17 nov 2015
Since the beginning of October Israeli soldier- and settler violence has increased sharply and resulted in even further restrictions on Palestinians’ everyday lives in occupied al-Khalil (Hebron). Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh, a volunteer with the Palestinian organization Human Rights Defenders, has been documenting the growing harassment, intimidation and violence by soldiers and illegal settlers alike.
Since the extrajudicial execution of Hadil Al-Hashlamoun on 22nd September, Israeli forces have redoubled their aggressive targeting of anyone trying to monitor and report on Israeli crimes.
In the days since two young Palestinians were ruthlessly gunned down in the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood of the H2 area of al-Khalil (Hebron), the already intolerable situation has worsened significantly. As of the 30th October all residents of Tel Rumeida have been forced to register with the Israeli army as they declared this Palestinian neighbourhood – in contrast to the adjacent illegal Israeli settlement – a ‘closed military zone’. Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh and Human Rights Defenders called on residents to refuse to comply with these inhumane and arbitrary new military rules. But with the recent wave of extrajudicial executions and growing violence in Tel Rumeida, fear in the community has been so high that “for our survival there was no option, only to register” articulates Imad. For Palestinians the developments in Tel Rumeida exemplify “a new technique to transfer [Palestinian] families and expand [illegal Israeli] settlements”.
Every time Palestinians leave their house, they are subjected to ID-checks, bag- and body searches. For relatives and would-be visitors of Tel Rumeida residents, passage through the checkpoints is denied. Often relatives find a way to sneak into the area where they then are at high risk of being arrested. Imad vividly illustrates that the Israeli forces “gave me the number 36, its just like in prison. They try to make you a number, you’re not a person”. Residents are forced to endure all this, and in addition, despite the legal requirement for law enforcement who would restrict anyones passage to produce a currently valid military order with a map showing clearly what areas are restricted, none of the residents has ever been shown such an order. abeen shown an actual military order.
In addition to these intolerable inhumane conditions that beset the daily lives of Palestinian residents of Tel Rumeida, Palestinians and internationals alike are confronted with extreme hardships and violence when documenting the ongoing atrocities by the Israeli army and illegal settlers. Imad explains that before the implementation of these new draconian measures both Palestinians and internationals were filming and documenting the everyday violence around Tel Rumeida, but now soldiers, “when they see the camera they come to you like beasts”. Soldiers have repeatedly damaged cameras and confiscated electronic devices during nightly house raids. Both Palestinian activist groups – like Human Rights Defenders and Youth Against Settlements, as well as international human rights observers have been targeted by the Israeli soldiers and police explicitly for documenting and exposing Israeli crimes. Being an activist, Imad and thus also his entire family are at even greater risk of becoming the direct target of violence.
On Saturday, the 7th of November large groups of Israeli settlers wandered the streets of this “closed military zone” escorted by Israeli soldiers. Soldiers commonly ‘temporarily’ confiscate Palestinian homes for “military purposes”, during which time they routinely lock up all of the family members in one room. On Saturday, when 70-100 settlers took over the roof of the Shamsiyyeh family home, threw rocks at the property, and deliberately destroyed the familys water pump and pipes, the family was luckily not home at that time.
“The most scary is that settlers are more free to walk the area with their guns. It makes us scared for our children”.
The danger brought by these illegal settlers roaming unchecked with M16s slung casually about their shoulders and with the endorsement of the military now prevents Palestinian children in this neighbourhood from being able to play outside any longer, and confines them to stay inside the house all day. The same evening, while the Shamsiyyeh family was peacefully sitting in their living room together they were suddenly startled by the sound of three bullets fired at their house. They were forced to hide in their kitchen for an hour, after Imad saw masked soldiers surrounding their house.
Some families have already left the neighbourhood as they see no other option to keep their families safe from the constantly increasing aggression of soldiers and settlers. Settlers face no consequences whatsoever when targeting and abusing Palestinian families and internationals, and in fact if anyone should even think to defend her/himself even verbally against this violence, generally s/he is arrested or shot . Imad clarifies that “sometimes there is no difference between internationals and Palestinians when they come to report”.
Still, Imad insists that it is essential to resist the illegal Israeli occupation and inhumane practices and continue the efforts to report on them. Although the Israeli forces do whatever they can to silence the truth, it becomes increasingly urgent that the world stops turning a blind eye on this ongoing massacre.
Since the extrajudicial execution of Hadil Al-Hashlamoun on 22nd September, Israeli forces have redoubled their aggressive targeting of anyone trying to monitor and report on Israeli crimes.
In the days since two young Palestinians were ruthlessly gunned down in the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood of the H2 area of al-Khalil (Hebron), the already intolerable situation has worsened significantly. As of the 30th October all residents of Tel Rumeida have been forced to register with the Israeli army as they declared this Palestinian neighbourhood – in contrast to the adjacent illegal Israeli settlement – a ‘closed military zone’. Imad Abu Shamsiyyeh and Human Rights Defenders called on residents to refuse to comply with these inhumane and arbitrary new military rules. But with the recent wave of extrajudicial executions and growing violence in Tel Rumeida, fear in the community has been so high that “for our survival there was no option, only to register” articulates Imad. For Palestinians the developments in Tel Rumeida exemplify “a new technique to transfer [Palestinian] families and expand [illegal Israeli] settlements”.
Every time Palestinians leave their house, they are subjected to ID-checks, bag- and body searches. For relatives and would-be visitors of Tel Rumeida residents, passage through the checkpoints is denied. Often relatives find a way to sneak into the area where they then are at high risk of being arrested. Imad vividly illustrates that the Israeli forces “gave me the number 36, its just like in prison. They try to make you a number, you’re not a person”. Residents are forced to endure all this, and in addition, despite the legal requirement for law enforcement who would restrict anyones passage to produce a currently valid military order with a map showing clearly what areas are restricted, none of the residents has ever been shown such an order. abeen shown an actual military order.
In addition to these intolerable inhumane conditions that beset the daily lives of Palestinian residents of Tel Rumeida, Palestinians and internationals alike are confronted with extreme hardships and violence when documenting the ongoing atrocities by the Israeli army and illegal settlers. Imad explains that before the implementation of these new draconian measures both Palestinians and internationals were filming and documenting the everyday violence around Tel Rumeida, but now soldiers, “when they see the camera they come to you like beasts”. Soldiers have repeatedly damaged cameras and confiscated electronic devices during nightly house raids. Both Palestinian activist groups – like Human Rights Defenders and Youth Against Settlements, as well as international human rights observers have been targeted by the Israeli soldiers and police explicitly for documenting and exposing Israeli crimes. Being an activist, Imad and thus also his entire family are at even greater risk of becoming the direct target of violence.
