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Research reportRapid Appraisal of Vulnerabilities, Resilience, Coping Mechanisms and Service Delivery Gaps for Children In Hebron Governorate, State of Palestine
November 2019
Research reportRapid Appraisal of Vulnerabilities, Resilience, Coping Mechanisms and Service Delivery Gaps for Children In Hebron Governorate, State of Palestine
November 2019
UNICEF-SoP/2018/Ahed Izhiman
DisclaimerThis is a product of professional research and represents the opinions of the authors. It is not meant to represent the position or opinions of the Child Protection AoR or its Members, nor the official position of any staff members.
Executive Summary
The Child Protection Area of Responsibility (AoR) commissioned a rapid appraisal to better understand the different protection risks and vulnerabilities experienced by boys, girls and women, impact on realizing their rights, how these vulnerabilities can be reduced, and the coping and resilience mechanisms of children and families in Hebron. The appraisal aimed to identify available protective factors, interventions, services and responses currently offered and to provide some knowledge of where the main information and child protection gaps are, and to develop a coherent set of priorities for strengthening the current responses and identify programmatic areas of priority. The findings are to be used to inform the development of an action plan for a coordinated response to the main protection gaps.
The study was conducted between April 2018 and April 2019 and focused on four areas in Hebron governorate that have experienced high levels of conflict with settlers and Israeli Security Forces (ISF) and high levels of vulnerability, namely: Hebron H2, Arroub refugee camp, Beit Ummar and Masafer Yatta (in South Hebron hills). Qualitative data collection methods were used to gather information. Information was collected from 158 children, 64 caregivers/parents and 61 key informants from different sectors including Palestinian and Israeli NGOs, humanitarian organisations and the Palestinian and Israeli authorities.
Risk and protective factors
In Hebron governorate incidences of children arrested and detained by Israeli Security Forces (ISF) appear high. For these children it is possible that the impact of their arrest and detention may be traumatic, and the perception that the arrest is unjust exposing children to further risks.
The study identified key drivers/risk factors and protective factors for children in conflict with settlers and ISF. Risk factors include ISF practices, especially when children live close to a settlement or military structures; the wish for retaliation/ revenge in response to provocation, perceived abuse and humiliation by the ISF and settlers, media and social media, and peer pressure. Contributing factors which put the children more at risk than others included having to pass through hot spot areas on the way to and from school; schools not providing a protective or supportive environment; difficult domestic backgrounds; the lack of safe places to play; and sex and age of the child with adolescent boys aged 14 – 17 years being the most vulnerable to being in conflict with ISF.
Preventive factors identified included the presence of protective parents in the children lives, protective presence and protective presence around schools. Children’s wish to avoid injury or arrest, access to safe playgrounds and extra-curricular activities and community promotion of non-violence are also preventive factors.
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Experiences and needs of children who have been injured, arrested and detained
The ill treatment of children during their arrest and detention was mentioned in each of the 6 in-depth interviews with former detainees and their families as well as CBOs.
The main impacts of detention on children are psychological and educational: i) upon release, children tend to be angry, hopeless, frustrated and isolate themselves. They don’t trust anyone anymore. Changes in relationships with family members and particularly fathers were often mentioned; ii) former child detainees encounter many difficulties with education such as catching up on missed classes, accepting the need to repeat a class and lose an academic year, and lack of support from education staff. It is perceived that child ex-detainees which receive a sentence with jail time, a fine and/or conditional release, have limited prospects for the future. Physical consequences for detained children were cited with released children reportedly ill when returning home due to poor treatment in detention.
Current responses to children directly and indirectly impacted by conflict with settlers and the ISF, services and gaps
In all areas, the most commonly available services are human rights case documentation and access to recreational services. There is limited access to educational services or vocational training, and child protection services to provide case management and mental health support is the least common. It was beyond the scope of this study to collect information on the efficiency and reach of services provided, but discussions with service providers suggest that the reach of many services is very limited.
The main services gaps and challenges identified are on several levels. First on the services providers working processes, there is a poor coordination amongst them and a lack of community-based contextualized responses and an insufficiency of the children’s safeguarding measures in CBOs providing services to children. Finally, we note an uncoordinated approach to services for children arrested, detained and released.
Service provision gaps relate to the lack of capacity of MoSD to provide systematic child protection case management services; schools who are not consistently serving as places of safety and protection; the limited availability of remedial education and vocational training for child ex-detainees; and the lack of access to legal services during detention. Finally, there is a limited support for children’s caregivers and a lack of awareness of the impacts of long-term exposure to trauma and evidence-based responses.
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Recommendations
1. Design a common and/or complementary advocacy strategy to advocate for realization of children’s rights from duty-bearers.
2. Target adolescent boys (12 – 17 years) in “hot spot” areas of Hebron governorate with protective and preventive programmes. This can include design and maintenance of safe recreational spaces for children and safe spaces especially targeting adolescents, and ensure structured activities are in place.
3. Strengthen parents’ capacity to provide a protective presence for their children, and provide caregiver support especially to those with children in contact with ISF;
4. Support schools to serve as places of safety and protection for children.
5. Support to ensure ongoing protective presence around schools (see UN Hebron Strategy).
6. Strengthen the existing national case management system, including referral pathways, to systematically screen and respond to children affected by violence and arrests and detention, who require sustained interventions and support provided by multiple actors.
7. Ensure ex-detainee children, as well as those briefly detained, access child protection and MHPSS services including targeted PSS interventions, individual therapeutic counseling, and enrolment of child who has been in long-term detention or served a prison sentence in a structured reintegration/rehabilitation programmes.
8. Provide awareness raising sessions on children’s rights when in detention.
9. Encourage greater engagement of service providers with communities to build trust.
10. Develop a centralised database on children injured, arrested and detained in Hebron governorate. This will be used to inform a multi-sectoral approach involving humanitarian actors and protection clusters to monitor, share, report and act on new protection concerns for children.
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UNICEF-SoP/2019/Noorani
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Table of Contents
Acknowledgements 9
Acronyms 10
1 Introduction 11
2 Rapid appraisal methodology 13
3 Data on children injured, arrested or detained in Hebron Governorate 15
4 Risk and protective factors 16
4 1 Key drivers/risk factors 17
4 2 Key protective factors 25
5 Needs of children injured, arrested and detained 29
6 Current responses and service gaps 31
6 1 Geographic spread and range of services 31
6 2 Service gaps and challenges 32
7 Conclusions and Recommendations 36
Annex A: Additional Information on Data Collected 42
Annex B: Actor Mapping for Hebron Governorate Rapid Appraisal Study Areas 45
Endnotes 56
List of Boxes
Box 1: Impact of the Occupation on Schools and Education 21
Box 2: Impact of exposure to settler and ISF violence on children 24
Box 3: Protective presence 26
Box 4: The case of Tuba school children escorted to school by ISF 27
Box 5: MoSD Index of Networking and Referrals 32
Box 6: Community Based Child protection Mechanisms (CBCPM) 40
Box 7: Comment on the development of the proposed Action Plan for Hebron governorate 41
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List of Figures
Figure 1 : Source 2018 CAAC database, UNICEF .....................................................................15
Figure 1: Type and number of services for children in contact and conflict with settlers and ISF .............................................................................................31
List of Tables
Table 1 Overview of Hebron Governorate and Study Areas ....................................................12
Table 2: Summary of Drivers/Risk Factors and Protective Factors ..........................................17
Table 3: Child friendly group discussions and focus group discussions with children .............42
Table 4: Focus group discussions with caregivers ...................................................................42
Table 5: Key informant interviews and focus group discussions with stakeholders ................43
Table 6: In-depth interviews with children and their parents .................................................44
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Child Protection AoR would like to thank the following people/organisations for their contribution to this report on the rapid appraisal of Palestinian children within Hebron:
• The research team consisting of Elise Reslinger and Theresa Wilson.
• The members of the project’s Technical Advisory Team
• Key informants including CBOs, NGOs, INGOs and UN agencies for their time and willingness to contribute to this study through sharing their experiences and reflections.
• CBO/ municipality staff from Mahawer centre, Arroub Rehabilitation centre, Beit Ummar municipality and Masafer Yatta villages council who assisted to organise various focus group discussions and in-depth interviews.
• Most important we are indebted to the participants of the focus group discussions (especially children and caregivers) as well government and non-government stakeholders including Israeli Security Forces who devoted their time and shared their views and experiences.
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Acronyms
CBCPM Community-based child protection mechanisms
CBO Community-based organization
CFGA Child Friendly Group Activity
CP Child protection
CPN Child Protection Networks
CPT Christian Peacemaker Teams
CPWG Child Protection Working Group
CRC Convention on the rights of the child
DCI Defence Children International Palestine
DCL District Civil Liaison Office (Israel)
DCO District Coordination Office
EAPPI Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel
FGD Focus group discussion
ICRC International Committee of the Red Cross
INGO International Non-governmental organization
ISF Israeli Security Forces
ISM International Solidarity Movement
KIGD Key informants group discussion
KII Key informant interview
MoEHE Ministry of Education and Higher Education
MoSD Ministry of Social Development
NGO Non-governmental organization
OCHA United Nations office for the Coordination Humanitarian Affairs
PA Palestinian Authority
PCBS Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
PLO Palestine Liberation Organization
RC Refugee camp
SOPs Standard Operating Procedures
TIPH Temporary International Presence in Hebron
TRC Treatment and Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture
UNDSS United Nations Department of Safety and Security
UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund
UNRWA United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees
UNSCO United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Process
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1. INTRODUCTION
Hebron governorate is the largest of the 11 governorates in the West Bank with 711 223 inhabitants including 339 628 children (47.7% of the population).1 As with the rest of the territory the governorate is divided into 3 administrative status areas2 with 11% of the population (78 234 people) living in Area C. The governorate has 2 refugee camps (Arroub and Fawwar) and 19 settlements with more than 15 000 Israeli settlers.3 The main city, Hebron, is the only Palestinian city in the West Bank with Israeli settlement compounds inside its urban area (H2 area).4 H2 has a population of 40 000 Palestinians and 500-800 settlers who live in 4 settlement compounds protected by around 3 000 Israeli Security Forces (ISF).
Palestinian children in Hebron Governorate have frequent, and often violent, encounters with settlers and the ISF at checkpoints on access roads, on their way to and from schools and public spaces. These clashes often result in the arrest and subsequent detention of children in Israeli military prisons. Some areas are more high risk for children than others, especially those areas that are adjacent to military structures, Israeli settlements or access roads. The rural, largely Bedouin, communities of the governorate are mostly affected by the expansion of Israeli settlements, with much of their infrastructure under threat of demolition and their development impeded by restricted access to water, electricity services and their agricultural lands.5
The aim of this study is to:
• better understand the different protection risks and vulnerabilities experienced by boys, girls and women, impact on realizing their rights, how these vulnerabilities can be reduced, and the coping and resilience mechanisms of children and families in Hebron.
• identify available protective factors, interventions, services and responses currently offered and to provide some knowledge of where the main information and child protection gaps are, and
• develop a coherent set of priorities for strengthening the current responses and identify programmatic areas of priority.
The findings are to be used to inform the development of an action plan for a coordinated response to the main protection gaps.
The Hebron Governorate rapid appraisal was conducted between April 2018 – April 2019 and focused on four areas in Hebron governorate that have experienced high levels of conflict with settlers and ISF and high levels of vulnerability, namely:
1. Hebron H2,
2. Arroub refugee camp,
3. Beit Ummar and
4. Masafer Yatta (in South Hebron hills).
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Table 1 Overview of Hebron Governorate and Study Areas
Hebron governorate population
711 22349% female; 51% male
Children (0 - 17) 339 628 (47.8%)Size 997 km²Urban/rural spread 85% urban
12% rural2.6% refugee camps (Arroub and Fawwar)
Number Israeli settlements
19
Estimated # of Israeli settlers
15 000 – 17 000
Arroub refugee camp (RC)
• Established: 1949• Size: 0.24 km²• Population: 9 850 registered Palestine refugees• Children (0 – 17): 4 708 • The camp’s location (bordering Road 60, a road frequently used by Israeli
settlers) leads to frequent incursions by the ISF, which in turn often result in clashes between the ISF and the youth in the camp. Arrests and detention of children in Israeli prisons are not infrequent during these clashes as well as during ISF military operations.
• Arroub RC is slightly more affected by protection concerns than Fawwar RC.
Beit Ummar • Population: 17 892• Children (0 – 17): 8 552• Semi-rural area located between Arroub RC and Hebron city on a bypass road
(Road 60) frequently used by Israeli settlers. 6 • There is a permanent military checkpoint at the east entry of Beit Ummar.7
Children are often exposed to military operations, detention, injuries and fatalities.
Hebron city H2 • Population: 40 000 Palestinians - 800 in closed area; 4 500 in restricted area; 34 700 in rest of H2.
• Children (0 – 17): 19 120• 4 settlement compounds with around 500 - 800 settlers in addition to a
couple of thousand Israeli security forces.• Approximately 12,000 residents (30%) live in neighborhoods adjacent to the
settlement compounds and are affected by strict access restrictions. • According to the OCHA Final Closure Update in H2, the area has 121 physical
obstacles including 20 permanent checkpoints, 8 partial checkpoints, 40 roadblocks, 9 road gates and 44 other obstacles in H2. Several streets within this area are designated for the exclusive use of settlers and are restricted for Palestinian traffic. In some streets, Palestinian pedestrians are banned.
Masaffa Yatta (in South Hebron Hills) 8
• Population: 4 0009
• Children (0 – 17): 1 912• Rural area in the South East of Hebron governorate. In the 1980s, the Israeli
authorities designated most of Masafer Yatta, where 14 herding communities live, as a closed military zone (named “Firing Zone 918”) for training. Since then, these communities have been subjected to a range of policies and practices by the Israeli authorities and Israeli settlers that have undermined their living conditions.10 Children and their families are at constant risk of demolitions and evictions. Children are also exposed to military operations and face difficulties reaching their schools. Since 2004, Israeli soldiers accompany children to their elementary school in a-Tuwani every day to protect them from the residents of the Havat Ma’on outpost.
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2. RAPID APPRAISAL METHODOLOGY
Two international researchers conducted the research - the lead researcher carried out the in-country fieldwork with remote support from a senior social science researcher. A national research assistant provided translation and logistical support.
