Tag: Settlers

Settlers shoot teenager south-west of Nablus

15 February 2011 | International Solidarity Movement

Settlers shot and wounded a boy of 18 whilst he was farming on his father’s land at 1400hrs today, in the village of Jaloud, south-west of Nablus. Wael Mahmoud Tobase Ayad was planting trees together with his brother. As they were finishing, three settlers from a nearby illegal settlement, armed with handguns and a rifle, appeared from amongst some trees between 50 – 100m away. One of the settlers shot and wounded him in his right side with a hand gun.

Gunshot wound of Palestinian teen

He is now in Rafidia hospital in Nablus, where he is due to have an operation to remove the bullet tomorrow. His condition is reported to be stable.

Wael’s father was shot in the leg by settlers in the same area in 2002.

The people of Jaloud are regularly harassed by settlers. There are two illegal settlements in the area, Shilo and Eli, and several outposts have also been built close to the village.

Israeli settlers chase Palestinian children after Israeli military fails to provide escort

08 February 2011 | Operation Dove & Christian Peacemaker Team

At-Tuwani, South Hebron Hills, West Bank – On the afternoon of 7 February 2011, three Israeli settlers from Havat Ma’on outpost chased a group of 12 Palestinian schoolchildren who were walking home from school. The Israeli military had failed to arrive to escort the schoolchildren, forcing the children to take a longer path without the army’s escort.

Shortly after the schoolchildren and Christian Peacemaker Teams(CPT) volunteers set out on the path towards Tuba and Maghayir al-Abeed villages, Israeli settlers, two of whom were masked, emerged from the grouping of trees which encompasses Havat Ma’on and began moving towards the children. Upon seeing the settlers, the children turned and sprinted to distance themselves from the settlers. Several children began crying and screaming in fear as they ran away from the settlers, one young girl began shaking uncontrollably as soon as she stopped running from the settlers.

The Israeli Border Police, who were located on an adjacent hill for the duration of the incident, arrived at the scene after the Palestinian children had safely distanced themselves from the settlers. The Border Police stopped and spoke with the settlers, two of whom remained masked during the entire conversation with the authorities.

The Border Police then approached the edge of At-Tuwani village where the children, CPT volunteers, and Palestinian adults had gathered. Border Police officers spoke with a CPT volunteer and an At-Tuwani resident, seeking to understand what had happened. After hearing their accounts but refusing to hear the role the settlers had played, the officers suggested that the Palestinian children, internationals, and At-Tuwani villagers were the ones causing problems, rather than the settlers.

Before the children had set out on the longer path without the military escort, CPT volunteers had called the Israeli military four times inquiring as to the whereabouts of the escort. During CPT’s final call to the military – more than 30 minutes after their initial call – the military dispatch office said that they hadn’t yet called the soldiers, who were to provide the escort, because they were too busy and had more important duties to perform.

Operation Dove and Christian Peacemaker Teams have maintained an international presence in At-Tuwani and South Hebron Hills since 2004.

Israeli settlers lay in front of tractors; attempt to prohibit Palestinian agricultural work

23 January 2011 | Operation Dove & Christian Peacemaker Teams

At-Tuwani, South Hebron Hills, West Bank – On Saturday, 22nd of January, Palestinian farmers successfully plowed fields in Khoruba valley, despite heavy harassment by settlers from the nearby settlement of Ma’on.

In the early morning, about twenty farmers from At-Tuwani started sowing seed and plowing fields in Khoruba valley, southeast from At-Tuwani. Soon thereafter, five settlers arrived from nearby Havat Ma’on outpost and positioned themselves in front of the tractors, in an attempt to prevent the farmers from completing their work. As more settlers arrived, tempers flared and the farmers attempted to move the settlers and physically block them from interfering with the land cultivation.

Approximately thirty minutes later, Israeli soldiers and Border Police arrived and immediately stopped the tractors from plowing. The Israeli forces took the ID cards of three farmers while removing both settlers and farmers from the immediate vicinity of the tractors.

The Israeli District Coordinating Office (DCO), the branch of the Israeli military responsible for the coordination of civilian affairs, later confirmed the right of Palestinians to plow the fields but the Border Police requested that all Palestinians and international peace activists leave the area, except for the farmers directly involved in the agricultural work.

Three settler youths moved from Khoruba valley to an area one kilometer south where they stopped another tractor from plowing and proceeded to throw stones at a Palestinian shepherd and his flock. Israeli forces again intervened, removing the settler youths from the area.

After the completion of the agricultural work, one Palestinian farmer was taken to the Kiryat Arba police station for questioning, and later released, after a settler made a formal complaint that he was assaulted.

An international delegation with four British MPs, was present for part of the incident and spoke with Palestinian farmers, Israeli forces, and an Israeli settler.

In the last five years, through several coordinated nonviolent actions, Palestinians from At-Tuwani and Yatta have successfully cultivated fields previously made inaccessible due to settler violence and harassment, Through the reacquisition of this land, Palestinians are asserting their right to the land and working to ensure their food security for the coming seasons.

Operation Dove and Christian Peacemaker Teams have maintained an international presence in At-Tuwani and South Hebron Hills since 2004.

[Note: According to the Fourth Geneva Convention, the Hague Regulations, the International Court of Justice, and several United Nations resolutions, all Israeli settlements and outposts in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are illegal. Most settlement outposts, including Havat Ma’on (Hill 833), are considered illegal also under Israeli law.]

