In Palestine, first thing we do under fire is identify the type of weapons israeli cops/soldiers are holding. This defines your strategy for resisting + trying to be safe. Here’s a thread on identifying weaponry for those out there fighting across Turtle Island♥️
Watching live as Israeli army broke into the French hospital in Jerusalem and attacked the funeral of Shireen Abu Aqleh. They almost knocked down her casket. She was put in a hearse & the army is ripping flowers and Palestinian flags off the hearse… I am in shock…
Seeing lots of *not great* advice about teargas on my feed! From years experience with US made teargas in Palestine, here's my two cents: don’t put water on your skin or face unless you have a steady stream like a shower. It'll feel good for a sec then burn more than before!!
It’s very lonely to hear people say they’re afraid to voice solidarity w Palestinians because of fear of backlash or lost opportunities.
Palestinians don’t have that choice & are constantly smeared, gaslit, excluded, policed. If we are brave together we can turn the tide.
Instead of going to work, people across Palestine have been protesting. Israeli snipers have the green light. In the small village of Nabi Saleh - only 600 people - there have been 13 people shot with live ammunition so far just today!!!
#PalestineOnStrike
#SaveSheikhJarrah
The march moved from Ramallah to Beit El, an illegal israeli settlement nearby. Dozens of cabs drove the crowd, refusing payment. The Israeli army started shooting live ammunition at our protest though many kids were present. Last update I hear there were 2 serious injuries.
The martyr Fadi Washaheh, who was shot by israeli soldiers at a protest 3 weeks ago & died from his injuries yesterday.
Today thousands of his loved ones, classmates, prisonmates, comrades & neighbors carried Fadi to burial. He fought for freedom his whole life.
الله يرحم روحك
In Palestine, israeli settlers will spray paint the star of David on our homes to harass or mark the building to be stolen. It's wild to see it happen to a business in Toronto, foodbenders, that voiced support for Palestine & against racism.
🚨Breaking: israeli forces conducted a huge raid on Palestinian civil society. Reports that 5 local human rights orgs were raided by the military, items stolen, doors sealed with iron & served military orders declaring them closed.
👇🏽Raid on Union of Pal Women (UPWC) office
Every part of Palestine is fighting rn - West Bank cities & villages lighting up from Jenin to Ni’lin, marches raiding ‘borders’ w Jordan & Golan & Gaza, unprecedented action from the 1948 Palestinians... Israel is spread thin👏🏽 When we unite we’re more powerful than their army!!
All of the lives lost, homes destroyed, and life-changing injuries that Palestinians have suffered over the past 2 weeks cannot be in vain. We are punished for resisting our oppression. We can’t quietly return to the status quo. Keep fighting with us.
israeli soldiers sometimes use stun grenades to thin out a crowd & then go in & arrest people. They know that people with experience won't run from stun grenades. Keep that in mind because israel trains US police & they may be using same strategies.
Useful graphic from Seattle.
STUN GRENADES
Stun grenades sometimes don’t go off when they’ve been fired/released. Be careful picking them up because they can seriously hurt you if they haven't gone off. Here is the Stinger flashbang grenade in DC.
Very relieved that the unexploded flash-bang grenade that my daughter found and innocently picked up this morning didn't explode in her face. Beyond angry that it was left on the streets of our capital city.
PEPPER SPRAY
The most common is handheld from bottles that are handheld to fire extinguisher sized. The spray is usually white or orange.
Attaching images of police using pepperspray in Memphis, Minneapolis & Boston. Also Defense Technology's line of peppersprays.
The best thing you can do with teargas is stay calm. Teargas tricks your brain into thinking it can't breathe so staying calm is key. Strong smells help remind your brain that it can breathe so bring alcohol wipes or alcohol based perfume and put it on the inside of your scarf.
Yesterday’s 10K-strong protest for Palestine in Ottawa was one of the biggest I’ve seen in the city—I couldn’t get high enough to capture even a quarter of the length of the march.
