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​​GöteborgsPosten - Frihetsteaterns vänner i Sverige: Rädda The Freedom Theatre!

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Ahmed Tobasi, Frihetsteaterns konstnärlig ledare vid ingången till Frihetsteatern, tisdag 4 juli.

Kulturdebatt I tisdags sprängdes entrén till Frihetsteatern i Jenin av israelisk militär. Frihetsteaterns vänner i Sverige manar till UD och Sida att gripa in.

Detta är ett upprop för en palestinsk teater i akut behov av solidaritet på alla plan.

The Freedom Theatre fungerar sedan 2006 som ett kulturcentrum i flyktinglägret i Jenin på ockuperade Västbanken. Här skapas teater med fokus på barn och unga och ges plats för verksamhet inom andra konstnärliga och sociala områden. Teatern har en utbildning för skådespelare och har också genom åren samarbetat med många konstnärer och teatrar över stora delar av världen och turnerat med föreställningar till många länder.

Teaterns motto "Resistance through art" står skrivet på väggen utanför teatern och arbetet för jämlikhet och social rättvisa följer här arbetet för tankens frihet. Denna väletablerade kulturinstitution har nu återigen attackerats av den israelisk ockupationsmakten. Israelisk militär har tagit över teatern och förvandlat teaterscenen till ett förhörscentrum. Detta är ett tydligt brott mot internationell rätt.

Entrén till teatern sprängdes i tisdags, området runt den är demolerat och det är oklart vilket skick själva teatern är i. En medarbetare i teaterns stab har kidnappats av israelisk militär och vi väntar med oro på vidare information. Alla vägar in i lägret har varit stängda. Protester och stöd från kulturorganisationer världen över har strömmat in. Vi, deras svenska vänner och kolleger fördömer denna folkrättsvidriga attack.

Teatern byggdes upp och har drivits med hjälp av svenska insatser. Vi vädjar nu till svenska UD och Sida om att aktivt medverka till att skydda teatern och rädda dess verksamhet och medlemmar.
För föreningen Frihetsteaterns vänner i Sverige Ann Mari Engel Jonatan Stanczak Robert Lyons Agneta Fagerström-Olsson Henrik Dahl Frida Röhl Jan Hammarlund Linn Reinius Erik Åkerlind Lena Carlsson

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Kulturdebatt: Rädda The Freedom Theatre!

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Kulturcentret i flyktinglägret i Jenin har ockuperats av israelisk militär.

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Swedish Television - Frihetsteatern i Jenin vandaliserad: ”Vi fortsätter vad som än händer oss”

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Frihetsteatern i Jenin vandaliserad: "Vi fortsätter vad som än händer oss"

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Den uppmärksammade "Freedom theatre" i Jenins flyktingläger på Västbanken blev i veckan till stora delar förstörd när den enligt flera källor stormades av israelisk militär. Samtidigt greps teaterns ledning.

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GöteborgsPosten - Svenskstödda Frihetsteatern på Västbanken förstörd

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Svenskstödda teatern på Västbanken förstörd

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Ledande personer på Frihetsteatern har gripits av IDF • Frida Röhl: ”Det är fasanfullt.”

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Arbetaren - Frihetsteatern i Jenin: “Stoppa det urskillningslösa våldet!”

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Förra veckan klubbades ett lagförslag om den första EU-regleringen någonsin för gigarbete och arbete som styrs av algoritmer. Det nya plattformsdirektivet kan få långtgående konsekvenser för svensk arbetsmarknad. Arbetaren reder ut på vilket sätt.

Efter långdragna nattliga förhandlingar nådde EU-parlamentet, EU:s råd och Europeiska kommissionen förra veckan på onsdagen slutligen en överenskommelse om det nya direktivet om plattformsarbete.

I flera år har förhandlingarna om gigföretagen på arbetsmarknaden pågått och de avslutande diskussionerna kretsade främst kring frågan om anställningsstatus för arbetare på plattformar som till exempel Uber, Deliveroo eller Glovo.

Det nya plattformsdirektivet har mött hårt motstånd från Tidö-partierna, men också från de stora gigföretagen. Bland annat har Uber enligt organisationen Corporate Europe Observator, som bevakar lobbyism inom EU:s institutioner, spenderat miljontals kronor på lobbyverksamhet inom unionen.

Lobbyorganisationer, som till exempel MoveEU, har under de senaste åren haft flera möten med EU-politiker på toppnivå, bland annat med EU-parlamentarikern Sara Skyttedal (KD). Plattformsdirektivet har varit en stridsfråga i Europa, för bland annat fackföreningar och vänsterpartier.

Men nu har ändå det uppmärksammade plattformsdirektivet till sist röstats igenom.

Leïla Chaibi, europaparlamentariker från den europeiska vänstergruppen, välkomnar beslutet.

- Fram till sista stund arbetade Uber- och Deliveroo-lobbyerna bakom kulisserna för att sabotera detta direktiv. Jag hade velat ha den här lagstiftningen mer ambitiös, men vi stod fast vid beslutet. Uber har inte stiftat lagen i Europa, säger hon i ett pressmeddelande.

Den överenskomna texten måste dock fortfarande formellt antas av både parlamentet och rådet för att träda i kraft, något som väntas ske inom en snar framtid.

Vad innebär direktivet?

I dag arbetar över 28 miljoner människor i Europa inom den så kallade plattformsekonomin, enligt Europakommissionen.

Eftersom många felklassificeras som egenföretagare betyder det att de inte har tillgång till samma grundläggande sociala och arbetsmässiga rättigheter som de skulle haft rätt till som anställda.

De nya reglerna innebär att en så kallad "anställningspresumtion" träder i kraft om två av fem kriterier som finns listade i direktivet är uppfyllda. Det handlar bland annat om plattformen fastställer övre gräns för ersättning, övervakar arbetets utförande - även digitalt - eller kontrollerar arbetsförhållandena.

Listan över kriterier kan sedan utökas av medlemsländerna själva. Plattformsföretagen måste i sin tur bevisa att förhållandet mellan medarbetaren och företaget inte är ett anställningsförhållande.

Arbetare får mer insyn i sin data

I dagsläget har personer som utför plattformsarbete inte tillgång till information om hur algoritmerna i apparna de arbetar med fungerar, på vilket sätt datan samlas in eller hur deras beteende påverkar beslut som sedan tas av automatiserade system.

Men nu blir plattformarna skyldiga att tillhandahålla den här typen av information till gigarbetarna och vara mer transparenta med hur datan samlas in. Arbetaren har tidigare rapporterat om hur förare på Uber organiserat sig och tvingats gå till domstol för att få tillgång till sin data. Detta för att bland annat kunna visa att förare stängts av i appen på orättmätiga grunder.

Det nya direktivet innebär att gigarbetare har rätt till insyn i hur datan behandlas och hur algoritmerna fungerar.

Slut på plötsliga uppsägningar i appen

De nya reglerna innebär därmed att plattformsföretag kommer att förbjudas att enbart använda automatiserade system för att fatta vissa viktiga beslut, till exempel vid uppsägningar och avstängningar av konton.

Avtalet innehåller också viktiga bestämmelser om kollektiva rättigheter. När en plattformsarbetare omklassificeras till anställd, kommer de nationella myndigheterna att vara skyldiga att se till att de andra arbetarna på plattformen inte också är falskt klassade som egenföretagare.

Detta öppnar dörren till arbetares rätt till anställd status - betald ledighet, pension, social trygghet, och så vidare - för miljontals personer i Europa.

Stopp för mellanhänder och underleverantörer

Direktivet innehåller även ytterligare krav som kommer att få konsekvenser för många gigföretag i Sverige - inte minst inom budbranschen.

Med den nya lagen kommer det nämligen i teorin inte att vara möjligt för en plattform att kringgå reglerna genom att använda mellanhänder - det vill säga när arbetstagare har ett direkt avtalsförhållande med en annan part än den relevanta digitala plattformen.

Tommy Iseskog, arbetsrättsjurist, menar att avskaffandet av mellanhänder i arbetsgivaransvaret är den överlägset viktigaste frågan i plattformsdirektivet.

- Efter att ha läst direktivet kan jag konstatera att detta är den viktigaste frågan. Inte minst med tanke på hur arbetsmarknaden ser ut i Sverige i dag, där vi ser hur större plattformsföretag i hög utsträckning använder sig av bemanningsföretag och underleverantörer, säger han.

Finns redan regler i Sverige som inte efterföljs

Tommy Iseskog understryker dock att plattformsdirektivets föreskrifter i sig inte är revolutionerande.

- Det finns redan formella regler om arbetsgivaransvar i Sverige, men som ofta inte efterföljs, säger han.

Enligt svenska regler finns det tre kriterier man tittar på för att fastställa att någon ska räknas som arbetsköpare. Det handlar om att det finns ett personligt arbetstagande, om arbetsköparen tillhandahåller redskap och så självaste arbetsledningen. Det avgörande i de svenska reglerna är vem som utövar arbetsledning. Gör man det, så har man automatiskt ett arbetsmiljöansvar.

- Regelverket är inte speciellt otydligt, men det är mycket okunskap därute båda bland arbetstagare och arbetsgivare. Stora plattformsföretag har inte klart för sig hur arbetsrätten och reglerna ser ut i Sverige, säger Tommy Iseskog.

Han drar en parallell till de många allvarliga dödsolyckorna på arbetsplatser som skett i Sverige de senaste veckorna.

- Nu pratar man om att skärpa lagen, men i själva verket är det tillämpningen av den redan existerande lagen man bör skärpa. Det finns mycket att göra när det handlar om att bejaka arbetares rättigheter, och när det handlar om plattformsarbete är många migrantarbetare precis som i byggbranschen extra utsatta, säger Tommy Iseskog.

Dröjer innan plattformsdirektivet antas

Rent formellt är direktivet ännu inte antaget. Och det kan enligt Tommy Iseskog dröja flera år innan reglerna blir verklighet i Sverige.

- Efter att det träder i kraft tar det 20 dagar innan det antas på EU-nivå, och sedan innehåller det en övergångstid på två till tre år, förklarar Tommy Iseskog och tillägger:
- Men om det sedan tillämpas är en annan fråga. I Sverige tog det till exempel 17 år innan man tillämpade reglerna om dygnsvila, trots att detta också från början handlade om ett EU-direktiv.

Facken ska börja driva frågan

Diskussionen om organisering av plattformsarbetare är dock ingenting nytt och har puttrat länge i de fackliga leden.

LO-förbunden utlovade redan i november att de ska arbeta mer offensivt för att teckna kollektivavtal med plattformsföretagen. Gig-jobbarna ska betraktas som anställda tills motsatsen har bevisats, står det i LO:s nya organisationsplan som fastställs på kongressen nästa år.

- Vi har pekat ut vilka de nya jobben är och vilket förbund som ska organisera dem, säger Torbjörn Johansson, ordförande i den arbetsgrupp som har tagit fram den nya organisationsplanen till tidningen Arbetet.

Förbunden ska även bli skyldiga att organisera gigarbetare, exempelvis inom Transport, och ska enligt Arbetet få hjälp med olika konkreta råd om hur de ska gå tillväga.

Tidigare har nämligen framförallt Arbetsmiljöverket drivit frågan om gigarbetares rätt till anställningsstatus. Nu går ansvaret i stället över till facken.

Arbetsgivaransvar har ofta behandlats i förvaltningsrätten, inte i Arbetsdomstolen

Eftersom AMV är en myndighet, så har frågan om arbetsgivaransvar för gigarbetare framförallt prövats i förvaltningsrätten och inte i Arbetsdomstolen.

Dock slog Arbetsdomstolen fast i en uppmärksammad dom i december 2022 att ett uppsagt Foodorabud inte var anställt av Foodora, utan av bemanningsföretaget PaySalary. Den gången var det Transportarbetareförbundet som drev fallet.

Frågan om plattformsarbetare ska räknas som anställda har behandlats ett flertal tillfällen i svensk rätt. Bland annat pågick en uppmärksammad tvist sommaren 2021 mellan Taskrunner och Arbetsmiljöverket. Senare samma höst i oktober 2021 kom en dom i en tvist mellan Arbetsmiljöverket och Tiptapp om huruvida gigföretaget skulle behöva ta ett arbetsmiljöansvar - med utgångspunkt i huruvida de formellt var arbetsgivare eller inte.

En person som följt de olika tvisterna är forskaren och Gigwatch-aktivisten Pontus Blüme, som för tillfället arbetar med en avhandling i ekonomisk historia om plattformsekonomin vid Stockholms universitet.

Han berättar att i juni respektive i oktober i år prövades samma typ av tvist mellan Bolt Food respektive Wolt mot Arbetsmiljöverket.

I de tidigare fallen har enskilda personer satt priset, men på dessa plattformsföretag har gigföretagen bestämt priset på vad tjänsten kostar för konsumenten respektive lönesättningen för gigarbetarna.

- Men trots att plattformarna nu faktiskt hade makt över prissättningen, och buden representerade företaget utåt genom att använda deras kläder och logotyper, så ansågs inte budens underordning gentemot plattformen vara så markant att ett anställningsförhållande skulle föreligga, berättar Pontus Blüme.

Han tror att det är just vid dessa fall som plattformsdirektivet potentiellt sett kan göra skillnad.

- I det nya direktivet finns det som sagt fem kriterier som ska uppfyllas. Om två av dem är uppfyllda så kan den anställda eller dess fackliga organisation trigga en så kallad anställningspresumtion. Då är det plattformens skyldighet att bevisa motsatsen.

Direktivets regler kan vara mer "uppdaterade"

Pontus Blüme menar dock att den historiska praxis som finns i Arbetsdomstolen definierar anställningsrelationen enligt mer ålderdomliga regler, så som den skulle varit i till exempel en fabrik.

- Heltidsanställningen som norm skiner också igenom i hur rättspraxis tillämpats. Därför tror jag att plattformsdirektivet kan ha en positiv effekt på hur den här typen av tvister kan komma att dömas i framtiden, eftersom kriterierna är specifikt framtagna för att gälla just plattformsarbete.

Han framhåller att i till exempel en av de första domarna mot TipTapp, framgår det i domen att juristerna letade efter vägledning i diverse EU-föreskrifter, men inte fann någonting som de kunde vägleda deras bedömning. De tvingades därför falla tillbaka på det svenska regelverket.

Motargumenten mot plattformsdirektiven skulle dock kunna vara att kriterierna ändå inte är tillräckligt vattentäta eller strikta för att plattformsarbetet ska omklassificeras, menar Pontus Blüme.

- Jag bedömer sannolikheten som mycket låg för att domarna mot Taskrunner eller Tiptapp hade haft en annan utgång även om ett plattformsdirektiv hade funnits på plats för tre år sedan. Dess kontroll av arbetskraften är helt enkelt för liten. Däremot finns det en möjlighet att det hade spelat roll för Wolt eller Ubereats matbud i tidigare domar.

Pontus Blüme tror att den första tvisten i Arbetsdomstolen, efter att plattformsdirektivet ratificeras, kommer att vara extra viktig eftersom den blir prejudicerande för andra kommande fall.

Han säger även att det till exempel inom "last mile-branschen", det vill säga budbranschen, hittills inte funnit konkreta fall som behandlats i Arbetsmiljöverket, men att frågan nu kan bli ännu mer aktuell när det blir fackens och myndigheternas skyldighet att följa direktivet.

Hamnar migrantarbetare i kläm?

Fackförbunden inom LO har sedan tidigare haft svårt att organisera den stora grupp som arbetar inom plattformsekonomin - nämligen migrantarbetare.

Gruppen migrantarbetare på den svenska arbetsmarknaden är extra utsatta, menar arbetsrättsjuristen Tommy Iseskog. Många personer är rädda att förlora arbetstillståndet om de protesterar eller larmar om de usla villkoren.

- Många gigarbetare tror att de är rättslösa om de blir avstängda i appen, vilket de inte är. Det krävs i själva verket sakliga skäl för en uppsägning, och det är ingenting som kan ske över en natt genom att man blir avstängd i en app. Många migrantarbetare vågar inte kontakta fack och myndigheter, och många har dåliga erfarenheter med sig från hemlandet. Det finns en slags hörsägen om att man bör ligga lågt. Samtidigt når de stora facken inte alltid ut till den här gruppen eftersom de kanske inte pratar språket, säger Tommy Iseskog.

Han menar att en annan utmaning för facken är att driva frågan om anställningsstatus rättsligt, och tror att plattformsdirektivet kan bli en skjuts i rätt riktning.

- Förhoppningsvis kan facken börja driva gigarbetares rätt till anställningsstatus på ett mer offensivt sätt nu, säger han.

Den svenska modellen och plattformsdirektivet

Den svenska modellen bygger på förhandlingar och avtal, nämligen kollektivavtal, mellan arbetsmarknadens parter: mellan arbetsköpare och anställda.

Nyligen införde dock regeringen, i samband med Tidöavtalet, ett försörjningskrav för arbetskraftsinvandrare från länder utanför EU, som innebär att lönen måste uppgå till minst 27 360 kronor i månaden, för att därefter årligen höjas gradvis.

Tusentals arbetskraftsinvandrare omfattas därmed inte av den svenska modellen, utan i stället är det politiker som bestämmer lönerna. I gigsektorn är det även många migrantarbetare som tvingas eller väljer, ofta på grund av avsaknad av giltigt uppehållstillstånd, att arbeta svart, och loggar in på kollegors falska konton.

Två syndikalistiska fackföreningar som de senaste åren satsat på migrantarbetare är Solidariska byggare och Stockholms LS.

"Hoppfullt - men kommer det att användas?"

Emil Boss, som är förhandlingssekreterare för Stockholms LS, menar att även med ett plattformsdirektiv som reglerar anställningsstatus kan migrantarbetarna hamna i kläm.

