Friday demonstration in support of prisoners.

 Bil'in - Palestine
17-2-2012
Dozens of injuries from cases of severe tear gas inhalation in the village of Bil'in west of Ramallah.
Dozens were wounded in cases of suffocation by tear gas in the weekly march which was organized by the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in Bil'in. The march commemorated the seventh anniversary of the popular resistance in Bil'in and the start of the eighth year, as well as supporting the Palestinian prisoners, especially the sixty-two day hunger strike of the captive Sheikh Khader Adnan. The participants included Qais Abdel Karim, a Palestinian Legislative Council member from the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Front Wasel Abu Yousef, Secretary General of the Arab Liberation Front Jamil Shehadeh, Political Bureau of the Palestine Liberation Front member Hisham Abu Raya, Amin Shuman and Issam Baker from the Higher Committee for prisoners' cases, the Coordinator of the High Follow-up popular resistance Naim Marar. The march drew its participants from a wide range of Palestinian national parties, as well as populations from the neighbouring villages and members of the Popular Committees in the governorate of Ramallah and Al Bireh. As usual, inhabitants of Bil'in as well as Israeli and international peace activists joined the protest.

The march began from the center of the village after Friday prayers, heading to land which was liberated last June. Participants raised Palestinian flags, pictures of the captive Khader Adnan, banners draw with pictures of the captive leader Marwan Barghouti and banners of the various factions. Some of the participants had costumed themselves as Sheikh Khader Adnan, their hands and feet shackled, while others were dressed as Israeli Prison Services (known as 'Alchaabas'). Many put masks of the image of Sheikh Adnan on their faces or masks in the colours of the Palestinian flag. They chanted slogans calling for national unity, the end of the occupation, destruction of the apartheid wall and calling for freedom of Palestinian prisoners and the internationalization of their case.

Upon the arrival of the procession at the 'Abu Lemon' protected area, some of the participants succeeded in breaking through the barbed wire, while many climbed the concrete wall and waved Palestinian flags atop it. Others painted pictures of Khader Adnan and glued big banners depicting him onto the wall. The Israeli soldiers, who were on the other side of the wall, fired rubber-coated steel bullets, stun grenades and copious quantities of tear gas toward the participants, which resulted in dozens of cases of suffocation among the participants. Some protesters then threw stones towards the soldiers.

For its part, the Popular Committee Against the Wall in Bil'in denounced the continued detention of Sheikh Khader Adnan, and held the occupation government fully responsible for his life. It emphasized its full solidarity with the captive Adnan and with all prisoners, and also called on civil society organizations, humanitarian institutions, local and international human rights organizations to immediately intervene to save his life and compel the Israeli government to release him and all prisoners, to end its policy of administrative detention, and stop abuses against Palestinian prisoners.

Outside the village, the Israeli occupation forces announced Bil'in as a closed military zone, set up checkpoints around and prevented hundreds of Israeli peace activists, international activists and Palestinians from other villages from participating in the march.