Date: Mon, 22 Oct 2001 11:00:58 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Kamran D. Rastegar" <kdr7-AT-columbia.edu>
Subject: Bethlehem Re-occupied



A letter from a veteran activist who has spent several years in Dheishe
refugee camp in Bethlehem, now in New York. Another by three people who
live in the camp. The situation is very bad, and largely is swept aside in
the midst of all the other news. 

---------------------
October 21, 2001
New York

Dear Friends,

I am writing this with a very heavy heart, as Israel's broadest incursion
into Palestinian areas (6 of 8 West Bank cities) continue to worsen at its
4th day.  Israeli army has already advanced into population centers and
commmercial districts of Bethlehem area (pop. 130,000) with over 30 tanks.
I'd like to share the information from my friends in Dheisheh refugee camp,
because it's so hard to know what's happening from regular news coverage.

Israeli tanks began rolling into Bethlehem district (Area A: Palestinian
Authority-controlled area under the peace agreement) late Thursday night.
They immediately occupied the entrance of Bethlehem area, by taking over
Intercontinental Hotel and Paradise Hotel, Aida Refugee Camp (pop. 4,000),
followed by the occupation of Azzah Refugee Camp (pop. 1,900) the next
morning.  There has been continuous shelling, bombing, and shooting
througout day and night, thrusting the area into a war zone.  Apache
helicopter gunship and F-16 fighter jets hover in the sky continously.No
work, no school, and no sleep for the children and families of Bethlehem.

As of yesterday afternoon, from what they knew there were at least:
4 tanks at Bab al-Zqaq (main intersection of the town), 2 in Cinema Square
(the center of main shopping area), 2 in Beit Sahour village, 3 in upper
part of Beit Jala village (number for the lower part unknown), 4 in Doha
village, 4 surrounding Azzah camp, 3 in Aida camp, 2 on the road leading to
Nativity Church, 2 near Palestinian security building, and 3 at al-Khader
village.  The only locality remained unoccupied is Dheisheh refugee camp.

It seems Israelis have positioned themselves at stretegic hilltops
throughout the area.  It is extremely dangerous to move from an area to
another, for tanks are everywhere and open spaces such as intersections
are directly exposed to snipers that overlook entire area from high
positions.  Anything that moves can get shot at.  Last night, friends of
mine on errands became a target of tank shell, which narrowly missed their
car.

The tanks and soldiers have been firing indiscriminatory into houses and
people, resulting in 15 deaths so far: 3 on the first, 4 on the second day,
4 on the third day, and 3 yesterday.  Many of them are women and children.
Some of them were killed in their homes, while getting off a car, standing
in front of a friend's house, etc.  Today, a man was killed inside Hussain
Hospital, the main hospital of Bethlehem, which came under attack of tank
fire.  In the past days, reaching the hospital has been almost impossible,
for tanks are blocking the road and have been firing at ambulances.  A
friend of mine, an ambulance driver for UNRWA was shot at.  The numerous
injured people have been taken to ill-equipped local clinics, if they are
lucky enough to reach there.

The situation in the two occupied refugee camps are the most horrific.
People are placed under house arrest.  It's extremely dangerous to go
outside, for shootings are taking place inside of densely populated and
crowded camps.  Several houses were already destroyed from tank shells and
by being caught on fire from shooting.

Dheisheh has become a center for the area's Muslim funerals, for it's the
only place remained unoccupied and safe (relatively speaking) for public
gathering.  People from other parts of Bethlehem are taking refuge there as
well.  They are resillient people and are coping with the situation with
amazing strength, but not without fear of what the next day may bring, as
tanks have been advancing deeper and deeper in the area, closer to Dheisheh.
Below is a letter from my friends Jehad, Rashid, and Yasir from Dheisheh's
Ibdaa Cultural Center.  At the end of this message is President Bush and
Colin Powell's contact info and sample letter of protest.

in prayers,

shirabe


----- Original Message -----
From: "Jehad Abass" <jeaev_10-AT-hotmail.com>
Sent: Sunday, October 21, 2001 10:17 AM
Subject: What is going on? What the hell is going on??? Freedom!


          What is going on? What the hell is going on???
                                 Freedom!

Bethlehem
Date: 21/10/2001
Time: 2:00 pm

It's the third day under occupation in Bethlehem. I woke up at 9:00am and
dressed to go to the funerals. These were the funerals of four martyrs who
fell yesterday. After we buried them, another two martyrs were added to the
list.

The shelling and bombing does not stop. And the tanks are moving in to
capture the whole of the city of Bethlehem. Already, all the strategic areas
are under Israeli military control: they are on every mountain around
Bethlehem, on every high hill, on every tall building.

Although Aida and Al-Azza refugee camps are still under occupation, Israeli
soldiers continue firing toward these camps, causing lot of injuries. And
the helicopters have started firing toward the Palestinian Authority Police
Center.

And the tanks are moving over here. slowly, slowly.

