Opposite Jayyous, which lost most of its lands to the Fence, new settlements are sprouting, presented as extensions to the existing settlement Zufin. This construction is part of the new fence settlements, and marks the final stage of the fencing project. On december 10, bulldozers of the "Ge'ulat Ha'aretz" firm uprooted some 300 olive trees on the property of Toufik Hassan Salim of Jayyous. Last Sunday (19.12), Jayyous villagers courageously blocked the bulldozers that entered their lands.
Once the construction is complete, the people of Jayyous will have lost the remainder of their lands outside the Fence (see attached map).
Come to the aid of the people of Jayyous, and struggle against the annexation and settlement campaign!
This coming Friday - 31.12.2004, we will go to the Jayyous lands west of the Separation Fence. We will demonstrate and plant trees to replace the ones that were uprooted On the last day of the year we will support the civil resistance of the people of the Occupied Territories, and raise a clear voice against the Fence Settlements.
The action was initiated by the Palestinian-Israeli committee set up by the villagers of Jayyous and Israeli and international activists. Gush Shalom participates together with Ta'ayush, ICAHD. and the Anarchists.
Details as given earlier on: http://www.geocities.com/keller_adam/Gush_Shalom_Jayyous_Dec31.htm
Friday, December 31, 2004
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
Israel, Tel Aviv, The struggle continue at schools too by Kerem 29/12/04
Two male and one female students of the municipal Alef high-school tied themselves to the gate of the auditorium in protest of the invitation of an air force general to lecture to the 12th grade students.
The three chained are part of about 10 members group of "students against militarism", protested the entrance of military agencies into the school for "education in military values" - a project of the Education ministry and Tel Aviv municipality enhanced lately. The lecture of the air force general "on the [ethical] conflicts the IDF encounter" is only part of the project of "preparing" the students to the compulsory military service, done by teachers, by military youth trainers who deliver classes on the moral of IDF, by organized visits of the 12th graders at the military recruiting centering.
Regardless the joining the army or evading/refusing it, [which this school of arts is pain in the authority ass as it is around 20%], the students have the right to graduate without being given pre military training.
The action continued for about two hours during which pro military ones throw few stones on the chained and destroyed their placard "non entrance to the army". Already at morning there were presence of five policeman and an officer, who stayed till the end of the action. It was revealed later they knew it in advance and came to warn the principal that students intend to harm the general. They even demanded to do a search in the students bags to search for eggs and spray cans... but the principal refused the search and even refused to give information about the students.
The action got lot of media cover and initiated hot polemics among the school students. The three unchained themselves after two hours and after a disciplinary talk with the principal were suspended till they deliver a paper on "why the agreement with the Palestinian failed, according to the book "touch distance" by the former general and prime minister Ehud Barak....
See also appended below the text of:
http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasite/spages/520249.html and the Hebrew text on-line:
http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3024826,00.html
Media report on the above action:
Students protest plan to appoint IDF officers to high schools
Three twelfth-grade students from Tel Aviv's municipal high school "A" protested on Tuesday the plan to appoint Israel Defense Forces officers to high schools around the country. The three students chained themselves to the entrance to an auditorium in which Brigadier General Yonatan Loker, commander of the air force's Hatzerim base, was due to give a lecture.
The students said they were protesting "the military takeover of the education system and [the plan to] turn high schools into military preparatory academies."
"We are declaring our opposition to the placing of military figures inside schools, a factor which would contribute to the dissolution of civil society and its total militarization," the students said.
Police officers were called to the school following the incident.
The invitation to Loker was made in the framework of widening cooperation between the Education Ministry and the IDF's Education Corps according to which officers will escort high school students through their final years of studies and will encourage their draft into the army.
In the first phase of the plan, officers will be assigned to 74 high schools around the country. The following year, the project will be expanded to include 250 high schools.
Activist organizations, including Courage to Refuse, have expressed their opposition to the involvement of the military in the country's education system.
The three chained are part of about 10 members group of "students against militarism", protested the entrance of military agencies into the school for "education in military values" - a project of the Education ministry and Tel Aviv municipality enhanced lately. The lecture of the air force general "on the [ethical] conflicts the IDF encounter" is only part of the project of "preparing" the students to the compulsory military service, done by teachers, by military youth trainers who deliver classes on the moral of IDF, by organized visits of the 12th graders at the military recruiting centering.
Regardless the joining the army or evading/refusing it, [which this school of arts is pain in the authority ass as it is around 20%], the students have the right to graduate without being given pre military training.
The action continued for about two hours during which pro military ones throw few stones on the chained and destroyed their placard "non entrance to the army". Already at morning there were presence of five policeman and an officer, who stayed till the end of the action. It was revealed later they knew it in advance and came to warn the principal that students intend to harm the general. They even demanded to do a search in the students bags to search for eggs and spray cans... but the principal refused the search and even refused to give information about the students.
The action got lot of media cover and initiated hot polemics among the school students. The three unchained themselves after two hours and after a disciplinary talk with the principal were suspended till they deliver a paper on "why the agreement with the Palestinian failed, according to the book "touch distance" by the former general and prime minister Ehud Barak....
See also appended below the text of:
http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasite/spages/520249.html and the Hebrew text on-line:
http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3024826,00.html
Media report on the above action:
Students protest plan to appoint IDF officers to high schools
Three twelfth-grade students from Tel Aviv's municipal high school "A" protested on Tuesday the plan to appoint Israel Defense Forces officers to high schools around the country. The three students chained themselves to the entrance to an auditorium in which Brigadier General Yonatan Loker, commander of the air force's Hatzerim base, was due to give a lecture.
The students said they were protesting "the military takeover of the education system and [the plan to] turn high schools into military preparatory academies."
"We are declaring our opposition to the placing of military figures inside schools, a factor which would contribute to the dissolution of civil society and its total militarization," the students said.
Police officers were called to the school following the incident.
The invitation to Loker was made in the framework of widening cooperation between the Education Ministry and the IDF's Education Corps according to which officers will escort high school students through their final years of studies and will encourage their draft into the army.
In the first phase of the plan, officers will be assigned to 74 high schools around the country. The following year, the project will be expanded to include 250 high schools.
Activist organizations, including Courage to Refuse, have expressed their opposition to the involvement of the military in the country's education system.
Saturday, December 25, 2004
Palestine, Israel, mas'ha, A lunch-meeting to mark a year to the action and shooting of Gil, that rocked the wall. 25/12/04
we were invited to lunch in Mas'ha this saturday, to keep in touch with the people in the village and mark one year to the incident of cutting open the gate and the Gil Naamati's shooting. Some 40 people - about half of the village and half of the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative participated. Like the local Palestinian villagers the Israelis had to park their cars at the road block and after passing it by foot - continue with local transport which is restricted to the villages area. It was quite cold and raining, but very peaceful and quiet as well. We sat together and talked for a while, mostly about the importance of mas'ha in the struggle against the fence and our wishes to stay in touch and continue the struggle together. Some of the talks were in Hebrew and translated to Arabic and vise versa.
After the meal, Gil Na'amati, who was with us, was asked to say a few words and got the warm solidarity expressions of all. Then, on the suggestion of the hosts, we went together to the gate in the fence where the historical action took place and looked together on the not far away location of the famous international camp of mas'ha (now on the other side of the fence) that started early Spring 2003 and promoted the joint struggle against the Apartheid fence/wall.
By coincidence, when we visited the gate, on the other side of gate compound we saw people from Betselem human rights organization that monitor the harassment, torture and killing of Palestinians in the occupied territories, who were there on tour of the fence. Though they were far away, few words were exchanged before the gate keeping soldiers came to our side with threats and pressed us to go away.
We spend there some 20 minutes in free talks among the participants - new and old, Israeli and Palestinians and then started the way to the road block were we mounted our cars on the way home.
=========================================
About 1000 unique links on the struggle the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative during the last year and a half, can be found in google.com search.
After the meal, Gil Na'amati, who was with us, was asked to say a few words and got the warm solidarity expressions of all. Then, on the suggestion of the hosts, we went together to the gate in the fence where the historical action took place and looked together on the not far away location of the famous international camp of mas'ha (now on the other side of the fence) that started early Spring 2003 and promoted the joint struggle against the Apartheid fence/wall.
By coincidence, when we visited the gate, on the other side of gate compound we saw people from Betselem human rights organization that monitor the harassment, torture and killing of Palestinians in the occupied territories, who were there on tour of the fence. Though they were far away, few words were exchanged before the gate keeping soldiers came to our side with threats and pressed us to go away.
We spend there some 20 minutes in free talks among the participants - new and old, Israeli and Palestinians and then started the way to the road block were we mounted our cars on the way home.
=========================================
About 1000 unique links on the struggle the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative during the last year and a half, can be found in google.com search.
Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Israel, Tel Aviv, Adbusting, Anarchist Brigade for Street Liberation conquers Tel-Aviv 22/12/04
For too long, the opinions expressed and the brains which were washed expressed only the interests of one group:https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/13/1440_1_tlv-21-12-04-1.jpg more pictures: israel.indymedia.org/pbook/posters/chapter/1 For too long, the opinions that were expressed and the brains which were washed expressed only the interests of one group: Those with money. This situation will exist no longer. This week is marked by the formation of a new action group with the aim of conquering public space and returning it to those whose voices are not heard.
Dudi Balsar, Shalom Hanoch, Moran Eisenstein, and many of Israel's best loved celebreties "lent" their public images to the cause. Not to be outdone, Castro, Cellcom, Hot and other leading corporate citizens donated the base funding for the project which resulted in over 1000 outdoor signs (billboards, bus stations, shop windows) being adorned with messages such as: "The bulldozers arrived today, the army demolished my house, now I live in a bus station". "I cut the fence too". "I did not get to work today, the army stopped me at a checkpoint". "I did not get to school today, the army stopped me at a checkpoint". "I am most free when I cut the fucking fence", see attached photos.
Following the successful pilot project in Tel-Aviv the operation will be carried out in other cities as well.
The members of the Anarchist Brigade will continue to fight the occupation of advertising and the advertising of the occupation in the form of associating love and freedom with images of soldiers. We will continue to act against the occupation and fight with all our strength against the brainwashing of advertising.
Dudi Balsar, Shalom Hanoch, Moran Eisenstein, and many of Israel's best loved celebreties "lent" their public images to the cause. Not to be outdone, Castro, Cellcom, Hot and other leading corporate citizens donated the base funding for the project which resulted in over 1000 outdoor signs (billboards, bus stations, shop windows) being adorned with messages such as: "The bulldozers arrived today, the army demolished my house, now I live in a bus station". "I cut the fence too". "I did not get to work today, the army stopped me at a checkpoint". "I did not get to school today, the army stopped me at a checkpoint". "I am most free when I cut the fucking fence", see attached photos.
Following the successful pilot project in Tel-Aviv the operation will be carried out in other cities as well.
The members of the Anarchist Brigade will continue to fight the occupation of advertising and the advertising of the occupation in the form of associating love and freedom with images of soldiers. We will continue to act against the occupation and fight with all our strength against the brainwashing of advertising.
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Bil'in 14.12.04: it's like cancer by kobi snitz IWPS*, and MEDIA. 15/12/04
It is their own court and they just don't care, they keep coming, it's like cancer https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/6/1343_bilin-12-14-04-reuters.jpg https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/4/1343_bilin-12-14-04-reuters2.jpg The land in question lay across the wadi and was obscured by black smoke from burning tires. During a break in the tear gas and rubber bullet volleys we were given a history of how it is being taken away. It seems that in 1991 the civil administration confiscated 1200 dunams from the lands of Bil'in to expand the settlement of Modi'in Ilit. After a court battle, two parcels of land close to the village were spared the confiscation. At the time, a delegation of Israeli peace organizations came to support the village, the person relating the story told us that he told Uri Avnery, "you'll see, one way or another they'll take away the two remaining parcels". A few days ago his prediction came true, what the civil administration could not get in court the ministry of defense has gotten with a military order. "This is their own court and they just don't care, they keep coming, it's like cancer !" we were told.
The conversation took place on the lands of Bil'in at a demonstration against the wall which, if built, will separate the village from parts of its lands and from the rest of the world. The small village, which has turned out representatives to support demonstrations in Budrus in the past, has turned out a determined demonstration which also included women in the front of the crowd. The army made sure it extracted its usual toll from the Palestinian demonstrators. Two were injured by rubber coated metal bullets, one in the stomach and one in the back. Two head injuries from batton blows and a head injury from a shock grenade. A number of internationals were arrested and badly beaten when they tried to protect some of the Palestinians. Israelis were also beaten and four of them were arrested. As of this writing, the Israelis were released and the ministry of interior is trying to deport the internationals.
The work today consisted of only surveying for the route of the wall, a large demonstration is planned for next Sunday when the bulldozers are scheduled to begin work. Judging from the amount of resistance to the surveying it seems that the resistance to the construction might be as strong as in neighboring Budrus. Like in Budrus, Israeli and international support can be quite useful here as well.
stay tuned for updates on the deportation situation.
Re: Bil'in 14.12.04: it's like cancer > iwps take on the same action For immediate action
At approximately 8:00AM this morning, villagers of Bi'lin and international peace activists, including Israeli activists, gathered in the center of the village of Bil'in, located between Ramallah and Budrus. They organized a peaceful protest against the construction of the illegal Israeli Wall that began two days ago. The Israeli army is preparing to destroy the village residents' trees and land in order to make way for the Wall.
The protestors marched to the construction site and were met by at least 30 Israeli soldiers, border police and other security personnel. The army began throwing sound bombs and shooting rubber- coated steel bullets at the peaceful protestors in an attempt to remove them from the area.
As Israeli occupation forces began arresting Palestinians, international peace activists were beaten and also arrested as they tried to intervene nonviolently. One international was beaten repeatedly in the legs and was unable to walk. An IWPS member, Kate, was among the internationals arrested, and taken to the nearest police station. All she had been doing was filming the actions of the occupation forces as they shot, teargassed and beat the peaceful demonstrators. She has been taken to the Israeli Ministry of Interior in Jerusalem. She now faces deportation.
Four Israeli activists and two other internationals have also been arrested.
Kate is now in her hearing - 5pm local time.
Please call the ministery of interior and pressure them to free Kate, an American Citizen, who was a peaceful documentor.
Israeli Ministry of Interior: +972 2 670 1401
or send a fax: +972 2 566376
For more information contact IWPS on 0546 853 225 - a member who witnessed the demonstration and arrest.
Karin - IWPS
E-Mail: iwpseurope (at) gmx.net www.iwps.info
> Media, Four injured, seven arrested in protest against W. Bank fence
Four Palestinians were injured Tuesday in clashes with the IDF while protesting against the West Bank separation fence near the village Bil'in, east of Modi'in. Seven protestors, five of them Israeli, were also arrested. Dozens of Palestinian residents of the village and activists of the Israeli "Anarchists Against the Fence" organization had gathered in the area to protest against construction of the fence near the village.
During the clashes, the IDF declared the area a closed military area and used rubber bullets and teargas to disperse the protestors. The four protesters all sustained light injuries.
====================================
* Ed. Note, IWSP = International Women Supporting Palestinian, somewhat like the ISM = International Support Movement, and national Palestinians cooperate with the Israeli Anarchists Against The Wall/Fence... but they seldom reveal the identity of the anarchists and nearly always just mention "Israeli activists".
The conversation took place on the lands of Bil'in at a demonstration against the wall which, if built, will separate the village from parts of its lands and from the rest of the world. The small village, which has turned out representatives to support demonstrations in Budrus in the past, has turned out a determined demonstration which also included women in the front of the crowd. The army made sure it extracted its usual toll from the Palestinian demonstrators. Two were injured by rubber coated metal bullets, one in the stomach and one in the back. Two head injuries from batton blows and a head injury from a shock grenade. A number of internationals were arrested and badly beaten when they tried to protect some of the Palestinians. Israelis were also beaten and four of them were arrested. As of this writing, the Israelis were released and the ministry of interior is trying to deport the internationals.
The work today consisted of only surveying for the route of the wall, a large demonstration is planned for next Sunday when the bulldozers are scheduled to begin work. Judging from the amount of resistance to the surveying it seems that the resistance to the construction might be as strong as in neighboring Budrus. Like in Budrus, Israeli and international support can be quite useful here as well.
stay tuned for updates on the deportation situation.
Re: Bil'in 14.12.04: it's like cancer > iwps take on the same action For immediate action
At approximately 8:00AM this morning, villagers of Bi'lin and international peace activists, including Israeli activists, gathered in the center of the village of Bil'in, located between Ramallah and Budrus. They organized a peaceful protest against the construction of the illegal Israeli Wall that began two days ago. The Israeli army is preparing to destroy the village residents' trees and land in order to make way for the Wall.
The protestors marched to the construction site and were met by at least 30 Israeli soldiers, border police and other security personnel. The army began throwing sound bombs and shooting rubber- coated steel bullets at the peaceful protestors in an attempt to remove them from the area.
As Israeli occupation forces began arresting Palestinians, international peace activists were beaten and also arrested as they tried to intervene nonviolently. One international was beaten repeatedly in the legs and was unable to walk. An IWPS member, Kate, was among the internationals arrested, and taken to the nearest police station. All she had been doing was filming the actions of the occupation forces as they shot, teargassed and beat the peaceful demonstrators. She has been taken to the Israeli Ministry of Interior in Jerusalem. She now faces deportation.
Four Israeli activists and two other internationals have also been arrested.
Kate is now in her hearing - 5pm local time.
Please call the ministery of interior and pressure them to free Kate, an American Citizen, who was a peaceful documentor.
Israeli Ministry of Interior: +972 2 670 1401
or send a fax: +972 2 566376
For more information contact IWPS on 0546 853 225 - a member who witnessed the demonstration and arrest.
Karin - IWPS
E-Mail: iwpseurope (at) gmx.net www.iwps.info
> Media, Four injured, seven arrested in protest against W. Bank fence
Four Palestinians were injured Tuesday in clashes with the IDF while protesting against the West Bank separation fence near the village Bil'in, east of Modi'in. Seven protestors, five of them Israeli, were also arrested. Dozens of Palestinian residents of the village and activists of the Israeli "Anarchists Against the Fence" organization had gathered in the area to protest against construction of the fence near the village.
During the clashes, the IDF declared the area a closed military area and used rubber bullets and teargas to disperse the protestors. The four protesters all sustained light injuries.
====================================
* Ed. Note, IWSP = International Women Supporting Palestinian, somewhat like the ISM = International Support Movement, and national Palestinians cooperate with the Israeli Anarchists Against The Wall/Fence... but they seldom reveal the identity of the anarchists and nearly always just mention "Israeli activists".
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Lessons in popular resistance or We are all Ahmed Awwad by kobi snitz* 14/12/04
In his book "stupid white men" Michael Moore, includes an open letter to Arafat, instructing him in the principles of non violence. Moore assures Arafat that when such an approach can not fail and, when taken, it will have a million potential Israeli supporters amongst those who attend 'peace now' rallies. Moore seems sincere in his support for Palestinian rights but he must have known that such a letter reinforces the idea that Palestinian political under-development is responsible for their misery. Quite apart from the obscenity of criticizing our victims, Moore also distorts history by giving the impression that Palestinian resistance has been restricted to terror attacks.
