13 dec 2014
The ministry of Agriculture in Gaza voiced firm rebuff to an Israeli request to meet with Palestinian farmers over the issue of toxic pesticides sprayed on their crops by Israeli warplanes last month.
The ministry had asked the Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) to identify the nature of the substance sprayed over Palestinian farmlands in mid-November near the security fence, adjacent to southern Gaza, A PIC correspondent quoted government sources as reporting.
The IOA laid down a set of stipulations, weeks after the request, saying the probe could only be carried out if samples of damaged crops are taken as case studies and Palestinian farmers are interviewed.
The Palestinian ministry rejected the appeal for fear of the security repercussions resulting from Israeli interrogation procedures.
A drove of Israeli warplanes had sprayed toxic herbicides over large areas of Palestinians’ crops and farmlands, for three days, that penetrated as deep as 1500 meters of the targeted lands located west of the border fence separating Gaza and 1948 Occupied Palestine.
More than 600 dunums of Palestinian cultivated land lots have sustained considerable damage in the process.
The ministry had asked the Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) to identify the nature of the substance sprayed over Palestinian farmlands in mid-November near the security fence, adjacent to southern Gaza, A PIC correspondent quoted government sources as reporting.
The IOA laid down a set of stipulations, weeks after the request, saying the probe could only be carried out if samples of damaged crops are taken as case studies and Palestinian farmers are interviewed.
The Palestinian ministry rejected the appeal for fear of the security repercussions resulting from Israeli interrogation procedures.
A drove of Israeli warplanes had sprayed toxic herbicides over large areas of Palestinians’ crops and farmlands, for three days, that penetrated as deep as 1500 meters of the targeted lands located west of the border fence separating Gaza and 1948 Occupied Palestine.
More than 600 dunums of Palestinian cultivated land lots have sustained considerable damage in the process.
10 dec 2014
The Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) on Tuesday handed a Palestinian citizen a military order ruling for his forcible deportation from Occupied Jerusalem and the West Bank at a time when scores of Palestinian civilians were handed demolition notifications.
Earlier, a week ago, the IOA notified 31-year-old Palestinian young man Daoud al-Ghoul of its intent to banish him from Occupied Jerusalem for five months as of November 30.
The Wadi Helwa Information Center, based in Jerusalem’s city of Silwan, said the banishment order, issued by the Israeli occupation army chief in the West Bank, rules for the expulsion of al-Ghoul from all cities and areas of the West Bank for six months.
Last week the IOA handed five Jerusalemite activists deportation orders allegedly for having taken part in anti-Israeli occupation campaigns.
The issue was reportedly based on a set of orders dating back to the ill-famed British Mandate phase.
In another development, the IOA threatened to raze a number of Palestinian family homes and residential structures across Occupied Jerusalem city under the pretext of unlicensed construction.
The Wadi Helwa Center said the Israeli municipality crews in Occupied Jerusalem took multi-dimensional snapshots of Palestinian quarters and houses in Silwan, south of holy al-Aqsa Mosque, in an attempt to pave the way for their destruction.
The demolition orders targeted a two-story residential apartment, covering over 150 meters square and sheltering 13 Palestinians, and another 20-year-old building in Ein Al-Louza neighborhood, covering an overall area of around 160 meters square and housing at least nine Palestinians.
The demolition orders targeted also a car park, a restaurant, and a local bakery in Ein al-Louza.
Earlier, on Monday the IOA threatened to knock down three auto-repair garages, the sole sources of income to at least 10 Jerusalemite families.
Meanwhile, the Israeli municipality officers, escorted by the Israeli occupation forces, stormed Jabal al-Mukabir, south of Occupied Jerusalem, and handed three demolition orders to three Palestinian house-owners.
Earlier, a week ago, the IOA notified 31-year-old Palestinian young man Daoud al-Ghoul of its intent to banish him from Occupied Jerusalem for five months as of November 30.
The Wadi Helwa Information Center, based in Jerusalem’s city of Silwan, said the banishment order, issued by the Israeli occupation army chief in the West Bank, rules for the expulsion of al-Ghoul from all cities and areas of the West Bank for six months.
Last week the IOA handed five Jerusalemite activists deportation orders allegedly for having taken part in anti-Israeli occupation campaigns.
The issue was reportedly based on a set of orders dating back to the ill-famed British Mandate phase.
In another development, the IOA threatened to raze a number of Palestinian family homes and residential structures across Occupied Jerusalem city under the pretext of unlicensed construction.
