Palestine-Israel, The joint struggle of the Israeli AAtW and the Palestinians on the Land Day week

BEIT-OMAR BIL'IN BUDRUS QARAWET-BANI-ZEID MA'ASARA NABI-SALEH NI'ILIN SAKHNIN SHEIKH-JARRAH

The joint struggle against land-confiscation of Palestinian citizens of Israel continue since 1948 war. At 1976 there was on 30/3 the first Land Day demonstrations against land grab at the Galilee. Six were murdered that day. "In the occasion of the Palestinian Land day and due to the arrests and the excessive use of force against demonstrators by the Israeli occupation army the Popular committees invite you to participate in demonstrations during this coming week." During the week we participated in Betunya Solidarity demo at the Ofer military court, and Budrus & Qarawet-Bani-Zeid Land Day demos. Friday we were at Bil'in, Ma'asara, Nabi-Saleh, Ni'lin, and Sheikh-Jarrah. Saturday we were at the Sakhnin central demo in Israel, and in Beit-Omar.

BETHLEHEM ACTION + UPDATES

Tomorrow - 31-3-10: Solidarity Demo with Jailed Peaceful Protesters

Ten demonstrators arrested during a peaceful demonstration in Bethlehem last Sunday, among them Abbas Zaki of PLO Executive committee, members of local popular committees and a journalist, are still being held at Ofer military prison, while the five Israelis arrested with them were released that same day.

What: Solidarity demo with imprisoned protesters
Where: Betunya Checkpoint, near Ofer Prison
When: Wednesday, March 31st, 10:30 AM

The al-Ma'sara Popular Committee invites all activists to show your support with the remaining ten detainees from Palm Sunday's protest who are currently being held at Ofer, while the four Israeli and one international activist, who were detained at the same protest and under the same circumstances, have already been released.

Please show your solidarity on with Hassan and Mahmoud from the al-Ma'sara Popular Committee, as well as Marwan from the Bethlehem Popular Committee and all the other detainees on Friday after the noon prayer in Al-Ma'sara. Together, we will insist that no repression can stop the demonstrations and popular resistance against the Apartheid Wall, illegal settlements and the Israeli occupation in general, and together, we will continue to demand justice and freedom.

Demonstrators Demand Prisoners' Release at Betunya Checkpoint, near Ofer Prison

Hundreds of people gathered at the Bitunya checkpoint near Ofer Military prison to demand the release of ten demonstrators arrested in Bethlehem last Sunday, among them Abbas Zaki of the PLO Executive Committee. Two demonstrators were arrested.

After a few short speeches, the demonstrators intended to continue to the Ofer military court, where the ten's hearings were scheduled to be heard. Once refused passage, protesters tried to topple the fence near the checkpoint in order to get to the court. Border Police officers responded with concussion grenades, tear-gas and rubber-coated bullets. Clashes between officers and local youth continued for about two hours before the demonstration was dispersed.

Two Palestinian protesters were arrested during the demonstration. One of them, a 16 year old, was nabbed from within his father's car, through the window, after Border Police officers broke it using a rifle butt.

The Bethlehem Ten's remand hearing, which was supposed to be held today, did not take place, and was postponed to tomorrow.

Bethlehem arrestees brought 1-4-10 to Ofer military court

Freedom march, Palm Sunday celebration in Bethlehem, Israeli occupation forces arrest 12 part 1 http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/03/29/18643199.php
part 2 http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/03/29/18643212.php
Video of Freedom march, Palm Sunday protest in Bethlehem, 28.03.2010
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1uBMnPBFCQ
Holy Fire at the "300" Checkpoint - see the photos, watch the video at:
http://www.palestinemonitor.org/spip/spip.php?article1342

UPDATE FOR THE MILITARY TRAIL Of THE BETHLEHEM TEN - All THE BETHLEHEM TEN PRISONERS WILL BE RELEASED. Until 1:30 the occupations military court will give a decision regarding weather they will demand 3000 shekel bail form each prisoner.

Military Judge Criticizes Police; Releases the Bethlehem Ten

Judge Dahan of the Ofer Military Court in the West Bank ordered the release of the ten peaceful demonstrators arrested in Bethlehem last Sunday, among them PLO Executive Committee's Abbas Zaki. The judge criticized the police and prosecution saying that the protest was nonviolent, and that the only force used in it was that used by police to apprehend the demonstrators.

After five long days in an Israeli military prison, the Bethlehem Ten were finally brought in front of a judge today at the Ofer military court. After hearing the arguments of both the military prosecution and the defense, the judge, Amir Dahan, decided to release all ten on bail and without posing restrictive release conditions. The judge also voiced his criticism of the police and prosecution by asserting in his decision that “There is no dispute that the march was not violent, and that no harm was done to anyone or to property, except for the force used by police officers during the arrests”.

