Tag: Arrests

Israeli forces arrest a German national and an Italian national in At-Tuwani

11 April 2009

A German national and an Italian national were taken by Israeli forces while accompanying farmers at 11am. Both individuals have been taken to the police station at Kyrat Arba. Palestinian farmers in At-Tuwani rely on the presence of International and Israeli human rights workers to mitigate violence from settlers.

As soldiers in the area frequently ignore settler violence and rarely interfere to protect the farmers, international volunteers provide support for the Palestinians. The grazing action began around 8.30 am, and the German and Italian nationals were arrested at 11am.

At-Tuwani is a village of 300 Palestinians located in South Hebron Hills. Residents make their living through farming, primarily wheat, barley, olives and grazing sheep. At-Tuwani is also one of several villages under daily threat from extremist settlers living in the area. Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills are daily nonviolently resisting settlement expansion and violence at the hands of settlers and soldiers.

Internationals accompany Palestinians as they perform agricultural work on their land and in other nonviolent demonstrations. Internationals accompany Palestinians as they work their land, use video to document settlers, soldiers, and police, and intervene as Palestinians request.

Four injured and dozens suffered teargas inhalation during International Children’s Day demonstration in Bil’in

Bil’in Popular Committee

10 April 2009

Following Friday prayers in Bil’in today, residents held a protest against the wall and settlement building. A group of children from the village were at the front of the protest holding Palestinian flags and banners remarking International Children’s Day. Some banners said “It’s our right to live safely”, “The wall kills our hopes and dreams”, “Settlements and the wall leave us with no future”. There were also pictures of children with the caption “Wanted by the Israeli occupation for resisting the wall”.

The protest began in the center of the village and was joined by international and Israeli activists. The demonstration headed towards the Apartheid Wall, which is built on Bil’in’s land. An Israeli army unit had been stationed behind the wall since early morning and prevented the crowd from going through the gate. The army fired tear gas canisters to disturb the crowd, causing dozens to suffer gas inhalation, and they injured four young’s, one of them journalist his name Mohammed Muhesen working in AP, Kubi from Israel, Abdullah Aburahma, and Adeeb Aburahma.

On the other hand, the Israeli army, which is at the wall, arrested two children from Bil’in : Wajdy Ali Shehada Abu Rahma (16 years) and Hamouda Emad Hahmouda Yassin (16 years). They have beat them and then leave them near the village of Qatana after midnight, where they have access to the city Ramallah, and then arrived in the village on foot early in the morning, and this is came within the suffering of the Palestinian children by the Israeli soldiers, which coincides with the Children’s Day. For this the Popular Committee for wall resistance in the village they intervention of human rights organizations in general and children’s rights in particular, to stop the violence from the soldiers that they injured or arrest, or beat them and intimidate them and leave them in areas far from their homes after midnight.

Palestinian kidnapped by Israeli forces in Tell, Nablus

9 April 2009

Yassir Shteieh, 29, was kidnapped from his home in Tell, Nablus region by the Israeli army in the middle of the night. Property in his home was destroyed by soldiers and no explanation for his arrest was given.

After 3 years in Israeli jail, Yassir Abdullah Teef Hussein Shteieh was recently married and had spent 14 months out of jail. At 2 am on the 8th of April, his wife got woken up by someone knocking at the door. As normally when the Israeli occupation forces is raiding a house they used the company of a downstairs neighbor to enter the apartment, and so also this night.

The flat was raided for two hours and the soldiers, constantly shouting, said they were searching for weapons. Some property was destroyed, such as the family photo album and the Koran where pages were torn out. The couples’ cellphones were also confiscated. Yasser was separated from his wife and brought outside dressed only in his nightwear. Meanwhile the neighbors were questioned about Yasser’s personal and family’s life.
Later on another person with his or her face covered arrived to the flat. Friends of Yasser says this might be a strategy from the occupation forces to create a split between Palestinians by strengthening the impression that there are collaborators amongst them.

When asked about violence from the soldiers towards any person, Yassir’s wife says she didn’t witness anything but the soldiers were constantly shouting so loudly that she could hear them interrogating Yasser outside the building when she was still at the 3rd floor.

Yassir, who works in the Palestinian authority and as a chauffeur, was taken without explanation to undisclosed destination and has not been heard from since.

Palestinian prisoners families protest at Red Cross

ISM Gaza | Palestinian Prisoners

8 April 2009

Every Monday for years the families of the Palestinian prisoners are protesting at the offices of the Red Cross in Gaza City.

These families  have not been allowed to visit their relatives imprisoned in Israeli jails for almost 2 years. According to human rights organizations (including Israeli organizations), Palestinian prisoners are submitted to torture and ill-treatment, permitted by the Israeli High Court of Justice. Israeli Prison Service admits that there are about 8,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails, but according to Palestinian Authorities the number exceeds 11,600.

Israeli Navy abducts 8 Gazan fishermen 100 meters off the coast

6th of April 2009 at 7am: Israeli Naval forces abducted eight Palestinian fishermen (including two minors) from the Salateen area in the north of the Gaza Strip.

Additionally, the fishermen’s four hassakas (small fishing boats) have been taken by the Israeli Navy. According to eyewitnesses, the fishermen were only about 100 meters from the coast at the time of their abduction.

Initial information received regarding the fishermen’s details are as follows:

-Esshaq Mohammed Zayed, 45

-Rassam Mohammed Zayed, 25

-Hafez Assad Al Sultan, 25

-Ahmed Assad Al Sultan, 17

-Safwat Zayed Zayed, 35

-Nashaat Zayed Zayed, 10

-Hammada Joma Zayed, 22

-Joma Mollok Zayed, 50

During the last month the Israeli Navy has escalated its attacks against Gazan fishermen by injuring at least three of them, abducting a further 24 fishermen, and stealing 10 hassakas and one shansula fishing boat.

Last week dozens of Salateen fishermen, joined by the Director of the General Syndicate of Marine Fishers, Palestinian activists from the Beit Hanoun Local Initiative and International Solidarity Movement activists, demonstrated against the Israeli attacks, demanding the release of the stolen boats.