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Return to Al Hadidiya
On May 8, 2007 we returned to Al Hadidiya for a visit of four days and three nights. The army did not come to carry out house demolition orders during that time, but our understanding of the hardships endured by the Palestinian Jordan Valley residents increased as we spent more time with our host Omar and his family, and as we talked with a number of other internationals who came for first-hand information about the area.
Omar’s Shepherd
On this visit we became better acquainted with a shepherd who has worked for Omar for the past year. This very likable 18 year old, has been a shepherd since he was 12 years old because his father could no longer work for Israelis. Last year some settlers accused him of throwing stones at them while he was out with his sheep. As a result of the settler accusations he spent one month is an Israeli prison, which he said was a terrible experience.
Now he is not allowed to pass through any checkpoints, which effectively confines him to the small area of Al Hadidiya. He is able to walk about six kilometers over a mountain to Tammun. a nearby village where a young woman he will marry in September lives. We feel a deep concern over what the future will hold for this young couple if the Israeli occupation continues.
United Kingdom – British Delegation
On May 9, a British
delegation of four visited Al Hadidiya. One of the four was Claire Short, a
member of the British Parliament. She used to be a member of the Labor Party
but is now an independent due to her disagreement with Prime Minister Blair’s
commitment to the Iraq War. Her decision to leave the Labor Party has brought
her public media attention, particularly on BBC. She has a keen awareness of
the Palestinian-Israeli situation and uses her influence to educate the British
public about the illegalities
The other three people in the British delegation were with War on Want, an organization that educates and develops actions based on analyses of systemic causes of poverty. The organization’s president, Rodney Bickerstaffe, Jo Metson Scott, photographer, and Ruth Tanner, leader of the group’s Palestinian campaign, represented War on Want.
The War on Want people shared a paper with us that discusses corporate complicity in Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people. From this paper we have learned that 60% of Israel’s vegetable exports go to the United Kingdom while 20% goes to the USA. Much of this produce comes from the Jordan Valley, one of the most fertile parts of the West bank and perfectly suited to the production of fruits, flowers and vegetables.
The European Union has trade agreements with Israel that require respect for human rights. Short states that the EU must enforce these trade agreements by calling for a boycott of Israeli agricultural products, particularly those grown in the Jordan Valley where human rights abuses against the Palestinians are so rampant. Having witnessed a home demolition in the West Bank the day before visiting our Al Hadidiya family (who are also threatened by a home demolition order and future expulsion), Short is ready to take the issue back to the British Parliament.
The colonization of the Jordan Valley is illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention and a war crime according to the International Criminal Court. Yet in February, 2006 Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert confirmed his government’s intent to annex the Jordan Valley to Israel. Thus, movement of Palestinians in the Jordan Valley has been greatly restricted and home demolitions and land seizures have increased in the past year. Of particular concern is Israel’s denial of water to Palestinian residents in order to satisfy the high water consumption levels of the illegal Israeli settlements and their agricultural operations.
British Broadcasting Corporation BBC
On May 10th, journalists Jean Assad and Matthew Price from the BBC came with Haya Alayed from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to do a newscast on the situation in Al Hadidiya.
Other Visitors
On May 11th, a Palestinian veterinarian from an EU/Italian organization came to Al Hadidiya. His job is to help the herders of ruminants better their lives, with one possibility being the production of Italian cheeses. He talked about the seemingly insurmountable difficulties facing the farmers, the high cost of feed being one problem along with all the problems related to the Israeli occupation – loss of land, inadequate supplies of water, inability to export products, etc.
On May 12th, Liana, a Red Cross Palestinian nurse came to the site. She checks on the families and their situations weekly and she gave us more exact numbers of whom who had been told to move and when. It was helpful to know that the Red Cross has access to these families.
Caterpillar
As we waited each day to see if home demolitions would occur in Al Hadidiya, we watched the road for Israeli army vehicles and for Caterpillar bulldozers. Caterpillar, as a direct supplier of armored bulldozers to Israel for military use, has been singled out by the United Nations for its complicity in the violation of Palestinian human rights. The Israeli military uses Caterpillar bulldozers to destroy agricultural farms, greenhouses, ancient olive groves and fields planted with crops, as well as Palestinian homes and sometimes human lives.
Caterpillar bulldozers have
also become an indispensable part of the military arsenal being used in the
construction of Israel’s Apartheid Wall.
Several churches, including the Presbyterian Church USA, are exploring the possibility of divesting from Caterpillar. The General Synod of the Church of England has voted to withdraw its 2.2 million pound investment from Caterpillar. The War on Want promotes boycotting of companies, such as Caterpillar, complicit in war crimes and human rights violations.
Fortunately, we saw no Caterpillar bulldozers approaching as we watched the road to Al Hadidiya. Omar, his family, his shepherd and his neighbors went about their lives with their homes intact for one more week. |
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