Today, May 15, 2012, Palestinians are remembering the 64th anniversary of the Nakba. In Arabic, “nakba” means “catastrophe,” and it refers to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948, which was accompanied by the expulsion of 700,000 Palestinians from their homes. Many Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes, while others fled when they heard the news of massacres in nearby villages, such as Deir Yassin and Tantura. More than 450 Palestinian towns and villages were depopulated by Zionist forces, and most of them were razed to the ground to prevent the return of the Palestinian refugees. Many refugee families still carry the keys to the homes that … Continue reading

On Friday, May 11th, 2012, two Palestinian farmers were attacked in Beit Ommar by Israeli settlers from Karmei Tsur.

Walid Sabarna and Ibrahim Abu Maria were working on their land 150 meters from the settlement, when two security guards from the settlement accompanied by six soldiers approached them at 5 pm. The guards asked the farmers what they were doing here, and they gave the obvious answer: working on their land. The guards responded that this was not the case, but that the land belonged to them and that the farmers should go away.

They then attacked Walid, beating and kicking his right leg. He had an operation on this … Continue reading

On Friday, May 11, 2012, Palestinian, Israeli and international activists gathered outside Ofer prison in Ramallah to protest in solidarity with the Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike. Over two hundred activists came and joined the demonstration. Israeli soldiers shot countless canisters of teargas at the demonstrators, as well as skunk water and rubber-coated and plastic-coated bullets. The activists set over a dozen tires on fire, creating a thick wall of smoke that made it difficult for the soldiers to see the demonstrators, so the soldiers shot into the crowd at random. Over 20 people were taken into the ambulances, and at least one was taken to the hospital.

A letter from Thaer Halahleh, on day 75 of hunger strike against his detention without charge, to his two-year-old daughter Lamar, who he has never seen. Translated by Jalal Najjar.

“My Beloved Lamar, forgive me because the occupation took me away from you, and took away from me the pleasure of witnessing my first born child that I have always prayed to God to see, to kiss, to be happy with. It is not your fault, this is our destiny as Palestinian people to have our lives and the lives of our children taken away from us, to be apart from each other and to have a miserable life, nothing is … Continue reading

Today, May 12, 2012, Palestinian, Israeli and international activists joined together for the weekly demonstration in Beit Ommar. Today’s demonstration was in solidarity with the Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike and to commemorate the 64th anniversary of the Nakba. Khader Adnan, who was released from administrative detention on April 17th, 2012 and was on hunger strike for 66 days, also took part in the demonstration.

The demonstration began with a march from the center of Beit Ommar to Karmei Tsur settlement, which was built on stolen Palestinian land. As soon as the demonstrators arrived near the settlement, about 30 heavily armed Israeli soldiers came to meet them. … Continue reading

On May 8th, 2012, multiple demonstrations were held in Hebron, Beit Ommar and surrounding villages in solidarity with the prisoners on hunger strike.

In Hebron, students from the Hebron district came together and marched in the center of town. Close to one thousand people were present with posters and flags, and youth from all the surrounding areas were present in the march.

In Beit Ommar, Israeli soldiers entered the town in the afternoon and occupied several people’s homes, firing teargas and rubber-coated bullets at the children in the street. In the evening, villagers marched in the town supporting Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahla. … Continue reading

Today, May 5th, 2012, Palestinian, Israeli and international activists joined together for the weekly demonstration in Beit Ommar. The demonstration took place by the fence separating Beit Ommar from the illegal settlement Karmei Tsur. The settlement is illegal under international law according to the 4th Geneva Convention, and is built on stolen Palestinian land. The fence prevents farmers from entering and working on their land.

This week, men, women and children protested in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners, particularly with those on hunger strike. Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahleh are on the 68th day of their hunger strike, and are in grave condition. They are both held under administrative detention, and demand … Continue reading

Yesterday, May 4th, 2012, a demonstration took place in Beit Ommar following a funeral in the village. After the funeral, some children started throwing rocks at the army watchtower at the entrance of the village. Some Israeli settlers arrived with guns and started shooting in the air. Additional soldiers came and forced the residents of Beit Ommar back towards the center of the town. Soldiers then entered the village and fired rubber-coated bullets, teargas and sound bombs. The teargas was aimed at people’s homes, causing many problems for the residents.
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As in much of Palestine and around the world, Beit Ommar residents have been demonstrating in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike who are risking their lives for their … Continue reading

On Saturday, April 28, 2012, Palestinian, Israeli and international activists joined together for the weekly demonstration in Beit Ommar. The demonstration took place by the fence separating Beit Ommar from the illegal settlement Karmei Tsur. The settlement is illegal under international law according to the 4th Geneva Convention, and is built on stolen Palestinian land. The fence prevents farmers from entering and working on their land. The demonstration was in protest against the settlement, the Israeli occupation and imprisonment of Palestinians, and was also in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike.

In total around 50 soldiers appeared during the … Continue reading

On Tuesday, April 24, 2012, Israeli soldiers arrested 21-year-old Nabil Mahmoud Salem Al-Alamy at about 9am at the entrance of Beit Ommar. Nabil is a student at Ahlia Univerisity in Bethlehem, and was on his way to the university when he was arrested.

Beit Ommar residents face daily harassment and arrests from the soldiers at the entrance of the town, disrupting their daily life and interfering with their ability to go to school, work, and other places.