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| Conflict |
Israeli forces kill Palestinian youth in Tubas
Palestine News Network 6/29/2008
Tubas / PNN - Palestinian security sources reported on Sunday that a Palestinian youth died after Israeli soldiers shot him in the northern West Bank. The boy, 17 year old Mohammed Daraghma, was among several youth throwing stones at invading Israeli jeeps in Tubas. The Israeli soldiers opened fire on the young people, hitting Daraghma. An Israeli military spokesperson told the Agence France Press that the invasion of Tubas was routine and that the Palestinian youth were preparing to throw a Molotov cocktail at the armored jeeps. [end]
Israeli forces kill Palestinian teenager in the northern West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 6/29/2008
Tubas - Ma’an – Residents of the northern West Bank town of Tubas buried 18-year-old Muhammad Nasser Sa’id Daraghmah on Sunday afternoon. Daraghmah was shot dead by Israeli troops 2am on Sunday morning. Those who attended the funeral shouted slogans condemning the killing and calling for Palestinian unity in the face of the ongoing Israeli occupation. Opening fire on stone-throwing teenagers, Israeli troops shot Daraghmah eight times, witnesses said. Another unidentified young man was arrested by the Israeli forces. Palestinian medical sources said that Daraghmah died immediately. Witnesses added that Israeli troops shot Daraghmah at close range, appearing to kill him deliberately, instead of arresting him or shooting him in his lower body. Daraghmah was arrested two years ago and served more than a year in Israeli jails. more.. e-mail
IDF kills youth in West Bank
Efrat Weiss and AP, YNetNews 6/29/2008
Palestinian sources report Israeli troops patrolling village of Tubas shoot dead 17-year-old boy. Military says soldiers opened fire on Palestinians who hurled Molotov cocktails on them - Palestinians sources reported Sunday that Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian youth during a night patrol in a West Bank village. Ayman Abdel Razek of the village of Tubas said troops shot the 17-year-old after midnight Sunday. He says village youths often throw stones at army patrols at around that time but that the youth was unarmed. The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said the soldiers tried to resuscitate the youth but failed. The IDF said in response to the incident that the soldiers operating in the village opened fire at Palestinians who hurled Molotov cocktails at them. more.. e-mail
Palestinians: Israeli troops kill teenager in West Bank
The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 6/30/2008
Israel Defense Forces shot and killed a Palestinian teenager during a night patrol in a West Bank village early Sunday, Palestinian medical officials and witnesses said. Troops opened fire on the 17-year-old after midnight on Sunday, a witness said, adding that village youths often throw stones at army patrols at around that time but that the victim was unarmed. The IDF said a Palestinian attacked soldiers with two Molotov cocktails in the village of Tubas and the soldiers shot him. The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said the soldiers tried to resuscitate the youth but failed. On Friday night soldiers shot and killed another Palestinian 17-year-old who Israeli and Palestinian officials said was throwing Molotov cocktails at a West Bank patrol. more.. e-mail
IOF troops kill Palestinian youth in cold blood
Palestinian Information Center 6/29/2008
TOBAS, (PIC)-- A Palestinian teenager was killed at dawn Sunday in cold blood at the hands of Israeli occupation forces in the city of Tobas to the north of the West Bank. Medical and local sources said that Mohammed Daraghma, 17, was killed during an IOF incursion into the town. The sources said that the soldiers killed Daraghma in cold blood when they spotted him in the main road of the city, and added that he died on the spot. The sources said that the troops took away Daraghma’s body. The IOF soldiers on Friday evening killed a 14-year-old Palestinian child during an incursion into Beit Ummar village north of Al-Khalil city. [end]
Crops poisoned by Israeli forces near separation wall in village west of Tulkarem
Ma’an News Agency 6/28/2008
Tulkarem – Ma’an – Farmers in the village of Artah, west of Tulkarem, reported on Saturday that they had lost their harvest because of a substance that Israeli forces sprayed on their crops earlier this month. According to the farmers, a tractor accompanied by an Israeli military jeep sprayed a poisonous substance called "Alber super" on crops planted near the separation wall in Artah on 11 June 2008. The farmers reported huge agricultural losses, and indicated that they need assistance from the Ministry of Agriculture and relevant institutions. On Saturday, the Social Work Committees (SWC) visited the farmers and the affected agricultural areas, which are near the Jashouri factories next to the separation wall west of Artah. The SWC human rights committee noted that such Israeli destruction of Palestinian crops violates international humanitarian law, specifically the. . . more.. e-mail
Israel Allows Gaza Fuel Supplies
BBC News, MIFTAH 6/28/2008
Israel has allowed fuel into the Gaza Strip, but kept border crossings closed to all other goods after a Palestinian rocket fire violated a truce. This is the third consecutive day that border crossings into Gaza have been closed, preventing humanitarian and commercial goods into the area. Israel Radio reported that two mortar rounds landed in an open field on the Israeli side of the border on Friday. The military confirmed there had been two explosions, but not the cause. Palestinian militants say they are a response to Israeli violations of the truce. Prior to Friday, four rockets have been fired into Israel by Palestinian militants since an truce was agreed on 19 June. ’Retaliation’ - An estimated 600,000 litres of industrial fuel will be allowed to pass through the Nahal Oz border terminal for Gaza’s only power station, a European Union Official told the Reuters news agency. This will keep the plant running for several days. more.. e-mail
Palestinians fire mortars at Karni crossing
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/28/2008
In another breach of agreed upon truce, number of shells land near crossing that is expected to be reopened Sunday; no injuries reported -Palestinians fired a number of mortars Saturday evening toward the Karni crossing on the Gaza-Israel border. It remains unclear whether the shells landed in Israeli or Palestinian territory. No injuries or damage were reported in the attacks. An explosion was heard near the western Negev community of Gabim, but a search for a rocket or mortar landing site came up empty. The Karni crossing is expected to be reopened by Israel on Sunday for the transfer of goods to the Strip within the framework of the agreed upon ceasefire between Israel and the armed Palestinian organizations in the coastal enclave. The crossings were closed down a week ago following repeated truce violations on the part of the Palestinians. more.. e-mail