@palyouthmvmt
@apaccanada
@IndJewishVoices
What did we just watch!! Israel can’t exist without dominating every aspect of Palestinian life & death and space & time.
Another video of the attack on
#ShireenAbuAqla
’s funeral:
The reason things like milk/yogurt help is cause they have a cooling effect. Don’t rub your eyes, don’t touch your face. When you’re gassed, the chemicals stay on your skin & clothing and spread to anything you touch. Saline wash your face then cold shower when youre home.
🚨STOP ARTWASHING! In protest, artists put speakers around the Art Gallery of Ontario
@agotoronto
blasting the chants of Palestine protesters.
This follows "departure" of Curator Wanda Nanibush who was allegedly dismissed for expressing solidarity with Palestine.
LISTEN:
In general (non-pellet) stun grenades are used to put you in shock. When u see them released, turn around to protect face from any small shrapnel, close your eyes, & cup your ears (don't close ears with one finger). Don't hold your breath or you'll feel intense pressure.
Most dangerous teargas injury is being hit with the canister (when fired out of a gun). Like bullets, they can kill. Unlike bullets, teargas travels slow enough to watch it coming so don’t turn & run when they start firing. Watch them shoot it & dodge. Move calmly upwind.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF PEPPER SPRAY
- Pepperball pellets shot from a gun. Attached photo shows it used in Denver (the gun usually has a compartment above)
- Backpacks with a hose that sprays pepperspray
- Pepper fog generators (looks like a leaf blower)
SPONGE BATONS
They can break bones. Many Palestinian kids have lost eyes to it & in 2016 a 10 year old was killed by it. You can see what the gun usually looks like in attached image. The sponge & black-plastic part is what is fired, & the metal shell is left behind.
Last month I was interviewed by a youth socialist mag in Canada. After, they told me they would remove my mention of Palestinian Authority neoliberalism & how it entrenches colonialism… because they dont want to “punch down”
I refused to let them publish the censored interview.
Disappointing & shameful. Dehumanizing queer & trans kids will not protect Muslim kids from racism in schools. Statements like this not only promote hate purportedly in our name, but also tell queer and trans Muslims that they are not ‘one of us’.
#cdnpoli
500 Palestinian administrative detainees have been boycotting Israeli military courts since Jan 1st.
Administrative detainees are political prisoners held by the israeli regime without charge or trial, indefinitely. So what does a boycott mean? 1/5
DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROJECTILES
- Rubber bullets
- Plastic batons
- Sponge batons
- Ballistic bags
- Impact rounds
They can cause bruising to internal bleeding to losing eyes. Def can be lethal. Made by companies like Combined Technologies & Nonlethal Technologies.
STUN GRENADES (flash-bang grenades)
These are usually hand activated - you’ll see them pull a pin out and throw it. Some of the circular rubber ball ones also release pellets. Attaching pics of different types of stun grenades.
Have a thick scarf, perfume inside it, that you cover your face & eyes with when you see gas coming. If you can't move upwind without running, instead get on the ground and cover your face with the scarf for minutes until it passes. Running in gas will TAKE YOU OUT.
I work w
@Addameer
, an internationally respected human rights org & key source of support for Palestinian political prisoners.
Friday we found out Israel outlawed us & 5 other Palestinian orgs. Our offices could be closed, our funds seized & us the staff arrested
#StandWithThe6
Your clothes will be covered in the teargas chemical and can still burn your skin & eyes days later. If you sit on your couch when you get home you've contaminated your furniture so make sure to throw all your protest clothes in the wash right away.
What folks in LA and elsewhere were taking pics of (attached tweet) looks like the Nonlethal Technologies Impact Batons which are fired out of 37mm cartridges that release 3 hard rubber batons at once.
Dallas police have the sponge baton guns in yellow (attached image from June 1). Often they're black. I believe the gun can always only hold 1 or 2 batons that are shot 1 at a time [but always feel free to correct - I'm not an expert & lowkey hate how much I know about this shit]
You can put a bucket over the teargas to contain, or kick it upwind of protesters. Fireworks are a fun way to disorient your attackers. Balloons filled with paint & oil are a <gentle> way to take their vehicles off the road cause they'll need soap to wash it off the windshield🙂
If they're shooting teargas directly at face level or from short distances - as they do in Salt Lake in this video - this can literally kill you and is super fucked up & illegal.
