19 oct 2015
Israeli forces, on Sunday, began installing a large concrete wall in occupied East Jerusalem to separate the Palestinian neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir from the illegal Israeli settlement of Armon Hanatziv.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli forces helped unload huge concrete blocks in the neighborhood, including the notorious T-shaped blocks used in Israel's illegal separation wall that surrounds and cuts through the occupied West Bank.
Most of the concrete blocks are two meters high, witnesses, and were set up in streets near the illegal Israeli settlement of Armon Hanatziv, also known as East Talpiot.
Residents of Jabal al-Mukabbir said that four days earlier, on Wednesday, Israeli forces closed all routes to the neighborhood with cement blocks and set up a checkpoint at the main entrance.
Nearly all Palestinian neighborhoods across occupied East Jerusalem have seen severe movement restrictions imposed by Israel's security cabinet following a series of attacks on Israelis.
Late on Tuesday, Israel’s security cabinet announced that Israeli police would be entitled to "impose a closure on, or to surround, centers of friction and incitement in Jerusalem, in accordance with security considerations."
The cabinet also gave approval for the revocation of residency status for Palestinians who carry out attacks as well as the police closure of occupied East Jerusalem.
Israeli rights group B'Tselem has called the Israeli government’s response to recent escalation in the area as "the very inverse of what ought to be done" toward ending the violence.
"The events of recent weeks cannot be viewed in a vacuum, isolated from the reality of the ongoing, daily oppression of 4 million people, with no hope of change in sight," the group said in a statement on Tuesday.
At least seven Israelis and 42 Palestinians have been killed in violence that has escalated since the beginning of October.
Israeli settlers renewed their attacks on the eastern Hebron area on Sunday evening, hours after they carried out a similar attack, according to local sources.
More than 200 Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian villages of Wad al-Haseen and Wad al-Nasara near the illegal Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arba, overnight, in the eastern Hebron district of the occupied southern West Bank, locals and medics said.
During the attack, Israeli settlers threw stones and firebombs at Palestinian homes and injured at least three people, two of which were minors, while Israeli forces later shot and injured one Palestinian with live fire.
An Israeli army spokesperson said she did not have reports of any injuries with live fire.
The spokesperson said clashes between Palestinians and Israelis broke out in the area, after which Israeli forces "arrived at the scene anddispersedthe clashes using riot dispersal means."
Kayed Daana, one of the residents whose home was attacked told Ma’an that dozens of Israeli settlers attacked her neighborhood and injured at least three of her neighbors who have been identified as 40-year-old Imad and two minors, Abdullah, 13, and Muhammad, 17.
Muhammad's injuries were the most serious of the three, as he was hit in the chest with one of the fire bombs, medics said.
Daana told Ma'an News Agency that she would like to urge the International Red Cross and others in the international community intervene against Israeli violations and attacks on Palestinians.
Bassam al-Jabri, one of the residents, said he saw the attacking Israeli settlers cutting the blockade fence that separates the illegal Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arab from nearby Palestinian homes, while under the protection of the Israeli troops before they attacked his neighborhood with fire bombs.
Al-Jabri said his house was one of those set ablaze, but that he and his neighbors were able to put the fire out before the fire was able to damage his whole home.
During the attacks, Palestinian villagers fled to their local mosques and used the mosque amplifier to call for help from neighboring Palestinian villages and communities, who responded to their calls. Israeli forces then got involved, shooting tear gas at Palestinians who showed up to help.
Community member Farid al-Razim, told Ma’an that villagers in his area were attacked by Israeli settlers with firebombs, while Israeli forces were shooting tear gas, and that one of the Palestinians from a neighboring village who had come to help was shot and injured with live fire.
While relations between Palestinian residents and Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank are normally tense, thesituation has been significantly deteriorating since settlers’ caught fire a home belonging to the Duwabsha family in Nablus on July 31.
An 18-month-old toddler was burned alive during the attack, while his mother and father succumbed to their burn wounds while being treated at separate hospitals. The family's four-year-old son is the only remaining survivor of the attack.
On Oct. 1, suspected Palestinians shot and killed Eitam and Naama Henkin, two settlers who were driving between the illegal settlements of Itamar and Elon More in an area near Huwwara in Nablus. Their four children, aged between four months and nine years, were found unharmed in the back of the car.
It is speculated that the shootings were a revenge attack on Israeli settlers, following months of increased restrictions at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and calls from right-wing Jewish groups, urging their supporters to visit the compound, which is venerated by Jews as the Temple Mount. Following the shooting, hundreds of Israeli settlers rioted across the occupied West Bank, with multiple attacks reported on Palestinian homes and vehicles.
Palestinian towns and villages in the Nablus area are surrounded by Israeli settlements and outposts, many of which are protected by the Israeli military and have gained notoriety for being comprised of the most extremist settlers.
The Palestinian government has no jurisdiction over Israelis in the West Bank, and violent acts carried out by Israeli settlers often occur in the presence of Israeli military forces who rarely act to protect Palestinian residents.
