By Megan

Early Tuesday morning, between 3-4am, the Israeli Occupation Forces invaded
Askar Refugee camp near Nablus city. The IOF rounded up all men in the camp
between 14 and 40 years of age and detained them in the UN facility school.
One international, Bjorn, was arrested and taken to Huwarra. One Palestinian
ISM coordinator, Muhammad, was detained on the UN grounds. The imprisoned
boys and men were not allowed water, food, or use of the bathrooms. IOF went
around the camp bombarding into houses. They broke down doors, ransacked
homes, and even trashed the camp's medical center.

ISM volunteers with internationals from Indymedia Rome, an Irish human rights
organization, and the UPMRC(Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committee)
went to the UN facility and around the camp to check on the conditions of
families within the occupied houses.

Our group visited a Al-Ahwal family whose house was being occupied by napping
soldiers. The house has been searched at 4am. The IOF smashed tables,
mirrors, cupboards, and wardrobes. They even squirted baby oil and hair gel
all over the bedroom curtains and bed spread. One young woman's diary was
torn apart. The woman and children of the household were confined to one room
while the soldiers were there. The family didn't have access to food or
change of diapers for the babies.

Two of the children, ages 12 and 14, were detained at the UN school. At the
family's request two women from our group (Megan and Alana) stayed at the
house. The family told about their father who had been killed by the Isreali
army 7 months ago and how the IOF looted their home many times.

After a half an hour or so after we arrived, the soldiers quietly slip out of
the back of the house. The presence was immediately made aware as the kicked
in the doors of other houses on the block on began destroying other peoples
belongings. Because other internationals had left that area and the Al Ahwal
family, expecting the soldiers return, had requested we stay, we (Alana and
Megan) remained inside listening to the IOF torment other families.

In the early evening, the men of the family returned to the house just as it
became apparent the IOF was leaving the camp. Their uncle who lived two
houses down came by to request a medic. Due to the curfew he was unable to
bring his 8year old son, who suffers from crippling rheumatism, to the
hospital for treatment. The Al-Ahwal family requested their stories be
documented in the media. We (Alana and Megan) will visit them later today to
follow up and check details.

We urge people to contact the UN operations officer at 057766542 to demand
they issue a high profile public statement condemning the Isreali Army's
violation of human rights and international law. It is intolerable for the
IOF to be allowed usage of UN facilities to carry out the indiscriminate
detention and torture of Palestinians.

Report from Nablus 8-27-04

The past few days have been on again off again with the Israeli army. It
seems every time I make plans to meet some friends for tea, the IOF comes
back to Nablus. Seriously, the army does everything in its power to disrupt
normal life. It is really remarkable how resilient the people here are with
getting their business going again once the army pull out- if only for a few
hours. Last night the IOF attacked an engagement party. Apparently, someone
at the party was wanted by the Isrealis. After someone at the party shot
celebratory rounds into the air, the IOF pounced with about 10 armored trucks
and jeeps surrounding the neighborhood. The army tied up an old man as a
human shield and arrested a bunch of people, none of whom were the guy they
actually wanted. Nevertheless, these folks were taken away to Hawarah
checkpoint and have to report back there again. The trucks also shot at
children -- I don't think they hit anyone.

As internationals, we often feel pretty useless in these situations. We seem
to just stand around and watch and wait with medics to make sure they can get
through. Sometimes it seems to make their job more confrontational with the
army. But overall the medics welcome our presence. Two days ago when the
IOF occupied the Old City, one of the soldiers told a medic if he didn't go
with us AWAY they would shoot him. When we negotiate with the soldiers to
try to get access to a family in the occupied houses this has mixed success.
But there is always so much confusion about what to do, where to be, what
risks we should take, work in small groups or large. We stand on corners
watching soldiers in armored trucks shoot at kids and hope they aim in the
air instead of a direct hit. Does this make problems for the occupiers, does
it slow the IOF down, do our actions support Palestinian resistance? It is
not always so clear.

