Community | August 03, 2010 | 5 comments

Israeli High Schoolers Assist The Razing Of A Bedouin Town

source: http://maxblumenthal.com/2010/07/the-summer-camp-of-destruction-israeli-high-schoolers-join-...

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On July 26, Israeli police demolished 45 buildings in the unrecognized Bedouin village of al-Arakib, razing the entire village to the ground to make way for a Jewish National Fund forest. The destruction was part of a larger project to force the Bedouin community of the Negev away from their ancestral lands and into seven Indian reservation-style communities the Israeli government has constructed for them. The land will then be open for Jewish settlers, including young couples in the army and those who may someday be evacuated from the West Bank after a peace treaty is signed. For now, the Israeli government intends to uproot as many villages as possible and erase them from the map by establishing “facts on the ground” in the form of Jewish National Forests.

One of the most troubling aspects of the destruction of al-Arakib was a report by CNN that the hundreds of Israeli riot police who stormed the village were accompanied by “busloads of cheering civilians.” Who were these civilians and why didn’t CNN or any outlet investigate further?

I traveled to al-Arakib yesterday with a delegation from Ta’ayush, an Israeli group that promotes a joint Arab-Jewish struggle against the occupation. The activists spent the day preparing games and activities for the village’s traumatized children, helping the villagers replace their uprooted olive groves, and assisting in the reconstruction of their demolished homes. In a massive makeshift tent where many of al-Arakib’s residents now sleep, I interviewed village leaders about the identity of the cheering civilians. Each one confirmed the presence of the civilians, describing how they celebrated the demolitions. As I compiled details, the story grew increasingly horrific. After interviewing more than a half dozen elders of the village, I was able to finally identify the civilians in question. What I discovered was more disturbing than I had imagined.

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http://maxblumenthal.com/2010/07/the-summer-camp-of-destruction-israeli-high-sch...
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5 comments // Israeli High Schoolers Assist The Razing Of A Bedouin Town

  • freecrack
    • 0
      freecrack  

    • wether intended or not this story is biased as shit.
      i dont know max blumenthal or his agenda, but clearly he has one if this narrative is what he is promoting.it acknowledges israeli reclaimation of land but ignores that it is just one level of a multilevel conflict.is it wrong to take ones land by force, even if providing homes elsewhere yes it is, but so is building a mosk on the holiest jewish site in the world, wich is just one event in a series of this tactic being employed.

    • 1 year ago
  • ArchDruid
  • freecrack
    • 0
      freecrack  
    • ArchDruid:

      israels nukes are off the record, so if you have a reliable source that says its in the negev you can be assured it isnt there.

      i personaly think they keep them on subs nowhere near israel, but with in striking range of various targets.but thats just my theory based on absolutely nothing.

    • 1 year ago
  • Progresshiv
    • +1
      Progresshiv  

    • One of my friends' mothers (a woman in her late 70s), when confronted with the disturbing truth of Europeans' treatment of Native Americans in North America, said, "But son, we won!" Apparently that sentiment is shared by conquerors worldwide.

    • 1 year ago
  • freecrack
    • 0
      freecrack  
    • Progresshiv:

      the only reason i support israel.
      all though it gets dicey if we (the global community) took the stance that land should go to whomever's ancestors had it as the region is split on that issue going all the way back to abraham

    • 1 year ago
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