Lockdown in Hebron
In this posting, an article from the NY Times about the significance of Hebron as the new centre of struggle 1], articles from Ma’an on the lockdown of Hebron and the symbolic holding of the PNA’s cabinet meeting there, 2 and 3]; a list of the 25 Palestinians in Hebron shot dead by Israeli armed forces October 2-November 2, 2015.
Hadeel al-Hashlamun, an 18-year-old student in Hebron approaches a soldier.
He shoots her dead, claiming she was about to stab him. No knife was found on the ground or her body. Photos by Reuters.
Palestinian Uprising Shifts to West Bank City of Hebron
By Diaa Hadid and Rami Nazza, NY Times
October 29, 2015
HEBRON, West Bank — Shadi Sider proudly pointed with his lit cigarette at the television blaring news of another Palestinian attack against Israeli soldiers just a few hundred feet from his home in this ancient city surrounded by Jewish settlements.
“Hebron is called the sleeping lion,” said Mr. Sider, 32, a trader and father of six. “Now it is waking up.”
This month’s Palestinian uprising, which started with a wave of knife attacks in Jerusalem, has shifted 18 miles south to Hebron, another holy city with a stark history of violence and tension. On Thursday alone, the authorities said, Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian who stabbed a soldier in the head just outside Hebron and another who pulled out a knife at a storied settlement in its Old City, bringing to 11 the number of attacks in the area over the past week.
‘Flying checkpoints’ – often just two soldiers exercising the power to stop and search – are now everywhere in Hebron. Here, one frisks two men while the other keeps watch. Hebron October 21st, 2014. Photo by Yotam Ronen/Activestills.org
Hebron, the West Bank’s largest city, with 200,000 Palestinian residents, has long been a hot spot for tensions. Palestinians call it, and a surrounding belt of villages, “the fortress of Hamas,” because of its role as the militant Islamist group’s unofficial West Bank headquarters. It is a place where the Palestinian Authority is weak and residents are culturally conservative. It is also the only spot outside Jerusalem where several hundred Jewish settlers live side by side with Palestinians, in heavily guarded enclaves in an area of the Old City under Israeli military control.
These days, Hebron’s streets are strewn with banners memorializing about 20 residents killed by Israelis this month in demonstrations and attacks. Confrontations erupt frequently with Israeli forces at the city’s entrances and around the Old City. And nearly 240 Palestinians from Hebron have been arrested by Israeli forces since the most recent flare-up of violence began, reported Addameer, a Palestinian prisoners rights group.
Here on October 29th Thursday they search a boy near the Jewish settlement of Beit Hadassah in Hebron after a Palestinian youth was shot dead while trying to stab a soldier. Photo by Menahem Kahana/AFP — Getty Images
The uprising has also taken on more local grievances, with Hebron residents furious that Israel has refused to release the bodies of Palestinians killed after alleged attacks. The authorities are holding about 25 bodies, Palestinians said, including 12 from Hebron. Residents have raised particular outrage over the fate of two young women, Bayan Oseili, 16, and Dania al-Husseini, 17, who were shot dead eight days apart by Israeli forces who accused them of trying to stab soldiers. Palestinians see it as an affront to the Muslim tradition of immediate burial, and a defilement of their honor.
“The uprising is in Hebron because we are more religious, and we have to mix with the settlers,” said Khalaf Gheith, 48, a tile maker. “And since the girls were killed and humiliated,” he added, pausing briefly, “the blood boils.”
Analysts say the anger here in Hebron poses more risk to the area’s stability than that in any other part of the West Bank. Hamas, which dominates the Gaza Strip, has been celebrating the attacks and urging more through its Aqsa television channel and social media networks, trying to give the sharp rise in violence more momentum. It appears partly driven by a desire to embarrass and undermine President Mahmoud Abbas, analysts said.
Still, Hamas is mostly staying out of the uprising, most likely fearing violent retribution in Gaza, said Daniel Nisman, a security analyst at the Levantine Group, a geopolitical risk analysis firm based in Tel Aviv. Hamas has claimed responsibility for only one stabbing attack, in a town near Jerusalem on Oct. 22. The perpetrators were from Sourif, a village near Hebron. But Mr. Nisman did not discount that Israeli forces had thwarted other attacks planned by Hamas.
A leading Hamas official in the Hebron area, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of being arrested, said that Mr. Abbas’s security apparatus was already powerless in Hebron. But he said the Israeli occupation was driving the uprising.
“There is no horizon,” he said. “That is the real reason.”
Like Jerusalem, Hebron is holy to both Muslims and Jews, believed to be the burial place of the biblical patriarch Abraham, and has a long history of conflict flaring amid periods of uneasy coexistence.
