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CounterPunch
February
3, 2003
The Empire Strikes Back:
Sharon and Settlers
Destroy the Infrastructure of Palestinian Existence
by NEVE GORDON and
CATHERINE ROTTENBERG
Nine Palestinian farmers were taken to the nearby
military base. When they arrived soldiers jumped on them, tied
their hands behind their backs and fixed a piece of cloth around
their eyes. They were led to a deserted area in the base and
told to sit on the ground, while the soldiers threatened, and
cursed them, hour after hour. Whoever dared to ask why he was
being held, requested to go to the bathroom, or complained in
any way, was kicked, slapped, or held down with his head to the
ground. The farmers, turned prisoners' only offence was an unsuccessful
attempt to plow their land.
This incident is part of the ongoing
campaign carried out by the Israeli government and the Jewish
settlers; a campaign whose major objective is to undermine the
infrastructure of existence of the occupied Palestinians, so
that they, in turn, will bow down to Israeli demands and give
up the claims to their land -- it is a struggle against what
the Palestinians call Tzumud, which means the "close and
relentless attachment" to the land, their home.
Throughout this past summer, the settlers
-- often aided by the Israeli military -- obstructed the harvesting
of olives, grapes and other crops, and now that the time for
tilling the soil has arrived, they are not allowing many Palestinians
to reach their fields so that in the spring there will be nothing
to harvest.
This particular incident began in late
November when Palestinian residents from the South Hebron region
started tilling their land. As soon as the farmers commenced
plowing the fields located near a Jewish settlement, they were
harassed by the settlers and detained for hours by the military.
It was then that they decided to contact
the Israeli Civil Administration in order to try and coordinate
the plowing, with the hope that the latter would protect them
from settler harassment. The farmers also contacted members of
Ta'ayush, Arab-Jewish Partnership, and requested that they intervene
on their behalf. Time was running out, since the seeds need to
be sowed before the rainy season.
Day after day passed; New Year's Eve
was quickly approaching, and there was still no word or sign
from Lieutenant Colonel Tarek, the Civil Administration's regional
commander. Ta'ayush activists intervened on behalf of the Palestinians,
and were told that the Palestinians should go to their fields,
with their tractors in order to meet the Civil Administration.
Every day the farmers came, and every day they were told: "come
tomorrow, not today."
Finally, after threatening the Civil
Administration that if they did not set a date immediately, a
Supreme Court appeal would be submitted, the residents were informed
that on Saturday February 1 they could come to their fields and
plow. Over two months had passed, and the plowing season was
quickly drawing to a close.
Only at 10:00 in the morning, Lieutenant
Colonel Tarek arrived on the scene. But instead of remaining
to protect the residents, he told them they could plow and disappeared.
Despite the late start, the Palestinians began working without
interference. At about twelve noon, Jewish settlers from Susya,
accompanied by soldiers, appeared. Wielding their guns, they
forced the Palestinians to stop their work, while simultaneously
beating a number of residents.
Ta'ayush members immediately called the
Civil Administration and the police, demanding that they proceed
to the fields at once; the activists decided concomitantly to
enter the region in spite of the fact that the whole southern
West Bank had been declared a closed military zone -- just to
ensure that they would not and could not enter the area. The
closure of the territories reaffirmed once again our suspicion
that all Ta'ayush activities are under surveillance by the security
services.
Using a roundabout route, one car with
five activists managed to pass through just as the Civil Administration
began detaining the nine Palestinian farmers and their four tractors;
they were taken to a military base three kilometers away.
The remaining Ta'ayush members were stopped
by the police about a kilometer from the fields. The activists
immediately exited their vehicles and began walking towards the
five members who had managed to reach the Palestinians. At this
point there was only one police van on the scene, and although
they could not stop all of the activists, they did manage to
arrest three people.
Most of the group continued walking,
however, while a few remained at the roadblock to make sure that
those arrested would not be taken away. Those who remained sat
down in protest, encircling the police vehicle.
