Israel-Hamas war: Ordinary life suspended in West Bank as Israeli military imposes ‘lockdown’ and families flee | Stuart Ramsay
The sounds of hammering, the deafeningly loud noise of a generator, and the continuous movement of people carrying doors, electrical cables, recovered bricks and even roofs to trucks and trailers.
This was all one needed to know that a family home on the West Bank was being dismantled.
Men shouted instructions to each other, overseen by the matriarchal figure of Sahar El Tell.
Her family have lived here for over 100 years – and this is their last day in their home, on their land.
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For three years they have been harassed and intimidated by a settler family who want them to leave – and they have resisted – but since the Hamas attacks on 7 October, the threats have increased.
Sahar El Tell and her family are leaving the home their family has lived in for over a century
The El Tell family have decided enough is enough.
“They attack us night and day, they beat the women and children who live here, cut the water pipes and electricity cables, they destroyed our neighbour’s car, and sent a drone to intimidate the children and our goats,” Sahar told me.
“They watch us with a drone, the drone was here this morning over our heads, so they can send a message they are watching us.”
They say it all came to a head when the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) issued them with a warning to leave in seven days or “we will destroy your houses on top of your heads”.
It’s not just Sahar and her family leaving.
Men loading a tractor trailer in Zanota
Men packing to leave Zanota
The entire population of the West Bank village of Zanota is moving, even though this land is legally theirs by international law.
Everything they can salvage gets put into trucks and trailers for the journey to a new, equally desolate, place in the Hebron Hills.
Yazan revealed his sadness at having to leave the home his father, grandfather and great-grandfather lived in all their lives
When I meet 17-year-old Yazan he is pulling electrical cables out of a wall and prepping the cables to take to their new home – he isn’t sure where yet.
Yazan told me he was feeling sad, upset, and simply at a loss about leaving the home his father, his grandfather, and great-grandfather lived in all their lives.
But staying is no longer an option.
An empty house with no roof in Zanota
“The settlers have limited our movements, they scared our goats with a drone, they threatened us, and they came at night, shouted at us, and smashed our neighbour’s car – our neighbour has also left,” he told me.
They’re too afraid to stay.
In much of the West Bank, since the war in Gaza started, the military has closed roads to Palestinian towns and villages and aren’t allowing the movement of cars into those towns. The people who live inside have to walk out and catch cabs instead.
The West Bank as a whole is in a sort-of lockdown imposed by the IDF.
I drove through much of this land, designated as occupied by the international community, and was amazed at just how much control the Israeli military now has here.
Israeli soldiers monitor a checkpoint
Ordinary life has been suspended – a suspension overseen by Israeli soldiers patrolling in armoured vehicles, searching cars at checkpoints, monitoring all movement from fortified watchtowers and locking shut huge yellow barriers to Palestinian towns; or dumping great mounds of earth to block roads.
It’s quiet, it’s eery, it’s intimidating and scary – and that’s exactly how it’s designed to be.
As we filmed in front of one of the closed entrances to Hebron, a woman got out of her car to talk to us. She wanted to know where we were from, and what we were doing here.
British-born Israeli Mayzie Avihail also wanted to tell me that Jews have a historical right to live in Hebron, whether it’s legal or not.
British-born Israeli Mayzie Avihail told Stuart Ramsay that Jews have a historical right to live in Hebron
“This is the oldest place in the world that is Jewish, and has been Jewish for 4,800 years, who can tell, can you tell me who you are descended from?” she said to me.
“We are Jews, we’re a tribe, we’re a family, we’re the only ones who can tell you where we are descended from.”
The IDF says it has imposed new restrictions on the West Bank because of increased security concerns.
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Read more:
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But this whole turn of events isn’t just about movement of people and control of security.
What we have seen evidence of is a sudden upsurge in activity by Israeli settlers on the West Bank.
With so much else going on, in effect they’re gambling that the normal limitations on their instinct to take over as much Palestinian land as possible, have been forgotten for the time being – so they’re acting fast.
