CPTnet
November 24, 2003
HEBRON UPDATE: November 6 -November 12

Thursday, November 6
No curfew

The Team hosted a group of twenty-one visitors from Britain, showing them
around the Old City and explaining CPT's work to them.

Friday, November 7
No curfew

At 11am while Palestinians prepared to pray at the Ibrahimi Mosque/Cave of
Machpelah, Israeli settlers tried to come up to the Palestinian side of the
mosque and give Israeli police and soldiers food and drink. Israeli police
stopped them.

CPTers Gary Brooks, Chris Brown, Bob Holmes and Greg Rollins went to observe
outside the Ibrahimi Mosque at noon, because large crowds were expected for
Friday prayers.

There was such a large crowd at the mosque gate that the CPTers could not
get through. Brooks and Brown went back to try another gate. When
they reached the gate a soldier pointed his weapon at them and told then the
gate was closed. Brooks and Brown went to a friend's house where they
observed the crowds from the roof, while Holmes and Rollins observed from in
front of the mosque. No disturbances occurred.

Saturday, November 8
No curfew

Brooks, Brown, Holmes, Mary Lawrence and Rollins went to the Palestinian
village of Sawahre, in East Jerusalem and joined Palestinians, Israelis, and
other internationals in a demonstration against the separation wall that the
Israeli government is building. About 600-700 people attended.

Monday November 10
No curfew

Holmes, Brown and Brooks picked olives with a Palestinian family living near
the settlement of Tel Rumeida. In the past soldiers and settlers have
prevented family members from harvesting their olives.

Bourke Kennedy and Lawrence hosted three visitors from England. As they were
walking up to Bab iZawiyyeh, they noticed an Israeli military jeep parked at
the end of one of the lanes leading to Old Shalala Street. They walked down
to see why it was there and found Rollins already there. A large army
bulldozer was backing down the street towards the intersection. Two
Palestinian women were standing in the lane trying to go home, but the
soldiers were making them wait.

 Lawrence and Rollins talked to a young soldier. He told them that the army
was constructing an awning along Old Shalala Street because the Israeli
settlers in Beit Hadassah settlement kept throwing stones down onto the
Palestinians in the street. (The Israeli army has kept the street closed
for months. Metal gates on both ends of the street have kept Palestinians
from entering.) The soldier said that he was sorry that he could not explain
this to the Palestinian women in their own language. Lawrence said that she
would get someone to explain it in Arabic to them.

The soldier nodded, "I know they hate me," he said. "They think I am a
monster." "You are not a monster," Lawrence told him. "You are a human being
caught up in an inhuman situation. You must try to keep doing the most human
thing you can."

Later in the afternoon Rollins and Holmes observed an army cement truck at
Beit Romano checkpoint. It appeared that the soldiers intended to fill oil
drums with concrete as part of the construction on Old Shalala Street. The
metal gates at the entrance to the street were open. Several Israeli settler
women (some carrying babies) came and sat down on the ground in front of the
opened gates to prevent the cement truck from backing up into the street.
Young settler men gathered at the checkpoint in front of an Israeli army
bulldozer which had been positioned across the road to restrict access to
Old HEBRON UPDATE: November 6 -November 12

Thursday, November 6
No curfew

The Team hosted a group of twenty-one visitors from Britain, showing them
around the Old City and explaining CPT's work to them.

Friday, November 7
No curfew

At 11am while Palestinians prepared to pray at the Ibrahimi Mosque/Cave of
Machpelah, Israeli settlers tried to come up to the Palestinian side of the
mosque and give Israeli police and soldiers food and drink. Israeli police
stopped them.

CPTers Gary Brooks, Chris Brown, Bob Holmes and Greg Rollins went to observe
outside the Ibrahimi Mosque at noon, because large crowds were expected for
Friday prayers.

There was such a large crowd at the mosque gate that the CPTers could not
get through. Brooks and Brown went back to try another gate. When
they reached the gate a soldier pointed his weapon at them and told then the
gate was closed. Brooks and Brown went to a friend's house where they
observed the crowds from the roof, while Holmes and Rollins observed from in
front of the mosque. No disturbances occurred.

Saturday, November 8
No curfew

Brooks, Brown, Holmes, Mary Lawrence and Rollins went to the Palestinian
village of Sawahre, in East Jerusalem and joined Palestinians, Israelis, and
other internationals in a demonstration against the separation wall that the
Israeli government is building. About 600-700 people attended.

Monday November 10
No curfew

Holmes, Brown and Brooks picked olives with a Palestinian family living near
the settlement of Tel Rumeida. In the past soldiers and settlers have
prevented family members from harvesting their olives.

Bourke Kennedy and Lawrence hosted three visitors from England. As they were
walking up to Bab iZawiyyeh, they noticed an Israeli military jeep parked at
the end of one of the lanes leading to Old Shalala Street. They walked down
to see why it was there and found Rollins already there. A large army
bulldozer was backing down the street towards the intersection. Two
Palestinian women were standing in the lane trying to go home, but the
soldiers were making them wait.

 Lawrence and Rollins talked to a young soldier. He told them that the army
was constructing an awning along Old Shalala Street because the Israeli
settlers in Beit Hadassah settlement kept throwing stones down onto the
Palestinians in the street. (The Israeli army has kept the street closed
for months. Metal gates on both ends of the street have kept Palestinians
from entering.) The soldier said that he was sorry that he could not explain
this to the Palestinian women in their own language. Lawrence said that she
would get someone to explain it in Arabic to them.

The soldier nodded, "I know they hate me," he said. "They think I am a
monster." "You are not a monster," Lawrence told him. "You are a human being
caught up in an inhuman situatio