The Wadi Helwa Center said the Israeli municipality crews in Occupied Jerusalem took multi-dimensional snapshots of Palestinian quarters and houses in Silwan, south of holy al-Aqsa Mosque, in an attempt to pave the way for their destruction.
The demolition orders targeted a two-story residential apartment, covering over 150 meters square and sheltering 13 Palestinians, and another 20-year-old building in Ein Al-Louza neighborhood, covering an overall area of around 160 meters square and housing at least nine Palestinians.
The demolition orders targeted also a car park, a restaurant, and a local bakery in Ein al-Louza.
Earlier, on Monday the IOA threatened to knock down three auto-repair garages, the sole sources of income to at least 10 Jerusalemite families.
Meanwhile, the Israeli municipality officers, escorted by the Israeli occupation forces, stormed Jabal al-Mukabir, south of Occupied Jerusalem, and handed three demolition orders to three Palestinian house-owners.
In what seems to be an attempt to nullify a ruling by the Israeli High Court, allowing the Palestinians to use bypass road #443, Israel decided to illegally expropriate 321 Dunams of Palestinian lands, west of the central West Bank city of Ramallah.
The military decision robs 321 Dunams (79.3 Acres) of privately owned Palestinian lands belonging to residents of Beit ‘Or al-Foqa village, Beit ‘Arik village and the town of Betunia.
Head of Beit ‘Or al-Foqa Village Council Rami ‘Alawi said Israel is alleging the decision was made due to “security considerations,” while in fact, "is nothing but theft of Palestinian orchards containing thousands of olive trees."
‘Alawi stated the “decision is vague and ambiguous, and would lead to completing the chain of illegal colonies surrounding the village along with the military base in the area.”
He added the decision also prevents the villagers from using road #443, or even approach it, which turns it into another settler-only road.
The road has already led to the illegal annexation of thousands of Dunams of lands belonging to residents of various villages, west of Ramallah, as it also links with Jerusalem and historic Palestine.
Israel started denying the Palestinians access to the road since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada in late September 2000.
Besides the fact that Israel’s “settlements”, built in the occupied West Bank, in and around occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law and the Fourth Geneva Convention, they are largely built on private Palestinian lands.
Israel also claims it builds settlements on what it calls “State Lands,” those constructions, and Jewish-only communities are built on occupied lands; therefore, the “state” is an occupying power that took control over the lands by force, and cannot claim ownership of an occupied territory.
In addition, the International Humanitarian Law states that the occupation must be a temporary situation, while colonizing the land is a permanent move that involves moving civilian population of the occupying power to settle in occupied territories.
Article 49 of the Geneva Convention, August 12 1949, regarding the protection of civilians at the time of war, especially from deportations, evacuations and transfer forbids “the occupier from transferring its own populations into territories it occupies.”
“Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not, are prohibited, regardless of their motive.”
Under Article 55 of The Hague Convention, the occupying power must safeguard the territories it occupied, and must maintain the status quo.
Land Expropriation and Settlements in the International Law – B’Tselem
The military decision robs 321 Dunams (79.3 Acres) of privately owned Palestinian lands belonging to residents of Beit ‘Or al-Foqa village, Beit ‘Arik village and the town of Betunia.
Head of Beit ‘Or al-Foqa Village Council Rami ‘Alawi said Israel is alleging the decision was made due to “security considerations,” while in fact, "is nothing but theft of Palestinian orchards containing thousands of olive trees."
‘Alawi stated the “decision is vague and ambiguous, and would lead to completing the chain of illegal colonies surrounding the village along with the military base in the area.”
He added the decision also prevents the villagers from using road #443, or even approach it, which turns it into another settler-only road.
The road has already led to the illegal annexation of thousands of Dunams of lands belonging to residents of various villages, west of Ramallah, as it also links with Jerusalem and historic Palestine.
Israel started denying the Palestinians access to the road since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada in late September 2000.
Besides the fact that Israel’s “settlements”, built in the occupied West Bank, in and around occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law and the Fourth Geneva Convention, they are largely built on private Palestinian lands.
Israel also claims it builds settlements on what it calls “State Lands,” those constructions, and Jewish-only communities are built on occupied lands; therefore, the “state” is an occupying power that took control over the lands by force, and cannot claim ownership of an occupied territory.
In addition, the International Humanitarian Law states that the occupation must be a temporary situation, while colonizing the land is a permanent move that involves moving civilian population of the occupying power to settle in occupied territories.
