18 june 2014
Gilad Sha’ar, 16, missing from illegal Israeli settlement
By Gazans Against Bias
Sex-offender abduction? Run-aways? Zionist false flag operation? Or kidnapping?
Any of those scenarios could well have described the failure of three young settlers to return to their homes in illegal settlements last Thursday night. Any competent investigation would consider them all, and obtain supportive evidence, before making accusations. Not so Israel’s.
No evidence was produced by Israel to demonstrate that the three were, in fact, kidnapped. This did not stop Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu immediately making wild claims not only of a kidnapping, but also of Hamas involvement.
Claims that were promptly leapt upon, and sung from the stalls by a chorus of international organisations that should know better.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon quickly condemned the ‘abduction,’ The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) likewise, while US Secretary of State John Kerry parroted verbatim the Israeli narrative, calling it a kidnapping.
In using the word ‘abduction’ in the absence of any evidence, the ICRC statement exposed their hypocrisy in claiming neutrality – they clearly bought, and then promoted, the Israeli spin. The UN didn’t even try to pretend impartiality, even less the US which leapt on the anti-Hamas bandwagon without a pause.
In fact, the only legitimate description possible is that of three “missing” youths. Not abducted, not kidnapped by Hamas – MISSING.
Hypocrisy of the International Community
By Gazans Against Bias
Sex-offender abduction? Run-aways? Zionist false flag operation? Or kidnapping?
Any of those scenarios could well have described the failure of three young settlers to return to their homes in illegal settlements last Thursday night. Any competent investigation would consider them all, and obtain supportive evidence, before making accusations. Not so Israel’s.
No evidence was produced by Israel to demonstrate that the three were, in fact, kidnapped. This did not stop Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu immediately making wild claims not only of a kidnapping, but also of Hamas involvement.
Claims that were promptly leapt upon, and sung from the stalls by a chorus of international organisations that should know better.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon quickly condemned the ‘abduction,’ The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) likewise, while US Secretary of State John Kerry parroted verbatim the Israeli narrative, calling it a kidnapping.
In using the word ‘abduction’ in the absence of any evidence, the ICRC statement exposed their hypocrisy in claiming neutrality – they clearly bought, and then promoted, the Israeli spin. The UN didn’t even try to pretend impartiality, even less the US which leapt on the anti-Hamas bandwagon without a pause.
In fact, the only legitimate description possible is that of three “missing” youths. Not abducted, not kidnapped by Hamas – MISSING.
Hypocrisy of the International Community
Ali Abd al-Latif al-Awour 7
The hypocrisy is not limited to the ICRC. While Ban Ki-moon had the good grace to acknowledge the murder of 7 year-old Ali Abd al-Latif al-Awour by Israeli military in Gaza last week, he did not mention the 196 Palestinian children currently being held in Israeli jails, the 8,000 detained by Israeli military since 2000, [PDF] or the thousands systematically injured, tortured and used as human shields by Israel, according to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child June 2013 report. [PDF]
He did not condemn their actual and documented abduction from their beds in the middle of the night, or call for any one of them to be immediately released.
Hamas
Nor has any evidence been produced by Israel to implicate Hamas – or any other Palestinian faction or individual – in the failure of the three missing youths to return home.
There have still been no credible claims of responsibility, and no ransom demands – the two hallmarks of a kidnapping.
The three ‘claims of responsibility’ to date have come from putative Salafist group Dawlat al Islam, Liberators’ Battalion of Hebron, and an unconfirmed statement from Al Aqsa Brigades – none of which have any connection with Hamas.
Still not a shred of actual evidence, either of an actual kidnapping or of Hamas involvement.
That has not stopped Israel from detaining scores of Hamas members, supporters and members of parliament in the West Bank, including the speaker of the Palestinian parliament, no less.
It has not stopped Israel from carrying out air-strikes on Hamas-linked facilities in the Gaza Strip, from unleashing a completely unfounded, disproportionate and lethal response against a political movement to what is, in effect, a ‘missing persons report.’
Not satisfied with merely attacking Hamas, Israel is also blatantly carrying out collective punishment, imposing widespread curfews in the West Bank, raiding homes and terrorising the population, killing and injuring people in the street, closing the borders to Gaza, and carrying out numerous air-strikes that have also killed and injured several civilians and destroyed or damaged private and public property, including a school.
In what other ‘democratic’ country would such an insane response – targeting a political party, destroying civilian and public property, and conducted without the presentation of ANY evidence – be accepted?
And why is the UN, the ICRC and the international media so silent on these clear breaches of international law, of the treatment of civilians, of civil and political rights?
Irrational, Irresponsible and Discriminatory Response
The hypocrisy is not limited to the ICRC. While Ban Ki-moon had the good grace to acknowledge the murder of 7 year-old Ali Abd al-Latif al-Awour by Israeli military in Gaza last week, he did not mention the 196 Palestinian children currently being held in Israeli jails, the 8,000 detained by Israeli military since 2000, [PDF] or the thousands systematically injured, tortured and used as human shields by Israel, according to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child June 2013 report. [PDF]
He did not condemn their actual and documented abduction from their beds in the middle of the night, or call for any one of them to be immediately released.
