Three years to Rachel's Murder and a testimony from the Jericho prison attack

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1.Rachels words

Three years ago today, Rachel Corrie was killed by the Israeli
military. For information about worldwide memorial actions see
http://www.RachelsWords.org.
Rachel Corrie was 23 years old when she was crushed to death by an
Israeli army bulldozer on March 16, 2003. She was working with others
trying to protect the home of a Palestinian pharmacist from demolition
in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Palestine"My Name is Rachel Corrie" is a
powerful one-woman show based entirely on the writings that

Rachel left behind, telling her story from the time she was a small
child, leading up to the days before her death. The play, edited by
Alan Rickman and Katharine Viner from Rachel's diaries and emails,
was produced by the Royal Court Theatre in London. Starring Megan
Dodds, it played to sold out audiences and wide acclaim.

"My Name is Rachel Corrie" was scheduled to open at the New York
Theatre Workshop on March 22nd. It has been postponed indefinitely,
sparking much debate. Director Alan Rickman said, "Rachel Corrie
lived in nobody's pocket but her own. Whether one is sympathetic with
her or not, her voice is like a clarion in the fog and should be
heard." Rachel's mother Cindy wonders, "Why are people so afraid
of Rachel's words?" We ask the same question and are determined to
give people the opportunity to hear those words.

The "Rachel's Words" initiative is made up of a broad spectrum of
groups and individuals who believe that Rachel's words and her
message of human rights and justice should be heard. We hope that
Rachel's Words will open the door for other equally important and
silenced voices. We resist the pervasive climate of fear and challenge
to free speech that is increasingly prevalent in our society. Rachel
wrote about issues that concern us all. People must have the
opportunity to hear her message and decide for themselves what they
think. Nobody's agenda should stand in the way of that.

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2.Another Fallen Friend and Martyr
March 12th, 2006 |
The death of Tom Fox and a true test of solidarity
By Joe Carr

I first met Tom Fox in Chicago at a Christian Peacemaker Teams'
training and we became good friends through our work together. He was a
father with children about my age, and was like an uncle to me.

He was my team's coordinator during my month in Iraq. Shaggy, a young
Iraqi friend and translator, nicknamed him "Uncle Tom" because of
his paternal but playful manner. He provided a calm and steady
presence, and an open and compassionate ear. His warmth and humor
helped me to hang on through my depressing and fearful time in Iraq.

I remember the comforting sound of Tom's recorder, which he played in
place of his clarinet. I will miss the mornings when he led worship,
often in the silent Quaker tradition.

Tom was truly committed to maintaining an international presence in
Iraq despite the danger. He understood the privilege we have in being
able to choose whether or not we face violence, a choice denied to
Iraqis, Palestinians, and poor people of color around the world. His
commitment to solidarity led him to Iraq, to share in some of that
risk.
Dozens of Iraqi bodies show up in Baghdad each week. Many are killed by
US-sponsored death squads, trained to use brutal counter-insurgency
tactics against militants and civilians alike. In the chaos of occupied
Iraq, thousands of Iraqis have been kidnapped for profit. But we only
hear about it when it happens to internationals.

I was standing with 23-year-old American activist Rachel Corrie when an
Israeli soldier intentionally drove over and crushed her to death with
a US-made Caterpillar bulldozer. A month later, I was with 22-year-old
British activist Tom Hurndall, helping to move Palestinian children out
of the line of Israeli sniper fire when that sniper purposefully shot
Tom in the head.

Today is the three-year anniversary of Rachel's murder is March 16,
and activists around the world will host events to commemorate her life
and sacrifice. But we will also commemorate the thousands of
Palestinians who've given their lives to the struggle, over 3,500
since September, 2000.

Activists are also gearing up for demonstrations to mark the three-year
anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. As we mourn for Tom Fox, let us
remember the 100,000-250,000 Iraqis murdered by US occupation forces,
and the 15,000-17,000 Iraqi hostages, held without charge in US and
Iraqi detention facilities.

