[GushShalomBillboard] Attack on Gush Shalom continues + action news
Gush Shalom (Israeli Peace Bloc)
info at gush-shalom.org
Sun Aug 18 00:52:02 IDT 2002
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[1] The concerned pilots (attack on Gush Shalom continues).
[2] The court to decide in deportation case of two Palestinian workers
[3] Thursday, Aug. 22, solidarity vigil re jailed COs, Defence Ministry, TA, 6 pm
[4] Appeal: Outbreak of Hepatitis A in Palestine
[Through billboard we forward what is on the agenda, based upon our own material and
on announcements received from others.]
[1] The concerned pilots (attack on Gush Shalpom continues).
The following appeared in Ben Kaspit's column of political commentary in
the weekend supplement of Ma'ariv. Our commentt appears between square brackets.
(...) What truly infuriated Prime Minister Sharon this week was the news of
graffiti reading "War Criminal" sprayed on the private cars of Air Force
pilots, and the threats of the members of Gush Shalom to collect incriminating
evidence against soldiers and officers involved in IDF operations in the
Territories, and pass it on to international tribunals.
On Tuesday [Aug.13], Sharon visited the Tel-Nof Air Force base and was
surprised at how frustrated and apprehensive the senior officers are about this
issue. First to raise it was the Air Force's Chief Psychologist who told of
being approached by many pilots. She said the pilot were concerned, some of
them "very concerned". Then the Air Force commander, General Dan Halutz, spoke
out about a widespread "feeling of insult, concern and apprehension" among his
officers.
According to one of the participants, the pilots who spoke to Sharon were
especially concerned at the possiblity that some years hence, after retiring
from active service and going on a family holiday to, say, Green Ireland, they
would find policemen waiting at the airport with war crimes warrants. The
presence of Sharon, who had already undergone a set of judicial proceedings in
Belgium (and seems about to be confronted with new ones soon) made the pilots'
apprensions all the more sharp.
At the cabinet meeting on the following day [Wed., Aug 14], Sharon seemed
shaken when he recounted this experience to the ministers. "It is
inconceivable" he murmured. "These people want to hand our soldiers over to the
enemy" [sic - Sharon concept of "the enemy clearly seems to include European
polic forces and international courts].
Defence Minister Ben Eliezer vehemently concurred with the Prime Minister. He
also gets similar feedback from army officers, and he too is furious. This is
the first time in the past weeks that the PM and his Defence Minister have
found common ground on any specific issue. In both of their bureaus, withering
criticism is heard about the Attorney General and his staff, who are described
as "dragging their feet" in pressing charges against the "informers".
[So far, the Attorney General seems unable to find an article of Israel law
according to which it is illegal to warn army offciers that their acts might be
in violation of international law. However, given sufficiant pressure the AG
might bend some law or another, or a brand-new law might be enacted as was
suggested in a radio interview earlier this week by Justice Minister Sheetrit - who
apparently is more worried about those who seek justice than about its violations.
Meanwhile there was also made a threat this week against Adallah, the human and
civil rights association active on behalf of Israel's Arab citizens. Amram Bogatch, the
govenmental Registrar of Associations made a public threat to "open an investigation
against Adallah", on the charges that it "exeeded its mandate" by offering free legal
counceling; that it is linked to a political party, namely KM Azmi Bishara's Balad
Party; and that there are "irregularities" in the running of its finances. Bogatch made
all these charges only in the media, making no direct approach to Adallah
itself and of course giving the association no chance to answer his charges.
By attacking Gush Shalom and Adallah a signal is given aimed at intimidating Israeli
peace and human rights groups in general.]
[2] The court to decide in deportation case of two Palestinian workers
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: "Shelly Nativ" <shelly_nat at hotmail.com>
Deportation: please come and show solidarity
>Mr. Magdi Nagar lives in the West Bank city of Beit Sahur (near Bethlehem).
He has lived there for seven years, and holds a Paletinian ID. He has committed no
crime. He was peacefully working in Israel when the police brutally
arrested him, and threw him in prison. He has been in Maasiyahu Detention
Center for four months - without trial.
But because he is in prison for 130 days, he cannot get his ID to show the
Israeli authorities that he is a citizen of the Palestinian Authority.
Therefore, the Israeli courts have ordered his deportation to Jordan,
saying that he has not proven his Palestinian citizenship (hard to believe
the absurdity of the situation).
His first petition to the courts was denied by Judge Moshe Gal in
Jerusalem. The appeal to the Supreme Court was also denied by Judge Shlomo
Levin.
But Attorney Leibowitz filed a second petition, and this petition will be
heard on Aug 19, 2002 at 9:30 AM in the Jerusalem District Court .
