[wvns] Palestine's Children of war
Children of war
By Gideon Levy
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/899694.html
Again children. Five children killed in Gaza in eight days. The public
indifference to their killing - the last three, for example, were
accorded only a short item on the margins of page 11 in Yedioth
Ahronoth, a sickening matter in itself - cannot blur the fact that the
IDF is waging a war against children. A year ago, a fifth of those
killed in the "Summer Rain" operation in Gaza were children; during
the past two weeks, they comprised a quarter of the 21 killed. If,
heaven forbid, children are hurt in Sderot, we will have to remember
this before we begin raising hell.
The IDF explains that the Palestinians make a practice of sending
children to collect the Qassam launchers. However, in this case, the
children killed were not collecting launchers. The first two were
killed while collecting carob fruit and the next three - according to
the IDF's own investigation - were playing tag. But even if we accept
the IDF's claim that there is a general trend of sending children to
collect launchers (which has not been proven), that should have
brought about an immediate halt to firing at launcher collectors.
But the IDF does not care whether its victims are liable to be
children. The fact is that it shoots at figures it considers
suspicious, with full knowledge - according to its own contention -
that they are liable to be children. Therefore, an IDF that fires at
launcher collectors is an army that kills children, without any
intention of preventing this. This then is not a series of unfortunate
mistakes, as it is being portrayed, but rather reflects the army's
contempt for the lives of Palestinian children and its terrifying
indifference to their fate.
A society that holds ethical considerations in high regard would at
least ask itself: Is it permissible to shoot at anyone who is
approaching the launchers, even if we know that some of these people
may be small children, lacking in judgment, and thus not punishable?
Or are we lifting all restraints on our war operations? Even if we
accept the IDF's claims that its sophisticated vision devices do not
enable them to distinguish between a 10-year-old boy and an adult, the
IDF cannot evade its responsibility for this criminal action. Even if
we assumed a completely distorted assumption that anyone who goes near
the launchers is subject to death, the fact that children are involved
should have changed the rules. Add to this the fact that the firing at
launcher collectors has halted the Qassams, or even reduce their
number, and you arrive at another chilling conclusion: The IDF shoots
at children to wreak vengeance and punish.
No child in Sderot is more secure as a result of this killing. On the
contrary.
Anyone who takes an honest look at the progression of events during
the past two months will discover that the Qassams have a context:
They are almost always fired after an IDF assassination operation, and
there have been many of these. The question of who started it is not a
childish question in this context. The IDF has returned to
liquidations, and in a big way. And in their wake there has been an
increase in Qassam firings.
That is the truth, and they are hiding it from us. When Gabi Ashkenazi
and Ehud Barak assumed their positions, the reins were loosened. If
Barak were a representative of the political right, perhaps a public
outcry would have already been sounded against the IDF's wild actions
in Gaza. But everything is permitted to Barak, and even the fact that
the victims are children does not matter - not to him and not to the
Israeli public.
Yes, the children of Gaza gather around the Qassams. It is practically
the only diversion they have in their lives. It is their amusement
park. Those who arrogantly preach to their parents "to watch over
them" have never visited Beit Hanoun. There is nothing there, except
for the filthy alleys and meager homes. Even if it is true that those
launching the Qassams are taking advantage of these miserable children
(which has yet to be proven), this should not shape our moral
portrait. Yes, it is permissible to exercise restraint and caution.
Yes, it is not always necessary to respond, especially when the
response ends up killing children.
The way to stop the firing of Qassams is not through indiscriminate
killing. Every launcher can be replaced. The start of the school year
bodes ill, for us and for them. Anyone who truly seeks to stop the
firing of Qassams should reach a cease-fire agreement with the current
government in Gaza. That is the only way and it is possible. The
liquidations, the shelling and the killing of children will work in
exactly the opposite direction of what is intended. In the meantime,
look what is happening to us and to our army.
===
IDF troops operating in the West Bank kill 16-year-old Palestinian
By Avi Issacharoff
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/904368.html
A 16-year-old Palestinian youth was shot and killed early Monday
morning during clashes with the Israel Defense Forces in Ramallah.
Palestinian sources reported that the youth, Mohammed Jabbarin, was
not armed and was shot after he hurled rocks at Israeli troops. The
IDF had been carrying out a routine operation in the West Bank town
when the clash erupted.
The IDF said that troops had identified an armed militant and opened
fire, hitting the target.
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Troops also arrested 13 wanted Palestinians in pre-dawn raids, Israel
Radio reported.
Meanwhile, Palestinian militants fired several mortar shells into
Israel from the central Gaza Strip. No one was injured and no damage
was caused.
Late Sunday, IDF troops opened fire on an armed Palestinian attempting
to infiltrate the West Bank settlement of Shavei Shomron, west of Nablus.
The soldiers noticed the Palestinian trying to enter the settlement
and called out to him to halt. The man refused and opened fire on the
troops. None of the soldiers were injured.
The soldiers returned fire, upon which the Palestinian fled the scene.
