Eight more residents arrested in Ni’lin
Reageer (0)18-1-2010
Occupation staged a pre-dawn raid in the village of Ni’lin, arresting four young men before withdrawing in the early hours of the morning. Later in the day, four more residents turned themselves in to Occupation authorities.
This is the most serious arrest raid that the village has witnessed in some time, and is a dangerous indication that Occupation forces have decided to intensify their crackdown on the popular resistance.
At two in the morning, Occupation forces were sighted in Ni’lin. They broke into the homes of more than ten families, wrecking property and arresting a pair of brothers as well as several other young men. Finally, at four in the morning, soldiers finally withdrew from the village.
During the course of the day, four additional people turned themselves in to the Occupation authorities. They had received papers naming them as targets, and decided to save their families’ the trauma of the late night break-ins.
This raid, coming just days after the release of Jamal and Mohammed, signals that Occupation forces aim to continue, and even intensify, their attack against grassroots activists and villages protesting the Wall. This is not to say that the arrest of villagers, in particular youth, is new in Ni’lin; this year nearly 40 people have been detained, and many remain jailed.
The events in Ni’lin may also be another step of a new wave of arrests across the West Bank. Bi’lin, which already been subjected to a long-running arrest campaign, has seen more activists taken in the past weeks. There have also been warning signs in al-Ma’sara, with soldiers threatening Popular Committee members during night raids.
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