A Non-Violent Protest Movement Grows in the West Bank
http://www.en.justjlm.org/523
A non-violent protest movement appears to be growing rapidly in the West Bank. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the military forces of the State of Israel, are conducting drills in anticipation of possible massive non-violent protests breaking out across the West Bank coinciding with the Palestinian Authority's UN application for statehood. As Haaretz reported back in June:
A non-violent protest of 4,000 people or more, even if they only march to a checkpoint or a settlement, and especially if the Palestinian police does not deter them, will be unstoppable," one IDF officer claims. "Such a great number of determined people cannot be stopped by tear gas and rubber bullets."
Another high ranking IDF official serving in the territories claimed that "if we are to face protests similar to those in Egypt or Tunisia, we will not be able to do a thing."
This announcement came following an increase in non-violent protest activity across the Palestinian territories and around Israel sparked by the 63rd anniversary of Israel's Independence Day, May 15.
"At the end of the day, the decision is in the hands of the political echelon," claims another commander, "it is fairly obvious that if there will be no progress on peace talks, the Palestinian police with whom we work very closely to prevent infiltrations will lose their patience."
On July 15, a group of several thousand Israelis and Palestinians marched through East Jerusalem from just outside the Jaffa gate of the Old City to the Arab neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Protests in Sheikh Jarrah have been ongoing since a controversial Supreme Court ruling in August of 2009, which ordered several Palestinian families evicted from their homes. This ruling came following a suit brought up by a right wing group in Israel claiming that according to an Ottoman-era law, the occupants of the homes should be Jews whose families once lived there. The group, Sheikh Jarrah Solidarity, has been protesting in Sheikh Jarrah every Friday since the eviction was ordered.
The Sheikh Jarrah Protests
The announcement from the website of Sheikh Jarrah Solidarity stated the following:
This Friday, July 15th, we will stand with our Palestinian partners in a Palestinian-Israeli march through the heart of Jerusalem for the independence of Palestine -
[B]ecause the Palestinians also deserve to be “a people, free in their country”. Because Jerusalem is the place for this freedom to be realized and because Jewish-Arab solidarity is the only response to hatred and racism.
We will march together in both sections of the city, the Israeli and the Palestinian, to express our support of Palestine’s independence and our commitment to fight for it together.
Will it Become a Movement?
The Sheikh Jarrah protest movement began with the purpose of standing in solidarity with the several Palestinian families evicted from their homes, but now, nearly two years later, a much larger movement has grown out of it, with much broader goals. Looking forward, with the advent of the Arab Spring, and the demand for democracy and freedom across the Arab world, will this movement grow? Will protests grow in size and frequency leading up to the official U.N. bid for statehood by the Palestinian authority?
Now attracting a broader segment of Israeli citizens, the July 15 protest was a clear statement of the growing support behind the recognition of Palestinian statehood amond Israelis.
Will this movement gain further momentum within Israel as well? It appears so. It will be interesting to see what tactics are pursued next.