Hamas
Nor has any evidence been produced by Israel to implicate Hamas – or any other Palestinian faction or individual – in the failure of the three missing youths to return home.
There have still been no credible claims of responsibility, and no ransom demands – the two hallmarks of a kidnapping.
The three ‘claims of responsibility’ to date have come from putative Salafist group Dawlat al Islam, Liberators’ Battalion of Hebron, and an unconfirmed statement from Al Aqsa Brigades – none of which have any connection with Hamas.
Still not a shred of actual evidence, either of an actual kidnapping or of Hamas involvement.
That has not stopped Israel from detaining scores of Hamas members, supporters and members of parliament in the West Bank, including the speaker of the Palestinian parliament, no less.
It has not stopped Israel from carrying out air-strikes on Hamas-linked facilities in the Gaza Strip, from unleashing a completely unfounded, disproportionate and lethal response against a political movement to what is, in effect, a ‘missing persons report.’
Not satisfied with merely attacking Hamas, Israel is also blatantly carrying out collective punishment, imposing widespread curfews in the West Bank, raiding homes and terrorising the population, killing and injuring people in the street, closing the borders to Gaza, and carrying out numerous air-strikes that have also killed and injured several civilians and destroyed or damaged private and public property, including a school.
In what other ‘democratic’ country would such an insane response – targeting a political party, destroying civilian and public property, and conducted without the presentation of ANY evidence – be accepted?
And why is the UN, the ICRC and the international media so silent on these clear breaches of international law, of the treatment of civilians, of civil and political rights?
Irrational, Irresponsible and Discriminatory Response
Eyal Yifrah, 19, missing from illegal Israeli settlement
When young people go missing, it is always a matter of great concern – to their parents and families, and to society as a whole. We expect the tools of the state to be used to assist in locating, and if necessary, freeing them, we hope for appropriate international assistance.
But we also expect these tools to be used, and international assistance to be provided, rationally and responsibly.
Jumping to conclusions and making wild unfounded accusations is neither rational nor responsible.
Even less so is unleashing the military might of a nation in a disproportionate excess of collective punishment.
It is to the shame of the international community that its once-highly regarded institutions failed to exercise the minimum restraint, and to wait until evidence was produced before singing from the Israeli song-sheet.
It is to the shame – but perhaps ultimately the benefit – of the international community that its once-highly regarded institutions have, through these events, had their discrimination against Palestinian children bared for all to see.
The ongoing abductions of Palestinian children – currently averaging more than one a day aged 12-15 years – are well-documented. They merely require action.
Three illegal Israeli settlers with no evidence, no proof of abduction – and a veritable international frenzy is unleashed on their behalf.
Such blatant discrimination may finally achieve what Palestinians have fought so long and hard for – equal rights under international law, and unbiased treatment in the media.
But don’t hold your breath – 66 years is a long time.
When young people go missing, it is always a matter of great concern – to their parents and families, and to society as a whole. We expect the tools of the state to be used to assist in locating, and if necessary, freeing them, we hope for appropriate international assistance.
But we also expect these tools to be used, and international assistance to be provided, rationally and responsibly.
Jumping to conclusions and making wild unfounded accusations is neither rational nor responsible.
Even less so is unleashing the military might of a nation in a disproportionate excess of collective punishment.
It is to the shame of the international community that its once-highly regarded institutions failed to exercise the minimum restraint, and to wait until evidence was produced before singing from the Israeli song-sheet.
It is to the shame – but perhaps ultimately the benefit – of the international community that its once-highly regarded institutions have, through these events, had their discrimination against Palestinian children bared for all to see.
The ongoing abductions of Palestinian children – currently averaging more than one a day aged 12-15 years – are well-documented. They merely require action.
Three illegal Israeli settlers with no evidence, no proof of abduction – and a veritable international frenzy is unleashed on their behalf.
Such blatant discrimination may finally achieve what Palestinians have fought so long and hard for – equal rights under international law, and unbiased treatment in the media.
But don’t hold your breath – 66 years is a long time.
Israeli forces have raided hundreds of homes and detained 300 Palestinian individuals since three Israeli teenagers went missing from a Jewish settlement near Bethlehem last week, the Palestinian Prisoner's Society said in a statement Wednesday.
Israeli forces have launched arrest raids across the West Bank since Thursday in retribution for the disappearance, which they say was the result of a Hamas kidnapping.
Hebron has born the brunt of the retribution, as a siege was imposed on the southern West Bank region of more than 600,000 over the weekend.
More than one-third of the 300 detained were taken during Israeli raids on more than 750 homes in the district.
During the raids, Israeli forces damaged properties in the majority of the houses, the Prisoner's Society said, and the infrastructure of a number of homes was damaged in some of the raids.
Palestinian Prisoner's Society director in Hebron Amjad al-Najjar said that the arrests have not only targeted Hamas members but all Palestinians.
Local sources said that Israeli forces are continuing raids and searches in areas around the Hebron-district villages of Ithna and Dura, and that there is a heavy deployment of Israeli soldiers in Farsh al-Hawa area.
The search is reportedly focused in the northwestern regions of Hebron, from where a telephone call to the police from one of the youths immediately after they disappeared was reportedly sourced by the military. In that call, one of the Israeli youths told the police the three had been "kidnapped."
