The following are two interviews with Michael and Tina Hannouneh, 17 and 47 years old American citizens, who where beaten by Israeli guards at the Israeli controlled Allenby Bridge border crossing last week. The interviews are by the IMEMC audio team, on Monday, 24th July.
Read a previous post - click here.
Interview with Michael Hannouneh
Interview conducted by Saed Bannoura, transcribed by Hanin Amr
Q: Can you please describe your experience at the Allenby Bridge?
A: Ok, well we give the guy our luggage and our passports. Then he gives us back our passports and tells us to walk around. And when I was walking around, a guy, supposedly a security, but he wasn’t wearing, just a shirt and shorts, asks for my Ipod in Arabic, but I don’t understand him. So I say “What?” And he says it in English a second time. And I said “no, why?”. And the next thing you know, he throws me on the floor. And my mom tries to tell him I don’t understand. He hits her, and she falls on this poll that was by us, like a bench, and broke her nose. And then he jumps on me and starts hitting me, and pounds me head onto the floor. And I wasn’t resisting. I said “ok”. And he kept on hitting me. And he pulled me up and hand cuffed me. And he pushed me on the floor again and asked me why I didn’t give him my IPod. And I told him I don’t understand and he pulled me over to the side and talks to me.
And he was just asking me questions like “Do you have any weapons me and he looked at my IPod a few minutes, and he gave it back to me, I told him “no”, I don’t have any weapons or nothing like that, nothing. And he goes “Ok, Ok”. And then he said “sorry”, and tried to fix me up. I told them to fix up my mom. And we went to the main guy and he said “sorry for the inconvenience and stuff like that. And they we were talking for hours, two hours and checking out our passports, to make sure we’re ok to walk through and go on.
And then they said yes, you can go on, but we needed a Palestinian passport, and I did that yesterday, so now I’m good. And they said sorry, and that they will pay the medicals for my mom. She had to go to the hospital. She got two stitches on her right eye, on the eyebrow and she got a broken nose. So they said that they will pay for the doctor. And they called a cab for us to go home. And on the way home, we stopped to get directions. And cops saw, and they told us to follow them. We did a report at the police station.
Q: When they tried to take your ipod, did you think they were thieves, or did they - ?
A: No, no, it was one guy, on guy, he was asking for my IPod. And I said no, and I thought he was a thief. Because I haven’t been here for a while. So I don’t know what’s happening. Yes, I thought he was a thief
Q:Because he wasn't wearing anything that identified that he was security?
A: Yeah, and he hit me on the floor. And when I looked closely, he put on a quick hat; I don’t know what it says on it. I think it was a security hat. I couldn’t read what it said, it was written in Arabic or some other language. I don’t know because he had nothing (he didn’t have anything that showed that he is a security personal). He had a shirt and shorts. You know, if he had something to show me he was a cop, I would had given him the IPod.
Q: How does this incident make you feel about Israel?
A: I don’t think I really probably want to come back. This is the second time I came here. The first time I was too little to understand. And now I don’t want to come back. I don’t want to come back. I don’t want to deal with this stuff.
Q:Why, in your personal opinion, do you think they treated you this way?
A: I asked him what other evidence he had that there was something wrong, and he said I don’t know. I said “ok”. So I don’t know why he did it, I don’t know. I was confused.
Q: They tried to talk to you in Arabic?
A: Yeah, and I don’t understand Arabic, I don’t know why he used it. I understand like 3 or 4 words. I understand little, very little. I’m trying to learn.
Q: So they assumed you knew Arabic very well and started talking to you in Arabic. Did they give you a chance to explain that you don't know Arabic?
A: No, I said “what” than he said it in English. And then he hit me on the floor. Then my mom came, and told him I don’t understand. He hit her right away. He told her something, I don’t know what he told her. He hit her and then she fell.
Q: Thank you very much, and we hope you and your mother are both feeling better.
A: All right, thank you very much.
-----
Interview with Tina Hannouneh
Transcribed by Tania Tabar
Q: I’m speaking with Tina Hannouneh, an American citizen. Could you tell me about your experience at the Allenby Bridge border crossing?
A: Well, you know what, it was really terrible because as soon as we got in they jumped my son and they wanted to take his ipod and they didn’t even ask, ‘Can you give me this?’ He said to him in Arabic ‘give me this.’ My son, he doesn’t understand any Arabic. And he said ‘no’ and as soon as he said ‘no,’ they started hitting him. He hit him, dropped him on the floor and started punching him.
I started to interfere, I told him ‘you know, he doesn’t speak Arabic.’ Can you speak to him in English?’ I told my son to give him what he wants. He hit my face, hit my nose, and broke my nose. I fell down, I hit my nose and head, and have stitches, like deep ones on my left eye. I started bleeding. Another guy had his gun in my face, pointed between my eyes, and he said, ‘ if you say one word I will shoot you.’ I just stayed quiet. And it was really terrible. My son was so excited to come over here, and now he is not. He was so disappointed and he didn’t even go to a doctor because he is scared. So I don’t know what to tell you. It’s really awful.
Q: Did the men who assaulted your son identify themselves as officers?
A: No. Not at all. If they did none of this would have happened. If he did my son would have gave it to him. He thought that any guy wanted to take his ipod and he paid for it from his own pocket. He worked hard for it and he’s not going to let anybody take it. If that guy had identified himself as a police officer or security, my son would have given it to him.
Q: He thought it was someone trying to steal the device?
A: Yes.
Q: Why do you think that the security guards at Allenby pounced on your son in such an aggressive way? Why did they target him?
A: I really don’t know. I look like an Arab and he’s a young kid. As soon as they heard me speaking English to my son, they came from inside running outside, and they said ‘Arab-American.’ They knew that I’m Arab and my son is American. I think at that time they stopped and they started apologizing and they cleaned up my face.
He was hitting my son real bad. And I was yelling at him until that guy came who said he was going to shoot me if I said one more word. I have dark skin and I look like an Arab, because I was born here in Bethlehem.
Q: You are from Beit Sahour?
A: Yes.
Q: Are you Christian?
A: Yes, I am Christian. I have a Christian family. All of us are Christian.
Q: I think many Americans are not aware of the Palestinian Christian population.
A: Yes that’s true. I work in Arizona and I have a lot of people who are surprised to hear that there are Christians in Bethlehem. I tell them that this is the land of Christ and a lot of people are Christian over there. But most of them, they flee the country because they want to live. They fear for their families, their kids. There are still a lot of them there and they are still suffering.
Q: Now back to your son. Is this his first trip into Palestine?
A: Since 1997. He was a young kid back in 1997 and this is now his second trip and back then he didn’t know anything. He was a little kid. But now he knows everything, he wants to see everybody. He downloaded the bible on his ipod. He was listening to it from Arizona to here because he wants to see all those places where Jesus walked, and where he was born. All those places.
Q: And now?
A: And now to tell you the truth, he is scared to go anywhere. He is so scared.
Q: It this your first experience being treated this way by the Israelis?
A: Well, to this limit. Yes.
Q: Did you have to get medical treatment?
A: When they knew that there was an Arab-American on the bridge, they took me to the manager of the bridge. He called the hospital and arranged for the medical treatment so it’s on his expense. Otherwise, to tell you the truth, if I didn’t have the American passport, I wouldn’t get this treatment. I wouldn’t get this attention but because I have an American passport and I live in the United States, they did that.
Q: Do you think this is common?
A: For any other Palestinian, they don’t get anything. They just hit them and forget about it.
Q: Do you feel that the Israeli soldiers were seeing you as a Palestinian despite your American passport?
A: Yes. They didn’t know that I have an American passport, but they heard me talking to my son in English and some of the girls they said ‘American-Arab’, and they saw the passport on the ground, and the luggage, the backpack and they noticed the American passport. It was in my hand when he hit my face.
Q: And if you were a Palestinian without an American passport, do you think you would be hit in the same way?
A: I would be hit more and I wouldn’t get any treatment. That’s a shame, huh?
Q: That’s horrible.
A: It is.
Q: There isn’t any legal recourse for Palestinians?
A: I don’t think so. There are a lot of people I hear, here and there, they just get hit and they leave them. They don’t care and they’re not going to care about them. They are not going to take them to any doctor or get them any medical attention. They just leave them, they hit them and they walk away.
Q: Can I ask why you originally decided to go to the United States?
