Tag: Bab al Shams

Two ISM activists facing deportation after new protest village ‘Canaan’ update

Update on 10 February:

All Palestinian activists arrested at protest village ‘Canaan ‘ released

ISM activist on huger strike!

Dave and Marco are being held in Givon prison and are expecting deportation.

One of them, Marco Di Renzo (54), has decided to start a hunger strike from tonight in solidarity with Palestinian political prisoners and to protest against his illegitimate deportation. He will also stop taking his blood pressure medication, which is life threatening for the condition he lives with, Thyroidectomy.

The charges against him are being in a closed military area and assaulting a soldier with his camera, which is completely untrue.

10 February 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, South Hebron Hills, Occupied Palestine

dave — Dave being arrested by Israeli soldiers (Photo: ISM)

Two activists from ISM (International Solidarity Movement) were arrested at the Canaan protest village and are now facing deportation proceedings. They are expecting to be in court in Jerusalem later today.

Israeli occupation forces yesterday thwarted two attempts by Palestinian activists to establish a new camp village near Yata in the Southern Hebron Hills, protesting Israel’s illegal settlement policy. The outpost, named “Canaan Village”, is the fifth in a series of protest encampments that was launched with the establishment of Bab Al-Shams last month. The aim of these tent villages is to confirm Palestinian ownership of the land through concrete actions and to protest against Israel’s illegal settlements by mirroring its strategy of “creating facts on the ground”.

Very early on Saturday morning, around 30 activists were interrupted in their attempt to set up tents near Karmel settlement by Israeli soldiers who arrived on the scene to remove the steel framing and confiscate part of the material. “We came here to build a Palestinian village upon Palestinian land, and to freely use our land in the way we want. As Palestinians we have rights and own this land,” activist and coordinator of the popular committees in the southern West Bank, Younis Araar, stated.

marco — Marco being handcuffed (Photo: ISM))

Undeterred by the army’s quick intervention and demolition of the tents, activists reorganised themselves and moved to rebuild the camp outside At Tuwani village at around 9am. Around 40 activists used the remaining material to set up one tent, as well as building stone circles and placing the Palestinian flag on the land. Thus Canaan Village was re-established on Palestinian-owned land that is under threat of confiscation due to planned extensions of the nearby settlement of Ma’on.

The number of protesters gradually grew as nearby residents and other activists came to join in the action, eventually reaching about 120. Within half an hour of the protesters arriving to set up the camp, the army had arrived at the scene too, and soon declared the area a close military zone amidst loud chanting of the Palestinian activists. The army then used large amounts of skunk water against the protesters. After successfully dispersing the crowds, it directed the water-jet directly at the tent and the handful of activists that had refused to leave it despite the appalling odour, causing the tent to fall together under the force of the water. The activists fled the tent and the army took over the part of the land with the destroyed tent on it.

Nevertheless, the protesters refused to leave and continued chanting and facing up the line of soldiers. Various journalists, photographers and videographers were standing to the side documenting the events. For no apparent reason, the soldiers suddenly lept forward, seizing a Palestinian videographer in an attempt to arrest him, which sparked an outcry among the crowd and caused activists as well as other media personnel to come to his help in an attempt to de-arrest him. Clashes ensued between dozens of protesters and soldiers, which lead to several arrests, including at least three journalists and an ISM volunteer from Italy. Soon after, a woman was injured after soldiers tried to arrest her, causing further clashes between the army and fellow protesters trying to protect her, and leading to the arrest of another Palestinian and an ISM volunteer from Britain. All together, five Palestinians were arrested during the action, according to an army spokesperson.

With the only tent taken over by the army earlier, and several photographers and videographers now arrested causing both intimidation and a lack of media attention, the protest seemed to loose its focus and structure after around 11am. Although villagers and other activists continued to join, no-one took charge to co-ordinate further actions such as chanting or sit-ins, and neither did the army move to disperse the protestors. Over the next 3 to 4 hours, people were mostly sitting around, spread out across the field and down the street leading up to it, chatting to one another, with the army standing around watching. Only a couple of dozen people remained up front, facing the line of soldiers. They did manage, however, to re-gather people to pray the Dhuhr prayer in two long rows right in front of the soldiers, in a beautiful and powerful act of non-violent resistance.

