Saturday, August 30, 2008

Palestine-Israel, The struggle continue, with old and new waves - AAtW in Ni'ilin, Bil'in, Um Salmuna and the refusnics front

The struggle in Bil'in continues in spite of the harassments - the usual Friday demonstration and the ongoing maintaining of the outpost on the west side of the separation fence. In Ni'ilin, the nearly daily demonstrations against the separation fence in build continue - though in a lower intensity, as the youth returned to school and the olive picking season is nearing. The army efforts to block the Israeli anarchists against the wall initiative fluctuates - reaching a pick on Thursday. In Um Salmuna, During the Friday demonstration, the gate to the route of the separation fence was forced open... "inviting" retaliation against the village activists. On Monday comrades accompanied a refusnic to the recruiting center where she got a week in jail for refusing enlisting.


About Media, Democracy, Violence, and Occupation
http://www.tv.social.org.il/eng/stv-nialin-19-8-08-eng.htm

Supporting demo for the objector Sahar Vardi -25-8-08 - link to video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wbI-cXFF9I

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Palestine-Israel, AAtW and the joint struggle against the separation fence and occupation - Bil'in, Ni'ilin, Tel-Aviv, Um Salmuna

Ni'ilin was the focus of our struggle this week too. Israeli activists joined the Anarchists Against the Wall initiative for 4 demonstrations and one meeting. The Israeli state restrict a bit the "super democracy for Jews" and put more efforts in blocking our way to Ni'ilin - preventing us from passing road blocks or "only" detaining us up to an hour before letting go. One comrade was even arrested for the bogus "trying to run over a soldier"... but released at a far away police station for "now guilt". In Bil'in and Um Salmuna we participated in the Friday demonstrations. On Thursday, a solidarity demo in front of the war ministry compound in solidarity with a jailed total refusenic of the new wave.

NI'ILIN

After a media focus on Ni'ilin following shooting in the foot of an arrested, blindfolded, and handcuffed Palestinian, border police gendarmes replaced the army in protecting the works on the route of the separation fence. May be the change in state force was the reason for our failure to stop the works for even a short time. However, again and again we came very near to the works and had clashes with the gendarmes while retreating to the village.

On Friday the state forces did a special efforts (that failed) to block the way of activists to the demonstration in Ni'ilin. Comrades who were on the way to the Friday demonstration in the near by Bil'in were detained for a while before released to continue our way to Bil'in.

Thursday 14.8.08 Ni'ilin video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBoFW0qZFP4
Thursday 21.8.08 Ni'ilin video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Begm9fSQMwM


BIL'IN

After experimenting with the "Skunk stink" water canon the two previous Fridays they used this Friday "only" colored water... and the usual tear gas shock grenades and some rubber coated bullets.

Following is the video clip of the previous Friday demonstration. You may even smell the stinking water that hit the photographer...
Friday's 15.8.08 Bil'in demo at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Cpl62Y0ZhA


TEL AVIV

Thursday was the first public action of the new wave of high school graduates total refusenics. AAtW activists are involved with it and they are involved with our struggles.

Udi Nir, 19, from the Tel-Aviv suburb of Hertzlia, has been sentenced yesterday (20 Aug. ) to 21 days in military prison.

Udi Nir is the first conscientious objector to be imprisoned among a new group of high school seniors, who signed a collective declaration of refusal to serve in the Israeli army of occupation. He has been called up to enlist this Monday, 18 Aug., but planned to delay his imprisonment (technically - by going AWOL) to join other signatories of the letter. This intention, however, was noted by the press (Udi appeared in a TV feature and a negative newspaper feature over the weekend). This resulted in what was arguably the quickest operation of its sort in Israel's history. On Tuesday, one day after he has not showed up at the Induction Base, Udi Nir was arrested by civilian police (itself an unprecedented move), and was subsequently given a conditional sentence of 6 days in prison. The following day he was again tried, this time for refusing an order to enlist, and was sentenced to 21 days in prison.

A small demonstration to protest Udi's imprisonment was organized by other members of the high school seniors group (see images on the right), and has received some media coverage.

