Last update - 01:11 08/12/2004
41 anti-fence demonstrators are arrested
By Yoav Stern
Security forces arrested 41 Israeli left-wing activists who were participating in a demonstration against the separation fence yesterday near the West Bank village of Budrus.
Most were held in custody for several hours and then released.
The protesters, who were from the groups Anarchists Against the Fence and Ta'ayush Arab Jewish partnership, were demonstrating against the use of village grounds for the construction of the West Bank separation fence and against the Israel Defense Forces' decision to place Budrus resident Ahmed Awad under administrative detention for organizing anti-fence protests.
None of the Israelis arrested were carrying their identity cards, and when asked their names they all said, "My name is Ahmed Awad."
The IDF said it disrupted the demonstration because Israeli and foreign activists leading the protest violated an agreement the army had made with Budrus residents, whereby the protest would take place only near the village and not near the construction site.
Several hours after the arrests, four of the detainees were taken to the Givat Ze'ev police station for questioning. The rest were freed even though they objected to being released because they did not want the other four to be taken alone for questioning.
The demonstrators are upset that the site of the protests has been declared a "closed military zone," in an attempt, they say, to put an end to the protests. Jonathan Pollack, one of the activists, said he does not accept the legitimacy of this classification.
"This is a step that is totally anti-democratic because it negates our right to protest," said Pollack. "There are much better ways to cope with these protests."
The IDF said it does not oppose demonstrations in principle.
"We declared the area a closed military zone in order to continue working on the fence," the IDF Spokesman said yesterday. "We don't oppose protests as long as they do not disrupt the work."
(...)
In the West Bank village of Budrus on Tuesday, troops clashed with
Israelis and Palestinians protesting the building of Israel's
separation barrier. About two dozen protesters blocked the workers by
lying in front of a steamroller. The soldiers dispersed the protest
with tear gas.
The police and army would not say how many people were
detained, although several were seen being dragged off in handcuffs.