Ann Petter Hearing; Bay Area Peace Activist Detained in Israel

Friends,



The hearing date for Ann Robinson-Petter at the Israeli High Court has been set for
Thursday, July 15 at 9:00AM. Please join us if you can!

In the meantime, two more peace activists have been detained upon arrival at Ben
Gurion airport, denied entry and ordered deported due to suspected affiliation with
the International Solidarity Movement (ISM). Please see the individual press
releases below and join us in protesting Israel’s effort to isolate the Palestinian
people and to silence even the nonviolent resistance to occupation and oppression.
For the past 2 ½ years, the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) has been
actively documenting and protesting Israel’s human rights violations and supporting
the Palestinian people’s nonviolent resistance to Israeli occupation.



Despite the fact that the ISM has not been declared an illegal organization by the
Israeli courts, the Israeli authorities are attempting to break the people’s spirit
and determination and weaken the popular mobilization, by preventing international
witnesses and peace activists access to the Palestinian people.



Please see the end of the message for authorities you can contact to help us protest
this policy.

In solidarity & struggle,
ISM
==========

INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY MOVEMENT
July 12, 2004
For Immediate Release



Jewish-American Activist from San Francisco threatened with deportation from Israel

Contact: Jeff Giaquinto 1-415-643-8649 (in San Francisco)
Jews For A Free Palestine -Eric Romann, 1-415-637-3779 (in San Francisco)
ISM – Huwaida Arraf (in Palestine), +972-54-747-3308
Lawyer – Adv. Yael Berda, +972-50-874-3083

Jamie Spector, a social worker from San Francisco has been detained at Tel Aviv's
Ben Gurion Airport yesterday and is facing deportation. As a member of the
International Solidarity Movement (ISM), Jamie was planning on taking part in
non-violent demonstrations with Palestinians, Israelis, and other internationals
against the "Apartheid Wall", the barrier Israel is building in the occupied West
Bank. At least a dozen human rights advocates have been denied access to the
Occupied Palestinian Territories over the past month and turned back by Israel at
Ben Gurion Airport.

Spector has traveled to Israel and Palestine once before with ISM, a Palestinian-led
movement of Palestinian and international activists that utilizes nonviolent,
direct-action methods of resistance to confront and challenge illegal Israeli
occupation forces and policies. ISM has not been declared an illegal organization
in Israel, though it is becoming clear that affiliation with ISM is grounds for
being refused entry into the country.


In San Francisco, Spector works with Jews for a Free Palestine, an organization
dedicated to ending Israel's occupation of Palestine and the recognition of
Palestinian refugee's right to return to their historic homeland. "Israel claims to
be the homeland for Jews everywhere, but a Jew can't even get in the country if she
takes issue with Israel's gross violation of international law; this speaks volumes
about the hypocrisy of Israel's policies in the Occupied Territories and in Israel
itself," said Eric Romann, Spector's friend and a fellow member of Jews for a Free
Palestine.

Stephen and Annette Spector, Jamie's parents and said they fully support their
daughter's actions and referred to her as "an angel of peace.”


Earlier this week, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that major
portions of the barrier violate international law, saying that it was "tantamount to
annexation of Palestinian land" and it "severely impeded the exercise by the
Palestinian people of its right to self-determination."

The Court called on Israeli officials to cease new construction of the Wall in
occupied Palestine, tear down sections, and compensate Palestinians whose land it
cuts across or whose interests have otherwise been harmed (New York Times and
Ha'aretz, July 10, 2004).

Jamie made this statement Sunday, July 11:

"As a Jewish person, I can understand how Israelis are concerned for their security,
given the long history of our oppression. At the same time, this is not the whole
story of the Jews. Jewish people have fought for social justice, in the communities
where we live and in support of others. It is to this Jewish heritage that I am
most connected. As a Jewish person of conscience, I see the illegal Apartheid Wall
that is being built as a modern Warsaw Ghetto. As a Jewish person, it is my
responsibility to do everything I can to oppose this wall, and the unjust occupation
of Palestinians. I will struggle nonviolently alongside the thousands of
Palestinians who are nonviolently protesting everyday."

-##-



==========

INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY MOVEMENT

July 12, 2004
For Immediate Release



DUTCH PEACE ACTIVIST DETAINED AND FACING DEPORTATION



Forty-six year old Dutch woman from Groningen, Holland, Christine Grefer, was
detained by the Israeli authorities upon her arrival to Ben Gurion airport on Friday
July 9, 2004 and is facing deportation. Traveling to the Occupied Palestinian
Territories to volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), Christine
was planning to take part in non-violent demonstrations with Palestinians, Israelis,
and other internationals against the Apartheid Wall -- the barrier Israel is
building in the occupied West Bank. At least a dozen human rights advocates have
been denied access to the Occupied Palestinian Territories over the past month and
turned back by Israeli authorities at Ben Gurion Airport in what the ISM is treating
as a concerted effort by Israeli authorities to break the Freedom Summer Palestine
2004 campaign– a two-month campaign of active nonviolent mobilization for
Palestinian freedom and an end to Israeli occupation.



In Holland, Christine is a computer assistant at a local college. She is a
certified Social Studies teacher who also has an advanced degree in theology. Long
involved in human rights work, Christine volunteered with the International
Solidarity Movement last year in Nablus, engaging mainly in documenting human rights
abuses at Israeli military checkpoints. Christine is active with Amnesty
International, Green Peace and in animal rights issues.



Earlier this week, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that major
portions of the barrier violate international law. The Court called on Israeli
officials to cease new construction of the Wall in occupied Palestine, tear down
sections, and compensate Palestinians whose land it cuts across or whose interests
have otherwise been harmed (New York Times and Ha'aretz, July 10, 2004). The
International Solidarity Movement (ISM) has been consistently engaged in
demonstrations against the wall while it works to raise awareness of the struggle
for Palestinian freedom. ISM's success in drawing international attention to the
Apartheid Wall and other Israeli human rights abuses has boosted the Palestinians'
protests against it in the international community.



Christine’s lawyer, Adv. Gaby Lasky, obtained a temporary injunction against
Grefer’s deportation and has filed an appeal against the decision to deny Grefer
entry into Israel. Grefer remains imprisoned by Israeli authorities.



For more information:
In Holland: Franca - +31-653-266-720
In Palestine: Huwaida - +972-54-747-3308
Lawyer: Adv. Gaby Lasky - +972-54-441-8988

###



==========

CALL / FAX / WRITE !!



Interior Minister Avraham Poraz
(fax: +972-2-5666376)(fax: 972-2-6701628)(fax: 972-2-6701585)
Email: sar [at] moin.gov.il



Enav Golomb
Justice Ministry
State Attorney's Office
Fax: 011-972-2-646-6655

Silvan Shalom
Foreign Minister
Fax: 011-972-2-530-3367
Email: sar [at] mfa.gov.il



U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv

tel. +972-3-6197575

Email: amctelaviv [at] state.gov



U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520

tel. 202-647-4000



Embassy of the Netherlands in Tel Aviv
tel: +972-3-752-3150

Email: tel-cdp [at] minbuza.nl

url for nearest Israeli Embassy:
http://www.embassyworld.com/embassy/israel.htm