Though the bulldozing of land belonging to the residents of Um Salamuna was stopped for several weeks due to a court order, (recent demonstrations have been on land owned by the residents of Wadi an-Nis) the court has lifted the injunction and the uprooting of olive trees and grapevines has begun again on the land of Um Salamuna. At a demonstration on Friday, people from Um Salamuna and the surrounding villages went to the land of Mahmoud Takatka, the head of the Um Salamuna City Council, where they prayed and then spoke about the new court decision and its impact on the people of Um Salamuna.
They also spoke about Alan … Continue reading

Yesterday, over a hundred Palestinians from the villages of Beit Fag’ar, Um Salamuna, Wadi An-Nis, Al- Masara, Al-Khadr, and Beit Ommar, accompanied by Israeli and international activists, united on land near the Efrat settlement and attempted to block Route 60, the main north-south highway from Hebron up through Jerusalem to the northern West Bank. Though the high-spirited demonstrators were prevented by an enormous show of force by the Israeli Occupation Forces from blocking the highway, their message was seen, and heard, loud and clear. Demonstrators held up banners and signs in Hebrew, Arabic and English protesting the theft of their land by the Israeli government for the construction of the Annexation … Continue reading

In an act of solidarity with the murdered students at Virginia Tech University in the United States, the people of the South Betlehem villages planted 30 olive trees along the path of destroyed land that is meant for the Annexation Barrier near Um Salamuna and Wadi an-Nis. The people of the South Betlehem villages marched to the path of the Annexation Barrier. Activists from the popular committee and Holy Land Trust read the names of the people who were killed in Virginia and wanted to express their solidarity with the families of those people killed. As they marched they carried signs saying, “from Palestine to Virginia, we support you!” and … Continue reading

Today, Palestinian, international and Israeli activists destroyed part of the foundation of the Annexation Barrier in Um Salamuna. Demonstrators marched to the site wearing chains around their wrists, symbolizing the imprisonment of the Palestinian people with the construction of the Annexation Wall. They filled cement support structures for the barrier with rocks and then moved on to a low cement wall that was supposed to be part of the foundation of the patrol road being built as part of the Annexation Barrier structure. Activists tore off the metal and wood reinforcements around a cement foundation built earlier this week and set fire to … Continue reading

Today, on Good Friday, demonstrators in Um Salamuna brought a large wooden cross and blocked an Israeli Army bulldozer there to destroy olive groves for the construction of the Annexation Wall. Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists marched to the working bulldozers carrying a cross and sat in front of a bulldozer, non-violently preventing it from working. The cross was both for the observence of Good Friday, the day Christians commemorate the crucifiction of Christ, and as a symbol for the “crucifiction” of the Palestinian people by the Israeli government and their policies of land confiscation and destruction.

Though the demonstrators were completely non-violent and non-confrontational … Continue reading

Today, over 300 Palestinians from the South Betlehem villages including Um Salamuna held their friday prayer on the land being confiscated for the Annexation Barrier and then marched down the main road leading to Efrat, blocking settler traffic, in commemoration of Land Day. There was a minor confrontation with three Israeli soldiers as the march enveloped an army jeep, but there were no arrests or injuries. Peaceful demonstrations were held throughout Palestine and in Palestinian villages inside the Green Line, including Budrus, Tulkarem, Bil’in, Sakhnin and Um Salamuna.

Land Day began in 1976 in the Palestinian-Israeli village of Sakhnin to protest the expropriation of Palestinian lands by Israelis in 1948 and 1967. … Continue reading

People in Um Salamuna celebrated Mother’s Day today by demonstrating against the Annexation Wall which the Israeli government is building on their land. The leader of the Um Salamuna Women’s Organization, Fatima Brijea, told the crowd that the wall was being built with violence, and that this violence would not help to achieve peace. She proclaimed the purpose of today’s demonstration against the wall was to help achieve peace “for our children and their children.” Many children, especially young girls, were present.

The demonstrators marched along the bulldozed path to where the machines were working. Once there, two Palestinian women, one man from … Continue reading

Today, over 300 Palestinians, along with international and Israeli activists gathered on the land of Um Salamuna, south of Betlehem. For nearly 2 months now the people of Um Salamuna have been joining together with people from neighboring villages to demonstrate on their land that has been bulldozed by the Israeli Occupation Forces in preparation for the construction of the Annexation Wall. Um Salamuna and the surrounding villages filed a case in the Israeli Supreme Court months ago protesting the path of The Wall but it was recently denied. For the last two weeks the people of Um Salamuna with Israeli and International activists have been non-violently confronting the bulldozers … Continue reading

Today over 300 people from the village of Um Salamuna gathered after friday’s prayer and marched down the settler road between Efrat and Tekoa settlements to their land. As they marched Palestinians, Internationals, and Israeli demonstrators blocked settlers’ cars and Israeli military jeeps in protest of the confiscation of their land for the construction of the Annexation Wall. People in the march celebrated when Rashid Mahmoud Takatka who was arrested while blocking the bulldozers last tuesday, drove up to the demonstrators, having just been released from prison. The people of Um Salamuna and the neighboring village of Wadi an-Nis, along with International and Israeli activists, have been confronting the … Continue reading

Today 5 internationals and 6 Israelis joined Palestinians to stop the bulldozing on the land of Um Salamuna near the village of Wadi an-Nis. The internationals and Israelis along with 2 Palestinians from PSP climbed on top of a Caterpillar bulldozer when it was stopped for a break. For over 2 hours Israeli and International activists prevented that bulldozer from working. Another bulldozer was stopped when Palestinian, international and Israeli activists stood in front of it for some time.

After 2 hours, 10 soldiers from the Israeli Occupation Forces along with Israeli Military Police and the private security for the bulldozers pulled the international … Continue reading