Tag: Settlement - Page 28 - International Solidarity Movement

Human Rights Defender Abdullah Abu Rahma arrested and detained

15^th May 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil Team | Bil’in, occupied Palestine

UPDATE 23d of May 2016: Abdullah was released from military prison on the evening of the 22nd. He must return to military court on the first of June for a hearing of the appeal of the military prosecution against the decision to release him.

UPDATE 19th of May 2016: Abdullah Abu Rahma remains in Detention. A military judge ruled that Abdullah can be released on 15,000 Shekel bail but postponed this until Sunday the 21st of May at four PM to give the military prosecution a chance to appeal the decision.

UPDATE 17th May 2016:

Abdullah Abu Rahma remains in Detention. The military prosecution has appealed yesterday’s decision by the court judge at Ofer to release Abdullah, a decision which was made after a video was presented which shows that Abdullah was arrested and beaten while protesting non-violently. The military prosecution were granted an extension to Abdullah’s detainment until tomorrow when there will be another hearing. This will be confirmed by the court tomorrow by 5pm.

On Friday the 13^th of May 2016, the internationally recognized human rights defender and coordinator of the Bil’in popular committee against the wall and settlements, Abdullah Abu Rahma, was arrested during the Alwada Cycling Marathon, which took place in the West Bank Friday. Abdullah Abu Rahma is currently still being held under detention by the Israeli military and his case will be brought to the military court in Ofer Military Base tomorrow.

Abu Rahma, who is from the West Bank village Bil’in, was arrested, after the Alwada Cycling Marathon had reached Bil’in. After reaching Bil’in the attending cyclists where met by approximately 150 heavily armed soldiers, who immediately started showering the cyclists with tear gas and blocked the road, where their route was going. Doing this attack of the peaceful demonstrating cyclists, Abu Rahma was arrest along with an international activist from Israel. The Israeli activist was released shortly after her arrest.

The Alwada Cycling Marathon’s intention was to demonstrate against the illegal Israeli occupation and the apartheid system, that Israel is enforcing on the Palestinians through a healthy and peaceful cycling route from Ramallah to Bil’in. By Israeli Forces attacking the peaceful demonstration and arresting Abu Rahma, they once again show the world, that they do not accept the right to protest peacefully and that they do not apply to the international law, that does not allow Israeli Forces to be on Palestinian controlled areas, which the area of Bil’in is.

Abu Rahma is an important activist for the village of Bil’in and a symbol of peaceful resistance all over the West Bank. For now, he is left waiting for his next sentence, after he has already been imprisoned for his non violent resistance multiple times, and has in the past been charged with both “incitement” and “organizing and participating in an illegal demonstration”. Till now, there has not been declared a charge against him in the current case, but the military court will determine his faith , after having hold him in detention for 4 days, even though he did not commit any crime what so ever.

Please spread this message as wide as possible and put pressure on the Israeli Justice system for his release through media attention or presence in the military court.

To hear more about the case, and get further information and updates, please contact us by email.

For more information about fridays Alwada Cycling Marathon:

https://www.facebook.com/haytham.alkhateeb/posts/10208232017891106?pnref=story

https://www.facebook.com/haytham.alkhateeb/videos/vb.1022320161/10208230395770554/?type=2&theater

For more information on Abdullah Abu Rahma:

Amnesty USA:

https://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/uaa32014_1.pdf

Human Rights Watch:

https://www.hrw.org/news/2010/09/08/israel-activist-convicted-after-unfair-trial

International Solidarity Movement:

https://palsolidarity.org/2015/03/a-decade-of-civil-disobedience-in-my-west-bank-village/

https://palsolidarity.org/2010/02/letter-from-prison-abdallah-abu-rahmah/

Al-Nakba day: The biggest crisis in the history of Palestine

15th May 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Occupied Palestine

Today, 68 years ago, the state of Israel was created on the Palestinian peoples’ home. The anniversary falls after a winter and spring with an escalation in violence and arrests of Palestinians, ever-expanding Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the Palestinian capital of Jerusalem, as the de facto take over by Israel of settlements in and around the city. It is estimated that there are approximately 600,000 Israeli settlers living in the West Bank, including Jerusalem.

