Occupation forces once again suppressed a weekly protest against the Apartheid Wall in Niâlin, a village in the Ramallah District. To disperse the crowd of villagers and activists, the occupation forces drowned the area in tear gas, causing multiple cases of asphyxiation.
As usual, the Niâlin march began after Friday noon prayers when almost 100 demonstrators carrying Palestinian flags and calling out against Israeli occupation marched towards the area of the Wall. When the crowd reached the Wall, they sat in front of the closed gate and continued their chants against Israeli infringements upon Palestinian human rights.
Protesters attempted to force themselves through the gate barrier by throwing stones in their hopes of reaching the confiscated Palestinian lands behind the Wall. However, Israeli occupation forces fired large amounts of tear gas at the villagers and activists, leading to injuries from being hit with the tear gas canisters in addition to several cases of people fainting from suffocation. This clash between the demonstrators and occupation forces continued for several hours as activists stood their ground against Israeli transgressions against Palestinians.
Although the Israeli occupation forcesâ violent response to this weekâs Niâlin protest against the Wall is nothing new, the fact that the villagers of Niâlin continue to demonstrate regardless of the imminent danger that will surely ensue, speaks to the determination of the people to fight against Israeli occupation. It reflects how Israeli forcesâ attempts to deter people from continuing to demonstrate are futile since weekly protests are continuing and growing.