Inte minst eftersom direktivet medför krav på striktare kontroll och transparens gällande arbetares data och personuppgifter.

- Många migrantarbetare kommer kanske ändå inte våga larma om missförhållanden, eller fortsätter att arbeta svart eftersom deras nya lön som formellt anställda ändå inte skulle nå upp till det nya försörjningskravet, säger Emil Boss.

Han berättar att facket drivit ett flertal fall gällande migrantarbetare som arbetat på gigplattformar, bland annat för budföretaget Airmee. Arbetarna har ofta blivit medlemmar i facket när olyckan redan varit framme, och i efterhand fått ut sina löner.

Stockholms LS har för tillfället ingen karensregel för medlemskap, till skillnad från de större facken, och har även satsat på organisering på arbetarnas egna språk.

Facket har dock ännu inte drivit något fall gällande rätten till anställning från gigplattformarna själva, utan framförallt drivit stämningar gällande icke utbetalda löner av de olika underleverantörerna i Arbetsdomstolen.

Det nya direktivet är hoppfullt, men det viktigaste är huruvida någon kommer att använda det eller inte.
Emil Boss, förhandlingssekreterare Stockholms LS

- Det nya direktivet är hoppfullt, men det viktigaste är huruvida någon kommer att använda det eller inte. Papperslösa arbetare i Sverige fick till exempel ett starkare skydd genom ett EU-direktiv redan 2013 men eftersom fackföreningsrörelsen inte använde det, märktes ingen skillnad. Det är först nu, tio år senare, som det EU-direktivet börjar tillämpas i liten skala av Syndikalisterna. Jag hoppas verkligen att LO kommer att använda sig av det nya direktivet kring gigarbete, säger Emil Boss.

Det återstår därför att se om det nya direktivet kommer att förbättra villkoren i praktiken, inte minst för de tusentals migrantarbetare som arbetar i sektorn.

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Frihetsteatern i Jenin: "Stoppa det urskillningslösa våldet!"

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Frihetsteatern i Jenins konstnärliga ledare Ahmad Tobasi och verksamhetsledaren Mustafa Sheta har förts bort av israelisk militär till okänd ort.

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Svenska Dagbladet - Frihetsteatern till stora delar förstörd

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Sedan starten 2006 har Frihetsteatern i Jenins flyktingläger på Västbanken stöttats av svenska teaterkonstnärer. Nu larmar föreningen Frihetsteaterns vänner om att teaterlokalen har vandaliserats och medarbetare förts bort.

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Frihetsteatern till stora delar förstörd | SvD

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Sedan starten 2006 har Frihetsteatern i Jenins flyktingläger på Västbanken stöttats av svenska teaterkonstnärer. Nu larmar föreningen Frihetsteaterns vänner om att teaterlokalen har vandaliserats och medarbetare förts bort.

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Dagens Nyheter - Frihetsteater på Västbanken stormad i israelisk operation

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En utskrift från Dagens Nyheter, 2023-12-27 00:11

Artikelns ursprungsadress: https://www.dn.se/kultur/flyktingteater-pa-vastbanken-stormad-i-israelisk-operation/

SCEN

Teater- och kulturhuset The Freedom Theatre i flyktinglägret Jenin på Västbanken stormades enligt flera källor av israelisk militär tidigare i veckan. Samtidigt greps ledningen i sina hem.

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Frihetsteater på Västbanken stormad i israelisk operation

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Teater- och kulturhuset The Freedom Theatre i flyktinglägret Jenin på Västbanken stormades enligt flera källor av israelisk militär tidigare i veckan.

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Charleroi pour la Palestine: L’offensive israélienne contre Jénine entre dans son troisième jour et a tué dix Palestiniens

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Un raid israélien meurtrier et à grande échelle contre la ville de Jénine et son camp de réfugiés, dans le nord de la Cisjordanie occupée, entrait dans sa troisième journée ce jeudi.

Tamara Nassar, 14 décembre 2023

Dans un communiqué de propagande, l'armée israélienne affirmait qu'elle avait entamé le raid dès les premières heures de mardi en compagnie du Shin Bet et d'autres forces opérant sous le commandement de la Division Menasha, un sous-groupe de l'armée israélienne actif au cours des Première et Seconde Intifadas et qui se concentre sur les villes de Jénine et de Tulkarem, dans le nord de la Cisjordanie occupée.

Cette opération de l'armée israélienne est toujours en cours au moment de la rédaction du présent article.

Au moins dix Palestiniens ont été tués lors de l'attaque israélienne et bon nombre d'autres ont été blessés lorsque les forces israéliennes ont poursuivi leurs opérations par des attaques aériennes dans le camp de réfugiés de Jénine, détruisant des infrastructures et mitraillant des Palestiniens.

Les forces israéliennes ont fait irruption dans des maisons et, dans certains cas, les ont utilisées comme bases militaires. Elles ont également arrêté nombre de Palestiniens.

L'armée israélienne a également assiégé la partie orientale de la ville, bloquant les entrées et les routes au moyen de véhicules blindés et de bulldozers.

Mardi, quatre Palestiniens dont un enfant ont été tués au moment où l'armée israélienne effectuait une frappe par drone dans le quartier d'al-Sibat, à Jénine.

L'armée israélienne a partagé des prises de vue de cette frappe sur Twitter/X, disant qu'elle avait identifié " une équipe " qui tirait sur des hommes et qu'à son tour elle avait frappé le groupe à partir d'un avion israélien, tuant " un certain nombre de terroristes ", mais ignorant la mort d'un enfant.

La vidéo montre quelqu'un qui lancé quelque chose vers les forces d'occupation, sans doute un engin explosif, encore qu'on ne puisse être sûr qu'il s'agit d'un des hommes visés par la frappe :

צה״ל, שב"כ ומג"ב בפיקוד חטיבת מנשה החלו הלילה במבצע לסיכול טרור במרחב מחנה הפליטים והעיר ג'נין. כלי הנדסה פעלו לחשיפת מטענים שהוטמנו מתחת לכבישים שנועדו לפגיעה בכוחותנו. הכוחות איתרו מספר נשקים, תחמושת ומטענים. בנוסף איתרו והשמידו מעבדת מטענים מוכנים לשימוש >> pic.twitter.com/oJwRc5z7mE

- צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) December 12, 2023

Le missile a tué Thaer Shadi Tabaji, 17 ans.

Il était là avec trois Palestiniens armés quand les forces d'occupation israéliennes ont lancé le missile qui allait les tuer tous les quatre, selon une enquête sur le terrain effectuée par Defense for Children International - Palestine (DCI-P).

Thaer présentait des blessures par éclats et des brûlures sur tout le corps, a déclaré DCI-P.

Israeli forces killed 17-year-old Thaer Shadi Fawaz Tabaji yesterday using a drone-fired missile in Jenin during an Israeli military incursion that is still ongoing. https://t.co/UUbxKtmPpb pic.twitter.com/MRhtF1OlgZ

- Defense for Children (@DCIPalestine) December 13, 2023

Les forces israéliennes ont également tiré à l'aide de fusils des grenades Energa antichars sur plusieurs maisons de Jénine et de son camp de réfugiés, provoquant des dégâts et des destructions considérables. L'agence d'information Wafa a fait état de ces dégâts en citant des sources sécuritaires et locales.

Wafa a également rapporté que des travailleurs civils s'étaient vu interdire l'accès aux maisons qui avaient pris feu dans le camp.

Une maison au moins a été complètement détruite lorsqu'elle a été bombardée, a déclaré DCI-P.

Les frappes de drones israéliennes en Cisjordanie occupée ont tué dix enfants palestiniens en 2023, alors qu'Israël a utilisé un hélicoptère Apache de fabrication américaine pour lancer des missiles qui ont tué quatre enfants. Une frappe d'un avion de combat israélien a tué un enfant de plus en Cisjordanie, pendant ce temps.

Des soldats israéliens ont assiégé les trois principaux hôpitaux de la ville, empêchant des ambulances de les atteindre.

Les forces israéliennes ont également entravé les mouvements de paramédicaux et ont effectué des fouilles complètes des ambulances au cours du raid, mercredi matin.

Le Croissant-Rouge palestinien a déclaré avoir reçu des appels d'aide médicale, mais les équipages des ambulances ont été empêchés d'atteindre leurs destinations du fait des obstructions permanentes de l'armée israélienne, malgré l'instauration d'une " coordination préalable ".

L'organisation médicale a rapporté " une pénurie sévère de lait et de pain pour nourrissons " chez des douzaines de Palestiniens dont les maisons sont toujours occupées par le personnel militaire israélien qui les empêche d'en sortir.

Deux autres Palestiniens sont morts après qu'Israël les a empêchés d'accéder aux soins médicaux et d'être hospitalisés lors du raid. Il s'agissait d'un Palestinien adulte qui avait reçu une balle dans la cuisse et d'un adolescent de treize ans qui avait été malade.

Ahmad Muhammad Sammar avait été malade à son domicile. Son père avait tenté de l'emmener à l'hôpital gouvernemental de Jénine, mais l'armée israélienne l'avait forcé à rebrousser chemin à plusieurs reprises.

Ahmed Mohammad Sammar (13 years old), a sick #child, was martyred after the #Israeli occupation obstructed his access to receive treatment at Martyr Khalil Suleiman #Hospital during the aggression on Jenin and its Camp. This raised the death toll of #martyrs in the city to seven... pic.twitter.com/LRk5vNwVe9

- State of Palestine - MFA 🇵🇸🇵🇸 (@pmofa) December 12, 2023

" Quand Ahmad et son père ont été à quelque 500 mètres de l'hôpital, les forces israéliennes ont arrêté la voiture et les ont forcés tous deux à sortir. Le père d'Ahmad l'a porté en marchant jusqu'à l'hôpital et y est arrivé vers 10 h 30 du matin ; là, les médecins ont déclaré qu'Ahmad était mort. "

L'impunité dont jouit Israël quand il attaque des hôpitaux de la bande de Gaza semble avoir créé un précédent qui s'étend également à la Cisjordanie occupée, où l'armée israélienne a pris l'habitude d'empêcher les Palestiniens d'accéder aux sites médicaux. Elle attaque même les hôpitaux, désormais, au cours de ses raids en Cisjordanie.

Une autre prise de vue montre un véhicule blindé israélien progressant vers des journalistes qui couvrent le raid et que l'on voit ensuite tenter de s'en aller :

تغطية صحفية: "آلية لجيش الاحـــتـلال تحاول دهس صحفيين خلال تغطيتهم اقتحام جنين ومخيمها". pic.twitter.com/OQUaGC0OQq

- شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) December 12, 2023

Les soldats israéliens ont envahi une mosquée de Jénine, durant la campagne.

Les forces d'occupation ont également effectué un raid contre le Théâtre de la Liberté et elles ont ouvert le feu. Les soldats israéliens ont saccagé les bureaux et défoncé un mur séparant un de ces bureaux de la maison d'un voisin.

" Des heures durant, les Israéliens sont restés dans les bureaux et on pouvait entendre des coups de marteau et des détonations ",

ont expliqué les gens du théâtre. À l'issue du raid, qui a laissé des dégâts considérables dans le théâtre, l'armée a arrêté son directeur artistique et son producteur.

Today the Israeli Army attacked The Freedom Theatre opening fire from inside destroying the offices

They have taken hostage AD @ahmedtobasi & Producer Mustafa Sheta#Mayday Created by @freedom_theatre & @artistfrontline #Jenin #JeninUnderAttack #Palestine #Theatre #جنين pic.twitter.com/03N0QYHYLk

- The Freedom Theatre (@freedom_theatre) December 13, 2023

" Les bulldozers de l'armée israélienne ont détruit des infrastructures civiles du camp de Jénine ainsi que plusieurs quartiers de la ville ",

a fait savoir DCI-P.

L'armée israélienne a en outre prétendu avoir découvert des armes enterrées sous certaines routes, au cours du raid.

L'armée occupante affirme également avoir arrêté des centaines de Palestiniens, durant l'opération, razzié des centaines de bâtiments et confisqué des armes.

Les médias locaux ont diffusé des prises de vue de ce qui s'avère être des arrestations massives de Palestiniens :

صور لحالات الاعتقال الجماعي من معسكر سالم الاحتلال غرب #جنين حيث أن الاحتلال اعتقل للان اكثر من ٢٠٠ شاب في العملية العسكرية المستمرة في #جنين pic.twitter.com/RaIux9Inra

- Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) December 13, 2023

L'armée israélienne a admis qu'au moins quatre de ses soldats avaient été blessés par des éclats dont elle prétend qu'ils provenaient d'explosifs. Par ailleurs, elle reconnaît que certains de ses hommes ont été blessés par des tirs amis.

Une vidéo publiée par les médias locaux montre un soldat israélien touché par balle à la jambe :

تغطية صحفية: "لحظة إصابة جندي إســرائـيــلـي برصـ.ـاص الـمـ.ـقــاومـــة، في جنين". pic.twitter.com/TCb2lJc3vX

- شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) December 13, 2023

Un enfant frappé par une balle dans la tête

La semaine dernière, les forces israéliennes ont tué six Palestiniens au cours d'un raid militaire dans le camp de réfugiés de Fara, près de Tubas.

Les forces spéciales israéliennes se sont faufilées dans le camp de réfugiés de Fara à bord de véhicules portant des plaques d'immatriculation palestiniennes.

Plusieurs snipers israéliens ont alors pris position sur le toit d'un centre médical géré par l' UNRWA, l'agence de l'ONU pour les réfugiés palestiniens, alors que les troupes israéliennes razziaient les maisons des habitants et arrêtaient des Palestiniens.

Peu après, les résidents du camp ont détecté la présence du contingent occupant entré en secret et des Palestiniens armés ont résisté à l'invasion israélienne au cours des confrontations qui ont suivi.

D'autres forces israéliennes - quinze véhicules blindés et un bulldozer de l'armée - sont arrivées dans le camp et l'ont bouclé complètement.

Maher Abdullah Jawabra, 14 ans, était débout sur le toit de la maison de son cousin en compagnie de celui-ci et d'un ami, quand un sniper israélien planqué sur le toit du bâtiment médical de l'UNRWA a ouvert le feu sur eux, blessant l'adolescent et son cousin.

Les forces israéliennes ont menacé les ambulances palestiniennes " à bout portant et les ont empêchées de fournir de l'aide " pendant plus d'une heure, selon une enquête de terrain de DCI-P.

تغطية صحفية: "فيديو يوثق لحظة إعدام قوات الاحـــتـلال للشاب رامي العبوشي في مخيم الفارعة، قبل أيام". pic.twitter.com/9mMPfY7C6n

- شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) December 11, 2023

Maher et son cousin ont finalement été transférés en toute hâte dans un hôpital voisin quand les forces israéliennes ont quitté le camp, mais les deux jeunes ont été déclarés morts à leur arrivée.

Soixante-dix enfants palestiniens ont été tués en Cisjordanie occupée depuis le 7 octobre, selon les renseignements collectés par DCI-P. En 2023, les forces et colons israéliens ont tué au moins 110 enfants palestiniens en Cisjordanie occupée.

Une vidéo du même raid contre Fara a été prise au moment même où les forces israéliennes ont abattu un Palestinien, lui ont ensuite tiré à nouveau dessus alors qu'il était allongé sur le sol, incapable de faire quoi que ce soit.

تغطية صحفية: "فيديو يوثق لحظة إعدام قوات الاحـــتـلال للشاب رامي العبوشي في مخيم الفارعة، قبل أيام". pic.twitter.com/9mMPfY7C6n

- شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) December 11, 2023

Cette vidéo montre Rami al-Aboushi s'enfuir en courant jusqu'au moment où, manifestement, il est touché par une balle et s'effondre au sol. On ne voit ensuite gisant par terre, blessé et incapable de se relever malgré ses efforts.Un véhicule blindé israélien s'approche ensuite très près de lui, toujours couché. Un soldat israélien ouvre la porte du véhicule et vide son chargeur sur Rami al-Aboushi, le tuant net.

L'année la plus meurtrière

L'année 2023 se termine et elle aura été pour les Palestiniens de Cisjordanie occupée la plus meurtrière depuis que le bureau de surveillance de l'ONU s'est mis à enregistrer ce type de données en 2005.

Depuis le 7 octobre, au moment où Israël a lancé sa campagne de mort et de destruction dans la bande de Gaza, suite à l'opération militaire du Hamas, l'organisation de résistance palestinienne, le long de la frontière et contre les colonies du sud d'Israël - un territoire qui a vu le nettoyage ethnique des Palestiniens en 1948 - l'armée d'occupation a intensifié ses attaques meurtrières contre les Palestiniens et leur résistance armée en Cisjordanie.

Israël a pris l'habitude de mener des raids militaires prolongés dans les villes, localités et camps de réfugiés de Cisjordanie, surtout dans le nord. Souvent, les raids militaires israéliens comprennent des attaques hautement destructrices contre les infrastructures, avec l'emploi de bulldozers pour endommager les réseaux de distribution d'eau et d'électricité, ainsi que les routes, ce qui se traduit par des dégâts partout dans les rues, des destructions d'habitations et de zones commerçantes en ces endroits.

L'armée israélienne a également effectué des attaques aériennes en Cisjordanie occupée, une pratique qu'elle a remise au goût du jour depuis la seconde intifada il y a une vingtaine d'années.
Les troupes israéliennes ont tué plus de 260 Palestiniens en Cisjordanie occupée depuis le 7 octobre et huit autres ont été tués par des colons, a rapporté l'organisation de surveillance OCHA, de l'ONU.
Cela constitue plus de la moitié des homicides israéliens dans la région depuis le début de l'année.
Les forces israéliennes ont blessé près de 3 500 Palestiniens en Cisjordanie depuis le 7 octobre. Plus de 540 d'entre eux sont des enfants.
Malgré l'intensification des attaques et raids meurtriers des forces israéliennes en Cisjordanie, la résistance armée continue à opérer sans relâche et sans répit, et deux nouvelles organisations de résistance armée se sont constituées à Tulkarem en moins d'un an.

