Kawther Salam's Diary 

Hell Made in Israel (6-29/5/02)

The Daily Life of Kawther Salam

Monday, 6th May 2002

Graffiti on the walls surrounding Kawther's home

Graffiti on the walls surrounding Kawther's home

Romi asked me if I want to returen to Hebron. She said that she do't like the soldiers, and she don't want me to live with them in Hebron. Romi liked my cocking, specialy the fish with rice and vegetables. Romi asked me daily befor she go to school if I will get out or not, if I will returen or not.

She called me all the time to be sure that I still stay home. Romi promised me that she will not serve in the army. she always said " Ikhss khayal " that means disgustin soldier, when we are walking in the streets in Tel-Aviv.


Tuesday, 7th May 2002

Daniel Seaman threat to make aresst on me The parliament member Sehava Galon's office phoned me, they informed me about Mr. Daniel Seasman, the Israeli press office director response. They said that Mr. Seaman refused again to renew my press card, he claimed that my staying in Israel is illegal, and the time of renewin the press card is over while I was in Ireland, and he still don't konw in which newspaper I work.

When the office of Mrs. Galon told him that they posted him the newspapers letters informing him that I worked with them as a journalist, he said, that he will not help me to receive my press card.

The office of Mrs. Galon said, that Mr. Seaman is a " Fascist " , and he is still a major general in the army. They said that Mr. Seaman responed, seems to them like a threat on me and them, they accused of supporting me to stay illegal in Israel!!


Wednesday, 8th May 2002

Graffiti on the walls surrounding Kawther's home

Graffiti on the walls surrounding Kawther's home

I cry today when I recevied the offer from Mr. Stevewn Neshyba and his wife to stay with them in " Tacoma, Washington " in the USA. Mr. Steven is a professor of the Chemistry Dept. in the University of Puget sound, He said that after he read my appeal through my diary on Wed. April 24, with his wife, they would like to help me, he asked me. " Would you consider staying with us in Tacoma, Washington? " we have a bedroom for gusts, and if I drive, I can borrow an old pickup truk. THere would be many details to work out, of course, how long I would to stay, for example, and what my visa status would be. He said, that this isn't much to offer, and he know that I don't know him at all!! and he said, my wife named Penny, we have two small children, 6 and 8 years old.

I cried when I received this letter. It touch my feeling, I know that the world full of human bieng while we are not considerd under occupation as a human bieng in this area.

Before Mr. Steven send me his letter I was received another letter from Austrian, Mr. Ramin invited me to stay a while in Austria and to take avacation.


Thursday, 9th May 2002

Children to Children

Yarden Dankner invited me to stay with her in "Arsarof" in Tel-Aviv. She came and picked me from Dina's house. Yarden used to invite me always. But today it was a special invitation, she talked with me about her project with Michael Pundak, "Child to Child".

Yarden and Michael are a peace activests, and always they think how to help palestinians under siege.

They decided to lead the peace activity "Child to Child"./ Nowadays, thousends of the Israelis believes that war is not the path and our hope that together, we can find a rout to peace.

Under this activity "Child to Child", Dankner and Pundak wrote: we are Israeli parents and children who decided to send gift boxes to Palestinians children to demonstrate our belief that war is not the right path and our hope that togather, as individuals, we can find a rout to peace.

In the coming weeks, with the assistance of non-political Israeli, Palestinian and international organizations,

we will be sending packages to Palestinians children. If you like to join us by making a gift package, please follow these guidlines:

Contents: Choose a few items from the following list:

cereeal, instant soup, cookies, toothbrush and toothpaste, a coloring book, chocolate,...with a blank card or paper and a self addressed envelope for a reply,

I admire what Dankner and Pundak are doing,

they decided to send this collection to the Hebronite childern under the curfew since 500 days.

In Hebron the Palestinians children used to be atacked and harassed

by the Jewish settlers all the time under the carfew, while ther are many Israelis are against what they are doing and against the settlements presence in the ocuupied teretorries.


friday, 10th. May 2002

Graffiti on the walls surrounding Kawther's home

Graffiti on the walls surrounding Kawther's home

I'm still enjoying my time with Elai and Yarden in their beautiful house on the beach. Our friend Mekal Pondak invited us to have a dinner with her family, she said, you should meet my brother Ron, the famouse political of the "Oslo" secret negotiation, and the "Perez Peace Institute" director.

When Mekal introduced me to her brother Ron, he laughed and started telling her further informations and stories about me.

Ron knows me well as a journalist and a member of "Perez Peace Institute" club. Mekal told me about her son Iyal, who refused to serve in the army. Iyal said, his mother stopped behind him, and it was long process between him and the "IDF" during over one year, until he proved his point of view to the "IDF" psychologist. Iyal's mother said, "I faced by alot of problems after she interviewed by "Ha'arez" newspaper with other Israeli motherrs who pushed their sons not to serve in the "IDF".

Mekal said, we born to be a peace family, and we should survive to live like this.