The Prisoner's Society said that the 300 detainees include 52 people who were freed in the Shalit prisoner exchange deal with Israel, and 11 Palestinian members of parliament.
According to the Palestinian Prisoner's Society, 104 were detained from Hebron, 52 from Nablus, 41 from Ramallah, 37 from Jenin, 16 from Tulkarem, 13 from Qalqiliya, 12 from each of Bethlehem and Jerusalem, 6 from Tubas, 5 from Salfit, and one from Jericho.
Additionally, one individual from Balata refugee camp near Nablus was arrested Wednesday night.
The Israeli military has engaged in a wide spread search campaign for the missing youths that has morphed into a full assault on Hamas members across the West Bank in recent days.
Israeli forces have killed one Palestinians and injured at least seven injured across the West Bank since the campaign began.
The attacks have triggered protests in the West Bank and rockets from Gaza, which Israel has bombed almost every night.
Israeli forces have launched arrest raids across the West Bank since Thursday in retribution for the disappearance, which they say was the result of a Hamas kidnapping.
Hebron has born the brunt of the retribution, as a siege was imposed on the southern West Bank region of more than 600,000 over the weekend.
More than one-third of the 300 detained were taken during Israeli raids on more than 750 homes in the district.
During the raids, Israeli forces damaged properties in the majority of the houses, the Prisoner's Society said, and the infrastructure of a number of homes was damaged in some of the raids.
Palestinian Prisoner's Society director in Hebron Amjad al-Najjar said that the arrests have not only targeted Hamas members but all Palestinians.
Local sources said that Israeli forces are continuing raids and searches in areas around the Hebron-district villages of Ithna and Dura, and that there is a heavy deployment of Israeli soldiers in Farsh al-Hawa area.
The search is reportedly focused in the northwestern regions of Hebron, from where a telephone call to the police from one of the youths immediately after they disappeared was reportedly sourced by the military. In that call, one of the Israeli youths told the police the three had been "kidnapped."
The Prisoner's Society said that the 300 detainees include 52 people who were freed in the Shalit prisoner exchange deal with Israel, and 11 Palestinian members of parliament.
According to the Palestinian Prisoner's Society, 104 were detained from Hebron, 52 from Nablus, 41 from Ramallah, 37 from Jenin, 16 from Tulkarem, 13 from Qalqiliya, 12 from each of Bethlehem and Jerusalem, 6 from Tubas, 5 from Salfit, and one from Jericho.
Additionally, one individual from Balata refugee camp near Nablus was arrested Wednesday night.
The Israeli military has engaged in a wide spread search campaign for the missing youths that has morphed into a full assault on Hamas members across the West Bank in recent days.
Israeli forces have killed one Palestinians and injured at least seven injured across the West Bank since the campaign began.
The attacks have triggered protests in the West Bank and rockets from Gaza, which Israel has bombed almost every night.
President Mahmud Abbas on Wednesday accused those behind the alleged kidnapping in the West Bank of three Israeli teenagers last week of wanting to "destroy" the Palestinians.
"Those who kidnapped the three teenagers want to destroy us. We will hold them accountable," Abbas told an Organisation of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Jeddah.
"Those who kidnapped the three teenagers want to destroy us. We will hold them accountable," Abbas told an Organisation of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Jeddah.
Dozens of Israeli extremists protested Tuesday before the house of Arab MK Haneen al-Zuobi and demanded deporting her out of Israel. The protest came after Zoubi described the abduction of three settlers as a non-terrorist action.
Israeli police prevented the protesters from crossing the street to Nazareth city, where they were chanting slogans calling Zaoubi as a terrorist and calling on expelling all Palestinians from Nazareth.
Israeli police prevented the protesters from crossing the street to Nazareth city, where they were chanting slogans calling Zaoubi as a terrorist and calling on expelling all Palestinians from Nazareth.
Haneen Zuobi
“If Haneen Zoubi did not retreat her words, we know how to deal with her. In case we failed to catch her at home today, we will try again and again.” they warned.
Al- Zaoubi refusal to recognize the missing of three Israeli settlers as a " terrorist abduction" spurred a verbal brawl in the Knesset session.
MK Miri Regev called al-Zaoubi "a traitor" and asked the Knesset to deport her to Gaza.
Zoubi said, " This incident is a result of Israeli aggressions against the Palestinians and its refusal to release Palestinian prisoners."
We are not surprised by the abduction for people under occupation is living bad living conditions.
“If Haneen Zoubi did not retreat her words, we know how to deal with her. In case we failed to catch her at home today, we will try again and again.” they warned.
Al- Zaoubi refusal to recognize the missing of three Israeli settlers as a " terrorist abduction" spurred a verbal brawl in the Knesset session.
MK Miri Regev called al-Zaoubi "a traitor" and asked the Knesset to deport her to Gaza.
Zoubi said, " This incident is a result of Israeli aggressions against the Palestinians and its refusal to release Palestinian prisoners."
We are not surprised by the abduction for people under occupation is living bad living conditions.
Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said Tuesday that the UN has no concrete evidence that the three Israelis were taken captives.
