Apparently, this year they are making one scenario about Israeli checkpoints in Palestine. A student wrote in and complained about it. I quote her letter below in its entirety. Following the letter will be my reply, one that first outlines problems in this letter, and then explains exactly what checkpoints are, how they affect Palestinian lives, and why it is not one-sided. Here is the letter:

I am a senior at Boise State majoring in Business. I am writing this letter as a response to the proposed theme of this year’s “Tunnel of Oppression” that is put on yearly at BSU by your students. I am an Observant Jew and not only a supporter of the State of Israel but also of the proposed Palestinian State. The Palestinian people have lived in the land of Israel for a very long time and deserve a sovereign nation of their own. I have studied both sides of the Israeli/Palestinian situation and feel that I can write this letter in complete confidence of my knowledge.

A reliable source contacted me and forwarded me both the Youtube video entitled “Pregnant Palestinian Stopped at an Israeli Checkpoint!” which was apparently shown to the students in your class, and the proposed outline for the ‘Checkpoint’ scene in your tunnel. After reading the proposed idea and viewing the Youtube clip, I felt alarmed at the blatant one-sidedness and appalling misinformation that is portrayed by your project. You are portraying an Israel that only exists in western (and eastern – the blood libel has reappeared recently in Arab newspapers) media, the great “Zionist oppressor” that only the likes of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad talk about. (I have personal friends that are Israeli and have served with pride in the Israel Defense Forces and they would be the first to tell you that none of it is true. I have personal friends that have lived in and visit Israel regularly and who are equally comfortable around Israelis and Palestinians.)

You are forgetting the other side of the story. Why don’t you tell your students to imagine Idaho being hit by several thousand rockets fired by a fringe-group of extremists from Canada? Why don’t you tell them the truth, which is that the checkpoints exist only because they must? There is a reason that every mall, Synagogue, school, and Mosque requires armed guards; it’s not because Israelis like being searched at every destination, it is due to the very real, everyday threat of terrorist attacks funded and supported by Islamist fanaticism. Why don’t you tell your students to imagine being killed by a suicide bomber during Christmas dinner at a local hotel? You’re forgetting that part. You also fail to mention that the Palestinians are regularly cared for at Israeli hospitals by staffs that comprise of both Jews and Muslims that work together seamlessly on a daily basis, treating peoples of all races, religions, creeds, and political affiliations. But I don’t need to mention any more because there is no truth to the portrayal of Israel and Israelis suggested for this farce.

This presentation is not only one-sided but also blatantly anti-Semitic. The representation of American Christians as being duped by a hidden cabal of Shylock-esque Israelis is clear. The Muslims are clearly supposed to be the helpless victims in this caricature, the Christians clueless but well-meaning, and the Jews are left to be characterized as bloodthirsty thugs “aroused by the sudden chaos” into beating civilians at random. I believe any Jew would be offended by this.

I have already made Boise’s small but very close-knit Jewish community aware of this atrocity along with the Idaho Statesman and the Arbiter. If you decide to allow this presentation to continue as it is written, I will contact the Anti-Defamation League and the ACLU for blatant Anti-Semitism on a college campus. I am in the process of forming a group of Israelis, American Jews, and fellow supporters of Israel of all faiths to protest your Tunnel of Oppression and hand out fliers from standwithus.org that show in plain fact, the truth in the Holy Land.

Dear Comrades,

The first claim this student makes is that Palestinians have lived "on the land of Israel" for a "very long time." Actually, Palestinians have always lived in Palestine NOT Israel; Israel did not exist before 1948. These Palestinians have been and are Muslims, Christians, and Jews. In fact, the city of Nablus, where I now live, is home to a community of Jews called Samaritans. These Jews identify as Palestinian Jews and when the state of Israel was created, they refused to move to the other side of the Green Line (the 1949 Armistice Line also known as the pre-1967 border). The Jewish Zionists who came to Palestine, starting in the late 19th century to colonize the land were European, also known as Ashkenazi Jews. They use the language of "return" to suggest that they were originally from here. But Israeli historian Shlomo Sand makes it clear that this is a myth; these Jews who colonized Palestine and ethnically cleansed the land of 750,000 Palestinians in 1948 were Jews who converted to Judaism in Russia and Europe.

Second, the student argues that the Tunnel is only presenting one side of the story. I think what s/he really means is not that it's one-sided, but rather that it is not the side that s/he wishes to have at the forefront. The fact of the matter is: if you live in the U.S. and you breathe you get the other side of the the story on a daily basis. If you watch the presidential and vice presidential debates you not only hear the word Israel numerous times, you also hear the candidates' profession of love for Israel. In contradistinction, the word Palestine or Palestinian is never mentioned. That, my dear comrades, is one sided. The reason that some of us who do work in the U.S. trying to educate people about Palestine do not tell the so-called other side of the story is that we are working to bring to bear a side that is not represented, that is vigorously silenced. The only way one can understand the issue of sides is to think about the fact that the two sides are of colonizer and colonized. Of occupier and occupied. Imagine, for instant, that we wanted to present a narrative of slavery in the U.S. Would we (meaning those who oppose human rights violations, oppression) tell that story from the point of view of the slave owner? Or what if we wanted to tell a story about what happened in to gay people, Jehovah's Witnesses, handicapped people, and Jews in Nazi Germany--would we tell that story through the eyes of Adolf Hitler? Or if we wanted to talk about violence against Mexicans crossing the U.S. border would we use Chris Simcox of the Minute Men to tell that story? Or if we wanted to narrate a piece about the Native American genocide would we rely upon the words of those who conquered and colonized the Americas? I think you get my point.

The analogy s/he tries to draw with a made-up scenario of Canadians firing rockets into the U.S. doesn't quite work. One would have to tweak the scenario a bit. It would work as an analogy if about 60 years before the rockets started firing Americans had invaded, stolen and conquered Canada. If Americans massacred thousands of Canadians. If Americans made 750,000 Canadians refugees for 60 years. If throughout that time Americans stole Canadian homes, water, agricultural lands, murdered innocent civilians on a daily basis, built a 20 foot high concrete wall to confiscate more land and water and displace more people. If Americans set up a system of controlling Canadians through over 650 checkpoints on a daily basis. If Americans invaded Canadian homes, villages, and refugee camps every day, killing civilians and kidnapping them to warehouse 11,000 Canadians in American jails. If all of these things--and so much more--were true, then we would understand, I think, why Canadians would be firing rockets on to American soil. They would be using armed resistance and they would be legally allowed to do so under international law. (Oh, and by the way, there are no rockets being fired by Palestinians in the West Bank, where all 650 checkpoints are into Israel.) Moreover, armed resistance in Palestine has only in recent years had become Islamic. Over the course of Palestinian resistance for the last few decades it has been predominantly secular, and oftentimes Communist. The rise of Hamas after the first intifada had a lot to do with the state of Israel itself bolstering Hamas as a way to weaken the then-stronger Fatah movement. This should come as no surprise as colonial regimes have always relied upon the tactic of divide and rule. The latest phase of this meddling in Hamas-Fatah politics, including U.S. involvement, was revealed in an article in Vanity Fair last year.

