Bil'in, Jayyous, Budrus, Ni'lin: Arrests, Injuries and Live Ammunition

09/01/2009

Source : AATW

Friday noon, around the same time as the Israeli Cabinet rejected the UN’s Security Council ceasefire resolution and Foreign Minister Livni promised "Israel is not going to show restraint", activists were taking part in the weekly Friday demonstrations of Bil’in, Jayyous and Ni’ilin. Residents of these three villages (and of many others) protested against the construction of the Apartheid Wall, Israeli settlements, and against the war on Gaza.

In Bil’in, some people marched wearing grey-and-white striped prison uniforms resembling those worn by Jews in concentration camps, complete with yellow patches in the shape of Gaza with the word “Gazan” on them, referencing the “Jude” Stars of David. Among the Palestinian flags a Venezuelan flag could be seen, in honor of Venezuela’s removal of the Israeli ambassador. As soon as the protest reached the vicinity of the wall, soldiers began firing concussion grenades, teargas and plastic-coated bullets into the crowd, injuring four people (including an Al Jazeera journalist). Later on, border police also detained three Palestinians, as well as arrested two Israeli activists, a father and his son.

Nonviolent demonstrations were met with the same kind of repression in Jayyous Budrus and Ni’ilin, with one significant and alarming difference: troops in both these villages quickly progressed from shooting teargas canisters to deploying a team of snipers, who targeted protesters with live aluminum bullets of a smaller, 0.22 caliber. In Ni’ilin, soldiers positioned on the hill overlooking the village’s clinic made sure to follow every such injury with a shower of teargas canisters aimed directly at those rushing to carry the injured away.

Village residents responded to these unprovoked attacks with stone-throwing.

Overall, eight people were wounded by the use of these new bullets. Four in Jayyous, including one journalist, two in Budrus and two in Ni’ilin - on top of several injuries caused by teargas canisters as well as teargas inhalation.