31 mar 2015
Employees of the Jerusalem City Council demolished, on Tuesday morning, some sections of Palestinian home, a horse barn and some walls, in the Market area (al-Hisba) in Wad al-Jouz neighborhood, in occupied East Jerusalem.
Sharaf Amro told the WAFA news agency that dozens of residents gathered in an attempt to prevent the soldiers from demolishing his home, and that the soldiers partially demolished his neighbor’s home, belonging to Totah family.
Amro added that the soldiers demolished several walls, storage rooms, and a few tin structures in the area.
WAFA said the soldiers declared the area a closed military zone, and prevented journalists from entering it, and that clashes took place between the invading army and local residents, including scuffles between the soldiers and owners of the targeted structures.
Amro told WAFA that Israel wants to demolish several homes and walls that have been built behind the Market area, in Wad al-Jouz, dozens of years ago, and that the homes are built on around 25 Dunams of Palestinian lands extending from Suwwana neighborhood to al-Absat Gate (Gate of the Tribes).
Israel previously illegally confiscated parts of the lands in question, and built walls, while the new violations pose threats on around 100 Palestinian homes in the area.
The lands are part of the Islamic Waqf Department, while Israel is planning to build parks, a mall, road and a parking lot.
Amro said the Palestinians fear Israel is close to removing the entire market along with the old homes, as part of its plans to build a Talmudic Garden, in addition to its escalating the construction and expansion of Jewish-only colonies.
Sharaf Amro told the WAFA news agency that dozens of residents gathered in an attempt to prevent the soldiers from demolishing his home, and that the soldiers partially demolished his neighbor’s home, belonging to Totah family.
Amro added that the soldiers demolished several walls, storage rooms, and a few tin structures in the area.
WAFA said the soldiers declared the area a closed military zone, and prevented journalists from entering it, and that clashes took place between the invading army and local residents, including scuffles between the soldiers and owners of the targeted structures.
Amro told WAFA that Israel wants to demolish several homes and walls that have been built behind the Market area, in Wad al-Jouz, dozens of years ago, and that the homes are built on around 25 Dunams of Palestinian lands extending from Suwwana neighborhood to al-Absat Gate (Gate of the Tribes).
Israel previously illegally confiscated parts of the lands in question, and built walls, while the new violations pose threats on around 100 Palestinian homes in the area.
The lands are part of the Islamic Waqf Department, while Israel is planning to build parks, a mall, road and a parking lot.
Amro said the Palestinians fear Israel is close to removing the entire market along with the old homes, as part of its plans to build a Talmudic Garden, in addition to its escalating the construction and expansion of Jewish-only colonies.
District Planning and Building Committee invites submission of master plan for building thousands of housing units in Jabel Mukaber; right-wing activists: Plan helps divide Jerusalem.
The Interior Ministry's District Planning and Building Committee on Monday invited the submission of a master plan for the construction of 2,200 new housing units for the Arab sector in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber. As part of the plan, several hundreds of housing units built illegally will also be retroactively approved.
The decision was approved despite strong objection from right-wing activists. Aryeh King, a member of the Jerusalem city council who is leading the charge against the plan, sent an urgent letter to Interior Minister Gilad Erdan on Sunday, claiming there are issues with the project, because in reality, according to him, many more units will be built than initially planned.
The plan allocates an area of some 1,500 dunman between Jabel Mukaber and Abu Dis for the construction of housing units. The project also includes areas allocated for commercial and employment centers, public buildings, schools, new roads and new parks. The "American road" will also be developed as part of the plan, a central traffic artery for east and south-east Jerusalem, along which commercial and employment centers will be developed.
The district committee had also been scheduled to discuss the construction of 1,500 housing units in Jewish East Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa, but the meeting on that project was cancelled last week without explanation.
Planning and Building officials said the Har Homa plan was frozen for political reasons, noting the order not to hold the meeting came from above. The Construction Ministry claimed there was no professional reason to cancel the meeting, while the Prime Minister's Office claimed the plans were not presented to them.
'The plan helps divide Jerusalem'
Right-wing factions in the Jerusalem municipality made several different attempts to stop the Jabel Mukaber plan's approval. According to King, "the state is approving construction of thousands of housing units for Arabs while at the same time freezing construction for Jews in the city's eastern parts." King noted that in reality, the plans create a "territorial contiguity" of Arab neighborhoods between Abus Dis and Jabel Mukaber and with that helps divide Jerusalem. "If we were wondering whether the mayor of Jerusalem was right- or left-wing, today we got our answer," he said. King defined the state's policy as "zero enforcement" and "a reward for construction criminals."
In the letter he sent Erdan, King presented correspondences between the Interior Ministry and the Jerusalem municipality, which raise claims that the plan contains significant planning problems. According to King, the area allocated for the plan and the density of buildings will eventually lead to four times the number of housing units being built.
"The plan uses green areas unnecessarily. The same number of housing units can be built in about a quarter of the area in buildings built at the acceptable height," King said. Right-wing activists' plans to take the plan off the district planning committee's agenda were unsuccessful. Four months ago, city councilman Moshe Leon submitted a request to hold another meeting on the plan, but his request was denied.
King, and the NGOs "Tevel b'Tzedek," "Green Now" and "The Legal Forum for Israel," also petitioned the Administrative Affairs Court, demanding the cancelation of the district planning committee's decision to adopt the plan. At the court hearing, Jerusalem municipality representatives rejected the claims made by opponents of the plan, saying the plan was vital for Jerusalem, which is in the process of resolving systematic planning failures that have been going on for years.
