Today anti-war demo / update on jailed COs / The settlers' persecution
October 29, 2002
[] Demonstration Nov. 29 18.30 in front of USA embassy (Hadash)
[] Update on imprisoned objectors (New Profile)
[] The settlers' persecution (Ha'aretz editorial)
[] Demonstration Nov. 29 18.30 in front of USA embassy (Hadash)
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: 28 Oct 2002 11:45:44 -0000
From: hadash-info@yahoogroups.com
DEMONSTRATION
No to USA aggression against Iraq !
No to Israel involvement in this aggression !
No to racism ! No to transfer !
The American strike against Iraq is about to take place in the near future, and only the people of Israel is silent.
Throughout the world, including England and the USA, there is a cry of protest against Bush and the oil corporations, leading to an evil war.
In Israel, however, the government headed by Sharon and Ben-Eliezers supports this war, which is liable to bring about a disaster upon Israel and all the peoples of the region.
Now is the time to confront the racist forces, seeking an opportunity to execute their criminal schemes of transfer of the Palestinians out of their land.
It is time for the rational voice of peace to speak up; it is time to stand clearly against the blind policy lead by the Israeli government of more and more force and violence.
Democracy could be established in Iraq only by the Iraqi people and NOT by the American aggressor!
The Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (DFPE - "Hadash") calls for a demonstration opposing the USA aggression against the Iraqi people, which shall only lead to a dreadful blood bath in the whole region.
The demonstration will take place on Tuesday, November 29, 2002, 6.30 PM in front of the USA embassy, 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv.
For details: 04-8536504; 03-6293944.
[] Update on imprisoned objectors (New Profile)
Dear friends,
This week four new objectors entered the prison's gates: Avi Ende, Niv Glodkin, T. And A. (who wish to remain anonymous)
This report will include information about the new refusers, an overview on all the refusers currently in jail and a section about possible action.
At the moment there are 15 refusers in prison:
1. Avi Ende, a 26 years old pacifist, is starting today (Sunday) a term of 21 days. He was not sent to a military prison, due to lack of space (or so he was told), but to a detention cell in 'Sde Dov' base, 'kanaf 5'. His
conditions there are worse than the conditions of other reserve-refusers.
2. Niv Goldkin, sentenced to 14 days, prison no. 4
3. A. , sentenced to 21 days, prison no. 4
4. T. , in prison no. 4
5. Haggai Mattar, one of the founders of the Letter of the Seniors (Shministim) , was sentenced to 14 days, prison no. 4
6. Dror Beuml, an activist with same group as Haggai, sentenced to 14 days, prison no.4. This is his third term in prison.
7. Yoni Ben Artzi, is now doing his fourth prison term (this time of 28
days) in prison no. 4.
8. Uri Ya'akobi, another activist of the Shministim, sentenced to 28 days, prison no. 4. This is his fourth prison term.
9. Yoni Yehezkel, member of that same group, sentenced to 21 days, 3rd term.
10. Yuval Daphny, a 23 years old student, sentenced to 28 days, prison no 6.
11. Danny Greenwald, 28 years old, sentenced to 28 days, prison no 6.
12. Yuval Endurn, 28 years old, sentenced to 28 days, prison no 6
13. Avner Avar, 21 years old , sentenced to 28 days, prison no 6
14. Ig'al Unik, 35 years old , sentenced to 28 days, prison no 6
15. Idan Eisner, 28 years old , sentenced to 28 days, prison no 6
What can we do?
First of all, please circulate this message and the information contained in it as widely as possible, not only through e-mail, but also on websites, conventional media, by word of mouth, etc. Other recommendations for action:
1. Sending Letters of Support for Prisoners
Please send the prisoners your messages of support to the addresses above or to:
[Prisoner's name]
Messages of support could also be sent to all imprisoned objectors by e-mail, at dash@seruv.org.il.
In addition to the letters of support, you can also send packages to prisoners (to counter the Israeli custom of sending gift packages to soldiers). You can use the POB above for that purpose. Note that there is no way
to insert foodstuffs into the prison. Books, on the other hand, are the prisoner's best friends.