A research Technical Working Group was formed to guide and support the study and development of the action plan guided by the Terms of Reference. Members included staff from UNICEF, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as an observer, the office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO), United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
Qualitative data collection methods were used to gather information from organisations, children and caregivers including semi-structured interviews and group discussions.11 A Persona doll12 was used in some group discussions with younger children to facilitate discussions and provide them with the option to externalise experiences without reliving them.
The study was conducted in line with international guidelines on ethical research,13 and guidelines for conducting research in conflict situations,14 to ensure that children were involved respectfully, and any potential risks of harm were prevented. The Health Media Lab (HML) Institutional Review Board (IRB) (the Ethics Review Board) granted ethical approval for the study.
A total of 61 key informants from 36 organisations were interviewed. The intention was to obtain different perspectives from different sectors including Palestinian and Israeli NGOs, humanitarian organisations and the Palestinian and Israeli authorities. Organisations and key informants were identified in consultation with the Research Technical Advisory Group. The identification of children and caregivers for FDGs and semi-structured interviews was done in consultation with community-based organisations (CBOs) and other service providers working directly with children and caregivers:
• Nineteen (19) child friendly group activities and FGDs were held, at least one per area. A total of 150 children aged 6 – 19 participated, 84 male (56%) and 66 female (44%). Most of the groups did not have children who had been injured, arrested or detained.
• Eight (8) FGDs were held with caregivers. A total of 57 caregivers participated in these FGDs – 22 fathers (39%) and 35 mothers/grandmothers (61%).
• Eight (8) semi-structured interviews were held with children (7 male, 1 female) and their caregivers, with at least one interview per study area.
See Annexure A for details on interviews and group discussions.
Focus group discussion were held with Israeli Security Forces in Hebron consisting of two Border policemen, and three soldiers from the 84th Givati Brigade together with two representatives from the Israeli Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs and Social Services. The purpose of the discussion was to engage in a discussion with Israeli Forces and other officials active in the area to understand from their perspective what are the vulnerabilities affecting children, and some of the drivers which are causing conflict between children and IF.
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Three feedback sessions on the draft findings of the study were held with the Research Technical Working Group including one with members of the Child Protection Area of Responsibility (AoR) as well as NGOs that participated in the study. These feedback sessions provided an opportunity to clarify and validate findings and obtain additional input.
Study limitations included:
• The tight time frame for the study, which meant that the scope of the study had to be limited to four purposively selected sites in Hebron governorate, nevertheless the data provides insights into general trends.
• Researchers were unable to interview the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) as it was not possible to schedule an interview due to the Tawijihi exam period, by which time the consultancy had ended.
• Engaging children and especially adults to participate in the study and secure their trust in the process was challenging. Numerous assessments, research and evaluations have been conducted over the years in Hebron governorate without subsequent impact or follow up and as a result most participants (both adults and children) were tired (research fatigue) and suspicious of yet another research process.
• While the process aimed at encouraging a co creation of knowledge especially with the children, the short time frames did not allow much time to facilitate a meaningfully participatory process. However, following the fieldwork, 4 mini-workshops took place to share and validate the preliminary findings with groups of teenagers (both boys and girls), key stakeholders and key informants.
UNICEF-SoP/2016/Loulou d’Aki
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3. DATA ON CHILDREN INJURED, ARRESTED OR DETAINED IN HEBRON GOVERNORATE
There is no centralised source of information on children injured, arrested or detained in Hebron Governorate. Several organisations reported collecting information, for example: OHCHR, B’tselem, OCHA, UNRWA, ICRC, DCI, Palestinian Prisoner Club, members of the Children and Armed Conflict Group.15 However this information is generally not shared between organisations, creating a challenge when designing programmes to address the needs of children and families directly impacted by occupation-related violence.
The available data on children injured, arrested and detained in Hebron governorate shows that:
• Of the 290 Palestinian children detained for security related offences in May 2018, 29 of them were from Hebron governorate (10%).16 The most common charge for child detention is stone throwing.
• In 2016, 51 incidents of interference with education by ISF were documented in Hebron governorate (27%) of the 178 incidents documented for 4 most affected governorates in the West Bank.17
• In 2018, 2,821 children were verified as killed and injured (2,762 injured and 59 killed). In Hebron 259 children (9 percent) were verified as injured (see slide below).
Figure 1 : Source 2018 CAAC database, UNICEF
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4. RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS
In Hebron governorate incidences of children arrested and detained by Israeli Security Forces (ISF) appear high. For these children it is possible that the impact of their arrest and detention may be traumatic, and the perception that the arrest is unjust could lead children to choose to engage in future violence.
The study identified key drivers/risk factors and protective factors for children in conflict with settlers and ISF. Risk factors include ISF practices, especially when children live close to a settlement or military structures; the wish for retaliation/ revenge in response to perceived provocation, abuse and humiliation by the ISF and settlers, media and social media, and peer pressure. Contributing factors which put the children more at risk than others included having to pass through hot spot areas on the way to and from school; schools not providing a protective or supportive environment; difficult domestic backgrounds; the lack of safe places to play; and sex and age of the child with adolescent boys aged 14 – 17 years being the most vulnerable to being in conflict with ISF.
Preventive factors identified included the presence of protective parents in the children lives, protective presence and protective presence around schools. Children’s wish to avoid injury or arrest, access to safe playgrounds and extra-curricular activities and community promotion of non-violence are also preventive factors.
The risk and protective factors identified in the 4 study areas in Hebron governorate (Arroub RC; Beit Ummar; H2; Masafer Yatta) included increased opportunities for children’s exposure to settlers and ISF, especially to and from school, due to the large number of settlements and the extensive checkpoints and road barriers (especially in H2). ISF raids on schools were also frequent in Hebron governorate and there are high drop-out rates. Children in the Hebron governorate frequently mentioned a strong dislike towards attending school. When it came to protective factors, the presence of protective presence at school was identified as strong protective factor.
UNICEF-SoP/2019/Noorani
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Table 2: Summary of Drivers/Risk Factors and Protective Factors
Level Drivers/Risk Factors Protective factors
Society • ISF practices: arrest of children in “hot spot” areas; targeting children previously arrested
• Media/social media exposure and use • Normalisation of violence in society • Heroism or culture of martyrdom
Community • Living in a “hot spot” area• Exposure to ISF and/ or settlers’
presence (checkpoints, settlements), especially to and from school
• Lack of safe places to play/recreational activities – boredom.
• Group effect/Peer pressure.• Normalisation of violence in schools,
community
• Civilian/international protective presence
• Lives in an area with limited ISF/settler presence
• Having access to playgrounds and extra-curricular activities (although this is very limited)
• Community (Masafer Yatta) promotes non-violent protest – however also has potential to be risk factor
• Effective referral mechanisms (although this was not the case for all children who needed services)
Family • Domestic conditions – overcrowding, poverty
• Abuse – physical, emotional, sexual • Normalisation of violence in the
home • Emulating role-models at home • Lack of parental involvement or
control
• Parents are protective - monitor whereabouts, keep children at home, send them away during holidays/escalations
• “Negative’ protective measures include sending girls out of the area for early marriage and use of harsh discipline to keep children at home
Child • No hope or prospects for the future.• Emulating “heroic” peers• Emulating role-models in the
community • Teenagers developmental issues• Children play• Patriotism• Sex: boy• Age: 14 – 17• Prior arrest and detention
• Child has cautious nature, afraid of injury and arrest
• Child wants to protect his/her future • Child don’t believe that throwing
stones and violent resistance is useful
4.1 Key drivers/risk factors
Given the political and spatial context of Hebron governorate, children are frequently in contact in some way with settlers and the ISF nevertheless the findings show that some factors/situations result in a greater likelihood of children being in direct contact or conflict with the Israeli settlers and ISF.
ISF practices
“When there is a lot of stone throwing we arrest a child for a few days to scare other children not to do that as well as to show the parents the consequences of stone throwing”. (Israeli DCL)
Information on numbers of children arrested and detained was difficult to access, but it appeared to be a frequent occurrence as reflected in the comments of children who frequently
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mentioned this - especially those from Hebron H2, Beit Ummar and Arroub. Most of the children could recount incidents of arrests of children they knew or, to a lesser extent, their own experiences of arrest.
“I have four brothers: they all went to jail once except one who went twice.” (14 year old, boy, Beit Ummar)
“Out of my 6 close friends: 4 of them are in jail now. I’m afraid to be the 5th.” (15 year old boy, Arroub RC)
The detention of children but also their parents, friends and relatives was often mentioned as a reason for confronting the ISF directly.
“The army detains people at checkpoints, so we need to act.” (Group discussion, boys and girls 6-11 years, H2)
“The army was coming to arrest someone, so we needed to defend him.“ (16 year old boy, Beit Ummar)
Arrests were reported by people as being conducted randomly when carried out during direct confrontation with the army but also targeting of children previously arrested.
When children, usually boys, hang about or wait for too long alone in a public space located next to a military structure, soldiers often come to check their IDs and sometimes arrest the child or his/ her family. This is a factor of risk for direct conflict with the ISF.
“While I was waiting for my mother for 10 or 15 minutes on the main road, soldiers came, pushed me and tried to arrest me. One of my neighbor who speaks Hebrew was there and intervened. They released me. Many times, if you are outside the camp on the main road waiting for your transportation, the soldiers will come to search and arrest you”. (15 year old boy Arroub RC)
Israeli Security Forces said they normal don’t check the bags of younger children at checkpoints, but when the situation flares up they have no choice but to behave differently. They know most of the residents and don’t see checkpoints as an issue, but if suspicion is raised (or there are tensions) they have no choice but to behave differently.
“There are some Palestinian’s who behave provocatively at checkpoints before children and set a bad example of trying to look like a hero for them”. (Israeli Soldier, Givati 84th Brigade)
Close proximity to an Israeli settlement
Closely linked to ISF practices, the key driver of children being in conflict with soldiers and settlers is simply their presence in the places where children live their lives: the streets, the schools, community spaces and their homes. The presence of the ISF as well as their exposure to occupation related infrastructure such as military towers, checkpoints or settlements increases the chances of being in direct contact and conflict with the army and settlers.
“If there was no settler or army to harass children, then there would be no direct confrontations.” (Mother, H2)
“Their exposure to the road 60 is what causes most of the problems. All the time soldiers and settlers are on the road…army enters the camp all the time. “ (CBO interview, Arroub RC)
The Road 60 crossing Beit Ummar and Arroub RC, and the settlements and checkpoints in H2, are major places of tensions. In these locations children compared their situation with the ones of Israeli settlers’ children which often provoke frustration and anger. To illustrate during the interview with fathers in Hebron H2 restricted area, they mentioned several times
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difficulties explaining to their children asking why Israeli children have access to schools and playground but not them.
Retaliation/revenge in response to perceived provocation, abuse and humiliation by the ISF and settlers
The most frequently mentioned reason given why children engage in political violence was related in some way to provocation, physical or verbal abuse and/or humiliation by the ISF or settlers.18
The child could have experienced this personally or witnessed a family member or friend being abused/humiliated or have seen it happen to someone on TV/social media.
Children and especially teenage boys often mentioned provocation from the army as being a reason to face them. One form of army provocation mentioned were signs the army hang in Arroub RC but also posters on the way to school in Masafer Yatta.
“In Arroub Refugee Camp children mentioned the stickers put by the army in the camp the week before saying: “Being a free dog is better than being a lion in a cage”. (FGD boys, 15-18 years, Arroub RC)
“On his way to school a child tore a poster stating, “Jerusalem is the capital of Israel”, he was then detained for a few hours”. (FGD mothers, Masafer Yatta)
“There is a sign next to the school saying, “the one who throw stone to this house [drawing of a pointing finger towards a Palestinian house] will be loved by God”. (FGD girls, 15-18 years)
Similarly, when settlers or the army enter a Palestinian area this is perceived as a clear provocation and the community and mostly teenagers and young men gather to face them.
“Nowadays on a daily basis at least three times a week there are confrontations. If soldiers arrest someone: they all go; if settlers attack them: they all go, children throw stones, even women go out and participate.” (FGD Boys, 15-18 years, H2)
“All recreational projects are useless, if a child goes to throw stones it is because the army will enter the town.” (Father, Beit Ummar)
Another provocation was the ISF invasion of private spaces during search operations or when soldiers climb onto roves of houses for extended periods19.
“In the past 2 months, my house was searched 18 times, what do you expect from my daughter? If she had a knife she would go to the checkpoint and commit suicide.” (Father, Beit Ummar)
Besides the psychological impacts of constant exposure to the army, the invasion of the private sphere is difficult for children who often mentioned the search operations inside their houses as a distressing.
“When they came to my house I was sleeping inside the house, sleeping in the veranda. The soldiers kicked me because I was sleeping. They asked me where the pistol they saw on the table earlier was because they thought it is a real one, but it was a toy. They took the toy and destroyed it. After a week they arrested my brother again for 11 months.” (14 year old boy, Beit Ummar)
“The army came to Alyah’s (Personal doll) house “by mistake” once, she was very scared. Alyah knows about one of her friends who fought trying to prevent the detention of her brother and another friend told her that she was sleeping when at 2am the army broke the main door. The family awoke and saw
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them in front of her brother’s bedroom, they arrested him when he was 20 years old.”
(Excerpts from a group discussion 12-18 year old girls- Beit Ummar)
“The children’s exposure to raids and search campaigns explains why they react.” (Father, Arroub RC)
“Clashes also happen during night search campaigns”. (Mother, Beit Ummar)
The Israeli DCL also acknowledged that children engage in throwing stones because they see their fathers, grandfathers and sisters being humiliated at the checkpoints, and are of the view that “it is how they are educated at home, raised against Israeli soldiers”20. The DCL reported that soldiers all received training (on children’s rights) before starting their assignments and that every Friday soldiers received briefings on how children should be treated. However, given the responses from children and parents, this training does not appear to have a significant impact on law enforcement in Hebron.
Israeli Security Forces also explained the unpredictability of the situation in Hebron:
“Today this morning children around 10-15 years started throwing stones at a security post. We don’t know what triggered the event, as there was no arrest or other incident that would normally trigger clashes. Glass bottles were thrown. There was no intervention of the parents or Palestinian security to prevent or stop. We say this as unprovoked. The children were throwing stones from inside people’s houses, and on the roofs. We don’t want to hurt or respond to the stone throwers inside the houses as this will cause harm. Our mission (as border police) is to hold the security in the area, and let both religions pray peacefully….At checkpoints, all locals know the processes and Jewish and Muslims have the same treatment. It is only when someone makes an incident that things escalate” (ISF, Border Policeman)
Unsafe school environment - Proximity of ISF to schools and corporal punishment in schools
The way to and from school was described as a likely place and time for direct confrontations between children and the ISF. The regular presence of soldiers patrolling or standing at proximity of their schools is a key contributing factor to children engaging in conflict with ISF.
