Last June, the trial of Ahmed Shamasna (Abu Faiz) opened in the Israel military court of Beit El, on the West Bank. Abu Faiz, a Palestinian whose "illegal" home had been demolished in 1997, was charged with "illegal building" in his attempt to construct a new home for his family of 15.
This is the first time a Palestinian has been charged with "illegal building" and brought to trial. In an international political atmosphere in which Israel today finds it difficult to demolish houses, measures such as arrest and heavy fines are seen by the government as effective alternatives, deterring Palestinians from building.
The trial also highlights the continued war against the Palestinian people and Israel's continued efforts to "create facts". With the active participation of Abu Faiz, his family (the homes of two of his sons also have demolition orders) and the Palestinian Land Defence Committee, the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD) employed the services of Allegra Pacheco, a prominent human rights lawyer, for the defence.
Because Abu Faiz, like thousands of other Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, could not obtain a permit from the Israeli Civil Administration to build a home on his own land, he built nevertheless, and that home was subsequently demolished. Abu Faiz again began rebuilding — and was arrested for "illegal building".
Allegra's defence rested on the claim that in building his home Abu Faiz acted out of necessity, self-defence and duress in providing basic shelter and decent living conditions to his family. In addition, she argued that house demolitions and the prevention of Palestinians from providing adequate shelter for their families violate international human rights laws and covenants.
In order to make her case, Allegra proposed to bring a number of expert witnesses from Israel, Palestine and abroad. At the first hearing in June, the military prosecutor objected to these witnesses as "irrelevant". The military judge, Yoram Haniel, said he would issue his ruling later, and the trial was postponed until August 8.
Despite repeated requests, the judge did not make his ruling known to Allegra before the beginning of the court session, thus depriving her of an opportunity either to prepare her defence or to appeal the judge's decision. The judge agreed with the prosecution that the witnesses were "irrelevant".
When Allegra threatened to appeal to the Supreme Court, Haniel agreed that she would submit another list of witnesses for his consideration. The next round in the trial was set for November 9.
In the meantime, Abu Faiz continues to pay the price. Mikha Yakhin, the field inspector for the Civil Administration who turned Abu Faiz into the police, continues his campaign of harassment and intimidation. Accompanied by soldiers he shows up at Abu Faiz's house on a daily or weekly basis, threatening the family.
On July 6, he threatened the family, promising that he would demolish all their houses. He entered Abu Faiz's house and threw out all the furniture, kicking and smashing it as he did.
We cannot evaluate the "peace process" unless we take into account the realities on the ground — both those that exist and those Israel is still in the process of creating.
BY JEFF HALPER
[Jeff Halper is coordinator of ICAHD, email: <icahd@zahav.net.il>, web site: <http://www.net-a.org/hdemol>.]