Tag: protest

Urgent Call out for Volunteers – Palestinians reject the ‘deal of the century’

Palestinians oppose the “deal of the century” at a protest in al-Khalil (Hebron)

At a time of heightened aggression against Palestinians by Israeli occupation forces suppressing “Deal of the Century” protests across the West Bank the International Solidarity Movement is issuing an urgent call out for volunteers.

What is the ‘Deal of the Century?’

On 28 January 2020 Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu announced their annexation plan for Palestine. Purportedly to bring an end to the 52 year occupation of Palestine by Israel, the ‘peace’ plan was put together without any Palestinian input and offers Israel a wish list of their long-held demands, at the expense of Palestinian rights and freedoms.

Although the US claim the plan offers the prospect of a future Palestinian ‘state,’ it does so at an unacceptable price with Israel unashamedly benefitting. Some of the most significant points include:

A proposed Palestinian ‘state’ with very limited sovereignty, for example it would not be permitted to have its own Army, and Israel would retain security control over vital areas such as the sea in Gaza
Establishing Jerusalem as Israel’s ‘undivided’ capital, stripping Palestinians of their current rights to their capital, East Jerusalem
Officially recognising illegal Israeli settlements constructed on stolen Palestinian land, bringing them under Israeli control
Annexing further swathes of Palestinian territory including the Jordan Valley
Stripping thousands of Arab-Israelis of their citizenship and forcibly transferring them to the West Bank
Finally refusing Palestinian refugees the ‘right of return’ to their homes lost in the Nakba

The plan has been resoundingly rejected by the Palestinian leadership and people living through daily oppression.

Why am I needed?

Protests have erupted across the West Bank in response to Trump’s legitimisation of Israel’s crimes against Palestinians. As usual the protests have been heavily suppressed by the Israeli army with lethal force. Five Palestinian teenagers have already been killed by Israeli soldiers since the deal was announced while dozens more have been injured. Israel’s violent crackdown on Palestinian’s protests against the Deal of the Century are expected to continue. This means we need more volunteers to ensure there is an international presence to document and raise awareness about human rights abuses by the occupation forces.

What would I be doing?

ISM volunteers support Palestinian resistance by providing protective presence at demonstrations, observing and documenting any human rights violations against Palestinians by Israeli settlers or soldiers. At this critical time of heightened political tension, we urgently need volunteers to join in solidarity with Palestinians fighting for their right to self-determination.

Aside from the need for practical solidarity, experiencing the situation for yourself is vital to adequately understand why the ‘deal of the century’ is such a threat to the future of Palestine, and your personal experiences will equip you to lobby and campaign more effectively in your home country.

Occupation forces at checkpoint 56, al Khalil (Hebron)

Will I receive training?

ISM will host mandatory two-day training sessions for prospective volunteers before they do any work on the ground.

How do I apply?

You can join ISM as a volunteer for as little as two weeks. However you are likely to gain more from your experience if you can commit to a longer period. We welcome volunteers for periods of up to three months.

Please send an email to ismtraining@riseup.net to register as a volunteer.

Bedouin kids join global climate strike in Palestine’s first Extinction Rebellion protest

Children of Umm al-Khair village call for environmental and Palestinian rights during global climate strike

19th October | International Solidarity Movement | Umm al-Khair, South Hebron Hill

Bedouin children in the West Bank joined global climate protests yesterday, calling out the Israeli occupation’s role in exacerbating the effects of climate change on Palestinians.

Over a dozen protesters from the Bedouin village of Umm al-Khair in the South Hebron Hills, waved placards reading “live with the land, live like Bedouins,” in Palestine’s first Extinction Rebellion action.

Although Israel and Palestine both face rising temperatures and less rainfall as a result of climate change, Palestinians are likely to suffer the effects more severely. This is largely because Israel restricts their water access, with less than 15% of water from the region’s three main aquifers allocated to Palestinians. The rest supplies Israel and illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

Palestinians protest climate change in village of Umm al-Khair, in front of illegal Israeli settlement Carmel which steals their water supply

In Umm al-Khair, the Palestinian Water Authority is not allowed to build water networks to provide the village with running water. And the people cannot build cisterns either. In contrast, Israel provides the neighbouring illegal Israeli settlement of Carmel with running water from pipes built over Umm al-Khair land. Instead, the Bedouins must transport their water by trucks – a costly process – giving them just 15 litres of water on average per day. This is far below the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) minimum recommendation of 100 litres per day and massively less than that enjoyed by Israeli settlers at 300 litres per day. With rainfall expected to decrease by 30% over the next 50 years, how will Palestinians, especially those in Umm al-Khair who rely almost entirely on their livestock, cope unless Israel ends its brutal occupation?

“The Israeli government control the water network, and they only allow the people of Umm al-Khair to get a little water,” Umm al-Khair resident Awdah Hathaleen says. “More than 5,000 plants of thyme died this year because of the water problems. Also they confiscated the land and build factories which pollute everything around and cause diseases.”

