16 nov 2017
Dozens of Israeli settlers on Thursday morning stormed the courtyards of al-Aqsa Mosque under the protection of the Israeli police.
Jerusalemite sources reported that 140 settlers, in successive groups, stormed al-Aqsa Mosque from al-Maghareba gate while listening to Talmudic explanations and performing Jewish rituals.
Furthermore, another group of 36 Jewish students were allowed to tour all of the Mosque's plazas, except for roofed oratories, without following a certain path like other settlers.
Settlers' incursions into al-Aqsa Mosque are carried out almost on a daily basis and they are done in two rounds: The first begins from 7 to 11 a.m. and the second starts after the Muslim noon prayer and lasts for an hour.
Meanwhile, Israeli police arrested the Jerusalemite photographer Mustafa al-Kharouf from his home in Wad al-Joze neighborhood in Occupied Jerusalem for unrevealed reasons.
On the other hand, the police released both female teachers: Khadija Khuwais and Hanadi Halawani. They were banned from entering al-Aqsa Mosque for unannounced terms.
Jerusalemite sources reported that 140 settlers, in successive groups, stormed al-Aqsa Mosque from al-Maghareba gate while listening to Talmudic explanations and performing Jewish rituals.
Furthermore, another group of 36 Jewish students were allowed to tour all of the Mosque's plazas, except for roofed oratories, without following a certain path like other settlers.
Settlers' incursions into al-Aqsa Mosque are carried out almost on a daily basis and they are done in two rounds: The first begins from 7 to 11 a.m. and the second starts after the Muslim noon prayer and lasts for an hour.
Meanwhile, Israeli police arrested the Jerusalemite photographer Mustafa al-Kharouf from his home in Wad al-Joze neighborhood in Occupied Jerusalem for unrevealed reasons.
On the other hand, the police released both female teachers: Khadija Khuwais and Hanadi Halawani. They were banned from entering al-Aqsa Mosque for unannounced terms.
The Israeli prison service transferred on Tuesday the Palestinian detainee Bassam al-Sayeh, aged 45, from Hadarim to Eshel jail.
According to the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies, al-Sayeh, diagnosed with life-threatening tumors, had been held in the Ramla prison clinic, where he had ceaselessly sounded distress signals over the systematic medial neglect he had been made to endure at the hands of Israeli prison authorities and medics.
Palestinian inmates launched calls for transferring him to Eshel jail, located near Assaf Harofeh Hospital, where al-Sayeh sporadically undergoes genetic testing.
A couple of months earlier, the occupation authorities transferred al-Sayeh to Hadarim lock-up, turning deaf ears to the prisoners’ appeals to transfer him to Eshel in order to get closer to medical centers lest his health condition takes a turn for the worse. However, the inmates stepped up pressure on the Israeli prison authorities, forcing them to ultimately transfer him to Eshel.
Cancer-stricken al-Sayeh was re-arrested by the Israeli occupation forces on October 8, 2015, during a hearing held for his wife Mona al-Sayeh at the Israeli Salem military court. Shortly afterwards, al-Sayeh was rushed to the Ramla prison clinic as his health status had gone sharply downhill. He suffers from blood and hepatic cancers.
According to the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies, al-Sayeh, diagnosed with life-threatening tumors, had been held in the Ramla prison clinic, where he had ceaselessly sounded distress signals over the systematic medial neglect he had been made to endure at the hands of Israeli prison authorities and medics.
Palestinian inmates launched calls for transferring him to Eshel jail, located near Assaf Harofeh Hospital, where al-Sayeh sporadically undergoes genetic testing.
A couple of months earlier, the occupation authorities transferred al-Sayeh to Hadarim lock-up, turning deaf ears to the prisoners’ appeals to transfer him to Eshel in order to get closer to medical centers lest his health condition takes a turn for the worse. However, the inmates stepped up pressure on the Israeli prison authorities, forcing them to ultimately transfer him to Eshel.
Cancer-stricken al-Sayeh was re-arrested by the Israeli occupation forces on October 8, 2015, during a hearing held for his wife Mona al-Sayeh at the Israeli Salem military court. Shortly afterwards, al-Sayeh was rushed to the Ramla prison clinic as his health status had gone sharply downhill. He suffers from blood and hepatic cancers.