He explained that the United Nations does not have an independent investigation team that can confirm that an abduction indeed took place.
Three Israeli settlers have been missed since last Thursday. Israel claimed that they were kidnapped and accused Hamas of abducting them. Hamas, for its part, made clear that Israel's allegations are intended to crack down Palestinians and intensify its aggressions against them in the West Bank and Gaza strip.
He explained that the United Nations does not have an independent investigation team that can confirm that an abduction indeed took place.
Three Israeli settlers have been missed since last Thursday. Israel claimed that they were kidnapped and accused Hamas of abducting them. Hamas, for its part, made clear that Israel's allegations are intended to crack down Palestinians and intensify its aggressions against them in the West Bank and Gaza strip.
17 june 2014
The tunnel discovered by Israeli forces in March 2014 near the border with Gaza
Israeli security workers have inspected the “Third Eye” tunnel, discovered in recent months to the southeast of the Gaza Strip, and conducted filming inside, amid tight security of army soldiers. According to local Safa agency, a convoy of 12 citizen cars and six buses, coming from the Gaza envelope settlement of the ‘Third Eye’ via the Kissufim route, entered the tunnel and spent about one hour filming.
Military jeeps deployed around to provide the protection of the delegation, the agency said.
The Israeli occupation army announced on March 21, 2014 that it found a tunnel leading hundreds of meters into the 1948 occupied territories.
Three Israeli settlers have been missing since Thursday. They are feared to be abducted by Palestinians in order for future prisoner exchange deal, given that they are over 5000 Palestinians held captive in Israeli prison, around 190 of them are held without trial or charge.
Israeli security workers have inspected the “Third Eye” tunnel, discovered in recent months to the southeast of the Gaza Strip, and conducted filming inside, amid tight security of army soldiers. According to local Safa agency, a convoy of 12 citizen cars and six buses, coming from the Gaza envelope settlement of the ‘Third Eye’ via the Kissufim route, entered the tunnel and spent about one hour filming.
Military jeeps deployed around to provide the protection of the delegation, the agency said.
The Israeli occupation army announced on March 21, 2014 that it found a tunnel leading hundreds of meters into the 1948 occupied territories.
Three Israeli settlers have been missing since Thursday. They are feared to be abducted by Palestinians in order for future prisoner exchange deal, given that they are over 5000 Palestinians held captive in Israeli prison, around 190 of them are held without trial or charge.
Israeli settlements in the West Bank have considered temporary solutions to prevent more kidnapping incidents, Israel's Maariv newspaper reported Tuesday.
They have asked settlers not to hitchhike on main roads, and to stay inside the settlements waiting for a ride in case there was is public transportation available.
Many settlers still hitchhike on main roads in the West Bank after the kidnapping of three teenagers last week, which increases chances of attacks by Palestinians posing as settlers, Maariv reported.
The Hebrew-language daily reported that hitchhiking on main roads in the West Bank has always worried Israeli security, who will begin providing public transportation to prevent such incidents.
They have asked settlers not to hitchhike on main roads, and to stay inside the settlements waiting for a ride in case there was is public transportation available.
Many settlers still hitchhike on main roads in the West Bank after the kidnapping of three teenagers last week, which increases chances of attacks by Palestinians posing as settlers, Maariv reported.
The Hebrew-language daily reported that hitchhiking on main roads in the West Bank has always worried Israeli security, who will begin providing public transportation to prevent such incidents.
Israeli soldiers walk on a path in a single file during an operation in the West Bank town of Hebron, on June 17, 2014
Israel stepped up efforts to clampdown on Hamas in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday as the hunt for three Israeli teenagers believed to be kidnapped entered its fifth day.
Thousands of Israel troops engaged in the search for the youths turned their attention during the night to Nablus and surrounding area, arresting 41 Palestinians, the army said.
So far, Israel has arrested around 200 Palestinians, most of them Hamas members, as it conducts a vast search operation for the students, two of them minors and one of whom lives in an illegal West Bank settlement.
Hebron has been on lock-down since the disappearances, with multiple checkpoints established around the city severely restricting the movement of thousands of Palestinians.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused militants from the Islamist movement of kidnapping the youths last week, although Hamas dismissed the accusations as "stupid."
"We are here in the midst of a complex operation. We need to be prepared for the possibility that it may take time. This is a serious event and there will be serious consequences," Netanyahu said on Monday evening.
Israel has said it holds President Mahmoud Abbas responsible for the safe return of the three, with Netanyahu phoning him to demand his help in the search efforts in what was their first direct political contact since 2012.
So far, there has been no formal claim of responsibility.
Adnan Dmeiri, spokesman for the Palestinian security services, said Friday that the PA was not responsible for the safety of settlers and noted that the teenagers disappeared from an area of the occupied West Bank under Israeli security control.
Smashing Hamas
At a meeting of the Israeli security cabinet on Monday, ministers decided to expand moves against Hamas in order to smash its political and social infrastructure in the West Bank, officials said.
"As long as our boys remain abducted, Hamas will feel pursued, paralyzed and threatened," said Lieutenant Peter Lerner, the military's official spokesman.
"We are committed to resolving the kidnapping and debilitating Hamas terrorist capacities, its infrastructure and its recruiting institutions," he said in a statement.
