Ramallah (06/02/2020) - The first month of 2020 witnessed a total of 27 violations against media freedoms in Palestine, 23 of which were committed by the occupation forces and authorities, while various Palestinian authorities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip committed only 4 violations.
This represents a relative decline compared to what the preceding month had witnessed in (December 2019), that is a total of 36 violations, 15 violations committed by the Israeli occupation forces, similarly, (15 violations) committed by Facebook, and 6 violations committed by different Palestinian authorities.
Among the most tragic incidents witnessed by the past month, was when the doctors at Jordan Hospital in the capital, Amman, informed the journalist Attia Mohammad Darwish (32 years old, from Gaza) that he completely lost his sight in the eye that was injured more than a year ago (on 14th Dec. 2018) by a gas bomb, which was fired at him by the Israeli soldiers, and there was no hope of rescue or consistent treatment.
Darwish was informed that he completely lost sight in his eye about three months after the journalist, Moath Amarneh, lost sight in his left eye in similar circumstances, as he was shot by an Israeli soldier while he was covering a peaceful protest against the settlement in Souref, West Bank.
Israeli Violations:
The number of Israeli violations increased from 15 violations in December 2019 to 23 in January 2020. The most prominent of which is the abuse of photojournalist Thaer Abdel Nasser Al-Sharif over several hours after he was detained by the Israeli occupation soldiers at an army point near Arroub camp in the West Bank, and summoning the cameraman Abdel Mohsen Shalaldeh by the Israeli occupation Intelligence and threatening him with death if he continues to film around Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron.
The Israeli violations documented last month (January 2020) have affected Reuters Cameraman Adel Abu Neima (detained and prevented from coverage), WAFA Agency Staff consisting of the cameraman Sulaiman Mahmoud Abu Srour, and reporter Nadeem Ahmad Alawi (prevented from coverage), Mohammad Jareer Hamdan (sprayed with pepper), Yazan Jafar Abu Salah (arrested), cameraman Iyad Hassan Abu Shalabk (assaulted and prevented from coverage), Shows presenter at Palestine TV journalist Thaer Abdel Nasser Al-Shareef who was arrested and detained for four hours and a half by the occupation soldiers at one of the military army points near Arroub Camp, not to mention he was assaulted and abused several times, the cameraman Rabee Hassan Muneer (suffocated and passed out), the cameraman Abdelmuhsen Tayseer Shalaldeh (summoned and threatened with death if continued to film near the Cave of the Patriarchs), in addition to detaining the journalists: Fathi Khaleel Barahma, Omar Ahmad Hassan Abu Awad, Adel Abu Nema, Sulaiman Mahmoud Sulaiman Abu Srour, by the Israeli occupation forces and preventing journalists from covering two protesting events organized in Jericho and the Valleys, assaulting Palestine TV staff (including the cameraman Fadi Taleb Khilaf, the cameraman Thaer Yousef Arjan, and reporter Azmi Waleed Banat) by firing a gas bomb at them and prevent them from covering events in Arroub Camp.
Furthermore, the doctors at Jordan Hospital in the capital Amman informed the photojournalist Attia Mohammad Darwish, who was injured more than a year ago by a gas bomb in the face (fired directly by one of the Israeli soldiers) in the eye, that he has lost sight completely in the eye.
Palestinian Violations:
The Palestinian violations included assaulting the journalists Mohammad Awad and Mohammad Al-Masri by members of the Palestinian Authority's National Security (who are stationed at what is known as “Point 5/5” in Beit Hanoun/Erez checkpoint, Gaza Strip), preventing Palestine TV staff consisting of the reporter Mohammad Salim Abu Hatab, and the cameraman Hossam Attiya Al-Masri, to prepare a report on the damage caused by the weather conditions in Khan Yunis and deleting a filmed material they had completed earlier.
