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BY OCCUPIEDPALESTINE

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Israeli authorities destroyed the houses, even though the owners have been paying a construction tax for the past 6 years

On Tuesday morning, Israeli authorities destroyed two Palestinian homes in the Khellat al-Ein neighbourhood to the east of the old city of Jerusalem claiming they had been built without permission.

Witnesses said that large numbers of Israeli forces accompanied by two bulldozers approached the area at 6am and besieged the two houses.

According to witnesses, the Israeli forces got out of their vehicles, broke into the houses, evacuated them and then destroyed them.

Describing the cruelty of the Israelis, a female resident of one of the houses told the Palestinian news agency Safa: “While we were sleeping, they [Israeli occupation forces] broke into our house and asked us to leave immediately.”

“They did not did not give enough time for us to evacuate my grandmother and we were not allowed to take any of our property,” she added.

The owners of the two houses, who are staying in a makeshift tent, said that their houses were built twelve years ago. A destruction order was issued three years ago, but the strangest aspect of the whole matter is that they have been paying construction tax for the past six years.

The mother, Um Mahmoud, said that they were obliged to pay much money for illegal construction. The last sum they paid was NIS50.000 (£9.000). “None of this was considered,” she told Safa.

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BY OCCUPIEDPALESTINE

“What I have seen was like post-war footage rather than home demolition as the Hebrew media misleadingly describe it,” says the head of the Islamic movement in northern Israel Sheikh Raed Salah.

Salah’s remarks Sunday came during a visit to the Bedouin Negev village of Attir where Israeli municipal staff demolished 18 houses.

“Demolishing 18 houses, uprooting 460 olive saplings, cutting down olive trees and sycamore fig trees, destroying roads, power generators and solar cells is war in the full sense of the term,” Salah added.

He urged all Palestinian residents of the Negev and across Israel to visit the demolished village to see the truth firsthand.

Salah was accompanied by other members of the Islamic Movement in Israel. The delegation was welcomed by dignitaries from the Abu Al-Quian family whose houses were demolished.

“Nothing was left on the ground. They leveled everything cutting down trees and turning the place into debris. However, we will remain firm and our spirits are stronger than before,” said Hajj Shihdeh Abu al-Queian.

“Perhaps what we are watching now is the beginning of disastrous consequences of the Prawer Plan which is aimed at displacing our people from Negev indiscriminately,” said Sheikh Salah.

He added: “This plan is one of ethnic cleansing against our people in Negev.”

On May 6, an Israeli government committee approved a draft bill setting a framework to implement the evacuation of “unrecognized” villages, most of which existed before the state of Israel.

“The government approved a plan that will cause the displacement and forced eviction of dozens of villages and tens of thousands of Bedouin residents, dispossessing them of their property and historical rights to their lands, destroying the social fabric of their communities, and sealing the fate of thousands of families into poverty and unemployment,” said lawyer Rawia Aburabia of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel.

“All of this while the government simultaneously promotes the establishment of new Jewish communities, some of which are even slated to be built on the fresh ruins of Bedouin villages,” Aburabia said.

Al-Nakba Infograph by @visualizingpal

 

 

NOVANEWS

• 4 Palestinian civilians, including a child, were wounded during incursions in the West Bank.

• Israeli forces have continued to use excessive force against peaceful protestors in the West Bank.

-       4 protestors were wounded during peaceful protests against the annexation wall and settlement activities.

-       2 photojournalists volunteering in B’Tselem and a paramedic were among the wounded persons.

• Israeli forces conducted 61 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank.

-       47 Palestinian civilians, including 13 children and a woman, were arrested in the West Bank.

-       A number of university students and members of Palestinian security services were among the arrested persons.

• Israel has continued to impose a total closure on the oPt and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world.

-       Karm Abu Salem crossing was closed for 2 days due to Jewish holidays.

-       Israeli forces established dozens of checkpoints in the West Bank.

-       A Palestinian civilian was arrested at a checkpoint in the West Bank.

• Israeli forces have continued to support settlement activities in the West Bank and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property.

-       Israeli authorities issued more house demolition notices in area (C).

-       An agricultural road in al-Khader village, southwest of Bethlehem, was closed. 

-       The settlers damaged 62 olive trees and set fire to a wheat field in the south of Hebron.

Summary

Israeli violations of international law and international humanitarian law in the oPt continued during the reporting period 09 – 15 May 2013.

Shooting:

During the reporting period, Israeli forces wounded 8 Palestinian civilians, including a child, in the West Bank; 4 civilians were wounded during Israeli dispersal of gatherings of Palestinian civilians protesting against Israeli forces’ attacks in the Palestinian residential areas, while the 4 others, including 2 photojournalists, a paramedic and an 18-year-old boy, were wounded during peaceful protests against settlement activities and the annexation wall.