Palestinians are therefore left to fend for themselves as few options for their personal security remain.
While Israeli forces will detain a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank for possessing a knife or gun, Israelis living in the same area are legally able to carry such weapons.
Rights groups have criticized Israel for implementing different legal systems for Palestinians and Israeli settlers living in the same area.
Such practices, they say, protect the expansion of settlements while systematically removing the ability for Palestinians to move freely throughout the occupied territory.
Settlers recently stepped up their attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, amid growing tension and renewing clashes between Palestinians and the Israeli army and police.
Clashes have been witnessed across the West Bank, including Jerusalem, and Gaza, as well as in Arab communities inside the occupied 1948 land, against the backdrop of Israel’s repeated assaults against al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem.
Israel has been enforcing a temporal division on the compound, the third holiest place in Islam, which ignited strong feelings of anger among Palestinians.
Settlements are illegal under international law as they violate Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits the transfer of the occupying power’s civilian population into occupied territory.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli forces helped unload huge concrete blocks in the neighborhood, including the notorious T-shaped blocks used in Israel's illegal separation wall that surrounds and cuts through the occupied West Bank.
Most of the concrete blocks are two meters high, witnesses, and were set up in streets near the illegal Israeli settlement of Armon Hanatziv, also known as East Talpiot.
Residents of Jabal al-Mukabbir said that four days earlier, on Wednesday, Israeli forces closed all routes to the neighborhood with cement blocks and set up a checkpoint at the main entrance.
Nearly all Palestinian neighborhoods across occupied East Jerusalem have seen severe movement restrictions imposed by Israel's security cabinet following a series of attacks on Israelis.
Late on Tuesday, Israel’s security cabinet announced that Israeli police would be entitled to "impose a closure on, or to surround, centers of friction and incitement in Jerusalem, in accordance with security considerations."
The cabinet also gave approval for the revocation of residency status for Palestinians who carry out attacks as well as the police closure of occupied East Jerusalem.
Israeli rights group B'Tselem has called the Israeli government’s response to recent escalation in the area as "the very inverse of what ought to be done" toward ending the violence.
"The events of recent weeks cannot be viewed in a vacuum, isolated from the reality of the ongoing, daily oppression of 4 million people, with no hope of change in sight," the group said in a statement on Tuesday.
At least seven Israelis and 42 Palestinians have been killed in violence that has escalated since the beginning of October.
Israeli settlers renewed their attacks on the eastern Hebron area on Sunday evening, hours after they carried out a similar attack, according to local sources.
More than 200 Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian villages of Wad al-Haseen and Wad al-Nasara near the illegal Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arba, overnight, in the eastern Hebron district of the occupied southern West Bank, locals and medics said.
During the attack, Israeli settlers threw stones and firebombs at Palestinian homes and injured at least three people, two of which were minors, while Israeli forces later shot and injured one Palestinian with live fire.
An Israeli army spokesperson said she did not have reports of any injuries with live fire.
The spokesperson said clashes between Palestinians and Israelis broke out in the area, after which Israeli forces "arrived at the scene anddispersedthe clashes using riot dispersal means."
Kayed Daana, one of the residents whose home was attacked told Ma’an that dozens of Israeli settlers attacked her neighborhood and injured at least three of her neighbors who have been identified as 40-year-old Imad and two minors, Abdullah, 13, and Muhammad, 17.
Muhammad's injuries were the most serious of the three, as he was hit in the chest with one of the fire bombs, medics said.
Daana told Ma'an News Agency that she would like to urge the International Red Cross and others in the international community intervene against Israeli violations and attacks on Palestinians.
Bassam al-Jabri, one of the residents, said he saw the attacking Israeli settlers cutting the blockade fence that separates the illegal Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arab from nearby Palestinian homes, while under the protection of the Israeli troops before they attacked his neighborhood with fire bombs.
Al-Jabri said his house was one of those set ablaze, but that he and his neighbors were able to put the fire out before the fire was able to damage his whole home.
During the attacks, Palestinian villagers fled to their local mosques and used the mosque amplifier to call for help from neighboring Palestinian villages and communities, who responded to their calls. Israeli forces then got involved, shooting tear gas at Palestinians who showed up to help.
Community member Farid al-Razim, told Ma’an that villagers in his area were attacked by Israeli settlers with firebombs, while Israeli forces were shooting tear gas, and that one of the Palestinians from a neighboring village who had come to help was shot and injured with live fire.
While relations between Palestinian residents and Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank are normally tense, thesituation has been significantly deteriorating since settlers’ caught fire a home belonging to the Duwabsha family in Nablus on July 31.
An 18-month-old toddler was burned alive during the attack, while his mother and father succumbed to their burn wounds while being treated at separate hospitals. The family's four-year-old son is the only remaining survivor of the attack.
On Oct. 1, suspected Palestinians shot and killed Eitam and Naama Henkin, two settlers who were driving between the illegal settlements of Itamar and Elon More in an area near Huwwara in Nablus. Their four children, aged between four months and nine years, were found unharmed in the back of the car.
