Tag: Ramallah

10-Year old shot dead at Nil’in

A 10 year old boy called Ahmed Ussam Yusef Mousa was shot dead at approximately 6pm near the Palestinian village of Nil’in. He was shot once in the head at close range with live ammunition.

Pictures courtesy of Activestills

According to eye witnesses a group of youths attempted to remove coils of razor wire from land belonging to the village. Without warning, they were fired upon and Ahmed was killed. Israeli newspaper Maariv reported in March that the Israeli authorities have given a new order to border police operating along the apartheid wall surrounding Jerusalem. They can now open fire directly on Palestinians who try to demonstrate near the barrier. But sniping is forbidden if there are Israeli or foreign citizens amongst demonstrators.

Demonstrations have been held almost every day for the past few weeks as near Nil’in against Israel’s Apartheid Wall, declared illegal by the International Court in the Hague in 2004. The wall will deprive the village of almost 2,500 Dunums of agricultural land, and put the existence of the entirely community in doubt.

The Israeli Army and Border Police have been increasingly ill-disciplined and violent in response to the demonstrations. News came this morning that Israeli Battalion Commander Lt. Col Omri, had been sent on 10 days compulsory leave as a punishment for his conduct at Nil’in. Omri held a 27 year old Palestinian detainee Ashraf Abu Rahma by the shoulder while one of his men shot Abu Rahma with a rubber coated steel bullet at very close range. Abu Rahma was blindfolded and his hands were bound when he was shot in the foot.

At least 11 other Palestinians have died protesting against Israeli’s apartheid wall. Their names are:

Mohammad Fadel Hashem Rayan, age 25.

Zakaria MaHmud Salem, age 28.

Abdal Rahman Abu Eid, age 62.

Mohammad Daud Badwan, age 21.

Diaa Abdel Karim Abu Eid, age 24.

Hussain mahmud Awwad Aliyan, age 17.

Islam Hashem Rizik Zhahran, age 14.

Alaa Mohammad Abdel Rahman Khalil, age 14.

Jamal Jaber Ibrahim Assi, age 15.

Odai Mofeed Mahmud Assi, age 14.

Mahayub Nimer Assi, age 15.

To date, none of the soldiers who killed demonstrators has been prosecuted.

Ynet: Naalin commander ordered to go on 10-day leave

Northern command chief suspends senior officer following shooting of bound Palestinian in during anti-fence rally, citing ‘moral and authoritative failure’

By Hanan Greenberg

To view original article, published by Ynet on the 29th July, click here

Northern Command Chief Major-General Gadi Eisenkot ordered Battalion 71 Commander Lieutenant-Colonel Omri to go on a 10-day leave of absence Tuesday following the incident in the West Bank Palestinian village of Naalin, in which a soldier under his command fired a rubber bullet at a bound Palestinian detainee during an anti-fence rally.

Staff Sgt. filmed shooting rubber bullet towards bound Palestinian detainee found to have testified truthfully about in second lie detector test. But his commander, whom he accuses of ordering him to shoot, found to have lied

Major-General Eisenkot noted that the incident indicated a severe lapse in judgment and a “moral and authoritative failure” on the commander’s part.

The Lt. Col. continues to maintain that the soldier acted independently, however Ynet has learned that he recently failed the polygraph test he was subjected to.

The soldier told military investigators that Lieutenant-Colonel Omri gave him a direct order to shoot one of the Palestinians, whose arms and legs were bound.

A video of the incident was circulated by B’Tselem and was aired first on Ynet.

On Tuesday morning materials pertaining to the case compiled were handed over to the Military Prosecution, which is expected to decide on the next legal steps against the commander and soldier.

Sources familiar with the investigation said indictments may be filed in the affair, but added that a final decision has yet to be reached.

Meanwhile, the IDF received another complaint from a Palestinian who claimed that Lieutenant-Colonel Omri and another officer physically assaulted him. The complaint was filed through B’Tselem.

Ynet: Canadian student faces deportation from Israel following protest

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation says volunteer detained while taking photos of IDF soldiers during rally against security barrier in Naalin, to detention center for people facing deportation. Father: I’m angry at human rights abuses in the West Bank

To view original article, published by Ynet on the 26th July, click here

A Canadian student who took part in a protest against the West Bank security barrier in the Palestinian village of Naalin has been arrested and faces deportation from Israel, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) reported on its website over the weekend.

