Qalandiya - on contemp
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On Contempt
-Contempt for the lives and deaths of Palestinians is shown by the fact that the body of Mohammad Alian, murdered on Yom Kippur Eve at the gate of the Old City of Jerusalem has not yet been delivered to his family.
-Contempt for Palestinians’ bodies is shown by the Israeli army’s response to Palestinians who were present on the occasion when Israeli soldiers mistakenly entered a Palestinian refugee camp in their military vehicle.
The commander of their rescue force said: “The forces made extensive use of crowd dispersal means and their professionalism rescued the soldiers from the refugee camp” (thus the Israeli media).
I am not familiar with rescue procedures nor with the measures they took, but what I was told by a storekeeper on site was that dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded the place, ordered the Palestinians not to go outside the homes and shops, and he – wanting to shut his store and escape – was kicked by a soldier in the leg and abdomen, pushed inside, and a stun grenade was hurled into his shop, causing a client to lose consciousness.
The person who told me about this needed three days to recover from his traumas, both in mind and in body.
-Contempt for Palestinian property is shown by the destruction of businesses and confiscation of all of their contents.
Thus, the fruit shop of Abdallah Tamimi was destroyed after so many years of providing livelihood to his own family and his parents’ – destroyed as if it had never existed.
Like the business of Nafez, a snack bar contained in a truck, a place that operated and was bustling even during the Ramadan fast until it was stolen from its owner. It was the Israeli army from Beit El who did this, Nafez said.
Like the cab drivers’ shed on the southern side of the checkpoint that the Israeli policemen didn’t like, and once every few days or weeks some of them would come and throw away the improvised cardboard shed that protected its frequenters from the sun.
Why? Because no one had a permit. No permit for drivers, no permit for Nafez, and certainly no permit for Abdallah.