Article 49 of the Geneva Convention, August 12 1949, regarding the protection of civilians at the time of war, especially from deportations, evacuations and transfer forbids “the occupier from transferring its own populations into territories it occupies.”
“Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not, are prohibited, regardless of their motive.”
Under Article 55 of The Hague Convention, the occupying power must safeguard the territories it occupied, and must maintain the status quo.
Land Expropriation and Settlements in the International Law – B’Tselem
Illegal expansion of "Jewish only" settlements continued unabated, in various parts of the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, with further demolition notices and destruction of Palestinian property by Israeli settlers.
Israeli police served demolition orders, on Tuesday, for a number of Palestinian-owned homes in the neighborhoods of Silwan and Jabal al-Mukabir, under the pretext of construction without legal permits, according to local sources.
Witnesses told WAFA correspondence that a staff from the Israeli municipality of West Jerusalem invaded Silwan and handed two local residents orders for demolition of their homes on “unpermitted construction” grounds.
Meanwhile, the Israeli municipality also served two local residents of Jabal al-Mukabir notices to demolish their homes, despite the fact that one of the two has a valid construction permit.
The latest demolition orders come only a day after similar notices were handed to residents of Silwan, Jabal al-Mukabir and Sur Baher for unpermitted construction.
Issuance of construction permits for Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem has been tightly restricted, WAFA reports, and, in case a permit is issued, the holder is forced to pay skyrocketing fees. This has led many Palestinians in Jerusalem to construct without obtaining a permit to shelter their families.
Meanwhile, in the village of Issawiya, to the north of Jerusalem, the Israeli municipality ransacked a Palestinian-owned shop. Prior to the assault, the shop’s owner, identified as Nader Richeq, had won an Israeli court’s ruling under which the demolition of his property was to be annulled.
Richeq’s workshop reportedly employs a number of workers and is considered a source of livelihood for at least 10 Palestinian families.
The orders came despite a noticeable surge in mass protests that had struck the city, beginning last June. However, such protests have significantly decreased in number, following mass arrests carried out by Israeli police in and around neighborhoods in occupied East Jerusalem.
Since then, at least 600 Palestinian children were arrested in the city, 40% of whom were exposed to sexual abuse during arrest or investigation by the Israeli authorities, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Club (PPC).
An attorney with PCC, also reported on other violations during the apprehension of children, including, to name just a few, night and predawn raids on family homes, physical abuse, and sexual abuse.
Also, on Tuesday, the Israeli army confiscated three Palestinian owned tractors in the village of Khirbet Ibzeq, in the northern Jordan Valley, according to local sources.
Aref Daraghmeh, head of Al-Maleh local council, which gathers a number of small Bedouin villages into one municipal congregation, said that an Israeli army force stormed the village and confiscated three tractors owned by local villagers.
Earlier in the morning, Bedouins and villagers from the Tubas governorate were allowed to cultivate an agricultural area close to the border with Jordan before army ordered the farmers out.
Entry to the area, locally known as Ein Sakout, has been prohibited since Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967, as Israel used it as a live-fire and training zone.
To be noted, Israel has heavily invested in transferring the Jordan Valley into a completely Israeli area, primarily of agricultural value, targeting to ban direct connectivity between a future Palestinian state and the rest of the Arab world.
To this end, tens of settlements and agricultural outposts have been established by Israel in the Valley, which makes up about one-third of the total area of the occupied West Bank.
Significantly contributing to Israeli agriculture, the Valley is nonetheless part of the "occupied" West Bank since 1967, a claim which the international community refuses to recognize.
See: 12/10/14 Palestine Takes on Observer Status at the ICC
WAFA further reports that Israeli authorities have, in recent years, earmarked around 35,000 dunams of land in the West Bank, currently used by the Israeli army as firing zones, for the purposes of settlement expansion.
According to Haaretz, in the 1970s, approximately a million dunams in the West Bank were declared firing zones for the exclusive use of the Israel army. Until the 1990s, such areas were used extensively for training.
After the Israeli military moved training bases to southern Israel, following the Oslo Accords, the use of firing zones in the West Bank declined and most are now abandoned or used only sporadically for training.
Nevertheless, the Israeli army continues to control these areas, keeping Palestinians out and demolishing buildings that are sometimes constructed there.
A May 2014 account by an Israeli army officer revealed that military training in live-fire zones in the West Bank are simply a justification to reduce the number of Palestinians living in close proximity.
Israeli settlers, on Tuesday morning, cut the wires of four power poles and chopped down several olive trees east of Burin village, to the south of Nablus.