11 nov 2017
|
|
“I want to change my perspective, go and see different places in the world,” says Ezz Zanoun, a Palestinian photographer in Gaza.
In 2006, Ezz witnessed his brother Mohammad, a photographer, get hit by an Israeli missile that exploded 10 meters from him. Mohammad was severely injured, but eventually recovered. The incident motivated Ezz to pick up the camera and start taking pictures. He photographs Israeli assaults on Gaza, but also daily life, hardship and beauty in the Strip. “Although we are tied up and besieged, and every day I’m personally affected by the siege,” Ezz says, “we keep fighting to tell people the truth.” |
While he is grounded in Gaza, Ezz adds, “My pictures get to travel around the world every day.”
8 nov 2017
The Palestinian journalist Mohammed al-Qiq, 35, was released on Wednesday after serving his sentence in Israeli jails.
Qiq was arrested in January 2017 at a military checkpoint to the north of Ramallah city. He later waged a hunger strike, his second in less than two years in Israeli jails, in protest at his administrative detention which he was able to put an end to. However, an Israeli court accused him of being involved in incitement against Israel and sentenced him to 10 months and a half in prison.
Qiq, a father of two, is known for his 94-day hunger strike waged in protest at his incarceration under administrative detention between 2015 and 2016. He also participated in the Freedom and Dignity mass hunger strike launched by hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails despite his deteriorated health condition.
Qiq was arrested in January 2017 at a military checkpoint to the north of Ramallah city. He later waged a hunger strike, his second in less than two years in Israeli jails, in protest at his administrative detention which he was able to put an end to. However, an Israeli court accused him of being involved in incitement against Israel and sentenced him to 10 months and a half in prison.
Qiq, a father of two, is known for his 94-day hunger strike waged in protest at his incarceration under administrative detention between 2015 and 2016. He also participated in the Freedom and Dignity mass hunger strike launched by hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails despite his deteriorated health condition.
7 nov 2017
Israeli military court of Ofer issued a 6-month-term administrative detention order against the Palestinian journalist and activist Bushra al-Tawil, 25 from al-Bireh city, who is held captive in Israeli jails with no charge or trial.
The court relied on the so-called “Secret File” in trialing prisoner Tawil. It was submitted by the Israeli military prosecution to the court's judge without allowing the captive or her lawyer to read the file.
Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) arrested detainee Tawil on November the first after storming the home of her father, the Hamas leader in Ramallah Jamal al-Tawil. She was previously arrested twice by the IOF and was released within Wafaa al-Ahrar prisoner swap deal.
The court relied on the so-called “Secret File” in trialing prisoner Tawil. It was submitted by the Israeli military prosecution to the court's judge without allowing the captive or her lawyer to read the file.
Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) arrested detainee Tawil on November the first after storming the home of her father, the Hamas leader in Ramallah Jamal al-Tawil. She was previously arrested twice by the IOF and was released within Wafaa al-Ahrar prisoner swap deal.
3 nov 2017
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) detained, Friday afternoon, a number of journalists at the entrance to Kafr Qaddum town, east of Qalqilia, and prevented their entry.
The journalists were stopped at the entrance to the town and stripped of their identity cards before being prevented from having access in, WAFA photojournalist reported.
The journalists were on their way to cover the weekly anti-settlement protest in the town, he added.
Residents of Kafr Qaddum began staging weekly protests in 2011 against land confiscations, as well as the closure of the village's southern road by Israeli forces. The road, which has been closed for 14 years, is the main route to the nearby city of Nablus, the nearest economic center.
The journalists were stopped at the entrance to the town and stripped of their identity cards before being prevented from having access in, WAFA photojournalist reported.
The journalists were on their way to cover the weekly anti-settlement protest in the town, he added.
Residents of Kafr Qaddum began staging weekly protests in 2011 against land confiscations, as well as the closure of the village's southern road by Israeli forces. The road, which has been closed for 14 years, is the main route to the nearby city of Nablus, the nearest economic center.
