CPTnet
23 December 2006
HEBRON UPDATE: 3-16 December 2006
On team during this period were Kathie Uhler, Jerry Levin, John Lynes,
Sally Britton, Cathy McLean, Art Gish, and Amy Peters, Dianne Roe, and
Bill Baldwin.
Tuesday, 5 December
John Lynes conducted a tour of the Old City. At the Gate 4/5 checkpoint,
an Israeli soldier telephoned for instructions before permitting them to
enter Shuhada Street. The permission was granted this time with the
understanding that the visitors were "part of CPT." In the past, the
Israeli military has not granted permission to people visiting the team
who were not "part of CPT."
Atta Jaber visited the team. He said that he had hoped to make 25,000 NIS
(approximately $5,900) on his tomatoes crop this year; but he said that he
will do much less than that because of Israeli Army restrictions that made
it difficult for him to get the produce to market.
Wednesday, 6 December
Amy Peters, Cathy McLean, Art Gish, Kathie Uhler, and Lynes, along with a
translator met with the principal of the Ibrahimi Boys School, They
discussed their concern with stone throwing by his students after school
on the Jewish Sabbath. The principal said that in addition to CPT's
morning patrol, its presence at noon would help to discourage that. He
said that teachers to help minimize the possibility are dismissing their
classes according to a staggered schedule so that fewer boys are on the
street at the same time. They agreed that CPT would meet with the
Principal to talk further about school patrols. On the way back from the
meeting, the team encountered the principal of the nearby Al-Fahaa'a
Girls' School who also said she would like such a meeting.
Jerry Levin, Amy Peters, and Art Gish walked up Shuhada Street and talked
with settlers in front of Beit Hadassah.
Thursday, 7 December
Gish attempted to attend morning prayers at the Ibrahimi Mosque. Israeli
soldiers denied him entry, saying, "You are not Muslim."
They threatened to arrest Gish if he did not leave. Gish refused to leave
and challenged them to arrest him. After talking with some mosque
officials, the soldiers allowed Gish to enter the mosque.
Lynes, McLean and Uhler visited the Faraz Jaber family, whose home the
Israeli military demolished on 29 November. This was the second time the
family had their house demolished. A cousin told the story of family
travails stretching back to 1982, when the Israelis sentenced Faraz and
her father to life in prison for allegedly heading an organization that
carried out bombings against Israel.
Another of her brothers and an uncle were also imprisoned recently. Her
father and brother are in the same cell in the Ramle prison in Israel. She
and her mother can visit them once a month.
At 9:30 p.m., a young Palestinian boy came with two friends to ask for
help. He said soldiers were beating a man near the boy's home located
along the street through the souq (market) leading to the Ibrahimi
Mosque. The man's family was watching and crying helplessly. Lynes and
Uhler found the family, ten Israeli soldiers and several Israeli policemen
and a police jeep at Gates 4/5. To find out what was happening, the CPTers
called a translator friend who over the phone found out from the man that
the man had challenged the soldiers angrily when they searched his house,
because they wanted to herd the family into one room while they conducted
the search. After about fifteen minutes of the family pleading with the
soldiers, they released the man.
Friday, 8 December
Lynes, Peters, and Uhler and other internationals visited a family in a
nearby village. The rubble of their first home demolished in 2002 is still
visible. A huge dirt barrier divides the community in half. Through it
runs a major Israeli by-pass highway. The family says that the barrier had
achieved its size because each time the Palestinians plowed through it,
the Israelis made it bigger.
Saturday, 9 December
Gish, Lynes and Peters on patrol along Worshippers Way talked with a
fifty-year-old settler in car who stopped for a chat. He said that CPT has
misrepresented the situation in the West Bank. When asked to elaborate, he
said that CPT gives legitimacy to Palestinian identity. "They are not
Palestinians. They are Arabs," he said. "There never were Palestinian
people."
Gish, Lynes and Peters did noon school patrol in Shuhada Street and
engaged in a debate with a group of about twenty Jewish visitors mostly
from America and Australia. Later in the afternoon, Gish and Lynes met an
Israeli tour group being going through the souq. This group included many
of the visitors whom they had met in the morning. But this time they were
more hostile and refused to talk peacefully.
In the afternoon, McLean and two visitors at the Beit Romano checkpoint
found soldiers detaining Palestinians while ultra-orthodox American Jews
strolled through the area at their leisure.
