12 july 2017
A
human rights report kept record of the abduction of 84 Palestinian
women and girls by the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) over the past six
months.
According to a report by the Palestine Prisoners Studies Center, 84 Palestinian women and girls were arrested by the Israeli forces since the start of 2017.
Media spokesperson for the center, Reyad al-Ashkar, said the Israeli forces have been chasing down Palestinian women and girls in a attempt to prevent them from joining anti-occupation protests or carrying out attacks against the Israeli soldiers and settlers.
Several Palestinian women and girls have been arbitrarily detained or/and shot on suspicion of intending to carry out anti-occupation attacks.
Among those arrested over the past few months, nine were identified as minors, among whom 12-year-old Hadil al-Rajabi, who was summoned to questioning in al-Mascoubiya detention center.
14-year-old Aya Amr was also kidnapped on allegations of attempting to stab soldiers at the Qalandiya checkpoint. Palestinian child Malek al-Ghalidh, aged 14, had been subjected to heavy beating in the pre-detention phase.
Two sisters from the blockaded Gaza Strip were also arrested by the Israeli forces at Beit Hanun (Erez) border-crossing on their way to a hospital in the West Bank for urgent treatment. One of the detainees is reportedly cancer-stricken.
Several other women and girls were arrested after they were shot and injured by the Israeli forces. The list included 17-year-old Takwa Hamad and 39-year-old Asia al-Ka’bana, both natives of Ramallah.
According to a report by the Palestine Prisoners Studies Center, 84 Palestinian women and girls were arrested by the Israeli forces since the start of 2017.
Media spokesperson for the center, Reyad al-Ashkar, said the Israeli forces have been chasing down Palestinian women and girls in a attempt to prevent them from joining anti-occupation protests or carrying out attacks against the Israeli soldiers and settlers.
Several Palestinian women and girls have been arbitrarily detained or/and shot on suspicion of intending to carry out anti-occupation attacks.
Among those arrested over the past few months, nine were identified as minors, among whom 12-year-old Hadil al-Rajabi, who was summoned to questioning in al-Mascoubiya detention center.
14-year-old Aya Amr was also kidnapped on allegations of attempting to stab soldiers at the Qalandiya checkpoint. Palestinian child Malek al-Ghalidh, aged 14, had been subjected to heavy beating in the pre-detention phase.
Two sisters from the blockaded Gaza Strip were also arrested by the Israeli forces at Beit Hanun (Erez) border-crossing on their way to a hospital in the West Bank for urgent treatment. One of the detainees is reportedly cancer-stricken.
Several other women and girls were arrested after they were shot and injured by the Israeli forces. The list included 17-year-old Takwa Hamad and 39-year-old Asia al-Ka’bana, both natives of Ramallah.
Tension ran high in al-Aqsa Mosque on Wednesday morning after an Israeli police officer raised the Israeli flag at the time when dozens of settlers stormed the holy shrine.
More than 80 Israeli settlers protected by Israeli police forced their way into the Mosque compound via the Al-Magharbeh Gate and performed Talmudic rituals.
During the raid, one of the policemen hoisted the Israeli flag on to his shoulder in total provocation to Palestinian worshipers and al-Aqsa guards who started shouting Takbeer.
The Islamic Endowments Department strongly condemned the provocative act.
In recent months, groups of Jewish extremists often accompanied by Israeli police forces repeatedly broke into al-Aqsa compound. The frequent violations anger Palestinian worshipers and occasionally lead to violent confrontations.
More than 80 Israeli settlers protected by Israeli police forced their way into the Mosque compound via the Al-Magharbeh Gate and performed Talmudic rituals.
During the raid, one of the policemen hoisted the Israeli flag on to his shoulder in total provocation to Palestinian worshipers and al-Aqsa guards who started shouting Takbeer.
The Islamic Endowments Department strongly condemned the provocative act.
In recent months, groups of Jewish extremists often accompanied by Israeli police forces repeatedly broke into al-Aqsa compound. The frequent violations anger Palestinian worshipers and occasionally lead to violent confrontations.