Ghassan Daghlas, who monitors settlement activities in northern West Bank, said that several individuals from Bracha, an illegal settlement outpost, broke into the eastern part of Burin, where they vandalized and attempted to steal the wires of power poles and broke the street lights in the area.
The settlers also chopped down several olive trees.
Israel has confiscated 854 dunams from Burin village (7% from the total village area of Burin) for the establishment of two settlements; “Bracha”, to the north-east of the village, and “Yitzhar”, to the south-west of the village.
Israel has confiscated 630 dunums from Burin village for the establishment of Huwwara military base near Huwwara checkpoint. According to the Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem, a total of 2,875 Israeli settlers now live in these settlements.
See 11/05/14 Stealing the Land, Inch by Inch
Israeli police served demolition orders, on Tuesday, for a number of Palestinian-owned homes in the neighborhoods of Silwan and Jabal al-Mukabir, under the pretext of construction without legal permits, according to local sources.
Witnesses told WAFA correspondence that a staff from the Israeli municipality of West Jerusalem invaded Silwan and handed two local residents orders for demolition of their homes on “unpermitted construction” grounds.
Meanwhile, the Israeli municipality also served two local residents of Jabal al-Mukabir notices to demolish their homes, despite the fact that one of the two has a valid construction permit.
The latest demolition orders come only a day after similar notices were handed to residents of Silwan, Jabal al-Mukabir and Sur Baher for unpermitted construction.
Issuance of construction permits for Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem has been tightly restricted, WAFA reports, and, in case a permit is issued, the holder is forced to pay skyrocketing fees. This has led many Palestinians in Jerusalem to construct without obtaining a permit to shelter their families.
Meanwhile, in the village of Issawiya, to the north of Jerusalem, the Israeli municipality ransacked a Palestinian-owned shop. Prior to the assault, the shop’s owner, identified as Nader Richeq, had won an Israeli court’s ruling under which the demolition of his property was to be annulled.
Richeq’s workshop reportedly employs a number of workers and is considered a source of livelihood for at least 10 Palestinian families.
The orders came despite a noticeable surge in mass protests that had struck the city, beginning last June. However, such protests have significantly decreased in number, following mass arrests carried out by Israeli police in and around neighborhoods in occupied East Jerusalem.
Since then, at least 600 Palestinian children were arrested in the city, 40% of whom were exposed to sexual abuse during arrest or investigation by the Israeli authorities, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Club (PPC).
An attorney with PCC, also reported on other violations during the apprehension of children, including, to name just a few, night and predawn raids on family homes, physical abuse, and sexual abuse.
Also, on Tuesday, the Israeli army confiscated three Palestinian owned tractors in the village of Khirbet Ibzeq, in the northern Jordan Valley, according to local sources.
Aref Daraghmeh, head of Al-Maleh local council, which gathers a number of small Bedouin villages into one municipal congregation, said that an Israeli army force stormed the village and confiscated three tractors owned by local villagers.
Earlier in the morning, Bedouins and villagers from the Tubas governorate were allowed to cultivate an agricultural area close to the border with Jordan before army ordered the farmers out.
Entry to the area, locally known as Ein Sakout, has been prohibited since Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967, as Israel used it as a live-fire and training zone.
To be noted, Israel has heavily invested in transferring the Jordan Valley into a completely Israeli area, primarily of agricultural value, targeting to ban direct connectivity between a future Palestinian state and the rest of the Arab world.
To this end, tens of settlements and agricultural outposts have been established by Israel in the Valley, which makes up about one-third of the total area of the occupied West Bank.
Significantly contributing to Israeli agriculture, the Valley is nonetheless part of the "occupied" West Bank since 1967, a claim which the international community refuses to recognize.
See: 12/10/14 Palestine Takes on Observer Status at the ICC
WAFA further reports that Israeli authorities have, in recent years, earmarked around 35,000 dunams of land in the West Bank, currently used by the Israeli army as firing zones, for the purposes of settlement expansion.
According to Haaretz, in the 1970s, approximately a million dunams in the West Bank were declared firing zones for the exclusive use of the Israel army. Until the 1990s, such areas were used extensively for training.
After the Israeli military moved training bases to southern Israel, following the Oslo Accords, the use of firing zones in the West Bank declined and most are now abandoned or used only sporadically for training.
Nevertheless, the Israeli army continues to control these areas, keeping Palestinians out and demolishing buildings that are sometimes constructed there.
A May 2014 account by an Israeli army officer revealed that military training in live-fire zones in the West Bank are simply a justification to reduce the number of Palestinians living in close proximity.
