[IMC-NYC] Fw: Palestine News: Israel Orders Foreigners Out

[ANNE M VENESKY]

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From: "WORLD VIEW" <nrr3mnsn@hotmail.com>
To: <nrr3mnsn@hotmail.com>
Sent: Monday, April 01, 2002 5:39 AM
Subject: Palestine News: Israel Orders Foreigners Out


Israel Declares Ramallah Closed Military Zone, Orders Foreigners Out

Xinhuanet 2002-04-01

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-04/01/content_338794.htm

JERUSALEM, March 31 (Xinhuanet) -- The Israeli Government Press Office (GPO)
announced on Sunday that the West Bank city of Ramallah has been declared as
a "closed military zone" and that no foreign citizens, including those from
the media, are allowed to enter the area.

"Anyone found in the closed zone, henceforth, will be removed. Members of
the media are advised that their presence in the closed zone is at their own
risk," said the GPO in a statement.

The statement also said that foreign press offices employing Palestinians
who work within Israel but lack proper entry and work permits are violating
Israeli law and will be subject to fines and other sanctions in line with
Israeli labor laws.

GPO director Danny Seaman warned that any Palestinian found without the
proper permits will face arrest, and bureaus will face consequences,
including a fine of 70,000 shekels (about 15,020 U.S.dollars).

In response, the Foreign Press Association issued a statement to protest the
Israeli position.

"The media must be allowed to cover this major story. We call upon the
Israeli government to allow free and independent coverage of the operation
in (Palestinians) areas," said the statement.

_________________________________
http://www.iap.org E-mails: iapinfo@iap.org OR iapinfo@yahoo.com
______________________________________________________________________
From: Huwaida Arraf <huwaidaa@yahoo.com>
Date: Sun, 31 Mar 2002 03:15:14 -0800 (PST)

Update: Ramallah
- Volunteer medic Netta Golan is riding with ambulances in the Ramallah
Tahta (lower) area. She helped retrieve the two bodies that
international civilians saw brought into Ramallah hospital earlier. She
says that there are two more bodies that they cannot get to.
- She observed soldiers conducting house to house searches and for people
who did not open their doors they were broken down
and she saw soldiers entering firing upon Palestinian civilians.
- Soldiers are holding Palestinian men on their knees and an Arab source
(who must remain unidentified) says that the men are
being divided into two groups: one group to be arrested and one group that
is being summarily executed.

Update: Bethleham

Our mayor has just announced that we expect invasion within the next hour.

12 to 15 APC's and tanks are now at the Bethlehem checkpoint and one
busload of soldiers. The soldiers are not allowing press to
enter at gunpoint.

check http://jerusalem.indymedia.org for updates and details

For more information contact:
Witnesses on the ground in Ramallah:
Arabic / English - Huwaida 972 2 052 642 709
French - Claude 972 2 055 559 145
There are German and Italian speakers available as well
Witnesses on the ground in Bethlehem:
(for international dialing drop the 0 before the phone number)
English - Heather 00 972 (0) 67 270 398
English - Georgina 00 972 (0) 55 840 767
Arabic/English - Bilal 00 972 (0) 52 814 992
Italian - Francesca 00 39 3389 77 3899
There are French and Swedish speakers available as
______________________________________________________________________
Hear Palestine News Summary

Compiled by Hear Palestine - Sunday, 31 March 2002

Official Palestinian sources are reporting that as many as 30
Palestinians may have been executed in the area near to the Daraghmeh
building on Irsal street. Precise information on what took place is
unclear, as access to the area has been completely prevented.
Additionally, there are fears that similar massacres have taken place
throughout the city, though residents are fearful that this might
only be the beginning.

Following are reports of what has taken place since the invasion of
Ramallah began at 3:00 am on 28 March. Please note that under the
circumstances, it has been extremely difficult to collect information
and as such the following report is the minimal information that Hear
Palestine has been able to confirm.

Additionally, it is important to point out that Israel seems poised
to invade and occupy all remaining Palestinian cities. Major military
concentrations have been reported surrounding Nablus, Bethlehem (Beit
Jala is already occupied), Qalqiliya (invasion already beginning and
electricity has been cut off), Hebron, Jenin and Tulkarem. At the
beginning of the invasion of Ramalllah, Sharon declared that an
additional 20,000 reserve soldiers would be called up for duty to
participate in Israel's war on the Palestinian people.

Ongoing Israeli Military Occupation of Ramallah
-----------------------------------------------

On 28 March 2002, the Israeli occupation army waged an unprecedented
military attack in most Palestinian cities, villages and refugee
camps, while carrying out raids and wide-scale collective arrests
within a campaign of terror, barbarism and humiliation directed at
the morale and determination of the Palestinian people.

