Letter to the independent
I concur with Yasmin Alibhai-Brown (Opinion, 8 February). If Jews in this country feel threatened by antisemitism, they should think themselves lucky they are not suffering the pogroms that another Semetic group, the Palestinians, are experiencing.
My friend Bilal is currently lying in hospital with a fractured spine and a fractured skull after being attacked on his land by ideologically driven Israeli settlers. He will get no compensation for his injuries or his lost land. The village has come under attack several times in the last months by gangs of these lawless thugs, who behave like latter-day Cossacks.
Maggie Foyer
London SW15
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Maan reports on the mosque demolition
Israel orders halt to construction on Nablus-area mosque
Nablus – Ma'an – The Israeli government halted construction of a mosque in the northern West Bank village of Burin south of Nablus on Tuesday, a Palestinian Authority official said.
Ghassan Daghlas, a PA official responsible for settlement activities in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that Israeli forces presented a formal order demanding that construction on the Salman Al-Farisi mosque be halted immediately.
Construction on the mosque began a year ago, and was near completion save for the minaret, Daghlas explained, until a copy of the order was posted to contractors. The same order demanded that construction on storehouses owned by Burin resident Hisham Najjar be stopped as well.
A spokeswoman for Israel's Civil Administration did not return calls seeking comment.
Nablus – Ma'an – The Israeli government halted construction of a mosque in the northern West Bank village of Burin south of Nablus on Tuesday, a Palestinian Authority official said.
Ghassan Daghlas, a PA official responsible for settlement activities in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that Israeli forces presented a formal order demanding that construction on the Salman Al-Farisi mosque be halted immediately.
Construction on the mosque began a year ago, and was near completion save for the minaret, Daghlas explained, until a copy of the order was posted to contractors. The same order demanded that construction on storehouses owned by Burin resident Hisham Najjar be stopped as well.
A spokeswoman for Israel's Civil Administration did not return calls seeking comment.
Protest at Burin Mosque
The new mosque in the village of Burin, Nablus District, West Bank, has been halted due to an Israeli miltary order to demolish the mosque.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Foreign activists in OPT
Foreign activists released from detention
High Court discussion reveals two Spanish, Australian women were detained near Ramallah in improper procedure
High Court discussion reveals two Spanish, Australian women were detained near Ramallah in improper procedure
Aviad Glickman
Published: 02.08.10, 12:31 / Israel News
The Supreme Court ordered the release of two foreign left-wing activists Ariadna Jove Marti and Bridgette Chappell in exchange for NIS 3,000 each (about $800). In addition, they were banned from the West Bank.
It was also decided that the two must submit an administrative petitions on their stay in Israel within five days. In addition, the
judges ruled that the State must issue affidavits regarding the jurisdiction of Oz unit inspectors in the territories.
The State Prosecutor's Office admitted that the arrest of the two near Ramallah on Sunday by members of the Interior Ministry's Oz unit was conducted in an improper procedure.
During a High Court discussion Monday, the State agreed to release the two women on bail, under the condition that they would be released into Israeli territories only.
The women, Ariadna Jove Marti of Spain and Bridgette Chappell of Australia, petitioned the High Court of Justice, claiming that their arrest was illegal as it was conducted in Area A, which is under full Palestinian control and not under the jurisdiction of the Israel Police.
The State's response revealed that the Israel Defense Forces handed the two women over to the Oz unit in the territories, rather than in Israel's sovereign territory, as it should have.
The State representative, Attorney Ilil Amir, said that despite the mishap, the two should be released as they were not allowed to enter the territories in the first place. After the discussion ended, the State representative reconsidered and said that the detainees could be released.
'Army persecuting people'
During the discussion, the judges criticized the arrest procedure. Judge Asher Grunis asked the State representative whether her people took any action aimed at regulating the authority issues. She replied, "It has become clear that not all elements understand all the instructions."
Judge Grunis added, "If the two women are staying in Israel illegally, you must act in accordance with Israel's entry law. Why keep them in custody? In light of the circumstances, you should consider releasing them under conditions."
Judge Uzi Vogelman asked the State representative, "If we decide to release them, are there any special conditions under which you would want to release them?"
Following a consultation between the State Prosecutor's Office and the Interior Ministry, the State representative told the judges that there would be no problem releasing the two women into Israel only and on bail of NIS 25,000 (about $6,685).
The women's lawyer, Attorney Omer Shatz, said: "We're asking ourselves why the army is motivated to arrest these two peace activists of all people. The army's motivation is to persecute people based on their political opinions. I ask the court not to lend a hand to this illegality."