Israeli settlers, on Tuesday morning, cut the wires of four power poles and chopped down several olive trees east of Burin village, to the south of Nablus.
Ghassan Daghlas, who monitors settlement activities in northern West Bank, said that several individuals from Bracha, an illegal settlement outpost, broke into the eastern part of Burin, where they vandalized and attempted to steal the wires of power poles and broke the street lights in the area.
The settlers also chopped down several olive trees.
Israel has confiscated 854 dunams from Burin village (7% from the total village area of Burin) for the establishment of two settlements; “Bracha”, to the north-east of the village, and “Yitzhar”, to the south-west of the village.
Israel has confiscated 630 dunums from Burin village for the establishment of Huwwara military base near Huwwara checkpoint. According to the Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem, a total of 2,875 Israeli settlers now live in these settlements.
See 11/05/14 Stealing the Land, Inch by Inch
8 dec 2014
Palestinian residents in Jalud village, south of Nablus, said they saw Israeli bulldozing activities in agricultural lands around Akhiah settlement in their village.
Head of the municipal council in the village Abdullah Tawfiq said that an Israeli bulldozer on Sunday evening bulldozed the southeastern area of the village.
Tawfiq told the Palestinian information center (PIC) that over 150 dunums of Palestinian lands had been annexed to expand the settlement.
The municipal official added that he owns the targeted land and would file a lawsuit against the settlement expansion activities in his land.
Head of the municipal council in the village Abdullah Tawfiq said that an Israeli bulldozer on Sunday evening bulldozed the southeastern area of the village.
Tawfiq told the Palestinian information center (PIC) that over 150 dunums of Palestinian lands had been annexed to expand the settlement.
The municipal official added that he owns the targeted land and would file a lawsuit against the settlement expansion activities in his land.
4 dec 2014
Two Palestinians injured by settler’s fire near Ramallah
Medical sources have reported that at least 36 Palestinians have been injured; one seriously, after dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded the Shu’fat refugee camp, in occupied East Jerusalem, and demolished a building that contained 20 stores.
The clashes in Shu’fat started after the soldiers demolished a large building, known as the Coca Cola building that contained 10 stores and 10 warehouses.
The building belongs to members of the Dajani family in occupied East Jerusalem.
Head of the Ras Khamis Development Committee in Shu’fat, Jamil Sandouqa, said the soldiers are trying to expand the military roadblock at the entrance of the camp.
Last year, the Israeli Supreme Court decided to remove the building and confiscate its land, for what it referred to as “security considerations.” The building was located right next to the Shu’fat military roadblock.
Amin Abu Ghazala, in charge of the Emergency Department Unit of the Red Crescent, has reported that 36 Palestinians have been injured; twelve of them by rubber-coated metal bullets, while one Palestinian suffered a serious injury in his eye, and was moved to the Hadassah Ein Karem Israeli Hospital, in Jerusalem.
He has been identified as Ammar Mohammad Ali, 21 years of age; local sources said he was standing in front of his meat shop.
A child was shot in the face, and a third Palestinian suffered a skull fracture; both were shot by rubber-coated metal bullets.
Abu Ghazala added that the soldiers stopped a Red Crescent Ambulance at the Qalandia Terminal, and confiscated its keys, while the medics were trying to move a wounded Palestinian to a hospital in Ramallah.
Dozens of residents suffered the effects of tear gas inhalation, while the soldiers used trucks to spray the residents, their homes and schools with waste-water mixed with chemicals, and fired gas bombs at schoolchildren.
Soldiers also placed concrete blocks in front of a building in the camp, occupied rooftops of several homes, and started firing at any resident walking in the streets after the army imposed curfew, forcing the entire refugee camp under house arrest.
A Palestinian identified as Nidal Fasfous, 35, was beaten by the soldiers who stopped his car, and detained him before violently assaulting and beating him causing a fracture in his nose, and various cuts and bruises to several parts of his body.
Eyewitnesses said the soldiers also deliberately fired rubber-coated metal bullets at Fasfous’s car, breaking its windshield, and several windows.
They added that the soldiers fired gas bombs and rubber-coated metal bullets at several shops, stores and homes.
The soldiers closed the Shu’fat roadblock, forcing the residents and cars to take an alternate road, through Hezma and ‘Anata, just to be able to enter the camp, and also installed a roadblock at the main entrance of ‘Anata.
Moreover, soldiers attempted to invade the Shu’fat Elementary School for Girls, run by the UNRWA, and fired gas bombs and concussion grenades at the students while trying to return home.
