Tag: settler attack - Page 3 - International Solidarity Movement

Human Rights Defenders Statement June 2018

9th July 2018 | Human Rights Defenders | Hebron, occupied Palestine

We condemn the recent fierce attacks carried out by the Israeli occupation soldiers, who have notably begun to target all activists working with Human Rights Defenders (HRD) to document the crimes of the occupation. The Defenders’ association has documented many of the cold-blooded murders in the city of Hebron, most recently the killing of 35 year old road construction worker Rami Sabarneh who was shot by the IOF.

There have been many other instances, for example the physical assault of one of our members in Hebron. Human Rights Defenders co-founder and activist Badea Dwaik was prevented from getting to his destination and assaulted by not only the Israeli soldiers but also an extremist settler.

Badia Dwaik being arrested by Israeli soldiers (photo by HRD)

We also condemn the constant, routine attacks and harassment as well as death threats to both founders of HRD, Badea Dwaik and Imad Abu-Shamsiya, by ‘Hebron’s infamous extremist settler’, Oder Ohanna. Another activist, Fayez Abu-Shamsiya, was beaten by settlers, and activist Zidan Shirbati was also assaulted by occupation soldiers.

Activist Aref Jaber was assaulted in his own home where he and his wife were savagely beaten by the IOF and had to be rushed to the hospital. After they were attacked, the soldiers took their cameras, photos, computers, and many other personal belongings.

Aref Jaber in hospital after he was attacked by Israeli forces (photo by HRD)

Tamara Abu-Laban, co-coordinator of Human Rights Defenders in the states, has received a constant stream of death threats through facebook, as well as on her personal phone, by Israeli occupation soldiers who also frequent our page to harass us.

The high level of human rights violations and violence against activists of HRD clearly confirms that there is a policy being aimed at all members, inside and outside of Palestine, who belong to our organisation and document/publish the crimes of the IOF and settlers. We have succeeded in shedding light on the IOF’s lies about being a ‘moral army’.

Accordingly, as a result of the increased direct targeting of activists of the Human Rights Defenders group, we hold full responsibility to the Israeli government in the event that any activist is harmed by the occupation soldiers and settlers. We ask The Human Rights Representative of the United Nations, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other human rights organisations, alongside Human Rights Defenders, to continue lobbying Israel and campaigning to support activists of the Human Rights Caucus.

We also call for the continued support of the believers of human rights and justice, and would like to request the donation of additional video cameras to HRD due to the exposure and destruction (by the IOF and settlers) of many of our cameras and other tools. There is a large presence of families in Hebron who are need of cameras, which are peaceful weapons that effectively expose and draw attention to the crimes of the occupation.

Finally, we commit to the continuation of our humanitarian and national mission to publish the violations of international law by the occupation, despite the vicious attacks and continuing death threats on the majority of our members by the occupation soldiers and Zionist settlers.

Israeli settlers onces again attack Daraghmah family

24 January 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, Tulkarm Team | Lubban ash-Sharqiya, occupied Palestine

On Thursday night, 21st of January, Illegal settlers attacked a Palestinian home in the outskirts of Lubban ash-Sharqiya village. The Israeli settlers threw stones, destroyed surveillance cameras and the Palestinian family also suspects that the settlers poisoned their water tanks. Since there isn’t any surveillance on the farm, the family now fears for further attacks.

The family was asleep late Thursday night when settlers from the nearby Ma’ale Levona settlement entered the farm, climbed up on the roof of the house and started throwing stones towards the main door. During the attack settlers screamed humiliating words to the family and dared them to go outside. The only thing the family could do was to stay inside, hoping that the settlers wouldn’t try to break in.

lubban5wm — Stones thrown at the family’s door. Photo credit: ISM

The morning after the family noticed that the lids to the 3 water tanks located on the roof were opened, so they now fear about poisoned water. The settlers also destroyed all 5 surveillance cameras on the farm. The Palestinians assume that the action must have been well planned, since the settlers were capable of locating all the cameras within a short amount of time.

