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1-They will come knocking on your door
2- ISM Actions in Rafah Nablus from Michael (ISM Media Office)
3-Do not sit under the olive tree with by Roy Brad
4-Internationals and Palestinians Demonstrate in Rafah, Gaza by Rachel Corrie
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1-They will come knocking on your door

(At a children’s activity recently in Nablus someone asked a room full of children how many had someone from their family in prison. Over half the room raised its hand.)Military forces come in the night, each and every night to take our men, our fathers, brothers, partners, uncles and cousins. They are taken with M -16’s, without charge, in front of our teary wet, angry eyes in the middle of a deeply dark night. Soldiers bang at our door or simply blow it off with dynamite, enter our house, fire live rounds of ammunition over the heads of our sleeping children at 2 or 3 in the morning. The soldiers search the house, turn everything upside down, rip, break, and damage furniture and any expensive equipment, steal our money, jewelry and cell phones, hit our mothers, beat our fathers, make our brothers strip, and leave in possession of a yet another male from our community.

“Sami was arrested and my uncle…” Hussein says “Last night.” I swallow hard, search for words in the heavy silence and see his face. Sami and my last conversation begins to play again in my mind….

“What is there to look forward to? More tanks, more death, more lost friends, longer prison terms, unemployment, closed schools, humiliation, military operations, violations and restrictions?” he quietly asked me.

Nineteen years old. Israeli soldiers came for him in the night at his father’s home on February 12, 2003.

4 men from the Khalili family were taken in 2 days.

Ibrahime, 17 years old, arrested two nights ago (February 14, 2003). I woke to a phone call at 4:20 am and a mother crying, repeating her words in an obvious state of shock “They took him, Ibrahime.

They ransacked the house…broke many things..they took him…Ibrahime…” a cracking, broken-hearted voice that echoed in my head for over an hour as I tried to go back to sleep, turning over again and again in whys and hows of this land, of this human-made hell.

I see the Abu Zhour family the next morning in Balata. The youngest daughter, who had two days earlier been gregarious and friendly, is utterly silent. Their rooms have been torn upside down, everything is in complete and utter shambles, clothes are everywhere, covered in a glitter of shards of broken glass from the mirror, crushed tapes, shredded papers, broken toothbrushes and school notebooks.

Israeli soldiers came a little after 3 am and entered the house with force, searching room to room, leaving with a 17 year-old boy: Ibrahime. A boy was hasn’t even finished high school. Tears welled up in my eyes when I saw the contents of a small bag that the soldiers had thrown in disarray in the corner of the boys’ room: clothes, coffee, and socks for Mohammed, the mother explained, another son already in prison (Taken in Nov. 2002). I can not tell you how many families have a similar bagprepared in their homes, waiting, because the reality is that the “democratic” State of Israel regularly prohibits even the Red Cross to visit the prisons.

Mohammed Khilfe arrested one week ago while Internationals were sleeping at his home. Israeli soldiers arrive in the middle of the night, search the upstairs, take Boshar as a human shield to come to Mohammed’s door downstairs and enter the house en masse. They forcefully remove Mohammed from the house after putting his mother on the phone with the Israeli secret police, who casually explained that they were going to take Mohammed and that she’d had better take care of her little 14 year-old or they’d come for him too. I call 5 minutes after the soldiers have gone and the mother can’t even speak…she repeats his name again and again and passes the phone to someone else.

Husam Shakshir, taken on February 12th at 3 am. Soldiers entered their home in the Old City and menaced everyone with M-16’s. They were physically aggressive towards the mother and father and pushed the gentle, nearly 70 year-old man who walks with a cane forcefully to the ground. Israeli soldiers left with their son after searching the entire house.

It happens every single night. A brother, father or son disappears in the dark of night, at a checkpoint, on a trip to the market, or getting a haircut. Arrest after arrest after arrest. For no reason or for any reason. It means beating or torture. Months of imprisonment without charge, and/or because of evidence presented to a judge by the Israeli secret police in private. The Israeli Army is taking everyone, politically active or not, young and old, rich and poor, students, farmers, bakers and carpenters - taking man after man away night after night.

It seems as if each and every one gets harder—harder to lose more family and friends, harder to find reasons, harder to believe they’ll come back home soon, and certainly harder to accept.

It may be because every man is one more brother gone in my eyes.

My oldest brother, Michael, is 31. He is a graduate student and has two kids and a wonderful partner.

He is not politically active, has no criminal record, loves hanging out with friends and adores his children, like most of the men here. He has a great sense of humor, is highly creative and deeply supportive of hisfamily and wife.