In related news, two Palestinians were shot by live rounds fired by an Israeli settler near the Beitello village, north west of the central West Bank city of Ramallah.
The two, identified as Ahmad Akram Ziyada, and Thabet Abdul-Karim Bazzar, have been moved to the Palestine Medical Center suffered moderate injuries.
Earlier Wednesday, a Palestinian child was shot and injured by a live round, fired by Israeli soldiers invading the ‘Askar refugee camp, in the northern West Bank district of Nablus; many residents suffered the effects of tear gas inhalation.
Medical sources have reported that at least 36 Palestinians have been injured; one seriously, after dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded the Shu’fat refugee camp, in occupied East Jerusalem, and demolished a building that contained 20 stores.
The clashes in Shu’fat started after the soldiers demolished a large building, known as the Coca Cola building that contained 10 stores and 10 warehouses.
The building belongs to members of the Dajani family in occupied East Jerusalem.
Head of the Ras Khamis Development Committee in Shu’fat, Jamil Sandouqa, said the soldiers are trying to expand the military roadblock at the entrance of the camp.
Last year, the Israeli Supreme Court decided to remove the building and confiscate its land, for what it referred to as “security considerations.” The building was located right next to the Shu’fat military roadblock.
Amin Abu Ghazala, in charge of the Emergency Department Unit of the Red Crescent, has reported that 36 Palestinians have been injured; twelve of them by rubber-coated metal bullets, while one Palestinian suffered a serious injury in his eye, and was moved to the Hadassah Ein Karem Israeli Hospital, in Jerusalem.
He has been identified as Ammar Mohammad Ali, 21 years of age; local sources said he was standing in front of his meat shop.
A child was shot in the face, and a third Palestinian suffered a skull fracture; both were shot by rubber-coated metal bullets.
Abu Ghazala added that the soldiers stopped a Red Crescent Ambulance at the Qalandia Terminal, and confiscated its keys, while the medics were trying to move a wounded Palestinian to a hospital in Ramallah.
Dozens of residents suffered the effects of tear gas inhalation, while the soldiers used trucks to spray the residents, their homes and schools with waste-water mixed with chemicals, and fired gas bombs at schoolchildren.
Soldiers also placed concrete blocks in front of a building in the camp, occupied rooftops of several homes, and started firing at any resident walking in the streets after the army imposed curfew, forcing the entire refugee camp under house arrest.
A Palestinian identified as Nidal Fasfous, 35, was beaten by the soldiers who stopped his car, and detained him before violently assaulting and beating him causing a fracture in his nose, and various cuts and bruises to several parts of his body.
Eyewitnesses said the soldiers also deliberately fired rubber-coated metal bullets at Fasfous’s car, breaking its windshield, and several windows.
They added that the soldiers fired gas bombs and rubber-coated metal bullets at several shops, stores and homes.
The soldiers closed the Shu’fat roadblock, forcing the residents and cars to take an alternate road, through Hezma and ‘Anata, just to be able to enter the camp, and also installed a roadblock at the main entrance of ‘Anata.
Moreover, soldiers attempted to invade the Shu’fat Elementary School for Girls, run by the UNRWA, and fired gas bombs and concussion grenades at the students while trying to return home.
In related news, two Palestinians were shot by live rounds fired by an Israeli settler near the Beitello village, north west of the central West Bank city of Ramallah.
The two, identified as Ahmad Akram Ziyada, and Thabet Abdul-Karim Bazzar, have been moved to the Palestine Medical Center suffered moderate injuries.
Earlier Wednesday, a Palestinian child was shot and injured by a live round, fired by Israeli soldiers invading the ‘Askar refugee camp, in the northern West Bank district of Nablus; many residents suffered the effects of tear gas inhalation.
3 dec 2014
The Israeli bulldozers demolished Wednesday morning a huge building and ten shops near Shufat military checkpoint in occupied Jerusalem in favor of the separation wall construction.
Spokesman for Fatah movement in Shufat refugee camp Thaer Fasfous told the PIC reporter that more than 300 Israeli soldiers brutally stormed the camp this morning before deploying throughout its streets.
He pointed out that dozens of soldiers stormed a number of homes in the camp before deploying snipers on their rooftops.
He said that Israeli occupation forces (IOF) surrounded an ancient building and ten adjacent stores in preparation for their demolition without notifying their owners.
The stores include car repair workshops, groceries, chicken butcheries, and warehouses, all established since 2004.