"The plan was approved as part of Mayor Nir Barkat's policy of a united Jerusalem, which will be achieved by narrowing the gaps in the east of the city, upgrading the quality of life and taking responsibility for Arab neighborhoods in all walks of life - planning and construction, infrastructure, education, welfare and cultural, social and community activities," the municipality's representatives said. The municipality representatives went on to say that, "the lack of planning led in recent years to a wide-spread phenomenon of illegal construction of some 20,000 structures, some built on public areas."
This, they said, meant many residents were not paying construction levies, creating land registry problems. "In light of these failures, the mayor decided not to take the 'head in the sand' policy his predecessors took, and instead act to significantly change the situation," they added.
The court dismissed the petition out of hand, saying it was too early to appeal the decision.
The Interior Ministry's District Planning and Building Committee on Monday invited the submission of a master plan for the construction of 2,200 new housing units for the Arab sector in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber. As part of the plan, several hundreds of housing units built illegally will also be retroactively approved.
The decision was approved despite strong objection from right-wing activists. Aryeh King, a member of the Jerusalem city council who is leading the charge against the plan, sent an urgent letter to Interior Minister Gilad Erdan on Sunday, claiming there are issues with the project, because in reality, according to him, many more units will be built than initially planned.
The plan allocates an area of some 1,500 dunman between Jabel Mukaber and Abu Dis for the construction of housing units. The project also includes areas allocated for commercial and employment centers, public buildings, schools, new roads and new parks. The "American road" will also be developed as part of the plan, a central traffic artery for east and south-east Jerusalem, along which commercial and employment centers will be developed.
The district committee had also been scheduled to discuss the construction of 1,500 housing units in Jewish East Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa, but the meeting on that project was cancelled last week without explanation.
Planning and Building officials said the Har Homa plan was frozen for political reasons, noting the order not to hold the meeting came from above. The Construction Ministry claimed there was no professional reason to cancel the meeting, while the Prime Minister's Office claimed the plans were not presented to them.
'The plan helps divide Jerusalem'
Right-wing factions in the Jerusalem municipality made several different attempts to stop the Jabel Mukaber plan's approval. According to King, "the state is approving construction of thousands of housing units for Arabs while at the same time freezing construction for Jews in the city's eastern parts." King noted that in reality, the plans create a "territorial contiguity" of Arab neighborhoods between Abus Dis and Jabel Mukaber and with that helps divide Jerusalem. "If we were wondering whether the mayor of Jerusalem was right- or left-wing, today we got our answer," he said. King defined the state's policy as "zero enforcement" and "a reward for construction criminals."
In the letter he sent Erdan, King presented correspondences between the Interior Ministry and the Jerusalem municipality, which raise claims that the plan contains significant planning problems. According to King, the area allocated for the plan and the density of buildings will eventually lead to four times the number of housing units being built.
"The plan uses green areas unnecessarily. The same number of housing units can be built in about a quarter of the area in buildings built at the acceptable height," King said. Right-wing activists' plans to take the plan off the district planning committee's agenda were unsuccessful. Four months ago, city councilman Moshe Leon submitted a request to hold another meeting on the plan, but his request was denied.
King, and the NGOs "Tevel b'Tzedek," "Green Now" and "The Legal Forum for Israel," also petitioned the Administrative Affairs Court, demanding the cancelation of the district planning committee's decision to adopt the plan. At the court hearing, Jerusalem municipality representatives rejected the claims made by opponents of the plan, saying the plan was vital for Jerusalem, which is in the process of resolving systematic planning failures that have been going on for years.
"The plan was approved as part of Mayor Nir Barkat's policy of a united Jerusalem, which will be achieved by narrowing the gaps in the east of the city, upgrading the quality of life and taking responsibility for Arab neighborhoods in all walks of life - planning and construction, infrastructure, education, welfare and cultural, social and community activities," the municipality's representatives said. The municipality representatives went on to say that, "the lack of planning led in recent years to a wide-spread phenomenon of illegal construction of some 20,000 structures, some built on public areas."
This, they said, meant many residents were not paying construction levies, creating land registry problems. "In light of these failures, the mayor decided not to take the 'head in the sand' policy his predecessors took, and instead act to significantly change the situation," they added.
The court dismissed the petition out of hand, saying it was too early to appeal the decision.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Monday threatened to demolish a number of Palestinian civilian homes and structures in the West Bank provinces of al-Khalil and Nablus.
The IOF troops stormed Umm al-Kheir hamlet in al-Khalil’s town of Yatta and threatened to demolish Palestinian homes and facilities under the pretext that the area is a closed military zone, categorized as a C Area in the Oslo accord, activist Rateb al-Jabour told the PIC.
The threats come at a time when the IOF warned of forcibly deporting Palestinian natives and civilian communities from the area as part of an ethnic-cleansing agenda and of intents to foster illegal settlement building.
Sources-based in Nablus city said similar notifications to knock down Palestinian agricultural facilities have been propagated by the IOF in Qasra town.
A series of notices ordering Palestinian citizens to destroy water wells and agricultural barracks, allegedly due to illegal construction, have been distributed by the IOF, a PIC correspondent quoted locals as reporting.
The IOF threatened to reduce the targeted facilities, located near the Yash Kodesh illegal settlement outpost, to rubble in case they are not willingly demolished by the native land owners within the next few days.
