[GushShalom] URGENT ALERT: Eviction Threat to Cave Dwellers

Fri Sep 3 17:38:42 IDT 2004

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

URGENT ALERT:   Eviction Threat to Cave Dwellers - ACT NOW 

Campaign start: 
>>  Online Petition //  Presence in the Court  // and more to come <<

     òáøéú àçøé àðâìéú

Joint Campaign by (alphabetically):
// Bat Shalom // Coalition of Women for Peace // Fifth Mother //
Gush Shalom // HaCampus Lo Shotek [Campus Speaks Out] // Israel Committee 
Against House Demolitions // MachsomWatch // New Profile // Noga Feminist 
Journal // Public Committee Against Torture in Israel // Rabbis for Human 
Rights // Ta'ayush: Arab-Jewish Partnership // The Other Israel peace 
magazine // Women in Black (Israel) // Women's International League for 
Peace and Freedom (Israel Section) //

 [with thanks to Gila Svirsky <gsvirsky at netvision.net.il>
  and Rav Arik Asherman <info at rhr.israel.net> for compiling following     
 information]

ENGLISH FOLLOWS HEBREW

     àðå  îàåã æ÷å÷éí ìçúéîúëí òì äòöåîä äîö åøôú åìîëúáéí îëì àçã/ú îëí 
äîåëï/ä ìëúåá ìî÷áìé äçìèåú äøùåîéí îèä ìôðé ãéåï äáâ"õ áòðééï úåùáé 
äîòøåú áàæåø ñåñéä áéåí ã' 8.9.04.  (ëæëåø ìëí éù ùðé áâ"öéí  î÷áéìéí 
ä÷ùåøéí ìùðé ð     éñéåðåú âéøåù áééùåáé îòøåú ùåðéí). áæîï ùäîîùìä ãåøùú 
ìäñéø àú öå äáéðééí ùäçæéø âáøéí, ðùéí åèó ìáúéäí, àðå àåîøéí ùäîãéðä 
îðöìú ìøòä àú äöå, äîåøä òì ùîéøú äñèèåñ ÷åå,  òì îðú ìäùàéø àú úåùáé 
äîòøåú áúðàéí áìúé àôùøééí     .  àñåø ìúåùáé äîòøåú àôéìå ìù÷í àú äîáðéí 
åäîòøåú ùöä"ì äøñ, áæîï ùîàçæéí áìúé çå÷ééí öåîçéí ëôèøéåú ìàçø äâùí, 
ùàéúîø ëäï åçáøéå äùúìèå òì ëôø â'àååàååéñ åéåùáéí áîòøä ùìäí åáæîï ù 
úåùáé ääúðçìåú ñåñééä îâãìéí âéãåìéí ò     ì àãîä ùâí îòøëú äáéèçåï äëéøä 
áä ëàãîä ôøèéú ôìùúéðéú.  ðà ìãøåù îäàðùéí äøùåîéí îèä ùäîãéðä úåãéòä 
ùäéà îåùëú àú á÷ùúä ìäñéø àú öå äáéðééí åúàôùø àú ôéúåç äúùúéåú äãøåùåú 
ìçééí áëáåã.  ðåñç äòöåîä éåëì ìòæåø áðéñåç äîëú     á.  ðà ìëúåá áàåôï  
çã åéùéø àáì áðéîåñ.  ùéçä èìôåðéú äéà äãáø äëé àô÷èéáéú.  ô÷ñéí î÷åøééí 
îñôø 2 áñãø äòãéôåú åìàçø îäí ãåàø àì÷èøåðé î÷åøé.  áá÷ùä, ìùìåç àú 
çúéîåúéëí òì äòöåîä ì http://www.PetitionOnline.com/SafeCave     
/petition.html 

     øä"î àøéàì ùøåï:  èì'  6705511-02, ô÷ñ  566-4838-02, 
asharon at knesset.gov.il, pm_eng at pmo.gov.il, webmaster at pmo.gov.il

