The hunger strike struggle in which Khader Adnan is engaged in is based on long epic experience of strikes, where the Palestinian detainees’ steadfastness dazzled even the jailers who slam the doors of cells. And without these hunger strikes which were culminated with martyrs, the detainees won’t be able to grab their demands and rights, because the prisons administration from the outset adopted the policy of procrastination, and making the Palestinian detainee going on in a vicious circle, to make it easier to pounce on him.

The hunger strikes in particular at Ashkelon prison at the beginning of the strikes experience contained a strong message to the Israeli occupation … Continue reading

Yousef and Saqqar Abu Maria, two Palestinian activists from Beit Ommar who were arrested on Saturday, February 11, 2012 during an unarmed demonstration against the Israeli occupation, have been released from the Israeli prison of Ramle on the evening of February 13th. Both men were released after being held for more than 48 hours, after they each were ordered to pay a fine of 1500 shekels (roughly $450 usd) each by the Israeli courts. Please consider donating to the Palestine Solidarity Project legal defense fund to help cover these costs and other costs for unarmed Palestinian activists on the front lines of fighting for their freedom. Since the beginning of January 2012, 34 Palestinians have been arrested … Continue reading

On the early morning of February 13, 2012, Israeli Forces accompanied by survey workers started to put marks on Route 60, the main road connecting the cities of Hebron and Jerusalem in the southern West Bank. The soldiers started surveying the area from the entrance of Al-Arroub refugee camp all the way to Beit Ommar. This move seems to signify the intention of the Israeli military to put up a four-meter-high fence along this area to isolate the two Palestinian communities from the main street, and further restricting the movement of Palestinian residents living in the area. This act is part of a wider design of a collective punishment policy pursued by the Israeli occupation, in light of … Continue reading

Activists around the world responded to a call to action initiated by the Palestine Solidarity Project to organize actions in their community to mark the one year anniversary of the murder of Yousef Ikhlayl at the hands of Israeli settlers. Activists in Mexico City, London, New Mexico, Chicago, Beloit, and France put up posters of Yousef in public areas and organized vigils or demonstrations in front of Israeli embassies. In Chicago, activists posted six hundred posters remembering Yousef and decrying the occupation on light posts, bus stops, and newspaper stands and also leafleted outside the Israeli consulate. In France, Yousef’s picture was held up in front of the Israeli Embassy during a vigil to mourn his murder. … Continue reading

On the 17th of December 2011 (53 days ago), Khader Adnan began his hunger strike in protest of his ill-treatment in Israeli detention and his arbitrary detention without charge or trial (known as Administrative Detention). He is in danger of dying at any moment. His wife, Randa, who saw him for the first time since his detention today described his condition as rapidly deteriorating and that he has lost a third of his weight and his hair.

TAKE ACTION NOW!

1.Call and demand the release of Khader Adnan, who has not been charged with any crime but instead is being held under Administrative Detention.
Call the Israeli Embassy in Washington DC … Continue reading

On Tuesday, February 7, 2012, Israeli settlers from Karmei Tsur, escorted by Israeli Forces, constructed two mobile homes (caravans) on two dunums (2000 square meters) of land owned by Palestinian residents of Beit Ommar. The farmland is legally owned by Mohamed Motlak Za’aqik and is located within the so-called security fence surrounding the settlement of Karmei Tsur to the south of the village. This fence was constructed in 2006, and annexed more than hundreds of dunums of Beit Omar farmland. Since then, the farmers are prevented from entering the area and cultivating their land for almost six years, causing all of the plum and grapes trees to dry up. Karmei Tsur was illegally established in 1984 on … Continue reading

On Saturday, February 4th, 2012, Palestinian villagers in Beit Ommar conducted their weekly demonstration against the settlement appropriation of their lands. The activists organized this week’s actions to plant dozens of olive trees near the Israeli settlement of Karmei Tsur. This week, the demonstrators were joined by a group of Palestinian and international runners conducting a marathon across the West Bank from Hebron to Jenin organized by Fair Trade groups and US-based community development group On the Ground.

The project aims to raise awareness and support for small farming communities and Fair Trade practices across the West Bank. They planted 500 olive saplings … Continue reading

On Friday, February 3, 2012, a large group of around 150 Israeli settlers entered the Palestinian village of Beit Ommar in the southern West Bank. The presence of settlers on Palestinian land is prohibited under International Law. The group was escorted by Israeli soldiers and border police, and moved through several neighborhoods of the village during the middle of the day.

The settlers wandered through Beit Za’tah and Alkarn neighborhoods before moving onto Wadi Esheikh area close to the illegal settlement of Karmei Tsur to the south of the village. During this provocative tour, the settlers blocked Route 60, the main road connecting Hebron … Continue reading

On Tuesday, January 31st, 2012, Beit Ommar villagers demonstrated near Route 60 at the entrance of the village to commemorate the one year anniversary of the murder of Yousef Ikhlayl, a 17-year-old Beit Ommar youth who was murdered by Israeli settlers on January 28th, 2011. The demonstration was organized by the Popular Committee in Beit Ommar and was supported by the Palestine Solidarity Project, the Popular Committee in Yatta, and several other Palestinian organizations.

As the demonstrators approached Route 60 at the entrance of the village, dozens of Israeli soldiers blocked their path and attacked the gathering with tear gas, sound bombs, and … Continue reading

By Bekah Wolf
Published on Electronic Intifada (http://electronicintifada.net/content/demanding-justice-yousef-quiet-boy-killed-israeli-settlers/10865)

On 28 January 2011 at 6:30am, Yousef Ikhlayl, 17, went with his father Fakhri to their farmland on the outskirts of the West Bank village Beit Ommar, where they prepared the land around their grapevines. At approximately 7am, two groups of Israelis from the illegal settlements Bat Ayn and Kiryat Arba were taking a “hike” in the privately-owned Palestinian agricultural land belonging to the residents of Beit Ommar (“Palestinian killed in clashes with settlers near Hebron,” The Jerusalem Post, 29 January 2011).

There was no indication that the settlers were planning on shooting. Yousef’s father reported that the first shot … Continue reading