The IOF troops stormed Umm al-Kheir hamlet in al-Khalil’s town of Yatta and threatened to demolish Palestinian homes and facilities under the pretext that the area is a closed military zone, categorized as a C Area in the Oslo accord, activist Rateb al-Jabour told the PIC.
The threats come at a time when the IOF warned of forcibly deporting Palestinian natives and civilian communities from the area as part of an ethnic-cleansing agenda and of intents to foster illegal settlement building.
Sources-based in Nablus city said similar notifications to knock down Palestinian agricultural facilities have been propagated by the IOF in Qasra town.
A series of notices ordering Palestinian citizens to destroy water wells and agricultural barracks, allegedly due to illegal construction, have been distributed by the IOF, a PIC correspondent quoted locals as reporting.
The IOF threatened to reduce the targeted facilities, located near the Yash Kodesh illegal settlement outpost, to rubble in case they are not willingly demolished by the native land owners within the next few days.
30 mar 2015 Landday
Dozens of Palestinian citizens, this morning, were injured in Israeli attacks on a demonstration commemorating the 39th Land day, in Huwwarah town, south Nablus.
Activist against the wall and settlements, Abdullah Abu Rahma told the PNN that dozens of citizens, including Palestinian Legislative Council member Walid Assaf, suffered teargas inhalation, in addition to being pepper sprayed.
Abu Rahma added that a number of the injured were treated on the spot, while others were moved to Rafidia hospital.
Palestinian people, from the river to the sea, today, partake in the annual Earth Day (Land Day) celebration, and demonstrate against the confiscation of what is now more than 21 thousand dunums of land. The day has been in memory on the 30th of March since 1976, when Israeli forces killed six Palestinian demonstrators on the same day.
On the occasion of Land Day, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) published a statistic showing that Israeli occupation now controls more that 85% of historical Palestine.
Jerusalem; Systematic Judaization:
Israeli occupation authorities demolish Palestinian houses and impose obstacles and constraints on building licenses for Palestinians. According to Al-Maqdisi Institute, during 2000 - 2013, Israeli authorities demolished 1,230 buildings in occupied East Jerusalem (the areas annexed by Israel in 1967). This has resulted in the displacement of 5,419 people, including 2,832 children and 1,423 women.
The estimated losses to Palestinians of the demolition of buildings in Jerusalem total around three and half million US dollars. (This does not include the large fines imposed on so-called construction violations.) Data indicates an increase in cases where residents have to demolish their own houses: 320 people have been forced to demolish their own homes since 2000.
The highest rate of self-demolition was recorded in 2010 with 70 demolitions, compared to 49 in 2009.
Data indicates that the total area of residential houses demolished in Jerusalem during 2013 increased in comparison with 2012. A total area of 6,196 m2 was affected during 2013: the area of non-residential establishments demolished totaled 1,150 m2.
Data from Israeli human rights organizations indicates that more than 25 thousand houses have been demolished in Palestine since 1967.
Half of Israeli settlers live in Jerusalem governorate
There were 482 Israeli locations in the West Bank (including settlements, outposts and military bases) by the end of 2013. Data indicates that the total number of settlers in the West Bank was 563,546 at the end of 2012; 277,501 settlers live in the Jerusalem governorate and constitute 49.2% of all settlers occupying the West Bank: 203,176 of them live in areas of Jerusalem annexed by Israel in 1967. In demographic terms, the proportion of settlers to the Palestinian population in West Bank is around 21 settlers per 100 Palestinians compared with 69 settlers per 100 Palestinians in the Jerusalem governorate.
Israeli settlers use 50 million m3 of stolen water from the Palestinians to cultivate the land seized by the Israeli occupation
According to Israeli statistics, the total cultivated area in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, during 2012, was 86 km2. The majority of land is irrigated with around 50 million m3 of stolen water from the Palestinians per year. Irrigated areas cultivated by Palestinians are about 78 km2, consuming around 30 million m3 of water per year, only due to the Israeli restrictions. The areas cultivated and water consumed by settlers would provide 100 thousand job opportunities for Palestinians in the West Bank if they were able to take advantage of them. This would contribute to GDP and the share of agriculture to the economy. It would also reduce the unemployment rate. In addition, a large agricultural area is located at the borders of the eastern Gaza Strip, but cannot be utilized by Palestinians because of Israeli measures.
Israel controls more than 85% of land of historical Palestine
Historical land area of Palestine reached, 27,000 km2. Israel uses more than 85% of the total area of the land, while the Palestinian comprise 48% of the total population and use less than 15% only of the land. A Palestinian, therefore, has less than a fifth of the area available to an Israeli.
Israeli occupation approves over 2,000 housing units monthly
During 2013, more than eight thousand dunums of land were confiscated from Palestinians and more than 15 thousand horticultural trees were destroyed, causing considerable damage to the Palestinian environment. The Israeli occupation authorities also approved the establishment of more than 23 thousand housing units concentrated in settlements around Jerusalem governorate, according to the annual report issued by the International Relations Department of the PLO.
Israeli occupation plunders the natural resources of the West Bank
International law prohibits Israel from exploiting the natural resources of the occupied territories, but Israel continues regardless and treats Palestinian land as its own. Israel has taken over the management of tourist sites in the Jordan valley: Solomon's caves, Al Fashkha spring and the protected area of Wadi Al-Qilt.
Israel exploits the Palestinian beaches of the Dead Sea and prevents Palestinians from developing tourism in this region by dumping wastewater and solid waste from Israeli settlements and industrial zones in these areas, according to the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories (B'Tselem) .