A: Well I married my husband and he used to live in the Arizona, he went to study over there. All of his family used to own a house in Jerusalem. The Jewish people, or the Israeli people, took over this house and they don’t have any house anymore here. So most of his family, all of his uncles, brothers, and sisters, all of them live in the United States. California Los Angeles, Arizona San Diego, and Washington. None of them are here. They used to own a big house, but not anymore. Overnight they came over and took it, and that’s it. So he was over there and he visited over here because he wanted to marry a young girl back from the old country so we met and we got married and we went over there. And that was it.
Q: Do you know anything about the Israelis denying entry to Americans of Palestinian origin? Did they attempt to do that with you?
A: No, not really. They told me my son cannot go in, but because of what happened to me, because I need to go in and take medical attention they would let him in. I didn’t remember that he is registered with me in my [Palestinian] ID, I didn’t even think about that. He was born in the United States, in Arizona. He is American, totally, 100% American. His mom and dad, fine, they are Palestinian. In 1997 I put him on the ID with me and I forgot about that. So on the bridge they said he couldn’t get in, he was supposed to go back to Jordan but because I needed medical attention, they made special arrangements and he went in with me. Other than that they would make him go back. They wouldn’t have let him in.
Q: The Israelis, despite him being born in the United States, were considering him a Palestinian?
A: Yes.
Q: That seems discriminatory.
A: It is.
Q: Are you planning to file a legal appeal against the Israeli authorities?
A: Yes. I consulted a lawyer and I sent an email to the consulate in Jerusalem and I would like to press charges against this guy. To me and my son, we saw death in our eyes. A guy pointing a gun between my eyes, and with his big eyes telling me, ‘If you say one word I will shoot you.’ God knows, if I said something, or if I just moved a little bit, if he shot me, no one would know anything about this. They would say something else or they would find me a crime, say that I did this and say I deserved this, and they would cover it for him.
My son was looking at my face and my whole face was full of blood. It was a really terrible scene for my kid. And he is having nightmares on his first week. Every night he wakes up in the middle of the night and he is saying something about what is happening on the border. That is not right.
Q: I bet you are not anxious to go back across that border when you leave?
A: To tell you the truth my son is asking if we can go through Tel-Aviv, but I told me it is impossible for them to let us do that. He doesn’t want to go through there again and he doesn’t want to come back here again. And I don’t blame him.
Q: Why would the Israelis not allow you to go through Tel-Aviv if you are both Americans?
A: Well even though we have American citizenship we’re considered Palestinians. As long as we have Palestinian IDs, we’re considered Palestinians, no matter what, no matter what identity or passport you have. And we’re not allowed to use that as a way out.
Q: Has the American consulate been helpful?
A: They’ve been considerate and they wanted to know what happened. I sent them the email and he said he will look at it and we will keep in touch if there is anything that they need to know. But I told him , yes, I want to press charges and they can do whatever it takes. And they are helpful, yes. I wouldn’t think they would stand by Israeli abuse.
Q: The US consulate has said in the cases where Palestinian-Americans have been denied entry that basically its not the American government’s place to intervene despite the fact that it violates the US law, this discrimination against people who are American citizens based on their country of origin. Do you think that they would stand up to the abuse, when they wont stand up for Palestinian-Americans who are denied entry?
A: I really don’t know how to answer that question, but I would rather think that they would be against this abuse. That’s what I would like to think but I really don’t know how to answer this question.
Q: Well, good luck, I really hope that you are able to get some justice for what happened to you and your son.
A: I hope so.
Q: Thank you so much for talking to me Tina
A: No problem.
Wednesday, 26 July 2006
Monday, 24 July 2006
ART Joins in the War
"The noise that weapons make never lasts while words of wisdom never die" Clotaire K
"The organizers of the 2006 Locarno International Film Festival have dropped the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a festival sponsor because of that country's unremitting bombardment of civilian targets in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip."
Read more
"We unequivocally oppose the brutality and cruelty of Israeli policy, which has reached new heights in recent weeks. Nothing justifies the continued occupation, closure, and oppression in Palestine. Nothing justifies the bombing of civilians and the destruction of infrastructures in Lebanon and Gaza."
Read More
Electronic Intifada
"The organizers of the 2006 Locarno International Film Festival have dropped the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a festival sponsor because of that country's unremitting bombardment of civilian targets in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip."
Read more
"We unequivocally oppose the brutality and cruelty of Israeli policy, which has reached new heights in recent weeks. Nothing justifies the continued occupation, closure, and oppression in Palestine. Nothing justifies the bombing of civilians and the destruction of infrastructures in Lebanon and Gaza."
Read More
Electronic Intifada
Wednesday, 19 July 2006
The War in Lebanon: The Real Aim
by Uri Avneri
Sunday, 16 July 2006
Posted on the Alternative Information Center (AIC)
THE REAL aim is to change the regime in Lebanon and to install a puppet government.
That was the aim of Ariel Sharon's invasion of Lebanon in 1982. It failed. But Sharon and his pupils in the military and political leadership have never really given up on it.
As in 1982, the present operation, too, was planned and is being carried out in full coordination with the US.
As then, there is no doubt that it is coordinated with a part of the Lebanese elite. That's the main thing. Everything else is noise and propaganda.
ON THE eve of the 1982 invasion, Secretary of State Alexander Haig told Ariel Sharon that, before starting it, it was necessary to have a "clear provocation", which would be accepted by the world.
The provocation indeed took place - exactly at the appropriate time - when Abu-Nidal's terror gang tried to assassinate the Israeli ambassador in London. This had no connection with Lebanon, and even less with the PLO (the enemy of Abu-Nidal), but it served its purpose.
This time, the necessary provocation has been provided by the capture of the two Israeli soldiers by Hizbullah. Everyone knows that they cannot be freed except through an exchange of prisoners. But the huge military campaign that has been ready to go for months was sold to the Israeli and international public as a rescue operation.
(Strangely enough, the very same thing happened two weeks earlier in the Gaza Strip. Hamas and its partners captured a soldier, which provided the excuse for a massive operation that had been prepared for a long time and whose aim is to destroy the Palestinian government.)
THE DECLARED aim of the Lebanon operation is to push Hizbullah away from the border, so as to make it impossible for them to capture more soldiers and to launch rockets at Israeli towns. The invasion of the Gaza strip is also officially aimed at getting Ashkelon and Sderot out of the range of the Qassams.
That resembles the 1982 "Operation Peace for Gallilee". Then, the public and the Knesset were told that the aim of the war was to "push the Katyushas 40 km away from the border".
That was a deliberate lie. For 11 months before the war, not a single Katyusha rocket (nor a single shot) had been fired over the border. From the beginning, the aim of the operation was to reach Beirut and install a Quisling dictator. As I have recounted more than once, Sharon himself told me so nine months before the war, and I duly published it at the time, with his consent (but unattributed).
Of course, the present operation also has several secondary aims, which do not include the freeing of the prisoners. Everybody understands that that cannot be achieved by military means. But it is probably possible to destroy some of the thousands of missiles that Hizbullah has accumulated over the years. For this end, the army chiefs are ready to endanger the inhabitants of the Israeli towns that are exposed to the rockets. They believe that that is worthwhile, like an exchange of chess figures.
Another secondary aim is to rehabilitate the "deterrent power" of the army. That is a codeword for the restoration of the army's injured pride that has suffered a severe blow from the daring military actions of Hamas in the south and Hizbullah in the north.
OFFICIALLY, THE Israeli government demands that the Government of Lebanon disarm Hizbullah and remove it from the border region.
That is clearly impossible under the present Lebanese regime, a delicate fabric of ethno-religious communities. The slightest shock can bring the whole structure crashing down and throw the state into total anarchy - especially after the Americans succeeded in driving out the Syrian army, the only element that has for years provided some stability.
The idea of installing a Quisling in Lebanon is nothing new. In 1955, David Ben-Gurion proposed taking a "Christian officer" and installing him as dictator. Moshe Sharet showed that this idea was based on complete ignorance of Lebanese affairs and torpedoed it. But 27 years later, Ariel Sharon tried to put it into effect nevertheless. Bashir Gemayel was indeed installed as president, only to be murdered soon afterwards. His brother, Amin, succeeded him and signed a peace agreement with Israel, but was driven out of office. (The same brother is now publicly supporting the Israeli operation.)