It is speculated that the shootings were a revenge attack on Israeli settlers, following months of increased restrictions at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and calls from right-wing Jewish groups, urging their supporters to visit the compound, which is venerated by Jews as the Temple Mount. Following the shooting, hundreds of Israeli settlers rioted across the occupied West Bank, with multiple attacks reported on Palestinian homes and vehicles.
Palestinian towns and villages in the Nablus area are surrounded by Israeli settlements and outposts, many of which are protected by the Israeli military and have gained notoriety for being comprised of the most extremist settlers.
The Palestinian government has no jurisdiction over Israelis in the West Bank, and violent acts carried out by Israeli settlers often occur in the presence of Israeli military forces who rarely act to protect Palestinian residents.
Palestinians are therefore left to fend for themselves as few options for their personal security remain.
While Israeli forces will detain a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank for possessing a knife or gun, Israelis living in the same area are legally able to carry such weapons.
Rights groups have criticized Israel for implementing different legal systems for Palestinians and Israeli settlers living in the same area.
Such practices, they say, protect the expansion of settlements while systematically removing the ability for Palestinians to move freely throughout the occupied territory.
Settlers recently stepped up their attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, amid growing tension and renewing clashes between Palestinians and the Israeli army and police.
Clashes have been witnessed across the West Bank, including Jerusalem, and Gaza, as well as in Arab communities inside the occupied 1948 land, against the backdrop of Israel’s repeated assaults against al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem.
Israel has been enforcing a temporal division on the compound, the third holiest place in Islam, which ignited strong feelings of anger among Palestinians.
Settlements are illegal under international law as they violate Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits the transfer of the occupying power’s civilian population into occupied territory.
17 oct 2015
Israel’s Ministry of Housing approved the construction of a three-storey apartment for Israeli settlers near Jerusalem’s Maragha neighborhood as part of ongoing attempts to wipe out the city’s Islamic idiosyncrasy.
According to Israeli news outlets, the approved bid plans for the construction of a three-storey apartment for Israeli settlers.
Earlier, one week ago, the Israeli local committee for planning and building approved a bid to expand the entrance way to a new Israeli illegal settlement in Jerusalem’s town of Silwan, where the apartment is set to be built.
The three-storey settlement unit will be established some thousand miles away from Muslims’ the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Jerusalem municipality announced its intents to inspect the licenses of Palestinian commercial stores in eastern Occupied Jerusalem and also check on payments of the Arnona property taxes.
Other procedures, including the meticulous inspection of banners, are also expected to be carried out by the Israeli occupation authorities as part of attempts to crack down on Palestinian merchants and shopkeepers.
Head of the merchants’ committee in Jerusalem’s al-Mesrara neighborhood raised alarm bells over the serious repercussions of such procedures, saying they would rather fan the flames of the ongoing tension and violence.
According to Israeli news outlets, the approved bid plans for the construction of a three-storey apartment for Israeli settlers.
Earlier, one week ago, the Israeli local committee for planning and building approved a bid to expand the entrance way to a new Israeli illegal settlement in Jerusalem’s town of Silwan, where the apartment is set to be built.
The three-storey settlement unit will be established some thousand miles away from Muslims’ the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Jerusalem municipality announced its intents to inspect the licenses of Palestinian commercial stores in eastern Occupied Jerusalem and also check on payments of the Arnona property taxes.
Other procedures, including the meticulous inspection of banners, are also expected to be carried out by the Israeli occupation authorities as part of attempts to crack down on Palestinian merchants and shopkeepers.
Head of the merchants’ committee in Jerusalem’s al-Mesrara neighborhood raised alarm bells over the serious repercussions of such procedures, saying they would rather fan the flames of the ongoing tension and violence.
15 oct 2015
The Israel army is to build a new 65 kilometre-long security fence along the border of the Gaza Strip to prevent the infiltration of Palestinians from the coastal enclave, Israeli Radio said on Wednesday.
According to Anadolu, the fence is intended specifically to protect settlements built close to Gaza. Israel already has a heavily-militarised border through which the Israeli army can and does send tanks and troops across into the occupied Palestinian territory on an almost daily basis.
It is claimed that approval for the new barrier was given after “repeated breaches of the current fence by Palestinians from Gaza.
According to Anadolu, the fence is intended specifically to protect settlements built close to Gaza. Israel already has a heavily-militarised border through which the Israeli army can and does send tanks and troops across into the occupied Palestinian territory on an almost daily basis.
It is claimed that approval for the new barrier was given after “repeated breaches of the current fence by Palestinians from Gaza.
6 oct 2015
Thousands of right-wing settlers have protested outside the residence of the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday evening in occupied Jerusalem.
The wring-wing settlers demand harsher security measures in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem "in light of the deteriorating security situation". They also demanded increasing settlement construction.
Ministers in the Israeli right-wing government and MKs have participated in the protest that came in the wake of the killing of an Israeli military officer and his wife few days ago in a shooting attack in Nablus.
