- 28 dec 2011
The Abu Taima family
“Living under occupation means that whatever hopes we have, it will fall apart one day. For example, you bring up your child and put all of your hopes in him or her, but then they come and kill your child and all your hopes are destroyed.”
In the early morning of 28 December 2008 Mahmoud Abu Taima, his wife Manal, and their two oldest sons, Khalil and Nabil were collecting zucchini from their lands in Khuza’a village, east of Khan Younis. After a few hours the two brothers went to their uncle’s farmland a few hundred meters further west. At around 8:30 the Israeli army fired a shell from the border fence which landed between the two boys.
Nabil 16 was killed and
Khalil was critically injured.
“You must understand, the area was very calm. Many farmers were working on their lands. It is an open area. I saw a projectile coming from the border fence towards the farm lands. Then I heard the explosion.
I immediately ran towards the place of impact because I knew my sons were in that area. By the time that I arrived, people had already put the boys on a donkey cart to bring them to the hospital,” recalls Mahmoud Abu Taima (40).
Khalil was critically injured by shrapnel in the chest and limbs and underwent a life saving surgery immediately after arriving in the hospital. “While we buried Nabil we were expecting that they would bring Khalil’s body from the hospital too,” says the boys’ mother Manal (37).
The Abu Taima family, who have their home in Abasan village, east of Khan Yunis, has been traumatized by the death of their son and brother Nabil. His parents, and 6 eldest siblings Khalil (20), Naima (18), Isra’ (15), Mohammed (14), Abdel Rahman (9), and Ibrahim (6 ) all have dear memories of him. “Nabil was a part of us and he had a big place in my heart.
I remember him in every moment and I feel that he is present with us. Like now, when I drink tea, I remember him and feel that he is present. When I eat my meals I feel as if he is still here with us. I can never forget him,” says his father Mahmoud.
“Nabil’s mind was older than his age,” says Manal, “he was very clever at school and all of his teachers and the students liked him a lot. On the anniversary date of his death, his teachers and friends come to visit us. Besides going to school, Nabil liked to breed rabbits. Until his death we had about 50 rabbits.
Since his death they died and we stopped getting new ones. We don’t feel like it anymore, now that he is not here.”
Ibrahim (6 ) and Abdel Rahman(9) had a very close relationship with Nabil. Manal says: “They were badly affected by his death. They wanted to take the shovel and open his grave so they could take him from his grave and bring him to a doctor for treatment. Ibrahim was upset and stressed for a long time so I took him to a psychologist.
When I told the children that a human rights organization was coming to talk to us Ibrahim asked me if they would bring Nabil.”
Khalil has spent the past years trying to recover from his physical injuries. “After 3 days I was transferred to Egypt for additional surgery. In the months after that I went to Médicines sans Frontières after finishing school and had 3 hour sessions of physiotherapy. I had very long days. Despite everything, there is still shrapnel inside my legs, chest and arms which cannot be removed.
There are places in my left leg in which I can’t feel anything. My ankles always hurt and I can’t move the way I did before. My mobility, including my walking, has been affected. I can’t do everything that I want. For example, nowadays I play football alone because I am too afraid someone will hit my leg and I will be in agony.”
Besides his physical injuries, Khalil is trying to deal with the loss of his brother and the trauma of the incident. “We would always go to school and other places together. I feel as if I lost a part of my body. It is difficult to continue my life without this part.
During the war it was my ‘tawjihi’[final high school] year and I had to go to school. I was traumatized after the incident. When I was sleeping I could hear the sound of a missile coming towards me. Somehow, I passed the tawjihithat year and am in university now.” Manal adds that Khalil used to have panic attacks after the incident, “even the sound of birds could make him have a panic attack.”
A few days after the attack, Israeli bulldozers destroyed the farmland belonging to the Abu Taima family, approximately 700 meters away from the fence. “We had zucchini crops, and a small storage room for fertilizers and equipment. We also had a water pump and water irrigation network. It is all destroyed now. We were unable to go to our farm for 2 years as it was too dangerous. Now we go again, despite the Israeli army shooting towards us. It is difficult. Since the death of my son I lost my motivation to work in the land,” says Mahmoud.
Mahmoud does not dare to have hopes or expectations for the future anymore: “living under occupation means that whatever hopes we have, it will fall apart one day. For example, you bring up your child and put all of your hopes in him or her, but then they come and kill your child and all your hopes are destroyed. We try to think about the future and have long-term hopes but it’s not possible for us.”