Fasfous pointed out that the demolition process aims to pave the way for the construction of a new section of Israel's separation wall between Shufat refugee camp and occupied Jerusalem and to expand an Israeli military checkpoint in the area.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces stormed Wednesday afternoon al-Khalil city amid a coordinated withdrawal of PA forces.
Eyewitnesses told a PIC reporter that IOF soldiers in three Israeli military patrols stormed and deployed throughout Ein Sara neighborhood in the city. No arrests were reported while field investigation was carried out with a number of young men.
Also in al-Khalil, Israeli forces ordered a number of Palestinian citizens to demolish an agricultural facility and a solar powered room in Yatta town under the pretext of being built without permit.
Israel has continued settlement construction in occupied Jerusalem and the West Bank, while actively limiting Palestinian construction and carrying out demolitions against structures built without hard-to-get permits.
Spokesman for Fatah movement in Shufat refugee camp Thaer Fasfous told the PIC reporter that more than 300 Israeli soldiers brutally stormed the camp this morning before deploying throughout its streets.
He pointed out that dozens of soldiers stormed a number of homes in the camp before deploying snipers on their rooftops.
He said that Israeli occupation forces (IOF) surrounded an ancient building and ten adjacent stores in preparation for their demolition without notifying their owners.
The stores include car repair workshops, groceries, chicken butcheries, and warehouses, all established since 2004.
Fasfous pointed out that the demolition process aims to pave the way for the construction of a new section of Israel's separation wall between Shufat refugee camp and occupied Jerusalem and to expand an Israeli military checkpoint in the area.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces stormed Wednesday afternoon al-Khalil city amid a coordinated withdrawal of PA forces.
Eyewitnesses told a PIC reporter that IOF soldiers in three Israeli military patrols stormed and deployed throughout Ein Sara neighborhood in the city. No arrests were reported while field investigation was carried out with a number of young men.
Also in al-Khalil, Israeli forces ordered a number of Palestinian citizens to demolish an agricultural facility and a solar powered room in Yatta town under the pretext of being built without permit.
Israel has continued settlement construction in occupied Jerusalem and the West Bank, while actively limiting Palestinian construction and carrying out demolitions against structures built without hard-to-get permits.
2 dec 2014
The Israeli supreme court is expected on Wednesday to issue a verdict on requests for the demolition of Palestinian homes in east Jerusalem as a punitive measure for deadly attacks on Israelis, according to different news reports.
Although, all the attackers were extrajudicially killed by Israeli security forces at the scenes, Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu early in November issued an edict ordering the demolition of the homes of Palestinians whose relatives carried out recent attacks on Israelis.
Netanyahu's decision was condemned by prominent human rights groups as mass punishment.
So far, the Israeli occupation authority carried out only one demolition, when they destroyed the house of Shaludi family on November 19, almost a month after Abdul-Rahman Shaludi rammed his car into Jewish settlers in east Jerusalem and killed two of them.
Israel's punitive demolition of Palestinian homes is part of emergency legislation or regulations that had been adopted by Britain during its mandate of Palestine.
Lawyer Medhat Diba, who defends one of the families whose home is to be razed, told Anadolu news agency that Israel still uses regulation 119 of the emergency legislation created by Britain in 1945, which legalized the forfeiture and demolition of Palestinian property used for hostile activities or attacks at the time.
The Israeli center for the defense of individuals Hamoked described the punitive demolition policy pursued by Israel against the Palestinians alone as a racist measure and collective punishment.
The supreme court of Israel will also study in a hearing to be held on Wednesday a petition filed by Hamoked calling for revoking Israel's punitive demolition policy.
Although, all the attackers were extrajudicially killed by Israeli security forces at the scenes, Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu early in November issued an edict ordering the demolition of the homes of Palestinians whose relatives carried out recent attacks on Israelis.
Netanyahu's decision was condemned by prominent human rights groups as mass punishment.
So far, the Israeli occupation authority carried out only one demolition, when they destroyed the house of Shaludi family on November 19, almost a month after Abdul-Rahman Shaludi rammed his car into Jewish settlers in east Jerusalem and killed two of them.
Israel's punitive demolition of Palestinian homes is part of emergency legislation or regulations that had been adopted by Britain during its mandate of Palestine.
Lawyer Medhat Diba, who defends one of the families whose home is to be razed, told Anadolu news agency that Israel still uses regulation 119 of the emergency legislation created by Britain in 1945, which legalized the forfeiture and demolition of Palestinian property used for hostile activities or attacks at the time.
The Israeli center for the defense of individuals Hamoked described the punitive demolition policy pursued by Israel against the Palestinians alone as a racist measure and collective punishment.
