Dohiyi Mir

Fridays In Bil'in

Oddly, the deficit hawks don't feel compelled to cut $3B in military aid to the Occupiers:

Like every Friday, the villagers walked through the village towards the second Apartheid Wall that still occupies around 30% of the village’s land. They crossed the olive groves that the Israeli army had illegally annexed for over six years and which the villagers were able to liberate through their continuous resistance. Some gathered early and enjoyed the shade of the trees in the area where villagers have now created the Abu Laymoon park.

When the protestors reached the second Apartheid Wall at the illegal colony on their lands - chanting for the liberation of Palestine and raising the Palestinian flag and banners of the imprisoned Marwan Bargouthi - soldiers stationed behind the wall started shooting tear gas canisters and rubber coated steel bullets at them, setting fire to a stretch of bushes close to the park. A twenty year old was shot with a rubber coated steel bullet in the leg.

In spite of the continuing barrage of tear gas canisters, the protestors held their ground in the heat of Palestine’s summers, chanting “Palestine is the 194 state”, in reference to the PA’s plan to request recognition as a full member state at the UN in September, demanding the immediate release of all political prisoners and vowing to keep up the resistance until Palestine is free and Palestinian rights are recognized.

Too bad the media here prefer the bullshit euphemism "rubber bullet" instead of the more descriptive and accurate "rubber coated steel bullet".  Sounds like cheap, harmless childrens' toys being fired against protesters...

ntodd

Fridays In Bil'in

The day of victory: Bil'in celebrates the removal of the wall:

For the first time after nearly seven years of resistance and struggle of the residents of Bil'in, the people of the village and a large number of participants from neighboring villages could hold the Friday prayer on the land that has been retrieved 2 days ago.

...

This victory was the result of the sacrifices made by the people of Bil'in...After they reached the protected area, they built the first house there after the removal of the wall. After many years of not seeing any big groups of Palestinians so close to their residence, the inhabitants of the nearby illegal settlement were watching the celebration and the building of the first house with great attention and surprise. The people of Bil'in are now planning to built more houses, in order to protect the land from the greed of the occupation. 

Indeed, a victory to celebrate.  Here's to many more, Insha'Allah.

ntodd

If It's Friday, This Must Be A Protest

CNN notices something:

Ever since he was a boy, Friday has been a day of prayer and rest for Murad Alazzany.

Following a rhythm as old as Islam itself, Fridays meant lunchtime prayers at the mosque and relaxing with friends and family for the rest of the day.

But that was before protests and revolutions across the Middle East smashed decades-old regimes and caused unprecedented civil unrest.

Yemen's uprising started in January this year, spurred on by the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions, and since then, Fridays have had a very different flavor for Alazzany and tens of thousands of Yemenis like him.

Alas, they didn't notice that for several years there have been nonviolent Friday protests in Bi'lin, Ni'lin and other Palestinian villages...

ntodd

Salaam

On this date exactly two years ago, instead of walking in the park with my family, I was here:

Facing these guys:

Who shot lots of shit at us:

And it sucked:

But I got to return home to safety, unlike most of these folks:

And it continues in Bil'in...

ntodd

Fridays In Bil'in

Same shit, different Friday:

In spite of the scalding heat, dozens of villagers from Bil’in marched once again together with international and Israeli solidarity activists to the Apartheid Wall in protest to its illegal annexation of 60% of the village’s land for the construction of Jewish-only settlements...

Waving the Palestinian flag and images of martyrs and prisoners of the popular resistance, protestors chanted for freedom and justice, against Apartheid, and for the release of all political prisoners.

As usual, the army opened fire at the protestors even before most had reached the Wall, shooting a type of tear gas that is considerably more harmful than the types ordinarily used in Europe or the US, throwing sound bombs, and spraying them with a chemical green liquid that activists have termed „shit“ or „skunk“ due to its nauseating odor which sticks to its target for days. Dozens of activists suffered from tear gas inhalation, which is aggravated by the harsh summer heat, and in various places, crops caught fire and spread quickly. The army continued to shoot at protestors even while they attempted to put out the fires.