(this could be the green seat-shell OC gas mentioned a couple tweets back)
Outside, hundreds gathered in protest. The demands from the wide coalition of protesters:
> Call for a
#CeasefireNow
> Call for an end to the siege of Gaza now
> End Canadian complicity in Israeli apartheid
Until then, SHUT IT DOWN! DISRUPT EVERYTHING!
Sponge batons are usually easy to identify because cops will wear a belt like in this photo of israeli police. With sponge baton, like most of "nonlethal" projectiles, u usually have 1-2 secs from when u hear the shot b4 you're hit. Turn, bow, & use arms to protect head/neck.
Don’t let anti-Muslim hate in Canada be depoliticized. It’s fueled by Canada’s pro israel policy & military industry. Canada is 2nd largest exporter of weapons to the MidEast & in top 15 globally - weapons that‘ll be used in bloody occupations & wars upheld by anti-Muslim racism.
🚨ASSEMBLY OF FIRST NATIONS MEMBERS PASS
EMERGENCY CALL FOR CEASEFIRE IN 🇵🇸
Vast majority of chiefs pass resolution calling for permanent ceasefire & for the defence of Palestinians as indigenous peoples under international law.
Watch beginning @ 3:31:00
I don't know enough about US police weaponry but in Palestine, these small rubber bullets are actually fully steel with thin plastic & you can identify the gun by an extra long attachment on the barrel (these pics are of israeli weapons in Palestine). 15~ are shot at a time.
Take a bow away from shooters & protect ur neck/head with your arms but DO NOT CROUCH/GET DOWN. Theyre *supposed* to fire these at leg level & getting down could just expose ur head. Again, u usually have 1 sec to do this (unlike live ammo which hits by the time u hear the shot)
Myself and nearly a dozen other SWANA artists pulled our exhibit from Art Canada Institute after they suggested a last-min “sensitivity review”. We’re 2 months into a genocide & have no tolerance for repression or censorship in the arts.
@hyperallergic
:
As I explain in this previous thread, for teargas what you really need is AIR - not water or milk etc. You should not run in gas unless ur close to a place where gas is not present (upwind of it). Otherwise you could make yourself pass out as you run.
Seeing lots of *not great* advice about teargas on my feed! From years experience with US made teargas in Palestine, here's my two cents: don’t put water on your skin or face unless you have a steady stream like a shower. It'll feel good for a sec then burn more than before!!
FYI this is protester knowledge aka unless you're the one buying & deploying the weapons you never 100% know what they're going to do. Us sharing info is harm reduction not foolproof protection! Be careful & remember they often try new weapons, strategies & break their own laws.
In the massive raid on 6 Palestinian civil society orgs today, the Israeli occupation army not only served military orders declaring the orgs shut down, they also sealed office doors w iron sheets & melted iron.
It says a lot about how threatened Israel is by human rights work.
Identifying what exactly is being shot by looking at the gun of these types of projectiles is pretty much impossible because so many different things can be inside these cylindrical shells (see pics). Good thing is your response to these is the same: turn, bow, protect neck/head.
If they're shooting rubber bullets or sponge batons or anything like that, the speed is somewhere in between live bullets (by the time you hear them, they've already hit) & teargas which you can dodge.
The long cylindrical batons in linked tweet are baton rounds often made of metal & covered with plastic.
I've never seen these ones used firsthand but like most projectiles of this size I think they're shot from a 37/38/40mm launcher that looks like these
Before I move onto teargas - want to clarify that for all these projectiles, best thing u can do is take cover because u usually (as long as they're not too close) have 1-2 secs to do so. If there's nothing to protect u around, that's when u bow away & protect your head w/hands.
