12 apr 2014
Right-wing Israeli political parties have begun a campaign to sue president Abbas for "war crimes" at the International Criminal Court in response to the Palestinian Authority's recent decision to join international conventions and treaties.
The campaign comes amid a near breakdown in ongoing peace negotiations between Israel and the PLO, and seeks to file legal procedures against Abbas accusing him of supporting "terrorism" and aiding to terrorist organizations.
Beginning on Friday, Israeli newspapers and websites have published advertisements calling on Israeli lawyers to join the campaign led by the Israel Law Center to sue Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas on charges of supporting terrorist organizations.
One of the prominent leaders of the campaign is chairman of the Jewish Home party Naftali Bennett, who has been a vocal critic of peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.
An ad in the Israeli daily newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth features president Abbas behind bars with a phrase in Arabic reading, "We will terrorize him in The Hague."
Palestinian officials, however, have downplayed the move, pointing out that Israel cannot pursue legal action at the international court due to its own failure to sign the treaties.
Palestinian minister of justice Ali Muhanna told Ma'an that the Israeli government had "lost balance both politically and legally."
Their response, he said, reflects the degree of rage in Israel towards the PA for attempting to join international conventions.
Muhanna confirmed that Israel "cannot engage in any legal action at the ICC because Israel is not a signatory to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court."
"Such legal proceedings are submitted through the ICC's Attorney General or through the UN Security Council."
"Abbas' move isn't a war crime. But the ongoing Israeli settlement construction, confiscation of Palestinian money, killing and detention of children are war crimes," he added.
The campaign comes amid a growing crisis in peace negotiations between Israel and the PLO.
Palestinian officials applied to join 15 international conventions last week after Israel failed to release a fourth batch of veteran prisoners as previously agreed upon.
The move angered Israeli authorities, who have since called for an end to coordination with the Palestinian Authority.
Peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians were relaunched in July under the auspices of the US after nearly three years of impasse.
Israel's government has announced the construction of thousands of settler housing units and its army has killed 60 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza since the negotiations began.
The campaign comes amid a near breakdown in ongoing peace negotiations between Israel and the PLO, and seeks to file legal procedures against Abbas accusing him of supporting "terrorism" and aiding to terrorist organizations.
Beginning on Friday, Israeli newspapers and websites have published advertisements calling on Israeli lawyers to join the campaign led by the Israel Law Center to sue Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas on charges of supporting terrorist organizations.
One of the prominent leaders of the campaign is chairman of the Jewish Home party Naftali Bennett, who has been a vocal critic of peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.
An ad in the Israeli daily newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth features president Abbas behind bars with a phrase in Arabic reading, "We will terrorize him in The Hague."
Palestinian officials, however, have downplayed the move, pointing out that Israel cannot pursue legal action at the international court due to its own failure to sign the treaties.
Palestinian minister of justice Ali Muhanna told Ma'an that the Israeli government had "lost balance both politically and legally."
Their response, he said, reflects the degree of rage in Israel towards the PA for attempting to join international conventions.
Muhanna confirmed that Israel "cannot engage in any legal action at the ICC because Israel is not a signatory to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court."
"Such legal proceedings are submitted through the ICC's Attorney General or through the UN Security Council."
"Abbas' move isn't a war crime. But the ongoing Israeli settlement construction, confiscation of Palestinian money, killing and detention of children are war crimes," he added.
The campaign comes amid a growing crisis in peace negotiations between Israel and the PLO.
Palestinian officials applied to join 15 international conventions last week after Israel failed to release a fourth batch of veteran prisoners as previously agreed upon.
The move angered Israeli authorities, who have since called for an end to coordination with the Palestinian Authority.
Peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians were relaunched in July under the auspices of the US after nearly three years of impasse.
Israel's government has announced the construction of thousands of settler housing units and its army has killed 60 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza since the negotiations began.
Four children have been injured this morning in Hebron after a group of Israeli soldiers assaulted them. The attack took place in the Old City of Hebron.
The children are Arif Jaber, 13 years old, Mohammed Arif Jaber, 11, Amir Arif Jaber, 10 and Basil Ayman Jaber, 11. One of the parents of the children said that the Israeli soldiers used rifle butts and their boots to hit the children. The children had to be taken to the Hebron Governmental Hospital for treatment.