On 10 May 2013, Israeli forces wounded a 21-year-old young man by a bullet in the right knee when Israeli forces moved into the southwest of Hebron.

On the same day, 2 civilians were wounded when Israeli forces moved into Beit Ummar village, north of Hebron.

On 14 May 2013, a child was wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the right thigh when Israeli forces moved into al-Aroub refugee camp, north of Hebron.

Israeli forces continued the systematic use of excessive force against peaceful protests organised by Palestinian, Israeli and international activists against the construction of the annexation wall and settlement activities in the West Bank. As a result, 4 Palestinian civilians, including 2 photojournalists, a paramedic and an 18-year-old boy, were wounded in Ramallah on 10 May 2013.

The full report is available online at:

http://www.pchrgaza.org/portal/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9512:weekly-report-on-israeli-human-rights-violations-in-the-occupied-palestinian-territory-08-15-may-2013&catid=84:weekly-2009&Itemid=183

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Ghatheyya Mifleh al-Khawalda (80) was 15 years old when she fled her home during the Nakba of 1948

Today is Nakba Day, the day on which Palestinians mourn the loss of their homeland in 1948.  65 years ago, in May of 1948, Ghatheyya Mifleh al-Khawalda was a carefree 15-year-old girl who lived with her mother and sister in the village of al-Qastina in Mandatory Palestine, when they were forced, along with the rest of their village, to flee in the face of imminent threat from Jewish militias. For some time, the people of al-Qastina had received word of terrible attacks against other villages nearby, in which many had died. Fearing a similar fate, they left their home, and would never return to live there again. They became victims of what is referred to as the Nakba, meaning ‘catastrophe’, the mass forced displacement of Palestinians from their homes in order to make way for citizens of the Jewish State of Israel which would be established soon afterwards.

Though Ghatheyya remembers her childhood with joy, her life has been marked by suffering since the day she was born: “While my mother was giving birth to me, my grandmother died. The following morning, it was Eid al-Adha. My father went out for his morning prayers, but he never returned. They found him dead where he had been praying. Still, I had a very happy childhood in al-Qastina. We had a very nice house, a big house with marble floors in the hallway. My father had been a farmer, and we had farmlands with orange trees, apple trees, grapefruit trees and others. I used to spend my days playing with my sister and the other girls in the village. We were very happy.”

This changed dramatically in 1948, with the arrival of Jewish militias, who were attacking Palestinian villages and clearing them of their inhabitants: “We had heard stories about attacks on other villages. Still, the attack on al-Qastina came without warning. Before that, there had been a British military camp nearby, but that year the British left and allowed the Jewish groups to take over. We were terrified of what they might do to us. They arrived, some of them in uniform and some in civilian clothes, and began shooting at people. Three people were killed. They were all civilians. We ran away, afraid for our safety, and went to Tal es-Safi, a nearby village on a hill. It was within walking distance, and we were in a hurry to leave, so we didn’t take anything with us. It was like Doomsday. It was utter terror. People’s minds were imprisoned by fear. We couldn’t think of anything except leaving, not even simple things like bringing food with us. In the chaos, some families couldn’t find some of their children and had to leave without them. Many were too afraid to return to find them, while others snuck down the hill at night-time to try to rescue them. We stayed in Tal es-Safi for a few days, sleeping at night-time in the open air with no blankets, mattresses, food, or water.”

The people of al-Qastina were not able to stay long in Tal es-Safi: “We stayed there for a few nights, maybe a week, but then the settlers came and we had to run again. The choice was simple. If you wanted to die, you stayed. If you wanted to live, you left. We managed to spend one night in Beit Jibrin before the settlers caught up with us. Anywhere we went, they chased us to the next place. Their main aim was not to kill us, but to get rid of us. If they had wanted us all dead, not one of us would have survived. They used fear to force us to leave our land. If a person died, we had to leave the body behind. We couldn’t go back for someone who was dead. We had to focus on surviving. We were joined by people from other villages, from Isdod and al-Majdal Asqalan.[1] We walked along the coast until we reached Gaza.”

The Jewish groups did not follow the fleeing Palestinians to Gaza, where Ghatheyya and her family were forced to make a new life: “Finally, we could stop running. There were many thousands of us. We slept in mosques, on the streets, in the dirt. There were so many people everywhere. Some people stayed with families from Gaza. Others had nowhere to go. The United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) began to build tents for families. They gathered the people from my village together in one compound and called us refugees. The size of your tent depended on how big your family was. You weren’t allowed to take in other families to live with you.”