*****

Publié le 14 décembre 2023 sur The Electronic Intifada
Traduction : Jean-Marie Flémal, Charleroi pour la Palestine

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L'offensive israélienne contre Jénine entre dans son troisième jour et a tué dix Palestiniens

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Israël a effectué un raid israélien meurtrier et à grande échelle contre la ville de Jénine et son camp de réfugiés

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Al Jazeera - No Safe Place: Jenin’s Freedom Theatre raided, daubed with Star of David

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The outside wall of the Freedom Theatre in Jenin bears graffiti, including of the Star of David and a menorah [Courtesy of Freedom Theatre]

The Freedom Theatre in Jenin, a popular symbol of peace and hope in the occupied West Bank, has been raided and vandalised by Israeli soldiers, who painted it with religious and political symbols.

In a film screening room inside the theatre, the Star of David has been daubed on the wall with spray paint while graffiti also depicting the Star of David and a menorah (a Hanukkah candle holder) has been scrawled on the outside wall.

Keep reading

The Israeli military raid on the theatre took place on the night of December 12 and the early hours of December 13. Its two directors were arrested that night and the next morning. One of them, Ahmed Tobasi, was released after 14 hours, but the other, Mostafa Sheta, remains in detention. He is believed to have been taken to the Megiddo military prison in northern Israel, Tobasi said.

This is not the first time the community landmark has come under attack.

The theatre has stood as a symbol of hope for residents of Jenin ever since it was first founded as the Stone Theatre in 1987 after the first Intifada by Arna Mer-Khamis, an Israeli peace activist who died in 1995.

Mer-Khamis was a lifelong supporter of the rights of Palestinians, especially children. With her theatre, she hoped to offer children a space for healing and to empower women through the theatre and arts.

The first building housing the theatre was destroyed in 2002 by Israeli forces during the second Intifada. In 2006, Juliano Mer-Khamis, Arna's son by her Palestinian Christian husband, Saliba Khamis, reopened the theatre on a new site in Jenin, and it doubled as a community centre.

Not everyone was a fan, however. In 2009, an unidentified person threw two Molotov cocktails at the theatre while it was empty. Juliano was shot dead by a masked attacker in Jenin in 2011 at the age of 52. His killing was never solved.

Since the start of Israel's war on Gaza on October 7, tensions have mounted in the West Bank with regular and often brutal raids carried out by Israeli forces and strict curfews placed on Palestinian residents. Armed settlers and soldiers have blocked roads with trenches and frequently fired shots at anyone stepping outside their homes.

About 58 Palestinians, including children, have been killed during 15 military incursions on the camp and the city.

'No questions - they just took me'

During all this, the Freedom Theatre kept going - until Tuesday night last week. It particularly offered a space for children to heal from trauma through activities led by the theatre's workers.

The theatre raid was part of a military operation in Jenin by Israeli forces that began on December 12 and lasted for three days. During that time, 500 Palestinians were arrested and 100 continue to be detained, said Tobasi, who himself was held in poor conditions.

"How can we continue existing this way?" Tobasi, 39, asked. It was not the first time he had been detained. He spent four years in Israeli prisons after he was captured during a 2002 siege of Jenin.

Born and raised in the Jenin refugee camp, Tobasi has been coming to the theatre since he was a child. He was part of the first group of children who participated in the Stone Theatre's activities.

Last Wednesday about 11am, however, Israeli forces broke down the front door of his home in Jenin and arrested him along with his brother.

He told Al Jazeera how he was handcuffed and blindfolded before soldiers kicked him in the head and stomach. He was then taken to the Al-Jalama checkpoint, north of Jenin, where he was held in the cold, rain and mud for about 14 hours before being released.

"They did not tell me why they were there," he said. "They did not tell me if I was wanted for any crime. No questions asked. They just took me."

Tobasi had recently returned to the occupied West Bank from France, where he was on tour with a theatre company. His family sent him photos and videos of the continuous raids that began after the start of the war on Gaza on October 7 and, he said, he felt the urge to come back to his people and his theatre.

Since he was released, he had had no news about Sheta, 43, until he spoke to another friend from the theatre, Ismael Hussam Ibrahim, who was arrested on December 12 and released on December 13.

Ibrahim said Israeli soldiers forced their way into his home, handcuffed and blindfolded him, and seized his laptop.

Ibrahim, 25, said he was taken to another location where he was able to raise his blindfold, and he saw Sheta, also blindfolded and handcuffed, sitting in the cold and mud close to him.

"They took pictures with me. I felt humiliated," he told Al Jazeera.

No safe space

The raid and ransacking of the Jenin Theatre have come as a huge blow to the community and the people who work there who viewed it as a safe place. One of them is Ranin Odeh, 32, the child and youth programme coordinator, who leads activities for traumatised children at the theatre

"I'm not well," she told Al Jazeera. "The occupying army stormed the theatre and destroyed the offices."

Odeh was not inside the theatre when the raid took place, but for her, what happened to the theatre has underlined the very real danger Palestinians in the West Bank are living in and the fact that there is no escape.

"Perhaps words do not express my feelings and thoughts. We are in a very miserable and difficult situation," she said. "Every place in the city of Jenin is a target. There is no safe place."

Tobani is spending most of his time clearing up the mess at the theatre now. "For me, the way they arrest us and treat us is very humiliating. You hate yourself, you hate humanity, you hate the world."

He said he hopes artists around the world will unite to support the theatre. For now, despite the risks and the mental exhaustion, Tobani, Odeh and many of the other staff have promised to continue the activities for children in any way they can.

Everyone should have a safe place to express themselves, Odeh said, "even though it seems in Jenin, there isn't one."

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'No safe place': Jenin's Freedom Theatre raided, daubed with Star of David

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Landmark that provided healing for traumatised children in the West Bank has been ransacked, directors arrested.

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Peoples Dispatch - Israel once again targets Jenin’s emblematic Freedom Theatre during three day raid on the city

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Middle East Eye - Israeli forces detain and assault Palestinian artists after raid on Jenin theatre

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Mail & Guardian - South Africa’s theatre community expresses solidarity with Jenin refugee camp theatre

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South Africa’s theatre community expresses solidarity with Jenin refugee camp theatre

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The Freedom Theatre in the West Bank has been raided by the Israeli Defence Force and its artistic director and a producer detained

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La ciudad cisjordana, escenario de redadas semanales, suma otros 12 muertos y cientos de detenidos. Los soldados dejaron pintadas insultantes y grabaron un vídeo mofándose del islam dentro de una mezquita

Malak Jatib, de 34 años, llora en su casa del campo de refugiados de Yenín (Cisjordania) la muerte de su hijo Musa, de 16 años, tras recibir un balazo mientras se encontraba en el hospital Jalil Suleiman. Luis De Vega Hernández

"A Musa lo mataron delante de mí". Sharaf Janfar, de 29 años, señala con el dedo el lugar exacto en que una bala le partió el jueves el corazón a un chaval de 16 años, dentro de las instalaciones del hospital Jalil Suleimán de Yenín (Cisjordania). Janfar reabrió el viernes su puestecillo sobre ruedas, desde el que despacha café a las puertas del centro tras dos días y medio de una incursión militar israelí que dejó 12 muertos, incluido el adolescente, y cientos de detenidos. Fue la operación más larga del total de 15 que han llevado a cabo las tropas durante la guerra.

El ejército israelí dijo que se trataba de una operación antiterrorista tras la que finalmente quedaron retenidas 60 personas, se intervinieron medio centenar de armas, explosivos y se destruyeron túneles. De recuerdo, los soldados dejaron también numerosas pintadas humillantes y hasta grabaron vídeos dentro de mezquitas profiriendo cánticos insultantes en hebreo contra el islam, lo que llevó, según el ejército israelí, a detener a los autores de las ofensas. La Autoridad Nacional Palestina (ANP) calificó lo ocurrido en Yenín, férreo feudo de la resistencia palestina, de "peligrosa escalada".

Yenín, con 62 muertos, es la localidad más convulsa de Palestina fuera de la franja de Gaza, en medio de la actual contienda, que comenzó el 7 de octubre con el ataque de Hamás en Israel, cuando fueron asesinadas unas 1.200 personas por la milicia islámica. En esta última incursión, 12 habitantes han muerto en la ciudad del norte de Cisjordania. La operación concluyó la tarde del jueves. Entre los asesinados, el adolescente Musa Jatib, que recibió el disparo estando desarmado, según fuentes del hospital y de Médicos Sin Fronteras (MSF). Cisjordania, donde han muerto unas 290 personas en esta contienda, representa, junto a la frontera con Líbano, los otros dos frentes de batalla que Israel mantiene abiertos, además del principal escenario, la Franja.

El hospital se ubica a la entrada del campo de refugiados de Yenín, principal objetivo de las tropas de Israel en Cisjordania. Se trata de un abigarrado e irregular entramado de callejones y viviendas casi improvisadas, erigidas a lo largo de las décadas en menos de medio kilómetro cuadrado, y donde habitan, al menos, 12.000 personas. En una de las primeras casas llora desconsolada Malak Jatib, de 34 años. Es la madre de Musa, que recibe las condolencias de otras mujeres del campo. Una de ellas ha perdido también a un hijo en estas semanas.

"Lo he dado todo por él para que se haga un hombre y en cuanto crece, me lo matan", lamenta Malak, separada y madre de otros cuatro hijos. El rostro de la mujer, que vive de limpiar casas, aparece, entre los abrazos de las visitas, iluminado por las lágrimas que descienden sobre sus mejillas. "Le rompieron el corazón, como a mí", susurra mientras muestra en su móvil vídeos del cadáver de su hijo durante el funeral celebrado el mismo jueves.

Pintadas dejadas por soldados israelíes con la fecha del ataque de Hamás, 7 de octubre, en el campo de refugiados de Yenín (Cisjordania) tras la última incursión. Luis De Vega Hernández

Más arriba, en la parte alta del campo de Yenín no solo tomaron posiciones los uniformados, sino que desarrollaron también una parte importante de la operación. "En esta calle hay, al menos, una docena de shujada ", asegura, refiriéndose a los mártires por la causa palestina, un vecino relatando el currículum de la vía que aparece en el mapa con el nombre de Maheub. Junto a los escombros, coches medio aplastados y algunos casquillos de bala, hay numerosos carteles, lonas y luminosos en recuerdo de todos esos muertos.

Los niños del barrio los conocían y relatan historias mientras los señalan con el dedo. Ahmed, de solo tres años, se pasea con su fusil kaláshnikov de juguete. Delante de una de las viviendas, aparece en un luminoso un joven ufano con un rifle. Es Motasim Sabagh, miembro de Hamás, muerto el pasado 7 de marzo. Su padre, Naser, de 50 años, y su hermano, Musab, de 19, fueron dos de los detenidos estos días por el ejército israelí antes de ser puestos de nuevo en libertad el jueves.

Pasaron en dependencias israelíes un día y una noche y aseguran que durmieron en un todoterreno militar atestado de arrestados maniatados y con los ojos vendados. "Eres un terrorista", dice Naser que le acusaban los soldados tras inspeccionar su móvil y ver la foto de su hijo Motasim. Él asegura que el fallecido se ganaba la vida como pintor en Israel y que ganaba "mucho", unos 9.000 séqueles al mes (unos 2.250 euros). El interrogatorio a Musab fue más largo, de unas dos horas, durante el que, según el joven, trataron de acorralarlo con preguntas para que declarara que pertenece a Hamás y le pidieron información al respecto sobre otros habitantes del campo de refugiados.

Al lado de la vivienda de la familia Sabagh aparece una de las casas dinamitadas. La hicieron saltar por los aires en la mañana del jueves y más de un día después todavía humea. Pertenecía a Maher Marai, de 55 años, que habla sobre los escombros y delante del cuadro en el que asoma otro shajid (singular de shujada), su hijo Mohamed, de 25 años, muerto hace año y medio. Marai, que tiene otro hijo encarcelado, cree que han derrumbado la casa porque otro de sus hijos dio cobijo en ella a un hombre buscado por Israel. Los vecinos apuntan, sin embargo, a que en el edificio de dos plantas podrían haber encontrado un túnel.

"Resistiremos"

Junto a Marai, el pequeño Murad, de 13 años, no deja de mirar de manera insistente al cielo, donde revolotea pertinaz y ruidoso un dron que todos consideran del ejército. "Resistiremos", afirma decidido Maher Marai, tratando de sobreponerse al desolador panorama. EL PAÍS también localizó junto a la calle Maheub los restos de una caseta donde el ejército aseguró haber encontrado explosivos, según el vídeo grabado en el momento en que procedieron a la voladura.

Se mire donde se mire, salta a la vista el extenso muestrario de destrucción dejado como recuerdo de la incursión por los militares. Calles levantadas, conducciones de agua arrancadas y encharcándolo todo, coches y casas destruidas con excavadoras o directamente voladas con explosivos. Llama la atención, además, las decenas de pintadas realizadas en las paredes con la estrella de David y la menorá, el candelabro judío de siete brazos. En algunos casos van acompañadas de mensajes como: "7 de octubre, nunca olvidaremos", estampado en una mezquita. Por todo el campamento hay pósteres y carteles con los rostros de los vecinos muertos, muchos miembros de la resistencia armada. Sobre ellos, tras la retirada de los militares, aparecen pintados hasta penes.

Desde fuera de una de las casas se escuchan las voces de Halima Taján, de 80 años, que para no estar sola se refugió junto su hija durante los días de la incursión. "¡Mira, una mierda, una mierda!", exclama señalando al suelo de su salón, donde asegura que defecó uno de los soldados que ocuparon su vivienda, que aparece totalmente revuelta. Ha tapado los pestilentes restos con una tela, pero se empeña en mostrarlos. Taján vive casi pared con pared con la casa del joven Musa Jatib, el asesinado en el hospital, considerado ya un shajid.

Una de las calles del campo de refugiados de Yenín (Cisjordania) tras la incursión de dos días y medio del ejército. Luis de Vega

El chaval, según los testimonios recogidos, corrió herido de muerte al recibir el disparo hacia la puerta de urgencias y allí se desplomó. "Era la una del mediodía", confirma observando la hora en su teléfono móvil Jiris Jader, de 49 años, uno de los responsables de enfermería del hospital. Lo llevaron de inmediato al quirófano, pero no pudieron hacer nada por él, cuenta. La muerte del menor fue denunciada también por MSF, que tenía parte de su equipo en las instalaciones y trataron asimismo en vano de salvarle la vida.

"Musa acababa de estar ayudando a sacar camillas de las ambulancias", recuerda Jiris Jader mientras relata cómo los soldados, a pocos metros de donde recibió el disparo el joven, bloqueaban los accesos al hospital. Incluso, añade, obligaban a los conductores de las ambulancias a desnudarse y arrodillarse en plena calle, como muestran en imágenes. Ese tipo de abusos son habituales y los ha denunciado de manera reiterada también MSF en Yenín y otros lugares de Cisjordania.

En una de las habitaciones del hospital Suleimán, permanece ingresada Rehat Mustada Yusef, de 68 años. La ambulancia en la que regresaba el miércoles a su casa junto a su hermana y una hija, tras ser atendida de un dolor en el pecho, recibió un disparo, como ella misma relata. Una esquirla se le incrustó bajo el párpado de ojo derecho. Por los pasillos y recibidores del hospital, Jalid Suleimán, que lleva el nombre de un jefe de la Media Luna Roja local asesinado por Israel, deambulan los gatos mientras los presentes fuman. Fuera, reina la calma. Hasta la próxima incursión israelí.

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Destrucción y humillación en Yenín tras la incursión israelí más larga de la guerra

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La ciudad cisjordana, escenario de redadas semanales, suma otros 12 muertos y cientos de detenidos. Los soldados dejaron pintadas insultantes y grabaron un vídeo mofándose del islam dentro de una mezquita

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En Palestine, le Théâtre de la Liberté (Freedom Theatre) est installé dans le camp de réfugié·es de Jénine. Le metteur en scène Hervé Loichemol, ancien directeur de la Comédie de Genève, a tissé des liens étroits avec les artistes et équipes qui luttent au quotidien pour leur survie et celle de l'art.

En 2022, il témoignait pour Le Courrier des difficultés rencontrées sur place, interrogeant le rôle émancipateur du théâtre en zone de conflits (notre édition du 5 décembre 2022). Aujourd'hui, Hervé Loichemol est à l'origine d'une pétition demandant la libération immédiate de l'équipe du Théâtre de la Liberté alors que l'armée israélienne a arrêté le 13 décembre une centaine de personnes à Jénine, dont Ahmed Tobasi et Mustafa Sheta, responsables artistique et administratif du théâtre, et Jamal Abu Joas, diplômé de l'école qui y est rattachée. Celle-ci demande aux gouvernements occidentaux de tout mettre en œuvre pour que soient aussi libérés "tous les Palestiniens détenus sans fondement légal par Israël et tous les otages détenus par le Hamas et pour que cessent la colonisation, le nettoyage ethnique et les massacres en cours".

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Pour la libération de l'équipe du Théâtre de la Liberté - Le Courrier

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En Palestine, le Théâtre de la Liberté (Freedom Theatre) est installé dans le camp de réfugié·es de Jénine. Le metteur en scène Hervé Loichemol, ancien directeur de la Comédie de Genève, a tissé des liens étroits avec les artistes et équipes qui luttent au quotidien pour leur survie et celle de l'art.