Palestine appreciated the UNESCO decision of designating Hebron and the two adjoined shrines at its heart – Tomb of the Patriarchs and the Muslim Ibrahimi Mosque – as a “Palestinian World Heritage Site in Danger”.
The Council for International Relations said, in a press release, that the decision halts the Zionist claim and confirms the right of the Palestinian people to their land and history.
The council called on the UNESCO to implement the decision by protecting the sites from the Israeli occupation and settlers who try very hard to Judaize the area and throw their Palestinian inhabitants out.
In the press release, the council thanked the members who voted in favor, considering their votes as leading to the end of the Israeli occupation and revealing peace in the region.
Last Friday, The UN’s world heritage body (UNESCO) recognized the old city of Hebron (Al Khalil), in the West Ban,k as a Palestinian world heritage site.
Meanwhile, Israel slammed the UNESCO vote, pledging to reduce its funding to the UN, CNN reported.
The decision by the UN’s cultural agency, at a meeting in Poland by secret ballot, saw 12 countries vote in favor, with three against and six abstentions.
Israel has accused UNESCO of making a politically motivated move, part of what it says is an attempt to deny the Jewish character and heritage of certain key sites in the Holy Land.
Israeli Government Minister Naftali Bennett, leader of the right wing Jewish Home Party, called it a “disgraceful vote.”
“The Jewish connection to Hebron goes back thousands of years,” said Bennett. “It’s disappointing and disgraceful that time and again UNESCO denies history and distorts reality, knowingly serving those attempting to erase the Jewish state.”
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, in a statement, that Israel would be reducing its funding to the United Nations by one million dollars, so that it could build a museum in the town.
The United States had worked strongly to prevent the decision. It has taken a tougher line under the Trump administration against what it says is anti-Israel bias among certain UN organizations. US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said that passing the vote on Hebron would have “unfortunate” repercussions for the “peace process”, PNN further reports.
The Council for International Relations said, in a press release, that the decision halts the Zionist claim and confirms the right of the Palestinian people to their land and history.
The council called on the UNESCO to implement the decision by protecting the sites from the Israeli occupation and settlers who try very hard to Judaize the area and throw their Palestinian inhabitants out.
In the press release, the council thanked the members who voted in favor, considering their votes as leading to the end of the Israeli occupation and revealing peace in the region.
Last Friday, The UN’s world heritage body (UNESCO) recognized the old city of Hebron (Al Khalil), in the West Ban,k as a Palestinian world heritage site.
Meanwhile, Israel slammed the UNESCO vote, pledging to reduce its funding to the UN, CNN reported.
The decision by the UN’s cultural agency, at a meeting in Poland by secret ballot, saw 12 countries vote in favor, with three against and six abstentions.
Israel has accused UNESCO of making a politically motivated move, part of what it says is an attempt to deny the Jewish character and heritage of certain key sites in the Holy Land.
Israeli Government Minister Naftali Bennett, leader of the right wing Jewish Home Party, called it a “disgraceful vote.”
“The Jewish connection to Hebron goes back thousands of years,” said Bennett. “It’s disappointing and disgraceful that time and again UNESCO denies history and distorts reality, knowingly serving those attempting to erase the Jewish state.”
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, in a statement, that Israel would be reducing its funding to the United Nations by one million dollars, so that it could build a museum in the town.
The United States had worked strongly to prevent the decision. It has taken a tougher line under the Trump administration against what it says is anti-Israel bias among certain UN organizations. US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said that passing the vote on Hebron would have “unfortunate” repercussions for the “peace process”, PNN further reports.
10 july 2017
The Israeli authority has escalated over the past month its collective punishment policy against Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said in its monthly report.
The report stated that four Jerusalemite youths were killed by Israeli gunfire in June while 126 others were arrested during the same reported period.
Three Jerusalemites aged between 18 and 19 were killed on June 16 by Israeli police while a 23-year-old young man was shot and killed in a separate incident on June 20 for alleged anti-occupation attacks.
