Sheikh Jarrah: ‘My Neighbourhood’

By Patrick Keddie

4 August 2012 | International Solidarity Movement

The Israeli authorities’ attempts to ethnically displace Palestinians from East Jerusalem have intensified greatly in recent years; in some areas, such as Sheikh Jarrah, eviction notices have been handed out to nearly every Palestinian family. My Neighbourhood, a recent short documentary film produced by Just Vision, examines the struggles against mass Palestinian eviction and asks important questions of how to resist.

The film focuses on Sheikh Jarrah, an area less than 5 minutes’ walk from the opulent American Colony Hotel (favourite haunt of foreign journalists, NGO workers and politicians). The main protagonist is Mohammed El Kurd, an ebullient and thoughtful Palestinian teenager who experiences the trauma of partial eviction, as half of his house taken over by Israeli settlers.

In August 2009, Mohammed’s neighbours were evicted by Israeli settlers, supported by the Israeli authorities, who broke down the doors and smashed windows to force out the distraught Palestinian family living there. Mohammed remembers “a lot of policemen, a lot of angry faces.” The house is now garlanded in Israeli flags and rigged with Closed Circuit Television cameras.

In My Neighbourhood, a spokesperson for the Sheik Jarrah Settlers Group declares that evictions are justified because the Bible decrees that the area belongs to Jews. Angry settlers are shown descending on the area after Shabbat prayers, some brandishing automatic weapons and chanting, “in blood, in fire, we will kick out the Arabs.”

In November 2009, a group of settlers forcibly claimed half of Mohammed’s house – an extension built by the family without permission (it is almost impossible for Palestinians to acquire building permits in Jerusalem under Israeli law). Three young settlers, rotating in three month shifts, have since occupied the front half of the house, whilst the 13 members of the El Kurd family live in the back. Inevitably, this bizarre situation causes huge tension and resentment. The El Kurd family are subject to regular provocation and harassment, whilst their attempts to reclaim the rest of their house have failed.

Like many others in the neighbourhood, Mohammed’s family arrived as refugees. The El Kurds moved into the house in 1956 after being forced out of Haifa during the 1948 Nakba. The attempt to evict them from their current house would be a second ethnic displacement. Palestinians in Jerusalem endure a precarious existence under Israeli law; they are not recognized as Israeli citizens and can be stripped of their residency at any moment, with little recourse to the law. If the family is evicted they will likely be forced to move to the West Bank and prevented from returning.

A protest movement against the Israeli settlements in Sheikh Jarrah quickly grew, partly organized by Israeli peace activists. My Neighbourhood features Zvi and Sara Benninga, young leftist Israeli activists, who are at the forefront of organizing solidarity protests in Sheikh Jarrah. The protests against the evictions initially attract 20 to 30 people and eventually culminate in a rally of around 3000 protesters. Over the course of two years, Mohammed overcomes his initial scepticism and forges strong relationships with the Israeli activists.

By 2011, an uneasy stalemate has been reached. Settlers still occupy half of the El Kurd’s house but the protests have helped prevent any further evictions from taking place in the neighbourhood. Zvi Benninga argues that “Sheikh Jarrah elicits hope.”

However, in a talk after a screening of the film at Amnesty International, co-director Julia Bacha said that the achievement should be seen in context, “It’s a pause” she said, “nowhere near a victory. Literally, Mohammed could be evicted tomorrow from his house.”

Mohammed states his ambition to become a human rights lawyer to “use the law to evict them.” However, whilst international law condemns the occupation and the attempts to forcibly create settlements in occupied territory, Israeli law is systematically designed to facilitate occupation.

Settlers have found or forged deeds from the Ottoman era, purporting to show that the area used to be occupied by Jewish inhabitants; under Israeli law, this can facilitate the eviction of Palestinian properties. It seems a wider challenge to the law and the structure of occupation itself is required.

How to resist in the battle for Sheikh Jarrah?

My Neighbourhood is only 25 minutes long and therefore inevitably lacks detail and some wider context. There is little mention of the wider struggle across Jerusalem against Zionist colonization, such as the eviction of Palestinians in Silwan, the Old City, and Beit Hanina.

However, it is an assured film and offers a lucid critique of Israeli occupation. It is a useful and direct resource that can be shown in schools, colleges and workplaces to educate and inspire. The violence, injustice, and cruelty shown in the film generate a raw, visceral sense of outrage, whilst the relationships formed between Palestinians and liberal Israelis are encouraging. However, My Neighbourhood is also useful as it provokes fundamental questions about how to resist.