The calculation now is that if the Israeli Air Force rains heavy enough blows on the Lebanese population - paralysing the sea- and airports, destroying the infrastructure, bombarding residential neighborhoods, cutting the Beirut-Damascus highroad etc. - the public will get furious with Hizbullah and pressure the Lebanese government into fulfilling Israel's demands. Since the present government cannot even dream of doing so, a dictatorship will be set up with Israel's support.
That is the military logic. I have my doubts. It can be assumed that most Lebanese will react as any other people on earth would: with fury and hatred towards the invader. That happened in 1982, when the Shiites in the south of Lebanon, until then as docile as a doormat, stood up against the Israeli occupiers and created the Hizbullah, which has become the strongest force in the country. If the Lebanese elite now becomes tainted as collaborators with Israel, it will be swept off the map. (By the way, have the Qassams and Katyushas caused the Israeli population to exert pressure on our government to give up? Quite the contrary.)
The American policy is full of contradictions. President Bush wants "regime change" in the Middle East, but the present Lebanese regime has only recently been set up by under American pressure. In the meantime, Bush has succeeded only in breaking up Iraq and causing a civil war (as foretold here). He may get the same in Lebanon, if he does not stop the Israeli army in time. Moreover, a devastating blow against Hizbullah may arouse fury not only in Iran, but also among the Shiites in Iraq, on whose support all of Bush's plans for a pro-American regime are built.
So what's the answer? Not by accident, Hizbullah has carried out its soldier-snatching raid at a time when the Palestinians are crying out for succor. The Palestinian cause is popular all over the Arab word. By showing that they are a friend in need, when all other Arabs are failing dismally, Hizbullah hopes to increase its popularity. If an Israeli-Palestinian agreement had been achieved by now, Hizbullah would be no more than a local Lebanese phenomenon, irrelevant to our situation.
LESS THAN three months after its formation, the Olmert-Peretz government has succeeded in plunging Israel into a two-front war, whose aims are unrealistic and whose results cannot be foreseen.
If Olmert hopes to be seen as Mister Macho-Macho, a Sharon # 2, he will be disappointed. The same goes for the desperate attempts of Peretz to be taken seriously as an imposing Mister Security. Everybody understands that this campaign - both in Gaza and in Lebanon - has been planned by the army and dictated by the army. The man who makes the decisions in Israel now is Dan Halutz. It is no accident that the job in Lebanon has been turned over to the Air Force.
The public is not enthusiastic about the war. It is resigned to it, in stoic fatalism, because it is being told that there is no alternative. And indeed, who can be against it? Who does not want to liberate the "kidnapped soldiers"? Who does not want to remove the Katyushas and rehabilitate deterrence? No politician dares to criticize the operation (except the Arab MKs, who are ignored by the Jewish public). In the media, the generals reign supreme, and not only those in uniform. There is almost no former general who is not being invited by the media to comment, explain and justify, all speaking in one voice.
(As an illustration: Israel's most popular TV channel invited me to an interview about the war, after hearing that I had taken part in an anti-war demonstration. I was quite surprised. But not for long - an hour before the broadcast, an apologetic talk-show host called and said that there had been a terrible mistake - they really meant to invite Professor Shlomo Avineri, a former Director General of the Foreign Office who can be counted on to justify any act of the government, whatever it may be, in lofty academic language.)
"Inter arma silent Musae" - when the weapons speak, the muses fall silent. Or, rather: when the guns roar, the brain ceases to function.
AND JUST a small thought: when the State of Israel was founded in the middle of a cruel war, a poster was plastered on the walls: "All the country - a front! All the people - an army!"
58 Years have passed, and the same slogan is still as valid as it was then. What does that say about generations of statesmen and generals?
Sunday, 16 July 2006
Posted on the Alternative Information Center (AIC)
THE REAL aim is to change the regime in Lebanon and to install a puppet government.That was the aim of Ariel Sharon's invasion of Lebanon in 1982. It failed. But Sharon and his pupils in the military and political leadership have never really given up on it.
As in 1982, the present operation, too, was planned and is being carried out in full coordination with the US.
As then, there is no doubt that it is coordinated with a part of the Lebanese elite. That's the main thing. Everything else is noise and propaganda.
ON THE eve of the 1982 invasion, Secretary of State Alexander Haig told Ariel Sharon that, before starting it, it was necessary to have a "clear provocation", which would be accepted by the world.
The provocation indeed took place - exactly at the appropriate time - when Abu-Nidal's terror gang tried to assassinate the Israeli ambassador in London. This had no connection with Lebanon, and even less with the PLO (the enemy of Abu-Nidal), but it served its purpose.
This time, the necessary provocation has been provided by the capture of the two Israeli soldiers by Hizbullah. Everyone knows that they cannot be freed except through an exchange of prisoners. But the huge military campaign that has been ready to go for months was sold to the Israeli and international public as a rescue operation.
(Strangely enough, the very same thing happened two weeks earlier in the Gaza Strip. Hamas and its partners captured a soldier, which provided the excuse for a massive operation that had been prepared for a long time and whose aim is to destroy the Palestinian government.)
THE DECLARED aim of the Lebanon operation is to push Hizbullah away from the border, so as to make it impossible for them to capture more soldiers and to launch rockets at Israeli towns. The invasion of the Gaza strip is also officially aimed at getting Ashkelon and Sderot out of the range of the Qassams.
That resembles the 1982 "Operation Peace for Gallilee". Then, the public and the Knesset were told that the aim of the war was to "push the Katyushas 40 km away from the border".
That was a deliberate lie. For 11 months before the war, not a single Katyusha rocket (nor a single shot) had been fired over the border. From the beginning, the aim of the operation was to reach Beirut and install a Quisling dictator. As I have recounted more than once, Sharon himself told me so nine months before the war, and I duly published it at the time, with his consent (but unattributed).
Of course, the present operation also has several secondary aims, which do not include the freeing of the prisoners. Everybody understands that that cannot be achieved by military means. But it is probably possible to destroy some of the thousands of missiles that Hizbullah has accumulated over the years. For this end, the army chiefs are ready to endanger the inhabitants of the Israeli towns that are exposed to the rockets. They believe that that is worthwhile, like an exchange of chess figures.
Another secondary aim is to rehabilitate the "deterrent power" of the army. That is a codeword for the restoration of the army's injured pride that has suffered a severe blow from the daring military actions of Hamas in the south and Hizbullah in the north.
OFFICIALLY, THE Israeli government demands that the Government of Lebanon disarm Hizbullah and remove it from the border region.
That is clearly impossible under the present Lebanese regime, a delicate fabric of ethno-religious communities. The slightest shock can bring the whole structure crashing down and throw the state into total anarchy - especially after the Americans succeeded in driving out the Syrian army, the only element that has for years provided some stability.
The idea of installing a Quisling in Lebanon is nothing new. In 1955, David Ben-Gurion proposed taking a "Christian officer" and installing him as dictator. Moshe Sharet showed that this idea was based on complete ignorance of Lebanese affairs and torpedoed it. But 27 years later, Ariel Sharon tried to put it into effect nevertheless. Bashir Gemayel was indeed installed as president, only to be murdered soon afterwards. His brother, Amin, succeeded him and signed a peace agreement with Israel, but was driven out of office. (The same brother is now publicly supporting the Israeli operation.)
The calculation now is that if the Israeli Air Force rains heavy enough blows on the Lebanese population - paralysing the sea- and airports, destroying the infrastructure, bombarding residential neighborhoods, cutting the Beirut-Damascus highroad etc. - the public will get furious with Hizbullah and pressure the Lebanese government into fulfilling Israel's demands. Since the present government cannot even dream of doing so, a dictatorship will be set up with Israel's support.
That is the military logic. I have my doubts. It can be assumed that most Lebanese will react as any other people on earth would: with fury and hatred towards the invader. That happened in 1982, when the Shiites in the south of Lebanon, until then as docile as a doormat, stood up against the Israeli occupiers and created the Hizbullah, which has become the strongest force in the country. If the Lebanese elite now becomes tainted as collaborators with Israel, it will be swept off the map. (By the way, have the Qassams and Katyushas caused the Israeli population to exert pressure on our government to give up? Quite the contrary.)
