Four hurt during anti-barrier rallies
Published: Saturday, 11 August, 2007, 01:10 AM Doha Time
Demonstrators scuffle with Israeli soldiers during a protest against Israel’s barrier near the West Bank village of Umm Salamouna, south of Bethlehem, yesterday
BILIN, West Bank: Two Palestinians and two Israeli policemen were injured yesterday during protests against the controversial separation barrier being built by the Jewish state on the West Bank.
The Israeli military said the two policemen were hurt by stones hurled by demonstrators near the Palestinian village of Bilin, near Ramallah.
Around 150 people, including Israeli pacifists and foreigners, took part in the protest – an event occurring almost every Friday.
Two Palestinians were also injured during a similar demonstration against the barrier in the Bethlehem area, further south, witnesses said.
Some 500 acres of land in Bilin has been seized for the barrier, and thousands of olive trees uprooted, according to the Palestinians.
The Jewish state says the barrier, extending more than 650km, is needed as an anti-terrorist measure. The Palestinians term it an “apartheid wall”.
Encroaching on the West Bank, the barrier makes the creation of a viable Palestinian state extremely problematic. – AFP