lubban3wm — Two of the broken cameras. Photo credit: ISM

The surveillance cameras had been donated to the family from European NGOs, in order to protect them against a large number of settler attacks. Additionally all windows of the family house are covered with metal bars. Every night the family closes both windows and doors thoroughly with rigid metal doors to keep attackers out. The family is living under constant threat and can’t even go to the toilet in the night, since it is located outside of the main building and it’s too risky for them to go out.

lubban2wm — Sealed window. Photo credit: ISM

While settlers attacked the house the family called Israeli police who didn’t arrive on the scene until three hours later. What increases the family’s vulnerability is that there is no authority that will protect them from the illegal settlers. Since the house is located in Area C, the roughly 60% of the West Bank that is under complete Israeli control, Palestinian police are not allowed to support the house and Israeli authorities clearly show that they have no interest in protecting Palestinian lives or Palestinian property.

The farm is located in the outskirts of Lubban ash-Sharqiya village, next to the road leading towards Ma’ale Levona settlement. The house is surrounded by five settlements, of which Eli, Shilo and Ma’ale Levona are the closest. The illegality of these Israeli colonies have been confirmed by the International Court of Justice and the United Nations Security Council. In the past, the family has suffered a lot from the settler attacks. It is not uncommon that settlers are both violent and heavily armed. The threatening of family members has come so far, that medical treatment was required. At the age of 9, the youngest brother sustained cut wounds on his stomach after being attacked and thrown on the ground. They live under constant threat of further violence. Settlers have already shot and killed a dog and a horse belonging to the family. A cow succumbed two days after a settler attacked and the family believes that the cow was poisoned. Also a car belonging to the family has been destroyed, along with other property.

lubban1wm — The settler attacks have left several scars on 15-year-old Mu’min. Photo credit: ISM

Illegal settlers burn infant alive in attack of a Palestinian house in the village of Duma

1st August 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Nablus Team | Duma, Occupied Palestine

Hebrew graffiti that was spray painted on the family home. It reads "revenge." — Hebrew graffiti that was spray painted on the family home. It reads “revenge.”

At 2:30 in the morning, on Friday July 31st, a group of settlers came into the village of Duma to set fire to a family’s home with molotov cocktails while the family was sleeping.

According to the village’s mayor, Abu Alam, the villagers woke up suddenly in the middle of the night by the screams of their neighbors. In 15 minutes, the whole house was set on fire with the family inside. Within 3 minutes, both parents and 4 year old, Ahmad, managed to escape running out the street while they were burning in flames.

One of the rooms in the house, completely destroyed by the fire.

The mother’s first reaction was to rush after her 1 and a half year old baby, Ali Dawabsheh, grab him wrapped between his blankets and run out the house with him in her arms. But to her great shock, in the panic and confusion of this terrible act of violence, only once she was out the house she realized that Ali was not her arms.

The neighbors of the village quickly reacted by trying to turn off the flames with hoses and any means possible and ran into the house to try to rescue the baby, but the flames had gone out of control and their child could not be saved.

In the room of baby Ali, with photos of him.

Both parents and their son Ahmad were immediately taken in a villager’s car to the Hospital of Rafidia in the city of Nablus, while the fire truck arrived from the village of Burin 40 minutes later, as well as an ambulance from the village of Akraba. When the firefighters finally entered the house they found the baby had died burned in his cradle.

What used to be the crib of baby Ali, now completely destroyed.

Because of this the mayor is now discussing with the Palestinian Prime Minister, Rami Hamdallah, the need to create a fire station in Duma since the nearest fire station is in the village of Burin, 40 km away.
Duma is a village surrounded by illegal settlements with a very violent history. Abu Alam explained to ISM that there is a well-known group of terrorists coming from settlements who in many occasions have attacked farmers and shepherds. Furthermore they have attacked the village, burned cars, cut down numerous olive trees and have been writing graffiti in Hebrew. He has no doubt that they are behind last night’s arson attack.

