Tag: Jerusalem - Page 12 - International Solidarity Movement

PMRS to Israeli forces: Stop attacking our personel!

Repost of an appeal by Palestine Medical Relief Society:

In light of the current climate of tensions in the West Bank and in East Jerusalem particularly which has led to deadly attacks on civilians and the unacceptable systematic use of lethal force by Israeli forces against Palestinians, the Palestinian Medical Relief Society (PMRS) calls for the respect of international humanitarian law and condemns in the strongest terms the excessive use of lethal force by Israeli forces which has resulted on several occasions within the past three weeks in what can only be described as executions of Palestinian men and women. PMRS calls on international non-governmental institutions, as well as all levels of international civil society to demand Israel respect its obligations under international law and pressure the Israeli government to abandon at once its logic of brutal repression and unrestrained use of force against children and young people.

Since the beginning of this month, 31 Palestinians have been shot dead, including several children. PMRS is gravely concerned by the escalation in the killing of Palestinian minors by police, army and settlers, the extra-judicial execution character of many of these killings, as well as the allegations – seemingly corroborated in several cases by videos and witness statements – that Israeli forces and settlers have tampered with several of the killing scenes, planting weapons next to the Palestinian victims in order to justify the murders.

Moreover, an estimated 1,500 Palestinians were injured by live rounds and rubber-coated steel bullets only since the start of hostilities, or an average of 100 a day. This number does not include the injuries resulting from excessive tear gas inhalation and physical assaults.

According to Dr. Mustafa Barghouti: “What we have witnessed during the last two weeks is intentional attacks by Israeli forces on Palestinian health professionals, doctors and first aid providers. That has included beating them, shooting them with live ammunitions and metallic bullets. One victim was Doctor Amer Aqel, who was hit in the eye with one of the rubber-coated steel bullets and lost his left eye. Ten first aid providers from the PMRS have been injured in various ways in Ramallah, Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Nablus. Additionally, several health workers and nurses working with the Ministry of Health and the Red Crescent were also injured. The Israeli army’s behavior does not respect the neutrality of medical professionals. Many ambulances were also hit with tear gas bombs and rubber bullets. Additionally, the Israeli army has been attacking journalists to prevent coverage of what is going on. So far, 41 journalists have been injured. Many have been beaten. One of them, Salah Ziad , working for Pal Media, was hit a live ammunitions.”

The violence of the past two weeks did not happen in a vacuum but rather is the inevitable result of the Israeli ongoing occupation and the ever-growing repression and Human Rights violations that come with it. Colonization, home demolitions, displacement of entire families, the impunity granted to settlers and armed forces, indiscriminate shooting and bombing of civilians… all these have been going on for decades with the international community idly watching by, hiding behind a long-time moribund peace process and the Oslo accords which have been emptied of their meaning and purpose by continuous Israeli violations. In recent decades, European countries have spent millions of Euros of taxpayers’ money to rebuild what Israel keeps destroying with impunity, from Palestinian homes, water supplies, livelihood to their very lives. This has to stop now.

PMRS calls on the international community to demand that Israel cease its serious breaches of Human Rights and humanitarian law at once, failing which, economic and political sanctions should be considered.

PMRS, just as other local and international health organizations has activated its emergency response plan in East Jerusalem and all over the West Bank. First aid teams, ambulances and mobile clinic vehicles are on the ground, ready to deploy to areas of need as they arise. Considering the level of tensions and the absence of any prompt resolution in sight, PMRS has concerns about its capacity to sustain its work during these times of emergency due to low funding and chronic medication shortages. Accordingly, PMRS calls on all international donors to allocate contingency funding and medical supplies to the current emergency.

Israeli forces encroaching on every-day live in occupied Jerusalem

16th October 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | al-Quds (Jerusalem), occupied Palestine

The Old City of al-Quds (Jerusalem) in the last few weeks has witnessed an explosion of Israeli forces’ presence, supposedly for ‘security reasons’. But having a closer look at – or just opening your eyes for – the multitude of restrictions, hindrances and fears aroused by this, proves that all of this has nothing to do with ‘security’ – but everything with instilling fear in the Palestinians still resisting the manifold ways the Israeli forces are trying to expel them not only from the Old City of Jerusalem, but all of Jerusalem in general.