A series of punitive steps aimed at decapitating Hamas in the West Bank were discussed on Monday by ministers, who examined the possibility of banishing its senior members to Gaza and demolishing their homes in the West Bank, Israeli media reports said.
Ministers were reportedly meeting again on Tuesday.
"Israel has decided to perform a root canal to uproot everything green in the West Bank," said army radio, referring to the color representing Hamas.
Israeli Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, who was at the meeting, told the radio Israel had decided to "dramatically" change its approach to the Islamist movement.
"We will bring about a situation in which Hamas people will become a nuisance for the Palestinian population, and that their presence in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) will cause harm everywhere," he said.
Crackdown aims to thwart Palestinian reconciliation
Pundits said Israel was also seeking to bring about the collapse of a newly-formed Palestinian unity government backed by Hamas, the first fruits of a reconciliation deal between rival leaders in the West Bank and Gaza which has been furiously denounced by the Netanyahu government.
"The purpose of the Israeli actions ... is to drive a wedge between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas, and stop the reconciliation process that began some two months ago," wrote Amos Harel in Haaretz newspaper.
By crushing Hamas' infrastructure, it would weaken the movement ahead of Palestinian elections which under the unity deal are supposed to take place before the end of the year, Fishman, writing in the top-selling Yediot Aharonot, said.
"Removing the political leadership from the West Bank is supposed to weaken Hamas in advance of the Palestinian presidential elections," he said.
But as the manhunt entered its fifth day, commentators voiced concern about growing reports of clashes around the West Bank, sparking fears that an already tense situation could rapidly escalate.
On Monday, a 19-year-old Palestinian was shot dead by troops during clashes in Jalazun camp north of Ramallah. And during the night, troops shot and seriously wounded a Palestinian who was trying to infiltrate a Jewish settlement in the same area, military radio said.
In Gaza, the Israeli air force carried out a fourth straight night of air strikes after militants fired more rockets over the border.
Last Thursday, one Palestinian was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip. Two days later, seven-year-old Ali Abd al-Latif al-Awour died from wounds sustained in an Israeli airstrike last Wednesday.
Israel has killed over 60 Palestinians since last July and injured more than a thousand in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip.
Israel stepped up efforts to clampdown on Hamas in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday as the hunt for three Israeli teenagers believed to be kidnapped entered its fifth day.
Thousands of Israel troops engaged in the search for the youths turned their attention during the night to Nablus and surrounding area, arresting 41 Palestinians, the army said.
So far, Israel has arrested around 200 Palestinians, most of them Hamas members, as it conducts a vast search operation for the students, two of them minors and one of whom lives in an illegal West Bank settlement.
Hebron has been on lock-down since the disappearances, with multiple checkpoints established around the city severely restricting the movement of thousands of Palestinians.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused militants from the Islamist movement of kidnapping the youths last week, although Hamas dismissed the accusations as "stupid."
"We are here in the midst of a complex operation. We need to be prepared for the possibility that it may take time. This is a serious event and there will be serious consequences," Netanyahu said on Monday evening.
Israel has said it holds President Mahmoud Abbas responsible for the safe return of the three, with Netanyahu phoning him to demand his help in the search efforts in what was their first direct political contact since 2012.
So far, there has been no formal claim of responsibility.
Adnan Dmeiri, spokesman for the Palestinian security services, said Friday that the PA was not responsible for the safety of settlers and noted that the teenagers disappeared from an area of the occupied West Bank under Israeli security control.
Smashing Hamas
At a meeting of the Israeli security cabinet on Monday, ministers decided to expand moves against Hamas in order to smash its political and social infrastructure in the West Bank, officials said.
"As long as our boys remain abducted, Hamas will feel pursued, paralyzed and threatened," said Lieutenant Peter Lerner, the military's official spokesman.
"We are committed to resolving the kidnapping and debilitating Hamas terrorist capacities, its infrastructure and its recruiting institutions," he said in a statement.
A series of punitive steps aimed at decapitating Hamas in the West Bank were discussed on Monday by ministers, who examined the possibility of banishing its senior members to Gaza and demolishing their homes in the West Bank, Israeli media reports said.
Ministers were reportedly meeting again on Tuesday.
"Israel has decided to perform a root canal to uproot everything green in the West Bank," said army radio, referring to the color representing Hamas.
Israeli Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, who was at the meeting, told the radio Israel had decided to "dramatically" change its approach to the Islamist movement.
"We will bring about a situation in which Hamas people will become a nuisance for the Palestinian population, and that their presence in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) will cause harm everywhere," he said.
Crackdown aims to thwart Palestinian reconciliation
Pundits said Israel was also seeking to bring about the collapse of a newly-formed Palestinian unity government backed by Hamas, the first fruits of a reconciliation deal between rival leaders in the West Bank and Gaza which has been furiously denounced by the Netanyahu government.
"The purpose of the Israeli actions ... is to drive a wedge between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas, and stop the reconciliation process that began some two months ago," wrote Amos Harel in Haaretz newspaper.
By crushing Hamas' infrastructure, it would weaken the movement ahead of Palestinian elections which under the unity deal are supposed to take place before the end of the year, Fishman, writing in the top-selling Yediot Aharonot, said.