Ghatheyya and Ahmed live with their son, Nehad, his wife, and their three children 

Though she was grateful to have survived and found refuge, for Ghatheyya, the Gaza Strip would never replace her hometown of al-Qastina: “Everyone in Gaza knew I was a refugee. It wasn’t a big deal. But Gaza never felt like home to me. I used to see my aunt sitting in front of her tent every day, crying. When I asked her what was wrong, she said: “Look at us. Instead of a house, we now have a tent. I wish we could have carried our houses with us on our heads.” We lived a fairly primitive life there. There was no work available for the men. We expected the situation to be temporary so we just tried to get by and live through it until we figured out what would happen next. UNRWA gave us cans of food and bags of rice. We used a makeshift stove to heat our food, but it did not work very well. We had to keep blowing on it to keep the flames alive. After a time, UNRWA bought pieces of land from people from Gaza for the refugees. They gave the families the construction materials and we built the houses ourselves. We built our home in Maghazi in the Middle Area.”

Two years after fleeing her home, Ghatheyya received a proposal of marriage from a young man who also came from al-Qastina, Ahmed Sa’id al-Khawalda. She accepted and they were married soon afterwards: “Ahmed’s family were still living in a tent, so I went from living in my family’s new home back to living in a tent with him and his family. When I became pregnant with our first child, he began building our first house in Khan Younis. I gave birth to our daughter in our new home. Altogether, we had four sons and two daughters. There was no work for Ahmed so his father provided for us. He had a job distributing food for UNRWA. Ahmed and I did our best to look after our children.”

Ghatheyya and Ahmed now have 32 grandchildren. All of the family still live in the Gaza Strip, though Ghatheyya becomes emotional when she speaks of how her eldest daughter died of cancer several years ago. The elderly couple live with their son, Nehad (40), his wife, and their three children. Another of their sons lives in the apartment above them. 

Ghatheyya dotes on her 15-month-old grandson, Sale 

Yet, Ghatheyya still dreams of her home in al-Qastina. She has had the chance to see her old village several times since 1948, passing through the town in taxis in the 1980s and early 1990s, when accompanying her daughter to Jordan for medical treatment. “The first time I asked the taxi driver to bring me there, he refused, saying it was too far out of the way. After that, I would pretend I was only going to al-Qastina, to make sure that the driver would bring me there and I could see my home. I didn’t have time to try to find my old house, as we would just pass down the main street in the car. Sometimes, the driver would only drive on the highway nearby, so I just saw the outline of the village. Of course, I recognised my home, although the only place that was still the same was an old car garage. I am not allowed to go there anymore, but I still think about my village after all these years. Al-Qastina crosses my mind very often. It doesn’t make sense that I cannot be in my home, on my land, in the place where I grew up. I still dream of the days of the land.”

It is estimated that some 725,000 Palestinians were forcibly displaced from their homes during the Nakba of I948. Under the operational definition of the United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA), Palestinian refugees are people whose normal place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948, who lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict. The descendants of the original Palestine refugees are also eligible for registration. As of 1 January 2013, there were 4,919,917 Palestinian refugees registered with UNRWA. 1,203,135 of them live in the Gaza Strip.

Under international law, all individuals have a fundamental right to return to their homes whenever they have become displaced due to reasons out of their control. The obligation of states to respect the individual’s right of return is a customary norm of international law. The right of return for Palestinian refugees specifically is affirmed in UN General Assembly Resolution 194 of 1948, which “[r]esolves that the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date.” The resolution also provides that the responsible authorities should compensate refugees who choose not to return, or who suffered damage or loss to their property.

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The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) is deeply concerned by the detention of journalist ‘Omar Abu ‘Aroqub by the General Intelligence Service (GIS) and the Preventive Security Service (PSS), who questioned him about the nature of his work.  PCHR calls upon the government and the security services in Ramallah to respect the freedom of the press and the right to freedom of opinion and expression, which are guaranteed under the Palestinian Basic Law and international human rights standards.

‘Omar Ahmed Abu ‘Arqoub, 24, from Wadi al-Shajna village near Hebron in the south of the West Bank, works as a presenter for the local radio station, al-Rayah fm. According to investigations conducted by PCHR, and the statement of the journalist in question, at approximately 09:00 on Saturday, 11 May 2013, Abu ‘Arqoub made his way to the GIS headquarters in Hebron in response to a summons for him that had been given to his brother. Abu ‘Arqoub was questioned about his work, the sources of his information, the nature of the programme ’Israeli Scenario’, which he presents for al-Rayah FM, as well as his personal information.  He was released at approximately 16:00 on the same day. He went to a shop belonging to his brother, Tariq, in Dura village. Soon afterwards, he discovered that another summons had been sent to him by the PSS in Hebron.

