Army Against Human Shielders, Joint Anti-Wall Demo

Army Against Human Shielders + Joint Anti-Wall Demo

GUSH SHALOM - pob 3322, Tel-Aviv 61033 - http://www.gush-shalom.org/

[a] Army decided to remove internationals
1) General Moshe Ya’alon's pronouncement on the radio
2) Implementation started
3) Who can help bail them out?
4) Where to protest

[b] 26/4 - Demo Against the Separation Wall - Tul Karm
1) Together Against the Walls of Annexation and Expropriation
2) A map of the separation wall at gush site + info about the protest tent at Mash'a

[a] Army decided to remove internationals

1) General Moshe Ya’alon's pronouncement on the radio

[Lt.-General Moshe Ya’alon, in the program “Open Line with the Chief of Staff” during which he spoke with soldiers and commanders about current events. The program’s presenter, Dalik Vilenitz, had asked him about the activists from human rights organization in the territories. The program was broadcast on the Ga’al ey Tzahal , April 16, 2003 at 08:00]

”First of all [nternational human rights activists] create the negative image we have, because it c ertainly strengthens the Palestinian story, which according to my understanding is fabricated in this conte xt. And as a result of this, they also impede the operations of our forces. (...) “I have just given an order to remove the organization’s activists from the area, firstly for thei r own benefit - they are endangering their own lives in a superfluous way - but are also creating provocations that inj ure our freedom of action on the ground. And so it’s advisable that they get out of the area.”

2) Implementation started

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: Huwaida Arraf
Date sent: Wed, 23 Apr 2003 03:33:03 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [palsolidarity] ISM Action Alert - ISM Coordinator and

Journalist Arrested

ISM ACTION ALERT

Arrest of another ISM coordinator and an Italian Journalist

Nur Shams Refugee Camp Tulkarem

ISM coordinator Osama Qashoo and an Italian journalist, Thomaso Besavi, were snatched yesterday, Tuesday April 22 at approximately 7:00pm, by Israeli soldiers while in the Palestinian refugee camp of Nur Shams, where the Israeli Army had surrounded the camp and were reportedly detaining a group of Palestinian women and beating a 15-year-old boy.

Osama and Thomaso both had cameras and were attempting to document Israeli military abuse of Palestinian civilians when they were threatened with arrest and then thrown into a military jeep. C ameras are a danger to the Israeli military image and various efforts have been made to restrict journalis t access to Palestinian areas and to keep out international peace and human rights workers. Recently, physic al and psychological harassment of internationals and journalists by the Israeli military has been dramatically increased. In the last month, American ISM volunteer Rachel Corrie was killed when she was run over by an Israeli military bulldozer, American ISM volunteer Brian Avery was shot in the face and will need to undergo a series of facial reconstructive surgeries, British ISM volunteer Tom Hurndall was shot in the head and is currently on life support, and Palestinian journalist Nazih Darawzeh was shot in th e head and killed, all while clearly identified as non-threatening, nonviolent, unarmed civilians.

Both Thomaso and Osama are currently being held at the police station of the illegal settlement of Ariel. Thomaso is threatened with deportation, while Osama, a Palestinian is in danger of abuse, long-term arrest and maybe even torture.

Please help us put pressure on the Israeli authorities to release both Thomaso and Osama . Call the Ariel police station to protest this abuse of human rights observers and journalists and to demand their

unconditional release. (Osama Qashoo - ID# 906848627)

+972-3-906-5530 (Prisoner information)

+972-3-903-5444 (General information)

+972-50-374-237 (Ariel police spokesman)

Please let us know that you called, by dropping as an email at info@palsolidarity.org and inform us of any information that you receive. For any additional information, please call Huwaida at +972-67-473-30 8.

3) Who can help bail them out?

