Tag: Tear-Gas Canister

Teenager beaten and dragged off the street by soldiers in Hebron

17th May 2017 | International Solidarity Movement, Khalil Team | al-Khalil (Hebron), occupied Palestine

Two young Palestinian boys detained by Israeli forces in Hebron during today’s incident

A Palestinian teenager was attacked in the street today by Israeli forces as he made his way through Hebron’s Old City. While talking with an NGO worker, the 18-year old was rushed by soldiers and beaten in broad daylight. Bleeding, he was taken into the nearby Bab Al-Baladiyeh military base where is he is currently detained. It is not yet known whether he will be arrested, but he can be held without charge for 7 days.

In the immediate aftermath, friends of the boy threw stones at the base’s gates in protest. Soldiers emerged from the base firing volleys of tear gas and stun grenades. The boys ran, but after a manhunt through the Old City two were found and detained in the base. Soldiers refused to explain their actions when questioned by ISM activists.

Israeli soldiers have beaten and detained a teenager in Hebron’s Bab al-Baladiyeh military base

A manhunt continued through the tunnels of the Old City, with conflicting reports suggesting another boy may have been detained. The soldiers eventually passed through the Ibrahimi mosque checkpoint towards Shahuda street, where ISM activists were harassed and spat on by Israeli forces.

Two Palestinian boys are detained by Israeli occupation forces after a brief manhunt

The two young boys were eventually released from detention, but the 18-year old is still being held, along with possibly another boy. The 18-year old has reportedly been harassed repeatedly by soldiers in recent days. Last week, he was cut on the wrists by Israeli interrogators after they accused him of lying to them. His relatives have apparently also received harassment from soldiers this past week.

Palestinian teenager’s cut wrist after being detained and interrogated by the Israeli Occupation Forces in Khalil on the 8th of May

Nabi Salih marches in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike

22nd April 2017 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah Team | Nabi Salih, occupied Palestine

Demonstrators walk through Nabi Salih, waving flags depicting prisoner Marwan Barghouti.

On Friday 21st April, a demonstration held in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike was violently supressed by Israeli forces at Nabi Salih, occupied West Bank. Teargas, rubber-coated steel bullets, and live rounds were fired at demonstrators by Israeli forces who later surrounded and blockaded the village for several hours.

Following Friday prayers, Palestinians marched from the town centre towards the Israeli checkpoint at the entrance to Nabi Salih. Joined by Israeli and international comrades, demonstrators carried images of imprisoned hunger-striker Marwan Barghouti.

As the demonstration marched towards the checkpoint, stones were laid along the road to prevent an incursion by Israeli military vehicles. 100 yards before the checkpoint, Israeli forces began firing volleys of teargas grenades at the demonstrators. With the wind against them, demonstrators had nowhere to shelter, with small children worst affected by the gas.

Protesters build rock wall barrier to prevent Israeli forces from driving into the town.

Whilst some demonstrators remained near the checkpoint, others moved to the nearby hills to prevent Israeli forces entering the village from the main road. As clashes continued, Israeli forces fired rubber-coated steel bullets and live rounds at demonstrators. A 13 year old Palestinian boy was injured when he was shot in the chest with a rubber-coated steel bullet.

After the demonstration Israeli forces gathered at the surrounding checkpoints, controlling movement in and out of the village. Activists had to wait several hours before they could leave the village.

The demonstration at Nabi Salih was held on the 5th day of hunger strikes by Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons, and is just one of many actions of solidarity held across Palestine and throughout the world.

Over 1500 Palestinian political prisoners have been on hunger strike since Palestinian Prisoners day, April 17th. Lead by Marwan Barghouti, this mass hunger strike raises an international awareness of the numerous human rights violations by Israel and their widespread practice of arbitrarily arresting Palestinian people.

Peaceful demonstration in Ni’lin met with tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets

8th April 2017 | International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah team | Ni’lin, occupied Palestine

Palestinian protester initiates the weekly protest in Ni’lin

On April 7th Israeli forces repressed a demonstration in Ni’lin, during which soldiers fired tear gas and a rubber-coated steel bullet into the crowd of Palestinian protesters as well as Israeli and international activists.

The demonstration began Friday afternoon after the prayer, where Palestinian protesters, joined by Israeli and international activists, went to the Apartheid wall outside of the town of Ni’lin. Around 20 minutes after the protest erupted, Israeli forces began firing several tear gas canisters across the wall from an army vehicle. Two more army vehicles eventually came to join the first, all of them firing teargas canisters simultaneously.

IOF started shooting tear gas at protesters

Protesters backed away from the wall when an Israeli soldier fired rubber-coated steel bullets directly into the crowd.

The firing of teargas went on for approximately half an hour, with protesters responding by throwing rocks towards the wall.