Israeli Minister of Welfare and Social Services Haim Katz, who recently called for imposing tougher penalties on Palestinian stone-throwers, has also called during the protest for boosting settlement construction.
Any decision to freeze settlement construction reflects the weakness of the government, he said.
Clashes have swept across the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem as Israeli forces and settlers carried out deadly attacks against Palestinians, killing at least four youths and injuring more than 500 within three days.
The wring-wing settlers demand harsher security measures in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem "in light of the deteriorating security situation". They also demanded increasing settlement construction.
Ministers in the Israeli right-wing government and MKs have participated in the protest that came in the wake of the killing of an Israeli military officer and his wife few days ago in a shooting attack in Nablus.
Israeli Minister of Welfare and Social Services Haim Katz, who recently called for imposing tougher penalties on Palestinian stone-throwers, has also called during the protest for boosting settlement construction.
Any decision to freeze settlement construction reflects the weakness of the government, he said.
Clashes have swept across the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem as Israeli forces and settlers carried out deadly attacks against Palestinians, killing at least four youths and injuring more than 500 within three days.
29 sept 2015
Israeli Municipality of Jerusalem refused a map sketch prepared by Palestinian inhabitants of al-Issawiya town in Occupied Jerusalem after being deprived of construction permits for years because of the unavailability of such a sketch.
Iroshalim Hebrew newspaper disclosed that the municipality’s refusal of the sketch will lead to hindering the issuance of building permits so that Palestinians can construct over their own lands.
The municipality justified the refusal by lack of funding and waiting for the coming budget. Meanwhile, it is working on establishing a public park on the expense of Palestinians’ lands in al-Issawiya and al-Tour towns. The Israeli environment authority, however, said there is no real value of establishing a park in that area.
The Israeli appeal committee refused the municipality’s decision to establish the park, but the latter issued a new decision to garden the area. The gardening decision stipulates for the confiscation of Palestinians’ lands for five years for building a temporary park over the lands.
Iroshalim Hebrew newspaper disclosed that the municipality’s refusal of the sketch will lead to hindering the issuance of building permits so that Palestinians can construct over their own lands.
The municipality justified the refusal by lack of funding and waiting for the coming budget. Meanwhile, it is working on establishing a public park on the expense of Palestinians’ lands in al-Issawiya and al-Tour towns. The Israeli environment authority, however, said there is no real value of establishing a park in that area.
The Israeli appeal committee refused the municipality’s decision to establish the park, but the latter issued a new decision to garden the area. The gardening decision stipulates for the confiscation of Palestinians’ lands for five years for building a temporary park over the lands.
28 sept 2015
The Euro-Israel company has begعn marketing 78 new settlement units in Occupied Jerusalem, the Israeli Kol Ha’ir newspaper reported.
The project includes 78 settlement units built in four nine-story apartments.
22 housing units were also sold out of 37 units in the first phase of the project.
The company has begun the construction of other three settlement projects in Occupied Jerusalem, comprising about 250 housing units in total.
Another Israeli company received licenses for the construction of three nine-story settlement buildings, with some 142 housing units in Jabal Abu Ghneim.
Meanwhile, Moriah Company said the Israeli municipality has allotted over 75 million shekels to improve government services for illegal settlers residing in Jabal Abu Ghneim.
The project includes 78 settlement units built in four nine-story apartments.
22 housing units were also sold out of 37 units in the first phase of the project.
The company has begun the construction of other three settlement projects in Occupied Jerusalem, comprising about 250 housing units in total.
Another Israeli company received licenses for the construction of three nine-story settlement buildings, with some 142 housing units in Jabal Abu Ghneim.
Meanwhile, Moriah Company said the Israeli municipality has allotted over 75 million shekels to improve government services for illegal settlers residing in Jabal Abu Ghneim.
6 sept 2015
Palestinian citizens from four villages to the west of Salfit have complained that Jewish settlers persist in annexing their agricultural lands and bulldozing them without stop.
Eyewitnesses said that heavy construction machinery were seen preparing a vast tract of land west of Salfit for the establishment of a service infrastructure for the illegal settlement of Leshem, including water, sewerage, electricity and telephone systems.
Specialist in settlement affairs Khaled Ma'ali stated that the towns of Kafr Addik, Sarta, Rafat, and Deir Ballut suffer from the ongoing expansion of Leshem settlement at the expense of their agricultural lands.
Ma'ali added that Leshem settlement used to be an outpost before it was declared in 2013 by the Israeli government as a settlement, affirming that another 24 settlements and outposts keep devouring different Palestinian areas in Salfit province.
In a related incident, Jewish settlers from Beit Aryeh recently embarked on bulldozing about 200 dunums of Palestinian land in order to expand their settlement, which is located northeast of Deir Ballut town in Salfit.
A Palestinian farmer from the town reported that an Israeli bulldozer driver told him that he was preparing the area for the expansion of Beit Aryeh settlement and the construction of a Jewish cemetery.