The family is not optimistic of the chances that they will see a court case against those responsible for their son’s death. “Nabil was not the first and last one who was killed by the army. Many boys like him were killed. Even if they [Israel] can capture the soldier who fired the shell, they will say he is insane,” says Mahmoud.
PCHR submitted a criminal complaint to the Israeli authoritiess on behalf of the Abu Taima family on 2 July 2009. To-date, no response has been received.
http://fwd4.me/0jxO 29 apr 2012, 23:41 , Respect -
Maria 21st Century Crusaders
(91:36) 21st Century Crusaders
This explosive new documentary investigates the current crusade being fought against Muslims in Iraq and Palestine.
The film begins with exposing America's 'War on Terror' as a front for its Crusade against Islam. In this section we are introduced to ex-Guantanamo detainee Moazzam Begg, Shaykh Ali Timimi (awaiting trial in U.S.) and Babar Ahmad (in UK prison).
In a highly emotive manner, the plight of Palestinians is looked at next. The oppressiveness of their lives is depicted for the viewer to witness and take heed. Consequently there will be none who view this and not be stirred by emotion.
The last third of the film is dedicated to the latest chapter in the Crusaders war: Iraq. The section looks at America and its dealing with Iraq and its citizens. It contains recent war footage from Iraq and uncovers the truth behind US casualties.
29 apr 2012, 23:41 , Respect -
Maria...Read more 29 apr 2012, 23:41 , Respect -
Maria 29 apr 2012, 23:41 , Respect -
Maria 28 dec 2011
IDF chief: Gaza war against Hamas was an 'excellent' operation
Benny Gantz speaking with Ilana Dayan Tuesday on Army Radio
Second round of fighting in Gaza is not a matter of choice for Israel; it must be initiated by Israel and must be 'swift and painful,' Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz says.
Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz marked the three-year anniversary of Operation Cast Lead on Tuesday by hailing it "an excellent operation that achieved deterrence for Israel vis-a-vis Hamas." However, he warned, cracks have emerged in that deterrence over time, and a second round of fighting in the Gaza Strip is not a matter of choice for Israel.
Samouni Family
Such a round must be initiated by Israel and must be "swift and painful," he said, adding, "I do not advise Hamas to test our mettle."
Speaking on Army Radio on Tuesday in honor of Shirutrom, the IDF's annual telethon, Gantz gave his most wide-ranging interview since taking office more than 10 months ago. His predecessor, Gabi Ashkenazi, gave no interviews to the civilian media during his four years in office. Only once a year, in honor of the telethon, did he agree to any interviews at all.
Nizar Rayyan family
Gantz appears to be taking the same tack, although sources close to him say he will be interviewed by the civilian media in the future.
In response to a question by interviewer Ilana Dayan regarding the timing of such an attack, Gantz said, "We will act when the conditions are right."
In reference to the debate over the best way to act against the Iranian nuclear program, Dayan asked Gantz whether his position and that of the new Mossad chief Tamir Pardo were not as strong as that of Ashkenazi and the former Mossad head, Meir Dagan. Gantz rejected the idea, stating, "Whoever should hear, hears my voice loud and clear."
Nizar Rayan family
Last November, after Yoav Galant was appointed to succeed Ashkenazi as chief of staff and Gantz retired from the IDF - only to return as chief of staff three months later when Galant's appointment was rescinded - Gantz told Haaretz he was proud he did not have to compromise his principles in the race for chief of staff.
Much of the interview was devoted to high-profile issues in the media of late, such as women singing in the IDF.
al-Dayeh family
Gantz characterized an incident last week in which female soldiers were prevented from singing at a Hanukkah ceremony at a basic training camp as "not good." He said he would act to prevent such occurrences in the future and would order an investigation into the incident.
Gantz also made a distinction between official IDF ceremonies, where he said he would not allow Orthodox soldiers to leave while women were singing, and entertainment, where Gantz said "we can and should respect [Orthodox soldiers' wishes to leave the hall]."
13-year-old Palestinian girl
"We don't quarrel with people. We look for how we can serve them," he added.
"Women's singing is not banned and ... the person who decides what happens in the room is the commander. The State of Israel and the IDF must make clear that the only authority is that of the commanders," Gantz told Dayan.
Gantz apologized again for a recent exchange with Defense Minister Ehud Barak, interpreted by some as an insult to women. "I was mistaken in the way I expressed myself," he said, referring to a comment caught on tape during a recent Golani Brigade exercise in the Golan Heights.
Aish family
"Women will serve everywhere they need to serve. They can contribute operationally and can function in an operational environment," Gantz said.
Gantz noted that the defense minister had approved the recent round of top appointments he made. He said the appointment of Brig. Gen. Nitzan Alon as GOC Central Command had nothing to do with Alon's statements against the extreme right. He attributed Alon's appointment solely to his skills.
