Tag: Bethlehem

Umm Salumona

For the first time in two months a Palestinian farmer was given permission today to visit his land at Umm-Salumona in the district of North Bethlehem. A large area of land has been annexed by the Israeli military, just below the illegal Jewish settlement of Efrata, to construct the Apartheid Wall, an act which is in violation of a recent Israeli High Court ruling which confirmed the land is Palestinian owned. Today’s demonstration was attended by almost 50 Palestinian, Israeli and international human rights activists.

The nonviolent activists initially assembled at Wadi-Nis village which is adjacent to the construction site of the wall. A member of the Holy Land Trust addressed the crowd and emphasized the discipline of nonviolence the Palestinian led resistance at Umm Salumona had used to voice their opposition to the theft of their land.

Hassan, the local grape vine farmer, whose land is literally a stone’s throw away from the Efrata settlement, invited those in attendance to dine on his grapes. The protestors marched downhill, crossing the long military and construction vehicle only road at Umm-Salumona and then climbed up towards the settlement. A barrier of soldiers met the demonstrators, who in response simply ate grapes. The soldiers, after 20 minutes gave the demonstrators an ultimatum telling them to leave the land in five minutes or be forced off it. The land owner thought it to be more beneficial to strike a deal with the soldiers, allowing him to check the rest of his land in return he assured that the other people present would leave. The Umm Salamona demonstration ended with demonstrators leaving the land peacefully, with no injuries sustained.

On Friday August 24 at 12:00pm around 40 Palestinians and 40 internationals gathered in Umm Salumuna, in the region of south Bethlehem, to protest the building of the apartheid wall. The village had been declared a military zone by the IOF, thus preventing anyone who didn’t live there from entering by road. However, this did not make it illegal to be present within the village because soldiers at the checkpoint did not present a map of the declared closed area. As a result of this restriction, the internationals and Palestinians who did not live in the village were forced to enter through grounds owned by a Palestinian from the area.

At the beginning of the demonstration the Palestinian community gathered for prayer on part of the site that had been destroyed for the building of the annexation wall. Following prayer a local religious leader called for internationals and Palestinians alike to raise their hands in supplication for the reclamation of land which is being stolen from the local landowners by the occupation forces.

Demonstrators in Umm Salamuna March Past Army Jeep

In contrast to previous occasions the protestors did not march uphill towards the line of awaiting soldiers, whose numbers had been substantially reinforced compared to last week, blocking the route to the wall of separation. Instead the non-violent demonstrators marched together past local houses, along the road used by bulldozers and other construction vehicles chanting slogans against the occupation. They proceeded along the main road where one Palestinian put an olive tree branch in between the aerial bracket and door of an IOF armored jeep, which resulted in the soldiers inside the jeep releasing two sound grenades into the crowd of demonstrators.

The first sound bomb struck an international demonstrator on the leg but thankfully caused no injury. The second, however, caused a middle aged man to collapse to the ground where he remained for a minute until he regained his composure and was able to rejoin the march with the assistance of his colleagues.

The march ended at the municipality building of Walaja, which will be demolished within several weeks. Israel will demolish the building because authorities claim the building had been built too close to the annexation wall. The non-violent resistance organizers in Umm Salumona continue to appeal for Palestinians, internationals and Israelis to support their efforts in opposing the yet unconstructed section of the apartheid wall in their region. Support for their regular Friday demonstrations would be greatly appreciated.

On Friday afternoon August 17th over 150 Palestinian landowners and their families were accompanied by Israeli and international human rights activists to protest against the Apartheid wall in Umm Salamona and W’laga on the outskirts of Bethlehem.

The demonstration has become a weekly event as residents become more and more determined to draw attention to and prevent the annexation of their land for absorbtion into the Illegal Israeli Settlement of Efrat. The Apartheid wall is currently under construction in the area. Many hectares of olive groves, pine trees and other vegetation have already been destroyed by the Israeli Occupying Forces with significant amounts further set to be up-rooted. Consequently it will financially and culturally impoverish the local Palestinian communities in the area, taking away their means of economic survival and forcing them to change their way of life that they have undertaken for generations.

At the beginning of the demonstration locals hung up banners at the entrance to the site which bulldozers use daily. They clearly outlined the community’s opposition with slogans stating ‘Our land is the key issue,’ ‘We are nothing without land,’ while on the march they chanted ‘No to occupation,’ ‘No to house demolitions,’ ‘No to tree destruction.’

The local community-led non-violent action commenced with an address by a local community leader in Arabic and English about the history of the local area followed by prayers conducted on the roadside, observed at close quarters by over 25 Israeli soldiers.
There was a peaceful march towards the area, which is being leveled in order to make way for the building of the wall. Local Palestinians gave further speeches about the devastation that is taking place despite local opposition. Human Rights Activists initiated a non-violent direct action by building a stone barrier to stop the path of the bulldozers on the valley that faces the illegal Israeli settlement of Efrat.