World
Israel says it will screen October 7 attacks to Greta Thunberg and other activists after Gaza-bound aid boat ‘diverted’
The Israeli military will show Greta Thunberg and other activists footage of the 7 October attacks after a Gaza-bound aid boat was diverted to Israel, the country’s foreign minister has said.
Early on Monday, the Israeli foreign ministry said that the British-flagged yacht Madleen – operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) – “is safely making its way to the shores of Israel”.
All passengers were safe and unharmed, the ministry added, sharing footage of the activists being handed sandwiches and water.
In a statement via his spokesperson, defence minister Israel Katz said that he has instructed the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) to screen footage of the 7 October attacks for those aboard when they arrive at Ashdod Port.
Greta Thunberg was ‘safe and in good spirits’ while en route to Israel, the foreign ministry said. Pic: Israel Foreign Ministry
“Antisemitic Greta and her Hamas-supporting friends should see exactly what the Hamas terrorist organisation – which they came to support and act on behalf of – truly is,” he said.
“They should see the atrocities committed against women, the elderly, and children, and understand whom Israel is fighting to defend itself.”
He then added, “I commend the IDF for its swift and safe takeover” of the vessel, and said the Israeli military “will continue its just and moral fight against the Hamas murderers until their defeat, the release of all hostages, and the full restoration of Israel’s security”.
Ms Thunberg and other activists after their boat was diverted to Israel. Pic: Israel Foreign Ministry
Israel’s foreign ministry said earlier that those aboard the Madleen “are expected to return to their home countries,” and that the humanitarian aid aboard the ship would be transferred to Gaza through established channels.
Ms Thunberg was “safe and in good spirits” while en route to Israel, it added, calling the vessel “the ‘selfie yacht’ of the ‘celebrities'”.
The FFC claimed the passengers on the yacht had been “kidnapped by Israeli forces” and released pre-recorded messages from them after previously saying that the “Israeli army had boarded” the vessel.
Climate campaigner Ms Thunberg, 22, was one of a dozen activists aboard the Madleen, which set sail from Sicily on 1 May on a mission aiming to break Israel’s sea blockade.
Ms Thunberg pictured in a pre-recorded video, released after the Madleen was diverted to Israel. Pic: FFC
The climate campaigner aboard the Madleen on 2 June. Pic: Freedom Flotilla Coalition/Reuters
Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament, who is of Palestinian descent, was also on the boat.
She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israel’s policies towards Palestinians.
Ms Hassan wrote on X as the FFC’s yacht was allegedly surrounded by other vessels: “The crew of the Freedom Flotilla was arrested by the Israeli army in international waters around 2am.”
The diversion of the Madleen came after Mr Katz said that he had instructed the IDF to prevent the vessel from reaching the shore and to “take whatever measures necessary”.
The Madleen was heading for Gaza
Addressing Ms Thunberg and the other activists on Sunday, he said: “You should turn back – because you will not reach Gaza.”
Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month after a three-month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas and preventing the group from importing arms.
But humanitarian workers have warned of famine unless there is an end to the blockade and the 20-month war, which began after a Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, that killed more than 1,200 people.
According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, more than 54,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel’s military campaign.
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Why is Greta sailing to Gaza?
An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group’s vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta.
The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.
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Francesca Albanese, United Nations’ special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, also urged other boats to challenge the Gaza blockade.
She said on social media: “Madleen’s journey may have ended, but the mission isn’t over.
“Every Mediterranean port must send boats with aid & solidarity to Gaza.”
World
Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe Turbay in ‘critical condition’ after attempted assassination – as 15-year-old suspect arrested
A 15 year-old-boy has been arrested after a Colombian senator running to be the country’s next president was shot and “critically” injured at a campaign rally in Bogota, authorities have said.
Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, 39, was targeted during the campaign event in a park in the Fontibon area of the Colombian capital, according to the Attorney General’s office.
He suffered two gunshot wounds when armed assailants shot him from behind and appeared to be bleeding from his head as he was helped by aides and people in the crowd, in a video posted on social media.
