It takes an image like this to bring home not just how brutal & violent but how putrid & small-minded the Israeli occupation of Palestine is. This little Palestinian boy is sitting in the ruins of a playground that was demolished yesterday by Israeli military bulldozers in the village of Za’tara near Nablus in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military demolished the playground, which was funded by the Belgian Development Agency & built only 11 months ago, because they claim it was constructed without proper permits from Israel.
The treacherous Oslo Accords sectioned the West Bank into three administrative areas, Areas A, B, & C, depending on the measure of Israeli control. This playground is in Area A, which is supposed to be under full civil & security control by the Palestinian Authority. Why does Israel have any say at all about what can & cannot be built on Palestinian territory?
It should be mentioned that media is so damn sloppy that this park could be in Za’tara, a village near Bethlehem (57 km/35 miles away from Nablus) in Area C which Israel claims complete control over & where Israel is bulldozing homes under the pretext of construction without permit. Of course, it’s impossible to distinguish between Areas A, B, & C because the occupation is so ubiquitous & the Oslo Accords such a massive betrayal of Palestinian self-determination.
Build & honor the economic, cultural, & academic boycott of Israel. Buy nothing with barcode beginning 729.
(Photo by Majdi MohammedAP)
The Indian troops responsible for shooting down four unarmed protesters in Handwara, Kashmir yesterday immediately released a video interview of the young girl who was allegedly molested by an Indian soldier. The rumor of that assault is what set off massive protests. In the interview, we who don’t know the language are told she denies an Indian soldier molested her–a denial which has completely disoriented the discussion around the murderous actions of the troops.
You don’t have to be an authority on Indian law as it’s imposed in Kashmir or on police procedurals to say that authorities violated several laws in videoing that interview & releasing it to media within hours of the shootings. There is no evidence of a parent or attorney being present, a legal standard in interviewing a minor. This raises the issue of intimidation & manipulation.
Another issue is that her interview would be evidence in a criminal investigation about if & by whom she was assaulted or threatened. Why was it released to media, except to thwart justice & a proper police investigation?
It would be an enormous relief to confirm she was not assaulted; it would be horrific if four people died because they thought she had been. But it doesn’t change the criminal reality that unarmed protesters were fired on. They believed what may turn out to be a panic because sexual violence is such a part of the Indian occupation of Kashmir.
Without international protest to support justice, the criminal investigation by Indian authorities will be a sham, like always. But this young girl should not be pilloried in media & public opinion. No conclusions can be drawn based on her illegally obtained interview without an independent, open investigation that gets to the bottom of what happened.
Nothing changes the reality that shooting down unarmed protesters is a constant feature of the Indian occupation. May the four victims RIP.
Long live Kashmiri Intifada!
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