Source: CODEPINK
Dear Gunnar,
Last Sunday, I spoke with Ariel Gold on YouTube about what is going on in Palestine, my home, and what my hopes are.
Between the COVID-19 pandemic, Israeli annexation of our land, and the occupation, we are going through an extremely difficult time.
As Americans, you have an incredible opportunity right now to help my beautiful country. Representative Betty McCollum — along with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Andre Carson, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Mark Pocan — just introduced legislation to forbid U.S. funds from being used for de jure annexation of Palestinian lands.
Let’s not be naive here: annexation isn’t just a formal process. It’s a daily occurrence. It’s the theft of my family’s lands; the confiscation of the springs that supply our village with fresh clean water; the checkpoints that prevent my children from going to school; the soldiers who shoot us with live ammunition; the imprisoning of my two sons. But while de facto annexation takes place every day, it still matters immensely that we prevent the formalizing of apartheid.
Israel’s annexation plan that’s being facilitated by the Trump administration is speeding up the loss of our lands. In the Jordan Valley, the “vegetable basket” or Palestine, we are losing our most valuable resources: food and groundwater. Palestinian Bedouin communities are being forcefully transferred, despite the fact that such removal of people is a war crime. If de jure annexation takes place, the already minuscule Palestinian economy will become almost nonexistent.
I thought I was ready for anything, even to lose my life as part of my peoples’ struggle. But when the military arrested my two sons, it was the worst nightmare any parent could imagine. After their arrests, Muhammad and Osama were sent to the Petah Tikva detention center where they were kept underground for 25 days. Osama had to be taken to the hospital twice during this time at Petah Tikva because of the torture he was forced to endure. I slept each night during this period in Muhammad and Osama’s beds. This was the only way that I could feel that I was near them.
Rep. McCollum’s Israeli Annexation Non-Recognition Act — H.R. 8050 — offers hope. By conditioning the huge amounts of aid from the U.S., Israel will have a more difficult time annexing Palestinian land — but it won’t happen without your help. Will you stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine by urging your representative to support this vital legislation?
Muhammad spent nine months in prison and Osama, two years. After Muhammad was released, he was shot chest by the Israeli military. The bullet from that shooting remains lodged right next to his heart. Unfortunately, because of COVID and border closings, Muhammad cannot travel for the operation he needs to remove the bullet.
I have lived my entire life under Israeli occupation. Generations of my family have fought against Israel’s violent apartheid. I and my children have been beaten, shot, and imprisoned for our activism. I ask you now to stand with us and support us. Watch my conversation with Ariel Gold on YouTube and ask your representative in Congress to join Betty McCollum’s important legislation.
With hope and determination,
Manal Tamimi
P.S. This Sunday at 2 PM EST, join us to watch and discuss an incredible musical collaboration for peace between the Solidarity Chamber Orchestra of Tehran and singers from the Washington, DC-based opera company IN Series. RSVP here.
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