The supreme court of Israel will also study in a hearing to be held on Wednesday a petition filed by Hamoked calling for revoking Israel's punitive demolition policy.
Several Israeli military vehicles invaded, Tuesday, Masafer Yatta and the al-Mafqara Bedouin communities, south of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and handed destruction orders against residential tents, and structures.
Coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlements in southern Hebron Rateb Jabour said the soldiers handed orders against a residential tent in Masafer Yatta, and three tents in al-Mafqara, near the Tiwani area.
Soldiers also photographed an elementary school in the area, an issue that raised fears among the residents that the army intends to demolish it.
Last month, the army demolished and removed a number of residential structures, sheds and barns in the area, and handed orders against several tents, barns and water wells in a number of communities near Yatta.
Coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlements in southern Hebron Rateb Jabour said the soldiers handed orders against a residential tent in Masafer Yatta, and three tents in al-Mafqara, near the Tiwani area.
Soldiers also photographed an elementary school in the area, an issue that raised fears among the residents that the army intends to demolish it.
Last month, the army demolished and removed a number of residential structures, sheds and barns in the area, and handed orders against several tents, barns and water wells in a number of communities near Yatta.
The Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) issued a decision to seize Palestinian land tracts in the West Bank city of Ramallah as part of pre-planned attempts to speed up settlement pace.
Local sources said the IOA issued a court ruling endorsing the misappropriation of around 48 dunums of Palestinians’ cultivated tracts west of Ramallah city.
Head of Ramallah’s municipal council, Moayed Wahdan, said in a press statement Monday the ruling was handed to the municipality of Deir Balout village by the Israeli occupation forces who threatened to grab hold over the targeted lands sometime soon.
Wahdan attributed the confiscation issue to Israeli schemes to expand an occupation military camp along the north-western area of Rentis town, adjacent to Deir Balout.
Reliable sources said efforts by a group of Salfit-based Palestinian lawmakers have been underway to nullify the decision.
The incident has not been the only one of its kind as the IOA had, some ten years earlier, seized hundreds of dunums of Palestinian-owned terrains in Rentis town to build the notorious Apartheid Wall.
Local sources said the IOA issued a court ruling endorsing the misappropriation of around 48 dunums of Palestinians’ cultivated tracts west of Ramallah city.
Head of Ramallah’s municipal council, Moayed Wahdan, said in a press statement Monday the ruling was handed to the municipality of Deir Balout village by the Israeli occupation forces who threatened to grab hold over the targeted lands sometime soon.
Wahdan attributed the confiscation issue to Israeli schemes to expand an occupation military camp along the north-western area of Rentis town, adjacent to Deir Balout.
Reliable sources said efforts by a group of Salfit-based Palestinian lawmakers have been underway to nullify the decision.
The incident has not been the only one of its kind as the IOA had, some ten years earlier, seized hundreds of dunums of Palestinian-owned terrains in Rentis town to build the notorious Apartheid Wall.
1 dec 2014
The Israeli municipality in occupied Jerusalem demolished Monday morning a Jerusalemite prisoner’s home under construction in Issawiya town.
Eyewitnesses said that Israeli bulldozers demolished since the early morning hours the detainee Ishaq Hamdan’s home under the pretext of being built without permit.
The demolition process was carried out under heavy presence of Israeli forces and police, the sources added.
Following the demolition process, angry protesters stoned the Israeli forces who in their turn fired tear gas and sound bombs. No injuries or arrests were reported during the clashes.
Jerusalemites face discrimination in all aspects of life including housing, employment, and services, and are unable to access services in the West Bank due to the construction of Israel’s separation wall.
Israel, however, has moved thousands of Israelis into exclusively Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem, while actively limiting Palestinian construction and carrying out demolitions against structures built without hard-to-get permits.
Eyewitnesses said that Israeli bulldozers demolished since the early morning hours the detainee Ishaq Hamdan’s home under the pretext of being built without permit.
The demolition process was carried out under heavy presence of Israeli forces and police, the sources added.
Following the demolition process, angry protesters stoned the Israeli forces who in their turn fired tear gas and sound bombs. No injuries or arrests were reported during the clashes.
Jerusalemites face discrimination in all aspects of life including housing, employment, and services, and are unable to access services in the West Bank due to the construction of Israel’s separation wall.
Israel, however, has moved thousands of Israelis into exclusively Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem, while actively limiting Palestinian construction and carrying out demolitions against structures built without hard-to-get permits.