On November 15th, 2011, six Palestinian activists were arrested for boarding Israeli settlement buses in the West Bank district of Ramallah. The activists, calling themselves the Freedom Riders, drew inspiration from the 1961 Freedom Rides in the United States, in which young black and white civil rights activists challenged the segregated transportation system across southern states.

Settler buses run by the companies Egged and Veolia, connect Israeli settlements which are built on stolen Palestinian land in the West Bank, and deemed illegal under International Law, with cities within Israel proper. Palestinians are not allowed to ride these buses, one of many separate … Continue reading

New Bypass Road planned on Beit Ommar and Schoukh Land. Yesterday PSP visited the location for the new road. Watch the documentation here:

More than 800 dumums of Beit Ommar and Shwoukh land will be taken by the Israelies for a 8km bypass road, starting from Gush Etzion. The settlers have already built a watch tower on a hill top in the area – the first step to establish a new settlement. The road to the planned settlement on Halhoul land will go through Beit Ommar and Shwoukh land and join in on the route 60 by Halhoul.

… Continue reading

BETHLEHEM -Israeli forces notified villagers near Bethlehem that their land will soon be confiscated, local residents said Wednesday.
Land owned by 40 families in Battir village – 148 dunums of vegetable, fruit and olive groves – is earmarked for confiscation, villagers said.

According to the notices received by villagers, the area is close to the train line to Jerusalem and next to the East Jerusalem settlement of Gilo, in which Israeli authorities approved the building of 1,100 new homes on Tuesday, sparking international condemnation.

The notification of the Israeli Ministry of Finance’s intention to purchase the lands said the acquisition was for military and security purposes.

Battir resident Nidal al-Zaghir said: the land confiscation “will be a great loss for the … Continue reading

RAMALLAH, West Bank—The Palestinian bid for United Nations statehood, whatever its outcome, is already helping reshape Palestinian attitudes to expect less of negotiations—which most feel have failed to deliver after nearly two decades—and embrace a more confrontational stance toward Israel.

That could mean challenging Israel using boycotts, demonstrations and international diplomatic forums more aggressively—ideas that are gaining currency among young Palestinians. In a year when peaceful demonstrations have radically altered the political landscape of the Arab world, they increasingly embrace notions of nonviolent resistance.

Still, many observers say that tensions are building in the Palestinian areas—especially in the West Bank, where Jewish settlements continue to grow and chafe against Palestinian communities. Even peaceful confrontations, they worry, could escalate and set off another … Continue reading

Last night, PSP joined thousands of Palestinians on the streets of Hebron to watch Mahmoud Abbas’ speech at the UN general assembly. Large crowds congregated along al-Quds street, where several big screens had been erected.

There was an expectant and celebratory atmosphere as the crowd watched musical and cultural performances that were being staged in Beirut and Nablus in the build up to the speech, which began at approximately 7pm local time.

The crowd applauded, cheered, and chanted as … Continue reading

Saturday 24 September 2011: Late on Friday night the Israeli army once again entered Beit Ommar. Two military jeeps positioned themselves inside the town – one near the route 60 highway, and another across the entrance to the town.

From these positions, Israeli soldiers sporadically fired tear gas into residential areas of the town, with several cannisters landing in gardens and next to homes.

These attacks came without any provocation, or any response from Beit Ommar residents. In addition to the tear gas fired into empty gardens, soldiers also fired several rounds along an entirely deserted main street.

In addition to the tear gas, … Continue reading

21st September: For the past two days, Israeli military forces have repeatedly entered the town of Beit Ommar, advancing along the main street and firing teargas and concussion grenades. Groups of soldiers ranging in number from six to twenty-five occupied the road close to the entrance to the town for hours at a time, occasionally closing the army-installed steel gate, which closes the town to Palestinians.

Last (Tuesday) night the military also fired flares over the village and the neighbouring Al Arub refugee … Continue reading

This morning at around 7.30 am, Beit Ommar farmers Ali Thalji, aged 70, and his son Ahmed, 40, were harassed by a group of Israeli soldiers as they tended to their sheep on fields in Safa, Beit Ommar.

The group of soldiers approached from the direction of the illegal settlement of Bat Ayn, telling Ali and Ahmed that the land they were on – their own fields – had been appropriated by the Israeli State, and repeatedly told them to leave the area.

After approximately half an hour, the soldiers left without any major incidents, but it is a development of great … Continue reading

[caption id="attachment_3871" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="The Israeli army bulldozed the house at 4am"][/caption]

Tuesday 13th September – In the early hours of Tuesday morning, Israeli army bulldozers demolished two buildings, one home in Beit Ommar, and one car parts shop in the neighbouring Al Rub refugee camp.

[caption id="attachment_3884" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Fayiz at the site of his demolished home."][/caption]

In Beit Ommar, a army bulldozer demolished a house which was under construction near the Route 60 highway, which runs past the entrance to the town. The building’s owner, Fayiz Nasr Khalyir, 47, had planned to house … Continue reading

This morning, Beit Ommar farmers arrived at their lands to discover that large areas of grape vines had been attacked by settlers from the illegal settlement of Karmei Tsur. The farmers immediately notified Mahmoud Ahmad Coql, who owns the destroyed fields.

In total, the settlers severed two dunums (two thousand square meters) of Mahmoud’s grape vines in fields near the illegal Karmei Tsur settlement.

Israeli authorities and the Israeli civilian police – upon seeing a number of Palestinians, press, and international activists – soon arrived on the scene accompanied by roughly twenty-five soldiers.

The shock of seeing so much of his work and livelihood destroyed overwhelmed Mahmoud, and … Continue reading