Eyewitnesses said that heavy construction machinery were seen preparing a vast tract of land west of Salfit for the establishment of a service infrastructure for the illegal settlement of Leshem, including water, sewerage, electricity and telephone systems.
Specialist in settlement affairs Khaled Ma'ali stated that the towns of Kafr Addik, Sarta, Rafat, and Deir Ballut suffer from the ongoing expansion of Leshem settlement at the expense of their agricultural lands.
Ma'ali added that Leshem settlement used to be an outpost before it was declared in 2013 by the Israeli government as a settlement, affirming that another 24 settlements and outposts keep devouring different Palestinian areas in Salfit province.
In a related incident, Jewish settlers from Beit Aryeh recently embarked on bulldozing about 200 dunums of Palestinian land in order to expand their settlement, which is located northeast of Deir Ballut town in Salfit.
A Palestinian farmer from the town reported that an Israeli bulldozer driver told him that he was preparing the area for the expansion of Beit Aryeh settlement and the construction of a Jewish cemetery.
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Sunday morning started the construction of a security fence along the Occupied Palestine-Jordan borders.
According to the Israeli public radio, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and war minister Moshe Ya’alon are expected to announce, in the course of the weekly cabinet meeting, the launch of the construction project near the borders with Jordan.
The first 30-kilometer stretch of the separation fence is set to run from Eilat to the outskirts of the new airport.
Occupied Palestine shares a border of 360 kilometers with Jordan.
Construction of 3bn Shekel Fence between Jordan and Israel to be Launched Today
The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Minister of Defense, Moshe Ya’alon, are to officially announce the beginning of the 30 KM fence project sometime today.
The 30 kilometer fence will be built under the pretext of “blocking infiltrators from the east”, PNN reports. According to Arutz Sheva Israeli website, the project will cost about three billion shekels ($765 million).
The first stage of construction on the fence will begin in Eilat and stretch northward. The length of the fence is estimated at 30 kilometers (19 miles) – nearly an eighth of the 230 kilometer (143 mile) long border between Israel and Jordan.
The fence is being designed “with the aim of having a similar effect in preventing the entrance of infiltrators as the fence on Israel’s southern border with the Sinai Peninsula,” Arutz Sheva reported.
According to the Israeli public radio, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and war minister Moshe Ya’alon are expected to announce, in the course of the weekly cabinet meeting, the launch of the construction project near the borders with Jordan.
The first 30-kilometer stretch of the separation fence is set to run from Eilat to the outskirts of the new airport.
Occupied Palestine shares a border of 360 kilometers with Jordan.
Construction of 3bn Shekel Fence between Jordan and Israel to be Launched Today
The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Minister of Defense, Moshe Ya’alon, are to officially announce the beginning of the 30 KM fence project sometime today.
The 30 kilometer fence will be built under the pretext of “blocking infiltrators from the east”, PNN reports. According to Arutz Sheva Israeli website, the project will cost about three billion shekels ($765 million).
The first stage of construction on the fence will begin in Eilat and stretch northward. The length of the fence is estimated at 30 kilometers (19 miles) – nearly an eighth of the 230 kilometer (143 mile) long border between Israel and Jordan.
The fence is being designed “with the aim of having a similar effect in preventing the entrance of infiltrators as the fence on Israel’s southern border with the Sinai Peninsula,” Arutz Sheva reported.
5 sept 2015
Jerusalemite youths pulled down Friday the Israeli fence that was set up earlier this week around part of an Islamic cemetery near al-Aqsa Mosque.
Earlier Thursday, the Committee for the Caring of Islamic Cemeteries in occupied Jerusalem called for intensifying Palestinian presence in the Bab al-Rahma cemetery on Friday to foil Israel's Nature Authority’s attempts to confiscate a part of the cemetery.
A number of national figures along with dozens of Jerusalemites arrived to the cemetery after Friday prayers in protest against Israeli confiscation plans.
During the protest rally, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, stressed that the cemetery is an Islamic endowment that contains a number of graves of the companions of Islam’s Prophet Mohammad.
For his part, head of the Committee, Mustafa Abu Zahra, affirmed that the Israeli authorities "claimed they were putting a court decision into effect," but he said that the authorities had given no evidence of a court ruling backing their action.
On Wednesday, Israeli authorities seized a large section of an ancient Muslim cemetery, located along the eastern wall of Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
The Israeli Nature and Parks Authority then installed barbed wire fence around a large tract of Bab Al-Rahma cemetery in order to transform it into a national park.
Earlier Thursday, the Committee for the Caring of Islamic Cemeteries in occupied Jerusalem called for intensifying Palestinian presence in the Bab al-Rahma cemetery on Friday to foil Israel's Nature Authority’s attempts to confiscate a part of the cemetery.
A number of national figures along with dozens of Jerusalemites arrived to the cemetery after Friday prayers in protest against Israeli confiscation plans.
During the protest rally, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, stressed that the cemetery is an Islamic endowment that contains a number of graves of the companions of Islam’s Prophet Mohammad.
