West Bank village punished for exposing Israel’s brutality

21 December 2015

Members of the Tamimi family prevent an Israeli soldier from arresting Muhammad Tamimi, 12, during the weekly protest against the occupation in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh on 28 August. Muhannad Saleem ActiveStills

The small West Bank village of Nabi Saleh is paying a steep price for a video of Israeli brutality.

Widely circulated in recent months, the video shows the mother and sister of 12-year-old Muhammad Tamimi wresting him away from a masked and armed Israeli soldier. The boy was throttled and jammed into boulders on 28 August, despite having a cast on his arm.

Israeli politicians not only defended the Israeli soldier’s actions; some argued that he should have behaved in an even more cruel manner.

Miri Regev, Israel’s culture minister, said that the soldier should have shot the boy’s unarmed rescuers.

Since the incident, the Israeli army has detained scores of young men from the village and subjected them to lengthy periods of interrogation, during which abusive treatment occurred.

Seventeen are currently imprisoned, including Waed Tamimi, Muhammad’s 19-year-old brother.

Waed was arrested, along with his 20-year-old cousin Anan, during a 19 October night raid on the home of Waed’s parents, Nariman and Bassem Tamimi. Four other young men were seized by the army that same night, including Louay Tamimi, whose brother Mustafa was killed in December 2011 when a soldier fired a high velocity tear gas canister at his head from a meter away.

Bassem Tamimi, who was on a lecture tour of the US when his son was arrested, has himself been detained a dozen times. He has also been tortured and spent three years in prison without a conviction.
Defying military orders

Bassem and his cousin Naji, the father of Anan, have been recognized as human rights defenders by the European Union. In 2012, Bassem was declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International.

The cousins have helped coordinate their village’s unarmed resistance activities. Rather than submit mutely to the confiscation of their land and freshwater spring by Israeli settlers, the residents of Nabi Saleh have for the last six years held spirited weekly demonstrations demanding an end to the Israeli occupation.

In so doing, they have defied Israeli Military Order 101, which criminalizes participation in protests, assemblies and vigils, as well as waving flags and distributing political material. Efforts to influence public opinion are prohibited as “political incitement.”

Palestinians face Israeli soldiers during the weekly protest in Nabi Saleh village in 2011. Anne Paq ActiveStills

But to Nabi Saleh residents, such military orders are inherently unjust. During his June 2011 trial for organizing demonstrations, Bassem Tamimi told the court:

“Despite claiming to be the only democracy in the Middle East, you are trying me under military laws which lack any legitimacy; laws that are enacted by authorities that I have not elected and do not represent me. I am accused of organizing peaceful civil demonstrations that have no military aspects and are legal under international law. We have the right to express our rejection of occupation in all of its forms; to defend our freedom and dignity as a people and to seek justice and peace in our land in order to protect our children and secure their future.”

Israeli and international activists have frequently joined the weekly protests in Nabi Saleh, and face an army deploying stun grenades, tear gas, skunk water, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition. Hundreds of demonstrators have been injured, some permanently, and two were killed.

Over the years, as many as 200 villagers have been detained out of a population of just over 500. All of them belong to Tamimi clan.
Why is the world silent?

At the 28 August protest, the army arrested Bassem’s 19-year-old nephew, Mahmoud. Vittorio Fera, an Italian activist, was also detained.

Fera was swiftly acquitted by an Israeli civil court from the charge of throwing stones and other objects.

Mahmoud — who faces identical charges in the military court system — has spent months now in Ofer, an Israeli prison in the West Bank, without a hearing.

For Palestinians, including children, there is no presumption of innocence and little likelihood of acquittal, given the 99.74 percent conviction rate in military courts.

Most of these convictions are a result of plea bargains, agreed to after the coercive extraction of confessions from children as well as adults. Some prisoners may be sentenced to administrative detention. Under that practice, detainees are held without charge or trial and without being told what evidence the authorities hold on them.

