Bilin protest (archives)
Photo: AP
Army detains Bilin youth suspected of rioting
Residents of West Bank city say soldiers disguised as Arabs arrived at Muhammad Yassin's garage, asked him for water and arrested him. Family: He is very ill
Muhammad Yassin, 19, of the West Bank village of Bilin, was arrested Thursday morning by Israel Defense Forces soldiers disguised as Arabs at a garage belonging to his family, local residents reported.
"The villagers say that there must be unemployment among the units disguised as Arabs, and that's way such an arrest requires their involvement," a source in the Popular Committee against the Separation Fence told Ynet.
The residents said Yassin was a regular participant in rallies against the separation fence being built in the area, but had not been involved in any other activities.
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The residents said that soldiers disguised as Arabs entered the village in an Isuzu car with a Palestinians license plate, disguised as a vehicle for selling vegetables. The car stopped next to Yassin's garage.
"They asked him for water, and when he entered the house next to the garage, this must have helped them identify for certain that it was him," one of the residents said. "They chased him and arrested him."
Yassin's relatives fear for him, as they say he is very ill and suffers from high fever.
According to the residents, the IDF has escalated its activity against the demonstrations' participants since June. They claimed that the ongoing detention policy was aimed at hurt the rallies' organizers and weaken the popular struggle against the fence.
Military sources said in response that Yassin was detained for questioning on suspicion of being involved in riots. They added that any medical complaint would be looked into.
Hanan Greenberg contributed to this report
