Eerily Quiet

Since violence engulfed Hebron after what Amnesty International deemed the extrajudicial execution of 18-year-old Hadil Hashlamoun at the end of September, people are afraid to come to the Old City of Hebron. The shopkeepers are feeling the pinch as tour groups and others no longer walk through and shop. Many of them are open without making anything. On some days there are shops that don’t open at all. It has become more of a ghost town again. Our friends in the souq have asked CPTers to encourage people to come to Hebron and to visit the old city. They don’t want to be forced to close. There is a very real concern that if shops close due to lack of business, that settlements will expand in Hebron’s old city.

(18/11/2015)

Broken Doors, Broken Lives

While we were walking through the souk, numerous shopkeepers told us stories of soldiers raiding their home, their shop, or their neighbours’ shop.

This man showed us the broken lock and door to his shop, explaining that he has five children, and can barely afford bread and medical treatment he needs, let alone pay to have the door to his shop fixed, after soldiers have broken it.

(17/11/2015)

Kindergarten Checkpoint

A worrying development by the kindergarten where CPTers accompany children to school: in the last week a checkpoint occupied by Israeli Border Police has been moved up from the lower street to the sidewalk area outside the kindergarten and neighbouring Palestinian homes. Before it was moved, the checkpoint was positioned across the street from the broken path the children walk up to get to school. In essence they weren’t really passing through a checkpoint on their way to and from school. This move forces our small friends to walk much closer to these heavily armed adults and to pass through a checkpoint to access their school.

(17/11/2015)

Illegal Arrests

Soldiers arrested two brothers, ages 10 and 11, from their home, allegedly for stone-throwing. Under Israeli Military law, no child under the age of 12 can be arrested. Additionally, when taken behind the gate at Bab-il-Balediyya, the Israeli military did not allow their father to accompany them, further violating their rights and protections as children. The 11-year-old was released within a half hour. The ten-year-old was taken away in a military jeep.

(17/11/2015)

Teary Morning

At the Qitoun checkpoint, Israeli border police shot eighteen canisters of teargas as children were walking to school. Soldiers shot more teargass than that, but CPTers could not get an accurate count beyond eighteen, as the gas was too strong to stay near to count.

(19/11/2015)