According to the lawyer, Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Moratinos has become involved in the matter, asking the Israeli ambassador in Spain not to deport Marti.
illegal arrests in the west bank
Court Frees foreign activists- west bank crack down
By Nir Hasson, Haaretz news correspondent
8/2/2010
The Supreme Court ordered two pro-Palestinian foreign activists released on bail on Monday, saying Israeli immigration officers overstepped their bounds by detaining them in the West Bank.
The activists' lawyer described their arrest as part of a campaign by Israel to choke off weekly demonstrations by Palestinians, left-wing Israelis and foreign activists against Israel's West Bank separation barrier as peace efforts remain at a stalemate.
Israeli soldiers raided the West Bank city of Ramallah on Sunday and detained Spaniard Ariadna Jove Marti and Australian Bridgette Chappell, handing them over to immigration officers overseen by Israel's Interior Ministry for possible deportation.
Both women belong to the International Solidarity Movement, which is at the forefront of anti-barrier demonstrations.
Palestinian authorities and the women's attorney called the entire operation illegal, arguing the military had no right to raid a city within an area designated by interim peace accords as being under Palestinian civil and security jurisdiction.
But the Supreme Court ordered Marti and Chappell released on other grounds, saying immigration officers - authorized only to operate inside Israel - had taken custody of the women from the military at a prison inside the West Bank.
"(The immigration officers) have no authority outside the legitimate borders of Israel," the women's lawyer, Omer Schatz, told reporters before the court ordered his clients freed on bail.
The two activists were banned by the court from returning to the West Bank but told they could file an appeal against deportation from Israel, which controls the territory's borders.
They two were ordered to pay NIS 3,000 bail apiece, instead of the NIS 25,000 originally requested, were told they could not return to the Palestinian territories, but that they could file an official appeal over their deportation.
During a hearing on Monday, state prosecutors said the two should not have been transferred to the Oz immigration unit, which has previously been instructed not to participate in the arrest of activists in the West Bank.
State Prosecutor Ilil Amir said, "A legal problem exists regarding the authority to enforce the laws of entry into Israel."
"At about 2:30 at night soldiers opened the door and came in. There were 15-20 soldiers who aimed their guns at us," Marti described on Sunday from a holding cell in Ramle prison. "They asked for our passports and then asked us to take our things and go with them. They cuffed us and drove us to Ofer Camp."
There they were handed over to the Oz immigration unit of the Defense Ministry.
They said Interior Ministry officials asked them to agree to be expelled immediately from the country.
"They told us that they are taking us to Holon and there we can decide, either we agree to immediate expulsion or that we will be jailed for six months. He told us that we had time until the trip to Holon to decide," Marti added.
The two say that at the Holon headquarters of the unit they were questioned, and that most of the questions dealt with the lack of visas.
They refused to sign documents that would see them willfully expelled.
Israel deported a leading ISM activist last month, the organization said. Eva Novakova, from the Czech Republic, had also been arrested in Ramallah.
By Nir Hasson, Haaretz news correspondent
8/2/2010
The Supreme Court ordered two pro-Palestinian foreign activists released on bail on Monday, saying Israeli immigration officers overstepped their bounds by detaining them in the West Bank.
The activists' lawyer described their arrest as part of a campaign by Israel to choke off weekly demonstrations by Palestinians, left-wing Israelis and foreign activists against Israel's West Bank separation barrier as peace efforts remain at a stalemate.
Israeli soldiers raided the West Bank city of Ramallah on Sunday and detained Spaniard Ariadna Jove Marti and Australian Bridgette Chappell, handing them over to immigration officers overseen by Israel's Interior Ministry for possible deportation.
Both women belong to the International Solidarity Movement, which is at the forefront of anti-barrier demonstrations.
Palestinian authorities and the women's attorney called the entire operation illegal, arguing the military had no right to raid a city within an area designated by interim peace accords as being under Palestinian civil and security jurisdiction.
But the Supreme Court ordered Marti and Chappell released on other grounds, saying immigration officers - authorized only to operate inside Israel - had taken custody of the women from the military at a prison inside the West Bank.
"(The immigration officers) have no authority outside the legitimate borders of Israel," the women's lawyer, Omer Schatz, told reporters before the court ordered his clients freed on bail.
The two activists were banned by the court from returning to the West Bank but told they could file an appeal against deportation from Israel, which controls the territory's borders.
They two were ordered to pay NIS 3,000 bail apiece, instead of the NIS 25,000 originally requested, were told they could not return to the Palestinian territories, but that they could file an official appeal over their deportation.