The Brazilian co-director Julia Bacha is perhaps best known for the 2009 documentary Budrus, which followed the successful attempts of a West Bank village to resist the building of Israel’s separation wall on their land. Budrus showed how disciplined, strategic, and forceful non-violent resistance can succeed and the film serves as a model for challenging the terms of the Israeli occupation.

In contrast, My Neighbourhood is a snapshot of popular protest, which stops short of non-violent direct action. The protests at Sheikh Jarrah offer a limited methodology for challenging the underlying effects of the occupation and suggest that more is needed to resist occupation of East Jerusalem and to actively re-gain the rest of the El Kurd’s house.

When I was in Sheikh Jarrah in late 2011, a sense of drift and aimlessness had descended on the neighbourhood. There was much talk of needing to re-vitalise the protest movement to actively force concessions from the settlers and the Israeli authorities, rather than just holding the authorities back enough to maintain the unhappy status quo. In My Neighbourhood, Mohammed laments that the family now says, “if we regain the house, rather than when”. Not only is the status quo undesirable, it is also fragile; the Netanyahu government and the right-wing local authorities are fiercely committed to extending the settlements and millions of dollars are flooding in to the area to finance settlement construction.

Bacha argues that the first Palestinian intifada, which was overwhelmingly characterized by non-violent direct action, was successful as it forced the Israelis to negotiate. The uprising ended when the negotiations began and it was these actual agreements made during the Oslo Accords in 1993 that were unsuccessful and led to the strengthening of the Israeli occupation.

In the current struggle of attrition in neighbourhoods like Sheikh Jarrah, Israel is gradually eroding the Palestinian presence in East Jerusalem and thus ending any hope for justice and reconciliation. Bacha suggests that mass, direct non-violent resistance on an intifada scale is what is needed to destabilise the structures of law and occupation that facilitate ethnic displacement in East Jerusalem. And that it should not stop until it achieves its aims.

One year after killings: Iraq Burin continues its struggle

By Jonas Webber

31 July 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

Three days before the start of Ramadan, the small mountainside town of Iraq Burin was attacked by Israeli settlers from the illegal colony of Bracha. The attackers descended from the settlement at 12:30 a.m. and were soon followed by the Israeli military, shooting tear-gas and sound grenades.

“Since Ramadan started, things have been relatively calm here,” says Yousef, a resident of Iraq Burin, “earlier we used to have trouble all the time.”

Ironically, the settler attacks are most common on Saturdays, the Jewish Sabbath, which traditionally is revered as a day of rest.

“But there have also been plenty of attacks on Wednesdays and Thursdays,” says Yousef.

The settlers target farmers closest to the settlement, making it impossible for them to work their land due to risk of being attacked or shot. The farmers’ lack of activity is then used against them as settlers claim the land to be abandoned and subsequently annex it. By these means, the illegal settlements across the West Bank continue to steal the lands of neighboring Palestinian villages.

Bracha is one of over 250 Israeli settlements and outposts erected in the Palestinian West Bank and violating Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. “Seizure of land for settlement building and future expansion has resulted in the shrinking of space available for Palestinians to sustain their livelihoods and develop adequate housing, basic infrastructure and services,” wrote the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

From Yousef’s rooftop one can see clearly where the irrigated fields of Bracha have stretched down into the valley since its construction in the early 1980’s.

Of the 2000 dunums that originally was Iraq Burin, 300 have been annexed by the settlement of Bracha and many hundreds have become inaccessible to Palestinians due to the risk of violent attacks. To protest this, the village has been holding demonstrations every Saturday for the past year. Similar to numerous protests across the West Bank, Iraq Burin’s regular demonstrations are met with brute force by the Israeli army.

“The failure to respect international law, along with the lack of adequate law enforcement vis-àvis settler violence and takeover of land has led to a state of impunity, which encourages further violence and undermines the physical security and livelihoods of Palestinians. Those protesting settlement expansion or access restrictions imposed for the benefit of settlements (including the Barrier) are regularly exposed to injury and arrest by Israeli forces,” noted OCHA.

For a short while, the demonstrations ceased after 2 young men, Muhammad and Usaid Qadus, were shot dead at close range by an Israeli soldier.

“But our peaceful struggle will continue among both the young and the old,” promises Yousef.

Jonas Webber is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).

Hebron: Settlers gas attack Palestinians, victim arrested and refused aid

By Hakim Maghribi

27 July 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

On the afternoon of July 27, brothers Ibrahim Abeidu, 17, and Mohammad Abeidu, 19, were carrying water for their neighbor in the Tel Rumeida neighborhood of Hebron. There is a current drought and water is often shared between households. Walking on the hills above the Muslim cemetery, 20 Israeli settlers from a nearby illegal colony appeared on the same path. As the brothers passed by, one settler suddenly turned to them and sprayed a form of nauseating gas in the faces of the two teenagers carrying water. The brothers became dazed, and fell to ground.