The Bethlehem Ten were arrested together with four Israeli activists and an international activist, during a march marking Palm Sunday and the Christian tradition of pilgrimage to Jerusalem on that day last Sunday. Demonstrators hoped to highlight Israeli restrictions on Palestinian movement and freedom of religion in Jerusalem. Despite having been arrested under the exact same circumstances and suspicions, the Israelis and international were released that same evening, in a clear example of racial discrimination.

“When referring to the repression of demonstrations, Israel always claims that it is the demonstrators' so-called violence that compels the Army to use such measures”, said Mohammed Khatib of the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee. “But today even their own judge, in what is most clearly the court of the Occupation, acknowledged that any protest, any form of resistance, is met with an iron fist”.

The arrest of the Bethlehem Ten, especially that of Abbas Zaki, motivated the Fatah movement to declare an escalation in the use popular struggle strategies during these tense times. It has also brought hundreds of people to demonstrate at the Bitunya checkpoint yesterday, where demonstrators tried to break through the Separation Barrier in order to reach Ofer prison.

Media
reported that even the military (reserve) judge criticized the harassment and arrest of the activists and release them with no condition. Israeli TV news also showed clips of the demo at the Ofer concentration camp.

BEIT OMAR

The big village/small town is in acute struggle with the Israeli occupation forces. There are few activists which initiated along the years joint struggles with Israeli activists but most of the village activists are not joining it. Lately a renewed effort is done and we started weekly demonstrations.

"While Salam Fayyad and other PA ministers march in Bil'in and Bethlehem declaring their support of the Popular Resistance, the Palestinian police have continued to repress any such resistance that is organized outside of their control. Because of this, Mousa Abu Maria was arrested at 1:40 this morning by Palestinian police, reportedly in coordination with the Israeli military. Residents reported more than a dozen Palestinian police vehicles were involved in the operation in Beit Ommar, where they also attempted to arrest National Committee member Younes Arrar, who was not home. His family said the police had no warrant and frightened his family.

Friday:

Yesterday, a peaceful demonstration was held for the third time this month on the highway outside Beit Ommar, organized by the National Committee of Beit Ommar against continued settlement expansion on Beit Ommar land by the settlements Bat 'Ayn and Karmei Tsur. Israeli, International and Palestinian activists sat in the road, a primary highway through the southern West Bank for settlers and Palestinians.

BIL'IN

About 25 Israelis with the Anarchists Against the Wall joined a similar number of internationals and together, with Palestinians of the village and the region, marched towards the gate of the separation fence. The theme of the demo was Land Day and a resistance to the latest escalating measures, taken by the army, to repress the demonstrations by declaring the area of the demo in Bil'in and Ni'ilin as closed military zone on Friday for Israeli and internationals... However though it had been widely spread in the Israeli media it boomeranged... It got lot of negative opinions, was not enforced, and had mainly the opposite effect. May be this was the reason they used much less of the repression means at the gate of the separation route than we used to.

When we arrived at the gate, few protesters managed to get inside the buffer zone, hang a Palestinian flag on the fence, hold up a sign and chant for a while, before a suspiciously calm army threw a few gas grenades around. Then, youth threw stones at a patrolling jeep, and in a neighborly act, returned the few gas grenades the army was missing.

http://www.bilin-ffj.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=259&Itemid=1

Israel Puterman video clip of Bil'in 2-4-10 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryY837CPVRE

BUDRUS

"There will be a land day demonstration in Budrus tomorrow 30-3-10..." and there really was. The demonstration started at noon after the mid day prier. Hundreds of the villagers with ten of us and few internationals marched to the gate in the separation fence. There people planted trees and protested the grab of lands by the separation fence. After a while, the state forces started to use tear gas and a protracted struggle developed between the Israeli state forces and the demonstrators who refused to retreat... and youth who threw stones and used road blocks of rocks to delay the advance of the state forces.

QARAWET BANI ZEID

Several hundred Palestinians and Israelis protest in West Bank village Qarawat Bani Hassan to mark the annual “Land Day”.
Today over 200 Israelis, Palestinians and internationals demonstrated near the Ein Entweteg Spring in the West Bank village of Qarawat Bani Hassan to mark the annual Palestinian "Land Day." The solidarity protest, started at around 10 AM and lasted until approximated 12:30 PM.

Qarawat Bani Hassan is a Palestinian town in the West Bank Salfit Governorate, located thirty kilometers southwest of Nablus. The town is home to roughly 4,000 people, most of them refugees from Kufr Bara. 89% of the village's land, including the Ein Enwetef spring, is in Area C, under complete Israeli control, and is in constant threat of annexation and settlement expansion.

Israeli settlers have been building the Havat Yaair settlement outpost on a hilltop above the the Ein Enwetef spring since 2003 on land belonging to Palestinians from the village of Qarawat Bani Hassan. The Israeli settlers and military regularly prevent Palestinians from accessing the area and since December 2009 the settlers have made repeated attempts to begin construction at the site of the spring.

The Ein Enwetef spring traditionally served Palestinians residents of Qarawat Bani Hassan and neighboring villages as a source of water for both agriculture and herding. Herding, a major source of livelihood in the Salfit region for decades is threatened with extinction by limited access to traditional water sources, contamination of local springs by raw sewage dumped by Israeli settlements and restrictions on movement in the area.