This time it will be Judge Moshe Drori - and if there will be enough
people, public pressure might succeed in preventing this illegal and
immoral deportation.
Please come and show solidarity. It is very important to fill up the
courtroom. This is the only effective way to save this man from a cruel
deportation and prevent him and his family from becoming our enemies.
Remember the details:
Date: Monday, Aug 19 2002
Hour: 9:30
Place: Jerusalem District Court, 40 Zalah ADin St. Jerusalem
Judge: Moshe Drori
Shamai Leibowitz, Attorney-At-Law
----------------------------------------------
Shamai Leibowitz, Esq
Ben Gurion St 11A
Givat Shmuel ISRAEL 54017
Tel: 972-3-5327772
[3] Thursday, Aug. 22, solidarity vigil re jailed COs, Defence Ministry, TA, 6 pm
With four of the Shiministim (Highschool pupils/ Seniors) at the moment in
prison (Kele-4) (apart from the four jailed reservist refusers in Kele-6) there is
going to be a solidarity demonstration at the Defence Ministry in Tel-Aviv,
Thursday, Aug. 22, at 6 pm. More background on the motivation of the refusers
will follow.
Contact: Neta 052-830494
[4] Appeal: Outbreak of Hepatitis A in Palestine
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: Huwaida Arraf <huwaidaa at yahoo.com>
Date sent: Fri, 16 Aug 2002 21:27:21 -0700 (PDT)
August 15, 2002
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing in appeal for international assistance in what could be a dire
humanitarian crisis. The residents of Salem, a village near Nablus in the West Bank,
are facing a severe outbreak of Hepatitis A. According to Dr. Ghassan Hamdan of
the Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees in Nablus, there have been 95
confirmed cases in this village since the outbreak first began two weeks ago.
Additionally, there are 9 confirmed cases in Iraq Bureen, a nearby community, and
other unconfirmed reports of further infections in neighboring villages. Thus far, all
104 confirmed infections have been children.
Dr. Hamdan asserts that recent damage to the village’s infrastructure is the most
likely cause of the problem. Israeli military forces, while using bulldozers to place a
roadblock on the main access road to Salem, have broken open sewage lines,
possibly contaminating the area’s water supply. Another example of infrastructure
damage is the dumping of garbage from nearby Israeli settlements in areas where
villagers grow their food. Additionally, 58 consecutive days of curfew in the Nablus
area have led to poor overall sanitary conditions, malnutrition, and lack of access to
medical care, greatly exacerbating the situation.
Due to lack of funding, the Medical Relief in Palestine is unable to provide the
necessary vaccinations for the village’s residents. Dr. Hamdan warns that, while the
prognosis for Hepatitis infections among children is generally positive, if the epidemic
continues it may spread to infants and to the elderly, with potentially devastating
effects. Therefore, the need for help in this situation is urgent.
The major needs in this crisis are funding for the vaccine and assistance with
transporting the medication to the Nablus area. The Israeli siege which restricts
Palestinian movement, both within and between Palestinian towns, makes it almost
impossible for local Palestinians to transport medical supplies and move in other
emergency cases. We believe that the direct intervention of international aid
organizations is crucial in addressing humanitarian crises in the Occupied Palestinian
Territories. Our teams of international volunteers and activists, along with our
Palestinian partners, will continue to work around the siege to provide aid to those in
need. Please consider helping us.
Any organization or individual wishing to help with this crisis should contact the Union
of Palestinian Medical Relief Organizations in Nablus at +972-9-238-7174. You can
also contact Susan Barclay in Nablus at +972-59-877-091 or +972-55-829-680.
Thank you very much for your attention in this matter.
Sincerely,
Adam Stumacher
Volunteer
International Solidarity Movement
----
NB: Did it occur to you to write a letter to the editor (or if you are living abroad: to
the Israeli Embassy) about the witchhunt against Gush Shalom - suggesting for
example that the attorney general investigate violations of international law - and not
those monitoring them? NB: Don't forget to include your address and phone number.
----
Full transcript of the war crimes panel available on the Gush site
For Hebrew http://www.gush-shalom.org/archives/forum.html
For English http://www.gush-shalom.org/archives/forum_eng.html
French available at request
Also on the site:
photo's - of action or otherwise informative
the weekly Gush Shalom ad - in Hebrew and English
the columns of Uri Avnery - in Hebrew, Arab and English
(and a lot more)
http://www.gush-shalom.org
In order to receive our Hebrew press releases [mostly WORD documents -
not always same as English]
mailto:gush-shalom-heb-request at mailman.gush-shalom.org
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