Ofer Prison – solidarity with Nasser Nawaj’ah

Place:

Ofer

South Hebron Hills

Susiya

Observers:

Michal, Leah, Smadar, Muhammad and Ariela (reporting and photographing); Translator: Natanya

Feb-23-2023

Morning

Ofer prison – solidarity visit with Nasser Nawaj’ah

Photo:

Ariela Slonim

A shift to the military court in Ofer, to identify with Nasser Nawaj’ah of Susiya, upon the opening of the hearing in his trial

It was originally planned that we would go to the Huda Kinderarten in Hashem Al-Daraj in the east-southern Hebron Mountain, but after we learned that the trial of Nasser Nawaj’ah of Susiya, whom we have known for many years as a human rights activist working with B’Tselem would begin today. He is accused of attacking a police officer, therefore it was decided that we would go to the military court. It was important to be there and to show Nasser that we support him and his struggle. He describes it thus: "They are trying to silence the voice that fights for human rights. They don't want us to tell the truth. They don't want us to be in the southern area of Mount Hebron and to document and photograph what is happening every day. They try in several ways and this is one of them, to harm human rights activists.'

The event itself happened in September 2021 when settlers from Susiya, under the auspices of the army, invaded a playground in the Palestinian Susiya, broke the gate and sabotaged the facilities. The event was of course on Saturday. Nasser was summoned for questioning and released unconditionally.

Dozens of Israeli and international human rights activists came to the court hearing equipped with megaphones and drums so that Nasser would know that he was not alone during the hearing. In the meeting with Nasser held across the fence, a fence that separates the Palestinians from the Israelis, I could not understand who was in the cage. Apparently, we are all in the occupation cage. In his words, he thanked the activists who came to support him and strengthen his heart. "The heart is full" he said.

Reminder: the playground, which includes a carousel, two swings, a sandbox and a slide, was completed in September 2021. The Israeli settlers of Susiya t claimed that the garden was an illegal construction, like everything the local residents try to do, including water holes, and appealed to the Civil Administration info-icon to deal with it. On Saturday, as mentioned, about 30 settlers invaded the garden and according to the army they separated the parties and took the settlers out of the compound.

Nasser's trial will continue on May 7th. We'll be there.

Location Description

Yata / Southern Hebron hills

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Yatta is a city located in the South Hebron Hills region. It is located in the border zone between the fertile area of Hebron and its surroundings and the desert of the Hebron Hills. Yatta has about 64,000 inhabitants. The surrounding villages are called Masafar Yatta (Yatta's daughter villages). Their inhabitants subsist on livestock and agriculture. Agriculture is possible only in small plots, especially near streams. Most of the area consists of rocky terraces.

Since the beginning of the 1980s, a number of settlements have been established on the agricultural land cultivated by the Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills region: Carmel, Maon, Susia, Masadot Yehuda, Othniel, and more. Since the settlements were established and Palestinians cultivation areas have been reduced; the residents of the South Hebron Hills have been suffering from harassment by the settlers. Attempts to evict and demolish houses have continued, along with the withholding of water and electricity. The military and police usually refrain from intervening in violent incidents between settlers and Palestinians do not enforce the law when it comes to the investigation of extensive violent Jewish settlers. The harassment in the South Hebron Hills includes attacking and attempting to burn residential tents, harassing dogs, harming herds, and preventing access to pastures.

There are several checkpoints in the South Hebron Hills, on Routes 317 and 60. In most of them, no military presence is apparent, but rather an array of pillboxes monitor the villages. Road blocks are frequently set up according to the settlers and the army's needs. These are located at the Zif Junction, the Dura-al Fawwar crossing, and the Sheep Junction at the southern entrance to Hebron.

Updated April 2022

Apr-10-2024

Muhammad D.

Sa'ir - Yael and Ahmad

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Susiya

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The Palestinian area lies between the settlement of Susya and a military base.
The residents began to settle in areas outside the villages in the 1830s and lived in caves, tents and sukkot. To this day they maintain a traditional lifestyle and their livelihood is based on agriculture and herding. Until the 1948 war, the farmers cultivated areas that extended to the Arad area. As a result of the war, a significant portion of their land left on the Israeli side was lost. After the 1967 war and the Israeli occupation, military camps were established in the area, fire zones and nature reserves were declared, and the land area was further reduced.

The Jewish settlement in Susya began in 1979. Since then, there has been a stubborn struggle to remove the remains of Palestinian residents who refuse to leave their place of birth and move to nearby town Yatta. With the development of a tourist site in Khirbet Susya in the late 1980s (an ancient synagogue), dozens of families living in caves in its vicinity were deported. In the second half of the 1990s, a new form of settlement developed in the area - shepherds' farms of individual settlers. This phenomenon increased the tension between the settlers and the original, Palestinian residents, and led to repeated harassment of the residents of the farms towards the Palestinians. At the same time, demolition of buildings and crop destruction by security forces continued, as well as water and electricity prevention. In the Palestinian Susya, as in a large part of the villages of the southern Hebron Mountains, there is no running water, but the water pipe that supplies water to the Susya Jewish settlement passes through it. Palestinians have to buy expensive water that comes in tankers. Solar electricity is provided by a collector system, installed with donation funds. But the frequent demolitions in the villages do not spare water cisterns or the solar panels and power poles designed to transfer solar electricity between the villages.

Updated April 2021, Anat T.

Ofer, Military Court

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The Military Court in the Ofer camp is located halfway between Ramallah and Jerusalem.

The place has seven courtrooms, most of them spacious. This court is one of two courts of the "first instance", in addition to the military court in Salem.
Here are the Palestinian hearings trials and some of the hearings in detention extensions. In addition, there is also a military court of appeals (on rulings of the courts of 'the first instance' in Salem and Ofer).
Family members of detainees info-icon from the territories (usually only two family members) are allowed to enter the hearings but are prohibited from talking to the detainees.
The families have at their disposal a waiting yard and a large, air-conditioned waiting room.

May-25-2023

Unknown

Supprting Nassser Nawaj’ah at the military court Ofer

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