Every Saturday in Hebron the Jewish settlers march through the Old City to get to Ibrahimi Mosque, where they pray in a part of the building that has been reconverted into a synagogue. This group of settlers march escorted by numerous soldiers in streets crowded by the Palestinians who live there, and it is not uncommon for the soldiers and the settlers to assault some of the Palestinians around them.
Furthermore, in Beit Hanina, next to Jerusalem, extremist settlers have attacked three young Palestinians. The attack took place next to the illegal settlement Pisgat Zeev. The three Jerusalemites had to be transported by ambulance to the Hadassah Ein Karem hospital for treatment. One of them has been seriously injured.
The children are Arif Jaber, 13 years old, Mohammed Arif Jaber, 11, Amir Arif Jaber, 10 and Basil Ayman Jaber, 11. One of the parents of the children said that the Israeli soldiers used rifle butts and their boots to hit the children. The children had to be taken to the Hebron Governmental Hospital for treatment.
Every Saturday in Hebron the Jewish settlers march through the Old City to get to Ibrahimi Mosque, where they pray in a part of the building that has been reconverted into a synagogue. This group of settlers march escorted by numerous soldiers in streets crowded by the Palestinians who live there, and it is not uncommon for the soldiers and the settlers to assault some of the Palestinians around them.
Furthermore, in Beit Hanina, next to Jerusalem, extremist settlers have attacked three young Palestinians. The attack took place next to the illegal settlement Pisgat Zeev. The three Jerusalemites had to be transported by ambulance to the Hadassah Ein Karem hospital for treatment. One of them has been seriously injured.
T-shirts reading "Let Every Arab Mother Know That Her Son's Fate Is In My Hands!" were printed on shirts for Israeli soldiers, Yediot Ahronot Hebrew newspaper revealed on Friday. An Israeli officer and two soldiers were dismissed after wearing these T-shirts, the paper claimed, pointing out that Israeli troops raided the place where the T-shirts were printed to confiscate them.
The newspaper added that the soldiers, who were wearing these T-shirts, were planning to go to Nablus.
The design depicts a soldier holding a gun next to an Arab town, and reads: "Let every Arab mother know that her son's fate is in my hands!"
Meanwhile, Israeli Occupation Authorities (IOA) have prevented on Friday Palestinians from 1948-occupied territories from having access to Nablus.
Eyewitnesses told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that occupation forces erected a checkpoint at the western entrance to the city and prevented the entry of all vehicles with yellow plates.
The IOA banned Arab citizens from Palestinian territories occupied in 1948 from entering Nablus without providing any justification, eyewitnesses said.
Since the second Intifada (uprising), Palestinians from occupied territories in 1948 were prevented over the week except Saturday from having access to Nablus, however they have been recently allowed in.
Analysts opined that the Israeli decision was meant to pressure the Palestinian negotiation team to extend peace talks with its Israeli counterpart.
The newspaper added that the soldiers, who were wearing these T-shirts, were planning to go to Nablus.
The design depicts a soldier holding a gun next to an Arab town, and reads: "Let every Arab mother know that her son's fate is in my hands!"
Meanwhile, Israeli Occupation Authorities (IOA) have prevented on Friday Palestinians from 1948-occupied territories from having access to Nablus.
Eyewitnesses told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that occupation forces erected a checkpoint at the western entrance to the city and prevented the entry of all vehicles with yellow plates.
The IOA banned Arab citizens from Palestinian territories occupied in 1948 from entering Nablus without providing any justification, eyewitnesses said.
Since the second Intifada (uprising), Palestinians from occupied territories in 1948 were prevented over the week except Saturday from having access to Nablus, however they have been recently allowed in.
Analysts opined that the Israeli decision was meant to pressure the Palestinian negotiation team to extend peace talks with its Israeli counterpart.
9 apr 2014
Tahsin al-Saqqa, director of marketing department in the ministry of Agriculture in Gaza, denied what the West Australian paper reported about banning the exporting of Australian live cattle to Gaza under the pretext of " mistreating ". Al-Saqqa said to ALRAY Wednesday "the information that published on the west Australian newspaper about stopping exporting a ship with 10,000 at Fremantle because cattle mistreating in Gaza is not true".
AlSaqqa made clear that Gaza buys the Australian cattle from the Israeli occupation, explaining that a footage of Israeli company's worker released showing them while shocking the cattle with electricity in order to kill them.
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry in Australia revealed that it had not approved consignments of cattle for Gaza since November when it began investigating allegations raised in the Israeli media.
