Chroniques d'une photographe,specialiste des droits humains en Palestine et ailleurs, Chronicles of a French photographer, specialist in human rights, in Palestine and elsewhere
Monday, May 30, 2011
Israeli police arrested a 7 year old Palestinian boy / La police israelienne a arrete un enfant palestinien de 7 ans a Silwan, East Jerusalem
Sunday, 29 May, 2011 | 23:37
Silwan, Jerusalem (SILWANIC) --
Special police forces raided the house of 7 year-old Ali Siyam this afternoon and illegaly arrested him, causing injury requiring hospitalization to both his aunt and father.
At 3 PM this afternoon, Israeli police forces raided the Alabasya neighborhood of Silwan in East Jerusalem to arrest 7 years-old Ali Siyam from inside his parents’ house. Despite his young age, which is significantly younger than the age of legal responsibity, the boy was taken for questioning at the Russian Compound police station.
When Siyam’s father and aunt tried to protect the boy from the cops, they were violantly assaulted to a degree that required their evacuation to the Hospital. Siyam’s father, Hammouda, was beaten and maced with pepper-spray inside the house and his aunt, Amal, was struck with a rubber-coated bullet in her thigh. The two are currently at the Hadassa Har Hatzofim hospital.
On arrival to the police station, Siyam was taken in for questioning. The boy’s lawyer, Adv. Lea Tzemel, who was already present at the place was denied entry to the station and access to her client. When she proceeded to try and walk through the gate regardless, she was herself detained.
After being questioned for stone-throwing for a number of hours in the presence of his mother, the boy was eventually released from custody at 8 PM.
see pictures
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Festival in Susiya and some reasons to smile / Festival a Susiya et des raisons pour sourire, South Hebron Hills, 28.05.2011





(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org, Susiya, 28.05.2011
Some reasons to smile on this Saturday and as there are not so many, I thinh they are worth mentionning: first there were theses hundreds of smiles seen during the Susiya Festival and second a big crack in the blockade against the Gaza Strip.
This Saturday the people of Susiya organized a festival - which includes music, dance and exhibitions, to celebrate the one year of their center for creativity and learning.
Hundreds of persons participated to this nice event. The people of Susiya who, with an incredible courage, have been facing for years settlers' attacks and harassment by the Israeli army. Settlers were in sight during the festival but the Israeli army prevented them to come closer. Both groups were probably amazed to see so many people in Susiya. The festival was full of colors and joy. very heart-warming.
On Saturday my thoughts were also with my friends and people of Gaza. The blockade is cracking. The government of Egypt did open the Rafah crossing. Women and men above 40 and children below 18 do not need a special visa. Men between 18 and 40 are still stuck..but I hope that rapidly a system of visa will be put in place. Knowing the extend of the psychological impact of this unjust siege imposed on the people of Gaza for the last 4 years, I cannot really imagine how it must felt for the ones who managed to cross...the waiting list is still enormous but this is a real change. Of course, the blockade is not over. Just a few days ago, some Palestinian fishermen were fired at by the Israeli military navy which is still controlling the sea. Also Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank are still separating and cannot travel (except very rare exceptions) through Erez crossing and Israel.
But yalla, lets not spoil the moment...this Saturday was indeed a good day..and the struggle continues.
------FRANÇAIS-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quelques raisons pour sourire ce samedi et elles sont assez rares pour les souligner: il y a eu ces centaines de sourires vus pendant le Festival Susiya et aussi une large fissure dans le blocus contre la bande de Gaza.
Ce samedi les habitants de Susiya ont organisé un festival - qui incluait musique, danse et expositions, pour célébrer la première année de leur centre pour la créativité et l’éducation.
Des centaines de personnes ont participé à ce bel évènement. Les habitants de Susiya , avec un courage incroyable, font face depuis des années à des attaques des colons ans et au harcèlement par l'armée israélienne. Tous veulent les faire partir mais eux resistent, encore et toujours, en faisant preuve de beaucoup de créativité comme l'installation de panneaux solaires pour pallier au manque de système d’électricité. Au loin, on pouvait voir les colons pendant le festival, mais l'armée israélienne les a empêchés de se rapprocher. Les colons, cette fois, ne vont pas gâcher la fête.Les deux groupes (colons et armée) ont probablement été surpris de voir tant de gens dans Susiya. Le festival était plein de couleurs et de joie très communicative.
Ce samedi mes pensées étaient aussi avec mes amis et avec les Palestiniens de Gaza. Le blocus se fissure sérieusement. Le gouvernement égyptien a ouvert le passage de Rafah! Les femmes et les hommes au dessus de 40 ans et enfants de moins de 18 ans n'ont pas besoin d'un visa spécial. Les hommes entre 18 et 40 sont toujours coincés .. mais j'espère que rapidement un système de visas sera mis en place. En connaissant l'étendue de l'impact psychologique de ce siège injuste imposé à la population de Gaza pendant les 4 dernières années, je ne peux pas vraiment imaginer quelle doit être la joie de ceux qui ont réussi ce samedi a se rendre en Egypte ... la liste d'attente de ceux qui veulent passer la frontiere est encore énorme, mais c'est un véritable changement. Bien entendu, le blocus n'est pas terminé. Juste il y a quelques jours, certains pêcheurs palestiniens ont été pris pour cible et blesses par la marine militaire israélienne qui contrôle encore complètement l'espace maritime. Les Palestiniens de Gaza et la Cisjordanie sont aussi toujours séparés et ne peuvent passer (sauf très rares exceptions ) par le passage d'Erez et Israël.
Mais yalla, ne gâchons pas le moment ... Ce samedi fut une bonne journée..et la lutte continue.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Demonstration against the Wall, Al Ma'sara / Manif contre le Mur, Al Ma'sara, 27.05.2011




