December 26, 2008
On Friday 26th December, around 250 protesters turned out for the Friday prayer demonstration against the Apartheid wall in Ni´lin. There was a large international and Israeli presence there in solidarity with the Palestinians.
The prayer started around noon followed by a march towards the construction site. The protesters were met by a barrage of tear gas and rubber coated steel bullets from the Israeli army who were waiting for the demonstration. The scattered the protesters who were split into two main groups, one who remained in the field and the other who moved to the checkpoint at the entrance of the town.
Many people suffered from tear gas inhalation with many also hit by rubber-coated steel bullets. There was a highly increased amount of teargas fired, most of which were aimed directly at the bodies of the protesters. Since mid-November the army also has been using an extension which can fire multiple round plastic covered steel bullets. Luckily no one was severely injured.
The demonstration continued until five o´clock.
The townspeople have been protesting on a regular basis since May 2008 against the construction of the Apartheid wall, which will annex another 40% of Ni’lin’s land accumulating a loss of around 85% of its land since 1948. Two children have been killed and hundreds of others have been injured by teargas, sound grenades and rubber coated steel bullets. 31 people are currently imprisoned, six of them are children, and many of them without legitimate charges.
Ni’lin – Thursday 25th of December
About 40 protesters vigilantly march down to the road to the construction site of the wall in monsoon like rain. After about 15 minutes soldiers arrived and started to shoot tear gas and rubber coated steel bullets. The army came close to the town and shot tear gas at the nearby houses.
The demonstration started around noon and ended at three o´clock. Two people were hit by rubber coated steel bullet, one of them in the head who required two stitches. Many others where asphyxiated by tear gas.
