Palestine-Israel, My weekly report on the AAtW and other Israeli anarchists 2-2-08

The Tel Aviv anarchist bookshop "Saloon Mazal" is moving to a cheaper location - Salame 50 due to fundings problems. It will be closed all February. --- The monthly critical mass against the occupation (and the siege of Gaza) occurred on the last Thursday of January. Due to the cold and stormy whether, less than 30 people converged at the city square. During the cycling, police jumped on Jonathan Polak who is their target lately and arrested him. After spending the night at jail, the morning judge "released" him to two days of house arrest. ---- Local conflicts, and snowy whether in the south of Palestine(Bethlehem region) caused the canceling of the weekend joint demonstrations. The joint struggle of the anarchists against the wall with the grass roots Palestinian activists culminated in the traditional Friday demonstration in Bil'in.

As usual, we marched from the center of the village on the road towards the separation fence and half of the village lands in the west of it that are in the gradual process of being robbed. The demonstration had two Ad Hok themas: The mourning of the death of the late PLO leader George Habash, and the solidarity with the sieged Gaza.

When we approached the hill the gate to the west is on we had a nice surprise. The block on the foot of the hill and the Israeli state force there who were prevented us from reaching the gate in the fence the last 6 months were absent. When we climbed the hill we had even a bigger surprise. The state force was not "protecting" the gate to the route of the separation fence in the usual belligerent mode (of the year and a half they "allowed" us to come near it) and were located behind the route of the separation fence - declaring as usual that the area is a closed military zone. Even when few bold demonstrators overcome the barbed wire block and entered the route and even touched the separating fence itself, nothing happened but warnings.

After the speeches ended and just as the demonstration declared ended, the youngsters who were impatiently yielding to the pressure not to throw stones during the nonviolent demonstration, started their ritual of confronting the state force. The other demonstrators regrouped toward the village keeping a safe distance from the tear gas and bullets rubbed with rubber of the state force who crossed the route of separation fence and start to pursue the youngsters.

On Sunday, we will accompany one of our comrades summoned for interrogation to the police station for undisclosed reason, and demonstrate there against the increased police suppression of our demonstrations in Tel Aviv.