CNN carried virutally 24-hour coverage of the shooting attack at the LA
airport yesterday, repeating Israel's claim that it was a terror attack.
Yet Israel's military attacks on civilians has become so commonplace, it's not
even reported anymore. And no major media outlet would even dare suggest
that blowing up civilian homes and shooting kids might be acts of terror, as
long as it is carried out by the Israeli army. ISM activists and
on-the-ground witnesses report below:
Arrests, searches and house demolitions continue in Jenin town and
camp.
Just Another day.
June 3 2002
This was a heavy day of targeted house searches, arrests and
demolitions.
At about five pm, during imposed curfew , two Israeli miliitary operations
took place simultaneously in the town and in the camp.
In the city six jeeps and one intelligence vehicle entered the old city
followed closely by 3 tanks. The soldiers were doing a targeted house to house
search - using civilian Palestinian human sheilds - looking for a `wanted' man
whom they apparently did not find.
Two female internationals from America and Ireland approached and observed
the military operation, concerned about the safety of the civilians in the
densely populated neighborhood of Jenin's Old City.
As the Israeli army prepared to blow up part of a house they claimed held a
"bomb factory", the international women asked permision to search the
surrounding house for residents. Their concern was heightened by the fact that
about two weeks ago the Israeli army detonated a house in Jenin killing 3
children when their neighboring house collapsed from the blast. The army refused
their request and the commanding officer shoved both women repeatedly, referring
to one as a` nazi dog'. The women remained and asked again if the soldiers were
sure that they had fully evacuated the area. Again the soldiers said yes, but
despite this affirmation, shouting was heard just moments before detonation . A
family that had been hiding, frightened, in a neighboring home came running out.
The room that was blown up was subsequently observed by the internationals as
being completely empty other than a chair. No explosives were found.
A tank guarding the street was manned by a soilder who had been observed by
several internationals the previous day firing live ammunition directly at
children in the camp. While the other tank fired in the air, this particular
soldier fired at least 30 rounds, narrowly missing several small children. When
he pulled his tank away from yesterday's operation, he forced a
Isaeli-Palestinian truckdriver who was detained while trying to pass the site
with his potato truck, to walk in front of his tank as a human shield. An
international accompanied him. As this tank pulled out, this same soilder let
out a spray of bullets aimed directly at a crowd of neighborhood children.
Simultaneously in Jenin camp, the army conducted searches and arrested five
men, including a local sheikh.
That night, the Israeli military operations continued. At around 10pm, the
soldiers entered a neighborhood next to Jenin Government Hospital and bordering
the camp, and set up their operations base at a private girl's school.
At around 11.30pm, prior to entering Palestinian homes, the soldiers fired
numerous rounds of live ammunition from tanks moving on the road. A seventeen
year old girl was shot in the thigh while in her home. At 12.15am, the Red
Crescent Ambulance service received a call from the Israeli army to come pick
her up. However, when the ambulance arrived it was fired upon and turned back.
Two more ambulances were subsequently dispatched and turned away. Finally, an
Irish international was allowed to pass on foot, and found the girl bandaged,
wrapped in a blanket, lying between two jeeps. Although she had been stripped
naked, the army demanded their blanket and stretcher remain with them. Finally
this was negotiated, and the girl was taken to hospital with the blanket and
stretcher.
In the course of last nights operations, despite a total absence of any
resistance, between 50 and 100 young men were taken from their homes and forced
to lay on their stomaches for the duration of the house to house searches, which
continued until past 3am. The army was looking for a local leader and his
sixteen year old son. When they did not find them, they vandalised their house
and arrested 5 men in the neighborhood of the leader's brothers. Previously,
when unable to locate another local leader, the Israeli army arrested his
brother, sister and father in an attempt to make him turn himself in.
For further details of yesterdays events as well as live updates of the
daily occupation of Jenin, call:
Coihme Butterly , Ireland 972 055 975 374
Rebecca Murray, U.S.A 972 055 558 954/ 972 053 869 307
Juliana Fredman, U.S.A 972 067 373 467/ 972 053 812 874
For information on the ISM, please call Huwaida at 052-642-709
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