For his part, head of the Committee, Mustafa Abu Zahra, affirmed that the Israeli authorities "claimed they were putting a court decision into effect," but he said that the authorities had given no evidence of a court ruling backing their action.
On Wednesday, Israeli authorities seized a large section of an ancient Muslim cemetery, located along the eastern wall of Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
The Israeli Nature and Parks Authority then installed barbed wire fence around a large tract of Bab Al-Rahma cemetery in order to transform it into a national park.
4 sept 2015
According to Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, the Israeli government has recently decided to erase $24 million in debt owed by settlements in the West Bank and occupied Golan Heights. These debts have been accumulating since 2011. The government had also decided to erase settlement debts amounting to $146 million, which have accumulated from as far back as the 1970’s.
These debts are owed to the World Zionist Organisation’s settlement division and were granted in the form of loans given to what it called “cooperative societies” in the West Bank and occupied Golan Heights dating as far back as the 1970’s and 1980’s. These then joined the settlements established today.
Writing off these debts means removing the financial burden from the budgets of all of these settlements. This officially liberates the settlements from any obstacles that may have hindered them from carrying out larger settlement projects. Therefore, erasing the debts is considered greater support than granting the settlements and settlement blocs the financial value.
These debts are owed to the World Zionist Organisation’s settlement division and were granted in the form of loans given to what it called “cooperative societies” in the West Bank and occupied Golan Heights dating as far back as the 1970’s and 1980’s. These then joined the settlements established today.
Writing off these debts means removing the financial burden from the budgets of all of these settlements. This officially liberates the settlements from any obstacles that may have hindered them from carrying out larger settlement projects. Therefore, erasing the debts is considered greater support than granting the settlements and settlement blocs the financial value.
2 sept 2015
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) notified Wednesday the demolition of a primary school in Yatta town south of al-Khalil.
The local activist Rateb Rajoub told PIC reporter that IOF stormed the town and handed demolition notification to a primary school under the pretext of being established in the Israeli-controlled area C.
The area has been subjected over the past two years to an Israeli systematic displacement policy aiming to forcibly evacuate the town for settlement expansion.
The local activist Rateb Rajoub told PIC reporter that IOF stormed the town and handed demolition notification to a primary school under the pretext of being established in the Israeli-controlled area C.
The area has been subjected over the past two years to an Israeli systematic displacement policy aiming to forcibly evacuate the town for settlement expansion.
31 aug 2015
Palestinians in the occupied West Bank are suffering from the rising Judaization and settlement schemes which expose the Israeli occupation and the settler gangs' malicious intent. These schemes don't only threaten the Palestinian citizens, but also their houses, their holy sites, and everything related to the Palestinians' lives.
In this report, the PIC sheds light on the settlement file and the statistics of competent authorities and settlement experts who affirmed that the settlers and their extremist groups' crimes committed against the Palestinians, their properties, and sanctities have been steadily increasing.
Shocking statistics
According to the latest statistics issued by the Popular Committee against Wall and Settlement, the settlement areas in the West Banl reached about 505 including settlements, settlement outposts, military outposts, services areas, and industrial and touristic sites, let alone the 93 houses which have been misappropriated partially or completely in Jerusalem.
16% of these settlement areas are in Jerusalem and Ramallah, 13% in al-Khalil and Jericho, and 12% are in Qalqilya.
Settlers' assaults
The Committee's statistics indicated that the settlers have escalated their assaults against the Palestinian citizens; in 2013 about 550 violations by Israeli settlers were reported, in 2014 the assaults were more than 760 while since the beginning of 2015 until end of August the assaults have reached 400.
The committee also pointed out that in 2014 the settlers' assaults in the West Bank governorates reached about 887 cases. Nablus took the lion's share of these violations, followed by al-Khalil and Jerusalem.
These violent attacks included beating up, running over, hurling stones, attacking Palestinian properties, kidnap attempts, shooting, breaking into houses, releasing gas and chemical materials, stabbing, burning homes, burning houses of worship, and even burning Palestinian citizens to death.
Even the trees and the farms were not spared the settlers' assaults; they burn and cut trees, attack the farmers, prevent water from reaching the farms, and unleash dangerous animals in the Palestinian agricultural lands.
The committee drew attention to the fact that over the past few years the settlers' assaults were limited to direct attacks against Palestinian citizens or against their trees and crops whereas today the systematic attacks, which are openly supported and protected by the Israeli army, extended to include the Palestinian lands, tress, houses, and mosques.
For his part, Suhail Khaliliyya, from the Applied Research Institute-ARIJ in Bethlehem, pointed to the noticeable increase in the settlers’ number which coincides with a similar increase in the settlement construction during the recent years.
According to the institute, the number of the settlement outposts has remarkably increased during the last years and the settlements have been expanded at the expense of the Palestinian lands.
The institute reviewed aerial photos that show that the number of the settlement blocs has increased by about a million square meters compared to the years 2012 and 2014.
