Egypt creates a buffer zone with Gaza
MEMO | September 2, 2013
The Egyptian army is working to create a buffer zone on the Egyptian border with the Gaza Strip in a purported effort to undermine weapon smuggling and chaos caused by militants in the Sinai Peninsula.
The military envisions that the ten kilometres long and 500 metre wide buffer zone is to be a building free area without trees. The area stretches from the Rafah Crossing through to the Mediterranean Sea.
Witnesses said that the Egyptian military bulldozers had started uprooting trees in the area and that 13 Egyptian houses had been destroyed in the al-Sarsouriya neighbourhood on Saturday.
At the time of writing this report, Egyptian military bulldozers were working fast razing sand-hills and trees in the area.
A military source, speaking anonymously, told the AP that homes had been knocked down over the last 10 days as a test of the buffer zone idea.
The interim Egyptian government said that this was a part of its “war on terrorism” campaign. The government and Egyptian mass media have been claiming that the tunnels between Egypt and Gaza have been used to smuggle weapons and Palestinian militants in to Egypt.
Egyptian residents in the neighbourhoods in the planned buffer zone took to the streets on Saturday, torching car tires and hurling stones at the Egyptian army in an effort to delay the demolition of their homes.
Witnesses said that the army called for residents to leave their houses through the loudspeakers of nearby mosques. The army bulldozers then immediately started damaging the houses.
“They did not give residents eviction notices and did not even give them enough time to collect their properties,” a tribal leader told AP.
In an interview with the Egyptian TV, CBC, Egyptian interior minister, Mohamed Ibrahim, claimed that the tunnels were the main cause of the uncertainty in Egypt. He insisted that prominent leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood had used the tunnels to enter and hide in Gaza.
Meanwhile, Hamas spokesman, Sami Abu-Zuhri, denied that the tunnels had been used to smuggle weapons and militants to Egypt or to smuggle Muslim Brotherhood leaders in to Gaza.
“Once they said that Osama Yassin was in Gaza, and two days later, they arrested him in Cairo,” Abu-Zuhri said in an example of the misinformation being reported on Gaza’s involvement in the Egyptian issue and the misuse of tunnels.
Since the end of the Israeli war on Gaza in 2008/2009, the tunnels have been used to smuggle goods, commodities and medicines. Numerous Palestinian, Egyptian and international journalists have observed the work of the tunnels.
They have reported that the tunnels have been used for humanitarian purposes in the light of the strict Israeli blockade on Gaza since 2006.
Egyptian navy attacks Palestinian fishermen
MEMO | September 1, 2013
Egyptian navy vessels have attacked Palestinian fishermen going about their work off the coast of Rafah. Five fishermen were arrested and two were shot when their boats were confiscated by the Egyptians.
Local sources say that Ibrahim Abdullah al-Najjar, 19, and his colleague Ismail Wael al-Bardawil, 21, were both shot in the hands during the attack. The men were taken to Abu Yousef al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah for treatment. Shooting fishermen in the hands is a tactic used by the Israeli Navy as it makes it difficult for them to get back to work.
Following the overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi by the army, the coup authorities have warned the Palestinians that the navy will arrest anyone who crosses into Egypt’s territorial waters.
The fishermen expressed deep disappointment at the Egyptian move. It resembles the attacks on them by the Israeli navy, they said.
A spokesman for the Interior Ministry of the Palestinian government in Gaza, Ihab Ghussein, said that he has asked for a formal explanation from Egypt about the attack on the unarmed fishermen.
Four young boys arrested and beaten in Hebron
International Solidarity Movement | September 1, 2013
Hebron, Occupied Palestine – On Friday 30th August, Israeli soldiers arrested four Palestinian boys and held and abused them in a military base for around four hours.
Ashaq (15), Ali (15), Anwar (14) and Ahmed (10) were walking down the Shilal Street in the Old City of Hebron at around 6.30pm, when soldiers near Bab Al-Baladia violently grabbed them and accused them of throwing stones. Anwar’s shirt was torn by a soldier as they arrested him. They took the four boys through the yellow gate into Beit Romano military base. All four were blindfolded, and Ashaq was slapped in the face by a soldier. The soldiers also ate seeds in front of the boys and then spat the shells at them. The boys were held in the military base for nearly four hours. International activists who went to the military base to demand information on whether the boys were being held inside and why they had been arrested, were told by soldiers “we don’t know”, and were asked to leave. As they were waiting outside the military base, they were insulted and threatened by a settler. Subsequently the army forced them to leave Shuhada Street and threatened one international with arrest if she tried to return.
