The steady and escalating cruelty of the occupation

"Although the Jordan River provides Israel with an estimated 450 million cubic metres of water per year, Palestinians in the Jordan Valley are denied access to and supply of its water.

Suleiman says, in 1976 Israel made an agreement with farmers stipulating that water should not be extracted from the village wells 'in exchange for the Israeli authorities giving them water at a reduced price'.

'After the villagers implemented the agreement and stopped using their water wells, the occupation authorities gradually began to reduce the amount of water granted to them putting their cultivation at risk.' ”

Israel is forcing out Palestine’s watermelon farmers before it takes their land

Farmer Sleiman Sawafta at his watermelon field. Bardala village June 2020. [Fareed Taamallah]

Farmer Sleiman Sawafta at his watermelon field. Bardala village June 2020. [Fareed Taamallah]

General view of Jordan valley [Fareed Taamallah]

General view of Jordan valley [Fareed Taamallah]

Interview with two activists: "Defunding the Police in the US is Palestine Work"

Sandra Tamari: "This is a moment for radical solidarity. It is a time to be humble as Palestine organizers to understand the fight for justice is a multi-front battle. Our call right now is to lift up the Black struggle against injustice. In doing that, we are not saying that Palestinian concerns about Israeli state violence or annexation are less important. Instead we are recognizing the four centuries of pain and trauma Blacks in the United States have faced and understand that when Black people are free, all of us are free. When Black people in the U.S. win, Palestine wins. We are both fighting against state-sanctioned, systematic racism that is upheld by violence. Our collective liberation is what’s at stake."

Khury Petersen-Smith: "Recognizing what is unique about the situation for Black people in the US, and that for Palestinians, doesn’t do anything to undermine our solidarity. It can make it much stronger."

Read more about the critical importance of foregrounding the struggle for Black liberation here:

‘Defunding the police in the United States is Palestine work’: a discussion on solidarity with Sandra Tamari and Khury Petersen-Smith

PALESTINIANS IN HOUSTON, TEXAS JOINED A MASS MOBILIZATION FOR BLACK LIBERATION ON TUESDAY, 2 JUNE 2020. (PHOTO: PALESTINIAN YOUTH MOVEMENT.)

PALESTINIANS IN HOUSTON, TEXAS JOINED A MASS MOBILIZATION FOR BLACK LIBERATION ON TUESDAY, 2 JUNE 2020. (PHOTO: PALESTINIAN YOUTH MOVEMENT.)

Fact: How Israel Uses Water as a Weapon

Fact

Residents of Kafr Qaddum, like other Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, do not have consistent access to running water because Israel controls their water supply. They must stock up on water during supply hours, and store their reserves in rooftop water tanks that can hold between 500–1,000 litres of water for use during the many hours when there is no running water.

Since the beginning of April, Israel has shot and damaged the water tanks on residents’ homes as retaliation for their weekly protests against Israel’s land confiscations and its closure of the village’s exit routes. This new tactic of suppression is causing hundreds of dollars of damage and significant loss of water resources for the community. 

Soldiers damaged 24 water tanks, in some cases shooting the same water tanks multiple times over the month. Families have lost more than 450 litres of water in one day.  

Residents try to temporarily patch the holes with screws and glue, but eventually must buy new tanks, which are costly, especially during the COVID-19 crisis when many people face new financial hardships in addition to Israel’s restrictions on movement and employment. 

Since the villagers began their weekly marches in 2011, they have been met with escalating forms of violence by Israeli forces. Between 2011 and 2014, two residents were disabled for life. One man is unable to speak since he was shot in the mouth with a tear gas canister. Another man was blinded by a rubber bullet shot in his eyes. In 2014, a man suffocated and died from tear gas inhalation. 

After 2014, Israeli soldiers began using .22 caliber bullets. Between 2014 and 2016 they injured more than 85 people, many of them children. In July 2019, the soldiers shot a 10-year-old boy in the head, causing severe brain damage.

Sources: Middle East Monitor, Mondoweiss, Mondoweiss, Btselem

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