Palestinian youths from the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh during a hearing at Ofer military court on 21 December. Oren Ziv ActiveStills

The 17 young men from Nabi Saleh may have been marooned in military prisons — where their families cannot visit them or even send them warm winter clothes — because someone from the village has been intimidated into saying who they saw throwing stones.

Two young men detained on 9 December have now been released, but Nabi Saleh families fear there will be more arrests. Israel appears bent on doing everything it can to impose collective punishment on a village that serves as the symbol of resistance to a nearly half-century-long military occupation.

As the youth await trials and anticipate years in prison, US activists have set up a Facebook page to press for their release. Bassem Tamimi, meanwhile, wonders why the international community has not taken a determined stand against Israel’s relentless repression.

“The silence of the world is worse than what the occupier is doing,” he said. “We can’t understand this silence, because our struggle is for humanity and the world is supposed to care about human rights.”

Nancy Murray, who for 25 years was director of education at the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, has worked for Palestinian rights since her first trip to the region in 1988.

Haaretz & Daily Mail: Palestinian Women, Children Stop IOF Soldier Detaining a Minor

by Nabi Saleh Solidarity 28 August 2015

Both Israeli and International media have covered the incident in Nabi Saleh where an Israeli solider attacked and tried to kidnap a young Palestinian boy, only to be over powered by Palestinian women and girls from the village. The women and girls succeeded in freeing the child, who had a broken arm and was being held in a headlock at gun point.

An 18 year old Palestinian youth was also arrested by the IOF on the day.

Palestinian Women, Children Stop IDF Soldier Detaining a Minor

Activists at the protest in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh say the soldier used violence against the 12-year-old boy.

Gili Cohen, Haaretz, Aug 28, 2015

An Israeli soldier tried to detain a minor during clashes in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh on Friday, but a number of Palestinian women and children managed to stop him.

According to the army, the youth was throwing stones at the troops, who did not realize he was a minor.

Photographs taken by Reuters and AFP show the soldier surrounded by women and children. In one of the images, a young girl is seen biting his hand.

The soldier was lightly wounded as a result of the altercation. The commander in the area decided to release the minor. The army said that one other Palestinian was detained in Friday’s clashes, along with one foreign activist.

Activists who were at Friday’s protest said that the soldier used violence against the 12-year-old boy, whose arm was in a cast at the time of the attempted arrest. Jonathan Pollak, one of the activists present, said that the boy did not throw stones and that the IDF force, which was in an abandoned building before approaching to detain the boy, could see he was a minor. Pollak told Haaretz that the soldier pointed his gun at the boy when he was detaining him.

The Israeli army spokesman responded in a statement that there was “a violent disturbance of the peace in Nabi Saleh, in which Palestinians threw stones at IDF forces that were in the place. The youth who was photographed was identified by the lookout force as a stone-thrower, and because of this it was decided to detain him. At the time of the arrest, a violent provocation by a number of Palestinians developed, including women and children. In light of the violent altercation, the commander decided to not to go ahead with the detention.”

Extraordinary moment that desperate Palestinian women fought and BIT an Israeli soldier after he put boy with a broken arm in a headlock at gunpoint

Israeli soldier pins boy to the floor with machine gun held up near his cheek in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh
But the gunman is ambushed by young girl who forces weapon from his hand and two women who claw at his face
The soldier eventually flees the scene, leaving the young girl to cradle the terrified boy in her arms on the ground
Clash happened during demonstrastions against Palestinian land confiscation to expand nearby Jewish settlement

By Simon Tomlinson for MailOnline

Published: Daily Mail, 29 August 2015

This is the remarkable moment a young girl and two women overpower an Israeli soldier who grappled a Palestinian boy with a broken arm to the floor at gunpoint.

The soldier placed the boy in a headlock while armed with a machine gun during clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters in the West Bank.

With terror etched on his face, the boy is powerless to move as the gunman towers over him, with the muzzle of his weapon just inches from his cheek.

Palestinians fight to free a Palestinian boy held by an Israeli soldier during clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters

But as he pins the boy to a rock, the soldier suddenly finds himself ambushed by a young girl who forces the weapon from his grasp and bites his hand.