Khaliliyya affirmed that the Israeli occupation pursues a systematic policy to expand the settlement construction in an attempt to impose new facts on the ground and force the Palestinians to exchange their lands that are located in areas desired by the Israelis.
Official support
The researcher stressed that the Israeli government supports the settlers' crimes, contrary to what it claims in the media, and clarified that when the Dawabsha family house was burned the Israeli army reached the scene very quickly which indicates that the army knew about the arson attack beforehand.
He warned that this will boost the settlers' persistence in carrying out these heinous systematic attacks especially that the Israeli parties always side with the settlers in their crimes against Palestinian innocent civilians.
The researcher, however, affirmed that the settlers' indulgence in committing crimes against Palestinian citizens will never weaken the Palestinians' steadfastness and adherence to their land.
In this report, the PIC sheds light on the settlement file and the statistics of competent authorities and settlement experts who affirmed that the settlers and their extremist groups' crimes committed against the Palestinians, their properties, and sanctities have been steadily increasing.
Shocking statistics
According to the latest statistics issued by the Popular Committee against Wall and Settlement, the settlement areas in the West Banl reached about 505 including settlements, settlement outposts, military outposts, services areas, and industrial and touristic sites, let alone the 93 houses which have been misappropriated partially or completely in Jerusalem.
16% of these settlement areas are in Jerusalem and Ramallah, 13% in al-Khalil and Jericho, and 12% are in Qalqilya.
Settlers' assaults
The Committee's statistics indicated that the settlers have escalated their assaults against the Palestinian citizens; in 2013 about 550 violations by Israeli settlers were reported, in 2014 the assaults were more than 760 while since the beginning of 2015 until end of August the assaults have reached 400.
The committee also pointed out that in 2014 the settlers' assaults in the West Bank governorates reached about 887 cases. Nablus took the lion's share of these violations, followed by al-Khalil and Jerusalem.
These violent attacks included beating up, running over, hurling stones, attacking Palestinian properties, kidnap attempts, shooting, breaking into houses, releasing gas and chemical materials, stabbing, burning homes, burning houses of worship, and even burning Palestinian citizens to death.
Even the trees and the farms were not spared the settlers' assaults; they burn and cut trees, attack the farmers, prevent water from reaching the farms, and unleash dangerous animals in the Palestinian agricultural lands.
The committee drew attention to the fact that over the past few years the settlers' assaults were limited to direct attacks against Palestinian citizens or against their trees and crops whereas today the systematic attacks, which are openly supported and protected by the Israeli army, extended to include the Palestinian lands, tress, houses, and mosques.
For his part, Suhail Khaliliyya, from the Applied Research Institute-ARIJ in Bethlehem, pointed to the noticeable increase in the settlers’ number which coincides with a similar increase in the settlement construction during the recent years.
According to the institute, the number of the settlement outposts has remarkably increased during the last years and the settlements have been expanded at the expense of the Palestinian lands.
The institute reviewed aerial photos that show that the number of the settlement blocs has increased by about a million square meters compared to the years 2012 and 2014.
Khaliliyya affirmed that the Israeli occupation pursues a systematic policy to expand the settlement construction in an attempt to impose new facts on the ground and force the Palestinians to exchange their lands that are located in areas desired by the Israelis.
Official support
The researcher stressed that the Israeli government supports the settlers' crimes, contrary to what it claims in the media, and clarified that when the Dawabsha family house was burned the Israeli army reached the scene very quickly which indicates that the army knew about the arson attack beforehand.
He warned that this will boost the settlers' persistence in carrying out these heinous systematic attacks especially that the Israeli parties always side with the settlers in their crimes against Palestinian innocent civilians.
The researcher, however, affirmed that the settlers' indulgence in committing crimes against Palestinian citizens will never weaken the Palestinians' steadfastness and adherence to their land.
Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) quelled a peaceful march in Beit Jala to the west of Bethlehem on Sunday in protest against the Separation Wall.
The PIC reporter said that the IOF soldiers used stun grenades and tear gas canisters to disperse the demonstrators. The march was organized by the Popular Committees against the Separation Wall and Settlement as well as by Beit Jala municipality, he added.
The march was launched from Beer Oneh area where Israeli military vehicles are working on completing the construction of the Separation Wall.
Patriarch Michel Sabbah along with scores of Palestinian activists and national figures in addition to inhabitants of Beit Jala participated in the march. They raised Palestinian flags and anti-Separation Wall slogans.
The IOF soldiers prevented the march from reaching the working place of Israeli vehicles and fired stun grenades and tear gas bombs at the marchers. The Israeli forces assaulted and arrested two Palestinians.
The forces attacked Palestinian press crews and forced them to leave the scene under gun threat.
In a speech, Patriarch Michel Sabbah stressed the need for supporting the inhabitants of Beit Jala in their popular resistance of the Separation Wall. He asked the Palestinian Authority to work on halting the Israeli violations and exposing it at the international level.