Logistics Support System in Australia said ,"the release of nine cattle from the supply chain was "unacceptable" and it suspended exports to the Gaza facility" , andt abused cattle could be identified by their ear tags.
The allegations are serious and information obtained during the investigation is considered when assessing any application from any exporter to send livestock to Gaza," A Department of Agriculture spokesman said.
Recently, all exporters to Israel should react with additional conditions to ensure livestock are unloaded in accordance with international animal welfare standards.
AlSaqqa made clear that Gaza buys the Australian cattle from the Israeli occupation, explaining that a footage of Israeli company's worker released showing them while shocking the cattle with electricity in order to kill them.
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry in Australia revealed that it had not approved consignments of cattle for Gaza since November when it began investigating allegations raised in the Israeli media.
Logistics Support System in Australia said ,"the release of nine cattle from the supply chain was "unacceptable" and it suspended exports to the Gaza facility" , andt abused cattle could be identified by their ear tags.
The allegations are serious and information obtained during the investigation is considered when assessing any application from any exporter to send livestock to Gaza," A Department of Agriculture spokesman said.
Recently, all exporters to Israel should react with additional conditions to ensure livestock are unloaded in accordance with international animal welfare standards.
Israeli settlers on Wednesday assaulted Palestinian school children in the southern West Bank, a school official said.
A school principal told Ma'an that a group of extremist Israeli settlers hurled stones at school girls in the village of al-Tuwani, leaving them bruised.
Israeli soldiers stood by and watched without taking action as the settlers threw rocks, the principal said.
The girls who sustained injuries were identified as Kifah Omar Abu Jundiyya and Dalal Awad Zein, both seventh graders.
In al-Tuwani and other areas in the southern Hebron district, school children on a daily basis wait at checkpoints for Israeli soldiers to let them through locked gates.
Regardless of Israeli military presence, settler attacks on children en route to and from school remain commonplace, the principal said.
In 2013, there were 399 incidents of settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Over 90 percent of investigations into settler violence by Israeli police fail to lead to an indictment.
More than 500,000 Israeli settlers live in settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem, in contravention of international law.
A school principal told Ma'an that a group of extremist Israeli settlers hurled stones at school girls in the village of al-Tuwani, leaving them bruised.
Israeli soldiers stood by and watched without taking action as the settlers threw rocks, the principal said.
The girls who sustained injuries were identified as Kifah Omar Abu Jundiyya and Dalal Awad Zein, both seventh graders.
In al-Tuwani and other areas in the southern Hebron district, school children on a daily basis wait at checkpoints for Israeli soldiers to let them through locked gates.
Regardless of Israeli military presence, settler attacks on children en route to and from school remain commonplace, the principal said.
In 2013, there were 399 incidents of settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Over 90 percent of investigations into settler violence by Israeli police fail to lead to an indictment.
More than 500,000 Israeli settlers live in settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem, in contravention of international law.
8 apr 2014
Israeli occupation forces routinely carry out arrest raids in the West Bank. Around 40 percent of Palestinian men living in the occupied territories have been detained by Israel at some point in their lives.
Israeli soldiers have stolen a large amount of money and jewelry from a Palestinian home in Idna town southern al-Khalil in occupied West Bank. Israeli occupation forces have stormed last night citizen Jaber Al-Tameezi's home in Idna town and forced his family to stay out for long hours while they searched the home. Shortly after Israeli forces' withdrawal, the family discovered that large amount of money and jewelry were stolen, Palestinian security sources told Quds Press.
The sources pointed out that Al-Tameezi filed a formal complaint in which he charged Israeli soldiers with stealing a sum of money and checks estimated at 150 thousand shekels (about 43 thousand dollars) and 200 grams of gold jewelry.
The Israeli forces have also detained Al-Tameezi's wife for hours and arrested his brother, the lawyer Tariq Al-Tameezi, and took him to an unknown destination.
Israeli soldiers have stolen a large amount of money and jewelry from a Palestinian home in Idna town southern al-Khalil in occupied West Bank. Israeli occupation forces have stormed last night citizen Jaber Al-Tameezi's home in Idna town and forced his family to stay out for long hours while they searched the home. Shortly after Israeli forces' withdrawal, the family discovered that large amount of money and jewelry were stolen, Palestinian security sources told Quds Press.
The sources pointed out that Al-Tameezi filed a formal complaint in which he charged Israeli soldiers with stealing a sum of money and checks estimated at 150 thousand shekels (about 43 thousand dollars) and 200 grams of gold jewelry.
