An Israeli movement which rejects the occupation organized the protests which it named "It is time to return to the Green Line", demanding Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories since 1967.
Palestinian, Israeli and international activists from the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) and the International Women’s Peace Service (IWPS) celebrated Saturday the new year and their continuous determination to jointly fight the occupation by peacefully taking over Beit Eeba checkpoint, north of Nablus, Palestinian news agency, WAFA reported.
The activists confirmed, by taking over the checkpoint and crossing it without showing their ID-cards to the soldiers, the right of all Palestinians for freedom of movement, without being controlled by the illegal occupation.
In an attempt to regain control of the checkpoint, the Israeli soldiers started closing it with barbed wires and pushed the activists, separating them from each other, and prevented many activists from Nablus from coming back into the city.
Two Palestinian activists were arrested; one is a resident of Israel, while the other a Palestinian man from the Nablus region.
One of the peace activists informed the IMEMC that the peaceful protestors gathered near a military checkpoint while singing and chanting. Clowns also took an important part in the procession.
Yet, the soldiers demanded that the protestors should leave the areas, stopped a Palestinian woman, and demanded her to show them their identity card. The woman rejected and tried to avoid the soldiers.
She said that she was in a Palestinian area, which does not give the Israeli soldiers the right to inspect her.
Also, she added that this is a peaceful procession, organized by Israelis, Internationals and Palestinians, therefore these military procedures violate the spirit of the procession.
Moreover, soldiers stopped a resident identified as Mohye Hassoun, who works for Rabbis For Human Rights, and arrested him.
One Israeli-Arab woman from Haifa, identified as Abeer Qobti was also arrested. Qobti is the spokeswoman for MUSAWA (Equality) center.
The movement calls on Israel to end its occupation to the Palestinian territories, in order to end the ongoing bloodshed on both sides.
The two were released after paying bail in the amount of 2000 New Israeli Shekels, and were accused of having assaulted a soldier, despite the fact that the procession was non-violent.
Nablus district is inhibited by some 200.000 residents; Beit Eeba checkpoint is one of dozens of checkpoint surrounding the city and its villages, and separating it from the rest of the West Bank.
As a result of the continuous siege of Nablus since the beginning of the Intifada, all aspects of live in the area are severely interrupted; teachers and students face daily difficulties on their way to school and universities, patients are delayed or stopped on their to hospitals and doctors and farmers are often unable to bring their products to the market.
Recently Nablus citizens under the age of 35 are denied their right to leave the city, but depending on what the Israeli army calls the "security situations" this can also apply to all Nablus citizens regardless of their age.
An Israeli movement which rejects the occupation organized the protests which it named "It is time to return to the Green Line", demanding Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories since 1967.