The PIC reporter said that the IOF soldiers used stun grenades and tear gas canisters to disperse the demonstrators. The march was organized by the Popular Committees against the Separation Wall and Settlement as well as by Beit Jala municipality, he added.
The march was launched from Beer Oneh area where Israeli military vehicles are working on completing the construction of the Separation Wall.
Patriarch Michel Sabbah along with scores of Palestinian activists and national figures in addition to inhabitants of Beit Jala participated in the march. They raised Palestinian flags and anti-Separation Wall slogans.
The IOF soldiers prevented the march from reaching the working place of Israeli vehicles and fired stun grenades and tear gas bombs at the marchers. The Israeli forces assaulted and arrested two Palestinians.
The forces attacked Palestinian press crews and forced them to leave the scene under gun threat.
In a speech, Patriarch Michel Sabbah stressed the need for supporting the inhabitants of Beit Jala in their popular resistance of the Separation Wall. He asked the Palestinian Authority to work on halting the Israeli violations and exposing it at the international level.
30 aug 2015
Ongoing Israeli drilling works, including detonation of rocks, near the village of Wadi Fukin, to the west of Bethlehem, may put the lives of nearby Palestinians at risk, according to village mayor Ahmad Sukkar.
Sukkar said, recently, that renewed drilling work by the Israeli authorities in the area also involve the use of heavy explosives to detonate rocks. This, according to him, has put the lives of many Palestinians as well as their properties and homes at risk, as a great amount of stone shrapnel splattered and fell near homes during detonation of rocks.
According to WAFA, the mayor also said that detonations work have badly affected water resources in and outside the village, and the outcomes are much worse given the nature of the village and the fact it relies heavily on agriculture.
The village is just close to Beitar Illit illegal settlement, one of the largest and most rapidly growing Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The settlement was established in 1984 on the lands of the Palestinian village of Husan.
Settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and the Golan Heights, both occupied since 1967, are considered illegal under international law.
The settler population in the West Bank is estimated at 531,000: in the late 2012 the population of the West Bank settlements reached 341,400 while in the late 2011 there were 190,423 individuals living in Israeli neighborhoods in East Jerusalem.
B’Tselem the Israeli human rights group said, “The settlements have been allocated vast areas, far exceeding their built-up sections. These areas have been declared closed military zones by military orders and are off limits to Palestinians, except by special permit. In contrast, Israeli citizens, Jews from anywhere in the world and tourists may all freely enter these areas.”
Sukkar said, recently, that renewed drilling work by the Israeli authorities in the area also involve the use of heavy explosives to detonate rocks. This, according to him, has put the lives of many Palestinians as well as their properties and homes at risk, as a great amount of stone shrapnel splattered and fell near homes during detonation of rocks.
According to WAFA, the mayor also said that detonations work have badly affected water resources in and outside the village, and the outcomes are much worse given the nature of the village and the fact it relies heavily on agriculture.
The village is just close to Beitar Illit illegal settlement, one of the largest and most rapidly growing Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The settlement was established in 1984 on the lands of the Palestinian village of Husan.
Settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and the Golan Heights, both occupied since 1967, are considered illegal under international law.
The settler population in the West Bank is estimated at 531,000: in the late 2012 the population of the West Bank settlements reached 341,400 while in the late 2011 there were 190,423 individuals living in Israeli neighborhoods in East Jerusalem.
B’Tselem the Israeli human rights group said, “The settlements have been allocated vast areas, far exceeding their built-up sections. These areas have been declared closed military zones by military orders and are off limits to Palestinians, except by special permit. In contrast, Israeli citizens, Jews from anywhere in the world and tourists may all freely enter these areas.”
The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) on Saturday violently attacked a peaceful march organized near al-Aroub refugee camp, north of al-Khalil city, in protest at the appropriation of Beit al-Baraka building by Jewish settlers.
Beit al-Baraka used to be a hospital belonging to an American Christian society, which had been providing free medical care for tuberculosis patients since its inception in the early 40s until its closure in 1983.
Anti-settlement activist in al-Khalil, Rateb al-Jabour, told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that a number of protesters were slightly injured when Israeli soldiers subdued them during a march demanding the protection of Beit al-Baraka building against Judaization.
Jabour added that the soldiers violently attacked the protesters outside the hospital building with their rifle butts and declared the area a closed military zone.
Father Atallah Hanna, Archbishop of the Palestinian Orthodox Church in Occupied Jerusalem, and foreign activists participated in the march.
Beit al-Baraka used to be a hospital belonging to an American Christian society, which had been providing free medical care for tuberculosis patients since its inception in the early 40s until its closure in 1983.
Anti-settlement activist in al-Khalil, Rateb al-Jabour, told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that a number of protesters were slightly injured when Israeli soldiers subdued them during a march demanding the protection of Beit al-Baraka building against Judaization.
Jabour added that the soldiers violently attacked the protesters outside the hospital building with their rifle butts and declared the area a closed military zone.
Father Atallah Hanna, Archbishop of the Palestinian Orthodox Church in Occupied Jerusalem, and foreign activists participated in the march.