On Saturday, the 7th of November large groups of Israeli settlers wandered the streets of this “closed military zone” escorted by Israeli soldiers. Soldiers commonly ‘temporarily’ confiscate Palestinian homes for “military purposes”, during which time they routinely lock up all of the family members in one room. On Saturday, when 70-100 settlers took over the roof of the Shamsiyyeh family home, threw rocks at the property, and deliberately destroyed the familys water pump and pipes, the family was luckily not home at that time.
“The most scary is that settlers are more free to walk the area with their guns. It makes us scared for our children”.
The danger brought by these illegal settlers roaming unchecked with M16s slung casually about their shoulders and with the endorsement of the military now prevents Palestinian children in this neighbourhood from being able to play outside any longer, and confines them to stay inside the house all day. The same evening, while the Shamsiyyeh family was peacefully sitting in their living room together they were suddenly startled by the sound of three bullets fired at their house. They were forced to hide in their kitchen for an hour, after Imad saw masked soldiers surrounding their house.
Some families have already left the neighbourhood as they see no other option to keep their families safe from the constantly increasing aggression of soldiers and settlers. Settlers face no consequences whatsoever when targeting and abusing Palestinian families and internationals, and in fact if anyone should even think to defend her/himself even verbally against this violence, generally s/he is arrested or shot . Imad clarifies that “sometimes there is no difference between internationals and Palestinians when they come to report”.
Still, Imad insists that it is essential to resist the illegal Israeli occupation and inhumane practices and continue the efforts to report on them. Although the Israeli forces do whatever they can to silence the truth, it becomes increasingly urgent that the world stops turning a blind eye on this ongoing massacre.
By Dr. Aayesha J Soni
On the 12th of November, 20-30 men arrived at the al-Ahly hospital in Hebron in two mini vans at around three o’clock in the morning, entering with someone in a wheelchair pretending to be pregnant. CCTV footage from inside the hospital revealed a large group of men armed with pistols and rifles, walking through the corridors telling hospital workers to get out of the way.
It would later become apparent that these men were undercover Israeli soldiers, who had entered the hospital under false pretenses with the singular purpose of an extrajudicial killing. The raid resulted in the killing of 27-year-old Abdallah Shalaldeh and the arrest of his cousin Azzam who was being treated there.
An armed attack on a hospital is an offense, according to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, to which Israel was a signatory a year after its formulation, in 1950. One can argue that besides breaking international law, the raid devastates one of the last places of asylum, refuge and indeed hospitality available to a distressed population subjected to the relentless violence both at home and in the streets. Indeed, Israel has crossed all limits with its latest stint.
Why Israel is no longer held to the same standards of morality as the rest of the world is a question that has long been left unanswered, however, this most recent heinous breach of sanctity has elicited a response from many human rights flag bearers.
Physicians for Human Rights Israel, Doctors Without Borders and Amnesty International are just a few of the reputable organizations who have lent their voices to the chorus of outcries at such barbarity. “The fact that Abdullah Shalaldah was shot in the head and upper body suggests this was an extrajudicial execution, adding to a disturbing pattern of similar recent incidents by Israeli forces in the West Bank which warrant urgent investigation,” said Philip Luther, director of the Middle East and North Africa Program at Amnesty International. “Israeli forces must immediately cease their use of intentional lethal force against people who are not posing an imminent threat to life.”
In a similar raid last month, undercover Israeli forces entered a hospital in Nablus, in the northern West Bank, kidnapping one of its patients. In addition, Israeli police and special forces have repeatedly raided al-Maqassed Hospital on the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem and have searched other Palestinian clinics in the city and according to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Jerusalem, a standoff between the hospital staff at Maqassed and security forces seeking to re-enter the hospital culminated in the use of tear gas and rubber bullets; a staff member and a patient were injured.
The thuggish operations of the Israeli army match very closely the criminal behavior of the country’s political authorities. Rather than bringing a new life into the world, these operatives sowed death; rather than saving lives, the way al-Ahli’s staff does on a daily basis, they took a life and a living hostage. It is clear that the Israeli response to popular Palestinian resistance is one lacking any restraint whatsoever. The policy is intended further to intimidate the population living under Occupation, to beat it into submission, not only on a physical but also on a psychological level, whereby safety is not guaranteed even in the most welcoming places of refuge, such as hospitals.
If it had been any other country, the international calls of “war crimes” would have been reverberating throughout the walls of media houses. Mass condemnation, UN Security Council votes and maybe even a march led by all the leaders of the “free world” would’ve been the leading stories at the outrage of targeted killings of hospitals- a war crime by any standard. But seeing as the lives of the innocent victims are only those of Palestinians, the silence of global outrage is deafening.
At bottom, Israel engages in self-dehumanization when it sanctions raids akin to the one that happened this Thursday. The barbarity of Israel’s actions must be exposed, and obstructing the sanctity of hospitals is a line that should never be crossed.
– Dr. Aayesha J Soni is a medical doctor and the vice chairperson of Media Review Network (MRN), a Johannesburg-based advocacy group. This article was contributed to PalestineChronicle.com.
On the 12th of November, 20-30 men arrived at the al-Ahly hospital in Hebron in two mini vans at around three o’clock in the morning, entering with someone in a wheelchair pretending to be pregnant. CCTV footage from inside the hospital revealed a large group of men armed with pistols and rifles, walking through the corridors telling hospital workers to get out of the way.
It would later become apparent that these men were undercover Israeli soldiers, who had entered the hospital under false pretenses with the singular purpose of an extrajudicial killing. The raid resulted in the killing of 27-year-old Abdallah Shalaldeh and the arrest of his cousin Azzam who was being treated there.
An armed attack on a hospital is an offense, according to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, to which Israel was a signatory a year after its formulation, in 1950. One can argue that besides breaking international law, the raid devastates one of the last places of asylum, refuge and indeed hospitality available to a distressed population subjected to the relentless violence both at home and in the streets. Indeed, Israel has crossed all limits with its latest stint.
Why Israel is no longer held to the same standards of morality as the rest of the world is a question that has long been left unanswered, however, this most recent heinous breach of sanctity has elicited a response from many human rights flag bearers.
Physicians for Human Rights Israel, Doctors Without Borders and Amnesty International are just a few of the reputable organizations who have lent their voices to the chorus of outcries at such barbarity. “The fact that Abdullah Shalaldah was shot in the head and upper body suggests this was an extrajudicial execution, adding to a disturbing pattern of similar recent incidents by Israeli forces in the West Bank which warrant urgent investigation,” said Philip Luther, director of the Middle East and North Africa Program at Amnesty International. “Israeli forces must immediately cease their use of intentional lethal force against people who are not posing an imminent threat to life.”
In a similar raid last month, undercover Israeli forces entered a hospital in Nablus, in the northern West Bank, kidnapping one of its patients. In addition, Israeli police and special forces have repeatedly raided al-Maqassed Hospital on the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem and have searched other Palestinian clinics in the city and according to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Jerusalem, a standoff between the hospital staff at Maqassed and security forces seeking to re-enter the hospital culminated in the use of tear gas and rubber bullets; a staff member and a patient were injured.