Just two days ago, on Thursday 14^th of October, Israeli forces shot and killed a 20-year old Palestinian youth. Immediately after he was shot, bystanders were forced to move back by Israeli forces, while the young man was lying on the ground bleeding to death, with no-one administering first aid. Whereas Israeli settlers from settlements within East Jerusalem, illegal under international law, where allowed to get closer to take trophy-photos of yet another killed Palestinian, Israeli forces suddenly stormed towards a group of Palestinians, threatening to beat them with their rifles and batons. Palestinians, thus, were between a rock and a hard place: run and risk being shot multiple times with live ammunition for the simple act of running away from a heavily armed trigger-happy militarised force that just killed another Palestinian, or walk away slowly and be attacked by the same army. Being forced away, Palestinians held on to their phones in their hands – prevented to take photos of the Israeli forces’ crimes – with fear high that if someone reaches into a trouser-pocket or bag to take out anything, including a phone, they would receive multiple fatal gun-shot wounds by the Israeli forces closely watching every movement of the Palestinian bystanders. Israeli settlers, on the other hand, were free to approach the body of the youth, who, in the meantime has died without ever receiving any medical attention, to take photos. The Palestinian Red Crescent Ambulance Crew right outside Damascus Gate was physically pushed back to the ambulance and then forced to leave by the Israeli forces.

With the recent escalation of killings of Palestinians in al-Quds (Jerusalem) by Israeli forces, this is hardly an exception. This in itself, is already a message: when the killing of a Palestinian youth is no longer something ordinary, but something that just happens, something that will not be investigated under any circumstances, something that enjoys wide acceptance and often even provokes cheering by Israeli bystanders, – is it something that became ‘normal’? Various news networks have decided that instead of bringing their equipment over and over again, it’ll be easier to leave it at Damascus Gate all the time. Sanitation workers were ordered by the Israeli forces to clean off the blood of the Palestinian youth from the ground to erase every spot of the crime just committed. Police barriers are kept outside Damascus Gate, ready to close off the entrance at any time.

Sanitation workers ordered to clean off the blood from the ground

The Old City of al-Quds (Jersualem) is ‘fortified’, at least two, or groups of four to ten Israeli forces, are at every corner or alleyway. Every-day life for Palestinians was forced to a halt, while Israeli forces are comfortably occupying plastic chairs kept outside of shops for tourists to rest, languishing on porches where people used to play cards, or sit in front of locked shops closed in fear of the constantly rising threat of settler and police violence against Palestinians. The omnipresence of Israeli forces and restrictions, though, seem to be geared only towards Palestinians. The persons asked to pass through the metal detectors set up in the Old City are always Palestinians, ordered to lift up their shirts and trousers, take off their shoes and empty their bags even after passing through, from time to time with their children looking on in horror, children’s faces distorted by fear. For Palestinian children, there’s no place to be a child and play, with an occupying army, waiting just around every corner, shouting at children for accidentally exploding a balloon they were playing with in their parents’ shop. Parents try to keep an eye on their children at all times, simple tasks like sending them out to buy bread might result in them going missing and a frantic search – just to find out that the Israeli police arrested minor children and did not even bother to inform their parents. There is no regard for Palestinians basic human rights, or even respect for them as human beings. Whereas Israelis and tourists are free to roam the streets of the Old City, Palestinian residents are often stopped at any or even various of the checkpoints, forcing to explain again and again that they are residents, arguing for being allowed to do the most normal thing in life: trying to go back home.

Watch a video of Israeli forces body-searching Palestinian youth in Jerusalem (video credit: Ramallah city)

31 martyrs in 14 days: 20 year old murdered today in Jerusalem

14th October 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

The oldest was 30, the youngest just 2 years old.

31 Palestinians have been murdered by Israeli forces since an escalation in violence, triggered by restrictions on al Aqsa Mosque, spread like wild fire across the occupied Palestinian territories and the besieged Gaza strip. A 20 year old Palestinian man, just shot to death by ten bullets close range near Jerusalem’s Damascus Gate joins 30 others martyred by their occupiers in just two weeks. Basil Bassam Ragheb Sidr, 20 was initially reported to be 14 and is believed to be from al-Khalil (Hebron).

Body bag of 20 year old Palestinian man murderedby Israeli forces is removed from the scene by Israeli police. — Body bag of 20 year old Palestinian man murdered by Israeli forces is removed from the scene by Israeli police.

The latest death comes amidst disturbing news that the Israeli government has passed a decision, as part of new restrictions being deployed in occupied East Jerusalem, that the bodies of Palestinian’s murdered by Israeli forces will not be released to their families. This adds agonizing and acute new cruelties to an already tragic, ongoing situation. The reason for the decision was stated to be a deterrent for post funeral demonstrations by Palestinians. Thus the refusal of Palestinian’s remains to their families is the refusal of the right to resistance of an illegally occupied people.