The loss of my comrades hurts very much, and it scares me to be so
close to our few western martyrs. But my pain and fear only deepens my
sense of solidarity and determination to continue their legacy of
struggle.

Iraqis, Palestinians, and oppressed people everywhere are fighting and
dying for freedom, and it's long passed time for Americans to join
them.

Let us grieve for our loss, together with families everywhere who's
loved ones have fallen. Let us also continue the legacy of Tom Fox, Tom
Hurndall, and Rachel Corrie, to build a global solidarity movement for
peace, justice, and freedom.

Let us see to it they do not die in vain.
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3. Vigil for Commemoration and Solidarity
March 15th, 2006

Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) and the Palestinian Center for
Rapprochement between People (PCR) invite you to a light a candle in a
vigil to honor Martyrs for Peace, Tom Fox, CPT Iraq, Rachel Corrie and
Tom Hurndall, from the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), and to
protest illegal Israeli invasion of the Jericho prison.
The vigil will start at 18:00 Friday 17 March 2006, at the Manger
Square Bethlehem.

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4. What I saw in Jericho Or Olmert's Election Campaign
March 15th, 2006

For pictures see:
http://www.palsolidarity.org/main/2006/03/15/what-i-saw-in-jericho-or-olmart%e2%80%99s-election-campaign/
By Neta Golan

Jericho Tuesday March 14th

After a four-hour walk around two Israeli checkpoints and an illegal
Israeli settlement, we arrived in Jericho to find that the neighborhood
around the compound surrounded by Israeli jeeps and Palestinian
children throwing stones at them. We asked the kids for directions.
After sizing us up for a while a young Palestinian guided us through
the side streets to the closest point to the compound as possible where
journalists where filming the attack.

As Chris from Britain, C. from IWPS and I were approaching the city we
could here shelling and a helicopter from a long way away. When we got
to the site of the prison and governmental compound we saw that the it
was "U" shaped and the external building that was visible to us was
burning and completely destroyed. We were told it had been shelled by a
helicopter before we arrived.

The prisoners and Palestinian prison employees had been cornered into a
room inside the middle of the "U" by the Israeli military who were
destroying the building around them after the British and American
guards abandoned the prison.
While we were getting organized to attempt to join the prisoners that
were being attacked, the external building was shelled by a tank at
least four times. The military were calling on the prisoners to
surrender on an amplifier system.

The sound that worried us the most was a very loud and very low
rat-tat-tat-tat that we thought was some kind of heavy machine gun
fire. Later we discovered that it was a rock compressor or "congo"
machine used to break up rock. Behind the destroyed external building
the rock compressor and a similar machine with a shovel on a long arm
were being used on the wall of the room where the prisoners were.

We tried in vain to contact the people inside the compound by phone to
tell them we were coming in. We knew we were running out of time so
despite our tiny number we stocked up with medical equipment and some
food, raised our hands to show that we were not armed and walked as
quickly as we could in the direction of where the prisoners were.
Soldiers screamed at us to stop but we continued. We were directly in
front but still hundreds of meters away from where the prisoners were
when soldiers that had left their jeeps on foot caught us.

After being caught I lay down to prevent them from easily removing me.
Thanks to the nonviolent techniques we teach in training it took three
soldiers about ten minutes to handcuff me with plastic handcuffs. They
succeeded by one of them pressing his knee down hard against my throat
and two other solider grabbing an arm each. I could see Chris on the
floor up against a jeep behind me.

When I refused to move the commander left two soldiers to guard me on
the spot. He told them in Hebrew "If any one comes out of the
building shoot him. Shoot in order to hit. We are not playing games.
The games are over." He repeated: "Any one that comes out of the
building shoot to hit!" The fact that they came out of their jeeps to
chase us and stood right in front of where the prisoners were for such
an extended period indicates that they knew that they were in no danger
of getting shot at.

The solider guarding me and I were there at least ten minutes until
Border Police came to carry me away. When the Border Police unit
commander approached my guard he asked him in Hebrew if the "fat"
ones were still in the building. He was told not to talk next to me and
he switched to Arabic and asked the same question.

