Tag: Video - Page 54 - International Solidarity Movement

BDS action against Israeli pharmaceutical company at COSMOFARMA expo

Rome Palestinian Solidarity Network

13 May 2010

On Saturday, May 8 a protest organized by the “Rome Palestinian Solidarity Network”(comprised of numerous associations and committees who stand with the Palestinian struggle for freedom) was held at the entrance to Rome’s exhibition center during COSMOFARMA, a pharmaceuticals expo attended by thousands of health professionals. The Rome Palestinian Solidarity Network, which endorses the international campaign for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) on the Israeli economy, aimed at raising awareness of the BDS campaign, calling on physicians, pharmacists and health workers not to purchase or prescribe products from the Israeli pharmaceutical company TEVA, the leading global manufacturer of generic drugs, or from L’Oréal, which through its substantial investments in Israel is helping to strengthen the Israeli war economy.

It is this economy, as denounced by the activists present at the Expo with Palestinian flags, banners and flyers, which continues to enrich itself through the occupation policies of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, through policies of apartheid and ethnic cleansing that continue to oppress the Palestinian people, through land confiscation, military violence and the illegal siege of the Gaza Strip. All taking place with the complicit silence of international community. While the protest was taking place outside, activists entered Hall 11 of the Expo to distribute leaflets at the TEVA stand, informing and engaging attendees on the reasoning and objectives of the Boycott Campaign. For more than 15 minutes, activists of the Rome Palestinian Solidarity Network attracted the attention of thousands of visitors through chants, conversations and leafleting while waving the Palestinian flag. The protest was cut short as the police arrived, taking five activists to the police office within the fairgrounds, where they were detained for over two hours in custody, and then charged with “unauthorized demonstration.” The police confiscated a megaphone, a Palestinian flag, the t-shirts worn by the activists reading “Free Palestine” and “Boycott Israel” and the video camera used to film the action.

The BDS campaign is expanding and intensifying throughout the world, and continues to have an impact on the image of a country, Israel, which despite the occupation of Palestine and the policies of apartheid still refers to itself as “the only democracy in the Middle East”. A country that uses opportunities such as that offered by COSMOFARMA to show its more “attractive” side. The effectiveness of the BDS campaign is in its ability to unmask this unacceptable hypocrisy, and just as activists standing with the Palestinian liberation struggle were present for COSMOFARMA on Saturday, tomorrow we will continue to exert political pressure through the BDS campaign, which is beginning to produce significant results.

Demonstrators succeed in delaying illegal wall construction; brutal military violence hospitalizes three

International Solidarity Movement

6 May 2010

Demonstrators peacefully block bulldozer. Credit: Oren Ziv/Activestills.org

Sitting peacefully in front of the formidable D9 Caterpillar bulldozer, demonstrators were successful today in temporarily halting construction of Israel’s illegal annexation wall. In the village of Al Walaja, approximately 20 Palestinian, Israeli and international activists disrupted work on the wall for nearly 30 minutes. Highlighting the systematic racism of Israeli apartheid, soldiers specifically targeted Palestinian participants. While internationals and Israelis were virtually ignored, Palestinians were brutally beaten and pepper sprayed, resulting in three hospitalizations. Three Palestinians and one international were arrested.

Palestinians being brutally beaten. Credit: Oren Ziv/Activestills.org

After gathering in the village, demonstrators walked down a hillside to access the massive, dusty swath of ex-farmland where the wall is to be built. Sitting in front of the bulldozer and linking arms, the action proved successful in delaying construction of the wall which will claim nearly all of Al Walaja’s land. Approximately 15 soldiers and border police then attacked the non-violent demonstrators, separating Palestinians from the group and pepper spraying some directly in the eyes while beating others. After arresting three Palestinians, Israeli military returned to violently rip apart international and Israeli activists. Several reported minor injuries, and one international was arrested. Currently three Palestinians remain hospitalized. Beatings resulted in one broken rib and one broken leg, and a third victim has impaired hearing due to receiving pepper spray directly in the ear. Of those arrested, at least one had been pepper sprayed directly in the eyes without receiving proper medical treatment afterwards.