This is not a one-time attack on the village and the Palestinians but a recurring result of the settlers’ violence and harassing against the village. It is a continuous attempt from the terrorist settlers to create fear and insecurity among the villagers as well as throughout the whole Palestine. Being attacked in your own house sends the message to the Palestinian villagers, that there is nowhere they can be safe.

It is important to note that whenever Palestinians go to the Israeli authorities to complain on these abuses, the authority gives no answers. This given the fact that all the settlements and surrounding roads are filled with surveillance cameras, which means Israeli authorities are fully aware of all these incidents of violence. Nevertheless, these authorities never prevent nor give a response to these attacks.

houseeeee — Benjamin Netanyahu’s press release, in which he expresses his sympathies with the attacked family, sounds extremely hollow and hypocritical when the Israeli government openly supports the continuous expansion of illegal settlements. It is created in an attempt to make the attack seem like a one-time incident, when in reality it is a result of the continuous occupation of Palestine.

Israeli settlers use chainsaw to destroy over 60 olive trees near Nablus

23rd June 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Huwwara Team | Nablus, Occupied Palestine

On Sunday, 21st of June, residents of the Jamma’in village in the Nablus region discovered that Israeli settlers had cut down over 60 Palestinian owned olive trees. They suspect that the trees had been destroyed the previous day with a chain saw. The trees were owned by farmers from both Jamma’in and Yasuf, both villages are situated close to each other just south of Nablus.

The olive trees were said to be over 150 years old and have been harvested by generations of the Zeiden family, as well as others from the Yasuf village. 40 of these trees belonged to three brothers from the Zeiden family, who when witnessed the destruction to their land said, ‘We have lost our livelihood’. With the olive harvest only a few months away, this year the family will lose a major portion of their income from the production of olives and oil.

The brothers explained how devastated they felt after seeing the trees cut down. They said that after they themselves had spent tens of years seeing that the trees were well kept and healthy, and then harvesting them yearly, it wasn’t only an economic catastrophe but also emotionally traumatic. For the brothers, and other locals, the trees had become symbols of years of memories, which they have now lost.

Yesterday, another resident of Jamma’in accompanied a Palestinian agricultural development group (PARC) to the area but were stopped by Israeli military who had blocked the road leading to the land. After finding another route, the group documented the destruction. They described it as very upsetting to see the tree branches laying on the ground with the olives almost ready to harvest, ‘We were very sad to see that the trees had been cut and were completely destroyed so close to the harvest time’.

nablus1 — The damage that settlers did to Palestinian olive trees.

The land surrounding these villages has also been targeted in the past. Two years ago Jamma’in residents faced a similar attack from Israeli settlers who destroyed more of their olive trees. Not only have the settlers targeted the local livelihood but they have also been physically violent. There are regular attacks on farmers throughout the year but they face more danger of settler violence leading up to and during the olive harvest. Many locals label the settlers from the illegal Kfar Tappuah settlement terrorist because of their repeated use of excessive violence on unarmed civilians.

The 505 road that connects Tel Aviv and the illegal settlement Ariel also causes continued issues for Palestinians living in this area. The Israeli settlers often stop their cars when passing Palestinian farmers, or anyone trying to cross the road, to intimidate them by brandishing their weapons and shouting abuse. The farmers with land close to the road and settlements have also been physically attacked and had their crops stolen by settlers during the harvest.

The Israeli occupation forces do not intervene during these attacks and in this instance it is presumed that Israeli courts will claim the trees were cut by an unknown person, meaning the farmers will be unable to receive any compensation.

All photo credit goes to Jamma’in municipality.

