Dear friends and fellow activists,

ISM is hard at work in the West Bank and Gaza, and needs your help!

The ISM media office was raided two times in the span of four nights in February, when Bridget Chappell and Ariadna Jove Marti were arrested. In the raids, the Israeli military stole all of our computers (three laptops, one desktop) as well as several video cameras. Just a few weeks ago, the Hebron office was broken into while activists were away. We believe the military is also to blame because neighbors reported soldiers coming to look through the windows multiple times when the apartment was empty, and in the raid two laptops, multiple cameras, photo memory cards and USB memory devices were stolen, while other valuables were left in plain sight.

ISM needs to replace this equipment in order to continue the important work we’re doing. Documenting ongoing settler violence and harassment in Tel Rumeida (Hebron) and Sheikh Jarrah (East Jerusalem) are two of our most important activities. The residents of these communities demonstrate remarkable resilience by refusing to be deterred by settler violence. In order for the communities to have a chance of telling their story to the global community (one of ISM’s primary roles), and to prove the innocence of our Palestinian friends when they are falsely accused (a frequent occurrence), we need to capture high-quality footage.

We need: at least two small hand-held video cameras (roughly $150-200 each).

ISM Gaza activists risk extreme danger to document some of the worst human rights violations in the world. One primary activity is documenting use of live fire in the “buffer zone” towards farmers and non-violent demonstrators. Israel’s use of live fire has killed 14 and injured over 50 thus far in 2010. Bianca Zammit, a Maltese activist, was shot in the leg April 23 while filming a demonstration, proving that such documentation is viewed as a threat by the Israeli military.

We need: a Mac laptop computer for video editing ($1000)

A camera with good ‘optical’ zoom, such as a Canon Powershot S51S ($150-300)

The strategic theft of our media equipment, combined with Bianca’s shooting, serve as a reminder that we pose a real threat in our ability to reach global audiences with information about Israel’s actions. As non-violent activists, cameras are our weapons in exposing the Apartheid. Please, help us to continue this important work by donating here: palsolidarity.org/donate, or by sending equipment to Palestine with an activist.

In solidarity,

ISM Palestine

--
PLEASE FORWARD THIS CALLOUT WIDELY