A demonstration in support of Udi Nir In a brief statement made on the day of his arrest, Udi Nir said:

I cannot take part in the activities of an occupying army, which constantly violates human rights. As an Israeli citizen and as an adolescent liable for enlistment I feel a sense of extensive responsibility for the cycle of violence and for all the choices I am making. It is out of this sense of responsibility that I refuse to enter the cycle of bloodshed and to add fuel to the fire of hatred raging here. I refuse to enlist into an occupying army so that I will not lend my own hand to the occupation and to acts that contradict my most basic values: human rights, democracy and the personal responsibility each and every human being bears towards fellow human beings.

Udi's full declaration of refusal, sent in a letter to the Minister of Defense, can be read here.

A demonstration in support of Udi Nir Udi's intention is to refuse to wear a military uniform in prison, which means he would be, or has already been, transferred to the Isolation Ward of the prison. He is due to be released from prison on 7 Sept. and is very likely to be imprisoned again several times after his release. His prison address is:

Udi Nir
Military ID 6022372
Military Prison No. 400
Military Postal Code 02447, IDF
Israel
Fax: ++972-4-9540580

Since the prison authorities often block mail from reaching imprisoned objectors, we also recommend you to send your letters of support and encouragement to Udi via e-mail to shministim@gmail. com, and they will be printed out and delivered to him during visits.
----------------

supporting demo for our third objector Sahar Vardi

This coming Monday, August 25th, Sahar Vardi will arrive to the recruiting station where she will declare her objection to serve in the occupying military. Sahar will be detained to the military prison.

In her letter Sahar explains the human responsibility to not hurt another human. She says that "The cycle of death is forever perpetuated by the choices of both sides to act with violence; this is a choice I refuse to take part of".

On Monday the 25th at 8 am, with Sahar's entrance to jail, we will stand outside the recruiting station in Tel Hashomer and call the government to end the injustice of the occupation.

For details, Tali: XXXXX

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Palestine-Israel, Ni'ilin, Bil'in, Um Salmuna - AAtW* and the joint struggle against the separation fence and occupation

During the week we participated "only" in two demonstrations in Ni'ilin. On Friday, there were the usual Ni'ilin, Bil'in (West of Ramallah) and Um Salmuna (south of Bethlehem). At Um Salmuna it is the quietest location due to topography and local considerations of both the local comity and the state forces.

BIL'IN

In Bil'in, the test field of demonstrations control weapons for Israeli state had another session of the "Skunk Spray" which backfired. Following a detailed report on the 182nd demo since February 2005: While marching with chanting, dancing, flags, and pictures of the late Palestinian poet Muhammad Darwish, we could see the water canon with the Skunk spray waiting at the gate in the separation fence leading to the western lands of the village.

Thus, instead of marching to the gate, we turned to the right through the olive trees to another section of the fence. There, the state force refrained from using the usual tear gas and rubber coated bullets to enable the experiment. However, the heavy car with the cannon took time to arrive, so the activists had the time to cut the external fence of the route of the separation fence and to converge near the electronic fence.

When the water cannon started spraying, most of the activist were already on the move towards the gate in the fence where the cannon was waiting for us... but no more there.

So, we converged there for a while till the water cannon returned, and then, just keeping 30 meter distance from it so it will not made the clothes and hairs smelly for few days. The plastic sheets some of us used for protection were redundant. The boasting of the state forces spokesperson during the week since its first use the previous Friday, that they developed the ultimate weapon to disperse the demonstrations against the separation fence, were found ridiculous again.

NI'ILIN

Ni'ilin - The cruelest choice by kobi snitz - a text by an AAtW* activist:
https://israel.indymedia.org/newswire/display/9456/index.php

Activities against the separation fence and their suppression continued every day with joint demonstrations on Monday Thursday and Friday. On Monday http://awalls.org reports:

Live ammunition used again in Ni'ilin 11/08/2008

A private security guard, hired by the Israeli Ministry of Defense, opened fire on unarmed Palestinian, Israeli and international demonstrators in Ni'ilin. No one was hit by the bullets, but a number of demonstrators were hit by bits of stones that ricocheted as a result of the bullets' impact.