To begin with, strikes, demonstrations and non cooperation with the occupation have gone on for decades. These efforts have not been joined by Peace Now nor covered by CNN. In fact, as Peace Now opposes refusal to reserve service, the only contact many peace now members have with the Palestinian population is when they man checkpoints or generally participate in the repression. In fact, I have met such a Peace Now soldier guarding the wall around the Palestinian village of Mas'ha. He repeated a common line telling me that he, being the humane soldier that he is, is reducing the brutality of the occupation and thus doing more for peace than those like myself who only criticize the army.
For its part, the IDF has tried hard to teach Palestinians a different lesson in Popular resistance. At the height of Palestinian popular resistance in 1987-88, AL-HAQ the Palestinian human rights monitoring organization has documented the deportation, administrative detention (i.e. imprisonment without trial) and beatings of union leaders, heads of charitable organizations and popular committees as well as protest organizers (see 'punishing a nation; Israeli Human Rights Violations During the Palestinian Uprising December 1987- December 1988', Al-Haq, south end press, 1988). In fact AL-Haq itself has had 4 out of 5 of its original field workers in administrative detention for most of the period of the report.
The Israeli position on Palestinian political organization was made explicit on March 19th 1988 when the 'Shabiba' was outlawed by a military order. According to Joel Greenberg writing in the Jerusalem Post on March 20 1988 (quoted in the AL-Haq report):
"The Shabiba, whose members include college students, pupils, and Palestinian youngsters not in school, has branches throughout the Territories and in East Jerusalem... among its open activities were community projects such as home renovation, aid to the elderly and youth programs. Security officials considered it to be in fact a recruiting mechanism for Fatah, through which young Palestinians are mobilized for anti-Israel attacks and nationalist political activity."
The military was not required to substantiate its (unlikely) claims about the Shabiba being a front for Fatah let alone accusations made against any particular member of the Shabiba who has been put in administrative detention. Furthermore, under Israeli law a person can actually be convicted for simply being a member of such an outlawed organization. Evidence of such membership can include delivering food to elderly people or the more serious charge of 'nationalist political activity'.
After years of deportation, imprisonment and beatings Israeli policy was pretty successful in suppressing 'nationalist political activity'. This success contributes to growth of violent armed resistance and terrorism in the occupied territories. When political activity becomes impossible and political leaders are jailed and deported the lesson conveyed is that the only possible resistance is armed and violent.
In spite of the repression, a Palestinian non violent popular movement has risen to oppose the separation wall. In Salem, Anin, Masha, Azawia, Biddu, Beit Awwa, Beit Ula, Iskakka, Budrus, Dir Balut, Beit Surik, Beit Likia, Al Ram, Abu Dis, Kibbia and other villages. A broad based movement, including men women and children has persistently resisted the land confiscation and the caging of their communities. The movement has persisted in non violent action even after 6 protesters were killed and thousands injured by live fire, rubber coated metal bullets tear gas and beatings. For the first time, this movement has also been joined by Internationals and Israelis on the ground. Those Internationals and Israelis who have joined the Palestinian movement do not presume to instruct Palestinians in the conduct of their struggle. Rather, they realize that it is thier own societies which need to learn that Palestinians are human beings and deserve to be treated as such.
The Israeli authorities have responded to the popular movement and its international supporters in the usual manner. Demonstrations are violently suppressed with live fire, Rubber coated metal bullets, tear gas and beatings. Not surprisingly, most of the violence is directed at Palestinians. In fact, commanders can be heard ordering soldiers to not shoot the Israelis. However, in spite of their relative privileged position, internationals and Israelis were also victims of IDF and police violence. One Israeli was nearly killed when he was shot in both legs with live ammunition from close range and another was shot in the eye with a rubber coated metal bullet. Other Israelis and Internationals have also been beaten and shot with rubber coated metal bullets.
Other than violent repression of demonstrations the Israeli authorities employ a wide range of political suppression tools. The ministry of interior systematically prevents members of the International Solidarity Movement from entering Israel and tries to deport those who are arrested at demonstrations. IDF commanders issue orders declaring demonstration areas "closed military zones" and arrest Israelis who are caught inside. Most sever of course is the treatment of Palestinian activists. Those who are suspected of being organizers can be imprisoned for months without charges. In the village of Budrus, one of the models for Palestinian popular non violent resistance the brothers Na'im and Ayed Morar, two members of the Budrus popular committee against the apartheid wall were placed in administrative detention last spring. In a rare move, a military judge reversed the detention order and said that their political activity is no reason for administrative detention. However, that was not the end of political repression in Budrus. Since the resumption of construction of the wall and the resumption of the demonstrations another member of the Budrus popular committee was put in administrative detention.
A 43 year old school teacher named Ahmed Awwad has been in administrative detention since Sept 27. In addition, dozens of Israelis and internationals were arrested for supporting the Palestinian demonstrations in defiance of the closed military zone orders. In October, charges of violating the order were brought against two Israeli anarchists. If convicted, they face a maximum of 2 years in jail. The aggravating circumstance that invites all the extra attention from the military and the police is the fact that the Budrus resistance has been quite successful. After months of demonstrating, the people of Budrus have won back all but a small part of their agricultural lands that was slated for confiscation for the construction of the wall. They have also obtained a temporary order by the Israeli supreme court barring construction on the remaining parts.
In response to the administrative detention of Ahmed Awwad and the upcoming trial of the two Israeli activists it was decided to respond with direct action. On the morning of Tuesday Dec 7, close to 100 Israelis from 'Anarchists Against the wall', 'Taayush' and others, as well as about 40 internationals arrived in Budrus. Many of the Israelis got rid of all identification, including the government issued blue cards identifying them as Jews and instead wore signs saying 'I am Ahmed Awwad' in many languages. During the demonstration, the Israelis did not retreat when the closed military zone was declared and the soldiers approached them. As hoped for, 41 Israelis were arrested and when asked to identify themselves they responded with 'we are all Ahmed Awwad'. The police were unable to process such a number of arrests which were complicated by the refusal to identify. After a few hours all but 4 of the Ahmed Awwad were released without even having to identify themselves. The last 4 were not given up without a fight but were literally grabbed from their comrades' arms and taken to Givat Ze'ev police station to be released a few hours later.
Two days later in the Jerusalem magistrate court, the prosecution dropped the charges of violating a closed military zone against the two Israeli anarchists. Charges of rioting are still pending and the prosecution threatens to bring more charges. It is impossible to know for sure what part the mass arrest played in the dropping of the charges but the lesson of the Budrus struggle for Israelis and others should be clear. They can be quite effective when they support the Palestinian struggle on the ground, and the best way to respond to repression and political persecution is with more protest and more resistance.
===============================
* One of the two Israeli anarchists the charges of violating a closed military against them was droped.
To begin with, strikes, demonstrations and non cooperation with the occupation have gone on for decades. These efforts have not been joined by Peace Now nor covered by CNN. In fact, as Peace Now opposes refusal to reserve service, the only contact many peace now members have with the Palestinian population is when they man checkpoints or generally participate in the repression. In fact, I have met such a Peace Now soldier guarding the wall around the Palestinian village of Mas'ha. He repeated a common line telling me that he, being the humane soldier that he is, is reducing the brutality of the occupation and thus doing more for peace than those like myself who only criticize the army.
For its part, the IDF has tried hard to teach Palestinians a different lesson in Popular resistance. At the height of Palestinian popular resistance in 1987-88, AL-HAQ the Palestinian human rights monitoring organization has documented the deportation, administrative detention (i.e. imprisonment without trial) and beatings of union leaders, heads of charitable organizations and popular committees as well as protest organizers (see 'punishing a nation; Israeli Human Rights Violations During the Palestinian Uprising December 1987- December 1988', Al-Haq, south end press, 1988). In fact AL-Haq itself has had 4 out of 5 of its original field workers in administrative detention for most of the period of the report.
The Israeli position on Palestinian political organization was made explicit on March 19th 1988 when the 'Shabiba' was outlawed by a military order. According to Joel Greenberg writing in the Jerusalem Post on March 20 1988 (quoted in the AL-Haq report):
"The Shabiba, whose members include college students, pupils, and Palestinian youngsters not in school, has branches throughout the Territories and in East Jerusalem... among its open activities were community projects such as home renovation, aid to the elderly and youth programs. Security officials considered it to be in fact a recruiting mechanism for Fatah, through which young Palestinians are mobilized for anti-Israel attacks and nationalist political activity."
The military was not required to substantiate its (unlikely) claims about the Shabiba being a front for Fatah let alone accusations made against any particular member of the Shabiba who has been put in administrative detention. Furthermore, under Israeli law a person can actually be convicted for simply being a member of such an outlawed organization. Evidence of such membership can include delivering food to elderly people or the more serious charge of 'nationalist political activity'.
After years of deportation, imprisonment and beatings Israeli policy was pretty successful in suppressing 'nationalist political activity'. This success contributes to growth of violent armed resistance and terrorism in the occupied territories. When political activity becomes impossible and political leaders are jailed and deported the lesson conveyed is that the only possible resistance is armed and violent.
In spite of the repression, a Palestinian non violent popular movement has risen to oppose the separation wall. In Salem, Anin, Masha, Azawia, Biddu, Beit Awwa, Beit Ula, Iskakka, Budrus, Dir Balut, Beit Surik, Beit Likia, Al Ram, Abu Dis, Kibbia and other villages. A broad based movement, including men women and children has persistently resisted the land confiscation and the caging of their communities. The movement has persisted in non violent action even after 6 protesters were killed and thousands injured by live fire, rubber coated metal bullets tear gas and beatings. For the first time, this movement has also been joined by Internationals and Israelis on the ground. Those Internationals and Israelis who have joined the Palestinian movement do not presume to instruct Palestinians in the conduct of their struggle. Rather, they realize that it is thier own societies which need to learn that Palestinians are human beings and deserve to be treated as such.
The Israeli authorities have responded to the popular movement and its international supporters in the usual manner. Demonstrations are violently suppressed with live fire, Rubber coated metal bullets, tear gas and beatings. Not surprisingly, most of the violence is directed at Palestinians. In fact, commanders can be heard ordering soldiers to not shoot the Israelis. However, in spite of their relative privileged position, internationals and Israelis were also victims of IDF and police violence. One Israeli was nearly killed when he was shot in both legs with live ammunition from close range and another was shot in the eye with a rubber coated metal bullet. Other Israelis and Internationals have also been beaten and shot with rubber coated metal bullets.
Other than violent repression of demonstrations the Israeli authorities employ a wide range of political suppression tools. The ministry of interior systematically prevents members of the International Solidarity Movement from entering Israel and tries to deport those who are arrested at demonstrations. IDF commanders issue orders declaring demonstration areas "closed military zones" and arrest Israelis who are caught inside. Most sever of course is the treatment of Palestinian activists. Those who are suspected of being organizers can be imprisoned for months without charges. In the village of Budrus, one of the models for Palestinian popular non violent resistance the brothers Na'im and Ayed Morar, two members of the Budrus popular committee against the apartheid wall were placed in administrative detention last spring. In a rare move, a military judge reversed the detention order and said that their political activity is no reason for administrative detention. However, that was not the end of political repression in Budrus. Since the resumption of construction of the wall and the resumption of the demonstrations another member of the Budrus popular committee was put in administrative detention.
A 43 year old school teacher named Ahmed Awwad has been in administrative detention since Sept 27. In addition, dozens of Israelis and internationals were arrested for supporting the Palestinian demonstrations in defiance of the closed military zone orders. In October, charges of violating the order were brought against two Israeli anarchists. If convicted, they face a maximum of 2 years in jail. The aggravating circumstance that invites all the extra attention from the military and the police is the fact that the Budrus resistance has been quite successful. After months of demonstrating, the people of Budrus have won back all but a small part of their agricultural lands that was slated for confiscation for the construction of the wall. They have also obtained a temporary order by the Israeli supreme court barring construction on the remaining parts.
In response to the administrative detention of Ahmed Awwad and the upcoming trial of the two Israeli activists it was decided to respond with direct action. On the morning of Tuesday Dec 7, close to 100 Israelis from 'Anarchists Against the wall', 'Taayush' and others, as well as about 40 internationals arrived in Budrus. Many of the Israelis got rid of all identification, including the government issued blue cards identifying them as Jews and instead wore signs saying 'I am Ahmed Awwad' in many languages. During the demonstration, the Israelis did not retreat when the closed military zone was declared and the soldiers approached them. As hoped for, 41 Israelis were arrested and when asked to identify themselves they responded with 'we are all Ahmed Awwad'. The police were unable to process such a number of arrests which were complicated by the refusal to identify. After a few hours all but 4 of the Ahmed Awwad were released without even having to identify themselves. The last 4 were not given up without a fight but were literally grabbed from their comrades' arms and taken to Givat Ze'ev police station to be released a few hours later.
Two days later in the Jerusalem magistrate court, the prosecution dropped the charges of violating a closed military zone against the two Israeli anarchists. Charges of rioting are still pending and the prosecution threatens to bring more charges. It is impossible to know for sure what part the mass arrest played in the dropping of the charges but the lesson of the Budrus struggle for Israelis and others should be clear. They can be quite effective when they support the Palestinian struggle on the ground, and the best way to respond to repression and political persecution is with more protest and more resistance.
===============================
* One of the two Israeli anarchists the charges of violating a closed military against them was droped.
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Alt. Media*, The Third Intifada - 'Yes to Peace, No to the Wall' 11/12/04
To appreciate the breathtaking magnanimity expressed by this short slogan, one needs to remember its context. Imagine: a foreign army occupies your village for decades, reduces you to subjects without any rights, arrests you arbitrarily, savagely tortures the arrested, and, on top of it all, sends mighty bulldozers to erect a gigantic wall on your land, locking you up as in a cage. And your reaction? Peaceful demonstrations, shouting "No to the Wall" – but "Yes to Peace," to peace with your very oppressor and dispossessor.
Budrus, where this slogan was coined, is a small village of some 1,200 Palestinians in the northern part of West Bank, just across the Green Line. Few Israelis have ever heard of it; but some may remember neighboring Kibia, just a mile to the east, where, on Oct. 14, 1953, an Israeli army unit – led by a young officer called Ariel Sharon – ravaged the village (then still under Jordanian rule), destroying 40 houses and killing more than 50 people, an atrocity that caused international outrage and was strongly condemned by the UN Security Council.
Half a century after that massacre, PM Ariel Sharon sent his bulldozers to the same rural area. Many imagine the Wall as a kind of border separating Israel from the Palestinian territories. The facts are different: the Wall twists like a snake entirely inside the Palestinian territory, and – in combination with other physical barriers, most notoriously roads for-Israelis-only – it creates numerous small enclaves, in which Palestinian villages and towns – sometimes just a few hundred people, less than in any average prison – are locked up, unable to leave their unsafe haven except by mercy of an Israeli soldier at the gate, when equipped with proper permits issued (or rather not issued) by the Israeli army. The contiguous territory in-between the enclaves is designated for the Israeli settlements.
Living in a Cage
A'ed Murar from Budrus counts three levels on which the Wall is destructive to Palestinian life. First the immediate level: the Wall takes the agricultural lands and water wells of the village, either because it is constructed on them, or because they are left outside the Wall, inaccessible to the farmers. The section of the population that depends on agriculture thus loses most of its means of survival.
The second level is imprisonment: there are no clinics or hospitals, no higher schools or universities, nor any other social and economic infrastructure inside the enclave; moreover, about 80% of Budrus' population works outside the village: they, too, lose their means of survival as their access to the outside world is dependent on Israeli army caprices.
The third level is that of nation and vision: by locking up the Palestinians and taking the land in-between the enclaves, Israel robs them of their future, of a contiguous territory for the Palestinian State promised in President's Bush roadmap. The Palestinians are thus left with no way to earn their living, with no infrastructure to run their present life, and with no hope for the future.
A Short History of the Wall
Historian and Ta'ayush activist Gadi Algazi distinguishes several periods in the construction of the Wall. From April 2002-May 2003, the Wall was built with incredible speed – 300-500 bulldozers working simultaneously – hardly attracting any public attention at all, neither in Israel nor abroad, thus enabling the Israeli government to quietly and irreversibly change the geography of the land for decades. The Israeli public had the illusion that the Wall was being built along the Green Line – a good reason for naïve peaceniks to support it – and that at worst it was perhaps conflicting with property rights of some Palestinian landowners along its route. Even the Palestinians could hardly grasp the full impact of the project, both because of its indeed incredible dimensions, and because Israel refused to publish any maps at the time, so that information was scarce in a West Bank hardly recovering from the massive Israeli aggression of "Operation Defensive Shield." Some resistance to the Wall was led by small groups of Israelis, international activists, and Palestinians, like in the Mas'ha camp.
May 2003 signaled a change: since then, the Wall has become the focus of media attention, and turned into a political issue in Israel and abroad. Demonstrations, many of them by Israelis and international activists, and their violent dispersion by the army increased public awareness and reduced the pace of construction. The clear decision of the International Court of Justice against the Wall as well as the critical position taken by the Israeli Supreme Court regarding its route mark a peak in the public struggle against the Wall; consequently, in the summer of 2004, the construction was virtually stopped, and the Israeli establishment started looking for new tactics.
It is in this period, in places like Budrus, that people like Mr. Murar – who had participated in the first Intifada and had been jailed and brutally tortured by Israel – reached the conclusions that resistance to the Wall should be led and organized first of all by Palestinians themselves; that waiting quietly for courts and verdicts was not enough; and, above all, that nonviolent demonstrations were the best weapon of the weaker side. He believes this for moral reasons, but also because nothing could harm the Palestinian interest more than violence, immediately exploited by Israel to distract public attention from the Palestinian plight and to accelerate the construction project behind the thick screen of "fighting off terrorism." A'ed Murar calls it the Third Intifada: the Intifada against the Wall.
Since the Palestinian Authority offered no real strategy or help in the villagers' struggle, they had only themselves to rely on – aided by Israeli and international supporters, like Ta'ayush, International Solidarity Movement, or Anarchists against the Wall. The Third Intifada is a popular uprising: in villages like Budrus, party affiliation and other differences are put aside, and the whole village marches together time after time to demonstrate against the Israeli bulldozers. Footage taken in several such demonstration shows the utter embarrassment of the Israeli soldiers, armed to the teeth against unarmed men, women, and children, who can stand for hours just a few meters away from them singing and shouting without any violence at all. If at last a single stone is thrown, the soldiers seem to be truly relieved: they immediately employ their heavy truncheons, shoot tear-gas and rubber-covered bullets at the crowd, and make violent arrests. But the resistance is not in vain: when a whole village stands together day after day, even the cruelest army must have second thoughts. So far, the demonstrations in Budrus managed to save the biggest plantation of the village from Israel's bulldozers.
Crucial Stage
The construction of the Wall, says Algazi, seems to have reached a crucial period. Following the verdicts from The Hague and Jerusalem, the Israeli establishment made a pause and took some time to reorganize and elaborate a new route and new strategies; these are now ready, and the construction of the Wall is about to resume in full speed. Signals and threats conveyed to inhabitants in Budrus make it clear that Israel is not going to give up easily on their land and water. The number of soldiers sent to demonstrations in villages like Budrus has been reduced, to increase the soldiers' insecurity and ease their finger on the trigger, and villagers are warned that if they do not capitulate this time, live ammunition may be used.
