OccupationalHazard.org 01.29.03

The Occupation - 01/29/03

2 International Activists Abducted
by Settlers From Itamar Settlement

Michael Shaik - International Solidarity Movement

At 11 am ISM activists Colin Kelsall (from the UK) and Satoshi Itakura (Japan), staying at Yanoon in the Occupied West Bank, were told by Palestinians that settlers from Itamar Settlement had moved onto Palestinian farmland and were working the land with tractors.
The two activists went alone to observe the situation and were approached by two armed settlers who demanded to see their passports. An altercation took place when the activists refused to hand over their passports and the settlers used their mobile phones to call in more settlers from Itamar.
After 20 minutes 3 more armed settlers arrived and the activists decided to retreat from the area by walking away. They were overtaken by the settlers who attacked them and confiscated their phone and camera. Then they confiscated their jackets, shoes, socks, wallets and passports and made them lie face down on the ground while they kicked them, walked on them and trod on their fingers.
After about 30 minutes they marched them back towards Itamar settlement. When they got to the fence separating the farmland from the settlement the settlers received a phone call then halted, making their prisoners lie face down on the ground again, while they walked on them and kicked them. This continued for another 20 minutes until the Army arrived, returned them their property (excluding the camera and the phone) and set the activists free.
The activists returned to Yanoon but ten minutes later the Army arrived to arrest them for trespassing on settler property. They are currently in detention at the Arael police station near Salfit.

Update 1/30/03
Good news everyone.
We got a call at about 11.30 last night from Tel Aviv from Colin saying that both that both he and Satoshi are free. When they were at the Police Station they were accused with breaking into the Itamar Settlement. Although the accusation was obviously absurd and they would never have gone to jail, there was a real possibility that it would be used as an excuse for deporting them.
The police gave both activists statements in Hebrew to sign but they refused. After about two hours interrogation the police dropped the charges then drove Colin and Satoshi out onto a settler road and dropped them off in the West Bank without a phone. It was dark and they did not know where they were. Both were afraid that they might be attacked by settlers or that the Palestinians would mistake them as settlers. They wandered along the road in the dark for some time until they were picked up by an IOF patrol which took them back to Arael police station. While they were there they were still denied the use of the phone and though several people phoned the station while they were there the police refused to let them talk to them. The police then took them to a settlement bus stop where they boarded a bus for Tel Aviv.
Despite their ordeal, both men are in high spirits. Had it not been for their courageous action yesterday the Palestinian farmland would almost certainly have been taken over by the settlers. For now, the land is back in the hands of its original owners and both activists are returning to on a bus back to Yanoon to resume their work in the Occupied West Bank.

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2 International Activists Abducted by Settlers From Itamar Settlement
Michael Shaik - International Solidarity Movement





At 11 am ISM activists Colin Kelsall (from the UK) and Satoshi Itakura (Japan), staying at Yanoon in the Occupied West Bank, were told by Palestinians that settlers from Itamar Settlement had moved onto Palestinian farmland and were working the land with tractors. The two activists went alone to observe the situation and were approached by two armed settlers who demanded to see their passports. An altercation took place when the activists refused to hand over their passports and the settlers used their mobile phones to call in more settlers from Itamar. After 20 minutes 3 more armed settlers arrived and the activists decided to retreat from the area by walking away. They were overtaken by the settlers who attacked them and confiscated their phone and camera. Then they confiscated their jackets, shoes, socks, wallets and passports and made them lie face down on the ground while they kicked them, walked on them and trod on their fingers. After about 30 minutes they marched them back towards Itamar settlement. When they got to the fence separating the farmland from the settlement the settlers received a phone call then halted, making their prisoners lie face down on the ground again, while they walked on them and kicked them. This continued for another 20 minutes until the Army arrived, returned them their property (excluding the camera and the phone) and set the activists free. The activists returned to Yanoon but ten minutes later the Army arrived to arrest them for trespassing on settler property. They are currently in detention at the Arael police station near Salfit. Update 1/30/03 Good news everyone. We got a call at about 11.30 last night from Tel Aviv from Colin saying that both that both he and Satoshi are free. When they were at the Police Station they were accused with breaking into the Itamar Settlement. Although the accusation was obviously absurd and they would never have gone to jail, there was a real possibility that it would be used as an excuse for deporting them. The police gave both activists statements in Hebrew to sign but they refused. After about two hours interrogation the police dropped the charges then drove Colin and Satoshi out onto a settler road and dropped them off in the West Bank without a phone. It was dark and they did not know where they were. Both were afraid that they might be attacked by settlers or that the Palestinians would mistake them as settlers. They wandered along the road in the dark for some time until they were picked up by an IOF patrol which took them back to Arael police station. While they were there they were still denied the use of the phone and though several people phoned the station while they were there the police refused to let them talk to them. The police then took them to a settlement bus stop where they boarded a bus for Tel Aviv. Despite their ordeal, both men are in high spirits. Had it not been for their courageous action yesterday the Palestinian farmland would almost certainly have been taken over by the settlers. For now, the land is back in the hands of its original owners and both activists are returning to on a bus back to Yanoon to resume their work in the Occupied West Bank.
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