Ein Enwetef is one of dozens of fresh water springs across the West Bank to which Palestinian access is denied or limited.

Tuesday March 30th 2010: Land Day: Qarawet Bani Zeid was one of the places activists of the AAtW participated in the demonstration. After it they joined us - another contingent of the AAtW in Budrus.

MA'ASARA

Demonstrators gathered today in Al Ma'asara, near Bethlehem, in commemoration of Land Day, marking the anniversary of mass confiscation of Palestinian land in 1976.

Palestinians, Israelis and internationals marched peacefully towards the village’s land. However, Israeli military, police and border police blocked the road with barbed wire, at which point the demonstrators stopped to chant resistance anthems and to hear speeches from representatives of the popular resistance. The soldiers then announced that the area had been declared a Closed Military Zone (CMZ), removed the barbed wire and moved on foot and in jeeps towards the protesters, throwing percussion grenades and tear gas canisters directly at them.

two persons were arrested after asking to see a copy of the CMZ order. taken to a nearby Israeli police station

Al Ma'asara has held a weekly demonstration since November 2006. The villagers are restricted from accessing their land, as it is the area in which the Israeli authorities are continuing to build the illegal separation barrier.

Video al ma'asara 02042010 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4YStK1Dt7I

NABI SALEH

As usual the last Fridays, Israelis with the AAtW initiative and internationals joined the people of the village in the weekly demonstration.

"Nabi Saleh: collective punishment targets entire neighborhoods

The village started this Friday mobilization with a rally commemorating Land Day. Soon afterwards, the villagers gathered to march to their lands, which are to be confiscated by the Israeli occupation. When the march reached the area near the village spring, which is to be annexed together with the land surrounding it, they found settlers guarded by the Israeli military next to the spring. When the villagers attempted to get by the Israeli occupation forces to reach their land, the military started shooting rubber-coated metal bullets in their direction from very close distance. These were followed by tear gas canisters which caused many villagers to feel sick.

The occupation forces further stormed the house of Mohammed Abdel-Hafiz at-Tamimi, overlooking the village and started shooting rubber-coated metal bullets, teargas and sound bombs at demonstrators from there. They also invaded the house of Haj Mohammad Abu Ibrahim and demanded from him to go to the demonstrators to ask them to end the march otherwise they would burn his house. Abu Asid Tamimi reported that the Israeli military fired sound bombs inside his house because some household members were standing next to the window looking towards the street."

Video clip:
David Reeb Friday Nabi Saleh 2.4.10 video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySkUpBKqaxA

NI'ILIN

Dozens protesters were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation when Israeli troops attacked the anti wall protest in the village of Nil’in central West Bank. Villagers along with Israeli and international supporters conducted the demonstration that included the Muslim midday Friday prayers at lands near the Israeli built wall. Later the crowed marched towards the wall and local youth hanged the Palestinian flag on top of the wall. Troops then fired tear gas and sound bombs at the protesters, dozens were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation.

SAKHNIN CENTRAL DEMO OF LAND DAY

We are calling you to join the central demo in Sakhnin tomorrow, 30.03.10 at 13:00
in commemoration of the annual Land day.

Our participation could contribute much to the struggle against the permanent land-
confiscation and the ongoing racist policy against the Arab Palestinians in the 48-
territories.

Let us join, march and say together;

No Pasaran

SHEIKH JARRAH

During the week activist tried to be present all the time in the conflict area with the settler colonialists.

"As always, this week we will demonstrate against the Settlement in Sheikh Jarrah
The demonstration will take place on Friday at 16:00 in the neighborhood
This week, during the intermediate days, you are welcome to come and visit the Palestinian families."

Friday

Approximately 200 protesters gathered in Sheikh Jarach to protest the ongoing settlement campaign in East Jerusalem. Protesters carried model homes to symbolize those that were taken from the Palestinian residents twice - in 48' and once again last year. In recent weeks the Israeli government made many announcements of new settlement plans in East Jerusalem, completely ignoring the international community and common sense. Their goal is to settle Jews everywhere as long as it's in the east: Silwan, Shuafat, Gilo, Ramat Shlomo and last but not least, Sheikh Jarach.

Construction plans for hundreds of new housing units have been approved in and around the Sheppard Hotel compound in Sheikh Jarach. It will span both the hotel and the large olive grove on the other side of the street. All Jewish, of course.

Some of the protesters marched up a few hundred meters to protest in front of the hotel, chanting and holding up signs for about half an hour. Nasser Gawi, a local resident whose home been given to extreme settlers and lives today in a protest tent, spoke about the situation and pointed out the areas threatened by construction.

The Israeli government has a clear goal - to make Jews a majority in Sheikh Jarach and separate it from the rest of East Jerusalem, by all means, legal or not, moral or not. We say - no!

See Previous reports at: http://ilanisagainstwalls.blogspot.com