Life under occupation in Palestine

Life under occupation in Palestine

Sunday high noon in Beit Jala, my former neighbourhood, a calm village near Bethlehem- one of many places in Palestine where land is confiscated by the Israeli administration to build the separationwall to connect illegal Israeli settlements (illegally by international law, in this case Gilo and Har Gilo) with each other. The Cremisan Valley is a region where a monk monastry and a nun convent provide a school for Palestinian youth, where farmers grow grapes and olives. Today 200 people found together to protest against uprooting olive trees on private Palestinian farming land and against the wall.
Christians, moslems, men, women, youngsters, orthodox priests, nunnes and some foreigners- ordinary people like me and you are on the street. My collegues and me are observing, not the first time.
I wonder how less soldiers are here, maybe 20 or 25? Not more but military well equipped. Four of them occupied a Palestinian building and stand on it´s roof.
After marching 250 meters towards confiscated farming land- the demonstration suddenly stops.
I take my camera to shoot a picture, when the first soundbomb explods next to us, followed by massive teargas shooting from the soldiers on the roof. Unluckyly, I breathe that moment. People run, we do too, but it´s too late. I regognize- I cannot breathe, it reminds me of having a heavy athma attack- I didn´t face since my teenage years. I inhaled too much gas. Too slow I put alco pads into my nose, which make the gas less harmful. After using an emergency spray I can move away. We pass by people, a first aid worker from the red cresent is carrying a nun out of the situation, tears run over the faces of people, a reaction of the gas. My collegue cannot open her eyes for a couple of moments, my just burn.
20 or 30 people continue demonstrating under this conditions, one of them an elderly woman- another nun. A second round of teargas rains on people, soldiers with mashine guns hunt protestors, again- running- the demonstration ends here.
Massive and quickly- teargas, soundbombs, rubberbullets and life ammunition are used by Israeli occupation force even in peaceful demonstrations like today.
Another day under occupation in Palestine, a (nearly) forgotten place, in a world full of conflicts and injustice. Let´s step out of this crazyness.