Nonviolence is met with violence

by on March 21, 2010 11

This is the news, a little late, from the popular resistance movement to the occupation in Palestine:

Friday’s demonstration in An Nabi Saleh saw an increase in violence and collective punishment from the Israeli military, as twenty-five demonstrators were injured, windows of cars and homes were intentionally shattered, and three were arrested.

ISM volunteer Ellen Stark was shot at point blank range (4 meters) with a rubber bullet as she stood with medics, Popular Committee members and other internationals. ISM co-founder Huwaida Arraf was arrested while negotiating with the IOF to allow Ellen through the military line to get to the hospital. According to Ellen, “we were standing on Palestinian land, in support of the village who’s land has been confiscated but we weren’t even demonstrating yet. We were standing with medics who were also shot with tear gas.”

Ellen’s had to undergo surgery to remove the bullet, which was lodged between her ulna and radius of her right arm. Her wrist is broken as a result of the bullet impact. As of 12:00 pm Saturday, Palestine time, Huwaida has yet to be located in the Israeli prison system.

About Philip Weiss

Philip Weiss is Founder and Co-Editor of Mondoweiss.net.
Posted in Israel/Palestine

{ 11 comments... read them below or add one }

  1. Chaos4700 says:
    March 21, 2010 at 11:39 am

    Incidentally, Israel doesn’t use “rubber bullets.” They use rubber-coated metal bullets, which are only slightly less lethal because they don’t fragment or bloom like conventional hollow-point bullets. That thin layer of rubber doesn’t absorb much of the force — the IDF might as well be firing armor piercing bullets at the protesters, for the sort of injuries either causes. I think maybe rubber-coated bullets are less likely to penetrate bone, but that isn’t to say they won’t do that a significant portion of the time.

  2. potsherd says:
    March 21, 2010 at 11:56 am

    This link to haaretz.com
    has to be wrong. It makes no sense.

    Israel Defense Forces soldiers on Sunday shot dead two Palestinians who attacked them with pitchforks near the West Bank city of Nablus, bringing to four the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in 24 hours.

    According to initial reports, soldiers from the IDF’s Nahshon Battalion were stationed south of the Israeli settlement of Itamar in order to protect Palestinians plowing their land.

    The soldiers opened fire after two Palestinians tried to attack them.

    The soldiers were not harmed.

    “Two men tried to stab a soldier during a routine patrol near the Awarta security crossing near Nablus. The force opened fire and confirmed their death,” an army spokeswoman said.

    From Ma’an:

    Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli soldiers shot dead two Palestinians near Nablus in the northern West Bank on Sunday.

    Palestinian security sources identified the victims as 19-year-old farmers Muhammad Faysal and Salah Muhammad Qawariq.

    Both were from the Awarta village, southeast of Nablus, and were en route to farmland carrying agricultural tools and herbicide, the same sources said.

    Israel’s army said the two attempted to stab a soldier who was on a “routine patrol” near the Awarta military checkpoint. “In response, forces opened fire and identified a direct hit,” an army spokeswoman told Ma’an.

    link to maannews.net

    • potsherd says:
      March 21, 2010 at 5:23 pm

      The “pitchfork story” told by the IDF is already falling apart. There’s evidence that the two were shot in cold blood and there is an eyewitness.

      4 killed in one day – can you say “intifada”?

      • potsherd says:
        March 21, 2010 at 5:34 pm

        Mohammed and Salah Quriq, both 19, were gunned down this morning at the Awarta checkpoint by Israeli soldiers. Military spokesmen claim the men were attempting to stab a soldier, a claim denied by local sources. A third man, injured at the scene, was taken by Israeli medics.

        Following the deaths of two youths at Iraq Burin, today’s violence brings the death toll to four in the past 24 hours. Army reports claim the Mohammed and Salah were shot in response to threatening behaviour with a pitchfork and axe. “Two men tried to stab a soldier during a routine patrol near the Awarta security crossing near Nablus. The force opened fire and confirmed their death”, a spokeman told us. No warning shots were fired and the men died at the scene.

        Hassan Awad, head of the Awarta council, contradicted this version of events. Speaking through an interpreter he told us “the men were working with their implements in fields adjacent to the checkpoint. Checkpoint security then approached the men, requesting to see their IDs. It seems that following this the men were gunned down in cold blood.”

        Awad claims he asked the senior officer at the checkpoint if the military accepted this version of events and was told they did and that a full investigation would commence immediately.

        link to palestinemonitor.org

  3. Citizen says:
    March 21, 2010 at 2:23 pm

    Yeah, the USA funds IDF forces defending themselves against the children of the corn.
    Nothing like a grade c horror movie reenacted in real life. Pass the popcorn. We love Hollywood in real life.

  4. Cliff says:
    March 21, 2010 at 4:06 pm

    Just some uppity trouble-makers. God bless the IDF. Am Israel Chai!

  5. Avi says:
    March 21, 2010 at 4:38 pm

    There are different variants of the so-called “Rubber Bullet”.

    In the US, the term usually applies to ammunition used by police against civilians. Ofttimes, these bullets are made of plastic and a hard rubber core.

    The military variant is different.

    A typical “rubber bullet” used by the Israeli army looks like this:

    This

    The Hebrew writing reads: “40mm, Special/Extended range, Series….”

    As you can see from the photo, it is made of a metal core, coated with a thin layer of rubber. Unlike regular bullets, the low velocity coupled with the heavier mass of these bullets results in a lower probability of flesh penetration. But, they do cause serious and sometimes fatal injuries, due to severe internal bleeding in the head, known as subdural hematoma. It’s akin to being hit in the head with a bat.

    When aimed at the stomach and chest area, rubber bullets can cause fatal internal bleeding and cause vital organs to collapse. There are countless cases, for example, of permanent blindness and spinal injuries caused by rubber bullets as the soft tissue of the eyeballs is no match for these bullets.

    • Keith says:
      March 21, 2010 at 5:29 pm

      AVI- Thanks for the comment. I had never seen one of these rubber bullets before. Since it is obvious that a much less destructive device could be used, the obvious conclusion is that these are intended to cause serious injury as a form of punishment. If the injury proves fatal, the authorities can always claim it was not intentional, an accidental mishap as it were.

  6. DICKERSON3870 says:
    March 21, 2010 at 8:54 pm

    RE: “Nonviolence is met with violence” – Weiss

    MUSICAL INTERLUDE (provided by the makers of Ziocaine™):

    [Jonny 5]
    …They see sharks in the estuary,
    They claim the ark is Bartholemew’s;
    They say “War is necessary,”
    But we say, “War is child abuse!” …
    [Jonny 5]
    …They shell dwellings to quell the shellings,
    They lift taboos to seduce the cowards;
    They say we’re too yellow-bellied,
    But we say “we’re the new superpower!”
    [Tim McIlrath/Jonny 5]
    We’d rather make our children [We request to negotiate]
    martyrs than murderers! [We come to you unarmed]
    We’d rather make our children [We desire to communicate]
    White Flag Warriors! …
    [Tim McIlrath]
    …This is love; this is not treason.
    This is love; this is not treason.
    This is love; this is not treason.
    This is love; this is not treason.
    This is love…

    Flobots – White Flag Warrior featuring Tim McIlrath (03:41) – link to youtube.com

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