The four dead bodies are still held in Israeli morgues as Israel continues to refuse handing over two other slain Jerusalemites’ bodies since last October.
On the other hand, the report revealed that 1,339 Israeli settlers broke into al-Aqsa Mosque over June via the Israeli-controlled al-Magharibeh gate.
The Israeli break-ins into the Mosque had notably intensified during the last ten days of the holy month of Ramadan.
Meanwhile, an employee of the Waqf department was denied access into the holy shrine for a whole month, while four guards of al-Aqsa were summoned for investigation last month.
The monthly report also documented the arrest of 126 Jerusalemites in June including 40 minors, three women, and two old men.
Furthermore, Israeli authorities tightened military restrictions near Bab al-Amoud area for two days in the past month of June following an alleged stabbing attack, preventing West Bankers’ access to al-Aqsa Mosque in the process.
Along the same line, the Israeli police detained four Palestinian citizens, who work as musaharatis (Ramadan predawn drummers or wakers) in the Old City of occupied Jerusalem for several hours before being released on a bail.
Five other Jerusalemite youths were brutally attacked by a group of settlers before Israeli police arrested four of them.
The report stated that four Jerusalemite youths were killed by Israeli gunfire in June while 126 others were arrested during the same reported period.
Three Jerusalemites aged between 18 and 19 were killed on June 16 by Israeli police while a 23-year-old young man was shot and killed in a separate incident on June 20 for alleged anti-occupation attacks.
The four dead bodies are still held in Israeli morgues as Israel continues to refuse handing over two other slain Jerusalemites’ bodies since last October.
On the other hand, the report revealed that 1,339 Israeli settlers broke into al-Aqsa Mosque over June via the Israeli-controlled al-Magharibeh gate.
The Israeli break-ins into the Mosque had notably intensified during the last ten days of the holy month of Ramadan.
Meanwhile, an employee of the Waqf department was denied access into the holy shrine for a whole month, while four guards of al-Aqsa were summoned for investigation last month.
The monthly report also documented the arrest of 126 Jerusalemites in June including 40 minors, three women, and two old men.
Furthermore, Israeli authorities tightened military restrictions near Bab al-Amoud area for two days in the past month of June following an alleged stabbing attack, preventing West Bankers’ access to al-Aqsa Mosque in the process.
Along the same line, the Israeli police detained four Palestinian citizens, who work as musaharatis (Ramadan predawn drummers or wakers) in the Old City of occupied Jerusalem for several hours before being released on a bail.
Five other Jerusalemite youths were brutally attacked by a group of settlers before Israeli police arrested four of them.
Violent clashes burst out south of holy al-Aqsa Mosque, in Occupied Jerusalem, after Israeli settlers attempted to seize a Palestinian land lot.
A PIC news correspondent said a group of Israeli settlers, escorted by a special unit, broke into Batn al-Hawa neighborhood, in Silwan, and attempted to grab hold of a Palestinian land owned by al-Rajabi and Basbous families.
The occupation forces claimed that a court decision signaled a green light for the settlers’ takeover of the land but refused to show the alleged court rule to the land owners.
The Israeli soldiers showered Palestinian homes in the area with pepper spray and attacked the anti-occupation youth with batons and rifle butts, leaving dozens wounded.
A court hearing is set to be held by the end of July to decide on the targeted land lot.
A PIC news correspondent said a group of Israeli settlers, escorted by a special unit, broke into Batn al-Hawa neighborhood, in Silwan, and attempted to grab hold of a Palestinian land owned by al-Rajabi and Basbous families.
The occupation forces claimed that a court decision signaled a green light for the settlers’ takeover of the land but refused to show the alleged court rule to the land owners.
The Israeli soldiers showered Palestinian homes in the area with pepper spray and attacked the anti-occupation youth with batons and rifle butts, leaving dozens wounded.
A court hearing is set to be held by the end of July to decide on the targeted land lot.