At around 10.15pm, Youth Against Settlements (YAS, a Palestinian activist group which seeks to end Israeli colonization and settlement activities in Palestine through non-violent popular struggle and civil disobedience) received a call by worried residents who had seen twelve soldiers taking the four blindfolded boys up into the cemetery opposite the military base. The youngest, Ahmed, had a bag put over his head. Members of YAS rushed to the scene, and when the soldiers saw them they seemed scared, released the boys and left quickly.
This incident stands out from other child arrests which are almost a daily occurrence in occupied Hebron due to the forced movement of the boys into the cemetery. This worrying act highlights the arbitrary nature of the occupation as well as the virtual impunity with which the soldiers are allowed to act.
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Israeli officers torture detained Palestinian children
Palestine Information Center – 23/08/2013
NAZARETH — B’Tselem organization published on Thursday a report that includes testimonies from children detained in Israeli jails, on charges of throwing stones at soldiers, saying they were subjected to torture during their interrogation.
B’Tselem said that since November 2009, it has received testimonies from dozens of Palestinian residents of the Bethlehem and al-Khalil, most of them minors, saying that they were subjected to threats and violence, sometimes amounting to torture, during their interrogation at the police station at Gush Etzion.
The testimonies describe interrogations in which the minors were forced to confess to alleged offenses, mostly stone-throwing.
The report included the testimony of a minor, aged 14 from Husan in Bethlehem. He said “The interrogator made me go into a room. He grabbed my head and started banging it against the wall. Then he punched me, slapped me and kicked my legs. The pain was immense, and I felt like I couldn’t stand any longer.”
“Then he started swearing at me. He said filthy things about me and about my mother. He threatened to rape me, or perform sexual acts on me, if I didn’t confess to throwing stones,” the child added.
He said: “His threats really scared me, because he was very cruel and it was just the two of us in the room. I remembered what I’d seen on the news, when British and American soldiers raped and took photos of naked Iraqis.”
B’Tselem reported that until July 2013 its field researchers collected 64 testimonies from residents of eight communities in the southern West Bank who reported such incidents. “Fifty-six of them were minors at the time of their interrogation.”
Related article
- Five-year-old Palestinian boy detained in Hebron (imemc.org)
Join ISM for the 2013 Olive Harvest Campaign
International Solidarity Movement | August 22, 2013
Occupied West Bank – At a time of regular settler violence in the West Bank, the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) is issuing an urgent call for volunteers to join us for the 2013 Olive Harvest Campaign at the invitation of Palestinian communities.
The olive tree is a national symbol for Palestinians. As thousands of olive trees have been bulldozed, uprooted, burned and destroyed by Israeli settlers and the military – according to the UN settlers alone destroyed or damaged over 7,500 trees just in 2012 – harvesting has become more than a source of livelihood; it has become a form of resistance.
The olive harvest is an annual affirmation of Palestinians’ historical, spiritual, and economic connection to their land, and a rejection of Israeli efforts to seize it. Despite attempts by Israeli settlers and soldiers to prevent them from accessing their land, Palestinian communities have remained steadfast in refusing to give up their olive harvest.
ISM volunteers join Palestinian farming communities each year to harvest olives, in areas where Palestinians face settler and military violence when working their land. Your presence can make a big difference, with Palestinian communities stating that the presence of international volunteers reduces the risk of extreme violence from Israeli settlers and the Israeli army.
We support Palestinians’ assertion of their right to earn their livelihoods and be present on their lands. International solidarity activists engage in non-violent intervention and documentation, practical support which enables many families to pick their olives.
The campaign will begin mid October and will last around 5-7 weeks. We request a minimum 2 week commitment from volunteers but stress that long-termers are needed as well. We ask that volunteers start arriving in the first week of October, so that we will be prepared when the harvest begins.
Training
The ISM will be holding mandatory two day training sessions which will run weekly on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Please see the join ISM page or contact palreports@gmail.com for further information.
In addition to the Olive Harvest Campaign, volunteers can also participate in regular ISM activities in support of the Palestinian popular struggle.
Join us in our solidarity with the Palestinian resistance at this crucial time of year!
In Solidarity,
ISM Palestine
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Palestinian women activists arrested last week remain imprisoned
International Solidarity Movement | August 21, 2013
Nablus, Occupied Palestine – At 10pm on August 15th Myassar Atyani, Linan Abu Gholmeh and Leena Jawabreh of Nablus district were arrested by the Israeli police with their friend Waroud Qasem in the 1948 occupied areas of Palestine (‘48), what is now referred to as Israel. The three friends who are all political activists and former political prisoners had travelled to ‘48 to visit Waroud who lives in Tyre and has Israeli citizenship.
They were traveling together in Waroud’s car when they were stopped by the Israeli police and found to be without travel permits; Palestinians living in the West Bank require permits issued by the Israeli authorities to travel outside of the West Bank, including to the Palestinian capital Jerusalem and the rest of ’48. These permits are notoriously difficult to obtain, especially for activists. The four women were subsequently arrested and transported to Hasharon prison. Myassar, Linan and Leena were detained at the prison until their appearance at Salem military court on the 19th of August.
