It’s Friday — and now we know that the West Bank villages of Bil’in and Nil’in, who have had weekly demonstrations for years, every Friday after the noon prayers, against The Wall that has taken so much of their lands are Closed Military Zones.
That means: by Israeli military order, no non-residents (not other Palestinians, not Israeli and international activists — even those who have been living with families there — and not even journalists) are permitted to be present from 8 am to 8 pm for at least six months (until 17 August).
This order was, apparently, actually in effect from 17 February — but it was just announced last week, more than two weeks after it went into effect. That is very characteristic of the Israeli military occupation.
The issuance of this order has drawn the attention of some Israeli activists who been visible in the Sheikh Jarrah demonstrations that have become weekly since late last year, but who have not, so far, been regulars in the weekly demonstrations in these West Bank villages.
It is not clear how they will express their solidarity today, given the closure orders. UPDATE: They went to the West Bank demonstrations…
A Jerusalem Post article by Dan Izenburg yesterday reported: that “ACRI [Association for Civil Rights in Israel] attorney Limor Yehuda said that ‘the military commander’s order will keep out Israeli and international protesters, precisely those who are recognized as having a moderating influence in the field. That raises questions about what are the reasons behind the order. If the establishment of the barrier on their land was not enough of a violation of the villagers’ human rights, in its latest act the state is failing in its duty to allow and respect the right of the residents to protest against the illegal acts being perpetrated against them’. Yesh Din legal adviser Michael Sfard said ‘the popular protest in Bil’in has become a symbol of the joint struggle of Palestinians and Israelis against the injustice and land robbery caused by the route of the security barrier’. ”
The Jerusalem Post story continued: “Earlier this month, Haaretz reported that the army was compiling a list of cars belonging to Israeli activists who routinely take part in the protests in Nil’in and Bil’in, including the names of the owners, and the make and the color of the vehicles. The army has also raided the villages at night and arrested protest leaders. In a statement issued last month, marking the fifth anniversary of the beginning of the protests in Bil’in, ACRI charged that from the very beginning, security forces took harsh measures and, sometimes, used exaggerated force to stop the protests. ‘In 2009, there was an escalation in the efforts of the security forces to repress the protest in Bil’in’, ACRI wrote. ‘Since June 2009, we have been witness to an unprecedented wave of arrests and interrogations of local residents of Bil’in, among whom number the organizers of the demonstrations against the barrier. About 37 activists have been arrested since June 2009, and some have been remanded in custody until the end of the proceedings. These arrests show that it is not a matter of “regular” law enforcement acts but preemptive operations aimed at repressing the popular and legitimate protest taking place in the village’.” This Dan Izenburg article can be read in full in the Jerusalem Post here.
Ma’an News agency is reporting that Friday prayers were held next to The Wall (which is a double fence in that rural area) in Nil’in…
There is a massive Israel police deployment, and so far things seem quiet in and around Jerusalem and Ramallah.
Palestine Television’s broadcast of the Friday prayer was this week from the Khalid ibn Waliid Mosque in Ramallah, and the sermon was given by Palestinian Authority (PA) Minister of Awqaf, Mahmoud al-Habash. He did not appear to be reading from notes — unlike all the other Friday prayer preachers in the West Bank, who have to have their words given prior authorization by the PA. He spoke about Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (asking for support), about the land, about the future state, about freedom, and about independence…
UPDATE: reports are coming in about clashes in Hebron, and — according to SMS Israel — disturbances and “rock-throwing all over PA areas”.
UPDATE TWO: Just found info on all the Friday demos on Twitter via jvplive (Jewish Voice for Peace — in California)… the determined Israeli activists got in and out without problems, other than suffering tear gas inhalation (Nil’in). One demonstrator was reportedly shot in the head, however, at Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah.
UPDATE THREE: SMS Israel says that youth threw a “fire bomb” at Israeli soldiers near Herod’s gate to the Old City — just at the start of Salah ed-Dine Street, the Champs-Elysees or Fifth Avenue of East Jerusalem
UPDATE FOUR: JMCC is reporting clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians are underway at Shuafat Refugee Camp — formerly (and still administratively) part of the “Greater Jerusalem Municipality”, but now living behind a huge concrete Wall and two Israeli military checkpoints.
UPDATE FIVE: Israeli activist Didi Remez reported this afternoon on Facebook and Twitter that he “drove into an IDF assault on Nabi Saleh”, and then updated with this extraordinarily good-natured announcement that he had been shot in the leg (with a “crowd-control” bullet): “Until you experience it, you can never understand it: standing 30 meters from a soldier with my hands in the air, he puts a plastic bullet in my leg and continues firing after I drop and at the guys trying to drag me to cover. Ruined my only pair of jeans 🙂” ADD: An American woman in Palestine to support the International Solidarity Movement was shot by a rubber bullet in her left wrist, and her bone was broken. She said that the demonstration had not even begun when she was shot.
UPDATE SIX: Ma’an News Agency’s round-up of the days events is posted here.