Meanwhile, two women claw at his balaclava-clad face and drag him off the youngster, who has his arm in a sling.

Eventually, the gunman flees the scene, leaving the young girl to cradle the terrified boy in her arms.

It is not clear what the boy had done to provoke the soldier into taking such drastic action, but it is not uncommon for protesters, and sometimes children, to hurl stones at security forces during demonstrations.

Terrified: An Israeli soldier puts a young boy in a headlock at gunpoint during clashes between security forces and Palestinian protesters following a march against Palestinian land confiscation to expand the Jewish Hallamish settlement in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh

With terror etched on his face, the boy is powerless to move as the gunman towers over him, the muzzle of his weapon inches from his cheek

Attacked: As he pins the boy to a rock, the soldier finds himself ambushed by a girl, who forces the weapon from his grasp, and two women

Ambushed: As the girl bites his hand, two women claw at his balaclava-clad face and drag him off the youngster, who has his arm in a sling

The soldier fights back as the girl tries to prevent him from detaining the boy during a protest in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh

In her loving arms: Eventually, the gunman flees the scene, leaving the young girl to cradle the terrified boy on the floor

The clash happened in the village of Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah, during protests against Palestinian land confiscation to expand the nearby Jewish Hallamish settlement.

In another flashpoint, Palestinian protester hurled stones at Israeli army bulldozer during clashes which following a protest against Israeli settlements in Qadomem, Kofr Qadom village, near the the West Bank city of Nablus.

They come a day after the European Union’s outgoing envoy to the Palestinian territories said the 28-nation bloc was moving forward with measures against Jewish West Bank settlements.

The envoy, John Gatt-Rutter, did not provide a timeframe. But his remarks to reporters underline European discontent with Israel’s continued expansion of settlements in territory that Palestinians want for a future state.

Israeli solider attempts to kidnap 12 year old boy in Nabi Saleh and is overpowered by Palestinian women and girls

by Nabi Saleh Solidarity, 28 August 2015

Israeli Occupation Forces invaded Nabi Saleh today and attempted to kidnap a 12 year old boy. However, Palestinian women and girls managed to overpower the soldier and free the boy before he was taken away. Israeli Occupation Forces also arrested an 18 year old Palestinian youth.

Video by Bilal Tamimi

Photo by Shadi Hatem

Photos by Bilal Tamimi

Israeli Occupation Forces falsely arrested photographers during Nabi Saleh protest, court rules

11951368_988545937863918_7644792514082098265_n Nabi Saleh – teargas fired by IOF. Photo by Manal Tamimi

Arrested photograpahers in Israeli Occupation Court

IDF falsely arrested photographers during Palestinian protest, court rules

Israeli soldiers arrested two Israeli and one Palestinian photographers during a demonstration in the West Bank. What followed showed just how differently Israelis and Palestinian detainees are treated.

By Oren Ziv / Activestills.org / 23 August 2015
Published: +972 Magazine

Israeli soldiers arrested three photographers, two Israelis and one Palestinian, during the weekly protest in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh last Friday. On Saturday night, an Israeli court ruled that there was no reason for the arrests and released the two Israelis from detention.

On Sunday morning, Israel Police agreed to release the third photographer, Bilal Tamimi, without conditions, following a request by his attorney. Tamimi is expected to be released soon.

Weekly anti-occupation demonstrations have been taking place in the village of Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah, for the past several years. Every week, dozens of Palestinians, Israelis and international activists march toward a spring that has been taken over by residents from the nearby settlement, Halamish. The soldiers arrested Tamimi, himself a resident of the village, toward the end of the demonstration, as village youths clashed with soldiers on a nearby hill.

A short while later, the soldiers arrested B’Tselem Spokesperson Sarit Michaeli as well as Israeli artist David Reeb, both of whom have been documenting the protests with their cameras for years. The two were arrested for refusing to clear the area, which they deemed a “closed military zone.” The soldiers, however, refused to present the required, written order.

