#Defend Masafer Yatta

[acesincomics]

Emergency Call to Action!

Sources: USCPR, CJNV

#Save Masafer Yatta #Defend Masafer Yatta #Masafer Yatta #Free Palestine #Palestine #I Stand With Palestine #Queers for Palestine #Palestine will be free #Palestine Under Attack

[fiercynn]

“The settlers come wearing soldiers’ clothes, which is a new strategy.”

Since the war started, there have been more and more daily attacks by settlers against the people living in Masafer Yatta [a region of rural hamlets in the south of the occupied West Bank]. We are just farmers, many of us living in caves and tents. I am 18 years old, and I have lived here all my life. We have no way to defend ourselves from the settlers, who are fully armed thanks to [National Security Minister Itamar] Ben-Gvir. They feel that now is their chance. The war is happening, and they have the green light to kill any Palestinian they see. They feel that no one is going to care about these people in Masafer Yatta. They come with the army’s protection from the settlement of Havat Ma’on, just five minutes from my village of Tuwani. They attack people’s sheep and demolish their tents and raid their homes. They attacked my family in our house: They came in and shot at my dad. Luckily he survived, but they broke his hand by hitting him with the butt of a gun. On Friday, they shot my cousin, who is still in the hospital. The settlers come wearing soldiers’ clothes, which is a new strategy; my dad only recognized them as settlers because they were the same people who attacked him last year. The settlers and the army are now controlling all the land around Tuwani. They planted an Israeli flag in the high mountains nearby, and they have blocked all the routes in and out of the area. They don’t even allow us to access our donkeys, or to give them food or water. They’re saying this is state land and it’s a war. It’s dangerous to leave the town. Some people are trying to travel through the mountains, because they need to reach hospitals, or to reach markets to get food and water. But the way through the mountains is bumpy, and they get shot at. No one can sleep at night; we are afraid that the settlers will come and burn down our homes. [x]

— Luna (pseudonym), as told to Amos; Tuwani; October 17th

#free palestine #jewish currents

[violottie]

This year’s Land Day falls during the Israeli government’s genocide of Palestinians." from Jewish Voice for Peace, 30/Mar/2024: (caption cont. under image)

With immense grief and rage at the horrors the Israeli military is committing in Gaza right now, we recognize Palestinians’ deep roots in their land as we support the struggle for Palestinian freedom. We honor the steadfastness and resilience of those who have resisted land theft by the Zionist movement and the Israeli government, military, and settlers.

This day commemorates Palestinian land defenders from every era:

Those across historic Palestine who went on a mass strike to protest the Israeli government’s takeover of their land in the Galilee on this day in 1976;

The Great March of Return protesters of Gaza who launched weekly protests for 21 months demanding their right of return on this day in 2018;

and Those who continue to resist genocide, encroaching Israeli settlement growth, home demolition, and displacement everyday—from Gaza City to Khan Younis to Masafer Yatta to Sheikh Jarrah to Huwara, Nablus, Jenin and beyond.

We mourn the thousands whom the Israeli military murdered or permanently injured over the years. We honor those who rose up in 1976 and all who have risen up to fight for justice in Palestine. In their memory, we recommit to supporting Palestinians in their struggle to end Israeli genocide, settler-colonialism, and ethnic cleansing, and for their right of return.

#palestine #land day #palestine land day #jewish voice for peace #jews for palestine #antizionist jews #anti zionist jews for palestine #free palestine #gaza #free gaza #from the river to the sea palestine will be free #i stand with palestine #rafah #save rafah #human rights #indigenous land #indigenous rights #land back #right to return

[soon-palestine]

Alison Russell, a Scottish-born Belgian citizen and Human Rights Defender, was detained by the Israeli occupation authorities while documenting the demolition of a house in Masafer Yatta, in the South Hebron Hills of the occupied West Bank. She was deported after very perfunctory proceedings at the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court. Israeli police alleged in a public statement that Alison “supported a terrorist organization.” Her attorney pointed out that this claim had no basis. Nevertheless, the presiding judge issued a verdict couched in fiery nationalist rhetoric, claiming that “There are many faces to Hamas terror. There are various kinds of terrorists. Some terrorists wield guns and bombs while others use a computer keyboard”.

