The Seige in Nablus Today

spent the day dealing with heart breaking scenes, bullets flying, grenades being launched, and one dead 15 year old.

we got awoken by a call at 6:00am, and it is now 10:00pm and we are still not done so i'll rehash it tomorrow. for now know that i am ok, shaken, and sore but safe. i just wrote a press release that i'll paste the link to. please send it around, post to indymedia or whatever it is you do with information.

in brief, the israeli army invaded a nablus neighborhood today. demolished many homes, shot and injured over 20 demonstrators, and killed one, a 15 year old boy named Muntasir. we spent the day documenting, photographing, escorting people, helping evacuate injured, negotiating with soldiers, dodging bullets and other flying objects...you know the usual ISM day.

as i write, the iman at the mosque is recounting the days events and asking people to assemble in the streets tomorrow to protest the attack and mourn the young martyr.

the palestinians put up a good fight too...though this is not the focus of the press release so i'll hit in in brief. when we got there, we narrowly missed a huge explosion detonated by palestinian fighters. we were about 50 meters from the blast designated to strike advancing military jeeps...the shabab attacked the army with stones, the army responded by shooting them...one died, many more shot and injured. later in the day, very briefly, some palestinian fighters shot at the israeli military, the military shot at them but hit nothing. this happened about 12 hours after the siege had begun, after Muntasir had been martyred, after the soldiers had been shooting at unarmed demonstrators all day and shooting grenades into a civilian home. when the armoured american-made bulldozer tried to exit the area, palestinians on the rooftops dropped chairs, windows, doors, tables and huge rocks on it. to combat the invading army, some threw stones, others bottles, and on two occasions, small bombs.

the scene was indescribable. bulldozers just wrecking without mercy. soldiers shooting kids. snipers in people's homes. soldiers shooting from the windows of schools. a baby being carried to an ambulance then the ambulance being blocked from leaving. people crying over their homes. bombs, grenades and armoured things that looked nearly tank-like.

i can't recount the news but its been heavy all over.

al aqsa martyrs brigades goes reacts to an israeli incursion right near us...detonates a car bomb, engages in armed clashes, claims to have injured 6

below are some ISM nablus reports we worked on the last few days, please do read:

today's press release and some of my pics..more to come in an ISM nablus photo series

2 shot at a checkpoint right near us while we were at the demolition

our report from thursday's action at the iraq burin flying checkpoint

the weekly beating in bil'in...all of ISM nablus was injured except for me

that's all i can do for right now...maybe some more tomorrow if i have time. my head's just not with me...i have a head ache from all the machine gun fire and explosions, i need sleep and food.

all my love from besieged and occupied palestine, nablus, the west bank:

michael