Downtown Boys have shared an open letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following Amnesty International’s call for urgent action following the Israeli army issuing an expulsion order which will forcibly evict 58 Palestinian Bedouin families in the area of Jabal al-Baba, east of Jerusalem.
The band are using the letter to urge Israeli authorities to immediately cancel the eviction order and any other plans that would forcibly transfer the Jabal al-Baba Bedouin community.
Read their letter below and find out more about the cause here.
Dear Prime Minister Netanyahu,
It is with deepest consideration that I urge you to stop all demolition in the Jabal al- Baba Bedouin community and other vulnerable communities in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including in Area C and East Jerusalem, and transfer responsibility for planning and building policies from Israeli authorities to the local Palestinian communities.
It is my understanding from the investigation of and education by Amnesty International that the Israeli army has issued an expulsion order which will forcibly evict 58 Palestinian Bedouin families in the area Jabal al-Baba, east of Jerusalem. As a U.S. American, my complicity in the direct support of my country to the continued abuse and killing of Palestinians by the Israeli army, makes me connected to this matter.
The Black Lives Matter movement and the Zapatista movement in Mexico, have unearthed so many of the connections between the Israeli army and the U.S. military and police forces. I write to you in solidarity with immigrants crossing the U.S./Mexico border who are met with brutal force tactics that stem from the same military violence that is used by the Israeli army.
An Al-Jazeera article on the matter reveals that the eviction order that the Israeli military issued for an entire village was originally an instrument designed for use against illegal Israeli settlement outposts.
The community’s lawyer has gone through the proper processes to appeal the order and has lost. This is reminiscent of the same thing that happens when migrants and people of color in my own country use the channels laid out for us to appeal for our survival and loss.
I call on you and Ambassador Ron Dermer to ceases the destruction and theft of families’ land and lives. Residents told Amnesty International that since the eviction order has been issued, they have been living in a constant state of fear and anxiety, with children being the most affected. The repeated destruction of homes and of the community’s livelihoods, which aims to pressure the community to relocate, violates international humanitarian law and international human rights law.
People’s lives are in your hands.
Please do something,
Victoria Ruiz and Downtown Boys Music
We’re excited to be a part of the #AmnestyCollective