An olive tree uprooted by Israeli occupation forces in a natural reserve near Umm al-Khair village

Hathaleen (pictured below) also pointed out that aside from restricting water access, the Israeli army also routinely destroys olive trees in the area and demolishes water networks and homes. “And what happened lately that the Israeli occupation uprooted more than 400 hundred trees close to Umm al-Khair. They don’t have mercy for the human, how they will be merciful with the environment?”

Yesterday’s protest was intended to highlight the role the occupation plays in Palestine’s climate change vulnerability and was co-organised with anti-settlement group the Good Shepherd Collective. It was one of hundreds of protests across the globe calling for climate justice by the environmental group Extinction Rebellion.

Protesters take the hilltop

April 19, 2019 | International Solidarity Movement | Kafr Qaddum, occupied Palestine

Soldiers shoot live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets and stun grenades at protesters in the weekly Friday demonstration in Kafr Quaddum. Several Palestinians, a minor and an international were shot by rubber-coated steel bullets and a French international was beaten and arrested by Israeli soldiers.

Around 150 protesters gathered in protest today in Kafr Quaddum to honor the 31st anniversary of the martyr Khalel Alwazer (Abu Jehad), a member of the central committee of the Fateh movement. They marched through the village towards the illegal settlement and in a demand to reopen the main road in and out of the village.* Protesters were joined by leaders from the PLO, Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, and Popular Resistance Committees in the West Bank. Even though it was the Christian holy day of good Friday, Father Abdalla Yolyo, who is an Orthodox Christian Leader, also joined the protest and showed his support to the villagers.

Almost immediately after the start of the protest the soldiers opened fire on the demonstration with of rubber-coated steel bullets. Soldiers were hiding on the roofs of Palestinians houses and on the hill. Many protestors were hit with rubber-coated steel bullets including several Palestinians, two international activists and a child who had to receive medical assistance.

At the same time several protesters were climbing the hill where the soldiers were firing from. The protestor managed to push the soldiers back and reached the top of the hill.

protesters climbing hill, soldiers in the background

As the soldiers left, the protester lit tire-fires, and the wind direction sent the smoke into the illegal settlement. Almost 10 minutes later the soldiers returned, charging into the demonstration and opened fire with live ammunition and eventually arrested a French international human rights defender.

*The main road into the village has been closed since 2003 by the illegal settlement. In 2010 the Supreme Court ruled the road block illegal, however the Israeli authorities refused to reopen the road. In February this year, Israeli authorities promised to reopen the road if the villagers protested peacefully for one month which the villagers complied with. However after a month of peaceful demonstration the road was not re-opened. As a response to the broken promise, the habitants of Kafr Quaddum and several internationals have been protesting ever Friday until the road is re-opened.

Soldiers invade Al-Khalil; fire live ammunition at protesters

April 5, 2019 | International Solidarity Movement, Al-Khalil team | Al-Khalil (Hebron), occupied Palestine

Israeli occupation forces storm into Al-Khalil and fire live ammunition at protesters after bombarding the city with tear gas, stun grenades, and rubber-coated steel bullets.

Around 1pm soldiers invaded Al-Khalil through checkpoint 56. The soldiers fired stun grenades at protesters. Immediately following the stun grenades, the soldiers fired tear gas into the street–forcing the protesters and press personnel to move. As the tear gas disappeared, protests continued. The Israeli soldiers then proceeded to shoot protestors with rubber-coated steel bullets while continuing to fire stun grenades at protesters.

At one point the soldiers switched from rubber-coated steel bullets to live ammunition. For approximately an hour soldiers fired live ammunition and stun grenades at Palestinian protesters until eventually retiring behind the checkpoint, which was closed to the public at this time.

The protests arose again and the soldiers fired several rounds of tear gas and shot rubber-coated steel bullets. During the invasion they also threw stun grenades at the press.

International and Palestinian Journalists Tear Gassed

November 17, 2018 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah team | Ramallah, occupied Palestine

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) decided to hold its annual meeting in Palestine this year, where they demonstrated at the infamous Qalandia checkpoint on Saturday. The dozens of journalists, holding only international press cards, were immediately met with canisters of tear gas.

“We went peacefully, wearing IFJ uniforms and carrying IFJ cards. It’s obvious that it was journalists who were demonstrating,” explained Nasser Abu Baker, Chairman of the Palestinian Journalist Syndicate, a representative to the IFJ. Nasser was one of the many journalists fired upon at Qalandia.  “In the last four years there were three 3000 crimes committed against journalists, 26 of which were murders… It’s obvious that the Israeli leadership couldn’t accept our demand for freedom of movement, and the scene of IFJ being there, standing with Palestinian journalists.”

Lack of freedom of movement is a common experience for Palestinians in the West Bank, most of whom are unable to leave. The few who leave the West Bank for work face the physical torment of waiting in line for hours, crammed together in zig-zagged cages, and facing the high probability of Israeli aggression.

Qalandia checkpoint is the subject of much reported abuse, though none of this would be known if it wasn’t for the Palestinian press. But their reporting has come with a price: It has created huge controversy and caused them to suffer incredible abuse. Today’s demonstration was no exception.
In Nasser’s words: “This was a crime against Palestinian journalists… It was crime against the international press.”