Brighton-Tubas Region Friendship and Solidarity Group Newsletter

The Tubas Region, which includes the Northern Jordan Valley, is an area Israel wants to ethnically cleanse and annex. Israel is doing this by making life impossible for the people of the valley .

A group of Palestine Solidarity activists made contact with the valley while campaigning against Carmel-Agrexco, a company which exports fruit and vegetables grown on stolen land to the UK. 7 activists, the Uxbridge 7, were taken to court in 2005 for blockading Agrexco’s depot in Middlesex. They argued that Agrexco were complicit in crimes commited by Israel and called witnesses from Tubas region in their defence.

In March 2006 two activists travelled to Tubas region with the aim of seeing how they could give solidarity to the region.

Here are our reports (to view just paste the addresses into your browser):

Health Care in Tubas - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=21
Al Jifflik Tent School - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=20
Pass Laws in Apartheid Israel - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=19
You are our Voices - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=11
Sport Under Siege - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=26
Corporate Complicity in the Ethnic Cleansing of the Jordan Valley - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=17
This is the Occupation - the IOF killed my Friend -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=40
Wall of Shame - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=43

In April we launched the Brighton-Toubas Friendship and Solidarity Group -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=44 and we started working with a variety of groups in Brighton and Hove trying to establish links with Tubas Region. Since then we have worked with Amnesty International, the Quakers, Sussex Action for Peace, Brighton and Hove Palestine Solidarity Campaign, the Muslim Women’s Group, Unison, Sussex University Students Union and Palestine Society, Students at Brighton University and Brighton Arabic School. We are hoping to make productive links with many other organisations in Brighton.

In September two activists from the group visited Tubas region again to consolidate links in the region. We met witih many groups in Tubas including unions, schools, the prisoners sociey, campaigning organisations, students, the Red Crescent and women’s groups. We talked to people about how we could give them solidarity.

Here are our reports:

Strikes and Closures in Occupied Palestine - www.brightonpalestine.org/mailings/admin/?page=send&id=87
Medical Services Disrupted in Tubas Region - brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=49
Update on Al Jifflik Tent School -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=61
Home Demolitions Planned in Al Jifflik -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=57
Tubas Students Delayed at Beit Iba Checkpoint -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=72
Hamas-sive Attack -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=70

Here’s what the press are writing about the valley, particuarly about employment conditions at the moment:

The Times - Settlement Expansion in the Jordan Valley -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=52
Alternative Information Centre - Employment in the Valley -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=69
Disruption to the Olive Harvest in the Jordan Valley -  http://brightonpalestine.org/blog/?p=71

On December the 5th we are having a report back meeting at the Friends Meeting House, Ship St, Brighton at 7.30pm, where local groups can discuss how to make effecive lnks with Tubas region.

We are planning a trip to Tubas in April next year and we hope that the groups we have been working with can join us. We are planning a briefing on logistics for the delegation to Palestine in January 2007.