Peaceful tree planting attacked by settlers and soldiers, two hospitalised and one arrested

1st April 2015 | International Solidarity Movement, Khalil Team | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

On March 31st around 40 Palestinian children and adults gathered in Hebron near Qurtuba school, a Palestinian school in the H2 neighbourhood of Tel Rumeida, to plant trees in commemoration of Palestine’s Land Day. Israeli extremist settlers from the illegal settlements in Al-Khalil (Hebron) attacked them as Israeli forces stood by, threatening to arrest the Palestinians and international volunteers while doing nothing to stop the settlers’ violence. Settlers pushed a 13-year-old girl down the stairs leading up to the school, and soldiers injured a 48-year-old man with a back condition; both were hospitalised. Israeli soldiers also arrested Jenny, a 24-year-old German solidarity activist, while she was filming the action.

hebron land day 1 — Palestinians gathered to plant trees in Tel Rumeida in an event marking Land Day

Military harassment began even before activists had reached the planting site. Jenny, the German activist later arrested at the demonstration, recalled the difficulty of getting the trees to the site: “Half of the trees had already gone through the checkpoint when Israeli soldiers decided that, as one officer put it, ‘trees are sensitive items’ and that the children carrying them would not be allowed through.”

“It was a very peaceful action,” she recalled. “Small children were planting trees near the school in Tel Rumeida. Everything was calm until Anat Cohen (a notoriously violent extremist settler) turned up; she began taking down the Palestinian flags demonstrators had put up on the fence beside the tree planting site, then randomly attacking Palestinians and international volunteers.”

kids planting trees khalil land day wm — Young children planting trees beside Qurtuba primary school

Extremist settlers pushed a 13-year-old Palestinian girl down the stairs close to the tree planting site. She was taken to the hospital half an hour later. Israeli soldiers harassed her friends and told them they were not allowed to sit beside her. A 48-year-old Palestinian man who had just undergone surgery on his spine was pushed violently by Israeli forces, despite the fact that soldiers were told several times that the he suffered from severe damage to his back. When they continued to shove him against a wall, he collapsed and lost consciousness for several minutes, and was taken to a hospital via ambulance.

khalil land day on the ground — Soldiers and onlookers gathered around Palestinian man after he fell unconscious after being shoved by soldiers

khalil land day ambulance — Injured Palestinian being taken via stretcher to the ambulance, as a settler in the foreground watches the scene

Settlers and soldiers continued harassing people; settlers accused many of being nazis, swearing at and insulting the demonstrators. Palestinians looking out from their houses were told to step away from their front door. When internationals tried to document the situation, they were met with yelling and pushing from Israeli soldiers as well as settlers.

henry — Israeli soldiers at the tree planting demonstration in Hebron

Amanda, an ISM volunteer present at the scene, recalled what she experienced at the hands of settlers and soldiers. “I was being attacked from all sides. A soldier shouted at me, brandishing handcuffs at me and threatening to arrest me even as a settler woman physically assaulted me. She stepped on my feet, kicked at my legs and punched me in the stomach, calling me a nazi and a[n extremely vulgar word for prostitute].”

Jenny spoke of her arrest, based on spurious testimony by the settler woman. “At the police station I was accused of attacking Anat Cohen. While I was filming her and the soldiers earlier as soldiers forced back the Palestinian group, she grabbed my hand and attempted to take my camera. I told soldiers at the time that she attacked me, but they paid no attention. They grabbed me and violently pulled me away from where I was documenting the tree planting.” Israeli soldiers took her to the military base on Shuhada street before transferring her to the Israeli police, who interrogated her and held her at the police station before releasing her early that same evening, after about five hours in custody. She has been temporarily barred from the city of Hebron.

“As people were leaving I saw soldiers trampling all over the area,” an ISM volunteer recalled. “I doubt that the trees survived.” Tuesday’s action was the third time in the last few months that Palestinians gathered near the school to plant trees on their land in Tel Rumeida. Three weeks ago olive trees were planted in the same area, but zionist settlers uprooted and stole them.

Later in the afternoon a Palestinian funeral, in the nearby Muslim cemetery, was disrupted by settler children who taunted the mourners.