There was 1929, when Palestinians massacred 69 Jews, pillaged homes and ransacked synagogues.
And in 1994, Baruch Goldstein, an American-born Israeli doctor, went on a shooting rampage that killed 29 Muslim worshippers inside a Hebron shrine known to Jews as the Tomb of the Patriarchs and to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque.
The 1997 Hebron protocol set up a unique arrangement dividing the city into an area under Palestinian control, and another — about a fifth of the territory — in Israeli hands, forcing Muslim residents to pass through military checkpoints to enter the mosque and choking off Hebron’s old city to Palestinians.
“That creates more Israeli-Palestinian friction, stokes Palestinians’ sense of anger and subjugation, and increases the opportunity to act on that anger,” said Nathan Thrall, a Jerusalem-based analyst for the International Crisis Group.
Upheaval appears to be the new normal in Hebron.
One day this week, radio reports said that Raed Jaradat, 22, from the nearby village of Beit Anoun, had been shot dead as he tried to stab an Israeli soldier at a nearby junction. Hours later, a distant relative from the same village, Iyad Jaradat, 19, was killed as he threw stones at a nearby military jeep in protest. The Israeli military said it was looking into reports of the second death, but had no immediate confirmation.
That evening, dozens of men flocked to a hall to pay respects to the father of Ms. Al-Husseini, the 17-year-old. “Hebron is the land of the martyrs!” blared a voice over a loudspeaker. “Today we give this martyr of Palestine, we come to renew our pact with martyrdom!”
The slain girl’s uncle, Jawad, 42, a printing-press owner, said his niece was quiet and studious. “If we want one thing from the world, we want the bodies of our daughters,” he sobbed.
Palestinians carry the bodies of five Palestinians killed by Israeli security forces following attempted stabbing attacks during a funeral procession in Hebron on October 31, 2015. Photo by Hazem Bader/AFP
A senior Israeli official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to do otherwise, said the government was holding the bodies to avoid a cycle in which funerals for so-called martyrs often erupt into violent clashes.
“Our policy is to de-escalate, to try return calm, and from bitter experience we know that these funerals of dead terrorists can be exploited by extremists for incitement and violence,” he said.
On Tuesday, dozens of women trudged up a muddy road to Ms. Al-Husseini’s family home. Some pinned her photo to their dresses. Some wore green Hamas lapels. One held a picture of her own son, Fadel Qawasmi, who was killed Oct. 17 by a Jewish settler in Hebron who accused the youth of trying to stab him.
“There’s so many martyrs,” sighed another woman, who is 39 and would give only her nickname, Umm Ubayda. “Everybody comes to console each other.”
Nearby, thousands of men rushed down the main thoroughfare toward an Israeli checkpoint in Hebron’s Old City, protesting the withholding of the bodies.
Shopkeepers shut their doors with practiced slams as the boom of tear gas being fired grew louder.
Mr. Sider, the trader and father of six whose narrow two-floor walk-up is nearby, gestured to the stairs leading to the flat roof. “Go up and you will see how we are surrounded,” he said, though he himself would not go up, saying he was scared.
Within sight of Mr. Sider’s home is a playground reserved for the Jewish residents, a synagogue, an apartment building for Jewish settlers and a military post.
Surveying the situation from the stairwell, Mr. Sider said he was pleased to see the surge in violence turn to Hebron. “They don’t want to leave,” he said of the Jewish settlers around him. “So this is their medicine.”
PA to hold weekly cabinet meeting in Hebron
By Ma’an news
November 03, 2015
HEBRON — The Palestinian Authority cabinet is set to hold its weekly meeting in Hebron on Tuesday to express solidarity with the city following an escalation of violence by Israeli forces and settlers, the governor of Hebron district told Ma’an.
Kamil Hmeid said that it would be the third time cabinet ministers had convened in Hebron. He said it came as Israel was “waging war on Palestinian citizens and institutions in Hebron, dividing the city and closing some of its entrances with concrete blocks.”
He said the cabinet meeting would affirm the PA’s support for Palestinian citizens, and encourage them to remain “firm.”
Hmeid added that cabinet ministers would be seeking to follow up the issue of “martyrs’ bodies” being held by Israel.
The mayor of Hebron, Dawood al-Zaatari, applauded the decision to hold the meeting inside the city.
Since a wave of unrest swept the occupied Palestinian territory last month, Hebron has found itself at the centre of violence, with the highest death toll in the occupied West Bank.
At least 17 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces and settlers in Hebron in October alone, and many of Hebron’s residents have felt abandoned by the PA, finding it too weak to protect them from Israeli aggression.
