Through the eyes of a Palestinian child, members of Jenin's Freedom Theatre perform the story of popular struggle in Nabi Saleh. Text and photos by Keren Manor/Activestills.org On Saturday, May 4, 2013, members of “The Freedom Theatre” performed a play based on stories and testimonies from children of the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh. The play tells the story of the village's resistance, through the eyes of a young Palestinian child. The first show was performed in the village's cultural center. The performance was dedicated to Mustafa and Rushdi Tamimi, two Palestinians from Nabi Saleh who were shot to…

Just over a year ago I started filming for a web series produced by National Geographic. My goal was to highlight the conflicting narratives and the different points of view while inspiring hope. As Obama is visiting the region, I no longer believe that he or other leaders will bring an end to this conflict. It must be people who lead the leaders. However, I have found that the majority of Israelis and Palestinians are indifferent and ineffective. Indifference is the greatest enemy to peace and justice. In this series, I try to understand why this conflict is still going on.…

Crowd control measures have killed 10 protesters since 2005. Meet 'the skunk,' the tear gas canister and the rubber-coated bullet - just some of the measures the IDF uses against civilian Palestinian protesters in the West Bank.  At least ten Palestinians have been killed by crowd control measures used by the IDF since 2005; 46 more were shot to death using live ammunition. These numbers, published by Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem, refer only to civilian protesters and not to people killed during IDF military operations or to Palestinians who were shot to death at checkpoints or near security fences.…

J14 leader Daphni Leef has been charged with rioting, more than half a year after she was violently arrested during an attempt to reignite the protest movement of the summer of 2011. Her trial will begin on January 23. By Leehee Rothschild Look at this photo of Daphni Leef. Look at her, thrown at the floor, crushed under uniformed men - uniforms which define them as the guardians of law and order and give them the authority and power to use reasonable strength, allowing them to define what's reasonable. Look at them triding on her, pulling her, dragging her, beating…

A recent article on Ynet, and excellent analysis by Ali Abunimah on the Electronic Intifada, yields this gem of a quote (emphasis Abunimah's): One soldier admits that the presence of cameras – presumably in the hands of Palestinian and other videographers – inhibits the soldiers from being even more abusive: T. says the cameras on the ground undermine the forces’ efforts. “A commander or an officer sees a camera and becomes a diplomat, calculating every rubber bullet, every step. It’s intolerable, we’re left utterly exposed. The cameras are our kryptonite.” Of course, Abunimah acknowledges that the presence of cameras does…

Rushdi Tamimi, 31, was shot by Israeli soldiers during a protest in Nabi Saleh on Saturday; he died today in a Ramallah hospital. 22-year-old Hamdi Falah died today after being shot four times by soldiers at a Hebron protest. In the past several days, Israeli forces have violently repressed demonstrations in East Jerusalem and the West Bank against the army's 'Operation Pillar of Defense.' Abir Kopty of the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee reported that protests held on Saturday and Sunday at Nabi Saleh, Ofer Military Prison, Hebron, Nablus, Jenin, and Bethlehem were put down through the use of tear gas, rubber…

On Friday, the weekly demonstration in Kufr Qaddum was subject to successive volleys of tear gas attacks as the Israeli army entered the village. Several protesters were injured in the process, including one man who suffered a direct hit to the back of the head from a tear gas canister. He remains hospitalized. By Alon Aviram In light of the current situation in Gaza and the south of Israel, there was visibly a smaller presence of press at protest sites. Some activists had feared that this factor would invite the Israeli military to be more heavy handed in its policing.…

What we can learn from the weird orders served to several leftist activists on Sunday. On police intimidation and the sham of 'the only democracy in the Middle East.' At least 11 leftist activists were surprised on Sunday morning when they were woken up by cops. The cops, all plainclothes and in groups of three, knocked on their doors between 6 and 7 in the morning, and handed them what they claimed to be administrative restraining orders, signed by the commanding general, prohibiting them from entering four villages in the occupied West Bank: Bil'in, Qaddum, Ni'lin and Nabi Saleh. Activist…

Thirteen anti-occupation activists were awoken by police officers early Sunday morning to receive closed military zone orders, preventing them from joining Palestinians in weekly demonstrations in the West Bank. By Leehee Rothschild Israeli police officers distributed closed military zone orders for four West Bank villages early Sunday morning to 13 prominent activists in groups such as Anarchists Against the Wall, Ta'ayush, and the Sheikh Jarrah Solidarity Movement. In most cases, the military orders were delivered personally, but for some activists who happened not to be home, they were left under their doors. In some cases, the officers came to look…

Protests in Nabi Saleh, Ma'asara and Kfer Qaddum; Beit Arabiya is demolished; arrest raid on remaining South Sudanese refugess in Israel; and more. Activestills images tell the stories of the week.                    

In a plea bargain, Bassem Tamimi was sentenced to four months in prison, ordered to pay a fine of NIS 5,000, and given an additional three-year suspended sentence. Just recently having completed a 13-month prison stint, he was arrested last month while taking part in a protest at a settlement supermarket. By Alon Aviram Ofer Military Prison -- A series of military courts operate inside a row of cramped and dilapidated cabins. An Israeli flag hung from the ceiling overlooking a line of seated and shackled defendants. Courtroom staff and defendants looked equally bored, both by the tedious bureaucratic processes…

Amnesty International has called for the release of activist Bassem Tamimi, whom they define as a prisoner of conscience. The 45 year-old father of four from Nabi Saleh was arrested October 24 during a protest action at a branch of Rami Levy, a Jewish-owned supermarket chain that has several branches in Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The chain stocks settlement goods, but refuses to stock Palestinian produce or products. Last year, Haaretz reported that the supermarket had instituted a policy of separating male Arab grocery baggers from female Jewish cashiers after two such employees became romantically involved. The protest, which was…

The olive harvest, an attempt at breaking the siege on Gaza, Palestinian elections and more. Activestills images tell the stories of the week.