2 nov 2017
journalist photographer Amin Siyam
The number of Palestinian journalists detained in Israeli prisons has jumped to 28 after the detention of the photographer Amin Siyam, from Occupied Jerusalem, and the female journalist Bushra al-Tawil, from Ramallah on Wednesday.
Palestinian Prisoners Society said, in a statement on Wednesday, that three of the imprisoned journalists are held under the illegal administrative detention without charges or trials.
The number of Palestinian journalists detained in Israeli prisons has jumped to 28 after the detention of the photographer Amin Siyam, from Occupied Jerusalem, and the female journalist Bushra al-Tawil, from Ramallah on Wednesday.
Palestinian Prisoners Society said, in a statement on Wednesday, that three of the imprisoned journalists are held under the illegal administrative detention without charges or trials.
female journalist Bushra al-Tawil
Besides, six others are serving different sentences, while the 18 remaining detainees are held in custody pending trial.
The Israeli magistrate court in Occupied Jerusalem extended on Wednesday the detention of prisoner Siyam to next Monday. He was arrested after being summonsed to be questioned by the Israeli intelligence, according to his brother.
Besides, six others are serving different sentences, while the 18 remaining detainees are held in custody pending trial.
The Israeli magistrate court in Occupied Jerusalem extended on Wednesday the detention of prisoner Siyam to next Monday. He was arrested after being summonsed to be questioned by the Israeli intelligence, according to his brother.
19 oct 2017
The leftist Palestinian People’s Party (PPP) issued a statement, Wednesday, strongly denouncing the Israeli military invasions into various Palestinian media outlets, violent searches and the orders to shut them down, and described them as “state-sponsored terrorism.”
In its statement, the PPP said that the outrageous and violent invasions into the media outlets in Ramallah, Hebron, Nablus and Bethlehem, are just another Israeli round of escalation, part of the ongoing efforts to silence the media in occupied Palestine.
“What is happening is criminal; the Israeli violations and military oppression are carried out with the sole purpose of trying to bury the truth, and to hide the ongoing crimes,” the PPS stated, “This is state-sponsored terrorism, and a direct violation of International Law, including the Freedom of the Press.”
The PPS saluted the Palestinian journalists, and all media outlets operating in occupied Palestine, and facing escalating Israeli aggression and violations, but remain determined to expose the criminal nature of the occupation.
In its statement, the PPP said that the outrageous and violent invasions into the media outlets in Ramallah, Hebron, Nablus and Bethlehem, are just another Israeli round of escalation, part of the ongoing efforts to silence the media in occupied Palestine.
“What is happening is criminal; the Israeli violations and military oppression are carried out with the sole purpose of trying to bury the truth, and to hide the ongoing crimes,” the PPS stated, “This is state-sponsored terrorism, and a direct violation of International Law, including the Freedom of the Press.”
The PPS saluted the Palestinian journalists, and all media outlets operating in occupied Palestine, and facing escalating Israeli aggression and violations, but remain determined to expose the criminal nature of the occupation.
18 oct 2017
Israeli soldiers, and secret security officers, invaded eight media outlets, on Wednesday at dawn, in several parts of the occupied West Bank, and shut them down under direct military orders, in addition to confiscating equipment.
Some of the invaded agencies are Ramsat, Trans Media and Pal Media, which the military confiscated their broadcast equipment and many machines, for providing services to Palestinian TV stations such as Al-Aqsa and Al-Quds.
The Israeli Military Commander of the Central District of the occupied West Bank, said the stations are “unlicensed”, provide services to what he called “terror elements,” and “engage in incitement.”
The soldiers invaded Trans Media in Nablus, in northern West Bank, and confiscated its equipment, before presenting a military order shutting it down for six months.
Many local youngsters hurled stones at the invading soldiers, who fired live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs, leading to several injuries.
The soldiers also invaded the offices of Al-Quds TV, Al-Aqsa TV, Palestine Today, Trans Media and Pal Media, in the southern West Bank city of Hebron, violently searched them and confiscated their equipment, before shutting them down for six months.