A third point the student brings up is about Antisemitism. S/he compares creating a scene about Israeli checkpoints in Palestine to blood libel. First, blood libel is certainly anti-Semitic; it involves a mythology about Jews using the blood of children for their matzah during their holiday Passover. The mythology is just that. Anti-Semitism actually refers to prejudice directed at any of the three peoples who speak or spoke one of the three Semitic languages: Aramaic, Hebrew, and Arabic. But over the course of the last century--and more specifically, since World War II--Jews have worked to dislodge the original meaning of the word to only mean anti-Jewish. But even if we take this Zionist definition of the word at face value, through this student's logic being anti-Jewish is the same as being anti-Israeli or anti-Zionist. These are three distinct categories. I think the first is self explanatory. The second, being anti-Israel, means critiquing the state of Israel and its policies. It is no different than critiquing the U.S. for its policies. But because the state of Israel is a Jewish state by definition (legally speaking there is no Israeli nationality; on Israeli Jews' identity cards it reads "Jewish" and some Israelis have tried to change this in court without success) some people choose to conflate the two. Importantly, there are many Palestinians who also live inside what is now Israel, all of whom are subjected to a set of laws that resemble Jim Crow segregation in the U.S. One must be Jewish to have equal rights in the state of Israel. The third term, Zionism, is an ideology. People who believe in Zionism believe that Jews have a right to conquer and settle a land even though that land, Palestine, belongs to an indigenous population, the Palestinians. This ideology began as a secular one, though there are of course religious Zionists today, many living in illegal settlements in the West Bank. One of the primary tactics used to silence people who wish to speak about the reality here in Palestine is to call them anti-Semitic in order to get them to shut up. It is worth noting that this tactic is especially used by the Israel lobby (organizations like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee [AIPAC] as well as the Anti-Defamation League [ADL] this student refers to in her/his letter) to force politicians to submit to unconditional support of Israel. Barack Obama is a perfect example of this as before he ran for office he had strong personal and political relationships with Palestinian Americans in Illinois. In any case, those of us who are committed to justice and human rights for Palestinians and all oppressed people around the world, the issue is not bashing a state. Rather, it is asking that state to comply with international law and uphold human rights; when a state violates these codes it deserves to be critiqued and challenged at the very least. The organizations this student is working with in the threats directed at you are Zionist organizations of the worst order. The ADL and Stand With Us disguise work that they do as upholding human rights. In fact, these organizations are stealth. In Congress and on American university campuses alike they work on a number of levels to ensure that nothing negative is ever said about the state of Israel. They work to silence student activism on the subject and by equal measure they work to fire or make sure faculty are not tenured if they conduct research on Palestine or are critical of Israel. Just following the ADL's campaign against Jimmy Carter for writing Palestine, Peace Not Apartheid, which was in many ways very tame and did not go far enough to explain the horrors that Israel unleashes on Palestinians every day and you may get a sense of what I mean. These organizations try to work with people of color in the U.S. united under some kind of "we're all oppressed" banner; but the reality is that most Jews in the U.S. are white folks like me. They have white privilege and use it to their advantage. I'll give you an example. The "Tunnel of Oppression" originated at the Simon Wiesenthal Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. I went there a few years ago thinking that it would be a museum highlighting the oppression of all peoples. I was horrified to see that in fact 90% of it was about a history of anti-Jewish persecution and the remaining 10% about African Americans and Native Americans; this is especially appalling when you measure the number of indigenous people who suffered genocide under the hands of brutal European colonialism. No other genocide in history can quite match this. For me what this is all about is a kind of Jewish supremacy (I use this term with a nod to white supremacy). What I mean by this is that such organizations like the ADL which feign interest in the suffering of other people always do so with an eye towards making sure that no one ever compares their suffering to what happened to Jews during World War II. Take a look, too, at the Washington DC Holocaust Museum. They have a genocide watch page which tracks more recent genocide around the world. But they are very clear that the world holocaust can never be used again to describe the suffering of any other people. And it is worth asking the question: why is it that we have a museum about something that happened in Europe in Washington DC? This museum was erected before the Native American museum was built and we still have no such museum about slavery or the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. But you don't have to go that far to see how this works. The Idaho Human Rights Education Center chose to build an Anne Frank memorial. Why is that exactly? The land on which Boise as a city, or the monument more specifically, is land that once belonged to tribes who were forcibly removed, ethnically cleansed, massacred, and who now live on reservations in Idaho. Why is it that we are not looking at those human rights violations? And on the adjacent memorial wall, why are there no quotes by any Arabs or Muslims?

So the checkpoints. From the letter I gather that you all chose to do a scene this year about the checkpoints here in Palestine. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) released a report this week updating the number of checkpoints in the West Bank. As of this week there are 630 such military checkpoints. These checkpoints take various forms. One is a permanent structure that is like a land border crossing as if you are crossing an international border. Right now, as far as I know, these only exist if you are going to Jerusalem, but Jerusalem is part of Palestine (however the Annexation Wall has annexed Jerusalem in such a way that if you want to go there you must cross through one of these checkpoints. If you are on foot, you walk through a maze of steel turnstiles, each one locking you inside the next space (there are several such spaces you must walk through in order to pass). The first one checks your ID card (Palestinians have several kinds of IDs: 1) if you live in 1948 or what is now known as Israel; 2) if you live in Jerusalem; 3) if you live in the West Bank; 4) if you live in Gaza. Depending on your ID you may or may not be allowed to cross. And even if you have proper papers, you still may not be allowed to pass (sometimes even if you have legitimate papers from an embassy or from a hospital in Israel the soldiers will most often turn you away). After the double ID check you are locked into an area where it resembles an airport as you are required to walk through a metal detector and then put your bag on a metal detection machine. Only here in some of these checkpoints there are armed soldiers pointing guns at you from planks above as you do this. Then there is yet another hoop at the end where you must put your hand on a computer-generated hand print machine before you may pass. And even then, you still may not be able to pass. Everything is at the whim of the soldiers. There are not any laws here; even Israeli laws do not apply to the West Bank. The law is basically the whim of a soldier on a particular day.

A couple of examples. A few years ago I was taking a friend to the American consulate in Jerusalem because she was going to study in the U.S. We had all the proper papers and an appointment at the consulate. She was 19 years old at the time. We went to the checkpoint, but they refused to let us go through to Jerusalem from Bethlehem. Another example, from a couple of years ago: I was with a couple of girlfriends in a rented car driving from Ramallah to Bethlehem. We drove through a checkpoint, known as the Container Checkpoint, which is in a neighborhood of Jerusalem called Abu Dies. We were told we could not pass because I there was a foreigner in the car with Palestinians. On that night--it was around 9 PM--we were told that it's illegal for foreigners and Palestinians to be in the same car. Another example: a few weeks ago a student invited me home for iftar (breaking the fast during Ramadan). The checkpoint near Nablus (the city I live in) is called Huwarra. By all accounts it is the worst (meaning the soldiers are the most lethal and violent with the people and are least likely to allow you to pass in either direction) checkpoint in the West Bank. This checkpoint is outdoors like the old ones used to be when you would go to Jerusalem. You just stand in line and wait for hours, especially if you are a Palestinian man, and this waiting is entirely a form of harassment. Most of the time we stand and watch the soldiers laughing, talking on the phone, eating, hanging out, even playing cards, rather than allow us to cross. This checkpoint, by the way, is deep inside the West Bank. It is nowhere near the Green Line or the Israeli-imposed border. Crossing Huwarra means crossing from one Palestinian area to another--which is the case for at least 80% of these checkpoints. On this day the soldiers were standing on the railing above us, threatening to shoot us. One of the women in line asked me to go speak to the soldier. I did, though I lost my cool, and called him a name he didn't like. He told me that my choices were either to go to prison or home.

