On Friday, residents of the Palestinian villages Bil'in and Ni'ilin were once again joined by international and Israeli activists in protests against the confiscation of their lands by Israel's Apartheid wall and adjoining settlements.
Palestinian and Israeli demonstrators running away from teargas canisters, Bil'in
In Bil'in, hundreds of demonstrators from the various Palestinian factions marched through the village's streets, calling for national unity, solidarity with Gaza and an end to the occupation. As with every Friday, the lively, colorful demonstration then made its way towards the route of the wall, following a truck equipped with loudspeakers blaring songs of resistance and political speeches.
As protesters reached the fence, a few began to symbolically mount Palestinian flags on the main gate, while others called directly at Israeli troops to "go home!". Soldiers stationed to the west, behind concrete blocks on the other side of the barrier, responded by throwing teargas grenades directly at the peaceful crowd. As demonstrators retreated, and a few village residents retaliated by throwing stones, soldiers began firing large amounts of teargas canisters, rubber-coated steel bullets and later on live ammunition, at anyone within range. Dozens were treated for gas inhalation.
(The day before, Khamis Fathi Abu Rahma left the hospital after being treated for a head injury suffered last Friday in Bil'in, when Israeli soldiers fired a teargas canister directly at his head, causing a fracture in his skull as well as a severe brain hemorrhage.)
Palestinian and Israeli demonstrators running away from teargas canisters, Ni'ilin
In Ni'ilin, hundreds gathered by the village's new clinic for the traditional Friday prayers and the following protest march against the confiscation of their lands. As the march began heading down the road towards the wall's construction site, Israeli soldiers waiting amongst the olive trees on the outskirts of the village attacked it, firing massive quantities of teargas canisters at the peaceful protesters.
Hours later, as Israeli troops finally seemed to retreat, demonstrators attempted to march in the general direction of the wall once more. However, soldiers were waiting further up the road, out of sight, and proceeded to fire teargas, rubber-coated steel bullets and a few shots of sniper fire using live ammunition, driving everyone back into the village. The Army chased protesters and stone throwers into the village but, unlike previous weeks, refrained from launching a full incursion into the center of Ni'ilin.
Overall, many suffered from teargas inhalation; three were treated for light injuries after teargas canisters hit them; three more for wounds inflicted by rubber-coated steel bullets, and an additional three for injuries to their lower bodies caused by live ammunition, one of them a Swedish national.
It should be noted that in both Bil'in and Ni'ilin, the beginning of Operation Cast Lead in Gaza saw an emerging, and alarming, pattern of the use of suppressed sniper fire as means of crowd dispersal in the West Bank.
The Ruger 10/22, a fully suppressed 0.22 caliber semi automatic sniper rifle, has been used by the Israeli army since the first Intifada (1987). However, following several incidents during the second Intifada (2000) which involved the death of Palestinians by Ruger fire (many of them children), Israel conducted field experiments at the IDF Sniper School in Mitkan Adam, proving that the Ruger was more lethal then thought - especially in upper body injuries. Also, since it is suppressed and was considered less lethal, soldiers were much more likely to use it freely. The IDF Judge Advocate General then reclassified the Ruger as a lethal weapon (despite current claims by the army that the Ruger is not "live ammunition"), and the use of the Ruger was completely prohibited in the IDF Center Command, while in the IDF South Command it was minimized dramatically.