The American policy is full of contradictions. President Bush wants "regime change" in the Middle East, but the present Lebanese regime has only recently been set up by under American pressure. In the meantime, Bush has succeeded only in breaking up Iraq and causing a civil war (as foretold here). He may get the same in Lebanon, if he does not stop the Israeli army in time. Moreover, a devastating blow against Hizbullah may arouse fury not only in Iran, but also among the Shiites in Iraq, on whose support all of Bush's plans for a pro-American regime are built.
So what's the answer? Not by accident, Hizbullah has carried out its soldier-snatching raid at a time when the Palestinians are crying out for succor. The Palestinian cause is popular all over the Arab word. By showing that they are a friend in need, when all other Arabs are failing dismally, Hizbullah hopes to increase its popularity. If an Israeli-Palestinian agreement had been achieved by now, Hizbullah would be no more than a local Lebanese phenomenon, irrelevant to our situation.
LESS THAN three months after its formation, the Olmert-Peretz government has succeeded in plunging Israel into a two-front war, whose aims are unrealistic and whose results cannot be foreseen.
If Olmert hopes to be seen as Mister Macho-Macho, a Sharon # 2, he will be disappointed. The same goes for the desperate attempts of Peretz to be taken seriously as an imposing Mister Security. Everybody understands that this campaign - both in Gaza and in Lebanon - has been planned by the army and dictated by the army. The man who makes the decisions in Israel now is Dan Halutz. It is no accident that the job in Lebanon has been turned over to the Air Force.
The public is not enthusiastic about the war. It is resigned to it, in stoic fatalism, because it is being told that there is no alternative. And indeed, who can be against it? Who does not want to liberate the "kidnapped soldiers"? Who does not want to remove the Katyushas and rehabilitate deterrence? No politician dares to criticize the operation (except the Arab MKs, who are ignored by the Jewish public). In the media, the generals reign supreme, and not only those in uniform. There is almost no former general who is not being invited by the media to comment, explain and justify, all speaking in one voice.
(As an illustration: Israel's most popular TV channel invited me to an interview about the war, after hearing that I had taken part in an anti-war demonstration. I was quite surprised. But not for long - an hour before the broadcast, an apologetic talk-show host called and said that there had been a terrible mistake - they really meant to invite Professor Shlomo Avineri, a former Director General of the Foreign Office who can be counted on to justify any act of the government, whatever it may be, in lofty academic language.)
"Inter arma silent Musae" - when the weapons speak, the muses fall silent. Or, rather: when the guns roar, the brain ceases to function.
AND JUST a small thought: when the State of Israel was founded in the middle of a cruel war, a poster was plastered on the walls: "All the country - a front! All the people - an army!"
58 Years have passed, and the same slogan is still as valid as it was then. What does that say about generations of statesmen and generals?
Tuesday, 18 July 2006
PNN: American Family Brutally Assaulted at Israeli Checkpoint
(Bethlehem) Ayman Oghanna 17 July 06
A mother and son, both American citizens, were savagely beaten last week by Israeli security at the Israeli entry point from Jordan: Allenby Bridge. The victims were 47 year old Tina Hannouneh and her 17 year old son. Their crime was looking Palestinian.
Hannouneh, who was born in the West Bank, moved to Arizona in 1986, where she now works as banker. She and her son Michael had come to Palestine, on a holiday, to visit friends and family.
The incident occurred because 17 year old Michael, who suffers form a chronic heart condition, was listening to his i-pod.
Tina underwent surgery last week in Beit Jala. Afterwards, she spoke to PNN about her ordeal:
“We were entering through security when a guy dressed as a civilian approached Michael He grabbed Michael’s neck with his right hand and reached for the i-pod with his left hand, shouting ‘give me that’ in Arabic.”
Michael, who has spent most of his life in the US, does not speak or understand Arabic. He was unaware that the man choking him was a security officer, and refused to give him the mp3 player. Hannouneh added, “The security officer was not wearing a uniform. My son couldn’t have recognized him as army or police. He payed $400 for that i-pod, he’s not just going to give it to anybody.”
Confused and bewildered about what was happening, Michael held on to his i-pod. It was then that the officer became violent. Hannouneh explained that “the guy punched him, dropped him to the ground, and started banging his head against on the floor.” She continued, “He shouted in Arabic ‘you can’t say no to a police officer.’”
After trying to protect her son, the officer turned on Hannouneh. She commented, “As hard as he could he hit my face. I fell to the floor and hit my head on the metal bar in the security fence. I have two stitches and my nose is really smashed. My shirt and my pants were covered in blood”.
Humiliation
The terrorized family’s ordeal only came to an end when other officials realized they were American. Like all Palestinians, Hannouneh and her son were victims of institutional racism at the heart of the Israeli security service. Hannouneh told PNN, “They did this to me because of the color of my skin, because I’m Palestinian”. She continued, “I can’t even travel through the checkpoint and complain to the US Consulate in Jerusalem because I am Palestinian. It’s humiliating”.
Adi Dagan, from Machsom Watch, an Israeli human rights organization that monitors checkpoints, told PNN: “To them she is just a Palestinian. Palestinians are without protection. In 2004 we documented 100 complaints of violence and we only received about 10 responses, sometimes soldiers are punished, but often nothing happens. This is what ordinary Palestinians go through everyday.”
Machsom Watch has documented shocking cases of physical violence, including one incident where a Border Policeman attacked a Palestinian man in the face with a screwdriver. Yet Machsom Watch admit that they have difficulty getting the full picture. Dagan added, “it’s clear to us that the soldiers act cautiously around us, the watchers and reporters, but lose their restraint when we are absent.”
PNN has learned that often Palestinians are too afraid to make complaints, especially as it would involve further contact with Israeli security officials. PNN contacted the US Consulate and the Israeli police, but as of yet has failed to receive any response.
Internationals at checkpoints
The assault follows a Ha’aretz report stating that for the first time since 1967, Israel is implementing a new policy in the West Bank that prevents the entry of Palestinians with foreign citizenship, most of whom are Americans. As always, the reasons are connected to “security,” though the harassment and restrictions separate families and weaken humanitarian organizations.
Nidal Ibrahim at the Arab American Institute (AAI) in Washington, DC told PNN, “We at AAI are disturbed by continued reports that we're getting of Israeli mistreatment of American citizens of Palestinian descent, including both being denied entry as well as the rough treatment and harassment.” Referring to Hannouneh’s case, the AAI stated “it speaks of the lack of restraint and understanding on the part of Israel in general and the Israeli border guard specifically. Ultimately, these types of actions do nothing to but cast a black eye on the state of Israel itself.”
For Hannouneh and her son, the trauma will have a lasting effect. Hannouneh said “My son was so excited. He was listening to the Bible on his i-pod. He wanted to come a day earlier. He wanted to go everywhere- where Jesus Christ was, where he was born. Now he doesn’t want to go into town because he is too scared. He can’t look me in the eye because he feels responsible, that it’s his fault. He never wants to come back, neither do I. I’m never coming back for this again. That’s probably the point, they don’t want anybody to come back.”
Hannouneh, who is seeking legal action both in Israel and the US, ended the interview with a plea to the US government: “We need some help here, at least come and see how Palestinians are suffering.” Unfortunately, Hannouneh’s plea is not the first of its kind, and it certainly won’t be the last.
A mother and son, both American citizens, were savagely beaten last week by Israeli security at the Israeli entry point from Jordan: Allenby Bridge. The victims were 47 year old Tina Hannouneh and her 17 year old son. Their crime was looking Palestinian.
Hannouneh, who was born in the West Bank, moved to Arizona in 1986, where she now works as banker. She and her son Michael had come to Palestine, on a holiday, to visit friends and family.
The incident occurred because 17 year old Michael, who suffers form a chronic heart condition, was listening to his i-pod.
Tina underwent surgery last week in Beit Jala. Afterwards, she spoke to PNN about her ordeal:
“We were entering through security when a guy dressed as a civilian approached Michael He grabbed Michael’s neck with his right hand and reached for the i-pod with his left hand, shouting ‘give me that’ in Arabic.”
Michael, who has spent most of his life in the US, does not speak or understand Arabic. He was unaware that the man choking him was a security officer, and refused to give him the mp3 player. Hannouneh added, “The security officer was not wearing a uniform. My son couldn’t have recognized him as army or police. He payed $400 for that i-pod, he’s not just going to give it to anybody.”
