May 25th, 2008
Members of the Combatants for Peace organization vowed Saturday to continue their battle against West Bank roadblocks, despite the arrest of five of the group activists.
One of those detained was refusenik Yonatan Shapira, a former Israel Air Force pilot, who was released after eight hours of questioning. "We won't be stopped, not by police officers, not by settlers and not by politicians. This is our future. If we fail to act, we won't survive," he told Ynet upon leaving the Hebron police station.
The police detained the Combatants for Peace activists after they took part in a demonstration calling for the removal of dirt roadblocks around the village of Samoa in South Mount Hebron.
Moshe Pesach, the Israeli coordinator of Combatants for Peace, told Ynet about the incident.
"We arrived at one of the roadblocks near the village of Samoa. We were about 30 Israeli activists and 100 Palestinians and we began removing an obstruction without using violence. We evacuated the road for some time before large army forces, and mainly Yasam (Israel Police special patrol unit) and Border Guard officers, who asked us to leave the area.
"Before we managed to leave, the police came in and acted violently. Policemen shoved us and threatened to beat us up and arrest us. They eventually detained three Israeli activists for questioning, claiming that we obstructed the work of an officer in the line of duty."
The Combatants for Peace organization is comprised of Palestinians and Israelis who were actively involved in the cycle of violence in the region and decided to lay down their weapons and turn from fighters in war to combatants for peace.
According to Shapira, who has been a member of the organization since its foundation in 2005, "If there is one thing that gives us hope in this area it's the joint activity between Israelis and Palestinians committed to reconciliation."
Adva Naftali
Published:
05.25.08, 08:30 / Israel News
One of those detained was refusenik Yonatan Shapira, a former Israel Air Force pilot, who was released after eight hours of questioning. "We won't be stopped, not by police officers, not by settlers and not by politicians. This is our future. If we fail to act, we won't survive," he told Ynet upon leaving the Hebron police station.
The police detained the Combatants for Peace activists after they took part in a demonstration calling for the removal of dirt roadblocks around the village of Samoa in South Mount Hebron.
Moshe Pesach, the Israeli coordinator of Combatants for Peace, told Ynet about the incident.
"We arrived at one of the roadblocks near the village of Samoa. We were about 30 Israeli activists and 100 Palestinians and we began removing an obstruction without using violence. We evacuated the road for some time before large army forces, and mainly Yasam (Israel Police special patrol unit) and Border Guard officers, who asked us to leave the area.
"Before we managed to leave, the police came in and acted violently. Policemen shoved us and threatened to beat us up and arrest us. They eventually detained three Israeli activists for questioning, claiming that we obstructed the work of an officer in the line of duty."
The Combatants for Peace organization is comprised of Palestinians and Israelis who were actively involved in the cycle of violence in the region and decided to lay down their weapons and turn from fighters in war to combatants for peace.
According to Shapira, who has been a member of the organization since its foundation in 2005, "If there is one thing that gives us hope in this area it's the joint activity between Israelis and Palestinians committed to reconciliation."
Adva Naftali
Published:
05.25.08, 08:30 / Israel News
Title quote by Groucho Marx (1980-1977).
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Once and once again... is not twice.
AOJ
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