APRIL 2006
LOOK
YOU, THE PALESTINIANS ARE SUFFERING MORE AND MORE - THESE
PEOPLE DO NOT WRITE FOR LITERATURE BUT FOR PUBLIC
INFORMATION, AND THEY PUT THEMSELVES ON THE LINE AGAINST
ISRAELS OCCUPYING FORCES AND NOW THE EUROPEAN UNION AND
USA HAVE WITHDRAWN ALL FINANCIAL SUPPORT .
6. Human Rights Worker’s Hebron Journal
April 11th, 2006
www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/04/337745.html
This post is from a Brighton based activist spending
April in occupied Palestine with the International
Solidarity Movement, a network of international activists
set up to support Palestinian non violent resistance
against Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. In these
posts I will be writing short accounts of aspects of the
occupation and resistance.
I am currently volunteering with the ISM in Tel Rumeida,
Hebron. Internationals from the ISM and the Tel Rumeida
Project stay in Tel Rumeida as witnesses to settler
violence and to non-violently intervene if settlers
attack.
Tel Rumeida is one of the saddest places I have been in
Palestine. It is a tiny district on the outskirts of the
Old City separated from the nominaly PA controlled area
of Hebron by a permanent checkpoint across a narrow
street. It feels like it should be a lively and vibrant
place but Shuhada street, once lined with shops, now
looks like a ghost town. It is flanked by boarded up
shops and a military checkpoint at each end. Shuhada
street appears empty but in fact it is still home to many
Palestinian families living above deserted shops who
often feel too intimidated to walk in the street.
This is because Shuhada street and Tel Rumeida street
(see www.telrumeidaproject.org/map_telrumeida.html
) live alongside some of the most violent and extreme
members of the settler movement in the occupied
territories. These Israeli Jewish settlers live next to
the Palestinian inhabitants and have mounted a campaign
of harassment against them with the desired end result of
the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Hebron.
International volunteers in Tel Rumeida escort
Palestinian children to and from the local school. This
is to provide protection from settler attacks. Settlers
regularly beat and throw stones at Palestinian children,
there were 12 incidents of this in December 2005 (see www.telrumeidaproject.org/monthly_summary.html
for monthly reports). Although the Israeli army have a
huge presence in Tel Rumeida they regularly ignore such
incidents. Every morning and afternoon Palestinian
children must walk through a hostile neighbourhood
through IDF checkpoints and barbed wire to reach their
school.
Simply continuing to live in Tel Rumeida is an act of
resistance for local Palestinians. In the short time I
have been here I have had stones thrown at me by Settler
children and have seen people spat at by the settlers.
But things can get much worse, often settlers riot in Tel
Rumeida hurling rocks and terrorizing the community (see www.telrumeidaproject.org/riots_photos.html
).
On Wednesday Israeli holiday time began and will continue
until April 21st. During Israeli holidays Palestinians
are particularly vulnerable to attacks from settlers, who
are often joined by supporters from the wider
’settler movement’. Some of the worst attacks
on Palestinians have occurred on Shabbat. I hope that Tel
Rumeida will be quiet throughout the holidays but I think
the international community should be watching the events
in Tel Rumeida in the coming weeks
The Wall Must Fall
thewallmustfall@hotmail.com
_______________________
7. Recent Israeli Military Operations in Aida Camp
April 8th, 2006
From: Abdel Fattah Abu-Srour, PhD
Subject: News from Aida Camp
(http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/article.php?pg=11&ar=184)
Israeli occupation soldiers during this whole week
continued their harassment to Aida camp inhabitants, with
tear gas, rubber bullets, taking hostages and shooting 3
kids 11-13 years old (one of them is a deaf-mute child)
with rubber bullets in the head and abdomen, and
provocative actions through the loud speakers of their
armored jeeps.
On Thursday, two workers on the popular committee went to
a store to take out some of their equipment to start
working in one of the job creation projects in the camp.
It was an Israeli soldier who opened the door and the
weapon pointed at them ordered them to come in. The
director of the Camp, who is a UNRWA employee, with
another employee went to check what happened (the
building is just next to their office), they were also
taken hostage… so another UNRWA employee called the
UNRWA direction and 2 hours later, the UNRWA employees
were released however, Mustafa Jamil Abusrour, and
Mustafa Shawkat Malash were kept hostages.
