Anarchists Against the Wall (AAtW; Hebrew: אנרכיסטים נגד גדרות) sometimes called "Anarchists Against Fences" or "Jews Against Ghettos",[1] was a direct action group composed of Israeli anarchists and anti-authoritarians who opposed the construction of the Israeli West Bank barrier.
| Anarchists Against the Wall | |
|---|---|
| אנרכיסטים נגד גדרות | |
 | |
| Leaders | None |
| Dates of operation | 2003–unknown |
| Active regions | Israel, West Bank, Jerusalem |
| Ideology | |
| Status | Active |
A member of Anarchists Against the Wall described the construction of the barrier as part of a strategy of ethnic cleansing, "one of the greatest threats the Palestinian population has known over the last century... which is to make life so appalling for the Palestinian people that they will be left with one choice: move out."[2]
The group disbanded, at least in part due to the decline in Palestinian popular resistance in the late 2010s.[3]
A collection of writings by various anti-wall activists under the name Anarchists Against the Wall: Direct Action and Solidarity with the Palestinian Popular Struggle was published in the English language by AK Press in 2013.[4]
Activities
The activists routinely broke the law, based on their position that the construction of the West Bank barrier was illegal according to international law, making the barrier itself illegitimate.[5] Their direct action took the form of entering closed-off military zones, burning tires,[6] halting construction work, damaging or tearing down sections of the barrier, breaking through gates of the barrier, and throwing stones. The military responses against the Palestinians, Israelis, and foreign national activists included tear gas canisters, rubber-coated metal bullets, concussion grenades, and at times live ammunition.[7]
On 26 December 2003, during an AAtW demonstration near the village of Mas'ha, the Israeli Defense Forces fired shots after demonstrators started to shake the locked gate in the fence. Israeli anarchist and former paratrooper Gil Na'amati was shot in both legs.[8] This got a great deal of media coverage, leading the group to keep what had been a temporary name that it was using at the moment.
See also
References
- ^ Anarchist Studies, Volumes 11–13. White Horse Press. 2003.
- ^ We Are Anarchists Against the Wall: On the non-violent resistance of the Israeli anarchist movement and the Palestinian popular committees against the Apartheid Wall. Federazione Dei Comunisti Anarchici. 2004. Archived from the original on 2022-03-30. Retrieved 2004-10-20.
- ^ ""A Nuclear Superpower and a Dispossessed People": An Anarchist from Jaffa on the Escalation in Palestine and Israeli Repression". CrimethInc. October 8, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
- ^ "Anarchists Against the Wall". www.akpress.org. Archived from the original on 2017-10-27. Retrieved 2023-11-12.
- ^ Lamarche, Karine (2009), Marteu, Elisabeth (ed.), "Political Activism and Legitimacy in Israel", Civil Organizations and Protest Movements in Israel, New York: Palgrave Macmillan US, pp. 73–90, doi:10.1057/9780230621749_4, ISBN 978-1-349-37852-4, retrieved 2023-11-12
- ^ Traubmann, Tamara (April 5, 2005). "Fence Protester Hit in the Head by Tear Gas Canister". haaretz.com. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016.
- ^ Gordon, Uri; Grietzer, Ohal (2013). Anarchists Against the Wall: direct action and solidarity with the Palestinian popular struggle. AK Press. ISBN 978-1-84935-114-0. OCLC 813861818.
- ^ Shohet, Dan (26 December 2003). "An account of the shooting of Israeli protestor Gil Na'amati". The Electronic Intifada. Archived from the original on 2023-05-30. Retrieved 2023-11-12.
Further reading
- Gordon, Uri (2011). "Anarchists Against the Wall". In Ness, Immanuel (ed.). The International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest. Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 1–2. doi:10.1002/9781405198073.wbierp1754. ISBN 978-1-4051-9807-3.
- Gordon, Uri; Grietzer, Ohal, eds. (2013). Anarchists Against the Wall: Direct action and solidarity with the Palestinian popular struggle. Oakland, United States of America: AK Press. ISBN 978-1-8493-5114-0. Archived from the original on 2023-11-12. Link
- Gordon, Uri (2008). "HomeLand: Anarchy and Joint Struggle in Palestine/Israel". Anarchy Alive!: Anti-Authoritarian Politics from Practice to Theory (PDF). Sydney: Pluto Press. ISBN 978-0-7453-2683-2. OCLC 154769337.
- Massey, David (2002). It's All Lies: Leaflets, Underground Press and Posters The Fusion of Resistance and Creativity in Israel. USA: AK Press. ISBN 978-965-7237-00-7. OCLC 78027640.
External links
- Anarchists Against the Wall website: Archived 12 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine