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Lebanese Army Fires Live Ammunition at Peaceful Protest
Ed - 29.06.2007 19:58
Lebanese Army Fires Live Ammunition at Peaceful Protest in Solidarity
with Nahr el Bared Refugee Camp
2 killed, 35 wounded, 7 critical cases shot above their waist
Today, during the second day of a three-day peaceful protest in the
Palestinian refugee camp of Badaoui in solidarity with Palestinian
refugees from Nahr el Bared, the Lebanese Army opened fire on the
protestors in Badawi refugee camp, killing two people and injuring 35, 7
critically.
A peaceful protest began within the Badawi Palestinian Refugee Camp in
north Lebanon. The protestors had signs reading “Nahr el Bared is in our
soul” and “Nahr el Bared, we won’t forget you.” The protestors were
calling for an end to the violence.
Energetic male youth continued the protest outside the camp, against the
wishes and attempts of the organizers.As they proceeded towards the
Lebanese army’s checkpoint, the army issued verbal warnings telling the
protestors to stay away. At this point, women and children raced to the
front to try to prevent the army from firing upon the crowd. The
Lebanese army shot two warning shots into the air and then immediately
responded with machine gun fire at the crowd of approximately 300
peaceful protesters. The army continued firing on people as they were
attempting to retrieve the wounded.
A senior official in the Lebanese Army stated that the Army responded in
this way to defend itself, and that its response was the minimal
response it could have undertaken.
Caoimhe Butterly, an activist and organizer, reported on what she had
personally witnessed. “The army first opened fire with 2 to 3 minutes of
sustained fire. When there was a lull in the shooting, we rushed in with
our hands above our heads. At this stage, the Army started firing on the
road again. Thus, people retrieving the wounded were wounded.”
In response to the Lebanese Army’s claim that a “significant number” of
the protestors had clubs, Butterly said, “the protestors did not have
clubs. Nobody had clubs. We saw the whole demonstration. They weren’t
carrying anything. We went from the beginning to the end of the
demonstration. We saw it all, and no one was carrying clubs.”
Furthermore, she continued, “the protest was never out of hand. They
weren’t throwing stones. At the time the Army opened fire, women were
sitting on the ground at the front, and a number of people even had
their backs to the soldiers. At the time the Army opened fire, people
were getting quieter and had stopped shouting, as if shouting is enough
to legitimize open fire.”
In response to the Lebanese Army’s claim that the protestors were 10
meters away from the checkpoint, Butterly said, “We were at a distance
where we couldn’t distinguish their faces; we could only distinguish
their figures. We were possibly at a distance of a few hundred meters,
and definitely not 10 meters. We were far away from the checkpoint.”
Two civilians were killed, and 35 wounded, including 5 women and 7
children below the age of 15 – including one 3-year-old child. An
elderly sheikh was wounded as he attempted to mediate. Seven of the
wounded are critically wounded, having been shot above the waist.
The protest was held in a response to the ongoing siege of Nahr al Bared
refugee camp in an attempt to highlight the worsening humanitarian
situation and indiscriminate shelling endured by the up to 3,000
civilians still remaining in the camp. The protest began yesterday by
initiating a three-day water-only symbolic hunger strike in solidarity
with family and friends in Nahr al Bared who are presently experiencing
the hunger, fear and vulnerability of facing a second month under siege.
The protest included a silent procession and die-in to highlight the
to-date 36 civilian casualties earlier this afternoon and an open mike
and opportunity for the press to interview people throughout the day who
have recently evacuated Nahr al Bared.
Eyewitness Contacts:
Caoimhe Butterly: +961 70 824084
Rasha Najdeh: + 961 3 963562
press release written by: Rania Masri, 961 3 135279
 Website: http://www.d4net.nl
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| aanvullingen | | The Lebanese Army's rules of engagement | Henk - 29.06.2007 22:45
Een cynische reactie van Amerikaanse Arabieren op deze afschuwelijke en misdadige actie van het Libanese leger:
The Glorious and Courageous Lebanese Army
The Lebanese Army's rules of engagement:
1. If a foreign army, such as the Israeli Occupation Forces, invade our country, destroy our infrastructure, and kill over 1,000 of our civilians, we shall serve them tea.
2. If Palestinian civilians non-violently demonstrate, we shall use live ammunition and fire at will.
 http://kabobfest.blogspot.com/2007/06/glorious-and-courageous-lebanese-army.html
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