Israel alleges that most of the Palestinians killed were attempting to carry out attacks on Israelis.
Israeli soldiers and police inspect the body of a dead Palestinian named Fadi al-froukh from the West Bank town of Sa’air near Hebron, 01 November 2015. Froukh was shot dead after trying to stab an Israeli soldier at the entrance of Sa’air village, Israeli news sources reported. Photo by Abed Al Hashlamoun /EPA
However, while Palestinians agree that several of those killed were attempting to carry out attacks, video footage and witness testimonies have raised serious questions over Israel’s allegations in many of the other cases.
Israel has so far released the bodies of seven Palestinians shot dead, including those of five children, but is continuing to withhold a number of other bodies.
More than 500 settlers live in Hebron’s Old City, surrounded by more than 200,000 Palestinians, under the protection of Israel’s army.
Israel declares Hebron street, neighbourhood closed military zone
By Ma’an news
October 30, 2015
HEBRON — The Israeli military issued an order to turn al-Shuhada Street and the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood in central Hebron into a closed military zone, preventing Palestinian non-residents from entering the area.
Coordinator of the Youth Against Settlements group in Hebron, Issa Amro, told Ma’an that Israeli forces raided Palestinian homes near al-Shuhada Street and Tel Rumeida early on Friday, recording the identification information from all Palestinian residents.
Israeli civil administration officers informed residents that they will be given special permits that will allow them enter and exit their homes, Amro said.
An Israeli army spokesperson was unable to comment on the military order, but told Ma’an that after an increase in attacks in the area, several measures had been taken to prevent future attacks “in accordance with a situation assessment” done by the military.
According to the spokesperson, “13 stabbing attacks have been carried out against Israeli security and civilians, including four foiled attacks.
Israeli daily Haaretz reported that the regional brigade commander in Hebron passed a ban on entrance to the area for male Palestinians between the ages of 15 and 25. The ban does not apply to local residents and students attending a nearby school who were ordered to use a single checkpoint, Haaretz reported, adding that all stores were forced to close until further notice.
Al-Shuhada street and Tel Rumeida are connected to Hebron’s Old City, which has been slowly sealed off to local Palestinians over the last few decades to secure the safety and expansion of Israeli settlers living in the area.
Hebron, segregated into Palestinian and Israeli areas — separated by tightly-controlled Israeli military checkpoints and security checks — has been a main flashpoint as violence escalated across occupied Palestinian territory and Israel this month.
Over 15 Palestinians have been killed in the Hebron district since Oct. 1, the majority of cases after alleged stabbing attempts.
Israeli authorities have decided to deliver the bodies of five Palestinians killed in Hebron to their families, the Hebron district governor said Friday, all of whom were aged 17 or below.
The move — contingent on “calm” in the area — came despite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s call earlier this month to hold bodies of alleged attackers, several of which are still being held.
NOTE
Names and details of those killed by IDF or police in Hebron and environs.
Twenty five people have been killed in Hebron between October 2nd and November 2nd, 2015. Information from PCHR’s comprehensive list.
Amjad Hatem al-Jundi (17) from Yata, south of Hebron
07 October 2015
Israeli police officers opened fire at him from a close range after chasing him in a mall claiming that he attempted to strip an Israel soldier’s weapon near Karyat Jat settlement in Israel
Several bullet wounds throughout his bodyMohammed Fares Abdullah al-Ja’bari (19), from Khellet Hadhour, Hebron
09 October 2015
He was killed while being on the road leading to “Givat Havot” settlement outpost in Hebron, as Israeli forces opened fire at him directly claiming that he attempted to stab an Israeli soldier and strip off the soldier’s gun.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyIbrahim Ahmed Awad (28), from Beit Ommer village, Hebron
10 October 2015
He succumbed to his injuries that he sustained on 08 October 2015 confrontations with Israeli forces in his village, in Hebron.