Four border police carried me into a jeep and then brought Chris in
with his hands cuffed behind his back. We were sure they were taking us
to a police station but they stopped at a checkpoint outside of Jericho
and told us we could go.

On the way back to Jerusalem we heard that the prisoners and the rest
of the besieged people had all been arrested. What people on the ground
said was that the wall of the room that a prisoners and the others were
in was demolished leaving them exposed to the Israeli soldiers, who
ordered them to walk down one by one. That explained the too-strong
machine gun-like sound that we heard: it was a rock compressor against
the old stone walls of the building. The prisoners had no weapons. The
Palestinians trapped inside the prison did not surrender and walk out
of the building. The building including the room they were in was
destroyed around them.

According to AlJazeera.net, two Palestinian security officers including
Ibrahim Abu al-Amin were killed and 23 other people were wounded in the
raid. The Palestinian people and the Arab world were humiliated enraged
and betrayed. The chances for a viable Palestinian Authority (not to
mention state) and the trust in international mediators was destroyed
while chances for retaliation attacks increased. The rift between the
west and the Arab world has grown wider. All for the sole purpose of
Olmart's election campaign.
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5. In Tel Aviv Israeli Activists Protest the Raid on Jericho Jail
March 14th, 2006
Updates from Tel Aviv

"Mofaz, how many prisoners will you kill today?"
- chanted by Israeli non-violent demonstrators
At 7pm Tuesday evening, approximately 100 Israeli activists held a
non-violent demonstration in front of the Ministry of Defense in Tel
Aviv. The protest was called in response to today's siege on a
Jericho prison and called for the release of all political prisoners.

20 Israeli police officers and 8 soldiers stood across the street from
the peaceful demonstrators. Next to them, 2 counter protesters from a
right wing political party held signs and yelled anti-Arab statements.
Many drivers screamed racist comments as they drove past the
demonstration.
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6. State opposes new housing in illegal W. Bank neighborhood
March 15th, 2006

The State Prosecution is opposed to resuming illegal construction in
the Matityahu-East neighborhood in the ultra-Orthodox settlement of
Upper Modi'in.
By Yuval Yoaz
Published in Ha'aretz

However, the prosecution does not object to populating buildings that
have already been completed. The state's stand was presented
Wednesday at a High Court hearing on a petition submitted by Peace Now
against the illegal construction, which has been frozen for the past
two months by a High Court interim order.

The state's representative asked the court to set criteria for
populating the buildings whose construction has been completed.
Justices Aharon Barak, Ayala Procaccia and Eliezer Rivlin raised the
possibility of forcing construction companies Heftizba and Green Park
to grant refunds to the buyers. The refunds may be a preliminary step
ahead of complying with the Peace Now demand to demolish all the
illegal buildings.
During Wednesday's hearing the state's representative, attorney
Orit Koren, said that contrary to the construction companies' stand,
the court should ban the completion of the 40 buildings in the
neighborhoods, some of which were built according to an illegal master
plan approved by the Upper Modi'in council, while others were built
without any building permits at all.

The state also said that it is considering launching a criminal
investigation against the people responsible for the illegal
construction in the neighborhood, on land allegedly belonging to
residents of the nearby village of Bil'in.

During the hearing, it was revealed that the details of the illegal
construction plan were published in the haredi newspapers Hamodia and
Yated Ne'eman. According to attorney Koren, the state intends to
submit a new master plan for the neighborhood and to pass it through
building and planning committees.

The neighborhood, whose illegal construction was exposed by Haaretz in
December 2005, was built on private land belonging to the residents of
the adjacent village of Bil'in. Some of the land was purchased by
land dealers using powers of attorney suspected to be forged. The
affidavit on the land ownership was signed by an attorney representing
settlers and not by the head of the village, as required.

The separation fence built in the area separates between Bil'in and a
large portion of its land, including the land on which Matityahu-East
is being built.