Several children also mentioned being victims of “ambush” from soldiers before and after school meaning that the soldiers are hiding and waiting for them.
“Mohammed throws stones to protect his country but also because he is angry. Sometimes soldiers ambush the children especially on their way to/from school.
(Excerpts from a group discussion with 12-14 year old boys- Hebron H2).
“Even when children go to the school, even if only one or two children throw stones the soldiers come with big groups or ambush children and detain them; once they detained a child 8 years old.”
(19 year old girl, Hebron H2)
Movement restrictions also prevent safe and smooth access to schools. School bags searches at checkpoints were raised as the most common challenge. For example, in H2 a father explained that on the day of the last school year exam, Tawijihi, his daughters were going to cross the checkpoint at dawn, but the soldiers prevented them from crossing. Their father went down to negotiate with the soldiers to let his daughters cross so they could sit their exams. The solders refused and, in front of them he told his daughters “just cross, let them shoot you”. The two girls crossed, and the soldiers did not shoot them.
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Box 1: Impact of the Occupation on Schools and Education
• From January to June 2018, 17 incidents of interference to education were verified in Hebron representing 39% of all verified cases in the West Bank and Gaza. The most affected areas in Hebron Governorate are the old city of Hebron (H2), Tuwani, Yatta and Qalqas. 21
• In 2017, 164 incidents of interference to education were reported in the West Bank, with 26 incidents (16%) taking place in Hebron governorate. The most affected areas in Hebron Governorate were the old city of Hebron (H2), Tuwani, Yatta and Qalqas. 22
• In 2014, 5% of all children in Hebron governorate were not attending basic school (including 22.9% girls), and 29% were not attending secondary school (including 28.4% girls). Of these children not attending school, most of them were boys (77.9% for basic school; and 71.6% for secondary school. Boys mainly dropped-out of school to go work or because they were unable to resume schooling following a detention. Children who have been detained sometimes face challenges to resume schools as they have difficulties focusing, sometimes need to repeat a class which does not suit their status of “man or hero”. Data on school dropouts following a detention is not available.
The use of corporal punishment in some schools results in a lack of trust in key protective persons such as the school counselor. In this case, school is then no longer perceived as a place to nurture development but an unsafe place.
When asked if they would speak with the school counselor of their problems, the boys answered “there is no counseling. If someone has a problem the teacher/ counselor will just beat him with a stick”. (FGD boys 15-18, Arroub RC)
“They think that the school counselor does not do anything. For example, when there is a problem between two children he sits at his desk and punishes both”. (FGD boys 15-18, Beit Ummar)
“In the school we noticed a widespread use of corporal punishment which of course affects the mental health (of children). This use of corporal violence is also a result of the occupation violence”. (INGO)
Boys, especially in H2 and Arroub RC, mentioned how much they hated school, one of the reasons being the use of corporal punishment and the presence of soldiers at proximity of the schools. CBOs and parents said that schools dropouts/negative attitudes towards school were due to the inadequate infrastructure23and overcrowded classes, up to 50 students per classrooms.
“They also hate school because soldiers are in front of the school and they are terrified by this. They are always interrupted and can’t study.” (Mothers, Hebron H2)
“Him and his friends don’t really like school sometimes they wish a rocket will hit it.” (Excerpt from a group discussion with 12-14 year old boys, Arroub RC)
Some children were also seen use the confrontations with the ISF as a way to escape or disrupt school.
“Children who are not good at school throw stones to soldiers so soldiers come and gas the school, and everybody has to evacuate”. (17 year old, boy, H2)
“When soldiers throw tear gas canisters, if they do not reach the school yard children take them and throw them again so the school is evacuated”. (18 year old boy, H2)
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This lack of commitment to education for all the reasons abovementioned can be a driver for children (especially boys) to engage directly with the ISF and settlers.
Israeli Security Forces supported the idea of having traditional leaders (Mukhtars) or Municipality representatives around the schools and commented that this has previously made a difference in reducing clashes. They said they routinely meet with school principals in hot spot areas (especially the 5 schools around checkpoint 160), have engaged with municipality to have plain clothes inspectors at the checkpoint, but this usually only lasts for a short period. Once they are gone the situation usually deteriorates.
“The principal usually takes responsibility for 1-2 days until the situation calms, and then the stone throwing starts again”. (ISF, Border Policeman).
“Usually we only have 2 soldiers at a checkpoint, but if the situation worsens we bring in reinforcements and tensions can escalate. Sometimes we fire gas or flashbangs, and the elders in the community come out and tell the youths to stop as this affected the whole community.”
Media/social media
Several children mentioned how upsetting it was for them to see on TV or Facebook what is happening in Jerusalem and Gaza. Children are also posting on social media unfiltered content resulting in their detention.
“My son posted something on Facebook. He was detained for two days in addition of a fine of 2500 NIS” (Mother, Arroub RC)
“When children see the war in Gaza they are angry and want to react. They need to react”. (Mother, Hebron H2)
Israeli Security Forces said the biggest issue to them are the youths, who are being encouraged to violence by someone …. “Instead of putting pencils in their pencil cases they are putting stones”.
“We caught a 16 year old boy with a knife at the checkpoint near the cave, he has no parental control or support. He is being treated like a hero and is being ‘incited’ to do so” (ISF, 84th Bridage).
Domestic conditions
Difficult family circumstances is a contributing factor in some of the cases of children’s direct engagement with the ISF and/ or settlers, especially girls. The involvement of girls in stone throwing is nominal in terms of actual numbers, but concerning serious attacks, several girls have engaged in these kinds of acts and some of them appear to have been motivated by social and family domestic issues. The main family dynamics described as conducive to a direct engagement with the ISF are parental negligence, difficult communication, domestic violence and child marriage, as illustrated in the following two quotes:
“Lucy, herself, was never in direct confrontation with soldiers or settlers, boys do that, but she threw stones once. Two of her acquaintances have been involved in stabbing, one is 19 years old who was fed up with her family situation since the divorce of her parents and before the attempt she said that she would like to be in prison, another girl 14 year old keeps going to threaten the soldiers but they caught her several times. She is an orphan with 9 brothers who don’t really take care of her. She hates school and her brother’s wife does not know how to handle her. Lucy wishes the occupation will end and also wishes to study. Four of her friends got married at 14 and 15 years and had children but Lucy says that she would kill herself as she does not want children.” (Group discussion with girls aged 12 – 24, Hebron H2)
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“He used to be a calm person, rearing pigeons and spending most of his time with his pigeons. But one day his pigeons flew to the neighbors’ house and the neighbor took his pigeons. The child went to the neighbor to get back his pigeons, but his father was angry with him for doing that and beat him. Out of frustration and anger, the child threatened him to go throw stones. The father released the pigeons and then the child started to throw stones. […] At the court, the judge said it “you are the only one in your family throwing stones while you have one brother who is a lawyer, one in politics…. It is not a habit of your family. Why are you different? “. The answer to this question according to his mother is that: he was affected by the pigeon story, being beaten by his father and while he was average at school he failed in maths. Following his behavioral changes, the school counselor spoke with the father and encouraged him to discuss with his son, so he could start to study more. The child then pretended to study. The family prevented the child to go out, but problems always happen on their way to and from school.” (Mother of a 16 years old former detainee, Hebron H2)
Families are often worried about their children but often feel powerless and incapable of controlling them, especially the fathers.24 This can lead to misunderstanding, stress and tensions within the families including domestic violence within the family but also between children in the street and adults towards children.
“Children are victims of political violence and are growing up in a widespread culture of violence in the streets, schools and even within their families. It is difficult to differentiate political and societal violence.” (INGO)
“There is no stone throwing or attacks against soldiers or settlers. If they are under pressure, they fight with each other, within the family.” (Mother, Susya)
Peer pressure
Most children mentioned that it is better engage in direct confrontation in a group with the ISF as it was is dangerous to go alone. The Israeli DCL also commented on peer pressure as it is usually groups of “20, 30 or 40 children throwing stones”.
“According to Mohammed, it is better to be together because alone it is difficult to protect yourself so best to go throw stones with friends.” (Excerpt from a group discussion with boys, 12 – 14 years, Hebron H2).
Peer pressure was mentioned by two of them who participated in stone throwing. One group of children spoke about being pressurised by boys to leave school when the community gathered to commemorate a martyr:
“The boys came to the girls’ school and forced us out of the classes, then it was up to us to go either to throw stones or home.” (FGD with girls, 12-15 years, Arroub RC girls)
Lack of safe recreational spaces and boredom
The lack of safe recreational spaces and safe spaces to play in all 4 study areas was frequently mentioned by children, parents and organisations as a contributing factor to children engaging in conflict as they are bored and looking for something to so but also as an unmet need. Children’s after school routines consisted of resting, eating and playing in the school playground or the streets (boys) or at home (girls). There were few safe places to play or opportunities for structured recreational opportunities.
“My first detention happened when I was 12 years old. I was playing on the playground next to the cemetery after school and was detained.” (14 year old boy, former detainee, Arroub RC)
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“Once a child was playing (in the street) with a toy gun, a settler saw him and suddenly, many soldiers surrounded the village.” (Mother, Masafer Yatta)
Vulnerabilities of adolescent boys
In each location, boys were reported to be more involved in stone throwing than girls. For the adolescent male, a key developmental task is establishing a “masculine” identify and transitioning from boyhood to manhood. For many young men this is a period of exploration, experimentation and acting-out.25
“Only boys throw stones” (14 year old girl, Arroub RC)
“Girls are less problematic” (Mother, Masafer Yatta)
It was also observed that some (mostly male) teenagers used the threat of participating to the clashes as a way to negotiate with their parents.
“Above 15 years old, it is sometimes a threat from the teenager to his parents “if you don’t give me this I’m going to throw stones” (Head of CBO Arroub RC)
Box 2: Impact of exposure to settler and ISF violence on children
In all the discussions with children, they described being psychologically traumatised by their encounters with ISF and settlers.
“When soldiers come to the house, I am so afraid that even after they leave I keep going to the bathroom.” (15 year old girl Arroub RC)
Children frequently shared the feeling of not being safe anywhere, not at home, not at school, not in :the streets
“You should know that any time they (ISF) can come to your house”. (15 year old boy Arroub RC)
“I was sleeping in my bed when the army came. When I opened my eyes, I saw their boots and dogs. I was very frightened.” (8 year old girl, Arroub RC)
Caregivers also described how they struggled emotionally and especially the stress of worrying about their children’s safety and having to constantly find ways to keep them at home and out of harms way.
“Our psychological health is so bad so imagine the psychological health of our children. Children themselves restrict their own movement”. (Father, Beit Ummar)
In some group discussions, particularly those with boys, children were not able to sit still for short periods of time and engaged in very rough play with the Persona Doll. This kind of hyperactive and aggressive behaviour can be indicators of trauma in children26 and requires awareness, patience and skills to manage in a positive way.
“A very, very active group. Kept moving and could not focus much (from my past experiences this is very common in H2 for boys). The children were very intrigued by the doll and kept playing with it. A few handled him gently but one child kept pulling it and pretending the doll was fighting and eventually broke its arm. At the end 3 boys stayed (including one former detainee, who had scars all over his face apparently following a settler’s attacks), playing with coat hangers, using them as
weapons pretending to shoot everywhere.” (Excerpt from the researcher field notes- Group discussion with boys, Hebron H2)
There is extensive literature on the impact of continuous exposure to trauma and the importance of caregivers being aware of the physical as well as psychological consequences of continuous exposure to violence. 27
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4.2 Key protective factors
Protective parents
Parents play a key role in protecting their children and preventing them from getting into contact or conflict with settlers and ISF. They use strategies such as accompanying children to and from school, closely monitoring their whereabouts, keeping children at home and not allowing them to play outside.
“Most of the time our neighbor keeps his son inside the house with the grandfather to protect him. When he is at work he keeps calling his wife to know where his son is”. (FGD fathers, Arroub RC)
As parents what are you doing to protect your children? “We close the windows and try to reassure them”. “We send the children to the mosque”. “Sometimes we take them to the centre where they can speak”. “Sometimes I prevent them to watch TV”. “If there are recreational spaces or summer camps, we send them”. (FGD mothers, Hebron H2)
The importance of parental presence is reflected in this comment from children:
“When you are alone with no family you are at risk”. [Two of the FGD participants were detained at the Ibrahimi mosque checkpoint while they were walking by themselves without the presence of their parents]. (FDG with girls, Hebron H2)
Parents also used negative measures to protect their children including arranging early marriages for girls. Several reasons can trigger the decision for families to marry their girl child including poverty and cultural practices, as mostly happens in the rural areas. The security situation also contributes this decision, as an early marriage is seen to give a new home to the girl with less mobility and harassment opportunities. Families in Masafer Yatta in particular expressed concerns about their daughters travelling on roads with an army and settler presence, although they did not directly mention early marriage as a solution to this concern.
“This is actually part of the psychology of parents in Hebron old city who are overprotective and who believe that getting a girl married at 15 years will protect her from the settlers’ violence, from being harassed by settlers and soldiers’ violence. Families will marry their girls off because it is risky for them to continue their education.” (INGO)
A common theme, especially amongst parents, was a sense of powerlessness at their inability to protect their children from being exposed to violence and also engaging in the violence:
“The army always come to the house and my children are exposed to attacks on a daily basis. My child (2½ years) has a heart disease and I am terrified for him.” (Mother FDG, Hebron H2)
“Often soldiers suddenly enter inside the house and go to the roof. We are always scared for our children”. (FGD fathers, Arroub RC)
“We are under occupation, my grandfather, my father and myself went to jail and I know my twins will go to jail in the future”. (Father of 4 children – girl (7 years), boy (4 years) and boy twins (1 year), Arroub RC)
Israeli Security Forces also shared their views of the importance of parental involvement to deter children’s engagement in risky activities. They observed that many children are unsupervised and have limited parental support or control.
“If a Jewish child is arrested normally the parents come to release the child, and the child can get a criminal record which prevent them going to the army; they know the price. For Palestinian children
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they don’t see the price and there is no censor from the community or home, or cause and effect. There is no deterrence to commit violence, on the contrary they see encouragement to violence” (ISF, Border Policeman).
Protective presence
International protective presence and the use of cameras to record incidents were mentioned several times as preventing or at least reducing the abuses towards the Palestinian population, especially in Masafer Yatta and Beit Ummar.