This nonviolent popular struggle is hardly reported in mainstream press. One needs to refer to alternative media to read about it. The idea of nonviolent Palestinian resistance sharply contradicts the stereotype of Palestinians as a "nation of suicide-bombers"; reporting peaceful Palestinian demonstrations is highly undesirable in official Israel's eyes. For all those reasons, this is a struggle very worthy of both public interest and support: The future of Israel/Palestine will be decided here, on the ground, rather than in press conferences in Washington or coalition intrigues in Jerusalem.
============================
* Ed. Note: It is not ignorance - it is just selectivity of presenting the facts...
Every one, including main Media acknowledge the contribution of the Anarchists Against The Wall to the third intifada.
Many are aware that the March-April 2003 Masha camp of Israeli (anachists mainly) international volunteers, and nocal villagers was the catalist that ignitted it.
Few are aware that the origin of the idea of the camp came from a workshop in the PGE European conference in Leiden (Holand) summer 2002. In the workshop participated a significant contingent of the Israeli anarchist scene, Israeli Palestinians, and other PGA people interested in the Israeli-Palestinian struggle against the occupation.
The confrontational mode of the Anarchists Against The Wall who were not satisfied with the less beligerant mode of the other Israeli activists draw the attention of the mainstream media. It also supplied to the Palestinian villagers a kind of shield agains the full use of murderous live ammunition by the Israeli army in the suppression of the mass demonstrations.
Budrus, where this slogan was coined, is a small village of some 1,200 Palestinians in the northern part of West Bank, just across the Green Line. Few Israelis have ever heard of it; but some may remember neighboring Kibia, just a mile to the east, where, on Oct. 14, 1953, an Israeli army unit – led by a young officer called Ariel Sharon – ravaged the village (then still under Jordanian rule), destroying 40 houses and killing more than 50 people, an atrocity that caused international outrage and was strongly condemned by the UN Security Council.
Half a century after that massacre, PM Ariel Sharon sent his bulldozers to the same rural area. Many imagine the Wall as a kind of border separating Israel from the Palestinian territories. The facts are different: the Wall twists like a snake entirely inside the Palestinian territory, and – in combination with other physical barriers, most notoriously roads for-Israelis-only – it creates numerous small enclaves, in which Palestinian villages and towns – sometimes just a few hundred people, less than in any average prison – are locked up, unable to leave their unsafe haven except by mercy of an Israeli soldier at the gate, when equipped with proper permits issued (or rather not issued) by the Israeli army. The contiguous territory in-between the enclaves is designated for the Israeli settlements.
Living in a Cage
A'ed Murar from Budrus counts three levels on which the Wall is destructive to Palestinian life. First the immediate level: the Wall takes the agricultural lands and water wells of the village, either because it is constructed on them, or because they are left outside the Wall, inaccessible to the farmers. The section of the population that depends on agriculture thus loses most of its means of survival.
The second level is imprisonment: there are no clinics or hospitals, no higher schools or universities, nor any other social and economic infrastructure inside the enclave; moreover, about 80% of Budrus' population works outside the village: they, too, lose their means of survival as their access to the outside world is dependent on Israeli army caprices.
The third level is that of nation and vision: by locking up the Palestinians and taking the land in-between the enclaves, Israel robs them of their future, of a contiguous territory for the Palestinian State promised in President's Bush roadmap. The Palestinians are thus left with no way to earn their living, with no infrastructure to run their present life, and with no hope for the future.
A Short History of the Wall
Historian and Ta'ayush activist Gadi Algazi distinguishes several periods in the construction of the Wall. From April 2002-May 2003, the Wall was built with incredible speed – 300-500 bulldozers working simultaneously – hardly attracting any public attention at all, neither in Israel nor abroad, thus enabling the Israeli government to quietly and irreversibly change the geography of the land for decades. The Israeli public had the illusion that the Wall was being built along the Green Line – a good reason for naïve peaceniks to support it – and that at worst it was perhaps conflicting with property rights of some Palestinian landowners along its route. Even the Palestinians could hardly grasp the full impact of the project, both because of its indeed incredible dimensions, and because Israel refused to publish any maps at the time, so that information was scarce in a West Bank hardly recovering from the massive Israeli aggression of "Operation Defensive Shield." Some resistance to the Wall was led by small groups of Israelis, international activists, and Palestinians, like in the Mas'ha camp.
May 2003 signaled a change: since then, the Wall has become the focus of media attention, and turned into a political issue in Israel and abroad. Demonstrations, many of them by Israelis and international activists, and their violent dispersion by the army increased public awareness and reduced the pace of construction. The clear decision of the International Court of Justice against the Wall as well as the critical position taken by the Israeli Supreme Court regarding its route mark a peak in the public struggle against the Wall; consequently, in the summer of 2004, the construction was virtually stopped, and the Israeli establishment started looking for new tactics.
It is in this period, in places like Budrus, that people like Mr. Murar – who had participated in the first Intifada and had been jailed and brutally tortured by Israel – reached the conclusions that resistance to the Wall should be led and organized first of all by Palestinians themselves; that waiting quietly for courts and verdicts was not enough; and, above all, that nonviolent demonstrations were the best weapon of the weaker side. He believes this for moral reasons, but also because nothing could harm the Palestinian interest more than violence, immediately exploited by Israel to distract public attention from the Palestinian plight and to accelerate the construction project behind the thick screen of "fighting off terrorism." A'ed Murar calls it the Third Intifada: the Intifada against the Wall.
Since the Palestinian Authority offered no real strategy or help in the villagers' struggle, they had only themselves to rely on – aided by Israeli and international supporters, like Ta'ayush, International Solidarity Movement, or Anarchists against the Wall. The Third Intifada is a popular uprising: in villages like Budrus, party affiliation and other differences are put aside, and the whole village marches together time after time to demonstrate against the Israeli bulldozers. Footage taken in several such demonstration shows the utter embarrassment of the Israeli soldiers, armed to the teeth against unarmed men, women, and children, who can stand for hours just a few meters away from them singing and shouting without any violence at all. If at last a single stone is thrown, the soldiers seem to be truly relieved: they immediately employ their heavy truncheons, shoot tear-gas and rubber-covered bullets at the crowd, and make violent arrests. But the resistance is not in vain: when a whole village stands together day after day, even the cruelest army must have second thoughts. So far, the demonstrations in Budrus managed to save the biggest plantation of the village from Israel's bulldozers.
Crucial Stage
The construction of the Wall, says Algazi, seems to have reached a crucial period. Following the verdicts from The Hague and Jerusalem, the Israeli establishment made a pause and took some time to reorganize and elaborate a new route and new strategies; these are now ready, and the construction of the Wall is about to resume in full speed. Signals and threats conveyed to inhabitants in Budrus make it clear that Israel is not going to give up easily on their land and water. The number of soldiers sent to demonstrations in villages like Budrus has been reduced, to increase the soldiers' insecurity and ease their finger on the trigger, and villagers are warned that if they do not capitulate this time, live ammunition may be used.
This nonviolent popular struggle is hardly reported in mainstream press. One needs to refer to alternative media to read about it. The idea of nonviolent Palestinian resistance sharply contradicts the stereotype of Palestinians as a "nation of suicide-bombers"; reporting peaceful Palestinian demonstrations is highly undesirable in official Israel's eyes. For all those reasons, this is a struggle very worthy of both public interest and support: The future of Israel/Palestine will be decided here, on the ground, rather than in press conferences in Washington or coalition intrigues in Jerusalem.
============================
* Ed. Note: It is not ignorance - it is just selectivity of presenting the facts...
Every one, including main Media acknowledge the contribution of the Anarchists Against The Wall to the third intifada.
Many are aware that the March-April 2003 Masha camp of Israeli (anachists mainly) international volunteers, and nocal villagers was the catalist that ignitted it.
Few are aware that the origin of the idea of the camp came from a workshop in the PGE European conference in Leiden (Holand) summer 2002. In the workshop participated a significant contingent of the Israeli anarchist scene, Israeli Palestinians, and other PGA people interested in the Israeli-Palestinian struggle against the occupation.
The confrontational mode of the Anarchists Against The Wall who were not satisfied with the less beligerant mode of the other Israeli activists draw the attention of the mainstream media. It also supplied to the Palestinian villagers a kind of shield agains the full use of murderous live ammunition by the Israeli army in the suppression of the mass demonstrations.
Thursday, December 9, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Ahmed Awwad is Free 9/12/04
Just freed from administrative detention Ahmed Awad who is one of the prominent activists in the nonviolent struggle against the Apartheid Wall/fence (intended in the name of "security" to annex Palestinian areas to Israel). The lame effort of the Israeli security agencies to present him as serious terrorist failed - mainly because of wide scale struggle of israli activists who know him from joint actions. See: (en) Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Lessons in popular resistance or We are all Ahmed Awwad by kobi snitz* http://www.ainfos.ca/04/dec/ainfos00217.html (en) Palestine-Israel, Budrus action report 07.12.04 - by kerem: Our right to protest - the struggle against the fence continues http://www.ainfos.ca/04/dec/ainfos00122.html
To see the call to action by the ism; https://israel.indymedia.org/newswire/display/1341/index.php or the story by amira hass. Also, the story of the demonstration for Awad and another story about the demonstration 21:00 Indymedai has just learned that Ahmed awad is out of prison and on his way home. more details tomorrow.
===============================
* The Anarchists Against The Wall initiative is a prominent factor in the joint Israeli-Palestinian struggles along the rote of the fence.
To see the call to action by the ism; https://israel.indymedia.org/newswire/display/1341/index.php or the story by amira hass. Also, the story of the demonstration for Awad and another story about the demonstration 21:00 Indymedai has just learned that Ahmed awad is out of prison and on his way home. more details tomorrow.
===============================
* The Anarchists Against The Wall initiative is a prominent factor in the joint Israeli-Palestinian struggles along the rote of the fence.
Wednesday, December 8, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Budrus action report 07.12.04 - by kerem: Our right to protest - the struggle against the fence continues 08/12/04
The protest's main aim was to demand our right to protest. The 2 main messages that we, the israelis, wanted to put across in this protest was one: to protest against the closed military zone that is presented to us every time we protest. This consequently makes the israelis hide from the soldiers in the fear of being arrested. The second message was to go against the political persecutions. 2 israeli activists are being persecuted for entering a closed military zone in a protest in Budrus, a few weeks ago. Ahmed Awwad, a 43-year-old high-school teacher and father of six, was arrested on October 21 in Budrus. He is in administative arrest up to this date, for no reason that is known to him or his lawyers.
We arrived at the village at different times, from 9am, to about 11 am. We were about 60 israelis and 40 internationals. We, the israelis divided ourselves into affinity groups, of between 5-12 people in a group, who's job was to look out for eachother during the protest. We all put signs on ourselves saying "I am Ahmed Awwad" in a few languages.
The protest began at 1 pm. We walked down to the land with about 100 palestinians, and arrived about 30 meters from the bulldozers, where the soldiers were. The soldiers immediately began with pushing and shoving us, and threw tear gas and shock grenades. The soldiers showed us a closed military zone order. They then decided that they would go back, and so should we, but the israelis decided not to retreat as we planned.
The soldiers retreated and tried to stop us from advancing but we held hands and managed to get to the bulldozers. When we got there I saw one israeli who was wounded in the head. I said to the soldier that she needs to get he medical treatment and he replied that it's her problem that she's here and got hurt.
The were many stunt grenades at that point, and a lot of different conforntations with the soldiers near the bulldozers. There was no attempt to stop them from working. At that time I saw the village people retreating, and the soldiers began shooting rubber bullets at them.
We saw a roller tractor coming toward us and a few people sat down in front of it. It wasn't about to stop until the soldiers made him stop, the driver swore at us, and more of us joined to sit there. I got pulled backwards very strongly by a soldier and screamed very loud, and came back to sit infront of the bulldozer when he let go.
The bulldozer finally turned around. At that point I saw someone from my group being arrested by about 7 soldiers. I found the rest of the group and we walked with him, when he was taken away to where more israelis and soldier were. We sat down and were told that we're allunder arrest. More israelis were coming on their free will to where we were and joined us. We were 34 israelis in all.
We waited for about 2 hours. We wouldn't identify ourselves, and had no I.Ds.
all of us said : "we're all Ahmed Awwad".
The blue police came as well. And all that while we heard shooting inside the village. (we were later told that the soldiers went into the village, took over the school and 3 private houses and were shooting at people on the street. One boy was injured.)
The police brought a Safari vehicle to take us. Which is only enough for 10 people, they told us not to worry, that they have enough cars to take all of us. One of the police officers recognized one of the protesters and told him he wants to take him in his jeep. We then thought that they recognize a few faces and maybe they'll only take them and leave the rest of us. We put 10 "not wanted people" on the safari and they drove off. We received a call a few minutes later that the Safari dropped them off somewhere and told them they weren't arrested. The intentions of the police were made clear by themselves a few minutes after that. They only wanted specifically 3 men and one woman and pointed them out. They gave us a few minutes to organise. We said we wouldn't let them take the targeted ones without a fight.
With about 20 soldiers around us, and the targeted sitting surrounded by all of us, the last struggle began. It took about 5 minutes for them to get the 4.
The soldiers and police went, and we walked up to the village where the rest waited for us. On the way up the village's kids were still throwing stones at the soldiers on the hill.
The 4 were released later that evening, and were paid bail for on the condition that they don't enter Budrus for 7 days.
======================
See also
(en) Israel-Palestine, Trial of two members of Anarchists against the wall Thursday the 9th of December 20004 at 12:30 http://www.ainfos.ca/04/dec/ainfos00078.html
(en) Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Media, Anti-fence protest detained - another take on today's demo http://www.ainfos.ca/04/dec/ainfos00114.html
We arrived at the village at different times, from 9am, to about 11 am. We were about 60 israelis and 40 internationals. We, the israelis divided ourselves into affinity groups, of between 5-12 people in a group, who's job was to look out for eachother during the protest. We all put signs on ourselves saying "I am Ahmed Awwad" in a few languages.
The protest began at 1 pm. We walked down to the land with about 100 palestinians, and arrived about 30 meters from the bulldozers, where the soldiers were. The soldiers immediately began with pushing and shoving us, and threw tear gas and shock grenades. The soldiers showed us a closed military zone order. They then decided that they would go back, and so should we, but the israelis decided not to retreat as we planned.
The soldiers retreated and tried to stop us from advancing but we held hands and managed to get to the bulldozers. When we got there I saw one israeli who was wounded in the head. I said to the soldier that she needs to get he medical treatment and he replied that it's her problem that she's here and got hurt.
The were many stunt grenades at that point, and a lot of different conforntations with the soldiers near the bulldozers. There was no attempt to stop them from working. At that time I saw the village people retreating, and the soldiers began shooting rubber bullets at them.
We saw a roller tractor coming toward us and a few people sat down in front of it. It wasn't about to stop until the soldiers made him stop, the driver swore at us, and more of us joined to sit there. I got pulled backwards very strongly by a soldier and screamed very loud, and came back to sit infront of the bulldozer when he let go.
The bulldozer finally turned around. At that point I saw someone from my group being arrested by about 7 soldiers. I found the rest of the group and we walked with him, when he was taken away to where more israelis and soldier were. We sat down and were told that we're allunder arrest. More israelis were coming on their free will to where we were and joined us. We were 34 israelis in all.
We waited for about 2 hours. We wouldn't identify ourselves, and had no I.Ds.
all of us said : "we're all Ahmed Awwad".
The blue police came as well. And all that while we heard shooting inside the village. (we were later told that the soldiers went into the village, took over the school and 3 private houses and were shooting at people on the street. One boy was injured.)
The police brought a Safari vehicle to take us. Which is only enough for 10 people, they told us not to worry, that they have enough cars to take all of us. One of the police officers recognized one of the protesters and told him he wants to take him in his jeep. We then thought that they recognize a few faces and maybe they'll only take them and leave the rest of us. We put 10 "not wanted people" on the safari and they drove off. We received a call a few minutes later that the Safari dropped them off somewhere and told them they weren't arrested. The intentions of the police were made clear by themselves a few minutes after that. They only wanted specifically 3 men and one woman and pointed them out. They gave us a few minutes to organise. We said we wouldn't let them take the targeted ones without a fight.
With about 20 soldiers around us, and the targeted sitting surrounded by all of us, the last struggle began. It took about 5 minutes for them to get the 4.
The soldiers and police went, and we walked up to the village where the rest waited for us. On the way up the village's kids were still throwing stones at the soldiers on the hill.
The 4 were released later that evening, and were paid bail for on the condition that they don't enter Budrus for 7 days.
======================
See also
(en) Israel-Palestine, Trial of two members of Anarchists against the wall Thursday the 9th of December 20004 at 12:30 http://www.ainfos.ca/04/dec/ainfos00078.html
(en) Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Media, Anti-fence protest detained - another take on today's demo http://www.ainfos.ca/04/dec/ainfos00114.html
Tuesday, December 7, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Media, Anti-fence protest detained - another take on today's demo 07/12/04
Border Police units on Tuesday detained 41 activists at an anti-security fence protest in Budrus, west of Ramallah on the West Bank. The protesters were held for violating the closed military zone orders for the area. Military sources confirmed that the members of two Israeli left-wing organizations - 'Anarchists Against the Wall' and 'Taayush' - had obtained a permission for the demonstration*.
The IDF had agreed for the event to take place exclusively inside of Budrus on the condition that the demonstrators did not approach the fence. When activists began to approach the barrier, the army declared the area a closed military zone.
Yonatan Pollak, a member of Anarchist against the Wall told The Jerusalem Post that the activists insisted on staying within the closed military zone in order to defend their rights to freedom of expression.
Of the 150 activists involved, 41 were detained** by Border Police Units who alerted Judea and Samaria police to the situation. When police arrived on the scene they immediately released the activists that cooperated with their request to vacate the area. Four Israelis resisted orders and were subsequently arrested on charges of attacking police officers and a security fence construction worker.
=================================
* The anarchists do not ask permission for demonstrations.
** The arrested were only of the Israelis as by their presence they force the army to refrain from too harsh repression of the palestinians.
The IDF had agreed for the event to take place exclusively inside of Budrus on the condition that the demonstrators did not approach the fence. When activists began to approach the barrier, the army declared the area a closed military zone.
Yonatan Pollak, a member of Anarchist against the Wall told The Jerusalem Post that the activists insisted on staying within the closed military zone in order to defend their rights to freedom of expression.
Of the 150 activists involved, 41 were detained** by Border Police Units who alerted Judea and Samaria police to the situation. When police arrived on the scene they immediately released the activists that cooperated with their request to vacate the area. Four Israelis resisted orders and were subsequently arrested on charges of attacking police officers and a security fence construction worker.
=================================
* The anarchists do not ask permission for demonstrations.
** The arrested were only of the Israelis as by their presence they force the army to refrain from too harsh repression of the palestinians.