Abu ‘Arqoub stated to PCHR that, at approximately 09:00 on Sunday, 12 May 2013, he went to the PSS headquarters in Hebron, where he was questioned by PSS officers about the nature of his work, particularly a report entitled ’The Scenario of Prisoners’, and the nature of interviews he conducted with prisoners who had been released from Israeli jails. Abu ‘Arqoub informed PCHR that he had been questioned again at approximately 08:00 on the following day. The investigation was focused on the materials he had obtained for his report. At noon, a member of PSS confiscated his laptop and a portable hard drive from his house. Abu ‘Arqoub stated that the interrogators had forced him to provide them with the passwords of his e-mail and Facebook accounts. He was released at approximately 17:00, but was instructed to refer to the PSS headquarters again on Saturday, 18 May 2013.

Furthermore, when Abu ‘Arouqb arrived home on Monday evening, he received another summons, ordering him to refer to the GIS headquarters on Saturday, 18 May 2013.

In the same context, Abu ‘Arqoub’s brother, Tariq, informed PCHR that a member of PSS came to their family home, in al-Shajna village at approximately 13:30 on Monday, 13 May 2013, and ordered the family to hand over ‘Omar’s laptop and portable hard drive. The security officers refused to show a warrant authorising them to search the house or confiscate any belongings. They also refused to give the family any receipts concerning the confiscated belongings.

Abu ‘Arqoub presents programme, ‘The Israeli Scenario’, at the Ramallah-based al-Rayah fm. He is specialised in Israeli affairs working for the Hona al-Quds Network of the Modern Media Institute at al-Quds University.

In light of the above, PCHR emphasizes that:

1.     The right to freedom of opinion and expression is ensured under Article 19 of the Palestinian Basic Law, and the freedom of audio, visual, and written media is also guaranteed under Article 27 of the Law, which prohibits censorship of the media;

2.     It is unlawful to arrest, search, imprison, or restrict the freedom of movement of any person, except by judicial order in accordance with the provisions of the law, as stipulated by Article 11(2) of the Palestinian Basic Law. Furthermore, homes may not be subject to surveillance, broken into or searched, except in accordance with a valid judicial order and in accordance with the provisions of the law, as stipulated by Article 17 of the Basic Palestinian Law. Finally, private property may not be expropriated, except in accordance with the law or pursuant to a judicial ruling, according to Article 21(b).

Therefore, PCHR:

1.     Calls upon the Attorney General in Ramallah to thoroughly investigate practices by the GIS and PSS officers against journalist Abu ‘Arqoub, including detaining and questioning him, and the confiscation of his belongings in violation of the law;

2.     Calls upon the government and security services in Ramallah to respect the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the freedom of the press, which are ensured under the Palestinian Basic Law and international human rights standards;

3.     Calls upon the security services to ensure the compliance of procedures of search and arrest with the relevant laws.

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“Is born as a response of the International Diplomacy of the Peoples against injustice and zionist oppression and the freedom of the palestinian prisoners , says its president and ambassador of islamic human rights Faisal Sergio Tapia”

Latin America/Beirut. -From Latin America was launched the International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights, as a diplomatic international non-governmental organization of Islamic human rights, humanitarian, independent, as a forceful response of international diplomacy of the peoples to the genocide perpetrated against the Palestinian People by Israel permanently, in defense of the Human Rights of Palestine and for freedom of Palestinian Prisoners, said its president and ambassador, the leader and human rights defender Faisal Sergio Tapia

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights is based under the principles of Islamic human rights, defense of justice, freedom and human dignity for all mankind, as international human rights organization Islamic in Latin America, Palestine, The Lebanon and the Islamic World, is under the principles of the Declaration of Human Rights in Islam (DDHI), also known as the Cairo Declaration (1990) held as part of the 19th Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers ( Sign of Peace, Development and Solidarity) held in Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt, from 9 to 14 Muharram 1411 (July 31 – August 5, 1990), contributing to the efforts of humanity in the field of the rights of man, whose aim is to protect human beings from exploitation and oppression, and affirm his freedom and right to a dignified life in accordance with Islamic Sharia, a statement by the member states of the Organization of Islamic Conference which provides an overview of the Muslim perspective on human rights and sets the Sharia as its main source.