The decision is linked to measures currently being enacted in East Jerusalem where Israeli forces have set up checkpoints at the entrances to Palestinian neighborhoods beginning early Wednesday. As well, occupation forces were issuing citations to Palestinian drivers at random as well as inspecting several Palestinian youths and students in humiliating ways, forcing them to take off their clothes.

An international human rights monitor on the scene where the youth was killed noted that the man was shot to death after running from Israeli forces. Immediately after the shooting, Palestinians were threatened by Israeli forces with being beaten if they didn’t leave the area immediately, thus they were doubly frightened. Run and get shot, or don’t run and get beaten and possibly arrested. “People were too scared to put their phones in their trouser-pockets in fear they might be shot when taking them out.” Although Palestinians were threatened and chased from the scene, settlers were allowed to get close to the boy’s body to take photos.

Palestinians gathered and prayed near site of Israeli forces murder of 20 year old Palestinian man.

Rather than taking measures to de-escalate the violence, Israeli officials and military have seemingly done the opposite. Israeli rights group B’Tselem has called the Israeli government’s response to recent escalation in the area as “the very inverse of what ought to be done” in realistic efforts to stop current violence.“The events of recent weeks cannot be viewed in a vacuum, isolated from the reality of the ongoing, daily oppression of 4 million people, with no hope of change in sight,” the group said in a statement on Tuesday.

Every death means a lifetime of suffering for the families left behind.

They are:

1. Mohannad Halabi, 19, al-Biereh – Ramallah.
2. Fadi Alloun, 19, Jerusalem.
3. Amjad Hatem al-Jundi, 17, Hebron.
4. Thaer Abu Ghazala, 19, Jerusalem.
5. Abdul-Rahma Obeidallah, 11, Bethlehem.
6. Hotheifa Suleiman, 18, Tulkarem.
7. Wisam Jamal, 20, Jerusalem.
8. Mohammad al-Ja’bari, 19, Hebron.
9. Ahmad Jamal Salah, 20, Jerusalem.
10. Ishaq Badran, 19, Jerusalem.
11. Mohammad Said Ali, 19, Jerusalem.
12. Ibrahim Ahmad Mustafa Awad, 28, Hebron.
13. Ahmad Abedullah Sharakka, 13, Al Jalazoun Refugee camp-Ramallah.
14. Mostafa Al Khateeb, 18, Sur-Baher – Jerusalem.
15. Hassan Khalid Manassra, 15, Jerusalem.
16. Mohamed Nathmie Shamassnah, 22, Kutneh-Jerusalem.
17. Baha’ Elian,22, Jabal Al Mokaber-Jerusalem.
18. Mutaz Ibrahim Zawahreh, 27, Bethlehem.
19. Unknown man from Jerusalem in his thirties. (no name was available until the time of his report )

Gaza Strip:

20. Shadi Hussam Doula, 20.
21. Ahmad Abdul-Rahman al-Harbawi, 20.
22. Abed al-Wahidi, 20.
23. Mohammad Hisham al-Roqab, 15.
24. Adnan Mousa Abu ‘Oleyyan, 22.
25. Ziad Nabil Sharaf, 20.
26. Jihad al-‘Obeid, 22.
27. Marwan Hisham Barbakh, 13.
28. Khalil Omar Othman, 15.
29. Nour Rasmie Hassan, 30.
30. Rahaf Yihiya Hassan, two years old.

The twenty year old man whose life was violently ended today in East Jerusalem brings the list to 31.

The other occupation: Settlers terrorize Palestinians of the West Bank

11th October 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

It was another emotional day for Palestinians in al-Khalil, (Hebron) after the burial of martyr Muhammad al-Jabari who was shot to death by Israeli forces near the entrance to the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement.

Thousands filled the streets as the body of the 19 year old boy was carried through the masses up to the martyr’s cemetery which is the same cemetery where 18 year old unarmed Palestinian female student Hadeel Hashlamoun was laid to rest after being shot to death at the checkpoint yawning into segregated Shuhada Street.

Immediately beyond the service, Palestinians gathered in the Bab al-Zawiya section of Khalil for a demonstration against the Israeli occupation forces use of violence which has now claimed the lives of nearly 20 young Palestinians in just one week. The demonstration was met with extreme violence by the Israeli military which settlers in the Tel Rumeida neighborhood gathered to watch on Saturday afternoon.

