Let Gaza Feel Italy's Solidarity

The date of the Gaza Freedom March, 31st December 2009, is drawing near. The march is a historic initiative to break the siege that imprisons the one and a half million people who live in the Gaza Strip.

The march will bring together people from all over the world, hand in hand with the people of Gaza, to call on Israel to open the borders. More than 1,300 people from 42 countries - amoung them 140 from Italy - will take part in the march, carrying with them humitarian aid, solidarity and love for the people of Gaza.

On the first anniversary of the Israeli invasion that left more than 1,400 dead, this is a global response from ordinary people, to the inaction of their leaders and of the world's political institutions.

This year, we have seen:

• Aid donated by people from all over the world blocked by the Israeli and Egyptian governments.
  
• Gazan fishermen and farmers injured or even killed by the Israeli armed forces.
  
• The ship of the Free Gaza movement attacked and hijacked by the Israeli navy.
  
• The Goldstone report ignored by European governments and denigrated by the US congress.
  

But we have also seen the indignation of people for what happened in Gaza, the solidarity and the determination to do something, despite the inaction of their governments. We've seen aid convoys and delegations of activists struggle to enter Gaza, and we've seen them succeed.

No we must struggle to make the Gaza Freedom March succeed. On December 20th, the Egyptian authorities communicated their intention to not open the Rafah crossing to permit the participants of the march to enter Gaza.

Click here to send a message of support for the march to the Egyptian ambassador in Italy.

People are mobilising. The message is clear:

End the siege, end the occupation, respect for international law.

But Gaza needs concrete solidarity from all. Click here to find out how you can contribute.

Freedom for the Bi'lin Detainees

Bil’in is a Palestinian village that wants to continue to exist, that fights to protect its land, its olive groves, its resources and its freedom.

The state of Israel, by annexing 60% of Bil'in's land to construct the separation wall, is destroying this village each day, confining its inhabitants to an open-air prison.

Every Friday, supported by Israeli and international activists, the inhabitants of Bil'in protest peacefully in front of the construction site of shame - and every Friday, the Israeli army respond with physical and moral violence.

The most recent attempt by the Israeli army to reduce Bil'in's non-violent resistence campaign to silence is a wave of nocturnal raids and the multiplication of arrests of demonstrators, in particular the leaders of the Bil'in Popular Committee. Since June 23 2009, 31 Bil'in residents have been arrested by the Israeli military.

People arrested in Bil'in since the start of the campaign of intimidation 24/06/2009: Mohammed Khalil Abu Rahma (23 years old) 24/06/2009: Moatassem Faisal Al-Khatib (17 years old) 26/06/2009: Khaleel Ibrahim (15 years old) 26/06/2009: Kamel Alkhateeb (15 years old) 29/06/2009: Emad Mahmoud Yassin (16 years old) 29/06/2009: Hosni Rasim al-Khatib (16 years old) 29/06/2009: Mohsen Kateb (16 years old) 29/06/2009: Hamoda Yaseen (16 years old) 30/06/2009: Suleiman Seif (17 years old) 5/07/2009: Oda Rebhe Abu Rahma (20 years old) 5/07/2009: Mahmoud Issa Yassein (17 years old) 7/07/2009: Abdel Muamer Majdi Abu Rahma 10/07/2009: Adeeb Abu Rahme 17/07/2009: Muhammed abde Fatah al Burnat (21 years old) 19/07/2009: Imad Burnat (37 years old) 3/08/2009: Khaled gut Show Alrazic Abd-al-Khatib (23 years old) 3/08/2009: Mustafa gut Show Alrazic Abd-al-Khatib (18 years old) 3/08/2009: Mohammed Abd-gut Show Alrazic Al-Khatib (16 years old) 3/08/2009: Abdullah Ahmad Yassen (18 years old) 3/08/2009: Abdullah Mohammed Ali Yassen (16 years old) 3/08/2009: Issa Mahmoud Issa Abu Rahma (40 years old) 3/08/2009: Mohammed Khatib (35 anni), freed 18/08/2009 on the condition of presenting himself at the Police station every Friday and staying there until 5pm, until his trial is over. 15/08/2009: Nashmi Mohammed Ibrahim Abu Rahma (14 years old) 20/08/2009: Mohammad Abu Rahma alias Abu Nizar (50 years old), Freed with a caution 23/08/2009 29/08/2009: Tofik Ashraf Mohammad Jamal Al-Khatib (29 years old) 29/08/2009: Hamru Hisham Bornat (24 years old) 1/09/2009: Abed Baset Mohammed Abu Rahme (19 years old) 25/09/2009: Haitham al Khatib (33 years old), Freed 25/09/2009. He was forced to sign a document promising not to go near the wall and he has been ordered to present himself at a judicial hearing within 6 months. 1/10/2009: Basel Mansour (32 years old), freed 8/10/2009 after paying a fine of 1000 shekels 19/11/2009 : Muhammad Yassin (19 years old) 3/12/2009 : Rani Najar (23 years old) 10/12/2009 : Abdallah Abu Rahma