Monday, 11 December 2006
Lynes, Dianne Roe and Art Gish met with the principals of the Ibrahimi
Boys' School and the Al-Fahaa'a Girls' School to discuss school patrol.
The principals expressed appreciation for our presence and said they often
tell students about CPT. They tell students to turn to CPTers if they have
problems with soldiers and settlers.
In team meeting, the team decided to talk with the police about the
problems from settlers, check with TIPH about their commitment to school
patrol and raised the possibility of inviting Israelis to come help with
patrols on Shabbat.
Tuesday, 12 December 2006
During morning school patrol, a settler woman hit a Palestinian boy with
her car at the corner near Yatta Road checkpoint. The settler woman
immediately made a phone call and within minutes about four other
settlers arrived, including a heavily armed settler security guard.
Extra soldiers and police arrived. The teachers kept the other school
children moving, and the soldiers and settlers caused no trouble. The boy
who was hit did not seem to be hurt. Three women from Machsoum Watch (an
Israeli group that monitors soldier behavior at checkpoints) also arrived
on scene and found out that there was to be a meeting at noon between
police and soldiers to talk about the dangerous traffic situation here.
CPTers have observed settlers driving very fast on crowded streets.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
John Lynes went to a Peace Team Forum meeting in Ramallah.
In the afternoon, Roe and Uhler visited a Palestinian nonviolent activist.
He told them of plans for upcoming projects of Sons of Abraham, an
organization of Israelis and Palestinians, as well as internationals in
Hebron.
Thursday, 14 December 2006
During morning school patrol, Anat Cohen (an Israeli settler who has
previously instigated confrontations) arrived at the Ibrahimi Boys' School
and began yelling at the students. Teachers moved students inside while
Cohen confronted anyone nearby. Lynes, Roe and Levin arrived on scene.
Anat tried to take Levin's camera when he began photographing, then moved
towards Roe who was videotaping. Levin stepped between the two women.
The school principal arrived late after soldiers held her at a checkpoint.
Anat told the police that a student had thrown a stone at her car;
therefore, they should arrest the principal because he is responsible for
the students' behavior. The police took the principal away for
questioning and released him after three hours.
Soldiers stopped Roe, Uhler and Peters as they walked down Shuhada Street.
When told CPT was not allowed to pass, Dianne asked the soldiers who was
allowed. They replied that only Israeli soldiers, members of the Jewish
Community (the Hebron settlers), and guests of the Jewish Community were
allowed to pass. The soldiers denied taking orders from the settlers and
said their orders came from the commander. They did not have a written
military order because they are not police. They refused to let CPT pass,
but said they would try to have a written order next time.
Levin went to the Ibrahimi Mosque with our translator who introduced him
to a female member of the Border Police. She is an Israeli Palestinian
Christian from Haifa and was on duty at the entrance to the Mosque. Levin
asked her if it felt strange to work at the Mosque and check Muslims
coming to the Mosque to pray. She replied, "No. It is my job." She
informed him that there are very few Christian women in the Border Police
and that she is the only one who speaks Arabic.
Friday 15 December
Peters and Roe joined an Israeli tour group (part of Breaking the Silence/
Sons of Abraham) at the home of a Palestinian friend. They watched videos
there and were able to walk down Shuhada Street unquestioned with the group.
Saturday 16 December
On morning school patrol, Levin and Lynes witnessed a Border Police Guard
shouting loudly at an elderly Palestinian woman walking past the Gutnick
Center. When Levin began taking pictures, the soldier yelled, "No
pictures!" Levin responded, "You know I can take pictures. There is no
regulation or law that says I can't." The soldier left the woman and
approached the CPTers. When Levin repeated that there was no law against
taking pictures, the guard suddenly smiled and said, "You can take
pictures." At this, Levin apologized for not hearing the soldier right
and thanked him for being so accommodating.
Levin and Lynes also interacted with a soldier at the Shuhada Street
checkpoint between the Gutnick Center and Gates 4/5 a few minutes later.
The CPTers explained about CPT's violence reduction work without guns and
received a positive response from the soldier.
Peters and Lynes went up Worshippers' Way (Haret il Jaber) and noted that
Palestinians were walking down Worshipper's Way, in spite of the fact that
many Israelis walk that route during the Sabbath.
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