On the legal fatigue of Sheikh Jarrah (and Palestinian cigarettes)

Tonight, one of the settlers came to our tent and was so desperate for a cigarette that he would even accept a Palestinian one. That guy normally claims that there is no place called Palestine, so we noted a slightly positive development.

The struggle of residents, activists and human rights organizations to stop the ethnic cleansing in Palestine is massive and indispensable. The efforts have a strong focus on certain areas in East Jerusalem, including Sheikh Jarrah. The Sheikh Jarrah Solidarity Movement arranges frequented demonstrations every week, an information center was recently inaugurated, and since two years the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) has a tent outside the Al-Kurd family's house from where those nightly reports are written. The reason for this attention is that the Israeli political strategy for East Jerusalem serve the Zionist agenda to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem. According to Peace Now, the geographic and demographic map of Jerusalem will become so Balkanized within 2-3 years

Too quiet

Tonight is quiet in the neighborhood of 28 houses' in Sheikh Jarrah - the 28 houses that the Zionists need to connect the major illegal settlements of East Jerusalem, thereby annexing the old city from the West Bank. Just one of the settlers came out to ask us if we love Jews and then he went inside the house again that they occupy from the Al-Kurd family. It is not always like this. We run through the journal of the last two months nightshifts in the tent outside the house of Al-Kurd's:

21 October
The occupants threw water at us 8 times, spat us in the face and threw stones in our direction. Most was documented by our video camera.

22 October
Verbal insults.

30 days' ultimatum

In the beginning of January, all of this might be over. A series of Kafkaesque trials reaching over the last thirty years might eventually succeed in evicting the Al-Kurd family and set the table for the Zionist agenda. This article describes how the Al-Kurd family within 30 days either has to agree with Zionist lies of Jewish ownership and pay rent retroactively for numerous years back, or risk being evicted.

Sheikh Jarrah: Al Kurd family faces 30 day deadline

Moonlight in Sheikh Jarrah

A dog is barking and the moon is full. The Palestinian family is hopefully asleep but the settlers who occupy parts of their house still show signs of being awake. It's getting cold in the tent so we're glad that we have a fire to warm our frozen hands over.

This is the video of the night and it's made right here in this house:

In a better world, the settlers would say things like "sorry for occupying your house, we will move out already tonight", or "Palestinians also have human rights", or "what about taking away this ugly separation wall". But instead, they're spitting us in the face, throwing water at us and calling us by ugly names.

tisbaH ala-kheir.