"Removing the political leadership from the West Bank is supposed to weaken Hamas in advance of the Palestinian presidential elections," he said.
But as the manhunt entered its fifth day, commentators voiced concern about growing reports of clashes around the West Bank, sparking fears that an already tense situation could rapidly escalate.
On Monday, a 19-year-old Palestinian was shot dead by troops during clashes in Jalazun camp north of Ramallah. And during the night, troops shot and seriously wounded a Palestinian who was trying to infiltrate a Jewish settlement in the same area, military radio said.
In Gaza, the Israeli air force carried out a fourth straight night of air strikes after militants fired more rockets over the border.
Last Thursday, one Palestinian was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip. Two days later, seven-year-old Ali Abd al-Latif al-Awour died from wounds sustained in an Israeli airstrike last Wednesday.
Israel has killed over 60 Palestinians since last July and injured more than a thousand in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip.
A group of fanatic Jewish settlers on Tuesday morning desecrated the Aqsa Mosque's courtyards under tight police protection. According to the Aqsa foundation for endowment and heritage, about 20 Jewish settlers, escorted by armed policemen, toured the courtyards of the Mosque.
Meanwhile, the Israeli police imposed entry restrictions on Palestinian worshipers, especially students of the Mosque's schools.
For his part, deputy speaker of the Knesset Moshe Feiglin announced on his facebook page that he was intending to enter the Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday morning, but he changed his mind for personal reasons.
In an earlier incident, 47 Jewish settlers and 15 Shin Bet officers on Monday defiled the Aqsa Mosque under police guard.
The Aqsa Mosque, nowadays, is exposed to persistent mass desecration of its courtyards by the Jews as a prelude to imposing Israel's full sovereignty over the Islamic holy site and divide it between Muslims and Jews.
Meanwhile, the Israeli police imposed entry restrictions on Palestinian worshipers, especially students of the Mosque's schools.
For his part, deputy speaker of the Knesset Moshe Feiglin announced on his facebook page that he was intending to enter the Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday morning, but he changed his mind for personal reasons.
In an earlier incident, 47 Jewish settlers and 15 Shin Bet officers on Monday defiled the Aqsa Mosque under police guard.
The Aqsa Mosque, nowadays, is exposed to persistent mass desecration of its courtyards by the Jews as a prelude to imposing Israel's full sovereignty over the Islamic holy site and divide it between Muslims and Jews.
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) arrested since the declaration of three settlers’ disappearance on Thursday more than 250 Palestinians, most of them were MPs, Hamas leaders and activists in addition to liberated prisoners. Most of the detainees were held in administrative detention (according to which detainees are incarcerated without charge or trial), while 240 raid and search operations were carried out in al-Khalil.
Hamas Movement strongly condemned in a statement the Israeli fierce arrest campaign against hundreds of its activists and leaders, saying that Israeli violations and restrictions would not succeed in undermining the Movement’s path and commitments towards the Palestinian cause.
For its part, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) documented the arrest of 55 Palestinians, including two liberated detainees, on Tuesday in the West Bank.
Head of the PPS Qadura Fares said that this Israeli hysterical arrest campaign is a new slap to the international laws and conventions. He mentioned in this respect the growing international demands for a fair trial for the administrative detainees who have been on hunger strike for nearly two months.
Ahrar center for Prisoners Studies, for its turn, said that 240 raid and search campaigns were carried out in the West Bank mainly in al-Khalil where 140 homes were stormed in the city, while 74 homes were raided in Ramallah.
Along the same line, 15 homes were searched and raided in Silwad town in Ramallah on Tuesday.
According to the PIC reporter, Israeli forces raided several homes in the town after detaining their owners for more than two hours. Huge material losses were reported.
The raid campaign also targeted homes belonging to liberated detainees and activists affiliated with the Hamas movement. Some Palestinian youths were summoned for investigation.
Hamas Movement strongly condemned in a statement the Israeli fierce arrest campaign against hundreds of its activists and leaders, saying that Israeli violations and restrictions would not succeed in undermining the Movement’s path and commitments towards the Palestinian cause.
For its part, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) documented the arrest of 55 Palestinians, including two liberated detainees, on Tuesday in the West Bank.
Head of the PPS Qadura Fares said that this Israeli hysterical arrest campaign is a new slap to the international laws and conventions. He mentioned in this respect the growing international demands for a fair trial for the administrative detainees who have been on hunger strike for nearly two months.
Ahrar center for Prisoners Studies, for its turn, said that 240 raid and search campaigns were carried out in the West Bank mainly in al-Khalil where 140 homes were stormed in the city, while 74 homes were raided in Ramallah.
Along the same line, 15 homes were searched and raided in Silwad town in Ramallah on Tuesday.
According to the PIC reporter, Israeli forces raided several homes in the town after detaining their owners for more than two hours. Huge material losses were reported.
The raid campaign also targeted homes belonging to liberated detainees and activists affiliated with the Hamas movement. Some Palestinian youths were summoned for investigation.