The 20 settlers proceeded to throw stones at the Abeidu brothers as they lay on the ground. This attracted a Palestinian crowd who came to intervene, as well as local activists from the organization Youth Against Settlements (YAS) who arrived to document the attack. Ibrahim Abeidu is himself a distinguished volunteer at YAS, who, among other things, works on self-strengthening activities, documentation, and youth education.

Some 60 Israeli soldiers arrived on scene, only to show aggression against the Palestinians rather than the gas-spraying illegal settlers.

Unusually, a Palestinian ambulance was able to get permission from Israeli forces to enter Shuhada Street and help the two brothers who remained in weak condition on the ground. The apartheid-stricken Shuhada Street in the center of Hebron has been closed to Palestinian access for over a decade while Israelis and internationals can walk freely.

Israeli soldiers prevented the two victims from entering the ambulance on the basis that they were not carrying their ID cards on them. Only after being questioned, in a condition when needing medical attention, was Mohammad allowed to enter the ambulance and be rushed hospital. The younger Ibrahim, however, was still forbidden from entering the ambulance. Having been carried downhill to Shuhada Street, he remained on the ground and was refused medical aid. Instead, soldiers arrested him on accusations of throwing stones and attacking the same 20 Israeli settlers that had gassed him.

Having received treatment in hospital, Mohammad is now back at his home. Not having received any known medical aid, his brother Ibrahim remains arrested at the police station in Qiryat Arba.

This latest event is yet another episode in a recent escalation of harassment against Palestinians in Hebron, from the inhabitants of the illegal Israeli settlements, and their friends in the Israeli Occupation Forces.

Hakim Maghribi is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).

Ultimate goal of Israeli policies in Hebron: ethnic cleansing

By Markus Fitzgerald

28 July 2012 | International Solidarity Movement

Just below the illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba, situated on the the eastern outskirts of Al Khalil (Hebron) is the Palestinian area of ar-Ras.

A quick online search of the Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arba provides general knowledge on the founding history and how it has been subject to Palestinian resistance since 1981 but fails to inform the reader of the consequences for the indigenous Palestinians living nearby the relatively large (ca. 7000 inhabitants) settlement. Nor will one find written that such colonies are considered illegal by international law as confirmed by the International Court of Justice. Nor of the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre in 1994 which was committed against Palestinians by an Israeli settler from the same area.

Hebron residents regularly speak with the International Solidarity Movement about constant violent attacks by the settlers, land expropriation by Israeli policies, lack of freedom of movement and the requirement of special permits for car use, lack of running water, and demolitions.

Demolitions

In 2006, Palestinian landlord Fayiz Arajar began the construction of a large building intended to house a dozen shops and several families. The building is formidably situated, overlooking the olive grove of the ar-Ras area and the distant white houses of Al Khalil, flickering in the heat.

In 2007, as the project was nearly completed, Israeli settlers occupied the building. Subsequent to a high court decision to evict them, settlers from across the West Bank gathered in the house ready to defend their illegal takeover of the building. The eviction deadline was set to December 4, 2007 by the high court.

The week leading to the deadline was tense. Israeli settlers vandalized the Palestinian cemetery, burned Palestinian cars, and attacked Palestinian houses. The escalation in such attacks came due to the arrival of thousands of illegal settlers in support of the squatters. They succeeded in fighting the eviction force. Israeli authorities simply refrained from further attempts to remove them and, as seen before, allowed the story to twist from that of property theft to a question of security (of the settlers). In recent years, Israel has even decided to erect a military checkpoint for Palestinian pedestrians in the interest of ‘protecting’ the settlers.

Muhammed Al-Jabari ‘Abu Naim’ and his family live in a house about 100 metres from the occupied building. On May 28 of this year, they began to build an extra floor ontop of their house. The family of 15 members needed more space.

Settlers from a nearby recently occupied house repeatedly attacked the building project underway by Abu Naim. Subsequently, Abu Naim was banned by Israeli authorities from continuing construction.

With reference to the Oslo accords (Annex 1, article XII) Palestinians are not allowed to build within 50 metres of security roads. In Abu Naim’s case, a security road was announced with the construction of a new military checkpoint in the area. The legal value of Abu Naim’s construction permit was overruled although his house is far from the 50 meter no-construction zone. The land on which the house was built 14 years ago has belonged to the Al-Jabari family since before the Israeli occupation in 1967.

