Black-and-Tan methods used by Israeli soldiers in Bil'in

international | rights, freedoms and repression | news report Wednesday September 16, 2009 16:42 by Justin Morahan

Middle of the night raids, children terrorised

In another of the increasing assaults on the people of Bilin village in Palestine, Israeli soldiers engaged last night in yet another middle of the night raid during which villagers were assaulted, property was trashed and children terrorized in their beds.

This morning at 1.30 a.m. Israeli forces were again raiding a Palestinian home in Bil'in, the West Bank, Palestine, looking for Abdullah Mahmoud Aburahma. He was not at home.

The soldiers closed the gates, sealed off the house, forced open two doors, broke the locks, destroyed the doors, trashed several rooms, beat a neighbour who had come to the rescue of the family - he was taken to hospital and released after treatment.

When five jeep loads of military reinforcements arrived, a Palestinian activist who was filming events was pushed to the ground and one soldier broke his camera. Other Palestinian journalists who were also filming were threatened with arrest unless they stopped filming. Another activist was hit on his right hand with a gun.

At another house, that of Abdullah's brother, the soldiers entered the children's bedrooms, pulling the sleeping children out of their beds. They searched every room and trashed a downstairs room. They took away Palestinian flags, banners and posters which are used in lawful protest in the weekly demonstrations against the wall.

Having terrorized the house owners and their families in the middle of the night, they left with a threat that the entire village was theirs until they found Abdullah.

The whole episode is similar to the actions of the notorious Black and Tans in Ireland in 1920-21.

Abdullah Mahmoud Aburahma has now called on all Human Rights organizations worldwide to help stop the night raids in Bil'in, and to support the lawful demonstrations in Bil'in against the Israeli occupation.

Bil'in is the village made notorious by the Israeli Army's brutal repression of its inhabitants over many years because of their non-violent protests against the Wall and the ongoing robbing by Israel of their land.

Among the hundreds of victims wounded there was Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Maguire (20 April 2007) shot at point blank range
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qnu5qPXEmkc

Among those killed there was Bassem Ibrahim Abu Rahma (17 April 2009) shot at point blank range while pleading for someone else's safety
http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/more-on-the-killing-of...asem/

The people of Bil'in have had to endure incessant persecution in the face of their non-violent protests against the wall in Bil'in. This has increased in recent weeks.

George Mitchell and President Barack Obama, please take note. You won't hear much about these continuing atrocities at the tables at which you sit and where you seek to establish justice and peace in Palestine and Israel.