Stop the Wall repression update: Feb. 24 – Mar. 09
Part I: Testimony
The following is testimony from a community leader in al Nabi Saleh. On 3 March 2011 he spoke about the repression of the Friday demonstrations and the targeting of youth in the village.
They (the army) come to arrest the kids; they were coming and taking pictures of them (the youth) at night, and then they began to arrest them. Every week they enter al Nabi Saleh one or two nights. There are sentries, and the youth do not sleep during the night. […]
My brother’s house has been targeted more than once, because his son was wanted by the army. […] Finally, his son couldn’t take it anymore and [returned to sleep at home, saying] ‘if they take me, they take me.’ He had slept for 15 days outside the home. Immediately the army came and arrested him.
The targeting of youth is not limited to al Nabi Saleh. During a recent interview, an activist from the village of Bil’in explained how the village youth had been targeted in the past:
“In the beginning of the demonstrations, they were raiding the village and trying to put a curfew on the village, damage the homes, and harass the children and terrify them. There were a lot of psychological issues, and a lot of the children were terrorized. It affected the kids psychologically […]
“Raids happen from time to time. Currently, we are facing raid and arrest operations, with army intentionally trying to raid the homes with children between the ages of 14 – 16. They are trying to make them to give confessions, and they are putting pressure on them. [These youth] participate in the demonstrations. The main thing they target is getting them to confess on the other youth.
Part II: Analysis
Over the past two weeks, Occupation forces arrested two human rights defenders, one in Hebron and the other in al Nabi Saleh, and continued night raids in the village of Beit Ummar.
On March 6, Occupation forces arrested Naji Tamimi, the coordinator of the popular committee in al Nabi Saleh from his home. According to statements from local sources, Occupation forces entered the village on foot, followed by three military vehicles. At 3:00 AM, they raided the house of Naji Tamimi where they arrested him. Soldiers also raided the house of another popular committee leader, but did not find him in his home.
This escalation and targeting of popular committee members in al Nabi Saleh comes after several months of raids and arrests of village youth. In other villages, such as Bil’in and Ni’lin, Occupation forces have targeted youth with the aim to extracting confessions and fabricating charges against local organizers. It is possible that Occupation forces are employing a similar strategy against al Nabi Saleh in an effort to jail organizers and weaken the weekly mobilization.
On March 1, another human rights defender was arrested in Hebron. Popular resistance activist Issa Ismail Amro, 30, was called for interrogation at the Israeli police station near Kiryat Arba. Amro went to the police station at 5:00 PM. He was questioned, and then transferred to Kafar Asiyun Military Detention Center.
Amro is an activist in the organization Youth Against Settlements, a non-partisan youth organization active in non-violent popular resistance against settlement activity. He has been arrested a number of times during the last year by the occupation authorities, who tried to invent accusations against him.
In addition to the arrest of Naji, there were several more arrests in al Nabi Saleh. Furthermore, as has been the case for the past months, Beit Ummar continued to be subjected to night raids, and on 4 March another four were arrested
Part III: Statistics
Serious injuries: 1
Arrests: 9
Arrests of HRDs, Youth and Minors
1. Mohammed Abdalmadi Sabri al Khatib
Place: Al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of arrest: 25 February 2011
Circumstances: Mohammed was returning home and found himself by chance in an area where clashes were occurring. He was forced to get out of the bus because soldiers had closed the road leading to his village, and was passing al Nabi Saleh on foot when he was arrested.
2. Mohammed Ibrahim Tamimi (14)
Place: Al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of arrest: 27 February 2011
Circumstances: Arrested during early morning raid on the village.
3. Naji Tamimi (47)
Place: Al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of arrest: 06 March 2011
Circumstances: According to statements from local sources, Occupation forces entered the village on foot, followed by three military vehicles. At 3:00 AM, they raided the house of Naji Tamimi where they arrested him. Soldiers also raided the house of another popular committee leader, but did not find him in his home.
4. Mahmoud Ramadan al Ja'bari (20)
Place: Hebron
Date of arrest: 25 February 2011
Circumstances: Mahmoud was arrested during a Friday demonstration calling for the opening of Shuhada Street in Hebron.
5. Issa Ismail Amro (30)
Place: Hebron
Date of arrest: 01 March 2011
Circumstances: Before his arrest, Amro said an Israeli police officer phoned him in the afternoon to come in for questioning at the police station as soon as possible. The officer threatened to raid his house that night if he did not appear for questioning.
Amro went to the police station at 5:00 PM. He was questioned, and then transferred to Kafar Asiyun Military Detention Center.
Amro is an activist in the organization Youth Against Settlements, a non-partisan youth organization active in non-violent popular resistance against settlement activity. He has been arrested a number of times during the last year by the occupation authorities, who tried to invent accusations against him.
6. Omar Mohammed 'Awadh (20), Khalil Mohammed 'Awadh (18) , Eihab 'Omar 'Awadh (16), and Sami 'Aamer Abu Warda (14)
Place: Beit Ummar (Hebron district)
Date of arrests: 08 March 2011
Circumstances: According to PCHR, at 1:30 in the morning Occupation forces raided a number of houses and arrested four Palestinians.
Violence against HRDs, Youth and Minors
1. Qassem Barakat al Khatib (17)
Place: Bil’in (Ramllah district)
Date of injury: 25 February 2011
Circumstances: Lightly injured after being hit with a tear gas canister during the Friday demonstration.
2. Asem Bisman Yasin
Place: Bil’in (Ramllah district)
Date of injury: 04 March 2011
Circumstances: Lightly injured after being hit with a rubber bullet in the leg during the Friday demonstration.
3. Abdul Hafiz Mohammed Tamimi (50)
Place: al Nabi Saleh (Ramllah district)
Date of injury: 25 February 2011
Circumstances: Injured and hospitalized after being shot in the head with a rubber-coated steel bullet. Treated in Salfit hospital.
4. Nidal Hussein Tamimi (22) and Ahmed Tamimi
Place: al Nabi Saleh (Ramllah district)
Date of injuries: 25 February 2011
Circumstances: Nidal was injured after being shot in the head with a rubber-coated steel bullet, and Ahmed was lightly hurt after being hit by a tear gas canister in the leg.
5. Mustafa Abdul Rizq Tamimi (28), Bassem Mohammed Abdalrahman, Helmi Tamimi (30)
Place: al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of injuries: 04 March 2011
Circumstances: Mustafa was hit in the leg by a tear gas canister during the Friday demonstration. Helmi was also injured in the same manner, while Bassem was lightly hurt after being hit in the back with a tear gas canister.
6. Nassar Abu Maizer (23), 'Odai Sa'id Nasser (18), and Hussam 'Abbdin (50)
Place: Hebron
Date of injuries: 25 February 2011
Circumstances: All three were lightly injured during a protest in the city to open Shuhada street. Nassar was hit by a rubber-coated bullet to the leg, 'Odai in the arm, and Hussam in the leg.
7. Mohammed 'Ayad 'Awadh (48) and Yousef 'Abdul Hamid Abu Maria (37)
Place: Beit Ummar (Hebron district)
Date of injuries: 05 March 2011
Circumstances: According to PCHR, Mohammed sustained bruises throughout the body and a fracture to the nose while Yousef sustained bruises and a cut to the left leg during the Saturday demonstration in Beit Ummar.