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Det israelske militærets terrorvelde rettet mot den palestinske befolkningen - inkludert dens ledende kulturelle og intellektuelle personligheter - fortsetter med uforminsket styrke. Bankingen og skyting av journalister, attentat mot diktere, drap av malere og forfattere i luftangrep - dette er et karaktertrekk ved det grufulle ansiktet til Netanyahu-Biden-genocidet i Gaza, også ledsaget av fornyet brutalitet og drap på den okkuperte Vestbredden.

Den israelske hæren, Israel Defense Forces (IDF), gjennomførte onsdag et raid mot Freedom Theatre i flyktningleiren Jenin på Vestbredden, og ødela så mye av teatrets utstyr som IDF-bøllene kunne få tak i og arresterte tre av dets ledende kunstnere.

Ifølge en uttalelse fra teatret, om morgenen den 13. desember "begynte den israelske hæren å angripe og ransake Freedom Theatre. De skøyt fra innsiden av teatret, ødela kontorene og banket ned en vegg."

Zoe Lafferty, teatrets assisterende direktør, beskrev angrepet til Middle East Eye som en form for "kulturelt genocid". IDF "tok den nye datamaskina vi kjøpte for å drive forestillingene våre fra", sa Lafferty. "Den var ikke dyr, men for Freedom Theatre er det er en enorm sum penger. Vi trengte å bruke den de åtte neste årene."

Teatrets uttalelse forklarte at hæren "så dro til hjemmene til [kunstnerisk leder] Ahmed Tobasi og [produsent og manager] Mustafa Sheta, satte bind for øynene på dem, la dem i håndjern og førte dem vekk. Samme kvelden dro hæren til hjemmet til [nylig uteksaminert skuespillerstudent] Jamal Abu Joas og banket ham alvorlig opp og tok ham deretter med seg."

Teateret la til: "Vi kan bekrefte at Tobasi er løslatt. Han lider av bein- og ryggsmerter av at den israelske hæren banket ham opp. Vi vil oppdatere om hans tilstand så snart som mulig."

Middle East Eye kommenterte at før de arresterte ham "fikk de israelske styrkene Tobasi til å ta av seg jakka og legge seg på gata i regnet". De brøyt seg deretter inn i hans hjem og ødela "alt de kunne, og tok til og med plantene og kastet dem i bakken", la teatret til.

Da han ble løslatt, sa Tobasi: "De behandlet oss som dyr. De prøver å skade oss på alle måter de kan, men det er viktig at vi holder oss sterke." Sheta og Joas forblir i skrivende stund i israelsk varetekt.

Shetas kone, Rasha Sheta, sa hennes mann hadde blitt satt i håndjern foran deres barn. "Barna mine tilbrakte natta gråtende. Vi følte oss så redde uten at han var der sammen med oss," sa hun i en uttalelse.

Teateret påpekte at denne ukas angrep "følger opp drapet på tre medlemmer av Freedom Theatre de siste ukene, deriblant den 17-år-gamle teaterdeltakeren Yamen Jarrar, 26-år-gamle Jehad Naghniyeh og 30-år-gamle Mohammed Matahen. I juni 2023 ble også 15-år-gamle Sadeel Naghnaghia og 17-år-gamle Mahmoud Al-Sadi, ungdomsdeltakere i teateret, myrdet. Tidligere, i juli, ble Freedom Theatre skadet på grunn av bombing, under en tre-dager-lang invasjon der [teatertekniker] Adnan Torokman ble internert i fire dager av den israelske hæren."

Forskjellige teatre og teaterkunstnere har fordømt angrepet på Freedom Theatre.

En av de mest prestisjefylte teatrene i Europa, Royal Court i London, ga ut en uttalelse som rapporterte at det var "sjokkert å høre at Mustafa Sheta og Jamal Abu Joas fra @freedom_theatre har blitt arrestert. Vi krever deres umiddelbare løslatelse. Ahmed Tobasi ble også arrestert, og har siden blitt løslatt. Han er påført skader som følge av å ha vært varetektsfengslet."

The Royal Court, fortsatte uttalelsen, var "også forferdet over å lese om gårsdagens angrep på teatret, ødeleggelsen av kontorer og overgrep mot ansatte, som fulgte drapene av medlemmer av Freedom Theatre, deriblant Yamen Jarrar, Jehad Naghniyeh og Mohammed Matahen, og arrestasjonen av hundrevis av andre i Jenin. Vi krever deres umiddelbare løslatelse." London-teatret la til: "Vi står sammen med våre kolleger - forfatterne, kunstnerne og studentene - for hvem Freedom Theatre er deres kreative hjem. Vi står imot drepingen og kneblingen av kunstnere og ødeleggelsene som kulturelle steder i Gaza og på Vestbredden har lidd i denne krigen."

The Tara Theatre i London, som er en forfekter for sørasiatiske stemmer og artister, gjorde det klart at det "fortsetter å stå i solidaritet med våre venner og kolleger fra Freedom Theatre som ble arrestert og internert av israelske styrker. ... Vi er også forferdet over angrepet på teatret, raidet og ødeleggelsen av deres kontorer og den brutale volden som ble utført mot de ansatte."

Mer enn 100 skotske dramatikere og teaterskribenter, deriblant Rona Munro, Stephen Greenhorn, Liz Lochhead, Gregory Burke, Adura Onashile, Alan Bissett, May Sumbwanyambe og Karine Polwart har signert et åpent brev som fordømmer angrepet på Freedom Theatre.

Brevet bemerket at Jenin-teaterkompaniet "opptrådte i Glasgow, på Tron Theatre, med forestillingen The Siege så seint som i 2015. Ahmed Tobasi framførte forestillingen And Here I Am på Edinburgh Fringe i 2017 på New Town Theatre, og bidro til multikunstnerfeiringen av det arabiske verket Chill Habibi på Summerhall samme år. Freedom Theatre er verdsatte medlemmer av vårt internasjonale samfunn. Målrettingen av deres teater og deres voldelige internering i hendene på det israelske militæret er en krenkelse av oss alle."

Freedom Theatre påpekte, i deres uttalelse, at palestinske kunstnere i flere tiår "har blitt vilkårlig internert av Israel, noen ganger i årevis, som også målretter og ødelegger kulturelle bygninger, en krigsforbrytelse under internasjonal lov. I løpet av de siste ukene har et enestående antall forfattere, poeter, teaterskapere og journalister blitt drept i Gaza, deriblant dr. Refaat Al'Areer, som ble bevisst målrettet og myrdet."

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Israelske soldater ransaker teater på Vestbredden, banker opp og internerer kunstnere

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IDFs terrorvelde rettet mot den palestinske befolkningen - inkludert dens ledende kulturelle og intellektuelle personligheter - fortsetter med uforminsket styrke.

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En norsk statsborger har vært anholdt av det israelske forsvaret på Vestbredden. The Freedom Theatre hevder den anholdte er deres kunstneriske leder, norske Ahmed Tobasi (39)

Ciidamada difaaca Israa'iil ayaa xabsiga u taxaabay muwaadin u dhashay dalka Norway oo ku sugnaa Daanta Galbeed. Masraxa Freedom Theatre ayaa ku andacoonaya in qofka la xiray uu yahay agaasimahooda farshaxanka, Noorwiiji Axmed Tobasi (39)

https://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/i/VPAOX6/nordmann-skal-blitt-paagrepet-av-israelsk-haer-paa-vestbredden

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Skal ha blitt pågrepet på Vestbredden - UD bekrefter at nordmann er løslatt

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En norsk statsborger har vært anholdt av det israelske forsvaret på Vestbredden. The Freedom Theatre hevder den anholdte er deres kunstneriske leder, norske Ahmed Tobasi (39) Ciidamada difaaca Israa'iil ayaa xabsiga u taxaabay muwaadin u dhashay dalka Norway oo ku sugnaa Daanta Galbeed.

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Ahmed Tobasi, kunstnerisk leder for The Freedom Theatre, ble løslatt noen få dager etter å ha blitt arrestert av den israelske hæren.

Ifølge en pressemelding fra Nordic Black Theatre tidligere i uken skal han ha blitt arrestert i sitt hjem i Jenin flyktningleir, sammen med broren sin, Mohammed.

- I morgentimene i dag brøt hæren seg inn i hjemmet til Mustafa Sheta, daglig leder for The Freedom Theatre. Soldatene stengte resten av familien inn i et rom, mens de bandt Mustafa på hender og føtter og kjørte avsted med ham til ukjent sted (...) Vi vet ikke hvor lenge Ahmed og Mustafa (eller de andre arresterte) vil bli holdt i varetekt.

- Stormet inn i boligen

Jarl Solberg, daglig leder i Nordic Black Theatre, sier de fikk høre at israelsk militære stormet inn i boligen hans i leiren, og tok ham og tre andre personer, troligvis også tilknyttet teatret, i varetekt.

- Utifra informasjonen vi fikk ble mobiltelefoner og PCer ødelagt. I tillegg skal et nesten hundretalls personer ha blitt arrestert på Vestbredden, sier han til Utrop.

Snakket ut om militæraksjon

Tobasi ble født i flyktningleiren i Jenin, som han vendte tilbake til etter at han reiste tilbake fra Norge. I flyktningleiren har han drevet med teatervirksomhet.

- Jeg følte et ansvar for å gi noe tilbake til hjemstedet mitt, sa han til TV 2.

I intervjuet med TV 2 snakket han også om en militæraksjon i flyktningleiren i juli, noen måneder før krigsutbruddet.

Kontaktet UD

Tobasi er norsk statsborger av palestinsk opphav, som for tiden bor i Jenin, noe som gjorde at norske myndigheter kunne kobles inn i saken.

- Nordic Black sendte inn denne uken en bekymringsmelding til desken i Utenriksdepartementet (UD). Ifølge UDs regler bekreftet UD at de tok imot meldingen og svarte oss at de holdt på å undersøke saken, men kunne ikke orientere oss videre om situasjonen.

Teatret har engasjert seg sterkt i saken er et årelangt samarbeid med Freedom Theatre.

- Tobasi var student på teaterskolen vår, og jobbet etter endt utdanning i flere av våre prosjekter. Så reiste han tilbake til Jenin for å bli teatersjef i Freedom Theatre. Han har blant annet jobbet med teater for barn og unge.

Sist Nordic Black var i fysisk kontakt med ham var i august.

- Han kom til Norge for å spille teater, hvor vi hadde en turné og spilte for fulle hus. Vi turnerte i Karlsøy, via Trondheim og avrundet i Oslo. Så har han også turnert i Europa, og gjøre noen forestillinger i Frankrike. Likevel er situasjonen utfordrende for ham, som for andre palestinere, og selv med norsk pass er han nødt til å gjennom utallige kontrollpunkter.

Flyktet til Norge

Tobasi ble fengslet som 17-åring, og vurderte sin personlige situasjon på Vestbredden som så usikker at han reiste ut og flyktet til Norge.
- Siden Freedom Theatre anses av Israel som ideologiske og politiske, risikerer Tobasi og andre tilknyttet hardere behandling under israelsk administrativ varetekt? Selv om han nå igjen er fri?

- Etterhvert fikk han flyktningstatus i Norge, opphold og statsborgerskap.

- Flere av de hundre som har blitt arrestert i Jenin, og som fortsatt sitter fengslet, er mer enn bare kunstnere. Israelske soldater driver ikke bare med trakassering, men også grove krenkelser av menneskerettighetene overfor palestinere.

- En begrensing av kunstnerisk frihet

Solberg ser alt dette som en begrensning av den kunstneriske ytringsfriheten.

- Folk flest i Palestina rammes av krigen, ikke bare kunstnere. Vi er utrolig bekymret og opprørte over det som har skjedd med Tobasi, som er en god venn, kollega og arbeidspartner.

For Freedom Theatre rammer fengslingene organisatorisk, med nesten hele ledelsen i varetekt.
Utrop har kontaktet Israels ambassade i Oslo for tilsvar. Ifølge kilden ved ambassaden som har svart Utrop på e-post skal Tobasi være løslatt. Ellers henviser kilden til norsk UD angående spørsmål utover hensyn til personvern. Utrop har i tillegg kontaktet UD, uten å lykkes med å få et tilsvar.

- For oss handler dette engasjementet om å sikre at kunst skal ha akseptable arbeidsvilkår. Freedom Theatre er en viktig partner for oss, og vi ønsker jo å fortsette og videreutvikle samarbeidet.

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Ahmed Tobasi, kunstnerisk leder for The Freedom Theatre, ble løslatt noen få dager etter å ha blitt arrestert av den israelske hæren.

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En norsk statsborger har vært anholdt av det israelske forsvaret på Vestbredden. The Freedom Theatre hevder den anholdte er deres kunstneriske leder, norske Ahmed Tobasi (39).

En norsk statsborger har i over et døgn vært anholdt av det israelske militæret på Vestbredden.

Det norske Utenriksdepartementet bekrefter til VG torsdag ettermiddag at de har jobbet med saken.

- Vi kan bekrefte at en norsk borger har vært anholdt i Israel. Denne personen er nå løslatt, sier kommunikasjonsrådgiver i Utenriksdepartementet Mariken Harbitz, til VG torsdag ettermiddag.

Ifølge The Freedom Theatre The Freedom Theatre The Freedom Theatre er et teater som høster stor internasjonal anerkjennelse og som har turnert mye i både Europa og USA med sine forestillinger. på Vestbredden er mannen som var anholdt den norske skuespilleren, dramatikeren, regissøren og scenekunstneren Ahmed Tobasi (39).

Tobasi er kunstnerisk leder ved teateret, og jobbet lenge ved Nordic Black Theatre i Oslo.

Nordmannen skal ifølge The Freedom Theatres Facebook-side ha blitt pågrepet av den israelske hæren, tidlig onsdag, i sitt hjem i Jenin på Vestbredden.

VG har snakket med talsperson for The Freedom Theatre, Zoe Lafferty. Hun hevder den israelske hæren tok seg fysisk inn på teateret, ransaket det, knuste en vegg, og deretter tok seg inn i husene til flere av teaterets ansatte, deriblant Ahmed Tobasis hus.

VG har fått videresendt en sms fra kona til en annen ansatt ved teateret, som sier hennes mann ble utsatt for det samme.
Klokken 14:05 torsdag ettermiddag skriver teateret at Tobasi er løslatt, etter over et døgn i den israelske hærens varetekt.
" Han lider av smerter i ben og rygg etter slag", skriver de i en offisiell uttalelse til pressen.

Tobasis familie er blitt gjort kjent med at VG omtaler saken.

- De tok seg fysisk inn på teateret, ransaket det, knuste en vegg, og tok seg deretter inn i husene til flere av teaterets ansatte. Vi vet de slo Tobasi da de pågrep ham, og knuste telefonen og iPaden hans, sier talsperson for The Freedom Theatre, Zoe Lafferty, på telefon til VG torsdag formiddag.
UD bekrefter til VG torsdag morgen at de jobber med en sak der en nordmann er pågrepet på Vestbredden.
- Vi er kjent med saken. Ambassaden i Tel Aviv og representasjonskontoret i Al Ram jobber med å få mer opplysninger, sier pressetalsperson Siri R. Svendsen i Utenriksdepartementet.

Teater: 100 pågrepet

Tobasis bror skal også være arrestert, det samme skal en produsent ved teateret, sammen med over 100 andre palestinere fra Jenin, skriver The Freedom Theatre, som holder til i Jenin flyktningleir.

VG har kontaktet Den israelske ambassaden i Oslo, uten å få svar på hvorvidt de sitter med opplysninger om saken.

VG har også snakket med presseavdelingen for den israelske hæren, IDF, som ber om at spørsmålene rettes til den israelske sikkerhetstjenesten. Det har ikke lyktes VG å få svar fra sistnevnte.

Ifølge kontaktpersonene ved henholdsvis Freedom Theatre og Nordic Black Theatre, har Tobasi ikke familie i Norge.

"Forferdelig bekymret"

Tobasi flyktet til Norge i 2008, og tok videreutdannelsen sin ved Nordic Black Theatre.
Senest i august spilte han for fulle hus i Oslo, forteller daglig leder i Nordic Black Theatre, Jarl Solberg, til VG.
- Tobasi har en lang samarbeidsrelasjon med oss, og han har vært både elev og jobbet med mange produksjoner i Nordic Black Theatre. Vi er selvsagt svært opprørte og forferdelig bekymret, sa Solberg til VG onsdag kveld.

- Tobasi har en lang samarbeidsrelasjon med oss, og han har vært både elev og jobbet med mange produksjoner i Nordic Black Theatre. Vi er selvsagt svært opprørte og forferdelig bekymret, sier Solberg.

Solberg sier at Tobasi ble pågrepet av den israelske hæren i sitt eget hjem i Jenin onsdag. Solberg hevder han ble bundet på hender og føtter før han ble kjørt bort med sin bror.

Talsperson for The Freedom Theatre, Zoe Lafferty, sier til VG at Tobasis familie fortsatt ikke har hørt noe fra ham, rundt 24 timer etter det de beskriver som en brutal pågripelse i hjemmet.

Har vunnet priser i Norge

Tobasi er 39 år gammel.

Selv om Tobasi dro fra Norge og tilbake til Vestbredden for noen år siden, har det nære samarbeidet med Nordic Black Theatre blitt vedlikeholdt.

- Vi hadde planer litt frem i tid sammen med Tobasi også, og vi har hatt en jevnlig dialog med han. Dette er selvsagt rystende, forteller Solberg.

Tobasi har gjort seg bemerket som en markant skuespiller i Norge.

I april i år vant han den norske Solidaritetsstipendet.

- Tobasi har i en årrekke jobbet med å bruke teater og sin scenekunst som et våpen mot Israel. Her hjemme i Norge er det mange tidligere kollegaer som tenker på Tobasi og som vil støtte han og The Freedom Theatre, sier Solberg.

