CPTnet
17 June 2007
HEBRON UPDATE: 24 May- 31 May 2007
During this time, the Hebron team included Jan Benvie, Jill Granberg, Joel
Gulledge, Eileen Hanson, Esther Kern, Ilse Meuhlsteph, Carol Rose, Mary
Scott Boria, Mary Wendeln and Mary Yoder.
Thursday, 24 May 2007
Joel Gulledge and Eileen Hanson met a group from Friends of Sabeel near the
Gutnick Center. Several members of the group visited the Ibrahimi Mosque.
The others, including two American Jewish women, waited with Hanson and
Gulledge down the hill between the mosque and Gutnick Center. A Border
Policeman came and told the group to move to the other side of the gate that
blocks the road and separates access to the mosque and synagogue entrances.
When asked why the group had to move, he responded "They are Jews,"
motioning toward the women.
Hanson replied that they were Americans, and entitled to be on the street
there. He continued to insist that they move. Hanson went to talk with the
commander, who was sitting at one of the shops along Shuhada Street.
Gulledge remained there with the group. Carol Rose and Ilse Meuhlsteph soon
arrived. Meuhlsteph asked, in Arabic, for an explanation from the Border
Policeman. Rose and Hanson attempted, unsuccessfully, to contact the US
consulate to clarify freedom of access for American visitors in Hebron.
Meanwhile, the rest of the group came out from the mosque and the entire
group walked with Hanson and Gulledge along Shuhada Street, past Beit
Hadassah settlement and through the Dubboya Street checkpoint. Soldiers did
not allow the Palestinian guide with the group through the checkpoint.
Hanson accompanied him and two others from the group, back along Shuhada
Street and entered the Old City through the mosque checkpoint
Jan Benvie gave the group a roof tour. Benvie and Esther Kern then escorted
them through the souq and out through the mosque checkpoint with no
problems.
When Benvie and Kern returned to the mosque gate about ten minutes later,
the large iron gate leading to the souq was closed and padlocked. Half a
dozen Palestinians were on the souq side waiting to exit the Old City. Four
members of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH) were on the
mosque side with the CPTers. Soon, a border policeman came with a key,
unlocked the padlock and opened the gate. He allowed TIPH to pass into the
Old City, which they did, but refused to allow any Palestinians to pass.
The Border Policeman yelled at the CPTers to go through as well. Benvie
asked him to let the Palestinians pass through. Benvie and Kern waited to
see that Border Police would allow the Palestinians through.
Rose and Wendeln participated in the Palestine Popular Committee action
campaigning for the opening of Dubboya Street.
Later in the day, Benvie and Rose returned to the mosque checkpoint to see
if the gate was still open. They proceeded down to the checkpoint beside
the Gutnick Center and saw a Border Policeman grabbing a young Palestinian
male around the neck and pushing him up against the wall. The young man was
crying out in pain. Gulledge and Kern arrived to photograph the soldier
searching the man. Later, Rose noticed what looked like blood on the young
man's face. Meanwhile a male settler approached them, talked to the soldiers
and started videotaping Benvie, Gulledge, Kern and Rose.
Friday 25th May
Rose, Scott Boria, and Wendeln observed that Border Police had detained some
Palestinian men for more than twenty minutes after mid-day prayers. Some of
CPTers engaged in a conversation with a Jewish settler near the Gutnick
Center. Meanwhile, another Jewish settler arrived and called Scott Boria
and Wendeln "Jew haters."
During an afternoon patrol, Hanson and Kern noticed that Border Police were
holding some men at the mosque checkpoint. They went to speak with one of
the men, to ask how long they had been there. An Israeli Border Policeman
told the CPTers to leave. He said there was a new rule stipulating that CPT
was not allowed to stand near the checkpoint. He told Hanson and Kern that
if CPT did not leave, the gate at the checkpoint would be closed. Hanson
and Kern left, planning to come back later.
About 4:30 p.m., Benvie and Hanson returned to the mosque checkpoint. The
same border policeman told Benvie and Hanson to leave the area. The Border
Policeman looked at Hanson and said "I told you before that you cannot stand
here," and repeated his threat to lock the gate. Benvie asked him to
clarify what he was saying. He replied, "If you do not move, I will lock
the gates and not let any Palestinians through." Benvie asked him if he
meant that he would punish the Palestinians if she did not move. "I will
not be punishing them," he said, "you will be punishing them." Benvie then
asked if he was aware that locking the gate constituted collective
punishment, which is illegal under the Geneva Conventions. He responded
that he was not familiar with the Geneva Conventions.
Saturday, 26 May 2007
Wendeln went to Qurtuba School to assist EAPPI with school patrol. They
again faced some harassment from the Israeli police (see HEBRON UPDATE:
15-23 May 2007.)
