22 Nov. 2011Olive trees belonging to a resident of Beitillu that were torched, apparently by settlers. Photo: Iyad Hadad, B'Tselem, 24 Oct. '11Video: Soldiers let settlers assault Palestinian demonstratorsOn 29 Oct. '11, Palestinian residents of Beit Ummar demonstrated on part of their land against theft of their lands. A B'Tselem volunteer documented settlers entering the security buffer strip surrounding the adjacent Carmei Tzur settlement, and throwing stones at the demonstrators. Soldiers at the scene did not try to stop the assault; instead, they removed the Palestinians by shooting tear gas and throwing stun grenades. The anti-democratic initiatives only strengthen our resolveJessica Montell, B'Tselem's Executive Director, calls on all those who are concerned about human rights and the Israeli democracy to speak out against efforts to stifle Israeli civil society.Israeli civilian killed by Palestinian rocket fireB'Tselem condemns the recent rocket fire by Palestinian organizations in Gaza at civilian areas in Israel. On 29 Oct., the firing killed Moshe Ami, 56, a father of four from Ashkelon. The organizations firing the rockets and mortar shells into Israel openly state their aim to kill civilians. Intentionally attacking civilians is immoral and constitutes a war crime.Settler violence against Palestinian farmers in Ramallah areaOn 24-26 Oct. '11, B'Tselem documented four cases of attacks on farmers from Beitillu, a Palestinian village near Ramallah, and their property. In three cases, the perpetrators damaged olive trees. In one case, settlers assaulted farmers who had come to their land to pick olives. The army failed to provide the farmers with adequate protection.No religious conflict in HebronB'Tselem's Hebron field-researcher Musa Abu Hashhash published an op-ed in the Jerusalem Post in anticipation of a mass pilgrimage of Jews to Hebron this Saturday. If we continue to allow the extremists to use religion to divide us, our conflict will be bloody and intractable. When we focus on basic rights we can build a future based on dignity for us all.B'Tselem awarded Danish human rights award jointly with Palestinian organization Al-HaqPalestinian and Israeli human rights organizations B'Tselem and Al-Haq were jointly awarded the annual human rights award given by the Danish PL Foundation this year. The award has been given since the 1980s to individuals and organizations who struggle non-violently for the values embodied by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.Israeli civil society organizations respond to attacks against activists18 Israeli civil society organizations speak out following the attacks on Peace Now: Israeli law enforcement authorities must take the threat seriously and act to protect activists from violence. ArchiveUnsubscribeFeedbackwww.btselem.org