We went to see and ‘negotiate’ the liberation
of the hostages, and took a glance where the soldiers
hide, and they were painted black on their faces. We
asked if they had anyone responsible to talk with, the
answer was “go home”. Around two hours later, a
military jeep came in from the military point occupying
the Mosque of Bilal Ibn Rabah (transformed into a
synagogue after 1967 occupation and renamed Rachel’s
Tomb) and passed back and forth, no body moved, and they
didn’t say anything. Then the jeep went into the
camp, and made several tours, and then on the other end
of the camp we heard some shooting. It was tear gas and
rubber bullets.
About 6 hours later, the 2 hostages were released and the
soldiers went out of the building… it seemed that
they used it as a hiding place to surprise the kids and
to keep watch over the building of the new illegal wall
and new Synagogue to the east of Aida, south of the
mosque Bilal ibn Rabah.
The most provocative day was today (April 8th) after they
assassinated a “wanted” Palestinian in
Bethlehem, the jeep entered the camp, near the girls
school (few meters from the illegal apartheid wall), and
the other one near the intercontinental hotel. According
to someone living in that place, one of those arrogant
soldiers starts shouting in a shameless tune:
“Come out to me inhabitants of Aida! Come out and
take your dose”
The soldier next to him was telling the one who was
shooting what to shoot, once tear gas, another time
rubber bullets. Some of the kids gathered a bit far, and
threw stones at them, but they were not even close to the
jeep, but the shooting and tear gas continued.
At around 4:30 p.m, a mother of twin girls who were in
the theatre rehearsals called at the center, and asked me
not to let the girls leave the center, because the army
was just shooting tear gas near the school where their
house also is located. Life continues… and we
continue to write… and you continue to read…
how long will that continue…. how long before those
who have some authority in this world exercise their
authority to force such gangsters and bandits to stop
their crimes against the humans we are, and against
humanity itself? Can anyone help us with an answer?
Wishing you a better day and a better night, and a better
week than the one had…
Abdel Fattah Abu-Srour, PhD
Director of Al-Rowwad Cultural and Theatre Training
Center
____________________
8. More Military Operations in Nablus
April 11th, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
At least 15 people have been arrested and 10 people
injured in an Israeli Military operation this morning,
according to international human rights workers based in
the area. The situation regarding house occupations is
unclear.
The Israeli military entered Nablus in the early hours of
the morning. At about 4.30am they began military
operations in the district around al-Najah University and
on 24th Sreeet. Fifteen were arrested, more than 10
injured, 3 by rubber bullets. A Palestinian journalist,
Jafa Ishtayi, was beaten by a soldier with an M16 rifle.
Since the Israeli election the Israeli military have
entered Nablus almost nightly and frequently during the
day. Yesterday 4 people were injured by rubber bullets in
an afternoon military invasion.
For more information call:
Mohammed Ayyash: 054 6218759
______________________
9. Picking Up the Pieces
March 22, 2006
IWPS House Article No. 84 (http://www.iwps-pal.org/en/articles/article.php?id=881)
Jenin refugee camp, in the northern part of the West
Bank, is home to approximately 14,000 people, crowded
into an area of about 1 square kilometer. The refugees
came mostly in 1948 from the Haifa area, a coastal town
in what is now the state of Israel.
At the entrance of Jenin refugee camp there is a huge
horse sculpture. It is made from an assortment of scrap
metal, the remains of an ambulance and two cars which
were attacked and exploded when the Israeli army invaded
the camp in 2002. Everyone was killed, including a
doctor, reportedly one of Jenin’s best. Being a
medic in Palestine is a dangerous job.
Our first stop was to the rehabilitation centre for
people with disabilities. It is the only centre of its
kind in the northern part of the West Bank. The centre
works particularly with children, both those who have
been born with a disability, such as cerebral palsy and
those who have been injured physically and mentally
during the Intifada. They provide a wide range of
services, such as physiotherapy, occupational therapy,
psychological interventions/treatments, medication and
family support.
The newly opened prosthetics department is on the ground
floor. It was one of the many times I fought back my
tears. Seeing the artificial limbs was a very stark image
of life under occupation. Rows of feet lined up on the
shelves, an assortment of sizes from small children to
adults. This image stabbed me. Hanging on the wall
outside were crutches and on the workbench limbs in
progress.
Up until a few months ago when the department opened,
they relied on a specialist coming every two months from
Ramallah or Bethlehem. The measurements would be taken,
the new limb made, but by the time the specialist
returned two months later (due to long curfews, travel
restrictions or heavy work load), the limb would often no
longer fit and so the process would start again.
