Tag: Denial of Entry - Page 19 - International Solidarity Movement

Peaceful sit-in protest violently broken up by Israeli forces

15th July 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

On 15th July 2016, a peaceful sit-in protest demanding the opening of Qurtuba stairs in occupied al-Khalil (Hebron) by Palestinians as well as Israeli and international activists was violently broken up by Israeli forces, leaving one Palestinian child injured and 4 activists arrested.

The peaceful sit-in protest was organised by Youth Against Settlements in coordination with the families denied access to their homes through the Qurtuba stairs. The stairs have been closed since 1st November 2015, when the whole area of Tel Rumeida and the tiny strip of Shuhada Street still accessible to Palestinian pedestrians, was first declared a closed military zone (CMZ). Despite the lifting of the closed military zone on 14th May 2016, many restrictions applying to Palestinian residents only, remain in place.

When Israeli activists from Ta’ayush challenged this closure and demanded that it’ll be implemented equally and thus for settlers as well – who are free to use the stairs whenever and however they please, without ever even being stopped – more soldiers and settlers gathered. This closure evidently constitutes illegal collective punishment and is an apartheid measure – as it is exclusively applied to Palestinians, but not to Israeli settlers or soldiers. The deciding criterion for whether or not the stairs are considered a CMZ for that specific person based solely on the ethnicity.

After a few minutes, Israeli forces ordered the Palestinian and international activists peacefully sitting on the side of Shuhada Street near the Qurtuba stairs to leave the area. Israeli forces thus ordered everyone to leave, claiming they’re no residents, while infamous and violent settler Ofer, living in the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement on the outskirts of al-Khalil was permitted to film and provoke the peaceful protestors, as was infamous female settler Tzippi.

Israeli forces, eventually, brought a CMZ-order not only for the Qurtuba stairs, but for the whole Shuhada Street and Tel Rumeida neighborhood. Whether or not this means a return to the dehumanization of Palestinians that previously during the CMZ have been degraded to a mere number, has yet to be seen.

Map of the closed military zone order Photo credit: Youth Against Settlements — Map of the closed military zone order
Photo credit: Youth Against Settlements

In the end, Israeli forces violently and aggressively arrested the 4 of the Israeli activists, violently pulling and dragging them from inside a Palestinian home. During this violent arrest, Israeli forces squeezed a ten year old boy between the wall and a metal door, and only let go once they arrested the Israeli activists. The boy, Marwan Sharabati, now suffers from pain in his leg, and at the moment is not able to walk normally, limping instead.

This is just another example of Israeli forces impunity for violence and their continuous breaches of international humanitarian and human rights law. While publicly advocating that they’re facilitating Palestinian movement during the holy month of Ramadan, the Israeli government and the Israeli forces are instead doing whatever they can to uphold, enforce and exacerbate not only Palestinian freedom of movement, but keep denying Palestinian rights on a large scale.

Ramadan in occupied Hebron

12th June 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

On 5th June, the holy month of Ramadan started. In occupied al-Khalil (Hebron), the Old City, that till then had been mainly deserted, comes back to life as many stream towards Ibrahimi mosque for prayers.

The Old City of al-Khalil, including the ‘souq’, the market, during the last months, has been mainly deserted. Starting in November, when Palestinians were shot down at Ibrahimi mosque checkpoint by Israeli forces, Palestinians began avoiding to use this checkpoint. The Ibrahimi mosque checkpoint directly connects the souq with Ibrahimi mosque, and is the main checkpoint to reach the area around the Ibrahimi mosque. With, at times, various arbitrary restrictions enforced at this checkpoint, denying any Palestinian between 15-30 to pass, for many the checkpoint stopped being an option for passage.

When trying to avoid this checkpoint, there’s only two options: either walking a long-detour up the hill and then down on the other side, far past the checkpoint; or to take a service-taxi that will drop passengers close to yet another checkpoint, the Queitun or Abu Sneneh checkpoint, that has recently been ‘upgraded’ to include a box where anyone passing inside the checkpoint won’t be seen from outside.

With the advent of Ramadan, many Palestinians now stroll through the market in the Old City to buy groceries or anything else needed in the house, with even more shops opened and prices low for Ramadan. After months of the Old City market resembling more and more a Ghost Street – just like Shuhada Street after it’s forst closure and complete prohibition for Palestinians – it now finally is busy again with Palestinians. The atmosphere during Ramadan is peaceful, and Palestinians pass the Ibrahimi mosque checkpoint for prayers in Ibrahimi mosque.

