Up on the hill, they are screaming for an ambulance, "As'aaf! As'aaf!", and I take off. I'm juggling the video and camera thing again, and make a decision to dump the video as I get up there. They're saying that the guy was shot in the head. I'm remembering Birzeit student Abdullah Saleh, a Birzeit student who was shot dead with a single live round through the heart almost exactly a year ago, as they move their way down that hill. One of the friends of the current victim is the one making the noise. He's screaming, "His head! His head!" as they bring the guy down.
Some of the guys bringing him down are covered in his blood. They're moving really fast - some are Birzeit students and probably remember Abdullah Saleh as well. I am out to the side of the natural path down the hill to let them pass and begin to follow them down after they go by. His friend who was shouting earlier about the shot in the head, has already arrived at the ambulance and is needlessly trying to direct them to the way to the back door. In the photo, I am talking about the guy who is gesticulating, whose head is level with the ambulance's back wheel.
I follow them down to the ambulance. For some reason they can't get the guy in. The stretcher sits there for a few long seconds, while they try to turn it the right way and begin to put it in.
I'm a couple of meters behind the ambulance now. Everyone has drawn back. He's at right angles to me and I can see him from head to toe, as if it has all been orchestrated. I see that his forehead is bleeding and actually looks a little crushed, just where the hairline is. Looks like a plastic-coated metal bullet as there was not the hole that a live bullet would produce. I'm willing them to hurry up and get him in the ambulance.
He's trying to sit up, both his hands raised, and it is a really painful motion to watch. I'm thinking, "Why don't you just lie down?" but he doesn't know where he is or how badly injured he is and his fight-for-life instinct has kicked in. My camera is not taking photos. It's run out of film. That's okay. I'm not about to forget this image.