The Israeli forces have also detained Al-Tameezi's wife for hours and arrested his brother, the lawyer Tariq Al-Tameezi, and took him to an unknown destination.
5 apr 2014
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) beat up a Palestinian child and chained and blindfolded him for a few hours in the Old City of Al-Khalil on Saturday.
Local sources said that IOF soldiers arrested the child, Mohiuddin Al-Rajabi, near the Ibrahimi mosque in the Old City of Al-Khalil after soldiers manning the nearby roadblock were thrown with stones.
IOF soldiers and Jewish settlers have recently escalated attacks on children in the Old City of Al-Khalil.
Meanwhile, IOF soldiers raided Aroub refugee camp, north of Al-Khalil, on Saturday morning and set up a number of roadblocks and checked IDs of passing citizens, eyewitnesses told the PIC.
Local sources said that IOF soldiers arrested the child, Mohiuddin Al-Rajabi, near the Ibrahimi mosque in the Old City of Al-Khalil after soldiers manning the nearby roadblock were thrown with stones.
IOF soldiers and Jewish settlers have recently escalated attacks on children in the Old City of Al-Khalil.
Meanwhile, IOF soldiers raided Aroub refugee camp, north of Al-Khalil, on Saturday morning and set up a number of roadblocks and checked IDs of passing citizens, eyewitnesses told the PIC.
3 apr 2014
The Palestinian Prisoner Society (PPS) revealed on Thursday that detainee Youssef Abdul Rahim Khatib was subject to drug injection while being arrested by Israeli occupation forces (IOF). An injection was found in the area where Khatib was arrested, his uncle said, adding that the injection caused him “a sudden blackout and breathing difficulty”.
In this regard, PPS executive director Abdullah Zaghari said that the injection will be examined at a specialized laboratory to identify the substance used in the injection. According to Zaghari, the incident represents one of the most serious precedents ever committed by the IOF.
Along the same line, Yousef Khatib, 26, was arrested after IOF soldiers broke into his uncle’s house in Beit Jala and destroyed its properties using sniffer dogs and bombs.
In another development, five Palestinian prisoners continue their hunger strike in Israeli prisons. The detainees said they would continue their strike until their demands were met, Al-Ahrar Center reported.
Fouad Khuffash, the director of Ahrar Center, identified the five hunger strikers namely Aymen Etbish, 32, who has been on hunger strike for 35 days now to protest his administrative detention and 24-year-old Amir Shammas’s hunger strike has by now reached its 83rd day, leading to a deteriorating physical condition. The list also includes Ahmed Al-Khatib, 30, Daoud Hamdane, 33, and Salah Salaht, 37, who have been without food for three consecutive days.
Khuffash further corroborated the existence of several prisoners who are threatening to go on hunger strike and have already refused their meals because of the frequent violations against them in Israeli prisons.
In this regard, PPS executive director Abdullah Zaghari said that the injection will be examined at a specialized laboratory to identify the substance used in the injection. According to Zaghari, the incident represents one of the most serious precedents ever committed by the IOF.
Along the same line, Yousef Khatib, 26, was arrested after IOF soldiers broke into his uncle’s house in Beit Jala and destroyed its properties using sniffer dogs and bombs.
In another development, five Palestinian prisoners continue their hunger strike in Israeli prisons. The detainees said they would continue their strike until their demands were met, Al-Ahrar Center reported.
Fouad Khuffash, the director of Ahrar Center, identified the five hunger strikers namely Aymen Etbish, 32, who has been on hunger strike for 35 days now to protest his administrative detention and 24-year-old Amir Shammas’s hunger strike has by now reached its 83rd day, leading to a deteriorating physical condition. The list also includes Ahmed Al-Khatib, 30, Daoud Hamdane, 33, and Salah Salaht, 37, who have been without food for three consecutive days.
Khuffash further corroborated the existence of several prisoners who are threatening to go on hunger strike and have already refused their meals because of the frequent violations against them in Israeli prisons.
2 apr 2014
Minor in Aida camp beaten and abducted
Israeli occupation soldiers forced a Palestinian child to take an unknown pill after abducting him at Johar mountain in Hebron, southern the occupied West Bank.
Local sources said that child Ziyad al-Shanteer, 15, was obliged to take an unknown pill. He felt dizzy and suffered a headache moments later.
The child was transferred to a hospital in Hebron for medical treatment, Al Ray reports.
According to doctors, Ziyad’s condition is stable.