The thuggish operations of the Israeli army match very closely the criminal behavior of the country’s political authorities. Rather than bringing a new life into the world, these operatives sowed death; rather than saving lives, the way al-Ahli’s staff does on a daily basis, they took a life and a living hostage. It is clear that the Israeli response to popular Palestinian resistance is one lacking any restraint whatsoever. The policy is intended further to intimidate the population living under Occupation, to beat it into submission, not only on a physical but also on a psychological level, whereby safety is not guaranteed even in the most welcoming places of refuge, such as hospitals.
If it had been any other country, the international calls of “war crimes” would have been reverberating throughout the walls of media houses. Mass condemnation, UN Security Council votes and maybe even a march led by all the leaders of the “free world” would’ve been the leading stories at the outrage of targeted killings of hospitals- a war crime by any standard. But seeing as the lives of the innocent victims are only those of Palestinians, the silence of global outrage is deafening.
At bottom, Israel engages in self-dehumanization when it sanctions raids akin to the one that happened this Thursday. The barbarity of Israel’s actions must be exposed, and obstructing the sanctity of hospitals is a line that should never be crossed.
– Dr. Aayesha J Soni is a medical doctor and the vice chairperson of Media Review Network (MRN), a Johannesburg-based advocacy group. This article was contributed to PalestineChronicle.com.
The Hamas Movement strongly denounced the Israeli decision to outlaw the Islamic Movement in the 1948 occupied lands as "an act of racism."
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri stated in a press release on Tuesday that the Israeli ban measure against the Islamic Movement targets the Arab presence in the 1948 occupied territories.
"The Israeli decision is aimed at punishing the Islamic Movement and preventing it from continuing its role in protecting the Aqsa Mosque," Abu Zuhri added, calling the decision as "a badge of honor" to the Islamic Movement.
The Hamas spokesman called on the international community to intervene to curb such Israeli racist measures against the Palestinians.
The Israeli security cabinet on Tuesday declared the Islamic Movement in the 1948 occupied lands an unlawful organization, effectively outlawing the group led by Sheikh Ra'ed Salah.
Following the decision, police forces raided over a dozen of the group's offices in the 1948 occupied lands, seizing computers, files and funds.
The Israeli occupation authority also froze its bank accounts and said that 17 organizations affiliated with the Movement were served with orders to close down.
The police also called in several of the Movement's officials for questioning, including Sheikh Salah, his deputy Sheikh Kamal Khatib, and the organization's director of Jerusalem and Aqsa Mosque affairs, Salman Abu Ahmad.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri stated in a press release on Tuesday that the Israeli ban measure against the Islamic Movement targets the Arab presence in the 1948 occupied territories.
"The Israeli decision is aimed at punishing the Islamic Movement and preventing it from continuing its role in protecting the Aqsa Mosque," Abu Zuhri added, calling the decision as "a badge of honor" to the Islamic Movement.
The Hamas spokesman called on the international community to intervene to curb such Israeli racist measures against the Palestinians.
The Israeli security cabinet on Tuesday declared the Islamic Movement in the 1948 occupied lands an unlawful organization, effectively outlawing the group led by Sheikh Ra'ed Salah.
Following the decision, police forces raided over a dozen of the group's offices in the 1948 occupied lands, seizing computers, files and funds.
The Israeli occupation authority also froze its bank accounts and said that 17 organizations affiliated with the Movement were served with orders to close down.
The police also called in several of the Movement's officials for questioning, including Sheikh Salah, his deputy Sheikh Kamal Khatib, and the organization's director of Jerusalem and Aqsa Mosque affairs, Salman Abu Ahmad.
Head of the Islamic Movement in 1948 Occupied Palestine, Sheikh Raed Salah, at dawn Tuesday slammed an Israeli decision illegalizing the group’s anti-occupation activism.
Sheikh Raed Salah said in a statement that right after the Israeli occupation slapped its ban on the Islamic Movement, police swooped down on 17 of its offices in Umm al-Fahm at the crack of dawn.
Sheikh Salah added that the Israeli occupation police searched the 17 offices and seized a set of documents and devices before they summoned Sheikh Salah and his deputy, Kamal al-Khatib, along with activist Suleiman Ahmad, for interrogation at an Israeli investigation center in Haifa.
“Such measures are oppressive and unacceptable,” Sheikh Salah said, vowing that the Islamic movement will forever keep up its anti-occupation activism and support of Occupied Jerusalem and the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
“I am very proud of my position as the movement’s leader,” he said. “I will try all possible means to stop Israeli violations against al-Aqsa and Occupied Jerusalem.”
Headed by Sheikh Salah, the Islamic Movement has been active in campaigns and activities staged in support for the holy al-Aqsa Mosque and Occupied Jerusalem.
Declaring the Islamic Movement illegal means that anyone who is a member or works on its behalf can be arrested and subjected to a term in prison.
Sheikh Raed Salah said in a statement that right after the Israeli occupation slapped its ban on the Islamic Movement, police swooped down on 17 of its offices in Umm al-Fahm at the crack of dawn.
Sheikh Salah added that the Israeli occupation police searched the 17 offices and seized a set of documents and devices before they summoned Sheikh Salah and his deputy, Kamal al-Khatib, along with activist Suleiman Ahmad, for interrogation at an Israeli investigation center in Haifa.
“Such measures are oppressive and unacceptable,” Sheikh Salah said, vowing that the Islamic movement will forever keep up its anti-occupation activism and support of Occupied Jerusalem and the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
“I am very proud of my position as the movement’s leader,” he said. “I will try all possible means to stop Israeli violations against al-Aqsa and Occupied Jerusalem.”
Headed by Sheikh Salah, the Islamic Movement has been active in campaigns and activities staged in support for the holy al-Aqsa Mosque and Occupied Jerusalem.
Declaring the Islamic Movement illegal means that anyone who is a member or works on its behalf can be arrested and subjected to a term in prison.
At least 88 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the Jerusalem Intifada on October 1 including 18 children and four women, medical sources revealed.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said that 69 Palestinians were shot and killed in occupied West Bank, while 18 others were killed during Gaza clashes whereas one youth was killed in the Negev.
More than 1422 Palestinians have sustained live gunshot wounds during West Bank and Gaza clashes, while 2150 suffered rubber bullet injures. More than 6300 tear gas inhalation cases were reported.
The Ministry pointed out that 255 Palestinians suffered different fractures and bruises after being brutally attacked by Israeli forces and settlers.
In the West Bank, 983 Palestinians were shot by live rounds, while at least 938 others were hit by rubber-coated steel bullets.
In Gaza Strip, 439 Palestinians were shot with live rounds, while 115 suffered rubber bullet injuries.
The Health Ministry said that 416 Palestinian children were among the injured persons including 226 injured with live ammunition and 128 injured with rubber bullets.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said that 69 Palestinians were shot and killed in occupied West Bank, while 18 others were killed during Gaza clashes whereas one youth was killed in the Negev.