Details of Violations:
(6th Jan.) The occupation soldiers assaulted a number of journalists and prevented them from covering a Palestinian protesting march organized at the entrance of Nabi Ilyas Village, eastern Qalqilya.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, a peaceful demonstration was organized to take place on the afternoon of 6th Jan. 2020, on the settlement street 55, that passes near the entrance of Nabi Ilyas Village, eastern Qalqilya, and that many journalists and media agencies arrived to cover the demonstration. In the meantime, at around 12:00PM on that day, while ROYA TV staff, consisting of the West Bank reporter Hafeth Mahmoud Abu Sabra (32 years old), his coworker the cameraman Ashraf Mohammad Saleem Dar Zaid (35 years old), was presenting a live statement during the newscast, a group of soldiers approached and one of the soldiers pulled out the cable of the live broadcasting device while the staff was going on air, which led to stop the live streaming in the studio. . Not only this, but the soldier also pushed the reporter Abu Sabra and ordered them to keep a distance of no less than two hundred meters claiming that it is “a closed military zone”. Furthermore, the occupation soldiers also prevented the remaining journalists from covering the demonstration which involved assaulting some demonstrators and citizens by settlers. The prevention from coverage escalated to pushing the following journalists very hard and ordering them to stay away.
The Syrian News Channel Staff consists of reporter Jeries Khaleel Azer (30 years old), the Channel cameraman Mutasem Sameer Saqf Al-Hait (32 years old), Palestine TV reporter in Qalqilya Ahmad Othman Shawer (33 years old), and the freelance photojournalist Mahmoud Fawzi Ismail (30 years old), the Colonization & Wall Resistance Commission cameraman Mohammad Jihad Hamdan (29 years old).
(6th Jan.) The Israeli occupation soldiers assaulted a number of journalists and prevented them from covering the demolition and dismantling of a number of houses and facilities of Palestinian citizens in Al-Auja Village, northern Jericho.
According to the investigations of MADA field researcher, a force of the occupation army arrived in the morning on Monday corresponding 6th Jan. 2020 to Al-Auja Village, northern Jericho, and started demolishing three brics and dismantled more than 15 housing units of citizens in the village. A number of journalists arrived to cover the events, including Reuters Cameraman Adel Ibrahim Abu Neima (52 years old), from Jericho. At 9:30, while the journalist Abu Neima was alongside a number of colleagues who were filming the demolition (was not wearing the PRESS helmet and vest), and they were next to a number of the village residents, while the Israeli soldiers were firing gas bombs, rubber coated metal bullets and live bullets at the residents not to mention they arrested a number of them including journalist Adel Ibrahim Abu Neima.
One of the Israeli soldiers handcuffed Abu Neiman and took him by force to one of the military jeeps, detained him in there for two hours, preventing him from covering the demolition. At around 2:30PM on the same day, one of the soldiers arrested three journalists, pushed and prevented them from covering the events, namely: WAFA Agency cameraman Sulaiman Mahmoud Sulaiman Abu Srour (37 years old), who was threatened by the soldiers to be arrested if he did not leave the area forcing him to move away by 700 meters from the event location. They also impeded the arrival of his coworker, WAFA reporter Nadeem Ahmad Mousa Alawi (25 years old). Furthermore, the soldiers assaulted Al-Awda TV reporter, and employee of Colonization & Wall Resistance Commission Mohammad Jreir Tawfiq Hamdan (40 years old), as one of the soldiers sprayed a number of citizens with pepper spray including Hamdan resulting in his suffocation.
(13th Jan.) The Israeli Intelligence summoned the photojournalist Abdelmuhsen Tayseer Shaladeh and threatened him with murder if he continued filming around the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, the photojournalist Abdelmuhsen Tayseer Shalaldeh (28 years old), from Hebron, works for G Media and Al-Jazeera Documentary, received at around 6:00PM, on Sunday 12th Jan. 2020 a phone call from an Israeli officer who informed him of the need to come to Gush Etzion Settlement Cluster, the Israeli Intelligence Investigation Center, at 10:00AM, on the following morning Monday corresponding 13th Jan. 2020. The journalist Shalaldeh went on the said schedule to Etzion Investigation Center, southern Bethlehem, where an intelligence officer detained him for half an hour. The Israeli officer told Shalaldeh that filming around the Ibrahimi Mosque and the detainees bothers the (Israeli Intelligence Services and Army), and threatened him to stop and that this was his last warning. When Shalaldeh left the headquarters, another officer threatened with murder and told him that it was the last he will be questioned, next time he will be “assassinated”. Abulmuhsen asked the officer whether he was serious or not, and the latter replied that he was serious and things might end up with assassination.
