Police allegedly beat detained protesters at Bil'in

Members of a special police unit arrested four people protesting the separation fence near the West Bank village of Bil'in on Friday. According to demonstrators, one Israeli and one Palestinian protester were beaten while in restraints and the Palestinian was denied medical attention even though an army doctor ordered him to be sent to an emergency room.

Adib Abu-Rahma, 33, of Bil'in, was taking part in the demonstrations when officers began pursuing him. Video footage shows one of the policeman punching him in the face. Abu-Rahma fell, after which he says about 10 policeman began hitting him.

"I was hit in the head, the chest and the legs, with clubs as well as hands," the father of eight reported. Israeli witnesses confirmed his account.

One of the soldiers in the unit said the soldiers and policemen used a great deal of force against another demonstrator, Eliezer Peles, who was already injured and had one arm in a sling.

"They just kept hitting him even though he couldn't have done anything to them if he had wanted to," the soldier said. Peles sustained a sprained arm and heavy blows to his back.

Afterward, Abu-Rahma was handcuffed and taken with an Israeli demonstrator, Yotam Ronen, to one of the military Jeeps. "Both of us were in restraints and three or four of the policemen started beating us while we were on the floor," Ronen said. "I shouted at them to stop beating us because we were tied up but they told us to shut our mouths."

Ronen said he asked the military doctor at the site to look at Abu-Rahma.

"I heard the doctor say Abu-Rahma might have a head injury and must go to an emergency room," but according to Ronen the policemen ignored the doctor.

Abu-Rahma was taken to the Givat Ze'ev police station and released five or six hours later without receiving medical attention.

"They gave me Tylenol," he said.

Abu-Rahma later went to a Ramallah hospital, where he was diagnosed as having sustained blows to his head, chest and testicles. He was released but returned yesterday for further tests.

A spokesman for the Judea and Samaria (West Bank) police force said that both a police medic and army physician examined Abu-Rahma and determined that he had not been seriously injured. The police said he did not complain of pain during his interrogation. The videotape showing policemen hitting him was given to the Police Internal Investigations unit.