More than 1422 Palestinians have sustained live gunshot wounds during West Bank and Gaza clashes, while 2150 suffered rubber bullet injures. More than 6300 tear gas inhalation cases were reported.
The Ministry pointed out that 255 Palestinians suffered different fractures and bruises after being brutally attacked by Israeli forces and settlers.
In the West Bank, 983 Palestinians were shot by live rounds, while at least 938 others were hit by rubber-coated steel bullets.
In Gaza Strip, 439 Palestinians were shot with live rounds, while 115 suffered rubber bullet injuries.
The Health Ministry said that 416 Palestinian children were among the injured persons including 226 injured with live ammunition and 128 injured with rubber bullets.
The national and Islamic factions have announced next Friday a day of popular anger against the occupation in all Palestinian areas.
Senior officials from the factions affirmed in a statement issued following their meeting in Ramallah that the central protest activities would take place on Tuesday and Friday in all flashpoint areas and near settlements, military checkpoints and the segregation walls.
Their statement underlined that all Palestinians next Friday would express their anger to confirm that their intifada (uprising) against that occupation would never stop until the liberation of Palestine.
Senior officials from the factions affirmed in a statement issued following their meeting in Ramallah that the central protest activities would take place on Tuesday and Friday in all flashpoint areas and near settlements, military checkpoints and the segregation walls.
Their statement underlined that all Palestinians next Friday would express their anger to confirm that their intifada (uprising) against that occupation would never stop until the liberation of Palestine.
16 nov 2015
In response to media inquiries, PLO Executive Committee Member Dr. Hanan Ashrawi commented, according to PNN:
“In his recent statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is cynically exploiting the pain of the innocent victims of Daesh terrorism in Paris in order to create a misleading linkage and to justify Israeli state terror against the Palestinian people, while presenting Israel as the victim.
In fact, Israel is an occupying power, and the Israelis who are in Palestine are either soldiers of the occupation army or illegal settlers colonizing the land.
The Israeli occupation has habitually terrorized Palestinian civilians, stolen their land and resources and demolished their homes; yet Netanyahu disingenuously claims self-defense while labeling any form of Palestinian reaction as “terrorism.” Nowhere is a people under occupation held responsible for the safety and protection of its occupiers, and nowhere else is a ruthless occupier presenting itself as the victim and justifying its atrocities as self-defense.
The military occupation is an ongoing aggression targeting Palestinians viciously and relentlessly while enjoying full impunity. Netanyahu is attempting to exploit the cruel and inhuman terrorism of Daesh in order to score cheap political points at the expense of the Palestinian people.
His statements are not only fraudulent and politically coercive, they are symptomatic of political and moral bankruptcy.”
“In his recent statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is cynically exploiting the pain of the innocent victims of Daesh terrorism in Paris in order to create a misleading linkage and to justify Israeli state terror against the Palestinian people, while presenting Israel as the victim.
In fact, Israel is an occupying power, and the Israelis who are in Palestine are either soldiers of the occupation army or illegal settlers colonizing the land.
The Israeli occupation has habitually terrorized Palestinian civilians, stolen their land and resources and demolished their homes; yet Netanyahu disingenuously claims self-defense while labeling any form of Palestinian reaction as “terrorism.” Nowhere is a people under occupation held responsible for the safety and protection of its occupiers, and nowhere else is a ruthless occupier presenting itself as the victim and justifying its atrocities as self-defense.
The military occupation is an ongoing aggression targeting Palestinians viciously and relentlessly while enjoying full impunity. Netanyahu is attempting to exploit the cruel and inhuman terrorism of Daesh in order to score cheap political points at the expense of the Palestinian people.
His statements are not only fraudulent and politically coercive, they are symptomatic of political and moral bankruptcy.”
The Hamas Movement has applauded the Palestinians in Qalandiya refugee camp for the great courage they showed in confronting the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) during an aggressive campaign against them at dawn Monday.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, in a press release, condemned the Israeli soldiers' use of lethal force against the Palestinians in Qalandiya camp today and described what happened as "a massacre and an example of Israel's terrorism."
Abu Zuhri stressed that "Israel's war crimes against the Palestinian people would never succeed in breaking their will."
He demanded the international community to stop its double standard policy and assume its responsibility for protecting the Palestinians against Israel's terrorism.
The IOF killed at least two Palestinians, wounded over 18 others and detonated the house of detainee Mohamed Shahin during a violent campaign at dawn in Qalandiya refugee camp, north of Occupied Jerusalem.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, in a press release, condemned the Israeli soldiers' use of lethal force against the Palestinians in Qalandiya camp today and described what happened as "a massacre and an example of Israel's terrorism."
Abu Zuhri stressed that "Israel's war crimes against the Palestinian people would never succeed in breaking their will."
He demanded the international community to stop its double standard policy and assume its responsibility for protecting the Palestinians against Israel's terrorism.
The IOF killed at least two Palestinians, wounded over 18 others and detonated the house of detainee Mohamed Shahin during a violent campaign at dawn in Qalandiya refugee camp, north of Occupied Jerusalem.
The performance of the actors was applauded by thousands of Malaysian citizens who attended the show and many of them expressed their condemnation of the Israeli violations at the Islamic holy site.
The Turkish Consul General in Jerusalem, Ambassador Mustafa Sarnıç, praised the close relationship between his country and Palestine historically and culturally.
He drew attention to the big concern given by the Turkish people to the sanctity of al-Aqsa Mosque and the city of Jerusalem. He also stressed that preventing entry to al-Aqsa Mosque will affect the whole Islamic world.
Sarnıç pointed out in an exclusive interview with QPress that the sanctity of al-Aqsa Mosque is very important to the Muslim world, as it is related to the incident of "Isra and Mi'raj " and is the third of the Two Holy Mosques (the Holy Kaaba at Mecca and the prophet's Mosque at Madina), stressing that the sanctity of al-Aqsa is of great importance for the Turkish people, so it must be preserved with all its peculiarities.
He said also: "The humanitarian and moral obligation on those who care about al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem is to maintain its distinctiveness.” He stressed that the protection of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa is the responsibility of all Muslims.
He emphasized that preventing the entry of Muslims to pray at al-Aqsa Mosque, does not affect only Palestinians, but the entire Muslim world as a whole.
Sarnıç stressed the right of all Muslims of various nationalities and the Palestinians to enter al-Aqsa Mosque and to perform their religious rituals in full freedom and comfort without any restrictions.
He continued: "Jerusalem should be the city of peace for the three religions, and all parties should respect this. Achieving peace in Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque is the responsibility of the entire world."
Sarnıç stressed the keenness of the State of Turkey and its government, which will be composed soon, and its people on supporting Palestine and Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque with all potentials.