According to a medical report at the Santa Fe Foundation hospital, he was admitted there in a “critical condition” and is still undergoing a “neurosurgical and peripheral vascular procedure”.
Opposition senator Miguel Uribe Turbay on 13 May. Pic: AP
His wife Maria Claudia Tarazone wrote on X that he is “fighting for his life” and urged Colombians to pray for him.
She later said he survived an initial operation for the injuries.
Ms Tarazone said: “Miguel came out of surgery, he made it. Every hour is a critical hour. He fought his first battle, and it went well. This will take time.”
The hospital said Mr Uribe Turbay had procedures on his head and his left thigh, and remained in intensive care as doctors try to stabilise his condition.
Two other people were injured in the attack but the nature of their injuries has not been made public.
A suspect, a 15-year-old boy, was arrested at the scene with a firearm and is being treated for a leg injury, police chief General Carlos Triana said.
The government is offering a $730,000 (£540,000) reward for information and President Gustavo Petro said the investigation will focus on who ordered the attack.
“For now there is nothing more than hypothesis,” he said, adding that failures in security protocols would also be looked into.
People gather outside the hospital where Mr Uribe Turbay is ‘fighting for his life’. Pic: Reuters
Mr Uribe Turbay, who announced his presidential bid for the right-wing Democratic Center Party in March, was accompanied by a team of 21 people at the time of the shooting, his office said, including councilman Andres Barrios.
He was hoping to run in the presidential elections taking place on 31 May next year – and succeed Mr Petro, the country’s first leftist leader.
His mother, who was a journalist, was kidnapped and killed in 1991 during one of the most violent periods in Colombia’s history.
Forensic investigators at the scene of Mr Uribe Turbay’s shooting in Bogota. Pic: AP
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His party described it as an “unacceptable act of violence”, while US secretary of state Marco Rubio condemned it in the “strongest possible terms”.
Writing on X, Mr Rubio also urged Colombia’s current president to “dial back the inflammatory rhetoric and protect Colombian officials”.
Police outside the hospital where Mr Uribe Turbay is being treated. Pic: AP
Former Colombian president Alvaro Uribe, who is not related to Mr Uribe Turbay, said the gunman had “attacked the hope of the country, a great husband, son, brother, and a great colleague”.
He cancelled a planned trip to France due to the “seriousness of the events”, his office said in a statement.
Messages of support poured in from elsewhere in Latin America, with Chilean President Gabriel Boric saying: “There is no room or justification for violence in a democracy.”
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa added: “We condemn all forms of violence and intolerance.”
Israel’s defence minister has threatened to “take whatever measures necessary” to stop an aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg from reaching Gaza.
The climate campaigner, 22, is one of a dozen activists aboard the Madleen, which set sail from Sicily last Sunday on a mission aiming to break Israel‘s sea blockade.
The activists have said they plan to reach Gaza‘s territorial waters as early as Sunday to deliver humanitarian aid.
But in a post on X, Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz said he has instructed the IDF to prevent the vessel reaching shore and to “take whatever measures necessary”.
Addressing Thunberg and the other activists, he said: “You should turn back – because you will not reach Gaza.”
He wrote: “I have instructed the IDF to act so that the “Madeleine” hate flotilla does not reach the shores of Gaza – and to take any means necessary to that end.
“To the anti-Semitic Greta and her fellow Hamas propaganda spokespeople, I say clearly: You should turn back – because you will not reach Gaza.
“Israel will act against any attempt to break the blockade or assist terrorist organizations – at sea, in the air and on land.”
Latest known position of the vessel
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Why is Greta sailing to Gaza?
Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament, who is of Palestinian descent, is also on the boat, which is operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition.
She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israel’s policies towards Palestinians.
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Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month after a three-month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas and preventing the group from importing arms.
But humanitarian workers have warned of famine unless there is an end to the blockade and the 20-month war, which was ignited by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 Oct 2023.
An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group’s vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta.
The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.
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