In addition, the soldiers abducted Amer al-Ja’bari, the director of Trans Media, and his brother Ibrahim.
In Bethlehem, the soldiers invaded Pal Media offices, in the al-Karkafa area, and confiscated their equipment, before shutting them down for six months.
Some of the invaded agencies are Ramsat, Trans Media and Pal Media, which the military confiscated their broadcast equipment and many machines, for providing services to Palestinian TV stations such as Al-Aqsa and Al-Quds.
The Israeli Military Commander of the Central District of the occupied West Bank, said the stations are “unlicensed”, provide services to what he called “terror elements,” and “engage in incitement.”
The soldiers invaded Trans Media in Nablus, in northern West Bank, and confiscated its equipment, before presenting a military order shutting it down for six months.
Many local youngsters hurled stones at the invading soldiers, who fired live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs, leading to several injuries.
The soldiers also invaded the offices of Al-Quds TV, Al-Aqsa TV, Palestine Today, Trans Media and Pal Media, in the southern West Bank city of Hebron, violently searched them and confiscated their equipment, before shutting them down for six months.
In addition, the soldiers abducted Amer al-Ja’bari, the director of Trans Media, and his brother Ibrahim.
In Bethlehem, the soldiers invaded Pal Media offices, in the al-Karkafa area, and confiscated their equipment, before shutting them down for six months.
16 oct 2017
Large numbers of Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) raided on Monday morning Qalandiya refugee camp, closed Ramallah-al-Quds Road, and stormed several commercial shops causing damage to their contents.
Eyewitnesses told the PIC reporter that IOF soldiers shut down the military barrier adjacent to the refugee camp before occupying the rooftops of nearby houses.
According to the PIC reporter, a state of panic prevailed in an UNRWA school in the refugee camp after IOF troops broke into the school and ordered its eviction.
IOF soldiers also arrested journalist Mohammad Abu Esba in Qalandiya and confiscated his tools.
Eyewitnesses told the PIC reporter that IOF soldiers shut down the military barrier adjacent to the refugee camp before occupying the rooftops of nearby houses.
According to the PIC reporter, a state of panic prevailed in an UNRWA school in the refugee camp after IOF troops broke into the school and ordered its eviction.
IOF soldiers also arrested journalist Mohammad Abu Esba in Qalandiya and confiscated his tools.
7 oct 2017
The Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies said that 450 Palestinians, including women and children, have been arrested since the outbreak of the Jerusalem Intifada in October 2015 on charges of "incitement" on Facebook.
Media spokesman for the Center, Riyad al-Ashqar, explained that Israel uses what Palestinian youths publish on social media sites as pretexts to detain them on charges of incitement and impose actual or administrative imprisonment sentences on them.
Ashqar pointed out that the detainees included journalists, children and women, adding that an administrative detention order was issued against the Jerusalemite female prisoner Sabah Fir'oun and renewed four times in a row for the same charge.
Ashqar said that Israel has established a special cyber unit to record all that is published by Palestinian youths. Israeli courts claim that posting statements honoring martyrs or videos documenting the Israeli crimes indicates a psychological readiness to carry out anti-Israel attacks.
He noted that the Israeli prosecution presents to the court a file containing dozens of printed Facebook posts as evidence of the Palestinians' willingness to harm Israel's security.
He cited the case of the Jerusalemite journalist Sanaa Dweik who spent 6 months in Israeli jails on charges of incitement because she used words like "Intifada" and "martyrs" in her press work though these terms are widely used in the Palestinian and Arab media.
In similar cases, the Israeli authorities imposed an administrative detention order that was renewed twice against the ex-prisoner Su'ad Erziqat, 28, and sentenced Ahmad Sa'ida, 17, to 11 months on charges of incitement on Facebook.
Since these arbitrary sentences were not enough for Israel, according to Ashqar, those released are ordered not to use Facebook for a certain period of up to months, and they may be fined or held in house arrest.
Ashqar stressed that arresting Palestinians because of their opinions is contrary to the international conventions and laws that allow freedom of expression, calling on the international community to intervene and put an end to the Israeli violations.
