Israeli soldier shoots U.S. activist in face with tear gas can

An American activist who participated in a Palestinian ’solidarity’ demonstration is in serious condition Saturday after an Israeli soldier shot him in the face with a high-velocity tear gas canister. He underwent surgery early Saturday.

Even as the rescue operation commenced, more tear gas rained down on the demonstrators as soldiers allegedly delayed ambulance access.

“Tristan Anderson, 38, of Oakland, Calif., was wounded Friday in the West Bank village of Naalin, during a protest against Israel’s separation barrier,” reported the Associated Press. “In the past year, four Palestinians have been killed and scores injured by Israeli troops putting down weekly stone-throwing protests against the barrier, which cuts off Naalin from 300 acres of olive groves.”

“The Israeli soldiers were standing on the hill looking over us firing tear-gas canisters” Ulrike Anderson, who was with Tristan when he was hit, told the International Herald-Tribune. “Tristan was hit and fell to the ground. He had a large hole in the front of his head. I tried to stop the bleeding. He was bleeding heavily from the nose.”

“Tristan was shot by the new tear-gas canisters that can be shot up to 500 meters,” said Teah Lunqvist with the International Solidarity Movement, according to California’s IndyBay. “I ran over as I saw someone had been shot, while the Israeli forces continued to fire tear-gas at us. When an ambulance came, the Israeli soldiers refused to allow the ambulance through the checkpoint just outside the village. After 5 minutes of arguing with the soldiers, the ambulance passed.”