“When foreigners come to work with us in the lands located next to a settlement, there are less problems, settlers even offer tea or coffee but when there is no protective presence settlers shoot in the air.” (Head of CBO, Beit Ummar)
“The lack of protective presence would cause more problems. It is not the perfect solution but as the Arab proverb says, “If you are drowning a piece of stick will be a hope”. If a Palestinian takes a picture the army will probably confiscate this camera, the protection is much higher with internationals.” (CBO, Masafer Yatta)
Box 3: Protective presence
One of the main protective services offered in Hebron governorate is a civilian protective presence. This can take various forms from community-established groups to international groups such as Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI),28 Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), International Solidarity Movement (ISM) or Operation Dove. This protective presence at checkpoints and accompanying children to and from school can contribute to a decrease in violations in these critical places. Another protective ‘” presence” is the use of cameras to videotape or take pictures of the violation. This tool was unanimously mentioned as the most efficient method unfortunately a new legislation has been tabled by the Israelis to forbid the use of cameras to record incidents. The ‘Agreement on Temporary International Presence in the City of Hebron’ (TIPH), signed in 1987 to ‘assist in monitoring and reporting the efforts to maintain normal life in the City of Hebron’, is another form of protective presence. 29 TIPH write monthly and quarterly reports on incidents they witness during their daily patrols in Hebron, and incidents reported to them by inhabitants of the city. Since 1997 TIPH has written more than 20 000 reports that are kept confidential and only submitted to Israeli and Palestinian officials and the eight donor countries. In late January 2019, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided not to renew the mandate of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH).
However, not all respondents viewed the protective presence as beneficial or making a difference.
“People come write, write, write and we don’t know where the report goes after” (FGD with fathers, Beit Ummar)
“Protective presence? It is “an empty word” (Arabic translation). It is useless. TIPH came to see me and asked if we wanted to complain but the boy’s father refused because he knows nothing will happen and then the soldiers will be even more aggressive”. Interview with mother of boy (17 year old) arrested in H2 while coming home from school. He was accused of throwing stones and spent a few months in detention and received a suspended sentence. Since his release from prison 5 months ago he has not returned to school (he was in the 10th grade).
In Hebron H2 few children responded when asked what they thought of the protective presence, those that did respond saw them as ineffective.
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“TIPH come sometimes, the presence of international I see it, but they just stand outside and write but they do nothing”; “They come but don’t change anything, they are just writing”; “When ISF send tear gas canisters or sound bombs, TIPH come less” (FGD with older girls, Hebron H2)
Israeli Security Forces (ISF) said they welcomed the withdrawal of the TIPH mandate as this provoked tension especially with settlers; it emboldened children to misbehave and provoked tensions. The ISF’s observations was that the TIPH observers came with preformed political bias and even engaged in protests hence undermining their neutrality. This provoked incidences (by inference with settlers). They welcomed increased presence of UN as their behavior has been perceived as more neutral and less intrusive.
“When the cameras were around people behaved differently, and there would be more escalation ‘off the record’ when the cameras were not around. Now there is less fluctuation in the situation. (ISF, 84th Bridage)
“Some NGOs come to Hebron with preformed and biased political views and opinions, which usually provokes the situation “ (ISF, Border policeman)
One very specific case of “protective presence” is the case of Tuba where children have been escorted to school by the ISF since 2004 to protect them from settlers’ attacks. Box 4: The case of Tuba school children escorted to school by ISF
In Tuba children have been escorted to school by the army since 2004 when the Israeli Knesset Committee for the Rights of the Child gave an order to the Israeli military and police to accompany them to and from school each school day in response to the increasing attacks by settlers from the Ma’on settlement. The Israeli military refused to allow an international presence for the reasons that they couldn’t guarantee both the safety of children and international from settlers’ attacks, so they escort the children on their own. In an interview with a 15-year-old girl from Tuba she described her experiences of this “protective presence”: “On a typical day, we wake up at 7am then wait for the soldiers to come to fetch us at 7:30am to go to school but many times, the soldiers are late, and we miss classes. When the soldiers don’t show up we take the long road to try to avoid settlers’ attacks. During Israeli and Jewish feasts, the army does not come. The short way (escorted) takes 30 minutes to walk and the long way takes 2 hours minimum, so we miss the first two classes. The younger children don’t walk very fast because they have short legs”. Her father explained that only the school children can go on this road escorted by the army, international protective presence or parents are not allowed. On one occasion, some children tried to go to school by themselves and settlers attacked them.
Child’s fear of injury or arrest
Some children, mostly girls, said they would not engage in direct conflict with the ISF and/or settlers because they were afraid of being injured or arrested.
“Girls don’t engage: once or twice I threw stones, it is different between boys and girls, girls who are detained are afraid of harassment [sexual]. Boys disobey the rules but if girls do the same they will be punished by the family.” (19-year-old girl, Hebron H2)
“[Where should Tristan (Persona doll) go in Tuwani to remain safe?] Children: He should stay at home and be afraid of settlers and soldiers. Sometimes they kidnap children and run over them. So, it is safer to stay at home to play.” (FGD boys & girls, 6-11 years old, Masafer Yatta)
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“[Why according to you some children don’t throw stones?] The fear to go to jail, some children also think that it is useless because you rarely touch a soldier while throwing stones and then you can be injured, detained. Also, once my father beat me to prevent me from going throwing stones.” (14 year old child, Arroub RC)
Access to playgrounds and extra-curricular activities
Children, parents and organisations unanimously identified access to playgrounds and extra-curricular activities as having the potential to play a protective role, both in preventing children from getting bored and going out to throw stones and in supporting their psychosocial well-being.
“Children need a playground. All the time they are in the street. There is a need for a place where families can go and also flowers in the streets and trees. It is good for children to learn how to grow and take care of flowers”. (FDG mothers, Arroub RC)
Many children mentioned that they played in the school playground after school and this protected them from harm (although as mentioned previously, these spaces are few and far between in Hebron governorate).
In Arroub RC a group of girls 13 years and older explained that playing basketball had helped them to relieve stress and tension when they were younger, but unfortunately due to regressive cultural norms30 they were no longer allowed to do this, and had no other recreational activities to engage in.
Community promotes non-violent protest
The Masafer Yatta took a decision about 10 years ago to adopt a non-violent approach to protests so as not to give soldiers an excuse to respond violently. In these communities the number of child detention and injuries are reportedly much lower than in other hot-spot areas in Hebron governorate. 31
“It is a philosophy. We explain to children that they can “throw stones back” without violent means. We meet with children before an action takes place, for example going to someone’s land to support him when he wants to do his olive picking [in many rural areas close the settlements, farmers are often violently prevented by settlers from accessing their agricultural lands]. The night before we bring all children 9 years old and above and give an awareness raising session on the “nonviolent methodology”[i.e. no violence, no weapons but resisting only by being present and shouting]. We also ensure that there is an international protective presence with their cameras. We ask everyone not to engage in direct confrontation with settlers. We tell them not to wear a mask because if a Palestinian wears a mask the army comes and arrests.” (CBO representative- Masafer Yatta)
While this practice promotes non-violent protest, it still has the potential to put children at risk of injury or arrest because of the way in which settlers/ISF respond to such protests.
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5. NEEDS OF CHILDREN INJURED, ARRESTED AND DETAINED
The ill treatment of children during their arrest and detention was mentioned in each of the 6 in-depth interviews with former detainees and their families as well as CBOs. One of Arroub CBO representatives said “Soldiers use various ill treatment against children during detention such as mental health, pressure, threat, beating, handcuffed, blindfold, isolation, crowded cells, diseases, lack of food... It also impacts on their education and health.”
None of the children interviewed (all of whom were boys) reported having had access to a lawyer before the first court appearance or to the presence of their parents during the interrogation process. Most children mentioned that their case had being postponed several times, up to a dozen times, with ill treatment often happening during the transfers and interrogations. One young man (18-year-old from Beit Ummar) explained his experience of being arrested and detained when he was a child. He mentioned that the postponing of his court appearances was one the most difficult experiences for him and his family (his court appearance was postponed 13 times).
The main impacts of detention are psychological. Upon release, children tend to be angry, hopeless, frustrated and isolate themselves. They don’t trust anyone anymore.
“It was difficult to resume studying, I did not want to open a book. I was always angry and could not sleep during the night then I tended to isolate myself”(18 year old boy, Beit Ummar)
Continuing education is another key challenge for former child detainees as they encounter many difficulties such as catching up on missed classes, accepting the need to repeat a class and lose an academic year and a few of them mentioned the lack of support from the education staff. In a few schools, the counsellors organise debriefing groups sometimes supported by YMCA for children former detainees but in most schools no attention is given to the specific needs of child ex-detainees. Remedial classes and educational support services are provided by a limited number of organisations (e.g. YMCA) and is an unmet need for many of these young people.
“Omar noticed that sometimes when children go out of jail it is difficult to resume school. His cousin was in 11th grade when he was detained at the beginning of the school year. Now he is supposed to be in the 12th grade but he has to repeat his 11th grade. He is going to stay home and study because he refuses to remain in the same class. One of his friends who was detained also tried the final exam when he was released but he failed, and the school did not allow him to repeat the class. Omar noticed that both his uncle who was detained and his cousin are angry and isolate themselves a lot after the detention. Before jail, his cousin was much calmer and obedient.” (Excerpt from a group discussion with 12-14 year old boys Beit Ummar)
“After X’s first detention, his return to school was supported by us, as a family. We faced difficulties with the school management and a lack of cooperation to get him back to school. The school headmaster and counsellor even accused my son of being a troublemaker. [...] After X’s second detention (when he was 16 years old), he did not resume school because it was holiday time when he was released. His brother Y [who was still in jail at the time] heard about a training offered by the Palestinian Authority intelligence and asked me to enroll X to this training. X went to this three months training then he became a PA employee.” (Mother, Arroub RC)
Changes in relationships with family members and particularly fathers were often mentioned. Following his son’s detention, a father said, “We are not father and child anymore, (we are) more like friends” (Father, Beit Ummar).
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Parents and CBOs also mentioned the impact of child detention on the household budget. Families said that while the Palestinian Authority’s Commission of Detainees and Ex-detainees support the families with monthly stipends32, the additional financial impacts of a child in detention has substantial impacts on the family, estimating the costs to be around 1000 NIS per month. This amount includes Including 400 NIS/ month for the canteen33, costs of the monthly visits, fines and clothes. As one NGO respondent commented, “The occupation arrests our children, but we feed them” (NGO).
Generally speaking, child ex-detainees many of whom receive a sentence with jail time, a fine and a conditional release, have limited prospects for the future. The conditional release posits that if in a duration of time, defined by the judge, the child is detained or arrested again then (s)he will have to serve a certain amount of time in jail even before being tried for the new accusations.
“I was detained for two months when I was 15 years old, my dream is to be a nurse but this dream might be compromised because the school is in Ramallah which means I have to cross the container checkpoint every day and may get detained there. My conditional release state that if I am detained in the coming five years I will serve minimum one year of jail in addition to the new accusation” (18 year old boy, Beit
Ummar)
For the young man quoted above, crossing a checkpoint every day seemed to be too dangerous for him, as he was afraid of being randomly detained and sent to jail, it was also a source of stress for him and his family, so he decided not to pursue his dream to become a nurse.
Physical consequences for children who are detained are even more serious. There were cases cited of children reported being ill upon release due to poor treatment in detention. To illustrate a 14 year old child mentioned several visits to the hospital following an ear infection caused by the severe beating he endured during his interrogation that was not well treated during his detention. Several NGOs, CBOs, parents and children mentioned that the army “does not want to kill the children but disable them”.
Israeli Security Forces offered a contrasting perspective explaining that they have no choice but to arrest children at night. At times they are looking for weapons, stolen cars and explosive devices, and from a practical perspective this is when everyone is home, and a riot can be prevented.
UNICEF-SoP/2019/Noorani- 30 -
6. CURRENT RESPONSES AND SERVICE GAPS
This section presents an initial mapping of the main service providers identified in the four study areas as well as the main gaps identified. Annex B provides additional information on the different service providers. This information could be used as the basis for mapping and planning services as well as developing a directory of children’s services in the Hebron governorate.
6.1 Geographic spread and range of services Figure 2: Type and number of services for children in contact and conflict with settlers and ISF
The diagram above shows the number and type of service provider per study area, as well as the average number of children per service. Some service providers offer more than one type of service and operate in more than one area.
It was beyond the scope of this Rapid Appraisal to collect information on the efficiency and reach of services provided, but discussions with service providers suggest that the reach of many services is very limited.
In all areas, the most commonly available services are human rights case documentation and recreational services; with education services/vocational training and child protection services the least common.
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6.2 Service gaps and challenges
Poor coordination amongst service providers
Poor coordination between service providers was identified as a service delivery challenge and gap. The main coordination structures for organisations providing services to children in contact and conflict with settlers and ISF, and the one most frequently mentioned, are the Child Protection/ MHPSS Working Group (CP AoR). Most (I)NGOs working in this sector in Hebron governorate are members of one or both of these working groups but do not attend regularly.34 At the governorate level, OCHA used to organize humanitarian actors’ coordination meetings on a monthly basis for humanitarian actors’ coordination at the governorate level. All CBOs reported that they did not attend these coordination meetings35 and only mentioned participating in ad hoc coordination meetings with the MoSD and Governorate office.
The MoSD Index of Networking and Referrals of Child Protection against Abuse, Violence and Neglect (see Box 5 below) states that the Child Protection Network (CPN) is the “incubator for professionals who are keen to provide prevention, protection and aftercare for children. It aims at achieving integration of services”. The CPN is administered by the MoSD and represented by a CP counsellor. The CPN was established in 2009 in Hebron and meets on an ad hoc basis. The main members identified of the CPN in Hebron governorate are TRC, YMCA, DCI-P and the MoSD. Box 5: MoSD Index of Networking and Referrals
The MoSD Index of Networking and Referrals of Child Protection against Abuse, Violence and Neglect36 (SOPs) was developed for MoSD, Education and Higher Education, Labor, Health and the Police. It is also relevant for NGOs. The document states that the protocols apply to all children. Including children victims of violence and community abuse, children with disabilities and children victims of Israeli occupation violence. The focus of child protection services are on providing support to children and parents (as appropriate) to prevent, avoid and eliminate any potential future abuse. The referral pathways focus is mainly on ‘traditional’ child protection cases such as abuse of children by parents. There are no referral pathways or protocols for the management of occupation incident-related cases including children in conflict with the law for security reasons (arrested, detained, ex-detainees).