(14th Jan.) A Doctor at Jordan Hospital informed the cameraman Attia Mohammad Darwish who was injured by a gas bomb in the face fired at him by one of the occupation soldiers a year ago that he completely lost sight in his eye and there is nothing that can be done about it.
According to the investigations of MADA field researcher, Attia Mohammad Ali Darwish (32 years old), a freelance photojournalist working for several institutions including AL-Ray Agency in Gaza, has arrived in the afternoon of Friday corresponding 14th Dec. 2018 to Malka eastern Gaza to cover the peaceful return march organized weekly in Gaza Strip.
At around 5:00PM on that day, and while he was 300 meters away from the separation fence on the other side of which the Israeli soldiers were deployed, taking photographs of the demonstrators, he was injured by a gas bomb in the face (lower his left eye) fired at him by one of the occupation soldiers. It should be noted that Darwish was in the known Press uniform (helmet and vest). Upon his injury, he was immediately transferred by an ambulance to Dar Al-Shifa Hospital, where he was taken to the ICU. Two days later (Sunday, corresponding 16th Dec. 2018) he underwent a surgery to remove the fragmented bone and place platinum in his face. He stayed in the hospital until 21st Dec. 2018, and then he was transferred to the Palestinian Red Crescent Al-Quds Hospital, where he stayed for a week under supervision. Then he was discharged and returned home on 28th Dec. 2018.
Given Darwish inability to clearly see post the injury, and since his attempts to get a medical transfer to the Eye Hospital in Cairo have failed, he traveled in February 2019, at his own expense, to Egypt, where the doctors informed him that there is nothing that can be done to his eye given the fragmentation caused to it as a result of the injury not to mention that a relatively long time passed since he was injured. He returned to Gaza Strip. On Wednesday, corresponding 15 Jan. 2020, he left Gaza Strip through Rafah Land Crossing and went to Jordan to receive treatment, after he got a medical transfer through the Palestinian Authority. On 18th Jan. 2020, he was admitted to Jordan Hospital in Amman, and once he was diagnosed, the doctors informed him that “there is not hope to treat his eye” and that he completely lost sight and it will always be like this. Darwish stayed at Jordan Hospital for one month as it was decided to perform a plastic surgery to his face and hearing since it was affected by the injury.
(15th Jan.) The Palestinian Authority Security officers assaulted the journalists Mohammad Awad and Mohammad Al-Masri while they were in what is known as “Point 5/5” in Beit Hanoun/Erez checkpoint, Gaza Strip to cover the release of prisoner Alaa Abu Jazar from the Israeli Occupation Prisons, through Beit Hanoun Checkppoint.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, Dunia Al-Watan e-Newspaper reporter, Mohammad Mahmoud Shaban Awad (30 years old), and the cameraman of Gaza Media Agency Mohammad Hazem Sami Al-MAsri (22 years old) have arrived on the afternoon of Wednesday 15th Jan. 2020, to what is known as (5/5) Point of the Palestinian Authority Services, at Beit Hanoun Checkpoint, Gaza Strip, to cover the arrival of prisoner Alaa Abu Jazar after he was released from the Israeli occupation prisons where he spent 17 years of his life.
At around 2:30PM, the security officer evacuated the citizens and journalists given the limited space. This resulted in altercation between the journalists (Al-Masri and Awad) and one of the security officers where one of the Palestinian Authority Security officers and three of his colleagues assaulted the journalists Awad and Al-Masri by beating and cursing, even though the journalists’ entrance was coordinated by the Palestinian Authority competent bodies to facilitate their mission. Their cell phones were seized by one of the police officers when they tried to contact the Crossings General Director Nathmi Muhanna. They were taken out of (5/5) point to the external gate. At that moment, the Director of Intelligence (Abu Ibrahim Al-Zaanain) came, and ordered the journalists to be taken to listen to their statements to find out what happened.