The demonstration was then repressed and protesters forced to flee when the IOF opened a gate in the wall, allowing an army vehicle to chase the protesters away from the scene.
None were reported injured during the protest.

Jayyous lands again under threat

5th April 2017 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Hebron, occupied Palestine

Residents from the West Bank village of Jayyous, east of Qalqilya, endured nightly raids by Israeli forces for a week straight in early April.  Israeli occupation forces fired tear gas at resident’s homes, causing some villagers to be taken for treatment to Darwish Nazzal hospital for tear gas inhalation.

Frustration has been rising among Palestinian farmers in the area as the Israeli military has arbitrarily denied farmers work permits during the loquat season. For over a decade, Palestinian farmers have been given agricultural permits to cross the apartheid wall to access their farm land.

Abu Azzam making his way to agricultural gate military check in Jayyous. (Photo Credit: www.rightsni.org)

Years ago, Jayyous villagers won this concession as well as a re-routing of the wall through popular resistance. These victories are threatened, however, as just last month a military order came to further attempt annexation of Palestinian lands both in Jayyous as well as the village Falamya.

During the past week, numerous Palestinian family homes, including that of Jayyous’ mayor, have been raided in the night following the provocation by Israeli forces of firing tear gas into the village. Village youth responded with impromptu demonstrations.

One week ahead of a meeting of the villagers, the Mayor, and the Minister of Agriculture with the Israeli occupation’s District Coordination Office, Jayyous villagers, joined by Palestinian police, held a large planting of lemon and other fruit trees. The fruit trees are being planted on reclaimed lands. Israeli forces, years ago, bulldozed the area to prepare for new construction on the apartheid wall. Palestinians successfully reclaimed the land on Wednesday, April 5th without incident.

 

Prominent Palestinian activist and Jayyous resident Abu Azem

Jayyous villagers are cautiously optimistic about next week’s meeting. Prominent Palestinian activist Abu Azem, in a statement to the ISM, noted that the meeting was to seek solutions to the permit denials so Palestinian farmers can be granted permits to cross the apartheid wall in order to access their ancestral lands. “We are optimistic that next week, we will have good answers,” Abu Azem says, “I expect if there are no solutions, there will be small battles.”

Madama village marks Land Day 2017 under heavy military violence

31st March 2017  |  International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah team  |  Madama, occupied Palestine

Palestinians gathered in Madama village to plant olive trees during Land Day

Thursday the 30th of March was Land Day, a day in which Palestinians and their supporters commemorate the loss of huge amounts of land, stolen by the Zionist colonisers in 1976. In Madama village, in the Nablus area, around 300 Palestinian activists with some internationals marched to the outskirts of their village to plant olive trees on village land which has been stolen by the extremist illegal settlement Yitzhar. This non-violent action came under heavy attack by the Israeli Forces with more than 45 people shot with rubber-coated metal bullets and many more suffering from tear gas inhalation.

At around 12pm the march set off from the centre of Madama with many people carrying flags and singing songs, including women, children and men. After climbing a steep street up onto the fields at the edge of the village people began to plant olive trees. There were Israeli Army vehicles and around 20 heavily armed soldiers waiting for the demonstration on the hillside. As people began to plant olive trees the soldiers started to shoot tear gas and rubber-coated metal bullets without any warning. Despite this repression, people continued to plant trees and a small group of people responded to the tear gas and rubber-coated metal bullets with stones.

Israeli settlers stood next to the Israeli Forces while tear gas was being shot

Over the next two hours or so, the Israeli forces became more and more aggressive firing rubber-coated metal bullets at anyone who was there, often at head height. If someone was injured and on the floor they would fire upon them again and at the people coming to rescue them, even if they were clearly marked as medics. According to the Red Crescent at least 45 people were injured by rubber-coated metal bullets throughout the demonstration. An activist from ISM was also shot with both a rubber-coated metal bullet and hit with a tear gas canister upon their lower legs whilst providing medical support to the injured.

Extremist settlers from the illegal settlement of Yitzhar also came to attack the demonstration with stones. They were held off by the people of the demonstration and after talking to the army sat and watched the Israeli forces fire upon unarmed demonstrators.

More than 45 people suffered injuries and needed assistance

Despite this extreme repression of a group of unarmed demonstrators, people did not leave until all the trees were planted, demonstrating that this is their land and they will not be threatened into not using it.

The villages around the illegal Yitzhar settlement have suffered a huge amount since it was set up in 1983. The extremist inhabitants of this settlement regularly attack Palestinians with impunity, sometimes even killing them. They regularly intimidate Palestinians off their farm lands, attack buildings and lands in the local villages, throw stones at Palestinian cars, and, block roads, these attacks are done with the protection of the Israeli Army. Yitzhar is just one example of the over 196 illegal settlements built throughout the West Bank, supported by Israel, but deemed illegal by the international community.