[News] Palestinian fighters call for 'days of rage'

[Anti-Imperialist News]

middleeasteye.net
<https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-fighters-days-rage-civil-disobedience-observed>
Palestinian fighters call for 'days of rage' as civil disobedience observed
over camp blockade
By Shatha Hammad in Ramallah, occupied Palestine October 12, 2022
------------------------------
[image: image.png]

Israeli <https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/israel> forces killed a
Palestinian <https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/palestine> on
Wednesday as hundreds of people observed a day of civil disobedience in
solidarity with a Jerusalem refugee camp that has been under Israeli
lockdown for five days.

A general commercial strike was held in occupied East Jerusalem and the
West Bank, as hundreds of people joined protests against the recent
escalation by Israeli forces.

Osama Adawi, 18, was shot dead in the abdomen by Israeli troops in the
al-Aroub camp in Hebron, the Palestinian health ministry said.

*Translation: Osama Mahmoud Adawi (18 years old) who was shot dead by the
occupation in Al-Aroub refugee camp, north of Hebron.*

The strikes were called for by residents of Shuafat camp in East Jerusalem,
who have been trapped in by Israeli authorities since Saturday, and a newly
formed armed group in the West Bank named the Lion's Den.

The announcement by the Nablus-based fighters came after they claimed
responsibility for an attack on an Israeli army post near a settlement on
Tuesday that left one soldier dead.

The group called for "days of rage" against the Israeli occupation in a
statement and urged citizens to join in strikes and protests near Israeli
checkpoints.

At the same time, Shuafat residents announced late on Tuesday that they
will mark a day of civil obedience to protest against Israeli measures
imposed upon them, which have been described as "collective punishment".

'The crimes of the occupation, in the continuous expansion of settlements
and killings, leave us Palestinians with no other choice but to continue to
defend ourselves and our lives'

*- Omar Assaf, Palestinian Democratic Grouping*

The Wednesday strike, unlike previous ones observed in Palestine, is seen
as a significant event by some observers because it was called for by a
small armed group and families in Shuafat, rather than organised political
or civil groups, who normally lead such initiatives.

Omar Assaf, a member of the Palestinian Democratic Grouping, told Middle
East Eye that the positive nationwide response to the civil disobedience
call indicates widespread support for armed resistance and an eagerness for
new leadership away from the Ramallah-based Palestine Authority.

"The crimes of the occupation, in the continuous expansion of settlements
and killings, leave us Palestinians with no other choice but to continue to
defend ourselves and our lives," Assaf said.

"What we are witnessing today in the West Bank confirms the Palestinian
people's willingness to continue working for their cause, but the problem
is the absence of a Palestinian leadership capable of capitalising on
this."
Israeli lockdown

Tensions this week escalated on Saturday night.

People in Shuafat camp, located just two kilometres from Jerusalem's Old
City, have been besieged in the neighbourhood since Saturday evening, after
an Israeli soldier was fatally shot at a checkpoint leading to the camp.

Shuafat is one of the most overcrowded camps in Palestine. It is home to
almost 140,000 refugees - and their descendants - who were displaced from
historic Palestine by Zionist paramilitary groups in 1948, to make way for
Israel's creation.

It is the only refugee camp that lies within Jerusalem's municipal
boundaries, but is located on the other side of the Israeli separation wall
from the majority of the city. Almost 90 percent of its residents have
Jerusalem resident IDs that are different from Israeli or Palestinian
Authority citizenship.

Israeli forces identified a suspect in the Saturday shooting as a
22-year-old Palestinian resident of the area, who is believed to be hiding
inside the camp.

A strict closure was then imposed on the camp in which no one could go in
and out. This has left many Palestinians unable to reach hospitals for
critical health treatments.

Education within the camp has also been suspended and shops are now dealing
with a lack of basic supplies, including milk and flour.

[image: Israeli officers wield their weapons at Palestinians in the Shuafat
refugee camp in East Jerusalem 12 October 2022 (Reuters)]
Israeli officers brandish their weapons at Palestinians in the Shuafat
refugee camp in East Jerusalem, on 12 October 2022 (Reuters)

[image: image.gif]

Additionally, Israeli soldiers have since raided the camp frequently,
violently dispersing protests, raiding homes and making several arrests.