Tuesday evening, occupation forces kidnapped a Palestinian minor in a West Bank raid to Aida refugee camp, in northern Bethlehem.
Local sources said that Israeli soldiers beat and detained Abdullah Hammad, 14, near Aida Social Youth Center.
He was taken to an unknown place, according to witnesses.
Israeli forces fired tear gas bombs towards Palestinians, causing several cases of suffocation.
Israeli occupation soldiers forced a Palestinian child to take an unknown pill after abducting him at Johar mountain in Hebron, southern the occupied West Bank.
Local sources said that child Ziyad al-Shanteer, 15, was obliged to take an unknown pill. He felt dizzy and suffered a headache moments later.
The child was transferred to a hospital in Hebron for medical treatment, Al Ray reports.
According to doctors, Ziyad’s condition is stable.
Tuesday evening, occupation forces kidnapped a Palestinian minor in a West Bank raid to Aida refugee camp, in northern Bethlehem.
Local sources said that Israeli soldiers beat and detained Abdullah Hammad, 14, near Aida Social Youth Center.
He was taken to an unknown place, according to witnesses.
Israeli forces fired tear gas bombs towards Palestinians, causing several cases of suffocation.
23 mar 2014
The guards of Shaare Zedek hospital prevented on Thursday night a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance from entering the hospital to transfer an old woman from Shu’fat refugee camp.
The paramedic officer, Ali Abu Ghazaleh, explained that the guards prevented him from entering the hospital in the ambulance and detained him twice at the first and second gates.
He said: “the guards at the first gate stopped the ambulance for few minutes and after checking my ID they allowed me to get in. At the second gate, we were surprised when the guards prevented us from entering and they detained the car including the passengers (driver, three paramedics and an 84-year old sick woman) for half an hour.
He added: “we had a conversation and the guards and their boss claimed that I do not have a permit and the vehicle doesn’t have a permit either.” One of them said: “if it was a “David’s Star” vehicle, then we would let it in without inspection or any delay.”
He explained that the guards forced the paramedics to transfer the woman on a stretcher despite the cold weather.
Ala’ Arna’out, coordinator for volunteers’ affairs in Jerusalem, explained that an official claim was filed to the Israeli Ministry of Health against the guards of the hospital and pointed out that there are audio and video recordings of the incident.
He also pointed out that the ambulances have the necessary Israeli permits to operate anywhere without any obstruction or delay.
The paramedic officer, Ali Abu Ghazaleh, explained that the guards prevented him from entering the hospital in the ambulance and detained him twice at the first and second gates.
He said: “the guards at the first gate stopped the ambulance for few minutes and after checking my ID they allowed me to get in. At the second gate, we were surprised when the guards prevented us from entering and they detained the car including the passengers (driver, three paramedics and an 84-year old sick woman) for half an hour.
He added: “we had a conversation and the guards and their boss claimed that I do not have a permit and the vehicle doesn’t have a permit either.” One of them said: “if it was a “David’s Star” vehicle, then we would let it in without inspection or any delay.”
He explained that the guards forced the paramedics to transfer the woman on a stretcher despite the cold weather.
Ala’ Arna’out, coordinator for volunteers’ affairs in Jerusalem, explained that an official claim was filed to the Israeli Ministry of Health against the guards of the hospital and pointed out that there are audio and video recordings of the incident.
He also pointed out that the ambulances have the necessary Israeli permits to operate anywhere without any obstruction or delay.
19 mar 2014
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) torched a Palestinian car in Burj village, in Al-Khalil province, on Tuesday. Eyewitnesses said that four IOF soldiers got out of their army vehicle and started fire in the car of Muhran Sami from Deir Al-Asal village.
They said that Sami was parking his car near the racist, separation wall that ran adjacent to the nearby Burj village.
The witnesses pointed out that the soldiers prevented citizens from extinguishing the fire and only left after it was completely burnt down.
They said that Sami was parking his car near the racist, separation wall that ran adjacent to the nearby Burj village.
The witnesses pointed out that the soldiers prevented citizens from extinguishing the fire and only left after it was completely burnt down.
14 mar 2014
|
|
‘This is all mine, this is my country and my land,’ man tells Arab homeowner; IDF: We have no policy of flag removal.
