BIL’IN: Irish activist arrested and injured 30Apr10

Via A4P
May 1, 2010

Today’s demonstration began with speeches in honor of International Workers’ Day by the Union of Palestine Workers, after which the crowd processed to the Wall. After several minutes, soldiers fired the first rounds of tear gas into the crowd, and continued to launch tear gas deep into the protestors’ route. Soldiers aggressively entered the village in waves in an effort to make arrests.

Four people were arrested today, including a female journalist and an international activist. Prior to the demonstration, two Israeli activists broached the Wall and attempted to post flyers calling for the arrest of the soldier who shot Emad Rizka in the forehead at last Friday’s demonstration. When soldiers approached them, they moved away, and soldiers instead arrested two Al-Jazeera cameramen who were sitting in a car by the Wall.

Injuries this week consisted of a girl who was struck from behind with a tear gas canister. Cameraman Haitham al-Khatib was also hit in his stomach by a canister. The international activist who was arrested was treated roughly by the soldiers, who ripped off his gas mask and threw him to the ground, resulting in a 3-inch gash on his leg and a wound to his ear.

Today’s demonstration was held in solidarity with the actions of IPSC – the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign – which is organizing major demonstrations this week against the Irish multinational company CRH. CRH acquired a 25% shareholding in the Israeli group Mashav Initiating and Development Ltd, which is the holding company for Nesher Cement. Nesher is the sole Israeli cement company, meaning it supplies cement and building materials for the ongoing construction of the illegal Separation Wall, the Jerusalem Light Railway project, the illegal colonial settlements and the network of apartheid settler-only roads, underpasses, bridges and tunnels in occupied Palestine.

Demonstrators in today’s procession carried signs calling for CRH divestment from Israel, to coincide with the CRH annual general meeting that will take place on Wednesday, May 5.

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