Jan. 20, 2003
[] Protest tomorrow (21.1) against house demolitions in Baqa AlG'arbia
[] B'Tselem Press Release against another planned demolition
[] Wednesday, vigils against Iraq war
[] Separaration Wall brings well-known brutality into a quiet village refusal updates + request for letter writing
[] Another refusenik goes to prison (Yesh Gvul)
[] [New Profile] Act Now re ArmyTreatment of signatories of Seniors' Letter
[] Yoni Ben-Artzi and his imprisoned friends, by Yigal Bronner
[] Protest tomorrow (21.1) against house demolitions in Baqa AlG'arbia
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: dani-g@barak-online.net
-- original message --
As part of the general house demolision that the Israeli government has recently started in Israeli Arab towns and villages, there are 62 demolitions that are about to take place tomorrow (January 21) in Baqa AlG'arbia, of houses that are used for commercial purposes. It is important that as many people as possible join us tomorrow for a non-violent protest agaist the expected demolitions and the new general line of applying demolisions in Arab towns and villages. We will meet at 8:45AM on the road to Baqa AlG'arbia, at the entrance to Baqa AlSharqia.
[] B'Tselem Press Release against another planned demolition
20 January 2003
Tonight, B'Tselem issued an urgent letter to the Defense Minister calling
on him to withdraw the order to demolish the market in Nazlat Issa. B'Tselem called upon the Minister to take the necessary measures to legalize the businesses in the market, or find an alternative solution that would not harm the livelihood of the vendors and their families.
B'Tselem warned that demolishing the market would severely violate the human rights of hundreds of residents and constitute a breach of international law which binds Israel as the occupying force in the Territories.
Over the last two days, the Civil Administration notified store owners in the Nazlat Issa market of the imminent demolition and ordered them to clear out their merchandise. Demolishing the market will destroy the principal source of income for the residents of the village and its vicinity.
--------------------------------
[] Wednesday, vigils against Iraq war
(1) forwarded from: ad@abnaa-elbalad.org
What: A Vigil against the Imperialist aggression towards the Iraqi people
(2) [quoted from a leaflet distributed t the Gush election forum]
Also Wednesday, at 6.00 pm, Chadash Youth demonstrate at American Embassy, 71 Haayarkon Street aagainst the coming war in Iraq and the US belief thaat it can do what it wants. If you have one, bring your gas mask Contact Ben 053-706871
[] Separaration Wall brings well-known brutality into a quiet village
[When we received this our first reaction was: this is so small among all
what happens; but exactly in order not to get used (and become indifferent) to such horrible little things it is important that Marie Campbell asks us to act upon this one case. [TOI-Billboard editor BZ]]
STATEMENT FROM I.S.M. WORKERS, FOR CIRCULATION, PLEASE NOTE THAT IS IS NOT A "NEWS ITEM" BUT A CALL FOR SPECIFIC ACTION
Woman seized and detained for seven hours by Israeli Occupying Forces
In a series of military raids in Jayyous, West Bank, on Thursday January 8, Alla Ali Sedah (age 22) was taken from her home and held in detention for over seven hours. Soldiers had appeared at her home in the early morning hours and herded the woman, her husband and five-month old baby, along with her husband's mother, brother and his wife into one room while they questioned the men separately, and then searched the house. At about 8 am they left the house, taking the two men away.
Later in the day, they returned and neighbours reported that they grabbed Alla roughly and pushed her into their vehicle. Nobody knew where she was being held until about 9 pm when she called her family from the Betah Takfa prison in Israel and asked them to come and get her from there. Her husband and brother-in-law whom neighbours insist are innocent of any wrongdoing are still in custody.
Villagers are appalled and insulted to have a woman, a nursing mother, treated in this manner. They see it as a sharp escalation of the harassment by Occupying Forces of the people of Jayyous and neighbouring villages. Villagers believe that they are being intimidated and punished for their resistance to the "Apartheid Wall" whose construction is causing
economic and social hardship in the village. Everyday life in Jayyous is
becoming increasing intolerable. People are becoming anxious, sleepless, and despairing.
Human rights workers request the help of women's and peace groups and of all Israelis of conscience to raise awareness of the tactics being used to terrify and control Palestinians. It is recognized that there is insufficient information available publicly to Israelis about the practices of the Occupying Forces and their harmful, humiliating, effects on the people. This first detention of a woman reported from this village adds a new dimension to the routinely insulting and gratuitously violent treatment of local men.
Israeli women are especially being requested to add their voices to those who deplore this new form of humiliation of the Palestinian people. Please contact the following government and military leaders and tell them that this disrespectful treatment of Palestinian women cannot be tolerated.