Megan

---------------

Update from Asira
Report from Budrus. 9-1-04

Today we visited the village of Nillin near Budrus. Currently about 4,000
people live in the village and its surrounding area. 10,000 others from
Nillin live in neighboring countries as refugees from the 1967 war. Over 70%
of the population are olive producers. Beyond just separating Nillin from
neighboring settlements,The Wall is a barrier between the people of Nillin
and the land, food, and culture.

We met with members of the Nillin Popular Committee Aagainst the Wall. They
talked with us about the wall and its impact: "They say its a security wall,
but that is not true. It is a land grab. It is apartheid." They showed us an
aerial photograph taken by the Israelis which shows the wall's projected
construction. The path, rather than outlining the settlements which have only
existed since the mid 90s, cuts right through the olive groves, which have
existed for thousands of years. Most Nillinians will be cut off from part or
all of their olive trees. This is an economic catastrophe. The land behind
the wall is a closed military zone, which allows the IOF to do pretty much
whatever it wants. Palestinians have to jump through countless hoops just to
get limited access to their groves. Often they are rejected simply because
the Israeli Civil Administration beauracrat didnt like the applicant's face.

Costing 50 sheckels, this permit only allows the farmer access at certain
times and through certain entrances. The farmer must also sign conditions
forfeiting claim of ownership of this land. Nillin expects trouble from the
settlers this harvest season. In the past settlers would attack farmers as
they tried to tend to their groves. For awhile the settlers have stopped
attacking the farmers in this way as they awaited construction of the wall
expecting the land to become theirs.

This past February Isreal began clearing trees for the wall here. Using a
silent motor in the early morning, olive trees marked with pink paint were to
be cleared. A young boy saw this and alerted the rest of the village. "We
stopped them with peaceful protest," the Popular Committee Against the Wall
told us. They brought us to their protest tent set up to keep watch on the
walls construction and the site of non- violent protests against bulldozers
and army jeeps. Admist bulldozers, soldiers,and chainsaws, the people of
Nillin held their Friday prayers. That February Nillin appealed to the
Isreali High Court. The court ruled that the wall move back a few meters but
this is still rejected by the community.

------------------------------------

Report from Qibia 9-4-04

Today we went to the village of Qibia and sat with some of the villages
elders to hear their stories from the 1953 massacre.

Qibia's lands once extended to the sea where now Ben Gurion airport and
military bases sit. By 1970, Qibia had lost 75% of its land. In 1953 Qibia
was the site of a brutal massacre by an Israeli special unit led by
then-Major Ariel Sharon.

Ibrahim Muhammad Hamad was a young boy of 9-10 in 1953. After the 1948 Nakkba
many Palestinians returned to Qibia to collect their belongs. Many families
in Qibia had guards watchover thier olive groves. Ibrahim's brother worked as
a guard. The day before the massacre someone from a village beyond Qibia had
killed an Israeli family of 5 or 6. The next day all of Qibia would pay.

Some guards in the olive groves first noticed Sharon's unit. Fearing the
noise would alert the village as they settled down for the evening, the
soldiers didnt shoot the guards right off. Rather, they opted for stealth.
They strangled a guard and tied up others. One freed himself and escaped,
getting shot in the back side. He managed to warn the village but it was too
late. From 7pm to 5am Sharon's unit slaughtered the town.

Ibrahim's family and some guests, 24 in all, hid in a corner of their house.
The walls of the room in which they hid stood strong as the rest of the house
was blown to the ground. Throughout the night Sharon's unit bombed homes
wherever they sensed life. In one home a teacher from a neighboring village
lived with his uncle's family. When the soldiers heard him talking with his
uncle about escaping they bombed the house, killing the entire family. People
who tried to make a run for it were shot and dumped in a well. Children's
bones can still be found in this well.

The next day Ibrahim and his famiy climbed from the wreckage of their home to
search for survivors and to bury the bodies. By dawn 75 people were murdered.
Eventually, Ibrahim's house and others' in the village were rebuilt. Crumbled
buildings, children's bones, loved ones having moved far away remind Qibia of
that horrible night in 1953 while the daily horrors of occupation remind them
that the man responsible still sits in power.