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Skal ha blitt pågrepet på Vestbredden - UD bekrefter at nordmann er løslatt

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En norsk statsborger har vært anholdt av det israelske forsvaret på Vestbredden. The Freedom Theatre hevder den anholdte er deres kunstneriske leder, norske Ahmed Tobasi (39).

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Ahmed Tobasi, teaterleder ved "The Freedom Theatre" på Vestbredden, ble løslatt etter et døgn i israelsk fengsel.

Klassekampen kunne i går melde at den norsk-palestinske kunstneren Ahmed Tobasi ble fengslet av israelske soldater onsdag morgen. Etter å ha sittet inne i tretti timer, ble Tobasi løslatt torsdag.

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Ahmed Tobasi, teaterleder ved "The Freedom Theatre" på Vestbredden, ble løslatt etter et døgn i israelsk fengsel.

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Den norsk-palestinske kunstneren Ahmed Tobasi ble onsdag arrestert av israelske tropper på Vestbredden.

Onsdag morgen skal israelske soldater ha tatt seg inn i kulturinstitusjonen The Freedom Theatre i flyktningleiren Jenin på Vestbredden. Der begynte de ifølge øyenvitner å smadre en vegg og skyte rundt seg, i tillegg til å knuse alt av teknisk utstyr.

The freedom theatre

The freedom theatre

Et palestinsk kultursenter i flyktningleiren i Jenin på den nordlige siden av Vestbredden.

Siden oppstarten i 2006 har teateret jobbet for å generere kulturell motstand og sosial endring i de okkuperte palestinske områdene.

Onsdag ble flere fra teateret arrestert av israelske styrker, inkludert norsk-palestinske Ahmed Tobasi, ifølge The Freedom Theatre. Teaterbygningen og leiligheten til Tobasi skal også ha blitt utsatt for hærværk.

Bråket skal ha fått kunstnerisk leder Ahmed Tobasi (39), som har norsk statsborgerskap, til å forlate hjemmet sitt i nærheten.

Etter å ha bedt soldatene roe seg ned ble han ført bort, ikledd tynne klær og sandaler, sammen med daglig leder Mustafa Sheta.

Tobasis leilighet skal også ha blitt utsatt for hærverk.

- Disse arrestasjonene er del av en lang og målrettet aksjon mot flyktningleiren generelt og teateret spesielt, sier Zoe Delemere Lafferty, teaterregissør og talsperson for The Freedom Theatre, på telefon fra London.

Hun har de siste 13 årene jobbet med teateret og er nå assisterende kunstnerisk leder.

UD: "Er nå løslatt"

Utenriksdepartementet (UD) bekreftet i går ettermiddag at en norsk borger har vært anholdt i Israel. Tidligere på dagen opplyste UD at de undersøkte "omstendighetene rundt en mulig pågripelse av en norsk statsborger på Vestbredden".

- Denne personen er nå løslatt, sa kommunikasjonsrådgiver Mariken Harbitz til Klassekampen like før avisa gikk i trykken.

UD ønsker ikke å identifisere vedkommende.

Kildene Klassekampen har vært i kontakt med, hadde i går ettermiddag ennå ikke hørt livstegn fra Ahmed Tobasi, og kunne verken bekrefte eller avkrefte at han var løslatt.

- Psykisk og fysisk tortur

Zoe Delemere Lafferty sier til Klassekampen at de israelske troppene kom tilbake onsdag kveld for å arrestere teaterlærer Jamal Abu Joas, som skal ha blitt utsatt for vold før han ble ført bort.

Nå frykter hun for hva som møter kollegaene i det israelske fengselet.

- Vi er godt kjent med vitnesbyrd fra palestinske fanger i israelske fengsler. De blir rett som det er utsatt for psykisk og fysisk tortur, nektet medisiner og mat. Hvem vet hvilken situasjon de er i, og hvor lenge de må sitte der, sier hun.

Lafferty forteller at teateret siden oppstarten i 2006 har opplevd jevnlige angrep, i tillegg til arrestasjoner av medlemmer av teateret. Tre medlemmer skal ha blitt drept de siste ukene: 17-årige Yamen Jarrar, 26 år gamle Jehad Naghniyeh og 30 år gamle Mohammed Matahen.

Bombet i sommer

Det siste angrepet på teateret skjedde i juli i år, da bygningen ble skadd som følge av et bombeangrep i nærheten.

- En løslatelse er ikke slutten på torturen. Tobasi og andre palestinere får ikke muligheten til komme seg fra traumene, fordi de blir angrepet igjen og igjen. Om Tobasi kommer seg hjem, kommer han til en smadret leilighet, sier Zoe Delemere Lafferty.

Ifølge Al-Jazeera ble et større raid av flyktningleiren Jenin påbegynt tirsdag denne uka. Det er den femtende gangen siden begynnelsen av oktober at israelske tropper har foretatt massearrestasjoner.

Til sammen er over 500 palestinere blitt arrestert i denne perioden, hvorav 400 skal være løslatt.

Gir barna håp

Tobasi flyktet til Norge i 2009 og er norsk statsborger, men er bosatt på Vestbredden.

"En løslatelse er ikke slutten på torturen."
- Zoe Delemere Lafferty, talsperson for The Freedom Theatre

- Ahmed Tobasi er en kraft og et lys, sier Vibeke Harper i kunstnergruppa Motforestillinger.

Hun besøkte The Freedom Theatre første gang i 2009 og har latt seg imponere av institusjonen som både lager kunst, aktiviteter for barn og utdanner kunstnere. Seinest i mars samarbeidet de med Motforestillinger om prosjektet "Revolusjonens løfte".
- Hvorfor har Tobasi valgt å flytte tilbake til flyktningleiren når han kunne levd her i Norge?
- The Freedom Theatre har en ekstremt viktig posisjon i flyktningleiren i Jenin. Tobasi redder daglig barns liv ved å gi dem framtidshåp og å ruste dem for å bearbeide traumer, sier Harper.

- Det sier alt om ham. Han kom til Norge etter at The Freedom Theatre hadde, ifølge ham selv, reddet livet hans. Så da daværende kunstnerisk leder Juliano Mer-Khamis ble drept i 2011, følte han et ansvar for å reise ned og bidra til at drifta kunne fortsette.

- Ikke glem de andre

Cliff Moustache, kunstnerisk leder ved Nordic Black Theatre i Oslo, husker godt da Tobasi ble innrullert ved deres teaterskole.
- Tobasi ser teater som motstandskamp?
- Jeg skjønte med en gang at dette var en ambisiøs fyr med kraft til å formidle viktige historier, sier Moustache.

- Han gir disse menneskene et verktøy som er sterkere enn alt annet.

Nå forventer han at norske myndigheter gjør alt som står i deres makt for at teatret kan fortsette sitt arbeid.

- Som norsk statsborger har man grønt kort, men vi kan ikke glemme de andre. Kampen må fortsette.

Den israelske ambassaden er blitt kontaktet for en uttalelse i forbindelse med saken, men rakk ikke å kommentere innen fristen.

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Den norsk-palestinske kunstneren Ahmed Tobasi ble onsdag arrestert av israelske tropper på Vestbredden.

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Norsk statsborger arrestert av israelske styrker på Vestbredden

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Onsdag morgen ble Ahmed Tobasi arrestert av israelske soldater. Dagen etter ble han løslatt, svært preget av det han opplevde.

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13. desember ble The Freedom Theatre i Jenin utsatt for nok et målrettet angrep fra den israelske hæren: Soldater tok seg inn i teatret, ramponerte kontorene og ødela utstyr. Deretter tok de seg inn i hjemmet til teatrets kunstneriske leder Ahmed Tobasi. Også der ramponerte og ødela de interiør og teknisk utstyr, før de på brutalt vis bortførte ham til ukjent sted. Soldatene tok seg så inn i hjemmet til daglig leder Mustafa Sheta - og bortførte også ham til ukjent sted. Senere på dagen ble teatrets medarbeider, 17 år gamle Jamal Abu Joas, angrepet, banket opp og arrestert.

- Situasjonen er pågående og uavklart; den israelske hæren er fremdeles inne i flyktningleiren, elektrisitet og internett kuttes periodevis, noe som gjør det vanskelig å kommunisere med de som er i leiren. Det går rykter om at Ahmed Tobasi er løslatt, men det er ikke bekreftet, sier Solberg.

I løpet av de siste to dagene har over 100 stykker i Jenin blitt arrestert av den israelske hæren, og i de siste to ukene har mange blitt drept, blant annet tre av teatrets medarbeidere.

- Arrestasjonene av teatrets ledelse føyer seg inn i en lang rekke lignende angrep på The Freedom Theatre: Helt siden de åpnet i 2006 har flere av deres ansatte og styremedlemmer blitt arrestert og satt i administrativ forvaring, sier Harper. I september i fjor ble styreleder Bilal Al-Sadi satt i administrativ forvaring. Harper forteller at et samlet norsk scenekunstfelt stilte seg da bak et opprop med krav om umiddelbar løslatelse. - Oppropet ble overlevert både utenriksdepartementet og kulturdepartementet, og de lovet å ta saken videre. Men Bilal Al Sadi sitter fremdeles i administrativ forvaring. Og nå er også kunstnerisk leder og daglig leder for teatret blitt fengslet.

Administrativ forvaring er et strategisk verktøy Israel benytter for å fengsle palestinere som ikke har begått lovbrudd, men som staten ser seg best tjent med å fjerne fra det palestinske sivilsamfunnet. Særlig utsatt er studenter, journalister, menneskerettighetsaktivister, advokater, kunstnere og kulturarbeidere: Når viktige samfunnsbyggere blir fengslet, lammes utviklingen og arbeidet de var i gang med. Israel har blitt kritisert for bruken av administrativ forvaring fra både internasjonalt og norsk hold gjennom flere tiår. - Det sitter nå over 2000 palestinere i administrativ forvaring, uten en rettskraftig dom. Over 200 av disse er barn. Dette er det høyeste antallet fengslede på flere tiår. Vi forventer at Norge følger opp sin uttalte kritikk med et krav om at Israel avslutter sin systematiske bruk av administrativ forvaring, sier Solberg.

Angrepene på The Freedom Theatre er et av flere målrettede israelske angrep på palestinske kunstnere. Kunsten er den viktigste identitetsbæreren i ethvert samfunn. - Israel har lenge forsøkt å dehumanisere palestinerne, og palestinske kunstnere er en svært viktig motstemme mot dette. Deres stemmer og fortellinger truer det narrativet Israel forsøker å selge. Vi kan ikke akseptere at palestinske kunstnere fengsles og med det stilnes, sier Harper.

Ahmed Tobasi og Mustafa Sheta har ikke blitt anklaget for noen lovbrudd. De er begge svært viktige for lokalsamfunnet i Jenin og er helt avgjørende for driften av The Freedom Theatre.

Ahmed Tobasi kom som flyktning til Norge i 2008, og studerte ved Nordic Black Theatre. Siden han er norsk statsborger, har norske myndigheter dermed et særskilt ansvar for å sørge for hans løslatelse fra urettmessig fengsling av Israel.

- Vi forventer at vår utenriksminister krever umiddelbar løslatelse av de urettmessige fengslede kulturarbeiderne. Vi forventer også at regjeringen kaller inn den israelske ambassadøren til et møte og krever en forklaring på hvorfor en norsk statsborger er satt i israelsk administrativ forvaring, sier Solberg og Harper.

Les mer om administrativ forvaring: https://www.addameer.org/statistics
(Pressemelding, 14.12.2023)

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Nordic Black Theatre og Motforestillinger er svært bekymret over situasjonen som deres samarbeidspartnere ved The Freedom Theatre i Jenin på Vestbredden, okkupert Palestina, befinner seg i. - Vi forventer at norske myndigheter gjør det de kan for å trygge deres livs- og arbeidsvilkår, sier Jarl Solberg, Nordic Black Theatre, og Vibeke Harper, Motforestillinger.

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National Public Radio - Artists rally in support of West Bank theater members detained since Dec. 13

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The Freedom Theatre has endured extraordinary stress and privations since it was first founded in 1987 by an Israeli and Palestinian couple. Located in a refugee camp on the West Bank, it has gained international renown for original plays and creative workshops for Palestinian children and families.

But in 2011, its artistic director was shot by masked assailants. Juliano Mer-Khamis, an Israeli film director, was the adult son of the theaters' founders. Last year, the chair of its board, Bilal al-Saadi, was arrested by the Israeli army. He was detained for six months in what PEN America described as "a serious human rights violation."

Last summer, the theater was shelled by the Israeli military as part of a days-long campaign in the area, with extensive damages reported by the non-partisan Middle East Institute and documented by the theater. On Wednesday December 13, in the midst of one of the biggest raids on Jenin in decades, the Israeli army ransacked and vandalized the theater, according to its staff, and arrested artistic director Ahmed Tobasi and two of its members. Israel says it was conducting an operation searching for militants, who have been expanding their activities in Jenin for over a year.

Tobasi was detained for 24 hours. NPR was unable to locate him for an interview, but in an December 15 appearance on the left-wing program Democracy Now, Tobasi said Israeli soldiers broke all the computers in the theater, blindfolded him and threw him in the mud by a jeep. He said he was afraid they were going to run him over.

"Everything is destroyed," Tobasi said in the video interview, which included images of the theater's raided offices. "This is a theater. It's not a military base. It's not a terrorist house. There are no guns. There are books, pictures, cameras, music, instruments. All of it been destroyed."

In a statement, the staff of the Freedom Theatre said the Israeli army fired weapons in the inside of the theater, scrawled slogans in Hebrew on its walls and later arrested Mustafa Sheta, the theater's general manager, and Jamal Abu Joas, a recent graduate of the Freedom Theatre Performing Arts School. Abu Jonas, the statement says, was also severely beaten.

Both men are now in an Israeli prison, according to a website that supports Palestinian artists.

An Israeli military spokesperson said in a statement, "The IDF conducted a counterterrorism activity in the Jenin camp, during which the forces located many weapons, ammunition and explosive devices in the territory of the camp. During the activity, hundreds of suspects were detained, and after initial questioning, those not involved with terrorism were released, while the rest were handed over for further questioning. At this time, we are not aware of IDF fire within the Jenin theatre. The activity is under ongoing review by commanders."

More than 1,000 British playwrights, actors and directors have signed an open letter in solidarity with the Freedom Theatre and calling for the release of the detained theater artists. Signatories include leading feminist playwright Caryl Churchill and five-time Olivier winning director Dominic Cooke. Artists in France, Italy, Mexico, South Africa, Germany and Belgium have also rallied in support.

On Tuesday night, a New York City protest in support of the Freedom Theatre artists included Osh Ashruf, founder of Broadway for All and Patricia McGregor, the artistic director of the New York Theatre Workshop, who evoked Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson when she addressed the rally.

"He asked one question. What are your hands, heads and hearts doing with your time on Earth to make it a better place?" McGregor asked. "Our brothers and sisters at the Freedom Theater in Jenin have been answering that question through art for decades...and we will continue to watch and demand until they are released. "

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Artists rally in support of West Bank theater members detained since Dec. 13

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Members of Jenin's renowned Freedom Theatre were arrested and detained by Israeli military forces, including its artistic director and general manager, who remains in custody.

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Broadway World - NYC Theatre Community Organizes Rapid Respond Rally for Freedom Theatre of Jenin

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Broadway News | Broadway Tickets & Videos | BroadwayWorld

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Your guide to all things theatre on Broadway and around the world including shows, news, reviews, broadway tickets, regional theatre and more.

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International Solidarity Movement - Jenin: The Other Gaza

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On Wednesday, December 13, I received a message from a fellow actress of the Freedom Theatre informing me that the occupation forces had arrested without charge Mustafa Sheta, theatre director and general manager, Ahmed Tobasi, artistic director, as well as Jamal Abu Joas, acting coach. The arrests took place in a military raid carried out by the occupation forces in the city of Jenin, with their main target being the refugee camp where the headquarters of the Freedom Theatre is located.

Mustafa Sheta was arrested at his home in the city of Jenin, where they handcuffed him and took him, mercilessly, in front of his children. They sat the whole family in the living room and when they identified Mustafa they asked him, "Have you done anything?" To which Mustafa replied, "I have not done anything." Still, the occupation forces took him away and to this day nothing is known about him.

On the night of December 12, 2023, Tobasi heard soldiers knocking on neighbors' doors. He got dressed, put on a winter jacket and got ready because he was worried about them coming to his home.

The next morning, shortly after 9 a.m., the Israelis began attacking and looting the Freedom Theatre. They fired from inside the theatre, destroying the offices and knocking down a wall. Tobasi's house is directly across from the Freedom Theatre.

Around 11:30 a.m., still fully dressed and still hearing disturbances, he came out and said, "Why are you making all this noise? You are terrorizing children."

The Israeli army took Tobasi and beat him. They made him take off his jacket and threw him on the ground in the street, in the cold and rain.

Shouting at Tobasi that he should stay there, the army entered his house and broke everything. They smashed his computer screen, his iPad, and destroyed everything they could, even taking the plants and throwing them on the ground.

After breaking everything in the house, the Israeli army took a towel from the house and blindfolded Tobasi. They then went to look for Mohammed, Tobasi's brother.

Occupation forces handcuffed them both and took them away. They did not have enough clothing for the cold and winter weather.

Jamal Abu Joas has also been captured by the Israeli army.

Jamal recently graduated from the Freedom Theatre School of Performing Arts, where he is now an acting coach and also a freelance photographer.

The army invaded his house, and searched and took everything, including Jamal's phone and camera. The soldiers have beaten him brutally.

On Thursday afternoon we decided to go to the city of Jenin in support and solidarity for my colleagues and friends from the Freedom Theatre and to document what had happened.

We arrived around two in the afternoon in the city of Jenin, and all the shops were closed. Some boys helped us get closer to the entrance of the refugee camp. Between the sounds of detonations of live ammunition and the smell of teargas we advanced, but only halfway. On the way we had to stop, there was an ambulance and a barricade that blocked the way.