After about half an hour, members of the National Security Agency came and asked the Director of Intelligence "Al-Zaanain" to take the journalists to another investigation room where 4 security officers of the intelligence and preventive security were present. They talked to them about what happened, and in the meantime the security office (with whom the altercation took place along with three of his colleagues) entered. His colleagues took him out of the room and continued questioning the journalists about what had happened and took them out to continue their coverage of releasing the prisoner Abu Jazar.
However, the security officer who assaulted them tried to come in their away again, which forced the intelligence director to ask the National Security officer to accompany the journalists Awad and Al-Masri on their way out to the gate of Point (3/3) of Hamad Security, where two Hamas security officers questioned them about what happened with them at the Palestinian Authority Security point, but they refused to respond unless in their institutions or in the presence of the Syndicate, and then they went home.
(21st Jan.) The Israeli occupation forces arrested the journalist Yazan Abu Salah, on his way back from Ramallah City to his house in Arraba, southern Jenin.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, at 2:00PM, on 21st Jan. 2019, while Yazan Jafar Fawzi Abdullah Abu Salah (24 years old), from Arraba, Jenin, a reporter of Ramallah News Newspaper, and Al-Hadaf Magazine on Facebook, was on his way home from Ramallah to Arraba, two Israeli military jeeps followed the vehicle that Yazan was riding on the road after Zatara checkpoint, southern Nablus, pulled over the vehicle and arrested Yazan. Yazan’s family contacted the complaints office in Jerusalem and learned that “currently” he was at Jalama Investigation Center.
(22nd Jan.) Officers from the “Internal Security” in Khan Younes, Gaza Strip prevented Palestine TV staff from preparing a press report on the death of a citizen whose house roof fall above her due to the heavy rain and other losses caused by the depression.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, Palestine TV staff, consisting of: reporter Mohammad Salim Abu Hatab (48 years old) and cameraman Hossam Attia Al-Masri (43 years old), both of whom are residents of Khan Younis camp, have arrived at around 9:30AM in the morning on Wednesday 22nd Jan. 2020, to the house of citizen Hind Kassab, who died as a result of the collapse of her house roof in Khan Younis, due to the rains, to prepare a press report, after asking the neighbors for permission. During filming (approximately at 9:45AM in the morning - that is, fifteen minutes after their arrival in the place), two civilians, dressed in civilian clothes, arrived and said that they were officers of the "Internal Security", and they asked Palestine TV staff to stop filming and leave the place immediately. T
he security officers asked the TV reporter, Mohammad Abu Hatab, for his identity card. The latter refused at first, asking them to show proof of being officer of the internal security, but they refused to respond to him. So the journalist Abu Hatab showed his card and gave it to one of the officers who checked it and gave it back. One of the security officers showed a card that did not clearly reveal the identity of holder. They asked the staff to leave the dead citizen’s house and the staff responded. While the staff was leaving the house, one of the security officers made a phone call, and immediately asked the cameraman Hussam Al-Masri to delete whatever he has filmed in front of him. The cameraman responded and deleted the filmed material. Meanwhile, journalist Abu Hatab informed one of the security officers that he and his colleague intend to go to Salah El-Din Street near the European Hospital in Khan Younis, to prepare a report about an area that wad drowning in rain water, for the sake of their report that they were trying to prepare about the weather conditions, but one of the officers told him: “you are not allowed to film anything in Khan Younis at all, neither you nor the TV, if you want to film, go see the Internal Security Office in the governorate and ask for authorization to film”. This forced the staff to stop working and cancel the report they were about to prepare. The reporter then informed the TV Management –Gaza Strip Office of the incident, and they left the place at around 10:10AM on the same day.
(24th Jan.) The Israeli security officers assaulted the photojournalist Iyad Abu Shalbak, while he was covering the participation of hundreds of citizens at Al-Fajir Prayer at Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, Iyad Hassan Abu Shalbak (39 years old), the cameraman of ROYA TV, arrived at an early house, on the morning of 24th Jan. 2020, to the square of Al-Aqsa Mosque to cover the participation of thousands of citizens in the prayers of Al-Fajir on Friday as part of the campaign “Al-Fajir Al-Atheem” launched by activists to perform Al-Fajir prayers. This is all part of Palestinian attempts to suppress semi-daily attacks by settlers in Al-Aqsa Mosque.