According to the report, Victor McDiarmid, a volunteer for the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), was detained on Wednesday at a demonstration by women from Naalin, where Israel plans to build the next section of its security barrier.

CBC News said McDiarmid, 23, was arrested after taking photographs of Israeli soldiers who were breaking up the protest by villagers, who say the barrier will separate them from their farmland.

“He was taken by Israeli soldiers whilst at the front of the demonstration and was taken off towards the jeep. And then he has reported to us that for 20 minutes they were punching, kicking and spitting in his face,” Adam Taylor, ISM’s media co-ordinator was quoted by CBC News as saying.

‘Resisting Israeli occupation’

The organization’s lawyers told CBC News that McDiarmid, who is from Kingston, Ont., has been transferred to a detention center for people facing deportation.

His parents told CBC News they support their son and the work he was doing in Israel to expose human rights violations.

Robert McDiarmid said he is outraged his son could still be sitting in a detention center.

“I’m angry at the human rights abuses in the West Bank. I’m angry that the Canadian government’s aborting,” McDiarmid told CBC News, adding that his son has said he wants to stay in Israel and fight his deportation.

The International Solidarity Movement describes itself on its website as a “Palestinian-led movement committed to resisting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land using nonviolent, direct-action methods and principles.”

Women’s demonstration in Ni´lin is attacked by Israeli army

On the 23rd of July a women’s demonstration against the construction of the apartheid wall took place in Ni’lin. Girls from the local summer camp had painted placards and made two big banners saying “Women against the Apartheid wall” for the demonstration.

Palestinian women came all the way from Tulkarem and Ramallah to join the demonstration. In total around 100 Palestinian, international and Israeli women participated in the march aiming at the bulldozers working on the construction site of the apartheid wall.

When having the bulldozer in site the women were violently stopped by Israeli soldiers who used teargas, sound bombs and physical violence. The women did not surrender but continued the chanting and tried to reach the bulldozers. The demonstrators succeeded to approach the bulldozers until being only 20 meters away. The soldiers then responded with a lot of violence, abusing more than 20 participators. Two persons were arrested, Jamal Kanaan from Ni’lin and one Canadian activist.

All in all the demonstration was very successful, being the first big women’s demonstration in Ni’lin for a long time.

ActLeft: Stop the fence in Ni’alin

The village of Ni’alin, which is located in the Ramallah district, has for more than a month now been leading an intense struggle against the de-facto appropriation of 2,500 dunams of land, over a third of all its land, as a result of the building of the “separation fence”.

The route of the fence in this area, much like in the famous case of the neighboring village of Bil’in, has been planned in such a way that all lands “left behind” the fence will serve the expansion of the near by illegal settlement of Hashmonaim.

The villagers have declared an uncompromising struggle against the fence; three-four demonstrations are held each week, marching towards the construction site and the settlement, in many cases successfully forcing a halt of construction.

The popular and nonviolent struggle of the demonstrators is met by growing ferocity on the side of the army, which is using live ammunition in addition to the regular tear gas and rubber bullets. On Friday, 4.7, the army decided to use collective punishment against the village – a full siege and curfew for ten days have been declared and enforced.

We demand that violence against demonstrators be stopped, and that the construction of the fence will be stopped in Nia’lin and elsewhere.

We sympathize and support the just struggle of the villagers against the appropriation of their lands.

An especially big demonstration will be held in the village of Ni’alin on Thursday morning, commemorating the anniversary of The Hague ruling which defined the Apartheid Wall illegal.

We call upon everyone to join this demonstration and the following ones as well

———-
The initiators of this call intend to publish it in Ha’aretz newspaper *this Wednesday or Thursday

In order to do so, we need to get some 250 signatories, each donating 100 NIS or more.

The donation can be broken down to two payments. Donations of all sizes will be warmly accepted.

Please confirm your signature with Ya’akov Manor at 050-5733276, 09-7670801, or with Amos Gvitz at 052-6035685, or at: manor12@zahav.net.il

Checks are to be made out to “Matte Hacoalitsia”, PB 1335, Kfar Saba, 44113

*If we do not receive enough signatures before the demonstration date we will have to postpone the publication to a latter date