The DCDHI states that his goal is to be a guide to the OIC member states in the field of human rights, likewise the International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights are governed by the principles of jus cogens as an expression of consciousness universal law of peoples and in particular, apply the basic legal instruments of the United Nations, in particular the Universal Declaration and the International Covenants on Human Rights, the resolutions of the General Assembly on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the Geneva Conventions of International Humanitarian Law

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights, is founded by Latin American and international human rights NGOs, by the Mission Diplomatique Internationale Humanitaire and the Comite Observateur International Humanitaire with international humanitarian NGO registration

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights its under the principles of Islam condemning crimes against humanity, as the Holy Qur’an says: “… Whoever killed a human being without this having committed a crime or corruption in the earth, it is as if he has killed all mankind … “[Sura 5:32].

The Islam proclaims the protection, defense and support of the oppressed peoples of the world, through the elimination of the causes of oppression and exploitation. Islamic law is structured to eliminate oppression and exploitation by the rules mandating profitability, forbid what is harmful, as a true theology for social liberation.

Human rights must be clearly defined and specific. Human rights should not be manipulated and used for imperialist, expansionist, which today are used armies of occupation on the people.

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights recalls the principles of jus cogens as an expression of the universal juridical conscience, the right of peoples, conducting international campaigns against the Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide on children and Palestinian women, among other territories, the complaint is ongoing and the search for truth about the bombing of the Israeli planes on the Gaza Strip, Gaza responsible Syndrome on Palestinian children with permanent psychological trauma for the massacres on Palestinian children in schools, hospitals and children’s silent genocide, genocides besides hunger where first world countries are indifferent to the hunger of children, where hunger of a child is a crime against humanity.

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights, is composed of men and women in Latin America, Palestine, Lebanon and the Islamic world committed to the defense of humanity and human dignity, Muslim brothers committed to the liberation of Al-Quds and all Palestine, against oppression and crimes against humanity carried out by imperialism and Zionism, as international human rights observers Islamic Diplomatic Mission of the International Human Rights Islamics.

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights observes the rights of the oppressed and subjugated the world, especially the oppressed in Palestine and massacres against Palestinian children by the Zionist army, as the defense of human rights of the people, the children’s human rights are children, are universal but the rights of nations, not imposition of powers that talk about human rights when you are the first to violate them in their countries and colonialist military interventions and commit crimes against people, cities, women, children and men.

“The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights and international humanitarian organization is mobilized by great feelings of love and commitment in defense of humanity, by great feelings in his heart against oppression, injustice … an authentic solidarity for their brothers suffering anywhere in the world where they are, raising their voices against the oppressor “says its president and human rights ambassador Faisal Sergio Tapia international Islamic community

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights develops the following international humanitarian diplomatic missions in different regions of the world:

* International Mission against the Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide, permanent awareness campaigns: * Palestinian Rights * Completion of torture * Rights of refugees * Rights of Palestinian prisoners of conscience * Protection of human dignity.

* International Observation Mission of the Human Rights in Palestine and its territories under occupation Israeli Zionist regime

* International campaigns for the release of all Palestinian prisoners held hostage in the prisons of the Zionist oppression

* Presentation of the Annual Report on the situation of Islamics Human Rights in the International Day of Islamic Human Rights each August 5

* International Observation Mission of the Human Rights of the Peoples

* Creation of International Islamic Human Rights Observatories in institutions and human rights organizations and academic institutions and government agencies

* Masters Diploma and International Islamic Human Rights , for lawyers, human rights organizations, universities and students

*Popular University of Islamic Human Rights

* Creation of the Islamic Hospital of Pediatrics in Palestinian refugee areas

* Creation of the Islamic Human Rights Memorial Museum

* International Conference on Islamic Human Rights against Injustice and Oppression

* International Campaigns for Islamic Human Rights

* International Tribunal of Conscience of Islamic Human Rights

* Opening of missions of International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights in countries of Latin America, Africa and Middle East

The International Diplomatic Mission of Islamic Human Rights in international non-governmental diplomacy, develops tools for building a culture of peace and human rights in defense of human dignity and life spaces open dialogue from civil diplomacy are used for the enforcement of compliance with international fundamental rights and international conventions and regional protection of peoples.

Non-Governmental Diplomacy plays definitely a decisive international role for the peoples of the world in respect of universal human rights and the fight against injustice and oppression.

The fundamental principles of human rights in Islam are justice, freedom and human dignity for all mankind, under the principles of Islam that condemns crimes against humanity, as the Holy Qur’an says: “… Who kill a human being without this having committed a crime or corruption in the earth, it is as if he has killed all mankind … “[Sura 5:32] .