Bi-Weekly Brief for November 1, 2021
A one page digest of Israel’s ongoing dispossession of Palestinian land and livelihoods, and Palestinian resistance.
Israel bent on stifling all criticism as it criminalizes leading Palestinian civil society organizations
On Oct. 22 Defense Minister Benny Gantz issued a military order labeling 6 of the most prominent Palestinian civil society groups ‘terrorist organizations.’ Addameer, Al Haq, Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International-Palestine, Union of Agricultural Work Committees and the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees can now have their assets seized, offices closed and staff imprisoned for up to 25 years on the basis of secret evidence they can neither see nor challenge, and those who assist or are in contact with them can also face jail sentences. These groups have reported on Israel’s human rights abuses, denounced settlement expansion and water theft (see Water Fact below) and provided evidence to the International Criminal Court for its ongoing investigation into Israel’s war crimes. Israel’s action has been widely condemned internationally, and inside Israel 24 human rights groups have signed onto a strongly worded front page ad in Haaretz calling the terrorism designation ‘a draconian measure that criminalizes critical human rights work.’
Israel shrugs off Biden Administration’s ‘deep concern’ at settlement expansion
On Oct. 26 Secretary of State Blinken reportedly warned Defense Minister Benny Gantz that Israel would face a ‘harsh response’ from the US if it went ahead with plans to build 3,144 new housing units in West Bank settlements. The following day, Israel gave the construction of 2,800 units the go ahead, and opened up bids on the others.
Who are the real terrorists?
Settler violence has continued unabated, with physical assaults taking place on farmers, Israeli volunteers, and Red Cross workers monitoring the olive harvest during what Israeli journalist Amira Hass called ‘orgies of attacking people and trees.’ In her column ‘I Fund Terrorist Groups’ Hass lamented that her tax dollars support settlers and the army as they inflict unrelenting terror on Palestinians. On Oct. 28 a new outpostwas established by settlers on Palestinian lands near Hebron, and the following day the army injured dozens of Palestinians during non-violent anti-settlement protests in Beita, Beit Dajan and Kufur Qaddoum.
Gazan fishermen subjected to near daily attacks and confiscation of their boats
After declaring in early Sept. that Gazans could fish within 15 nautical miles, Israeli gunboats have continued to fire on them at 3 nautical miles. On Oct. 27 Israel confiscated 2 boats and opened fire on a third which contained generators and flashlights that were used for lighting at 7 nautical miles.
Water Fact
Al Haq, one of the groups labeled a ‘terrorist organization’ by Israel on October 22, is the oldest human rights organization in Palestine and the entire Middle East. Established in 1979, it has been the primary source of information about what it calls the ‘systemic attack on the Palestinian people’s right to water and sanitation’ constituting ‘water apartheid.’ From its far-ranging 2013 report ‘Water for one People Only’ to its close monitoring of Israel’s water practices and the regular submissions it has made to international bodies and the UN, Al Haq has played a critically important role in highlighting how Israel has utilized water as a tool to displace Palestinians and expand settlements. Thanks in considerable part to its research and legal advocacy, the International Criminal Court is moving ahead with a formal investigation of Israel’s alleged war crimes.
Compiled by The Alliance for Water Justice in Palestine