Bil'in raided 09.11.2010 By haithmkatib@gmail.com

Bil'in raided 09.11.2010

Today, 09.11.2010 about 3 in the morning the Israeli army entered the village of Bil'in. A number of about 50 soldiers were coming in jeep and by foot. As they arrived to the two targeted houses they ran and took positions outside, while a number of them entered the house of two brothers.

At first the soldiers were hammering on the door of one house, demanding to see 30 year Ashraf al-Khatib. It turned out they went to the wrong house. They then went to another house -- forcing one of Ahsraf's brothers to show them the way to where Ashraf lives. Soldiers then entered that and his brother's family's house, and with the same procedure they woke up the family, again asking for Ashraf al-Khatib. His brother, Haytham al-Khatib, is a journalist from the human right's group B'tselem and was of the ones woken up by the army. Though they again entered a house where their target does not live, they stayed in there for about 1,5 hour, searching all the rooms.

Haytham al-Khatib tells about his 6 year old son's reaction when he woke up and saw tens of soldiers in his house. "He asked me to close the door, because he didn't want to see them." Haytham himself was held back when he wanted to record the raid in his family's houses -- the soldiers simply locked him in a room for more than an hour, away from his children and wife. The children in the houses are aged from 1,5 to 8 years, and this is not the first time they have seen their homes raided at night.

However, after 1,5 hour of searching for the target in three houses, two of them where he doesn't reside, Ashraf al-Khatib was not found. Five weeks ago Ashraf was shot in his leg with live ammunition by an Israeli soldier in a demonstration in Bil'in. The bullet went through his leg, breaking the bone. Even though he was heavily injured and in major pain, the soldiers tried to arrest him. Luckily he was brought to safety and then to hospital for surgery by fellow protesters. This night the army decided to come and take him in front of his wife and 1,5 year old daughter instead.

The soldiers retreated from the targeted houses by foot, walking toward the military road that follows the illegal segregation fence in Bil'in, about 4.30 AM. The village of Bil'in has suffered from frequent night raids over the last few years, and a number of villagers have been taken for interrogation and imprisoned for their non-violent resistance to the occupation and segregation wall on Bil'in's land.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Bil'in
• raided
• 09.11.2010
• By
• haithmkatib@gmail.com

[ohffsjustgivemeauser]

Why are you interfering with their work? if you don't want any soldiers in your town stop throwing stones and Molotov cocktails and people will not be arrested at the middle of the night, and your kids can sleep tight. Talk to your "peaceful" neighbors.

[Stumooos]

Stop throwing rocks and molotov bottles...

Stop Terror! = soldiers will not come

[MrMinutemen]

exposing the psychopaths is maybe the best weapon. much love, thank you. Godspeed, Inshallah!!

[YolandaGuadalupe]

@scottishbadboy1

Thank you for sharing !!

Will post in FB

haithmkatib

Thank you !!

May you and yours stay safe 

[bwanjep9]

Very strong footage, my friend. I agree with bixby2000: It is amazing how you are taking this aggression with stride. You are teaching us a lot, thank you! May all of you stay safe, especially the children.

[scottishbadboy1]

Well done for standing up to the zionist scum

[bixby2000]

Is this a baby, sleeping on the bed while the soldier enters in the room ?

I admire this calm of you.

Why don't they want to understand that the message is now out, and there is no use to pestering any of you. No need to put the bird in cage, the song is now in the air... And if we have no images, we'll copy paste the old ones, like they copy-paste their agressivity, day after day, week after week.

[harryfear]

Great footage. Can you kindly tell me with what equipment you filmed this? Thanks.