Stop the Wall repression update: Jan 12 – Jan 26
Part I: Testimony
Exerts from testimony gathered from seriously injured youth in al Nabi Saleh on January 22, 2011. Injures did not take place within the current two week reporting period. Read more testimony here.
Eyas Tamimi (24), leg broken by high-velocity tear gas canister during a Friday demonstration on January 7, 2011:
“I was here in the village, and they started to fire the high velocity tear gas rounds. You’re not supposed to fire them directly (at people), but they started to fire them directly. It hit my leg, here, and broke it. I was with everyone when I was injured. Basically, they are intending to hit us. If there is a march, or there isn’t a march, they shoot us.
“The intentionally shoot the houses with tear gas, in order to terrify the people who are inside the homes. Most of their attacks on the houses are intentional […]
“If there isn’t a march, they enter and provoke the people. Outside of the days of the march. They practice all forms of violence, and enter the village at night and during the day, they are always invading, like what happens in Ni’lin and Bil’in.
“It was around two in the morning. A unit entered the village on foot and began to search the homes, house by house. They took pictures of every young man they found. They took pictures of everyone on the basis that, this is what they said, if someone throws a stone, we will come and take him from this home.”
Uday Tamimi (18), shot with 12 rubber bullets during a Friday demonstration on December 24, 2010:
"There were three jeeps coming from Beit Reema (soldiers) in the third (jeep) shot me, with all 15 gul (small metal balls coated with rubber; fired in volleys), hitting me with 12. I was alone, about 15 meters from the army. After that I passed out and I woke up in the hospital in Ramallah. I remained in the hospital for two days. They took an X-ray of my chest, and said there were no problems."
Majd Tamimi (18), leg broken by high-velocity tear gas canister during a Friday demonstration on November 19, 2010:
"I was going down from my uncle’s house to the street. A (tear gas) bomb came into my neighbor’s house, and she lost consciousness and passed out. The medics came, and I went down with them. When I was heading down with them, I was hit with a gas bomb that they fired from up on the hill, about 200 meters away, and it hit my leg.
"The demonstration was happening (near the confiscated land, outside the built-up area of the village) and they started shooting at the village. Not at the demonstration, at the village, and one (tear gas round) entered the house. They do this every week.
"[…] I was far from any confrontations. But they always shoot people, they don’t even take into account women and children. They don’t (only) shoot those who throw stones.
"I was injured three months ago. In those months I was not able to walk. Two weeks ago I started walking on crutches, but only a little. After a month I should be able to get back. I had to bring a doctor’s report to my university, and we’ll see what happens.
Part II: Analysis
Soldiers continued to employ violence at the anti-Wall demonstrations, with serious cases of tear gas inhalation reported in Bil’in, Ni’lin and al Nabi Saleh on January 14th and 21st. Eyewitness also reported that soldiers fired live ammunition during on the 14th in al Nabi Saleh.
While there were no serious injuries reported over this period, there was an alarming spike in arrests, in particular in al Nabi Saleh. Both the raid wherein soldiers photographed all the youth in the village, as well as the instances of injured Palestinians facing arrest, indicate that this threat has been looming over al Nabi Saleh. On 21 January, Adi Abdulhafith Tamimi (20), was arrested during the Friday march. Then, at 2:00 AM 23 January, soldiers raided al Nabi Saleh and arrested 14-year-old Islam Tamimi. The next day they briefly arrested and held his 10 year old brother, and several days later arrested several 15-year-old boys as well as the head of the popular committee, Bassam Tamimi, who was later released.
There was also a high number of arrests in the village of Beit Ummar, where regular protests are held against the nearby settlement. Over the course of the reporting period, Occupation forces launched at least two night raids, arresting five minors.
Targeting youth and popular committee organizers has been commonly used by Occupation forces to undermine protests, with Jayyus being one example among many. In Jayyus, a mass arrest of youths and other villagers occurred on the night of February 18, 2009. Around 65 people were brought to the local school to be interrogated for several hours, and 26 of them were subsequently arrested. Many of those detained and then arrested were members of the local youth committee, which at that time did much of the mobilizing work for the weekly demonstrations against the Wall in Jayyus.
Part III: Statistics
Serious injuries: 2
Arrests: 11
Arrests of HRDs and Minors
1. Adi Abdalhafith Tamimi (20)
Place: al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of arrests: 21 January 2011
Circumstances: During the weekly demonstration in al Nabi Saleh, Adi was caught by soldiers, beaten and then dragged away.
2. Islam Saleh Tamimi (14)
Place: al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of arrests: 23 January 2011
Circumstances: Islam was beaten and arrested in night raid. He was last known to be held at Ofer, with a first court hearing on Thursday 27 January.
3. Karim Tamimi (10), Bassam Tamimi, two other unidentified (15)
Place: al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of arrests: 24 January 2011 and 26 January 2011
Circumstances: On January 24, soldiers raided the village and briefly arrested the brother of Isalm Tamimi, but released him later that day. Several days later they arrested the coordinator of the popular committee, Bassam Tamimi, but later released him. Two 15-year-old boys were also arrested, and their status is unknown.
4. Mo'taz Khaled 'Awdah (17), Muhab Ibrahim Bahar (17)
Place: Beit Ummar (Hebron district)
Date of arrests: 18 January 2011
Circumstances: According to PCHR, Occupation forces raided Beit Ummar at 2:00 in the morning, arresting two minors
5. Ussaid Mohammed Awadh (17), Yasser Mohammed Abu Fanoos (17), Fadi Fayez Abu Fanoos (14)
Place: Beit Ummar (Hebron district)
Date of arrests: 20 January 2011
Circumstances: According to PCHR, Occupation forces raided Beit Ummar at 11:30 at night, arresting three minors
Violence against HRDs and Minors
1. Name unknown (15)
Place: Ni’lin (Ramallah district)
Date of injury: 14 January 2011
Circumstances: A soldier fired at a 15-year-old boy who had climbed the Wall carrying a Palestinian flag. The tear gas round struck him in the head, causing him to fall from a height of 3 meters. He was transported to the hospital, treated for moderate injuries.
2. Alaa' Abi Barghouthi (13)
Place: al Nabi Saleh (Ramallah district)
Date of injury: 21 January 2011
Circumstances: According PCHR, Alaa’ suffered burns to his face after Occupation forces used hot gas during the Friday demonstration.
3. Ni’lin: Yacub ‘Amira (20)
Place: Ni’lin
Date of injury: 14 January 2011
Circumstances: The above were lightly injured when hit with tear gas canisters or rubber bullets.