In the last month and a half, the charge of being a “supporter of a terrorist organization” has become an excuse for an extensive campaign of political persecution against anyone who dares to post any protest the unfolding genocide in Gaza. This has affected Palestinians who have Israeli citizenship and against Israeli Jews, such as the teacher Meir Baruchin, who was detained for almost a week on completely unfounded charges. In the Gaza Strip, a far more brutal procedure for the same allegations is implemented. A Gazan journalist or political activist accused of “supporting Hamas” may expect to be targeted and/or have their family targeted by a missile from an Israeli warplane. Such was, for example, the fate of Ahmed Abu Artema and countless other Palestinian activists and journalists. Nowadays in Israel, all it takes to be charged with “supporting terrorism” is to express sorrow and pain over the killing of children in the bombing of the Gaza Strip. State Attorney Amit Isman strongly criticized these detentions, but Israel’s police, controlled by Ben-Gvir, persist in carrying out such detentions.  In the case of human rights defender Alison Russell, the far-fetched charges of “supporting terrorism” or “keyboard terrorism” cover up the real reason for her detention and deportation. In court, the state asserted that “she had many times disrupted the activities of the IDF troops, whenever she came in contact with them”. Indeed, it is highly disturbing for the troops to have outside observers and witnesses present where acts of oppression take place, which often constitute blatant violations of International Law. 

The tiny villages at Masafer Yatta in the South Hebron Hills are attacked by settlers on one side and the army on the other: The settlers attack the villages, destroy whatever is at hand and threaten entire communities with murder, and in these criminal acts they enjoy complete immunity from the police and army. For its part, the army arrives to destroy the houses of the villagers, houses which were declared to be “illegal” by the Supreme Court. Alison was detained and deported when she tried to document the destruction of one of these houses. The police had stated “a deportation order from Israel” was issued to Alison, as well as a decree to “prevent her from entering Israel” in the future. We would like to emphasize that Alison never wanted to “enter Israel.” She wanted to come to the West Bank, a Palestinian territory occupied by Israel, by the express invitation of Palestinian residents to document and intervene in human rights abuses and stop an ongoing nakba. In the words of Alison herself, “The UN, created when the world was saying ‘nie wieder faschismus,’ has given up on Palestine. But right now, right here, in a tiny little corner of Palestine, there are a dozen villages that are under direct and immediate threat. When the handful of determined people that are here manage to organize a group to sleep in the hamlets, we delay their expulsion…I’m here ‘cos I really think our action is effective. Please make it more effective by getting involved too.”

#palestine #gaza #free palestine #stop the genocide #permanent cease fire #end the occupation #human rights #masafer yatta #the use of a computer keyboard #west bank

[emptyanddark]

"“Ironic” doesn’t begin to describe hearing words like “leftist” and “hyper-activist” in proximity to the Supreme Court, the settler-built and settler-serving institution that has, for decades, authorized and facilitated the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian population. Are we all talking about the same court here? Palestinians are forced to engage in a starkly different relationship with the law than the one Jewish Israelis enjoy.

The legal body those pearl-clutching liberal Zionists are taking to the streets to defend is the same one that, last May, ruled—in complete violation of international law—in favor of the government’s plan to forcibly expel over 1,300 Palestinians from Masafer Yatta in the South Hebron Hills. And, to make the forcible transfer of communities that predate the Zionist state even more cartoonish and bleak, one of the Supreme Court judges that green-lighted this war crime is himself a settler living in the occupied West Bank."

#palestine #Mohammed El-Kurd #r/

[ravnlghtft]

In Masafer Yatta, the Israeli government could force about 1,300 native Palestinian people off of the land they've lived on for generations—at any moment.

Israr el has demolished homes and harassed villagers for decades, and is now escalating its violence. In one village, Khallet ad-Dabe, Israel's colonial court has authorized the military to demolish all the homes, the school, and many agricultural buildings of over 90 Palestinian people starting September 29, 2022.

Every person has the right to stay in their homes and homeland.

Supporters of justice around the world have been speaking out, protesting, and contacting their governments to stop Israel's bulldozers. In May 2022, Congresswoman Cori Bush responded to this call and was joined by fourteen other members in sending a letter to the Biden administration calling out Israeli war crimes and demanding that the U.S. push for Israel's demolitions and displacement to end.

We must rise with Palestinians in Masafer Yatta to stop ethnic cleansing and defend their ancestral homeland! Join us: demand action from Congress.

