Watch: Heated argument draws TV attention – VIDEO


MAAN NEWS AGENCY FEB 29 2012

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — While heading to his daughter’s school to attend an awards ceremony, Rajih Abu al-Sukkar was notified that Israeli forces uprooted dozens of olive trees in lands belonging his village Turmusayya near Ramallah.

He immediately rushed to the land along with other residents. “Are you leaving my ceremony?” his daughter asked. “The celebration isn’t more important than the olive trees,” replied the father.

It never crossed his mind that the heated argument he had with Israeli soldiers would make him a local celebrity. However, footage of the argument drew thousands of viewers on YouTube and television.

“When I arrived, I saw that Israeli bulldozers had chopped down 140 olive trees belonging to my uncle Muhammad Rabii Hanoun. The trees have been planted 15 years ago.

“The scene of the trees drove me crazy and I started yelling at the soldiers who lined up and prevented us from accessing our land.

“I asked them to show me any court order allowing them to do what they did to the trees, but the commander just replied that he had orders, not written down orders, which was a more provocative and infuriating reply,” the 44-year-old said Tuesday.




Watch: Heated argument draws TV attention
Published today (updated) 29/02/2012 14:46

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — While heading to his daughter’s school to attend an awards ceremony, Rajih Abu al-Sukkar was notified that Israeli forces uprooted dozens of olive trees in lands belonging his village Turmusayya near Ramallah.

He immediately rushed to the land along with other residents. “Are you leaving my ceremony?” his daughter asked. “The celebration isn’t more important than the olive trees,” replied the father.

It never crossed his mind that the heated argument he had with Israeli soldiers would make him a local celebrity. However, footage of the argument drew thousands of viewers on YouTube and television.

“When I arrived, I saw that Israeli bulldozers had chopped down 140 olive trees belonging to my uncle Muhammad Rabii Hanoun. The trees have been planted 15 years ago.

“The scene of the trees drove me crazy and I started yelling at the soldiers who lined up and prevented us from accessing our land.

“I asked them to show me any court order allowing them to do what they did to the trees, but the commander just replied that he had orders, not written down orders, which was a more provocative and infuriating reply,” the 44-year-old said Tuesday.

“I asked the soldiers either to allow me to access the land, or shoot me dead, but the commander kept looking at me indifferently. The officer’s cold and indifferent response provoked me to the degree that I started to speak to them sarcastically, as I experienced how weak we were in front of 32 Israeli soldiers ready for instructions to assault us while we were defenseless.”

Asked if his reaction was over the top, he said it was a natural response. “Pardon my words, what made me reach such a degree of passivity was the officer’s vapidity and silence. I tried to provoke him, but he was provocative to a degree that I was about to slap him.”

Abu al-Sukkar is the brother of freed Palestinian prisoner Ahmad Abu al-Sukkar who served 28 years in Israeli jails. He says it is a duty to defend his village’s land north of Ramallah. He also highlighted that he owned an agricultural tractor and that he helped farmers reclaim and cultivate their fields which face confiscation threats.

He also mentioned that he was involved several times in clashes with Israeli forces and settlers over a tract of land he owns near the illegal settlement of Shilo, and that they he received death threats. A shed he built there was also demolished, he said.


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