Occupation authorities have started to drill and explore for oil and natural gas in the West Bank to deprive Palestinians of these resources.
Activist against the wall and settlements, Abdullah Abu Rahma told the PNN that dozens of citizens, including Palestinian Legislative Council member Walid Assaf, suffered teargas inhalation, in addition to being pepper sprayed.
Abu Rahma added that a number of the injured were treated on the spot, while others were moved to Rafidia hospital.
Palestinian people, from the river to the sea, today, partake in the annual Earth Day (Land Day) celebration, and demonstrate against the confiscation of what is now more than 21 thousand dunums of land. The day has been in memory on the 30th of March since 1976, when Israeli forces killed six Palestinian demonstrators on the same day.
On the occasion of Land Day, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) published a statistic showing that Israeli occupation now controls more that 85% of historical Palestine.
Jerusalem; Systematic Judaization:
Israeli occupation authorities demolish Palestinian houses and impose obstacles and constraints on building licenses for Palestinians. According to Al-Maqdisi Institute, during 2000 - 2013, Israeli authorities demolished 1,230 buildings in occupied East Jerusalem (the areas annexed by Israel in 1967). This has resulted in the displacement of 5,419 people, including 2,832 children and 1,423 women.
The estimated losses to Palestinians of the demolition of buildings in Jerusalem total around three and half million US dollars. (This does not include the large fines imposed on so-called construction violations.) Data indicates an increase in cases where residents have to demolish their own houses: 320 people have been forced to demolish their own homes since 2000.
The highest rate of self-demolition was recorded in 2010 with 70 demolitions, compared to 49 in 2009.
Data indicates that the total area of residential houses demolished in Jerusalem during 2013 increased in comparison with 2012. A total area of 6,196 m2 was affected during 2013: the area of non-residential establishments demolished totaled 1,150 m2.
Data from Israeli human rights organizations indicates that more than 25 thousand houses have been demolished in Palestine since 1967.
Half of Israeli settlers live in Jerusalem governorate
There were 482 Israeli locations in the West Bank (including settlements, outposts and military bases) by the end of 2013. Data indicates that the total number of settlers in the West Bank was 563,546 at the end of 2012; 277,501 settlers live in the Jerusalem governorate and constitute 49.2% of all settlers occupying the West Bank: 203,176 of them live in areas of Jerusalem annexed by Israel in 1967. In demographic terms, the proportion of settlers to the Palestinian population in West Bank is around 21 settlers per 100 Palestinians compared with 69 settlers per 100 Palestinians in the Jerusalem governorate.
Israeli settlers use 50 million m3 of stolen water from the Palestinians to cultivate the land seized by the Israeli occupation
According to Israeli statistics, the total cultivated area in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, during 2012, was 86 km2. The majority of land is irrigated with around 50 million m3 of stolen water from the Palestinians per year. Irrigated areas cultivated by Palestinians are about 78 km2, consuming around 30 million m3 of water per year, only due to the Israeli restrictions. The areas cultivated and water consumed by settlers would provide 100 thousand job opportunities for Palestinians in the West Bank if they were able to take advantage of them. This would contribute to GDP and the share of agriculture to the economy. It would also reduce the unemployment rate. In addition, a large agricultural area is located at the borders of the eastern Gaza Strip, but cannot be utilized by Palestinians because of Israeli measures.
Israel controls more than 85% of land of historical Palestine
Historical land area of Palestine reached, 27,000 km2. Israel uses more than 85% of the total area of the land, while the Palestinian comprise 48% of the total population and use less than 15% only of the land. A Palestinian, therefore, has less than a fifth of the area available to an Israeli.
Israeli occupation approves over 2,000 housing units monthly
During 2013, more than eight thousand dunums of land were confiscated from Palestinians and more than 15 thousand horticultural trees were destroyed, causing considerable damage to the Palestinian environment. The Israeli occupation authorities also approved the establishment of more than 23 thousand housing units concentrated in settlements around Jerusalem governorate, according to the annual report issued by the International Relations Department of the PLO.
Israeli occupation plunders the natural resources of the West Bank
International law prohibits Israel from exploiting the natural resources of the occupied territories, but Israel continues regardless and treats Palestinian land as its own. Israel has taken over the management of tourist sites in the Jordan valley: Solomon's caves, Al Fashkha spring and the protected area of Wadi Al-Qilt.
Israel exploits the Palestinian beaches of the Dead Sea and prevents Palestinians from developing tourism in this region by dumping wastewater and solid waste from Israeli settlements and industrial zones in these areas, according to the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories (B'Tselem) .
Occupation authorities have started to drill and explore for oil and natural gas in the West Bank to deprive Palestinians of these resources.
Supporters of Ayman Odeh, head of Israel's Arab parliamentary bloc, walk past the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, as they arrive in Jerusalem on March 29, 2015 after a four-day march from the Bedouin village of Wadi al-Naam to support Bedouin Arabs
A four-day march led by Palestinian-Israeli MPs, in solidarity with Israel's impoverished Bedouin community, reportedly wound up at Israel's presidency on Sunday.
President Reuven Rivlin's office said Palestinian representatives delivered a report on the hardships faced by Bedouin villages to his wife, Nechama, as the head of state was in Singapore for the funeral of its founding father Lee Kuan Yew.
She would hand over the report to Rivlin upon his return, according to AFP.