I imagine Michael, Liz, Owen and Dylan waking to US Marines in the middle of the night that break down their door and barge into their home, shooting real bullets, yelling orders at everyone, telling my brother to “Shut up!”, jamming a M-16 in his gut when he speaks up in outrage. Wreaking havoc in what was sound sleep and sacred safety, terrorizing their children and robbing them in an instant of much more than physical possession.

I can see my cousins beginning to scream and cry and Liz and Mike cut so deeply by the feeling of powerlessness as they watch their children’s security vanish, their home pillaged, their rights trampled on, their humanity denied, and then without even a moment to exchange a word or a kiss, my brother, Michael, taken from his home, blindfolded, handcuffed, and dragged away. Liz picks up the clump of trembling boys in front of her and moves them towards the window when the door is slammed shut.

His little boys and wife watch, still terrified, as he disappears in M-16’s and shadows, taken by a military jeep far, far away.

You think about beatings, physical force, the various stories you’ve heard about torture and cruelty, interrogations, the weather, is he cold? No idea where he is, for how long, in what conditions or with whom. Disappears. Stolen. Right in front of your children and your eyes. No charge, no reason.

To your hundreds of questions there will be no answer.

The world will watch and remain silent, say that you likely deserved it, call your partner a criminal or a ‘terrorist’, assume that if he was taken, there must be a reason and then move right on tobusiness as usual and the morning traffic jam.

Same old story, just another Palestinian “gunman” imprisoned.

No, I said “They came for your brother last night.”

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2- ISM Actions in Rafah and Nablus

Rafah

At 9.30 this morning seven ISM activists based in Rafah (1 Palestinian, 3 UK and 3 US) accompanied municipal water workers who were investigating a leaking water pipe in the Yibna Area close to the "Apartheid Wall". The area in which the action took place is overlooked by two of the wall's towers from which soldiers had fired at the workers earlier that morning, forcing them to abandon their work. With the help of the activists, who formed human shields, the water workers quickly discovered that the problem was not with the water main, as they had feared, but with a branch pipe that was quickly closed so that the action was completed within a few minutes.

Following this action the activists headed to Tel e-Sultan where, on January 30, Israeli military bulldozers had destroyed the two largest of the six wells which supply Rafah's water, cutting its water supply in half. Last week water workers had tried to repair one of the wells but were forced to abandon their work when they came under fire from a nearby tank guarding the Jewish settlement of Rafiah Yen.

Again the workers were able to carry out their repair work on the wells because of the protection afforded them by the presence of the activists acting as human shields. Because the bulldozers were so thorough in their demolition of the well, the action will probably take three days and might involve the activists sleeping at the well tomorrow night.

The Tel e-Sultan wells are overlooked by two military towers and, normally, a tank, although the tank was absent today.

Nablus

At 1.45 today five ISM activists based in Nablus (2 Irish, 1 Dane, 1 American and 1 Swiss) were at Sufian Street in the town's centre when Israeli tanks and motorised infantrymen stormed up the street. While many of the people on the streets, who were shopping at the town's markets along the street, fled others began breaking up the curbside to throw stones at the invading forces. Palestinian resistance fighters in the area also returned fire on the Israeli soldiers, who fired live ammunition at the armed resistance fighters, the stone throwers and the fleeing civilians alike.

After about two hours the soldiers withdrew from the area with an unknown number of captives, leaving 2 dead and 27 injured Palestinians in their wake. Two ambulance workers were among the injured who were shot when trying to rescue the wounded. The ISM activists were able to escort some of the women and children fleeing the area by shielding them from the Israeli fire.

Also, in the village of Asira, north-west of Nablus one ISM activist (from South Africa) was ambushed by Israeli soldiers when walking with a friend. Four Israeli soldiers jumped out from an olive grove and detained the two men at gunpoint for 15 minutes before taking them to a place in the orchard where four other soldiers were resting. The men were then held at gunpoint for one hour and forbidden to either make a phone call or smoke a cigarette.

Then they were released. No reason was given for their detention.

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3 - Do not sit under the olive tree with.....

Today I travel to the village of Asira, north-west of Nablus. Asira has a population of 12 000 and a high level of adults have studied in Higher education. Now the village is surrounded by roadblocks and getting around is increasingly difficult. I meet my host Kanaan and we go for a short walk. A few 100 metres outside of the village, wecome to an Olive Grove and some
roadblocks. I take a photo of the roadblocks, and we carry on. Kanaan is talking about his childhood, and places where he used to play.