[nadiasindi]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: [email protected]

ARAB AMERICAN & PALESTINIAN AMERICAN LEADERS

MEET WITH US SECRETARY OF STATE, ANTHONY BLINKEN

Washington, DC - On January 27, 2023, Arab-Americans, including Palestinian American leaders, met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken upon his invitation to discuss his upcoming trip to the Middle East on January 29, which will include stops in Egypt, Israel, and Palestine.

The discussion focused on the secretary’s agenda for his trip to the region, which has been upstaged by the recent Israeli undercover military raid in Jenin that resulted in the killing of 10 Palestinians, including civilians.

Discussions in the meeting were serious, frank, and substantive, and allowed the Arab-American participants to express their concerns about US policy objectives and statements regarding the situation in Palestine, and specifically the events in Jenin and the mass displacement of Palestinians from Masafer Yatta in the West Bank. The group made it clear to the secretary that the US has a responsibility to act to restrain Israel’s aggressive behaviors toward the captive Palestinian people. Decades of US acquiescence to Israel’s policies of settlement expansion, land confiscation, home demolitions, and a range of other human rights violations have led to an Israeli sense of impunity and Palestinian despair. If the Administration is to fulfill its commitment to the equal worth of Israelis and Palestinians and their rights to security, prosperity, and dignity, the group insisted that the Secretary demonstrate firmness and resolve to rein in Israeli behavior.

Another central concern to the community are Israel’s ongoing efforts to gain admission to the U.S. visa waiver program. Last year, Israel published military rules regarding its restrictions on visitors to the West Bank which make clear that American citizens are discriminated against in entry to the West Bank if they indicate an intention to visit Palestinians. Those visiting Israelis face no similar restrictions.

As to the Department of State’s highlighted objective of the trip as that of encouraging Israel’s integration in the region, the participants urged the secretary to ensure that the rights of Palestinians be protected in any US supported regional integration projects. Recent polling on Arab public opinions (including AOI) shows widespread Arab rejection of normalization with Israel.

Finally, the community leaders emphasized their condemnation of antisemitism and hate crimes against the Jewish people and other vulnerable communities (including our own). They also expressed their deep concern with efforts to expand the definition of antisemitism to include criticism of Israeli policies and behavior. This conflation, they warned, was nothing more than a heavy-handed attempt to silence legitimate criticism of Israel.

The Arab American Institute is a national civil rights advocacy organization that provides strategic analysis to policy makers and community members to strengthen democracy, protect civil rights and liberties, and defend human rights. AAI organizes the 3.7 million Arab Americans across the country to ensure an informed, organized, and effective constituency is represented in all aspects of civic life. 

Arab American Institute Foundation 1600 K Street, NW, Suite 601 Washington, DC 20006 United States

[rebel-girl-queen-of-my-world]

#Repost @jewishvoiceforpeace with @make_repost ・・・ Today, we recognize Palestinians’ deep roots in their land and honor the steadfastness and resilience of those who have resisted land theft by the Israeli government, military, and settlers. This day commemorates Palestinian land defenders from every era: those across historic Palestine who went on a mass strike to protest the Israeli takeover of their land in the Galilee on this day in 1976; the Great March of Return protesters of Gaza who began fighting for Palestinians’ right of return on this day in 2018; and those who continue to resist encroaching Israeli settlement, home demolition, and displacement everyday — from the Naqab to Masafer Yatta to Sheikh Jarrah and beyond. We mourn the tens of thousands whom the Israeli military murdered or permanently injured for their resistance. In their memory, we recommit to supporting Palestinians in their struggle to end Israeli settler-colonialism and ethnic cleansing, and get their right of return. This year, that means supporting the #DefundRacism campaign to end the laundering of money from “charitable” US-based Zionist organizations to Israeli settler organizations actively engaged in violence against and displacement of Palestinians. Swipe for more information and protests happening in your city, and take action at the link in bio or defundracism.org. #LandDay #LandDay2022 #freepalestine #palestine #antiracist #anticolonialism #jewsforpalestine #jewsagainstapartheid #jewsagainstzionism #apartheid #israeliapartheid #humanrights https://www.instagram.com/p/Cbu7ABsup64/?utm_medium=tumblr

#repost #defundracism #landday #landday2022 #freepalestine #palestine #antiracist #anticolonialism #jewsforpalestine #jewsagainstapartheid #jewsagainstzionism #apartheid #israeliapartheid #humanrights

[redress-newsbites]