Israel's top Palestinian MP, Ayman Odeh, began the 100-kilometer march on Thursday, with several dozen supporters, saying their aim was to put a spotlight on the "human misery" faced by the Bedouin community.
The march started in the village of Wadi al-Naam, near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba, but not recognized by the authorities.
Odeh has pledged to secure formal recognition for more than 40 Bedouin villages which have no running water, are not connected to the electricity grid and lack basic infrastructure because of their unrecognized status.
He visited several of the largest villages on the march to Jerusalem.
Around 260,000 Bedouin live in Israel, more than half in unrecognized villages without utilities. Many live in extreme poverty.
A four-day march led by Palestinian-Israeli MPs, in solidarity with Israel's impoverished Bedouin community, reportedly wound up at Israel's presidency on Sunday.
President Reuven Rivlin's office said Palestinian representatives delivered a report on the hardships faced by Bedouin villages to his wife, Nechama, as the head of state was in Singapore for the funeral of its founding father Lee Kuan Yew.
She would hand over the report to Rivlin upon his return, according to AFP.
Israel's top Palestinian MP, Ayman Odeh, began the 100-kilometer march on Thursday, with several dozen supporters, saying their aim was to put a spotlight on the "human misery" faced by the Bedouin community.
The march started in the village of Wadi al-Naam, near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba, but not recognized by the authorities.
Odeh has pledged to secure formal recognition for more than 40 Bedouin villages which have no running water, are not connected to the electricity grid and lack basic infrastructure because of their unrecognized status.
He visited several of the largest villages on the march to Jerusalem.
Around 260,000 Bedouin live in Israel, more than half in unrecognized villages without utilities. Many live in extreme poverty.
On Land Day anniversary, Palestinian activists managed to plant dozens of olive trees in a land threatened with confiscation to the south Jenin despite the heavy presence of Israeli occupation forces (IOF).
Local sources said that a number of Palestinian youths planted olive saplings in a land threatened with confiscation over the past four years in Jenin’s town of Arraba.
Arraba mayor Ahmed Aradaa said that planting the seedlings proves the Palestinians’ strong adherence to their land.
He stressed the need to provide protection to the lands threatened with confiscation.
In Gaza Strip, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) opened fire at dozens of youths near the border fence east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza Strip as they were commemorating Land Day anniversary.
Dozens of Palestinians rallied on the Land Day and marched towards the border fence east of Khan Younis, before setting fire to a number of tires.
The participants chanted slogans against the occupation and managed to place Palestinian flag on the fence before IOF soldiers opened their machineguns at them. No casualties were reported.
On the annual Land Day, demonstrations are held to remember six Arab protesters who were shot dead by Israeli police and troops during mass demonstrations in 1976 against plans to confiscate Arab land in the Galilee.
Local sources said that a number of Palestinian youths planted olive saplings in a land threatened with confiscation over the past four years in Jenin’s town of Arraba.
Arraba mayor Ahmed Aradaa said that planting the seedlings proves the Palestinians’ strong adherence to their land.
He stressed the need to provide protection to the lands threatened with confiscation.
In Gaza Strip, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) opened fire at dozens of youths near the border fence east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza Strip as they were commemorating Land Day anniversary.
Dozens of Palestinians rallied on the Land Day and marched towards the border fence east of Khan Younis, before setting fire to a number of tires.
The participants chanted slogans against the occupation and managed to place Palestinian flag on the fence before IOF soldiers opened their machineguns at them. No casualties were reported.
On the annual Land Day, demonstrations are held to remember six Arab protesters who were shot dead by Israeli police and troops during mass demonstrations in 1976 against plans to confiscate Arab land in the Galilee.
Israeli forces delivered demolition notices to seven Palestinians in the village of Qasra in southern Nablus on Monday.
Locals said the notices were for water wells and steel structures used for farming purposes that belong to Palestinians living near the Yash Kodesh settlement outpost.
The structures under demolition order belong to Ahmad Abd al-Rahman Ahmad Hassan, Mustafa Hilal Fayyad Odeh, Thaer Adel Abd al-Hamid Hassan, Mahmoud Zaal Ahmad Odeh, Saed Muhammad Ahmad Wadi, Tareq Hussein Hassan Abu Rida, and Ibrahim Ahmad Mahmoud Wadi.
Approximately half of Qasra's lands are classified Area B and the other half Area C, under the Oslo Accords.
In Area C Israel has full civil and military control, and Palestinians require permits approved by Israeli authorities to construct. As a result of rarely approved permits, Palestinian residents are forced to build without permits and their structures are often liable to be torn down later by Israeli forces.
In addition to Yash Kodesh settlement outpost, Migdalim settlement and Ahiya settlement outpost also lie in Qasra's lands.
There are over 500,000 Israeli settlers living in settlements across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in contravention of international law.
Some settlers act without approval to expand settlements or create new ones in the West Bank, building outposts that are illegal even by Israeli government standards.
In some cases, these settlement outposts are "legalized" by Israel, and in rare cases they are dismantled.
Locals said the notices were for water wells and steel structures used for farming purposes that belong to Palestinians living near the Yash Kodesh settlement outpost.
The structures under demolition order belong to Ahmad Abd al-Rahman Ahmad Hassan, Mustafa Hilal Fayyad Odeh, Thaer Adel Abd al-Hamid Hassan, Mahmoud Zaal Ahmad Odeh, Saed Muhammad Ahmad Wadi, Tareq Hussein Hassan Abu Rida, and Ibrahim Ahmad Mahmoud Wadi.