After they completely occupied Beit Jala, the two camps (Aida and Azza) and
the city center of Bethlehem, they reached Al-Hussein Hospital. They then
refused to allow the ambulances to reach the hospital. So the ambulances had
to take the injured to another hospital, a hospital in al-Khader Village. It
is a small hospital and it already has a lot of injured people to care for.
There is no room for more injured.

What will happen?
There is shelling everywhere.
How we can do the funerals of the martyrs??
While we are thinking of that we hear that there is another martyr - he was
killed just a moment ago!

"Oh my God!"

He is 26 years old, a man born into suffering. The man is from Azza camp. He
can't hear or talk as other people can. He went outside his home in Azza to
buy bread for his family. When the soldiers saw him they opened fire on him.
They had shouted at him to go to them and to produce his ID but. he was not
able to hear them so he just went on his way. and they opened fire. The man
didn't hear the commotion behind him and the bullets which were fired
towards him. Suddenly he felt a 500mm bullet strike his back. He just fell
and took his last breath with his normal silence. But in his eyes there were
obviously a lot of words which he wished to say; but the main word was
"FREEDOM!"

We do not wish to live under these conditions. We hope our future will be
better than our fathers'.

I want to live in freedom!

Freedom to be able to choose where you want to live; freedom to be able to
have all your family members able to sit and enjoy meals together; freedom
to live your lives normally - without checkpoints, without shelling, without
shooting, without martyrs, without funerals, without demonstrations.

Freedom to live without fearing that soldiers may arrest you, or that they
may shot you just because you are a Palestinian or a "refugee", freedom to
hear music rather than the sounds of bombs and shells, freedom to not lose
your friends in "clashes", freedom to not feel that you are in a big jail,
freedom to have nobody to control your life, freedom to know that you and
your family will be safe - today and tomorrow - because you live in your own
country.

We will continue our struggle until the day we have our freedom!

Because freedom is the light which will end all this darkness!



Jehad abbas and Rashed Abu-Alia and Yasseir al-qaisi
Ibdaa Culture Center
Dheisheh Refugee Camp
Bethlehem, Palestine

Jehad Ahmad Abbass
Ibdaa Cultural Center
P.O.Box 793,Bethlehem
West Bank, Palestine
Tel/Fax  +972-2-277-6444
          +972-2-276-7996
Telephone+972-2-276-7997
Mobile    +972-50-499-373
Ibdaa-AT-hotmail.com
www.dheisheh-ibdaa.net


*****************************************************
Make your voice heard: Contact info and Sample letter
*****************************************************

President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
E-mail: president-AT-whitehouse.gov
Phone: (202) 456-1414
Fax: (202) 456-2461

Secretary of State Colin Powell
E-mail: secretary-AT-state.gov
Phone: (202) 647-4000 (202-647-5150) Bureau of Near East Affairs
Fax: (202) 261-8577

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

October 20, 2001

Dear Secretary of State Powell,

I am writing to urge you immediately to intervene to stop Israel's
rampage against Palestinians in the occupied territories.
Israeli attacks are escalating and the death toll is mounting despite
strong statements from the United States that these attacks should be
halted. It is clear that words alone do not stop Israel's government,
and it is now time for the United States to take a stand.

The United States cannot be both for a Palestinian State, as the
President has recently affirmed it is, and also for allowing Israel to
rampage freely and indefinitely through the occupied territories
murdering people, destroying property, building settlements and
besieging and impoverishing the entire population. The United States
cannot both be for peace and negotiations and at the same time
unconditionally supply the very weapons with which Israel makes
war against a defenseless civilian population under occupation.

The United States cannot be for law and order and at the same time
do nothing to oppose Israel's use of death squads armed with
American weapons to carry out extrajudicial executions.

Since October 18 at least 20 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli
occupation forces who have now taken over parts of six Palestinian
cities. Dozens of Israeli tanks now control Bethlehem, Beit Jala,
Tulkarem, Qalqilya, Ramallah and Al-Bireh and their residents are
under constant bombardment.

Today, 23 year old Rania Kharufa died after being hit by shrapnel
from a tank shell which exploded near her house in Beit Jala.

Aisha Abu Odeh, a mother of eight was mowed down by Israeli
machine gun fire at the at the door of her home in Aida refugee
camp near Bethlehem and witnesses said tank fire killed 17-year-old
Yusef Abayat on the street. Yesterday, 35-year-old Mariam Sbeh
was killed according to media reports.

On 18 October 2001, 10-year old Riham Nabeel Ward was killed by
live ammunition to the chest while attending school in the German
Area, Jenin. Riham and other students of the Shahidayn Al
Ibrahmiyyeh Basic Girls School arrived for class in the morning and
found Israeli tanks and soldiers positioned near the school following
an Israeli incursion into the area the previous night. Israeli soldiers
opened fire while the students were attempting to take cover on the
floor of one of the classrooms.

Israel is gravely violating the Fourth Geneva Convention which
protects civilians in wartime. Time is short, Mr. Secretary and
enough lives have been lost. In the interests of everyone, in the
interests of peace, I hope the United States will act now.

Sincerely,




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