Tag: Hebron - Page 65 - International Solidarity Movement

“When soldiers see a camera they come to you like a beast”

16^th November 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

Since the beginning of October Israeli soldier- and settler violence has increased sharply and resulted in even further restrictions on Palestinians’ everyday lives in occupied al-Khalil (Hebron). Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh, a volunteer with the Palestinian organization Human Rights Defenders, has been documenting the growing harassment, intimidation and violence by soldiers and illegal settlers alike. Since the extrajudicial execution of Hadil Al-Hashlamoun on 22^nd September, Israeli forces have redoubled their aggressive targeting of anyone trying to monitor and report on Israeli crimes.

In the days since two young Palestinians were ruthlessly gunned down in the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood of the H2 area of al-Khalil (Hebron), the already intolerable situation has worsened significantly. As of the 30th October all residents of Tel Rumeida have been forced to register with the Israeli army as they declared this Palestinian neighbourhood – in contrast to the adjacent illegal Israeli settlement – a ‘closed military zone’. Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh and Human Rights Defenders called on residents to refuse to comply with these inhumane and arbitrary new military rules. But with the recent wave of extrajudicial executions and growing violence in Tel Rumeida, fear in the community has been so high that “for our survival there was no option, only to register” articulates Imad. For Palestinians the developments in Tel Rumeida exemplify “a new technique to transfer [Palestinian] families and expand [illegal Israeli] settlements”. Every time Palestinians leave their house, they are subjected to ID-checks, bag- and body searches. For relatives and would-be visitors of Tel Rumeida residents, passage through the checkpoints is denied. Often relatives find a way to sneak into the area where they then are at high risk of being arrested. Imad vividly illustrates that the Israeli forces “gave me the number 36, its just like in prison. They try to make you a number, you’re not a person”. Residents are forced to endure all this, and in addition, despite the legal requirement for law enforcement who would restrict anyones passage to produce a currently valid military order with a map showing clearly what areas are restricted, none of the residents has ever been shown such an order. abeen shown an actual military order.

In addition to these intolerable inhumane conditions that beset the daily lives of Palestinian residents of Tel Rumeida, Palestinians and internationals alike are confronted with extreme hardships and violence when documenting the ongoing atrocities by the Israeli army and illegal settlers. Imad explains that before the implementation of these new draconian measures both Palestinians and internationals were filming and documenting the everyday violence around Tel Rumeida, but now soldiers, “when they see the camera they come to you like beasts”. Soldiers have repeatedly damaged cameras and confiscated electronic devices during nightly house raids. Both Palestinian activist groups – like Human Rights Defenders and Youth Against Settlements, as well as international human rights observers have been targeted by the Israeli soldiers and police explicitly for documenting and exposing Israeli crimes. Being an activist, Imad and thus also his entire family are at even greater risk of becoming the direct target of violence.

On Saturday, the 7^thof November large groups of Israeli settlers wandered the streets of this “closed military zone” escorted by Israeli soldiers. Soldiers commonly ‘temporarily’ confiscate Palestinian homes for “military purposes”, during which time they routinely lock up all of the family members in one room. On Saturday, when 70-100 settlers took over the roof of the Shamsiyyeh family home, threw rocks at the property, and deliberately destroyed the familys water pump and pipes, the family was luckily not home at that time. “The most scary is that settlers are more free to walk the area with their guns. It makes us scared for our children”. The danger brought by these illegal settlers roaming unchecked with M16s slung casually about their shoulders and with the endorsement of the military now prevents Palestinian children in this neighbourhood from being able to play outside any longer, and confines them to stay inside the house all day. The same evening, while the Shamsiyyeh family was peacefully sitting in their living room together they were suddenly startled by the sound of three bullets fired at their house. They were forced to hide in their kitchen for an hour, after Imad saw masked soldiers surrounding their house.

Settlers on the roof of the Shamsiyyeh family home Photo credit: Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh — Settlers on the roof of the Shamsiyyeh family home
Photo credit: Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh

Some families have already left the neighbourhood as they see no other option to keep their families safe from the constantly increasing aggression of soldiers and settlers. Settlers face no consequences whatsoever when targeting and abusing Palestinian families and internationals, and in fact if anyone should even think to defend her/himself even verbally against this violence, generally s/he is arrested or shot . Imad clarifies that “sometimes there is no difference between internationals and Palestinians when they come to report”.

Still, Imad insists that it is essential to resist the illegal Israeli occupation and inhumane practices and continue the efforts to report on them. Although the Israeli forces do whatever they can to silence the truth, it becomes increasingly urgent that the world stops turning a blind eye on this ongoing massacre.

Human rights activists evicted from Tel Rumeida apartment again

12th November 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil Team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

Yesterday, international activists regained access to their Tel Rumeida apartment after being denied entry for a week. This morning at 8.45am another activist tried to enter the apartment but was prevented by soldiers, even after showing them the rental contract granting her the right to reside in Tel Rumeida. Soldiers then came up the stairs to the front door and threatened the three activists with arrest if they failed to leave the apartment within five minutes.

After a short delay, the police arrived and demanded the activists open the door and leave the building. When the activists questioned this, the Israeli forces replied that they were in a closed military zone and were not allowed to be there. This was despite the activists having demonstrated the right to reside in the property on the previous day.

The Israeli forces began to batter down the front door with a crowbar. When they were unable to get in after 10 minutes, other soldiers climbed onto the roof and smashed their way in through the roof access door within a few minutes. The commander and two soldiers entered the room where the activists were sitting without showing any resistance.