Approximately half of Qasra's lands are classified Area B and the other half Area C, under the Oslo Accords.
In Area C Israel has full civil and military control, and Palestinians require permits approved by Israeli authorities to construct. As a result of rarely approved permits, Palestinian residents are forced to build without permits and their structures are often liable to be torn down later by Israeli forces.
In addition to Yash Kodesh settlement outpost, Migdalim settlement and Ahiya settlement outpost also lie in Qasra's lands.
There are over 500,000 Israeli settlers living in settlements across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in contravention of international law.
Some settlers act without approval to expand settlements or create new ones in the West Bank, building outposts that are illegal even by Israeli government standards.
In some cases, these settlement outposts are "legalized" by Israel, and in rare cases they are dismantled.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Sunday stormed a chain of agricultural stocks under construction in Jenin’s town of Ramana and expelled all the workers who were inside the building.
Local sources said the IOF soldiers deployed at the adjacent Salem military camp have been staking out the building moments before they broke into the area and threatened to demolish the storehouse allegedly under a military command.
The IOF soldiers turned down the appeals of the storeowner, Ghassen al-Akr, who said he has been doing his work on legal grounds.
The IOF further stormed southern Jenin and interrogated Palestinian passers-by.
Locals said the IOF troops cordoned off Yabad town and pitched a makeshift military checkpoint at its main entrance, where a number of Palestinian vehicles were stopped and searched.
Scores of Palestinians were subjected to exhaustive field interrogation in al-Aja town moments after a flock of nine army jeeps raided the area and stationed at its center.
Local sources said the IOF soldiers deployed at the adjacent Salem military camp have been staking out the building moments before they broke into the area and threatened to demolish the storehouse allegedly under a military command.
The IOF soldiers turned down the appeals of the storeowner, Ghassen al-Akr, who said he has been doing his work on legal grounds.
The IOF further stormed southern Jenin and interrogated Palestinian passers-by.
Locals said the IOF troops cordoned off Yabad town and pitched a makeshift military checkpoint at its main entrance, where a number of Palestinian vehicles were stopped and searched.
Scores of Palestinians were subjected to exhaustive field interrogation in al-Aja town moments after a flock of nine army jeeps raided the area and stationed at its center.
Nidhal Da’na
The Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) ordered a Palestinian citizen to self-demolish his own home in Occupied Jerusalem under the pretext of unlicensed construction.
The Quds Press news agency quoted the citizen Nidhal Da’na as stating that the IOA forced him to demolish a 1,500-year-old-house of his own near Bab al-Sislsila (one of the gates of the holy al-Aqsa Mosque).
He said he cannot but abide by the self-demolition order as the only means to avoid shelling out exorbitant fines imposed by the Israeli occupation municipality, often amounting to 10,000 dollars.
Part of the house floor collapsed sometime earlier due to Israeli excavations beneath the al-Aqsa Mosque and its vicinities, the house owner further reported, saying an underground tunnel has been detected beneath the building.
A number of Palestinian Jerusalemites said they prefer to knock down their own houses as the only way to avoid the steep costs issued by the IOA against any objections.
The Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) ordered a Palestinian citizen to self-demolish his own home in Occupied Jerusalem under the pretext of unlicensed construction.
The Quds Press news agency quoted the citizen Nidhal Da’na as stating that the IOA forced him to demolish a 1,500-year-old-house of his own near Bab al-Sislsila (one of the gates of the holy al-Aqsa Mosque).
He said he cannot but abide by the self-demolition order as the only means to avoid shelling out exorbitant fines imposed by the Israeli occupation municipality, often amounting to 10,000 dollars.
Part of the house floor collapsed sometime earlier due to Israeli excavations beneath the al-Aqsa Mosque and its vicinities, the house owner further reported, saying an underground tunnel has been detected beneath the building.
A number of Palestinian Jerusalemites said they prefer to knock down their own houses as the only way to avoid the steep costs issued by the IOA against any objections.
29 mar 2015
Jewish settlers uprooted hundreds of olive and almond trees in al-Khalil on Saturday evening and stole stones in Salfit governorate on Sunday.
Local sources told the PIC reporter that groups of settlers uprooted more than 1,200 olive trees and more than 40 almond trees in al-Shuyukh town to the northeast of al-Khalil city.
The olive and almond trees belong to two Palestinian brothers of al-Ayaydeh family, the sources added.
The Israeli occupation forces carried out large-scale land leveling works in the area one month ago to annex it to the nearby settlements established on the town’s land by force.
In a similar context, eyewitnesses from Salfit district reported that the settlers of Leshem settlement, using huge bulldozers, crushed and stole rocks in western Salfit towns.
The researcher Khaled Maali said rock crusher machines belonging to settlers of Leshem settlement were used for crushing the rocks of six villages and towns to the west of Salfit to be used later for street paving in the settlement.
Maali said settlement expansion has escalated recently in the cities and towns of Salfit and of the West Bank in general especially in the wake of Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu’s election victory.
He added that the settlers’ aggressive practices run contrary to the international law and Geneva Fourth convention, which prohibits changing landmarks or establishing structures in occupied territories.
Settlers Steal Stones near Salfit for Paving Settlement Streets
Witnesses and citizens of towns and villages west of Salfit reported that bulldozers were tracking the area and left with several massive stones. Settlers are using this kind of stone to pave new streets of newly built settlements.
