Tragedy

I received this mass message from a friend who is in Palestine. It broke my heart.

Hi Folks,

A semi-quick message--I really need some support and a little time from all of you right now. This morning, we received notice that two university students had been shot and killed last night during an Israeli raid into Nablus, the city in the West Bank that we are staying in right now. We toured the flat less than 12 hours after their deaths. The Israeli army had used small explosives to enter the room and shot and killed one confirmed member of Islamic Jihad and a suspected affiliate of Hamas (the locals and university students I am working with all claim that the 2nd student was not an activist and as apolitical as a student under military occupation can be). Both men were unarmed when Israeli forces entered their apartment. One was shot 16 times while he was still in bed, naked, while the other was shot in the chest several times. The explosives used to enter the apartment had already torn through both of his legs and his arms. The first witnesses to the scene told us they believe he was executed after he was wounded.

I saw the flat. I saw the blood next to the shattered pieces of furniture, appliances, and debris. There were no explosives, no weapons, nothing. Just your ordinary student flat.

They could easily have been arrested. Another one of the students in the apartment building, the one who answered the 1st floor door, was arrested without a struggle. Instead, the Israeli forces deprived the Palestinians, themselves, and the world of justice by executing suspected militants without a trial or conviction. This is not unusual.

For a sense of how twisted the reporting on this situation can be, please check out these links:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/world/international-palestinians-israel-violence.html?_r=1&ref=world&oref=slogin
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7470530.stm
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2008/06/20086246582657247.html

Again, I witnessed this scene less than 12 hours after the students were killed, saw videos and pictures taken directly after the raid, and heard the eye-witness accounts of those who lived, worked, and went to school with these students.

Needless to say, I'm a little shaken, but I care more that you are able to benefit from what I saw today. A quick little note from you, though, would make a big difference for me...as well as your time checking out those stories.

I love you all..