At around 6:15AM, and after large forces of the Israeli occupation security and police raided several places in Al-Aqsa squares, the cameraman Abu Shalbak went from the square of the farthest mosque to the Dome of the Rock square (150 meters away from where he was at) and there he saw dozens of soldiers carrying weapons in the square forcing the prayers and women to leave and assaulting them by beating and firing rubber bullets. While he was doing his work there, one of “Al-Yasam” Israeli military unit approached the cameraman Abu Shalbak and smacked him with a stick on his right leg. Then another security officer approached and smacked him again while yelling “do not film… do not film… get out of here…het out of her”. Note that these officers of the Israeli unit were smacking prayers violently and hysterically in the meantime. After about a minute, a third security officer attacked the cameraman Abu Shalbak, slapped him with his hand on his face and pushed him toward the stairs leading to the farthest mosque square, amid threatening him of arrest if he continued filming. The cameraman Abu Shalbak suffered bruises and scratches in the face and leg as a result of this attack, and he received first aid in the field by volunteer paramedics who were in the squares of Al-Aqsa Mosque at that time.
(25th Jan.) The Israeli occupation forces arrested journalist Thaer Abdel Nasser Al-Sharif, 28 years old, and detained him for several hours, during which they subjected him to severe abuse, after they sprayed him and his family with pepper.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, Thaer Abdel Nasser Ahmad Sharif (28 years old), from Arroub Refugee Camp, northern Hebron, a show presented at Palestine TV, arrived at 5:30PM, on Saturday, corresponding 25th Jan. 2020 to his family house 10 meters away from the bypass road (60) in Arroub Refugee Camp, northern Hebron, to meet one of the persons working at his place in the second floor of his family house. When he arrived the house, two of the occupations soldiers and one officer were in front of his family house detaining two young men, the officer asked Thaer to step forward and show his personal identity card, and Thaer responded and showed his ID.
However, the officer asked Thaer to bend and put his ID on the floor, but Thaer refused to do so. After few minutes of argument, the officer counted 3-2-1, and one of the soldiers assaulted him and punched him on his neck. Then he was assaulted by two soldiers who grabbed him from his hands and dropped him down on the floor while the officer squeezed his knee against Thaer’s neck. The young men started shouting at the soldiers and the latter pulled their weapons at the young men. The journalist Al-Sharif started shouting for his family, and immediately his father and three of his brothers rushed to him. In the meantime, the journalist managed to push away the officer and got up. Then the officer pulled out of his pocket a bottle of pepper gas, sprayed the journalist and his family, and forced them into the house, while his fluent Hebrew-speaking father remained arguing with the soldiers. Few minutes later, the officer asked the journalist Al-Sharif, who was suffering from suffocation due to inhaling gas (pepper) and his family, to step against the wall and raise his hands up to be searched.
The officer searched Thaer and handcuffed his hands to the back with a plastic cuffs, and tried to bend him down, but the journalist refused to respond. So, the officer punched him on his neck and took him to the military tower 50 meters away. While the two soldiers followed him, and beat him up with their hands on his head, back, and sides, until they reached the military tower. The officer walked the journalist Al-Sharif into a narrow corridor, and the soldiers started arguing, then the officer began insulting the journalist with humiliating words, and then blindfolded him with a piece of cloth, walked several meters and pushed him forcefully, until his head hit a concrete wall, and then asked him to sit on the floor. As soon as the officer finished talking, one of the soldiers kicked Al-Sharif strongly on his knees several times, until he fell on the ground, and continued beating him on his feet while Al-Sharif was screaming in pain of his feet and right hand, whose fingers are amputated as a result of an old work injury. Half an hour later, the beatings stopped, but the soldiers continued to insult him.