Despite the short existence of Canaan Village, its establishment is part of an encouraging series of protest villages over the last month or so. Whilst the West Bank has witnessed a surge in direct-action grassroots activism in recent weeks, the international community has become increasingly critical of Israel’s illegal settlement policy and other actions in violation of international law, all of which are signs of hope for the Palestinian people as they continue their struggle for justice and dignity.

canaan1 — Palestinian activists setting up a tent structure (Photo: ISM)

canaan2 — Palestinian tent at Canaan protest village

canaan3 — Residents of Canaan raising Palestinian flags

Canaan protest village

10 February 2013 | Beit Ommar Popular Movement, South Hebron Hills, Occupied Palestine

Today, the South West Popular Committee along with international activists embarked on a new effort to establish a village, Canaan, on Palestinian land in South Hebron Hills. The village’s name was not accidental. We wanted to declare that we are the indigenous people of Palestine. We are the descendants of the Canaanites and our ties to the land can never be broken or taken away. Early last night, various Palestinian activists from a wide array of villages in the South West Bank area along with international activists met in a home to discuss plans for the coming day.

Residents of Canaan just after they erected the tent (Photo: Beit Ommar Popular Movement)

Signs were prepared which stated ‘Our Land is Our Right’, ‘Canaan Village’ and a declaration of intent which stated that “we are the sons and daughters of the Cananites, we establish Canaan Village on endangered Palestinian land.” “We declare that it is our natural right to develop, reclaim, improve, use and live on all our lands free and without threat from occupiers/colonizers.”

In the early morning hours, following a night of planning, we established Canaan as our first attempt, in the south of Yatta (the entrance to Twani). Within less than a minute, while we barely managed to establish the tent, an occupation jeep arrived. The occupation soldiers encircled us and told us we must leave. We refused to obey such a racist demand. An officer of the occupation army then went on to demolish our tent, steal our additional tents and equipment and violently prevent us from reclaiming our land and our belongings.

Several hours later, we went on with a much larger group of activists, international supporters and an especially large number of journalists, to the east Yatta, near Ein Mai’in, Hazawai, we established a large tent and began building a room from stones of the land. Within half an hour, we were heavily encircled by at least 6 jeeps of the occupation forces. A large military vehicle which fires skunk water was brought in. We were told that we have 10 minuets to leave the area and that the land was a ‘closed military zone’. We did not yield of course and were immediately showered upon by heavy skunk water.

Canaan tent being skunk watered (Photo: ISM)

Occupation soldiers then went on to attack journalists and arrest them. They beat an elderly woman and other activists. In several instances, activists jumped in and prevented with their bodies the arrest of two people. After several hours of struggling with the occupation soldiers which numbered more than 50, 4 journalists, 8 Palestinians and 2 international activists were arrested, our tent was destroyed and we were prevented from returning to our land. For many hours during the hot afternoon, hundreds of activists remained in the area and demanded the right to return to the Canaan Village.

Residents of Canaan praying at the camp site (Photo: Beit Ommar Popular Movement)

Palestinian activists erecting the tent (Photo: Beit Ommar Popular Movement)

Israeli army and border police trying to arrest Palestinian activists (Photo: Beit Ommar Popular Movement)

Israeli border police arresting a Palestinian activist (Photo: Beit Ommar Popular Movement)

The long road to Bab al-Karama

20 January 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Bab al-Karama, Occupied Palestine

The road to Bab al-Karama, the new tent neighborhood created by Palestinians on land that will be separated from the village of Beit Iksa by the Apartheid wall, exposes a landscape of Apartheid.

To reach Bab al-Karama from Occupied Ramallah one needs to take the “Palestinian only” road that runs under the “Israeli only” 443 Highway between Ramallah and Beir Naballah.

Beir Naballah used to be a suburb of Jerusalem. Affluent Jerusalemites built their homes in Beir Naballah to escape from the housing crisis imposed on Palestinians by Jerusalem’s municipality housing polices. It sits on a road that connected the villages in the area with Jerusalem and continued on to Latrun. Now Beir Naballah is completely surrounded by an Israeli wall. The old road was widened and transformed into an Israeli highway called 443. The highway now connects Jerusalem to Tel Aviv and the Palestinian residents of the area are barred form using it. The Jerusalemite residents were forced to abandon their homes and many businesses dependent on clientele from Jerusalem have closed.

We exit Beir Naballah through a second tunnel that connects the Beir Naballah enclave to another enclave where 8 Palestinian villages are also isolated by Israeli walls. This tunnel is even more surreal than the first. Not only does it run under two Israeli only roads but as well as under the Apartheid wall and through the Givaat Zeev settlement bloc. High cement walls with razor wire on top of them hug the sides of the road.

We drive in Biddu and drive through the villages that had been since their creation connected to Al Quds but are now cut off from it and artificially connected to Ramallah. True to the Orwellian tradition of Israel’s military language they call the Palestinian network of roads they have built under their highways “fabric of life roads”. The landscape is beautiful and almost idyllic. Goats grazing on green hills, old stone houses…, but this ideal setting is surrounded by walls, gates and settlements.