Picture: http://awalls.org/files/images/After.jpg
Border policemen pushing back demonstrators moments after the shooting. The guards can still be seen in the back

The shooting began only several minutes into the demonstration, as demonstrators got close to the heavy machinery, and despite the fact that some of the protesters held their hands over their heads. There was absolutely no threat posed to the guards or work crew. The shooting was not preceded by stone throwing or any other form of violence by the demonstrators. A border police force arrived at the scene very quickly and started using teargas and rubber-coated bullets. Eight were injured, including a seven year old who was hit in the back by a rubber-coated bullet and a French demonstrator who was shot in the head with a teargas projectile.

Picture: http://awalls.org/files/images/Border.Police.jpg
Border policemen shooting teargas at the crowd



See media report on Thursday demonstration at: http://www.ainfos.ca/en/ainfos21255.html
=============================
* The Israeli Anarchists Against the Wall initiative

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Palestine-Israel, Two Youth Murdered As Israel Tries To Suppress Ni'ilin Uprising

For almost 4 months residents of Ni'ilin Village in the occupied West Bank, along with their Israeli and international supporters, have been trying to defend their lands through grassroots popular resistance, which includes almost daily demonstrations, attempts to block bulldozers and clashes. After losing much of its land in 1948 and due to the massive construction of settlements on its lands since 1967, Ni'ilin is now left with merely 7,000 dunams (1,700 acres). 2,500 dunams (about 620 acres) of these lands are expected to be left isolated and effectively confiscated behind Israel's illegal segregation wall http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/index.php?pr=71&code=mwp&p1=3&p2=4&p3=6&case=131&k=5a according to the current trajectory.

The Israeli army has employed severe and brutal violence in its attempt to suppress the Ni'ilin uprising, that has so far caused hundreds of injuries and has included arrests, the imposing of siege and curfew http://www.awalls.org/niilin_days_and_nights_of_siege_and_curfew as collective punishment, the the shooting of a cuffed and blindfolded detainee, http://www.awalls.org/a_cuffed_and_blindfolded_demonstrator_shot_with_a_rubber_bullet_from_pointblank_in_niilin and most recently the cold blooded murders of ten year old Ahmed Mousa http://www.awalls.org/10_year_old_murdered_in_niilin and 17 year old Ahmed Amireh http://www.awalls.org/niilin_youssef_amierehs_funeral_attacked_with_teargas_and_rubber_coated_bullets who was mortaly injured http://www.awalls.org/niilin_second_mortal_casualty_in_two_days on the eve of Mousa's funeral, and succumbed to his wounds five days later.

The village of Ni'ilin remains undeterred, and after three days of grieving over Ahmed Mousa, struggle has already resumed http://www.awalls.org/niilin_razor_wire_barricade_dismantled_in_ahmed_mousas_memory_7_injured Villagers vowed to continue the struggle against the theft of their lands and their livelihood.

As Anarchists Against the Wall wrote: "A monument erected in the memory of Ahmed Mousa where he was murdered, from stones stained by his blood".

For the first time since the murder and mortal injury that shocked Ni'ilin this week, about 600 villagers marched to their lands accompanied by Israeli and international supporters. Villagers prayed on their lands, only a few hundred meters away from where Ahmed Mousa was murdered, and as soon as they were done, loudspeakers went on announcing in Hebrew and Arabic that the area is a closed military zone, and threatened everyone present that force will be used if people will not disperse. A large border police force was present on the overlooking hill, with a valley separating them from the villagers.

On hearing the border police message, demonstrators grew more and more angry, and their rage over the past days could be felt very strongly. At first, shouts were called towards the officers, denouncing them as murderers and calling them to go back to their homes. Very quickly however, demonstrators lost interest in the border police's provocation and turned towards the wall's construction site. There were no bulldozers at work, but everyone knew that the razor wire barricade that was erected to try and prevent protesters from disrupting construction still stands. The same razor wire Ahmed Mousa was trying to take apart before he was murdered on Tuesday.

The border policemen started firing teargas at the demonstrators, but there was no stopping them. The protesters' resolved, fueled by their outrage of the last few days' events was greater than the pain caused by the teargas. When a group of a few dozen border policemen came nearer to the crowd and started firing rubber-coated bullets, collective ire erupted into a hail of stones.