One of the soldiers asked the journalist to stand up, but he could not, because of the pain in his legs and right hand, as a result of the beating and severe cold. Two soldiers helped him stand up and asked him to sit down again. Al-Sharif tried to sit down very slowly due to the pain he was feeling, but one of the soldiers violently kicked him on his legs and he fell on the ground. After that, the journalist was assaulted with hands by one of the soldiers on his abdomen, head and back. At around 7:00PM, a soldier took him to a small room and sat him on a chair with plastic flooring. The journalist was able to look from under the cover fixed to his head, and found himself inside a bathroom. Shortly after, he started screaming at the soldiers because of the pain in his feet and hands, and one of the soldiers opened the door and began to insult the journalist and slapped him on his head several times. Few minutes later, the journalist Al-Sharif began to feel a state of breakdown due to coldness and pain, so he shouted at the soldiers, and one of them came, spat on Al-Sharif several times, and beat him again. The insults and spitting by the soldiers continued intermittently for about an hour, after which the soldiers took the journalist out of the bathroom, walked him several meters and sat him on tinplate that was very cold and wet. Shortly after that, Al-Sharif tried to spread his legs to relieve them, but he felt something strongly smacking his (testicles), he screamed in pain while the soldiers continued to assault him with hands and spitting several times on him. In the meantime, the journalist was hearing pictures being taken from one of the soldier’s cell phones, as if the soldier was filming the assault. At about 10:00PM, one of the soldiers helped him get up and walked several meters by him, removed the blindfold from his eyes, removed the plastic cuffs, and asked him to go to the officer who was standing on the other side of the road. Al-Sharif was unable to move, and he felt dizziness, until one of the citizens in the street approached him and helped him pass the road until he reached the officer who started threatening him with arrest and assault in case of "violating the orders of the soldiers." Al-Sharif returned to his family house at 10:00, and he was exhausted and tired as a result of being beaten and subjected to severe cold.
(29th Jan.) The Israeli occupation forces detained three press staffs and prevented them from reaching Al-Maleh area in the northern Valleys to cover a peaceful event organized there to protest against Washington deal of century, which included enabling Israel to annex the Jordan Valley region. They also prevented the press staffs to cover another protest taking place in Al-Auja, on the same day.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, the journalist Fathi Khaleel Barahma and Omar Ahmad Hassan Abu Awad, who work for Palestine TV, as well as the journalist Adel Abu Neima who works for Reuters Agency, and journalist Sulaiman Mahmoud Sulaiman Abu Srour, who works for WAFA News Agency, all from Jericho, have took off, at 9:00AM, on Wednesday corresponding 29th Jan. 2020, from Jericho towards Al-MAleh area (eastern Tubas), northern Valleys, to cover a peaceful popular protest called for by the Colonization & Wall Resistance Commission and Tubas Governorate against the deal of century announced by Washington under which the Israeli occupation can annex to its territories the Valleys.
At 9:40, the journalists who were together in the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation vehicle arrived to Al-Jiftlik Village (located on the road to Al-Maleh area where they were heading). The Israeli soldiers who had set up more than one checkpoint to prevent the citizens from going to Al-Maleh area to participate in the protest, stopped the journalists and asked them for their press and personal cards, and a soldier photographed the same on his mobile phone, and then he returned the cards of the journalists, Adel Abu Neima and Fathi Brahma. He asked the journalists, Sulaiman Mahmoud Abu Srour and the journalist Omar Abu Awad, to get off the vehicle and forced them to sit in a place about 25 meters away from the vehicle. The soldier was accompanied by an Israeli policeman and three people in civilian clothes.
The two journalists, Abu Awad and Abu Srour, were pushed and threatened with arrest by the soldier and his companions if they saw them in the Valleys region. They seized WAFA Agency press card from Abu Srour, and the Journalists Syndicate card of Omar Abu Awad claiming they are invalid (expired on 31st Dec. 2019) and forced them all to go back to Jericho and prevented them from arriving to Al-Maleh area where they heading. On their way back, when they approached Fasayel Village, which is adjacent to Jericho, at approximately 12:00PM, they watched a popular march of Palestinian citizens at the entrance to the settlement of "Maali Ephraim", which is adjacent Fasayel Village. They stopped and got off the vehicle to cover the march, but the occupation forces that were in the place prevented the cameramen Omar Ahmad Abu Awad and Sulaiman Mahmoud Abu Srour again to cover the march. While an Israeli police officer tried to seize the camera of Palestine TV, and prevented the journalist Fathi Brahma from covering the event. About 20 soldiers gathered at the location of the journalists and ordered them to leave the place and not to film, claiming that the place is a "military zone", and the soldiers threatened the driver of Palestine TV vehicle Samer Asaad Issa Abu Salman, to seize his driver's license, and the vehicle, and give him a ticket of 1000 NIS if he did not leave the place, which prompted him to leave the place immediately.
