August 22, 2009

RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Nine Palestinian citizens and two Italian activists suffered suffocation during the weekly anti-wall protest in Nil’in village when Israeli occupation forces (IOF) fired dozens of tear gas canisters at the masses.

A large number of IOF troops were deployed Friday morning in olive fields and along the southeastern and southwestern areas of the village.

The IOF troops also prevented volunteers who wanted to join the weekly protest from entering the village and blocked commercial activities in it.

These security measures were intended for protecting an Israeli company which started to change the wire fence it had established into a concrete wall at a height of more than 12 meters provided with a comprehensive surveillance system.

In another related context, two Palestinians were severely wounded after they were beaten by IOF troops with rifle butts and batons during another anti-wall protest which is organized weekly in the village of Masarah, south Bethlehem.

In Al-Khalil, the IOF troops used excessive force and physically assaulted Palestinian citizens and international activists during a peaceful march organized near the settlement of Karmi Tsur in protest at the Israeli settlement expansion.

Local sources reported that the IOF troops arrested an American activist during the march at the pretext of sabotaging the iron gate established at the entrance to area.

In another context, the Hebrew radio reported that the IOF troops kidnapped Thursday evening three unarmed Palestiniansin the Gaza Strip, alleging that they passed the security fence in Kissufim area.

Palestinian local sources said Friday that a large number of IOF troops stormed Tulkarem city at dawn and raided many homes before kidnapping two Palestinian citizens affiliated with Hamas including one who was arrested many times by the Palestinian Authority’s militias.

The PA militias in the city reportedly kidnapped days ago, in the context of its security coordination with Israel, an ex-detainee released recently from Israeli jails.

For its part, the Hebrew radio said that the IOF troops kidnapped at dawn Friday six Palestinian citizens in Nablus and Tulkarem.

Palestinian local sources in Qalqiliya city had reported on Thursday that IOF troops reinforced by military vehicles and a bulldozer invaded the city.

The sources added that the Israeli bulldozer demolished stores of auto spare parts in the city which caused considerable financial losses, noting that the owners of these stores were imprisoned in Israeli jails.