Clashes continued for about four hours. After two hours, the demonstrators were pushed away from the groves, and into the first houses of the village, but at around 17:00, the army retreated, and demonstrators went back to finish what they had started - dismantling the razor wire barricade in Ahmed Mousa's memory, and blocking the path of the wall with it. An hour later it all lied on the path of the wall, about 300 meters of it.

Five Palestinians and two international activists were injured by rubber-coated bullets."

More info: http://www.awalls.org/niilin_razor_wire_barricade_dismantled_in_ahmed_mousas_memory_7_injured

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Palestine-Israel, Weekly report on the joint struggle against the separation fence and occupation - AAtW involvement

During the week and in the weekend Ni'ilin was the focus of the anarchists against the wall initiative (and people who joined us). Monday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday demonstrations in Ni'ilin and Tuesday demonstration in Zichron Ya'acov (where 23 of us were arrested.) Other Friday demonstrations were in Um Salmuna, and Bil'in (181th) where we were again subjects in another experiment of "nonlethal dispersing tools" of the Israeli state forces. This test was not painful at all, but very stinking. After we converged near the gate of route of the separation fence they used a water cannon that was welcomed the first second at the hot noon, but repulsing after the smell was felt.

NI'ILIN

Friday 1-8-08 video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INOEryW70Tc&feature=user
Yusuf Ahmad Amira's funeral - ni'lin 4-8-08 link to video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzqc0lr_qTY
Thursday 7-8-08 Israel video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zG7t8NpdU18
Thursday 7.8.08 David video at http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=QGQE2NlxtGA



> Call for the AAtW for a demo in front of colonel - commanding Ni'ilin region

17 year old Yusef Amira who was shot in the head last week died this morning.

A demonstration against the murderous policies of the army towards to popular resistance to the wall

Tomorrow, Tuesday, in front of the home of Brigadier General Aviv Reshef

Yusef Ahmad Yunes Amira, 17 years old, was shot by a border police officer last Wednesday in Nilin and died of his injuries today. After the end of the funeral procession of Ahmad Mousa, the 10 year old who was murdered the previous day at a demonstration against the wall, border police troops invaded the center of the village shooting rubber coated metal bullets everywhere. A border police officer shot Amira in the head with two bullets from a distance of less than 10 meters while he was in his driveway. Amira was pronounced brain dead when he reached the hospital and died this morning.

Yusef Amira is the 13th casualty of the popular struggle against the wall which has also included thousands of injured. This struggle has been met from its beginning with unprecedented repression which keeps escalating every day. The soldiers use lethal means to attack demonstrations of Women Men and children who protest together the theft of their lands.

The escalation by the army in Nilin is the direct responsibility of Brigadier General Aviv Reshef. All war criminals from policy makers to those who carry it out should be held responsible. Tomorrow we take that message to Reshef's home.

Aviv Reshef and his neighbors ought to know:

There is no immunity for murderers in uniform.
Resisting the occupation does not end at the green line
The responsibility does not end when the green uniforms are shed.
The demonstration will leave tel aviv at around 16:00
If you can make it Please call Keren today at 052-xxxxxxx
From Haifa please call Uri 052-xxxxxxx

Please call tonight and not tomorrow so we can arrange for transportation.
The success of the demo depends on it.
******
The 23 people that were arrested in that demo were released the next day. (10 were in solidarity jail night with the others as they refused to accept releasing terms while the others stayed in for the night). They were released on the condition that they stay away from Zichron for the next 14 days.
(TV channels 10 and 2 competed for the video clip of our documenting team... With dirty trick channel 10 got it and screened part in the news program.)

--------------------------

UM SALMUNA

A call for solidarity with mousa abu maria who was administratively arrested for organizing the demonstrations against the separation fence in the region.

Hello, sorry for the late notice but tomorrow at 11:30 there would be a hearing in the supreme court in Jerusalem regarding the administrative arrest of mousa abu maria. This hearing, unlike the previous ones in the military courts, would be open to the public and it's very important to come to see mousa and show him support. [AAtW activists witnessed the sham hearing of the "highest court of justice" which as expected ratified the the previous decisions of the military "judges".]