They demanded the activists leave, stating they had no right to be in the area and they were acting illegally. They then claimed that they had checked with their lawyers and the contract ‘is illegal…because it’s a closed military zone’. The commander said the activists are not residents, just ‘guests’ and that they didn’t understand the contract because it was written in Arabic.

Then several more soldiers entered, together with 2 police officers. They took the activists’ passports and told them to leave aggressively. They also showed them the closed military zone document. When the activists questioned the army’s right to break in to the apartment, the police officer told them to take the case to court.

The commander then twisted the arm of one activist, forcing him to the floor, although none of the activists offered any physical resistance. The activists were then escorted out of the apartment, down the street to checkpoint 56 and out of Tel Rumeida.

Settler gun training on roof overlooking school : this is how they teach hate

11th November 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil Team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

This morning, for four hours from 9am to 1pm, a group of Israeli Settlers were training on the rooftop of the illegal settlement building, Yona Menachem Rennert Beit Midrash, on Shuhada street. An instructor taught them how to hold a gun properly and how to adopt the best body position for shooting correctly. The young settlers were all carrying guns and shouted continuously during the exercises, disrupting the children and the teachers of Qurtuba school during their lessons, and also the neighborhood life, like for the Palestinian farmers who were picking olives on their land, near the school.

This kind of settler training, which takes place several times a week in the illegal settlements of Al-Khalil, are part of the Israeli settlement strategy. This is one example of how they are indoctrinating their youth, teaching them to hate Palestinians, and encouraging attacks against them.

Israeli law allows any Israeli who has a firearms license to carry a gun in the street. While the Palestinians have to endure the daily humiliation of being searched at each checkpoint as well as total military control of their daily life in case they might be carrying a knife,
the Israeli government has declared that the restrictions around obtaining firearms licenses will be reduced for the Israeli security forces and Settlers alike. Last Thursday it was the Mayor of Jerusalem, Nir Barkat who called on all Israelis with firearms licenses to keep their weapons permanently with them, to protect themselves from attacks by Palestinians.

Israeli forces continue to arbitrarily declare ‘closed military zones’ around al-Khalil (Hebron)

9th November 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil Team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

On November 7^th 2015, the Abu Rajab family in occupied al-Khalil (Hebron) received a military order by the Israeli forces declaring most of their house of being under military control for an indefinite time. The house is right on the corner of the Queitun checkpoint and has previously been targeted by Israeli forces.

Since 2000, the Israeli military has occupied the roof of the building of the Abu Rajab family. On Thursday evening, the 5th of November 2015, the Israeli forces broke into the house and raided the family’s home, barricaded the front door, broke the windows and doors and left the family living next door startled without any further information. The home was empty the night the Israeli army broke in as the resident was visiting a relative. The following night, Friday the 6th of November 2015, around 12 am, around 70 soldiers and 21 military jeeps gathered around the house of Abu Rajab family. Shortly after that the Israeli forces arrived at the house questioning the family about their whereabouts. Around 6.30am, the residents of the Abu Rajab family were forcefully woken up by the Israeli army who presented them with a military order that declared part of their house a ‘closed military zone’ for an unspecified time. They were told that they would receive a new order soon, leaving them completely in the dark about what would happen to their house in the future and unable to enter their own home until the military order will be revoked.

In 2011, the Israeli forces took over the second and third floor of Abu Rajab’s house in addition to the roof. Although the family has tried to take the case to court, they have been unsuccessful so far in regaining the parts of their home that have been taken by Israeli forces. According to international humanitarian law, it is illegal to take over private residential areas for military purposes. Nevertheless, Israeli forces have been continuously raiding homes and restricting Palestinian access to several parts of al-Khalil (Hebron) with complete austerity.

Abu Rajab house after being ransacked by Israeli forces

One of the members of the family has reported that many houses in the Abu Al-Rish neighbourhood have been raided during the past week and military presence has been increasing rapidly in the area. Just last week, one of the family members was beaten up by Israeli settlers who entered their house through the garden from a house next to the Abu Rajab compound, which is under control of the Israeli army. Until now, the family, like many others, are left completely in the dark about whether they will be able to take back what is rightfully theirs and live in constant fear of escalating violence and illegal confiscation of their lands.

Israeli forces detain Palestinian family in their home for 26 hours & wreak havoc on YAS center

9th November 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

On the 7th of November, soldiers entered the home of the Haddad family from 5am and did not leave until 7am the following day. At this time, there were 8 people inside the home who were forced into one of the rooms. 20 soldiers entered Haddad’s home and began taking pictures, while settlers were cheering and dancing outside the front.

The family was denied any privacy as the door remained open and a guard was posted at the door for the duration of the occupation. There were significant delays for the bathroom. The youngest daughter, aged 8, had to wait for over an hour and each time the door had to be kept open.

One of the daughters of the family, aged 25, was permitted to leave to purchase food, however she was unable to return as clashes broke out in the area. She was forced to stay with her sister, therefore the family had very little food. They were permitted only 5 minutes in the kitchen and were not able to have a square meal. Whilst the family was detained in room, soldiers used the bathroom and kitchen freely, and tracked mud through the carpets. During this same period of time, the YAS centre was raided and activists were detained inside. Not only did the military occupy the centre, they also destroyed the media facilities in the apartment, stealing and destroying cameras, computers, hard drives, and other important equipment.