IDF forces are combing the area near the settlement for the gunman.
Meanwhile Sunday, a Qassam rocket landed north of the western Negev
town of Sderot. There were no injuries reported, but a nearby
structure suffered some damage.
IDF troops earlier Sunday killed two Palestinian militants in separate
incidents in the West Bank cities of Hebron and Nablus.
In Hebron, gunmen shot at soldiers who entered their neighborhood in
response to an outbreak of violence between feuding family. The army
patrol returned fire, killing a man identified as Baha al-Azuni and
wounding two others.
Earlier Sunday, a Fatah-linked militant was shot dead by troops Sunday
during a military operation, Palestinian sources said.
The militant was identified as Yusuf Al-A'asi of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs'
Brigades. In a separate incident in the city, troops shot and wounded
a Palestinian man.
Palestinian sources said IDF troops were operating overnight Saturday
in the southern Gaza Strip near the Sufa Crossing. According to the
sources, tanks and bulldozers entered the Strip with the support of
helicopters. The sources added that troops carried out arrests.
The IDF confirmed that troops targeted a militant cell in southern
Gaza that had been involved in attacks on Israel, adding that a Qassam
rocket was fired at Israel on Sunday morning.
===
West Bank village faces demolition
By Katya Adler
BBC News, Akkaba, West Bank
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6993142.stm
When school began this month, the children of Akkaba in the northern
West Bank did not just have the usual concerns of a new school year.
They had the added grave worry that any day their school may be
demolished.
The children of Akkaba in their soon-to-be-demolished school
The Israeli army says Akkaba is in a "militarised zone" and was built
without planning permission. It therefore views the village as illegal
and has handed out dozens of demolition orders.
The army handed the demolition order to the kindergarten - built with
British, Norwegian and US aid - before the start of term.
One of the school's teachers, Othman al-Ghoury, said the order, though
extremely worrying, did not come as a surprise.
"All the buildings in this village suffer the same situation. They are
expected to be demolished. The school, the kindergarten, the mosque,
the clinic and all the houses," Mr Ghoury said.
"I'm going to sit in the house and let them pull it down on top of me
" Naime Dabek
Perched on a hill in the arid Jordan valley, Akkaba is a perfect
example of the daily Palestinian experience which Tony Blair needs to
improve under his brief as international Middle East envoy.
At the soon-to-be-demolished village clinic, also built with British
money, a weeping Naime Dabek was being comforted by friends - her
house had just been served with its demolition order.
"I'm going to sit in the house and let them pull it down on top of
me," she told us. "I'll poison myself and die. Where would I go? I'm a
widow. I have no-one."
Planning permission
The Palestinian Authority has varying degrees of control in the West
Bank, but Israel ultimately controls the Occupied Territories.
The Israeli army, in occupation of the area since it seized it in the
1967 war, restricts all travel with more than 500 checkpoints,
roadblocks and earth mounds, which it says are necessary to prevent
Palestinian militant attacks and suicide bombings.
"We're not even on the water or electricity grid here - Israel can
literally wipe us off the map." Sami Sadek, Mayor of Akkaba
The army also has the power to issue demolition orders in conjunction
with the civil authorities. But Akkaba's mayor, Sami Sadek said the
village had been around for generations.
In a statement to the BBC however, the army said the village sprung up
only a few years ago, in a militarised zone, and that's why it had
issued the demolition orders.
Forbidden from building an office, Mr Sadek, put his desk under a
shady carob tree and villagers gather round him on plastic chairs,
smoking, drinking coffee and discussing their difficulties.
"Our main problem is Israel's occupation," Mr Sadek told us. "It's not
just about construction. We're not even on the water or electricity
grid here. Israel can literally wipe us off the map."
With no mains water supply here, the families of Akkaba pay
individually for a water tanker to come to their homes. Otherwise
their taps would run dry.
Running dry
Munjid Sbeh, a farmer, has eight children.
"The fact that we have to buy water affects us financially - instead
of spending the money on our children's education or clothing for
them, we have to buy water. Our farm is not stable," Mr Sbeh said.
"This situation means our older children are going to cities like
Jenin, Nablus and Ramallah for work instead of working here on the
farm. We face huge obstacles."
The United Nations monitors all the Occupied Territories. Adeeb
Salman, a UN humanitarian affairs officer, is a regular visitor to Akkaba.
"The majority of Palestinians are facing the same problems as this
village. Israel controls every aspect of life in the West Bank," he said.
"Their infrastructure, their schools, their daily life. This will
hinder any development, any hope. Any improvement of life for the
Palestinians must have the co-operation of the Israeli authorities."
If Tony Blair wants his mission to improve Palestinian lives on behalf
of the international community, more aid and better governance by the
Palestinian Authority will not quite do it. What are needed are
political solutions.