Palestinian researcher reported that they are traces or crushed stones in settlements, grinded and crushed stones and rocks are to be used in various fields related to the construction of housing units in the settlement, at the expenses of the territory of the towns and the villages of Kafr al-Dik, Rafat, Bruqin, Deir Balut and Sarta.
He pointed out that after Israeli PM Netanyahu's re-election, fear of a speed in settlement construction is palpable in many areas in the West bank, and, with that, other systemic human rights abuses committed by Israel.
He concluded by stressing that settlers and settlements are a violation of international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention. The international community considers the establishment of Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories illegal under international law. However, Israel maintains that they are consistent with international law because it does not agree that the fourth geneva convention applies to the territories occupied in the 1967 six-day war.
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Convention have all affirmed that the Fourth Geneva Convention does apply.
Numerous UN resolutions have stated that the building and existence of Israeli settlements in theWest Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights are a violation of international law, including UN Security Council resolutions in 1979 and 1980.
UN Security Council Resolution 446 refers to the Fourth Geneva Convention as the applicable international legal instrument, and calls upon Israel to desist from transferring its own population into the territories or changing their demographic makeup. The reconvened Conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions has declared the settlements illegal as has the primary judicial organ of the UN, the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The position of successive Israeli governments is that all authorized settlements are entirely legal and consistent with international law, despite Israel's armistice agreements all being with High Contracting Parties.
In practice, Israel does not accept that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies de jure, but has stated that on humanitarian issues it will govern itself de facto by its provisions, without specifying what these are. The majority of legal scholars hold the settlements to violate international law, while others have offered dissenting views supporting the Israeli position.
Military occupation does not vest the occupying power with sovereignty over the occupied territory.
Local sources told the PIC reporter that groups of settlers uprooted more than 1,200 olive trees and more than 40 almond trees in al-Shuyukh town to the northeast of al-Khalil city.
The olive and almond trees belong to two Palestinian brothers of al-Ayaydeh family, the sources added.
The Israeli occupation forces carried out large-scale land leveling works in the area one month ago to annex it to the nearby settlements established on the town’s land by force.
In a similar context, eyewitnesses from Salfit district reported that the settlers of Leshem settlement, using huge bulldozers, crushed and stole rocks in western Salfit towns.
The researcher Khaled Maali said rock crusher machines belonging to settlers of Leshem settlement were used for crushing the rocks of six villages and towns to the west of Salfit to be used later for street paving in the settlement.
Maali said settlement expansion has escalated recently in the cities and towns of Salfit and of the West Bank in general especially in the wake of Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu’s election victory.
He added that the settlers’ aggressive practices run contrary to the international law and Geneva Fourth convention, which prohibits changing landmarks or establishing structures in occupied territories.
Settlers Steal Stones near Salfit for Paving Settlement Streets
Witnesses and citizens of towns and villages west of Salfit reported that bulldozers were tracking the area and left with several massive stones. Settlers are using this kind of stone to pave new streets of newly built settlements.
Palestinian researcher reported that they are traces or crushed stones in settlements, grinded and crushed stones and rocks are to be used in various fields related to the construction of housing units in the settlement, at the expenses of the territory of the towns and the villages of Kafr al-Dik, Rafat, Bruqin, Deir Balut and Sarta.
He pointed out that after Israeli PM Netanyahu's re-election, fear of a speed in settlement construction is palpable in many areas in the West bank, and, with that, other systemic human rights abuses committed by Israel.
He concluded by stressing that settlers and settlements are a violation of international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention. The international community considers the establishment of Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories illegal under international law. However, Israel maintains that they are consistent with international law because it does not agree that the fourth geneva convention applies to the territories occupied in the 1967 six-day war.
The United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Court of Justice and the High Contracting Parties to the Convention have all affirmed that the Fourth Geneva Convention does apply.
Numerous UN resolutions have stated that the building and existence of Israeli settlements in theWest Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights are a violation of international law, including UN Security Council resolutions in 1979 and 1980.
UN Security Council Resolution 446 refers to the Fourth Geneva Convention as the applicable international legal instrument, and calls upon Israel to desist from transferring its own population into the territories or changing their demographic makeup. The reconvened Conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions has declared the settlements illegal as has the primary judicial organ of the UN, the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The position of successive Israeli governments is that all authorized settlements are entirely legal and consistent with international law, despite Israel's armistice agreements all being with High Contracting Parties.
In practice, Israel does not accept that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies de jure, but has stated that on humanitarian issues it will govern itself de facto by its provisions, without specifying what these are. The majority of legal scholars hold the settlements to violate international law, while others have offered dissenting views supporting the Israeli position.
Military occupation does not vest the occupying power with sovereignty over the occupied territory.
An Israeli court has issued a decision on Sunday to raze a Palestinian town to the south of al-Khalil city for settlement expansion.
The coordinator of the Popular Committee against Settlement in Yatta, Ratib al-Jabour, told the PIC reporter that the Hebrew media disclosed on Sunday an Israeli order for the demolition of the nearby Susya town.
Jabour added that the Israeli racial order aims at expanding settlement projects for the Susya outpost, which was forcibly established on the town’s land.
Demolition of the town will displace 35 Palestinian families including more than 300 persons who have been living in Susya town for decades, he elaborated.
Jabour appealed to human rights organizations to work on halting the implementation of the unjust decision which deprives the town’s inhabitants of living in their own lands and homes.