There is another kinds of checkpoint, too. This is called a "flying checkpoint." These are checkpoints that move from place to place every day and you never know where they will be. They are always in a different location. If you would like to have more of a context for checkpoints in general, there are reports on the Israeli human rights organization B'tselem's website.

Why do the checkpoints exist? The student who wrote to you would have it that they exist for "security" reasons. But for whose security? United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, written at the end of the 1967 war in which Israel conquered and annexed Gaza and the West Bank, it was made clear that:

Emphasizing the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in which every State in the area can live in security,

UN Resolution 242 has been the main document used in all negotiations between the state of Israel and Palestinians. However, since 1967 the state of Israel has been in direct violation of this UN Resolution, as well as a host of others (most importantly UN Resolution 194, which states that Palestinian refugees have a right to return to their homes, and which UN Resolution 242 upholds later in the document). One of the ways it has violated this resolution is by building illegal settlements. These settlements, or colonies, are illegal because they violate UN Resolution 242. It is also illegal because it violates the Fourth Geneva Convention which states:

The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.

The real reason for these checkpoints, which also prevent Palestinians from driving on Jewish-only roads, is to protect their illegal settlements. These settlements help to create facts on the ground; what this means is by continuing to build them and offer tremendous savings to Israelis who wish to live there (most who live in them do so because they can purchase houses for half the price of those inside the Green Line; the other population living in these settlements are religious Zionists who believe that it is their God-given right to occupy and control all of historic Palestine by force). There are also what is known as illegal "outposts" which are basically a group of mobile home units. Israelis come into the West Bank, plop them down, and presto, you have the beginning of an illegal settlement in the making. To give you a sense of what these facts on the ground mean in terms of checkpoints and the related military infrastructure here is a description of what Jeff Halper of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions calls the "Matrix of Control":

A second set of controls derives from Israel's policy of "creating facts on the ground" - virtually all of them in violation of international law (including the Fourth Geneva Convention signed by Israel itself). These include:

* Massive expropriation of Palestinian land;

* Construction of more than 200 settlements and the transfer of 400,000 Israelis across the 1967 boundaries: about 200,000 in the West Bank, 200,000 in East Jerusalem and 6000 in Gaza (the latter occupying a fourth of the land, including most of the coastline);

* Carving the Occupied Territories into areas -- Areas "A," "B," "C," "D" in the West Bank; "H-1" and "H-2" in Hebron; Yellow, Green, Blue and White Areas in Gaza; nature reserves; closed military areas, security zones, and "open green spaces" of restricted housing over more than half of Palestinian East Jerusalem - which confine the Palestinians to some 190 islands all surrounded by Israeli settlements, roads and checkpoints;

* Carving the Occupied Territories into areas -- Areas "A," "B," "C," "D" in the West Bank; "H-1" and "H-2" in Hebron; Yellow, Green, Blue and White Areas in Gaza; nature reserves; closed military areas, security zones, and "open green spaces" of restricted housing over more than half of Palestinian East Jerusalem - which confine the Palestinians to some 190 islands all surrounded by Israeli settlements, roads and checkpoints;

* A massive system of highways and by-pass roads designed to link settlements, to create barriers between Palestinian areas and to incorporate the West Bank into Israel proper;

* Imposing severe controls on Palestinian movement;

* Construction of seven industrial parks that give new life to isolated settlements, exploit cheap Palestinian labor while denying it access to Israel, rob Palestinian cities of their economic vitality, control key locations and ensure Israel's ability to continue dumping its industrial wastes onto the West Bank;

* Maintaining control over aquifers and other vital natural resources;

* Exploiting holy places (Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem, the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron and others in and around Jerusalem) as pretexts for maintaining a "security presence," and hence military control.

This carving up of the Palestinian landscape is done with the Jewish-only roads, the illegal settlements, and, of course, the checkpoints. You can't isolate one from the other. For instance, because it is a Jewish holiday right now we are under what is called "closure." This means everyone who lives in the West Bank is sealed up and everyone basically becomes a prisoner of their own village or city.

There is violence that targets Palestinians every day. Some of it comes from these illegal Israeli settlers that the Israeli army is here to protect. Some of it comes from the army itself. Here are some recent links about the checkpoints and also about its context.

The Israeli army forces Palestinian men to remove their cloths at a checkpoint near Jenin city

Palestinian toddler almost dies due to Israeli checkpoint

World Bank: Israeli siege is strangling Palestinian economy

Three Palestinian residents wounded by Israeli army fire at a Nablus checkpoint

UN facing increased delays at Israeli checkpoints

Settlers increase attacks on Palestinians as olive picking season begins

UN says number of West Bank checkpoints on the rise

Gaza patients continue painful wait for urgent medical treatment

Weekly Report: On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory 25 Sep. 08 Oct. 2008

Rights org: Eight years of intifada, international failure

I hope this offers you some context and I hope it gives you some tools to fight the silencing work of Zionist students on campus.

In solidarity,
Marcy

[caption id="attachment_1368" align="alignleft" width="500" caption="Israeli Checkpoints in the West Bank"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1369" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Qalandia Checkpoint, summer 2005"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1370" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Qalandia Checkpoint, summer 2005"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1371" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Flying Checkpoint, Abu Dis (summer 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1372" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Flying Checkpoint, Abu Dis (summer 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1373" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Approaching Checkpoint sign, Jerusalem (summer 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1374" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Jerusalem Checkpoint (summer 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1375" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Bethlehem Checkpoint (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1376" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Flying Checkpoint, Abu Dis (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1377" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Qalandia Checkpoint (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1378" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Qalandia Checkpoint (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1379" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Hebron Checkpoint, inside the Old City (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1380" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="Hebron Checkpoint (inside the old city) (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1381" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Beit Jala Checkpoint (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1382" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Bethlehem Checkpoint (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1383" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Flying Checkpoint, Beit Sahour (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1384" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Flying Checkpiont, Beit Sahour (fall 2005)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1385" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1386" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1387" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1388" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1389" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1390" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1391" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Bethelehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1392" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1393" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1394" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1395" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1396" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1397" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1398" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1399" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Qalandia Checkpont (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1400" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1401" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1402" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1403" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1404" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Qalandia Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1405" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (winter 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1406" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Bethlehem Checkpoint (summer 2006)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1407" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Handprint Detector, Bethlehem Checkpoint (fall 2007)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1408" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Flying Checkpoint, Jenin (fall 2007)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1409" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Flying Checkpoint, Jenin (fall 2007)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1410" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Beit Hanina Checkpoint (fall 2007)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1411" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Huwwara Checkpoint, Nablus (fall 2008)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1412" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Huwwara Checkpoint, Nablus (fall 2008)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1413" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Huwwara Checkpoint under construction, Nablus (fall 2008)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1414" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Huwwara Checkpoint, Nablus (fall 2008)"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1415" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="New Huwwara Checkpoint Under Construction, Nablus (fall 2008)"][/caption] ]]> http://djiin.wordpress.com/?p=831 Sun, 05 Oct 2008 15:20:06 +0000 Djiin Of Truth http://djiin.fr.wordpress.com/2008/10/05/btselem-video-reports/ During a search for wanted persons soldiers destroyed seven housing units, and forced male residents of the neighborhood to undress in front of their families and neighbors.

~~~

Almost 9,000 Palestinians are being held in prisons inside Israel, in violation of international humanitarian law. In hundreds of cases, Israel forbids adult relatives to visit, so it is left to children under 16 to maintain the family contact.

[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1703765327215644777&ei=V9LoSNP4C5HS2gKP3JSpCw&q=B%27Tselem]

