On Sunday, May 20th, 2012, around fifty thousand Jews marched to the Old City in Jerusalem to celebrate ‘Jerusalem Day’. The march celebrated the 45th anniversary of the ‘recapturing’ of East Jerusalem in 1967 (a culmination of the ‘Six Day’ War).

Sections of highway 60 around Beit Ommar were closed so that around five hundred settlers could cycle to Jerusalem for the march. Highway 60 connects Beit Ommar with the rest of the West Bank. Amidst an extremely heavy presence of soldiers and police the main entrance to Beit Ommar was also temporarily closed, almost completely halting Palestinian life as a result.

Many of the settlers shouted ostentatiously … Continue reading

On Friday April 27th, PSP activists from Beit Ommar traveled to Nabi Saleh to participate in their weekly demonstration.

The residents of Nabi Saleh – a town of 550 residents, located 20 kilometers north-west of Ramallah – host demonstrations every Friday to protest against the theft of their land by the Halamish settlement, a religious settlement which began stealing land in 1978. A Peace Now report stated in 2006 that one third of the settlement is built on private Palestinian land.

In 2009, in response to the theft of yet more land, the village began holding weekly demonstrations, which have become notorious for the levels of violence and repression … Continue reading

On Friday, April 06, 2012, Palestinian, Israeli and international activists joined the weekly peaceful demonstration in Um Salmona. Um Salmona is a small village located 12 km southwest of Bethlehem, and a separation barrier cuts through the village. During the demonstration, Israeli soldiers blocked two roads, preventing demonstrators from reaching the barrier. They also stopped cars from using the roads. Several Palestinian children broke through the line of soldiers, and waved Palestinian flags over an Israeli army jeep. There were no arrests, and no injuries.
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Tomorrow, activists will join the weekly demonstration in Beit Ommar against the settlements and separation fence, and in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on hunger strikes.

Today, March 30th, 2012, demonstrations took place all over Palestine commemorating Land Day. On March 30, 1976, thousands of Palestinians gathered to protest Israeli government plans to confiscate 60,000 dunams of Arab-owned land in the Galilee. Israeli forces killed six Palestinians that day, and wounded and jailed hundreds. Palestinians continue to mark this day to protest the ongoing expropriation of Palestinian land.

In Beit Ommar, a peaceful demonstration took place at the entrance of the town, which is located on Route 60. Before reaching the gates of the town, which were closed by the Israeli military to keep people from … Continue reading

On Monday, March 12, 2012, at about 6am, Israeli settlers from Bat Ayin settlements cut down around 150 olive and grape trees, owned by Hamad Alsalaby in Wad Abu Reesh, while soldiers provided security to the settlers. The Bat Ayin settlement was established in 1989, and is well-known for its violent attacks against Palestinians. Palestinians don’t like to walk alone through the land because there’s a chance the settlers will shoot at them.

Most of the settlers are opposed to any sort of fence separating the Palestinian land from the settlement because they consider all of the land as belonging to them, despite the settlement being illegal under international law. The … Continue reading

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