Machsom Watch

Description

Machsom Watch, also called Checkpoint Watch, is a human rights organization of Israeli women who monitor and document what happens at military checkpoints in the West Bank. It was founded in January 2001, after three women from Jerusalem first witnessed a checkpoint and decided to act. It has no administration and is run entirely by volunteers, with decisions made by vote at plenary meetings.

Volunteers visit checkpoints in daily shifts to watch and record the conduct of soldiers and other security personnel toward Palestinians, and try to encourage respectful and speedy treatment. They also observe and document legal proceedings in military detention centers and military courts where Palestinians stand trial. Reports of what they see are written up and sent to members of Israel’s parliament and to journalists, and published on the organization’s website in Hebrew and English.

Beyond the checkpoints, members visit Palestinian villages, help with contacts to the Civil Administration on bureaucratic and infrastructure problems, and assist Palestinians barred from entering Israel for work or travel. They also lead tours through the West Bank and Jerusalem area to show the public what the occupation looks like on the ground. The organization aims to safeguard Palestinians’ freedom of movement and human rights, and to inform the Israeli public about conditions under occupation.

Machsom Watch operates in the Jerusalem region and the central, northern and southern West Bank. Membership is open to any woman who shares its opposition to the occupation.