Further up, at the entrance to the refugee camp, there was a convoy of the Israeli army. Journalists were gathered on the edge of the street at the entrance of a hospital and residential house. We waited for about 10 minutes; the sound of the live fire grew louder. But then the occupation forces withdrew and we were able to enter.

We entered through a side street towards the central square of the camp. From the first moment we could see the level of destruction that had been undertaken. The streets were completely destroyed, the doors of the houses broken, the shops destroyed, the water was running all over the place. What were once streets were now muddy fields because the army had also broken the pipes to destroy the water infrastructure. The level of destruction was incalculable.

We arrived at the central square which was unrecognizable. Wherever one turned there was graffiti of the Star of David painted on walls.

All the surroundings were damaged. We joined with local community members trying to clean a little and see how they could repair what the occupation forces had destroyed. We continued walking towards the theatre. My eyes could not recognize where I was. This place that I walked so many times could not be connected with my memories. The firefighters were putting out a fire in a house that still seemed to be burning We could feel the heat coming off as we passed by.

When we arrived outside the theatre, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. The place that I saw so full of life the last time I was there was covered by a spectral silence. The warehouse, the theatre room, the offices, everything had been destroyed. They threw everything everywhere. They broke everything: books, pictures, doors, computers, screens, glass. And again, the Star of David was everywhere one looked. They did this as an exercise in intimidation, cruelty and power. This was not only an attack on life but also an attack on freedom. The occupation forces want to end any type of resistance.

I went out to the parking lot again and see a man outside the theatre room. When he turns to me, it takes me a moment to recognize him. He is Tobasi. They have released him. I hug him tightly. I feel relieved to see him again. He asks me how I am. "Confused," I respond, "I think it's absurd for me to ask you." But he nevertheless responded, "Alhamdulillah."

It is evident that they have hurt him, that they tortured him, that they beat him. It is difficult for him to walk. We entered the office at a slow but steady pace. "They destroyed everything," he says. When we are in one of the offices outside we hear the noise of a car engine, he turns around and asks me, "Is it a jeep?" No, it's just a car, but we have to leave. We offer to help clean, but he says, "Later, now it's not safe. They can come back at any time.

Already on the street outside the theatre, we say goodbye. I told him to write to me, that I will return. He said, "Yes, but in a couple of days, now it is not safe." I told him that I am here for him, for Mustafa and for the Freedom Theatre. I initially came to do an artistic residency with them, which was cut short by the events that arose after October 7. "Take care of yourself, be careful, stay safe," he said.

We continued walking deeper into the camp, reaffirming with our eyes the horror and devastation.

We reached the roundabout where the great monument of the map of Palestine was located, which was knocked down. We advanced a little further and the children around us run and shout at us "Jeish Jeish," the occupation forces had returned. Explosions were heard and the sound of the siren announcing a new incursion. We didn't have much time to stop and think of what to do, to either take refuge in the theatre or continue to try to reach the service station to Ramallah. We decided to continue. A Palestinian in a car offered us a ride to the service station; walking wasn't safe. We tried to insist on giving him money but he more insistently refused. At the service station we said goodbye.

The service advanced towards Ramallah, leaving behind the unprecedented devastation. My memories want to find a place in this reality. It is like trying to put together a puzzle from which several pieces have been stolen.

The next morning Tobasi gives an interview in which he says the attack on the refugee camp has been the most devastating, the most violent since 2002, referring to the second intifada. Jenin is now in some ways the other Gaza.

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17 December 2023 | International Solidarity Movement | Jenin On Wednesday, December 13, I receive...

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Democracy Now - Ahmed Tobasi interviewed Democracy Now

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Palestinian Theater Director Speaks Out After Being Jailed & Beaten By Israeli Soldiers

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The Israeli military this week raided the Freedom Theatre in Jenin, a renowned cultural institution whose mission is to fight for Palestinian justice, equality and self-determination. It’s part of a wave of violence Israel has unleashed across the occupied West Bank since October 7, killing 58 people in Jenin alone even as the country intensifies its assault on Gaza. We speak with Freedom Theater artistic director Ahmed Tobasi, who was just released after being held for 24 hours. Two of his colleagues remain in Israeli detention. “The Israeli soldiers believe we are not human beings,” says Tobasi. “You are under occupation, and that’s your destiny as a Palestinian.” He decries the decades of international impunity under which the oppression of Palestinians operates, and calls on Americans to resist the use of their tax dollars to fund Israel’s violence. “They believe no one in this world can ask them to stop,” he says. We also get a reaction from Peter Schumann, the founder and director of the Bread and Puppet Theater, the legendary political and social justice-oriented theater company, marking its 60th year with a puppet show in New York City that is an ode to Gaza.

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American Theatre - Freedom Theatre Members Detained in West Bank Operation

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JENIN, WEST BANK: On Wednesday, Dec. 13, the Freedom Theatre announced the arrest of multiple of its members. Artistic director Ahmed Tobasi, producer and general manager Mustafa Sheta, and Jamal Abu Joas, who recently graduated from the Freedom Theatre Performing Arts School, were all detained by Israeli security forces.

The Freedom Theatre wrote on its social media that Tobasi was arrested outside his home in the Jenin refugee camp, where the theatre operates, and that Sheta was also arrested at his home. A statement from the theatre's staff says that Abu Joas was also arrested at his home. The theatre's statement says that Tobasi, Sheta, and Abu Joas were all arrested by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). Multiple Israeli security forces operate in the West Bank, including border police. While it is likely that the IDF made the arrests, this has not been confirmed by an independent media source as of this writing.

According to the Freedom Theatre, Tobasi and his brother, Mohammed, were arrested during an IDF operation in Jenin the morning of Dec. 13. The theatre's statement says that Tobasi went outside his home in response to noise and was then assaulted by an IDF officer; IDF officers then reportedly entered Tobasi's home, destroyed a variety of electronic items, and retrieved Mohammed Tobasi before handcuffing both brothers. They soon released Mohammed Tobasi.

The Freedom Theatre posted video footage of Tobasi's home after the operation, taken by Tobasi's family. Ahmed Tobasi was released on Dec. 14, as confirmed by the theatre.

"They treated us like animals," Tobasi said upon his release. "They are trying to hurt us in any way they can, but it's important we stay strong."

Sheta was also arrested the morning of Dec. 13 and remains in detention. According to Sheta's family, IDF special forces members blindfolded Sheta before his arrest.

"My children spent their night crying," Rasha Sheta, Mustafa Sheta's wife, told the Freedom Theatre. "We felt so scared without him being around with us. We don't know why he was arrested."

The theatre also states that Abu Joas was arrested by army forces at his home on Dec. 13, and that officers confiscated Abu Joas's phone and camera and assaulted him. He remains in detention.

In January, Freedom Theatre general assembly member Yahya Zubeidi was arrested at or near a checkpoint between Jericho and Jenin due to "suspicion of involvement in terrorist activity," according to the IDF. The Freedom Theatre also confirmed Zubeidi's arrest on their social media at the time; there has been no news of his release since. Zubeidi is the brother of the Freedom Theatre co-founder Zakaria Zubeidi, who was previously a member of the Jenin branch of an armed militant group, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade. Zakaria participated in a high-profile amnesty deal with Israel in 2007 and began collaborating with artist Juliano Mer Khamis at the Freedom Theatre.

In 2011, Mer Khamis was assassinated and the Israeli government rescinded Zakaria Zubeidi's pardon. He was detained in 2019 and escaped from prison in 2021, but was captured and remains in Israeli military detention.

In their statement, the Freedom Theatre adds that in the last few weeks, three members of their company have been killed: Yamen Jarar, a 16-year-old Freedom Theatre participant, by drone fire on Nov. 3, according to Defense for Children International; theatre member Jehad Naghniyeh Torokman, 25, by an Israeli military officer, also on Nov. 3, according to PEN America and Palestinian television channel Fajer TV; and Mohammed Matahen, an usher and front-of-house staffer, killed on Nov. 9, according to the Freedom Theatre.

The current war between Israel and Hamas, which governs the Palestinian territory of Gaza, has exacerbated tensions in the West Bank and resulted in an increase of army-led arrests and civilian unrest and violence. Haaretz has estimated that Israeli security forces killed more than 200 Palestinians in the West Bank between Oct. 7 and Nov. 28.

Multiple organizations based in the U.S. and around the world are organizing for Sheta and Abu Joas's release. Artists and arts administrators in New York have organized a rally for Tuesday, Dec. 19 in the East Village of Manhattan.

This is a developing story.

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Freedom Theatre Members Detained in West Bank Operation

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Artistic director Ahmed Tobasi has been released, while general manager Mustafa Sheta and others remain detained.

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Common Dreams - Israeli Forces Raid Freedom Theatre in West Bank and Arrest Artists

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In what critics are calling part of an effort to destroy Palestinian culture, Israeli forces on Wednesday raided the Freedom Theatre in the Jenin refugee camp in the illegally occupied West Bank and subsequently kidnapped three of the renowned playhouse's staff members.

Freedom Theatre associate director Zoey Lafferty wrote for The New Arab that Israeli occupation forces ransacked the internationally renowned cultural center shortly after 9:00 a.m. local time Wednesday. Lafferty said Israeli troops tore apart the theater's office and knocked down a wall, firing weapons from inside the building.

Israeli troops then went to the homes of artistic director Ahmed Tobasi and producer Mustafa Sheta and blindfolded, handcuffed, and abducted them. Hours later, they also kidnapped and "severely beat" Jamal Abu Joas, a recently graduated acting student.

"For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years, who also target and destroy cultural buildings, a war crime under international law."

Tobasi, who says he was also beaten by his captors, was later released.

"They treated us like animals," he said in a statement following his release. "They are trying to hurt us in any way they can, but it's important we stay strong."

Rasha Seta, Mustafa's wife, said that her husband "was handcuffed and taken in front of our children with no mercy or any consideration to our feelings."

"My children spent their night crying," she added. "We felt so scared without him being around with us. We feel very sad for him being away, especially since we don't know why he was arrested. We call for everyone who can help us to stand with my husband and release him from this occupation."

The raid and arrests follow Israeli forces' killing of three members of Freedom Theatre in recent weeks: 17-year-old Yamen Jarrar, 26-year-old Jehad Naghniyeh, and 30-year-old Mohammed Matahen. In June, occupation forces killed youth theater participants Sadeel Naghnaghia, age 15, and Mahmoud Al-Sadi, who was 17 years old.

"For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years, who also target and destroy cultural buildings, a war crime under international law," Freedom Theatre said on Thursday. "In the last few weeks in Gaza, an unprecedented number of writers, poets, theatermakers, and journalists have been killed, including Dr. Refaat Alareer, who was deliberately targeted and murdered."

According to Gaza officials, nearly 19,000 Palestinians-most of them women and children-have been killed by Israeli bombs and bullets since October 7, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel and killed over 1,100 Israelis and others while taking around 240 people hostage. Upward of 1.9 million Gazans-or nearly 90% of the besieged strip's population-have been forcibly displaced. Many critics around the world have accused Israel of perpetrating genocide in Gaza.

The Freedom Theatre stages professional theatre productions; holds theater workshops in the refugee camp, Jenin town, and nearby villages; offers training in acting, pedagogy, and photography; and publishes books, exhibitions, and short films.

"Since we opened our doors in 2006, we have made theater and visual art available to every young person in Jenin refugee camp," the theater's website explains. "Our work has made Jenin refugee camp known in Palestine and internationally for innovative, thought-provoking theater and media productions. We have created a generation of artists and leaders, who one day will be at the forefront of the Palestinian liberation movement."

The Israeli raid and arrests came as occupation forces killed at least a dozen Palestinians in the West Bank during three days of raids on the Jenin refugee camp, which was built in 1953 to house some of the more than 750,000 Arabs ethnically cleansed from other parts of Palestine during the establishment of the modern state of Israel.

Today, around 15,000 Palestinians call the camp home. Jenin has been repeatedly invaded before and during Israel's current war on Gaza due to its residents' robust resistance to Israeli occupation, ethnic cleansing, apartheid, and settler colonization. Last month, an Israeli attack on the camp killed two children -one of them just 8 or 9 years old.

This was already the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since the Second Intifada, or general uprising, a generation ago. Since October 7, Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed around 280 Palestinians in the territories, with thousands more wounded and close to 4,000 people kidnapped.

"As the genocide continues in Gaza and invasions in Jenin camp happen daily, it is hard to find the line between devastation and hope, loss and defiance, reality and optimism," Lafferty wrote. "What is clear is that Palestinians have managed to unite those around the world of different ages, backgrounds, cultures, and religions, to not only stand up for Palestinian rights and voices, but also our own."

"Through words and creativity, resilience and resistance, Palestinians have taught us how we can build a global Intifada," she added.

In what critics are calling part of an effort to destroy Palestinian culture, Israeli forces on Wednesday raided the Freedom Theatre in the Jenin refugee camp in the illegally occupied West Bank and subsequently kidnapped three of the renowned playhouse's staff members.

Freedom Theatre associate director Zoey Lafferty wrote for The New Arab that Israeli occupation forces ransacked the internationally renowned cultural center shortly after 9:00 a.m. local time Wednesday. Lafferty said Israeli troops tore apart the theater's office and knocked down a wall, firing weapons from inside the building.

Israeli troops then went to the homes of artistic director Ahmed Tobasi and producer Mustafa Sheta and blindfolded, handcuffed, and abducted them. Hours later, they also kidnapped and "severely beat" Jamal Abu Joas, a recently graduated acting student.

"For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years, who also target and destroy cultural buildings, a war crime under international law."

Tobasi, who says he was also beaten by his captors, was later released.

"They treated us like animals," he said in a statement following his release. "They are trying to hurt us in any way they can, but it's important we stay strong."

Rasha Seta, Mustafa's wife, said that her husband "was handcuffed and taken in front of our children with no mercy or any consideration to our feelings."

"My children spent their night crying," she added. "We felt so scared without him being around with us. We feel very sad for him being away, especially since we don't know why he was arrested. We call for everyone who can help us to stand with my husband and release him from this occupation."

The raid and arrests follow Israeli forces' killing of three members of Freedom Theatre in recent weeks: 17-year-old Yamen Jarrar, 26-year-old Jehad Naghniyeh, and 30-year-old Mohammed Matahen. In June, occupation forces killed youth theater participants Sadeel Naghnaghia, age 15, and Mahmoud Al-Sadi, who was 17 years old.

"For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years, who also target and destroy cultural buildings, a war crime under international law," Freedom Theatre said on Thursday. "In the last few weeks in Gaza, an unprecedented number of writers, poets, theatermakers, and journalists have been killed, including Dr. Refaat Alareer, who was deliberately targeted and murdered."

According to Gaza officials, nearly 19,000 Palestinians-most of them women and children-have been killed by Israeli bombs and bullets since October 7, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel and killed over 1,100 Israelis and others while taking around 240 people hostage. Upward of 1.9 million Gazans-or nearly 90% of the besieged strip's population-have been forcibly displaced. Many critics around the world have accused Israel of perpetrating genocide in Gaza.

The Freedom Theatre stages professional theatre productions; holds theater workshops in the refugee camp, Jenin town, and nearby villages; offers training in acting, pedagogy, and photography; and publishes books, exhibitions, and short films.

"Since we opened our doors in 2006, we have made theater and visual art available to every young person in Jenin refugee camp," the theater's website explains. "Our work has made Jenin refugee camp known in Palestine and internationally for innovative, thought-provoking theater and media productions. We have created a generation of artists and leaders, who one day will be at the forefront of the Palestinian liberation movement."

The Israeli raid and arrests came as occupation forces killed at least a dozen Palestinians in the West Bank during three days of raids on the Jenin refugee camp, which was built in 1953 to house some of the more than 750,000 Arabs ethnically cleansed from other parts of Palestine during the establishment of the modern state of Israel.

Today, around 15,000 Palestinians call the camp home. Jenin has been repeatedly invaded before and during Israel's current war on Gaza due to its residents' robust resistance to Israeli occupation, ethnic cleansing, apartheid, and settler colonization. Last month, an Israeli attack on the camp killed two children -one of them just 8 or 9 years old.

This was already the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since the Second Intifada, or general uprising, a generation ago. Since October 7, Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed around 280 Palestinians in the territories, with thousands more wounded and close to 4,000 people kidnapped.

"As the genocide continues in Gaza and invasions in Jenin camp happen daily, it is hard to find the line between devastation and hope, loss and defiance, reality and optimism," Lafferty wrote. "What is clear is that Palestinians have managed to unite those around the world of different ages, backgrounds, cultures, and religions, to not only stand up for Palestinian rights and voices, but also our own."

"Through words and creativity, resilience and resistance, Palestinians have taught us how we can build a global Intifada," she added.

Related Articles Around the Web

In what critics are calling part of an effort to destroy Palestinian culture, Israeli forces on Wednesday raided the Freedom Theatre in the Jenin refugee camp in the illegally occupied West Bank and subsequently kidnapped three of the renowned playhouse's staff members.

Freedom Theatre associate director Zoey Lafferty wrote for The New Arab that Israeli occupation forces ransacked the internationally renowned cultural center shortly after 9:00 a.m. local time Wednesday. Lafferty said Israeli troops tore apart the theater's office and knocked down a wall, firing weapons from inside the building.

Israeli troops then went to the homes of artistic director Ahmed Tobasi and producer Mustafa Sheta and blindfolded, handcuffed, and abducted them. Hours later, they also kidnapped and "severely beat" Jamal Abu Joas, a recently graduated acting student.

"For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years, who also target and destroy cultural buildings, a war crime under international law."

Tobasi, who says he was also beaten by his captors, was later released.

"They treated us like animals," he said in a statement following his release. "They are trying to hurt us in any way they can, but it's important we stay strong."

