The welcome could not have been warmer or
more of a relief. After scrambling up a 15 foot
dirt and rubble barrier while a sound bomb
detonated next to us, and climbing over low
barbed wire to which I briefly attached myself,
we walked rapidly with our arms raised
across an open carpark. The gunfire seemd
to come from all directions. Shouting in
Hebrew, iIraeli soldiers fired live ammunition
around our feet; some from a tank ahead and
from jeeps and soldiers approaching rapidly
from our left. Further sound bombs pulsated
through my body and mind, but I was focused
on reaching a doorway 150m in front, my
vision tunnelling, the clarity of which took on
an eerie yet clear light.
A jeep pulled up in front, the tension inducing
gunfire continuing as a soldier temporarily
grabbed my jumper. I broke free and ran the
last 25m through the doorway. The welcoming
arms attached to cheering smiling faces
pulled me into a foyer full of soldiers and
some internationals. Ecstasy! I was alive and
inside Moqata'a, president Yasser Arafat's
compound in Ramallah, Palestine. Twenty
minutes passed before I could breath
normally. President Arafat welcomed the 6 of
us. As a direct action of the International
Solidarity Movement we came to support the
legitimacy of the legally elected President of
Palestine.
The ISM is an international grassroots peace
organization, including Palestinians and
Israelis, who are trying to help Palestinians
and end the illegal occupation of Palestine by
the Israeli Regime through non-violent means.
As the international community has failed to
protect civilians under the 4th Geneva
Conventuion we have come to protect
Palestinian rights, including helping food,
medecine and medical care being provided.
We decided to risk our lives entering the
Moqata'a as we had received news from an
international contact with a reliable source
high up in the Israeli Defence Force that the
army would try entering the compound. We
joined 40 other activists, the Moqata'a 40,
already in the compound who had entered 3
weeks earlier and the group now comprised
Americans, French, Germans, British, Danish,
an Israeli and an Australian.
As the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem
was burning from Israeli firepower, President
Arafat was visibly upset by the news. No-one
in the history of the Church had committed
such a sacriligious act on the symbol of the
birth of Christianity; the Israeli leadership had
made a historical mistake and was acting
irrationally. I was deeply moved by the effect
this had on him as well as the massacre in
Jenin, but also by his strength and
determination for a peaceful political
settlement.
Living conditions for the over 400 people living
inside the compound are very difficult, only
relieved by the wonderful sense of community
spirit and optimism. The Israelis have refused
the delivery of food and water for over 8 days,
and we all live on rations. There is no running
water, toilets don't flush nor can rubbish be
removed, and the poor hygiene is leading to
the spread of infections including
gastro-enteritis and scabies. Everyone sleeps
on the floor. One injured man, now a
paraplegiac, who has tremendous pain from
his injuries, often cries out in agony while the
Israelis refuse to allow any medical help to
enter. Another man has shrapnel embedded
in the cornea of his right eye, which cannot be
removed due to a lack of appropriate surgical
instruments. A man suffering from epilepsy
has no medication and is now having
seizures. Also, there are over 20 people with
chronic disease like diabetes and
hypertension who also have no medication.
These add to the human rights abuses
throughout Palestine and the many abuses I
observed and heard in Bethlehem, where I
stayed last week, including the denial of an
ambulance for a 7 year old girl with a ruptured
appendix. She had to walk 5k to receive the
medical treatment she desperately needed.
The day after our arrival in Ramallah we sent
a delegation of 10 internationals to inform the
outside world of the situation inside the
compound and throughout Palestine as a
whole. They were immediately arrested by the
Israeli army and taken to an unknown location
where they are still being held nearly 36 hours
later. While finishing writing this article we
were informed by the Generals here that our
actions 2 days ago stopped the Israeli forces
storming the compound. Then, around
midnight, President Arafat entered the room
to see us. He parted by saying, "be careful.
The others who left yesterday are still in
prison. Just be careful," and smiling, his
beaming eyes made contact with mine. He
then shook my hand and left as silently as he
came.
The Moqata'a 40 ask for the end of the Israeli
occupation of Palestine, an international
peace keeping force, sanctions against Israel
until this is achieved, and an end to the human
rights abuses and the continued flagrant
breach of the 4th Geneva Convention and we
recoginize the legitimate right under
international law that the Palestinian people
have to resist the illegal occupation of their
land by a foreign army.
Now, while I look out my window today after
the visit of the European Delegation, some
Israeli soldiers were attempting to break into
and loot an armoured car. I also heard news
of our friends who were arrested. They had
just left Ramle prison outside Tel Aviv, where
the men had been shackled by chains and one
beaten across the neck and abdomen. They
have just been deported.