Palestine-Israel, Budrus, Media, 35 activists arrested 07/12/04
Israeli army and gendarmes arrested 35 israeli activists participating in peaceful [nonviolent] demonstration against the separation fence [the Apartheid Wall] - so reported public Radio station and on line daily. The demonstration was against the wall and in protest of the harsh repression of the Budrus people involved in the nonviolent demonstration against the separation fence - see (en) Israel-Palestine, A Village Stands for their Rights: Civil Disobedience in Budrus http://www.ainfos.ca/04/dec/ainfos00026.html The stated reason for arrest the authority gave was: "entrance to area disregarding the declaration by authorities that it is closed military zone." Two of the arrested are to appear Thursday in Jerusalem courthouse for the same "offense" at previous demo.
The arrested refused to reveal their names and when asked replied: "All of us are Ahmad Awad - the name of local Budrus activist in the nonviolent struggle against the Apartheid Wall, who was administratively arrested a month ago for that reason alone.
In the demonstration that started at 13:00 participated about 100 israelis of the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative and of other left organizations, 30 international volunteers and about local villagers. They approached the construction site of the fence near Budrus and stand in a vigil near the working Bulldozers. One of the activists was hit in her head by a tear gas grenade. When the report was distributed by Roiters, the army was assaulting the people and the village with tear gas grenades (including shooting an ambulance).
The arrested refused to reveal their names and when asked replied: "All of us are Ahmad Awad - the name of local Budrus activist in the nonviolent struggle against the Apartheid Wall, who was administratively arrested a month ago for that reason alone.
In the demonstration that started at 13:00 participated about 100 israelis of the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative and of other left organizations, 30 international volunteers and about local villagers. They approached the construction site of the fence near Budrus and stand in a vigil near the working Bulldozers. One of the activists was hit in her head by a tear gas grenade. When the report was distributed by Roiters, the army was assaulting the people and the village with tear gas grenades (including shooting an ambulance).
Sunday, December 5, 2004
Israel/Tel Aviv, Media, The yearly conference of the local business elite, the counter "conference, and the anarchists counter-counter action 05/12/04
Background: In parallel to the local "Dabos" conference of the economic elite the reformist left held its counter conference (including - as speaker the the general secretary of the general trade union - Amir Perets) whose tinny parliament party joined lately the Labor party - that carried when in power the same neo-liberal policy as the Licud party now in power. [Ed.]
Internet electronic media headlined an article on the counter conference" "Anarchists disconnected the loudspeaker when Perets gave his speech". ....During Perets speech in the "Exploited conference", activists of "Anarchists for ending the authoritarian economy" cut the lines of the loudspeakers an shouted: "No to the Licud [the ruling party], no to the Labor [working hard on joining the government] dismantle the state". So said a person of that organization to the Nana news. According to the report, the loudspeakers were cut twice during the speech, but after their reconnection Perets could finish his speech.
Internet electronic media headlined an article on the counter conference" "Anarchists disconnected the loudspeaker when Perets gave his speech". ....During Perets speech in the "Exploited conference", activists of "Anarchists for ending the authoritarian economy" cut the lines of the loudspeakers an shouted: "No to the Licud [the ruling party], no to the Labor [working hard on joining the government] dismantle the state". So said a person of that organization to the Nana news. According to the report, the loudspeakers were cut twice during the speech, but after their reconnection Perets could finish his speech.
Israel-Palestine, Trial of two members of Anarchists against the wall Thursday the 9th of December 20004 at 12:30 05/12/04
A trial against two anti-wall activists that were arrested in Budrus at Jerusalem Magistrate Court (6 Hishin st.), judge Shulamit Dotan's court room On Thursday 9.12 the trial of two members of Anarchists against the wall will begin at the magistrate court in Jerusalem. The two, Kobi Snitz and Yonatan Pollak were arrested on 21.9.04 at a demonstration against the wall at the Palestinian village of Budrus. They are accused of being in a closed military zone and causing a disturbance. Adv. Gaby Laski who represents the two, will challenge the legitimacy of closed military zones and the court's jurisdiction. The right to protest extends to the occupied territories as well and closed military zones are not protest-prevention zones.
The real offence the defendants are accused of is participation in non-violent resistance to the wall and the occupation. The aggravating circumstance are the fact that this resistance has been successful and the defendants and their comrades collaborate with a popular movement which acts democratically and non violently.
The fact that these activists are put on trial while the soldiers who shot at them with live ammunition from close range and the officers who ordered the shooting are allowed to continue to shoot at demonstrators illustrates the corrupt repressive policies of "the only democracy in the middle east".
This trial follows administrative detention of Palestinian anti wall activists, who do not even get the benefit of a trial, and the violent repression of the protests. This is a clear attempt at silencing legitimate protest. Those who repress non-violent popular resistance are guilty of fueling the violence.
It was said that the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality. Not the policy of repression, the violence or the legal persecution will deter us from the struggle against occupation and repression and for justice, equality and liberty for all living beingWe will be grateful to anyone who could come and show support at court.
The real offence the defendants are accused of is participation in non-violent resistance to the wall and the occupation. The aggravating circumstance are the fact that this resistance has been successful and the defendants and their comrades collaborate with a popular movement which acts democratically and non violently.
The fact that these activists are put on trial while the soldiers who shot at them with live ammunition from close range and the officers who ordered the shooting are allowed to continue to shoot at demonstrators illustrates the corrupt repressive policies of "the only democracy in the middle east".
This trial follows administrative detention of Palestinian anti wall activists, who do not even get the benefit of a trial, and the violent repression of the protests. This is a clear attempt at silencing legitimate protest. Those who repress non-violent popular resistance are guilty of fueling the violence.
It was said that the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality. Not the policy of repression, the violence or the legal persecution will deter us from the struggle against occupation and repression and for justice, equality and liberty for all living beingWe will be grateful to anyone who could come and show support at court.
Friday, December 3, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Beit Ula, activity against the Apartheid Wall - December 3 2004
As they outflanked the soldiers and it became clear to the shabab that they could reach the work site, they began to run across the side of the hill and were not slowed down by the tear gas canisters that flew overhead- too far to do any damage https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/4/1263_beit-ula-03-12-04-reuters2.jpg https://israel.indymedia.org/feature/display/1263/index.php Today, the people of Beit Ula were able to stop the construction of the giant cage that the israeli government is constructing for them in the form of the separation barrier. For the second day in a row, the work was stopped and no injuries requiring medical treatment were suffered. The experience has left the village with a sense of power and a renewed determination to come back to resist the wall day after day.
At 11:30 300 palestinians, israelis and internationals gathered for "friday prayer" on Beit Ula's lands close to the work site. Unlike the day before, today's demonstration included shabab (youth) and young children. Like the day before, and unlike other villages, today's demonstration still did not include any women.
At the end of the [palestinian] prayer, the demonstrators divided into three groups, one headed to the soldiers and one on each side of them. It must have been obvious to the soldiers that they will not be able to stop the crowd so the bulldozers were withdrawn from the work site before the crowd got close. As they outflanked the soldiers and it became clear to the shabab that they could reach the work site, they began to run across the side of the hill and were not slowed down by the tear gas canisters that flew overhead- too far to do any damage. The other groups of demonstrators also streamed past the soldiers who were trying to catch up with the shabab and converged on the work site.
At the actual spot where the bulldozers tore into the hill the demonstrators decided to hold their ground. The organization was disciplined enough that the people were able to sit down when soldiers began to escalate the tension. As it was the day before, literally not a single stone was thrown, this time with the shabab present.
https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/6/1263_beit-ula-03-12-04-reuters.jpg Speeches were made by the deputy mayor Abu al Abed (translated by Billal Adam) and an Israeli activist called Abu Na'im. The deputy mayor demanded that the work be stopped until the court decided the case brought by the village against the wall. He then addressed the Druze soldiers who could understand his speech in arabic: "you must know that our actions are looked upon favorably by god, I am sure that in your heart you are ashamed of your actions... we do not wish to fight with you or even with the Israeli state, if you take the wall back to the green line you will not have this fight". The Israeli activist also spoke to the soldiers and when they told him that this is a closed military zone he replied that this is actually the private property of the people of Beit Ula.
At 11:30 300 palestinians, israelis and internationals gathered for "friday prayer" on Beit Ula's lands close to the work site. Unlike the day before, today's demonstration included shabab (youth) and young children. Like the day before, and unlike other villages, today's demonstration still did not include any women.
At the end of the [palestinian] prayer, the demonstrators divided into three groups, one headed to the soldiers and one on each side of them. It must have been obvious to the soldiers that they will not be able to stop the crowd so the bulldozers were withdrawn from the work site before the crowd got close. As they outflanked the soldiers and it became clear to the shabab that they could reach the work site, they began to run across the side of the hill and were not slowed down by the tear gas canisters that flew overhead- too far to do any damage. The other groups of demonstrators also streamed past the soldiers who were trying to catch up with the shabab and converged on the work site.
At the actual spot where the bulldozers tore into the hill the demonstrators decided to hold their ground. The organization was disciplined enough that the people were able to sit down when soldiers began to escalate the tension. As it was the day before, literally not a single stone was thrown, this time with the shabab present.
https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/6/1263_beit-ula-03-12-04-reuters.jpg Speeches were made by the deputy mayor Abu al Abed (translated by Billal Adam) and an Israeli activist called Abu Na'im. The deputy mayor demanded that the work be stopped until the court decided the case brought by the village against the wall. He then addressed the Druze soldiers who could understand his speech in arabic: "you must know that our actions are looked upon favorably by god, I am sure that in your heart you are ashamed of your actions... we do not wish to fight with you or even with the Israeli state, if you take the wall back to the green line you will not have this fight". The Israeli activist also spoke to the soldiers and when they told him that this is a closed military zone he replied that this is actually the private property of the people of Beit Ula.
Thursday, December 2, 2004
Israel-Palestine, A Village Stands for their Rights: Civil Disobedience in Budrus 02/12/04
Over the last year, thousands of Palestinian villagers have been demonstrating against the fencing works that are closing in on their villages, confiscating their lands and livelihood, and threatening to turn them into prisoners in their own home. Their demonstrations and attempts to stop the bulldozers with their body are encountering brutal violence from the army and the Frontiers Patrol. Apparently, what frightens the Israeli government the most is the development of a Palestinian popular, non-violent struggle. It is much more convenient for Israel to deal with those represented as terrorists and "human beasts".
The village of Budrus has been at the center of the "Fence Intifidah", and is now the target of ample oppression. Hundreds of Israelis have already visited the place to express peace and solidarity, and have been welcomed by the inhabitants. One of the leaders of of the civil protest in Budrus, Ahmad Awad, has spent the last few months in administrative detention, without facing charges or standing trial.
Ta'ayush, Anarchists Against Fences and Hakampus Lo Shotek Tel Aviv invite you to hear about the activities of Ahmad Awad and the village of Budrus, about the Apartheid Fences and their danger, about the non-violent resistance to the Occupation and the chances that resistance hold, if we will manage to protect it.
Monday, December 6th, 18:00
Tel Aviv University, Gilman, room 326
Participants:
Tamar Peleg
A filmed interview with A'ed Murar, Budrus
Shai Pollack
Hana Amuri
Einat Podjarny
--------------------------------
A call for direct action
call for direct action in budrus December 7 for over a year the joint israeli- palestinian non violent struggle has been waged with remarkable success. The ocupation authorities have responded by increasing the number of indightments against political activists for participating in demonstrations against the wall.
political repression of the people of Budrus has for some time now included harrasment of the entier village, night-time house searches and arrests. likewise, their fellow israeli activists are being put on trial for their support of the Budrus struggle.
join us for a solidarity direct action for the people of Budrus, the israeli activists and for the right of each and every one of us to protest, demonstrate and struggle jointly
The village of Budrus has been at the center of the "Fence Intifidah", and is now the target of ample oppression. Hundreds of Israelis have already visited the place to express peace and solidarity, and have been welcomed by the inhabitants. One of the leaders of of the civil protest in Budrus, Ahmad Awad, has spent the last few months in administrative detention, without facing charges or standing trial.
Ta'ayush, Anarchists Against Fences and Hakampus Lo Shotek Tel Aviv invite you to hear about the activities of Ahmad Awad and the village of Budrus, about the Apartheid Fences and their danger, about the non-violent resistance to the Occupation and the chances that resistance hold, if we will manage to protect it.
Monday, December 6th, 18:00
Tel Aviv University, Gilman, room 326
Participants:
Tamar Peleg
A filmed interview with A'ed Murar, Budrus
Shai Pollack
Hana Amuri
Einat Podjarny
--------------------------------
A call for direct action
call for direct action in budrus December 7 for over a year the joint israeli- palestinian non violent struggle has been waged with remarkable success. The ocupation authorities have responded by increasing the number of indightments against political activists for participating in demonstrations against the wall.
political repression of the people of Budrus has for some time now included harrasment of the entier village, night-time house searches and arrests. likewise, their fellow israeli activists are being put on trial for their support of the Budrus struggle.
join us for a solidarity direct action for the people of Budrus, the israeli activists and for the right of each and every one of us to protest, demonstrate and struggle jointly
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Israel-Palestine, Media, IDF to "discipline" troops over shooting of fence protester of the Anaarchists Against The Wall initiative at Masha year ago
Chief military prosecutor Brigadier General Avi Mandelblit has ordered an IDF company commander, his deputy, and four soldiers brought up on disciplinary charges over an incident last year in which troops seriously wounded Israeli demonstrator Gil Na'amati during a demonstration against the West Bank fence, Israel Radio reported yesterday. Mandelblit also ordered official reprimands for the Samaria regional brigade commander at the time of the incident, the battalion commander of the Golani infantry unit and his deputy, over negligent preparation of the unit in confronting civilian protesters. A second protester, an American woman, was also wounded by IDF fire during the demonstration. Military Police detectives found that the soldiers, who were on a routine border patrol along the fence and lacked riot control gear, had not been told they were to face demonstrators, the radio said.
At one point, dozens of people - some of them masked, others carrying Palestinian flags - [and placards in both Hebrew, Arabic and English - Ed.] suddenly approached the [gate in the - Ed.] fence from the West Bank side, rattling it strongly and attempting to cut through it [to open its locking chains - which they succeeded - Ed.].
The soldiers, standing about [30 or less - Ed.] 40 meters from the other side of the fence, at first called to the protesters to disperse, then fired into the air.
[disregarding the shouts of the demonstrators in clear Hebrew, and the efforts of media people standing near the soldiers - Ed.] Later, one of the soldiers was allowed [after consulting superiors - Ed.] to fire at the legs of a demonstrator whom the troops believed was cutting the fence. Another soldier then opened fire at the protester, Na'amati, seriously wounding him. A third soldier also fired, apparently [clerly so admitted - Ed.] trying to keep photographers from the site, the radio said.
The soldiers who shot Na'amati will have a disciplinary trial for improper use of firearms. Another will face charges of having shot at ground level rather than as ordered, into the air.
At one point, dozens of people - some of them masked, others carrying Palestinian flags - [and placards in both Hebrew, Arabic and English - Ed.] suddenly approached the [gate in the - Ed.] fence from the West Bank side, rattling it strongly and attempting to cut through it [to open its locking chains - which they succeeded - Ed.].
The soldiers, standing about [30 or less - Ed.] 40 meters from the other side of the fence, at first called to the protesters to disperse, then fired into the air.
[disregarding the shouts of the demonstrators in clear Hebrew, and the efforts of media people standing near the soldiers - Ed.] Later, one of the soldiers was allowed [after consulting superiors - Ed.] to fire at the legs of a demonstrator whom the troops believed was cutting the fence. Another soldier then opened fire at the protester, Na'amati, seriously wounding him. A third soldier also fired, apparently [clerly so admitted - Ed.] trying to keep photographers from the site, the radio said.
The soldiers who shot Na'amati will have a disciplinary trial for improper use of firearms. Another will face charges of having shot at ground level rather than as ordered, into the air.
Friday, November 26, 2004
Israel-Palestine, Court to cancel charges against anarchist fence protesters 26/11/04
The Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court is considering canceling an indictment against 11 members of Anarchists Against the Fence, yesterday's hearing on the case indicated. At a previous hearing, on October 18, Judge Shmuel Landman suggested that the state consider withdrawing the indictment itself. Yesterday, however, the prosecution rejected this suggestion. The defendants are charged with sitting down in the middle of Tel Aviv's Kaplan Street during an unlicensed demonstration against the separation fence on February 23. They are not accused of any violence, as the prosecution erased the charge of attacking a policeman that appeared in the original indictment.
According to defense attorney Gaby Lasky, it is extremely unusual for nonviolent demonstrators to be prosecuted.
Following the October 18 hearing, Landman wrote: "The prosecution should at least consider the public interest in trying this case in general, and the charge of disturbing the peace in particular... because one of the foundations of the crime of disturbing the peace is a gathering that causes the public to feel threatened, and I am doubtful that this is the case."
Yesterday, the prosecution responded that blocking a road did make the public feel threatened. Moreover, it said, had the demonstrators requested a permit for their protest, an indictment might not have been filed; but when the police are taken unawares, the prosecution is less forgiving.
In his decision, however, Landman said that after hearing the evidence and watching a videotape of the demonstration, he reserved the right to throw out the indictment on the grounds that it did not serve the interests of justice. He also thereby rejected the prosecution's argument that only the High Court of Justice could cancel an indictment for this reason.
Anarchists Against the Fence members are also on trial in the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court for a September demonstration in the West Bank village of Burdus. The military commander responded to the demonstration by declaring the area a closed military zone, and the demonstrators broke the law by refusing to leave.
The group views both indictments as part of an ongoing government effort to deter them from their protests. This effort has also included interrogations by the Shin Bet security service and the use of rubber bullets, tear gas and even live fire against demonstrators.
According to defense attorney Gaby Lasky, it is extremely unusual for nonviolent demonstrators to be prosecuted.
Following the October 18 hearing, Landman wrote: "The prosecution should at least consider the public interest in trying this case in general, and the charge of disturbing the peace in particular... because one of the foundations of the crime of disturbing the peace is a gathering that causes the public to feel threatened, and I am doubtful that this is the case."
Yesterday, the prosecution responded that blocking a road did make the public feel threatened. Moreover, it said, had the demonstrators requested a permit for their protest, an indictment might not have been filed; but when the police are taken unawares, the prosecution is less forgiving.
In his decision, however, Landman said that after hearing the evidence and watching a videotape of the demonstration, he reserved the right to throw out the indictment on the grounds that it did not serve the interests of justice. He also thereby rejected the prosecution's argument that only the High Court of Justice could cancel an indictment for this reason.
Anarchists Against the Fence members are also on trial in the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court for a September demonstration in the West Bank village of Burdus. The military commander responded to the demonstration by declaring the area a closed military zone, and the demonstrators broke the law by refusing to leave.
The group views both indictments as part of an ongoing government effort to deter them from their protests. This effort has also included interrogations by the Shin Bet security service and the use of rubber bullets, tear gas and even live fire against demonstrators.
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
Israel, Tel-Aviv, Benefit, Salon Mazal is having a Birthday Party! Woooha 24/11/04
All incomes for the maintainance of the infoshop. Saturday, 4.12,10:30PM Kolnoa Zamir-Alenbi 34 Tel-Aviv It's not my revolution if I can't dance in it! Lineup: Ha Biluim, Yahli Sobol, Vaadat Kishut DJ Ellyott, DJ Rob Random (London, Drum n' Bass)
Introducer: Eran Shadar
Mazal Girl: Molmol
Entrance: 40 NIS (Discount for the unemployed and Salon Mazal members)
In the place: Info stands, Warm welcoming and more surprises!
