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PHRMG Hotline Update 5/2001

Jerusalem, 18 November 2001

 Focus on Hebron  

Although incidents of settler violence occur throughout the Occupied Territories, certain hotspots are easily identified. Based on the volume of complaints received by the PHRMG Hotline, the most violent is undoubtedly Hebron.

 The city of Hebron is blessed and cursed by the presence of the Tomb of Abraham, the patriarch of both Judaism and Islam. Tension between the two communities is well established, and in 1929, Palestinians expelled a small Jewish community from the city. Following the Israeli occupation of the West Bank in 1967, a small nationalist group returned to Hebron, established the settlement of Kiryat Arba near the entrance of the city and occupied two other sites in the heart of the largely Palestinian city. Today, approximately 40,000 Palestinians live in the city of Hebron alongside 400 Israeli settlers who are protected by 1,200 Israeli soldiers.

 Relations between the conservative Palestinians of Hebron and the fiercely nationalistic Jewish settlers living under the protection of the Israeli army have been characterized by provocations and frequent outbursts of violence. In 1994, Baruch Goldstein, a settler from Kiryat Arba, entered the mosque at the Tomb of the Patriarch and murdered 29 Palestinians before he himself was killed.  This massacre drew international attention to the extreme politics of the Hebron settlers, many of them of American origin and suspected of being members of the outlawed Kach movement, which calls for “Death to Arabs.”  Goldstein’s funeral was attended by at least a thousand mourners and Rabbi Israel Ariel eulogized Goldstein, calling him a “holy martyr.”  A shrine built by the Kiryat Arba municipality on Goldstein’s tomb has become a place of pilgrimage.     

 A large number of cases reported to the PHRMG Hotline have been complaints of settler violence in Hebron.  At approximately 3:30am on 16 July, five settlers broke into the home of Mohammed Abu Eisheh and beat him severely.  He was able to positively identify three of the perpetrators as Baruch Marzel, Sharon Alkoni, and Benyahin Ben Yitzhak.  Despite the presence of an Israeli military post only three meters from the house, no one intervened.  Abu Eisheh attempted to file a complaint the following day at the Kiryat Arba Police Station, located within the settlement (a major deterrent to Palestinians wishing to file a complaint, as they expose themselves to further harassment and violent attacks in entering the settlement.)    After one unsuccessful trip to the Kiryat Arba Police Station, Abu Eisheh was called back to file an official complaint on 18 July.  Since that time, no action has been taken by the police.  PHRMG is contacting Salim Bader, the officer assigned to this case, to follow up on what action is being taken. 

 In several cases, the police in the Hebron area have responded appropriately to settler attacks, conducting initial investigations and apprehending suspects.  On 12 July, a notoriously violent woman attacked 12-year-old Ahmed al-Khatib, causing head injuries that required hospitalization (detailed in Hotline Update 4/2000.)  The Kiryat Arba Police responded to this attack, taking the boy’s testimony and photographing his wounds.  Another case (detailed in Hotline Update 3/2000) is that of Abdallah Ibrahim Sultan, a 75-year-old man who was beaten by a settler in Hebron on 24 October.  He filed a complaint with the police and was contacted the next day to identify his attacker.  The police have indicated that they intend to prosecute the settler.  PHRMG is pursuing both of these matters with the individual investigating officers to ensure further action. 

 We are encouraged to see that the police in the Hebron area have begun to investigate and respond to settler attacks and hope to see this trend continue.  Several other settlers from the Hebron area have been arrested recently for attacks on Palestinians.  On 13 November Oren Davis of Kiryat Arba was arrested for suspected involvement in the arson and looting of shops in Hebron during riots following the death of an Israeli infant in April.   

 A growing number of Palestinians in the Hebron area are reporting incidents of settler violence and there seems to be an increase in police response.  We believe that this trend can be attributed, in part, to the extensive outreach activities conducted by the PHRMG Hotline in the Hebron area and hope to see it continue.  We have distributed numerous leaflets in Hebron advertising the Hotline, and providing residents with information on how to file an official complaint.       

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