Report 9-12-04
by Megan

On the morning on the 10th the Nablus ISM group got a call from Asira, a
nearby village, saying that there was curfew and soldiers there. A group of
us went through the mountains to see what was going on. On the evening of the
9th, an army hummer was burned to the ground and reportedly 4 soldeirs were
injured. The army told this Israeli - Palestinian childrens group in Asira,
that the village would be "punished" for "awhile" because of this. We were
told by a contact in Asira, that that night the soldiers harassed a little
girl of 10 or 11 and used her as a human shield atop one of their jeeps. The
next morning (the 10th) children went to school. We were told that the army
has often threatened the school master saying that if they caught any of the
students throwing stones there would be repurcussions. Without any evidence
that any of the students did anything the army tear gassed the school yard
and started to bulldoze the school walls using an elderly cuople as a human
sheild.

That morning the town's one ambulance was detained from 6:30- 10 when it
tried to bring bread into the village. The army and the checkpoints severly
limit the towns already limited medical services. They only have one
ambulence and hardly any equipment or trained staff in their medical center
and have not recieved much from their appeals to NGOs. When we arrived about
mid day the town was under tight cerfew and there were jeeps and APCs
patrolling the town and provoking children. Someone told us that the night
before offensive comments and noises were blared from the jeeps. We went
around the village to see what the situation was. We helped our contact
deliver bread and medicine around the village. By ten that evening it had
seemed that the army had left having suffered another broken down jeep. We
were told the next morning that the army had not left, but instead was
searching peoples houses all night. That morning children tried to go to
school but were sent home. No one could go to the store, pharmacy, or leave
town.

Again we tried to deliver some bread. we told the soldiers we were hungry
school teachers looking for bread and juice. I think the soldiers were a
little confused about why we were in this remote village teaching English and
why we had such a craving for Mango juice. In the afternoon the army pulled
out. We left the town through the mountains because the check point was
closed to internationals. As we crossed the mountains we noticed four
Palestinian men being held by four or five soldiers. The soldiers forced one
of the Palestinians to bring us back to them. The Palestinian apologized,
"Sorry that i have to do this." The army asked to search our bags, we pulled
out some juice and crackers but said they couldnt search our bags cause we
had personal products in them and it was ludicrus to think we would have
anything dangrous. We did a pretty good job annoying them by saying I cant
believe you would treat school teachers like this. We were able to offer the
detained Palestinians some nuts and cigarettes. One of them was hand cuffed.

The soldiers made us give them a our ID, but we only gave them copies and
they called in to the DCO. Some of the soldiers wanted us to go over the
mountain to be taken away by police jeep. We told them that we wouldnt go
because we were all women and they were men with guns and we didnt trust
them. The soldier was like - I'm a soldier in the Isreali army, i wouldnt
touch you. We said we still dont trust you and are not getting in any jeep
with men and that we have to use the toilet. They took us to a house so we
could use the toilet. They wanted us to leave our bags with them but we said
no, we need our things and dont they have girlfriends or sisters. We didnt
get to use the toilet and by then I think they were pretty fed up with us and
no police jeep had come. so they let us go back to the village.

At dawn we took a crazy ride in a jeep over the mountains to avoid being
caught again by soldeirs. There must be some pretty skilled mechanics here
given the beating these cars take. This is the route people have to take to
get to the hospital in Nablus. One lady with diaolosis has to do it 3 or four
times a week. I felt pretty nausious and i am fine. Imagine pregnant women or
people with heart conditions. The guy we stayed with in Asira was telling us
about the trouble he has getting to work in Nablus, which would be only
minutes away. Going through the check point he is often stopped and sent back
or held for hours. THe mountain route, or Palestinian roller coaster as I
like to call it, cost him 600 shekels (almost half his sallery) a month. He
has started riding a bike to work. This can be dangerous but he finds it the
best way. He has encouraged others in the village to do the same but cant get
the bikes to the village from Jerusalem. Hopefully this will get worked out.
plus some cyclists for peace will be coming through soon. A critical mass
bike ride would be cool. Anyway, this guy was really great and does inspiring
things for his community.

This will be my last night in Nablus. going to a demo in Al Ram tomarrow and
then to Beit Inan.

Megan