http://www.youtube.com/user/klamathmedia#p/a/u/0/O6J4h4_icKY

This is third time bulldozers have been stopped in Al Walaja, which is located between Jerusalem and Bethlehem. After 1967, the village was annexed into Jerusalem, although villagers did not receive city residency. The settlements Gilo and Har Gilo are located on Al Walaja land, although villagers cannot build on their own lots. Because the village is in “Area C”, building permits must be granted by the Israeli government. Between 2000 and 2007, over 94% of permits were denied. Upon completion of the wall, Al Walaja will be almost entirely trapped, with access limited to just two guarded checkpoints. Over 5,000 dunums will be annexed into Jerusalem by the wall, virtually all of the village’s farmland.

Israeli forces shoot unarmed demonstrators in Gazan ‘buffer zone’

ISM Gaza

24 April 2010

UPDATE: Video has been added to this post. Please see below

El Maghazi, Deir Al Balah, Gaza, Occupied Palestinian Territories, 24th April 2010, 12PM – At a peaceful nonviolent demonstration against the forceful cessation of farming within what Israel defines as a “buffer zone,” which was attended by 150 people, two Palestinians demonstrators and one International activist were shot. Israeli soldiers opened fire on the demonstrators from the border fence. Nidal Al Naji (18) was shot in the right thigh. Hind Al Akra (22) was shot in the stomach and is undergoing emergency surgery. Bianca Zammit (28) from Malta was filming the demonstration when she was shot in her left thigh. The wounded are currently being treated in Al Aqsa Hospital.

Shortly after 11 a.m., women and men, including 6 ISM activists, marched from Al Maghazi towards the Israeli fence closing off the Gaza strip. After being met with live ammunition upon cresting a ridge, some demonstrators continued walking forward. This group included six women, two ISM activists and 20 men. The 20 male demonstrators reached the border fence. Zammit was shot while filming the demonstration between the ridge and the fence, at a distance of roughly 80-100 meters. Hind Al Akra, also standing between the ridge and the fence, was shot in the stomach, and Niadal al Naji was shot in the leg near the fence. Demonstrators carried the wounded back across rough terrain to taxis for transport to Al-Aqsa Hospital.

The demonstrations are held in protest against the arbitrary decision by Israel to instate a 300 metre buffer zone as no-go area for Palestinians where “shoot to kill” policy is implemented. People have been shot regularly as far as 2 kilometres away from the border. Popular Campaign for the Security in the Buffer Zone, an umbrella organization that includes organizations representing farmers and Gaza residents living near the border, and also a number of political parties are present at many of these demonstrations.

Those venturing to the border regions to gather rubble and steel do so as a result of the siege on Gaza which, along with Israel’s 23 day winter war on Gaza, has decimated Gaza’s economy, including 95 percent of Gaza’s factories and businesses, according to the United Nations. Additionally, these recycled construction materials are vital in Gaza where the Israeli-led siege bans all but under 40 items from entering.

The siege prevents vitally needed construction materials from entering Gaza, where over 6,400 houses were destroyed or severely damaged in the Israeli war on Gaza, and nearly 53,000 sustained lesser damages. Hospitals and medical centres, schools, kindergartens and mosques are among the other buildings destroyed and damaged during the Israeli war on Gaza.

Animation produced in Palestine: struggles with breast cancer in Gaza

Directed by Ahmad Habash

25 March 2010

Fatenah is a 27 year old woman living in the Gaza Strip. Her life is similar to the lives of many other women in Gaza. Her life changes the day she discovers to have breast
cancer. This animation, the first produced in Palestine, shows with great accuracy the scenarios of Gaza city. The 27 minutes long story is a breath-taking journey into Fatenah’s daily struggles. It uncovers the human drama of her fight to survive. This journey into the heart of the Gaza Strip will touch and move you.