It appears Gantz successfully navigated his first media test, conveying the messages he wanted to convey and avoiding unnecessary pitfalls.
al-Absi family
And yet it may be hoped that, next time, Gantz will take somewhat more of a risk and speak on the record to the civilian media as well.
Another question, one that did not come up in the interview, remains unanswered:
Why does the IDF, with massive funding at its disposal each year, still need to hold a telethon and scrounge for pennies from civilians?
http://fwd4.me/0jFq 29 apr 2012, 23:41 , Respect -
Maria 29 dec 2011
Balousha family
Anwar Balousha and son Muhammed
“I miss them all the time; sometimes I even go to look for one of them in the house in the split second before I remember they were killed.”
At around midnight on 29 December 2008 an Israeli aircraft attacked the Imad Akel Mosque, situated in Jabaliya refugee camp. The attack destroyed the home of Anwar and Samira Balousha, which was situated just three meters from the mosque.
Five of the family’s eight daughters were killed as a result of the bombing, which caused the family home to collapse on top of them as they slept. Five others were injured in the incident and other homes in close proximity to the mosque were completely destroyed.
In the main room of the reconstructed Balousha family household stands a portrait of the family’s five deceased daughters,
Tahreer,
Ikram,
Samar,
Dina, and
Jawaher,
who were eighteen, fifteen, thirteen, eight, and four respectively at the time an Israeli F-16 dropped a bomb on the Imad Akel Mosque, three meters from the family home. The family have since had one newcomer to the home, Tahrir (named after her deceased sister);
but for father Anwar, “the home still feels empty; it is like there is gaping hole where my daughters once were, and despite feeling their presence with us all the time there is a huge sense there is something missing.”
While his face and composure give little away in terms of the suffering his family has gone through, Anwar’s words are clear regarding the effect the incident had on himself and his family. “My wife has been badly affected; just yesterday there was an UNRWA crew demolishing the wreckage of one the neighbors’ homes destroyed in the war to make room for its reconstruction.
It reminded Samira of the war and she started to cry.” Anwar himself says he spends a lot of time at the daughters’ graves talking to them about daily life’s small comings and goings. “I miss them all the time; sometimes I even go to look for one of them in the house in the split second before I remember they were killed.”
The family's remaining children have been traumatized. Anwar describes how Iman, twenty, who had a very close relationship with her older sister, Tahrir, and who watched her sister Dina die in her arms following the attack, seems often to be lost in her own thoughts: “sometimes I call her but she cannot even hear me,” says Anwar.
Despite being very intelligent, Iman’s grades have suffered as a result. He also fears that his son, Muhammad, who was recently treated for a shrapnel wound in his foot, suffered during the attack, will grow up wracked by feelings of revenge for the death of his sisters. “He speaks of them constantly,” says Anwar, “he will not forget.” When asked by his father about his sisters,
Muhammad says that “my sisters were murdered by the Israelis; they are in Paradise.”
The three years since the attack have been a period of constant flux and displacement for the family. They have had to move home seven times in the past three years, each time creating a greater sense of instability for the family’s remaining children.
“The children find themselves friendless each time they move,” says Anwar. “My son Muhammad wanders off back to the neighbourhood of his old homes or to the local UNRWA school in search of friends; we can’t find him for hours and when he eventually comes home he says he went to find friends to play with.” They have only recently returned to their rebuilt home that was destroyed during the attack.
Regarding hopes and fears for the future, Anwar has mixed feelings. He is hopeful for the family’s legal case in Israel but he says, “if they bring me all the money in the world they could not compensate me. I want my daughters, not money.” He is ravaged by fear for his children every time there is bombing and fears that he will lose them in the future. “Though this is my home, I am seeking a future outside Gaza; right now I want to leave to make a new life for me and my family.”
PCHR submitted a criminal complaint on behalf of the Balousha Family on 2 August 2009. To date, no response has been received.
http://fwd4.me/0jxR 29 apr 2012, 23:41 , Respect
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29 apr 2012, 23:42 , Respect -
Maria 30 dec 2011
The Hamdan family
Iman and Talal Hamdan standing in front of a picture of their killed children Hiya, Lama and Ismail
“When I wake in the morning the first thing I do is remember my children. I come and sit outside and picture them where they used to play. I don’t want to go out and interact with other people anymore. I largely stay inside the home.”
Talal Hamdan and Iman Hamdan are quietly contemplative about life since the loss of their three children
Haya,
Lama, and
Ismail.