Palestinians praying outside Ibrahimi mosque

Especially on Friday, large crowds of Palestinians flocked to Ibrahimi mosque for prayers, so many that some of them had to pray outside the mosque. Despite the heavy Israeli forces presence, the majority of the worshippers was allowed to pass the checkpoints without major delays or denials of entry. Again, after months of detentions at checkpoints on the way to prayer and arbitrary detentions, this is only a slight relief from every-day harassment. On the way to prayer, to exercise their freedom of religion, Palestinians still have to cross various military checkpoints – just to pray inside Ibrahimi mosque.

Watch a video of how these checkpoints look like for Palestinians (video credit: Christian Peacemaker Teams Palestine).

Testimony of one of the latest attacks against Gaza’s fishermen

12th June 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza-team | Gaza Strip, occupied Palestine

Last Wednesday Rajab Khaled Abu Riela, 30 years old, his brother and two cousins left Gaza’s port at 12 pm. They stayed out fishing until 1:30 am. “When we started our way back to the port one Israeli warship approached, the soldiers started insulting us through the microphone and immediately after started shooting against our two small boats with live ammunition”. “Then their warship crashed against us. In that moment I decided to try to escape, but I was immediately shot in the leg with live ammunition”. They took Rajab and his brother to Ashdod port, where they wouldn’t give him any medicine or treatment for the injury he sustained by the Israeli forces. “I was left bleeding until 9:30am”. Finally they were sent back to Gaza, where an ambulance took him directly from Erez border to the hospital, where he had to undergo surgery.

When he finally reached Shifa Hospital, doctors managed to remove the biggest pieces of the bullet – but many small pieces still remain in his leg.

Rajab's mother shows the bullet removed from his leg — Rajab’s mother shows the bullet removed from his leg

“Our future [for the fishermen] is uncertain; we don’t know what will happen tomorrow. Israel assaults us every day, takes our boats, shoots at us… Since 2005 I have pain in my chest due to an attack of the occupation, and as well my brother was injured while fishing in 2008. I’m responsible for providing for my family, we are 21 members… Now no one is providing for us, as I’m injured and they took our boat and motor. How I can work now without a boat?”

Peaceful planting activity stopped by Israeli forces in Hebron

11th June 2016 | Youth Against Apartheid | Hebron, occupied Palestine

On 9th April, Hebron Youth against Apartheid organized a planting activity in cooperation with the Colonization and Apartheid Wall Resistance Commission in the heart of Shuhada Street and Tel Rumeida neighborhood of al-Khalil (Hebron). Dozens of heavily-armed Israeli occupation forces stopped the group while marching towards the land, and prevented them from carrying out the planting. Despite this, the group refused to leave the area and instead protested in front of the armed soldiers, raising Palestinian flags, calling for human rights, justice, freedom, peace, nonviolence, freedom for prisoners and an end to the colonization of the old twon of Hebron city.

Actvists stopped by Israeli Forces Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid — Actvists stopped by Israeli Forces
Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid

Afterwards, the activists visited families in the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood, by sneaking into the area that then was still a closed military zone, meaning families are prohibited from receiving visitors. The group managed to visit the activist Imad Abu Shamsiyah who documented the execution of the injured Palestinian teen Abdul Fattah Al-Sharif and for this received threats from Israeli colonists threatening to burn him and his family; as well as the family of human rights defender Hashem Azzah, who was killed by Israeli forces’ tear gas.

Banner against Israeli occupation Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid — Banner against Israeli occupation
Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid

Youth Against Apartheid activities against Israeli apartheid occupation of Hebron

11th June 2016 | Youth Against Apartheid | Hebron, occupied Palestine

On 8th June, Hebron Youth Against Apartheid organised an activity to erase the racist Zionist occupation slogans on slaps of concrete walls and the military checkpoints within mainly the Tel Rumeida and Shuhada Street area. The slogans were replaced with slogans calling for freedom, BDS, peace, and to remove the illegal Zionist occupation colonies from the heart of al-Khalil (Hebron) city. During the activity, Israeli forces stopped and chased the activists.

Activists replacing slogans Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid — Activists replacing slogans
Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid

In the evening, despite the Zionist occupation forces restrictions, threats and closure, Hebron Youth Against Apartheid decorated Shuhada Street and Tel Rumeida with special Ramadan lights, for the first time in years.

Activists preparing Ramadan lights Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid — Activists preparing Ramadan lights
Photo credit: Youth Against Apartheid

On 7th June, Hebron Youth Against Apartheid organised a sit-in to protest the continued closure of the apartheid passage leading to Shuhada Street in front of the illegal Zionist occupation colony Beit Hadasa. The Palestinian citizens demanded freedom of movement and a removal of the closure imposed on these stairs since November 2015.