Upstairs in the centre was a well equipped play room and
what had been a computer room, before the contents were
destroyed and vandalised by the Israeli soldiers. On the
corridor walls were pictures, drawn by 11 and 12 year
olds. The first one was of the camp pre-invasions, all
the rest were of during the invasions. I was deeply moved
by the stories told, of the horrors that became reality
for those children, as they were attacked by one of the
most powerful armies of the world. Pictures of bodies
lying bleeding in the street. Pictures of apache
helicopters and fighter plane bombing their houses.
Pictures of soldiers firing their weapons.
Jenin camp was very badly hit during the 2002- 2004
invasions, and the whole city and surrounding areas were
under long curfews. The first 2 weeks of the invasions
were the worst in terms of the numbers killed, 57 or 63
according to differing sources of the day. Much of the
camp was razed to the ground. 420 homes completely
destroyed. 800 homes partly destroyed. Given the size of
Palestinian families that means thousands of people left
homeless. For some of the older generation that was at
least the third time in their lives they were made
homeless, first in 1948, followed by 1967 and then again
in 2002. Many of the houses were destroyed as the
armoured Caterpillar bulldozers ploughed through the
narrow streets of the densely populated camp, decimating
everything in its path in order to reach and destroy the
houses of fighters. An extremely blatant example of
collective punishment and clearly violates international
law (4th Geneva Convention, Article 33 prohibits
collective !
punishment, prohibits reprisals against people
& property. Hague Regulations, Article 50 outlaws
collective punishment)
Our host, Basem, spoke not only about the camp but also
about his village, Yabad, which is now surrounded by 5
illegal Israeli settlements and the Apartheid Wall. A
journey which could take as little as 13 minutes took him
6 hours during the invasions. In order to transport a
sick neighbour to hospital he had to drive cross country,
through the olive trees, unable to use the roads in what
had been declared a closed military zone.
The short journey through the camp to our next stop, the
“Freedom Theatre” revealed to me something of
the extent of the destruction during the invasions. All
the new houses, of which there were countless, were the
ones that had been rebuilt after being demolished by the
Israeli army. The remaining houses were littered with
bullet marks.
The “Freedom Theatre” has new premises. A hall
with a stage and some lights. On the wall some photos of
Arna mer Khanis (an Israeli woman married to a
Palestinian man) and the Palestinian and Israeli children
she brought together in theatre projects. Too many of
them are now dead. Alongside the photos a “Free Tali
Fahima” poster. Later, Basem showed us the remains
of a house, which had been destroyed the third time over,
nothing more than some rubble & timber. One of the
homes in which the “Freedom Theatre” had
formerly performed.
After lunch we visited the “Not to Forget”
women’s centre. Farha, the chairperson welcomed us
and explained how during the 2002-2004 invasions, a group
of women formed a society to help the women and children
of Jenin camp. The centre grew out of their work. All the
women are volunteers and most of them have lost someone
during the Intifada. They provide lots of activities for
children, such as art and dance classes as well as summer
camps. Over a thousand children are benefiting from their
services, having a chance to rediscover something of
childhood. For the women they provide training such as
computer classes and education around the elections, as
well as embroidery groups enabling them to generate some
income. Farha explained how many women in the camp have
psychological problems, arising from having their sons or
husbands in prison, financial problems due to high
unemployment, losing family members as martyrs and the
difficulties resulting from long curfews.
Whilst we were there six girls, around 10 or 11 years
old, gave a dance performance. The serious, focused mood
of the first few dances dissolved into something lighter
and ended with all of us joining the dabka, the
traditional Palestinian folk dance. Watching these girls
smiling, laughing, eyes twinkling, and the young man who
was teaching them with such energy and joy, was a
beautiful experience. I was moved by their spirit and
their ability to pick up their lives. Throughout the West
Bank there are countless examples of the attempts by the
Israeli government and military to erase the Palestinian
people and culture. I am learning all the time of the
countless forms of resistance. Keeping the traditional
dances alive and vibrant is one such form.
Refugee camps can conjure up the image of masses of
people living a temporary life in tents. Whilst there may
be a mental insecurity, triggered by (the then) frequent
invasions, there is not a sense of impermanence. People
are living in houses. There are shops. Schools. Clinics.
Mosques. The land is rented for long periods. It is
obvious the problems faced by the refugees will not be
resolved quickly, if ever. The enormity of the refugee
problem is slowly dawning on me. Basem spoke of how many
of the old people keep safe the keys to their houses and
deeds to their land, in what is now Israel. Clearly the
idea of “a land without people, for a people without
land” is inaccurate, to say the least. By continuing
to live in the camp, rather than moving elsewhere the
people of Jenin camp are maintaining their status as
refugees, and with that their right of return.
Text by: Alys
Editing: Grace, Lina
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