Rasha Seta, Mustafa's wife, said that her husband "was handcuffed and taken in front of our children with no mercy or any consideration to our feelings."

"My children spent their night crying," she added. "We felt so scared without him being around with us. We feel very sad for him being away, especially since we don't know why he was arrested. We call for everyone who can help us to stand with my husband and release him from this occupation."

The raid and arrests follow Israeli forces' killing of three members of Freedom Theatre in recent weeks: 17-year-old Yamen Jarrar, 26-year-old Jehad Naghniyeh, and 30-year-old Mohammed Matahen. In June, occupation forces killed youth theater participants Sadeel Naghnaghia, age 15, and Mahmoud Al-Sadi, who was 17 years old.

"For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years, who also target and destroy cultural buildings, a war crime under international law," Freedom Theatre said on Thursday. "In the last few weeks in Gaza, an unprecedented number of writers, poets, theatermakers, and journalists have been killed, including Dr. Refaat Alareer, who was deliberately targeted and murdered."

According to Gaza officials, nearly 19,000 Palestinians-most of them women and children-have been killed by Israeli bombs and bullets since October 7, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel and killed over 1,100 Israelis and others while taking around 240 people hostage. Upward of 1.9 million Gazans-or nearly 90% of the besieged strip's population-have been forcibly displaced. Many critics around the world have accused Israel of perpetrating genocide in Gaza.

The Freedom Theatre stages professional theatre productions; holds theater workshops in the refugee camp, Jenin town, and nearby villages; offers training in acting, pedagogy, and photography; and publishes books, exhibitions, and short films.

"Since we opened our doors in 2006, we have made theater and visual art available to every young person in Jenin refugee camp," the theater's website explains. "Our work has made Jenin refugee camp known in Palestine and internationally for innovative, thought-provoking theater and media productions. We have created a generation of artists and leaders, who one day will be at the forefront of the Palestinian liberation movement."

The Israeli raid and arrests came as occupation forces killed at least a dozen Palestinians in the West Bank during three days of raids on the Jenin refugee camp, which was built in 1953 to house some of the more than 750,000 Arabs ethnically cleansed from other parts of Palestine during the establishment of the modern state of Israel.

Today, around 15,000 Palestinians call the camp home. Jenin has been repeatedly invaded before and during Israel's current war on Gaza due to its residents' robust resistance to Israeli occupation, ethnic cleansing, apartheid, and settler colonization. Last month, an Israeli attack on the camp killed two children -one of them just 8 or 9 years old.

This was already the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since the Second Intifada, or general uprising, a generation ago. Since October 7, Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed around 280 Palestinians in the territories, with thousands more wounded and close to 4,000 people kidnapped.

"As the genocide continues in Gaza and invasions in Jenin camp happen daily, it is hard to find the line between devastation and hope, loss and defiance, reality and optimism," Lafferty wrote. "What is clear is that Palestinians have managed to unite those around the world of different ages, backgrounds, cultures, and religions, to not only stand up for Palestinian rights and voices, but also our own."

"Through words and creativity, resilience and resistance, Palestinians have taught us how we can build a global Intifada," she added.

Related Articles Around the Web

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Israeli Forces Raid Freedom Theatre in West Bank and Arrest Artists

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The attack on the internationally renowned cultural center came as Israeli occupation forces stepped up raids on the Jenin Refugee camp in recent days, killing a dozen Palestinians and abducting scores more.

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Independent Catholic News - Open letter calls for release of Palestinian theatre company

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More than 2,000 actors, writers and theatre directors have already signed an open letter calling for the release of members of a Palestinian theatre company who were arrested by Israeli army on 13 December.

Founded in 2006, the Jenin-based Freedom theatre, founded in 2006, has toured the world extensively - including the UK.

The full letter text follows:

This letter calls for the immediate release of Mustafa Sheta, Jamal Abu Joas and all 100 members of the Jenin community detained on Wednesday 13th December. Please read the letter in full and fill in the form linked below if you would like to add your signature to the list. Completing this form will add your name to a public list on the letter itself. Your name may also be used for press opportunities. Your email will be kept confidential and only used in the event of updates, or related actions. Whilst we are particularly interested to hear from those working within the theatre industry, this letter is open for anyone to sign. So please share it widely. Sign the letter HERE

We, as venues, artists and culture workers are united in our commitment to justice, dignity, freedom, and equality for all people in Israel and Palestine. We hold every life to be precious, and we grieve every death.

On Wednesday 13th December, Israeli soldiers attacked The Freedom Theatre in Jenin, shooting the building, destroying offices and assaulting its staff.

Artistic Director Ahmed Tobasi, Producer Mustafa Sheta, and theatre graduate Jamal Abu Joas were taken from their homes and detained. Jamal was severely beaten.

Ahmed Tobasi has since been released, also beaten. His colleagues, along with approximately 100 other Palestinians taken hostage from Jenin, remain detained.

This follows the murder of three members of The Freedom Theatre in the last few weeks including 17-year-old Yamen Jarrar, 26-year-old Jehad Naghniyeh and 30 year old Mohammed Matahen.

In 2015, The Freedom Theatre embarked on the biggest touring production ever performed in Britain by a Palestinian theatre company, with their production The Siege.

The company performed at The Lowry in Manchester, Lakeside Theatre in Colchester, Battersea Arts Centre in London, The Hub in Leeds, St Mary in the Castle in Hastings, The Merlin in Frome, Birmingham Rep, Nottingham Playhouse, The Cut in Halesworth and The Tron in Glasgow.

The Freedom Theatre is a beacon of hope and resilience in the face of inconceivable adversity.

Our friends and contemporaries at The Freedom Theatre deserve the right to carry out their work without fear of violence or persecution.

In Gaza, several Palestinian artists, including Refaat Alareer, Saleem Al-Naffar, Inas al-Saqa, Hiba Abu Nada, and Heba Zagout, have been among the 20,000 killed by Israeli forces since October 7th.

Arts and cultural sites have also been destroyed in targeted attacks, including the Orthodox Cultural Centre, Al-Qarara Cultural Museum, the Rafah Museum, the headquarters of the Our Sons for Development Association, the Gaza Centre for Culture and Arts, the Milad Association, the Arab Social Cultural Centre, the Hakawi Theatre Association and the Rashed Al-Shawa Cultural Centre.

Destroying and targeting cultural sites is a clear violation of international law, in accordance with the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.

The targeting of cultural sites is part of a pattern of aggression in which Israel has systematically destroyed hospitals, bakeries, and power and water infrastructure.

We, the undersigned, call on our elected representatives to demand:

- the immediate release of Mustafa Sheta, Jamal Abu Joas and all 100 members of the Jenin community detained on Wednesday 13th December,
- an end to the targeted attacks on cultural sites,
- an immediate and permanent ceasefire,
- an end to the occupation in Gaza,
- an end to settler expansion in the West Bank,
- the rightful return of first-generation Palestinian refugees and their descendants.

The struggle for freedom for Palestinians is one of collective liberation. We refuse to pit one community against the other, and stand firmly against all forms of racism including Islamophobia and antisemitism.
Freedom Theatre: https://thefreedomtheatre.org/who-we-are/

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Open letter calls for release of Palestinian theatre company | ICN

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More than 2,000 actors, writers and theatre directors have already signed an open letter calling for the release of members of a Palestinian theatre company who were arrested by Israeli army on 13 December.Founded in 2006, the Jenin-based Freedom theatre, founded in 2006, has tou...

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The World Tonight - Gaza ceasefire talks continue at UN - BBC Sounds

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Catch up on your favourite BBC radio show from your favourite DJ right here, whenever you like. Listen without limits with BBC Sounds.

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Middle East Monitor - Military Trial of Jenin’s Freedom Theatre producer due this week

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The Guardian - Leading lights of UK stage call for Israeli release of Palestinian theatre group

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Some of Britain's most heralded playwrights, actors and theatre directors have signed an open letter calling for the release of members of a Palestinian theatre group who have been in Israeli custody since 13 December, while also decrying the destruction of cultural sites in the West Bank and Gaza.

Caryl Churchill, Vicky Featherstone, Dominic Cooke and Maxine Peake were among the 1,000 signatories of the letter that called for the immediate release of Mustafa Sheta and Jamal Abu Joas of the Freedom Theatre, whose members were detained after the Israeli army conducted raids in Jenin refugee camp last week.

The Freedom theatre's artistic director, Ahmed Tobasi, was also taken into custody but released after a day, while Sheta, a producer, and Abu Joas, a theatre graduate, were taken from their homes and detained. The Jenin-based Freedom theatre, founded in 2006, has toured the world extensively - including the UK.

"On Wednesday 13 December, Israeli soldiers attacked the Freedom theatre in Jenin, shooting the building, destroying offices and assaulting its staff," the letter reads. "The Freedom theatre is a beacon of hope and resilience in the face of inconceivable adversity.

"Our friends and contemporaries at the Freedom theatre deserve the right to carry out their work without fear of violence or persecution."

The open letter is the second sent from British theatre-makers in recent days. On 15 December, 100 Scottish theatre writers demanded that the staff of the Freedom theatre, which toured to the Edinburgh fringe in 2017, be released. The Royal Court in London, where Featherstone is the artistic director, also released a statement saying it was "horrified to read of the attack on the theatre, destruction of offices and assaults on staff".

Several Palestinian artists and writers have been killed during the conflict, including Heba Zagout - who died along with two of her children, Adam and Mahmoud, in an Israeli airstrike - and the poet Refaat Alareer. The signatories of the letter call for an end to the violence and criticised the destruction of cultural institutions, including the Rafah Museum and al-Qarara cultural museum, calling attacks on such sites a "clear violation of international law".

The other demands include the immediate release of Sheta, Abu Joas and all 100 Jenin residents detained on Wednesday; an immediate and permanent ceasefire; an end to the occupation in Gaza; an end to settler expansion in the West Bank; the rightful return of first-generation Palestinian refugees and their descendants.

Last year, Churchill, who is one of the UK's most celebrated playwrights, was stripped of a lifetime achievement award in Germany because of her support of boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS), and accusations that Seven Jewish Children, her 10-minute play that was written in the aftermath of Operation Cast Lead in 2009 when at least 1,383 Palestinians were killed in Gaza, was antisemitic.

In response, Churchill said: "[The play] is critical of Israel's treatment of Palestinians; it is not an attack on all Jews, many of whom are also critical of Israeli policy."

It was also announced on Monday that Stephen Fry would deliver this year's Channel 4 Alternative Christmas message, using it to call for British Jews to "stand upright and proud in who they are" in the face of "the greatest rise in anti-Jewish racism since records began".

Fry, who will say he "never thought for a single second" he would have to worry about being Jewish in the UK, will point to the 1,350% rise in antisemitic attacks in Britain over the past two-and-a-half months, including "shop windows smashed, Stars of David and swastikas daubed on walls of Jewish properties, synagogues, and cemeteries, and Jewish schools being forced to close".

He will say he accepts and claims his Jewish identity "with pride", and calls on viewers to "speak up and call out venomous slurs and hateful abuse wherever you encounter them".

First airing in 1993, Channel 4's annual broadcast has served as an alternative to the monarch's annual televised address on the BBC and aims to bring viewers a message about that year's events.

In previous years the message has been delivered by a varied selection of presenters, including the whistleblower Edward Snowden, the actor Danny Dyer, and Ameca - one of the world's most advanced AI robots - last year.

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Leading lights of UK stage call for Israeli release of Palestinian theatre group

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Open letter signed by top playwrights, actors and directors demands Israel free members of Freedom theatre

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The National - Israel condemned for attack on Palestinian theatre company

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An official statement from The Freedom Theatre of Jenin (FTJ) said that their theatre was ransacked and leading members of the company detained and badly beaten.

"On the morning of the 13th of December, the Israeli army began attacking and ransacking The Freedom Theatre," the statement read. "They shot from inside the theatre, destroying the offices and knocking down a wall," it continued.

The company says that, following the assault on the theatre building, the Israeli forces then went to the homes of FTJ's artistic director Ahmed Tobasi and company producer and general manager Mustafa Sheta, where they proceeded to blindfold, handcuff and detain the two men.

READ MORE: I was born in Palestine. The war in Gaza is just part of the story

Later that day, according to FTJ's account, Israeli soldiers went to the home of the company's acting teacher Jamal Abu Joas, beat him and detained him.

The arrests and beatings led to an international outcry. The Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB) published a statement expressing its "deep concern" at the detention of the three FTJ members and calling for their immediate release.

According to the most recent information, Tobasi has now been released, but is suffering leg and back pain having been beaten by Israeli soldiers. The other two men continue to be in Israeli detention, according to the latest reports.

"They treated us like animals," said Tobasi, in a statement released by FTJ. "They are trying to hurt us in any way they can," he continued, "but it's important we stay strong."

READ MORE: Ministers to draw up plan to allow asylum seekers to work in Scotland

FTJ urged concerned citizens worldwide to continue to demand the release of Sheta, Joas and the more than 100 Palestinians seized by Israeli forces during the three-day incursion into the Jenin camp. Rasha Sheta, wife of Mustafa Sheta, said: "He was arrested on December 13 from our house in the city of Jenin where he was handcuffed and taken in front of our children with no mercy or any consideration to our feelings.

"My children spent their night crying. We felt so scared without him being with us. We feel very sad for him being away, especially since we don't know why he was arrested. We call for everyone who can help us to stand with my husband and release him."

The theatre company points out that this is not the first time that FTJ and its members have been targeted by the Israeli army. The attacks of recent days, "follow the murder of three members of The Freedom Theatre in the last few weeks including 17-year-old theatre participant Yamen Jarrar, 26-year-old Jehad Naghniyeh and 30 year old Mohammed Matahen", the company said.

The statement added that these deaths came after the killing in June of youth theatre participants Sadeel Naghnaghia (who was 15 years old) and Mahmoud Al-Sadi (who was aged 17). In July, the company said, "The Freedom Theatre was damaged due to bombing during a three-day invasion and technician Adnan Torokman was detained for four days by the Israeli army."

FTJ is a company well known to many people in the Scottish theatre community and civic society. The company visited Scotland in 2015, when they were guests of honour at a civic reception held at Glasgow City Chambers. On that occasion they gave a performance of their play The Siege at the city's Tron Theatre.

Ben Harrison, artistic director of the acclaimed Edinburgh-based theatre company Grid Iron, has worked extensively with Palestinian theatre-makers in the West Bank. He told the Sunday National: "I view with dismay the detention and torture of members of the Jenin Freedom Theatre this week.

"It's part of a campaign of violence against them that began much earlier this year and long before the events of October 7. The State of Israel's claim that their unprecedented assault on Gaza is solely connected with their desire to punish Hamas is given the lie by the massive increase in IDF [Israeli Defence Force] and settler violence in the West Bank where Hamas are neither very active nor dominant.

"The UK and US governments have given the Israeli state the green light to act with impunity in Gaza and the West Bank and, worse, are actually arming the IDF. Having witnessed at first hand the aggression of the Israeli army in Hebron this year, I stand in solidarity with all Palestinians and Palestinian artists at this frightening and unpredictable time."

The Freedom Theatre is calling on its supporters around the world to support the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against the illegal Israeli Occupation of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

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International outcry from arts community amid attack on Palestinian theatre company

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A PALESTINIAN theatre company with strong links to Scotland has been devastated during the Israeli army's three-day invasion of the Jenin refugee...

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The Ferret - 100 Scots playwrights condemn Israeli attacks on West Bank theatre

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One hundred Scottish playwrights including Scotland's former makar, have signed an open letter condemning raids by Israel on a Palestinian theatre in the West Bank.

The Freedom Theatre, in Jenin refugee camp, was attacked by Israeli forces this month, with several members of the theatre company arrested.

They included the theatre's artistic director, Ahmed Tobasi, who was later released after suffering injuries through beatings while detained.

The West Bank is under the control of the Palestinian authority, not Hamas and the targeting of the theatre - which has performed in Glasgow - has drawn strong condemnation in Scotland.

Signatories to the letter include Liz Lochhead, who was the Scot's Makar - or national poet - from 2011-2016. Other high profile playwrights include Alan Bissett, Sue Glover, David Harrower, Morna Young, Peter Arnott, Cora Bissett, Uma Nada-Rajah, Matthew Zajac, Stef Smith, Julia Taudevin, and Meghan Tyler.

Call to Israeli authorities to release playwrights

The letter says: "As members of the Scottish playwriting community, we are horrified by the news that Ahmed Tobasi, producer Mustafa Sheta, and youth trainer Jamal Abu Joas were recently taken hostage by the Israeli military.

"We join with our artistic colleagues in Scotland and across the globe in vociferously opposing these attacks on artists and their freedoms. We call on our elected representatives to demand the immediate release of our colleagues, and an end to the military occupation and its targeting of artists, journalists and writers in Palestine."

Freedom Theatre associate director Zoey Lafferty wrote a piece for The New Arab claiming that Israeli forces ransacked the internationally renowned cultural centre shortly after 9am on 13 December 2023.

Originally called the Stone Theatre, The Freedom Theatre was founded in 1987, after the first Intifada, by Arna Mer-Khamis, an Israeli activist who died in 1995. The first Intifada was a Palestinian mass uprising in 1987.

Mer-Khamis was born into a Jewish family in 1929 and became a lifelong supporter of the rights of Palestinians, especially children. With her theatre, she hoped to offer children a space for healing and to empower women through the theatre and arts.

This egregious assault on theatre artists is an attack on us all, and Scotland's playwrights will not stand for it.
Kieran Hurley, writer

Playwright and screenwriter Kieran Hurley, who signed the letter, said The Freedom Theatre does "valuable work" with young people in Jenin "to tell their own stories, nurturing the next poets, writers, and actors, using culture as a means of resistance to oppression".