Confused and bewildered about what was happening, Michael held on to his i-pod. It was then that the officer became violent. Hannouneh explained that “the guy punched him, dropped him to the ground, and started banging his head against on the floor.” She continued, “He shouted in Arabic ‘you can’t say no to a police officer.’”
After trying to protect her son, the officer turned on Hannouneh. She commented, “As hard as he could he hit my face. I fell to the floor and hit my head on the metal bar in the security fence. I have two stitches and my nose is really smashed. My shirt and my pants were covered in blood”.
Humiliation
The terrorized family’s ordeal only came to an end when other officials realized they were American. Like all Palestinians, Hannouneh and her son were victims of institutional racism at the heart of the Israeli security service. Hannouneh told PNN, “They did this to me because of the color of my skin, because I’m Palestinian”. She continued, “I can’t even travel through the checkpoint and complain to the US Consulate in Jerusalem because I am Palestinian. It’s humiliating”.
Adi Dagan, from Machsom Watch, an Israeli human rights organization that monitors checkpoints, told PNN: “To them she is just a Palestinian. Palestinians are without protection. In 2004 we documented 100 complaints of violence and we only received about 10 responses, sometimes soldiers are punished, but often nothing happens. This is what ordinary Palestinians go through everyday.”
Machsom Watch has documented shocking cases of physical violence, including one incident where a Border Policeman attacked a Palestinian man in the face with a screwdriver. Yet Machsom Watch admit that they have difficulty getting the full picture. Dagan added, “it’s clear to us that the soldiers act cautiously around us, the watchers and reporters, but lose their restraint when we are absent.”
PNN has learned that often Palestinians are too afraid to make complaints, especially as it would involve further contact with Israeli security officials. PNN contacted the US Consulate and the Israeli police, but as of yet has failed to receive any response.
Internationals at checkpoints
The assault follows a Ha’aretz report stating that for the first time since 1967, Israel is implementing a new policy in the West Bank that prevents the entry of Palestinians with foreign citizenship, most of whom are Americans. As always, the reasons are connected to “security,” though the harassment and restrictions separate families and weaken humanitarian organizations.
Nidal Ibrahim at the Arab American Institute (AAI) in Washington, DC told PNN, “We at AAI are disturbed by continued reports that we're getting of Israeli mistreatment of American citizens of Palestinian descent, including both being denied entry as well as the rough treatment and harassment.” Referring to Hannouneh’s case, the AAI stated “it speaks of the lack of restraint and understanding on the part of Israel in general and the Israeli border guard specifically. Ultimately, these types of actions do nothing to but cast a black eye on the state of Israel itself.”
For Hannouneh and her son, the trauma will have a lasting effect. Hannouneh said “My son was so excited. He was listening to the Bible on his i-pod. He wanted to come a day earlier. He wanted to go everywhere- where Jesus Christ was, where he was born. Now he doesn’t want to go into town because he is too scared. He can’t look me in the eye because he feels responsible, that it’s his fault. He never wants to come back, neither do I. I’m never coming back for this again. That’s probably the point, they don’t want anybody to come back.”
Hannouneh, who is seeking legal action both in Israel and the US, ended the interview with a plea to the US government: “We need some help here, at least come and see how Palestinians are suffering.” Unfortunately, Hannouneh’s plea is not the first of its kind, and it certainly won’t be the last.
Friday, 14 July 2006
Who is Violent; the Occupied or the Occupier?
- This post is inspired while reading some comments on a couple of blogs regarding ‘Palestinian Suicide Bombers’ -
Pro-Israel justifications for storming the Occupied Palestinian Territories, the building of the Apartheid Wall, the killing of Palestinian civilians, demolishing Palestinian houses and infrastructure, annexing Palestinian agricultural land to Israel and Israeli settlements growth, range between "The Palestinians brought it on themselves because they are stupid" and "They strap bomb-belts to their children and send them to bomb ours".
The statistics bellow show that Israelis killed by Palestinians in suicide-bombings, since the out-break of the Second Intifada, are less than 50% of the total Israeli death toll. Only 13% of the Palestinian casualties by Israel were actually "wanted" by the Israeli government for "Terror Crimes", casualties of which were not put on trial. Why would a mighty security force, such as the Israeli one, fail to take out those individuals who make the State of Israel insecure and terrorised with fear, only, with minimum random casualties? The Summer Rain Offensive against Gaza is a good example for IOF’s screw-ups.
Some comments I read on blogs said things like, ‘Those civilians threw themselves in front of the danger’ or ‘The terrorists are more satisfied when the Palestinian civilians death toll goes up the roof’. An Israeli spokesperson recently said to a reporter on Al-Jazeera that all those who where killed or targeted in the Summer Rain Operation where armed and that the IOF distributed some leaflets amongst the Gazans, a week before the operation, to warn them of an offensive on Northern Gaza. Well, bollocks!
- It was very clear from different reports that there where children and civilians killed in their own houses or neighbourhoods;
- There were no such leaflets;
- The Israeli Occupation Authority closed Rafah border crossing on the 27th of June with no previous notice, trapping several hundreds of Palestinians - of whom 578 are of need of medical attention - for more than two weeks now [1];
- and, the IOF did target localities in Central Gaza and destroyed a main power generator and infrastructure.
Statistics
Palestinian Death Toll 08/09/2000 - 30/06/2006
Total Number of Palestinian deaths : 4285
(not including those who died after medical treatment was delayed due to restrictions of movement: 3554)
Palestinians killed by IOF in Occupied Palestinian Territories: 3453
(of them Armed: 1647)
(of them minors: 699)
Palestinians killed by IOF in Israel: 60
(of them Armed: 54)
(of them minors: 2)
Palestinians killed by Israeli citizens in Israel: (see Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by Israeli citizens in Israel)
Palestinians killed by Israeli illegal settlers in OPT: 72
(of them Armed: 15)
(of them minors: 8)
Palestinians killed as a result of Israeli shelling on OPT : 837 (included in those killed by IOF)
Deaths as a result of medical prevention at Israeli checkpoints : 117
(of them stillbirths: 31)
Palestinians extra-judicially assassinated : 579 (included in those killed by IOF)
(of them bystanders killed during extra-judicial operations: 257)
Palestinians killed in Gaza during Summer Rain IOF Offensive until 12/07/2006: 82 (not included in the statistics)
Error: - 0.14
Israeli Death Toll 08/09/2000 - 30/06/2006
Total Number Israeli deaths: 1008
(including Israeli-Palestinians killed by Israeli Police and IOF 1033)
Israeli soldiers killed by Palestinians in OPT: 243
Israeli illegal settlers killed by Palestinians in OPT: 236
(of them Armed: unspecified)
(of them minors: 39)
(of them killed in suicide-bombings: 16)
Israeli citizens killed by Palestinians in Israel: 443
(of them Armed: unspecified)
(of them minors: 80)
(of them killed in suicide-bombings: 381)
Israeli soldiers killed by Palestinians in Israel: 86
(of them killed in suicide-bombings: 48)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by the Israeli Police in Israel: 12 (in October 2000)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by IOF in Israel: 5 (in August 2005)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by Border Police: 1 (in July 2003)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by IOF in OPT: 4
Israeli citizens killed by Israeli Palestinian citizens in Israel: 3 (in October 2000 and September 2001)
Error: - 0.1
---
[1] According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health report of the 12th of July - in Arabic, 578 Palestinians of those trapped on the Rafah border crossing are in need of medical attention. Four of them who died while waiting on the border crossing were identified;
- Abu Khaled Daoud, 78, died following a heart attack on the 8th day on the border crossing;
- Muhamed Sharaab, 15, died following complications in his health and lack of medicine. He was on his way back to the Gaza Strip from Egypt after having a successful heart operation in Cairo;
- Muna Ismael, 19, died following complications in her health and lack of medicine after a successful operation in Cairo; and,
- Hamza Abu Daleb, 18 months, died of sun stroke and lack of food and medicine.
The MOF reported that the Israeli Occupation Authority has forbidden medical teams, medicine of food to be delivered to the Palestinians trapped on the border crossing. The PA was not allowed by the IOA to allocate teams to evacuate the dead amongst those trapped on the border. The reader knows what that means: The IOA is committing another crime against the Palestinians' Human Rights.
