Tag: Demonstration

Palestinians mark the Nakba

AFP

14 May 2009

Thousands of Palestinians on Thursday marked the 61st anniversary of the Naqba, the “catastrophe” that sparked an exodus of hundreds of thousands of refugees after Israel was created in 1948.

Holding Palestinian flags and photos of Arab villages razed by Israeli forces six decades ago, demonstrators marched in the centre of Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

“The right of return is sacred”, “No peace without the right of return”, read the banners held by the marchers.

The ceremonies took place a day early because the May 15 anniversary of the Naqba falls this year on a Friday, a day off in the mostly Muslim Palestinian territories.

The demonstration was headed by political figures and religious leaders and began at the tomb of legendary Palestinian chief Yasser Arafat at the headquarters of the Palestinian Authority, today run by his successor, president Mahmud Abbas.

In the northern West Bank town of Nablus, about 2,000 people participated in a march, holding Palestinian flags tied with black ribbons as a sign of mourning.

In Aqabet Jaber refugee camp, in the oasis town of Jericho, participants unveiled a statue featuring a six-metre (20-foot) metallic key, symbolising the refugees’ attachment to the houses from which they fled or were forced out in 1948.

Around 700,000 people were exiled in this way in 1948, with the United Nations estimating that today they and their decendants number 4.6 million.

The Israeli army said in a statement that it was sealing off the occupied West Bank from midnight on Thursday until Saturday evening for the Naqba.

Israeli forces suppress Ni’lin demonstration

8 May 2009

Construction site of the Apartheid Wall in Ni'lin
construction site of the Apartheid Wall in Ni'lin

Before the start of the weekly Friday demonstration against the Apartheid Wall in Ni’lin, international solidarity activists visited homes that Israeli forces occupied last Friday. As soldiers were already present in the olive groves of Ni’lin, the internationals stayed at the homes to deter another attempt by the Israeli army to occupy their homes.

Around 100 demonstrators gathered, accompanied by international and Israeli solidarity activists, to march against the construction of the Apartheid Wall on Ni’lin’s land. Demonstrators reached the construction site and were able to damage a part of the illegal Wall. Then protestors were pushed back into the village when Israeli forces opened fire with numerous tear-gas canisters.

The protest continued as demonstrators were pushed back, and the young men from the village responded to the army violence by throwing stones. Israeli forces occupied a rooftop next to the outskirts of the olive groves to shoot at the protestors.

Israeli forces used tear-gas canisters, sound bombs and live ammunition against the protest. The demonstration continued until 5.30pm.  Seventeen people were badly enough injured by the tear-gas to require medical treatment. One young man lost the tip of his finger after he was shot by a canister.

The Israeli soldiers came back to the field, close to the houses in the village, around 7pm. Residents went out to protest against their presence on their lands for an hour.

Israeli occupation forces have murdered four Ni’lin residents during demonstrations against the confiscation of their land and critically injured one international solidarity activist.

Ahmed Mousa (10) was shot in the forehead with live ammunition on 29 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. Tristan Anderson (37), an American citizen, was shot with a high velocity tear gas projectile on 13 March 2009 and is currently in critical condition. In total, 26 persons have been shot by Israeli forces with live ammunition.

Bil’in demonstrators call on international health institutions to “Stop the Occupation Flu”

Bil’in Popular Committee

8 May 2009

Palestinian, Israeli, and international protesters walked through the streets of Bil’in on Friday wearing surgical masks to protect themselves from the “Occupation Flu” which first infected Palestinians sixty-one years ago. It has caused the deaths of thousands of Palestinians, injured hundreds of thousands and has put millions in prisons, including Israeli prisons but also the prisons created by the wall in the West Bank and the siege on Gaza.

Protesters carried banners that read, “Stop the Occupation Flu” and called on international health and human rights institutions to intervene in order to save the Palestinian people from this dangerous disease which is spreading in the region and is threatening the rest of the world. Protestors also carried Palestinian flags and photos of the martyr Bassem Abu Rahmah, Bil’in’s most recent victim of the “Occupation Flu”, who was killed by the Israeli army three weeks ago.

The Israeli army responded to the demonstration by firing teargas and rubber-coated steal bullets into the crowd, causing eight injuries and dozens of cases of teargas inhalation. The injuries are Abdullah Aburahma, Fadel Alkhatib, Adeeb Aburahma, Abdullah Yassen, Ibraheem Burnat, Mohammed Aburahma, Mustafa Alkhatib and Hytham Alkhatib.