~~~

Rasmi al-Khatib was 13 years old in October 2001, when he was playing soccer with friends. A soldier fired at the children and a bullet struck him. Since then, Rasmi's left arm has been paralyzed.

[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8254427100166528536&ei=J9PoSMmCJYLi2gK3n6CiCw&q=B%27Tselem]

Another facet of Israel's regime in the occupied territories has come to light – and it's tearing families apart

Friday September 12 2008

forcible transfers

"Over the past year, settlers from Yitzhar and the surrounding area have sharply stepped up violent acts in nearby Palestinian villages. The attacks include throwing stones at passing cars, physically attacking farmers, burning down crops, and stealing livestock. On 14 Sept., after a Palestinian stabbed a Jewish boy and burnt down a caravan in the Shalhevet Yam settlement near Yitzhar, dozens of settlers raided the village of ‘Asira al-Qibliya. They threw stones, fired into the air, broke windows, drew Stars of David on walls of homes and widely damaged property. Testimonies given to B’Tselem indicate that soldiers were present at the time, yet did nothing to prevent the settlers' actions, and fired at the Palestinians." [my emph.]

Contrast with the army's reaction to a Palestinian attempting to attack the settlement.

Meanwhile, a 60-year-old Palestinian woman was shoved to the ground by IDF soldiers "slipped and fell" (it's odd how Palestinians keep "slipping" around Israeli soldiers, isn't it?) while trying to block the path of IDF soldiers coming to search her property, whereupon she died of a broken skull "preexisting heart condition".

1989 startete Jim Hubbard (im Bild) ein Programm namens Shooting Back (zurückschießen), um entrechteten amerikanischen Jugendlichen zu stärken, indem er sie Fotografie lehrt.

In der heutigen Jerusalem Post nimmt Hubbard, der auch Professor an der Annenberg School of Communication ist, das „Shooting Back“-Programm von B’Tselem, die Kameras an palästinensische Jugendliche geben. Nicht nur, dass die NGO einen geschützten Namen missachtet, Hubbard sagt, dass B’Tselem außerdem Kinder leichtsinnig in Gefahr bringt:

Bei B’Tselems Projekt machte mich die potenzielle Gefahr betroffen, die für die Kids besteht, denen Kameras zur Dokumentation von Menschenrechtsverletzungen gegeben wurden, die sich in extrem explosiver Umgebung im Nahen osten abspielen. Zuerst einmal wurden sie von potenziell heißen Konflikt-Punkten angezogen, in denen sie echter physischer Gefahr von allen Seiten ausgesetzt sein können.

Darüber hinaus werden die Kids auf B’Tselems Internetseite namentlich aufgeführt und ihre Gesichter werden in den Fernseh-Nachrichten gezeigt. Einige der Videos hatten Strafverfolgungsaktivitäten zur Folge, was die jungen Videodreher in die aufreibende Lage versetzt eventuell vor Gericht aussagen zu müssen und seine oder ihre Verletzbarkeit erhöht. Zusätzlich haben die Mitarbeiter von B’Tselem berichtet, dass sie verbal und physisch angegriffen wurden. Ist ihnen nicht in den Sinn gekommen, dass ein ähnliches Schicksal die Kids erwarten könnte, denen die Kameras gegeben wurden, um die Missbräuche zu filmen?...

In einem jüngst an B’Tselem geschriebenen Brief forderte ich, dass sie aufhören und davon absehen den Namen „Shooting Back“ zu benutzen. Ich will nicht, dass mein Name mit einem Projekt in Verbindung gebracht wird, bei dem – egal, was die Absichten sind – meiner Meinung nach Kinder gefährdet werden. Die Antwort bestand darin einen große New Yorker Anwaltskanzlei beauftragt, um ihren Gebrauch der Marke ohne meine Zustimmung und – aus meiner Sicht – Verletzung meiner Markenrechte zu verteidigen.

Lesen Sie den ganzen Text (in Englisch).

The images show Israelis from the far-right Yitzhar settlement coming towards the West Bank village of Asira al-Kabaliya and throwing rocks. The attackers were responding to an incident on Saturday afternoon when an intruder burnt down a mobile home and stabbed a nine-year-old boy in the area. The footage was shot by a local resident who then sent it to B'Tselem, an NGO that hands out recording equipment to Palestinians to capture footage of violence in the Israeli and Palestinian Territories (see other posts about the group).

The footage has caused outrage because The Israel Defense Forces appear not to intervene in the attacks. After the video was shot the attackers continued into the village, when six Palestinians were shot and injured. Stars of David were painted on the buildings. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called the attack a "pogrom against non-Jews", and said that it would not be tolerated.

My comments for France 24's The Observers:

This is yet another video exposing the lucid and raw injustice of the occupation. Everything about this footage - the mob violence, the soldiers' impotence, and the Star of David looking ever as ugly as a Swastika - makes me sick to the stomach. Sadly, what you see in this video is not an anomaly. It has been happening for years, and recently it has been escalating.

Prime Minister Olmert has called this disturbance a ‘pogrom' and has said, ‘There will not be pogroms against non-Jews in the state of Israel'. His words are interesting in two respects:

Firstly, by using the word ‘pogrom' (a word usually reserved for when speaking of anti-Semitic riots against Jews), Olmert joins those who at times see a moral and historical equivalence between violence committed against Jews in the Diaspora, and violence committed by Jews in Israel and the occupied territories. This may seem like a non-issue, but in reality it is an unusual choice of words for a prime minister to use. Perhaps a political leader who is about to resign from office can afford to have on his lips what another politician will only have on his mind.