Speak to:
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
you might also want to contact the United Nations:
Marie L. Campbell
[] Another refusenik goes to prison (Yesh Gvul)
**Yesh Gvul**
Infantry Fst. Sgt. (res.) Yoni Kozlovsky (29,single) of Tel Aviv was sentenced on Jan. 19 to 28 days in military jail for refusal to serve in
the occupied territories (he was posted to guard the West Bank Jewish
settlement of Anatot). Kozlovsky, who is preparing his Ph.D. thesis in neuroscience at the Tel Aviv University, is brother of another refusenik,
Ro'i, who was sentenced for refusal before the outbreak of the intifada.
Yoni defended his refusal with the following statement:
"I refuse to serve in the occupied territories because I believe in liberty, equality and fraternity - words almost forgotten in Hebrew. I refuse to take part in an occupation that denies three million Palestinians their freedom and human rights. I refuse to take part in an occupation marked by
crimes and immoral deeds, an occupation that kills civilians and steals
their land, an occupation that employs detention, closures, starvation,
torture, theft and killing.
I detest the occupation because the occupation is racism. I hope Palestinains and Israelis achieve peace, through a compromise resting upon reconciliation, justice and morality, mutual respect and compassion."
Yoni's personal number: 5035744. He is currently in Prison 4 , but has
asked for a transfer to Prison 6 where most refuseniks are detained. Yoni's private e-mail is: johnatha@post.tau.ac.il"johnatha@post.tau.ac.il
[] [New Profile] Act Now re ArmyTreatment of signatories of Seniors' Letter
New Profile Movement for the Civil-ization of Israeli Society
[In addition to the information furnished by Assaf Oron below, Atalyia
Boymel informed me last night that Dror Boymel was yesterday again
sentenced, now for the 6th time. Six consecutive times in jail will bring
his days in prison to 168, 14 of which were added because of his refusal
to wear a uniform. Also because of his refusal to wear a uniform, Dror
is presently in solitary confinement, as are also Noam Bahat and Hillel
Goral. Dorothy]
The Israeli Army Does not Recognize the Existence of Pacifists
· Israel signed several international human rights charters, that explicitly
obligate it to respect pacifists and conscientious objectors. In theory, the Israeli army has "conscience committees" for pacifists, but they "found" all applicants for pacifist or CO status to be "frauds." No civil service option is offered to these applicants.
· 19-year-old Yoni Ben-Artzi is a declared pacifist since age 12. The Israeli army set out to break Yoni. Since the middle of 2002, Yoni has been repeatedly called to the induction base, refused to enlist, and was sentenced to about a month imprisonment each time. This has happened for seven
straight times. By the end of his present sentence--his 7th--he will have
been jailed 190 days
· One might think, Well, everyone in Israel goes to the army, so that’s life,
no? This is not true. Most ultra-orthodox boys (10% of the male draft
eligible) are exempted in order to continue their religious studies. Other socio-economic and ethnic groups, and many individuals, are not drafted for various reasons. All in all, only 55% of the draft eligible boys, actually serve the "compulsory" 3 years.
· The politicians representing the exempt ultra-orthodox religious groups support the most warlike and anti-Arab policies.
· In 2001, Yoni joined forces with other pacifists and with 18-year-olds who
see IDF policies towards Palestinians as so brutal, that they cannot join an army practicing them. Together they drafted "The Seniors’ Letter" (see http://www.shministim.org/). Over 300 girls and boys are now signatories to this letter.
· When reaching the draft, the girl signatories are exempted, while most of
the boys receive the same treatment as Yoni. Other names of current 18 or 19-
year-old prisoners: Uri Ya'akobi (133 days), Dror Boimel (119 days), Yoni
Yehezkiel (112 days), Haggai Mattar (84 days), Noam Bahat (70 days), Hillel
Goral (70 days), (these two are on hunger strike now), Adam Maor (70 days),
Mattan Kaminer (56 days), Shimri Tzameret (35 days).
Pressure DOES Work
· In December 2002, Yoni Ben-Artzi and Uri Yaakovi were recognized by Amnesty International as prisoners of conscience. A huge number of protest faxes hit key military addresses. As a result, the army "sat down to think" for a couple of weeks, thereby giving Uri and Yoni a "break" at home after their sixth jail term.
· The person who sentenced Yoni previously was the Induction Base Commander, Col. Devora Hassid. She was reportedly startled by the amount of international protest (she is probably not used to such exposure), and did not want to take part in this process anymore.
· Therefore, Yoni found himself facing a full General, Chief of Personnel and
IDF Staff member Gil Regev. General Regev had no trouble sentencing Yoni again for 35 days, on Thursday, January 16. This brings Yoni’s prison total to almost 200 days, with no end in sight.
What You Can Do Please write Protest Faxes and Letters about Yoni and his friends to:
· Brigadier General Menachem Finklestein, Chief Military Prosecutor.
Military postal code 9605, IDF, Israel. Fax: ++972-3-569-43-70
· Induction Base, Tel-Hashomer, Military Postal Code 02718, IDF, Israel. Fax: +972-3-7376052. attn: General Gil Regev.