The writer, best known for the film Beats, added "They are our valued international peers, having contributed to our cultural life through touring their work to Scotland recently. This egregious assault on theatre artists is an attack on us all, and Scotland's playwrights will not stand for it."

Sara Shaarawi, a playwright from Cairo who is based in Glasgow, said she was "proud" to sign the letter and call for the end of the violence. She added: "We've been watching the horrific violence the Israeli military has inflicted on Gaza and the West Bank for two months, including their deliberate targeting of cultural institutions and artists.

As theatre artists we cannot stand by and let this happen to our colleagues. The devastation and destruction of Palestinian life and heritage we have witnessed so far has already been an immense loss to the world."

The Israeli Embassy, in London, has been asked to comment.
Image of Jenin refugee camp thanks to DZarzycka/Istock

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100 playwrights condemn Israeli attacks on West Bank theatre

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100 Scottish playwrights including Scotland's former makar, have signed an open letter condemning Israeli raids on a West Bank theatre.

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BNN Breaking - Freedom Theatre’s Mustafa Sheta and Jamal Abu Joas Detained by Israeli Army

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In an unsettling turn of events, Mustafa Sheta, the director of the Freedom Theatre in Jenin, and acting coach Jamal Abu Joas, have been in Israeli custody since December 13th. The theatre, a beacon of freedom and creativity in the midst of conflict, has not remained silent and is actively demanding their immediate release. The incident has garnered international attention, yet the details surrounding their detention remain murky.

The Unsettling Arrest

According to Sheta's son, Adam, the Israeli soldiers were nothing short of intimidating during the arrest. He recounts the chilling scene, where guns were pointed at them, and his father was taken away. In a heartrending video message, Adam articulates his longing for his father and how, if he could, he would tell him of their love and prayers for his release.
(Read Also: Israel's Grim Loss in Gaza, Indonesian Election Fever, and US Warning to North Korea)
The Freedom Theatre Under Siege

The Freedom Theatre in Jenin, located in the occupied West Bank, experienced its share of turmoil when leading members were detained and brutally beaten by the Israeli army. The theatre was left in a state of disarray, with the incident leading to an international outcry. The theatre, which has previously been targeted by the Israeli army, is now urging global support to boycott the illegal Israeli Occupation of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
(Read Also: Gaza Strip: A Lethal Maze of Advanced Weaponry and Guerrilla Warfare)
Concerns over Mass Arrests and Detentions

Since the 2023 Israel-Hamas war outbreak, Israel's mass arrests and detentions of Palestinians, including Gazan workers, have raised alarm bells. The legality, secrecy, and conditions of these detentions have been questioned, with allegations of torture emerging. Thousands of Palestinians have been arrested in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, and over 3,000 remain in detention. Israel has also deported 3,200 Gazan Palestinian workers to the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian Commission for Detainees and Ex-Prisoners Affairs disclosed that the number of Palestinians in Israeli prisons has doubled since the war's onset. The high number of Palestinians held in administrative detention is also a matter of grave concern, with a record 2,873 Palestinians being held as of December 6.
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Freedom Theatre's Mustafa Sheta and Jamal Abu Joas Detained by Israeli Army

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Mustafa Sheta, the director of the Freedom Theatre in Jenin, and acting coach Jamal Abu Joas, have been detained by the Israeli army since December 13th. The theatre is calling for their immediate release.

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The Stage - Vicky Featherstone and Maxine Peake voice support for Palestine’s Freedom Theatre

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Vicky Featherstone and Maxine Peake voice support for Palestine's Freedom Theatre

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An open letter voicing support for a Palestinian theatre's right to create work without "fear of violence" has been signed by industry figures including playwright Caryl Churchill, actors Maxine Peake and Juliet Stevenson, and Royal Court artistic director Vicky Featherstone.

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The National - Scottish playwrights condemn attack on Palestinian theatre

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The Freedom Theatre in Jenin, in the West Bank, was attacked by Israeli forces, with several members of the theatre company taken hostage by the military.

The theatre's artistic director Ahmed Tobasi has since been released, having reportedly sustained multiple injuries through beatings while detained.

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His colleagues Mustafa Sheta, a producer, and Jamal Abu Joas, a youth trainer, are still detained, their whereabouts unknown.

Glasgow-based playwright Kieran Hurley (below) said: "This egregious assault on theatre artists is an attack on us all, and Scotland's playwrights will not stand for it."

The Freedom Theatre has strong connections to Scotland, performing at the Edinburgh Fringe and at Glasgow's Tron Theatre as recently as 2017.

Hurley, alongside other Scottish playwrights including Rona Munro, May Sumbwanyambe, Liz Lochhead, Gregory Burke, signed an open letter calling for elected representatives to demand a ceasefire and the return of hostages, alongside the targeting of journalists, artists and writers in Palestine.

The open letter reads: "As members of the Scottish playwriting community, we are horrified by the news that The Freedom Theatre of Jenin's Artistic Director Ahmed Tobasi, Producer Mustafa Sheta, and youth trainer Jamal Abu Joas were recently taken hostage by the Israeli military.

"Ahmed Tobasi has since been released, having sustained injuries through beatings. His colleagues, along with approximately 100 other Palestinians taken hostage in Jenin in the last 24 hours, remain detained.

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"The Freedom Theatre performed in Glasgow, at the Tron Theatre, with their show The Siege as recently as 2015. Ahmed Tobasi performed the show And Here I Am at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2017 at the New Town Theatre and contributed to the multi-artist celebration of Arab work Chill Habibi at Summerhall that same year.

"The Freedom Theatre are valued members of our international community. The targeting of their theatre and their violent detainment at the hands of the Israeli military is an affront to us all.

"We join with our artistic colleagues in Scotland and across the globe in vociferously opposing these attacks on artists and their freedoms.

"We call on our elected representatives to demand the immediate release of our colleagues, and an end to the military occupation and its targeting of artists, journalists and writers in Palestine."

Speaking to The National, playwright Eliza Gearty condemned the attack on the Freedom Theatre, adding that it is "the latest in a long line of atrocities that have been carried out in the last two months, and for much longer."

She added: "Israel is held up by our politicians as a bastion of democracy in the Middle East and yet we're seeing the reality of a regime hellbent on destroying an entire population, including their cultural and creative legacies.

"Oppressive states have long used the tactic of silencing and suppressing creative voices in order to exert total control; what we are seeing happen in Palestine is no different.

"As writers, we have a responsibility to stand up for our international colleagues and to call out the hypocrisy of our political leaders.

"I signed the open letter in the hope that it will contribute to a mounting international pressure to release Mustafa Shefta and Jamal Abu, and to demand an end to the military occupation in Gaza. "

Playwright Sara Sharaawi condemned the "deliberate targeting of cultural institutions and artists" by the Israeli military.

She added: "As theatre artists we cannot stand by and let this happen to our colleagues, the devastation and destruction of Palestinian life and heritage we have witnessed so far has already been an immense loss to the world."

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More than 100 Scots playwrights condemn Israeli attack on Palestinian theatre

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MORE than 100 Scottish theatre writers have signed an open letter condemning recent attacks on a Palestinian theatre by the Israeli military.

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The New Arab - From Gaza to Jenin we must resist Israel’s cultural genocide

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From Gaza to Jenin, Israel is committing cultural genocide

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As Israel manipulates the truth and silences Palestinian voices to justify its violence, art and culture are powerful tools of resistance, writes Zoe Lafferty.

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Télérama En Cisjordanie, le Freedom Theatre pris pour cible par l’armée israélienne

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Installée dans le camp de réfugiés de Jénine, la compagnie a été attaquée mercredi. Trois de ses membres, dont le directeur, ont été arrêtés, comme une centaine d'autres Palestiniens. Onze autres seraient morts en trois jours.

est un havre de résistance, artistique et politique, installé dans l'un des territoires les plus cadenassés de la planète : depuis 2006, le Freedom Theatre fait vivre la culture au sein du camp de réfugiés de Jénine, en Cisjordanie occupée, l'un des plus pauvres et des plus denses de la région (entre 15 000 et 25 000 personnes sur moins d'un demi-kilomètre carré).

Le théâtre - fondé par l'acteur et militant juif et arabe israélien Juliano Mer-Khamis, assassiné en 2011 - a été mercredi 13 décembre la cible d'un assaut de l'armée israélienne. Au cours d'une opération militaire dévastatrice ayant tué onze Palestiniens en trois jours (selon le ministère de la Santé de l'Autorité palestinienne), des soldats ont arrêté et embarqué le directeur du Freedom Theatre, Mustafa Sheta, son directeur artistique, Ahmed Tobasi, ainsi qu'un comédien en formation, Jamal Abu Joas.

Dix ans d'attaques et d'arrestations

Tout juste rentré de France où Télérama l'avait rencontréfin octobre, le comédien et metteur en scène Ahmed Tobasi avait retrouvé dimanche le camp où il a grandi. Mardi, il partageait une vidéo dans laquelle on peut entendre le bruit des drones survolant sa maison, une pratique régulière de l'armée israélienne.

Zoe Lafferty, directrice artistique associée du Freedom Theatre, actuellement à Londres et interdite d'entrée en Cisjordanie, livre à Télérama le récit du régisseur du lieu, Adnan Torokman : les soldats israéliens ont fait irruption mercredi matin dans le bâtiment hébergeant les bureaux du théâtre, qu'ils ont en partie pillés et détruits, avant d'ouvrir le feu sur des passants dans la rue depuis les fenêtres. " L'armée a ensuite procédé à de nombreuses arrestations, une centaine au total, parmi lesquelles celles de nos trois collègues, raconte-t-elle par téléphone. On leur a bandé les yeux, retiré des vêtements, frappé les jambes, passé les menottes avant de les amener on ne sait où. " Dans l'après-midi du 14 décembre, le Freedom Theatre a déclaré que le directeur artistique Ahmed Tobasi avait été libéré, sans plus de nouvelles des deux autres détenus.

C'est loin d'être la première fois que le lieu de culture palestinien est pris pour cible par l'armée d'Israël : le président du théâtre Bilal Al-Saadi a lui aussi été arrêté, en septembre 2022, et reste maintenu en détention administrative en Israël à ce jour. Sur la seule année 2023, cinq Palestiniens actifs au sein du théâtre, dont trois mineurs, ont également été tués. " Cela fait plus de dix ans que nous subissions attaques et arrestations, rappelle Zoe Lafferty. Ça n'a fait qu'empirer depuis le 7 octobre. Israël ne laissera jamais ce théâtre tranquille. "

Sur place, Adnan Torokman, le régisseur du théâtre, se dit " choqué et bouleversé " mais pas surpris par les récents événements et affirme n'avoir " absolument aucune information " sur la situation de ses collègues arrêtés. " C'est l'un des objectifs israéliens : nous faire nous sentir impuissants, considère Zoe Lafferty. Lorsque onze personnes meurent et une centaine sont arrêtées dans un si petit périmètre, l'impact humain est immense : tout le monde connaît l'une des victimes et les traumatismes se répètent. "

À lire aussi :

"Fauda", la série israélienne rattrapée par le réel

Le Freedom Theatre, dont le travail bénéficie d'une importante aura à l'étranger, peut compter sur un réseau de solidarité dans de nombreux pays, comme en France avec l'association Les Amis du Théâtre de la Liberté de Jénine. " Nous recevons un soutien formidable, se réjouit la directrice artistique associée. Ce qui nous interroge, c'est la manière dont sont perçues ces arrestations par les médias et les politiques. L'armée israélienne retient emprisonnés des milliers de Palestiniens sans aucune raison valable. Qu'est-ce qui différencie ces arrestations d'une prise d'otages ? " ne peut-elle s'empêcher de demander.

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En Cisjordanie, le Freedom Theatre pris pour cible par l'armée israélienne

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Installée dans le camp de réfugiés de Jénine, la compagnie a été attaquée mercredi. Trois de ses membres, dont le directeur, ont été arrêtés, comme une centaine d'autres Palestiniens. Onze autres seraient morts en trois jours.

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L'humanité : Entretien avec Tobasi “ Cisjordanie : “L’occupation est une guerre permanente qui dure depuis soixante-quinze ans”

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Un temps engagé dans la lutte armée, Ahmed Tobasi a embrassé le chemin de la culture pour porter au théâtre la voix du peuple palestinien. Lors de sa tournée dans l'Hexagone, avec la pièce And Here I am, qu'il joue seul sur scène, l'Humanité l'a rencontré. Le comédien décrit la situation de la Cisjordanie occupée.

Pouvez-vous nous parler de la situation à Jénine ?

Le camp est attaqué continuellement, les militaires israéliens s'en prennent à toute la communauté. Ils détruisent les systèmes électriques, de distribution d'eau, nos rues avec des bulldozers. Deux enfants membres du théâtre ont été tués cette année. Il y a des checkpoints partout. On ne peut pas circuler entre les villes. Les gens sont fatigués. La vie sous occupation est une humiliation constante, une punition collective qui a pour but d'empêcher les gens d'imaginer qu'une vie meilleure est possible.

S'ils veulent combattre le Hamas, pourquoi s'en prendre aux millions de civils de Gaza et de Cisjordanie ? Israël ne se fait aucun souci des droits de l'Homme, ni du droit international, et les grandes puissances occidentales le laissent faire. Ce sont vos gouvernements qui fournissent les armes... Ces derniers mois, le monde semble soudainement se rappeler que nous vivons sous l'occupation. Mais cela dure depuis soixante-quinze ans ! Sachez toutefois que les Palestiniens restent toujours aussi déterminés à mettre fin à la colonisation.

Les grandes puissances occidentales ont une part de responsabilité dans ce qui se passe aujourd'hui...

Je pense que l'occupation est le résultat du mode de pensée criminel qui caractérise une partie de l'Occident et des États-Unis. Nous sommes des victimes, mais des victimes de votre colonisation, de votre collaboration, de vos guerres. Les Occidentaux se targuent d'avoir des valeurs, de défendre la démocratie, la liberté... Au final, après soixante-quinze ans, où en sommes-nous ? Une chose paraît claire pour les Palestiniens et pour bien d'autres nations : l'Occident n'apporte au monde que des guerres criminelles, et pas grand-chose de bon pour les peuples.

Depuis le 7 octobre, des artistes palestiniens ont été censurés dans plusieurs pays européens. Vos représentations prévues en Suède ont été annulées...

C'est un symbole très fort lorsqu'une autorité décide de réduire au silence une œuvre culturelle ou un artiste. C'est un signal désastreux. Si nous en arrivons là, c'est la preuve que nous traversons une période très sombre en tant que société.  Vue dans son contexte, c'est une situation folle, très problématique, mais surtout qui doit nous questionner : vers où cela nous mène ? Il ne faut pas prendre ces annulations à la légère.

En Occident, nous avons toujours l'habitude de voir les Palestiniens en tant que victimes. Que pensez-vous de cette vision et de cette représentation ?

C'est toute la force du théâtre. Israël tue des milliers de personnes et transforme des villes en champs de ruines. Mais, regardez-moi, je suis ici, je suis vivant, et à travers ma pièce, grâce au théâtre, c'est aussi un autre visage de la Palestine et des Palestiniens que vous pouvez observer, et comprendre : nous sommes avant tout des êtres humains.

Je réhumanise une population alors que l'occupation nous déshumanise. Or, nous sommes des gens normaux. Nous pleurons, nous rions ; nous sommes des artistes, nous pouvons être médecins, professeurs, scientifiques, tout ce que nous voulons quand on nous laisse avoir une vie normale. J'utilise le théâtre pour montrer la réalité, qui est évidemment complexe. En racontant mon histoire personnelle, je parle de tous les jeunes de Palestine qui n'ont parfois pas beaucoup de choix.

Le Théâtre de la Liberté est un lieu de résistance culturelle. Comment convaincre les jeunes d'y participer et ne pas avoir recours aux armes ?

Avec tout ce qui se passe, ce sera plus difficile. Mais je considère que tout Palestinien est un combattant. En ce moment, c'est la guerre, mais l'occupation existe depuis des décennies. Survivre dans un camp de réfugiés et voir soudainement les militaires attaquer, des tirs, des explosions, des maisons détruites, des personnes tuées... cela arrive quasiment tous les jours, toutes les nuits.

Ces quinze dernières années, nous avons travaillé avec des enfants pour leur dire que nous devons essayer d'utiliser d'autres outils pour résister : l'art, le journalisme, la culture... Mais avec quels sentiments croyez-vous que vont grandir tous ces enfants traumatisés, qui ont vu leurs proches mourir devant leurs yeux ? Israël fabrique de plus en plus de colère. Quel avenir si l'on ne fait qu'alimenter l'esprit de vengeance ?

Quel message souhaitez-vous transmettre au peuple français ?

Je veux lui dire que les Palestiniens restent déterminés à mettre fin à la colonisation et permettre aux gens de vivre une vie normale. Mais notre cause n'est pas la seule : c'est pour l'humanité tout entière qu'il faut se mobiliser. Nous devons nous battre pour tous ceux qui sont oppressés, pour tous les enfants.

Aujourd'hui c'est la Palestine, mais hier, c'était l'Ukraine, et demain ce sera ailleurs. Chaque enfant dans ce monde devrait avoir le droit de grandir normalement, et l'opportunité d'être maître de son propre destin. C'est cela, la vraie liberté.

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Cisjordanie : " L'occupation est une guerre permanente qui dure depuis soixante-quinze ans " - L'Humanité

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Haut lieu de résistance culturelle au sein du camp de réfugiés de Jénine, le Théâtre de la Liberté a été attaqué mercredi par l'armée israélienne. Son directeur artistique, Ah...

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Camille Reporter

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Le théâtre de la liberté a été attaqué lors d'un raid de l'armée israélienne dans le camps de réfugiés de Jénine, en Cisjordanie. Son directeur, Mustafa Shet...