Urgent update on detainees

US Won’t Help Free Americans Detained in Israel!

Background:
On May 2nd, members of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) carried out an action of solidarity by delivering much needed food to the Palestinians held in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem since April 1, 2002. Many were detained on the date of the action, and those who were able to get inside were detained when the seige was lifted on May 9th. They were acting as international peace observers and the actions they took violated no laws and those imprisoned have not been officially charged with committing any crime.

-Four US citizens (Trevor Baumgartner, Nathan Musselman, Nathan Mauger, and Tom Kaoutsoukos) are on a hunger strike (for several days, Trevor and others were refusing water). They say, "We want to leave this country voluntarily and we want a letter from the Ministry of Interior stating that we are not being deported and that there are no prohibitions on future travel to Israel. We will continue our strike until our demands are met."

Nathan Musselman and Trevor have existing tickets from Amman back to the US and have agreed to pay to fly from Tel Aviv to Amman. Now the authorities want to keep Nathan longer - for interrogation by the Shabak, Israeli internal security. Nathan has called his attorney to say they have been told that if their parents pay for tickets they can leave tonight, but if they don't then it will take a week or so for Israel to arrange (their parents have previously refused to pay for plane tickets for deportation). Nathan Mauger has been informed by the Embassy that he will be on a flight tonight, but this is the third time such information has been given and there is no guarantee that this will happen. The men were previously housed together but are now being held separate- clearly an attempt to stop their solidarity efforts.

-Kristin Schurr, who is the only remaining woman in detention, has been told that she will be allowed to use her exisiting ticket on Thursday morning –let’s see if this really happens! She reports that she has been beaten and repeatedly strip searched while in detention. Kristen is a journalist with Free Speech Radio and Democracy Now!

-Robert O’Neill and Nauman Zaidi may be stuck in jail for another week to more because of a disagreement over their destination. They are US citizens who are students in Egypt and they need to get back to school and finish their semester. Israel will not let them pay their own way to Egypt, and they will not pay their own way to the US. Nauman’s father has been calling the embassy to inquire about his son, and they are not returning his phone calls.

The situation is made more urgent by the fact that an Israel state holiday begins Thursday, and government offices will close at noon. Optimum calling time for us will
start again at about 8:30 am israel time, or: 10:30 pm pacific time tonight, Wednesday
NOTE: that's a 3.5 hour window.









Tell the US and Israel ensure that all 5 americans be put on the plane, with their original return tickets, asap.
Call or fax embassies and government offices.
u.s. embassy tel aviv fax: 011 972 3510 3828
u.s. embassy jerusalem fax: 011 972 2624 2560
israeli ministry of interior fax: 011 972 2629 4755
If you don’t have access to a fax, please you can email eli [at] movementbuilding.org the text you want faxed. Also please call Consul General Ed McKeon - US Embassy - 011 972 3519 7551
Nica Cleaverly US Embassy - American Citizens’ Services 011 972 3519 7479

The American Embassy has done nothing for the interests of its citizens. In fact, it has been quite the opposite- it has been actively assisting Israel in abusing these people. It is incomprehensible that this situation has occurred. Their efforts on behalf of their own citizens have been at the very least apathetic if not negligent. There can be no excuse for such flagrant abuse, and it shows where America's allegiance lies in respect of
human and civil rights.

Trevor Baumgartner is an activist and a teacher. While he lived in Berkeley until last year, he taught with Poetry for the People. His writings can be found online at http://www.movementbuilding.org/trevor
For updates on the detainees, check out http://palestine.indymedia.org
http://www.indybay.org
http://www.ccmep.org/Action/urgentaction050802.html#may13

***
From Poetry for the People:
For our friend, Trevor Baumgartner, and the 7 additional International
Observers Illegally detained in Israeli prisons without charge
For bringing food to the Palestinians besieged and trapped
In the Church of Nativity, Bethlehem. Trevor and the 7 internationals remain on hunger strike In solidarity with the Palestinian people

Ode to Hunger Strikers


gut linings erupt
the epicenter awakes
in the belly of the believer

a symphony of stomachs
thunder
beckoning lighting
to ignite
storms
that rumble
and roll through

hunger strikes
and summons a hail of acid
to eat the earth's mount everests
into humble mounds
of dirt