On Thursday night, the Popular Committee Against the Wall in Bil’in organized a short biographical film about the martyr Bassem Abu Rahmah entitled, “Bassem, Friend of All”. The film focused on the period of Bassem’s life spent participating in the struggle against the wall. Bassem had spent the last four years of his life involved in this struggle until he was killed by an Israeli soldier with a teargas canister on the April 17, 2009. The film was shown outdoors in Bil’in and many residents from Bil’in and surrounding villages showed up.

In other news, a delegation of French university students and faculty visited Bil’in yesterday and had a tour around the village and a presentation about the Wall.

The Popular Committee this week also received a response from the Norwegian government regarding a petition submitted by Bil’in and Jayyous to open an investigation into Norwegian companies that are investing in Africa-Israel Investments, Ltd. which is owned by billionaire Lev Leviev. Leviev is known to support the building of settlements, especially the eastern half of the Mattityahu settlement bloc which is built on Bil’in’s land and the settlement of Zufim which is built on Jayyous’s land.

In other news, the Popular Committee Against the Wall in Bil’in deplores the arrest of five leaders of the Popular Committee in Alm’asra they are: Mahmoud Zawahra coordinator of Alm’asra Committee, Mohammed Burjya, a spokesman for the Media Commission, and his brother Hassan, Azmi Alchiokhi, who is president of the Popular Committees in Hebron, Mustafa Faouar. The Committee calls upon the People’s human rights organizations to intervene for the release of five leaders, and this is comes within the occupation forces to target the leaders of the popular events to discourage the continuation of events against the construction of the wall and settlements.

Al-Ma’asara village continues demonstrations despite increased army repression

On the 8th of May, 2009, residents of the southern West Bank village of  Al-Ma’asara conducted their weekly demonstration against Israel’s annexation barrier, despite increased repression from Israeli forces.  At last week’s demonstration, five nonviolent Palestinian organizers were arrested, and they continue to be held in an Israeli prison.  This Friday, Israeli soldiers created at least three flying checkpoints on the roads leading to the village in an attempt to stop participants from reaching the demonstration.  Soldiers turned back all Palestinian cars and only allowed settler vehicles to pass.  Five military jeeps and two police cars were also stationed at the entrance to Al-Ma’asara, much further into the village than during past Friday demonstrations.  Israeli and international solidarity activists who were able to reach the village by going around the checkpoints were showed papers that declared the entire village a closed military zone.

Despite this repression, at around 1:15pm nearly fifty Palestinian demonstrators marched from the village towards the army.  The villagers stopped in front of the soldiers waving Palestinian flags and chanting against the occupation.  Approximately twenty Israeli and international solidarity activists gathered on the other side of the soldiers, but were prevented from joining the main demonstration.  Two Israeli solidarity activists were handcuffed and detained in military jeeps after sitting down and refusing to leave when ordered by the army.

After about 45 minutes the demonstration ended and the detained activists were released.  Villagers continue to demand that the five arrested Palestinian organizers be released without charge or trial.

Misuse of firearms suspected in Ni’lin

Aviad Glickman | YNet News

4 May 2009

Deputy State Prosecutor Yehoshua Lamberger has ordered the police to update protocols pertaining to the use of crowd control measures in demonstration dispersals, Ynet learned Monday.

The order followed several cases in which demonstrators suffered injuries by gas and smoke grenade fire. The nature of the injuries suggested a possible misuse of firearms and crowd control measures by security forces.

Lamberger said that even if the situations at hand called for the use of gas and smoke grenade, aiming them at the physical person of the rioters was wrong.

He cited four relevant cases from the past several months, which resulted in Police Internal Affairs Bureau (IAB) investigations against the officers involved.

The four cases pertained to a 2008 riot in the town of Naalin, near the West Bank city of Ramallah, during which a Palestinian demonstrator was shot, and two 2009 riots which left a Spanish reported, a US citizen and one Israeli seriously wounded.

Immediately following the incidents, the deputy state prosecutor ordered investigations into the possible misuse of crowd control measures by Border Guard officers, and the alleged fire of such measures directly at civilian population.

The results of the probes prompted Lamberger to order all crowd control measures use protocols and procedures be updates, so as to avoid any future reoccurrences.