The latest to be detained is the coordinator of the non-violent resistence movement of Bil'in Abdallah Abu Rahmah, arrested during the night of December 10th by Israeli soldiers.

At 2 in the morning, 7 Israeli military jeeps stopped near to the home of Abdallah Abu Rahmah in the city of Ramallah. The soldiers burst into the house and arrested Abu Rahmah in his bed, in the presence of his wife and children. Abu Rahmah is a school teacher at the Latin Patriarch school in Birzeit near to Ramallah and he is the coordinator of the Bil'in Popular Committee against the wall and the settlements. In previous attempt to arrest Abu Rahmah, on September 15th, the Israeli army used such violence that a soldier was indicted.

What can you do?

Support the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee and its efforts to free the detainees.

http://www.popularstruggle.org/freeabdallah#do

A simple man called Gandhi led the non-violent struggle in India and simple people like Rosa Parks led the struggle for civil rights in the USA, simple people here in Bil'in are carrying out a non-violent struggle that will bring them freedom. The example of South Africa demonstrates that injustice can be defeated.

Desmond Tutu

Israeli Lettres de Cachet

Lettres de cachet were letters signed by the king of France with which a subject could be condemned to imprisonment without trial or the possibility of defense or appeal. Lettres de cachet were abolished immediately after the French Revolution, but naturally such a useful practice was not completely abandoned. All the colonial powers used similar regulations. Administrative detention, still used today by the Israeli occupation forces in Palestine, is one of these regulations.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.. Article 9 Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Administrative detention is a form of detention without charge or trial, authorised by an administrative order rather than a judicial decree. An administrative detention order can be for a maximum period of six months, but there is no limit to the number of times it can be renewed. It was introduced in Palestine by the British authorities during the Mandate, and was used against both the indigenous population and the Jewish immigrants.

The Zionist jurist Dov Joseph, protesting against its use by the British authorities said:

Are we to be subjected to official terror? ... no citizen can be safe from life imprisonment without trial... it is not necessary to have committed any crime, a decision taken in some office is enough..

After the establishment of the state of Israel, the British Emergency Regulations, which included administrative detention, were incorporated into Israeli law and Dov Joseph, by then minister of justice, used them against the Palestinian population. Since then, administrative detention orders have struck children, women, young people, old people, intellectuals, students, political and trade union leaders, and in the last three years it has been the turn of elected members of the Palestinian Legislative Council. Since 2000, more than 19,000 administrative detention orders have been handed down.

Currently, more than 500 Palestinians are subject to administrative detention orders. The most recent detainee is Mohammed Othman. Mohammad was arrested by the Israeli authorities on 22nd September. He was returning to the West Bank from Norway where he had spoken at public meetings and met with government officials. Despite two months of detention, isolation, and lengthy interrogations, no charges were brought against him and finally the military authorities requested an administrative detention order.

Click here to send a mail to President Obama asking him to press for Mohammed's immediate release.

Click here for more information about the campaign against administrative detention.



Report on the arbitrary detention of Palestinians prepared by the Israeli human rights organisations B'tselem and Hamoked.

200910 Without Trial Eng