5 july 2017
Joint civil defense drills have been staged by the Israeli occupation and the Palestinian Authority (PA), chaired by Mahmoud Abbas, according to Hebrew-speaking sources.
A Wednesday report by Yedioth Aharonot newspaper unraveled underway drills carried out concurrently by the PA and Israeli civil defense crews at a military checkpoint pitched in Jenin.
The exercises simulated the evacuation of wounded people from crushed vehicles following traffic accidents.
Security cooperation between the PA forces and the Israeli army has been ongoing despite the political stalemate between the two sides, the same source added.
A Wednesday report by Yedioth Aharonot newspaper unraveled underway drills carried out concurrently by the PA and Israeli civil defense crews at a military checkpoint pitched in Jenin.
The exercises simulated the evacuation of wounded people from crushed vehicles following traffic accidents.
Security cooperation between the PA forces and the Israeli army has been ongoing despite the political stalemate between the two sides, the same source added.
In its 41st session being held in Poland, the UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee has passed a resolution condemning Israel for its policies and violations in the Old City of Jerusalem.
10 member states on Tuesday voted in favor of the resolution, three voted against it, and three states abstained.
The resolution refers to Israel as an occupying power and clearly denies its claims to the Old City and eastern Jerusalem.
The Jordanian-sponsored resolution confirms that Israel has no sovereignty over eastern Jerusalem and its Old City and calls upon it to necessarily remove its Judaization projects and redress the changes it has created in and around the Old City.
The resolution demands Israel to unconditionally allow and facilitate the Jordanian construction and rehabilitation projects at the Aqsa Mosque, its vicinity and the Old City of Jerusalem.
It expressed the UNESCO’s dismay and regret over the unwillingness of the Israeli occupation authority to halt its persistent excavations, tunneling, Judaization projects and other illegal practices in east Jerusalem, particularly in and around the Old City of Jerusalem, which are illegal under international law.
The opening ceremony of the 41st session of the World Heritage Committee kicked off on July 2 at the Royal Palace of Wawel in Krakow, Poland, in the presence of nearly 1,000 people, among them the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda. The Committee will be in session until July 12.
10 member states on Tuesday voted in favor of the resolution, three voted against it, and three states abstained.
The resolution refers to Israel as an occupying power and clearly denies its claims to the Old City and eastern Jerusalem.
The Jordanian-sponsored resolution confirms that Israel has no sovereignty over eastern Jerusalem and its Old City and calls upon it to necessarily remove its Judaization projects and redress the changes it has created in and around the Old City.
The resolution demands Israel to unconditionally allow and facilitate the Jordanian construction and rehabilitation projects at the Aqsa Mosque, its vicinity and the Old City of Jerusalem.
It expressed the UNESCO’s dismay and regret over the unwillingness of the Israeli occupation authority to halt its persistent excavations, tunneling, Judaization projects and other illegal practices in east Jerusalem, particularly in and around the Old City of Jerusalem, which are illegal under international law.
The opening ceremony of the 41st session of the World Heritage Committee kicked off on July 2 at the Royal Palace of Wawel in Krakow, Poland, in the presence of nearly 1,000 people, among them the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda. The Committee will be in session until July 12.
4 july 2017
Israeli occupation authorities are to discuss the approval of 1,800 settlement units in the Sheikh Jarrah Neighbourhood, in the heart of occupied Jerusalem.
According to Israeli rights watchdog Peace Now, the Israeli Jerusalem Regional Committee would discuss the approval of the project on July 16.
The project requires the expulsion of five Palestinian families from the occupied Palestinian neighbourhood, according to Days of Palestine.
Peace Now said that two buildings, five and seven stores, are planned to replace the houses of the five Palestinian families.
Additionally, a nine-story yeshiva campus that includes student accommodation and a six-story office building are also planned to be built in Sheikh Jarrah.
Peace Now said that this is the first time in recent years that new settlement units are being planned for settlers within a Palestinian neighbourhood in East Jerusalem.
