Abu Shadi and the other 8 members of his household are shocked and afraid. The house that they have lovingly constructed and improved over the last 4 decades is at risk. Today, 11 year old Ahmad is sitting in his fifth form classroom, not knowing what he will come home to. These actions by Israel are vicious and illegal. Pressure must be brought on Israel to bring an end to this abhorrent practice.

The story begins on March 7th, 2002. 23 year old Shadi Mohammed Nasser entered the Ariel Settlement and blew himself up in the ground floor of a hotel at 'Ariel Settlement, injuring 14 Israelis. Shadi was a vulnerable young man who had been receiving treatment for epilepsy, which he suffered from the age of 8. As a young man he was diagnosed to be suffering from a deteriorating depressive illness, with associated behavioral problems. He last saw his psychiatrist ten days before the attack.

Shadi's family had no prior warning of the attack, and in addition to their attempts to come to terms with his loss, they have lived with the fear of losing their home for the last 10 months.

Last night I moved into their home as an act of solidarity, along with another activist from London. We sat talking for hours with the family, and I could not help but be impressed by their compassion and decency. They live off a smallholding, with chickens, sheep, olive trees and a donkey. A couiple of the older sons have jobs which bring in a small salary and the three youngest are still at school.

Their house backs onto a settler road, which was constructed in 1995, and from their front door, a settlement can be seen on the hilltops above the valley. It is a beautiful spot, and very peaceful. bar the roar of the occassional vehicle speeding by on the settler road, which local Palestinians cannot use.

After weeks of travelling very slowly on damaged roads, and skirting around impromptu roadblocks created by the huge fleet of Caterpillar Bulldozers that the Israeli Army has, it is somewhat shocking to see these vehicles with their distinctive yelloy licence plates speed by so quickly.

We will stay with the family to offer support and solidarity, approaches have been made to Israeli Peace Groups and Human Rights Groups to attempt to secure a lawyer who can apply to the Israeli Courts for an Injunction to prevent the demolition going ahead.

In the meantime, it would be good if people could contact Israeli Government Officials and ask for clemency for this family. I would be grateful if someone with a fast internet connection could post up some of the email addresses, as this computer crashes frequently.

It is hard to see what positives can arise from the demolition of this home, and the homelessness of its nine occupants.

Salaam - Peace