During Fridayâs demonstration in Niâlin â marking the anniversary of the Fatah movement â one eight year old boy was injured in the head with rubber coated steel bullets and two teenage boys (15 and 17 years old) were arrested.
Around 500 people, including international and Israeli activists, attended the weekly Friday protest against the Apartheid Wall in Niâlin. Niâlin celebrated the anniversary of the Fatah movement, and although the Israeli army had closed the entrance of the village, many people managed to attend.
After the Friday prayer on the land, demonstrators marched towards one of the gates, chanting slogans against the confiscation of Palestinian land and calling for an end to Israeli military occupation and justice for the Palestinian people.
When the demonstrators reached the Wall, soldiers were awaiting them on the other side. After a group of youth had climbed the concrete blocks and planted Fatah flags on the Wall, the army came through the gates. Soldiers started launching large amounts of tear gas canisters into the crowd, as well as firing rounds of rubber coated steel bullets and live ammunition. Many people experienced breathing problems.
The demonstration pulled back towards the village and soldiers tried to arrest demonstrators. Towards the end of the demonstration, soldiers arrested two youth (residents of Shuqba, a neighboring village) aged 15 and 17 years. When the soldiers started beating up these youngsters, other participants and Red Crescent volunteers tried to come to their aid. Soldiers then assaulted one medical volunteer Jumaâa Khawaja; he was beaten with a gun.
Israeli soldiers also fired live ammunition and rubber coated steel bullets, injuring an eight year old boy â who was shot in the head. The boy was immediately taken to Ramallah hospital where he received treatment. He was sent home later that night with six stitches in the back of his head. No further injuries were reported.
Later in the night, two jeeps entered the village and started shooting live ammunition and tear gas towards anybody who was walking outside. After twenty minutes, they left again.
***image2***
Report and photos Ahmad Mesleh – Niâlin Youth Center