Part 1/3

Part 2/3

Part 3/3

Directed by Ahmad Habash, Screenplay Saed Andoni, Ahmad Habash, Ambrogio
Manenti, Produced by Saed Andoni, Music Said Murad, Editing Saed Andoni,
Animation Ahmad Habash, Director of Photography Ahmad Habash, Sound Designer

Zaher Rashmawi, Voices – Actors: Buthaina Sumairi (Fatenah), Ahmad Abu
Saloom (Abu Rasheed), Shaden Saleem (Amal), Imad Ahmad (Mualem), Mesbah Deeb
(Ayman), Waleed Aqel (Dr. Salah / AMB. Driver), Nibal Thawabteh
(Lutfieh),
Hanan El Hilu (Dafna), Amira Habash (IDF soldier), Ahmad Habash (Palestinian
Dr. / IDF soldier), Saed Andoni (IDF sergeant), Gabriel Lambert (Israeli
Dr.), Chiara Stefanini (Israeli nurse)..

Israeli Court Begins Hearing Testimonies in the Unlawful Killing of 23 year old American Activist Rachel Corrie

Rachel Corrie Foundation

10 March 2010

For Immediate Release

Supporters rally with the Corrie family outside the court building on the first day of the trial. Courtesy Rachel Corrie Foundation.

The Haifa District Court began hearing eyewitness testimonies today, March 10, 2010, in a civil lawsuit filed by Rachel Corrie’s family against the State of Israel for her unlawful killing in Rafah, Gaza. Rachel Corrie, an American human rights defender from Olympia, Washington, was crushed to death on March 16, 2003 by a Caterpillar D9R bulldozer. She had been nonviolently demonstrating against Palestinian home demolitions with fellow members of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a Palestinian-led movement committed to resisting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land using nonviolent, direct action methods and principles.

The court heard the testimonies of two ISM witnesses, British citizens Richard Purssell and Tom Dale. Their testimonies were frequently interrupted due to poor court-provided translation, which the presiding judge, Oded Gershon, acknowledged to be flawed. A new court translator was requested by the judge for the coming hearings.

The state attorneys spent most of their time cross-examining the eye-witnesses about the ISM and their purpose in Rafah. Purssell repeatedly affirmed that his purpose for being in Gaza was to offer nonviolent protection to Palestinian civilians whose homes were threatened with demolition by the Israeli military. Relatively little time was spent ascertaining what happened to Rachel Corrie.

“Seven years after my daughter Rachel was killed, I was finally able to hear Rachel’s friends, who were with her, testify in a court of law. Despite some disheartening procedural challenges, we remain hopeful that the truth about what happened to Rachel will be revealed, and that the people responsible for her killing will be held accountable,” said Cindy Corrie, Rachel’s mother.

The courtroom was filled with local and international reporters, human rights observers and three representatives from the U.S. Embassy, including Consul General Andrew Parker. Last night, the Corrie family met with Parker and senior members of Vice President Joseph Biden’s staff in Jerusalem. Antony Blinken, the Deputy Assistant to the President and National Security Advisor to the Vice President, reconfirmed the long-standing U.S. Government position that there has not been a thorough, credible, and transparent investigation into Rachel’s case. They reiterated the U.S. Government’s endorsement of pursuing justice for Rachel through the Israeli court system. Embassy staff will continue to attend the trial.

“I continue to be humbled by the steadfast dedication to nonviolent support for all of our human rights demonstrated by Rachel’s friends, not just seven years ago in Rafah, but again today in Haifa,” said Craig Corrie, Rachel’s father.

In the Media

Associated Press, ‘Trial begins over death of US activist in Gaza’
CNN, ‘Parents demand answers from Israel in bulldozer death’
Democracy Now, ‘Civil Trial Begins over Israeli Army Killing of Rachel Corrie’
Guardian, ‘British activist saw Rachel Corrie die under Israeli bulldozer, court hears’
Ha’aretz, ‘State accused of whitewash as Rachel Corrie suit begins’
Ha’aretz, ‘State: IDF not to blame for activist Rachel Corrie’s death’
Ha’aretz, ‘Corrie’s sister to Haaretz: U.S. encouraged family to sue Israel’
Huffington Post, ‘Rachel Corrie’s (Posthumous) Day in Court’
Independent, ‘I saw Israeli bulldozer kill Rachel Corrie’
Ma’an News, ‘Israeli Defense Ministry goes on trial for Corrie death’
Reuters, ‘Family of slain U.S. activist sues Israel’
The National, ‘Corrie family finally puts Israel in dock over daughter’s death’
YNet News, ‘Dozens protest near Haifa Court in memory of Rachel Corrie’