For now, the mid-construction upper floor is left as an empty shell without windows or doors. Israeli bulldozers are on stand by to demolish the entire house should Abu Naim continue construction.

Prevention and annexation of resources

The Dana family is forced to pull up 100+ liters of water per day from this well as a result of Israeli policies preventing them from filling their water tanks – click to see more photos

Across the olive grove and by Kiryat Arba’s barbed wire fence lives Kayid Dana and his brothers. Another stunning view embraces you from just outside their house, disrupted only by a looming Israeli watchtower. Most of the occupied West Bank is spotted with these grey towers. Watching from their windows, the ever present occupation, reminding Palestinians that privacy is a luxury that few, if any, enjoy.

The Dana family has been living on the same land for the past 50 years. In 1958, the Israeli authorities repetitively offered them money to leave the house and make room for the growing illegal settlement. The family refused and nonetheless Israeli forces bulldozed half of their garden.

As of June 24, the Dana family has been without water. Israeli authorities prevented water trucks from entering the area to refill their water tanks. As a result, Kavid and his family are relegated to pump water from an unsanitary well outside their home. This is where they encounter the next problem: water is only available for a couple of hours each day. This is not enough to supply their 4 camels (100 liters/day) and the most basic household needs.

North of the Dana family home, through the olive groves, lives the Abdul Hay family (Abu Hossni). Their windows are fenced to prevent Israeli settlers from shattering the glass with the stones they throw. On December 4, the family was subject to a vicious attack that left 3 with dumdum (expanding bullet) wounds. Dumdum bullets are a type of live ammunition that enter the body, expand, and cause permanent injuries or death. Although dumdum bullets have been known to be used by Israeli settlers, they are illegal according to international law.

Jamal Abu Saifan, who lives in the area, captured the incident on his camera and explains how a lightly injured Israeli settler was choppered away 15 minutes after his injury, whereas the 3 Palestinians wounded by gunfire, one critically, waited 3 hours for an ambulance.

The ambulance attempting to reach them was stopped and denied entry to the area by Israeli forces.

An ultimate goal: ethnic cleansing

Unfortunately, settler attacks are far from rare and have been occurring since Kiryat Arba was established in 1968. The purpose of these violent attacks, and the army violence and policies that accompany them, are not only to injure people and destroy their lands. That is only a strategic measure to reach an ultimate goal: the ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

The next step by Kiryat Arba is the construction of a new road which will divide the vital Palestinian olive groves down the middle. The road will be inaccessible to Palestinians, not only preventing Palestinians from tending to their trees on the other side, but annexing further land, expropriating an economic necessity, and making life more difficult for the indigenous Palestinians.

Despite the collection of circumstances to make life difficult, all the families in the area have made the choice to remain on their land despite the uncertainty and pressures of their everyday life under Israeli occupation.

Markus Fitzgerald is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).

Hebron: Over 30 detained

By Aziza Frost

27 July 2012 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

On the evening of July 18, over 30 Palestinians were detained in Tel Rumeida of Hebron after being accused of attacking an Israeli settler from the illegal settlement in the city. The attack allegedly took place after the settler went to swim in Abraham’s spring, which is on Palestinian land, but has a history of being used by settlers from the local colony.

A number of houses nearby to the spring were raided, along with the headquarters of Youth Against Settlements (YAS).

One of the Palestinians detained lives with his family in a house overlooking the spring. Their house was raided by soldiers and a young man was taken.

About 70 Israeli soldiers and 35 settlers gathered at the spring. The settlers insisted that the soldiers arrest the Palestinians, and internationals were barred from approaching the site by soldiers and border police.

Several Palestinians were detained near the spring, while three others were detained separately near the YAS headquarters. They were not accused of the attack, but nevertheless had their ID’s confiscated. The reason behind their detention is still unknown.

After several hours of being detained near the spring, a few Palestinians were released and others were taken to the police station for questioning. The remaining were released shortly after midnight, none of them being charged with the attack.

Earlier that day, Israeli settlers tried for the third time to build a wall of rocks around the spring which lies on Palestinian-owned land. Around 10 Israeli settlers were building, while 15 soldiers guarded them.

According to soldiers, the settlers had a permit but it was not possible to see it. The Palestinian owners of the land thus had no choice but to watch as settlers continued building, and teenagers from the illegal settlements swam in the water.

This incident is symptomatic of the settler mentality as they steadily try to build into Palestinian-owned land and increase the size of their colonies in the West Bank.

Palestinian residents of Tel Rumeida say that the settlers are hoping to encroach upon the spring and the surrounding land, and thus connect two settlements located in the area.

Aziza Frost is a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (name has been changed).