The children were ages twelve, ten, and five. On the morning of 30 December 2008, an Israeli F-16 dropped a bomb in the area they were walking in Beit Hanoun, killing all three. The children were walking with their father to a nearby rubbish site to drop off household waste when Israeli forces targeted the area. The children were the youngest of the couple’s children; they have not had other children since the attack.
Though none of the previous three years have been easy on the couple, for Iman, the hardest period was directly after the attack, when she found herself in deep shock.
“After the death of my children I could not cry; I did not have the space to properly mourn them,” says Iman, “but when I finally became alone, I couldn’t stop my tears.” Iman believes the shock of the incident has greatly increased her physical health problems, which include severe back and leg pain.
“I barely sleep at night, maybe two hours during the day." Her grief is compounded by the experience of losing her father, brother, and two cousins all on the same day during the first intifada.
Talal’s life has also been completely changed since the death of his children. “When I wake in the morning the first thing I do is remember my children. I come and sit outside and picture them where they used to play,” says Talal. “I don’t want to go out and interact with other people anymore. I largely stay inside the home.” Talal had a very close relationship with Ismail: “he would beg me to take him everywhere with me and so I would take him; we were always together.”
Relating to the painful memory of his children, Talal was once sick and needed to go to the hospital. “This particular hospital was the one my children were transferred to before they died. When I walked in, the memory of my three children lying dead next to each other came back to me, and I started to cry. The doctors first thought I was afraid of injections; my family had to explain to them what had taken place, and why I was so upset. In the end I couldn’t stay in the hospital for the treatment.”
Contemplating the approach of the upcoming anniversary, the couple speaks of how they will face it. “On the day of the anniversary I will try to keep myself busy to avoid thinking about it too much,” says Iman, “I don’t visit the graves, I can’t bear it.”
The couple now has young grandchildren living with them, one of whom is named Ismail, after their killed son. “We try our best to make up for our loss with Ismail; we go up and see him and spend time with him every morning,” says Talal.
Before the attack Talal had worked in construction. He tried to return to work after the attack, but nerve damage in his legs and arms, as a result of the attack, have left him unable to continue working. The family now survives on UN food aid, and help from their other two sons.
Regarding the future, the family has hopes and apprehensions. “We are always afraid that an attack will take place again resulting in more deaths in the family. I am always calling my daughters to tell them to take care of themselves and the children,” says Talal. “I hope that peace will prevail and that we will return to calm eventually.
Most of all, I hope that other children are not killed in similar incidents. I can understand when adults are killed during war but I cannot understand when children are killed.” Regarding the family’s legal complaint following the death of their children, Talal is positive. “I expect it to be successful; my children were not militant and there were no military targets in the proximity.”
PCHR submitted a criminal complaint to the Israeli authorities on behalf of the Hamdan Family on 21 July 2009. To date, no response has been received.
http://fwd4.me/0jxT
29 apr 2012, 23:42 , Respect -
Maria 30 dec 2011
Israeli massacre of five Palestinian girls in Gaza remembered by family
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Israeli massacre of five Palestinian girls of the Balousha family (scroll down) in 2008 was remembered by their parents who said that they are still seeking justice to punish the killers of their beloved daughters.
On December, 29, 2008, the second day of the vicious Israeli war on Gaza, an Israeli F-16 war plane dropped a heavy bomb on a local mosque in Jabalya district, north of the Gaza Strip, leveling it to the ground and destroying home of the Balousha family that was located three meters away from the mosque killing five of his daughters under the rubbles.
Jawahir Balousha
Pictures of the five daughters, Tahrir, 18, Ekram, 15, Samar, 13, Dina, 8, and Jawahir, 4, were hanged on the walls of the main room of the house that the family had rebuilt again with the feeling of sorrow and grief still engulfing the family every time they recall what had happened.
"I feel that the house still empty, my five beloved daughters indeed left a big gap in our life, and although I like to always feel that they are present with us, but the fact would remain there and we feel that we lack something precious in our life," the bereaved father, Anwar Balousha, said.
Although equanimity of Anwar and the expressions of his face try to hide the suffering that his family had passed through as a result of the massacre, yet, his words clearly tell of the deep scar the loss of his five daughters had left on him and on his family.
"My wife was deeply affected by the calamity. Indeed she cried too much as she recalled the war when she saw a team of UNRWA workers yesterday removing the rubbles of one of the destroyed homes beside us," Balousha pointed out.
He said that he is spending a lot of his time standing before the graves of his daughters telling them details of his daily life. "I miss them too much, and this makes me return back to the house and search for them, even for a moment, before I realize that they are dead," he added.