Media spokesman for the Center, Riyad al-Ashqar, explained that Israel uses what Palestinian youths publish on social media sites as pretexts to detain them on charges of incitement and impose actual or administrative imprisonment sentences on them.
Ashqar pointed out that the detainees included journalists, children and women, adding that an administrative detention order was issued against the Jerusalemite female prisoner Sabah Fir'oun and renewed four times in a row for the same charge.
Ashqar said that Israel has established a special cyber unit to record all that is published by Palestinian youths. Israeli courts claim that posting statements honoring martyrs or videos documenting the Israeli crimes indicates a psychological readiness to carry out anti-Israel attacks.
He noted that the Israeli prosecution presents to the court a file containing dozens of printed Facebook posts as evidence of the Palestinians' willingness to harm Israel's security.
He cited the case of the Jerusalemite journalist Sanaa Dweik who spent 6 months in Israeli jails on charges of incitement because she used words like "Intifada" and "martyrs" in her press work though these terms are widely used in the Palestinian and Arab media.
In similar cases, the Israeli authorities imposed an administrative detention order that was renewed twice against the ex-prisoner Su'ad Erziqat, 28, and sentenced Ahmad Sa'ida, 17, to 11 months on charges of incitement on Facebook.
Since these arbitrary sentences were not enough for Israel, according to Ashqar, those released are ordered not to use Facebook for a certain period of up to months, and they may be fined or held in house arrest.
Ashqar stressed that arresting Palestinians because of their opinions is contrary to the international conventions and laws that allow freedom of expression, calling on the international community to intervene and put an end to the Israeli violations.
6 oct 2017
Israeli soldiers attacked, Friday, a nonviolent procession in Qalqas village, east of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and detained many journalists.
Aref Jaber, an activist against Israeli colonies, said the soldiers resorted to the excessive use of force against the nonviolent protesters, and fired several gas bombs at them, causing many to suffer the effects of teargas inhalation.
Jaber added that the soldiers detained many Palestinians, including journalists, after preventing media outlets from entering the area.
It is worth mentioning that Qalqas road remains blockaded for the seventeenth consecutive year, an issue that compounded the suffering of the residents of that area, forcing them to take longer, largely unpaved routs.
Aref Jaber, an activist against Israeli colonies, said the soldiers resorted to the excessive use of force against the nonviolent protesters, and fired several gas bombs at them, causing many to suffer the effects of teargas inhalation.
Jaber added that the soldiers detained many Palestinians, including journalists, after preventing media outlets from entering the area.
It is worth mentioning that Qalqas road remains blockaded for the seventeenth consecutive year, an issue that compounded the suffering of the residents of that area, forcing them to take longer, largely unpaved routs.
The Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) has kept record of 26 violations against press freedoms in the West Bank and Gaza in September.
A report by MADA documented 22 violations by the Israeli forces and police against journalists in the West Bank and Gaza in September.
MADA said a total of 26 violations of the freedom of the press was recorded in September, up from 25 in August.
The center deemed most of the Israeli violations as “serious.”
It added that last month the Ofer military court, southwest of Ramallah, issued a suspended eight-month prison sentence against al-Aqsa TV journalists Mustafa al-Khawaja and Alaa al-Titi. Both were also banned from working with the channel and ordered to pay a fine of 3,000 shekels.
Three journalists were also arrested by the Israeli forces while six others had been subjected to physical assaults and injuries in September.
A report by MADA documented 22 violations by the Israeli forces and police against journalists in the West Bank and Gaza in September.
MADA said a total of 26 violations of the freedom of the press was recorded in September, up from 25 in August.
The center deemed most of the Israeli violations as “serious.”
It added that last month the Ofer military court, southwest of Ramallah, issued a suspended eight-month prison sentence against al-Aqsa TV journalists Mustafa al-Khawaja and Alaa al-Titi. Both were also banned from working with the channel and ordered to pay a fine of 3,000 shekels.
Three journalists were also arrested by the Israeli forces while six others had been subjected to physical assaults and injuries in September.
Several Palestinians were left injured at noontime Friday after the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) stormed the central West Bank province of Ramallah.