The protestors proceeded uphill towards the Apartheid Wall but were blocked by Israeli soldiers and jeeps. After a non-violent attempt to get to the wall the soldiers stopped the march by aggressively pushing the activists and unsuccessfully attempting to arrest a number of Palestinians and Internationals. Demonstrators were violently grabbed and pushed to the ground, while one Irish activist was kicked in the head. Mainstream and independent media present were also deliberately pushed and obstructed from recording the soldier’s violent behavior.

The demonstrators maintained their nonviolence throughout the march and peacefully dispersed at about 2pm, confident that they manifested their dissent towards the annexation of Palestinian land by the Israeli State. A Spanish activist who attended the demonstration was arrested at a checkpoint as he left the area soon after the demonstration ended. Video evidence shows that he participated in a legal and nonviolent manner on the periphery of the protest.

MPT August, 2007 Report #4

On Friday, August 10, Bill and Peter took a taxi to Al Walaja west of Bethlehem to join in the demonstration against the construction of the separation wall/fence and confiscation of the residents’ land by the Israeli military. When the wall is completed, it will entirely encircle the village, making it a walled prison.

This was the third demonstration held in Al Walaja, at the site of the fence being constructed. It was organized by Holy Land Trust (HLT) and the Popular Committee Against the Wall in Southern Bethlehem. There were not many from the village present. A number of Palestinians came from other communities in the Bethlehem district. Many Israelis and other internationals were present. About 100 demonstrators in all took part.

The Israeli military came in force, lined up along the fence. Before the demonstration began, one Palestinian leader spoke heatedly to the Israeli soldier apparently in command against the Israeli actions.

We met a young man from Ohio who said he had served in the U. S. military in Iraq for six months, and now has become an advocate of nonviolent civil disobedience against war and violence. He got involved last summer in the Palestine/Israel conflict, and decided to come here to see for himself the situation. He was there to protest the Wall and land confiscation.

An Imam sang the call to prayer. Sami Awad of Holy Land Trust (HLT), an organizer of the event, spoke briefly about the nonviolent nature of this demonstration. He spoke in English, addressing the Israeli soldiers as well as everyone gathered to demonstrate. The tone he set seemed to put the soldiers more at ease during the event. They did not act aggressively during this demonstration.

The mayor of the village then addressed the demonstrators in Arabic. After his talk, rows of Palestinian men then conducted the traditional Muslim prayer, some using prayer rugs.

The demonstrators as a group turned their backs to the lineup of Israeli soldiers, as a bodily gesture of rejection of the assault on their Palestinian lands. A village councilman then addressed the crowd in Arabic.

He was followed by a woman from the village who addressed the crowd in English. She gave a brief history of the suffering of Al Walaja, including how in 1948 they were driven out of their homes. Most went to Jordan at that time. People began to return to Al Walaja on their own (not in groups). Some lived in caves for 12 years. Beginning in the 1950s, houses started to be built. Now, much of the land has been annexed to Jerusalem, and as a result the people are living illegally in their own houses, according to Israeli law. The people have taken the case to the Israeli court. They have filed another case against the law that prohibits them from building anything. Israeli bulldozers even tear down chicken coops. More than 90 houses are scheduled to be demolished. The demonstration ended after her impassioned talk.

After the demonstration the two of us walked for about a half hour and arrived at the home of Omar (not his real name), an organizer in Al Walaja in resistance to the wall and confiscation of lands in Al Walaja. He shared the good news that his case was settled out of court and he can again go to Jerusalem to work.

He explained that during the demonstration a week ago, on Friday, the Israelis cut the water supply of Al Walaja. It was just restored last night. They allowed water for only a couple hours a day during that time. They told the villagers that they are putting in new water pipes, and that it was in the interest of the people.

There is no well where Omar lives. When his son Mohammed tried to get spring water a kilometer away from a well, the Israelis arrested him along with his friend, both 14 years old, then let them go two hours later.

About 50 homes have already been demolished in Al Walaja by the Israelis. Many have become poor. Some are using wood now rather than gas for cooking. Some are in Israeli jails for various reasons. For example, they may be ordered to pay a fine of perhaps 1,000 shekels. One neighbor refused to pay the fine for building his home, an illegal act. He is in jail for five months. Families now face the situation of having to buy things for their children’s school year, which will begin soon.

Al Walaja is building a school. The first floor is completed. Under the hardship of occupation, the people are unable to spare the money to complete the construction. There are about 350 families in Al Walaja. The cost to complete the school averages about 1,500 shekels per family ($350 U. S. dollars). Over 100 of the families are very poor.

Omar said that many don’t believe they can change anything. He told the story of one neighbor who believed that trying to do anything was useless. When he saw two homes being rebuilt (illegally, by Israeli law), he changed his mind and now agrees with Omar that it is a way to resist, and that if the Israelis demolish the homes, the people will rebuild them again.

This spirit in Omar and so many Palestinians is inspiring to us, who will continue to do what we can to end the injustice of the occupation in Palestine.