Secondly, by stating that there will be no pogroms against non-Jews in the state of Israel, Olmert is making a well-intentioned but irrelevant point. Yes, in the state of Israel such actions will not be tolerated. But we are not in the state of Israel. We are in the occupied territories - a place where rights and rule of law do not apply to everyone equally. In the ‘territories' such actions are not an exception to the rule. If Olmert means to say that the territories are in fact part of the State of Israel then this is the biggest story of the year. What he should have said is that the state of Israel will not tolerate such behavior within its borders or outside of them. The difference between the two statements is quite significant.

The date of this attack - Saturday, 13 September 2008 - is also significant. To begin with, for Jews the Sabbath is a holy day of rest and spiritual rejuvenation. Terrorizing and spilling the blood of the innocent is the very last thing that would be permitted on such a day (it is of course never permitted). These Jews who committed the attack are a disgrace to everything that is sacred in Judaism. They have profaned their religion. I point this out not because I have a preference for mob violence on Sunday as opposed to Saturday, rather because it shows you how far these folks have strayed from the essence of their faith.

The date is also telling because it falls on the anniversary of the signing of the Oslo accords. It was on 13 September 1993 that the Israeli government and the PLO officially began a historic peace-process. Of course this could be just a coincidence (one the press has yet to pick up on), yet I suspect it is not. Every year around this time the settler community laments the "tragedy" of the peace process and gets aggressively riled up on how the present government is failing to learn the lessons of Oslo. While it is clear that this particular act of mob violence was triggered by a heinous Palestinian attack, it does not stretch the imagination to see how the people in question were primed and poised to see all Arabs as enemies. After all, the two-state solution, the objective of the Oslo peace process, is a death-knell to the settlers' dream of a greater Israel.

The settler movement is the blight of Israeli democracy. One can only hope that this type of videos can further awake us from our ethical and political slumber."

According to the group, the land has been taken with the justification that it is needed to protect Israeli settlements.

Some settlements have seized up to two and a half times more land than they have been designated, by fencing it off or through intimidation, adds B'Tselem.

The settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law, but it is disputed by Israel, that has settled about 450 000 people in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

The West Bank barrier is a security measure intended to stop suicide bombers, argued Israel, even though Palestinians see it as a mean to grab land.

In 2004, an advisory ruling has been issued by the International Court of Justice, saying that the barrier breached international law where it is built on occupied territory and should be dismantled.

The annexion of the land has more than doubled the size of the settlements, calculated B'Tselem, and though Palestinians still own the land, they are denied any access.

It says that the unofficial closing off of land to Palestinians, around these settlements, has been going on for 30 years.

'Special security areas'

But more recently, the Israeli military have been formalising the expansion of these settlements through what are called "special security areas".

The overall area of the settlements has been more than doubled by this, calculated the group.

So despite privately owning half the land, Palestinians now have no access to it.

The Israeli authorities argue that these measures are only temporary and made for security, to protect against Palestinian attacks.

The security zones were needed to protect settlements, said the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) in a statement to the BBC. The Israeli Supreme Court approved the use of these zones a number of times, said the IDF, adding that any building in them was illegal.

But the security argument is specious, insists B'Tselem, saying that settlers often move into the designated security buffer zone.

It makes the agreed goal of a future Palestinian state all the more difficiult to reach, says the group.

Israel has annexed thousands of hectares of West Bank land beside the barrier it is building, according to an Israeli rights group.

B'Tselem calculates that the annexation of the land has more than doubled the size of the settlements, with Palestinians, who still own the land, denied access.

Under international law the settlements in the West Bank are illegal.

It says that the unofficial closing off of land to Palestinians, around these settlements, has been going on for 30 years.

The group has calculated that this has more than doubled the overall area of the settlements.

Palestinians, despite privately owning half the land, now have no access to it.

The rubble in front is all that remains of a Palestinian house destroyed by Israelis. Credit:Mel Frykberg

EAST JERUSALEM, -  The Israeli government is attempting to Judaise Palestinian East Jerusalem, and maintain a Jewish majority against the demographic threat of a higher Palestinian birth rate.

To that end, the Israeli government is enforcing a number of policies aimed at establishing facts on the ground in order to limit the number of Palestinian residents in the city.

To make any future division of Jerusalem almost impossible, the Israeli authorities are applying a combination of strategies including limiting family reunification permits, redrawing Jerusalem's municipal boundaries, enlarging Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem and establishing new illegal ones.

Under international law the Green Line divides Jewish West Jerusalem from Palestinian East Jerusalem. However, Israel has illegally occupied East Jerusalem since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

Last month Israel published tenders for the construction of 1,761 illegal housing units for Israeli settlers in East Jerusalem alone, according to the Israeli rights group, Peace Now.

Israeli human rights organisation B'Tselem says there are nearly 192,000 Israeli settlers residing illegally in 12 settlements in East Jerusalem.

Jerusalem municipality's redrawing of the city's municipal boundaries has incorporated the illegal settlements, while the building of the separation barrier, which separates Israel proper from the West Bank, has increased the number of Palestinians on the 'wrong side' of the barrier or wall, thereby further limiting a Palestinian presence.

According to conservative UN figures, about 25 percent of the 253,000 Palestinians living in East Jerusalem have been cut off from the city by the barrier.

"The Israelis are implementing the final plan to Judaise Jerusalem completely," Suhail Khalilieh, head of the Applied Research Institute in Jerusalem (ARIJ) settlement unit told IPS.

"The plan began when Israel annexed East Jerusalem in 1967. The last stage of the plan involves the completion of the barrier with the specific aim of manipulating the demographics and limiting the balance of the Palestinian population to a mere 15-20 percent, with the remainder being Jewish," said Khalilieh.

East Jerusalem is of particular importance to Palestinians because under international law it belongs to them and is designated the capital of a future Palestinian state. They also have significant cultural, religious, educational and business ties to the city.

Al-Aqsa Mosque, the second holiest Islamic site, as well as sites where Christ is said to have been buried and crucified are in East Jerusalem. Many Palestinians are Christian, even though they are a minority.

The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) is trying to address the future status of East Jerusalem, which it considers a red line issue, within the framework of final negotiations on a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

But the PNA faces a task of Sisyphean proportions as Israel's encroachment of East Jerusalem has steadily increased over the decades since 1967, when a third of the area was expropriated from individual Palestinian landowners during the annexation and used exclusively to build settlements.

The expropriation, in defiance of the Fourth Geneva Convention, was justified on the basis of classifying Palestinian-owned land as vacant or unused, as many Palestinians fled the war temporarily to neighbouring countries.

"Palestinians residing outside of Jerusalem for seven or more years lose their Jerusalem residency status unless they can prove Jerusalem residency within the municipal boundaries and the importance of the city in their daily life, which is imperative in order to keep their identity cards," says B'Tselem.

This does not apply to Israelis in West Jerusalem.

According to UN figures, in 2006 at least 1,360 Palestinians had their ID cards revoked. This was five times more than in 2005, and more than in any previous year since Israel began occupying East Jerusalem.

In 2003, the Citizenship and Entry into Israel law was enacted, which denies spouses from the occupied Palestinian territories, who are married to Israeli citizens or permanent residents (Jerusalem ID card holders), the right to acquire citizenship or residency status, and thus the opportunity to live with their partners in Israel and Jerusalem.