(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org, Al Ma'sara, 27.05.2011
As every Friday, the demonstration took place in the village of Al Ma'sara. Soldiers blocked us on the way. When we asked to see the closed military zone order, we did not get any answer apart from a soldier who said with authority: I am the law and this is the line: Don't cross it!". Despite the sun demonstrators made a sit-in in protest, and sang various songs and slogans. A theater game was also played in front of the soldiers.
Comme chaque vendredi, la manifestation a eu lieu dans le village de Al Ma'sara. Les soldats nous ont encore une fois bloqué le chemin vers les terres confisquées du village Lorsque nous avons demandé à voir l'ordre de zone militaire fermée, nous n'avons pas eu de réponse en dehors d'un soldat qui nous a dit avec autorité: "Je suis la loi et c'est la ligne:! Ne la traversez pas!! »
Malgre le soleil, les manifestants ont fait un sit-in en signe de protestation, et ont chanté plusieurs chansons et des slogans. Un jeu de théâtre a également été joué devant des soldats.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Protest against a new Jewish settlement / Manif contre une nouvelle colonie, Ras Al Amud, East Jerusalem, 25.05.2011.





(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org, East Jerusalem, 25.05.2011
Just one day after the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared at the American Congress that Jerusalem will not be divided, several Israeli officials, including Ministers and the speaker of the Knesset attended a ceremony for the new Jewish settlement of Ma'aleh Zeitim, in East Jerusalem's Ras al-Amud neighborhood.
Palestinian, Israeli and international activists organised a protest on the opposite side of the settlement. 2 activists were arrested. While Netanyahu, once again, blamed the Palestinians for stalemate in the pseudo "peace process", Israel continues to build more settlements which are ALL illegal according to international law.
------FRANÇAIS-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Juste un jour après que le Premier ministre israélien Benjamin Netanyahu ait déclaré au Congrès américain que Jérusalem ne sera pas divisée, plusieurs responsables israéliens, y compris certains ministres et le Président de la Knesset ont assisté à une cérémonie pour célébrer la nouvelle colonie juive de Maale Zeitim, a Ras al-Amoud a Jérusalem Est.
Des activistes palestiniens, israéliens et internationaux ont organisé une manifestation sur le côté opposé de la colonie. Deux activistes ont été arrêtés. Bien que Netanyahou, une fois de plus, a blâmé les Palestiniens pour l'impasse dans le pseudo «processus de paix", Israël continue de construire en toute impunité davantage de colonies qui sont toutes illégales selon le droit international.
Monday, May 23, 2011
Kite day in Al Walaja / Jour de cerfs-volants a Al Walaja, 21.05.2011





(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org, Al Walaja, 21.05.2011
300 children from Al Walaja village flew kites that they made and on which they wrote messages and made drawings, Al Walaja, 21.05.2011. The kites were launched in an area threatened by the building of the Wall and close to houses who got new demolitions orders.
300 enfants du village de Al Walaja ont lancé avec fierté et bonheur leurs cerfs-volants qu'ils ont fabriqué eux-memes et sur lequels ils ont écrit des messages et fait des dessins. Les cerfs-volants ont été lancés dans une zone menacée par la construction du Mur et à proximité de maisons qui ont obtenu de nouveaux ordres de démolitions.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Demonstration against Nakba day Crackdown and Obama's speech / manif contre la repression sanglante du 15.05 et contre le discours d'Obama, Qalandia