See yourself as invited, Spread the word to your friends and enemies!
All incomes to the maintainance of Salon Mazal
For the invitation: http://salonmazal.org/zope/home/1101286767
Introducer: Eran Shadar
Mazal Girl: Molmol
Entrance: 40 NIS (Discount for the unemployed and Salon Mazal members)
In the place: Info stands, Warm welcoming and more surprises!
See yourself as invited, Spread the word to your friends and enemies!
All incomes to the maintainance of Salon Mazal
For the invitation: http://salonmazal.org/zope/home/1101286767
Saturday, November 6, 2004
Israel, Media, The SHABAC "General Security Ser.vic.es" interrogated and warned three activists of the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative 6/11/04
Last week, three activists of the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative were summoned by police for a warning by SHABAC interrogating officers. The interrogators tried to "convince" the three to stop participating in the demonstrations against the building of the separation fence, and to stop the confrontation with the security forces there. One of the activists, Leizer Peles, who had already been detained few times by the security forces during the last demonstrations, said that the SHABAC interrogators warned him from the possibility that Palestinian organizations will try to recruit him for terrorist activity. Peles said: "Interrogators said that the Palestinians do not care, that it is possible that they will try to exploit me and that they have no conscious".
He also said that he interrogators presented to him the case of Tali Fahima administrative detention [for 4 months] as an example of the means they have for meeting the challenge of Israeli Jews who endanger security.
Peles said yesterday that the SHABAC is a tool in the political game instructed by the authorities to stop all activities opposing to the the establishment atrocities. He added that: "No interrogations and harassment, no false detentions and not even live ammunition shooting in our direction will stop us from continuing the efforts to fell the wall and to achieve equality and freedom to all".
The General Security Services responded yesterday that: "The SHABAC do not refer to the details of is operation activity".
He also said that he interrogators presented to him the case of Tali Fahima administrative detention [for 4 months] as an example of the means they have for meeting the challenge of Israeli Jews who endanger security.
Peles said yesterday that the SHABAC is a tool in the political game instructed by the authorities to stop all activities opposing to the the establishment atrocities. He added that: "No interrogations and harassment, no false detentions and not even live ammunition shooting in our direction will stop us from continuing the efforts to fell the wall and to achieve equality and freedom to all".
The General Security Services responded yesterday that: "The SHABAC do not refer to the details of is operation activity".
Thursday, November 4, 2004
Palestine-Israel, JOIN THE PEOPLE OF KUFR THULTH IN NON-VIOLENT RESISTANCE ON SUNDAY, 7 NOVEMBER0 4/11/04
BACKGROUND:
Kufr Thulth, a village of 4000, is surrounded by 4 illegal Israeli settlements. In 2001, settlers began to establish an another outpost on the land owned by villagers from Kufr Thulth, by placing empty caravans on the land. In 2003, settlers began to regularly visit the caravans on weekends. Two roads were established for settler use, while Palestinian roads were blocked or destroyed. The IOF established a watchtower in the area. The village took the case to the Israeli courts and won an injunction to close the settler roads. In response, the IDF declared the roads to be for military use and have since prevented Palestinains access to the area.
In mid 2004, settlers raided Palestinian lands and uprooted and cut around 150 almond and olive trees. The Israeli police refused to accept complaints from the village. In October, settlers once again raided the Palestinian fields and cut more trees with the protection of the IOF and the Israeli District Coordinating Liaison (DCL)
Since October 2004, settlers have started to live and establish housing infrastructure on the land, all of which has been done under the protection of the IOF. Palestinain farmers have been attacked, shot at, prevented from reaching their land and more trees have been cut, again all under the protection of the IOF.
ACTION:
Kufr Thulth invites all Palestinians, Israelis and Internationals who oppose the building of illegal settlements and the military occupation of Palestinians lands to participate in a non-violent act of resistance on Sunday, November 7.
You are invited to assembly at the village council (Baladiyye) and then move to the Palestinian fields, where we will then march towards the Israeli military base where the village will present a set of demands.
THE VILLAGE OF KUFR THULTH DEMANDS THE FOLLOWING:
* Close the road that passes through the Palestinian lands, carrying out the Israeli court orders.
* Stop the cutting and uprooting trees by the settlers.
* Stop the stealing of Palestinian lands by settlers
* Secure the right of the Palestinian farmers to work in and grow their lands
* Remove all the settler houses and other buildings from the Palestinian lands
Please wear appropriate dress.
You are also welcome to bring banners and placards in support of the village.
======================================
Ed. Note: Supported by the Israeli Anarchists Against The Wall
Kufr Thulth, a village of 4000, is surrounded by 4 illegal Israeli settlements. In 2001, settlers began to establish an another outpost on the land owned by villagers from Kufr Thulth, by placing empty caravans on the land. In 2003, settlers began to regularly visit the caravans on weekends. Two roads were established for settler use, while Palestinian roads were blocked or destroyed. The IOF established a watchtower in the area. The village took the case to the Israeli courts and won an injunction to close the settler roads. In response, the IDF declared the roads to be for military use and have since prevented Palestinains access to the area.
In mid 2004, settlers raided Palestinian lands and uprooted and cut around 150 almond and olive trees. The Israeli police refused to accept complaints from the village. In October, settlers once again raided the Palestinian fields and cut more trees with the protection of the IOF and the Israeli District Coordinating Liaison (DCL)
Since October 2004, settlers have started to live and establish housing infrastructure on the land, all of which has been done under the protection of the IOF. Palestinain farmers have been attacked, shot at, prevented from reaching their land and more trees have been cut, again all under the protection of the IOF.
ACTION:
Kufr Thulth invites all Palestinians, Israelis and Internationals who oppose the building of illegal settlements and the military occupation of Palestinians lands to participate in a non-violent act of resistance on Sunday, November 7.
You are invited to assembly at the village council (Baladiyye) and then move to the Palestinian fields, where we will then march towards the Israeli military base where the village will present a set of demands.
THE VILLAGE OF KUFR THULTH DEMANDS THE FOLLOWING:
* Close the road that passes through the Palestinian lands, carrying out the Israeli court orders.
* Stop the cutting and uprooting trees by the settlers.
* Stop the stealing of Palestinian lands by settlers
* Secure the right of the Palestinian farmers to work in and grow their lands
* Remove all the settler houses and other buildings from the Palestinian lands
Please wear appropriate dress.
You are also welcome to bring banners and placards in support of the village.
======================================
Ed. Note: Supported by the Israeli Anarchists Against The Wall
Sunday, October 31, 2004
Israel, Tel Aviv, Anarchists Demo in front of Belarus embassy 31/10/04
Tommarow 1/11 there is a protest infront of the bellarus embassy because of the curroption and lies of the dictator\president alexander luksanko.
were going to meet on dizingof square at 12:00 and go to the embassy leaflating and giving out free vegan food for the international vegan day! the demonstaration is organised by ex-bellarus anarchists now living in Israel
come to show solidarity with the bellarus people
were going to meet on dizingof square at 12:00 and go to the embassy leaflating and giving out free vegan food for the international vegan day! the demonstaration is organised by ex-bellarus anarchists now living in Israel
come to show solidarity with the bellarus people
Friday, October 22, 2004
Israel-Palestine, Tel-Aviv-Jaffa, 22th October day against police brutality and solidarity of anarchists with the struggle in the region 22/10/04
As part of the international day of anarchists solidarity with the struggle in Palestine-Israel, Anarchists Against The Wall initiative called for a demo - in the context of the international day against police brutality. About 70 people came to the starting point of the demo in the Jaffa - the Jewish-Palestinian mixed population section of greater Tel-Aviv. We started the march with banners and placards against police brutality and against the WALL and similar themes, in an "unauthorized" demo. Police officers promised not to harass us if we will not try to block the traffic.... while accompanying our march they only nagged us to keep to the pavement. After about an hour march and leafleting in the main streets we arrived at the local police station.
The leaflet in both Hebrew and Arabic we distributed was starts with short descriptions of police brutality against poor people, immigrant workers, youth, Palestinians... up to killing with out being punished.
It continues: The blue* terror run rampage every night in our streets. The immigration authority is running a daily men hunting after illegal work immigrants boasting it already expelled 100,000 of them during the last 3 years. Beating, humiliation, jail and expulsion is the fate of people who tried to earn living for their families.
On October actions [2000 demonstration of solidarity of Israeli Palestinian citizens at the beginning of Intifada] police snipers murdered in cold blood 13 Palestinians their only crime was that they tried to protest against the treatment of second rate citizens in a Jewish racist state. The police claimed they learned their lesson [following a political scandal] but since that they already killed another 15 Israeli citizens Palestinians. Murderers have license to kill as long as they wear uniform. Foreign workers, Arabs, Beduins, homosexuals, new legal immigrants and every one not in accord with the system is suppressed by the state agencies.
6000 complains submitted against police personal on 2003 - but only 58 of them were on trial and just few of them were punished. The police people investigation authority cover up their friends and the state cover both - backing the real criminals.
The police officers that rule us on the streets and the soldiers that police the 3.5 Palestinians without rights in the occupied territories, suppress protest with gas grenades, metal bullets covered with rubber, and live ammunition, are the true face of the state behind the government lies, and the propaganda in the TV and news paper of the capitalists... More and more people begin to understand that the "law and order" is not for us.
The laws and the police protect the rich from the poor. The army protect the the occupation, the settlers and the racist Zionism. We do not obey because we believe in them - we obey because we are afraid from what they will do to us if we will not.
No one want to end in administrative detention like Taly Fahima [A young jewish woman who befriended with a wanted Palestinian rebel] ore die in a demo like the 6 Palestinians participated [in non-violent] demonstrations against the fence. Or just being beaten in the street by some hooligans in blue*
=====================================
Do not let the police terror to win
=====================================
Anarchists Against Fences @
=======================
* [Blue is the color of the police uniform.]
The leaflet in both Hebrew and Arabic we distributed was starts with short descriptions of police brutality against poor people, immigrant workers, youth, Palestinians... up to killing with out being punished.
It continues: The blue* terror run rampage every night in our streets. The immigration authority is running a daily men hunting after illegal work immigrants boasting it already expelled 100,000 of them during the last 3 years. Beating, humiliation, jail and expulsion is the fate of people who tried to earn living for their families.
On October actions [2000 demonstration of solidarity of Israeli Palestinian citizens at the beginning of Intifada] police snipers murdered in cold blood 13 Palestinians their only crime was that they tried to protest against the treatment of second rate citizens in a Jewish racist state. The police claimed they learned their lesson [following a political scandal] but since that they already killed another 15 Israeli citizens Palestinians. Murderers have license to kill as long as they wear uniform. Foreign workers, Arabs, Beduins, homosexuals, new legal immigrants and every one not in accord with the system is suppressed by the state agencies.
6000 complains submitted against police personal on 2003 - but only 58 of them were on trial and just few of them were punished. The police people investigation authority cover up their friends and the state cover both - backing the real criminals.
The police officers that rule us on the streets and the soldiers that police the 3.5 Palestinians without rights in the occupied territories, suppress protest with gas grenades, metal bullets covered with rubber, and live ammunition, are the true face of the state behind the government lies, and the propaganda in the TV and news paper of the capitalists... More and more people begin to understand that the "law and order" is not for us.
The laws and the police protect the rich from the poor. The army protect the the occupation, the settlers and the racist Zionism. We do not obey because we believe in them - we obey because we are afraid from what they will do to us if we will not.
No one want to end in administrative detention like Taly Fahima [A young jewish woman who befriended with a wanted Palestinian rebel] ore die in a demo like the 6 Palestinians participated [in non-violent] demonstrations against the fence. Or just being beaten in the street by some hooligans in blue*
=====================================
Do not let the police terror to win
=====================================
Anarchists Against Fences @
=======================
* [Blue is the color of the police uniform.]
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Israel-Palestine, international day against police violence and solidarity with palestine, demo in Jaffa 20/10/04
Oct 22 is international day against police violence. from rome to new york people will be demonstrating against police abuse and in solidarity with the people of palestine. join us for a demo in Jaffa, this friday oct 22 at 12:30 in front of the gesher theater (jerusalem blv, on the tel aviv side)
see also
https://israel.indymedia.org/feature/display/1018/index.php
======================
The call for the demo was initiated by the Anarchists Against The Wall in association with the call of the Cretan (Greece) anarchists for 22 October international day of anarchists solidarity with the struggle in our region. Anarchist collectives of about 15 countries announced their participation in this solidarity initiative.
========================
From the leaflet:
22 October an international day against police brutality
Demonstration against police brutality
Solidarity with Palestinians and against the wall
-------------------------------------------
"When I see blood and muscle worker struggle with his/her natural enemy - the policeman, I do not need to ask myself on whose side I am"
George Orwell
There already arrived the time to stop the brutality of the wearer of uniform, whether police, IDF (army), immigration police officers, or general security service.
There is not a day without harassment, humiliation, false incrimination, beating, and "lawful" murder.
WE HAVE NO SECURITY IN THEIR POLICE STATE
Meeting in front of the "Gesher Theater" at the Jerusalem Blv., Jaffa. Friday 22/10 12:30 @
SOLIDARITY With every one harmed by police terror: work immigrants, Palestinians both within and out of the green line border, Beduins, queers, youth, workers, refusnics, the poor strata, the prisoners in jails, the homeless, the punkists....
see also
https://israel.indymedia.org/feature/display/1018/index.php
======================
The call for the demo was initiated by the Anarchists Against The Wall in association with the call of the Cretan (Greece) anarchists for 22 October international day of anarchists solidarity with the struggle in our region. Anarchist collectives of about 15 countries announced their participation in this solidarity initiative.
========================
From the leaflet:
22 October an international day against police brutality
Demonstration against police brutality
Solidarity with Palestinians and against the wall
-------------------------------------------
"When I see blood and muscle worker struggle with his/her natural enemy - the policeman, I do not need to ask myself on whose side I am"
George Orwell
There already arrived the time to stop the brutality of the wearer of uniform, whether police, IDF (army), immigration police officers, or general security service.
There is not a day without harassment, humiliation, false incrimination, beating, and "lawful" murder.
WE HAVE NO SECURITY IN THEIR POLICE STATE
Meeting in front of the "Gesher Theater" at the Jerusalem Blv., Jaffa. Friday 22/10 12:30 @
SOLIDARITY With every one harmed by police terror: work immigrants, Palestinians both within and out of the green line border, Beduins, queers, youth, workers, refusnics, the poor strata, the prisoners in jails, the homeless, the punkists....
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Israel/Palestine: Materials for the 22 October solidarity actions 19/10/04
The FdCA has produced a special English-language version of its monthly news-sheet on the occasion of the international day of anarchist solidarity with the struggle in Palestine and the Israeli anarchists. "Alternativa Libertaria" is a 2-page PDF file and can be freely downloaded, printed and distributed by anarchist groups and organizations. You can find it at:
http://www.fdca.it/AL/ottobre04EN.pdf
This month's issue includes:
* Israeli Anarchists
* Anarchists in the world
* Peacefully Confronting the Wall in Budrus (see below)
* How much is this occupation costing us?
* We will not be stopped!!
We remind you also of the special 70-page pamphlet we have produced for the occasion: "We Are All Anarchists Against The Wall". This too can be freely downloaded and used.
Cover: http://www.fdca.it/wall/media/anarwall_EN_cover.pdf
Text: http://www.fdca.it/wall/media/anarwall_EN.pdf
Cover & Text zipped: http://www.fdca.it/wall/media/wall_english.zip
Italian versions are also available on the FdCA website.
* * * * *
Peacefully Confronting the Wall in Budrus
I live in Budrus, a village of 1,200 people, west of Ramallah. The Wall will completely surround Budrus and eight other villages, separating us from the rest of the West Bank. There are no hospitals, universities, or civil institutions in these nine villages, and many of the people work in Ramallah. The Wall will prevent thousands of Palestinians from going to work, school, universities, and hospitals. We already live in a prison, surrounded by settlements and checkpoints. So with the Wall, it will become a prison within a prison. As a young Palestinian woman, I dream of becoming a doctor. However, the Wall may prevent me from studying in a university.
On Nov 23rd, 2003, Wall construction started in Budrus and we immediately began holding peaceful demonstrations opposing it. The Israeli authorities planned to take 250 acres of Budrus' land and bulldoze our olive groves. The day construction began, the soldiers formed a line to prevent us from reaching the bulldozers, but I was able to cut through the line and sit in front of the bulldozer. We stopped Wall construction that day.
We protested peacefully for three months until March 1, when the Israeli authorities said they would move the Wall to the Green Line, so Budrus would not lose land. Recently, they told us that they still want to take 44 acres of our land, and Budrus and eight other villages will also still be surrounded by the Wall. So we will continue to struggle against the theft of our land.
Though our demonstrations were peaceful, the Israeli soldiers wounded 102 persons. They used sound bombs, teargas, and rubber-coated steel bullets, and beat men and women with clubs. In Biddu and Beitunia, villages near Jerusalem, Israeli soldiers killed six people during protests against the Wall. The Israeli military tried to stop Budrus' peaceful protests by arresting participants. Thirteen men from Budrus, including my father, two uncles, two cousins, and a 15-year-old classmate were arrested. The soldiers' violence scares me, but to make my dreams a reality I have to take part in the peaceful struggle against that Wall. Nonviolent resistance against the Wall requires everyone. Our entire community participated in protests, men with women, elders with children, and Palestinians with Israelis and internationals.
I had never dealt with Israelis as friends before. Israelis were always occupiers and soldiers. During the first demonstration I met three women who became my first Israeli friends. They believe the Wall will not bring them security, and they wish more Israelis would see what is happening on the ground. I now have many Israeli friends. A friendly relationship between Palestinians and Israelis is important, because I look to the future when there will be a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders next to Israel. Security and understanding requires friendship. Please support us in ending this oppressive Israeli military occupation of our land.
[From an article by Iltezam Morrar, aged 15, in The Electronic Intifada, 16 July 2004.]
* * * * *
FEDERAZIONE DEI COMUNISTI ANARCHICI
http://www.fdca.it
http://www.fdca.it/AL/ottobre04EN.pdf
This month's issue includes:
* Israeli Anarchists
* Anarchists in the world
* Peacefully Confronting the Wall in Budrus (see below)
* How much is this occupation costing us?
* We will not be stopped!!
We remind you also of the special 70-page pamphlet we have produced for the occasion: "We Are All Anarchists Against The Wall". This too can be freely downloaded and used.
Cover: http://www.fdca.it/wall/media/anarwall_EN_cover.pdf
Text: http://www.fdca.it/wall/media/anarwall_EN.pdf
Cover & Text zipped: http://www.fdca.it/wall/media/wall_english.zip
Italian versions are also available on the FdCA website.
* * * * *
Peacefully Confronting the Wall in Budrus
I live in Budrus, a village of 1,200 people, west of Ramallah. The Wall will completely surround Budrus and eight other villages, separating us from the rest of the West Bank. There are no hospitals, universities, or civil institutions in these nine villages, and many of the people work in Ramallah. The Wall will prevent thousands of Palestinians from going to work, school, universities, and hospitals. We already live in a prison, surrounded by settlements and checkpoints. So with the Wall, it will become a prison within a prison. As a young Palestinian woman, I dream of becoming a doctor. However, the Wall may prevent me from studying in a university.