Rubber-coated metal bullet wound to the headBasel Bassam Ragheb Seder (20), from Hebron
14 October 2015
Israeli forces killed Basel while he was walking in al-Amoud Gate area in the Old City, in East Jerusalem. According to an eyewitness, Israeli soldiers approached Seder, but he tried to avoid them and went down stairs on al-Amoud Gate stairs. A soldier shouted asking him to stop, but Seder ran faster, due to which the soldier opened fire at his back crying “Terrorist, terrorist”. Seder was wounded and fell to the ground. Few minutes later, Israeli forces approached and fired about 10 bullets at him from a range of five metres or less. Soon after, Palestinian civilians hurried up to the place, but Israeli forces repressed and dispersed them. Furthermore, they completely closed al-Amoud Gate area and erected iron barriers until they transported Seder to an unknown destination.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyEyad Khalil al-Awawda (27), from al-Koum village, southwest of Hebron
16 October 2015
Israeli forces deployed at the northern entrance of Hebron (Ras al-Joura) opened fire at Eyad after he chased an Israeli soldier to stab him, as confrontations were taking place between Palestinians and Israeli forces in that area. As a result, al-Awawda sustained several bullet wounds and fell to the ground. Israeli forces and police backup arrived, while al-Awawda was transported to an unknown destination. He was pronounced dead later and submitted to the Palestinian military liaison office at approximately 21:00.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyFadel Mohammed Awad al-Qawasme (18), from al-Shaikh neighborhood in Hebron
17 October 2015
An Israeli settler opened fire at and killed Fadel, who was present in the area between the entrance of al-Shuhada Street and Bab al-Daboya checkpoint in the city. A video posted on social media showed the settler with two Israeli soldiers, as the settler was trying to attack al-Qawasme who was lying on the ground. Half an hour later, al-Qawasme was transported by an Israeli ambulance to an unknown destination. In addition, the reason why al-Qawasme was present in that area has been unknown.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyBayan Ayman al-‘Esaili (16), from Bani Salim area in Hebron
17 October 2015
Israeli Border Guard officers stationed at the military checkpoint at the entrance of Bani Salim area, east of Hebron, opened fire and killed Bayan, who was going back home from school. Israeli forces claimed that the girl attempted to stab a female soldier that opened fire at her. The girl was transported by an Israeli military ambulance to an unknown destination.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyTareq Zeyad al-Natcha (16), from Khellet Hadhour area, south of Hebron
17 October 2015
Israeli forces stationed at the military checkpoint “56” at the northern entrance of al-Shuhada Street opened fire at Tareq and killed him after he stabbed a soldier near the electronic gate. Tareq was then transported by an Israeli military ambulance to an unknown destination.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyOday Hesham Mohammed Masalma (24), from Beit Awwa village, southwest of Doura, southwest of Hebron
20 October 2015
At approximately 10:45, while four Israeli soldiers were present between the Palestinian houses, Oday Hesham Mohammed al-Masalma (24) was carrying a bag with olives inside it and walking between the trees. Oday stabbed one of the soldiers in his arm, but the 3 other soldiers opened fire at him, due to which he fell to the ground and rolled in a dirt downhill. They went after him and shot him dead. Israeli forces denied paramedics, who arrived in the Palestine Red Crescent Society’s (PRCS) ambulance, access to the wounded for half an hour. Israeli forces then withdrew, while the corpse was taken to Hebron Governmental Hospital. Following medical examination, it was found out that Oday sustained several bullet wounds to the left leg causing laceration in the blood vessels and a bullet wound to the back left side of the head. According to PCHR’s investigations, Israeli forces could have arrested the aforementioned person after wounding him.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyHamza Mousa al-‘Amla (25), from Beit Oula village, west of Hebron
20 October 2015
At approximately 15:00, Israeli forces stationed on the main road, opposite to “Gosh Etzion” settlement, south of Bethlehem, opened fire at a Palestinian civilian vehicle. As a result, the driver Hamza Mousa al-‘Amla (25), from Beit Oula village, west of Hebron, was killed by several bullets. The corpse was taken by an Israeli military ambulance to an unknown destination. Israeli forces claimed that al-‘Amla had run over 2 settlers on the side of the road.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyBashar Nezam Jamil al-Ja’bari (15), from al-Ras area in Hebron and cousin, unnamed
20 October 2015
At approximately 21:30, dozens of settlers organized a protest heading from “Kiryat Arba” settlement to the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron. Meanwhile, Bashar Nizam Jamil al-Ja’abari (15) and his cousin were on their way back home in al-Ras area adjacent to the aforementioned settlement. While watching the demonstration, the two children stood beside an Israeli soldier, who was around the corner of al-Rajabi building that the Israeli settlers are attempting to seize control over. The soldier was leaning against the wall and normally talking to the two children when the latter asked the soldier to help them to cross via the iron gate, which separates the aforementioned building from where they live. When the two children heading towards the gate were only two metres away from the soldier, other Israeli soldiers fortified in a military watchtower in the area opened fire at the children and killed them immediately. The Israeli forces detained the children’s corpses and denied the Palestinian civilians and ambulances access to the area