“Soldiers, settlers, and the police are the occupation”: Hani Abu Haikal’s life inside the Tel Rumeida settlement

9 January 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramona

Hani Abu Haikal and his family live in Hebron’s H2, which is under Israeli control. They are part of the 30,000 Palestinians that live among 500 settlers in this part of the city. Life for Palestinians inside H2 is extremely difficult, with many of them facing settler harassment, movement constraints, and a large military and police presence serving settlers’ interests, even if most attacks are directed at Palestinians.

Hani and his family have to deal with all these issues, in addition to the fact that they live deep inside the Tel Rumeida settlement, surrounded by settlers on all sides. Only around five Palestinian families remain inside, while many have left because of the troubles they faced. The situation got especially bad during the second Intifada, in 2000, when there was a curfew imposed on Palestinians for three years. This meant that Palestinians could not work, or go to school, among other much needed activities needed to survive.

Many restrictions continue to exist for families inside the settlement. They cannot have guests without getting prior permission from Israeli authorities. This includes family member and friends, and even ambulances and doctors. Israeli authorities reject around 60% of their requests for visitors. This makes life for Hani’s family very difficult, especially for his mother who is very sick and old. She cannot walk, so she needs to have doctors come inside the settlement to visit her.

There are many other restrictions that Hani’s family has to deal with. Palestinians have no permission to own cars so they have to walk everywhere, and carry everything to their home. Settlers on the other hand, can have as many cars as they want. Palestinians inside the settlement live under martial law, while the Israelis live under civilian law. Palestinians constantly face harassment at the hands of settlers. Settlers have beaten up Hani’s son, without any repercussions. In the past, when Hani was able to own cars, settlers burned more than six of his cars. Settlers have also repeatedly damaged and burned his land.

Recently, an empty Palestinian home was taken over by settlers. The Palestinian owner of the house has an Israeli Supreme Court order to evacuate the settlers, but the police have not followed the order.

On Wednesday, January 5, Hani had a visit from the recently appointed Hebron governor, Kamil Hamid as well as Palestinian Authority doctors, who came to visit Hani’s sick mother. As is the case with all people coming to visit his home, he had to get special permission from Israeli authorities to allow the visit. It took two weeks to get the permission. It was also promised that the military would protect the governor from settler attacks.

Things did not turn out so smoothly, however. The governor faced settler verbal and physical attacks, without any protection from the military or police. Baruch Marcel, the founder of the extreme right-wing Jewish National Front party, who also lives in the Tel Rumeida settlement, lead and gathered all the settlers. The Israeli military and police stood by while the attacks were happening, and Hani and his body guards had to rush over to protect the governor.

After the governor, the doctors and Hani were able to get inside his home safely, they were trapped inside for three hours while the settlers’ mob remained outside. Soldiers tried to get the governor to leave the building from the back, but he refused, and said “I am a governor, I am not a thief. I come with special permission, under Israeli protection and I’m supposed to come back as I came in.”

For Hani, this incident was indicative of the troubles Palestinians face in Hebron’s H2. “I liked what happened because the governor saw what our real lives are like here” Hani said. It was an opportunity for the governor to see the unfair treatment that Palestinians receive from Israeli authorities. Even with all the preparation that went into having the governor visit Hani’s home, he was still not provided with the protection he was promised. This shows that the Israeli system is unjust in its treatment of Palestinians, even if they are high government officials.

According to Hani, the occupation’s strength comes from soldiers, settlers, and police working together to uphold the occupation. There is a misconception that the Israeli soldiers and police uphold the system of law and justice, and protect everyone equally. He says. “Anyone who lives here like me knows that the soldiers, the police and the settlers are a team that work together.” he says. “The settlers, they attack us. The solders give settlers protection. And the police arrests us.” This team works together to implement and enforce Israel’s efforts at population transfer of Palestinians from areas Israel wants to control. Life is made so difficult for Palestinians that they often have no other choice but to leave.

Protester arrested as soldiers occupy Nabi Saleh

9 January 2011 | Popular Struggle Coordination Committee

Border Police officers arresting Ouday Tamimi. Picture credit: Bilal Tamimi

Dozens of soldiers brought the village of Nabi Saleh to a standstill today in yet another attempt to curb demonstrations in the village. One protester was arrested, and two required medical treatment for their injuries.

Dozens of villagers, joined by Israeli and international supporters took part in the weekly demonstration in the village despite the siege laid on the village by the army, and the unusually large number of soldiers who occupied the village’s streets. Many hiked through the mountains the entire area was declared a closed military zone as early as 9 am and a gate that was installed at the entrance to the village earlier this week was shut closed.

Unlike most weeks, this Friday’s midday prayer, which precedes the demonstration, did not take place in the village’s mosque, but rather on the hill opposing the settlement. As people gathered to pray, soldiers and Border Police officers rushed towards them, ordering them to enter their homes for the duration of the closed military zone order. In response, the protesters staged a sit-in and refused to leave the place.

At the same time, clashes broke inside the village between the armed soldiers who took over the village, and local youth. Throughout the day, soldiers shot rubber-coated bullets at the protesting villagers and their supporters, as well as massive quantities of tear-gas. Tear-gas projectiles were often shot directly at the protesters, causing one injury. At some point, a pregnant women was evacuated to the hospital, after soldiers fired a tear-gas projectile directly into her house. Naji Tamimi, a member of the village’s popular committee, was beaten by a group of Border Police officers as he tried to approach the house in order to evacuate her.

During the day, soldiers randomly took over houses and arrested a seventeen year-old from the street. They have also tried to detained a thirteen year-old boy, but after other demonstrators gathered around him to prevent his arrest, the soldiers decided to not peruse his detention.

At nightfall, on the army’s retreat out of the village, a final barrage of tear-gas was volleyed, as 64 projectiles were simultaneously fired into the village.