Waroud, also a former political prisoner from 2006 to 2012 was released from Hasharon prsison and placed under full house arrest with her driving license confiscated. She has another court hearing pending. The other three women are now being held in Salem prison awaiting a further court hearing. Leena on the 22nd of August and Myassar and Linan on the 25th of August.
Their families attended their court hearing on the 19th but thus far have been prevented from speaking with them directly by soldiers in the military court. Therefore they have only heard word of their relatives through their lawyer. Family members said that Linan told the lawyer to “Have me sentenced to what they want but don’t let them put me under administrative detention”.
Linan was arrested after her husband Amjad Mlitat was martyred by the Israeli army in 2004, and held until 2009 when she was released as part of a prisoner exchange; she was then re-arrested in July 2010 and placed under administrative detention, until the October 2011 prisoner exchange. “Administrative detention is a procedure that allows the Israeli military to hold prisoners indefinitely on secret information without charging them or allowing them to stand trial.” Administrative detention is a leftover from the British Mandate period of Palestine’s occupied past and has been exploited by the Israeli authorities to ensure that anybody resisting their occupation of Palestine can be imprisoned without justification; this violates the internationally protected right to a fair trial and means that prisoners can be held indefinitely, as administrative detention orders can be continually renewed without evidence. Human rights organisation B’tselem point out that with their regular use of administrative detention Israel violates international law, which “…stipulates that it may be exercised only in very exceptional cases – and then only as a last possible resort, when there are no other means available to prevent the danger.”
Myassar was most recently arrested and interrogated in 2009 and detained in prison for a month – she was also arrested multiple times in the 80’s and 90’s. Leena spent four years in prison from 2004 to 2008. All three women are prominent activists especially for prisoners rights and have been involved in prisoner hunger strikes.
Palestinians living in the West Bank are rarely granted permits to travel to ’48, nor to Gaza – in practical terms this means that they cannot reach the coast, the capital Jerusalem or the many remaining Palestinian cities in what is now referred to as Israel. The Apartheid Wall, illegally built, separating the West Bank from ’48, means that families and friends are divided. Many who want to visit the land lost by Palestinians who were expelled during the Nakba, or ‘catastrophe’, in 1948 are regularly denied and thus sometimes choose to travel without permission from the occupying Israeli authorities. The denial of permits is especially strict against those who are political activists and males aged 12- 35 – for these groups it is almost impossible to gain permission to travel freely in historic Palestine.
Ex-political prisoners, human rights defenders and those resisting the occupation are regularly targeted by the Israeli authorities and military for bureaucratic denial of permits, harassment, attacks and arrests.
You can take action demanding the immediate release of Linan, Leena and Myassar here.
Egyptian army kills journalist, wounds another
Middle East Monitor | August 20, 2013
Security sources said that Egyptian security forces killed a senior editor in state Al-Ahram newspaper Tamer abdul-Ra’ouf at a military checkpoint near the city of Damanhour on Monday night.
The sources said that the security forces shot fire at Abdul-Ra’ouf and Hamid al-Barbari, the correspondent of Al-Jomhoriyya newspaper; state newspaper, too. Abdul-Ra’of immediately died and Al-Barbari sustained serious injuries.
In a statement on its Facebook page, the Egyptian army said that the journalists’ car casted doubts as the journalists were driving very fast during the night curfew. The statement said that the journalists did not respond to the army’s calls or warning shots to stop.
“There was no exaggerated use of fire shooting or intended killing,” the statement, which called for people to commit to the curfew, said.
Egyptian Interim government has imposed curfew in wake of bloody dispersal of two major sit-ins for pro-Morsi supporters in Cairo. More than one thousand Egyptians killed and couples of thousands injured.
Arab Organisation for Human Right in the UK said that “arbitrary” killings in Egypt against protesters calling for the end of the military coup in Egypt.
Egyptian journalist slapped with 4-day detention after surviving army shooting
Egyptian Journalist who was injured after army forces opened fired on him and killed his colleague is accused of possessing unlicensed weapons
Ahram Online | August 21, 2013
Damanhour prosecution ordered late Tuesday the detention of Al-Gomhoreya journalist Hamed El-Barbary, who had survived an army shooting a day earlier, for four days pending investigation after being charged with possessing weapons.
Tamer Abdel-Raouf, Bureau chief of Al-Ahram newspaper in Beheira, was shot dead on Monday evening while driving his car a few hours after the beginning of the state-imposed curfew at 7pm. El-Barbary, who was in the same car, got injured.
After he was hospitalised, El-Barbary testified that army forces at a checkpoint located south of Damanhour, northern Beheira governorate, fired at the car after ordering the driver, Abdel-Raouf, not to pass through. He said Abdel-Raouf complied but forces shot him anyway.