Suddenly there is the sound of footsteps, we turn and see 4 Israeli soldiers, guns trained on us. The sargeant starts yelling at us in Hebrew. I tell him that I only speak English, and ask him what the problem is. He demands that we lift our jackets. I repeat that I am from England, and why does he want me to lift my jacket. He asks what I am doing here, and I say walking with a friend.

"You came all the way from England to go for a walk?" he asks. "Is that against the law?" I ask. He takes Kanaan's ID and then demands my passport. I hand it over.

Move off the road" he tells us. All the time the soldiers keep their guns trained on us. He reads the ID and passport numbers into his phone. I try to talk to Kanaan and am ordered to shutup. Afte3r about 15 minutes of standing there we are are ordered to follow them, guns trained on us all the time. They lead us into the olive grove, where there are another 4 soldiers lying on the ground, around an Olive tree, guns trained on us. We are ordered to sit under an olive tree. The first 4 soldiers make off again, taking ourt documents with them. For an hour we are held there, guns trained on us. The one with his gun aimed at me stares at me continually, and I stare into the middle distance, humming. Eventually I decide that I have had enough of his
stare. I ask to phone my Embassy. I am refused. I then get into a staring competition with him. He stopos looking so cocky and is the first to break eye contact. My phone rings, I stare at him. He gets agitated and orders me to turn it off. I do. The second phone rings! Same procedure. I turn them off and put them in front of me. He gestures for me to put them into my pocket. I tell him I only speak English and don't have a clue what he's on about. Another one gets up and gestures as well. I repeat the statement that I only speak English and don't know what they're doing. I ask again to phone my Embassy, and ask whether I am under arrest. It's getting really cold and I'm fed up. I start asking them if they are doing this because they have big guns. They tell me to shut up. I ask them if they want me to shut up cos they have big guns.

The original quartet returns and hands me the passport and Kanaans ID. We are free to go. Kanaan is really apologetic! I assure him that I am fully aware that this is the Israeli Army playing Bully Boy.

When we get back to his house, he cooks some spaghetti bolognaise! A weird meal after so much humous and falafel, but very enjoyable. I ask him if it has ever happened to him before.
"Many times" he tells me. Today was the easiest. The worst was one summer day when he was returning from nablus. He was detained in the morning and kept till 1am the next day. He was ordered to say "I am an ugly Palestinian". He refused.

He was beaten and forced to strip. Again he was ordered to say "I am an ugly Palestinian". Again he refused. He was forced to sit on thorns. For hours he was pressured to say "I am an ugly Palestinian", he continued to refuse. At about midnignt a tank arrived. He was forced to lie on the road. He was told that if he didn't say the words, the tank would roll over his head.
Slowly the tank rolled forward. He continued to refuse, even though by now he was convinced he was about to get killed. The tank treads stopped within 15 cm of his head.

After another beating, he was rolled down a hill, still naked, where there were lots of thorns. He was left naked on the raod. People from nearby houses who had watched the whole incident came out with a blanket, and he was taken to a clinic where a doctor and friends spent 2 days pulling the thorns out of his body.

He contacted some Israeli friends, who contacted Members of the Knesset. Their enquiries met with the reply "This is a security matter!" Still he wants peace and maintains his friendships with Israeli friends. He is busy raising funds for a childrens centre in the village, to provide activities for the village kids, to bring some positive things into their lives.

I don't think he's an ugly Palestinian.

He's a brave, dignified Palestinian!
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4- Internationals and Palestinians Demonstrate in Rafah, Gaza
Saturday, February 15, 2003

At 11 am on Saturday the 15th of February 100-150 Palestinians were joined in Rafah by nine
internationals in a march for peace for the people of Iraq, in protest of US government policies
towards the people of Iraq and Palestine, and in support of the political rights of protesters in New York City. This demonstration occurred in conjunction with protests around the world.

Messages from Communities Around the Globe Palestinians and international friends from the United States, the UK, and the Netherlands marched along Sea Street, Sharia al Baha, one of the central streets in Rafah Camp. As they approached the center of town they began to shout through bullhorns in Arabic "Hurriyah la Falesteen! Hurriyah la al Iraq! Hurriyah la Rafah! Hurriyah la Baghdad!" and in English "Freedom for Palestine! Freedom for Iraq! Freedom for Rafah! Freedom for Baghdad!"

Internationals carried hand-written signs: "Amsterdam says no to War on Iraq and Rafah! Olympia USA says no war on Rafah and Iraq! City of Chicago Stop War on Iraq! South London for Peace in the Middle East. Malvern Against the War. Dingle for Peace in the Middle East." Palestinians carried signs saying "Stop Repression in New York", a nod to the illegalization of marches scheduled for New York City today. Some internationals reported that friends at home marched with identical signs mentioning the situation in Rafah.

