[JAYYOUS, QALQILIA] Friday, the Israeli military arrested nine international and one Israeli peace activist after gassing and shooting rounds of live ammunition into a crowd of approximately 200 Palestinian men, women, and children who, accompanied by 30 International volunteers, staged a peaceful protest and sit-in at the site of Israeli destruction of Palestinian agricultural land. One of the activists was deported Saturday morning, the others are awaiting trial 'pending deportation'. The men of the group are held in prison.

From 7:00 AM Palestinian and Internationals gathered on land with the utmost determination to stop the uprooting of Palestinian olive trees carried out by Israeli government-contracted bulldozers. At 11:30 AM the Palestinians conducted Friday prayers on the land being destroyed, under the rifles of Israeli soldiers. At 12:30 PM Israeli soldiers began to fire tear gas, sound bombs, rubber-coated steel bullets, and live ammunition at a crowd which included many women and children. International and Israeli peace activists stepped in the way of the Israeli soldiers who were firing bullets at the Palestinian running away from the tear gas. At this point the Israeli soldiers grabbed the peace activists, tried to take away their cameras and any other evidence that showed the Israeli soldiers’ violent behavior. Many activists were hit with the butts of the soldiers’ rifle. One, Esther Serra, was tortured when an Israeli soldier pinned her down and poured water over her face after she had been tear gassed (water inflames the tear gas and worsens the effect on the skin). Canadian national Thomas Linner has been beaten very badly by the Israeli soldiers and requires medical attention. The arrested activists have been taken to Tsufim military base near Qalqilya.

The activists that have been arrested are as follows:
Two Irish nationals (Michael McGrath and Charlotte Carson); one Canadian national (Thomas Linner); one Swedish national (Ole Martin); one UK national (Cary Gibbons); one Spanish national (Ester Serra); and three American nationals (Susan Barney from Boston, Rodhika Sainath from Los Angeles, a Methodist minister, Reverend Gordon Hutchins, from Minnesota); and Israeli peace activist (Jonathan Pollak).