A settler became tangled in barbed wire after he climbed on to the roof of a Palestinian apartment building in Hebron to remove two Palestinian flags, as seen in a video published on YouTube by B’Tselem. The incident last Saturday began when a bearded settler, wearing Shabbat clothing – black pants, a white shirt and a large white skullcap – set up a wooden ladder and climbed up it. He tried to scale a wire fence around the roof of a Palestinian home next to |
Beit Hadassah, a Jewish apartment complex, in an area of the city under Israeli military control.
Shadi Sidr, one of the Palestinian home owners and a volunteer for the Israeli NGO B’Tselem, filmed the incident. The video opens as the settler, breathless from the climb, gets caught on barbed wire woven into the fence.
“Why are you on my roof?” asked Sidr in broken Hebrew.
The settler, who had a Russian accent, also spoke in broken Hebrew as he answered Sidr.
“I’ve come to talk with you,” the settler said. As he spoke, he hung onto the building’s stone ledge, his shirt stuck in the barbed wire and his feet still on the ladder.
His antics attracted the attention of Hebron’s Jewish community, which gathered below to watch the spectacle.
The settler, undeterred by his precarious position, asked Sidr to remove the two Palestinian flags.
Sidr refused and asked the settler how he would feel if Sidr attempted to climb onto his roof to remove an Israeli flag.
“Would that be good?” asked Sidr.
“But this roof is my roof.
This is all mine, this is my country and my land,” said the settler.
“No. This is my house.
Why are you here?” asked Sidr.
“You just think it’s yours.
But this whole country is the Land of Israel,” said the settler.
“Hebron is not in Israel.
This is Palestine. I am not in Tel Aviv,” said Sidr.
“What is Palestine? It is only what the Romans called it. This is the Land of Israel. This is my country.
And everything that is here is mine,” said the settler.
A soldier arrived at that moment to rescue the settler from the barbed wire and to assure him the flag would be taken down. The soldiers told Sidr he is not allowed to fly the flag.
Sidr did not heed the soldier’s command and the tale of the flag did not end there.
A short time later three armed soldiers with helmets and flak jackets arrived at Sidr’s home to push him to remove the flags. They used the stairs to climb up to the roof, where they found Sidr, his brother, a few other family members and observers from the Temporary International Presence in Hebron.
This incident was also caught on video.
Shadi Sidr, one of the Palestinian home owners and a volunteer for the Israeli NGO B’Tselem, filmed the incident. The video opens as the settler, breathless from the climb, gets caught on barbed wire woven into the fence.
“Why are you on my roof?” asked Sidr in broken Hebrew.
The settler, who had a Russian accent, also spoke in broken Hebrew as he answered Sidr.
“I’ve come to talk with you,” the settler said. As he spoke, he hung onto the building’s stone ledge, his shirt stuck in the barbed wire and his feet still on the ladder.
His antics attracted the attention of Hebron’s Jewish community, which gathered below to watch the spectacle.
The settler, undeterred by his precarious position, asked Sidr to remove the two Palestinian flags.
Sidr refused and asked the settler how he would feel if Sidr attempted to climb onto his roof to remove an Israeli flag.
“Would that be good?” asked Sidr.
“But this roof is my roof.
This is all mine, this is my country and my land,” said the settler.
“No. This is my house.
Why are you here?” asked Sidr.
“You just think it’s yours.
But this whole country is the Land of Israel,” said the settler.
“Hebron is not in Israel.
This is Palestine. I am not in Tel Aviv,” said Sidr.
“What is Palestine? It is only what the Romans called it. This is the Land of Israel. This is my country.
And everything that is here is mine,” said the settler.
A soldier arrived at that moment to rescue the settler from the barbed wire and to assure him the flag would be taken down. The soldiers told Sidr he is not allowed to fly the flag.
Sidr did not heed the soldier’s command and the tale of the flag did not end there.
A short time later three armed soldiers with helmets and flak jackets arrived at Sidr’s home to push him to remove the flags. They used the stairs to climb up to the roof, where they found Sidr, his brother, a few other family members and observers from the Temporary International Presence in Hebron.
This incident was also caught on video.
|
|
“Why are you in my house?” asked the brother.
“You have to take the flag down or we will arrest you,” the soldier told Sidr and his brother. “The order that is on this house is that you are not allowed to put up the [Palestinian] flag. You either take down the flag or we have to place you into custody and I don’t want to do that.” In response, Sidr’s brother said “This is a Palestinian house and I placed a flag [here] for my house,” pointing out that he painted a flag, now faded, onto a wall on the roof. “Just take down the flags and there won’t be any problems,” the soldier said. |
“This is my house,” Sidr replied. He wanted to know why the soldier was threatening to arrest him and not the settler.
