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Palestine | International | Police State and Prisons | Racial JusticeFour Demonstraters Shot and Wounded in Ni'ilin, Palestine Protest
At the weekly protest of the construction of the Apartheid Wall four villagers were shot with live bullets and three protestors were hit with teargas canisters. Ni'ilin, Palestine faces the loss of over half of its land to the Apartheid Wall. This will further impoverish the villagers. It is part of the Israeli plan to destroy Palestine by making life impossible for the Palestinians.
Every Friday Ni'ilin villagers are joined by Israeli and international activists to protest against the Wall's construction. Over one hundred people gathered for an open air prayer in one of the village's olive groves. After prayer the crowd marched to the area where the wall is being built across their land. Villagers began breaking down the razor wire barrier along the construction zone. Soldiers arrived in a jeep and began firing tear gas into the crowd. The demonstrators were forced to retreat. As they retreated, other soldiers positioned in the olive groves attacked them with more tear gas. A international activist (from Sweden) was hit in the stomach with an extended range tear gas grenade. Youth threw stones with slings and villagers and supporting activists tried all day to again walk towards the Wall. In addition to tear gas, concussion grenades, and rubber coated steel bullets; Israeli forces opened fire throughout the day with live bullets. The Israeli Army uses a special low powered bullet, formerly claimed to be non-lethal. The bullets, however, have killed several Palestinians, and are commonly used by snipers at demonstrations in Ni'ilin. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent four young men were taken to the hospital after being shot with live bullets. The first was shot in the left thigh as the crowd ran from approaching soldiers. The second was shot in the right calf and loaded into the same ambulance as the first. The third was shot across the lower back and had to be taken away in a private car. The fourth was shot just above the right knee late in the day. Additionally, a young boy was hit with an extended range tear gas canister. The child was hit in the lower leg. The last injury of the day was a Red Crescent Medic, also hit with a tear gas canister. The medic was shot in the right buttock. The protest continued until dusk, when the soldiers withdrew from the area of the village. The were followed into the night by many protesters. When the army was gone a family on that edge of the village invited everyone over for tea. It had been an intense day for all involved. For a good video of those shot see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0Mjjul1aPc
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Friday Prayers in a village olive grove.
March to the Apartheid Wall.
The man leading the march to reclaim their land is shot in the leg latter in the day.
This military razor wire stops villagers from getting to their land and the construction site of the Wall. The Wall will permanently block access to half the villages land and annex it to the Israeli settlement seen here, also on the villages land, stolen earlier.
A Palestinian youth throws a rock at an army jeep driving on the path of the Wall.
Villagers have crushed down the barbed wire and attempt to barricade the road and Wall construction.
A demonstrator faces the soldiers who prepare to shoot tear gas. This young man was shot in the back later in the day.
Soldiers seen through the barbed wire of occupation.
Tear gas shot toward the village.
A medic runs through tear gas.
Demonstrators and tear gas, the Swedish activist on the far left was hit by a tear gas grenade half an our after this picture was taken. She was wounded.
Photo by a friend. Soldiers shoot at a Palestinian protester.
Villagers use slings to throw stones at the soldiers.
A Palestinian has just thrown a stone at the soldiers.
People take covr as soldiers advance firing teargas, rubber coated steel bullets and live ammunition.
One man is shot through the thigh. He ran from the soldiers until he fell to the ground.
The ambulance rushes to pick up the next person shot moments later.
Medics, journalists and friends gather around the second person shot. He was hit in the lower leg.
Thanks to a friend for this photo. The third person shot was hit across the lower back. Like the other two the bullet went in and out again. Thy were taken to the hospital but were able to come home at night. The third person shot was not so lucky. The bullet went in and stayed. He remained in the hospital for surgery.
Comments (Hide Comments)
Sunday Mar 8th, 2009 4:13 AM
All of the four people shot and three tear gas grenade injured people are recovering. They are all back from the hospital and most can walk around. They were all amazingly lucky to be doing so well.
Thursday Mar 12th, 2009 3:22 PM
That's intense.
Friday Mar 13th, 2009 2:25 PM
For Immediate Release
13th Friday 2009, Ni'lin Village: An American citizen has been critically injured in the village of Ni'lin after Israeli forces shot him in the head with a tear-gas canister. Tristan Anderson from California USA, 37 years old, is currently being taken to Israeli hospital Tel Hashomer, near Tel Aviv. Anderson is unconscious and has been bleeding heavily from the nose and mouth. He sustained a large hole in his forehead where he was struck by the canister. "The Israeli soldiers were standing on the hill looking over us firing tear-gas canisters straight into the crowd. Tristan was hit and fell to the ground. He had a large hole in the front of his head and his brain was visible. I tried to stop the bleeding, but he was bleeding heavily from the head, nose and mouth." Ulrika Jenson (Sweden) - International Solidarity Movement "Tristan was shot by the new tear-gas canisters that can be shot up to 500m. I ran over as I saw someone had been shot, while the Israeli forces continued to fire tear-gas at us. When an ambulance came, the Israeli soldiers refused to allow the ambulance through the checkpoint just outside the village. After 5 minutes of arguing with the soldiers, the ambulance passed." Teah Lunqvist (Sweden) - International Solidarity Movement Contact: Ulrika Jenson (English and Swedish) - +972 598 521 158 Teah Lunqvist (English and Swedish) - +972 598 531 036 ISM Media Office - 02-297 1824 or +972 598 503 948 The International Solidarity Movement (ISM) http://palsolidarity.org/ is a Palestinian-led non-violent resistance movement committed to ending Israel's illegal occupation of Palestinian land. We call for full compliance with all relevant UN resolutions and international law. For specific media inquires such as interview requests, photo usage, etc. please email the ISM Media Office at media [at] palsolidarity.org Other sources are now reporting the following related details: Ulrika Jenson, an International Solidarity Movement activist, said troops fired tear gas canisters into the crowd from a hill above. "Tristan was hit and fell to the ground," Jenson was quoted as saying in an ISM statement. "He had a large hole in the front of his head, and his brain was visible." Why the protests? "Ni'lin was 57,000 dunums in 1948, reduced to 33,000 dunums in 1967, currently the town’s land is 10,000 dunums and will be 7,500 dunums after the construction of the Wall." "Ahmed Mousa (10) was shot in the forehead with live ammunition on 29th July 2008. The following day, Yousef Amira (17) was shot twice with rubber-coated steel bullets, leaving him brain dead. He died a week later on 4 August 2008. Arafat Rateb Khawaje (22), was the third Ni’lin resident to be killed by Israeli forces. He was shot in the back with live ammunition on 28 December 2008. That same day, Mohammed Khawaje (20), was shot in the head with live ammunition, leaving him brain dead. He died three days in a Ramallah hospital." |