     ùø äáéèçåï ùàåì îåôæ:  èì' 6977138-03, ô÷ñ  6976218-03, 
sar at mod.gov.il

     îúàí ôòåìåú áùèçéí äàìåó éåñó îùìá  èì'' 677138-03, ô÷ñ' 6975177-03, 
mlene+41 at netvision.net.il

     øàù îðäì äàæøçé úú àìåó àéìï ôæ:  èì' 9977001-02, 9977341-02

Friends and supporters

    We need the help of decent people to prevent the threatened expulsion 
of a powerless community of herders and farmers who live in caves in the 
Occupied Territories, with little connection to the outside world.  

During the month of Elul we are particularly congnizant that Teshuvah, 
Tefillah and Tzedaka Ma'avirin et Roa HaGzeira.  We must practice justice 
and right wrongs here on earth before we can ask the Holy One of Blessing 
to look favorably on our petitions on the High Holy Days. 

We very much need each and every one of you to sign the petition 
appearing below and  send letters to the list of decision makers also 
appearing below before the High Court hearing on Wednesday, September 
8th, regarding the cave dwellers of Susya and surroundings.  (To remind 
you, there are two parallel High Court cases dealing with two separate 
attempts to expell cave dwellers from different cave communities.  The 
government will be asking that the court rescind their order which 
returned the expelled cave dwellers to their homes, while we argue that 
the government is exploiting the Court decision (which spok     e of 
preserving a "status quo" ) to make life impossible for the residents of 
the caves.  They are not even allowed to rebuild/repair the caves and 
other structures damaged by Israeli security forces during the expulsion, 
while new outposts dot the landscape, Itamar Cohen and his friends have 
taken over the village of Gawaweis and are living in one of the homes and 
the settlement of Sussya is growing crops on land which the defense 
establishment itself ruled to be private Palestinian land.  

Please demand that the government withdraw all objections to the Court's 
restraining order and allow the development of the infrastructure 
necessary for the cave dwellers to live in dignity.  The petition and 
background information below can help you in terms of what to write.  
However, please keep in mind that phone calls are most effective, 
followed by original faxes, followed by original emails. Please make your 
communications firm and clear, but polite.  

Please sign on the petition by clicking:   

http://www.PetitionOnline.com/SafeCave/petition.html 

Also please let us know if you can come to the court on Wednesday or are 
interested in expressing solidarity in any other way.

* Bat Shalom * Coalition of Women for Peace * Fifth Mother * Gush Shalom 
* HaCampus Lo Shotek [Campus Speaks Out] * Israel Committee Against House 
Demolitions * MachsomWatch * New Profile * Noga Feminist Journal * Public 
Committee Against Torture in Israel * Rabbis for Human Rights * Ta'ayush: 
Arab-Jewish Partnership * The Other Israel peace movement newsletter * 
Women in Black (Israel) * Women's International League for Peace and 
Freedom (Israel Section) 

 _____________________________

     The Petition:

     To:  Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Ministry of Justice Yosef Lapid

     STOP THE EVICTION OF PALESTINIANS FROM THE SOUTH HEBRON HILLS

     We, the undersigned, call upon the Israeli government to abandon all 
attempts to evict the Palestinian inhabitants of the south Hebron hills 
from their ancestral homes in the region.  Forcible expulsion of a 
population is reprehensible and a violation of international law.  
Israel, as a member of the community of nations and a signatory to the 
Rome Convention of 1994, is committed to safeguarding the population of 
the occupied territories and is strictly forbidden from any attempt to 
change its residency status.  We further demand that the Israeli 
authorities protect this population from ongoing harassment and 
aggression by Israeli settlers in the area.

