LGBTQ people and allies celebrate pride while others protest ‘pinkwashing’; tens of thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank head into Jerusalem for prayers during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, some climbing over walls to do so; African asylum seekers bring the theater to their detention center; migrants and refugees commemorate their dead in Europe; Israelis protest racism and the privatization of natural resources.
Photo by: Oren Ziv, Anne Paq, Ahmad Al-Bazz, Yotam Ronen, Faiz Abu Rmeleh
Photo editing: Anka Mirkin, Keren Manor
Israelis take part in the annual pride parade in Tel Aviv, June 12, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Activists display banners next to Israeli supporters at Christopher Street Day (CSD) parade in Berlin, as part of an action against ‘pinkwashing,’ Germany, June 27, 2015. The protesters accuse Israel of using LGBTQI rights issues to mask what they describe as “ethnic cleansing and genocide in Palestine.” In their call for protest, they write: “Pinkwashing is used extensively by the Israeli government. Israel claims they support LGBTQI rights, in order to divert attention away from their human rights crimes against Palestinians… We will not allow the Israeli war machine to use LGBTQI rights as a justification for its oppression of others.” Every year, Israel has a prominent place in the CSD parade, distributing Israeli flags colored with the rainbow colors. (Activestills.org)
Protesters evacuate a Palestinian youth suffering from tear gas inhalation during a protest against settlement expansion, Qaryut village, West Bank, June 6, 2015. The closing of their main access road, over a year ago, has forced the villagers to take a longer route, adding 20 kilometers to their journey. According to residents, the road has been closed many times in recent years. (Activestills.org)
A view of the Palestinian village of Qaryut, West Bank, June 6, 2015. (Activestills.org)
New housing units at the Israeli settlement of Shilo, Qaryut village, West Bank, June 6, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Palestinians cross the Qalandiya checkpoint between the West Bank city of Ramallah and Jerusalem on their way to pray at the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, on the second Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, June 26, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Palestinian farmers await the opening of an agricultural gate in the separation fence in Falamya village (Gate number 914), West Bank, June 14, 2015. The farmers land, although inside the West Bank, is on the Israeli side of the separation barrier. The Israeli army allows them to access their land but only during specific hours when soldiers arrive to open special gates they must apply for permits to use. (Activestills.org)
Activists gather in a cemetery to bury an unidentified migrant from Syria who died in the sea on his way to Europe, Berlin, June 19, 2015. The funeral was held by an Imam as part of a political campaign called “The Dead are Coming,” which is organized by the Center for Political Beauty, a Berlin-based art activist group. The reburial is one of several awareness actions organized by the group. (Activestills.org)
African asylum seekers detained in the Holot detention facility perform alongside Israelis preform during a theater production outside the detention centre in the Negev desert, June 13, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Israeli artists wear tape over their mouths to protest against Minister of Sports and Culture Miri Regev (unseen) upon her arrival to a theater awards ceremony in Tel Aviv, June 19, 2015. Regev threatened to cut funding for a children’s theater in Jaffa after it’s director, who is also a professional theater actor, said he would refuse to preform in West Bank settlements. (Activestills.org)
Activist Atty. Barak Cohen is seen in Tel Aviv court, as Rakefet Russak Aminoach, President of Bank Leumi, appeals to ban Cohen from protesting near her and her family, June 18, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Police arrest a protester during a demonstration against the privatization of natural gas Israel, Tel Aviv, June 27, 2015. Around 4,000 people marched in protest of the government’s policies regarding natural gas reserves found in Israeli-controlled waters in the Mediterranean Sea. (Activestills.org)
Activists protest against a march by supporters of far-right group Bärgida in Berlin, June 15, 2015. Bärgida is a xenophobic and Islamobic group, which has gained notoriety, notably in the West of Germany. The group managed only to gather around 100 persons, among them some neo-Nazis, while the activists against their march were around 1,000. (Activestills.org)
Rght-wing Israeli activists protest after a stabbing incident near Damascus Gate, outside Jerusalem’s Old City, June 21, 2015. The sign reads: ‘No coexistence with cancer.’ Earlier in the day, a Palestinian youth stabbed and injured an Israeli border policeman. (Activestills.org)
Palestinians mourners at the funeral of Izz Al-Din Bani Gharra, 21, in Jenin refugee camp, West Bank, June 10, 2015. Bani Gharra was shot and killed overnight during an Israeli arrest raid. According to the UN, he was the 12th Palestinian killed by Israeli forces in East Jerusalem, West Bank and Gaza the beginning of 2015, with over 900 injured. More Palestinians and Israelis have been killed since. (Activestills.org)
Childran cross an flowing, open sewers in the Shu’fat Refugee Camp, East Jerusalem, June 2, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Audience members after African asylum seekers jailed in Holot performed alongside Israelis in a theater show outside the Holot detention center in the Negev desert, June 13, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Ethiopian-Israelis block a main road in Tel Aviv during a protest against police brutality and racism, June 3, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Israeli Ethiopians and activists protest against police violence and racism in central Tel Aviv, June 22, 2015. Protesters blocked roads near Rabin Square. Police arrested at least 15 activists. (Activestills.org)
Activists dig mock graves in front of the Reichstag during a march and action in solidarity with migrants and refugees, Berlin, Germany, June 21, 2015. Thousands protested against what they termed Europe’s restrictive migration policies under the slogan: ‘Refugees are welcomed here.’ Activists stormed the fences around the Reichstag field and dug dozens of symbolic graves to commemorate thousands of migrants who died on their way to Europe. This action was part of a campaign “die toten kommen” (the dead are coming) organized by the Center for Political Beauty, a Berlin-based art activist group. (Activestills.org)
Palestinians climb over the Israeli separation barrier to attend Friday prayers in Al-Aqsa Mosque, in the town of Al-Ram, near the Qalandiya checkpoint between the West Bank city of Ramallah and Jerusalem, on the second Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, June 26, 2015. (Activestills.org) Israel loosens restrictions on entry permits during Ramadan to allow Palestinians to pray at Al-Aqsa, but men under 40 are not eligible.
Palestinians cross the Qalandiya checkpoint between the West Bank city of Ramallah and Jerusalem on their way to pray at the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, on the second Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, June 26, 2015. (Activestills.org)
Palestinian worshippers pray inside Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem during the first Friday of the holy month of Ramadan, June 19, 2015. (Activestills.org)
The family of Palestinian hunger striker, Khader Adnan, waits in an Israeli hospital after a deterioration in his condition, June 28, 2015. Khader had been on a strict hunger-strike for 54 days before reaching a deal with the Israeli authorities according to which he will be released on July 12, 2015. After deal was signed he started to receive life-saving medical treatment. (Activestills.org) Adnan is being held under administrative detention, a practice Israel uses to imprison Palestinians without ever charging them with a crime or giving them a chance to defend themselves.
Protesters attempt to illustrate the Israeli government’s weakness vis-a-vis energy companies during a protest against the privatization of natural gas in Tel Aviv, June 27, 2015. Around 4,000 people marched in protest of the government’s policies regarding the natural gas fields discovered off the Israeli coast. (Activestills.org)