7 October 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank
On the tenth day of the hunger strike of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, a crowd of around a hundred people took to the streets for a planned demonstration in the village of Beit Ummar, Hebron.
This was one of a number of recent demonstrations across the West Bank supporting the 9 demands of Palestinian prisoners, which include the right to family visits, end to the use of isolation as a punishment, and an end to the profiteering of Israeli prisons from financial penalties charged against prisoners.
The Beit Ummar protest began after the congregational noon prayer of Muslims with a peaceful march through the village, but later there tear gas canisters, sound bombs, and for the first time in recent months the Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD), created by the American Technology Corporation, were used against protesters in clashes continued until 2:30 PM.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhUnWK–A4g&feature=relatedA Palestinian man, Abdellah Slibi was detained. Slibi, 22, is reported to suffer from learning disabilities and was observed by an international peace activist being blindfolded during the arrest. He was later released. A British peace activist was struck on the leg by a tear gas canister, but was not seriously hurt.
The Israeli apartheid legal system allows for Palestinian people to be held under administrative detention for up to six months without trial, based on confidential materials that are kept from the detainee and their lawyer, a violation of international law.