He explained that Turkey is working hard with all the means at the level of the presidency, ministries, non-governmental institutions and journalists, to highlight its position, its keenness and interest in al-Aqsa Mosque, as well as working at the level of international forums to do its duty towards al-Aqsa Mosque, to end the suffering of the Palestinians and Muslims so that they can reach al-Aqsa Mosque for prayers.
As for the projects implemented by Turkey in the city of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque, the ambassador said that many important projects were implemented in the infrastructure and maintenance of cultural monuments and the Islamic archaeological relics in the Old City and in al-Aqsa Mosque.
He explained that Turkey implements its projects through institutions that operate effectively in Palestine, including Turkish International Cooperation and Coordination Agency “TİKA”.
He said: "The TİKA Foundation in cooperation with the Islamic Waqf has coated the crescent on top of the Dome of the Rock with gold, in addition to the restoration of the archive room inside al-Aqsa Mosque, rebuilding of the Yusufiyah Cemetery and other projects carried out in cooperation with the Waqf".
He added: "Our projects are not limited to al- Aqsa Mosque, but we have other projects in the Old City of Jerusalem that maintained historical landmarks."
The Turkish ambassador pointed to the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs’ interest in the success of a major project, which is to send the Turkish visitors to the city of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque, before they go to perform Umrah.
He pointed out that it is expected that the number of Turkish visitors to Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque during one year would reach up to 100 thousand, which helps to support and improve the tourism industry and the economic conditions of the Palestinians
He drew attention to the big concern given by the Turkish people to the sanctity of al-Aqsa Mosque and the city of Jerusalem. He also stressed that preventing entry to al-Aqsa Mosque will affect the whole Islamic world.
Sarnıç pointed out in an exclusive interview with QPress that the sanctity of al-Aqsa Mosque is very important to the Muslim world, as it is related to the incident of "Isra and Mi'raj " and is the third of the Two Holy Mosques (the Holy Kaaba at Mecca and the prophet's Mosque at Madina), stressing that the sanctity of al-Aqsa is of great importance for the Turkish people, so it must be preserved with all its peculiarities.
He said also: "The humanitarian and moral obligation on those who care about al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem is to maintain its distinctiveness.” He stressed that the protection of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa is the responsibility of all Muslims.
He emphasized that preventing the entry of Muslims to pray at al-Aqsa Mosque, does not affect only Palestinians, but the entire Muslim world as a whole.
Sarnıç stressed the right of all Muslims of various nationalities and the Palestinians to enter al-Aqsa Mosque and to perform their religious rituals in full freedom and comfort without any restrictions.
He continued: "Jerusalem should be the city of peace for the three religions, and all parties should respect this. Achieving peace in Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque is the responsibility of the entire world."
Sarnıç stressed the keenness of the State of Turkey and its government, which will be composed soon, and its people on supporting Palestine and Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque with all potentials.
He explained that Turkey is working hard with all the means at the level of the presidency, ministries, non-governmental institutions and journalists, to highlight its position, its keenness and interest in al-Aqsa Mosque, as well as working at the level of international forums to do its duty towards al-Aqsa Mosque, to end the suffering of the Palestinians and Muslims so that they can reach al-Aqsa Mosque for prayers.
As for the projects implemented by Turkey in the city of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque, the ambassador said that many important projects were implemented in the infrastructure and maintenance of cultural monuments and the Islamic archaeological relics in the Old City and in al-Aqsa Mosque.
He explained that Turkey implements its projects through institutions that operate effectively in Palestine, including Turkish International Cooperation and Coordination Agency “TİKA”.
He said: "The TİKA Foundation in cooperation with the Islamic Waqf has coated the crescent on top of the Dome of the Rock with gold, in addition to the restoration of the archive room inside al-Aqsa Mosque, rebuilding of the Yusufiyah Cemetery and other projects carried out in cooperation with the Waqf".
He added: "Our projects are not limited to al- Aqsa Mosque, but we have other projects in the Old City of Jerusalem that maintained historical landmarks."
The Turkish ambassador pointed to the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs’ interest in the success of a major project, which is to send the Turkish visitors to the city of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque, before they go to perform Umrah.
He pointed out that it is expected that the number of Turkish visitors to Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque during one year would reach up to 100 thousand, which helps to support and improve the tourism industry and the economic conditions of the Palestinians
The Birzeit student council and blocs called on Palestinian students to join a protest rally on Monday in response to Israel’s mounting terrorism across the occupied Palestinian territories.
The Birzeit student council urged all students to partake in a rally to be staged at 11 a.m. in support for the holy al-Aqsa Mosque and the ongoing anti-occupation uprising.
Birzeit student activist groups said that shortly after the vigil the rally-goers will be flocking to the Beit El military checkpoint, pitched at the northern entrance of the West Bank town of al-Bireh, to enter into direct confrontations with the Israeli occupation troops.
The move reportedly aims to activate the role of Palestinian students in the current anti-occupation Jerusalem Intifada.
The Birzeit student council urged all students to partake in a rally to be staged at 11 a.m. in support for the holy al-Aqsa Mosque and the ongoing anti-occupation uprising.
Birzeit student activist groups said that shortly after the vigil the rally-goers will be flocking to the Beit El military checkpoint, pitched at the northern entrance of the West Bank town of al-Bireh, to enter into direct confrontations with the Israeli occupation troops.
The move reportedly aims to activate the role of Palestinian students in the current anti-occupation Jerusalem Intifada.
Deputy Head of Hamas Political Bureau Ismail Haneyya said Jerusalem Intifada has exceeded all containment attempts and constitutes a strategic turning point in the area.
In a ceremony for honoring Quran Hafizes (memorizers) held in Gaza on Sunday, Haneyya hailed the Palestinians who carried out anti-occupation operations in the West Bank and Occupied Jerusalem.
The Hamas senior official pointed out that Jerusalem Intifada is distinguished by the intensity of individual anti-occupation operations in quality and quantity. He said that Palestinians carried out over 70 operations in a month and a half.
Haneyya pointed out that the festival of honoring the Quran Hafizes coincided with the anniversary of the martyrdom of the Hamas leader Ahmad al-Jaabari. He also said that about 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza memorizes the Quran and the number is expected to jump to over 100,000.
In a ceremony for honoring Quran Hafizes (memorizers) held in Gaza on Sunday, Haneyya hailed the Palestinians who carried out anti-occupation operations in the West Bank and Occupied Jerusalem.
The Hamas senior official pointed out that Jerusalem Intifada is distinguished by the intensity of individual anti-occupation operations in quality and quantity. He said that Palestinians carried out over 70 operations in a month and a half.
Haneyya pointed out that the festival of honoring the Quran Hafizes coincided with the anniversary of the martyrdom of the Hamas leader Ahmad al-Jaabari. He also said that about 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza memorizes the Quran and the number is expected to jump to over 100,000.
Many of the German cities witnessed events in solidarity with the Palestinian people and in condemnation of Israeli violations and crimes including killing of Palestinians and storming hospitals in the West Bank.