For the Palestinians it is remembered as Yawm an-Nakba, meaning “Day of the Catastrophe” or just Nakba Day. During the 1948 Palestine War, an estimated 700,000 Palestinians fled or were Expelled, and Hundreds of Palestinian towns and villages were depopulated and destroyed. These refugees and their descendants number several million people today, divided between Jordan (2 million), Lebanon (427,057), Syria (477,700), the West Bank (788,108) and the Gaza Strip (1.1 million), with at least another quarter of a million internally displaced Palestinians in Israel and many more around the world. Later, a series of laws passed by the first Israeli government prevented them from returning to their homes, or claiming their property. They, along withmany of their descendants remain refugees. The expulsion of the Palestinians has since been described by some historians as ethnic cleansing.

Many dispossessed Palestinians continue to hold and treasure the keys to their lost homes, and the key has become a symbol of Palestinian right to return home. United Nations Resolution 194, passed immediately following the Nakba, declares the right of all refugees displaced and dispossessed by the Zionist militias to return to their homes. Almost a million had registered with the UN by 1950, and today there are over 4 million with UN-registered claims against Israel. Compliance with 194 was one of the conditions for Israel’s admission to the UN, to which they agreed but which they have never honored. This right is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to which all UN member states are obliged to conform, and following 194 has been re-confirmed by many subsequent UN resolutions. It remains an international demand upon Israel. But Israel has refused to consider this right throughout the various iterations of the “peace process” since the Palestinian refugees return would jeopardize their Jewish majority. So we can only hope that justice will prevail for the Palestinian people.

Open The Zone: press conference

13th May 2016 | Open the Zone campaign | Hebron, occupied Palestine

On 12th May 2016, the Open the Zone campaign held a press conference in front of Shuahda checkpoint in Hebron – protesting the continuous collective punishment and denial of human rights to Palestinians in the ‘closed military zone’.

Palestinian children waiting at the checkpoint

The press conference was launched with a children’s event offering a chance to the Palestinian children forced to live under a closed military zone order since 1^st November to draw their hopes and dreams inside an outline of the closed military zone. During the children’s event, a few children, on their way home, were kept outside the checkpoint, causing a small boy to start crying as Israeli forces refused to open the turnstile for them so they could go through the checkpoint in order to reach their homes.

Children drawing outside Shuhada checkpoint, the 'entrance' to the closed military zone — Children drawing outside Shuhada checkpoint, the ‘entrance’ to the closed military zone

The governor of Hebron, Dawood Zatari stressed how, even though the situation throughout the H2-area of Hebron under full Israeli control is difficult, the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood and Shuahda Street that are under the closed military zone (CMZ) order are a grave concern. Kamel Hamed, the mayor of Hebron, that visited the CMZ on 9th May reiterated the municipalitie’s commitment to the people living in this area and encouraged the steadfastness of the families. Abed Salaymeh, campaign spokesperson and Shuhada Street resident, illustrated the families perspective of life in the CMZ, while Zleikha al-Muhtaseb stressed the impact of the CMZ on the children living in this area.

Children's drawing of Shuhada checkpoint — Children’s drawing of Shuhada checkpoint

The Open The Zone campaign was initialised by the International Solidarity Movement and Youth Against Settlements to bring the thinly-disguised attempts of forced displacement by the Israeli forces within and through the CMZ to the world’s attention and achieve an end to this form of collective punishment.

While during the event, big numbers of Israeli forces gathered behind the checkpoint, closely observing the events, after the press conference was finished, they increased the scrutiny with which they checked every single person attempting to go home – ensuring that they are registered as a number. This dehumanizing numbering of Palestinians needs to stop – Palestinians are people, not numbers!

a group of children in front of Shuhada checkpoint, facing big group of soldiers

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Open The Zone: municipality delegation visit to CMZ

10th May 2016 | Open The Zone Campaign | Hebron, occupied Palestine

Yesterday, 9^th May 2016, the Mayor of Hebron and several employees of the municipality of Hebron visited the closed military zone in Shuhada Street and the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood in the framework of the Open The Zone campaign.

The delegation on Shuhada Street, with Shuada checkpoint in the background and a group of settlers passing them

The delegation from the municipality arrived to the neighbourhood through the Gilbert checkpoint, where they were surprisingly allowed to pass despite not being registered as numbered residents in the area. During their visit, at several points they were denied to continue by Israeli forces. Walking on the tiny strip of Shuhada Street still accessible to Palestinians, they were denied to go up the stairs to Qurtuba school that for more than half a year have been closed for any Palestinian, despite them stating their function as a delegation including the mayor of Hebron. When trying to walk down the same stairs from up near Qurtuba school, they were again denied passage by the Israeli forces.

