> > Adila Laida - Khalil Sakakini Cultural Centre
> > Ramallah
> > 31 March 2002
> >
> >
> > Dear All,
> >
> > I am the director of the Khalil Sakakini Cultural
> > Centre in Ramallah (Http://www.sakakini.org). As I
> > am  under siege at home, i am sending out this email to
> > journalist friends, & others, to ask to please get
> > our  message out & disseminated further.
> >
> > I hope this message will not become morbid fodder
> > for chain emails to draw pity, or prayers, or donations,
> > but rather actions. We are doing our bit by
> > resisting  & or standing steadfast, & ask the world to please
> > do  its bit in the name of our common humanity, each
> > according to his her/own capacity. We do not want to
> > become the red indians of the Arab world, but simply
> > want to live free, in peace & dignity on this land.
> >
> > I will start by a few paragraphs' overview of the
> > situation "live" as i see it, & follow it with 9
> > suggestions of what we would please like to see
> > happen  in the media & elsewhere in the outside world.
> >
> > Firstly tonight -Sunday- we have heard numerous
> > reports of 30 Palestinian policemen executed in cold
> > blood by Israeli soldiers in a building where they
> > sought refuge on Irssal street in Ramallah. This was
> > after 5 Palestinian officers were executed by being
> > shot to the head & then had their corpses thrown on
> > the pavement for hours on Friday. Ambulances are
> > prevented from reaching their destinations & 2
> > hospitals have either been broken into (Arabcare) or
> > shot at (Nazer Maternity Hospital). If this
> > continues,  it will be another Chechnya or Sarajevo in the
> > making.
> >
> > Personally, I have been shut at home since Friday
> > morning, like all the tens of thousands of
> > inhabitants  of Ramallah & El-Bireh, & no prospect of an end
> > soon.
> >
> > We did not have electricity for one day, but thank
> > God  it got reestablished today Sunday.
> > One of the employees of the Sakakini Center had the
> > Israeli army burst into his village (Kobar)
> > yesterday,  destroy belongings & arrest his younger brother,
> > alongside 30 other young men from the village.
> >
> > The cleaning lady of the Center lives in a house
> > with  an outhouse for toilets. For 3 days the Israelis
> > have  been posted by the door to her house & preventing
> > all  exit. When the eldest today sneaked out to the
> > outhouse, the Israelis caught him & beat him. His
> > school teacher father tried to intervene, the
> > Israelis  beat him & arrested him.
> >
> > One of the board members of our center was arrested
> > with all the employees of the office building where
> > he  was working late Thursday night. They were all
> > blindfolded & had their hands tied & placed in one
> > room for 16 hours. The Israelis destroyed some
> > office  furniture & stole hard drives from computers. They
> > all  untied themselves once they realized the Israelis
> > had  gone on to bigger prey..
> >
> > My brother in law & his wife & their 3 under-10 year
> > old kids are without phone & electricity since
> > Friday & cannot go live w/ someone else as they would be
> > shot  at.
> >
> > My next door neighbor's 70+ year old father lives
> > near Yasser Arafat's office. The Israelis broke into
> > his home Friday, broke everything w/ the butt of
> > their  rifles (TV, sinks, furniture, etc.. ) & then stole
> > some money.
> >
> > There are reports also of Israeli soldiers breaking
> > into banks & change offices & jewelery stores &
> > stealing money & jewelry.
> >
> > In El Bireh, they arrested Saturday 150 young men
> > between 16-45 years of age after calling out for men
> > of this age bracket to get out, they are grouping
> > them  in Ramallah's Old City.
> >
> > The only local private TV station in town that used
> > to  air hourly news & advice (Watan TV) has been seized
> > by  the Israelis on Friday, & they are now airing
> > pornographic films. Journalists have been ordered
> > out  of Ramallah today Sunday.
> >
> > All neighborhoods are abuzz with talk of who is next
> > in Israeli home incursions. As for me & many others,
> > there is the human instinct of crying out for help
> > when in danger.
> >
> > What we have done: With our means we have made phone
> > calls to appeal for help & pressure on the
> > international community to a number of high level
> > officials in a number of neigboring countries, as
> > well  as sent appeals to the media like this one.
> >
> > Below are 9 modest &/or utopic suggestions &
> > requests:
> >
> > 1- This is a long siege please keep the pressure to
> > have our story told & appeals for action continuous.
> >
> > 2- The Centre's admin.& finance director, Ms. Manal
> > Issa has collected about 10 testimonies by children
> > around her describing conditions under siege as well
> > as drawings she has scanned. These testimonies in
> > Arabic can be obtained directly from her at:
> > [log in to unmask] I will translate them tomorrow
> > to  englsih & have them available. I am also asking that
> > anybody who gets this email directly or forwarded,
> > ask  us for copies of these testimonies to have them
> > published as widely as possible.
> >
> > 3- Please ask for pressure on the international
> > community & decision makers to lift the siege on us.
> > We need tens & hundreds of letters daily to:
> > [log in to unmask] & vice.president@white
> > house.gov
> >
> > 4- If you do not want that, please write mainstream
> > news organizations in the US about the siege.
> >
> > 5- We need daily demonstrations in front of Israeli
> > embassies.
> >
> > 6- We need appeals from Arab artists to western
> > European artists for concerts/demonstrations/appeals
> > to decision makers to lift the siege.
> >
> > 7- We need action by Western/European artists for
> > events to ask for the siege to be lifted on us.
> >
> > 8- If you work for a publication, please keep a
> > section for daily news or weekly news from the
> > siege, interviews with witnesses to repression/the siege,
> > children's testimonies, & information from
> > hospitals.
> >
> > 9-The disastrous health picture can be obtained by
> > calling the Ramallah Hospital & talking to its
> > director Dr. Atari or to the Deputy minister of
> > health who is stationed there Dr. Munther Sharif
> > (972 2 2 298 2220).
> >
> > 10- Please give us your suggestions for action & for
> > what you need from us to better help us.
> >
> > Thank you to the Muharraq Club, Bahrein TV, &
> > Dubai's  Nadwat al Thaqafa for hearing us already..
> >
> > Thank you all & we all look forward to hearing from
> > you soon,
> > Adila Laidi.


_________________________________________________________________
MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos:
http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx
------- End of forwarded message -------


Dr. David Storey
Geography Department &
Centre for Rural Research
University College Worcester
Henwick Grove
Worcester WR2 6AJ
England

Tel: 01905 855189
Fax: 01905 855132