On Nov 23rd, 2003, Wall construction started in Budrus and we immediately began holding peaceful demonstrations opposing it. The Israeli authorities planned to take 250 acres of Budrus' land and bulldoze our olive groves. The day construction began, the soldiers formed a line to prevent us from reaching the bulldozers, but I was able to cut through the line and sit in front of the bulldozer. We stopped Wall construction that day.
We protested peacefully for three months until March 1, when the Israeli authorities said they would move the Wall to the Green Line, so Budrus would not lose land. Recently, they told us that they still want to take 44 acres of our land, and Budrus and eight other villages will also still be surrounded by the Wall. So we will continue to struggle against the theft of our land.
Though our demonstrations were peaceful, the Israeli soldiers wounded 102 persons. They used sound bombs, teargas, and rubber-coated steel bullets, and beat men and women with clubs. In Biddu and Beitunia, villages near Jerusalem, Israeli soldiers killed six people during protests against the Wall. The Israeli military tried to stop Budrus' peaceful protests by arresting participants. Thirteen men from Budrus, including my father, two uncles, two cousins, and a 15-year-old classmate were arrested. The soldiers' violence scares me, but to make my dreams a reality I have to take part in the peaceful struggle against that Wall. Nonviolent resistance against the Wall requires everyone. Our entire community participated in protests, men with women, elders with children, and Palestinians with Israelis and internationals.
I had never dealt with Israelis as friends before. Israelis were always occupiers and soldiers. During the first demonstration I met three women who became my first Israeli friends. They believe the Wall will not bring them security, and they wish more Israelis would see what is happening on the ground. I now have many Israeli friends. A friendly relationship between Palestinians and Israelis is important, because I look to the future when there will be a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders next to Israel. Security and understanding requires friendship. Please support us in ending this oppressive Israeli military occupation of our land.
[From an article by Iltezam Morrar, aged 15, in The Electronic Intifada, 16 July 2004.]
* * * * *
FEDERAZIONE DEI COMUNISTI ANARCHICI
http://www.fdca.it
Israel, Tel Aviv, [Including Media reports,] the anarchists' day in court 19/10/04
Monday morning, 45 people of the Anarchists Against The Wall initiative, sympathizers and media, converged in the Tel-Aviv "peace Court" of state - (the lower level court for the less serious "offenses"). See: http://www.ainfos.ca/04/oct/ainfos00191.html (en) Israel-Palestine, We will not be stopped! No to the apartheid fence! no to the state violence! As preventive measure courthouse guards prevented comrades from entering if they wore shirts with slogans (including part of the 11 defendants... needed intervention of the judge to let them in. As the prosecution of the 11 defendants for such minor disturbance of traffic seemed so out of proportion - even the main media channels - dailies, public main radio and TV, included reported in a sympathy way.
The most extreme reservation of media from the state clumsy act of persecution was the including in the main public TV news a lengthy item - including the small demo in the court house in front of the chambers, the court house guards forcing its end, the speeches of both sympathizers and defendants.....
Israeli public opinion still insist on maximum democratic rights to the Israeli Jews - even when we struggle in support of the rights of the Palestinians - the trampling-on the same main stream media accept.
".... the sedate Magistrate's Court in Tel-Aviv got a whiff of the Wild West Bank atmosphere when eleven of the Anarchists Against Walls showed up to answer a variety of charges, ranging from holding an illegal demonstration to obstructing policemen and assaulting policemen* and up to "defacing real property" (i.e., writing graffiti). The charges all referred to a single event, lasting less than ten minutes, on the afternoon of February 25 this year - the day when the International Court at the Hague started deliberating on the construction by the Sharon Government of the Separation Wall which cuts through Palestinian villages and towns.
The Anarchists had planned to mark this day by a joint demonstration with the inhabitants of a village which lost most of its land because of the Wall/Fence. But the army and police got wind of these plans, and the group was intercepted at the West Bank border and forced to turn back - whereupon they drove directly to the Defense Ministry in Tel-Aviv, sat down on the street in front of its gates, and were immediately pounced upon by the police. One of beaten to the point of losing consciousness, another one needed to be hospitalized, and thirteen in all spent the night in detention.
On the following morning, the police asked the duty judge to keep them under house arrest "until the Hague Court ends its deliberations" but the Duty Judge rejected this idea and granted them bail.
It was then that the police and public prosecutor decided to prefer charges against them - leading to today's rather grotesque affair.
With a variety of tattoos and unconventional hair styles and accompanied by several sympathizing, well-known artists and actors, the accused young men and women stood in the court house lobby - displaying to the many media representatives their T-shirts with the text "We will not be silenced" and covering their mouths with strips of black sticky tape.
That was enough for the court house guards to snap into action, shout "No demonstrating on court premises" and push the offending activists into an empty courtroom, where they were made to take off the offending shirts (of which the TV cameras already got their fill, anyway). It took quite a bit before they finally made it to Judge Muki Landman's hall and sat down in the overcrowded dock, with the spectator benches equally crowded with their supporters.
Defence Lawyer Gabi Lasky began by asking the court to dismiss the charges out of hand, on the basis of Natural Law (or "estoppel" in lawyers' jargon). She began with a long exposition on the Wall and the way it disrupts the daily life of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, quoting extensively from the reports of various human rights organizations which she also presented to the court as evidence. Many judges would have rejected all this as irrelevant - Landman did not.
Adv. Laski made special reference to the inhabitants of the so-called "Seam Area", where the accused originally intended to demonstrate on February 25. "The Seam Area has been declared a closed military zone, where entry is forbidden. Even if you were born there and your parents before you, and even if you lived there all your life, you must apply for a special permit from the army in order to stay in your own home and work your own field.
But by the same military order, citizens of Israel are exempt and may enter the Seam Area without needing any permit. And not only Israeli citizens, also 'those who have the right to Israeli citizenship under the law of return', that is - Jews. Yes, a Jew from Brooklyn or from Timbuktu could land at Ben Gurion Airport, go to the Seam Area and stay there as long as he wants, without needing any permit - but a Palestinian who was born there needs a permit from the army to live in his own home!
It was against this kind of blatant injustice that the accused tried to protest, first in the Seam Area itself, then when this was denied at the Ministry of Defence where this infamous military order originated. They acted according to the Categorical Imperative of the great philosopher Immanuel Kant, according to which every person must act as if his and her life is setting the moral example for the whole world. They acted according to the Talmud, which states that a man would not be considered truly righteous, even if he followed all of God's commandmnents, if he had failed to cry out against an injustice of which he was aware. On the basis of Natural Law, the case against them should be dismissed".
"I will reserve my response to counsel's argument until later" responded Judge Landman. "But first I must draw the prosecution's attention to some obvious concrete defects in the charge sheet. For example, accused no.7 is accused of assaulting policemen, but there is no concrete act attributed to her which would substantiate that charge.* The same with accused no. 1 being charged with hindering a policeman in the execution of his duties. Exactly what did she do, Mr. Prosecutor? Sitting on the road for all of three minutes and refusing to get up when ordered by the policeman, that's hindering him in the execution of his duties? Hmmm.
And about the rest of them, in what did the assault on the police consist? "Kicking the police while being carried to the patrol car? Well, I suppose if you prove that they did do that, yes, it would technically count as assault. Still, I seem to recall that during the evacuation of Yamit and other Sinai settlements [in 1982] the settlers did quite a bit more than that, and none of them was prosecuted. A good thing, too. There should be toleration built into the prosecution policy, some leeway.
We are now entering a period of debate and controversy. We will have many demonstrations by many people and groups who have something very urgent to say, and I don't care if they are from the left-wing or right-wing, protesting the erection of the fence or the dismantling of settlements. From the policy of the prosecution in this case, I suppose we will see all of them marching into this court-room by the dozen. We may have to set up a special court for demonstrators, like there is already a special court for the deportation of migrantworkers. If that's what you want, fine!
Anyway, I am giving the prosecution 6 weeks to reconsider, do they really want to proceed with this case. If they still do, I will then state my ruling on the defence's request with regard to Natural Law. Until then, every body is dismissed."
==============
* Surprise surprise.... among the 11 defendants, all the ones who submitted complains to the police investigating bureau were accused also with assault while these not complaining got only the minor items.
The most extreme reservation of media from the state clumsy act of persecution was the including in the main public TV news a lengthy item - including the small demo in the court house in front of the chambers, the court house guards forcing its end, the speeches of both sympathizers and defendants.....
Israeli public opinion still insist on maximum democratic rights to the Israeli Jews - even when we struggle in support of the rights of the Palestinians - the trampling-on the same main stream media accept.
".... the sedate Magistrate's Court in Tel-Aviv got a whiff of the Wild West Bank atmosphere when eleven of the Anarchists Against Walls showed up to answer a variety of charges, ranging from holding an illegal demonstration to obstructing policemen and assaulting policemen* and up to "defacing real property" (i.e., writing graffiti). The charges all referred to a single event, lasting less than ten minutes, on the afternoon of February 25 this year - the day when the International Court at the Hague started deliberating on the construction by the Sharon Government of the Separation Wall which cuts through Palestinian villages and towns.
The Anarchists had planned to mark this day by a joint demonstration with the inhabitants of a village which lost most of its land because of the Wall/Fence. But the army and police got wind of these plans, and the group was intercepted at the West Bank border and forced to turn back - whereupon they drove directly to the Defense Ministry in Tel-Aviv, sat down on the street in front of its gates, and were immediately pounced upon by the police. One of beaten to the point of losing consciousness, another one needed to be hospitalized, and thirteen in all spent the night in detention.
On the following morning, the police asked the duty judge to keep them under house arrest "until the Hague Court ends its deliberations" but the Duty Judge rejected this idea and granted them bail.
It was then that the police and public prosecutor decided to prefer charges against them - leading to today's rather grotesque affair.
With a variety of tattoos and unconventional hair styles and accompanied by several sympathizing, well-known artists and actors, the accused young men and women stood in the court house lobby - displaying to the many media representatives their T-shirts with the text "We will not be silenced" and covering their mouths with strips of black sticky tape.
That was enough for the court house guards to snap into action, shout "No demonstrating on court premises" and push the offending activists into an empty courtroom, where they were made to take off the offending shirts (of which the TV cameras already got their fill, anyway). It took quite a bit before they finally made it to Judge Muki Landman's hall and sat down in the overcrowded dock, with the spectator benches equally crowded with their supporters.
Defence Lawyer Gabi Lasky began by asking the court to dismiss the charges out of hand, on the basis of Natural Law (or "estoppel" in lawyers' jargon). She began with a long exposition on the Wall and the way it disrupts the daily life of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, quoting extensively from the reports of various human rights organizations which she also presented to the court as evidence. Many judges would have rejected all this as irrelevant - Landman did not.
Adv. Laski made special reference to the inhabitants of the so-called "Seam Area", where the accused originally intended to demonstrate on February 25. "The Seam Area has been declared a closed military zone, where entry is forbidden. Even if you were born there and your parents before you, and even if you lived there all your life, you must apply for a special permit from the army in order to stay in your own home and work your own field.
But by the same military order, citizens of Israel are exempt and may enter the Seam Area without needing any permit. And not only Israeli citizens, also 'those who have the right to Israeli citizenship under the law of return', that is - Jews. Yes, a Jew from Brooklyn or from Timbuktu could land at Ben Gurion Airport, go to the Seam Area and stay there as long as he wants, without needing any permit - but a Palestinian who was born there needs a permit from the army to live in his own home!
It was against this kind of blatant injustice that the accused tried to protest, first in the Seam Area itself, then when this was denied at the Ministry of Defence where this infamous military order originated. They acted according to the Categorical Imperative of the great philosopher Immanuel Kant, according to which every person must act as if his and her life is setting the moral example for the whole world. They acted according to the Talmud, which states that a man would not be considered truly righteous, even if he followed all of God's commandmnents, if he had failed to cry out against an injustice of which he was aware. On the basis of Natural Law, the case against them should be dismissed".
"I will reserve my response to counsel's argument until later" responded Judge Landman. "But first I must draw the prosecution's attention to some obvious concrete defects in the charge sheet. For example, accused no.7 is accused of assaulting policemen, but there is no concrete act attributed to her which would substantiate that charge.* The same with accused no. 1 being charged with hindering a policeman in the execution of his duties. Exactly what did she do, Mr. Prosecutor? Sitting on the road for all of three minutes and refusing to get up when ordered by the policeman, that's hindering him in the execution of his duties? Hmmm.
And about the rest of them, in what did the assault on the police consist? "Kicking the police while being carried to the patrol car? Well, I suppose if you prove that they did do that, yes, it would technically count as assault. Still, I seem to recall that during the evacuation of Yamit and other Sinai settlements [in 1982] the settlers did quite a bit more than that, and none of them was prosecuted. A good thing, too. There should be toleration built into the prosecution policy, some leeway.
We are now entering a period of debate and controversy. We will have many demonstrations by many people and groups who have something very urgent to say, and I don't care if they are from the left-wing or right-wing, protesting the erection of the fence or the dismantling of settlements. From the policy of the prosecution in this case, I suppose we will see all of them marching into this court-room by the dozen. We may have to set up a special court for demonstrators, like there is already a special court for the deportation of migrantworkers. If that's what you want, fine!
Anyway, I am giving the prosecution 6 weeks to reconsider, do they really want to proceed with this case. If they still do, I will then state my ruling on the defence's request with regard to Natural Law. Until then, every body is dismissed."
==============
* Surprise surprise.... among the 11 defendants, all the ones who submitted complains to the police investigating bureau were accused also with assault while these not complaining got only the minor items.
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Israel/Palesine: Booklet on the struggle against the Wall for 22 October day of international anarchist solidarity 17/10/04
On the occasion of the international day of anarchist solidarity on 22nd October 2004, the FdCA has prepared a 70-page booklet on the struggle against the Wall in Palestine. We invite anarchist groups, organizations and individuals to download the zipped PDF file of the pamphlet. It can then be printed and distributed during actions on 22nd October. The booklet is entirely in English, though an Italian version will be available from the FdCA in Italy. To download the pamphlet, please visit our web special http://www.fdca.it/wall and click on the link "scaricabili" at the top left.
Federazione dei Comunisti Anarchici
International Relations
Federazione dei Comunisti Anarchici
International Relations
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
Israel-Palestine, We will not be stopped! No to the apartheid fence! no to the state violence! 13/10/04
Posted by Anarchists Against the Wall 12 Oct 2004 on https://israel.indymedia.org/feature/index.php Monday, October the 18th will start the court hearing of 11 activists who demonstrated against the apartheid wall at the war ministry compound in Tel Aviv - 23d Februar 2004 - the day the international court in Hage started deliberation on the apartheid wall. That day tens of activists demonstrated in front of the War ministry compound and blocked the Kaplan street, in protest against the building of the separation fence by the Israeli government, after they were blocked from reaching the demo with Palestinian people in Tul karem area the fence seperate them from their fields, declared by authority as a "closed military zone".
Just few minutes it took the riot plolice to arrest 13 of the activist using excessive vilence documented by 4 video cameras. The video taype refute the police claim that a "police man was attaced while on duty", which is what the demonstrators are accused with.. after they submited formal complain to the "departmen investigating policemen" on the violence against them. One of the 13 arrested was even taken to hospital for treatment of seriously damaged nouse, another activist lost consciousness, a female activist was sexually harased while in castudy. The 13 demonstraters - one of them under-age, were detained for the night at the Abu-Kabir detention facility. Next day they were brought to court where the judge refused to follow the police demand to release them with conditions that will limit their right of demonstration in the future.
This was the first time of such bringing to court was taken agains "Anarchists Against The Fence" since the sooting at the Mas'ha village gate on 26.12.2003 when Gil Naamaty leggs were hit. Next month, starting the court hearing of other under age activists accused too with blocking streets in Tel Aviv. It seems this is the beginning of a chain of harasments and political presecution culminating in a urgent and substantial danger to the freedom of expression and demonstration in Israel.
Befor this demonstration and even after it were many tens of political and social demonstrations in which roads were blocked, but no court indaitments were done. Never before bothered the security service to send a representative to a police station - like with our people, to interogate and warn the dataynees.
We intend to transform the trial to a trail against the fence. With the help of supporters we will stand in the court processes and insist to convey the message for which we blocked the road: The apartheid fence will only lead to despair and haterad.
For details: Jonathan Polak
Lawyer Gaby Lasky:
The hearing begins in the morning of Mondey 18.10 9:00 in the "peace courthous" in Tel Aviv the hall of judge Landsman corner of Shderot Shaul Hamelekh and Witsman street.
Just few minutes it took the riot plolice to arrest 13 of the activist using excessive vilence documented by 4 video cameras. The video taype refute the police claim that a "police man was attaced while on duty", which is what the demonstrators are accused with.. after they submited formal complain to the "departmen investigating policemen" on the violence against them. One of the 13 arrested was even taken to hospital for treatment of seriously damaged nouse, another activist lost consciousness, a female activist was sexually harased while in castudy. The 13 demonstraters - one of them under-age, were detained for the night at the Abu-Kabir detention facility. Next day they were brought to court where the judge refused to follow the police demand to release them with conditions that will limit their right of demonstration in the future.
This was the first time of such bringing to court was taken agains "Anarchists Against The Fence" since the sooting at the Mas'ha village gate on 26.12.2003 when Gil Naamaty leggs were hit. Next month, starting the court hearing of other under age activists accused too with blocking streets in Tel Aviv. It seems this is the beginning of a chain of harasments and political presecution culminating in a urgent and substantial danger to the freedom of expression and demonstration in Israel.
Befor this demonstration and even after it were many tens of political and social demonstrations in which roads were blocked, but no court indaitments were done. Never before bothered the security service to send a representative to a police station - like with our people, to interogate and warn the dataynees.
We intend to transform the trial to a trail against the fence. With the help of supporters we will stand in the court processes and insist to convey the message for which we blocked the road: The apartheid fence will only lead to despair and haterad.
For details: Jonathan Polak
Lawyer Gaby Lasky:
The hearing begins in the morning of Mondey 18.10 9:00 in the "peace courthous" in Tel Aviv the hall of judge Landsman corner of Shderot Shaul Hamelekh and Witsman street.
Palestine-Israel, The daily struggle continue* - a different aspect. 13/10/04
The first sign that something has in Beit-Awwa changed, were the flags decorating the Baladia. Some familiar faces were also missing from the crowd preparing for the demonstration. One reason is that the demonstration today was organized by official village administration, as opposed to previous demonstrations which were organized by popular committees. Later, we would also learn that the army raided the village the day before and picked up people suspected of demonstrating. The reason for the decoration was an appearance by Abas Zaki, a member of the central committee of the Fatah and the Palestinian legislative council. He arrive at 10:25 and spoke for about 20 minutes along with other dignitaries. From there we marched to the Bulldozers who were working just north of the school. The crowd was about 150 people and the bulldozers stopped at the first sight of us. There was only one army jeep and about 5 private security for the three bulldozers.
Wishing to avoid injuries, the leaders of the demonstration worked out an agreement with the commanding officer that we would retreat after a while and not be attacked by the soldiers. Then, while watching them build a giant cage for the people of Beit-Awwa, Zaki made a speech which began with the words "IDF soldiers, good morning...". The soldiers took the opportunity to photograph the people listening to the speech with a digital camera. After the arrests of the previous day, taking someone's picture become a real threat. The private security also threatened the crowed in their own way. They pointed their uzis from close range and told people they would kill them.