Saturday, 11th. May 2002

When the "IDF" send "Itan" to serve as a reserve soldier in the occupied Territories near Hebron,

he went for a couple of days to convince the officer that he couldn't serve in the army. Itan is my neighbor in Tel-Aviv, he said, I have a twins "Roi and Idor" while no body is taking care of them, I can't serve as a soldier near Hebron. I have a friend living there.

Itan said I told my friends about you, I said, I'm shy to shoot toward my friend, I can't do this!! Itan talked with me about his feeling freely, he said, he was worried to be identified by me as a journalist and a friend during the couple days he served near Hebron.

"I was all the time recognizing you identified me", I was there just to convince the "IDF" that I couldn't serve in the army.


Sunday, 12th May 2002

The Broken Hearts on the Beach!!

On the Israeli beach, under the "Ruins" of the anceinnt city of Appolonia, near the Sadni Mosque. In the beautiful area "Arsuf", I found a lot of the Jewish hearts lifted in the middle of the garbage, the human hearts changed to be stony hearts on the beach!! I said to my self, "when the people are not concerned about the pollution of their environment, and they have no respect for the beautiful nature, the area where they live, sit, or stay, the atmosphere they breath, the water they drink, and they throe their hearts out of their bodies, that's means, "WAR is POSSIBLE"!!

Anyone, see all of these hearts on the beach, that's full of garbage, he get to conclusion, that all of the Jewish hearts are out of their bodies, laying on the beach just waiting that one day to return to human bodies!! Why the Jewish didn't want to keep on their hearts? Why they didn't want to understand others or to respect their neighbors or to feel about them?? Even the stones on the beach feel the pain of the people in this area!!


Tuesday, 21 May 2002

did a Military Police Officer Rape a Palestinian Man??!!

Asad Saed Al Hemoni, 30 years old, was arrested by the "IDF" soldiers on 17th, October 2001. On 28th, April 2002, Mr. Al-Hemoni was transferred from Al- Naqab prison on the day before the appeal in the military court session in Beit El.

Mr. Al- Hemoni said, "On my return from Al- Naqab to Offer prison, I was accompanied by two officers. When I felt the need to use the toilet, the officer from Al- Naqab gave me permission but the other said no and insulted me. I told him that I had asked in a polite way to go to the toilet and he continued to curse at me. He said, 'I will show you what you need. Follow me'. This officer asked a military policeman to come with them. They took him to the back of the toilet and the officer put on gloves and then put vaseline on them. He then asked Mr. Hemoni to take off his pants, but he refused.

The officer asked the military policeman to take off Mr. Hemoni's pants but he too refused and said, "I am not ready to do something illegal." The officer told him to leave and then demanded that Mr. Hemoni take off his shirt. He did. Next the officer cuffed his hands behind him. He then proceeded to rape and torture Mr. Hemoni.

As a result Mr. Hemoni sustained injuries including a badly bruised left hand. Mr. Hemoni screamed and shouted and other police came and took him to a medical clinic. He was told to keep silent because he was accused of beating the officer.

At the first opportunity to meet lawyers visiting the prison, he filed a complaint which they forwarded to the Red Cross and Al-Damer Human Rights Organization. Next, the jail administration began an investigation and informed Mr. Hemoni that he was accused of beating the officer. He said, "How could I do this with hands cuffed?"

On 20 May 2002 Mr. Hemoni called me on my cell phone and told me the story.

I have called some Israeli Parliament Members who advise me to write the story and send it to them.

I decided to publish the story in Al Ittihad newspaper in Haifa under "Appeal to the Israeli Parliament Members,

a Military Police Officer Raped a Palestinians man in Offer Prison" The story was published on Friday 24th, May 2002.

The Parliament member Mr. Isam Mekhol, phoned me.

He said, "I send a complaint to the Police Ministry and to the Israeli State Observer after I talked about the issue during the Parliament session.

Mr. Mekhol, posted me a copy of his letter, he said, "after that I recevied such called from the Israeli TV and Radio,

I received another call from Italian journalist".


Friday, 24th May 2002

It took me 10 hours to arrived Hebron, the teapot in my kitchen was full of urine with bad smell!! All the windows glass were broken!!

A new barbed wire put on my roof to prevent the constructor man to fix the damaged water tanks on my roof.

My neighbors told me that the "IDF" soldiers were broke in my house with other settlers the last couple days.

Nazeha Abu Dahoud, the woman that her husband was killed on 30 December 2000 in my house as a result of the "IDF" attacked him when he was sharing his wife living in my house before, told me that she filled a complaint to the "TIPH" the temporary presence observers in Hebron after she recognized by the way the settlers and the soldiers breaking in my house, she said all of them smell the and saw the urine in the teapot in my kitchen!!


Wednesday, 29th May 2002

The military investigation committee came to investigate me in Hebron,

My lawyer Lea Tesamel fixed this meeting to be held in the Israeli headquarter in Hebron, the "DCO" office.

The investigator came on time, but the "DCO" officer protest against him, he claimed that the committee didn't send him a massage before, he delay our work for one hour.

The investigator was busy and he can't listen to my testimony, he don't understand English or Arabic!!

I provided him with some papers and he said he will work on translating it and come back to me.