Bil’in veiled by tear gas

By Joseph Dana December 18, 2010 | Edit

Soldiers reacted aggressively to this week’s demonstration with a barrage of tear-gas projectiles directed at the demonstrators from behind the barrier.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KfDqFyymxQ[/youtube]

The weekly protest  started as planned after the Friday midday prayers with a march from the village center towards the lands sequestered behind the Wall. The demonstrators raised flags, chanted slogans and carried posters of Abdallah Abu Rahmah, the jailed coordinator of the village’s popular committee.

Tear-gas covering the scene of the demonstration. Picture credit: Hamde Abu Rahmah
Tear-gas covering the scene of the demonstration. Picture credit: Hamde Abu Rahmah

As the procession reached the Wall, a few protesters opened the shut metal gate, and proceeded in the direction of their lands. Soldiers positioned on the other side of the barrier, barricaded behind concrete slabs, immediately began shooting massive amounts of tear-gas at the direction of the village, completely covering the entire area with the acrid fumes.

The exceptionally large amounts of tear-gas, which could be strongly sensed even at the edge of the village’s built-up area, force the majority of demonstrators to disperse. A small group that managed to hold its ground by the gate despite the gas, was also eventually mush back by the lack of breathable air.

From the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee

Joseph Dana was a contributing writer on +972 Magazine from August 2010 to December 2011. This is an archive of his work.

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