As a result, thousands of married couples are forced to live apart from one another.

In Israel, foreign spouses who are Jewish are automatically granted citizenship under Israel's Law of Return.

Furthermore, since 1982 the Israeli Interior Ministry has not permitted the registration of Palestinian children as Jerusalem residents if the child's father does not hold a Jerusalem ID card, even if the mother is a Jerusalem ID cardholder.

Jerusalem's urban planning too, has been fine-tuned to increase the Jewish population with tax incentives and massive investment in Jewish neighbourhoods, while severely restricting construction in Palestinian neighbourhoods to seven percent of East Jerusalem.

"However, even before Palestinians are permitted to build they need to obtain the requisite building permits which are both expensive and extremely difficult to obtain," said Khalilieh.

Even if Palestinians are fortunate enough to get the permits, they are still restricted to building on only 25 percent of their land.

Again, these restrictions do not apply to Jewish residents of West Jerusalem.

Jeff Halper from the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD) says there is currently a housing shortage of 25,000 units in East Jerusalem, and fewer homes means higher prices.

"Despite the housing shortage, Israel's municipality grants Palestinians only around 150 to 350 work permits a year, yet demolishes 150 or more existing homes at the same time," said Halper.

Houses built without permits are demolished by the municipality.

B'Tselem states that both Israelis and Palestinians build illegally, but that the response of the authorities is not equal. Palestinians account for about 20 percent of illegal construction, yet more than 75 percent of the demolitions are carried out on Palestinian homes.

"While demolitions carried out in Jewish neighbourhoods target either commercial buildings or additions to a house, in Palestinian neighbourhoods such demolitions leave entire Palestinian families homeless," added the human rights group.

ICAHD further asserts that Palestinians face discrimination in regard to budgeting and taxation as well as essential needs like water, sewage, roads, parks, lighting, post offices, schools and other services.

The PNA continues to negotiate with the Israelis despite the continued settlement building and land expropriation.

"The Palestinians are in an extremely weak position. If they stopped negotiations on this basis, Israel would put the blame on failed talks squarely on their shoulders, with the support of the U.S., and continue with establishing facts on the ground irrespectively," Khalilieh told IPS. (END/2008)

Hier wird mal wieder auf das kurze Gedaechtnis der Medienkonsumenten spekuliert. Fuer mein Teil erinnere ich mich gut an die jungen Maenner des Hillesclans, die vor der Hamas aus dem Gazastreifen flohen. Abbas wollte sie erst in den Gazastreifen zurueckschicken, dann gab er dem oeffentlichen Druck, vor allem aus Israel nach und liess sie nach Jericho, aber beileibe nicht Ramallah.

Lila hat damals die Hintergruende beleuchtet, warum Abbas die Maenner des Hillesclan nicht in der Westbank haben wollte.

PA officials explained that the reason behind their refusal to absorb the new "refugees" was their desire not to encourage other residents of the Gaza Strip to leave.

"Everyone knows that if we allow people to leave the Gaza Strip, almost all the residents living there would try to cross the border into Israel," said a senior PA official. "We don't want to leave the Gaza Strip to Hamas."

(...)

The last thing Abbas needs is another 180 bitter Fatah thugs from the Gaza Strip patrolling the streets of Ramallah, Bethlehem and Nablus and imposing a reign of terror on the local population.

Past experience has shown that the Palestinians in the West Bank have never been enthusiastic about the presence of their brethren from the Gaza Strip among them.

Shortly after the establishment of the PA in 1994, former PA Chairman Yasser Arafat deployed dozens of policemen from the Gaza Strip in a number of West Bank cities. This resulted in an "intifada" by the residents of these cities, many of whom openly rejected the presence of the Gazans in their communities. In many cases, West Bank families refused to rent out apartments to the "undesirables" from the Gaza Strip.

The experience was repeated in June 2007 when hundreds of Fatah members fled the Gaza Strip following Hamas's violent takeover of the area. Most of those who arrived in Ramallah are still finding it impossible to rent apartments in the city.

Many others continue to be shunned by local residents who treat them with great suspicion and often mock them for escaping from Hamas. A former Fatah security commander who was among the June 2007 "refugees" said recently that he had stopped going to public places in Ramallah because he felt that he was "unwanted" and because of the "ridiculing" looks he got from people.

(zitiert aus der Jerusalem Post)

Die Bewohner der Westbank und des Gazastreifens fuehlen sich in ihrem Alltag nicht als eine Nation und Schickalsgemeinschaft. Diese Fiktion wurde von Arafat 1964 ins Leben gerufen und von den arabischen Laendern nach der Niederlage von 1967 verstaerkt uebernommen. Adressat war schon damals die oeffentliche Meinung im Westen, vor allem die "progressiven", antiimperialistischen linken Gruppierungen. Und die haben das pal. "Narrativ" mitsamt dem Widerhaken geschluckt. Psychologisch ist daher nachvollziehbar, dass eine Organisation wie B'Tselem auch noch an dieser Maer festhaelt, nachdem sie von den Palaestinensern selber vor gerade einem Monat fuer obsolet erklaert worden war.

Die Autonomie der PA in den Gebieten A und B wird von B'Tselem uebrigens vollkommen ausgeblendet:

Praktisch alle Staedte und groesseren Ansiedlungen unterstehen der PA. Wenn Israel darauf bestehen wuerde, dass sich Fluechtlinge aus dem Gazastreifen in der Westbank niederlassen, dann muessten sie entweder in isolierten Weilern oder juedischen Siedlungen leben oder neue Siedlungen muessten fuer sie angelegt werden.

Auch hier sehen wir wieder einmal die psychische Abhaengigkeit von Israel (Aehnliches gilt fuer die USA und den Antiamerikanismus), nicht nur bei den Palaestinensern, sondern auch bei Organisationen und Menschen mit einem Weltbild wie B'Tselem.

Der erste Kommentar bei Y-net ist ebenfalls ein gutes Beispiel. Ein israelischer Araber nennt sich selber "Palaestinenser" und beklagt sich:

my wife and i live in 2 differant towns 30 minuets appart , and i cannot go to visit her because i hold an israeli citizeship and she cannot come to see me because she holds a palestinian id card ,

Wenn wir die Vorwuerfe ganz ungeprueft akzeptieren, dann verhalten sich Israel und PA reziprok: Niemand will die Buerger des jeweils anderen auf seinem Territorium. Aber der Kommentator weiss sehr genau, wem er die ungeteilte Verantwortung gibt: "there is nothing worst than the occupation"

Der Witz ist natuerlich, dass er ohne Probleme seine isr. Staatsbuergerschaft aufgeben koennte, um stattdessen Buerger der PA zu werden. Aber trotz seinem Bekenntnis "a palestinian, called israeli" will er das natuerlich nicht. Damit steht er nicht allein.

Peter Beaumont speaks to Palestinians filming abuse from settlers and Israeli armed forces as part of a remarkable project called Shooting Back (5:45)

Meanwhile, more Palestinian youngsters are being shot, two more fatally, in Ni'lin: Ahmed Moussa, aged 10 and Ahmad Amirah, aged 18, as IOF abuses continue in other areas.

