"In the afternoon of 20 July 2009, the Israeli District Coordinating Office (DCO) delivered stop work orders for nine Palestinian structures around the village of At-Tuwani. While the DCO and Israeli soldiers delivered the stop work orders, Palestinian children and adults gathered in the area, protesting the delivery of the stop work orders."
Related Reports:
AT-TUWANI:Villagers nonviolently resist Israeli military delivery of nine Stop Work orders; Soldiers strike child, arrest adult Source: CPTnet 22 July 2009
[Note: According to the Geneva Conventions, the International Court of Justice in the Hague, and numerous United Nations resolutions, all Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian territories are illegal. Most settlement outposts are considered illegal under Israeli law.]
At-Tuwani, South Hebron Hills, Palestine - In the afternoon of 20 July 2009, Israeli soldiers and representatives from the Israeli District Coordinating Office (DCO) delivered stop work orders for seven Palestinian houses, one cave, and one cistern around the village of At-Tuwani.
Palestinian children and adults gathered around the Israeli authorities. One Palestinian admonished the DCO officers to deliver demolition orders to the illegal buildings in the Israeli outpost of Havat Ma'on, which continues to expand. Palestinian children surrounded each house and chanted loudly to impede the DCO's efforts to leave the orders at each house and make using radio and phones difficult for the DCO and soldiers. In addition, Palestinians sat in front of the military and DCO and prayed together.
While delivering the stop work orders, a member of the DCO struck a small child and an Israeli soldier shoved a Palestinian civilian to the ground. Israeli police arrested a Palestinian man who was protesting the stop work orders and charged him "threatening soldiers."
One of the houses had already been destroyed the night of 16 July (See 20 July CPTnet release, AT-TUWANI: New Palestinian house and olive tree destroyed in the night ) The Palestinian homeowners suspect that Israeli settlers from Ma'on or the Havat Ma'on outpost perpetrated the destruction. The family began rebuilding their home the next day.
The Israeli military often issues a stop work order prior to a demolition order; after which the Israeli military may demolish the structure at any time.
Despite Israeli settler and soldier harassment to discourage the growth of the village of At-Tuwani, Palestinians continue to assert their right to develop and build on their own land.
Photos from the day are available at here.More on At-Tuwani
AT-TUWANI URGENT ACTION: Demand that Quartet pressure Israel to revoke demolition order for electricity pylons
Source: CPTnet
30 July 2009
[Note: According to the Geneva Conventions, the International Court of Justice in the Hague, and numerous United Nations resolutions, all Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) are illegal. Most settlement outposts are considered illegal under Israeli law.]
On Tuesday, 28 July, members of the Israeli District Coordinating Office (DCO)—the branch of the Israeli army that administers civilian affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT)—issued a demolition order for the newly constructed electricity pylons in the South Hebron Hills village of At-Tuwani. These pylons would connect the village to the Palestinian electricity grid in nearby towns.
Tony Blair, special envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East* visited At-Tuwani on March 19, 2009. (See AT-TUWANI: At-Tuwani hosts former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair to address Israeli occupation and violence in the southern West Bank.) During his visit, Blair assured villagers that the DCO had given oral permission for electricity construction work.
On 25 May 2009, the DCO entered the village of At-Tuwani, ordered villagers to halt construction work on new electricity pylons in the village, but produced no written orders (see AT-TUWANI URGENT ACTION: Demand that Israeli occupying forces allow At-Tuwani to bring electricity into their village.)
Saber Hreni, head of the At-Tuwani Village Council, wrote to Blair on 26 May, “We hope that in your role as envoy for the Quartet, you can be of assistance to us in contacting the Israeli government with the hopes of procuring written permission for these projects. We fear without written permission our problems will continue.”
Blair did not respond to concerns of the villagers regarding permission to erect the electricity pylons.
ACTION TO TAKE
Contact the Office of the Quartet and ask them to pressure Israel to revoke the demolition order for the pylons and allow the At-Tuwani villagers access to electricity.
Stefan Szetesi
Private Sector Development Officer
sszetesi [at] quartetrep [dot] org
and
Olivia Otecosky
otecosky [at] quartetrep [dot] org
Telephone: +972 2 633 3333
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The Quartet on the Middle East is the body—consisting of representatives of the United Nations, the United States, the European Union, and Russia—responsible for facilitating peace talks between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartet_on_the_Middle_East.) Tony Blair is currently the special envoy for the Quartet.
Currently At-Tuwani receives only four hours electricity a day, supplied by a diesel generator operated and paid for by the villagers. The Israeli settlement and outposts of Ma’on, Havat Ma’on, and Avigail, located within two km of At-Tuwani, are supplied by electricity from the main Israeli power grid.
Israel, as the occupying power, is responsible for the general welfare of the occupied Palestinian civilian population.* Whilst providing electricity and water to Israeli settlements and outposts in the occupied Palestinian territories, the Israeli authorities fail to supply these basic services to Palestinian towns and villages. In this most recent move, they are now threatening to demolish the villagers’ attempts to improve their living conditions by connecting to the Palestinian electrical grid.
* International Humanitarian law (1907 Hague Regulation and 1949 Fourth Geneva Conventions) obliges the occupying power to ensure the welfare of the occupied population.
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