Israeli army troops broke into Umm al-Sharayet neighborhood, in Ramallah, and attacked Palestinian anti-occupation protesters with randomly-shot spates of bullet fire and teargas canisters.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said it transferred two protesters to Ramallah hospitals so as to be treated for rubber-bullet wounds. At least 10 other protesters received field treatment. Dozens more choked on teargas.
According to eye-witnesses, the IOF kidnapped two Palestinians following a round of home break-ins in Abu Kweik Street, in the area.
Sometime earlier, the occupation forces closed off the main access roads between Ramallah and Nablus along with the Zaatara checkpoint to secure a marathon staged by Israeli settlers.
Palestinian civilians and drivers have been denied access out of and into their homes and workplaces as a result of the abrupt closure. The Israeli army said the cordon is to be kept until noontime.
Israeli jeeps, police troops, and military patrols also showed up at the scene to protect the contestants.
Meanwhile, Palestinian youth Aboud Harzallah was kidnapped by the Israeli soldiers from his family home in Jenin’s southwestern town of Yabad.
The IOF further attacked a peaceful march calling for unblocking the main road to Khirbet Qelqes, south of al-Khalil province.
A number of demonstrators sustained breathing disorders due to heavy teargas inhalation.
The marchers chanted slogans denouncing Israel’s infringement of Palestinians’ freedom of movement, which they said led to the death of a number of civilians as they were forced to pass through unsafe bypass roads due to the Israeli closures.
The occupation forces also came down heavily on press officers as they attempted to cover the event and detained a number of protesters.
A number of cameramen, photojournalists and activists choked on teargas. Moments later, the IOF declared the area a closed military zone.
The IOF systematically attacks the peaceful marches and rallies staged on a weekly basis near Beit Hagai illegal settlement outpost, south of al-Khalil.
Khirbet Qelqes has been isolated from its environs by Israel’s Bypass Road 60, leading to Israeli settlements south of al-Khalil.
In 2000, the IOF sealed off the main entrance to Qelqes with sand barriers, severing its ties with the neighboring Palestinian towns and villages.
Israeli army troops broke into Umm al-Sharayet neighborhood, in Ramallah, and attacked Palestinian anti-occupation protesters with randomly-shot spates of bullet fire and teargas canisters.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said it transferred two protesters to Ramallah hospitals so as to be treated for rubber-bullet wounds. At least 10 other protesters received field treatment. Dozens more choked on teargas.
According to eye-witnesses, the IOF kidnapped two Palestinians following a round of home break-ins in Abu Kweik Street, in the area.
Sometime earlier, the occupation forces closed off the main access roads between Ramallah and Nablus along with the Zaatara checkpoint to secure a marathon staged by Israeli settlers.
Palestinian civilians and drivers have been denied access out of and into their homes and workplaces as a result of the abrupt closure. The Israeli army said the cordon is to be kept until noontime.
Israeli jeeps, police troops, and military patrols also showed up at the scene to protect the contestants.
Meanwhile, Palestinian youth Aboud Harzallah was kidnapped by the Israeli soldiers from his family home in Jenin’s southwestern town of Yabad.
The IOF further attacked a peaceful march calling for unblocking the main road to Khirbet Qelqes, south of al-Khalil province.
A number of demonstrators sustained breathing disorders due to heavy teargas inhalation.
The marchers chanted slogans denouncing Israel’s infringement of Palestinians’ freedom of movement, which they said led to the death of a number of civilians as they were forced to pass through unsafe bypass roads due to the Israeli closures.
The occupation forces also came down heavily on press officers as they attempted to cover the event and detained a number of protesters.
A number of cameramen, photojournalists and activists choked on teargas. Moments later, the IOF declared the area a closed military zone.
The IOF systematically attacks the peaceful marches and rallies staged on a weekly basis near Beit Hagai illegal settlement outpost, south of al-Khalil.
Khirbet Qelqes has been isolated from its environs by Israel’s Bypass Road 60, leading to Israeli settlements south of al-Khalil.
In 2000, the IOF sealed off the main entrance to Qelqes with sand barriers, severing its ties with the neighboring Palestinian towns and villages.