According to the Palestinians and left-wing organizations, the
separation fence route was influenced by the construction plans in the
area. The private land received the status of state land, which was
then leased to construction companies managed by settler leaders. The
construction of the separation fence encouraged buyers to purchase
homes in the area.
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7. The Ridiculousness of Tel Rumeida
March 13th, 2006
by Katie

Here are a few incidents that happened in Tel Rumeida over the last few
weeks. Keep in mind that these anecdotes are only a tiny fraction of
the daily insanity happening here.
I don't even blink...

The other day the soldiers at the IOF post near the Beit Hadassa
settlement were detaining every single Palestinian man who walked by
for up to 45 minutes for ID checks. Why ? "Security." This is the
generic answer you hear when you inquire about any outrageously unfair
practice against Palestinians. Part of our work here is to try and get
the men released sooner rather than later because the soldiers usually
don't detain the men for as long when we're pressuring them. It was
out of the ordinary for the soldiers to be detaining everyone who
passed so I decided I was going to try to warn people to take a
different route around the IOF post so they wouldn't be detained.
>From down the street I could see a man I knew pretty well and I
motioned for him to come over and talk to me. I told him the soldiers
were detaining everyone and that he should go around and tell everyone
he knew to avoid that IOF post today. What happened next just totally
broke my heart because he replied "no, it's ok, we're used to
it." This kind of thing is so normal here that people just accept it
as part of their life, but its not normal. It's racist and unfair and
it makes me so crazy to see it happening everyday. Even still, I'm
getting resigned to it as well. The first time someone pointed his gun
at me and cocked it, I was a little bit freaked out, now it happens so
often I don't even blink. I just laugh.
A baby or a bomb?

There's a metal detector at the checkpoint going into Tel Rumeida
that everyone must pass through. Because pregnant women and teachers
don't pose a security threat, the soldiers have orders to allow them
to go through a gate instead of through the metal detector. This is so
they don't get X-rayed everyday which is unhealthy if you are
pregnant or trying to become pregnant. There is often a lot of hassle
about this policy because soldiers will say they don't know about the
order, or they will make the women wait around for a long time or they
just refuse to let them through the gate all together. When the
soldiers refuse to let them through, I have seen women leave the
checkpoint in order to take another route into Tel Rumeida so they
don't have to pass through the metal detector. This takes them three
kilometers out of their way. Recently I saw an obviously pregnant woman
waiting at the gate for the soldier on duty to let her through. The
soldier was ignoring her and she motioned for me to come over and help
her. I asked the soldier if he was aware of the order to allow pregnant
women through the gate. He replied he had heard of no such order and
that if she wanted to get into Tel Rumeida, she would have to go
through the metal detector. He told me he couldn't be sure if it was
a baby under her dress or a bomb (!) This is the kind of insanity that
makes me almost freak out, but freaking out at the soldiers doesn't
usually help so I took a few breaths and called the nice lady at
Machsom Watch, an Israeli human rights organization that monitors and
intervenes in checkpoint harassment. Usually when I call her, whoever
is being detained is let go, and sure enough, a few minutes later the
soldier got a call and he let her through.

Call the Moussad, they've built a house...

Settlers drive cars in Tel Rumeida. Palestinians are not allowed to
drive cars in Tel Rumeida. Why ? "Security." Roadblocks have been
set up on roads going into the Palestinian controlled area of Hebron to
prevent Palestinian cars from entering or leaving Tel Rumeida. One of
our neighbors recently finished building a beautiful house here. When
asked how he and his family brought the building materials in to build
the house, he explained that they had to bring everything in by
wheelbarrow. It took two years. The house is at the bottom of a steep
hill and right now the family is building a concrete wall to protect
the house from rocks or debris that may fall from the hill in bad
weather. They need a car to transport sand and gravel to build the
wall. In order to do this, first they must move the concrete roadblocks
at the entrance to Tel Rumeida in the middle of the night and second
they must distract the soldiers so they do not hear the car. Last night
the young men in the neighborhood had to act really loud an obnoxious
in front of the soldiers so that they would not hear the car being
driven a block away. The next day, the Moussad (secret police) came to
ask questions about how the sand and gravel got there. My fellow
Americans, your tax dollars go to pay for special missions such as
this.