People who are interested in going together from tel aviv - meet at 9:50 near the service to Jerusalem.

Mousa, 30 years old from beit ommar, is a co-founder of the Palestine solidarity project and dedicates his time to unarmed popular activity together with many other Palestinians, Israeli and international activists. He was arrested in the middle of the night almost 4 months ago and since then was only interrogated once, for about 10 minutes, and only about previous felonies which he was already sentenced for. The administrative detention warrant was given for the period of 6 months, but can be extended unlimited times.

About 800 administrative detainees are being held in Israeli jails without an indictment or a trial.

http://www.tv.social.org.il/medini/free-mousa-abu-maria-eng.htm
http://palestinesolidarityproject.org/

BIL'IN

David video of Friday's demo at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NctSjPsSMhE

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Palestine-Israel, Ni'ilin, Tel Aviv, Bil'in, Um Salmuna - the Anarchists Against the Wall are on the move

This week we participated in the Ni'ilin continuous struggle. In relation to the murder in it of the ten years old Ahmad Husam Yousef Mousa we held a big demo in Tel Aviv. Friday demonstrations were as usual in Bil'in (the 170th) and Um Salmuna. Friday in Ni'ilin (which some of us joined at noon and some after the demo in Bil'in) ended after about 4 hours of intense struggle in dismantling the razor wire fence that cost the life of Ahmad Husam and that of Ahmed Youssef. Due to the intense struggle in Ni'ilin including the previous week exposer of video which shows a direct order of regiment commander to shoot Ashraf in the leg, the Israeli media gave lot of space to the struggle against the separation fence.

The Israeli state force tried to prevent the approach of the demonstrators to the machines working on the route of the separation fence in building with a few hundred meters of spools of razor wire fortified with a steel cable. Tuesday evening after the big demonstration ended Ahmad Husam Yousef Mousa age 10 and few friends tried to destroy the razor wire fence. One of the crew of an army car of state force that passed along the route detected them and one shot of live ammunition to Ahmad head killed him. The next day, after the funeral of Ahmad Husam, there was another demonstration of the village youth near the route in building, and an illegal use of guns by the state force which shoot Ahmed Youssef Amira in the head from short distance was fatal. He was in come since the shooting with no hope for recovery.

On Wednesday evening we organized a demonstration in Tel Aviv in protest of the murder of Ahmad Husam Yousef Mousa. About 150 activists marched from the Arlozorov train station to the residence of the war minister with placards and banners, shouting all the way. After standing there for a while we started the return march - blocking few times the road. Due to the negative media, the state forces only arrested one of us and released him after few hours.

At Friday noon, there was a protest prayer and a demonstration after it. some of us participated there from the beginning. As there was a long confrontation with the Israeli state force, some of us joined it after we finished the Friday demonstration in Bil'in.

The Israeli state force forced the demonstrators to retreat to the village but the confrontation continued among the houses and the olive trees at the fringe of the village. At a certain point, the state force withdrew and the demonstrators approached again the route of the separation fence in building. We were surprised to find that no state force remained on the site, and used that opportunity to dismantle the razor wire spools fence that cost the life of two during the week.

We returned at evening to Tel Aviv tired but with some bitter satisfaction.

Video clips:
curfew on Ni'ilin - 5-7-08 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMBDXhDuXFw
Ni'ilin 24.7.2008 at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g86R_oPu7wU
Ni'ilin - 29-7-08 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBq9Rzu_ulM
10 years old killed in Ni'ilin http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84_ePTW6wEE&feature=user
From Friday's broadcast:
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/8/1/israeli_troops_kill_two_palestinians_in
http://www.democracynow.org/shows/2008/8/1

Nilin Update & Pictures -- Hebrew and English
update: https://israel.indymedia.org/newswire/display/9398/index.php
Pictures with semi updated feature: https://israel.indymedia.org/newswire/display/9390/index.php

Report in TV channel 2 http://www.keshet-tv.com/VideoPage.aspx?MediaID=41983&SourceID=23