Large police forces were summoned, including
special units and armed vehicles. These forces rapidly advanced
and stopped the activists who had continued marching forward,
about 400 yards before they reached the Palestinian residents.
The Ta'ayush activists negotiated with the police and reached
an agreement that they would withdraw if the five Ta'ayush activists
who had been arrested (two more had been arrested as they walked
towards the fields) were released as well as the Palestinians
and their tractors.
In the meantime, the five activists who
managed to get through collected affidavits from the Palestinian
residents, some of whom had been beaten by settlers. They related
how they were suddenly attacked by a group of settlers while
plowing and sowing seeds. One young Palestinian woman received
a blow from a rifle.
The five members also contacted Knesset
Member Zahava Galon who called Lieutenant Colonel Tarek. She
was promised that the Palestinians and their tractor would be
released shortly and that they would be allowed to plow the following
day. Once again, as it would turn out, Tarek was lying.
In order to cover up his breach of the
agreement, which specified that he would remain with the Palestinians
until they completed their work and, in this way, protect them,
Lieutenant Colonel Tarek decided to place the blame on the Palestinians.
It is always easiest to blame the victims.
Instead of removing the settlers and
taking responsibility for the fact that he had left the area,
he concocted a story, claiming that the Palestinians had plowed
in an out-of-bound area and were therefore to blame for what
had occurred. Thus, the Palestinians who had been forcibly prevented
from plowing their land for over two months, and who -- when
they were finally given permission to plow their own land --
were beaten and detained, were blamed for the whole situation.
And all this because a civil administration officer acted irresponsibly,
wanted to cover his tracks, and did not want to upset the Jewish
settlers, who are the real sovereign in the area.
Based on the promise given to Zahava
Galon, as well as a promise from the police that they would release
the activists who had been arrested, the Ta'ayush activists decided
to withdraw. They waited about one kilometer from the fields
for the release of the nine Palestinians; there was a large police
and military presence waiting with them.
It was now about 2:00 pm.
After further negotiations and a promise
from Tarek that within an hour he would release the Palestinians,
part of the group retreated even further, while five members
remained near the Susya settlement. There were also four police
vans and 25 policemen waiting with them.
Two hours passed, and the policeman in
charge, Moshe Moshe, notified the activists that the Palestinians
had been taken to the Hebron police station. He also promised
the activists that the Palestinians would be released very soon.
At around 4:30, the five Ta'ayush activists
decided to drive to the Hebron station themselves to see whether
they could find the Palestinians and to file complaints against
Lieutenant Colonel Tarek and the settlers.
By the time they reached Hebron it was
dark. They managed to file the complaints, but they saw no sign
of the Palestinians. Moshe Moshe tried once again to find out
where they were, and this time he informed the activists that
the Palestinians were still being held in the military base near
the fields, and that they were in the process of being released.
About twenty minutes later, the activists
finally made contact with one of the Palestinians who had been
detained. He related how they had been taken to the military
base and placed in a corner with their hands tied behind their
backs and a piece of cloth fixed around their eyes. They had
sat in a corner on the ground for six long hours, while soldiers
randomly kicked, threatened, and cursed them. Their four tractors,
however, remained in custody.
As if this was not enough, the following
day the Palestinians contacted Ta'ayush and informed us that
settlers had taken over the fields and were beginning to plant
trees on the very land that the farmers had been trying to plow
for over two months. The very land that -- only a day before
the Civil Administration had promised would be "available"
and "safe" for tilling. Those that went back to the
military base to take the tractors, were once again tied and
blindfolded and held for hours before they were released. The
military was determined to suppress all Palestinian efforts to
live a normal life.
For more information on Ta'ayush and
to support our activities in the South Hebron region click www.taayush.org.
Neve Gordon
teaches politics at Ben-Gurion University, Israel, and is a contributor
to The
Other Israel: Voices of Refusal and Dissent. (New Press
2002). He can be reached at ngordon@bgumail.bgu.ac.il
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