===
GAZA RESIDENTS TELL OF DEMEANING QUESTIONING BY SHIN BET
Amira Hass, Haaretz
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/894015.html
In the most recent Israel Defense Forces raids in the Gaza Strip,
during which dozens of people were detained for interrogation by the
Shin Bet, the security service adopted a procedure unknown in recent
years: The detainees were forced to undress in the presence of another
detainee and a soldier or a member of the Shin Bet and then be
interrogated while wearing a disposable, blue paper overall. This
emerged in cumulative testimony from the Strip. In the West Bank,
apparently, the color of the overall is white.
According to a clarification by Haaretz with the Palestinian Center
for Human Rights, this procedure has been implemented in the last
three months with detainees from Beit Lahia, the Al Fuhari
neighborhood in Khan Yunis and twice with detainees from the
agricultural town of Shuka east of Rafah, on June 9 and on August 3.
In earlier raids where a large number of Palestinians who were not
suspects nor wanted men were detained, they were not stripped and
usually were questioned while wearing their own clothes. But the Shin
Bet said in response that "an examination by the relevant security
factors indicated there has been no change in the professional
instructions for the manner of examination."
Othman Hussein, a resident of Shuka who works in the research and
planning department of Palestinian Authority Chair Mahmoud Abbas'
bureau, was detained with another 83 people during an August 3 raid,
along with his 16-year-old son. All of them - except for an employee
of the Gaza European Hospital - were released within 24 hours.
Hussein, 44, is a writer and a poet. He was held for interrogation a
year ago as well. "At the time they maintained a certain attitude of
respect," said Hussein in a phone conversation with Haaretz. "I sat in
detention for 22 hours, and I was interrogated for an hour, mainly
regarding my opinion of current events. They didn't strip me and they
didn't humiliate me. "This time, their method was particularly
humiliating, embarrassing and disgusting. I'm convinced it's a method
designed to humiliate and weaken us in front of the interrogator."
Hussein said that all those questioned who were taken from their homes
were Fatah members like him and known as such.
The raid on Shuka, which stands on the edge of Rafah airport, began at
about 1 A.M. Friday morning and ended at 5 P.M. According to Hussein,
the soldiers announced on loudspeakers that all men aged 15-45 should
leave their homes and gather in the neighborhood square. At the same
time, the soldiers conducted searches of about 50 houses, detaining
men. Four children under the age of 15 and about 20 adults over the
age of 45 were also detained, Hussein said. "I didn't plan to leave
the house, but when I saw that my 16-year-old son was on the way to
detention, I joined him." Hussein said it was about 6:30 A.M.
The 84 detainees gathered gradually in the square and eventually had
their hands cuffed behind their backs. It was very hot, with no
shelter from the sun. But the soldiers offered bread and water, said
Hussein. Around 10 A.M. one group was told to get onto a truck, and a
second group was taken at 12 noon. Hussein and his son were in the
first group.
"We were about 10 meters from the truck. When we approached it, the
soldiers blindfolded us. When they saw that we couldn't get onto the
truck with bound hands and blindfolded, they grabbed us, one by one,
and tossed us into the truck, like sheep. Except that sheep are not
handcuffed and blindfolded."
After a short ride they arrived at an army camp in the Kerem Shalom
area. There they were put two at a time into a wooden hut with only
three walls. A man wearing civvies told them to undress completely in
front of him and passed a metal detector over their naked bodies,
including their behinds, according to Hussein's testimony.
Hussein and his son were put together in the hut. According to
additional testimony, men and women soldiers were walking near the
open hut all the while. Afterward, everyone was told to don an overall
and put his clothes in a separate black bag, and then the detainees
were handcuffed and blindfolded again.
The detainees were moved to outside the interrogation rooms, where
they waited, in groups of 10 at a time. Each was interrogated
separately by a Shin Bet investigator. There appeared to be only two
interrogators. At the entrance to the interrogation room, handcuffs
and blindfolds were removed.
Hussein said he came before the interrogator angry and upset. The
interrogator did not introduce himself and asked questions "whose
answers he has in the computer in any case - how old I am, who my
relatives are, how old they are, etc. Then he asked me about what had
happened between Hamas and Fatah. I answered him: 'You strip me next
to my son, sit me in the sun for about four hours, and then you want
me to tell you my opinion of Hamas and Fatah? I don't want to tell you."
The investigator nevertheless tried several times to get him to say
something about his political opinions, but he refused, Hussein said.
At the conclusion of the questioning, at 2 P.M. they were once again
handcuffed and blindfolded. At 10 P.M. they were allowed to look for
their clothes in a pile of black bags and were taken by bus to the
Sufa crossing, north of Kerem Shalom. From there, in the middle of the
night, in a dangerous border area, they made their way on foot several
kilometers to Rafah.
The response of the Shin Bet: "As a rule, the security check is
determined according to the concrete level of risk of the person under
interrogation, which is decided according to the circumstances of each
individual case. This examination does not usually include stripping
the interrogatee. However, in exceptional cases, the examination can
include stripping in view of past instances in which terrorists harmed
security personnel with whom they had contact. It should be emphasized
that the examination is external only, and the dignity, privacy and
modesty of the interrogatees are strictly maintained."
*********************************************************************
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