If pepper sprayed directly, you need to get to a water stream immediately, at least 3 mins of running cold water. A bit of water will make it burn way worse. Yogurt/milk helps your burning skin after. Don't go in enclosed spaces (like ambulances lol). You need air.
Rubber bullets usually take like 1-2 secs to hit you, depending on distance, so you have time to turn around and cover your eyes/head/neck to protect the most sensitive places. Those medical ice packs help for non critical rubber bullet injuries.
You can use their teargas against them. If you're comfortable w your threshold for gas (or have a gasmask or goggles/scarf) you can throw it back at them - or just throw upwind of protesters. You only have a few seconds to do this. Wear thick gloves because it will be HOT.
This is the other type of rubber bullet we're familiar with in Palestine. Cylindrical. The gun that fires them (pictured) shoots one at a time. They're more forceful than the spherical ones in last tweet. idk - are people seeing these in the US?
Colonialism kills in so many ways.
The Jewish National Fund planted 240 million+ trees across Palestine, mostly the nonnative super flammable in our climate pine — because it looks European, takes over landscapes & pines classified land as “noncultivated” to be annexed by israel
The huge forest fire west of Jerusalem now.Thousands are being evacuated from the villages and communities in its path.10 fire fighting planes and firemen from across the country are battling the blaze thats out of control.
This is based on experience + street medic trainings but I’m not a medical expert! They also modify weapons & their chemical make-up often, so things change. We didn’t have access to obscure materials so there may be other effective sprays/washes if u do your research & pay up🤷🏻♀️
Today is a global day of action to STOP ARMING ISRAEL. We’re blockading Lockheed Martin Canada in Ottawa, Cndn branch of the largest weapons company in the world.
@LockheedMartin
makes a fortune off death. Their stock prices have increased 10% since Oct 7.
There is an added worry with weapons like these that shoot multiple rubber pellets/bullets from one canister: their trajectory is unpredictable. Unlike projectiles shot one at a time, these scatter.
Forgot to say that for ppl who wear contact lenses, some will swear its more dangerous because teargas can get trapped inside your lens or get reactivated when you take them out. I have friends who swear it protects their eyes from teargas tho. Go without them if you're worried.
I was asked to do an interview for
@CBCOttawa
’s
@OttawaMorning
last week. I did a 30min pre-intrvw & 20min interview w
@RobynBresnahan
. Spoke about protests in Palestine & the young people we buried. They didn’t air it & havent answered emails in a week.
.
@CBCNews
EP Laura Green told staff to avoid using "Palestine" even in personal exchange so to avoid mentioning it in coverage, in script drafts and communications.
Newsroom anti-Arab and anti-Muslim bigotry in a nutshell - erasing an entire people.
Did you know that israel maintains post-mortem prison sentences?
Since 2016, israel has refused to return the bodies of 6 Palestinian prisoners who died in detention. Some parents have been waiting for 4 decades for the remains of loved ones.
#ReturnOurChildren
TEARGAS
In terms of ID-ing teargas canisters: they can be short or long cylindrical metal canisters - or spherical rubber balls. See pics.
The short metal canisters are fired 3-6 at a time & scatter. The longer & spherical ones are usually fired one at a time
They *should* fire teargas angled up so it arcs down (video from Montreal). In this case: watch them shoot, dodge/see where it lands so u don't get hit, then A) move upwind if nearby or B) get down, cover face w/scarf, breathe slow into scarf til it passes
Farmer’s market shenanigans with
@MariamBarghouti
and Blanca, one of the peasant farmers of Asala: the Palestinian Business Women’s Association. Palestine Economic Week is beginning - wherever you are, buy Palestinian!
Identifying the guns that shoot teargas can be hard because from what I know the same gun can shoot a wide range of different projectiles. Police will often use some identifiers like a different coloured barrel to differentiate & you have to get familiar with your local PD.
Beanbag gun is usually modified w/yellow, green, or orange markings. You have to figure out what your particular PD does. Like other "nonlethal" projectiles, either take cover or turn & bow away -protect head/neck & stomach!