"Freedom for Palestine. Freedom for Iraq."

At about 11:10 this crowd converged in Al Awda square with a group of children from the Children's Parliament, youth from the Fateh youth organization, as well as adults from Fateh and various community organizations.

Children joined in chanting "Hurriyah la Falesteen wa Hurriyah la al Iraq"—and passed forward
crayoned United States flags to the center of the demonstration. A US national burned these flags, while the Children waved peace signs and continued to chant. A few of the children burned crayoned Israeli flags.

As rain began to pour on the streets of Rafah at about 11:30, Palestinians and internationals walked through traffic. The bullhorns went off, and the chanting dissipated to child voices and adult voices yelling "Hurriyah la Falesteen! Hurriyah la Falasteen! Hurriyah la Falesteen!" Freedom for Palestine. Freedom for Palestine. .Freedom for Palestine.

The situation in Rafah

Rafah is a city and refugee camp of about 140,000 people in the southern Gaza strip immediately adjacent to the Egyptian border. Currently, the Israeli Military (IDF), is constructing a wall approximately ten meters high paralleling the border.

The Rafah Popular Refugee Committee estimates that over 600 houses have been destroyed on the Rafah side of this wall. 79 houses were destroyed in Rafah in January alone, according to a United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) press release Tuesday. UNRWA Commissioner General Peter Hansen urged the international community not to ignore the situation in the West Bank and Gaza as focus intensifies on Iraq.

Internationals engaged in human rights work in Rafah report daily demolitions of civilian homes and "ceaseless shelling" from tanks stationed along the outskirts of Rafah. Palestinians living on the "front line"--those houses immediately facing the now-open area where other homes once stood—refer to the shelling and larger bomb blasts as "music".

An international from the United States pointed out that the children involved in this demonstration rarely have direct contact with the outside world. "They have never seen Israelis except inside of tanks and sniper towers".

What does this war mean for Rafah?

When asked what war in Iraq means for people in Rafah, one of the Palestinian organizers of the demonstration remembered his experiences as a child during the first Gulf War:

"During 1991in the first Gulf War Israel had bunkers and Israelis had gas masks. We had no masks. Israel is a technological country and knows how to deal with these things. But in the camps—no on cares what happens to us in the camps."

He described the uncertainty of wondering whether Iraqi missiles aimed at Israel would hit Gaza and the difficulty of living under twenty-four hour curfew imposed by the IOF.

"We made some things, the best we could. We shut all the doors and nailed nylon over the windows. We knocked a hole in our wall to move between rooms."

UNRWA alludes to further consequences of an Iraq war for Palestinians. According to Tuesday's press release, UNRWA's emergency programmes—"including the feeding of 1.1 million people"—will run out of resources and come to an end in mid March unless donations are received immediately.
As of Tuesday, no funds had been received by UNRWA in response to a December call for US $ 94 million in emergency aid. UNRWA mentions Rafah in particular as an area of need - "Supplies of food, tents and cash to those made homeless cannot continue unless donations are forthcoming."

Hansen makes the international community's inaction and the potential for war: "[T]he paradox is that our emergency funding for the year may be threatened because donors are holding back to see what is needed in Iraq."

When asked what the IDF might do in Gaza in the event of an Iraq war, one Palestinian from Rafah replied "We cannot know what they will do. We just wait." No one made mention of the potential for mass famine.

"We know what this is like and we do not want this for the people of Iraq" A shopkeeper in the vicinity of the demonstration described the sentiment of many in Rafah that US aggression towards Iraq in the midst of continuous support for Israel demonstrates abject disregard for the value of Palestinian lives. He mentioned the IDF's possession of weapons of mass destruction and killing of Palestinian civillians:

"This is something we cannot understand. We know the government is not the people, but why America wants to attack Iraq so much? Just the oil? They have all the oil. The Middle East is already as a base for America—army everywhere. Why do they want Iraq? What is the difference between Iraq and Israel? Why do they want these things for us?"

Another Palestinian organizer expressed doubt that the demonstration in Rafah would matter in the international community. "There were demonstrations before but the media doesn't come here from Gaza. No one will see our demonstration." Others in Rafah echo this sense of invisibility:

"We make protest here for Iraq, but we need to think about ourselves. Things are bad enough here. Nobody here likes Saddam Hussein. We make protest for Iraq because we know what this is like and we do not want this for the people of Iraq. Saddam Hussein is a king. He will not die. He will not be hungry. He will not suffer. We make a protest for Iraq. Because we have experienced this. Who makes protest for us?"

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