=============================
* see also:
Palestine-Israel, Report of Anarchists Against the Wall (AATW) about the days of resistance
http://ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00429.html
See pictures at:
https://israel.indymedia.org/media/all/display/190/index.php to
https://israel.indymedia.org/media/all/display/199/index.php See also the call for international solidarity day of anarchists all over the world on October 22
(en) Greece, Crete, Proposal for an international day of solidarity to the Palestinian struggle
http://www.ainfos.ca/04/aug/ainfos00059.html (en) Israel-Palestine, Media:...................
http://ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00359.html
http://ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00366.html
Wishing to avoid injuries, the leaders of the demonstration worked out an agreement with the commanding officer that we would retreat after a while and not be attacked by the soldiers. Then, while watching them build a giant cage for the people of Beit-Awwa, Zaki made a speech which began with the words "IDF soldiers, good morning...". The soldiers took the opportunity to photograph the people listening to the speech with a digital camera. After the arrests of the previous day, taking someone's picture become a real threat. The private security also threatened the crowed in their own way. They pointed their uzis from close range and told people they would kill them.
=============================
* see also:
Palestine-Israel, Report of Anarchists Against the Wall (AATW) about the days of resistance
http://ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00429.html
See pictures at:
https://israel.indymedia.org/media/all/display/190/index.php to
https://israel.indymedia.org/media/all/display/199/index.php See also the call for international solidarity day of anarchists all over the world on October 22
(en) Greece, Crete, Proposal for an international day of solidarity to the Palestinian struggle
http://www.ainfos.ca/04/aug/ainfos00059.html (en) Israel-Palestine, Media:...................
http://ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00359.html
http://ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00366.html
Friday, October 8, 2004
Israel, Tel Aviv, Just another demo called by anarchists to protest the atrocities of the IDF in Gaza strip 08/10/04
Few days ago Tel Aviv anarchists issued a call for a noisy demo. We gathered at the location of the Friday vigil of women in black and joined them with black coffins and placards. When we started to march, we were joined by other radicals of the left from the Friday vigil and from the refusnics movement. The police tried to block us from marching as we were too many and have not asked for permit.
They even detained 6 people, but failed to stop us. Instead marching as one contingent of 70 we were divided by the police efforts to block us into three main groups - each marching on the pavements with placards, a coffin and shouting slogans, along the streets towards the war ministry compound.
After an hour of vigil people went to the scheduled meeting of the refusnics initiative in the down town park.
In the public radio news, they "reported" the police lies - as if they detained 6 of us because we quarreled with passers by and caused disturbances... and falsely claimed they dispersed us...
They even detained 6 people, but failed to stop us. Instead marching as one contingent of 70 we were divided by the police efforts to block us into three main groups - each marching on the pavements with placards, a coffin and shouting slogans, along the streets towards the war ministry compound.
After an hour of vigil people went to the scheduled meeting of the refusnics initiative in the down town park.
In the public radio news, they "reported" the police lies - as if they detained 6 of us because we quarreled with passers by and caused disturbances... and falsely claimed they dispersed us...
Palestine-Israel, [againstwall*] October 22 in Malta 08/10/04
Hey - Just wanted to let you guys know we're planning a solidarity demo with the group Movement Graffiti here in Malta. We'll set up a mock checkpoint at a fake wall at the university and distribute information highlighting access to education issues around the wall, but also touching on other ones - as well as the occupation in general. I'll send more info when we've got it.
R.
======================
* [Graffiti is an antiauthoritarian anticapitalist group]
* [againstwall@yahoogroups.com is a mailing list of the Anarchist Against The Wall initiative]
R.
======================
* [Graffiti is an antiauthoritarian anticapitalist group]
* [againstwall@yahoogroups.com is a mailing list of the Anarchist Against The Wall initiative]
Thursday, October 7, 2004
Israel-Palestine, Anarchists call for a demo tomorrow, Friday, in Tel-Aviv 1pm at "Maxim Cinema", corner King George, Sderot ben-Tzion 07/10/04
IDF murdered 13 year old girl with 20 bullets. They suspected she carried a bomb. Only books were found on her body. She just strayed from the road because of heavy morning mist. at the last awful days of the Israeli attack 86 palestinians have already been murdered. At least 15 of them are kids. 300 people injured. People with cancer cannot get their medical treatment - still the numbers are not clear. And Sharon, the Prime Minister/Murderer announced that the action will continue. The people murdered are converted to numbers. Every one who just had a glimpse of the occupied territories can imagine the children running away from armed IDF soldiers; the bombed and demolished hoses; the suffocating dust; the awful helplessness sensation arousing in the throat; the paralyzing fear; the noise of shock grenades; the tear gas; the shooting; the pain.... all the people arrested and taken from their homes.
And Sharon keep playing God; keep saying he is detaching... but the attack will continue. Keep pretend that these murdered by the Kasam rockets in the Israeli Shderot are not his fount.
And Bus pretend he is angry... and profit each minute, from each bullet. And the silence is deafening. In Tel Aviv they are preparing for the love march. And there is no marginal location without one kind of festival or another.
Just few kilometers away. no more than that. Just few kilometers is enough for people to become meaningless numbers. So it is possible to try not to see. not hearing. not to feel.
Friday meeting at 13:00 in front of Maxim movie house (Ben Zion avenue and king George intersection) for a protest march that will scream against the awful murder. Bring every thing that make noise and scream. every thing that can help to scream louder... so some one may hear, so it will not be possible to forget.
And Sharon keep playing God; keep saying he is detaching... but the attack will continue. Keep pretend that these murdered by the Kasam rockets in the Israeli Shderot are not his fount.
And Bus pretend he is angry... and profit each minute, from each bullet. And the silence is deafening. In Tel Aviv they are preparing for the love march. And there is no marginal location without one kind of festival or another.
Just few kilometers away. no more than that. Just few kilometers is enough for people to become meaningless numbers. So it is possible to try not to see. not hearing. not to feel.
Friday meeting at 13:00 in front of Maxim movie house (Ben Zion avenue and king George intersection) for a protest march that will scream against the awful murder. Bring every thing that make noise and scream. every thing that can help to scream louder... so some one may hear, so it will not be possible to forget.
Wednesday, October 6, 2004
Israel-Palestine, Tel-Aviv, Alt. Media, "Talk - don't bomb!" - hundreds protest in front of the War ministry compound 06/10/04
Once again, the drairy parking lot opposite the Defence Ministry in Tel- Aviv, the place where we find ourselves when horrors fill the TV screens. Some three hundred people, representing a variety of groups, came there today to once more express shock, anger and disgust.
"We have come here because civilians are being killed by the dozen every day, houses demolished in multitude, trees and whole orchards made into desert, in a feat of primitive vengefulness which is immoral, dangerous and achieves the opposite of the declared government aims" said Uri Avnery to the Associated Press camera. On the opposite side, police and security operatives were massing as to defend the ministry gate from a rush of furious demonstrators.
It was Gush Shalom which took the initiative to organize a protest, in spite of a feeling of futility "but, still this is the least we can do, and we have to do it", and gradually the others came to join. Courage to Refuse was conspicuous with their "It won't end, if we don't refuse" banners. The Anarchists arrived directly from their confrontation with the wall-builders at Beit-Awa where they had been subjected to police clubs and teargas.
From Jaffa came a large group of Arabs, many of them with relatives at Jabaliya Refugee camp, the focus of the army rampage. Among all this, the Gush Shalom two-flag emblems were held aloft together with the text: "Sderot and Jabaliya - both victims of the occupation." - A pregnant woman with a sign "Mom, what is your boy doing in Gaza?" Alex Maor, father of the recently released CO Adam Maor asked "Dad" the same question. At his side, a big cartoon of Sharon riding a tank, with the caption "Death and destruction in the service of the occupation."
The veteran Latif Dori held a sign in Hebrew and Arabic "Sharon, you have murdered the peace dove!" At his side, youths were waving the European Rainbow peace flag. Meanwhile, the Gush spokesperson Adam Keller, just back from a coast-to-coast US tour and hardly recovered from jet-lag, ran around between journalists dragging with him the sign "Tayas Amitz Lo Maftzitz!" (a daring pilot doesn't bomb).
Upon the arrival of a whole bunch of youngsters the chanting started. "Peace - Yes! Occupation - No!", "Stop Killing - Start Talking!", "Soldier Listen - You Can Refuse!", "All the Ministers, War Criminals!", "Soldier Stop! War Crime!", "Pilot Stop! War Crime!" ("A pilot can't stop in mid-air" shouted somebody, whereupon the slogan was amended to "Pilot, Turn Back!"). Meanwhile, organizers from different groups discussed the idea of a follow-up action for the coming Saturday (October 9).
On the way to the bus, a blaring TV news broadcast from a nearby cafe: "Army forces at Rafah mistakenly shot to death a 13-year old girl on the way from school." The poor girl had been thought to have explosives in her schoolbag. "It's the first time this week, that they didn't say they killed one more terrorist" remarked an activist.
[photos soon at http://www.gush-shalom.org/english/index.html]
"We have come here because civilians are being killed by the dozen every day, houses demolished in multitude, trees and whole orchards made into desert, in a feat of primitive vengefulness which is immoral, dangerous and achieves the opposite of the declared government aims" said Uri Avnery to the Associated Press camera. On the opposite side, police and security operatives were massing as to defend the ministry gate from a rush of furious demonstrators.
It was Gush Shalom which took the initiative to organize a protest, in spite of a feeling of futility "but, still this is the least we can do, and we have to do it", and gradually the others came to join. Courage to Refuse was conspicuous with their "It won't end, if we don't refuse" banners. The Anarchists arrived directly from their confrontation with the wall-builders at Beit-Awa where they had been subjected to police clubs and teargas.
From Jaffa came a large group of Arabs, many of them with relatives at Jabaliya Refugee camp, the focus of the army rampage. Among all this, the Gush Shalom two-flag emblems were held aloft together with the text: "Sderot and Jabaliya - both victims of the occupation." - A pregnant woman with a sign "Mom, what is your boy doing in Gaza?" Alex Maor, father of the recently released CO Adam Maor asked "Dad" the same question. At his side, a big cartoon of Sharon riding a tank, with the caption "Death and destruction in the service of the occupation."
The veteran Latif Dori held a sign in Hebrew and Arabic "Sharon, you have murdered the peace dove!" At his side, youths were waving the European Rainbow peace flag. Meanwhile, the Gush spokesperson Adam Keller, just back from a coast-to-coast US tour and hardly recovered from jet-lag, ran around between journalists dragging with him the sign "Tayas Amitz Lo Maftzitz!" (a daring pilot doesn't bomb).
Upon the arrival of a whole bunch of youngsters the chanting started. "Peace - Yes! Occupation - No!", "Stop Killing - Start Talking!", "Soldier Listen - You Can Refuse!", "All the Ministers, War Criminals!", "Soldier Stop! War Crime!", "Pilot Stop! War Crime!" ("A pilot can't stop in mid-air" shouted somebody, whereupon the slogan was amended to "Pilot, Turn Back!"). Meanwhile, organizers from different groups discussed the idea of a follow-up action for the coming Saturday (October 9).
On the way to the bus, a blaring TV news broadcast from a nearby cafe: "Army forces at Rafah mistakenly shot to death a 13-year old girl on the way from school." The poor girl had been thought to have explosives in her schoolbag. "It's the first time this week, that they didn't say they killed one more terrorist" remarked an activist.
[photos soon at http://www.gush-shalom.org/english/index.html]
Monday, October 4, 2004
Israel/Palestine: Update on the International Day of Anarchist Solidarity against the Wall 4/10/04
Dear comrades,
At the request of the comrades in Crete, Greece, we are sending an update on the day of international anarchist solidarity which they are promoting for 22nd October 2004 in support of the non-violent struggle of the Palestinians against the Apartheid Wall being constructed in Palestine and in support of the Israeli conscientious objectors.
In Greece, the promoters of the day of solidarity will be organizing a series of events throughout the country, featuring a speaking tour with 2 members of the "Anarchists Against the Wall" initiative, from 21st October until 7th November. They will be visiting 10 Greek cities, speaking about anarchist resistance to the Apartheid Wall. On 22nd October, the Greek comrades will be out on the streets publicizing the struggle against the Wall, handing out texts and leaflets, showing videos etc., something which will be happening also in many other countries on the same day. The Greek comrades appeal to anarchist and libertarian individuals and organizations all over the world to show their solidarity by doing what they can to publicize the struggle in Israel and Palestine on October 22.
The groups which have declared their participation so far are:
* An anarchist group from Ottawa, Canada
* Another anarchist group from San Francisco, U.S.A.
* The "Musas Libres" group, Monterrey, Mexico
* The group round the zine "Zinecallar", Costa Rica
* Juventude Organizada com Ideal Anarquista (JOIA), Sao Paolo, Brazil
* COB/AIT and the "Colectivo Libertario", Sao Paolo, Brazil
* Anarchist Black Cross, Cordoba, Argentina
* The group round the zine "Tacanazine", Lima, Peru
* Various locals of the CNT, Madrid, Spain
* An anarchist group from Lugo, Spain
* Another anarchist group from Valencia, Spain
* Federazione dei Comunisti Anarchici, Italy
* An anarchist group from Cecina (Livorno), Italy
* Anarchist Federation Warsaw, Poland
* Anarchists Against the Wall, Israel
* An anarchist group in Melbourne, Australia
and of course most anarchist groups in Greece!
The Greek comrades have prepared a common poster which can be used freely by any groups wishing to participate in events on October 22. The poster is available in English and Castillian versions (and shortly also in Italian) on our web pages dedicated to the struggle against the Apartheid Wall (http://www.fdca.it/wall - click on the "scaricabili" link in the top left-hand corner).
The poster can be downloaded and local information inserted into the spaces provided.
The promoters also ask any groups who plan on organizing an event for October 22, even if it will consist in handing out information leaflets, to let them know by sending an e-mail to nikosfindelmundo@yahoo.com
Federazione dei Comunisti Anarchici
International Relations
http://www.fdca.it
At the request of the comrades in Crete, Greece, we are sending an update on the day of international anarchist solidarity which they are promoting for 22nd October 2004 in support of the non-violent struggle of the Palestinians against the Apartheid Wall being constructed in Palestine and in support of the Israeli conscientious objectors.
In Greece, the promoters of the day of solidarity will be organizing a series of events throughout the country, featuring a speaking tour with 2 members of the "Anarchists Against the Wall" initiative, from 21st October until 7th November. They will be visiting 10 Greek cities, speaking about anarchist resistance to the Apartheid Wall. On 22nd October, the Greek comrades will be out on the streets publicizing the struggle against the Wall, handing out texts and leaflets, showing videos etc., something which will be happening also in many other countries on the same day. The Greek comrades appeal to anarchist and libertarian individuals and organizations all over the world to show their solidarity by doing what they can to publicize the struggle in Israel and Palestine on October 22.
The groups which have declared their participation so far are:
* An anarchist group from Ottawa, Canada
* Another anarchist group from San Francisco, U.S.A.
* The "Musas Libres" group, Monterrey, Mexico
* The group round the zine "Zinecallar", Costa Rica
* Juventude Organizada com Ideal Anarquista (JOIA), Sao Paolo, Brazil
* COB/AIT and the "Colectivo Libertario", Sao Paolo, Brazil
* Anarchist Black Cross, Cordoba, Argentina
* The group round the zine "Tacanazine", Lima, Peru
* Various locals of the CNT, Madrid, Spain
* An anarchist group from Lugo, Spain
* Another anarchist group from Valencia, Spain
* Federazione dei Comunisti Anarchici, Italy
* An anarchist group from Cecina (Livorno), Italy
* Anarchist Federation Warsaw, Poland
* Anarchists Against the Wall, Israel
* An anarchist group in Melbourne, Australia
and of course most anarchist groups in Greece!
The Greek comrades have prepared a common poster which can be used freely by any groups wishing to participate in events on October 22. The poster is available in English and Castillian versions (and shortly also in Italian) on our web pages dedicated to the struggle against the Apartheid Wall (http://www.fdca.it/wall - click on the "scaricabili" link in the top left-hand corner).
The poster can be downloaded and local information inserted into the spaces provided.
The promoters also ask any groups who plan on organizing an event for October 22, even if it will consist in handing out information leaflets, to let them know by sending an e-mail to nikosfindelmundo@yahoo.com
Federazione dei Comunisti Anarchici
International Relations
http://www.fdca.it
Sunday, October 3, 2004
Palestine-Israel, Detailed report by AATW* people on Beit Awwa demonstration 03-10-04
We, a group of israelis joined the people of beit awwa, in palestine, in their almost daily struggle against the wall which is being built on their lands. photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/7/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-reuters.jpg we arrived in beit awwa at around 10:20 and immediately went with about 250 other demonstrators to the work site. By 10:35 the crowd grew to about about 500 people and we managed to reach the bulldozers very quickly. As we did, one of the two bulldozers stopped working and left the area. the driver of the remaining bulldozer continued to work even as the demonstrators were meters from it, endangering the demonstrators as well as the security guards and soldiers.
for about 45 minutes we stood at the work site, near the remaining bulldozer and the soldiers who seemed by their age to be reserve troops. We chanted and women help up olive branches, not a stone was thrown and virtually all the people from beit awwa as well as israelis and internationals repeated to the soldiers that this is a non violent demonstration and we want no trouble. we simply want to sit on the lands of the people of Beit Awwa. Our reassurance did not seem to calm the soldiers down, they kept pushing people, hitting them, using shock grenades and tear gas. One soldier shot three rounds of tear gas canisters at a crowd of people point blank. in addition to being very dangerous - this use of tear gas canisters violates standing orders which require a distance of 50 meters for their use.
at 11:15 the soldiers managed to disperse the crowd using batons, shock grenades, tear gas and rubber coated metal bullets from close range. The attack resulted in a total of about 30 injuries. amongst them at least 5 from rubber coated metal bullets: three palestinians, one israeli and a danish woman. An israeli woman also suffered a possible fracture to her hand when she fell as she was running away from the soldiers.
After the main demonstration dispersed, a jeep arrived with what seems like a new experimental sound weapon. It consisted of a set of giant speakers mounted on a jeep which can emit painfully loud noise and direct it in a particular direction.
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/10/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-ap.jpg
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/8/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-ap2.jpg
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/5/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-reuters2.jpg
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/6/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-reuters3.jpg the danish woman being carried away after being hit by a rubber coated metal bullet in her back
By Ivy & Kobi
============================
* [Ed. Note: AATW = Anarchists Against The Wall]
for about 45 minutes we stood at the work site, near the remaining bulldozer and the soldiers who seemed by their age to be reserve troops. We chanted and women help up olive branches, not a stone was thrown and virtually all the people from beit awwa as well as israelis and internationals repeated to the soldiers that this is a non violent demonstration and we want no trouble. we simply want to sit on the lands of the people of Beit Awwa. Our reassurance did not seem to calm the soldiers down, they kept pushing people, hitting them, using shock grenades and tear gas. One soldier shot three rounds of tear gas canisters at a crowd of people point blank. in addition to being very dangerous - this use of tear gas canisters violates standing orders which require a distance of 50 meters for their use.
at 11:15 the soldiers managed to disperse the crowd using batons, shock grenades, tear gas and rubber coated metal bullets from close range. The attack resulted in a total of about 30 injuries. amongst them at least 5 from rubber coated metal bullets: three palestinians, one israeli and a danish woman. An israeli woman also suffered a possible fracture to her hand when she fell as she was running away from the soldiers.