The three were taken to the Binyamin Police Station, where they discovered that along with violating the closed military zone order, Reeb and Tamimi were accused of attacking an officer, while Michaeli was accused of obstructing a police officer in the line of duty. After their interrogation, Michaeli and Reeb refused to sign off on the conditions of their release, which would ban them from the village for two weeks, while setting their bail at NIS 1,000. Upon refusing, the two were taken into detention. Tamimi was not offered these conditions and was taken straight to jail at Ofer military prison.

“It was clear that the arrest was unlawful,” Michaeli said following her release. “The fact is that they agreed to release us, even on condition, while it was clear that they would never allow Bilal the same conditions. That is why we refused to agree to those terms, even if it meant a night in jail.”

Michaeli and Reeb were brought before a judge at the Jerusalem Magistrates Court on Saturday night. During the hearing, Attorney Neri Ramati, who represented the detainees on behalf of Attorney Gabi Lasky’s office, asked the police representative whether the soldiers presented Michaeli and Reeb with a written copy of the closed military zone order. When the representative admitted that they had not done so, Judge Gad Arenberg ordered the two be released without condition.

“In this case the judge decided to release the detainees not only because they were not shown the closed military zone order, but also because they demanded to see the order and were arrested. Furthermore, the judge noted that the detainees were filming and were not connected to the clashes taking place,” said Ramati following the decision.

It is important to note that because it is unclear whether violating a closed military zone order is in fact illegal, and because it is doubtful whether such a violation merits arrest and release on condition, soldiers and policemen often tack on additional violations such as obstructing or attacking an officer. “Violation of a closed military zone order has no parallel offense in Israeli law, and we have never had a case in which someone has been accused solely of violating such an order. In these cases the police always add additional offense.”

Michaeli points to the different treatment that she and Reeb, both Israeli citizens, received, as opposed to Tamimi. “David, Bilal, and I were arrested at the same spot and interrogated over the same offenses, but we were treated differently, since Bilal is Palestinian and is subject to Israel’s military law. We are Israelis, and thus enjoy the benefits of Israel’s civilian legal system.”

Following the court’s unequivocal decision Saturday night, Israel Police accepted Attorney Ramati’s request to release Tamimi without conditions.

Tamimi’s release is not an everyday occurrence. Most Palestinians arrested in the occupied territories remain in detention until the end of legal proceedings. Moreover, the military legal system almost never offers alternatives to detention, such as house arrest, while the conviction rate for Palestinians in Israel’s military courts stands at 99.74 percent.

Several months ago, soldiers violently attacked Israeli photojournalist Haim Schwarczenberg and a Abbas Mumani, who works for AFP, as they attempted to comply with orders to leave the area. The army decided to try the attacking soldiers after the incident was filmed and first published on +972 Magazine,

Israeli Occupation Forces arrest 2 Palestinian children & 1 youth – 10 April 2015

David Reeb’s video: 10 April 2015

By Text and Photos by Popular Struggle Coordination Committee: 10 April 2015

Iyad Al Tamimi, was injured and brused due to his falling off a two meters high wall as a result of heavy gas bombs thrown at demonstrators by the Israeli occupation army. The heavy gas bombs caused the suffocation of tens of demonstrators. Confrontations between the Occupation army and demonstrators continued around the area of the Israeli military tower located at the entrance of the village. Israeli soldiers arrested three young palestinian men and children:
Bassel Thalji Al Rimawi – 19 Years old
Osaid Hussam Faqih – 15 Years old
Amir Samir Hjaiji – 16 Years old
Those arrested were released, however Bassel Rimawi is still detained

Manal Tamimi shot in leg by Israeli Occupation Forces – 3 April 2014

By Nabi Saleh Solidarity: 4 April 2015
Video by Israel Puterman:

Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) opened fire with live 2.2 ammunition on unarmed demonstraters in Nabi Saleh. Manal Tamimi suffered a fracture leg as a result of being shot in the leg with the live ammunition by the IOF. Another protester, Mohammed was also shot in the leg with the live ammunition. According to reports from activists in Nabi Saleh, the live ammuniton hit a nerve and he needed emergency surgery. Photo by: Sarit Micheali

***

PHOTOS: Soldiers fire live ammo, wound two in Nabi Saleh protest

Photos and report: Anne Paq / Activestills.org : +972 Magazine: 5 April 2015

Israeli soldiers fired live ammunition against nonviolent Palestinian protesters in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh on Friday. Two Palestinians were wounded, including activist Manal Tamimi.

