Every week our photographers and cameramen cover any number of demonstrations organised by activists protesting against the barrier Israel is building in and around the West Bank. Palestinians say the barrier is an Israeli land-grab that stifles freedom of movement and economic growth. Israeli authorities say the barrier prevents would-be attackers from reaching Israel.

You can read more about the controversy over the barrier here.

Covering the demonstrations has become a kind of routine. Most demonstrations happen on Fridays in the early afternoon. Protesters usually arrive along the same route. The Israeli army or Border Police are usually positioned in the same places. Protests start fairly quietly with chanting and flag-waving but almost invariably degenerate into skirmishes where demonstrators throw rocks at the Israeli forces who fire tear gas or rubber coated bullets to disperse the crowd.

Occasionally serious injuries and even deaths have occurred at these demonstrations. Israeli security force personnel have also been wounded during these events.
 
Our journalists also follow a routine, but their work can be tricky. They try to pick a position where they can film or photograph the demonstrations, while staying out of harm’s way. Sometimes that’s easier to plan, than implement. When covering these demonstrations, our staff wear helmets, body armour, and gas masks. They’ve been trained to operate as safely as they can in these types of environments.

Last Friday, July 3, our cameraman Saed Hawari covered one of the regular demonstrations outside the village of Bilin on the West Bank. The demonstration was not unusual, but our camerman ended up a little too close for comfort. As you can see in the video below, some tear gas grenades bounced up and nearly struck him. Fortunately, he was not hit, and was not injured.

Check out the video below - especially the first few shots.