Tag: Tear-Gas Canister - Page 23 - International Solidarity Movement

Video and photos: Israeli bullets and tear gas target popular resistance in Gaza

25th February 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Charlie Andreasson | Gaza, Occupied Palestine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ky-ekZSTsec
(Video by Marco Varasio)

At al-Shifa hospital Mohammed Helles, age 14, is laying in a coma with an uncertain outcome after he was shot, with what appeared, to be a tear-gas canister in the head and parts of it penetrated his brain. He had an operation, but fragments are still left. Kamal hospital reported thirteen injures, from both gunshot wounds in the legs and tear-gas canisters.

Israeli forces struck a Palestinian protester in the head with a tear-gas canister in Jabaliya, in the northeastern Gaza Strip.

— ISM Palestine (@ISMPalestine) February 21, 2014

Friday’s demonstration on the hillside east of Jabaliya gathered about 400 people, mostly young men in their late teens. Protests against land seizure, mixed with dissent at the consequences of the occupation such as a broken economy, soaring unemployment and loss of hope for the future, were met by tear gas and live ammunition, with ambulances shuttling back and forth .

Over the slope an Israeli drone hovered at a low altitude, but at an even lower altitude two Palestinian kites floated close over the fence. Cheers and applause broke out when one tore and three Israeli soldiers rushed after it. But it was also the only thing protesters had over which to rejoice. The protests will probably not change the occupying power’s policy towards the Palestinian people. According to figures from OCHA, 17 percent of the Gaza Strip, including 35 percent of its farmland, is unavailable due to the Israeli-established “buffer zone.” More than 100,000 people are directly affected, and the protests against the occupying power, as well as its military response to them, are likely to continue.

An Israeli drone is hovering over Palestinian protesters by the separation barrier in Jabaliya, in the northeastern Gaza Strip.

— ISM Palestine (@ISMPalestine) February 21, 2014

Fifth annual Open Shuhada Street demonstration in Hebron

21st February 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Hebron Team | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

The fifth annual “Open Shuhada Street” campaign took place on Friday the 21st of February in Hebron. Five people were arrested and 13 treated after being shot by rubber-coated steel bullets during a peaceful demonstration to open Shuhada Street for Palestinians.

On the 21st of February about two thousand Palestinians and international human rights activists took part in the “Open Shuhada Street” demonstration in Hebron, Occupied West Bank. The demonstration, organised by Palestinian activist group Youth Against Settlements and Hebron Defence Committee, started at the Ali Al-Baka mosque and then went towards Bab Al-Baladiya. Bab Al-Baladiya is a small square in front of the gate leading to Al-Shuhada Street at the illegal settlement Beit Romano.

Shortly after arriving at Bab Al-Baladiya the Israeli Forces threw a large amount of stun grenades right into the crowd of peaceful demonstrators and shot teargas at the part of the demonstration that had not yet gotten close to Bab Al-Baladiya. Several Palestinians were arrested following the chaos caused by more than ten stun grenades being thrown in a short time span. This dispersed the demonstration into several smaller groups.

Following the demobilization of the peaceful demonstration by the Israeli forces, clashes erupted near Bab Al-Zawiye.

According to medical sources thirteen were treated for injuries caused by rubber-coated steel bullets and a large number was treated at the hospital or on the spot for excessive teargas inhalation. A total of five were arrested.

Al-Shuhada Street, once the main market street in Hebron, was made off-limits to Palestinians following the Al-Ibrahimi Mosque massacre in 1994, when American-born Israeli Baruch Goldstein shot and killed 29 and wounded 125 Palestinians that had been praying inside the mosque.

The street was partially reopened to Palestinians following the Hebron Protocols in 1997 but was closed again to Palestinians after the outbreak of the Second Intifada. February the 25^th, 2014 marks the 20^thanniversary of the massacre.