Use things as shields. Pics of Palestinians doing it🙂:
For ex, the red gas shell here contains 5 smaller teargas canisters that spread out when shot, cover more ground & release gas 10-25 secs:
The blue gas shell contains a single teargas grenade (pictured, no text) & lasts 20-40 secs
Some teargas launchers look like this (pic is from Canada RCMP). This holds multiple canisters and is visible from far away. These can hold many types of diff projectiles. What u need to know: with these they won't have to reload between shots, unlike single/double cartridge guns
Haven't seen these in US pics yet but the israeli army uses these round rubber teargas grenades that when shot go off circularly like a ballon losing air so they're hard to dodge. Look exactly like some stun grenades seen in US that release rubber pellets so careful picking up.
Breaking report that
@DCIPalestine
Director is in Israeli custody.
@alhaq_org
Director was called for interrogation this morning.
3 mos ago,
@Addameer
&
@BisanResearch
Directors were blocked from traveling on way to World Social Forum.
The attack is escalating fast.
BEAN BAGS
Going back to explain this one because it's been seen in San Jose, Austin, Spokane & Tampa.
Fabric bag filled w/lead shot that emerges from a canister when fired. Can cause serious injury if it hits neck/face/stomach & has caused a few deaths.
Israeli soldiers in ramallah now. A group positioned themselves on a car below my bedroom window. They set up a sniper on a car & shot down the road. They were laughing. Then they broke the car’s windows and left. We can still hear them shooting down the road.
Literally israel will raid & trash media offices, bomb entire media buildings (on live tv!!!), arrest & break the bones of journalists, jail/injure/kill Palestinians for speaking up on social media .......... and still international media refuses to report the truth on Palestine.
I'm a proud worker of
@Addameer
, one of the 6 Palestinian organizations that are being targeted by Israel because our work is so damn effective. We support political prisoners, the other orgs produce research and protect children, women, farmers, and the land.
#StandWithThe6
NO PEACE FOR THE COMPLICIT! Tonight arts workers confronted president of
@agotoronto
board of trustees Rupert Duchesne asking why the Art Gallery of Ontario is ignoring 1000s of community emails & choosing to be complicit in Israel's genocide of Palestinians 1/3
but you can try to get out of its range. It's tragectory is about 30 degrees like in this pic. You're more likely to get out of its range if u go left/right than if you try to get far away. This targeted range is why police can stand right behind & beside it & not be affected.
Yesterday lawyer Diala Ayesh & Mays Abu Ghosh, formerly imprisoned by israel, were arrested by PA at a sit-in along w/many others. When released late yesterday, in tears Diala said: ‘I’ve never seen anything like it’. The arrests were so violent at least 2 ended up in hospital.
(back to) PEPPER SPRAY
Notice how in this video the cop sprays the journalist w/out warning or even looking. SUPER COMMON STRATEGY. I've seen them do it this way so many times they must have a pact. If u see a cop holding pepperspray announce to everyone.
Different angle of 2️⃣9️⃣ above out of Minneapolis, where police slammed a VICE News reporter to the ground and another pepper-sprayed him
You can see everything from this vantage point (original was 1st person POV)
SOUND CANNONS (LRADs)
Talk of them in NYC. Emits an incredibly loud targeted-direction sound --causing vertigo, disorientedness, nausea & from too close - permanent ear damage. Ear plugs help a bit but tbh not much. They reach 300metres forward so u can't really run from it but..
I was so shocked they had such a simplistic idea of our reality & that they were so adamantly against critiquing the PA.
What is so complicated? We need you to listen & amplify the voices of the people and not the voices of internationally trained & funded police forces.
This linked thread on sound cannons is very helpful/detailed! Especially what it says about not trusting police to use it the "safe" way. My experience w/these has always been from at least 60~ metres back & it's been disturbing & dizzying, but manageable.
I'm seeing more word of LRADs (Lonf Range Acoustic Devices) being deployed at protests. Do not fuck around with these things. Ear-plugs will not protect you. An LRAD chirp at near point-blank range will cause PERMANENT hearing damage.