Bethlehem - Ma'an - Israeli forces invaded the village of Bil'in at 9am Thursday morning and detained a local youth involved in the weekly demonstrations against the Israeli separation wall, a statement from the local Popular Committee said.

"In an escalation of the recent arrest campaign conducted by the Israeli military in attempt to crush the popular struggle against the Wall in the village, an undercover army unit invaded Bil'in this morning and arrested a local youth, 19 year old Mohammad Yassin," the statement said.

The Popular Committee described the incident, saying a "civilian Isuzu pickup with undercover soldiers dressed as Palestinians" entered the village "searching for residents suspected of organizing and participating in the village's weekly demonstrations." Yassin was reportedly detained from the car garage where he works as a mechanic. "The arrest involved the beating of Yassin himself, as well as of his brother and his mother, who assumed that the disguised soldiers were just random by-passers attacking their kin," the Popular Committee statement said.

According to the Popular Committee, a total of 28 Bil'in residents have been detained for their involvement in the demonstrations since 23 June 2009.