The Palestinian administrative detainees entered on Tuesday, June 17, 2014, the 55th day of their open-ended hunger strike in protest at their illegal detention as their health conditions reached a life-threatening stage. Lawyer of the Palestinian prisoner society Jawad Boulos, who visited on Monday Beilinson hospital, said that six Palestinian hunger strikers there have been infected with a contagious virus in their throats.
Boulos added that the doctors in the hospital told him that the virus resulted from the damaged immunity of the hunger striking prisoners and warned of the gravity of their health conditions, especially since they suffer from irregular heartbeats.
For its part, Ahrar center for human rights said that a senior Israeli prison officer met some prisoners and attempted to convince them to end their hunger strike, but they expressed their determination to continue fighting their hunger battle until Israel ends their administrative detention.
The center stated on Tuesday that this officer asked the hunger strikers he met to halt their protest step, claiming that Israel is in a state of war and more prisoners would be transferred to administrative detention.
The officer also told them that the issue of their hunger strike became neglected and the incident of kidnapped Israelis in Al-Khalil became the focus of media attention.
Boulos added that the doctors in the hospital told him that the virus resulted from the damaged immunity of the hunger striking prisoners and warned of the gravity of their health conditions, especially since they suffer from irregular heartbeats.
For its part, Ahrar center for human rights said that a senior Israeli prison officer met some prisoners and attempted to convince them to end their hunger strike, but they expressed their determination to continue fighting their hunger battle until Israel ends their administrative detention.
The center stated on Tuesday that this officer asked the hunger strikers he met to halt their protest step, claiming that Israel is in a state of war and more prisoners would be transferred to administrative detention.
The officer also told them that the issue of their hunger strike became neglected and the incident of kidnapped Israelis in Al-Khalil became the focus of media attention.
Violent clashes broke out at dawn Tuesday between Palestinian civilians and the heavily-armed Israeli patrols in different areas of al-Khalil following a wave of Israeli break-ins into the city. Eye-witnesses attributed the clashes to the Israeli brutal and abrupt invasions of scores of Palestinian native homes, the PIC has been told.
Palestinian ex-detainee Ali Sabarna was rounded up by the Israeli soldiers while other arbitrary abductions are expected in the ongoing Israeli attacks launched in the area.
A PIC correspondent quoted local sources as stating that the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have deliberately cut off electricity supplies across the entire town.
Random checkpoints have been erected by the IOF at the main entrances to the nearby al-Aroub refugee camp, banning the access of Palestinian native citizens out of or into the camp, a PIC correspondent at the scene documented.
Other military checkpoints have been set up across the province of al-Khalil all along the Israeli “hysterical” raid-campaign, initiated under pretext of searching for the missing Israeli soldiers, who have disappeared since Thursday.
IOF soldiers invaded the cemetery of Beit Kahel, west of al-Khalil, and hollowed out the graves under the same pretext.
A number of Palestinian homes were invaded and civilians interrogated, while others have been taken into custody following IOF break-ins into Wadi al-Maleh, al-Louza, and Sheikh neighborhoods.
Informed sources in Dura town reported having seen the Israeli soldiers kidnap Palestinian ex-prisoner Montassar Shadid, already locked-up for 18 years in Israeli jails.
According to a PIC correspondent, the entire city has been raked through by the Israeli patrols in search of Hamas leaders, scores among whom have been targeted by such a frenzied operation.
Palestinian ex-detainee Ali Sabarna was rounded up by the Israeli soldiers while other arbitrary abductions are expected in the ongoing Israeli attacks launched in the area.
A PIC correspondent quoted local sources as stating that the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have deliberately cut off electricity supplies across the entire town.
Random checkpoints have been erected by the IOF at the main entrances to the nearby al-Aroub refugee camp, banning the access of Palestinian native citizens out of or into the camp, a PIC correspondent at the scene documented.
Other military checkpoints have been set up across the province of al-Khalil all along the Israeli “hysterical” raid-campaign, initiated under pretext of searching for the missing Israeli soldiers, who have disappeared since Thursday.
IOF soldiers invaded the cemetery of Beit Kahel, west of al-Khalil, and hollowed out the graves under the same pretext.
A number of Palestinian homes were invaded and civilians interrogated, while others have been taken into custody following IOF break-ins into Wadi al-Maleh, al-Louza, and Sheikh neighborhoods.
Informed sources in Dura town reported having seen the Israeli soldiers kidnap Palestinian ex-prisoner Montassar Shadid, already locked-up for 18 years in Israeli jails.
According to a PIC correspondent, the entire city has been raked through by the Israeli patrols in search of Hamas leaders, scores among whom have been targeted by such a frenzied operation.
Hamas has warned of the serious repercussions to be inevitably generated by the ongoing Israeli allegations that the Movement might be responsible for the disappearance of the three Israeli soldiers. “No comment” was Hamas’s way to voice disapproval, in a statement on Tuesday, over the Israeli charges, describing them as a set of inherently political schemes weaved so as to cover up Israeli aggressions against Palestinian natives and ongoing attempts to thwart the reconciliation process.
Regardless of who stands behind the “abduction”, Palestinians have the right to defend themselves and stand by their imprisoned brothers and sisters, the statement added.