The activities included condemnation of terrorist Paris attacks; French flags were raised in solidarity with the victims.
The Palestinian Assembly in Germany in cooperation with Palestinian, Muslim and Arab organizations arranged on Saturday a march in Germany’s capital Berlin. The march was for the demand of halting the Israeli policy of abuse and killing of Palestinians and for prosecuting Israel for its crimes in accordance to international laws.
On Friday, November 13, a demonstration was arranged in Hamburg City, while a gathering was organized in Stuttgart by the Palestinian Assembly in Germany. The demonstrators demanded the German government and international community to bear responsibility toward Israeli aggressive practices against Palestinians.
The president of the assembly Dr. Suhail Abu Shamalah expressed his concern over the increasing pace of Israeli attacks which mounted to risky levels. He warned of the continuation of storming of Palestinian hospitals by Israeli Special Forces under different pretexts.
The activities included condemnation of terrorist Paris attacks; French flags were raised in solidarity with the victims.
The Palestinian Assembly in Germany in cooperation with Palestinian, Muslim and Arab organizations arranged on Saturday a march in Germany’s capital Berlin. The march was for the demand of halting the Israeli policy of abuse and killing of Palestinians and for prosecuting Israel for its crimes in accordance to international laws.
On Friday, November 13, a demonstration was arranged in Hamburg City, while a gathering was organized in Stuttgart by the Palestinian Assembly in Germany. The demonstrators demanded the German government and international community to bear responsibility toward Israeli aggressive practices against Palestinians.
The president of the assembly Dr. Suhail Abu Shamalah expressed his concern over the increasing pace of Israeli attacks which mounted to risky levels. He warned of the continuation of storming of Palestinian hospitals by Israeli Special Forces under different pretexts.
15 nov 2015
From Khalid Amayreh in Occupied Palestine
As usual in these circumstances, Israel is trying to exploit the Paris bombings for its propaganda purposes.
Israeli and Zionist officials have been insinuating that the widely condemned terrorist bombings in Paris, for which the ISIS took responsibility, justified Israel's crackdown on Palestinian resistance against Jewish colonialism, especially Israel's lebensraum policies in the West Bank.
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has been quoted as saying that the Paris bombings should make France and other countries understand Israel's war on Palestinian terror.
Netanyahu's opportunistic remarks seem to have been motivated by two main considerations.
First, is the desire to alleviate international pressure on Israel to terminate the decades-old occupation of the Palestinian homeland and allow for the establishment of a viable Palestinian state.
And, second, Israel is always eager to see as many French Jews as possible immigrate to Occupied Palestine in order to augment the ranks of a dwindling Jewish population due to comparatively higher demographic growth among Palestinians.
As a pathological liar, Netanyahu understands the Palestinian cause as a matter of propaganda and public relations quagmire, not as real problems requiring real political solutions.
This is one of the main reasons that the conflict in Palestine has remained unresolved and blood on both sides continues to be spilled on a daily basis.
Indeed, hasbara, media lies, carefully produced sound-bites may help the Zionist state reap some short-term political capital in the capitals of the West. But it will never succeed in bringing the conflict even one centimeter closer to a historic solution.
I am quite sure that many wise people on the Jewish side of the isle realize this equation.
However, it seems that Netanyahu and cohorts are too insolent and too arrogant to listen to the voices of wisdom.
He thinks that brute military power alone guarantees Israel's future, forgetting the fact that entire empires collapsed for reasons, not including military weakness.
Netanyahu, in a cynical way, always tries to lump Israel in the company of civilized countries.
But the peoples of the world do know too well Israel's criminal credentials and that this state is actually a crime against humanity.
Have the peoples of the world forgotten Israel's genocidal crimes against the people of Gaza in 2008-9, 2012, and 2014?
Does the world need to be reminded that the number of Palestinian children murdered by Israel in one month exceeds the number of civilians killed by ISIS ever since its appearance a few years ago?
Do we have to remind the world that unlike terrorist entities, Israel dropped heavy bombs on apartment towers packed with terrified women and children in Gaza, causing hundreds of civilian casualties.
In fact, in 3 hours, the Israeli army killed and maimed more innocent civilians at the Shujaiyya in Gaza than the victims of the Paris bombings last night.
My point here is not to belittle the criminal nature of the Paris bombings.
My point is rather to caution the world against hard criminal states such as Israel which is routinely perpetrating ethnic cleansing and other genocidal crimes against the Palestinian people and then plays the self-righteous card of identifying with the victims of the terrorist bombings in Paris.
In fact, Israel is behaving very much like the little Hitler of Damascus who has murdered and maimed a million Syrians while forcing more than 15 million others out of their homes, forcing them to flee death and seek safety all over the world.
Still, Assad has the audacity to shed crocodile "tears of sympathy" with the victims of terror in Paris, ignoring the fact that his genocidal terror against the innocent civilians of Syria made the terrorist bombings in Paris inevitable.
Likewise, Netanyahu and his "shitty state", as a French diplomat referred to Israel a few years ago, goes on murdering Palestinians, murdering their children, destroying their homes, stealing their land, bulldozing their fields and narrowing their horizons. Netanyahu is raising his eyebrows every time he watches a Palestinian child throws a stone on Israeli military vehicle patrolling the West Bank.
And instead of honestly trying to find out what makes that child behave as such, the Israeli premier closes his mind and opens his big mouth, complaining about "Arab terror" and concocting corrupt analogies between the Nazis and Zionism's victims.
But the world, including France, yes France, the US, Britain and Russia, is hypocritical par excellence.
Otherwise, Israel the perpetual crime against humanity should have been declared as such from the first moment it was created.
Indeed, had the world behaved moralistically then, the world would have been spared the terror of ISIS and other similar groups, whose violence, however despicable it might look, is an ultimate product or by-product of the much greater terror and violence committed by criminal players such as Israel, the US, France, the UK and now Russia.
Can there be a scandal more scandalous than the seizure and usurpation of Palestine by Zionism?
So to the West in general I say, please, don't pretend to be innocent because you are not innocent.
As usual in these circumstances, Israel is trying to exploit the Paris bombings for its propaganda purposes.
Israeli and Zionist officials have been insinuating that the widely condemned terrorist bombings in Paris, for which the ISIS took responsibility, justified Israel's crackdown on Palestinian resistance against Jewish colonialism, especially Israel's lebensraum policies in the West Bank.
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has been quoted as saying that the Paris bombings should make France and other countries understand Israel's war on Palestinian terror.
Netanyahu's opportunistic remarks seem to have been motivated by two main considerations.
First, is the desire to alleviate international pressure on Israel to terminate the decades-old occupation of the Palestinian homeland and allow for the establishment of a viable Palestinian state.
And, second, Israel is always eager to see as many French Jews as possible immigrate to Occupied Palestine in order to augment the ranks of a dwindling Jewish population due to comparatively higher demographic growth among Palestinians.
