Mahmoud’s arrest comes just one month after injuries suffered after having been shot with a rubber bullet in the head while participating in a non-violent weekly demonstration.

Undercover arrests such as this one are a new and increasingly common method undertaken by the IOF to arrest people without warning. This tactic is explicitely illegal under international law. “Feigning of civilian or non-combatant status” is perfidy and prohibited by the Geneva Conventions. (Protocol I. Art. 37, Sec. 1)

Major topics discussed included how to eradicate and appropriately deal with the problem of normalization both on a popular and administrative level, as well as how to increase the effectiveness of boycotting settlement products both here locally in the Palestinian economy as well as abroad. Questions from attendees spanned from the general, such concern for the “unity of Palestine” against the threats posed by “normalization organizations” to the specific such as a call for a workable 3-4 year plan for BDS in the complicated and entangled economy of Jerusalem.

One theme reiterated by a few speakers was the immediate need to label Israel not as a Occupying Power but as an Apartheid state. An occupying power is someone that the international community will urge you to go into negotiations with, an Apartheid state is unacceptable; something to be Boycotted, Sanctioned, and Divested from.

The conference came to a head with questions of normalization and security coordination directed at Jawad Naji the Palestinian Minister of the National Economy. He responded saying “Whether you’re angry or not this is the Palestinian government. I’ve never heard of these joint Israeli Palestinian projects. There are none… Our oversight campaign has arrested many people involved with the settlement products.” Not long after this Naji walked out/was expelled from the conference (a short video and description can be found here http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=w09Pa5obGzA) The Hebron activist Nazir Banat who asked the final questions is reported to have been attacked and sent to the hospital after the conference.

After the question and answer portion, the conference broke into smaller sections offering workshops on a wide variety of BDS related topics including Youth, Women, Agriculture, Internationals, Tourism, Civil Society and other specialized sectors. Taking the broad discussion and targeting specific avenues and how to successfully implement BDS techniques within them.

While the speakers were careful to point out the successes of the movement so far, and the attendance of this years gathering was an impressively full and diverse room, it is clear the the movement has much to overcome to develop into the kind of international force that was seen in South Africa. As Omar Barghouti of BNC noted “we have no fancy hotels no red carpet. We are working with almost no budget. If you have practical plans to implement for BDS please step forward. We have the right to resist. We must take it now.”

This conference and the plans for an larger scale international conference sometime in the near future are important steps in attaining that goal.

*quotations taken from the Simultaneous English Translation offered by the conference organizers.

Early this morning a group of settlers entered Beit Ommar from Bat Aiyn, a settlement that lies to the south of the village, and attacked the land of local farmer Hammad Abdal Hameed Jaber Saleebi age 75. With covered faces they set to work cutting down more than 20 olive trees and flooding his crops with sewage water leaving his land uprooted and unharvestable. This will mark the seventh in a series of reoccurring attacks taking place on the private property of this farmer and his family this year alone. (One of which left Hammad in the hospital in Hebron for five days with a head wound.) After working for 2-3 hours the settlers left the land in trucks taking the uprooted ripe olive trees with them as to not leave any evidence behind.

After the incident, the police, soldiers, mayor of Beit Ommar and other Palestinian farmers gather on Hammad’s land to find him devastated at the lack of effective help he received this morning and the damage to his crops. After a year of work, Hammad is left with destroyed, contaminated fields and little if anything that will be viable for harvest time.

