The Only Democracy? » Archive
Stop the Bullets! Activism in the Buffer Zone
By Abu Waleed, Popular Campaign for Security in the Buffer Zone and Ellen Stark, International Solidarity Movement Stop the bullets! A call to stop the use of live ammunition by Israel against unarmed citizens in the Gaza ‘buffer zone’ The catastrophic Israeli attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, which left 9 dead, has rightly horrified the international community. However, lethal force by the Israeli military is nothing new to Palestinians. In the Gaza ‘buffer zone’, live ammunition is routinely used against unarmed demonstrators and farmers. The ‘buffer zone’ is illegal The Israeli military violently enforces a zone of 300 meters to 2 kilometers along Gaza’s lengthy border with Israel, in direct violation of the Oslo Accords of the 1990’s. This zone claims 30% of Gaza’s farmland, and some of … Read entire article »
Filed under: On The Ground Reports
Civil Disobedience Is….A Fun Day Out in Tel Aviv
By the Coalition of Women for Peace The trip to the Betar crossing point passed in almost complete silence. When we approached the checkpoint, the red sign, the metal tower, the speed bumps, the concrete barriers, the soldiers’ position, I felt my legs shaking – and not because of the bumpy road. I took a deep breath, slowed down but didn’t stop, rolled down the window, gave the soldier a causal wave and he indifferently motioned for me to keep going. ‘We made it!’” (Ilana Hammerman, “If There Is a Heaven,” Ha’aretz, 7 May 2010) One spring morning, not so long ago, four women crossed the Betar Checkpoint: Ilana Hammerman, an Israeli translator and editor, and three Palestinian girls from a village in the West Bank. The girls, Aya, Lin and … Read entire article »
Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs, On The Ground Reports
Links and Video about the Gaza Freedom Flotilla
Documents explaining international law and law of sea applicable to the Flotilla: Video: Daniel Machover, Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights, summary of analysis of international law applicable to flotilla attack. Downlaodable Documents: Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights document analyzing international law applicable to flotilla attack and a Diakonia analysis on the law of sea applicable to flotilla attack: Link concerning the criminalization of the four Palestinian citizens of Israel who were … Read entire article »
Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs
An Open Letter by Jeff Halper to the Israeli Jewish Public: Support the Gaza Flotilla
By Jeff Halper If we were not Israeli Jews, if the nine ships bringing 800 peace-makers from 40 countries would be sailing with humanitarian aid to an imprisoned population of a million and a half to, say, Haiti, the flotilla now on its way to Gaza would be hailed as a monumental event. The government of Israel would donate another 50 tons of food and materials and a brigade … Read entire article »
Filed under: On The Ground Reports
Who’s Who of Banned Israeli Visitors
From Right To Enter: At this point, you could have quite the dinner party with the folks Israel leaves out! How do I get on that guest list? UPDATE: Eitan Bronner has an article on the dustup inside Israel over whether it was such a great idea to ban Noam Chomsky, after doing likewise to Jewish American journalist Jared Maslin, Falk, and Goldstone as well as my personal favorite, Spain’s most famous clown Ivan Prado. Maybe if … Read entire article »
Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs
Israeli Writer Michal Peleg Calls Out Her Government for Arrest of Dr. Omar Said
by Michal Peleg Dr. Omar Said from Kafr Kana, Israel, was arrested on April 24, at a border crossing between Israel and Jordan, and is held since in prison for investigation, without trial. Dr. Said is a pharmacologist, an expert of academic and international fame in the medical use of herbs. He specializes in innovations in traditional Middle East medicine based on local flora. … Read entire article »
Filed under: On The Ground Reports
Palestinian Teenager Shot, Apparently By Settler
From the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee. Aysar Yasser a-Zaben, 16 years old, was shot in his back yesterday evening in his family’s lands in Mazra’a al-Sharqiya, east of Ramallah, apparently by a settler. Aysar al-Zaben’s body was found in his plot by family members only hours after he was shot. He was found lying dead on the ground, face down, with a bullet hole in his back after being missing since the … Read entire article »
Filed under: On The Ground Reports
Four Beaten and Arrested at Al-Walaje Sit-In
by Mazin Qumsiyeh Our ten hour ordeal with the occupation forces started at 8:30 AM as we gathered in the small village of Al-Walaje. A tiny store with an elderly women who insisted on making me coffee and not charging me. Idyllic setting except for the heavy bulldozers now carving the hills to separate the remaining people from their lands via an apartheid wall that is planned to completely ring the village. This … Read entire article »
Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs, On The Ground Reports
Two More Arrests of Activists, One is a Teenager.
From the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee Two residents of Ni’lin were arrested by the Israeli Army tonight, during a night-time raid on the village. Their arrest follows the two similar arrests last week, and may signal a renewed increase of anti-Wall arrests. A large military force, including a plain-clothed snatch squad, raided the village of Ni’lin at 2:30am tonight, arresting Sa’id Amirah and 17 year old Mohanned Srour, two anti-Wall activists … Read entire article »
Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs
Another Day, Another Arrest of Human Rights Worker
From The Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief. Israeli authorities have taken Izzet Sahin, the representative and founder of IHH (The Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief)’s Office in West Bank, into custody on the 27th of April. Izzet Sahin have been taken into custody by the Israeli military while he was passing through the checkpoint in Bethlehem. Sahin was transferred to Ashkelon prison following … Read entire article »
Filed under: Human Rights Activists in the Crosshairs
Interactive Video
“You have a choice! Israeli Anti-Militarists Speak”
Four Israelis—Dorothy Naor, Sergeiy Sander and Eli Fabrikant, and Ofer Golani—talking about their personal histories, political views and activism in 132 short films.