Israeli forces use tear gas against schoolchildren in Hebron

16th February 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Hebron Team | Hebron, Occupied Palestine

On Sunday, the 16th of February, Israeli soldiers and border police in Hebron fired tear gas and sound grenades at children on their way to school. The border police also chased the children, attempting to arrest them.

Soldiers and border police chasing schoolchildren in Hebron (photo by ISM)

At Checkpoint 29, around 7:30 a.m., a few children on their way to school (there are three schools near the checkpoint) were throwing stones at the soldiers stationed there. In response to this two border police and a soldier appeared from an alley and threw a sound grenade at the kids close to the United Nations school on Tareq Ben Ziyad Street.

This frightened not only the children who had thrown stones but all the children on their way to school, causing them to flee. When they did not catch any children the two border police and the soldier stood in front of the school blocking the entrance and started firing teargas at those who had fled.

As the border police and the soldier returned to the checkpoint, three new soldiers came out of an apartment across the street, preventing the children from entering their school. The soldiers continued firing teargas towards the crowd of upset and frightened children.

Tear gas is a nondiscriminatory nerve gas which affects all persons nearby. The gas often takes a long time to disperse, forcing children to go through the half-dispersed gas clouds on their way to school, leaving them crying and coughing. The use of tear gas against schoolchildren is common in Hebron.

In total, seven soldiers and two border police were involved in the incident, firing six tear gas grenades and two sound grenades at the children.

Palestinian shot by live ammunition during demonstration in Tura

15th February 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Nablus Team | Tura, Occupied Palestine

On Saturday, February 15th, Demonstrators gathered at 11:30 a.m. by the village of Tura near the annexation wall to celebrate the 25^thanniversary of the DFLP (Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine). People began chanting and marching in the direction of the checkpoint.

After 20 minutes of demonstrating, protesters decided to get back to the village, and the Israeli forces began shooting tear gas grenades and canisters, quickly followed by live ammunition. Several people suffered severely from tear gas inhalation. One man, close to the group of soldiers, was targeted and shot in the leg. He was immediately removed from the demonstration and taken to the hospital. As the protest was ending, another young man was shot in the stomach by a tear gas canister. The condition of those injured is unknown at this time.

Tura is located next to the two illegal settlements of Shaqed and Hinnanit. This proximity combined with the violence of the occupation brings weekly confrontations between the local population and the Israeli army. The Israeli forces occupying this area are known for their extremely violent repression.

Four injured at weekly demonstration in Kafr Qaddom

14th February 2014 | International Solidarity Movement, Nablus Team | Kafr Qaddom, Occupied Palestine

At approximately 10:00 a.m. on Friday, the Israeli army positioned themselves on top of the hill overlooking Kafr Qaddom and on the closed road that leads to the illegal settlement, Qedumim.

As they did last week, the Israeli army attempted to portray themselves as peacemakers with a megaphone asking residents to go to their homes. This recurrent event is for the Israeli government’s new promotional film about the presence of the army in the West Bank.

Shortly thereafter, the residents of Kafr Qaddom burned tires and the Israeli army started shooting a large amount of tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets from the top of the mountain and from the road. One sniper with live ammunition was also placed on a large boulder among the olive trees. Residents responded with stones and were repeatedly forced back down the road by a bulldozer and the teargas. Many suffered from teargas inhalation and the canisters were often shot at head level which can cause serious injuries.

One person was hit in the neck by a rubber-coated steel bullet and was carried out of the demonstration unconscious and taken to the hospital. His condition is now stable. Another person was injured by a rubber-coated steel bullet in his leg and two persons by high-velocity teargas canisters in their legs.

The village of Kafr Qaddom has been holding a weekly Friday demonstration for over two years. The demonstrations in Kafr Qaddom are held in protest against the continued occupation of Palestine and for the right to access the land stolen by the illegal settlement of Qedumim. In addition, the village’s main road to Nablus has been blocked, adding 14 kilometers to the journey, which has caused two deaths when ambulances were not able to reach the village in time.