CPTnet
6 May 2005
HEBRON: Settler riots stop diplomatic tour; Army declares tour area closed
military zone
by Dianne Roe with David Janzen and Kathie Uhler
Thursday morning, 6 May, while preparing to join a diplomatic tour of Tel
Rumeida, organized by Hebron Rehabilitation Committee (HRC),* members of
Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) learned of intense Israeli settler activity
near Qurtuba School at the base of Tel Rumeida.
The night before, Israeli settlers had vandalized Palestinian homes on Tel
Rumeida. Dianne Roe and Kathie Uhler left for the school and Duboyya Street
area to look at the situation and to try to visit Dr. Tayseer Zeahda, owner
of one of the vandalized homes.
As Roe and Uhler arrived at the school, about ten teenaged Israeli settler
girls told them to leave "their street." When the CPTers said they were
staying to accompany the Qurtuba students, the settlers began attacking the
CPTers, yelling insults, pushing, shoving, kicking and spitting. Israeli
soldiers stood by watching and laughing until Uhler called over for their
help. Roe phoned the Israeli civilian police and the CPT office for TIPH (a
monitoring group.) Kristin Andersen at the CPT office called Roe back and
said that TIPH was monitoring another situation further up on Tel Rumeida,
where Israeli settlers were also threatening local Palestinian residents,
and the approaching diplomatic tour.
The CPTers held firm about staying to accompany the Palestinian school
children. With EAPPI (Ecumenical Accompaniment Program in Israel and
Palestine), they walked the girls up the hill going by the Duboyya Street
checkpoint. At the checkpoint, a soldier pointed at Roe's red cap and said,
"CPT STOP! This is a closed military zone."
Meanwhile CPTers Bill Baldwin, Sally Britton, David Janzen, and Grace
Pleiman joined the HRC diplomatic tour--which included representatives from
the consulates of South Africa, France, Switzerland, Ireland, and United
Kingdom--to tour the site of the proposed new Israeli settler road from Tel
Rumeida.
After a major delay the diplomats (but not the Palestinian nor some other
international participants) were allowed to pass, but the Israeli army
turned them back about fifteen minutes later, declaring the area a closed
military zone.
As the diplomats returned to the Tel Rumeida area, Dr. Zeahda, owner of the
vandalized home at Tel Rumeida, joined them. Dr. Zeahda told CPT that
the rioting settlers had broken his water pipe, cut his phone lines, and
stoned his home for several hours. He said that both Israeli soldiers and
Israeli police had facilitated the settler violence.
On the morning of 6 May, 2005 four members of CPT attempted to visit and
document the damage to the doctor's home. Soldiers told them that the area
was closed to CPT. Roe and Pleiman then went to the tea shop of Hani Abu
Haikel who lives on Tel Rumeida. "Even the soldiers are threatened by the
settlers" said Abu Haikel. "We do not know what will happen next."
Photos illustrating stories about Tel Rumeida may be viewed on
www.cpt.org/gallery. Click on "Hebron," then the "Tel Rumeida" album.
*For more information about Tel Rumeida, visit the HRC website:
www.hebronrc.org
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