Settlers have been engaged in an ongoing legal battle over the two plans, which aim to be established on the property where the five Palestinian families reside, for a total of 13 settlement units.
The families in question are regarded, legally, as protected tenants in the Israeli-owned properties, a status that was achieved according to an Israeli law which allows Jewish Israelis to claim ownership of property if they can prove it was under Jewish ownership before 1948.
However, the law only applies to Jewish Israelis, and not to Palestinians who were dispossessed of their lands and properties prior to and after the establishment of Israel in 1948, despite their right being upheld by UN General Assembly Resolution 194.
According to Israeli rights watchdog Peace Now, the Israeli Jerusalem Regional Committee would discuss the approval of the project on July 16.
The project requires the expulsion of five Palestinian families from the occupied Palestinian neighbourhood, according to Days of Palestine.
Peace Now said that two buildings, five and seven stores, are planned to replace the houses of the five Palestinian families.
Additionally, a nine-story yeshiva campus that includes student accommodation and a six-story office building are also planned to be built in Sheikh Jarrah.
Peace Now said that this is the first time in recent years that new settlement units are being planned for settlers within a Palestinian neighbourhood in East Jerusalem.
Settlers have been engaged in an ongoing legal battle over the two plans, which aim to be established on the property where the five Palestinian families reside, for a total of 13 settlement units.
The families in question are regarded, legally, as protected tenants in the Israeli-owned properties, a status that was achieved according to an Israeli law which allows Jewish Israelis to claim ownership of property if they can prove it was under Jewish ownership before 1948.
However, the law only applies to Jewish Israelis, and not to Palestinians who were dispossessed of their lands and properties prior to and after the establishment of Israel in 1948, despite their right being upheld by UN General Assembly Resolution 194.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday blocked a legislation that would prevent the division of Jerusalem, Israeli media reported, according to Al Ray.
According to the Jerusalem Post, the Prime Minister’s office explained the reason as Netanyahu wanting the coalition to reach a consensus on what the bill would look like, rather than use a version put forward by Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett, of the right-wing Bayit Yehudi party.
“In addition, there is a Jerusalem Affairs Minister, Ze’ev Elkin, who has the right to be involved in the legislation,” it added.
The bill, which was scheduled to be put to vote next Sunday, requires a vote of 80 members of the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) to approve the concession of any part of Jerusalem.
Head of Bayit Yehudi party Naftali Bennett, according to the daily, said that the bill sets a very high bar for dividing Jerusalem.
“Twice in the last 15 years, we were a hair’s-breadth away from giving away the Temple Mount, Mount of Olives, City of David and three-quarters of the old city to the Palestinians, in the time of [former prime ministers Ehud] Barak and [Ehud] Olmert,” he said.
“Netanyahu blocked the legislative process, but we are determined to pass it in three readings, and I’m sure we can unite around the bill and Jerusalem,” he added.
Israel occupied the West Bank — including East Jerusalem — during the 1967 Middle East War. It later annexed the city in 1980, claiming it as the capital of the Jewish state in a move never recognized by the international community.
International law views the West Bank and East Jerusalem as “occupied territories”, and considers all Jewish settlement-building activity on the land as illegal.
Palestinians accuse Israel of waging an aggressive campaign to “Judaize” the historic city with the aim of effacing its Arab and Islamic identity and driving out its Palestinian inhabitants.
According to the Jerusalem Post, the Prime Minister’s office explained the reason as Netanyahu wanting the coalition to reach a consensus on what the bill would look like, rather than use a version put forward by Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett, of the right-wing Bayit Yehudi party.
“In addition, there is a Jerusalem Affairs Minister, Ze’ev Elkin, who has the right to be involved in the legislation,” it added.
The bill, which was scheduled to be put to vote next Sunday, requires a vote of 80 members of the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) to approve the concession of any part of Jerusalem.
Head of Bayit Yehudi party Naftali Bennett, according to the daily, said that the bill sets a very high bar for dividing Jerusalem.