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyMahmoud Khaled Mahmoud Ghneimat (20) from Sorif village in Hebron
22 October 2015
Israeli forces opened fire at two Palestinian civilians from Sorif village, northwest of Hebron, when the later were waiting at the bus stop. Both of them are construction workers in Beit Sheimesh area in Israel. As a result, Mahmoud Khaled Mahmoud Ghneimat (20) was killed, and his colleague, Meqdad Mohammed Ibrahim al-Heeh (20) was seriously wounded. They were taken by a Red Star of David ambulance to Hadassa Hospital in Jerusalem and kept Ghneimat’s corpse. Israeli forces claimed that the aforementioned civilians intended to carry out a stabbing after boarding the bus.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodySa’ed Mohammed Yousif al-Atrash (20) from the southern area of Hebron
24 October 2015
Israeli forces deployed in the al-Ibrahimi Mosque area in the Old City of Hebron killed him after shooting from only two meter-distance while he was near the Shari’a court near the Mosque yard. Israeli forces claimed that the young man attempted to stab one of them with a knife
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyRa’ed Saket ‘Abdel Rahim Jaradat (22) from Ras al-‘Aaroud area, west of Sa’ir village in Hebron
24 October 2015
Israeli forces stationed at the entrance of Beit ‘Aynoun village that is connected with Bypass Road (60), east of Hebron, killed him. They shot several bullets at him after Jaradat had stabbed one of the Israeli soldiers. He was taken to Israel.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyEyad Rawhi Jaradat (19) from Hebron
24 October 2015
Israeli soldiers deployed at the entrance of Sa’ir village and Beit ‘Ayoun area, east of Hebron, fired sound bombs, tear gas canisters and live bullets at protesters. As a result, the aforementioned civilian was killed and others were wounded.
A bullet wound to the headDania Jehad Ersheid (17), from al-Hawooz area in Hebron
25 October 2015
Israeli forces opened fire from a close range at her while she was subject to searching at the iron detector gate leading to al-Ibrahimi Mosaque.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyShadi Nabil ‘Abdel Mo’ati al-Qodsi (21) and ‘Izz al-Deen Nadi Sha’ban Abu Shakhdam (17)from Hebron
25 October 2015
Israeli forces stationed on the main road in front of the “gosh ‘Etzion” settlement complex, south of Bethlehem, opened fire and killed Shadi Nabil ‘Abdel Mo’ati al-Qodsi (21) and ‘Izz al-Deen Nadi Sha’ban Abu Shakhdam (17) from Hebron when they arrived at a bus stop next to the entrance of the aforementioned settlement compound. As a result, they were killed immediately. Israeli authorities claimed that the aforementioned civilians stabbed a settler causing him minor wounds.
Several bullet wounds throughout the body‘Izz al-Deen Nadi Sha’ban Abu Shakhdam (17) from Hebron
25 October 2015
Same circumstances
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyHammam ‘Adnan Is’ayed (22) from Hebron
25 October 2015
Israeli forces deployed in Tal al-Ramidah neighbourhood in the centre of Hebron killed the aforementioned civilian while he was passing by the area and near “Gelbert” checkpoint established in the centre of Tal al-Ramidah neighbourhood. The video published by Israeli authorities showed Hammam lying on the ground and there was a knife being thrown beside the corpse by a soldier.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyIslam Rafiq Hammad I’abeido (23) from Tal al-Ramidah neighbourhood in Hebron
28 October 2015
Israeli forces deployed in Tal al-Ramidah neighbourhood in the centre of Hebron killed the aforementioned civilian while passing by the area and only few meters away to the west of “Gelbert” checkpoint established by Israeli authorities in the centre of the aforementioned neighbourhood. Israeli forces claimed that I’abeido intended to carry out a stabbing. He was then taken to Israel.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyMahdi Mohammed al-Mohtaseb (22) from Hebron
29 October 2015
Israeli forces stationed at Checkpoint 160 established in the Old City in the Centre of Hebron opened fire at the aforementioned civilian and killed him. Israeli forces claimed that the aforementioned attempted to carry out a stab attack.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyFarouq ‘Abdel Qader ‘Omer Seder (19) from Hebron
29 October 2015
Israeli forces opened fire in the al-Shuhadaa’ Street in the centre of Hebron and only few meters away from the checkpoint leading to al-Daboya area and killed him. Israeli forces claimed that the aforementioned attempted to carry out a stab attack.
Several bullet wounds throughout the bodyFadi Hasan al-Faroukh (27) from Beit ‘Aynoun area, northeast of Hebron
01 November 2015
Israeli forces opened fire and killed him in a vineyard adjacent to Bypass Road (60) at the entrance if Sa’ir village, north of Hebron. Israeli forces claimed that the aforementioned civilian attempted to carry out a stab attack.