Duplication of work especially on human rights violations documentation and legal assistance
Duplication of work is a direct consequence of the lack of coordination. This practice is especially prevalent with organisations documenting human rights violations and to some extent with the provision of legal assistance37. While it was evident that each organization has a very clear mandate to document these cases (including advocacy, communication, fundraising, engagement with the international human rights system), the best interests of the child were not always the main focus. Children directly affected, and their families are asked to repeat their stories over and over again while the services following this exercise are minimal. An example of good practice is the NGO B’tselem who coordinates their case documentation with the Palestinian centre and Al Haq to avoid duplication.
Lack of capacity of MoSD to provide systematic child protection case management services
There is a lack of capacity in MoSD to provide a continuum of care (from prevention, early intervention to statutory services) and systematic child protection case management services
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to all children affected by conflict or non-conflict related violence, negligence and abuses as described in the draft MoSD SOPs.
MoSD has 4 CP counsellors (all trained social workers) in Hebron governorate – 2 are based in Hebron (1 CP counsellor and 1 supervisor/coordinator) and 2 in Yatta. CP counselors are assigned by the MoSD to “receive and follow up cases of children deprived from social care, in addition to living in dire circumstances”.38
The number of children in Hebron governorate is estimated to be 339 628, which gives a ratio of 1 child protection counsellor to 84 907 children. CP counsellors are in charge of case management for the whole governorate but have limited resources to do their work, including not having a car. Police protection is not provided when they work in H2, which means their own safety is often jeopardized. Information on MoSD cases attended to from January to June 2018 shows that CP counsellors received 111 cases through referral from different resources (average of 27/28 cases per counsellor). No information was provided on the type of cases.
It was evident that some NGO/CBO service providers were unaware of the existing SOPs and referral pathways. Referrals are also constrained by the limited availability of specialised services.
“There are no referral pathways. We need a psychologist. MSF comes but it’s not enough, they just visit the children to register them. There is no long-term treatment only one or two sessions.” CBO, Arroub RC)
Schools are not consistently serving as places of safety and protection
According to the MoSD Networking Index39, education counsellors in schools are responsible for follow-up of students psychological, behavioral, emotional and turbulent situations, performs a developmental, preventive and therapeutic role. Suspected cases of abuse are to be referred to the child protection. Recent information on the number of schools with school counsellors in Hebron governorate was not available, but information from 2013 shows that during the 2012/2013 academic year 67.3% of MoEHE schools had a school counseling service with an average of 724 students per counselor.40
However, in the group discussions with children, some mentioned that their school did not have a school counsellor and none of the children said they would go to a school counsellor if they had a problem.
Whenever schools are recognized as safe places they can serve as an important protective element in children’s lives by supporting and advising parents and children. Some initiatives within schools to support children and especially the ones directly affected by the occupation are useful. For example, the Beit Ummar support group created by YMCA and the school counselor. Unfortunately, sometimes the use of corporal punishment results in a lack of trust in key protective persons such as the school counselor partly due to this practice. In this case, the school is then no longer perceived as a place to nurture development but an unsafe place. As highlighted in the section on factors that place children at risk of getting into contact or conflict with ISF, schools were identified as a risk factor, particularly when children were subjected to corporal or other harsh forms of punishment by their teachers.
“The Headmaster should position himself like a friend (to children) but sometimes he beats the children.” (Mother, Hebron H2)
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Uncoordinated approach to services for children arrested, detained and released
A case management approach to the provision of services to children who are arrested and detained is largely absent. Even if no services can be delivered while the child is in prison, ideally someone from the MoSD or the Commission of Detainees and Ex detainees could open the case and refer to the MoSD child protection counsellor (or NGO/CBO partner) for holistic case management and service provision to the family while the child is still in prison and to the child and family on his/her release.
Most ex-child detainees and their caregivers mentioned receiving services from either YMCA or MSF, and were on the whole satisfied with the services received, also some case management related challenges were identified, as illustrated in the experience of a mother of an ex-detainee:
“When the YMCA came to our house they said they would follow up with my child for vocational training but I have had no news till now 3 months after]. She (YMCA staff member) did not call to follow up.” (Mother, H2)
These services tended to be focused on education (assistance with reenrolling in school, remedial education or vocational training) and psychosocial support but did not appear to address isolation of young people after they are released (so no peer-to-peer networks or support groups).
In one area, a few fathers had formed a Fathers Committee to provide support to young men to continue their education when they are released from jail. There did not appear to be any coordination/linkages between the work they were doing and other formal service providers.
Lack of awareness of impacts of long-term exposure to trauma and evidence-based responses
As mentioned in the section on impacts, they are often negatively affected by long-term exposure to trauma. With the exception of YMCA who uses Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy to support trauma management, it seems that the use of evidence-based trauma management methods is not common. Also lacking is awareness raising for children, caregivers and teachers on the impacts of long exposure to trauma. More awareness raising on this topic might support caregivers and teachers to understand the physical and psychological consequences of this long exposure and decrease their often violent/harsh responses towards children displaying traumatic behaviour. Children also need to be empowered to understand the consequences of their long-term exposure to trauma and how to support their own wellbeing.41
Limited support for children’s caregivers
With few exceptions, there is limited focus on the caring of children’s caregivers by their teachers, school counsellors and even NGOs/ CBOs staff. Very few parents of children directly affected by the occupation received support even though they are mentioned in the section on protective factors as the first respondents to children’s protection concerns.
Limited remedial education and vocational training for child ex-detainees
Access to education in general is perceived as protective and to work on reinforcing schools as safe place is important. Nevertheless, it was noted in the section on impacts that school dropouts are particularly a challenge for children after detention but also when injured by
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soldiers or settlers. The special education needs of these children are not being accommodated. They require services such as home-based education and/ or remedial education and peer support services such as ex-detainee group debriefings (see example in Beit Ummar42), peer-to-peer support between former detainees or pairing an older ex-detainee in the community with a recently released child detainee43.
For children who have no prospects of returning to school, other options should be made available to them. For example, the YMCA offers vocational training to children 15 years and older. The UNRWA Kalandia training center is also an option, but more vocational training opportunities are needed. A number of CBOs mentioned the importance of vocational trainings in helping children to resume their lives after prison, as highlighted in the following comment from a CBO in Masafer Yatta: “There should be training for children who cannot resume school (after jail). After jail, the child will not be able to work in Israel and cannot work below 18 years old in the PA.” (CBO, Masafer Yatta).
Lack of access to legal services during detention
The section on impacts also highlighted the on-going severe violations of children’s rights during arrests and interrogation. All children who were former detainees mentioned the lack of access to a lawyer, their parents or any visit during this period that sometimes was extended up to 17 days. Actors who could negotiate access to children during the first days of interrogation should start to advocate for it. This would enable the monitoring of cases such as the 18-year-old male in Beit Ummar who was interrogated for 17 days and released in a field next to Halhul in the midst of the night without any appearance in front of a court.
Interventions do not incorporate community-based responses and are not locally contextualised
With few exceptions, mostly in Masafer Yatta, services did not harness existing effective positive protection practices such as peer-to-peer support or “former child detainee- new child detainee” support mechanisms44. Some services had been implemented without an in-depth understanding of local community dynamics/cultural practices which affected the effective implementation of activities. For example, in Hebron one implementing NGO did not engage with the main tribes prior to implementing mixed gendered recreational activities and consequently these activities were not successfully implemented. Some concerns were also raised by caregivers about child protection interventions such as the creation of child friendly spaces or recreational activities aiming at diverting children from political action or, worse, to indirectly support the occupation.
Insufficient child safeguarding measures in CBOs providing services to children
When conducing group activities with children at CBOs, we observed that some staff members did not seem to be aware of basic child safeguarding measures such as respecting children’s rights to privacy and confidentiality, even when this was explicitly promised in the study’s verbal and written consent protocol. Some staff insisted on taking photos and/or filming the group sessions despite numerous requests from the research team for this to stop. The practice/culture of documenting occupation-related incidents (as well as the daily lives of Palestinian children) is well-established in Palestinian communities, and an important part of ensuring a protective presence and for advocacy purposes, but this should not be at the expense of children’s right to privacy and confidentiality and potentially undermine their safety when they participate in a sensitive research study.
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7. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Children are living under exceptional and difficult circumstances in Hebron governorate especially in “hot spot” areas such as H2, Arroub RC and Masafer Yatta. They face daily hazards including verbal and physical harassment, exposure to tear gas and sound bombs. They also face societal pressures, economic challenges, and negative coping strategies including child marriage. Key vulnerabilities include proximity to settlers and ISF checkpoints/military installations, with boys, especially older adolescents, most at risk of targeted harassment and arrest.
As a result children live in fear of arrest and violence (for themselves and their family members), and some resort to violence against settlers and the ISF, and see it as an expression of self-determination. In many cases this is for reasons of wishing to make political statements, and in some cases is out of desperation or a cry for help driven by lack of access to recreational or quality schooling opportunities. Some children feel there is an expectation that they will protest at times violently which can result in often very negative impacts on their lives.
While there are many drivers, the primary one is political with the impact of the occupation, requiring measures to ensure that the rights of Palestinians children and adults are respected and upheld in line with international law.
There are however some drivers that can potentially be mitigated programmatically through practical measures such as improved access to school and recreational spaces, strengthened child protection systems (including case management and referral pathways), access to remedial or vocational education for ex-detainees, increased recreational opportunities and supportive services for caregivers, and protective presence measures at hot spot areas such as schools and checkpoints.
Parents interviewed for this study were aware of the importance of putting measures in place to prevent their children from getting into contact or conflict with settlers and ISF but often struggled to do so in a positive and constructive way (i.e. positive parenting methods). 45 Many expressed fears for the children’s safety when at school, in the community and even at home as well as fears for their own safety and concerns about their ability to meet the basic needs of their family. In order for parents to provide this support to their children, they themselves need support.
There does not appear to be a cohesive system to identify vulnerable and at-risk children46 who are most in need of services and ensure that they, and their families, receive the necessary services in Hebron governorate, which if in place would address a number of the service delivery gaps identified.
Key recommendations include:
Design a common and/or complementary advocacy strategy47 that identifies bottlenecks to improve children’s rights and advocates for duty bearers (both Israeli and Palestinian) to realise these rights. This strategy should not only be informed but also partly led by affected communities and children. Specific demands for change and corrective actions for the Israeli/Palestinian authorities should include:
• ISF practices when engaging with children to comply with the precepts of the Convention of the Rights of the Child and swift and appropriate action taken against ISF personnel who abuse children physically and emotionally.48
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• The ISF to review their protocols in dealing with Palestinian boys and young men to prevent violence and heavy handedness.
• Appropriate and timeous action to be taken by the Israeli authorities against settlers who commit act of violence against Palestinians. This can include increased presence of Border Police or civil police to ensure settlers are arrested for committing acts of violence. 49
• MOEHE schools are made safer and are more supportive to children with the Education no violence policy enforced;
• Engagement with communities on right for peaceful protest, but pointing out that violent protest expose children to significant risks.
• Address the culture of ‘herofication’ of children as martyrs encouraging children to engage in risky and/or violent acts against ISF;
• Case management systems are prioritized to assist to address the vulnerabilities of children in Hebron who need additional support.
Develop a centralised database on children injured, arrested and detained in Hebron governorate. The absence of reliable and up to date information on the number and location of children injured, arrested and detained in Hebron governorate, including those detained for periods of less than 6 hours makes it difficult for organisations to plan and provide services or develop a common advocacy strategy. A system to centralise and verify data being collected by different sources needs to be developed. The newly introduced child protection case management information system in MoSD could provide the platform from which to develop such a system.
A multisectoral approach involving humanitarian actors and protection clusters should be introduced to monitor, share, report and act on new protection concerns for children.
The duplication of services especially in relation to documentation of human rights violations needs to be addressed as soon as possible to ensure that the best interests of children are at the centre of the data collection approach and to avoid the widespread “research/ need assessment/ documentation” fatigue amongst communities. The UN strategy for Hebron and the Protection Cluster Action Plan recommends that the methodology for data collection should be child rights based and place the best interest of the children above all. It is important that all actors who document human rights and child rights violations work in synergy and agree on a methodology placing the children best interests as the main focus. The system should aim to avoid harmful practices such as asking a child to repeat his/her story several times and avoid duplication in service provision.
Design and maintain safe recreational spaces for children and safe spaces for older teenagers to meet. Children in all the group discussions, caregivers and many stakeholders all requested that safe recreational spaces be increased, including spaces that give children an opportunity to engage with nature (e.g. vegetable gardening, flower growing, caring for animals). This is likely to be a very challenging undertaking given the space and access restrictions in most parts of Hebron governorate, but creative and ‘out-of-the-box’ solutions need to be found (e.g. roof-top gardens). Lessons could be learnt from a very successful Isibindi Safe Park model50 developed in South Africa and implemented in a number of countries including Lebanon where it has been adapted to refugee camp settings. This model requires the training of staff in basic child and youth care work which equips them with the competencies to build trusting
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relationships with children, implement structured recreational and psychosocial programmes with the children, and identify children who may need additional services and refer them accordingly. The model emphasizes the importance of having appropriately trained staff members who serve as a protective presence and can provide meaningful support to young people as they participate in activities or socialise with friends.
Strengthen parents’ capacity to provide a protective presence for their children. Strengthening caregiver capacity (both male and female) to effectively communicate with and support their children is a particularly worthwhile investment, especially because most children identified their parents and families and the main source of support in coping with the difficulties they face in their lives. Complementary mental health and PSS initiatives that assist primary caregivers in dealing with their own distress and in re-establishing positive parenting strategies have been shown to help to increase caregiver resilience, and in turn better meet the recovery and development needs of conflict-affected children and should be developed.51
In addition, key messages for parents to consider when talking to children about violence and the importance of asking for help if they become distressed should be developed in consultation with parents and disseminated through a variety of media channels, including social media, and community meetings and venues such as mosques. Parents also need to be aware of behaviours that could indicate a child is suffering from extreme distress, complex trauma or post-traumatic stress disorder such as bed-wetting, isolation or poor performance, and have the basic skills to respond appropriately and support their child to access available services where needed.
An awareness raising campaign should be introduced to inform children and families about their rights and where to seek assistance in case of violence, arrest and/or detention. A child friendly version of the awareness raising campaign materials should be prepared ideally with the participation of children using innovative mediums such as graphic novels.