[caption id="attachment_76" align="alignnone" width="200" caption="Dore Gold, Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs"][/caption]

In recent days we have hosted two speakers whose views on the Israeli-Palestinian issue couldn't be more different. We led off with Dore Gold, former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations and a continuing advisor to Knesset opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu. A few days later we presented Jessica Montell, executive director of B'tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories.

Closing off the lecture series tonight is Donniel Hartman, the Institute's Co-Director. Read some of Donniel's recent thoughts on this issue:

• Learning a lesson from a shooting
• Bringing our boys home

The lectures were given to the participants in the Institute's Christian Leadership Initiative, and were designed to give these American clergymen and women a sense of the wide range of viewpoints held here in Israel. But don't worry, we'll be posting up videos of the lectures soon, and we'll tip you off as to when they come online. If you want, you can write to me, and I'll drop you a personal note.

The Israeli National Radio reported on Monday evening that the Israeli Army District Attorney has released the Israeli soldier who shot a bound Palestinian civilian in Ni'lin village near Ramallah in the northern part of the West Bank two weeks ago. A video showing an Israeli soldier shooting a bound Palestinian in the village of Ni'lin near Ramallah raised uproar among human rights organizations. The tape, which was released on Sunday by the Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, shows an Israeli soldier shooting Ashraf Abu Rahme with a rubber coated-steel bullet at short range while his arms were bound almost two weeks ago. B'Tselem said that other soldiers witnessed the shooting but moved no limb to stop it, and demanded an investigation to be opened into the incident. The shooting took place July 7, during an anti-wall demonstration in the village. The video shows Abu Rahme being taken to the military jeep by one soldier, while the other points his gun form a very short range at Abu Rahme and shoots him in his left foot. The video was filmed by a Palestinian girl, 14, from a window in her home in the village. B'Tselem has distributed about 100 cameras to Palestinians throughout the West Bank over the last year, as part of their "Shooting Back" project. B'Tselem released a video last month showing the beginning of an apparent assault by stick-wielding Israeli settlers on Palestinian farmers. The footage shows four people holding sticks approaching the farmers near the settlement of Susya outside Hebron. Dozens of similar violations go undocumented especially in nonviolent protests in remote villages that most media outlets do not reach. The Israeli soldier told the investigators that he opened fire at the Palestinian civilian after he had received orders by his commander. The Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, said that this incident is against the morals of the Israeli army and an investigation will be conducted. The Israeli Army District Attorney announced that the charges against the soldier will be dropped but the officer who gave the order will be questioned and may face charges.

]]> http://5pillar.wordpress.com/?p=119 Mon, 21 Jul 2008 22:39:11 +0000 5-Pillar Scribe http://5pillar.fr.wordpress.com/2008/07/21/palestinian-within-rifle-sights-but-not-news-sites/

It's a shame to have to report that this kind of stuff continues to go on in a country that refers to itself as a democracy and a best friend of the U.S.  In addition, we as Americans won't get to see it on our own television sets.  It warrants taking a look and trying to be as objective as possible.  Yet the spin merchants already seem to be at work, not only by what is reported, but also what isn't reported. 

Description of Horror

This act of horror actually took place on July 7, in Nilin, West Bank, against Ashraf Abu Rahman, 27; who was reportedly arrested by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), according to B'Tselem Human Rights Group.  The young Palestinian was protesting regarding the barrier wall Israel erected, in what Palestinians say is on Palestinian soil in the area of Nilin.  Yes, it's the same one that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled illegal back in 2004. 

We also didn't see the exact reason why he was arrested.  To give the IDF, and in particular this soldier, the benefit of the doubt; we'll presume it was for legitimate reasons.  Rahman was reportedly blindfolded and had his wrists bound behind his back.  How does blindfolding become necessary for a protester on his own land?   We can take note of this point for later.  After being fully subdued, he was seated on the ground - presumably awaiting to be transferred for processing.  

He seemed to be stable and without any demonstration of resistance or threat of escape.  If Rahman was a threat, it was the soldier(s) who stood him up for transport - maybe dereliction of duty on their part; not sure.  A rifle, designed for long-range shooting, is held up to Rahman and [blaam]; well, you hear it on the video. 

Conspiracy

The presence of other soldiers has to leave one wondering what actions did they or could they have taken to prevent this tragedy that seems to be heading to the circular file of world opinion.  The soldier in the white t-shirt seems to look 'for cameras' or other form of credible witnesses immediately after the shooting; with little regard for the injured detainee.  Other soldiers are actually looking away from Rahman; as if they would somehow be able to later say, "I saw nothing." 

The presence of a lieutenant colonel only indicates a disturbing level of comfort by the soldier(s) having no fear of the reaction of an eye-witnessing superior officer.  If it were the other way around, and had it been a Palestinian police officer or soldier shooting an Israeli; the soldier and colonel would have been identified immediately.

There was plenty of time to report the incident.  However, it was exposed, not by an Israeli, as there were several of them as witnesses, working in an official capacity; but a Palestinian; a 14-year-old female.  [Note:  Will the investigation provide security provisions ensure that she and her family are safe; as her courageous act may have inadvertantly placed her in a higher degree of danger of retribution?] 

Explaining it away

Eyes, at least Palestinian, Muslims and other peoples of conscientious minds have their eyes on B'Tselem and the IDF.  The incident seemed to have been reported by B'Tselem in a manner that although seemed to be factual, certain phrases were stated that would indicate to some that there may have been a bias. 

Sarit Micheali, of B'Tselem said things like "We assume it's the bullet," while describing the the cause of injury to Rahman's leg. "His condition is reasonable," she said.  Unless there is an idiom oddity there, 'reasonable' for an injury is an odd description.  Stressing the fact that it is "...a rubber-coated bullet" doesn't do anything to make one feel better about being shot at close range, even if it were with a paintball gun - which it wasn't.  It was a military assault-rifle.  If it happened in the U.S., even as a civilian, the aggressor would have been charged with shooting a missile in the direction of ....or a premeditated act of aggravated assault using a deadly firearm; have it labeled a hate-crime - for obvious reasons; or worse yet; committed a war crime.

It wasn't only the terminology used in explaining this act; but what wasn't mentioned that was also significant.  Information such as the name of the perpetrators, their senior officers, the unit or command the soldiers were attached to and the like, are not available.  These things are usually looked for when we refer to a democracy or a society that allows for an open press.

Legal PR

Haven't we learned from other acts in the past?  This is the same unlawful, highly sinful treatment that would not be tolerated in the so-called 'free world.'   Is the crime(s) only being investigated because it was exposed?  What about the timely obligation of the other soldiers and witnesses from reporting the same crime, or the medical personnel?  Have we learned from other acts in the past?  Have any of the soldiers been charged; or at least placed on some sort of suspension?  Isn't this a conspiracy?  We should be following up and awaiting an outcome that serves justice.

Did it Happen?  Where's the Timely News?