Israel Seeks Permission to Demolish Ancient Palestinian Village
The Israeli public prosecution has asked the Israeli High Court of Justice for permission to demolish the ancient Palestinian village of Sussia, and relocate its residents to Yatta, near Hebron, allowing for more "archaeological" work at the site.
Israel's intent was noted in a response to the High Court of Justice regarding a petition filled by Sussia residents and human rights organizations about a year ago, according to Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency.
Before this petition was filed, an additional petition was filed by the Regavim organization, funded by settler-group Amana and Isaeli regional authorities in the West Bank, calling for what they claimed Palestinian “illegal outposts” in Sussia to be demolished.
The prosecution opposed the court’s temporary injunction against demolition, despite the fact it often supports such temporary injunctions when they are made against illegal Jewish outposts.
The petition criticizes decisions made by the Israeli Civil Administration’s planning committee to reject an alternate plan suggested by Sussia residents, stating that the relocation to Yatta is in their best interest. The residents’ petition also seeks to cancel 64 separate demolition orders against all of the 100-or-so structures in the village.
Alternately, the residents ask that the Civil Administration offer a different solution that would allow them to continue living on the land, which they own.
Israeli attorney Kamar Mishraki-Asad, representing the Sussia residents, told Haaretz, “It’s incredible, but with the settlements, it was already ruled that Sussia land is privately owned and thousands of dunams of land in the area are privately owned by Palestinians. Despite this, for many years the army has prohibited residents from setting up their homes in the area, and has rejected any request for construction or planning permits, in order to keep them away from the Sussia settlement and to allow the settlers to continue seizing the agricultural lands, and expel the residents to Areas A and B.
“Now, after residents made great efforts and prepared plans for their village, the army continues its policy while cynically relying on planning concerns,” Mishraki-Asad added. “For years, the army has forbidden water, electricity and drainage infrastructure to be built, and now claims that expelling the residents is for their own good.”
Last Thursday, the prosecution issued its official stance on the matter, claiming: “There was no historic Palestinian village at the archaeological site there; that the village consists of only a few seasonal residences for a few families; and the land is necessary for the continuation of archaeological work.”
Regarding its decision not to approve further construction in the area – in contrast with the policy allowing for nearby Jewish construction – the prosecution claimed that such construction would only serve a small number of residents who are actually more connected to Yatta. It claimed that their construction plans were unreasonable, due to the need for electrical infrastructure and the local infrastructure was insufficient to provide for appropriate incorporation of residents into the job market.
The coordinator of the Popular Committee against Settlement in Yatta, Ratib al-Jabour, told the PIC reporter that the Hebrew media disclosed on Sunday an Israeli order for the demolition of the nearby Susya town.
Jabour added that the Israeli racial order aims at expanding settlement projects for the Susya outpost, which was forcibly established on the town’s land.
Demolition of the town will displace 35 Palestinian families including more than 300 persons who have been living in Susya town for decades, he elaborated.
Jabour appealed to human rights organizations to work on halting the implementation of the unjust decision which deprives the town’s inhabitants of living in their own lands and homes.
Israel Seeks Permission to Demolish Ancient Palestinian Village
The Israeli public prosecution has asked the Israeli High Court of Justice for permission to demolish the ancient Palestinian village of Sussia, and relocate its residents to Yatta, near Hebron, allowing for more "archaeological" work at the site.
Israel's intent was noted in a response to the High Court of Justice regarding a petition filled by Sussia residents and human rights organizations about a year ago, according to Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency.
Before this petition was filed, an additional petition was filed by the Regavim organization, funded by settler-group Amana and Isaeli regional authorities in the West Bank, calling for what they claimed Palestinian “illegal outposts” in Sussia to be demolished.
The prosecution opposed the court’s temporary injunction against demolition, despite the fact it often supports such temporary injunctions when they are made against illegal Jewish outposts.
The petition criticizes decisions made by the Israeli Civil Administration’s planning committee to reject an alternate plan suggested by Sussia residents, stating that the relocation to Yatta is in their best interest. The residents’ petition also seeks to cancel 64 separate demolition orders against all of the 100-or-so structures in the village.
Alternately, the residents ask that the Civil Administration offer a different solution that would allow them to continue living on the land, which they own.
Israeli attorney Kamar Mishraki-Asad, representing the Sussia residents, told Haaretz, “It’s incredible, but with the settlements, it was already ruled that Sussia land is privately owned and thousands of dunams of land in the area are privately owned by Palestinians. Despite this, for many years the army has prohibited residents from setting up their homes in the area, and has rejected any request for construction or planning permits, in order to keep them away from the Sussia settlement and to allow the settlers to continue seizing the agricultural lands, and expel the residents to Areas A and B.
“Now, after residents made great efforts and prepared plans for their village, the army continues its policy while cynically relying on planning concerns,” Mishraki-Asad added. “For years, the army has forbidden water, electricity and drainage infrastructure to be built, and now claims that expelling the residents is for their own good.”
Last Thursday, the prosecution issued its official stance on the matter, claiming: “There was no historic Palestinian village at the archaeological site there; that the village consists of only a few seasonal residences for a few families; and the land is necessary for the continuation of archaeological work.”
Regarding its decision not to approve further construction in the area – in contrast with the policy allowing for nearby Jewish construction – the prosecution claimed that such construction would only serve a small number of residents who are actually more connected to Yatta. It claimed that their construction plans were unreasonable, due to the need for electrical infrastructure and the local infrastructure was insufficient to provide for appropriate incorporation of residents into the job market.