WATCH: Israeli troops train assault rifles on medics and journalists

After arresting and wounding a Palestinian protester, Israeli Border Police attack medics who try to reach the detained man, as well as the photographers covering the arrest.

By Oren Ziv / Activestills.org

Israeli Border Police officers trained their assault rifles on medics and journalists during a protest at the DCO checkpoint on the outskirts of Ramallah last Friday, December 22. Since Trump’s Jerusalem declaration, the checkpoint has been the site of near-daily protests and clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians.

The video shows the area around the main square, where Israeli forces arrested a Palestinian demonstrator. During the arrest, Israeli troops beat and wound the Palestinian man. A large group of photographers covering the protest moved in to document the incident, while several medics attempted to reach the man who had been arrested. Even though there were no protesters around during the time of the arrest, Israeli forces released stun grenades and used their weapons to hit the journalists and the medics.

One of the medics says he was hit in the chest and then shot with a rubber-coated bullet from close range (the shooting does not appear in the video). Several minutes after the video, Israeli forces took the man they had arrested into their jeep and drove away.

Campaign banner 2

The protest began after the Friday noontime prayer, when around 100 Palestinian youth attempted to block the road leading to the checkpoint by burning tires. The army fired tear gas and started moving towards the protesters. At some point, a small group of Israeli Border Police managed to get close to the protesters from the side, firing tear-gas and rubber-coated bullets at them.

For three consecutive weeks, Palestinians in East Jerusalem, Gaza, and the West Bank have protested Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and announcement that the U.S. embassy will move to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. Israeli forces killed have killed at least eight Palestinians, including double-amputee Ibrahim Abu Thuraya, 29, and wounded hundreds more since the protests began.

Israeli border police arrest a Palestinian near the DCO/Beit El checkpoint. (Activestills/Oren Ziv)
Israeli Border Police arrest a Palestinian near the DCO/Beit El checkpoint. (Activestills/Oren Ziv)