(30th Jan.) The cameraman Rabee Hassan Mouneer was suffocated until he passed out while he was covering a demonstration at Al-Bireh entrance that the soldiers attacked more than once with a barrage of suffocating gas bombs.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, at around 1:00PM, on Thursday corresponding 30th Jan. 2020, a march called for by the national and Islamic forces was launched to condemn “the deal of century” announced by the American President Donald Trump. About 200 people took part in the march, which was launched from the medical products company in Al-Bireh, and headed towards "Beit El military checkpoint, located at a distance of about 200-300 meters away from the launching location. When the march arrived “City INN” Square at around 1:30PM, three Israeli military vehicles came from the DCO gate and started firing a barrage of tear gas bombs at the demonstrators causing multiple cases of suffocation among them. The heavy firing of gas bombs wounded the cameraman of "Al-Arabi" TV, Rabee Hassan Mouneer, (38 years old), with a state of severe suffocation, as he was transferred by paramedics to an ambulance of the Palestinian Red Crescent, which was parked at a distance of about 30 meters, and there he was provided with first aid until his situation stabilized, and he returned to continue his work and cover the events of the demonstration again. At around 2:30PM, a large force of the occupation army raided the site again and fired heavy gas bombs at the demonstrators and journalists, resulting in dozens of cases of suffocation among the demonstrators. The journalist Rabee was injured again with suffocation, and shortness of breath until he passed out (fainted) which forced the ambulance staff in the area to quickly transfer him to Al-Mostaqbal Hospital, 2 kilometers away from the demonstration, where he received first aid and a respirator (Oxygen) was placed for him until he regain consciousness. At about 4:00PM, he was transferred to the Palestine Medical Complex in Ramallah, as he was suffering from chest aches as a result of this injury. He received further aid, examinations, Electrocardiography, and x-ray images to check his status that the doctors described as minor. He stayed in the hospital until 6:30PM and then he was discharged. The doctors recommended him to go see a pulmonologist and cardiologist.
(31st Jan.) The Israeli occupation soldiers assaulted and prevented Palestine TV staff from covering the clashes taking place in Arroub Camp, northern Hebron.
According to the investigations of MADA researcher, Palestine TV staff, consisting of the journalists: cameraman Fadi Taleb Khilaf (33 years old), cameraman Thaer Yousef Arjan (38 years old), and reporter Azmi Waleed Banat (24 years old), went to Arroub Refugee Camp, northern Hebron, at around 12:00PM, on Friday, corresponding 31st Jan. 2019, to cover a peaceful march called for by the national forces in the camp to condemn “the deal announced by the American President Donald Trump”.
Once Friday prayer ended, the march arrived to the Distribution Center of UNRWA where the demonstrators started throwing stones at the occupation soldiers and the latter responded with sound and gas bombs randomly at them and the journalists who arrived to cover the events. This forced Palestine TV staff to go to one of the buildings near the clashes, and they went up on its roof on the third floor to cover what was going on. Meanwhile, the soldiers fired a gas bomb at the building where Palestine TV staff was located, resulting in suffocation. Minutes later, the staff returned to transmit the events live, during which three Israeli soldiers went up to the roof of the building, and they asked the staff to stop broadcasting. The soldiers tried to prevent them from broadcasting by placing their hands on the camera, the soldiers continued to harass the staff until they forced them to leave the building after they threatened the staff to use force, should it not obey the orders. Meanwhile, journalists were forced to leave the camp due to the heavy tear gas bombs.