2. Letters to Authorities
It is recommended to send letters of protest on behalf of the objectors to:
Mr. Binyamin Ben-Eliezer,
Copies can be sent to the commanders of the prisons at:
Commander of Military Prison No. 4,
Another useful address for sending copies would be the Military Attorney General:
Brig. Gen. Menachem Finklestein
In the cases of draft resisters and conscripts it would be especially useful to send your appeals to the Commander of the Induction Base in Tel-Hashomer. It is this officer that ultimately decides whether an objector is to be exempted from military service or sent to another round in prison:
Deborah Chassid
Copies of appeals in can also be sent to:
Head of Incompatibles Unit
Addresses of additional military and government officials, as well as those of some Israeli media, to which you can send copies of your appeals, can be found at this web address: http://www.newprofile.org/english/Summery_CO_01.html (see the bottom of the page).
Please be aware that writing to the media at this time is more important than ever.
A standard sample letter is available at the bottom of the same web page
(http://www.newprofile.org/english/Summery_CO_01.html#sample). However it would be advisable to adjust your letter to the particular circumstances of the case.
Thank you,
[] The settlers' persecution (Ha'aretz editorial)
28/10/2002
The settlers' persecution
The settlers of Itamar in the West Bank have taken upon themselves security powers and are violently chasing away the farmers from the adjacent villages of Yanoun and Akrabeh. According to reports from the villagers, armed settlers are riding into the villages on all-terrain vehicles and are threatening and beating the farmers who are going out to harvest the olive trees they own or lease,
thereby undermining their principal source of income at this time of the year.
This ongoing persecution - which has been accompanied by gunfire directed at the farmers and their homes, the torching of the Yanoun village generator and the contamination of the well in the area - has already caused most of the village residents to abandon their homes. The village, which was once home to 150 families, now has less than 10 families living there.
Dozens of complaints dating as far back as 1998 and concerning the vandalization of property have been filed by the village residents with the Israel Police, but these have gone no further than a confirmation of their receipt. Till now, no one has stood trial and no indictments have been served against the persecutors.
The villages of Yanoun and Akrabeh are, in fact, under Israeli control. Nevertheless, it turns out that the Israel Defense Forces and the police are in no hurry to uphold the law. Instead, representatives of the security forces are
trying to forge "understandings" and "agreements" between the settlers and the villagers, as if they were mediators and not law enforcement authorities.
According to some of these understandings, the IDF is prepared to provide security for the villagers to harvest their olives and work their land, provided that such actions are carried out at a distance from the settlement - or, more correctly, beyond the area marked out by the settlers. The official argument is that if the Palestinian farmers are too close to the settlement, they could
undermine the security of the settlers.
However, and also under these same understandings, the IDF is hesitant to ensure the livelihood of the farmers. Last week, military officials informed the olive harvesters that the IDF was unable to secure their work and hence, they should return to their homes. It appears that only the presence of representatives of the Ta'ayush Arab-Jewish
partnership organization, alongside members of the media, caused the IDF to change its tune and decide to deploy forces to separate the settlers and the farmers.
It is doubtful whether this arrangement can go on for very long. The IDF's list of priorities, so it appears, is not directed toward providing security for Palestinians who wish to earn a living from their land. One can assume that the IDF does not want to enter into a confrontation with a group of settler-thugs on a matter that it does not view as a security task.
However, the conflicts between the settlers and the Palestinian residents of Yanoun, Akrabeh and other villages in the West Bank are, in fact, the true test for the
IDF's ability to control matters. The commandeering of land, the demarcation of a settlement's jurisdiction and, primarily, securing the source of livelihood of innocent citizens cannot be passed into the hands of the settlers. In this regard, there is absolutely no difference between the establishment of an illegal outpost and the forceful commandeering of a village's land on the way to expelling its residents.
The IDF's response must be both determined and ongoing so as to make it clear that as long as the occupation continues, there is only one authority in charge of upholding the rights of both the Jewish and Arab civilians.
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------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: Sergeiy Sandler
Date sent: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 01:36:21 +0200
POB 16238
Tel-Aviv
Israel.
Minister of Defence,
Ministry of Defence,
37 Kaplan St.,
Tel-Aviv 61909,
Israel.
E-mail: sar@mod.gov.il or pniot@mod.gov.il
Fax: ++972-3-696-27-57 / ++972-3-691-69-40 / ++972-3-691-79-15
Military Prison No. 4,
Military postal number 02507,
IDF
Israel.
Fax: ++972-3-957-52-76
Chief Military Attorney
Military postal code 9605
IDF
Israel
Fax: ++972-3-569-43-70
Commander of Induction Base, Tel-Hashomer
Military Postal Code 02718, IDF
Israel.
Fax: ++972-3-737-60-52
Induction Base (Baqum)
Tel-Hashomer
Fax: ++972-3-737-67-05.
David Raban, New Profile.
