Journalist's Journal
By Walid Batrawi Posted Jan 1 2003
I was sitting in my Columbia, Mo., apartment one morning when the phone rang.
With a shaky voice, the lady on the phone said in Arabic, “I have very disturbing news.”
For a moment, I did not recognize the voice, but she continued, “The Israeli army took over the building where you lived in Ramallah.”
It was Buthaina, my sister-in-law.
“It all happened so quickly,” she said. “The neighbors told me that the Israeli army came, ordered them to go out and asked who was living in your apartment. The neighbor told them that you are in the United States and that you and your wife are journalists. The CNN and Pacifica Radio stickers and the ‘TV’ sign you posted on the door helped to prevent them from breaking into the house.”
“What about the neighbors?” I asked.
“They were ordered to leave their house,” she responded.
I hung up the phone and spent two hours calling the Israeli Defense Forces spokesman’s office and the Israeli Civil Administration to make sure that the army didn’t break into my house. I made it clear that my wife and I are journalists working for foreign agencies and would not tolerate any damage to our apartment.
“If the army needs to go in the house, they are welcome to do it without breaking into the house,” I said to the spokesman’s office. The reason I said this is because I have witnessed how the army breaks into a house, resulting in damages and a big mess.
The lady on the phone from the IDF spokesman’s office seemed to agree with what I said. She called me back an hour later to say there was no reason to worry and recommended that I speak to an officer at the Civil Administration in Beit El, outside of Ramallah.
The officer there assured me that “the IDF doesn’t take over inhabited houses,” a statement I had to argue since the army had just kicked my neighbors out by taking over their house, as well as our building. The IDF gave no explanation except “operational reasons.” I wondered what those would be; the building where I lived is not a tall one. It is a location familiar to journalists as they overlook it from their rooms at the City Inn Palace Hotel. Usually the army takes over tall buildings and turns them into observation points. The reason for taking my apartment complex might be because it overlooks Al-Amari Refugee Camp in Ramallah.
A week later, news came from home that the Israeli army had left the building without breaking into my apartment, but they had left behind a damaged apartment next door.
Because my apartment belonged to a journalist, the Israeli army did not occupy it. For me, having the right contacts to call at the right time was the only means to stop it.
In addition, thanks must go to the stickers and “TV” sign I posted on the door of my apartment. The idea came to me because I was not sure how I could protect myself and my family while resting at home and didn’t know how to safeguard my apartment while no one was there.
This puzzled me for a while until I decided to post a CNN sticker with the name of my wife, Benaz, who is a contributor for CNN World Report. I also put up a Pacifica Radio sticker with my name on it, as I used to work for Pacifica before I moved to the United States.
Inside the apartment, I glued expired Israeli government press cards on the mirror near the front door. I hoped this would help if the Israeli army ever entered the apartment. This was also a way for my wife and me to identify ourselves as journalists while we were not on the street.
On the street, journalists covering the two-year Palestinian intifada try their best not to get arrested, injured or killed by clearly identifying themselves. If walking, a heavy flak jacket and a strong helmet with “PRESS” or “TV” written on it are ideal. When driving, an armored vehicle, if available, with a big “TV” sign, would be the best. If not, one can stick a “TV” sign on his or her private car and drive around. This is exactly what I did with my car. Of course, the rules of the game say there are no guarantees.
A quick look at the International Press Institute’s alerts of press-freedom violations in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Areas from Sept. 28, 2000 to April 20, 2002, shows that there were 220 incidents during that period. The survey said 81 percent were perpetrated by Israelis, 10 percent perpetrated by Palestinians and 9 percent with unknown perpetrators. The same report shows that six journalists were killed — four by Israelis, one by Palestinians and one disputed. Among them, the victims were five Palestinians and one Italian. The IPI documented 59 incidents of media workers injured with live ammunition, shelling, shrapnel or rubber-coated metal bullets.
The most recent incident was the killing of Palestinian journalist Issam Al-Tilawi while he was working for Voice of Palestine radio. He was shot on Sept. 22, 2002, by Israeli soldiers while covering street protests over Israeli actions in Ramallah. He died immediately from a single gunshot wound.
As dangerous as it can be for a journalist in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, it can also be an advantage. Journalists, medical teams and Red Cross personnel are the only civilians who can walk the streets freely during curfew hours. Israeli soldiers in armored personnel carriers can also move freely because they are in control.
Palestinian journalists working for the foreign media have an advantage because they can use their credentials to pass through checkpoints and sometimes be able to travel from one area to another. Other Palestinian journalists who work for local media outlets and ordinary civilians cannot move freely and are jailed in their houses during curfew hours and in their towns, villages or refugee camps if curfew is lifted.