As a pathological liar, Netanyahu understands the Palestinian cause as a matter of propaganda and public relations quagmire, not as real problems requiring real political solutions.
This is one of the main reasons that the conflict in Palestine has remained unresolved and blood on both sides continues to be spilled on a daily basis.
Indeed, hasbara, media lies, carefully produced sound-bites may help the Zionist state reap some short-term political capital in the capitals of the West. But it will never succeed in bringing the conflict even one centimeter closer to a historic solution.
I am quite sure that many wise people on the Jewish side of the isle realize this equation.
However, it seems that Netanyahu and cohorts are too insolent and too arrogant to listen to the voices of wisdom.
He thinks that brute military power alone guarantees Israel's future, forgetting the fact that entire empires collapsed for reasons, not including military weakness.
Netanyahu, in a cynical way, always tries to lump Israel in the company of civilized countries.
But the peoples of the world do know too well Israel's criminal credentials and that this state is actually a crime against humanity.
Have the peoples of the world forgotten Israel's genocidal crimes against the people of Gaza in 2008-9, 2012, and 2014?
Does the world need to be reminded that the number of Palestinian children murdered by Israel in one month exceeds the number of civilians killed by ISIS ever since its appearance a few years ago?
Do we have to remind the world that unlike terrorist entities, Israel dropped heavy bombs on apartment towers packed with terrified women and children in Gaza, causing hundreds of civilian casualties.
In fact, in 3 hours, the Israeli army killed and maimed more innocent civilians at the Shujaiyya in Gaza than the victims of the Paris bombings last night.
My point here is not to belittle the criminal nature of the Paris bombings.
My point is rather to caution the world against hard criminal states such as Israel which is routinely perpetrating ethnic cleansing and other genocidal crimes against the Palestinian people and then plays the self-righteous card of identifying with the victims of the terrorist bombings in Paris.
In fact, Israel is behaving very much like the little Hitler of Damascus who has murdered and maimed a million Syrians while forcing more than 15 million others out of their homes, forcing them to flee death and seek safety all over the world.
Still, Assad has the audacity to shed crocodile "tears of sympathy" with the victims of terror in Paris, ignoring the fact that his genocidal terror against the innocent civilians of Syria made the terrorist bombings in Paris inevitable.
Likewise, Netanyahu and his "shitty state", as a French diplomat referred to Israel a few years ago, goes on murdering Palestinians, murdering their children, destroying their homes, stealing their land, bulldozing their fields and narrowing their horizons. Netanyahu is raising his eyebrows every time he watches a Palestinian child throws a stone on Israeli military vehicle patrolling the West Bank.
And instead of honestly trying to find out what makes that child behave as such, the Israeli premier closes his mind and opens his big mouth, complaining about "Arab terror" and concocting corrupt analogies between the Nazis and Zionism's victims.
But the world, including France, yes France, the US, Britain and Russia, is hypocritical par excellence.
Otherwise, Israel the perpetual crime against humanity should have been declared as such from the first moment it was created.
Indeed, had the world behaved moralistically then, the world would have been spared the terror of ISIS and other similar groups, whose violence, however despicable it might look, is an ultimate product or by-product of the much greater terror and violence committed by criminal players such as Israel, the US, France, the UK and now Russia.
Can there be a scandal more scandalous than the seizure and usurpation of Palestine by Zionism?
So to the West in general I say, please, don't pretend to be innocent because you are not innocent.
A 23-year-old security guard was attacked in Kiryat Ata on Saturday after passersby mistook him for a terrorist.
Taxi passengers set upon a security guard from Kiryat Ata, who served in the IDF's Kfir Brigade, and attacked him believing he was a terrorist; the young man was lightly wounded.
A security guard at a police facility in Kiryat Ata was attacked by taxi passengers on Saturday who he claims suspected he was a terrorist.
The guard, a Christian originally from Kafr Yasif in northern Israel who served in the IDF's Kfir Brigade, was set upon in the center of Kiryat Ata as he was on his way to work after visiting his girlfriend.
"A car was sitting in the middle of the road so I honked my horn and then got out of my car to see what was happening," the security guard said.
"A taxi driver passing by saw the crucifix in my car and started shouting: 'He's an Arab terrorist.' They then started beating me with everything they had: sticks, chains and knives," he continued.
"I shouted at them that I'm a police security guard but it didn't help. They continued beating me on my head and my shoulders. All over my body," the 23-year-old said.
Investigators at Zevulun District Police held one of the suspects in the attack for questioning while Nahariya police collected the security guard's testimony.
"I managed to push them away when I realized that if I didn't get out of the situation, I wouldn't get out alive," he continued. "I got into my car and drove, and ran into something. It was frightening."
When he arrived at his workplace, his car was taken to be checked by investigators.
In a statement, the police said that the young man had got out of his car and "asked the driver of the vehicle in front of him why he had stopped at the traffic light. The driver was alarmed and shouted 'terrorist.' According to the security guard, taxi passengers close by heard the shout and attacked him, lightly wounding him."
Paramedics from Magen David Adom and United Hatzalah arrived at the police station and treated the young man onsite. MDA paramedics then took him to the Western Galilee Hospital in Nahariya. He is suffering from bruising and injuries to his shoulders.
"It's just shocking what they did to him," said the security guard's mother. "Ten people thought he was a terrorist and fell on him with sticks and knives, wounding him on his head, his shoulders and all over his body.
"We're in shock. He served in the military and everything," the mother added.
Taxi passengers set upon a security guard from Kiryat Ata, who served in the IDF's Kfir Brigade, and attacked him believing he was a terrorist; the young man was lightly wounded.
A security guard at a police facility in Kiryat Ata was attacked by taxi passengers on Saturday who he claims suspected he was a terrorist.
The guard, a Christian originally from Kafr Yasif in northern Israel who served in the IDF's Kfir Brigade, was set upon in the center of Kiryat Ata as he was on his way to work after visiting his girlfriend.
"A car was sitting in the middle of the road so I honked my horn and then got out of my car to see what was happening," the security guard said.
"A taxi driver passing by saw the crucifix in my car and started shouting: 'He's an Arab terrorist.' They then started beating me with everything they had: sticks, chains and knives," he continued.
"I shouted at them that I'm a police security guard but it didn't help. They continued beating me on my head and my shoulders. All over my body," the 23-year-old said.
Investigators at Zevulun District Police held one of the suspects in the attack for questioning while Nahariya police collected the security guard's testimony.
"I managed to push them away when I realized that if I didn't get out of the situation, I wouldn't get out alive," he continued. "I got into my car and drove, and ran into something. It was frightening."
When he arrived at his workplace, his car was taken to be checked by investigators.
In a statement, the police said that the young man had got out of his car and "asked the driver of the vehicle in front of him why he had stopped at the traffic light. The driver was alarmed and shouted 'terrorist.' According to the security guard, taxi passengers close by heard the shout and attacked him, lightly wounding him."