The MOF also reported that amongst the Palestinians trapped on the border crossing present families and first relatives to martyrs killed by the IOF during the Summer Rain Offensive on the Gaza Strip. These relatives to the martyrs have lost their rights to paying the last respect to their dead.
---
Notes on terminology:
IOF: Israeli Occupation Forces
IOA: Israeli Occupation Authority
OPT: Occupied Palestinian Territories
MOF: Palestinian Ministry of Heath
Israeli citizens: those who live to the east of the West Bank Armistice Line - mostly known as the Green Line- and East of the Gaza Armistice Line.
Israeli illegal settlers: those who live in illegal Israeli settlements on Occupied Palestinians Territories - within the Green Line.
---
Statistics based on Miftah: The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy, B'Tselem: The Israeli Information Center For Human Rights in The Occupied Palestinian Territories and Palestinian Ministry of Health
Pro-Israel justifications for storming the Occupied Palestinian Territories, the building of the Apartheid Wall, the killing of Palestinian civilians, demolishing Palestinian houses and infrastructure, annexing Palestinian agricultural land to Israel and Israeli settlements growth, range between "The Palestinians brought it on themselves because they are stupid" and "They strap bomb-belts to their children and send them to bomb ours".
The statistics bellow show that Israelis killed by Palestinians in suicide-bombings, since the out-break of the Second Intifada, are less than 50% of the total Israeli death toll. Only 13% of the Palestinian casualties by Israel were actually "wanted" by the Israeli government for "Terror Crimes", casualties of which were not put on trial. Why would a mighty security force, such as the Israeli one, fail to take out those individuals who make the State of Israel insecure and terrorised with fear, only, with minimum random casualties? The Summer Rain Offensive against Gaza is a good example for IOF’s screw-ups.
Some comments I read on blogs said things like, ‘Those civilians threw themselves in front of the danger’ or ‘The terrorists are more satisfied when the Palestinian civilians death toll goes up the roof’. An Israeli spokesperson recently said to a reporter on Al-Jazeera that all those who where killed or targeted in the Summer Rain Operation where armed and that the IOF distributed some leaflets amongst the Gazans, a week before the operation, to warn them of an offensive on Northern Gaza. Well, bollocks!
- It was very clear from different reports that there where children and civilians killed in their own houses or neighbourhoods;
- There were no such leaflets;
- The Israeli Occupation Authority closed Rafah border crossing on the 27th of June with no previous notice, trapping several hundreds of Palestinians - of whom 578 are of need of medical attention - for more than two weeks now [1];
- and, the IOF did target localities in Central Gaza and destroyed a main power generator and infrastructure.
Statistics
Palestinian Death Toll 08/09/2000 - 30/06/2006
Total Number of Palestinian deaths : 4285
(not including those who died after medical treatment was delayed due to restrictions of movement: 3554)
Palestinians killed by IOF in Occupied Palestinian Territories: 3453
(of them Armed: 1647)
(of them minors: 699)
Palestinians killed by IOF in Israel: 60
(of them Armed: 54)
(of them minors: 2)
Palestinians killed by Israeli citizens in Israel: (see Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by Israeli citizens in Israel)
Palestinians killed by Israeli illegal settlers in OPT: 72
(of them Armed: 15)
(of them minors: 8)
Palestinians killed as a result of Israeli shelling on OPT : 837 (included in those killed by IOF)
Deaths as a result of medical prevention at Israeli checkpoints : 117
(of them stillbirths: 31)
Palestinians extra-judicially assassinated : 579 (included in those killed by IOF)
(of them bystanders killed during extra-judicial operations: 257)
Palestinians killed in Gaza during Summer Rain IOF Offensive until 12/07/2006: 82 (not included in the statistics)
Error: - 0.14
Israeli Death Toll 08/09/2000 - 30/06/2006
Total Number Israeli deaths: 1008
(including Israeli-Palestinians killed by Israeli Police and IOF 1033)
Israeli soldiers killed by Palestinians in OPT: 243
Israeli illegal settlers killed by Palestinians in OPT: 236
(of them Armed: unspecified)
(of them minors: 39)
(of them killed in suicide-bombings: 16)
Israeli citizens killed by Palestinians in Israel: 443
(of them Armed: unspecified)
(of them minors: 80)
(of them killed in suicide-bombings: 381)
Israeli soldiers killed by Palestinians in Israel: 86
(of them killed in suicide-bombings: 48)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by the Israeli Police in Israel: 12 (in October 2000)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by IOF in Israel: 5 (in August 2005)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by Border Police: 1 (in July 2003)
Israeli Palestinian citizens killed by IOF in OPT: 4
Israeli citizens killed by Israeli Palestinian citizens in Israel: 3 (in October 2000 and September 2001)
Error: - 0.1
---
[1] According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health report of the 12th of July - in Arabic, 578 Palestinians of those trapped on the Rafah border crossing are in need of medical attention. Four of them who died while waiting on the border crossing were identified;
- Abu Khaled Daoud, 78, died following a heart attack on the 8th day on the border crossing;
- Muhamed Sharaab, 15, died following complications in his health and lack of medicine. He was on his way back to the Gaza Strip from Egypt after having a successful heart operation in Cairo;
- Muna Ismael, 19, died following complications in her health and lack of medicine after a successful operation in Cairo; and,
- Hamza Abu Daleb, 18 months, died of sun stroke and lack of food and medicine.
The MOF reported that the Israeli Occupation Authority has forbidden medical teams, medicine of food to be delivered to the Palestinians trapped on the border crossing. The PA was not allowed by the IOA to allocate teams to evacuate the dead amongst those trapped on the border. The reader knows what that means: The IOA is committing another crime against the Palestinians' Human Rights.
The MOF also reported that amongst the Palestinians trapped on the border crossing present families and first relatives to martyrs killed by the IOF during the Summer Rain Offensive on the Gaza Strip. These relatives to the martyrs have lost their rights to paying the last respect to their dead.
---
Notes on terminology:
IOF: Israeli Occupation Forces
IOA: Israeli Occupation Authority
OPT: Occupied Palestinian Territories
MOF: Palestinian Ministry of Heath
Israeli citizens: those who live to the east of the West Bank Armistice Line - mostly known as the Green Line- and East of the Gaza Armistice Line.
Israeli illegal settlers: those who live in illegal Israeli settlements on Occupied Palestinians Territories - within the Green Line.
---
Statistics based on Miftah: The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy, B'Tselem: The Israeli Information Center For Human Rights in The Occupied Palestinian Territories and Palestinian Ministry of Health
Thursday, 13 July 2006
Dr. Mona El-Farra, wrote;
"Ministry of Health Statistics in GazaFrom Gaza, With Love
"Yesterday the Palestinian Mininstry of health officially declared that the number
of martyrs is 82 people and 271 injured from 30 - 6 - 2006 to 12 - 7 - 2006. Among
the martyrs 22 children. The number is expected to increase because there are
still casualties in the intensive care units."
Security, My Arse
Yesterday, I was “illegally” roaming about in Israeli controlled area of Jericho of the West Bank, and no Israeli soldier cared to stop me once at a checkpoint or ask to show my ID.
I went to the Dead Sea with some of my friends in a yellow-plated rented car. My friends could get the car from Jerusalem because they are internationals as yellow-plated cars are allowed to be driven by Israeli citizens and internationals, only. They picked me up in Bethlehem and drove on Wadi Ennar road - the only road connecting the Bethlehem District with the Ramallah District. One would have to pass the Container Israeli Checkpoint to be able to proceed the journey. Not a single car or man was stopped for an identity check. All were waved through rather quickly. Now, what an arbitrary procedure to keep the Israeli State secure is this? It is worth mentioning here that once one gets through this checkpoint by the end of the Bethlehem District, one can get on the by-pass road of Ma’ale Adumim illegal Israeli industrial settlement. The settlement is treated as part of Great Jerusalem. So, technically, one can sneak into Jerusalem from there with no permit.
This did not stop there. Getting closer towards Jericho, we noticed that there were absolutely no checkpoints around. There used to be one there two months ago, but not today, strangely enough. Palestinians usually would have to drive all the way to central Jericho using that by-pass road. They are, supposedly, not allowed to take any turns from the main road until they get to central Jericho as for those turns would lead to either one of the Illegal Israeli settlements in the District of Jericho or to different Nature Reserve spots of Ein Jedi. Palestinians are not allowed there. However, would one not wonder about the reason of not having any Israeli checkpoints there to block the entrance of Palestinians into so-claimed-Israeli Territories? Well, we did get to the Dead Sea and Qumran - both places I am not allowed to enter as a Palestinian - because we simply could do so.
