Machsom Watch

Machsom Watch is an human rights organization composed exclusively of Israeli women. In English, the group is also known as "Women for Human Rights". Their stated aims are to "monitor the behaviour of soldiers and police at checkpoints", "ensure that the human and civil rights of Palestinians attempting to enter Israel are protected", and "record and report the results of our observations to the widest possible audience, from the decision-making level to that of the general public". The word " machsom" is Hebrew for "checkpoint", in reference to the many checkpoints maintained by Israel in the West Bank . Machsom Watch was founded in 2001 by Ronnee Jaeger, Adi Kuntsman, and Yehudit Keshet in response to concerns about reports of human rights abuses against Palestinians at IDF and border police checkpoints. Machsom Watch also expresses concern about the effect on civilians of the siege of West Bank communities by Israeli military authorities reacting to the Al Aqsa Intifada . Ronnee Jaeger is an activist with long history of protesting human rights abuses in Guatemala and Mexico . Adi Kuntsman is a feminist intellectual originally from the Soviet Union , who arrived in Israel in 1990. Yehudit Keshet was an Orthodox Jew and scholar of Talmudic ethics, although she has abandoned Orthodoxy. At the beginning of 2004 , Machsom Watch had approximately 400 members. Early on, Machsom Watch had some male monitors but that didn't work out. According to Keshet, "Their relationship [with the soldiers] was totally different. They were horrified by what was going on, but at the same time they bonded with the troops." [Hammer, 2004, 40] In March 2004, Machsom Watch received the Emil Grunzweig Human Rights Award . This annual prize is given by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel "to an individual or NGO that has made a unique contribution to the advancement of human rights in Israel". Conversely, Nadia Metar, co-chair of the right-wing Israeli Women in Green calls them " fifth columnists who collaborate with the Arab enemy".

Machsom Watch , or Checkpoint Watch is a group of Israeli women who monitor Palestinian at Israeli checkpoints . The self described "politically pluralistic" human rights organization is composed of Israeli women to the exclusion of men, with a "bias towards mature, professional women" who tend to have a "liberal or leftist background". Machsom Watch claims to have 400 members, notably including former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert 's daughter Dana . The word machsom is Hebrew for "checkpoint," referring to Israeli Defense Forces checkpoints which control movement between different parts of the West Bank and between the West Bank and Israel. The IDF view of the humanitarian situation expressed by IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz during a two-hour meeting with members of the group in March 2006 where he told the women that: " Humanitarianism is not exclusively owned by Machsom Watch and it is tested not only at the checkpoints, but also in preventing suicide bombers from reaching the markets of Tel Aviv and Netanya ." According to its website, the group's aims are to monitor the behavior of soldiers and police at checkpoints; ensure that the human and civil rights of Palestinians attempting to enter Israel are protected; and record and report the results of their observations to the widest possible audience, from decision-makers to the general public. Some members also see their role as protesting against the existence of the checkpoints. Machsom Watch has been accused of being hostile towards the Israeli troops and disrupting the operation of checkpoints. Some of its charges against the troops have also been disputed as false. On May 2006, the group sent a letter of apology to the IDF after activists had verbally attacked a soldier, called him "Nazi" and other profanities as he asked Palestinians to stand in line for an ID check at a checkpoint leading into Israel. In response to the group's contentions regarding the checkpoints, the IDF has implemented training procedures intended to ensure respectful behavior by soldiers. NGO Monitor website, Infofile (see linked articles), accessed 11 March, 2006. A Time Of Change: Israelis, Palestinians And The Disengagement: At Checkpoints, A Gentle Advocate For Palestinians' , San Francisco Chronicle , 2 August, 2005, accessed 11 March, 2006. Irish Times , 12 June, 2005. 'Israeli checkpoint monitors decry their army's abuse of Palestinians' - Reproduction , accessed 11 March, 2006.

Machsom Watch , or Checkpoint Watch is a group of Israeli women who monitor and document the conduct of soldiers and policemen at checkpoints in the West Bank. Its members also observe and document the procedures in military courts, and aid Palestinians crossing through IDF checkpoints. The self described "politically pluralistic" human rights organization is composed entirely of Israeli women, who tend to have a "liberal or leftist background". The word machsom is Hebrew for "checkpoint," referring to Israeli Defense Forces checkpoints which control movement between different parts of the West Bank and between the West Bank and Israel. According to its website, the group's aims are to monitor the behavior of soldiers and police at checkpoints; ensure that the human and civil rights of Palestinians attempting to enter Israel are protected; and record and report the results of their observations to the widest possible audience, from decision-makers to the general public. Some members also see their role as protesting against the existence of the checkpoints. Machsom Watch has been accused of disrupting the work at the checkpoints and entering restricted areas without permission. In response to the group's contentions regarding the checkpoints, the IDF has implemented training procedures intended to ensure respectful behavior by soldiers. On 2 November 2017, 2 members were robbed and nearly killed in a Palestinian village by a mob of Arabs pelting their vehicle with cinder blocks and stones before they were rescued by the IDF.

Israeli human rights organization Logo of Machsom Watch Machsom Watch , or Checkpoint Watch , is a group of Israeli women who monitor and document the conduct of soldiers and policemen at checkpoints in the West Bank. Its members also observe and document the procedures in military courts, and aid Palestinians crossing through IDF checkpoints. The self described "politically pluralistic" human rights organization is composed entirely of Israeli women, who tend to have a "liberal or leftist background". The word machsom is Hebrew for "checkpoint," referring to Israeli Defense Forces checkpoints which control movement between different parts of the West Bank and between the West Bank and Israel. According to its website, the group's aims are to monitor the behavior of soldiers and police at checkpoints; ensure that the human and civil rights of Palestinians attempting to enter Israel are protected; and record and report the results of their observations to the widest possible audience, from decision-makers to the general public. Some members also see their role as protesting against the existence of the checkpoints. Machsom Watch has been accused of disrupting the work at the checkpoints and entering restricted areas without permission. In response to the group's contentions regarding the checkpoints, the IDF has implemented training procedures intended to ensure respectful behavior by soldiers. On 2 November 2017, two members were robbed and nearly killed in a Palestinian village by a mob of Arabs pelting their vehicle with cinder blocks and stones before they were rescued by the IDF. Irish Times , 12 June 2005. 'Israeli checkpoint monitors decry their army's abuse of Palestinians' - Reproduction , accessed 11 March 2006.

Israeli human rights organization Logo of Machsom Watch Machsom Watch , or Checkpoint Watch , is a human rights organization of Israeli women who monitor and document the conduct of soldiers and policemen at checkpoints in the West Bank. Its members also observe and document the procedures in military courts, and aid Palestinians crossing through IDF checkpoints. Self-described as "politically pluralistic", it is composed entirely of Israeli women who tend to have a "liberal or leftist background". The word machsom is Hebrew for "checkpoint", referring to Israeli Defense Forces checkpoints which control movement between different parts of the West Bank and between the West Bank and Israel. According to its website, the group's aims are to monitor the behavior of soldiers and police at checkpoints; ensure that the human and civil rights of Palestinians attempting to enter Israel are protected; and record and report the results of their observations to the widest possible audience, from decision-makers to the general public. Some members also see their role as protesting against the existence of the checkpoints. Machsom Watch has been accused of disrupting the work at the checkpoints and entering restricted areas without permission. In response to the group's contentions regarding the checkpoints, the IDF has implemented training procedures intended to ensure respectful behavior by soldiers.