In Ramallah and al-Bireh, Israeli occupation soldiers carried out
wide-scale demolitions and destruction of official Palestinian
institutions and property in the surroundings of President Arafat's
office, which has been subjected to continuous military attacks since
the invasion of Ramallah.

Other residential buildings, official Palestinian institutions and
media offices have been attacked, homes occupied and a large number
of Palestinians arrested. Israeli tanks spread throughout the city,
isolating its residential quarters from one another and preventing
all movement.

Electricity and water have been cut off in most areas in Ramallah,
confining the civilian population to their homes.

At time of publication, it is difficult to obtain an accurate number
of casualties due to the inability of ambulances to move.

Two security officers from President Arafat's personal guards were
killed in an attack on the compound yesterday, while a number of
others were wounded. Buildings and a large number of cars in the
compound were destroyed. Another two Palestinians were injured this
morning, one critically, during an attack that targeted President
Arafat's office directly. Ambulances have been prevented from
rescuing them.

Additionally Israeli occupation forces have executed 9 Palestinian
security force members since yesterday.

Attacks on President Arafat's office
------------------------------------

A large number of tanks and over 700 Israeli soldiers surround
President Arafat's personal office, while armored bulldozers continue
to demolish buildings in the compound.

A large number of occupation forces are based in surrounding
residential buildings including the wide dispersion of snipers.

The Israeli occupation forces, which have de facto taken President
Arafat hostage beneath the cover of "isolating" him, are feigning
attacks on President Arafat's office while incrementally getting
physically closer to the two remaining rooms where Arafat is located.
Confrontations intermittently break out between the few Palestinian
fighters in the office and the invading forces.

Israeli forces invaded and occupied the headquarters of Ramallah's
Mayor Abu Firas adjacent to President Arafat's office then demolished
a wall leading to one of the rooms of the President's office.

Israeli forces also attacked the office with heavy machine gun fire,
while continuing to besiege it with army tanks, heavy armored
machinery and a large number of soldiers.

US made Israeli Apache helicopters continued to circle above
Ramallah's skies throughout the morning, while more military
reinforcements were reported approaching the city from the direction
of the village of Rafat.

Occupation forces also fired an unknown gas inside President Arafat's
office.

Yesterday evening, Israeli occupation forces based in President
Arafat's compound warned through loud speakers that they would invade
Arafat's office within the coming hour to "arrest whoever they
please".

A Palestinian source reported earlier that an Israeli army official
informed the Mayor of Ramallah Mustapha Issa Abu Firas by telephone
that the Israeli army will invade President Yasser Arafat's office in
less than an hour to arrest a number of "wanted people" and would
open fire at anyone who attempts to resist.

President Arafat had declared earlier that he would resist any
attempt to invade the office and would refuse to negotiate with the
besieging Israeli soldiers.

Earlier in the day, Arafat called on the international community to
put an end to Israeli brutality against the Palestinian people in a
message through an international solidarity team that managed to
enter his office and portray his message to the world.

Arafat praised Palestinian determination in the face of Israeli
racism and terrorism using all sorts of American weapons to carry out
aggression against the Palestinians.

Arafat told his people, "Together until a Palestinian child raises
the Palestinian flag over Jerusalem's walls, mosques and churches."

At 9:00 pm (30 March), the Israeli army waged a continuous heavy
military attack on buildings inside the compound. The shelling
targeted General Intelligence and Military Intelligence buildings
within the compound.

Military reinforcements are continuously being brought into the
location and its surroundings.

Two security officers were killed in the compound in yesterday's
military attacks, after being wounded and left to bleed to death.
These are:

-      Ahmad Kallab, President Arafat's guard
-      Shaher Abu Sharar, President Arafat's guard

Armored bulldozers continue to demolish all the buildings in the
compound apart from the building in which President Arafat is
present, while snipers point their guns at Arafat's office.

At 12:30 in the afternoon yesterday, Israeli occupation soldiers
besieged the Preventive Security headquarters in Betounya using seven
tanks, an armored bulldozer and three Apache helicopters.

Later in the day, Hussein al-Ashqar, 27 years old, from Qalqilya, was
shot dead by Israeli soldiers.

Collective Arrests - Collective Executions
------------------------------------------

Invading Israeli soldiers have arrested at least 200 civilians since
yesterday though precise figures are expected to be much higher.

Occupation soldiers announced through loudspeakers that Palestinian
inhabitants aged between 15 and 60 must come out of their homes and
collect in given gathering locations (usually school yards and public
spaces). Many of these people are later arrested them beneath
humiliating conditions including the use of blind folds, plastic
handcuffs and no warm clothing provided in the cold weather.