There are many ways to show how this is being covered up.  Aside from the IDF not having so far done its part; the global news agencies somehow have missed or omitted this from their radar.  At the time of writing this post; I actually went to an Associated Press (AP) page online where details were listed on this story.  Whenever I tried to refer back to the site; the referenced article disappeared.  When I researched more, I discovered that others have already noted that it was removed from AP. 

Then I continued to search other U.S.-trusted internet news sites.  Unfortunately, neither left or right-leaning news sites dare show this up to now.  This is just another example of injustice toward Muslims, in an official act carrying out of justice.  It is just a microcosm of the lack freedom on many levels Muslims do have; and let's not forget, lack of democracy that exists -- especially when there is a belief no one is watching.  It is further appalling that this is done by a 'close friend' of the U.S. 

Global Response

The world perception is significantly limited.  For Muslims to scream out and respond against this tragedy would only welcome the highly publicized 'unjust call for jihad.'  Where are the Darfur activists when you need them?  Would not this bring about a legitimate concern for Palestinians; and for that matter, Muslims and Christians in the area to seek pre-emptive attacks because they would expect this type of horrific treatment no matter how submissive they are in a perceived tyrranical situation?  

While I say "No,"  it is only because pre-emption is not in the mind or decree of a Muslim.  Those who oppose Islam and Muslims have used "pre-emptive attacks" or simple vengeance to legitimize their own xenophobia manifesting into sadistic acts against human nature. 

Would it have made a difference whether the prisoner were of the same nationality, ethinicity or religion as the soldier?  Is it unfair to identify this as an act of zionist aggression?   Where are the people who parrot, "if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck...?"  If it were an Iraqi shooting someone, he would gain infamy by the news identifying his nationality, neighborhood where he lived and whether he was a Sunni or Shia - religion being non-descript if he were a non-Muslim. 

In the U.S., we are bothered even by an animal who is tasered or prodded to render it momentarily incapacitated.  Where is the outrage on this act against humanity?  To offer a gesture of objectivity; I would be equally appalled if I saw a Palestinian, American, Christian or Muslim soldier doing the same to an Israeli.

Meme si, a priori, je trouve anormal cet acte, il ne faut tout de meme pas condamner avant enquete. De plus, meme si c'est normal que B'Tselem denonce aupres de Tsahal de tels agissements, il est completement anormal qu'ils donnent les images aux televisions du monde entier. Quel est le but ? Si ce n'est de salir Israel et son armee ? Cet acte est sans nul doute quelquechose d'isole et de le diffuser dans le monde entier ne fait que deformer la realite et ne peut avoir comme impact dans les esprits embues que de generer plus d'antisemitisme et d'antisionisme (si tant est que ces deux concepts soient dissociables).

Et je continuerai de le crier haut et fort. Tsahal, l'armee de defense d'Israel, est l'armee la plus ethique au monde! Meme si B'Tselem tombe sur des derapages en cherchant tres tres fort et en donnant des cameras videos aux "Palestiniens" pour pouvoir epier l'action de Tsahal.

B'Tselem est un ramassis de Kapos qui dans leur ultra-gauchisme preferent faire du mal a leurs freres plutot qu'a leurs ennemis pour faire plaisir a on ne sait qui. Je maintiens que n'importe quelle armee au monde aurait commis des massacres dans la situation que vit Israel depuis 60 ans. Et meme si les "Palestiniens" ont tente de colporter des fausses rumeurs de pretendus massacres, elles se sont toujours averees fausses et  Israel a beaucoup d'amour pour la vie et tend a proteger les enfants de ses ennemis plus que ses propres enfants (ce que je trouve aberrant egalement).

The incident occured earlier this month during protests against the construction of the annexation wall in Nil'in. The wall, ruled "illegal" by the International Court of Justice in 2004, will separate the villagers of Nil'in from their farmland, with potentially devastating consequences for a community highly dependent on agriculture.

According to B'Tselem, the officer holding the demonstrator down while he was shot was a lieutenant colonel. The soldier who fired the gun was, according to local residents, still serving in the same unit the following day. Such is the culture of impunity that successive Israeli governments have engendered, whereby soldiers feel free to beat, torture and kill innocent people without the slightest fear of punishment.

Update: The soldier who shot the unarmed demonstrator has now been released and, yes, returned to his unit.

B'Tselem reports:

"According to press reports, the Military Police have opened an investigation and arrested the soldier who fired the shot. Apparently, until the video was aired, the army did not conduct a Military Police investigation, and settled for an operational debriefing. According to the reports, the debriefing reached the desk of the Judea and Samaria (West Bank) Division Commander, who failed to inform the Military Police or the Judge Advocate General’s Office, or to take any measures against the soldier or the battalion commander. Residents of Ni’lin stated that, the day after the incident, they saw the soldier still serving in his unit.

When questioned by investigators, the soldier stated, according to press reports, that the battalion commander had ordered him to shoot the detainee. The commander, however, admitted only that he had ordered the soldiers “to frighten” the bound Palestinian."

Before the order was given, Attorney-General Menachem Mazuz said that though it would not be illegal, the proposed demolition could create legal difficulties.

B'Tselem, an Israeli rights group, says it has written to Mr Mazuz, asking him to prevent the demolition of the attacker's home. The group said that such a move would be a collective punishment, making it illegal under international humanitarian law.

Hussam Dwayat, 30, went on the rampage at the wheel of a front-loader vehicle, or bulldozer, killing three people and wounding dozens before security personnel shot him dead.

On Thursday, Ehud Olmert, Israeli prime minister, said that Israel should destroy the homes of "every terrorist from Jerusalem".

"In light of repeated rulings over the years by the Supreme Court, it cannot be said that there is a legal objection… to the demolition of houses in Jerusalem, but the move would create considerable legal difficulties", said Mr Mazuz said in his legal opinion.

He warned that, apart from legal challenges in Israeli courts, international condemnation could be drawn by a resumption of the practice of house demolitions.

No prior knowledge

As a consequence, the Attorney-General called for a detailed consideration of the circumstances surrounding each case, by the internal security service, Shin Bet, the army and the justice ministry.

The demolitions of Palestinians' homes, involved in attacks against its citizens, have been abandoned by Israel in February 2005, after its been challenged in Israel's Supreme Court by human rights groups.

Twenty people live in the home of the attacker, in the Sur Bahir area of East Jerusalem, and all insist that they had no prior knowledge of Hussam Dwayat's intentions.

He acted alone, without being connected to any Palestinian militant group, said the Israeli authorities.

"The declared objective of this policy is to harm innocent persons - relatives of suspected perpetrators, who are not accused of any criminal wrongdoing themselves" said rights group B'Tselem in a statement, about the anticipated demolition.

"The demolition of houses is a clear case of collective punishment, which violates the principle that a person is not to be punished for the acts of another. Collective punishment is therefore illegal regardless of its effectiveness."

The group also pointed to the findings of a committee appointed by Moshe Yaalon, a former chief of staff, as finding house demolitions did more harm than good to Israel's security.

Fonte: Misna - 2/7/2008 9.12

Foto: Atef Abu A-Rob, B'Tselem
Crisi idrica ad Anin, distretto di Jenin, estate 2006.

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