While venting my exasperation about the situation here to F, he told me
that compared to the way things were at the beginning of the intifada
in 2002, it's like paradise now. Back then there was a 24 hour curfew
that lasted for 100 days. This meant that no one could leave their
house unless the army gave them permission. If they were caught in the
streets, they would be arrested. I am totally in awe of the restraint
and patience demonstrated by the people of Hebron.
________________________________________________________________________

8. Kalandia and the Meaning of 'Security'
March 11th, 2006
By Jon

For pictures see:
http://www.palsolidarity.org/main/2006/03/11/kalandia-and-the-meaning-of-security/

Traveling between Ramallah and Jerusalem used to be a relatively easy
trip, despite the various demarcations and borders the two cities
contained, both within and between them. Things have changed of course,
both quickly and drastically. What only a few years ago was a temporary
"flying" checkpoint near Kalandia Refugee Camp, would then be
converted into a more fixed checkpoint; ultimately it would evolve into
it's present form, a monstrous Terminal/Wall infrastructure complex.
And the process continues; everyday that I pass through there,
something new is built or added, complete with Palestinian laborers
working in the shadow of Caterpillar bulldozers, while being watched
over by heavily armed Israeli security guards.

With the physical landscape being so irrevocably redefined and
reconstructed by the occupation, I want to describe my most recent
passage through Kalandia. Partly, I am doing this as I prepare to leave
Palestine, and not knowing when I may be able to return. Of the many
things that frighten me, one is this; simply how much will change and
be changed while I am away? How do you look forward to returning
somewhere if your can't even recognize it when you get there?

When I first used Kalandia checkpoint, in 2003-2004, it was a
checkpoint much like Huwarra near Nablus; people were being harrassed
by the IOF whenever I passed through, mostly by being questioned as to
their IDs and permits. It's hard to describe the experience of
waiting on line with 50 or more Palestinians, waiting to have your ID
checked, while a 20 year old Israeli soldier is standing in front of
you, pointing his rifle at you, looking at everyone like they are no
better than the dirt on his boots.

Back in January, a soldier was killed at Kalandia, stabbed by a
Palestinian while passing through what at that time had evolved into a
labyrinth of concrete, metal sheeting, razor wire and Israeli soldiers.
For the next week or two, the process there, which was already
humiliating, violent and painfully slow became even more so. I remember
passing in the opposite direction on the way to Ramallah, and seeing
the new changes; even longer lines, and when one approaches the
soldiers to show your ID, there were at least 5 other soldiers standing
to the side, their rifles drawn and pointing straight at you, ready to
shoot at a moment's notice.

Then, the sparkling new 'Terminal' was opened. Paid for by US aid
to the Palestinian Authority, it is truly a triumph of sarcasm and
sadism, all rolled into one (and by the way, didn't a certain Central
European regime build a wall in Warsaw and charge the people they were
building it around for it's construction?). Now, the IOF can hide in
their protected little bomb and bullet-proof cubicles, scream orders
and insults in Hebrew through a microphone, make people wait as long as
they like, while never having to so much as breath the same air as the
Palestinians passing through the terminal.

Outside the checkpoint there used to be a sign that read "THE HOPE OF
US ALL," although it wasn't entirely clear whose hopes and for what
they were referring to; pretty soon a group of activists from Jews
Against Genocide covered it in graffiti, writing "ARBEIT MACH FREI"
a few times over it. Soon, after, the sign was removed... but alas, the
checkpoint remains.

