Tag: Ni’lin

Ni’lin demonstration manages to reach bulldozers

Thursday, October 23, 2008.

Around 10am, fifty Palestinians along with several international activists, marched towards the olive groves of Ni’lin to protest the construction of the Apartheid Wall.

The demonstrators arrived at the bulldozers and began to shout and throw rocks at the vehicle. After 5 minutes, the Israeli army showed up at the scene and began to fire tear gas and rubber coated steel bullets at the demonstrators. The Palestinians and internationals retreated into the trees but continued to shout against the army. Until 5am, the soldiers continued to shoot at the demonstrators in the fields.

During this time, the soldiers came into the village, near the Ni’lin clinic. They shot rubber-coated bullets and tear gas cannisters directly into the village, several into homes. Most of the demonstrators suffered from tear gas inhalation as a result of the high amount used by the Israeli soldiers, and several Palestinians were shot with rubber coated steel bullets, including one injured with a bullet to his head.

In the West Bank village of Ni’lin, a resistance against the construction of a wall which will confiscate Palestinians’ land continues. The building of the Apartheid Wall will further assist in the deterioration of lives of residents. The Wall will not only steal privately-owned land, but will ensure that Ni’lin residents will be more restricted in their movement, having to pass through a checkpoint to reach other villages.

Seven injured at Ni’lin demonstration

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

In the continued spirit of resistance, 100 Palestinians along with several International and Israeli activists marched to demonstrate against the construction of the Apartheid Wall in the West Bank village of Ni’lin.

The demonstrators met around 15.30 and moved close to the construction site when Israeli soldiers began to scream at them to go back while throwing sound grenades. The demonstrators spread throughout the olive groves while the Israeli soldiers shot tear gas canisters directly at the people.

The soldiers continued to throw sound grenades, and shoot tear gas and rubber coated steel bullets until 18.00. When the soldiers left the construction site, many protesters went down to disrupt the day’s work on the wall.

Attempting to halt the building of the Apartheid Wall, which will annex much of Ni’in’s privately-owned land, demonstrators filled a recently cleared path for the wall with rocks. While the action of destroying the path was taking place, the soldiers returned to the site to shoot more gas and bullets.

The demonstrators went back towards the fields and the demonstration was declared over after the Israeli soldiers had left around 18.30. While most demonstrators suffered from tear gas inhalation, seven Palestinians were shot with rubber coated steel bullets.

The importance of the resistance in Ni’lin is apparent with continuous demonstrations taking place against the Apartheid Wall.

Resident of Ni’lin shot twice by rubber-coated steel bullets during demonstration in Ni’lin

Friday, October 17, 2008

On Friday 17th October, the village of Ni’lin held a peaceful prayer on their land followed by a demonstration over property that has been annexed by the Israeli government to build the Apartheid Wall. At 11.30, Ni’lin residents held a prayer for the return of their land. Immediately after, around 150 Palestinians along with Israeli and international activists, were shot at with tear gas, sound grenades and rubber bullets.

The Israeli army began shooting at demonstrators around noon and continued to shoot while moving throughout the olive groves until 13.30. The soldiers withdrew to the construction site near a current checkpoint where over 100 settlers where waving Israeli flags and chanting insults on a loudspeaker.

The Israeli army had five jeeps and around 30 soldiers close to the site where three bulldozers were working to build the Apartheid Wall. While the settlers remained at the site, soldiers continued to shoot rubber-coated steel bullets and tear gas from both the construction area and from the olive groves to the side of the demonstrators.

At around 14.00 the bulldozers ceased their construction for the day and the settlers left the site, followed shortly by most of the soldiers. The Popular Committee of Ni’lin then declared the end of the demonstration and demonstrators proceeded to head back towards the village. While most of the 150 demonstrators suffered from tear gas inhalation, it is reported that a total of ten people where injured by rubber bullets. Mohammad Hussain Srour, 22 years old, was shot on his knee by two rubber bullets and taken to the Ramallah hospital.

Israeli forces attack Ni’lin olive harvest

On Friday morning 10th October, residents of Ni’lin village went out to harvest olives on their land, supported by about 100 Israelis and international activists, and also accompanied by media crews.


Video by Israel Putermam


Photos courtesy of Activestills

The proposed route of the wall cuts deeply into this land, and will cut villagers off from a whole valley full of olive trees belonging to the village of Ni’lin. Ten people were injured, two of them children, as the Israeli army violently tried to prevent the activists and farmers from reaching their land. Two Palestinian ambulances were also shot at with tear gas.

As people approached the planned route of the wall, soldiers appeared firing sound bombs and tear gas without warning, to prevent anyone from getting to the olive trees beyond this point. Sound bombs and tear gas were thrown very close to people who were standing peacefully and sitting down. Tear gas was then fired from a gun aimed directly at activists who had gone up to the front of the group, and also at farmers who had begun their harvest in an area further away. Three Israelis protesting peacefully were forcibly dragged away and detained. One Palestinian man, Omar Salfi, was injured when the tear gas caused him to fall out of a tree.

The the farmers and activists were pushed back, but after Israeli activists had negotiated for some time with the army, they were allowed access to the olive trees between the planned route of the wall and the Israeli settlement on the top of the next hill.

The village of Ni’lin has been badly affected by the attempt to construct part of the wall there, which would cut off many local farmers from their land if built. Peaceful demonstrations against the construction of the wall by residents and activists take place in Ni’lin regularly.


Israeli forces attack fire brigade and ambulance crew during demonstration in Ni’lin

The non-violent resistance continues in Ni’lin, as the demonstrations are consistently taking place against the apartheid wall. On Friday, October 3rd, around 200 people participated in the weekly prayer demonstration that followed the Friday prayer in the fields of the village. After the prayer took place at noon; village residents, members of the village popular committee, ISM activists, members of IWPS, and Israeli activists began to slowly approach the road where Israel’s Apartheid Wall is being built.

The wall is meant to annex a large portion of Ni’lin’s remaining land to protect and expand nearby settlements. The Israeli soldiers that based themselves on the hills across the valley began to shoot tear gas at the demonstrators as they marched toward the construction area. At the same time around 50 Israeli settlers showed their support to the Apartheid wall by holding a rally on the other side of the valley.

Seeing this, the demonstrators began to move towards the settlers and after a short while they got attacked again with a heavier amount of tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets. At least seven people were injured by tear gas and rubber bullets. As the tear gas canisters were being constantly fired into dry bushes, the fire brigade needed to put out several fires. The soldiers did not distinguish between the demonstrators and the ambulance team or the fire team and fired directly at those trying to help the demonstrators.

After about two hours of resisting the rubber bullets and tear gas attacks by the Israeli soldiers and after one army jeep hunted demonstrators through their own olive gardens, the demonstrators spread out and went back to the village. One of the ISM activists was grabbed by the soldiers during their incursion into the fields. She was put next the military jeep and told not to move, but managed to walk away when they failed to provide evidence for an arrest.