There have been reports that PA police and security members have been
separated from other detainees and are being concentrated in separate
locations. There are widespread fears that collective summary
execution of these detainees could be taking place, akin to the
collective massacre that took place in the Taboun building yesterday
where five Palestinian security officers were found dead. Israeli
occupation soldiers had taken over the building earlier and executed
the five security officers. All five appear to have been shot in the
head from short range while on their knees as signs of blood on the
walls reveal. These are:

-      Khaled Awadallah, 32 years old, from Jericho
-      Ismail Lib, 56 years old, from Deir Ghassan
-      Sa'id Mahdi, 60 years old, from Gaza
-      Abdelrahman Abdallah, 58 years old, from Nablus
-      Omar Moussa, 54 years old, from Jericho

Additionally, four PA police officers had been shot and left to bleed
to death in the Islamic Club in old Ramallah. The identity of those
killed remains unknown.

Attack on al-Natsha building, central Ramallah
----------------------------------------------

At dawn yesterday Israeli occupation forces invaded al-Natsha
building in the center of Ramallah. Several civilian and political
institutions are present in the building.  Occupation forces opened
heavy machine gun fire and fired gas bombs.

Dozens of people in the building were wounded as a result, some
critically. Israeli occupation military forces arrested over 30
people present in the building, among them Sakher Habash, a member of
Fateh Central Committee.

Attacks on Hospitals and Medical Teams
--------------------------------------

Israeli invading soldiers this morning held one ambulance while
attempting to rescue some of the injured and arrested the medics and
driver after opening machine gun fire at the ambulance.

Israeli occupation forces have consistently prevented ambulances from
movement. The army has confiscated 7 ambulances and 10 emergency
medical team members have also been arrested. Their present location
is unknown. Several people have been injured in various areas of
Ramallah, especially in the area near to the Arab Bank, Qadoura
refugee camp, Um al-Sharayit and Old Ramallah areas, however
ambulances are unable to reach them and thus it is difficult to
estimate their number.

Al-Ri'aya Children's hospital was raided by a large number of
occupation forces yesterday using police dogs in their raid.

Additionally, Ramallah hospital was raided today and several of its
medical personnel arrested.

A women's medical center on Irsal street was also subject to machine
gun fire. Medical personnel inside the hospital reported to Al Jazira
that at least two PA Security members were killed near the hospital
and that medical personnel have been unable to attend to them because
they are consistently shot upon when they approach the bodies.

Attacks on Media Institutions
-----------------------------

Al-Jazira and Abu Dhabi satellite station buildings were raided by
Israeli occupation forces today.

Israeli occupation soldiers raided and confiscated a number of local
Palestinian television channels, namely al-Watan, and forced those
inside the buildings to leave under the threat of weapons. Occupation
forces then broadcasted pornographic movies.

Israeli soldiers yesterday kicked out of Ramallah city a large number
of foreign and Arab journalists.  Israeli forces aggressively raided
a media building (Imarat al-Ighatha al-Zira'ya) and kicked out all
the journalists present inside the building. Several media offices
belonging to various media channels have offices in the building.

It has also been reported that an American cameraman was shot and
injured today. Yesterday, a cameraman for the Egyptian Nile satellite
station was also shot in the neck and is in critical condition.

In recent hours, Israeli military forces have declared Ramallah a
closed military zone and demanded that all foreign journalists leave
the city.

Buildings Set on Fire
---------------------

Invading Israeli soldiers attacked and set fire to the four-story
Chamber of Commerce building, while preventing the fire brigades and
ambulances from reaching the location.

Al Asra' building, where a number of local Non-Governmental
Organizations and Human Rights groups have their offices was also set
on fire yesterday.

Military Attacks on Old Ramallah
--------------------------------

Israeli occupation forces waged attacks on residential areas this
morning in the Old Ramallah and Muntazah neighborhoods, inflicting
severe material damage. House to house raids and arrests were made in
the area and wide material damage was reported.

There have been reports of injuries but no exact numbers were known
due to the inability of movement and lack of communications.

Theft
-----

Increased reports are emerging of Israeli occupation forces breaking
into supermarkets and stealing products, which are then taken into
armored personnel carriers, presumably to be fed to the invading
Israeli army.

Witnesses have also reported Israeli occupation forces stealing at
least 12 cars in Ramallah.

Cutting off electricity and water
---------------------------------

Israeli occupation soldiers since yesterday cut off electricity and
water from the city, including President Arafat's office where
telephone lines were also cut off.

Ramallah city has been transformed into a war zone. Streets and basic
infrastructure have been veritably destroyed while occupation tanks
roam the deserted streets and snipers have overtaken strategic
buildings throughout the city opening fire at anything that moves.

Given that this is the third day of the Israeli invasion, one must
presume that basic necessities are beginning to run out, if they have
not run out already.

----------------------------------

Hear Palestine is a free press service offering daily mailings from the
occupied Palestinian territories. Material is analysed and compiled from the
Arabic press, radio and television transmissions, and direct interviews by
Karma Abu-Sharif. E-mail - briefing@hearpalestine.org








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