Hamas held Israel accountable for the lives of the Palestinian hunger-striking detainees and civilians in the West Bank and Gaza along with MPs of the Legislative Council, all permanent targets of Israeli terror campaigns.
Hamas has firmly denied any potential involvement in the alleged abduction of the three Israeli soldiers, who have disappeared from al-Khalil 5 days ago.
“In no way shall we be afraid of such Israeli threats. Premier Benjamin Netanyahu should think twice before embarking on any such crimes,” Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri declared in a Monday statement.
Hamas’s declarations came following Israeli threats to tyrannize the Palestinian people and hold Hamas guilty of the up-to-now-unproved “kidnap-affair,” by all means.
Hamas leader Mushir al-Masri said, during a political seminar in Gaza on Monday, the abduction operation is “an honor that Hamas cannot aver”, pointing out the ironic disparity between the Israeli dramatization of the kidnap as one targeting “teens” and the picture broadcasts displaying three armed soldiers.
“We should compete in restoring the freedom of our prisoners. This is the real honor we should all try to win!” al-Masri concluded, reminding the Palestinian masses of the Israeli illegitimate incarceration of Palestinian MPs, PLC Chairman Aziz Duwaik, and scores of innocent civilians.
Regardless of who stands behind the “abduction”, Palestinians have the right to defend themselves and stand by their imprisoned brothers and sisters, the statement added.
Hamas held Israel accountable for the lives of the Palestinian hunger-striking detainees and civilians in the West Bank and Gaza along with MPs of the Legislative Council, all permanent targets of Israeli terror campaigns.
Hamas has firmly denied any potential involvement in the alleged abduction of the three Israeli soldiers, who have disappeared from al-Khalil 5 days ago.
“In no way shall we be afraid of such Israeli threats. Premier Benjamin Netanyahu should think twice before embarking on any such crimes,” Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri declared in a Monday statement.
Hamas’s declarations came following Israeli threats to tyrannize the Palestinian people and hold Hamas guilty of the up-to-now-unproved “kidnap-affair,” by all means.
Hamas leader Mushir al-Masri said, during a political seminar in Gaza on Monday, the abduction operation is “an honor that Hamas cannot aver”, pointing out the ironic disparity between the Israeli dramatization of the kidnap as one targeting “teens” and the picture broadcasts displaying three armed soldiers.
“We should compete in restoring the freedom of our prisoners. This is the real honor we should all try to win!” al-Masri concluded, reminding the Palestinian masses of the Israeli illegitimate incarceration of Palestinian MPs, PLC Chairman Aziz Duwaik, and scores of innocent civilians.
An Israeli large-scale military campaign has been launched since the early morning hours on Tuesday in Balata refugee camp in Nablus. Raids and arrests were carried out during the campaign. Dozens of Israeli military vehicles stormed at dawn today Balata camp, where hundreds of Israeli forces violently broke into homes belonging to Fatah movement members and liberated prisoners after blowing up their doors.
Local sources told a PIC reporter that some homes were turned to military barracks. Dozens of arrests were reported during the military campaign.
A long the same line, dozens of military troops and 15 buses carrying hundreds of settlers stationed at Hawara military camp in southern Nablus in preparation for carrying out a large military operation in the city.
Local sources told a PIC reporter that some homes were turned to military barracks. Dozens of arrests were reported during the military campaign.
A long the same line, dozens of military troops and 15 buses carrying hundreds of settlers stationed at Hawara military camp in southern Nablus in preparation for carrying out a large military operation in the city.
Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Zeev Elkin has called for re-arresting Palestinian liberated prisoners who were released during Shalit swap deal, holding them responsible for the abduction of three Israeli settlers few day ago. MK Elkin charged that those ex-detainees were the real motivation for the abduction operations carried out against Israelis, Maariv newspaper quoted Elkin as claiming.
He called for their deportation from the West Bank to the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, Israeli media sources said that the Israeli cabinet is expected to meet Tuesday morning in Tel Aviv to discuss the three missing settlers’ issue.
Arrests and deportation of Hamas’s cadres and leaders and other security measures are scheduled to be discussed during the meeting.
Israeli military sources declared on Friday the disappearance of three conscripts near al-Khalil on Thursday night. Large-scale Israeli raid and arrest campaigns were launched throughout West Bank following the incident against members and cadres in Hamas's movement.
He called for their deportation from the West Bank to the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, Israeli media sources said that the Israeli cabinet is expected to meet Tuesday morning in Tel Aviv to discuss the three missing settlers’ issue.
Arrests and deportation of Hamas’s cadres and leaders and other security measures are scheduled to be discussed during the meeting.
Israeli military sources declared on Friday the disappearance of three conscripts near al-Khalil on Thursday night. Large-scale Israeli raid and arrest campaigns were launched throughout West Bank following the incident against members and cadres in Hamas's movement.
Israeli settlers on Monday opened fire at a Palestinian car near Beit Rima village north of Ramallah, without causing any injuries.
Witnesses told Ma'an that settlers from the nearby Hallamish settlement opened fire at a car on the road leading to Beit Rima, but he managed to flee unscathed.
Witnesses told Ma'an that settlers from the nearby Hallamish settlement opened fire at a car on the road leading to Beit Rima, but he managed to flee unscathed.