Tamimi was shot in her leg as she was standing and talking to her friends, only minutes after the protest had begun, along with another young Palestinian. Both were transferred to a Ramallah hospital where they received treatment for their wounds.

Activists report that the army has stepped up its use of live ammunition in the village over the past few months. Nariman Tamimi, a prominent activist in the village’s Popular Struggle Coordination Committee, was shot with live ammunition on November 22, 2014. She is still recovering.

Nonviolent protests in Nabi Saleh began in 2009 after residents from the nearby settlement Halamish took took control over the Ein al-Qaws spring — owned by a resident of the village — preventing Palestinian access to their land.

Joint Village Land Day Protest in Nabi Saleh – 28 March 2015

By Nabi Saleh Solidarity: 28 March 2015

Video by David Reeb

On 28 March, a joint village demonstration in Nabi Saleh to mark Palestinian Land Day. Joining the Land Day demonstration in Nabi Saleh were activists from Nilin, Bilin, Kufr Qaddum and Hebron

video by David Reeb

Nabi Saleh: Videos, reports & photos (17th – 31 January 2015)

21 January 2015

Update by Nabi Saleh Solidarity

IOF in Nabi Saleh on 21 January 2015. – the Israeli army raided NabiSaleh in the morning, firing live ammunition/teargas and arresting Eyad Tamimi (49) and Hamza Tamimi (25) from their houses

Photo: IOF in Nabi Saleh on 21 January 2015. - the Israeli army raided NabiSaleh in the morning, firing live ammunition/teargas and arresting Eyad Tamimi (49) and Hamza Tamimi (25) from their houses

23 January 2015

Update by Nabi Saleh Solidarity

Activists report IOF invade village with four jeeps and at least 18 soldiers before the weekly demonstration began. The fired large amounts of teargas at unarmed protesters. In particular the valley was filled with teargas making it difficult for people to breath. Residents reported that the teargas was particularly strong, with many suffocated by the gas due to the large quantities and strong winds. IOF continue to invade village and harass village for several hours after the conclusion of the demonstration.

Video by David Reeb

Report and photos from Haim Scwarczenberg:

(for more photos, click here)

“The weekly protest in Nabi Saleh followed a week of IDF raids in the village and arrests of residents, as well as what seems like the introduction of a new weapon that contains an unknown organge-colored chemical. Villagers and solidarity activists marched with the Palestinian and Egyptian flags to protest against arbitrary arrests of civilians. The IDF responded with barrages of tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and rounds of live ammunition (“tutu”) in order to disperse demonstrators. No major injuries reported.”

30 January 2015

Photos and text by Haim Schwarczenberg:

(for more photos, click here)

“Protesting the systematic detention of children and minors by the IDF, residents of Nabi Saleh and solidarity activists marched today, demonstrating against the recent prison sentence given to 14 years old Malak al-Khatib. Malak was accused of stone throwing, and was pressured into signing a plea deal which handed her a two-months prison term and 6000NIS fine. She is currently held in Hasharon prison, with other female Palestinian political prisoners. The IDF attempted to disperse the marchers by using tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition (“tutu”). One child was injured from a live bullet and was taken to Salfit for medical treatment.”

Teen hurt as Israeli forces suppress West Bank demos

Maan News: 30/01/2015

(MaanImages)

RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Israeli forces suppressed weekly protests near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on Friday, injuring a child, a Ma’an reporter said.

In Nabi Saleh, a 15-year-old Palestinian boy was injured in the thigh with a live bullet fired by Israeli soldiers.

