December 10, 2002

Unrighteous Acts

[Bethlehem, West Bank] A lifting of curfew was announced today -- 10am to 4pm. Sounded good. I needed to get some cash, pay my phone bill, grab some food, and go to JZ's. JZ invited me over to Beit Jala to spend the next session of curfew, and I was excited about that. Since my last curfew break involved being chased down by an APC when I left early, this time I decided to wait a while, give soldiers (and tanks) a chance to leave, give neighbors a chance to shop, and maybe the traffic would thin if I left a bit later.

But when I left it was the normal curfew break pandemonium. A curfew break can be an incredibly stressful ordeal. People everywhere trying to get somewhere else. Crowded streets, crowded markets. Everyone anxious and in a hurry. Today it was worsened since it was raining steadily. Traffic jammed everywhere. It was a really messy day. I was barely out when I noticed a few Israeli jeeps. I found it very unusual that they would be in the streets with normal traffic. Their lights were flashing and they were announcing that curfew was in effect again! They were imposing curfew three hours early. Everyone was out, expecting to have three additional (but brief) hours to finish their tasks, yet this was taken away. (You might not think that three hours outside means very much, but stay locked in your home for a couple of weeks, and then tell me how three hours out feels.) I couldn't believe it.

Discouraged, confused and angry, I made my way home. My apartment is near a van stop where villagers can catch a ride out of Bethlehem. Today there dozens of Palestinians waiting for a ride when two Israeli jeeps showed up. It was especially busy, since everyone was forced to leave Bethlehem en masse. The street was crowded with people -- old men and women, children, folks of all ages -- when the jeeps stopped. The people were just standing there waiting for a ride home. Doing nothing but trying to do what they were told to do. The jeeps made several announcements, then a soldier got out of the lead jeep -- and as I said to myself that this shouldn't be happening -- he threw a sound grenade into the middle of the crowd of people waiting for the bus. They were waiting for the bus home! So today was another typical day for Palestinians. They had curfew imposed unexpectedly, and then they were punished for not getting out of town fast enough. Unrighteous acts on the world's International Day of Human Rights.

Movie: Jeeps stop. "Go home now", "There is curfew"
Right-click on the photo, and select "save target as" to download the movie.
The file (3.9Mb mpg file) is rather large and the quality is low, but you can make out the soldier in the lead jeep throwing the sound grenade, and of course there is the noise of the blast. The people on the opposite side of the soldier run away.

This was the area the soldier was targeting.
People are just starting to come back onto the street.