Iftar under fire

By Khaled Amayreh
In Palestine where over 300 young Palestinians have been shot dead and many hundreds maimed by often trigger-happy Israeli soldiers and settlers, the advent of the holy month this year comes amidst bereavement, insecurity and turmoil unseen since Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1967.
Indeed, for a disproportionate number of Palestinian families who have lost a son -- and in some cases two -- or a husband to the ongoing uprising, the pain is truly overwhelming.
Some, like the mother of 14-year-old Karam Al-Kurd of Rafah, whose son died on the first day of Ramadan of wounds sustained in "confrontations" with Israeli troops in Gaza a week earlier, are looking to their faith for solace and fortitude. "He didn't die; he is alive in the highest, with the saints, angels and prophets," says the tearful mother.
But Umm Karam is also expressing her grief in a quotidian form of remembrance. In actions that only a grieving mother could fully understand, she sets a place at iftar (the meal breaking the daily fast) for her departed son, as though he was expected to return imminently.
Such an expression of grief, though symbolic and seemingly illogical, underlines the utterly base nature of the Israeli propaganda claiming that Palestinian mothers have little compassion for their children.
The maiming and killing of Palestinian youngsters by Israeli soldiers and settlers is not the only regular occurrence that has made Ramadan so bleak for those in the occupied territories.
The Israeli army has used all manner of Draconian measures to try to narrow Palestinians' horizons so as to break their will to revolt and, ultimately, secure their submission. Thus their tactics target every aspect of Palestinian life, both individual and collective.
But the Al-Aqsa Intifada and concomitant Israeli repression have shown that seven years of the so-called peace process have made very little difference to the Palestinian will to resist. And, as one Palestinian legislative council member said, the entire peace process seems to have been no more than a lie.
Thus, simple tasks, such as travelling outside one's village or town in an emergency, or purchasing food or fuel, become formidable challenges. Mere errands are transformed into "missions" fraught with danger.
Take for example, Iyad Hantash, who was shot by Israeli soldiers on the second day of Ramadan while returning to his village of Khursa, 20 kilometres south-west of Hebron, shortly before sunset. The young man, who works as a plasterer, was returning home for iftar when an Israeli soldier opened fire at him without the slightest provocation causing Hantash minor injuries. Asked why the soldier shot at him, he said, "It seemed as though he just felt like it."
Others were not as lucky as Hantash. According to Palestinian sources, as many as 10 Palestinian civilians were seriously wounded in similar circumstances as they walked or drove home to be with their families to break the fast.
(l) Supporters of the Right of Return Coalition demonstrate outside the Israeli mission to the UN in NewYork last week in support of Palestinian resistance to Israeli aggression, while (r) Israel continues to shell Palestinian towns for the second consecutive month
(photos: Reuters)
One tactic used on a daily basis which has an immediate collective impact is shooting at power transformers shortly before sunset or dawn to cut electricity just as families gather for iftar or before the late-night meal, suhour.
By cutting electricity to Palestinian population centres at key times of the day, the Israelis generate more bitterness and contempt among Palestinians. One newspaper editorial vowed, "We may go back to the era before electricity, but we will not give in to Zionist arrogance. The occupation has got to go."
Demonstrating the resourcefulness that has characterised life under occupation, many Palestinians have mitigated the effects of blackouts by fixing their old kerosene lamps. However, in some localities, especially in the Gaza Strip, even kerosene lamps are difficult to maintain since distribution of fuel supplies is subject to Israeli approval.
Humiliation is a tactic applied against individual Palestinians. Two weeks ago, Israeli soldiers manning a roadblock outside Hebron stopped a Palestinian pickup truck carrying five jerrycans of olive oil.
The commanding officer forced the olive farmer to get out of the car, giving him the choice between death on the spot or dumping the oil. The farmer's wife eventually convinced her husband to opt for the lesser of the two options, arguing that "God will compensate us." At gun point, and with tears streaming down his face, the man eventually acquiesced, spilling the fruit of his labours amidst the soldiers' uproarious laughter.
One of the most disturbing aspects of the Israeli repression of the Palestinian uprising has been the closure of Jerusalem to Palestinian worshippers on Friday. Normally, Jerusalem's Haram Al-Sharif is flooded with hundreds of thousands of Muslim worshippers on Fridays during the month of Ramadan. This year, however, the Israeli army and police turned the city into a huge garrison, with roadblocks erected on all routes leading to the Old City to prevent Palestinians from reaching Islam's third holiest shrine.
In many instances, worshippers, including the elderly, were mistreated and even beaten by Israeli soldiers. Thousands of Muslims were forced to perform their congregational prayers in the streets outside the boundaries of the city.
The virtual closure of the Haram Al-Sharif was criticised by Palestinian political and religious leaders. "These stringent measures are clear proof that religious freedoms are virtually non-existent under the Israeli occupation of Jerusalem," said the Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine Ikrema Sabri. "In our faith, there is no greater crime than preventing people from going to the mosques and worshipping God," he added.
Palestinian Authority Jerusalem official Faisal Al-Husseini said the barring of Muslims from the Haram Al-Sharif underlines Israel's lack of commitment to religious freedom. "They [the Israelis] lie to the whole world by claiming that all believers are free to go to their respective holy places. As you see, they are preventing people from reaching our mosques. There can be no true freedom of worship under occupation."
The Israeli authorities claimed that the ban was necessitated by security considerations. However, these claims fail to explain why elderly men and women were turned back at Israeli roadblocks.
Sheikh Mohamed Hussein, director-general of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, opined that the real reason is political. "As the battle for Jerusalem gains momentum, the Israeli occupation authorities don't want the world to see how important Jerusalem is for Muslims -- they do not want to see half a million Muslims converge on the city."
Related stories:
Blowing in the wind
Waning expectations
The other casualty
Barak's last throw of the dice 30 Nov. - 6 Dec. 2000
No holds barred 23 - 29 November 2000
The cost of weakness 16 - 22 November 2000
Crushing the Intifada -- phase two 16 - 22 November 2000
See Intifada in focus 26 Oct. - 1 Nov. 2000
Intifada special 19 - 25 October 2000
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