Furthermore, Balousha asserted that the massacre of his daughters has affected his eldest daughter and his only son, saying, "My eldest daughter Iman, 20, was brilliant at school before the incident, but now she is always absent minded and her performance at school deteriorated because her sister Dina died between her two arms, and my son Mohammed always searches for new friends to play with ".
Balousha filed a case against the Israeli occupation forces in Israeli courts since the incident without any result so far. He said:" If they (Israelis) give me all the money of this world they will never pay for my daughters. I don’t need the money; I need my five daughters back".
The incident made Balousha and his wife live in fear over the future of their remaining children every time the Israelis carryout a raid on Gaza Strip.
http://fwd4.me/0jOD 29 apr 2012, 23:42 , Respect -
Maria 29 apr 2012, 23:42 , Respect -
Maria 30 dec 2011
Gaza: Family Marks 3 Years After Its Children’s Death By Army Shells
On the night of December 29, 2009, (scroll down) just after Israel launched its deadly, illegal, war on the residents of the Gaza Strip, Israeli war-jets fired missiles at Imad Aqel Mosque in the Jabalia refugee camp, in northern Gaza, also hitting a home wounding the father, and the mother, and killing five of their children.
Anwar Ba’lousha, and his wife Samira, were wounded, while their daughters;
1- Tahrir, 15,
2- Samar, 13,
3- Dina, 8, and
4- Jawaher 4,
were all killed in the deadly blast.
The father said that he and his wife have a new daughter now, named Tahrir after her slain sister, adding that the family is living in overwhelming pain, remembering the slain children, and their once delightful presence.
“They are all dead, but I can still feel their presence around us”, the father said while looking at a family picture on the wall, “This place feels empty, but our hearts are filled with love, and sorrow for their death”.
While his face shows no signs of sadness, trying to maintain an image of a steadfast father, the father said; “My wife is unable to overcome the pain, the loss, just yesterday an UNRWA team was removing the rubble of our neighbor’s home that was shelled and bombarded during the war, and my wife could not help but cry remembering what happened to us, and the family we once had”.
Anwar added that he spends a lot of time near the graves of his daughters, talking to then, and remembering the family he once had, and still loves.
His surviving family members are still suffering the pain, posttraumatic symptoms and nightmares.
A surviving daughter, Eman, 20, had a very strong connection with her sister, Dina, who died in her arms.
“She always seems in distance space, thinking, remembering and unable to clear her mind”, the father stated, “Sometimes I call her name, I try to talk to her, but she won’t be able to hear me”.
He also stated that he now fears that his son, Mohammad, who recently had surgery to remove shell fragmentation from his leg, is overwhelmed with the thoughts of revenge for the death of his sisters.
For three years now, the bereaved family has been moving from one house to the other, but every time they move to a new place, the surviving children find themselves unable to make friends, and feeling more isolated.
“We recently searched for our son, Mohammad, for several hours, and when we found him he said he was looking for friends”, the father stated, “He would walk to areas we lived in, to the UNRWA school, and other areas”.
The family was recently able to return to its home that was once filled with children and happened, and was just rebuilt after years of being destroyed by the deadly Israel missile that practically killed an entire family when an Israeli soldier decided that their home is “an enemy target” and went ahead to bombard it.
Anwar still seems having mixed feelings and fears, he thinks of the future, and also thinks about the court case he lodged in Israeli courts seeking financial compensation, to feed what’s left of his once large, loving family.
“The money of the whole world will never be able to compensate me, I want my daughters back, not money”, he concluded, “But I also want to provide food and shelter for my surviving children, every time Israel bombards Gaza, I become sacred, ‘am always afraid the army will kill the surviving members of my family.
Israel launched a deadly war against the Gaza Strip starting December 27, 2008, and ‘ending’ on January 19, 2009. The army shelled homes, mosques, hospitals, medics, targeted journalists and media facilities, infrastructure and everything the trigger-happy soldiers felt like bombarding, or just obeying higher orders from ruthless commanders.
During the offensive on Gaza, 1419 Palestinians were killed; thousands were wounded, while dozens died of their wounds later on. Thousands were injured, as the army used the illegal White Phosphorous shells, heavy bombs, and pounded every corner of the coastal region from the air, land and sea.
Now, as 2011 is ending, the internationally promised reconstruction of the Gaza Strip remains on paper, and in a cyberspace of vows. Despite claims of easing the deadly siege on Gaza, the coastal region is still surrounded, and essential medical supplies are still missing leading to the death of dozens of patients while other patients could face the same fate due to the lack of medical equipment and supplies.
http://www.imemc.org/article/62747