The Settlers at Work on the Land of Hammad

The 75 year-old farmer tending to his destroyed land

At 3:30am, a military force about fourteen soldiers stormed the area of Abu Hashem’s family, they searched the area with dogs for more one hour, after that they moved down town, while they moving they occupied the house of the former Mayor Nasri Sabarna they were shooting fire, tear gas and sound bombs. The IOF arrested Saif Naseem Mahmoud Meseif Sabarna 18 years old, he is living on the street Jerusalem – Hebron.
On the 15th of May 2013, the people of Beit Omar organized a protest of men, women and children. They walked the streets of Beit Omar toward the entrance were the demonstrators chanted slogans, they arrived at the entrance, the soldiers had already closed the main road that connects Jerusalem to Hebron. Minutes after the soldiers came and dispersed the demonstrators by using tear gas and sound bombs.
On the 17th of May 2013, there was clashes near the cemetery at the entrance of the town of Beit Omar. Friday is the holiday in Palestine and clashes between Israeli soldiers and the youth are a weekly occurrence. During the clashes the soldiers arrested Qutayba Naser Sabarna 15 years old and beat him brutally in front of his family when they came to take him home. The soldiers started to shoot tear gas, sound bombs and rubber bullets everywhere in the area
This morning of May 20th, 2013, at approximately 11 a.m. our time, we were made aware of the presence of a Nazi flag hanging from electrical lines in our village of Beit Omar. We immediately attempted to have the flag removed but had to wait for the Israeli military to approve our equipment because the flag was hanging in area of the village designated Area C (under full Israeli military control).
The Popular Committee and PSP express our complete disgust with the display of the swastika. in our village. It in no way represents the people of Beit Omar, or of Palestine. We are against Israeli governmental policy, colonialism, and apartheid but not Jewish people themselves, and condemn any adoption of fascist, racist, or anti-Semitic language or symbols for the Palestinian cause for freedom and liberation.
Beit Omar is a town of over 17,000 residents, and the act of one individual should not be implied to represent our community as a whole.
On the 20th of May 2013, the Israeli occupation forces stormed Beit Omar town and they were searching for something in the farm lands and houses using dogs and automatic machines “some of these house belongs to Jamal Hasan” the Israeli occupation forces were looking for his sons Rabe’ 17 years old and Malik 15 years, they are ex-prisoners and they also raided the house of Yaser Mohammad Zaqeeq looking for his son Ahmad 19 years old an ex-prisoner, but the IOF didn’t find any of the youths.
On the 24th of May 2013; Early friday morning dozens of settlers tried to storm Al-Aroub refugee camp under the protection of the israeli occupation forces but people from camp confronted them by peaceful means thus the settlers retreated. After this they attempted to enter Beit Omar which is located just up from Al-Aroub on route to Hebron. Just like before they failed, as when they saw people from the town coming they fled. These & similar events are a daily occurrence for Palestinians living within the West Bank.
On friday the 24th of May 2013, clashes broke out near the cemetery at the entrance to the town of Beit Omar. Friday is the holiday in Palestine and clashes between israeli soldiers and the youth manifest weekly due to the presence & continual harassment from the soldiers. The israeli forces are always near the cemetery searching any person they so choose and their homes which has a detrimental effect on peoples daily lives. During the clashes israeli soldiers started to shoot tear gas, sound bombs and rubber bullets resulting in injuries.

On 26th of May 2013, a group of settlers under the protection of Israeli military began to set up a number of tents in the eastern area of the town in Beit Omar. They proceeded to raise the israeli flag on the tents while the israeli forces were spread out in the surrounding area with a heavy presence on the main road (route 60). They closed off the main entrance of the town preventing people from moving in & out.
Soon clashes started at the main entrance of Karmi Tzur, the israeli forces started shooting tear gas, sound bombs & rubber rounds. Two people were arrested.

On the 31th of May 2013, a dozens of settlers gathered at the entrance of Beit Omar, north of Hebron city under the protection of dozens of soldiers in order to occupy the land that they tried to occupy last Friday 24th of May; where a number of them were on the farmlands surrounding the entrance of the town.
The soldiers moved the farmers whom were working on their land & also tried to stop people from filming what was happening.
A group of soldiers moved to the mount next to the town that the settlers want to occupy. The man who owned the land Ali Faris Sabarna, 65 years old was arrested earlier in the day. Because he has built a shack to protect him and his family while the israelis are working on his land. This farmer is now in Kiryat Arba settlement awaiting trial.

The soldiers moved the farmers whom were working on their land & also they tried to stop people from filming what was happening.
A group of soldiers moved to the mount next to the town that the settlers want to occupy. The man who owned the land Ali Faris Sabarna, 65 years old was arrested earlier in the day. Because he has built a shack to protect him and his family while the israelis are working on his land. This farmer is now in Kiryat Arba settlement awaiting trial.

The Israeli occupation forces gave these families reports to meet the Israeli intelligence at Gush Etzion, these families refused to take these reports. When the Israeli occupation forces finished searching in the houses they moved to an area close to Karmi Tzur settlement to search two house belongs to brothers Ibrahim Khader Sabarna and Hasan Khader Sabarna they are ex-prisoners.