After enjoying a float and a look at some ancient ruins, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found, we drove back towards Bethlehem. Just as we got back on the main by-pass road, a checkpoint immerged from the middle of nowhere. It must have appeared within the four hours, after we passed. The funny thing is that we discovered that it was a partial checkpoint, once we got closer. The Israeli soldiers were checking cars that drove towards Jericho, but not ones leaving Jericho. Amused by that, I started giggling to myself and shouting jokingly, while in the car, ‘I demand my right, as a Palestinian citizen, that my id be checked, and I be held for as long as it takes to, firmly and undoubtedly, show that I am not a threat to the State of Israel’.
Finally, we got back to the Container checkpoint to be stopped by a soldier. Apparently, yellow-plated cars are not allowed through though this specific checkpoint. We told the soldier that we were not stopped on the way out. He asked, ‘What time was that?’, ‘Around 11’, we said. ‘Oh, I was not here on duty, so it is not my fault’, he said while walking away towards the control to put the car registration number on the wire. He came back shortly after saying that the car cannot pass but that we can. He also suggested that we should go back and drive on the Jerusalem-Ma’ale Adumim road. Well, I cannot go there as I do not have a pass, meaning that I have to get off the car and get a transport back to Bethlehem. The soldier also said that my friends can meet me in Bethlehem after driving through at the Beit Jala DCO - District Coordination Office - checkpoint. At that point, I felt that I was pushing it a bit by asking, ‘Then, what difference does it make if my friends drive through this checkpoint instead of the other on the other side of the district. What is different about the DCO checkpoint’. However, the soldier responded calmly saying that he cannot tell me such information and that he is doing his job by applying the rules and instructions he was given. Eventually, and after a half an hour of “chit-chat”, he “made us a favour” and opened a gate to a shortcut to the Jerusalem-Ma’ale Adumim road, saving my friends an extra hour and a half drive. Well, there was no difference made on my case as I still had to get off and get myself into public transport.
Even when we were stopped at this checkpoint, the soldier did not ask for any ids or passports. I could have easily pretended to not speak Arabic and stay in the car with my friends, driving with them to Jerusalem. Besides, we were leaving so-claimed-Israeli Territories going to Palestinian Territories when we were eventually stopped by a soldier, while one would argue that this should have been done the other way round by the Israeli soldiers to insure the security of the State of Israel.
I went to the Dead Sea with some of my friends in a yellow-plated rented car. My friends could get the car from Jerusalem because they are internationals as yellow-plated cars are allowed to be driven by Israeli citizens and internationals, only. They picked me up in Bethlehem and drove on Wadi Ennar road - the only road connecting the Bethlehem District with the Ramallah District. One would have to pass the Container Israeli Checkpoint to be able to proceed the journey. Not a single car or man was stopped for an identity check. All were waved through rather quickly. Now, what an arbitrary procedure to keep the Israeli State secure is this? It is worth mentioning here that once one gets through this checkpoint by the end of the Bethlehem District, one can get on the by-pass road of Ma’ale Adumim illegal Israeli industrial settlement. The settlement is treated as part of Great Jerusalem. So, technically, one can sneak into Jerusalem from there with no permit.
This did not stop there. Getting closer towards Jericho, we noticed that there were absolutely no checkpoints around. There used to be one there two months ago, but not today, strangely enough. Palestinians usually would have to drive all the way to central Jericho using that by-pass road. They are, supposedly, not allowed to take any turns from the main road until they get to central Jericho as for those turns would lead to either one of the Illegal Israeli settlements in the District of Jericho or to different Nature Reserve spots of Ein Jedi. Palestinians are not allowed there. However, would one not wonder about the reason of not having any Israeli checkpoints there to block the entrance of Palestinians into so-claimed-Israeli Territories? Well, we did get to the Dead Sea and Qumran - both places I am not allowed to enter as a Palestinian - because we simply could do so.
After enjoying a float and a look at some ancient ruins, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found, we drove back towards Bethlehem. Just as we got back on the main by-pass road, a checkpoint immerged from the middle of nowhere. It must have appeared within the four hours, after we passed. The funny thing is that we discovered that it was a partial checkpoint, once we got closer. The Israeli soldiers were checking cars that drove towards Jericho, but not ones leaving Jericho. Amused by that, I started giggling to myself and shouting jokingly, while in the car, ‘I demand my right, as a Palestinian citizen, that my id be checked, and I be held for as long as it takes to, firmly and undoubtedly, show that I am not a threat to the State of Israel’.
Finally, we got back to the Container checkpoint to be stopped by a soldier. Apparently, yellow-plated cars are not allowed through though this specific checkpoint. We told the soldier that we were not stopped on the way out. He asked, ‘What time was that?’, ‘Around 11’, we said. ‘Oh, I was not here on duty, so it is not my fault’, he said while walking away towards the control to put the car registration number on the wire. He came back shortly after saying that the car cannot pass but that we can. He also suggested that we should go back and drive on the Jerusalem-Ma’ale Adumim road. Well, I cannot go there as I do not have a pass, meaning that I have to get off the car and get a transport back to Bethlehem. The soldier also said that my friends can meet me in Bethlehem after driving through at the Beit Jala DCO - District Coordination Office - checkpoint. At that point, I felt that I was pushing it a bit by asking, ‘Then, what difference does it make if my friends drive through this checkpoint instead of the other on the other side of the district. What is different about the DCO checkpoint’. However, the soldier responded calmly saying that he cannot tell me such information and that he is doing his job by applying the rules and instructions he was given. Eventually, and after a half an hour of “chit-chat”, he “made us a favour” and opened a gate to a shortcut to the Jerusalem-Ma’ale Adumim road, saving my friends an extra hour and a half drive. Well, there was no difference made on my case as I still had to get off and get myself into public transport.
Even when we were stopped at this checkpoint, the soldier did not ask for any ids or passports. I could have easily pretended to not speak Arabic and stay in the car with my friends, driving with them to Jerusalem. Besides, we were leaving so-claimed-Israeli Territories going to Palestinian Territories when we were eventually stopped by a soldier, while one would argue that this should have been done the other way round by the Israeli soldiers to insure the security of the State of Israel.
Wednesday, 12 July 2006
Gazans; Specimens for Israeli Weaponry
This morning, I received some bad news from a friend of mine in Gaza. One of his friends was shot dead by the Israeli Occupation Forces. He was in his early twenties.
My friend also wrote me, in a previous letter, that he was "scared" and that he does not know when this all would end.
The alarming tone of the message reminded me with the Nativity siege in 2002. All these images and feelings from those 40 days came back to me. I remembered how it was to feel like dying everyday for 4 weeks.
I ask the gods to grand him the strength and courage to be able to deal with the after-math trauma when this is all over.
----
Palestinian Injuries Suggest Israel is Using Chemical Weapons in Gaza
Extracts from IMEMC report for 11 July 2006
My friend also wrote me, in a previous letter, that he was "scared" and that he does not know when this all would end.
The alarming tone of the message reminded me with the Nativity siege in 2002. All these images and feelings from those 40 days came back to me. I remembered how it was to feel like dying everyday for 4 weeks.
I ask the gods to grand him the strength and courage to be able to deal with the after-math trauma when this is all over.
----
Palestinian Injuries Suggest Israel is Using Chemical Weapons in Gaza
Extracts from IMEMC report for 11 July 2006
"The Palestinian ministry of health revealed on Tuesday that the Israeli army has used a new type of explosive in its offensive on the Gaza Strip. These explosives contain toxics and radioactive materials which burn and tear the victim's body from the inside and leave long term deformities.
The ministry called upon the international community and the humanitarian organizations to send an international medical team to examine the victims and confirm the truth about these banned weapons that Israel appears to be using.
"Dr. Jom'a Al Saka the spokesperson of Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza [said], 'When the Shrapnel hit the body, it causes very strong burns that destroy the tissues around the bones. When these shrapnel enters the body, it burns and destroys internal organs, like the liver, kidneys and the Spleen and other organs and makes saving the wounded almost impossible. As a surgeon, I have seen thousands of wounds during the Intifada, but nothing was like this weapon.' "
Tuesday, 11 July 2006
Children Arrested in Bethlehem on Monday
"Israeli troops arrested four residents from the village of Taqua east of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Monday morning.