     If you'd like to sign, click on:

     http://www.PetitionOnline.com/SafeCave/petition.html

     Background Information

           This area is inhabited by a small Palestinian population of 
approximately 2,000 pastoralist herders and farmers living in caves 
carved out of the mountainside. Their way of life is 
           Today, their homes, fields, and way of life are under 
existential threat.  Israeli settlers have established a string of 
settlements and illegal outposts in this area and seek to annex the land 
in the immediately fo     reseeable future.  The Jewish settlers of 
Susya, Maon, Yatir, and other places in the Hebron hills are among the 
most militant and violent in the occupied territories, and they have 
turned the lives of the Palestinian cav     e-dwellers into a nightmare.
           With support from the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and Civil 
Administration, the settlers have made life imposible for the cave 
dwellers, even going so far as to destroy cave-homes and poison water 
cisterns.  In most      cases, even simple agricultural work, such as 
sowing the fields or harvesting the crops, has become impossible.  In 
most cases, the Israeli security forces have turned a blind eye to these 
crimes.
           A legal battle in the Israeli courts, led by human rights 
lawyer Shlomo Lecker and the staff of the Association for Civil Rights in 
Israel, has temporarily granted these people the right to remain on their 
land foll     owng the attempts to expell them in 1999 and 2001.  
However, there is now the very real danger that the Israeli High Court of 
Justice will soon issue a decision that allows the IDF to evict the 
Palestinians and seize thei     r land.
          We have joined together to help these people preserve their 
homes, their culture, and their human dignity. 

     Prime Minister Ariel Sharon: Office of the Prime Minister, Kiryat 
Ben-Gurion, Rehov Kaplan 3 Jerusalem 91919; Fax: 972-2-566-4838; Tel: 972-
2-670-5511; asharon at knesset.gov.il; webmaster at pmo.gov.il

     Israeli Officials Responsible for the West Bank

     Minister of Defense Shaul Mofaz : Ministry of Defense, Ha-Kirya, Tel 
Aviv, Israel;  sar at mod.gov.il  Fax 972-3-697-6218 Tel: 03-697-5436

     Coordinator of Activities in the Territories  Yosef Mishlav Ministry 
of Defense, Ha-Kirya  Tel Aviv, Israel; Spokespeople Phone:  972-3-697-
7138; Fax:  972-3-697-5177; mlene+41 at netvision.net.il

     Brigadier General Ilan Paz Commander of Civil Administration; Beit 
El, West Bank, Israel; Tel:  972 2 997-7001; Fax:  972-2-997-7341

     Brigadier General (retired) Baruch Spiegel  Advisor to the Minister 
of Defense on Humanitarian Issues  Tel.  972 3 6976918, Fax 972 3 
6975648; baruch_spiegel at mod.gov.il

     Mr. Yair Lotstein. Legal Advisor to the Civil Administration: P.O. 
Box 10482, Beit El, West Bank, Israel; Tel: 972-2-997-7071 ;Mobile: 972 2 
50-511782; Fax: 972-2-997-7326

     Mr. Captain Ofir Hacham Spokesperson Civil Administration: Ha-Kirya 
Tel Aviv, Israel, Israel, Tel: 972-3-697-7138 

     Please forward!

# Truth against Truth - opposite views on the history of the conflict
  in 101 steps 

Hebrew / òáøéú
http://www.gush-shalom.org/Docs/Truth_Heb.pdf

English
http://www.gush-shalom.org/Docs/Truth_Eng.pdf

# Boycott List of Settlement Products (newly updated)
  Now also with list of settlements

Hebrew / òáøéú
http://gush-shalom.org/Boycott/boycheb.htm

English
http://gush-shalom.org/Boycott/boyceng.htm

--
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http://www.gush-shalom.org/english/index.html (English)
http://www.gush-shalom.org/arabic/index.html (selected articles in Arabic)

with
\\photos of recent actions 
\\the weekly Gush Shalom ad 
\\the columns of Uri Avnery 
\\Gush Shalom's history & action chronicle  
\\position papers & analysis (in "documents")
\\and a lot more

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