After the main demonstration dispersed, a jeep arrived with what seems like a new experimental sound weapon. It consisted of a set of giant speakers mounted on a jeep which can emit painfully loud noise and direct it in a particular direction.
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/10/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-ap.jpg
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/8/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-ap2.jpg
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/5/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-reuters2.jpg
photo https://israel.indymedia.org/usermedia/image/6/833_beit-awwa-10-3-04-reuters3.jpg the danish woman being carried away after being hit by a rubber coated metal bullet in her back
By Ivy & Kobi
============================
* [Ed. Note: AATW = Anarchists Against The Wall]
Friday, October 1, 2004
Israel-Palestine: Interview with 2 Anarchists Against the Wall* 01/10/04
D: We just want people to know what is going on inside the occupied territories and also inside Israel about the situation. Cause actually the media in and outside of Israel is really based on lies and denying what's happening. No-one really knows about the the situation and the conditions of the Palestinians. People are certain that the wall is going to be built on the green line, which is supposed to be the border of Palestine. Which is decided in 1967 by the UN, but actually, the way that the Wall is built, it's not on the Green Line. In some places it's 22, 24 kilometres far from the Green Line inside Palestine. It's not about security but landgrab, because the Wall annexes about 40% of Palestinian land, good agricultural land and their water reserves. It's really important that people know what is going on there.
---------------------------------------------
* How does this effect the daily lives of people living in the occupied territories?
R: The way the wall is affecting the Palestinians is, well, first we can talk about the Palestinians that live near the villages where the wall is being constructed cause on one level, for a lot of villages it cuts them of from their land, from where they usually make their living from. Then, some villages are completely isolated from other villages and then... they have problems of movement. If families are cut off from hospitals and schools. Then there is the situation where villages have tried to grow, to build more houses, but they can’t because they're completely surrounded by a fence and the wall. It depends, like, for the first phase of the wall - 145km has been built already- there are like 50 villages which are caught between the wall and the Green Line, I mean the green line which is supposed to be the original border between Israel and Palestine). So even though they [the villages in the area between the Green Line and the Wall -ed.] are left out of the wall, they are not Israeli citizens so they have problems of labour, having any rights whatsoever even getting inside Palestine because you have to have a special permit, even if you want to go to Israel you have to have a special permit. Usually you get screwed from both sides, so they basically, maybe, will have to move inside the wall so they can have a normal livelihood and build schools, hospitals etc.
Then you have the fact of all of the water resources and the agricultural land that is being taken away from them, so they have a problem of sustaining livelihoods in the bigger cities. Also the fact that you have migration from villages into the bigger cities. Let's say big markets or towns where you had a lot of commercial activity with the transfer of goods with Israelis who were friendly with them or even with Palestinians around the area are being shut down because they have no way in or out. And the fact that, the way it is progressing.....(?) ... to completely isolate Palestine from both sides by Israel so they won't have contact with any other country.
But a positive aspect is that it is actually creating a situation where Palestinians are actually organizing for themselves.. because the Palestinian Authority (P.N.A.) and political organisations like Hamas and Fatah showed little concern whatsoever for these villages, they decided to organisize their resistance by themselves and also using new methods where it enables them to have a higher level of democracy. It is not some political official, it is the village deciding together and inviting who they want, whether an Israeli or Palestinian, to work together against the wall. This partly enables them to have a more direct political process happening, where they feel more empowered. And the fact that they are getting some results, even though they might be minor and small, they are getting more results then they got with with the Palestinian Authority or Hamas or political organisations that showed little concern for the villages. In that aspect it is actually changing the way things are dealt with. Also the fact that they do non-violent resistance and actually achieving something with it is giving them more force to do these kind of actions than actually using guns.
* So we get the picture of villages that are cut off from the rest of the world. So in the future things will get worse, you think?
Yes, things are getting worse. But even sometimes the effects in some of the places take time. When the wall is built you don't really feel sometimes the impact immediately. You feel it, let's say, when you're waiting for the harvest of olive trees which is next year, and then you see that you cannot always go and harvest them, it is really important to have a certain time to harvest them before it rots down or it starts raining too much and it's hard to harvest.
So on that aspect they're not even sure how it's going to be sometimes, and in some places it slowly has created a situation where villages slowly get more and more frustated. Actually in that area it's created a new hostility in places that before were not even political. Sometimes the occupation in the foreign news always seems as if it's happening everywhere and everybody is aware of it. And to a certain agree everybody is aware of it, but to different degrees. In the cities they're much more aware of it, you have tanks... In the Palestinian cities there are curfews, closures... So for a lot of villages which are more or less left to themselves they couldn't get out of the city easily, but they did not feel the whole impact of the occupation.
Then there's also the difference between the village and city: village people say this about the city people, city people talk about that about the village people. But here it's actually creating ... the big impact of the occupation is here in the villages. So it's also creating a whole new association between the city and the village, where cities are also getting more involved what's happening in villages and are trying to create demonstrations in support of the villages which are uprising. I mean, like at Nablus and Ramallah where they're getting more active about it.
* Is this something that is initiated from the Palestinian side or is this a cooperation beween the left in Israel and the Palestinian action groups that want to use non-violent measures against this wall?
Well, it's a combination of a bit of all. I mean it starts from Palestinians - they're the ones who are the most concerned and they're the ones who invite Israelis, that's the shift in the policy - where we can do demonstrations together and reach a broader audience and a bigger spectrum and maintain a more civil demonstration style.
It always comes from the Palestinian villages: you never have a situation where internationals and Israelis will come to the village and say: "OK, we want to do a demonstration here because there's a wall". So it's the Palestinian village, because they'll have to suffer the consequences. If it's having their land confiscated, having more problems with the army or with the police, maybe in the future having permits to cross the wall or go into other areas - they're the ones who are going to suffer for it, and they're theones who are deciding it.
And it is also creating a stronger point for non-violent resistance, which has always existed in Palestine but in the last few years, especially from the beginning of the 2nd Intifada, was very minor because of all these political organisations who were saying the only way to confront the occupation is through violent means, militias, suicide-bombers etc. Now we've said, no, you can do it differently.
* Can you tell us for how long this is going on, these non-violent protests against the wall?
I think it's about for just over a year. It started very small, and then through different actions just grew and grew. And now it's a situation where almost every village decides to do its demonstration and to do it on their own agreement and sometimes a neighbouring village will come in support. Each village tries to be non-violent and usually it's the new kind of way of dealing with it so... different results, usually.
* The support in Israel for these kind of actions, how is this, for instance, how is this portrayed in the national media?
D: Actually, it was not so long time ago in the Israeli national newspaper they said that about 65% of the Israeli population support non-violent, direct... ah, sorry, 75% of the Israeli people support actions against the wall but in legal ways and not violent. It means that people who are getting more aware of the situation, won't do anything on their side, but they support us as long we're not doing it in illegal ways.
* Are there are also many people that want to join?
This is complicated because there are a lot of left-wing groups in Israel which are against the occupation but won't join those kind of actions. They support us, like, in passive ways (and sometimes it's not so passive) but it's out of Palestine - in Israel, in Tel Aviv, the big cities - Peace Now demos, they're just holding signs and singing and talking about it. But most of the people won't take part in this kind of action in Palestine, against the wall. Yes, you know it's scary and dangerous.
* What sort of actions are there now in Israel against the occupation?
R: Oh, actions inside the territories? But, it always attracts small groups of people because it's usually 24 hours' notice in advance, and it's complicated to get in (the occupied terroties) and it's always hard to telephone around everybody and ask... But then you have big organisations that create a demonstration and plan it one month in advance or so with a certain village and do some peaceful demonstration, graffiti against the wall. Then you have organisations that spread lists about what products to boycott which are built in Jewish settlements inside Palestine. There's the Comittee Against House Demolitions, which is an organisation which is in Jerusalem which helps fight the demolition of houses because it's hard for Palestinians to get permits to build their houses for absurd laws, so everytime they try to built let's say another room, because they cannot have another house because of the legal administration won't let them have one, you know for the plans? So they build a room onto their house and then the army comes in and destroys the house. And also trying to work with people inside the villages inside the wall which are certain to have houses demolished or schools. You have demonstrations inside major cities like Tel Aviv, who do like peaceful noise demos. And doing petitions, trying to bring the message across and doing small alternative demonstrations and even bigger demonstrations and making their own noise demonstrations inside Israel. And also doing info evenings inside of Israel and showing movies. And then there are also organizations that work on a bigger level in sustaining solidarity with the Palestinians.
* So a lot of things going on. We also saw on your video that there are a lot of people from outside Israel and Palestine joining in. Does this help and in what way?
Well, it works on a few aspects. First of all it shows that we're not isolated, that there are also other people who are also concerned about what's happening. On a moral level this is very important. On a practical level internationals can go to places where Israelis cannot go. There are areas in Palestine which is it forbidden for Israelis to go to and internationals can, basically the bigger cities in Palestine, which is considered Area A for Israelis, but internationals can go. Then, in some villages it's still hard for them or difficult for them to work with Israelis, so the internationals can prepare the ground for working with other groups. They can even have their base network inside Palestine, which is hard for Israelis to maintain. And also, like, spreading out the message, coming over, documenting, trying to help, going back to their countries and trying to create support overseas and create pressure from outside which is also very positive.
D: It's really important for Israelis to be there, first of all for the Palestinians. It's really important that Israelis support them because the Israelis are the ones who put them in this situation, they are the ones who conquered them. It's really important for the Palestinians to see that also Israelis support them, and really care for them and really want to help them. I mean, it changed the whole image for them, because now it shows them that not all the Israelis are the enemy and, yeah, we can still work together and try to learn to do postive things together. So it's really important that there are Israelis there. When Israelis are there it changes the situation with the soldiers a bit: now they cannot do what they want do and shoot the Palestinians, because when Israelis are involved it also means that the media gets involved more easily. Now they cannot just shoot live ammunition; they have to be a little bit more calm.
[* ed. note: this is a transcript of a radio interview made earlier this year with some members of the Anarchists Against the Wall initiative. The interview was broadcast by Free Radio Tonka in the Netherlands. Link to audio version at http://www.ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00540.html]
---------------------------------------------
* How does this effect the daily lives of people living in the occupied territories?
R: The way the wall is affecting the Palestinians is, well, first we can talk about the Palestinians that live near the villages where the wall is being constructed cause on one level, for a lot of villages it cuts them of from their land, from where they usually make their living from. Then, some villages are completely isolated from other villages and then... they have problems of movement. If families are cut off from hospitals and schools. Then there is the situation where villages have tried to grow, to build more houses, but they can’t because they're completely surrounded by a fence and the wall. It depends, like, for the first phase of the wall - 145km has been built already- there are like 50 villages which are caught between the wall and the Green Line, I mean the green line which is supposed to be the original border between Israel and Palestine). So even though they [the villages in the area between the Green Line and the Wall -ed.] are left out of the wall, they are not Israeli citizens so they have problems of labour, having any rights whatsoever even getting inside Palestine because you have to have a special permit, even if you want to go to Israel you have to have a special permit. Usually you get screwed from both sides, so they basically, maybe, will have to move inside the wall so they can have a normal livelihood and build schools, hospitals etc.
Then you have the fact of all of the water resources and the agricultural land that is being taken away from them, so they have a problem of sustaining livelihoods in the bigger cities. Also the fact that you have migration from villages into the bigger cities. Let's say big markets or towns where you had a lot of commercial activity with the transfer of goods with Israelis who were friendly with them or even with Palestinians around the area are being shut down because they have no way in or out. And the fact that, the way it is progressing.....(?) ... to completely isolate Palestine from both sides by Israel so they won't have contact with any other country.
But a positive aspect is that it is actually creating a situation where Palestinians are actually organizing for themselves.. because the Palestinian Authority (P.N.A.) and political organisations like Hamas and Fatah showed little concern whatsoever for these villages, they decided to organisize their resistance by themselves and also using new methods where it enables them to have a higher level of democracy. It is not some political official, it is the village deciding together and inviting who they want, whether an Israeli or Palestinian, to work together against the wall. This partly enables them to have a more direct political process happening, where they feel more empowered. And the fact that they are getting some results, even though they might be minor and small, they are getting more results then they got with with the Palestinian Authority or Hamas or political organisations that showed little concern for the villages. In that aspect it is actually changing the way things are dealt with. Also the fact that they do non-violent resistance and actually achieving something with it is giving them more force to do these kind of actions than actually using guns.
* So we get the picture of villages that are cut off from the rest of the world. So in the future things will get worse, you think?
Yes, things are getting worse. But even sometimes the effects in some of the places take time. When the wall is built you don't really feel sometimes the impact immediately. You feel it, let's say, when you're waiting for the harvest of olive trees which is next year, and then you see that you cannot always go and harvest them, it is really important to have a certain time to harvest them before it rots down or it starts raining too much and it's hard to harvest.
So on that aspect they're not even sure how it's going to be sometimes, and in some places it slowly has created a situation where villages slowly get more and more frustated. Actually in that area it's created a new hostility in places that before were not even political. Sometimes the occupation in the foreign news always seems as if it's happening everywhere and everybody is aware of it. And to a certain agree everybody is aware of it, but to different degrees. In the cities they're much more aware of it, you have tanks... In the Palestinian cities there are curfews, closures... So for a lot of villages which are more or less left to themselves they couldn't get out of the city easily, but they did not feel the whole impact of the occupation.
Then there's also the difference between the village and city: village people say this about the city people, city people talk about that about the village people. But here it's actually creating ... the big impact of the occupation is here in the villages. So it's also creating a whole new association between the city and the village, where cities are also getting more involved what's happening in villages and are trying to create demonstrations in support of the villages which are uprising. I mean, like at Nablus and Ramallah where they're getting more active about it.
* Is this something that is initiated from the Palestinian side or is this a cooperation beween the left in Israel and the Palestinian action groups that want to use non-violent measures against this wall?
Well, it's a combination of a bit of all. I mean it starts from Palestinians - they're the ones who are the most concerned and they're the ones who invite Israelis, that's the shift in the policy - where we can do demonstrations together and reach a broader audience and a bigger spectrum and maintain a more civil demonstration style.
It always comes from the Palestinian villages: you never have a situation where internationals and Israelis will come to the village and say: "OK, we want to do a demonstration here because there's a wall". So it's the Palestinian village, because they'll have to suffer the consequences. If it's having their land confiscated, having more problems with the army or with the police, maybe in the future having permits to cross the wall or go into other areas - they're the ones who are going to suffer for it, and they're theones who are deciding it.
And it is also creating a stronger point for non-violent resistance, which has always existed in Palestine but in the last few years, especially from the beginning of the 2nd Intifada, was very minor because of all these political organisations who were saying the only way to confront the occupation is through violent means, militias, suicide-bombers etc. Now we've said, no, you can do it differently.
* Can you tell us for how long this is going on, these non-violent protests against the wall?
I think it's about for just over a year. It started very small, and then through different actions just grew and grew. And now it's a situation where almost every village decides to do its demonstration and to do it on their own agreement and sometimes a neighbouring village will come in support. Each village tries to be non-violent and usually it's the new kind of way of dealing with it so... different results, usually.
* The support in Israel for these kind of actions, how is this, for instance, how is this portrayed in the national media?
D: Actually, it was not so long time ago in the Israeli national newspaper they said that about 65% of the Israeli population support non-violent, direct... ah, sorry, 75% of the Israeli people support actions against the wall but in legal ways and not violent. It means that people who are getting more aware of the situation, won't do anything on their side, but they support us as long we're not doing it in illegal ways.
* Are there are also many people that want to join?
This is complicated because there are a lot of left-wing groups in Israel which are against the occupation but won't join those kind of actions. They support us, like, in passive ways (and sometimes it's not so passive) but it's out of Palestine - in Israel, in Tel Aviv, the big cities - Peace Now demos, they're just holding signs and singing and talking about it. But most of the people won't take part in this kind of action in Palestine, against the wall. Yes, you know it's scary and dangerous.
* What sort of actions are there now in Israel against the occupation?
R: Oh, actions inside the territories? But, it always attracts small groups of people because it's usually 24 hours' notice in advance, and it's complicated to get in (the occupied terroties) and it's always hard to telephone around everybody and ask... But then you have big organisations that create a demonstration and plan it one month in advance or so with a certain village and do some peaceful demonstration, graffiti against the wall. Then you have organisations that spread lists about what products to boycott which are built in Jewish settlements inside Palestine. There's the Comittee Against House Demolitions, which is an organisation which is in Jerusalem which helps fight the demolition of houses because it's hard for Palestinians to get permits to build their houses for absurd laws, so everytime they try to built let's say another room, because they cannot have another house because of the legal administration won't let them have one, you know for the plans? So they build a room onto their house and then the army comes in and destroys the house. And also trying to work with people inside the villages inside the wall which are certain to have houses demolished or schools. You have demonstrations inside major cities like Tel Aviv, who do like peaceful noise demos. And doing petitions, trying to bring the message across and doing small alternative demonstrations and even bigger demonstrations and making their own noise demonstrations inside Israel. And also doing info evenings inside of Israel and showing movies. And then there are also organizations that work on a bigger level in sustaining solidarity with the Palestinians.
* So a lot of things going on. We also saw on your video that there are a lot of people from outside Israel and Palestine joining in. Does this help and in what way?
Well, it works on a few aspects. First of all it shows that we're not isolated, that there are also other people who are also concerned about what's happening. On a moral level this is very important. On a practical level internationals can go to places where Israelis cannot go. There are areas in Palestine which is it forbidden for Israelis to go to and internationals can, basically the bigger cities in Palestine, which is considered Area A for Israelis, but internationals can go. Then, in some villages it's still hard for them or difficult for them to work with Israelis, so the internationals can prepare the ground for working with other groups. They can even have their base network inside Palestine, which is hard for Israelis to maintain. And also, like, spreading out the message, coming over, documenting, trying to help, going back to their countries and trying to create support overseas and create pressure from outside which is also very positive.
D: It's really important for Israelis to be there, first of all for the Palestinians. It's really important that Israelis support them because the Israelis are the ones who put them in this situation, they are the ones who conquered them. It's really important for the Palestinians to see that also Israelis support them, and really care for them and really want to help them. I mean, it changed the whole image for them, because now it shows them that not all the Israelis are the enemy and, yeah, we can still work together and try to learn to do postive things together. So it's really important that there are Israelis there. When Israelis are there it changes the situation with the soldiers a bit: now they cannot do what they want do and shoot the Palestinians, because when Israelis are involved it also means that the media gets involved more easily. Now they cannot just shoot live ammunition; they have to be a little bit more calm.
[* ed. note: this is a transcript of a radio interview made earlier this year with some members of the Anarchists Against the Wall initiative. The interview was broadcast by Free Radio Tonka in the Netherlands. Link to audio version at http://www.ainfos.ca/04/sep/ainfos00540.html]
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