On Tuesday, we got some very sad news from the Al Arakib camp. It had been destroyed by the Israeli police. We visited these people last week, and were told that their village was in danger of being destroyed.
Israeli Bedouins who continue to live in their ancestral homes in the Negev Desert are not given permits to build houses and are also often denied access to electricity, water, other needs we would take for granted. We met with the villagers who sat us down to a meal. They were offering us water and tea and coffee and dates. Theirs was a very poor village yet they shared everything they had with us. I remember the kids following Hope, one of our team members and playing with her. They told us they were given until August 15 to leave.
According to Amos and other Jewish activists who were there and news stations like Al Jazeera and BBC, 1500 police moved into the camp at 4 in the morning. Everything was destroyed. The houses, the tents, the meeting place, even the chicken coops were destroyed. Approximately 150 Israeli activists were there to try to stop this action. Three to five people were arrested. According to the BBC, water cannons were used.
I wasn't there during the attack. All I can say is that the people who had us over for tea and offered us everything they had have lost everything.
I can't even begin to describe my outrage and disgust. These people have done absolutely nothing to provoke the Israeli army. There are no Bedouin armed groups or attacks on either Israeli soldiers or civilians. There is no Bedouin Hamas or Islamic Jihad. There are many Bedouins serving in the Israeli army. They are citizens. It means absolutely nothing.
To learn more about this crime, please read http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-10777040
Please pray for the people of Al Arakib as they try rebuilding their lives.
No comments:
Post a Comment