Sunday, 27 May 2007
In the morning, Mary Wendeln and Eileen Hanson went to the Kiryat Arba
Police Station to testify about events that took place on 27 April 2007 in
the village of Al-Buweib, when settlers had attacked at least one
Palestinian, an Israeli peace activist and a member of Operation Dove.
Monday, 28 May 2007
During morning school patrol, Benvie observed soldiers detaining a teacher
from the Ibrahimi School at the checkpoint beside the Gutnick Center. All
teachers have a special certificate indicating their status that they carry
in addition to their ID. This certificate is intended to ensure that
soldiers will not hold teachers at checkpoints while coming and going from
school. Benvie explained to the Border Police that the man was a teacher
and should be allowed to pass. However, the Border Police detained him
another seven minutes.
About noon, the team learned from Atta Jaber that bulldozers were preparing
to demolish homes in the Beqa'a valley. Hanson and Kern responded. (See 30
May 2007 CPTnet release: "Two homes demolished in Beqa'a Valley by Israeli
military.")
Tuesday 29 May 2007
During morning school patrol, Benvie observed the same teacher from the
Ibrahimi School detained at the same checkpoint near the Gutnick Center (see
28 May entry.) By the time Benvie approached and spoke with the teacher,
the Border Police were returning his ID. The teacher told Benvie they had
held him for ten minutes.
An Israeli Border Policeman again told Benvie and Hanson that they could not
stand in the street near the Ibrahimi mosque checkpoint.
At 12:30 p.m., Benvie discovered that the Israeli Border Police had closed
the large metal gate at the checkpoint from the souq to the Ibrahimi Mosque.
Palestinians could enter the souq, but could not exit toward the Mosque. A
Palestinian teacher told Benvie that the Israeli military were "repairing
the turnstile gates." At 12:40 p.m., Benvie heard the call to prayer and
noted that about thirty-five to forty men and women were waiting. The
Israeli military did not open a nearby alternative gate.
Hanson led a tour of Hebron for the advisory board of Tantur Ecumenical
Institute.
Wednesday 30 May, 2007
On morning school patrol, Israeli Border Police again held another,
different, teacher from the Ibrahimi Boys School at the checkpoint near the
Gutnick Center. The teacher was held for half an hour despite his showing
his teacher's certificate.
Benvie led a tour of ten Germans visiting with the Palestinian peace group,
Library on Wheels, through the Old City. Four of the visitors wanted to
visit the synagogue at the Tomb of the Patriarchs. Benvie walked to the
steps of the synagogue to show the group where to enter. The Israeli border
police told Benvie "They can go, but you cannot go. You are CPT."
Thursday May 31, 2007
Granberg joined two International Solidarity Movement (ISM) volunteers in
accompanying members of a family as they harvested grass on a parcel of land
on Patriarch's Hill beside the Kiryat Arba settlement. The group harvested
grass for the family's goats from 10:00 a.m. until noon. Members of the
press, and six to ten Israeli soldiers were also present.
Several settlers passed by on a stairway that settlers have built illegally
on the family's land, which now connects the two settlements adjacent to the
family's home. One young settler woman threw tomatoes and eggs at the group
harvesting. Soldiers immediately stopped and detained her.
A male settler later ignored the soldiers' orders and entered the
Palestinian family's field to photograph those harvesting. After taking
photos, he left. Israeli Police arrived briefly and recorded the passport
details of all internationals present. Soldiers remained present until all
participants of the harvesting had finished and left the premises.
Hanson led a tour of people visiting with the Interfaith Peace Forum from
the US. The group also met with Zleekha Muhtaseb and heard about her work
with young children in the Old City.
Benvie and Muhtaseb went to a meeting organized by Save the Children.
Organizations working in Hebron's Old City each gave a short presentation
about their work. The main purpose of the meeting was to allow the
different groups to meet and learn about each other's work. A follow-up
meeting will focus on how these groups can work more closely together.
Hanson traveled to Bethlehem to meet the CPT delegation and offer
non-violence training in preparation for joining an action on Friday morning
along the route of the Separation Wall.
_______________
To stop receiving messages from CPTNET on MennoLink, do NOT hit reply. Send
a message with only the word, "suspend," in the body to
server@MennoLink.org.
Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) seeks to enlist the whole church in
organized, nonviolent alternatives to war and places teams of trained
peacemakers in regions of lethal conflict. Originally a violence-reduction
initiative of the historic peace churches (Mennonite, Church of the Brethren
and Quaker), CPT now enjoys support and membership from a wide range of
Christian denominations.
To ask questions or express concerns, criticisms and affirmations send
messages to peacemakers@cpt.org.
To receive news or discussion of CPT issues by e-mail, fill out the form
found on our WEB page at http://www.cpt.org/subscribe.php
Donate to CPT on-line with your credit card! Go to
http://cpt.org/donate.php and click the DONATE button to make a
contribution through Network for Good, a secure way to help support CPT.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Jul 03 2007 - 09:11:39 EDT