Dorothy Naor just spoke to George Rishmawi regarding the arrest of the two men described by Huwaida below. The release of the two men will probably require a bond. Anyone willing to sign one, pleas e inform (immediately, if possible) Huwaida (phone number below) or George: 052 299 310; 054 351 399 george@rapprochement.org

4) Where to protest

Please convey your protest per phone, fax and/or email: The IDF's turning against the non-violent internationals shows its intentions: to be able to act un impeded and push Palestinians to ever more violence which will "justify" the aggression against the whole Palestinian population.

by phone:

IDF spokesperson Ruti Yaron 03-6080202/3/4
From abroad +972-2-5694558/9, +972-2-6245789/5268

by fax:

From Israel anaf tikshoret 03-6080312
From abroad: anaf tikshoret benleumit +972-2-5694256

Secretary of State Colin Powell Fax: +1-202-261-8577
Prime Minister Tony Blair, Fax +44-207-925-0918
European Union, Jerusalem, Fax: + 972- (0)2-532 6249

UN Special Coordinator, Gaza, Fax: +972-(0)8- 282-0966

per email: Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz sar@mod.gov.il Spokesperson Defense Ministry info@mail.idf.il

cc to:

"Secretary of State, Colin Powell" secretary@state.gov, French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin premier-ministre@premier-ministre.gouv.fr "Mr. Terje Rod Larsen Personal Representative of the Secretary General to the United Nations in Palestine" unsco@palnet.com, lemore@un.org European Union, Jerusalem, Email mailto@delwbg.cec.eu.int UN Special Coordinator, Gaza, Email unsco@palnet.com Sérgio Vieira de Mello UN High Commissioner for Human Rights webadmin.hchr@unog.ch European Parliament Belgian Office epbrussels@europarl.eu.int Huwaida Arraf huwaidaa@yahoo.com info@gush-shalom.org

For other e-mail addresses see internet sites:

Israeli embassies http://www.embassyworld.com/embassy/israel1.htm

Contact information for European Governments http://europa.eu.int/abc/governments/index_en.htm

[b] 26/4 - Demo Against the Separation Wall - Tulkarem

1) Together Against the Walls of Annexation and Expropriation

-----Original Message-----

From: Ta'ayush Arab-Jewish [mailto:arab_jewish@hotmail.com]

Quickly and invisibly, a system of fences is being erected:

"The Wall of Separation", which has risen far and deep east of the Green Line. The outline of this wall/fence was decided according to the demands of the settlers. It constitutes an organized land robbery on a grand scale, effectively annexing thousands of dunams of land from the West Bank into Israel.

Around and inside Jerusalem a system of walls and fences are rising, turning thousands of Palestinians to prisoners in their own homeland. The region of Kalkilya is already walled in from all sides, and has turned into an enclosed enclave. Around Tul-Karm an additional fence is rising, caging thousands of Palestinians into inhabitants of a giant enclosures, subject to the mercy of the occupation authirities. These days work has started to mark the outline of a new fence, which will annex to Israel the settlements of Ariel and Immanuel, and which will turn thousands of Palestinians in the region of Salfit into inhabitants of fenced enclaves.

While exploiting the anxieties and promissing false promises of security, the program of annexation and expropriation is moving ahead. Should we accept it now, it will bring an end to the possibility of the foundation of an independant Palestinian State alongside the State of Israel. If we do not oppose it now, the West Bank will become a series of isolated Palestinian enclaves, ruled by settlers and under military control.

This is the future that Sharon is preparing for us: Apartheid. True security should not be based upon expropriation and annexation, upon starvation and imprisonment; rather, it should be based on peace between equals. For there is no peace without justice. The barbed wires are a death trap to us all, to the Palestinians and the Israelis. Let's do something about it:

Join us to a joint Palestinian-Israeli demonstration in Tul Karm area. Against the walls of annexation and expropriation For a life of peace and justice in this country!

The demonstration will take place on Saturday, April 26. Further details (place, hour, trasportation) will follow. You can also check at www.taayush.org or our voice-mail 03-6914437. It is crucial that we bring this message to the public. We need volunteers for distribution of leaflets. Those willing to join, contact Tali 053-367102.

Happy holidays to all those who celebrate

2) A map of the separation wall at gush site + info about the protest tent at Mash'a

http://www.gush-shalom.org/thewall/hebrew.html
http://www.gush-shalom.org/thewall/index.html (English)

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Did you know (y)our protest was succesful? BBC was brought back to the Israeli screens.

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