Troops stormed the village and searched several homes before taking the following people prisoner: Nower Sobah, 19, Fadi Hamad, 18, Soliman Sobeh, 17 and Saleem Al Sha'er, 17, all were taken to unknown locations, local sources reported."
IMEMC
Bethlehem Explodes in an Outlet
I was in bed when the city turned into a screaming horn. I have to admit that I am not a big fan of football, but what happened yesterday to the city was a bit too much, even for a fan.
Hearing people chanting from the restaurant next to my house, I managed to watch the World Cup on audio. I knew that France and Italy got a draw by the end of the official match. Then, no golden goals were scored, leaving Italy to win in penalty kicks. I got all that information just by listening to those football fans in the restaurant.
Well, that was nothing. The moment the fans realised that Italy won the World Cup, no one in the city was left sleeping. People were shouting and beeping their horns like crazy. Some put on some fire-works, Christmas lights or loud music. This lasted about an hour, no kidding.
In the morning, going to the shop to buy breakfast, I heard some people talk about what happened as being extremely mad. One man said that it sounded like as if we won our independence from the Israeli Occupation.
Palestinians need something to direct their energies into. I just wish it was something else. Something more meaningful and useful to them individually. I do not mean that being a fan of a sport is not something useful. I am just thinking that if one would explode with emotions - which last an hour - for football matches, every four years, that it might be useful for one to practice some other hobbies and activities. I mean such activities during which one can sing loudly, shout, hit or kick a ball, run for a mile, or go for demos.
Hopefully, one day, a similar outlet would be demonstrated when the Palestinian national football team wins the gold.
Hearing people chanting from the restaurant next to my house, I managed to watch the World Cup on audio. I knew that France and Italy got a draw by the end of the official match. Then, no golden goals were scored, leaving Italy to win in penalty kicks. I got all that information just by listening to those football fans in the restaurant.
Well, that was nothing. The moment the fans realised that Italy won the World Cup, no one in the city was left sleeping. People were shouting and beeping their horns like crazy. Some put on some fire-works, Christmas lights or loud music. This lasted about an hour, no kidding.
In the morning, going to the shop to buy breakfast, I heard some people talk about what happened as being extremely mad. One man said that it sounded like as if we won our independence from the Israeli Occupation.
Palestinians need something to direct their energies into. I just wish it was something else. Something more meaningful and useful to them individually. I do not mean that being a fan of a sport is not something useful. I am just thinking that if one would explode with emotions - which last an hour - for football matches, every four years, that it might be useful for one to practice some other hobbies and activities. I mean such activities during which one can sing loudly, shout, hit or kick a ball, run for a mile, or go for demos.
Hopefully, one day, a similar outlet would be demonstrated when the Palestinian national football team wins the gold.
Thursday, 6 July 2006
Two Women from Bethlehem Arrested on Day Italy Won
The Israeli Occupation Forces invaded the town of Beit Sahour of the Bethlehem Municipal and arrested two women in their early twenties on Wednesday, 05 July 2006.
Niveen Dakka, 22, was arrested from her parents house a bit after midnight. The IOF detained a man from the town a bit before they arrested Niveen. It later was clear that the man was not detained for a reason other than to give directions to the soldiers to were the Dakka house is. The man was released within the hour.
The town was awake when seven army jeeps stormed into the village as they were watching football. Just as people were going around shouting victoriously 'ITALIA... ITALIA', the Dakka house was ransacked, and Niveen was taken by the troops to an unknown location.
Later on Wednesday, the IOF reinvaded the town of Bethlehem, arresting Shireen Abu Kamel, 25. It seems that the IOF have interrogated Niveen all night and morning long until they got hold of some information leading to Shireen.
Some Israeli resources say than Shireen Abu Kamel was part of a plan for a operation inside Israel.
It is worthy to mention that the Israeli resources usually do not give details whenever speaking of an operation. They never say whether it is a "suicide-bombing" or taking over a military post, or any of that kind. The public still has no clue whether Shireen was actually planning for an operation, whatever that is, or if it is all justifications given by the IOF or the Israeli sources to storm into town, or even for the reason of searching for an individual or a group with more of a political influence, through arresting people who might lead to them. Whatever the reasons are, the IOF has committed yet another crime against Human Rights. Arresting two women with no clear conviction as if they stole the World Bank, detaining a man from the town, randomly, scaring the s**t out of him and then release him, destroying property, and then leading the two women to an unknown location. Not to mention, the troops are Israeli and the people they arrested were Palestinians living in Area A - area under full Palestinian Authority control. The IOF broke the agreement and wandered into town as if it was Israeli property. Actually, they do that all the time. They have no respect to agreements neither to Palestinians. Also, they have no respect to the International Court of Justice - ICJ - and international resolutions that condemns the Wall, Israeli settlements illegally built in the West Bank, on Palestinian Territories, and Human Rights violations against the people of Palestine.
It is worthy to mention, as well, that the two locations from which the two women were arrested are less than 10 minutes apart.
Niveen Dakka, 22, was arrested from her parents house a bit after midnight. The IOF detained a man from the town a bit before they arrested Niveen. It later was clear that the man was not detained for a reason other than to give directions to the soldiers to were the Dakka house is. The man was released within the hour.
The town was awake when seven army jeeps stormed into the village as they were watching football. Just as people were going around shouting victoriously 'ITALIA... ITALIA', the Dakka house was ransacked, and Niveen was taken by the troops to an unknown location.
Later on Wednesday, the IOF reinvaded the town of Bethlehem, arresting Shireen Abu Kamel, 25. It seems that the IOF have interrogated Niveen all night and morning long until they got hold of some information leading to Shireen.
Some Israeli resources say than Shireen Abu Kamel was part of a plan for a operation inside Israel.
It is worthy to mention that the Israeli resources usually do not give details whenever speaking of an operation. They never say whether it is a "suicide-bombing" or taking over a military post, or any of that kind. The public still has no clue whether Shireen was actually planning for an operation, whatever that is, or if it is all justifications given by the IOF or the Israeli sources to storm into town, or even for the reason of searching for an individual or a group with more of a political influence, through arresting people who might lead to them. Whatever the reasons are, the IOF has committed yet another crime against Human Rights. Arresting two women with no clear conviction as if they stole the World Bank, detaining a man from the town, randomly, scaring the s**t out of him and then release him, destroying property, and then leading the two women to an unknown location. Not to mention, the troops are Israeli and the people they arrested were Palestinians living in Area A - area under full Palestinian Authority control. The IOF broke the agreement and wandered into town as if it was Israeli property. Actually, they do that all the time. They have no respect to agreements neither to Palestinians. Also, they have no respect to the International Court of Justice - ICJ - and international resolutions that condemns the Wall, Israeli settlements illegally built in the West Bank, on Palestinian Territories, and Human Rights violations against the people of Palestine.
It is worthy to mention, as well, that the two locations from which the two women were arrested are less than 10 minutes apart.
Shireen Abu Kamel, 25, while being arrested from her parents house
Image from MA'AN News
Image from MA'AN News
Info based on IMEMC and MA'AN News
Saturday, 1 July 2006
Palestine International Festival
For more information, read;
http://www.thisweekinpalestine.com/details.php?id=1775&ed=116
-- Will post the full time-plan of the festival soon.
This is where my robin lies at the moment
This blog is an attempt to post news from Bethlehem - and sometimes from Palestine.
Posts will not only be political in theme. There will also be talks about arts from Bethlehem/Palestine, strangely enough to some people.
When it comes to personal information, I cannot be arsed. However, feelings following a specific incident, I believe, are valid to share with viewers.
This attempt hopes to add to people's awarness of what goes on in Bethlehem/Palestine - and not to be a mere waste of cyber space.
Posts will not only be political in theme. There will also be talks about arts from Bethlehem/Palestine, strangely enough to some people.
When it comes to personal information, I cannot be arsed. However, feelings following a specific incident, I believe, are valid to share with viewers.
This attempt hopes to add to people's awarness of what goes on in Bethlehem/Palestine - and not to be a mere waste of cyber space.
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