The last time I was there, I was not very happy to see a really, really
long line to get into the checkpoint. Usually, I haven't had to wait
too long, as the soldiers have never seemed too concerned about my
being there; at the most, I might have my visa checked, but that's
about it (and sometimes not even that much). To make matters worse, I
was pretty tired too, and a bit stressed about my leaving so soon; the
last thing I wanted to deal with while on my way to seeing friends in
Hebron was a long wait at Kalandia but I didn't seem to have much
choice. So, I got into the slowly moving mass of people, and soon I was
in a sea of Palestinian men, from about 25 to 40 years old; there was a
way to pass for the young & old & women, but I just couldn't get the
guts to flaunt my privilege and use it.

Inside the nearby control room was a female Israeli soldier, and she
was shouting commands in Hebrew every minutes or so, as she controlled
how long the revolving metal-bar doors in front of us would be open for
(complete with green and red lights, for our convenience!). Now, most
of the men seemed to be taking the situation with the usual coping
method of laughing at it; personally, I started fantasizing about how
many screwdrivers it would take to dismantle the place while we were
waiting, but that's just me. They would cover the speaker with their
hand, mimic her voice, and stay pretty relaxed, all things considered,
but for all these men to be talked to like they are children by this
young woman was certainly yet another method of humiliation by the IOF.
And then there was the challenge to her authority; whereas she would be
insisting that only one person go through the revolving door at a time,
the men would be squeezing anywhere from 2 to 4 people through at a
time; she would say "wahadi wahadi," (one by one) and they would
say (and do) in response, "arba a arba" (four by four).

This went on for a bit, until I got within range to squeeze in, but I
had some difficulty; my backpack kept getting stuck, and people would
jump out ahead of me each and every time. I finally got into position
along with 2 other guys, with my backpack on my head, and we waited for
the light to turn green. But, then something unexpected happened. Next
to the revolving doors that we were using, there were to regular doors,
and two men selling sunglasses were working out passage through, as
their merchandise wouldn't fit through the revolving doors. So, she
opens the other doors, and what happens? Yes, everyone starts pouring
through, including me; hell, I had already spent an hour there, and
this was just the first door to get through!

At this point, more than 100 of us had gotten through, but there was
still the actual checking of the permits & bags still to be done. I
walked about, trying to find a line that was shorter, going faster,
something, but, nothing! I even tried to slip into the women's line,
but the soldier said on the speaker that I needed to go to the men's
lines. So, standing there, I resigned myself to getting to Jerusalem
much later than I expected, if at all. But out of the corner of my eye,
I notice that the station to my left was just starting to let people
in, so I make a move... along with 50 other people! But I get a jump on
most of them, push my way into the revolving door, and then it slams
shut, I get the red light!

But now I'm mad, I'm tired, and I just don't understand why these
soldiers, these boys, see the need to toy with us all like this? Is
this 'security?'.
So I yell at the soldier I see behind the window, "What the hell are
you doing to us? Will you let us through for Christ's sake?"
The soldier behind the glass window sees me, and of course hears and
sees my frustration, so what does he do? He responds to me in Hebrew,
saying who the hell knows what!

So I tell him " I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU ARE SAYING!!!! Will you just
let us through?!?"

And then, miraculously, he does! About 10 of us get into the main
chamber, put our bags through the scanner, walk through the metal
detector... as an afterthought I show my passport, but they don't
even ask to see the visa or ask me anything.

And after passing through another set of the same revolving iron bar
doors, I was out, the whole ordeal only taking 1 and a half hours. It
could have been much worse, and I did get through eventually, but just
what was it that I had been through? According to the Israeli
government, I had passed through the newest and most efficient
checkpoint that was to provide 'security' and would be 'The Hope
of Us All." As far as I am concerned, I had passed through a place
that, despite the aesthetic changes, had not changed at all. It is
still a place that by its very existence, miles within the Occupied
West Bank, serves only to humiliate, control, and do violence to the
lives of Palestinians. It is a constant reminder to Palestinians that
they are the ghettoized slaves and serfs of the land, and that the
Israeli boys with guns, whether up close and personal or behind
blast-proof glass, have all the power in the world; it is, in other
words, the true meaning of 'security,' which will never result in
anyone's security.


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