“Twice in the last 15 years, we were a hair’s-breadth away from giving away the Temple Mount, Mount of Olives, City of David and three-quarters of the old city to the Palestinians, in the time of [former prime ministers Ehud] Barak and [Ehud] Olmert,” he said.
“Netanyahu blocked the legislative process, but we are determined to pass it in three readings, and I’m sure we can unite around the bill and Jerusalem,” he added.
Israel occupied the West Bank — including East Jerusalem — during the 1967 Middle East War. It later annexed the city in 1980, claiming it as the capital of the Jewish state in a move never recognized by the international community.
International law views the West Bank and East Jerusalem as “occupied territories”, and considers all Jewish settlement-building activity on the land as illegal.
Palestinians accuse Israel of waging an aggressive campaign to “Judaize” the historic city with the aim of effacing its Arab and Islamic identity and driving out its Palestinian inhabitants.
2 july 2017
Haaretz newspaper reported on Sunday that the Israeli authorities decided, in line with the sanctions they impose on the families of the Palestinians who carry out attacks, to file lawsuits demanding them to pay compensations up to millions of shekels.
The paper pointed out that the so-called Public Prosecution filed an unprecedented case with the Jerusalem District Court demanding the widow of a Palestinian who carried out an anti-occupation attack and her children to pay financial compensations for the damage he caused to the state.
This is the first of a series of similar cases that will soon be filed against the families of Palestinian attackers, according to the Israeli prosecution.
The paper said that the first lawsuit was filed a week and a half ago against the family of the martyr Fadi Qunbar who killed 4 soldiers in the anti-occupation car-ramming attack he carried out in January.
The Israeli authorities demanded Qunbar's widow to compensate for the damage caused, bear the cost of the memorials erected on the graves of the dead soldiers, and pay financial compensations to the families of the soldiers who were killed or injured.
In accordance with the lawsuit, Qunbar's family is demanded to pay nearly 2 million shekels for each family.
On 8th January 2017, Fadi Qunbar, a resident of the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber, plowed a truck into a group of Israeli soldiers killing 4 and injuring 13.
The paper pointed out that the so-called Public Prosecution filed an unprecedented case with the Jerusalem District Court demanding the widow of a Palestinian who carried out an anti-occupation attack and her children to pay financial compensations for the damage he caused to the state.
This is the first of a series of similar cases that will soon be filed against the families of Palestinian attackers, according to the Israeli prosecution.
The paper said that the first lawsuit was filed a week and a half ago against the family of the martyr Fadi Qunbar who killed 4 soldiers in the anti-occupation car-ramming attack he carried out in January.
The Israeli authorities demanded Qunbar's widow to compensate for the damage caused, bear the cost of the memorials erected on the graves of the dead soldiers, and pay financial compensations to the families of the soldiers who were killed or injured.
In accordance with the lawsuit, Qunbar's family is demanded to pay nearly 2 million shekels for each family.
On 8th January 2017, Fadi Qunbar, a resident of the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber, plowed a truck into a group of Israeli soldiers killing 4 and injuring 13.
The Israeli government signaled the go-ahead to a bid to allow members of the Knesset (Israeli parliament) to storm holy al-Aqsa Mosque, in Occupied Jerusalem.
The Israeli Channel 7 said a ban maintained for one year and half was lifted so as to allow Israeli MKs and ministers to defile al-Aqsa as of next week.
Last February the Ethics Committee at the Knesset cancelled instructions banning MKs from entering the site.
On October 8, 2015, the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu ruled that Arab and Israeli MKs be banned from al-Aqsa Mosque until further notice so as to tone down soaring tension.
The Israeli Channel 7 said a ban maintained for one year and half was lifted so as to allow Israeli MKs and ministers to defile al-Aqsa as of next week.
Last February the Ethics Committee at the Knesset cancelled instructions banning MKs from entering the site.
On October 8, 2015, the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu ruled that Arab and Israeli MKs be banned from al-Aqsa Mosque until further notice so as to tone down soaring tension.