The Israeli-run Jerusalem municipality has also failed to send waste
collectors to the camp, causing garbage to fill the streets, a Shuafat
resident told MEE.

The municipality also said it would close a major bakery belonging to the
Tamimi family - from whom Israeli forces believe the suspect hails - even
though it serves nearly 30,000 Palestinians, according to one resident.

The closure has been criticised as "collective punishment" by many
Palestinian human rights advocates.
Civil disobedience

The camp's residents gathered late on Tuesday and decided on a number of
measures to counter the Israeli restrictions.

They announced a day of civil disobedience and encouraged Palestinians
across Jerusalem to join them in protests and strikes. Their statement was
read through mosque loudspeakers and printed and distributed around the
city.

Suhaib Masalmeh, an activist from Shuafat, said the commitment to the
strike call on Wednesday was "remarkable to see. The response has been
great by the residents, everyone seems to have complied," he told Middle
East Eye.

Masalmeh said that when residents presented their demands to the army in a
piece of paper, a soldier tore it up and told them the closures would only
be lifted if the suspected shooter in Saturday's attack was handed over.

[image: A commercial strike was observed across Palestinian cities in the
occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem on 12 October 2022 (MEE/Latifeh
Abdellatif)]
A commercial strike was observed across Palestinian cities in the occupied
West Bank and East Jerusalem on 12 October 2022 (MEE/Latifeh Abdellatif)

[image: image.gif]Nonetheless, hundreds of the camp's residents organised a
march early on Wednesday, made up mostly of women and students, which was
attacked and dispersed by Israeli forces.

Many young men spread across the camp's entrances and set up mounds to
prevent vehicles from moving around.

Masalmeh added that around 35,000 workers from the camp, who have jobs with
Israeli companies in Jerusalem, have also joined the strike, crippling
businesses across the city.

Some 600 drivers from Shuafat who work for the Israeli Egged Public
Transportation Company did not report for duty on Wednesday, causing
disruption to their operations, according to Masalmeh.
West Bank heeds the call

Outside the camp, the civil disobedience call reverberated across Jerusalem
and beyond.

Protests and strikes were reported in the neighbourhoods of Issawiya and
Beit Hanina, as the Old City looked like a ghost town, with shops shuttered
for the day.

In the West Bank, many cities, schools and universities heeded the call,
especially after the Lion's Den group issued a statement calling for an
escalation against the Israeli occupation.

[image: Israeli forces walk through Jerusalem's Old City which looked like
a ghost town as shop owners observed the day of disobedience on 12 October
2022 (MEE/Latifeh Abdellatif)]
Israeli forces walk through Jerusalem's Old City as shop owners observe the
day of disobedience, on 12 October 2022 (MEE/Latifeh Abdellatif)

[image: image.gif]

[image: image.gif]In its statement, the group said, "We call for burning
tyres, setting up barricades, and closing streets to send a clear message
that the people are rallying around the resistance and those persecuted in
Jerusalem."

Nablus, where the armed group is based, had endured Israeli closures late
on Tuesday, similar to those imposed on Shuafat.

Checkpoints and roads leading to the city were closed, imposing strict
restrictions on movements in and out, hours after an Israeli soldier was
killed by fighters who are believed to have fled back to the city.

'The state of the resistance that exists today reflects an awareness among
fighters who are engaging the Israeli army in small but effective attacks'

*- Khaled Dwaikat, Unified Palestinian Movement*

Khaled Dwaikat, a member of the Unified Palestinian Movement, said the
tactics used by armed Palestinians in the West Bank against Israeli targets
indicate a new strategy.

"The state of the resistance that exists today reflects an awareness among
fighters who are engaging the Israeli army in small but effective attacks,"
he told MEE.

"They realise that it's better for them to avoid large-scale confrontations
like in the Second Intifada."

At least four Israeli soldiers have been killed by Palestinian fighters
since May, amid a growing armed resistance in the West Bank.

Meanwhile, more than 160 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire this
year, including 50 in the Gaza Strip and at least 110 in the West Bank and
East Jerusalem. The death toll in the West Bank is the highest recorded in
a single year since 2015.

On Wednesday, Israeli troops violently dispersed protests in several areas
in the West Bank, including the Dheisheh camp in Bethlehem, the northern
entrance of al-Bireh city, al-Aroub camp in Hebron and Sebastia village in
Nablus, among others.
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