During a hearing on Monday, state prosecutors said the two should not have been transferred to the Oz immigration unit, which has previously been instructed not to participate in the arrest of activists in the West Bank.
State Prosecutor Ilil Amir said, "A legal problem exists regarding the authority to enforce the laws of entry into Israel."
"At about 2:30 at night soldiers opened the door and came in. There were 15-20 soldiers who aimed their guns at us," Marti described on Sunday from a holding cell in Ramle prison. "They asked for our passports and then asked us to take our things and go with them. They cuffed us and drove us to Ofer Camp."
There they were handed over to the Oz immigration unit of the Defense Ministry.
They said Interior Ministry officials asked them to agree to be expelled immediately from the country.
"They told us that they are taking us to Holon and there we can decide, either we agree to immediate expulsion or that we will be jailed for six months. He told us that we had time until the trip to Holon to decide," Marti added.
The two say that at the Holon headquarters of the unit they were questioned, and that most of the questions dealt with the lack of visas.
They refused to sign documents that would see them willfully expelled.
Israel deported a leading ISM activist last month, the organization said. Eva Novakova, from the Czech Republic, had also been arrested in Ramallah.
the mosque in burin
Burin residents mobilize against demolitions
Latest News, Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign, January 30th, 2010
Hundreds of Palestinians participated in a crowded demonstration in Burin yesterday. The march was organized in protest of the Occupation forces� decision to demolish the Suleiman al Farsi mosque in the village, along with a group of storage structures close by. This was done on the pretext that the structures fall in Area C, with the full knowledge that the mosque is located inside the residential area of the village, close to nearby homes constructed before 1967.
The protest came after calls from the Burin Popular Committee, the Burin municipality, and the National and Islamic Forces. Hundreds held Friday prayers at the threatened mosque, where Occupation forces fired tear gas at demonstrators in an attempt to disperse them. Demonstrators responded to these attacks with stones.
With settlements to the north, east and southwest, Burin, is one of the villages in the area that suffers from continuous settler attacks.
Latest News, Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign, January 30th, 2010
Hundreds of Palestinians participated in a crowded demonstration in Burin yesterday. The march was organized in protest of the Occupation forces� decision to demolish the Suleiman al Farsi mosque in the village, along with a group of storage structures close by. This was done on the pretext that the structures fall in Area C, with the full knowledge that the mosque is located inside the residential area of the village, close to nearby homes constructed before 1967.
The protest came after calls from the Burin Popular Committee, the Burin municipality, and the National and Islamic Forces. Hundreds held Friday prayers at the threatened mosque, where Occupation forces fired tear gas at demonstrators in an attempt to disperse them. Demonstrators responded to these attacks with stones.
With settlements to the north, east and southwest, Burin, is one of the villages in the area that suffers from continuous settler attacks.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
I have just received a disturbing email from Palestine. It contained a photo of my friend Bilal in hospital with a fractured spine and heavy bandaging around his head and hands. While working on his land last week, he was attacked by a gang of settlers. It is not for no reason that the Occupied Palestine Territories are called the Wild East; as settlers consider themselves above the law.
Israel continues to see itself as a Western style democracy with a respected legal system. Israel has also signed the Geneva Convention which lays a duty of care on the occupying forces to protect the civilians under their control. So why is a country with one of the world’s strongest armies unable to control these lawless thugs? Israel never ceases to remind the international community that it has a security problem; but the Palestinians living in the shadow of settlements are absolutely without protection.
In July 2007 a Jerusalem High Court ruling stated that the Israeli police and army were duty bound to protect Palestinians from settler violence. In practice this protection is nonexistent. I have witnessed a number of confrontations between settlers and farmers. If and when Israeli authorities intervene they simply order the Palestinians to leave their lands so as not to ‘inflame’ setters. Most often as in the case above, the army are nowhere to be seen and Palestinians are at the mercy of well armed and very mobile settler gangs.
This problem is on the increase. Settlers have vowed to make ‘price tag’ reprisals against Palestinians if the government attempts to dismantle outposts or settlement. As the settler population grows, more and more army and police recruits come from settlements and outposts. Advocate Talia Sasson expressed the problem succinctly. ‘Law enforcement bodies cannot act against State authorities breaking the law. They cannot handle a mixed message, that the outposts are illegal but encouraged by the authorities.'
Meanwhile my friend Bilal lies in hospital, no redress, no compensation whilst the settlers just sit back and stick two fingers up to decency and democracy.
- MF
23/01/2010
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