· IDF Personnel PR Officer: 24-hour Phone +972-3-5699000, Fax +972-3-
5699400 Send Faxes with attn: General Gil Regev.
· Israeli embassies and consulates: http://www.israel-mfa.gov.il/mfa/go.asp?MFAH0czk0
· Online petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/091202/
This is not even about politics any more. It’s about stupid brutality.
Assaf Oron, January 20, 2003
[] Yoni Ben-Artzi and his imprisoned friends, by Yigal Bronner
[When recently Yigal Bronner himself was imprisoned - and treated harshly - for refusal to serve in the occupied territories his case caused a huge wave of protest. Now he helps the struggle of the draft refusers.]
Dear Friends,
A brief update on the situation of the conscientious objectors. All of them are still in military prison. Yoni Ben Artzi's seventh consecutive sentence was noted by it the israeli mainstream media (check the following samples, the former in Hebrew, the latter in English). Maybe this is a good sign.
Meanwhile, two of the imprisoned refuseniks, Noam Bahat and Hillel
Goral went on a hunger strike.
More than 1300 signatures have been collected in the past few days on the petition against the imprisonment of the conscientious objectors. Please visit the site and sign if you have not done so yet.
http://www.petitiononline.com/091202/
It should be noted that the military official who sentenced Yoni Ben Artzi for his seventh consecutive prison-term, is one of the top generals in the IDF, the head of human resources in the military, Gen. Gil Regev. It may be a good idea to let him know what you think of his decision. His
fax number is
It may also be a good idea to sound your protest to the local Israeli embassy (if outside Israel), the details of which could be found at the following website:
http://www.israel-mfa.gov.il/mfa/go.asp?MFAH0czk0
Finally, keep protesting to the military's prosecutor, Menachem Finklestein. The more faxes the better! Fax: ++972-3-569-43-70
Thank you all,
---
TOI-Billboard replaces the Gush Shalom Billboard - forwarding alerts &
articles of a variety of sources. In order to receive full coverage of Gush
Shalom's actions and statements subscribe to the Gush Shalom list
by sending a request to info@gush-shalom.org
Subscribe to TOI-Billboard by sending one blank mail to
TOI_Billboard-subscribe@topica.com
Recently an archive of TOI-billboard messages was started at:
https://www.angelfire.com/co3/alaqsaintifada/TOIarchive/index.html
You can protest against repeated imprisonment - with no end in sight - of draft resisters by signing at http://www.petitiononline.com/091202/
President Bush has agreed that war should be the very last resort. Let's hold him and his administration to those words, by signing: http://www.moveon.org/winwithoutwar/
The Other Israel peace movement magazine pob 2542, Holon 58125, Israel; ph/fx: +972-3-5565804; for free sample hardcopy mailto: otherisr@actcom.co.il
http://members.tripod.com/~other_Israel/
Subject: [taayush-north] URGENT:
From: "yseggev
Date: Mon, 20 Jan 2003
For further details: Wajih 068-572881
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Mon, 20 Jan 2003 20:43:58 +0200
From: "Lior Yavne - B'Tselem"
Press Release
B'Tselem Calls on the Defense Minister: Call Off the Demolition of the
Nazlat Issa Market
For additional details and to set up interviews, please contact:
Ronen Shnayderman - 050-387230, or pager 03-6106666 (31146)
U.S. OUT OF MIDDLE EAST !!!
When: Wednesday, 22/1/2003 at 16:00
Where: At the "alKhanuk junction" in Nazareth (the northern enterance to the city. The vigil is organized by Abnaa elBalad Movement, as a part of the mobilization against the danger of war & destruction
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: marie campbell
Spokesperson of the Prime Minister
Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz
Spokesperson Defense Ministry
Foreign Minister Biyamin Netanyahu
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan ecu@un.org, coi@un.org,
inquiries@un.org, commond@un.org
Professor Emeritus, Graduate Program in Policy and Practice
Faculty of Human and Social Development
University of Victoria
PO Box 1700
Victoria BC V8W 2Y2
tel: (250) 595-7364
fax: (250) 721-7067
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: "peretz kidron"
Date sent: Mon, 20 Jan 2003 12:11:36 +0200
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: Dorothy Naor
Subject: [New Profile] Act Now re Army Treatment of signatories of Seniors' Letter
POB 48005, Tel-Aviv 61480, Israel
E-mail: newprofile@speedy.co.il
Voice box: ++972-(0)3-516-01-19
Website:
http://www.newprofil
e.org/
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Mon, 20 Jan 2003 16:35:49 +0200
From: yigal bronner
Subject: A brief update on Yoni and his imprisoned friends
General Gil Regev, Head of Manpower:
"Agaf Koach Adam " (Human Resources Division )
fax +972-(0)3-5699400
ph +972-(0)3-5699000
Yigal