Paramedics from Magen David Adom and United Hatzalah arrived at the police station and treated the young man onsite. MDA paramedics then took him to the Western Galilee Hospital in Nahariya. He is suffering from bruising and injuries to his shoulders.
"It's just shocking what they did to him," said the security guard's mother. "Ten people thought he was a terrorist and fell on him with sticks and knives, wounding him on his head, his shoulders and all over his body.
"We're in shock. He served in the military and everything," the mother added.
Dr. Najeh Bkeirat, head of the "Islamic education" department of al-Aqsa Mosque, believes that the current Jerusalem Intifada (uprising) must meet at least three demands with regard to al-Aqsa Mosque and the occupied city of Jerusalem.
Bkeirat in an interview with the Palestinian Information Center pointed out that several demands should be put forward to be the intifada goals; the most important of which are: to prevent Jews from entering al-Aqsa Mosque and to open its doors unconditionally for the Muslims, to ensure freedom of movement between neighborhoods, and the removal of all aspects of militarization in the holy city and harassment of the Jerusalemites.
He said that the Israeli occupation is destroying the Jerusalemite community and it must be prosecuted for its crimes. He called also for a review of the Oslo agreement and to irrevocably end it, because Israel did not carry out any of its articles.
Sheikh Bkeirat believes that this intifada will be a starting point that must be utilized for the development of strategies to confront the Israeli occupation schemes aimed at the Judaization of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque.
Bkeirat expressed his fears from the right-wing Israeli government's efforts to endorse the occupied city of Jerusalem as the Jewish capital of the Jewish state as envisioned by Benjamin Netanyahu.
Bkeirat said that despite all attempts to obscure the Palestinian cause and the city of Jerusalem, they were brought to the forefront of events and caught the world's attention anew by the current intifada.
He pointed out that the Israeli excavations under al-Aqsa Mosque for the past 48 years are still ongoing, and the violations of Palestinian human rights have increased by 90%, in addition to the frequent degrading arrests and prosecutions the young Jerusalemites are subjected to.
Sheikh Bkeirat confirmed that the Israeli occupation continues to impose the Zionist vision, and gradually gobbles Jerusalem through settlement building, pointing out that the Israeli occupation is trying to create a new de facto situation in the city of Jerusalem by enforcing demographic changes and exerting pressure on the Palestinians, the indigenous people of Jerusalem, to force them to migrate to empty the holy city for settlers.
Palestinian position
As for the Palestinian position toward the current developments, Bkeirat said it is divided into two political positions: the officials in the Palestinian Authority taking a neutral position about the Jerusalem Intifada, while the leadership of the Palestinian resistance supporting it, pointing out that despite the division in the political positions, the Palestinian people are united in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and the 1948 occupied lands.
He underlined that the Palestinian people are excelling in the intifada despite the weak capabilities and the absence of strategies. He opined that there should be a capable leadership that assumes the responsibility for taking a clear decision on the projected goals of the intifada
Sheikh Bkeirat said that the Arab and Muslim position was content with denouncing Israeli violations, and has fallen short of the level of support, the preparation of strategies, putting pressure on the Israeli occupation or boycotting it in the light of the Palestinians' blood that is being daily shed.
Bkeirat in an interview with the Palestinian Information Center pointed out that several demands should be put forward to be the intifada goals; the most important of which are: to prevent Jews from entering al-Aqsa Mosque and to open its doors unconditionally for the Muslims, to ensure freedom of movement between neighborhoods, and the removal of all aspects of militarization in the holy city and harassment of the Jerusalemites.
He said that the Israeli occupation is destroying the Jerusalemite community and it must be prosecuted for its crimes. He called also for a review of the Oslo agreement and to irrevocably end it, because Israel did not carry out any of its articles.
Sheikh Bkeirat believes that this intifada will be a starting point that must be utilized for the development of strategies to confront the Israeli occupation schemes aimed at the Judaization of Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque.
Bkeirat expressed his fears from the right-wing Israeli government's efforts to endorse the occupied city of Jerusalem as the Jewish capital of the Jewish state as envisioned by Benjamin Netanyahu.
Bkeirat said that despite all attempts to obscure the Palestinian cause and the city of Jerusalem, they were brought to the forefront of events and caught the world's attention anew by the current intifada.
He pointed out that the Israeli excavations under al-Aqsa Mosque for the past 48 years are still ongoing, and the violations of Palestinian human rights have increased by 90%, in addition to the frequent degrading arrests and prosecutions the young Jerusalemites are subjected to.
Sheikh Bkeirat confirmed that the Israeli occupation continues to impose the Zionist vision, and gradually gobbles Jerusalem through settlement building, pointing out that the Israeli occupation is trying to create a new de facto situation in the city of Jerusalem by enforcing demographic changes and exerting pressure on the Palestinians, the indigenous people of Jerusalem, to force them to migrate to empty the holy city for settlers.
Palestinian position
As for the Palestinian position toward the current developments, Bkeirat said it is divided into two political positions: the officials in the Palestinian Authority taking a neutral position about the Jerusalem Intifada, while the leadership of the Palestinian resistance supporting it, pointing out that despite the division in the political positions, the Palestinian people are united in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and the 1948 occupied lands.
He underlined that the Palestinian people are excelling in the intifada despite the weak capabilities and the absence of strategies. He opined that there should be a capable leadership that assumes the responsibility for taking a clear decision on the projected goals of the intifada
Sheikh Bkeirat said that the Arab and Muslim position was content with denouncing Israeli violations, and has fallen short of the level of support, the preparation of strategies, putting pressure on the Israeli occupation or boycotting it in the light of the Palestinians' blood that is being daily shed.
Jerusalem center for the study of Israeli and Palestinian affairs confirmed that the number of martyrs in the first half of November reached 14, while 20 anti-occupation operations were carried out in Occupied Jerusalem and the West Bank.
In a report on Saturday, the center revealed that the pace of resistance continued to rise in comparison to last month indicating that the Jerusalem Intifada will enter the third week of its second month in a stronger shape.
The center said the scores of martyrs who were killed by Israeli forces in Jerusalem Intifada has mounted to 86. Al-Khalil governorate remained in the first place in terms of number of martyrs as it offered 31 martyrs. Occupied Jerusalem came next with 18 martyrs.
On the other hand, Israeli losses increased to 14 deaths and 282 injuries, the center pointed out.
In a report on Saturday, the center revealed that the pace of resistance continued to rise in comparison to last month indicating that the Jerusalem Intifada will enter the third week of its second month in a stronger shape.
The center said the scores of martyrs who were killed by Israeli forces in Jerusalem Intifada has mounted to 86. Al-Khalil governorate remained in the first place in terms of number of martyrs as it offered 31 martyrs. Occupied Jerusalem came next with 18 martyrs.
On the other hand, Israeli losses increased to 14 deaths and 282 injuries, the center pointed out.