The boy, Muhammad Bilal al-Tamimi, was taken to the Palestine Medical Center in Ramallah.

This week’s march in Nabi Saleh was a protest of Israeli violations against Palestinian children. Protesters held signs against the Israeli occupation and demanding protection for Palestinian minors.

Demonstrators also carried pictures of Malak al-Khatib, a 14-year-old girl currently being held in Israeli custody.

Israeli soldiers fired tear-gas grenades and rubber-coated bullets at protesters. Clashes broke out after protesters refused to stop marching.

Meanwhile, in Bilin, a Palestinian was hit directly with a tear gas canister.

Several others suffered tear gas inhalation as Israeli forces suppressed a march made up of Palestinians from the village in addition to international and Israeli activists.

The protesters were calling for an end to Israeli aggression against Palestinian children.

Israeli forces detained local popular committee member Muhammad al-Khatib for a few hours before releasing him.

Nonviolent protests are held each Friday in villages across the West Bank in protest of the Israeli occupation, Israeli settlements, and the separation wall.

Nabi Saleh: Videos, reports & photos (1st – 16th January 2015)

Video: 2 January 2015

by David Reeb

Reports & Photos: 16 January 2015

Report from Popular Struggle Coordination Committee

Local and International protesters participated in the peaceful weekly demonstration in Nabi Saleh. The reprisals didn’t made wait. The patients demonstrators suffered again the Israeli violence. The soldiers shot protesters with live bullets, pushing back them. Moreover, threw tear gas bombs leaving tens wounded. But, in spite of this, the demonstration continued shouting for stopping the violence, collective punishment and terror against humanity which Israel practice every day against Palestinians

ISM Report: Live ammunition used at Nabi Saleh demonstration

16th January 2015 | International Solidarity Movement | Nabi Saleh, Occupied Palestine

For five years now, residents of Nabi Saleh have been denied access to their spring. A source of irrigation for their crops, as well as a place for recreation: al-Qaws spring was the heart of this farming community.

The illegal settlement of Halamish was established on the land of Nabi Saleh, and the neighbouring village of Deir Nidham in 1977; since then, and particularly in recent years, the settlement has been growing, stealing more land, and finally denying the villagers access to their spring.

For five years, every Friday, residents of Nabi Saleh gather with local supporters, Israeli and international activists, to protest against the theft of their land and the denial of access to the spring. Sometimes, with bravery and determination alone, these villagers have managed to reach the spring, stealing a few precious moments before the arrests and reprisals reach their climax. Most of the time, the repression from the Israeli Occupation Forces is too great to get anywhere close.

Today in Nabi Saleh the villagers gathered at the petrol station on the edge of the village; undeterred by the rain, they were ready for the weekly demonstration. The weekly show of strength and determination to fight for what is rightfully theirs.

We walked down the road, men, women, and children chanting in Arabic and English, voicing our common determination to end this occupation. The Israeli military were waiting at the bottom of the road, blockading the access to the village. As soon as we were in range the tear gas started. A peaceful march met with poisonous tear gas from the very beginning. Many attempted to throw and kick the smoking toxic canisters away, but the sheer quantity meant we had to retreat quickly.

As the smoke cleared, we tried to walk forwards once more. But then the unmistakable crack of live ammunition. We ran back. Without provocation, live ammunition was aimed at a group of peaceful protestors. Fortunately this time the bullet didn’t find a body, but the Israeli Occupation Forces lack of respect for human life is truly frightening.

Two months ago four protestors were injured at this peaceful demonstration, adding to a long list of villagers who have been hurt or killed by Israeli military bullets whilst trying to fight for their rights. The army have been using live ammunition at this group of families and demonstrators more and more frequently during the last year. So the villagers’ weekly demonstration to struggle for their most basic rights – land and water – has been reduced to a short walk to become the target of bullets. Each week villagers risk their lives because they will never accept the theft of their land. Each week they are shot at because they want access to the spring which has been the source of life for their community for generations.