(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org, Qalandia checkpoint, 20.05.2011
A group of activists demonstrated in Qalandia checkpoint against the bloody crackdown of last week's Nakba Day (15 dead, hundreds of injured including by tank shell in Gaza) and the last speech by Obama who continues to blindly side by Israel at any cost and failed to make the connection between the Arab revolts and the Palestinian legitimate right to protest the occupation. He also failed to condemn Israel use of force against unarmed demonstrators while eloquently condemning the use of force by the Syrian government against demonstrators. Nothing new under the sun, and nothing to be expected...
Un groupe d'activistes ont manifesté au checkpoint de Qalandia contre la répression sanglante du jour de la Nakba de la semaine dernière journée (15 morts, des centaines de blessés, y compris par obus tires de chars à Gaza!) et le dernier discours de Barack Obama qui continue aveuglement a soutenir Israël à tout prix et a omis de faire le lien entre les révoltes arabes et le droit légitime des Palestiniens de protester contre l'occupation. Il a également omis de condamner Israël pour usage de la force disproportionné contre des manifestants désarmés tandis qu il condamnait dans le meme discours avec éloquence l'usage de la force par le gouvernement syrien contre les manifestants. Rien de nouveau sous le soleil,et rien a attendre de ce cote la.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Nakba Day protest in Qalandia refugee camp
Juste pour montrer comment les manifestants ont été attaqués par des jets intenses de gaz lacrimogene (ensuite aussi par des balles en caoutchouc).
(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org
Monday, May 16, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Funerals of Milad Said Ayyash and clashes / Funerailles de Milad Said Ayyash suivi de confrontations, East Jerusalem, 14.05.2011

(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org, East Jerusalem, 14.05.2011
Hundreds of Palestinians participated to the funerals of Milad Said Ayyash, 17 who died on wounds sustained in Friday protests near Silwan, on 15.05.2011.
Milad Said Ayyash was shot with live ammunition which according to witnesses came from a settlement. The funeral procession going from Ras al-Amud to Al Aqsa mosque was attacked by tear gas. After the burial, clashes erupted in Ras al-Amud between Palestinian youth and Israeli anti riot police.
Des centaines de Palestiniens ont participé aux funérailles de Milad Said Ayyash, 17 ans, mort des suites de blessures subies lors de manifestations vendredi près de Silwan, le 15.05.2011.
Milad Said Ayyash a été touché avec des balles réelles qui, selon les témoins, ont été tirées d'une colonie. Le cortège allant de Ras al-Amoud à la mosquée Al Aqsa a été attaqué par des gaz lacrymogènes. Après l'enterrement, des affrontements ont éclaté à Ras al-Amoud entre les jeunes palestiniens et la police anti émeutes israelienne.
Friday, May 13, 2011
Demonstration against the Wall, Al Ma'sara / Manif contre le Mur, Al Ma'sara, 13.05.2011





(c) Anne Paq/Activestills.org, Al Ma'sara, 13.05.2011.
Marking the Naka, Palestinians, Israelis and internationals walked in Al Ma'sara Palestinian village to demonstrate against the Wall and occupation, on 13.05.2011. They were met by Israeli repression and violence. The Israeli soldiers attacked the group by launching tears gas and sound bombs directly at the crowd. The Demonstrators kept coming back and advancing, demanding access to their lands and reasserting their right to protest. They were met with more violence. Two demonstrators were arrested, one Palestinian and one Israeli. The demonstration took place two days before the Nakba day (15.05.2011), where huge protests are planned. The nervousness of the Israeli soldiers was very tangible, the crack down on all Friday demonstrations was very high, including one serious injury in Nabi Saleh - an American suffers serious head injury after being hit by a tear gas canister in the head (see report below).
------FRANÇAIS-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marquant la Naka, un groupe de Palestiniens, Israéliens et internationaux ont marché une nouvelle fois au village palestinien de Al Ma'sara pour manifester contre le Mur et l'occupation,le 13.05.2011. Ils ont été accueillis par la répression et la violence de l’armée israélienne . Les soldats israéliens ont attaqué le groupe en lançant des grenades de gaz lacrymogènes et des bombes sonores directement sur la foule. Les manifestants revenaient sans cesse et ont continué d'avancer, revendiquant l'accès à leurs terres et leur droit de manifester. Ils ont été accueillis avec plus de violence. Deux manifestants, un palestinien et un israélien, ont été arrêtés,. La manifestation a eu lieu deux jours avant le jour de commémoration de la Nakba (15/05/2011), où des manifestations énormes sont prévues . La nervosité des soldats israéliens était très tangible, la répression de toutes les manifestations du vendredi a été très forte, y compris un blessé grave dans Nabi Saleh - un Américain qui a été frappé par une grenade lacrymogène a la tête (voir le rapport ci-dessous ).
+Teen Critically Injured as Israel Cracks Down on Nakba Demos-
by Popular Struggle Coordination Committee
17 year-old was critically injured from live fire in East Jerusalem. An
American protester suffered serious head injury after being hit by a
tear-gas projectile shot directly at him from close range.
Israeli military and police forces responded heavy handedly to
demonstrations commemorating 63 years to the Palestinian Nakba
(catastrophe) of 1948 today all over the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Morad Ayyash, a 17 year old from the Ras el-Amud neighborhood was shot
in the stomach with live ammunition. He has reached the Muqassed
hospital with no pulse and the doctors are now fighting for his life.
Tension also rose in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, where 19
protesters have been injured and 11 were arrested. During the evening
hours, large police forces raided houses in Silwan and carried out
additional arrests.
In the village of Ma'asara, south of Bethlehem, two protesters were
arrested during a peaceful demonstration that was attacked with tear-gas
for no apparent reason. One of those arrested is a member of the
village's popular committee. In Nabi Saleh - a regular target for
military aggression recently - soldiers and Border Police officers
injured no less than 25 protesters, including a Palestinian women in her
50s who was beaten up so badly that her wounds required her removal from
the Salfeet Hospital to the bigger and more advanced Rafidiya Hospital
in Nablus. A 25 year-old American demonstrator suffered a serious head
injury and an Israeli activist was diagnosed with two open fractures in
his hand. Both were injured by tear-gas projectiles shot directly at
them from short range, in violation of the Israeli Army's open fire
regulations. Four protesters were arrested in Nabi Saleh, including two
Palestinian women.
Violence in Nabi Saleh started today after Israeli Border Police
officers took over the village's main junction and tried to disperse the
demonstration while it was still well inside the village, The officers
began charging the peaceful protesters with batons, shooting large
amounts of tear-gas - partly shot directly at the demonstrators - and
carrying out arrests.
The Israeli military and police's violent and hysteric reaction to the
Nakba day demonstrations today is an example to the fact that Israel
cannot conceive handling Palestinian civil resistance to the Occupation
in any means but military means. As September looms, it seems as if
Israel chooses to tread not the path of democracy, but rather that of
neighboring regimes like Egypt and Syria, and shoot at unarmed
demonstrators.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Commemoration March for the Nakba / Marche commemorant la Nakba, Bethlehem, 12.05.2011