The last village we reach, the one closest to Jerusalem is Beit Iksa. But to enter it we need to pass a military checkpoint. At the edge of the village we finally reach Bab al-Karama overlooking a network of Israeli highways and the city of Jerusalem. In the valley right below Bab al-Karama one can see two tunnels that will be connected by a bridge on which a fast track train connecting Jerusalem to Tel Aviv will run. The train will run on the village’s land but not only will the villagers be barred from accessing it, Israel’s Apartheid wall will be built between the village and the train separating the villagers from over 4500 dunams (60%) of their agricultural land. More than 1300 dunams had already been taken in the 70s for the construction of Ramot Allon settlement.

View of Jerusalem and the construction of the illegal railway

Palestinian residents of Bab al-Karama build the mosque (Photo: REUTERS/Ammar Awad)

Israeli Border Police invade Bab al-Karama

Gate of Dignity was built on lands of Beit Iksa north of Jerusalem

18 January 2013 | International Middle East Media Center

The Palestinian village of Beit Iksa overlooking Jerusalem just built a new village they called Bab Al-Karamah (Gate of Dignity) on their land behind the apartheid wall that Israel has built on their land and call on Palestinians and Internationals to join them in their popular struggle to hold on to their lands. The wall Israel is building on the village land would leave 96% of the village land inaccessible and behind the segregation wall.

Over the past 24 hours, the villagers built a mosque and set up 5 tens for dwelling on their land behind the wall. The head of the Beit Iksa village council Mr. Kamal Hababa stated that idea of building this village extension is to protect their legally owned lands and to be the second such village built to protect from growing efforts at transforming Arab Jerusalem.

Already the threatened village land behind the wall is 7411 dunums which amounts to half the total threatened lands of the eight Palestinian villages northwest of Jerusalem and 96% of the village land of Beit Iksa. Colonial Jewish only settlements built on Palestinian lands beyond the Green line in this area include Ramot, Neve Shmuel, Har Shmuel, and Givat Ze’ev.

The erection of Bab Al-Karama village comes shortly after Palestinian activists erected a village they called Bab Ashams to counter Israeli settlement construction in the area known as E1, located between Jerusalem and Jericho, which signals a new model in popular struggle against the ongoing expansion of the Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

gateofdignity2 — Night at Bab Al-Karamah. Photo: Abir Kopty

gateofdignity — Night at Bab Al-Karamah. Photo: Abir Kopty

Meeting Samer Al Issawi in the holding room

16 January 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank, Occupied Palestine

By Neta Golan

After spending the night in the Russian compound detention center, known as Al Moskobia, I was taken to the holding cell in the court to await trail. Looking through the bars of the holding cell next to mine I was shocked to recognize Samer Al Issawi. I asked the young man standing near the barred door to tell Samer that I know him and that many others all over the world know his face, his name and his cause and are working to raise awareness and to support him.

When Samer heard that I had been arrested in Bab Al Shams he came up to the door to speak to me in person. He was too weak to stand without support and needed to lean himself against the door, but when he spoke he spoke with strength and passion. He sends his regards to all those who took part in Bab al Shams and says that this action has been giving him strength and pride and strengthens his resolve to continue with his hunger strike until his release. “I hope this model will spread and many similar villages will be created around Palestine. I hope to see Bab Al Muhabeh (the gate of love) Bab Al Huriya (the gate of freedom) and Bab Al Salam (the gate of peace).” Samer reiterated his resolve to continue his hunger strike until his release despite his deteriorating condition. “I will join you all on the outside soon,” he said smiling.

According to Dr. Daud Abdullah, Samer was Born in December 1979 and is now battling for his life. Long years of imprisonment, deprivation and torment have taken their toll. Still, he continues to resist with the only weapons left available to him; an undaunted spirit and an empty stomach. His resolve is never to succumb to what he regards as Israel’s racist policies.

“Shortly after his release in October 2011 as part of the exchange for the release of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shailt, Samer was rearrested; this time the pretext was that he broke the condition of his release by visiting the West Bank. He faces another twenty years behind bars to complete the original sentence.

Whether he survives or not, Samer Al-Issawi has placed before the free world its moral, legal and political duties toward the Palestinians in Israeli jails. They may be “disappeared”, but they’re not forgotten. The newly-recognised State of Palestine is no less culpable. It must take the lead by activating the 2012 Baghdad Declaration at the UN for an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the legal status of the Palestinians in Israeli occupation jails. That should be followed by similar action within the International Criminal Court.”

On the 16th January, the day I met him, Samer had a court hearing in Jerusalem in which his appeal was denied. The occupation authorities set another hearing on 5th February at Ofer military court to decide his case.