“We don’t want any problems, show me a court order and I will remove the flag,” he added.
The soldiers then conferred with their superiors by phone and spoke among themselves about what to do next.
“This is completely crazy,” said one soldier. “There is no reason to remove him [Sidr] by force in front of the cameras.”
The soldiers then told Sidr they would return with a court order with regard to the flags, but no such order has been forthcoming.
The IDF said on Thursday there was no regulation mandating Palestinian flag removal.
“The IDF does not have a policy of removing flags and has no intention to adopt such a policy,” the IDF said.
It added that the soldiers’ statement about the flag removal was part of “a local initiative and the matter will be examined.”
According to B’Tselem, which published the videos, Sidr found on Thursday that the flags on his rooftop had been torn.
Read the original article at Israel’s Jerusalem Post newspaper.
“We don’t want any problems, show me a court order and I will remove the flag,” he added.
The soldiers then conferred with their superiors by phone and spoke among themselves about what to do next.
“This is completely crazy,” said one soldier. “There is no reason to remove him [Sidr] by force in front of the cameras.”
The soldiers then told Sidr they would return with a court order with regard to the flags, but no such order has been forthcoming.
The IDF said on Thursday there was no regulation mandating Palestinian flag removal.
“The IDF does not have a policy of removing flags and has no intention to adopt such a policy,” the IDF said.
It added that the soldiers’ statement about the flag removal was part of “a local initiative and the matter will be examined.”
According to B’Tselem, which published the videos, Sidr found on Thursday that the flags on his rooftop had been torn.
Read the original article at Israel’s Jerusalem Post newspaper.
11 mar 2014
Yoav, an Israeli military unit responsible for demolishing houses in the Negev, desecrated the Islamic cemetery in Al-Araqeb on Monday, Land Research Center said in a press release.
According to the LRC, the Israeli soldiers entered the cemetery under the pretext of taking pictures of the mosque and minaret. However, their real intention was and still is to wipe off Al Araqeb and kick its inhabitants out so that they can have control over the land. For that, they have been trying to erase every Arabic presence in the area.
People of Al-Araqeb tried to defy the members of the unit. The latter told them that: "You do not have any sanctuaries here since all this land is ours."
It should be remarked that Al-Araqeb, which is located in the Palestinian Negev, was a target for the Israeli house demolition operations for more than 65 times! It is inhabited by 22 families that consist of around 130 people, more than half of whom are children.
According to the LRC, the Israeli soldiers entered the cemetery under the pretext of taking pictures of the mosque and minaret. However, their real intention was and still is to wipe off Al Araqeb and kick its inhabitants out so that they can have control over the land. For that, they have been trying to erase every Arabic presence in the area.
People of Al-Araqeb tried to defy the members of the unit. The latter told them that: "You do not have any sanctuaries here since all this land is ours."
It should be remarked that Al-Araqeb, which is located in the Palestinian Negev, was a target for the Israeli house demolition operations for more than 65 times! It is inhabited by 22 families that consist of around 130 people, more than half of whom are children.
4 mar 2014
Fadel Abu Odwan, 11, was left alone and bleeding heavily for three hours after Israeli soldiers opened fire on him at the Gaza border fence on February 21. Ramallah, March 4 2014, An unarmed Palestinian child was gravely wounded and left without medical attention for three hours after Israeli soldiers opened fire on him at the Gaza border.
On February 21, 11-year-old Fadel Abu Odwan was on his way to help his brother bring in the sheep from their grazing area near the Gaza border fence. Israeli soldiers approached and opened fire on him, leaving him to lie bleeding and unable to move, in full view of the soldiers, for three hours before medical attention was sought.
Speaking to DCI-Palestine from hospital, Fadel recalls lying on the ground after he was shot in the leg and the groin while running away from the soldiers. “I would lift my hand and look up and see the sky, and realise I was not dead yet, so I would close my eyes again and wait for death.” He remembers his thoughts vividly. “I was thinking I am going to die, I am going to be a martyr.”
On the way to meet his brother, Fadel had been stopped by three Palestinian officers stationed at their usual spots near the fence. They took the slingshot that he carries for hunting birds and proceeded to play with it, shaking it at the fence and using it to throw stones, ignoring his requests that they return it.