Thousands of Palestinians walked in Bethlehem. to commemorate the Nakba and demand the right of return for the millions of Palestinian refugees.
Des milliers de Palestiniens ont participé à une marche à Bethléem pour commémorer la Nakba, , et réclamer le droit au retour pour les millions de réfugiés palestiniens.
Their Independence is our Nakba; Thousands of Palestinians March on Thursday | |
12.05.11 - 19:43 | |
By Munjed Jadou – PNN Editor in Chief- Their Independence is our Nakba. That is the slogan that was chosen for this year protests. In Bethlehem same as West Bank and Gaza Strip main cities; school students, teachers and politicians as well as religious leaders; both Muslims and Christians, marched affirming the right of return to the today’s 4.7 million refugees in and outside Palestine. “Our massage this years that we will return, we will start to implement laws of right of return, we will march to Israeli checkpoints demanding to go home. We are working day and night to achieve our goal, right of Return to the villages we were expelled from in 1948.” Monther Amria, head of the Nakba Committee in Bethlehem told PNN. Today’s protests marked the start of daily actions until May 15, were people will gather in Ramallah, central West Bank, and Gaza City demanding the right of return. Bishop Attallah Hanna from the Orthodox Church reterated Palestinians right to Jerusalem. “We are gathered in the manager square in Bethlehem, as one people, Christians and Muslims to reiterate that we are Palestinians we are Arabs, and we demand our right of return and our right to Jerusalem and that right of return does not decay with time.” Bishop Hanna told PNN. From his part Legislative Council member, Mohamed al-Laham, said in an interview with PNN that the most important characteristic of today’s activity that its shows that Palestinians still demand right of return, which is guaranteed by international laws, led by the United Nations resolution 194. al-Laham stressed that Israel must understand that its military power will not be able to erase the memory of the Nakba and the anniversary of the tragedy. "They can kill and destroy but our people will continue to demand their rights, we call upon the international community to achieve justice for the Palestinian people after 63 years of displacement” al-Laham concluded. In May 15th 1948 Jewish forces who later became Israel’s army destroyed hundreds of Palestinian villages and towns; killing hundreds and expelling an estimated of 700,000 Palestinians from their homes. Now 1.5 million Palestinians still live in Israel, they also had representation in the protests:“Our hope and dream is to achieve the Palestinian Arab state with Jerusalem as its capital.” Mohamed Naf’e from the Communist Party in Israel commented. Earlier this week the Israeli army announced that it well increase deployment of troops in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and borders. This increase was in response to groups on Facebook calling for civil disobedience in the Palestinian territories while in states sharing borders with Israel the organizers asked people to mobilize rallies to the Israeli borders. Head of PNN’s English Department Ghassan Bannoura contributed to this article. |