Delegation detained at the stairs leading to Qurtuba school

The delegation visited several families that have been living under closure in the closed military zone (CMZ) since 1^st November 2015, and listened to the demands of the families. Additionally to electricity and water-connections for the Shuhada Street kindergarten, this included an ambulance, as recently several Palestinians in need of an ambulance were denied this medical assistance by Israeli forces, at times for ridiculous reasons such as ‘it’s Shabbat’. This problem has been long-running, as in the whole area, even before the CMZ, Palestinian vehicles – thus including ambulances – are not allowed to drive. With the CMZ ambulances are now required to get additional permits – additional to the permits to be driving on this settler-only road – before being allowed to enter the CMZ.

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Solidarity visit to Ni’lin: Killings, arrests and invasions as part of the everyday life

“There was a single Israeli army jeep that invaded the village late at night. This was very strange, as usually if the army come, they would come with 10 or more jeeps…“

This is what we were told when we visited Ni’ilin on Friday 6 May, referring to the start of the terrible Israeli incursion into the village a night earlier in the week – where a seven day old baby suffered tear gas inhalation and had to be taken to hospital.

thumb_IMG_8840_1024 — The village of Ni’ilin. Photo credit ISM

The village children, concerned and curious about the invasion of the village, had followed the jeep and blocked the road which meant the jeep could not get out. The soldiers then called for back up and four more jeeps came into the village on a rescue mission. This is when the occupation forces started indiscriminately firing vast amounts of teargas. No one is clear about the reasons why the first jeep decided to invade the village nor why they felt the need to use so much teargas.

The army often come at night to arrest youg people accusing them of partaking in the weekly demonstrations, but no arrests were made that night even after all the violence. However in the last six months, five boys aged 16 and 17 have been arrested and are still in prison without any charges being made against them.

We had come to the village to establish what had happened on that night and to show solidarity by joining their weekly demonstration against the apartheid wall. Apart from a committed group of Israeli protesters, the demonstration no longer attracts many international activist or media attention.

However, as the paramedics from the Red Crescent told us, the Israeli occupation forces are far more aggressive when there is no international and/or media presence to record their actions and monitor their behaviour. The villagers would therefore welcome any support international activists can offer. For a relatively small demonstration, that has only been going for eight years, there have been a significantly high percentage of deaths. Five people have been killed since it started, most by live ammunition, and notable as well as heartbreaking for our organisation, an ISM activist was severely injured by a tear gas canister here in 2009 and has sadly not recovered.

The village of Ni’lin is located only about three kilometres from the Green line (which marks the pre-1967 border) and has suffered extensive land theft and settlement expansion. Our guide pointed out one of the many illegal settlements encircling the village: Hashmonaim, which was built in 1985, and is located next to the apartheid wall and is one of the reason it was built where it is.

thumb_IMG_8834_1024 — Hashmonaim settlement and the apartheid wall. Photo credit: ISM

The village, being so close to the Green line mean the apartheid wall (which for the most part does not follow the agreed border anyway), has been routed through land belonging to the village. By positioning the wall well into Palestinian territory and thereby stealing large areas of land in the process, Israel ensures the further expansion of the illegal settlement. The Israeli supreme court judged it unlawful at one point but eventually the build went ahead, and since then residents have been protesting and campaigning against it.

The weekly demonstration has been ongoing since 2008 with the villagers of Ni’lin non violently protesting against the apartheid wall and the annexation of their lands. When the wall was first erected, some of the young boys in the village manage to cut through what was then a wire fence. The army responded by erecting the very high concrete wall now standing there, resulting in even more of Ni’ilins lands being lost. Many villagers are farmers and with the loss of their land, have also lost their main form of income. Many others used to work in ’48 (Israel proper) but because of the wall and the impossibility of gaining permits to enter Israel, they can now not continue to do so and have also lost their source of income.

thumb_IMG_8859_1024 — Peaceful protester at the demonstration. Photo credit: ISM

During the weekly demonstration, protesters walk from the village towards the wall with the aim of reaching it. However, the army now enter into the olive groves in the village preventing any chance of protesters reaching their goal. This means there are often clashes with the army firing teargas, rubber bullets and live ammunition. But on Friday we were fortunate that the army used no violence at all – instead they spent their time filming the protesters to be able to identify them, presumably for later arrests. This may be a worrying sign- since it was a repetition from the previous week’s demonstration which was also quiet- that further night raids may occur. The villagers, however, are not deterred and will continue to assert their rights and peacefully protest the illegal appropriation of their lands the, the apartheid wall and the injustices they face. I dearly hope to be able to join them soon again as they deserve all the support they can get.