Bil'in Habibti ...???~

Bil'in demo 21.08.09 Today's demo did not evoke the usual aggressive response from the occupation forces. As the demonstrators arrived at the Apartheid Wall, the only visible two soldiers behind the Apartheid Wall remained in their shelter. One Jeep was parked to the left of the door in the Wall and one to the right. It was eerily quiet for quite some time. There was no reaction to the Palestinian chanting until suddenly a multiple of tear gas was fired into the crowd from an additional Jeep that had just arrived. This caused the usual discomfort to the protesters, but most of them remained in the front lines. A few single tear gas canisters were being fired here and there while the protesters remained gathered for awhile. Some activists tried to open the gate which had been firmly locked by the occupation forces. Then, earlier than in previous weeks, the demonstration was called to an end and everyone returned to the village without incident. Historically, today marks the 40th anniversary of the fire at the al-Aqsa Mosque, the Masjid al-Aqsa, opposite the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mound in Jerusalem. It had broken out in the early morning of 21. August 1969. This fire had destroyed priceless old wood in the southeastern wing of the mosque, known as the Noble Sanctuary, or Haram as-Sharif. Massive riots followed in the Arab sections of Jerusalem and in the territories followed the incident. Initially, Israel was accused of arson, but the day after the fire, it became evident that a non-Jewish Australian tourist, belonging to an evangelical sect, was responsible for it. Night raid Bil'in 20.08.09 Once again the night in Bil'in was disrupted by a raid ending with the arrest of one Palestinian man. This occurred in the night after the children's demonstration Wednesday morning where the children had chanted slogans like "We want to sleep," "Stop the night raids" and others. The house of Mohammed Ibrahim Achmed Hassan Abu Rahma (age 50) was invaded shortly before 2am on Thursday morning, 20.08.09, ending with his arrest. His son Nashmi Mohammed Ibrahim Abu Rahma (age 14) had been arrested 5 days ago. About 25 soldiers had come to the village on foot with their faces disguised. While taking the victim away, the soldiers threw a sound bomb into Palestinian and international activists who tried to interfere and de-arrest the man. A shuffle occurred during which the soldiers hit Palestinians and international activists, knocking one international female activist to the ground and pulling the hair of another. As the cameraman was filming the arrest, one soldier hit and broke his camera. The occupation forces succeeded in taking the victim away escaping through the fields, closely followed by Palestinian and international activists. Jeeps were waiting at a fair distance and picked up the soldiers with their victim. The Head of the Bil'in Popular Committee Iyad Burnat says that in spite of the continuing arrests, the resistance and demonstrations against the military occupation and the Apartheid Wall will continue. "This is our right and we want our lands back now, not tomorrow." The Head of the Bil'in Popular Committee Iyad Burnat says that in spite of the continuing arrests, the resistance and demonstrations against the military occupation and the Apartheid Wall will continue. "This is our right and we want our lands back now, not tomorrow." http://www.bilin-ffj.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=176&Itemid=1 Children's demo Bil'in 19.08.2009 http://www.bilin-ffj.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=175&Itemid=1 Today, the first nonviolent demonstration for the children of Bil'in took place to protest against the night raids and the many arrests of young boys in the village. They carried banners and chanted slogans like "We want to sleep," "No more night raids," "Let us live," "We want Peace," and so on. The children lead the demonstration toward the Apartheid Wall with villagers and Palestinian and international activists following them. At the Wall they were met by two soldiers only who were on regular duty at the Wall. Arrived at the Wall, the children continued their chanting as the soldiers watched. Two Jeeps arrived with reinforcement. Noticing that the gate, which leads to the green line and gives access to the Wall, was open, five soldiers came through the door of the Wall to close it shut while the children chanted into their faces and activists challenged them about arresting children. They asked them whether they were ever thinking about what they were doing. Once the gate was shut, the occupation forces retreated. The children and the protesters gathered at the Wall for a while placing their posters and flags at the gate. Seeing all the children, the occupation forces refrained from firing any tear gas or ammunition. They simply told everyone to go back. Eventually, everyone returned to the village. Thank you for you continued support, Iyad Burnat- Head of Popular Commitee in Bilin co-founder of Friends of Freedom and Justice - Bilin Email- bel3in@yahoo.com Mobile- (00972) (0) 547847942 Office- (00972) (2) 2489129 Mobile- (00972) (0) 598403676 www.bilin-ffj.org