Support schools to serve as places of safety and protection for children. This requires strengthening the capacity of schools to provide protective, safe and enabling environments for students (drawing on work done by organisations such as Save the Children/ Ma’an Development – Schools as Zones of Peace). A holistic school safety plan should be developed that addresses children’s safety/security in schools physical and psychological protection (including protection from corporal punishment). The plan should include children, parents and the community in the design and implementation of activities and make provision for fundraising (when needed).
Support protective presence strategy (see UN Hebron Strategy) ensuring a protective presence is maintained at key school access points in the morning and afternoons, during afterschool activities and at checkpoints on the way to/from school in hotspot areas.
The routine presence of traditional leaders, and/or municipal staff, as protective presence around schools at the start of school and towards the end can reduce confrontations between ISF and pupils.
Target adolescent boys (12 – 17 years) in “hot spot” areas of Hebron governorate with protective programmes. Children most likely to get into conflict with settlers and ISF are boys aged 12 – 17. There is a need to consultatively develop a structured, comprehensive programmatic response in partnership with existing CBOs and NGOs that are currently
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providing services for young people in communities and schools. This could include the development of an appropriate response including establishing manhood training and rites of passage programmes; providing mental health assistance for young men who have been traumatised by their exposure to violence and are in need of treatment and protection; and establishing remedial educational initiatives that build educational skills and provide tutoring and counseling, especially for boys who are struggling at school. Such initiatives have proven to be very successful among populations of educationally challenged and alienated young men.
While young males should be a priority target, structured activities should also be offered for girls (especially girls older than 12 years) to reduce the negative impacts of the conflict on them.
Children should also be sensitized on their rights when in detention so as to claim them in the event they are arrested and detained.
Strengthen the existing national case management system, including referral pathways, to systematically screen and respond to children affected by violence and arrests and detention, who require sustained interventions and support provided by multiple actors. This would entail providing targeted support to strengthen the capacity of MoSD as custodian of the national child protection system, including their response to incident-related child protection concerns (includes financial, social welfare workforce, competencies and logistics) and other key NGO/CBO actors who can work in partnership with MoSD to provide case management to high risk/urgent cases.
The existing Index of Networking and Referrals of Child Protection Against Abuse, Violence and Neglect should be updated to include:
• Specific referral pathways for incident related child protection issues in particular children arrested and detained52.
• The role of MoSD child protection counsellor in managing incident-related cases and coordinating the management of cases with other actors (e.g. child protection, mental health, health, legal).
• Specific procedures for H2 where needed.
A hard copy and electronic child protection service provider directory should be developed to support the implementation of the referral pathways and include information of particular relevance for child detainees and ex-detainees. The development of this directory will require mapping the existing service providers including prevention & protective services and specialised services for children and caregivers (drawing on the Rapid Appraisal actor mapping matrix – see Annex B). This directory could also include information on available prevention/protection services for children in Hebron governorate.
Options for governorate-based coordination mechanisms to support service planning and delivery should be explored including quarterly meetings and sharing of information on service providers and contacts (the actors mapping provided in this report is a good place to start).
There is a duty to support the national child protection system but also to commit as much as possible to a sustainable and consistent funding especially for participatory approaches that demand more flexibility and time but ensure more sustainability and relevance.
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Address the unmet needs of children released from detention. Specific service gaps include:
• Targeted PSS interventions for children who have been detained for brief periods of time, including: addressing issues of masculinity and identity; assistance with returning to school;
• Individual therapeutic counseling based on need;
• Enrolment of child who has been in long-term detention or served a prison sentence in a structured reintegration/rehabilitation programme which includes a strong education/vocational training focus and
Children who have been detained for a few hours or in a holding facility also have needs that must be addressed. A case management approach to the provision of these services should also be adopted (see previous recommendation), including the identification, assessment and referral to specialised services where needed.
Take steps to improve service provider relationships/build trust with communities
Service providers need to engage respectfully with communities around their views on children’s role in resisting the occupation ensuring that resistance is peaceful and non-violent. Communities should be made aware that (most) service providers are cognizant of the children right to freedom of thought and as stated in Article 14 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child as well as their rights and best interests to be protected and to grow up in a safe and nurturing environment as stated in Article 353. Communities should be engaged on how these rights are peacefully realised in a balanced way that is in the best interest of children.
UN agencies, INGOs, NGOs, CBOs should explore practical mechanisms to give feedback to children and communities, thereby providing some means of accountability for services provided. One option could be to report on a quarterly basis to community-based structures (see Box 4 below) to facilitate feedback to the community. Written feedback could be displayed in schools and also shared during town meetings. Box 6: Community Based Child protection Mechanisms (CBCPM)
The Minimum Standard 16 for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action recommends the establishment of a formal “network or group of individuals at community level who work in a coordinated way toward child protection goals. Effective Community-based Child Protection Mechanisms (CBCPM) include local structures and traditional or informal processes for promoting or supporting the wellbeing of children.”54 Experience on the establishment of CBCPMs can be taken from the UNRWA Family and Child Protection programme, which created this type of CBCPM few years ago. Ideally this CBCPM should include children55, father and mother group representatives, school counsellors, religious chiefs and the main CP CBOs and, in the case of refugee camps, camp representatives.
Areas for further research
Embedding research and evaluation within implementation strategies is an important means of learning from programming and meeting ethical standards in supporting communities in severe distress.56 It is therefore important that all the recommended actions include a component of research and evaluation. In addition, the following two areas for further research were identified indirectly through the study:
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• Review of evidence-based trauma management/treatment modalities for both children and adults, particularly for complex trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder.57
• The participation of settler children in harassing and committing acts of violence against Palestinian families is cause for concern from a child protection perspective. The implications of this practice on the healthy development of these children should be investigated further.
Box 7: Comment on the development of the proposed Action Plan for Hebron governorate
The study used an intervention research approach and consequently the recommendations and proposed action plan for Hebron governorate aim at testing innovative service approaches to preventing or ameliorating problems or intervention maintaining quality of life. Action plans have already been designed for Hebron governorate (for example the UN Strategy for Hebron and Protection Cluster action plan for H2) and the action plan proposed by this study is located within these existing plans.58
UNICEF-SoP/2019/Noorani
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Annex A: Additional Information on Data Collected Table 3: Child friendly group discussions and focus group discussions with children
No. Area Age range Male Female Total
1. Hebron H2 6 - 11 5 3 8
2. Hebron H2 10 - 14 - 6 6
3. Hebron H2 9 - 13 10 - 10
4. Hebron H2 14 - 21 - 4 4
5. Hebron H2 17 - 18 4 - 4
6. Arroub RC 6 - 11 5 6 11
7. Arroub RC 8 - 15 - 8 8
8. Arroub RC 11 - 14 13 - 13
9. Arroub RC 12 - 15 - 5 5
10. Arroub RC 11 - 16,5 13 - 13
11. Beit Ummar 8 - 11 3 2 5
12. Beit Ummar 12 5 - 5
13. Beit Ummar 11 - 15 - 16 16
14. Beit Ummar 14 - 18 10 - 10
15. Masafer Yatta- Tuwani 7 - 11 3 5 8
16. Masafer Yatta- Tuwani 10 - 13 - 9 9
17. Masafer Yatta- Tuwani 11 - 14 9 - 9
18. Masafer Yatta- Tuba’ 13 - 15 4 - 4
19. Masafer Yatta- Tuwani 17 - 19 - 2 2
TOTAL 84 66 150
Table 4: Focus group discussions with caregivers
No. Area Male Caregiver Female Caregiver
1. Hebron H2 - 15
2. Hebron H2 4 -
3. Arroub RC - 4
4. Arroub RC 2 -
5. Beit Ummar - 4
6. Beit Ummar 6 -
7. Masafer Yatta- Tuwani - 12
8. Masafer Yatta- Tuwani 10 -
TOTAL 22 35
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Table 5: Key informant interviews and focus group discussions with stakeholders
# Type Organization
1. KII Mahawer centre
2. FGD Mahawer centre, Youth Children Dream Society, Sharek
3. KII YMCA
4. KII MSF
5. KII Arroub Rehabilitation Centre
6. KII Popular Committee Arroub RC
7. KII Women Centre
8. KII Beit Ummar municipality
9. FGD Union of Father, Zakkak committee, Prisoner club, KG Islamic sciences, Youth centre, Women centre for charitable society
10. KII EAPPI
11. KII ICRC
12. KII CPT
13. KII HRC
14. KII MoSD Hebron & Ramallah
15. KII B’tselem
16. KII TIPH
17. KII Palestinian DCO
18. KII Operation Dove
19. FGD Village council, B’tselem, Sport club, Tuwani charitable society, Women cooperative, Rural charitable society
20. KII B’tselem- South Hebron hills
21. KII Israeli DCL
22. KII DCI-P Hebron & Ramallah
23. KII Human Rights Defenders
24. KII OHCHR
25. KII Save the Children
26. KII UNICEF
27. FGD Israeli Security Forces (84th Givat Brigade, and Border policeman)
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Table 6: In-depth interviews with children and their parents
No AreaChild Profile Family
Member/s presentAge Gender Description
1. *** Hebron H2 16 M
Refugee. Child released 3 months ago after being sentenced to 5 months jail. Court postponed 8 times. Accusation: “stone throwing”.
Mother
2. *** Hebron H2 17 M
Non-refugee. Detained for 9 months, 3000 NIS fine and a 3 years probationary period for stone throwing. Now released he dropped out of school and is working. Court postponed 10 times. Accusation “stone throwing”
Father, 2 brothers (and mother at the end)
3. *** Arroub RC
1416
MM
Refugee. Mother of two young men in jail who have both been detained when they were children. One is still in jail and the other was just released and he started a vocational training.
Mother (and brothers at the end)
4. Arroub RC 14 M
Refugee. The child was detained twice, the last time he was sentenced to 1 month and one day+ 3000 NIS fine. He was released two months ago. He resumed school. Accusation “stone throwing”.
Mother
5. Beit Ummar 18 M
Non-refugee. Detained when he was 15 years for 2 months, 2500 NIS fine and 5 years probationary period. Court postponed 13 times. Accusation “stone throwing”
Father and Mother
6. Beit Ummar 18 M
Non-refugee. Detained 3 times, twice from his house once from the military tower. 1st time detained he was 15 years – detained for 18 days and got a 5000 NIS fine. 2nd time he was 16 years, court was postponed 6 times and he got a 2500 NIS fine. The 3rd time he was 17 years and was detained around 15 or 18 days only for interrogation and no court. He was released around midnight in a field when the interrogation ended. Every time the accusation was “stone throwing”.
Father then mother and brother joined
7. Beit Ummar 16 M
Non-refugee. Child injured twice by rubber-coated bullet. The child was injured less than a week before our visit. One of the bullets broke the bones of his foot. The second time he was injured it was around 7am by an undercover unit during direct confrontations with the army in the city.
Father then uncle and cousin joined
8. Masafer Yatta- Tuba’ 15 F
For 10 years (1st grade to 11th grade) she has been escorted by the ISF to school, following problems with settlers’ attacks in 2002. A typical day for her consists of waking up at 7am then waiting for the soldiers to come at 7.30am and then they go to school. “Many times, the soldiers are late, and we miss classes”. When the soldiers don’t show up children take the long road to try to avoid settlers’ attacks.
Father (and other member of the community coming and going under the tent)
* Caregiver and son interviewed separately;** Child not present in interview as currently in detention;*** Child not presents in interview.
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Annex B: Actor Mapping for Hebron Governorate Rapid Appraisal Study Areas Note: This is an initial mapping done during the Rapid Appraisal. It is a working document that needs to be completed and updated regularly.
Hebron Governorate
Government/ Union
Governorate office • Supports child protection actors by lending cars to MoSD social workers and support the coordination between with NGOs and CBO.
• Supports the H2 civilian protective presence.
MoSD- Ministry of Social Development
• Services: CP case management, database (including children affected by occupation related violence), awareness raising. Runs Protection shelters for girls (up to 18 yr.) in Beit Jala and for boys (up to 18yr) in Beitunya.
• Beneficiaries: All children victim of violence, negligence or abuses• Staff: 2 social workers for Hebron (1 CP employee and 1 supervisor/
coordinator) and 2 social workers for Yatta. • Challenges: They don’t have a car and the 4 of them are in charge of
case management, coordination and data collection for the whole governorate. No police protection for H2.
• Funding: Palestinian Authority, UNICEF, Save the Children, others.
Police • Support to MoSD when needed for CP cases – except in Hebron H2
MoEHE- Ministry of Education and Higher Education
• Run schools in Hebron Governorate. (Number TBD)
Commission of Detainees and Ex detainees
• Services: Strengthening of community and family support; Support for social support activities initiated by the community, strengthening of parenting/family supports; Facilitation of community support to vulnerable persons, Structured recreational or creative activities; Psychological interventions & clinical management; Basic counselling for individuals, families and groups.
• Beneficiaries: All detainees and former detainees (adults & children) and their families.
General Palestinian Union for Persons with Disability
• Services: Referral to the Ministry of Health for health insurance and disability assessment/diagnosis
• Beneficiaries: Persons with disabilities included children
Palestinian DCO • Services: Coordination with Israeli DCL to release detained children; awareness raising on the “hotline 163” for Palestinian DCO; (e.g. distributed notebooks to children and TV spots explaining their mission and the hotline). In 2018, 12 children who were detained were referred to the Palestinian DCO to be released, including 4 children who were throwing stones following what happened in Gaza.
• Beneficiaries: Children who are detained by the ISF- first few hours
MoH- Ministry of Health Runs hospital and health centres
Prisoners Club • Services: Legal aid, data collection/ stats• Beneficiaries: All prisoners (adults& children) and their families.
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Hebron Governorate
INGOs
Action Aid • Services: Community based protection interventions; child sponsoring; summer camps, we gave them a club and established computer labs for 3 CBOs to empower these children because in this area all the school are poor. Support the creation of community-based protection committees which is a structure empowering communities and setting a structure that will look into protection threats whether related to life and livelihood of people that will be looked after by the community members that consists of women, young people, committee influential people. This committee develops a protection plan based on participatory process to identify the protection threats their magnitude and impact on people, young people whether it is an economic issue or a lifesaving issue and based on that they develop an action plan. Now in the implementation stage, they provide small funds to support the implementation of the protection plan.
• Beneficiaries: Communities in situation of vulnerabilities.