Fadel describes how at that point two Israeli military jeeps approached from the other side of the border at full speed. “I started running so fast because I was scared of them and thought they would shoot us. I ran for about 100 meters (328 feet) away from the fence.” He was brought to a halt by the bullet, which passed through his groin and lodged itself in his left leg.
He lay bleeding for an hour before he heard an Israeli soldier calling to him, telling him to crawl toward them. When it became apparent that Fadel was unable to move, the soldier went to cut the fence, but was given orders to stop. Fadel was left alone losing blood for a further hour, 150 meters (492 feet) away from the fence and the two Israeli jeeps and a tank stationed there.
As it got darker, Fadel heard dogs barking. “I looked around and saw eight black dogs sniffing about three metres (10 feet) away from me. I realised they were about to eat me because they sniffed the blood. I could not defend myself because with every move, I felt excruciating pain.” The soldiers fired shots to ward off the dogs, but no attempts to provide medical attention were made.
Ayed Abu Eqtaish, Accountability Program director at DCI-Palestine said, “This is a horrific example of Israeli soldiers injuring children with impunity. When a child is shot and left for hours without being given medical attention the perpetrators must be brought to justice.”
After three hours, Fadel was rescued by his brother and cousins and taken to hospital. His medical report shows that he underwent surgery to remove his testicles and was subsequently placed in intensive care. Fadel’s doctor said, “This injury will cause Fadel lifelong physical and psychological damage, and will certainly affect his ability to marry and have children.”
Fadel is now one of the many children to have been injured by Israeli forces at the Gaza border fence, with the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) documenting at least six children wounded and one killed in shootings in the area since the beginning of 2014.
“They shot me for no reason,” said Fadel, who remains in hospital. “They could have rescued me, but they just left me there for three hours. I will never forget what they did to me.” Source: Defence for Children International Palestine
On February 21, 11-year-old Fadel Abu Odwan was on his way to help his brother bring in the sheep from their grazing area near the Gaza border fence. Israeli soldiers approached and opened fire on him, leaving him to lie bleeding and unable to move, in full view of the soldiers, for three hours before medical attention was sought.
Speaking to DCI-Palestine from hospital, Fadel recalls lying on the ground after he was shot in the leg and the groin while running away from the soldiers. “I would lift my hand and look up and see the sky, and realise I was not dead yet, so I would close my eyes again and wait for death.” He remembers his thoughts vividly. “I was thinking I am going to die, I am going to be a martyr.”
On the way to meet his brother, Fadel had been stopped by three Palestinian officers stationed at their usual spots near the fence. They took the slingshot that he carries for hunting birds and proceeded to play with it, shaking it at the fence and using it to throw stones, ignoring his requests that they return it.
Fadel describes how at that point two Israeli military jeeps approached from the other side of the border at full speed. “I started running so fast because I was scared of them and thought they would shoot us. I ran for about 100 meters (328 feet) away from the fence.” He was brought to a halt by the bullet, which passed through his groin and lodged itself in his left leg.
He lay bleeding for an hour before he heard an Israeli soldier calling to him, telling him to crawl toward them. When it became apparent that Fadel was unable to move, the soldier went to cut the fence, but was given orders to stop. Fadel was left alone losing blood for a further hour, 150 meters (492 feet) away from the fence and the two Israeli jeeps and a tank stationed there.
As it got darker, Fadel heard dogs barking. “I looked around and saw eight black dogs sniffing about three metres (10 feet) away from me. I realised they were about to eat me because they sniffed the blood. I could not defend myself because with every move, I felt excruciating pain.” The soldiers fired shots to ward off the dogs, but no attempts to provide medical attention were made.
Ayed Abu Eqtaish, Accountability Program director at DCI-Palestine said, “This is a horrific example of Israeli soldiers injuring children with impunity. When a child is shot and left for hours without being given medical attention the perpetrators must be brought to justice.”
After three hours, Fadel was rescued by his brother and cousins and taken to hospital. His medical report shows that he underwent surgery to remove his testicles and was subsequently placed in intensive care. Fadel’s doctor said, “This injury will cause Fadel lifelong physical and psychological damage, and will certainly affect his ability to marry and have children.”
Fadel is now one of the many children to have been injured by Israeli forces at the Gaza border fence, with the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) documenting at least six children wounded and one killed in shootings in the area since the beginning of 2014.
“They shot me for no reason,” said Fadel, who remains in hospital. “They could have rescued me, but they just left me there for three hours. I will never forget what they did to me.” Source: Defence for Children International Palestine