Earlier, Egyptian Armed Forces Spokesman Colonel Ahmed Ali said the forces did not intend to kill them.
In his statement, Ali said that the passengers “breached the curfew, drove quickly towards the security checkpoint and did not comply with calls to stop or warning shots fired in the air.”
He added that the car did not stop for the forces to know the identity of its passengers.
On 14 August, Egypt’s interim Cabinet re-introduced a state of emergency, which includes a daily curfew starting at 7pm until 6am in 14 governorates. This came amid recurrent clashes across the nation between security forces and supporters of deposed president Mohamed Morsi.
Journalists and media personnel are officially exempt from the curfew.
Venezuela Withdraws Its Ambassador from Egypt
Telesur | August 16, 2013
Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro announced today that he will withdraw the country’s ambassador from Egypt because of the conflict there and confrontations between supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood and the defacto government, which has seen over 700 people killed.
“We have witnessed a blood bath in Egypt…We warned that the coup against Morsi was unconstitutional. Morsi was kidnapped and the responsible party for what is occuring in Egypt is the empire, which has its hands in it,” said the head of state.
He assured that, “The United States doesn’t have friends, it has interests, and what it wants is to control the planet”.
Maduro reiterated that, “We are against a blood bath in Egypt, it is a set-back that is going to cost a lot to our brothers, the Arabic people”.
He called on the Venezuelan people to be alert. “We can’t allow the hands of imperialism to enter Venezuela, we have to be the guarantee of independence,” he stressed.
The original article has been abridged. Translation by Tamara Pearson for Venezuelanalysis.com
Israeli soldiers violently attack and arrest peaceful protesters in Beit Ummar
International Solidarity Movement | August 17, 2013
Beit Ummar, Occupied Palestine – Yesterday, the 16th August, four people were violently arrested at a peaceful demonstration taking place near the village of Al-Masara, on the outskirts of Hebron(Al Khalil). Around sixty demonstrators calling for the dismantlement of illegal Israeli settlements upon Palestinian land were attacked and the protest was disbanded by Israeli soldiers within minutes.
At around 11.30am the procession began, with many people waving flags and calling chants for freedom. An Israeli military vehicle drove by, immediately turned around and blocked the road. Within two minutes two more military jeeps and one police car had joined the blockade. Heavily armed soldiers stormed the procession, splitting the group into two and beating protesters to the ground. The soldiers pushed protesters back and formed a wall of plastic shields. Four men including two Palestinian and two international protesters were arrested.
One of the arrested men, Abed, was holding a camera and documenting the demonstration when he was violently grabbed and pushed by an Israel soldier. Abed shouted at the soldier to let go of his arm and tried to pull away from the soldiers grasp. The soldier responded by strangling and arresting him. Another protester, Muad Al-lahham, was arrested while calmly waving a Palestinian flag.
Local Palestinians are incensed by the continuous settlement expansion and subsequent annexation of their land that deliberately prevents farmers from harvesting their crops. This disabling act of aggression has led to local Palestinian families being financially crippled. As an act of resistance, the local people regularly hold peaceful demonstrations that are consistently met with force from the Israeli occupation. These acts, usually held on Friday – Juma’a – often use symbolism to convey their message. Two weeks ago the locals erected a tent on occupied Palestinian land, as a mark of resistance to the Israeli settlements.
Palestinians here are used to being arrested at their demonstrations. Yesterday, Mahmoud from Al-Masara had his permit taken from him, which is indicative of imminent arrest. For Mahmoud, this is routine and he calmly smoked a cigarette while soldiers decided his fate. Mahmoud was allowed to maintain his freedom, but he never knows when an arrest may come. Asked why he continues to protest he said: “Our goal is to live in peace and to have our freedom like anybody else in the world. Israelis have occupied Palestine, but they can never occupy our minds.”
The majority of protesters came from the villages of Beit Ummar and Al-Masara, which are both affected by Highway 60, built by Israeli authorities. The highway cuts through the villages, dividing people from their farm lands. As well as this, the inhabitants of the Israeli settlement of Kami Tzur that is close to the villages use intimidation and force in attempt to prevent the farmers harvesting their crops. The force used by the Israeli army at yesterday’s protest demonstrates the intolerance toward peaceful protesters who make a stand against this injustice.
Related articles
- PCHR Weekly Report: 1 killed, 2 wounded, 60 abducted by Israeli troops in last two weeks (imemc.org)
- AL MASARA: Israel suppresses weekly demonstration, arrests journalist 17Aug13 | Australians for Palestine (ramyabdeljabbar.wordpress.com)
- Palestinian youth abducted in Beit Ummar by Israeli occupation forces (ramyabdeljabbar.wordpress.com)