DCI-P- Defence Children International- Palestine
• Services: Legal aid, awareness raising on child rights, Protection children groups, advocacy, participation to the CP network meetings. DCI represents 40% of children detained while the commission on detainees and ex detainees 60%. DCI has its protection groups of children in partnership with MoSD. Children trained to report on protection issues.
• Beneficiaries: children affected by conflict related violence.
MSF- Médecins sans Frontières
• Services: MHPSS. MSF psychosocial education and psychosocial support projects: The psychosocial education project started in February 2018 (for one year), targeting H2, Masafer Yatta, Arroub RC. In schools, MSF do some awareness raising sessions. The sessions mostly consist of explaining the role of mental health, how to seek support and positive coping mechanisms.
• The psychosocial project consists of 4 1½ - 2 hr. sessions for children aged 12-7 and 16-13. The sessions work on emotional regulations mechanisms for children and how to deal with stress, anger and self-esteem for teenagers.
• MSF also provided psychological first aid in all governorates. They also provide psychosocial counseling and services in beneficiaries homes or in their consultation rooms. MSF has 8 consultation rooms in Hebron governorate.
• Staff: 4 clinical psychologists for short term therapy (3-4 months) for 6 - 8 or 10-14 sessions.
• Beneficiaries: School students 7-12 and 13-16. MSF have around 100 beneficiaries including 50% children. And former children detainees.
SOS village Children • Services: Alternative care located in Bethlehem but accessible for Hebron’s children as
• Beneficiaries: Children up to 18 years who are victim of violence, negligence and abuses (conflict related violence or not) Maximum capacity of the centre: 126 children.
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Hebron Governorate
ANERA • Services: Construction of public parks, school and KGs maintenance• Beneficiaries: Children
World Vision • Services: Office in Halhul. To be completed: still have awareness raising programme for children/teenagers on the safe use of social medias?
• Beneficiaries: Children
NRC- Norwegian Refugee Council
• Services: To be confirmed. School based interventions include training teachers on effective classroom management and struggling students; training counsellors to support students suffering nightmares; assisting teachers and school staff in developing child-centered teaching and learning approaches; supporting parents and school communities in establishing parent associations; providing information to students, parents and teachers about their rights and referral mechanisms for further support; providing emergency resources for vulnerable schools to enhance teaching and learning, as well as protect against attacks on education.
• Beneficiaries: School students and staff.
B’tselem • Services: Case documentation in coordination with al Haq, Palestinian centre and Land defence; protective presence (cameras); Picnics, all Hebron governorate.
• Beneficiaries: Adults and children victim of human rights violations• Staff: 2 employees for the whole governorate and 50 cameras
including 30 just in or around H2.
Save the Children • Services: Data collection on education related to children and armed conflict, projects Schools as Zones of peace, Mainstreaming of Child protection in emergencies in the national child protection system with the MoSD.
• Beneficiaries: Children affected by the armed conflict
MdM Swiss – Médecins du Monde Swiss
• Services: Psychosocial support. MdM work in Palestine focuses on reintegrating child detainees into mainstream society while simultaneously providing psychological support to them and their families. MdM teams provide safe spaces for children to talk about their experiences and offer activities (such as sports, photography, theater) to alleviate stress and to help the children cope with being an ex-detainee at such a young age.
• Beneficiaries: Former child detainees• Funding: They will stop their intervention in Arroub RC and Beit
Ummar in December 2018.
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Hebron Governorate
NGOs/ CBOs
PRCS- Palestinian Red Crescent Society
• Services: MHPSS and Rehabilitative and educational services for persons with disabilities
• Beneficiaries: Adults and children victims of conflict related violence and/or with disabilities.
Yes Theatre (YT) • Services: Yes Theatre’s core programmes include plays for adults, youngsters and kids. In addition to that, YT offers trainings for teachers and school counsellors to use drama, storytelling, acting and other methods in teaching and dealing with students at schools, besides YT’s projects such as Kids4Kids, Play4Kids, drama workshops, puppet workshops, Yes4Youth Training Programme, and Yes4Future.
• Beneficiaries: children.• Funding: Most of Yes Theatre activities are implemented through
cooperation with the Palestinian Ministry of Education, UNRWA, and other governmental and non-governmental organizations.
Al Haq • Services: Palestinian Human Rights organization. Awareness raising, advocacy.
Tamer • Services: Support the literary and scholarly production on child culture in Palestine, enhance reading, writing and all forms of expression among children and young adults, contribute to a Palestinian environment that is supportive to learning.
• Beneficiaries: children and young adults
YMCA • Services: Psychosocial services for children and their families (including use of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing psychotherapy), vocational training, small financial support for private classes or transportation, picnic for prisoners and their families. Psychosocial and rehabilitative services as well as accessibility services at homes for persons with physical disability.
• Beneficiaries: Children affected by conflict related violence, child detainees and ex detainees, children and adults with disabilities.
Alihsan Society • Services: Medical, rehabilitative and ongoing care for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities
• Beneficiaries: Adults and children with disabilities.
Charitable Blind Society • Services: Educational services for blind students• Beneficiaries: Students with disabilities.
SAWA hotline • Services: Child protection hotline (national)• Beneficiaries: Child victims of abuses, negligence or violence (conflict
related or not)
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Hebron Governorate
Multilateral organizations
OHCHR • Services: The protection civilians through monitoring and reporting; development of human rights capacity of Government officials, national human rights institutions, human rights defenders and civil society organizations; mainstreaming of human rights through partnerships with United Nations and regional mechanisms; and advocacy and public communications aimed at promoting and protecting human rights.
• Beneficiaries: Adults and children victim of human rights violations.
UNRWA • Services: Run schools, health centres, Family and Child protection program, human rights violation documentation when the victim is a registered refugee. Arroub RC has 4 UNRWA schools serving 2,000 children. The schools in Arroub include libraries and computer and science laboratories. Psychosocial support is available however, there is a lack of organised after-school activities59.
• Beneficiaries: UNRWA’s mandate is for Palestine refugees only. • Funding: It is important to note that the financial difficulties UNRWA
is currently facing will have a significant impact on their capacity to provide services to children60.
UNICEF • Services: Support the national case management and child protection system and health, education and adolescents’ programmes.
• Beneficiaries: Children and youth
OCHA • Services: Coordination, Case documentation/ demolitions, access• Beneficiaries: Adults and children
ICRC • Services: When a child is in detention, ICRC facilitates Family Visit for minors twice a month; for detention visits, the ICRC visits to all, including minors in detention places including temporary places of detention.
• Beneficiaries: Child detainees, children affected by conflict related violence.
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Services provided in the 4 study areas
Hebron- H2Government Hebron municipality • In charge of planning and administrative management.
INGOsEAPPI- Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel
• Protective presence and advocacy.
ISM- International Solidarity Movement
• Protective presence and advocacy.
CPT- Christian Peacemaker Teams
• Protective presence and advocacy.
B’tselem • Human rights monitoring and reporting and advocacy.
NGOs/ CBOsYouth Children Dream Society
• Psychodrama, mini TV series.• Have 4 social workers and work with 50-60 children a day on psychodrama.
Hebron Charitable organization
• TBD
Sharek (Hebron municipality)
• Recreational and educational activities.• Summer camps. • Training on how to document child rights violation.
Mahawer centre • Food & medicine distribution.• Cash distribution.• Income-generational activity with women (food)
kindergartens 2 • Playground (for around 20 children)• Ongoing programs in partnership with other organisations: • Action Aid project: funded through sponsorships from families in Greece.
790 children sponsored 100 Euros/ year. The money does not go to the child but is used to support the community where the child is living (for example playground, garden).
• DCI project: awareness raising to children on child rights and how to record violations against them (all violations: from the occupation, violence, corporal punishment at school)
• SOS Children: support vulnerable children in families where they are exposed to an alcoholic/ drug addicted father or sick family members and children who are homeless/at risk of homelessness. Follow the family at their homes from 1 to 3 years. Provide social work and psychological support and treatment. Assistance with soloing any problem faced by the child (e.g. psychological, financial).
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Hebron- H2Hebron Rehabilitation committee (HRC)
In its constitution, HRC has the following goals and strategies:• Reviving the Old City by renovating buildings, reusing abandoned houses,
and rehabilitating the infrastructure while preserving its cultural heritage and the city’s architectural fabric
• Improving living conditions for the Palestinian population by restoring homes, enabling unity between the Old City and the new one, and providing various services to enhance living and working conditions
• Boosting trade and the economy, while promoting local and foreign tourism• Launching projects to combat unemployment and poverty, while providing
jobs for local people
Youth against settlements
• Human rights monitoring and case documentation, advocacy and awareness raising activities.
Human Rights Defenders
• Awareness raising on Israeli and Palestinian law, English and Hebrew classes, human rights violations documentation
Community centre Tareq Ibn
• Sport for children with disability
Health Work Committee- HWC
• Runs a health centre in the old city
Multilateral organizationsTIPH • Besides their regular mandate of presence and reporting, 60% of their
projects target children. They have 13 projects every 6 months in H1 and H2 (e.g. renovating schools, Yes Theatre, awareness raising, fun days) also do briefings in the schools on TIPH.
• Host Monthly Brunch meeting (place for coordination de facto).
UNRWA • 2 schools
OHCHR • See Hebron governorate section- description
OCHA • See Hebron governorate section- description
ICRC • See Hebron governorate section- description
UNICEF • See Hebron governorate section- description
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Arroub Refugee Camp
Government Popular committee • In charge of the coordination with UNRWA and the PA
MoEHE • Runs 2 schools
INGOsMdM Swiss • See Hebron governorate section- description/ will stop their
intervention in December 2018
MSF • See Hebron governorate section- description
B’tselem • See Hebron governorate section- description
NGOs/ CBOsRehabilitation centre • Rehabilitation and inclusion of children and young people
with disabilities. Give them wheelchairs, canes, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, psychological support (workshop with UNRWA with fun activities) and recreational activities for children. Provide food baskets.
Youth centre • Sport activities
Women centre • Summer camps: embroidery, cuisine (income generative activity)
Phoenix centre (closed for now) • CLOSED due to lack of funding• Formerly centre for women and children. Up to 2016 provided
different recreational activities for children between 6 and 15 years old e.g. Dabkeh, music, games, drawing, handicraft. Educated mothers on various topics and the making of embroidered accessories, candles and toys. Centre was part of the popular committee (Phoenix centre) but due to a lack of funding they had to close. Used to have partnerships with schools, providing recreational activities.
DCI-P • See Hebron governorate section- description
YMCA • See Hebron governorate section- description
Multilateral organisationsUNRWA • 4 schools (2 school counsellors), 1 health centre provides
primary health care including reproductive health, infant and child care, immunizations, screening and medical check-ups and treatment
• Psychosocial counselling and family and child protection are also available at the health centre.
OHCHR • See Hebron governorate section- description
OCHA • See Hebron governorate section- description
ICRC • See Hebron governorate section- description
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Beit Ummar
Government
MoSD • See Hebron governorate section- description
Prisoner Club • See Hebron governorate section- description
MoEHE • Runs schools (number TBD)
MoH • Runs health centres and hospitals
INGOs
MdM Swiss • See Hebron governorate section- description / will stop their intervention in December 2018
MSF • See Hebron governorate section- description
B’tselem • See Hebron governorate section- description
NGOs/ CBOs
YMCA • See Hebron governorate section- description
DCI-P • See Hebron governorate section- description
Union of Father • TBD
Zakkak Committee • Charity work
Local youth centre • Summer camps, recreational activities, sport activities
Women centre for charitable society
• TBD
Fathers committee • Group of fathers who tries to ensure that children resume school after detention and to accompany them after their release from jail.
Dar El Haytham charitable society
• Run a school
Beit Ummar charitable society • Run a school and a KG as well as one health centre.
Multilateral organisations
OCHA • See Hebron governorate section- description
ICRC • See Hebron governorate section- description
OHCHR • See Hebron governorate section- description
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Masafer Yatta
Government Village council • In charge of the administrative management MoEHE • Runs schools (number TBD)
MoH • Runs health centres
INGOsOperation Dove • Protective presence and advocacy
Psychologist for Human Rights • Cultural activities: conventions, conferences, debates, seminars, film and documentary screenings, concerts, language courses for children (starting from 3-year-olds), adolescents, and adults. Training activities: refresher courses both practical and conceptual for youth workers, teachers, social workers; specialized courses in Psycho-traumatology, Emergency Psychology, and Stress management, Art-Therapy, Development and Cooperation.
Yesh Din • Monitoring and reporting on human rights violations, awareness raising activities and advocacy
B’tselem • See Hebron governorate section- description
MSF • See Hebron governorate section- description
Rabbis for human rights • Protective presence and legal counseling (?)
World Vision • Psychological first aid (PFA) and extra curricula activities, training of the school counsellors, parents and teachers
ISM • Protective presence and advocacy
NGOs/ CBOsCharitable Rural Women Society • Provide summer camps and psychological debriefing,
• Have a social worker that works with MSF and TRC. • Work in Yatta and South Hebron hills. Their mandate is flexible -
they did some unexploded ordinance (UXO) awareness sessions and hope in the future to build a safe space for children to play.
Youth club Sport activities
Susya Sport Club • Have sport activities for children aged 8-16. • Part of the Palestinian Soccer and Association team. Organize
summer camps with Higher Council for Sport.
Tuwani Charitable society • TBD
Women Cooperative Tuwani • Cooperative has 25 women and 5 men. • Help resist settlement expansion.
Ma’an Development • Structured recreational activities every Monday during the school year.
• Awareness raising and fun days
HWC • Fun days, health awareness raising
Freedom bus • Theatre plays
YMCA • See Hebron governorate section- description
Multilateral organizationsOHCHR • See Hebron governorate section- description
OCHA • See Hebron governorate section- description
ICRC • See Hebron governorate section- description
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UNICEF-SoP/2016/Loulou d’Aki
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Endnotes
1 Approximately 14% of the State of Palestine’s population lives in the Hebron governorate. Sources: PCBS et al. 2015 and UNSCO, 2016.
2 The Oslo accords divided the West Bank into three different administrative status: Area A, administered by the Palestinian Authority, Area B administered by the Palestinian Authority on the administrative level but Israeli authorities on the security side and finally Area C fully administered by Israel. Over 60% of the West Bank is considered Area C, and most of the area has been allocated for the benefit of Israeli settlements, at the expense of the development of Palestinian communities (OCHA oPt).