The Shamsiyyeh family’s home has long been the target of violence from Israeli settlers who have thrown rocks and other debris as well as poisoning their water tanks on several occasions and even cutting their water pipes on the roof. Today, settlers again filed onto the family home’s roof to watch the Israeli military assault on Palestinians in Bab al-Zawwiya, some armed with machine guns.

Israeli occupation forces predictably did nothing to calm the situation or remove the settlers from the roof of the family home. One settler sprayed pepper spray from the roof, gassing the family and subsequently himself. Israeli forces allowed him to leave with the pepper spray without asking a single question.

Israeli settler pointing his gun at Palestinian families

Just a few hours later, a settler armed with a machine gun, lightly slung around him just like an accessoire, came onto the roof. Soldiers close-by refused to ask the settler to leave from the private Palestinian family home’s roof. The settler then suddenly pointed his machine gun at Palestinians, including small children, on nearby houses roofs. Soldiers at first watched the events unfold only to join the settler on the roof, taking orders from him on what to do.
Watch a video here:

In occupied al-Khalil, it has been apparent that settlers rule the military, both through demanding arrests and ID checks of Palestinians and through getting away with any transgression of Palestinian’s human rights by being handed total impunity by the occupying forces. This is especially disturbing since a West Jerusalem mayor has publicly called for settlers to carry guns amidst a high pressure situation with exploding violence across the occupied Palestinian territories.

In the Tel Rumeida section of al-Khalil, just days ago, settlers held a large march up the hill chanting “Death to Arabs” and burning Palestinian flags.

Beit El demonstration under attack by Israeli forces after Martyr laid to rest

10th October 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil team | Ramallah, occupied Palestine

Less than one hour after the Halabi family laid their son, martyr Mohannad al-Halabi, to rest in a cemetery in Ramallah, violent confrontations broke out in the nearby Beit El area. In a continuation of the sharp escalation in violence seen across the occupied Palestinian territories and Jerusalem, demonstrations across the West Bank today were met with an unleashing of brutality by Israeli forces that left hundreds injured and two dead.

After withholding the body of 19 year old Mohannad al-Halabi for seven days, his family received him at 2am Friday morning at a hospital in Ramallah. Thousands gathered Friday afternoon at the Abd al Nasser Mosque for prayers before bringing his body to a nearby cemetery where he was laid to rest near his grandfather.

As Palestinians filled the streets in the Beit El area for demonstration, Israeli forces began showering the crowd with rapid live ammunition fire, hitting 23 and seriously wounding at least 2. 44 others sustained injuries by rubber-coated bullets, stun grenades and clouds of tear gas which were fired in rapid succession by venom trucks. Water cannons filled the streets with foul smelling organic or chemical composition fluid.

Confrontations raged on during a demonstration near the Beit El settlement

A Palestinian youth was unharmed after being run over at the demonstration by an Israeli military jeep.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unRWEnqmbm0

Video credit: Maan News

In Gaza City, where West Bank and Jerusalem solidarity demonstrations were held, 7 young Palestinians were martyred in similarly brutal Israeli military attacks that utilized exploding bullets aimed at Palestinian children’s heads and chests. 145 others were reportedly injured as Israeli military forces opened fire at the demonstration held by the border fence east of Gaza City, near Khan Younis on Friday, medics and the Ministry of Health confirmed.

Two Palestinians have been confirmed killed by Israeli occupation forces as of today, bringing the toll of Palestinians murdered in a week of sharply escalated violence in the West Bank to 16 martyred. Over 1,000 have been injured during the escalation. Tensions were sparked after the Israeli government, again, imposed restrictions and refused Muslims entry into al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

An Israeli governmental official in Jerusalem, days ago, made inflammatory statements in calling for Israeli’s to arm themselves amidst the conflict. These statements sharply conflict with other Israeli official’s statements claiming to want to calm tensions raging throughout the West Bank where Palestinians are undergoing not just Israeli military violence but brutal attacks by settlers which include attacks on Palestinian cars, homes and random attacks in the streets.

Days ago in the Tel Rumeida section of al-Khalil, (Hebron) nearly two hundred settlers marched, burning Palestinian flags, chanting ‘death to Arabs,’ and attacking Palestinians and human rights monitors with stones and physical violence.

Today, the 22 year old Palestinian man shot to death near the Kiryat Arba illegal settlement in al-Khalil will be laid to rest after funeral services. In the occupied Palestinian territories, violent escalation continues.