[GushShalom] The day after the shooting of peace activists

[Gush Shalom (Israeli Peace Bloc)]

GUSH SHALOM  pob 3322, Tel-Aviv 61033 www.gush-shalom.org

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The day after the shooting of peace activists
A lot of fury - a lot of attention
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International release
Tel-Aviv, December 27, 2003

We just come back from a fiery demonstration - in protest of yesterday's 
shooting at peace activists. Especially, the story of the seriously-wounded 
Gil Na'amati continues to make headlines. The 22 -year old kibbutznik had 
to be raced to hospital after he lost consciousness because of his heavy 
bleeding. Both his legs were operated to remove bullets; in one leg the 
knee was involved. The non-violent though militant protest at the 
Separation Fence was his first demonstration after he only two weeks ago 
finished his three years of military service. (His father told on TV  that Gil  
had become so rebellious exactly because of what he had seen and had to 
participate in at the roadblocks in the West Bank.)

This Saturday evening hundreds of furious, many of them young, 
demonstrators blocked for hours the road in front of Tel-Aviv's Defence 
Ministry. Among them were also our veterans such as Uri Avnery and 
Teddy Katz, as well as Oren Medicks and Nimrod Kerrett who both 
became very involved in the anti-Wall protest and the Masha camp.
The police came with a far too small force and succeeded to arrest eleven - 
among them David Tartakover, graphic artist and laureate of the 
prestigious Israel Prize. The others just continued their sit-in on the road.

While blocking the road slogans were chanted "We won't kill nor be killed 
for the settlements" (some chanted "for Zionism" which in Hebrew also 
produces an acceptable rhyme and rhythm) and fitting placards were held 
up. Anarchists Against The Wall: "When they shot at Palestinians we 
were silent!"; the anti-militaristic Profile Hadash "Purity of arms - a 
contradiction in terms!"; from the Gush Shalom store: "The Evil Wall Must 
Fall!" The gay peace group Kvisa Schora was represented, but what 
especially attracted media attention was the presence of Knesset Member 
and Meretz Leader Ran Cohen.

When out of nowhere suddenly the prominent anarchist activist Yonathan 
Pollack appeared (straight from the Ariel Police Station where he had been 
held since yesterday) it was decided to end the demonstration and march 
collectively to the Tel-Aviv (Yarkon) Police Station and demand there the 
release of the detained activists. 

The police station was sort of besieged, and through the mediation of 
lawyer Yoni Lerman and Leah Tzemel it was agreed to lift the siege in 
return for the release of all activists.

Read further the reports in Ha'aretz, Jerusalem Post and for the Hebrew 
readers, Y-net and Ma'ariv

(English)
http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/376391.html    
 (Hebrew)
http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasite/spages/376445.html   

(English)
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFul
l&cid=1072509699711&p=1008596981749

(Hebrew)
http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-2850186,00.html

(Hebrew)
http://images.maariv.co.il/channels/1/ART/616/290.html


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