As I learned almost exactly 2 years ago, tear gas (other projectiles notwithstanding) is bad enough.  Can't imagine the stink juice in that heat...

ntodd

Fridays In Bil'in

Last week:

Today in the weekly march in Bil'in organized by the Popular Committee Against the Wall with the participation of Sa'di Tameezi, the Palestinian ambassador to Vietnam, two young men were injured, and dozens of people suffered from the effects of tear gas fired by Israeli soldiers. Dozens of Palestinians were joined by international and Israeli activists, commemorating the martyrs who fell in the demonstrations held on the anniversary of the Nakba last week.

he march began in the center of the village after Friday prayers. In the area above the wall, demonstrators raised the Palestinian flag, as well as banners inscribed with the names ofvillages destroyed in 1948 and pictures of the imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti.Participants chanted nationalist slogans in favor of the right of return (the return of refugees to the land from which they were expelled).

But fuck Palestinian security, right, Mr Obama?

ntodd

This Is Real Occupation, Bibi!

Thank you, Rae!

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to the special joint meeting of Congress Tuesday afternoon was interrupted early on by [my friend and fellow Code Pinker, Rae Abileah, a 28-year-old Jewish activist of Israeli descent...she yelled, “stop Israeli war crimes.”]

The protester was removed, and the crowd in the chamber first booed her, then gave Netanyahu a standing ovation.

Netanyahu recovered quickly, going off his prepared text to say that “in our free societies, you can have protests,” pointing out that in the “you can’t have real protests in the farcical parliaments of Tehran and Tripoli. This is real democracy!”

Alas, you also can't have real protests in occupied Palestine:

As soon as the protestors reached the fence, Israeli soldiers started firing tear gas, rubber, tutu and live bullets and stink water causing the injuring of 17 years old Mohammad Abu Rahma who twisted his knee not to mention dozens of cases of asphyxia due to the tear gas. In the same time soldiers, hiding behind olive trees captured Iyad Al Khatib, 15 years old, beat him and took him away in an unknown place

5-6-7-8, Israel is a fascist state...

ntodd

Fridays In Bil'in

No news of today's regular protest, but I guess folks are dealing with other things:

In yet another night raid, Israeli soldiers raided Bil’in last night and arrested three people. Forced entered the village at roughly 8:30 local time using tear gas and stun grenades. The three have been taken to an unknown location.

In Gaza-related news, the Stay Human convoy honoring the murdered activist Vittorio (Vik) Arrigoni arrived yesterday.

ntodd

[Update: Bil'in commemorated Nakba Day during Friday's weekly protest.]

Fridays In Bil'in

The Israelis must be really pissed about a unified Palestinian front:

The march celebrating the end of the division between Hamas and Fatah started from the center of the village and tried to reach the separation wall. The Protesters, raised Palestinian flags and banners of all factions, especially Fatah and Hamas, while chanting the national anthem as a message of welcoming to the signing of the reconciliation agreement and calling for unity and rejection of differences.

Two Bil'in's citizens, dressed as President Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen and the head of the political office of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, carried the coffin of the " Division" and protestors burnt it at the gate of the wall as a message of the permanent end of the division. As soon as the protestors reached the fence, Israeli soldiers started firing tear gas, rubber, tutu and live bullets and stink water causing the injuring of 17 years old Mohammad Abu Rahma who twisted his knee not to mention dozens of cases of asphyxia due to the tear gas. In the same time soldiers, hiding behind olive trees captured Iyad Al Khatib, 15 years old, beat him and took him away in an unknown place. 

I'm not overly optimistic about the Fatah/Hamas deal, but applaud any attempt to bring Gaza and the West Bank back together again.

ntodd

Fridays In Bil'in

Didn't get the skunk water when I was there:

At Bilin's protest today, a ten year old boy, Mohammed Iyad Bornat was hit with a tear gas canister in the thigh. In addition, dozens of peaceful protesters both internationals and Palestinians, suffered from tear gas inhalation. This was in an attempt from the Israeli army to repress Bilin's weekly protest marches against the wall and the illegal settlements which continue to strangle the village.

...

When the protestors arrived at the east gate of the wall, the Israeli soldiers repeatedly fired sound bombs, "skunk water", tear gas and rubber coated steel bullets towards the protestors resulting in minor casualties among the demonstrators.

This comes a day after the IDF wounded 2 children in another daytime invasion...

ntodd