Israeli soldiers invaded, on Wednesday at night, the West Bank village of Bil’in, near Ramallah, and searched the home of a local organizer of nonviolent protest against the Annexation Wall. The invasion is the second on Wednesday.The Friends of Foredoom and Justice in Bil’in (FFJ) reported that the invasion was carried out around 8 pm, while the first invasion to the village was carried out around 3 am Wednesday.
Soldiers broke into the home of Ashraf al-Khatib of the local Popular Committee Against the Wall and barged into his residence before searching and ransacking it. The army also broke into al-Khatib’s neighbor’s home and searched it causing damage.
Later in the night, soldiers invaded the village once again and broke into the house of al-Khatib, once again, but he was not there. The army then left the village without conducting any arrests.
The FFJ said that soldiers have invaded Bil’in at least four times in the last three days, and added that the army is seeking to abduct al-Khatib.
Al-Khatib received a phone call form an officer of the Israeli Intelligence (Shin Bet) who demanded that he head to the Ofer Military Prison for interrogation.
The officer made it clear to al-Khatib that unless he shows up for interrogation, the army will keep invading the village and breaking into his home.
Bil’in is one of the leading Palestinian villages in nonviolent and creative resistance against the Annexation Wall and settlements.
It became a target for repeated Israeli invasion and attacks and the army is trying to keep international and Israeli peace activists out of the village by declaring it a “closed military zone”.
Soldiers repeatedly resort to the use of excessive force against the local population, as well as towards Israeli and international protesters, leading to several casualties.