3 Arab Studies Society - Land Research Center (LRC 2006). The treaties of International Humanitarian Law, as well as a series of decisions taken by the United Nations and other institutions in the international legal community, have determined that the establishment of civilian colonies by an occupying power in occupied territory is illegal. Therefore, according to international law, all settlements are illegal. Despite this fact, Israel’s Supreme Court has avoided a debate of this issue, claiming it is political. As of 2017, there are 130 Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Glossary of terms: Settlements and outposts in the West Bank. See: https://www.yesh-din.org/en/glossary-terms-settlements-outposts-west-bank/
4 After decades of tensions, Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) signed the Protocol Concerning the Redeployment in Hebron (Hebron Protocol) in January 1997 as a temporary measure to address conflict in the area and saw Hebron City split into two Zones: Zone H1 under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority (PA) (80% of the city) and Zone H2 under Israeli Military control (20% of the city).
5 Garcia, J. P. (2016) Life Under Occupation. A Journey through Palestine. www.lifeunderoccupation.org
6 The Land Research Center 2018; Applied Research Institute - Jerusalem (ARIJ) and Land Research Center – Jerusalem (LRC) 2017.
7 The Applied Research Institute - Jerusalem 2009.
8 South Hebron Hills is in Area C of the West Bank, under full Israeli control. Israel’s policy there threatens the continued existence of some thirty Palestinian villages. B’Tselem, 2013 https://www.btselem.org/south_hebron_hills
9 B’Tselem, 2013 https://www.btselem.org/south_hebron_hills
10 OCHA oPt, 2013. Massafer Yatta case study; OCHA oPt, 2017a. The Monthly Humanitarian Bulletin- Firing zones and risk of forcible transfer.
11 Including child-friendly group activities with younger children (6-11 years old and 12-14 years old), focus group discussions with older children (15-18 years old) and caregivers, in-depth interviews with children and caregivers, key informant interviews and group discussions with service providers including CBOs, NGOs, INGOs, UN agencies and local authorities.
12 Persona Dolls are life-like, culturally appropriate girl and boy dolls made of cloth. Persona dolls are used as a practical tool to conduct research with children as they can facilitate discussions with children on difficult/sensitive topics in a relaxed and inclusive atmosphere. See: http://pdt.org.za/2014-06-10-10-56-24/approach/2-about-persona-doll-training.html
13 Graham, A., Powell, M., Taylor, N., Anderson, D., and Fitzgerald, R., 2013. Ethical Research Involving Children, ERIC. Florence: UNICEF Office of Research- Innocenti; UNICEF, 2016. Documents for Ethical Concerns; UNICEF, 2015. UNICEF Procedure for ethical standards in research, evaluation, data collection and analysis; UNICEF, 2013. Strategic Guidance Note on Institutionalizing Ethical Practice for UNICEF Research.
14 Berman, G., Hart, J., O’Mathúna, D., Mattellone, E., Potts, A., O’Kane, C., Shuterman, J., and Tanner, T., 2016. What we know about ethical research involving children in humanitarian settings: An overview of principles, the literature and case studies.
15 TIPH collects data on all incidents they observe or reported to them, but only share their reports with the Israelis/Palestinian authorities and the eight countries that fund them. It is an unfortunate practice as sounds like they have a wealth of information that could be of use to service providers (not to mention advocacy). But they have been operating in terms of the TIPH mandate since 1987 and it is unlikely to change.
16 Source: Israeli Prison Service, May 2018. According to a DCI-P report, in 2017 an average of 310 Palestinian children were in the Israeli prison system each month for “security offences,” according to Israel Prison Service (IPS) data. Among them were an average of 60 children between the ages of 12 and 15. The IPS does not release the yearly total number of incarcerated Palestinian children and has stopped consistently releasing monthly data since May 2016.
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17 Annual CAAC Bulletin 2016: Children and armed conflict. Israel & the State of Palestine
18 According to a 70-page complaint in July 2015, Palestinians are often abused and humiliated. The complaint included cases of soldiers using physical violence, confiscating phones and smashing them, and keeping Palestinian travelers waiting for over 3 hrs.’ in the sun. Source: Zitun, 2015, in Spielberg, W., Dajani, K. J. K., & Abdallah, T. (2016). No-Man’s-Land: Hearing the Voices of Palestinian Young Men Residing in East Jerusalem. Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology.
19 Often soldiers take the roofs of houses placed strategically to monitor the area. They often stay hours or even days.
20 The Israeli DCL also reported that they “did an investigation and discovered that this Anti-Wall and Settlement commission pays the children to go throw stones…we don’t think or assume, we know”. However, none of the international or local organisations interviewed supported this view. It was suggested that sometimes the PA subsidy given when a child is detained creates confusion.
21 UNICEF and CAAC working group, 2018. CAAC incidents documented in Hebron. n/p. .
22 Ibid.
23 Families mostly mentioned the lack of computer lab, old furniture…
24 Kiser, L.J. and Black, M.M., 2005. Family processes in the midst of urban poverty: What does the trauma literature tell us? Aggression and Violent Behavior, 10(6), pp.715–750; Veronese, G., Said, M., and Castiglioni, M., 2011. Growing-up amidst military violence: Socio- ecological implications of resilience in Palestine. In: Perspectives on Immigration and Terrorism. Amsterd
25 A 2016 study on adolescent males in East Jerusalem found that youth from poorer neighborhoods and in occupied areas of the city (especially the Old City and the neighbourhoods of Silwan, At-Tur and Sheikh Jarrah) struggled most to find healthy forms of masculine identity. Many young men saw individual acts of resistance as their only means of masculine expression, particularly in the face of ongoing police intimidation and humiliation. Humiliation by the ISF led to feelings of shame, lowered self-esteem and perceived weakness, leading to greater acts of rebellion and defiance in an attempt to minimise these feelings. Spielberg, W., Dajani, K. J. K., & Abdallah, T. (2016). No-Man’s-Land: Hearing the Voices of Palestinian Young Men Residing in East Jerusalem. Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology. Advance online publication. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pac0000168
26 Complex trauma symptoms include: child has difficulty controlling emotions and easily can become sad, angry, or scared; child has trouble controlling behaviors. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Assessment of complex trauma by parents and caregivers (undated). www.NTCSN.org
27 A study on the impact of Palestinian children’s on-going exposure to violence found them to be at great risk of developing mental health problems such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, hyperactivity, and somatic disorders. The presence of mental health problems was related to the severity and continuity of stress and trauma. However, not all children victims of trauma become mentally ill, but more than 50% of them developed sort of reactions which was augmented by other risk factors such as unemployment of the parents, big families, being under siege, restriction of movements, mental health of parents, and community violence. Interestingly children were able to cope with such adversities and continue in going to schools and finishing their education to high levels. This resilience outcome denotes the Palestinian children flexibility and ability to look for better future and life. Source: Thabet, A. A. M. (2017) Palestinian children: Victims of decades of violence and trauma, JOJ Nurse Health Care, Vol. 2, Issue 3.
28 An evaluation of the EAPPI protective presence in 2016 found it to be very effective but there had been no baseline study to establish benchmarks target so it was not possible to measure the level of impact in the lives of children and adults. Gaps identified included a lack of coordination in sharing of information on incidents and planning of services not based on analysis of available information. Source: Drak, B. & Gallarrdo, M. (2016) Evaluation for the World Council of Churches and the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel.
29 Karin Aggestam (2003) TIPH: Preventing conflict escalation in Hebron?, Civil Wars, 6:3, 51-69, DOI: 10.1080/13698240308402544
30 After a certain age according to socio-cultural norms, girls should not continue sport. While growing up, mixed gendered activities are usually forbidden as well.
31 Reported anecdotally. Not possible to verify due to lack of current or historical data on arrests per area.
32 The PA pays these stipends to the PLO who pays the families. There are two types: one for the prison canteen (around 400 NIS/ month and then another one for the prisoner’s family. The amount is calculated according to the length of his sentence including for children.
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33 While the detention centres provide basic meals, it is not adequate most of the time, the Palestinian Authorities also send 400NIS per month to the detention administration and when possible, parents do the same.
34 Reasons given for not attending these meetings included the lack of alignment between NGO priorities and the working groups’ agendas and the time needed to travel to and from Ramallah, where these meetings take place.
35 Several reasons were cited for not attending these coordination meetings such as not being invited as well as the time and cost to travel to amallah.
36 The Index of Networking and Referrals of Child Protection against Abuse, Violence and Neglect, Draft, MoSD, 2017.
37 Duplication in case documentation happened between: OHCHR, B’tselem, OCHA, UNRWA, ICRC, DCI and duplication in legal aid for children sometimes happened between: DCI, Prisoner club and the Commission of Detainees and Ex detainees
38 Ministry of Social Development. (2017). MoSD Index of Networking and Referrals of Child Protection against Abuse, Violence and Neglect.
39 Ibid.
40 The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (2015) The status of the rights of Palestinian. State of Palestine Children 2014. http://www.pcbs.gov.ps/Downloads/book2147.pdf
41 “A critical reflection on children’s health and well-being in war-affected areas has been proposed here in light of the ongoing debate regarding the controversies raised by the construct of resilience and needing to be addressed by scholars and practitioners working on resilience in order to guide future research and interventions. Regarding Palestinian children, symptoms- oriented clinical interventions focused on reducing traumatic and stress responses to war and violence may risk undermining the children’s natural competence and ability to adjust, reproducing phenomena such as isolation, stigma and passivity that are associated with the policies and strategies of occupation”. Source: Veronese, G. and Castiglioni, M., 2015. ‘When the doors of Hell close’: Dimensions of well-being and positive adjustment in a group of Palestinian children living amidst military and political violence. Childhood, 22(1), pp.6–22.
42 In Beit Ummar, YMCA in partnership with the school counselor established activities designed for former detainees children such as group debriefing or outings. Several children mentioned these initiatives as helpful following their detention.
43 This is a recommendation from a former child detainee. He advised this kind of pairing/ tutoring arguing that an older former detainee would have more authority on a recently released child and would know what struggles and feelings the child is going through in order to help him.
44 A few actors built on their in-depth knowledge of the community. Examples are YMCA who developed a specific programme for ex detainee children with the school counselor in Beit Ummar; and Action Aid who supported communities to design protection community-based protection plans in H2 and Masafer Yatta.
45 Positive parenting practices involve providing guidance on how to handle emotions or conflicts in manners that encourage judgment and responsibility and preserve children’s self- esteem, physical and psychological integrity and dignity (PCBS, 2018. Preliminary Results of the Population, Housing and Establishments Census, 2017, p.174). UNICEF has recently launched a website on positive parenting. It should be soon translated into Arabic.
46 Vulnerable and at-risk children include children who have been detained (even briefly), children who have been injured, exposed to demolitions or where family members have been detained, injured or killed. It also includes children with complex trauma or post-traumatic stress disorder.
47 As advised in the Active Leaning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action (ALNAP) Handbook, “a protective approach requires that humanitarian workers go beyond an aid-only approach and also focus on ensuring respect for humanitarian and human-rights norms. This involves humanitarian agencies taking up some key skills and techniques that have been more explicitly developed in human-rights practice to date. These skills are vital if humanitarian agencies are to recognize and report violations, advocate more effectively, pressurize relevant authorities to adhere to international legal standards themselves.” Source: Slim and Bonwick. (2006). Protection: an ALNAP guide for humanitarian agencies. OXFAM. p.112.
48 As mentioned previously ISF reports that all soldiers receive training on children’s rights before they start their assignments, as well as weekly briefings from the DCL on how to engage with children. However, the extent of violations of children’s rights (including physical and emotional abuse at checkpoints, and during arrests and interrogations) suggests that either this training is not being adequately monitored or enforced or the training does not adequately address the child protection issues that ISF personnel are likely to encounter when engaging with children.
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49 Actors like Yesh Din have done much work to support Palestinian access to official complaint mechanisms, but few families consider it worth the effort to file complaints as the process is time-consuming and overly bureaucratic and rarely results in justice for the complainant. See: https://www.yesh-din.org/en/avoiding-complaining/.
50 See: Isibindi Model: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qxadwidg_A4; NACCW: Isibindi Path Of Courage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MriK1u_ij_w; NACCW Safe Parks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M PLbsqkCsuA
51 A study on child discipline in high-conflict areas found that parents are more likely to use both moderate and severe corporal punishment, and are less likely to use constructive parenting techniques like redirection. The authors argue that war devastates children directly, but also because it impairs the well-being of the adults on whom they rely for guidance and support. The capacity of parents to provide this support is undermined when they themselves experience high levels of mental distress. The study makes a compelling case for fostering a climate of nurturing child-rearing and investing in trauma-focused counselling services for parents. See Malcolm, M. Diwaker, V. Naufal, G. (2017). Child discipline in times of conflict. IZA Institute of Labor Economics. Discussion Paper Series.
52 Save the Children started working on mainstreaming child protection in emergencies cases in the national child protection system with MoSD in Ramallah. These efforts should be supported.
53 G.A. res. 44/25 1990.
54 Child Protection Working Group. (2012). Minimum standards for child protection in humanitarian action, p.143.
55 Teenagers interviewed in this study who were part of the DCI-P protection groups were very motivated and found the groups to be extremely relevant.
56 Growing Up in Conflict: The impact on children’s mental health and psychosocial well-being Report on the symposium, 26–28 May 2015, New Babylon Meeting Center, The Hague
57 Recent developments in neuroscience show promising results in treating trauma, such as EMDR (which is used by YMCA) and mindfulness meditation. Information on these treatment modalities should be documented and shared with relevant service providers.
58 The UN strategy for Hebron proposes two priorities to address the needs of children and youth. For children there is a focus on providing psychosocial support and protective presence at key school access points. Coupled with these activities the action plan proposes building the capacity of teachers to provide psychosocial support to children. Some rehabilitation of kindergartens is also planned in this strategy. For the youth, the strategy focuses on providing economic opportunities as well as ensuring the right to education and psychosocial care, extracurricular activities to promote leadership and resilience amongst youth. UN.(2016) UN strategy for Hebron. p.24.
59 Profile Arroub Camp. UNRWA. March 2015
60 For more information see press release “Statement by UNRWA spokesperson Sami Mshasha on implications of funding shortfall on emergency services in oPt”, 26 July 2018 https://www.unrwa.org/newsroom/official-statements/statement-unrwa-spokesperson-sami-mshasha-implications-funding
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UNICEF-SoP/2019/Noorani
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Research reportRapid Appraisal of Vulnerabilities, Resilience, Coping Mechanisms and Service Delivery Gaps for Children In Hebron Governorate, State of Palestine
November 2019