Israeli troops kill Palestinian teen
Middle East Online 6/28/2008
TEL AVIV - Israeli soldiers shot dead a West Bank teenager who threw Molotov cocktails at an Israeli army patrol, the army and Palestinian officials said Saturday. The military said Israeli soldiers entered the Palestinian village of Beit Umar, near Hebron, in an operation late Friday. The troops shot a Palestinian boy who threw two molotov cocktails at them, an Israeli military spokesman said. Palestinians said the shots killed Mohammed Alameh, 17, one of a group of youths who fought the soldiers. Alameh was not a member of any Palestinian resistance group. There was no sign of retaliation from Gaza Saturday morning, where Hamas is observing a ceasefire with Israel. The West Bank is not covered by the nine-day old truce between Israel and Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip. Israel continues its closure of the crossings into Gaza, bringing food shipments. . . more.. e-mail
The Israeli army kills a Palestinian boy near Hebron
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/28/2008
During a military operation targeting the village of Beit Omer located near the southern West Bank city of Hebron the Israeli army killed a Palestinian boy and kidnapped nine other civilians on Friday night. Witnesses told IMEMC that military jeeps stormed the village on Friday afternoon then searched homes during the search troops kidnapped nine men among them were 70 year old man. The operation last until 9:00 in the evening, Mohamed Awwad, a local journalist said. He added that soldiers then started to move out and took positions at the village entrance. Awwad told IMEMC that a military jeep stormed the village again and then fired sound bombs and tear gas at the villagers. Mohmaed Al Allami, 17 years old, was painting his house, he went to see what is happing outside his family home Israeli soldiers shot him three times in the hart, Awwad added. more.. e-mail
IOF troops kill Palestinian teen in West Bank
Palestinian Information Center 6/28/2008
AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces on Friday evening fired at and killed a Palestinian teenager in Beit Ummar village, north of Al-Khalil city, during an incursion into the town. Locals reported that Mohammed Al-Allama, 17, was hit with two bullets one of them in the head during the confrontations between the heavily armed IOF troops and the stone throwing young men in the village. The troops withdrew from the village after rounding up nine citizens. Meanwhile, Israeli settlers set fire to old olive trees in Nizam village, south of Salfit district, in the second such incident in one week. Eyewitnesses said that the settlers poured oil and inflammable materials on the trees that date back to the Roman times before setting fire to them. Earlier in the week settlers burnt trees in Burin village, Nablus district. more.. e-mail
Palestinians: Teenager killed by IDF in West Bank
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 6/28/2008
Army fires at three Palestinians hurling Molotov cocktails at highway north of Hebron - An IDF force spotted and fired at three Palestinians hurling Molotov cocktails at Highway 60 in the West Bank, north of Hebron. Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that a 17-year-old boy was killed in the incident during a violent clash with IDF soldiers. The teenager, identified as Muhammad Anwar Abu Sarakh, was reportedly shot in the head. According to the report, troops also detained nine people at his village. Earlier this week, a senior commander of the Islamic Jihad and an additional member of the group were killed in the West Bank city of Nablus. The two were killed in an exchange of fire with IDF and Shin Bet forces who had entered the city to arrest several wanted Palestinians. more.. e-mail
Threat to demolish more Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem, legal battle underway
Maisa Abu Ghazaleh, Palestine News Network 6/27/2008
Jerusalem - As Israeli settlements continue to expand across occupied East Jerusalem, a legal battle is underway to prevent the destruction of 450 Palestinian homes in the district of Khallat Al ’Ein. In preparation for the confiscation of Palestinian land, the Israeli-controlled Jerusalem Municipality has sought to argue that the residents of Khallat Al ’Ein possess no permanent license for the housing. With the legal assistance of Attorney Al Hussein, the local residents have taken their case to the Jerusalem Court of Local Affairs. Al Hussein stated that the demolition order is an act of racism which contravenes both international and Israeli law. He affirmed that, as East Jerusalem was annexed by Israel in 1980, the Palestinians living there have the same rights as any other citizens in the state of Israel. more.. e-mail
Goods crossings to Gaza stay shut following rocket attacks
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/28/2008
GAZA CITY: Israel kept commercial crossings into the Gaza Strip closed on Friday after a Palestinian rocket attack the day before tested a week-old truce and was slammed by the territory’s Hamas rulers. Two mortar rounds were also fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip on Friday, a military spokesman said, though he could not confirm where they hit. Army Radio said they landed in open fields near the border without hurting anyone. On Thursday Palestinian militants fired two rockets, one of which struck a field near the hard-hit southern Israeli town of Sderot without causing either casualties or damage. That attack was claimed by the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a group tied to the Fatah party of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas whose forces were driven from Gaza when Hamas seized control there over a year ago. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri criticized the attack, accusing "parties. . . more.. e-mail
CPT: 'Israeli military issues demolition orders, blocks main access road in South Hebron Hills'¯
Christian Peacemaker Teams - Tuwani / Hebron, International Middle East Media Center News 6/28/2008
This is a press release issued by the Christian Peacemaker Teams stationed in the southern West Bank city of Hebron and reporting on violations carried by Israeli soldiers and settlers against the Palestinian residents in the area. On 26 June, 2008, the Israeli military issued a demolition order on the partly constructed water cistern in the village of At-Tuwani. The cisternis being built with financial support from a Spanish NGO. If completed the cistern will provide a vital additional water source in the arid region of the South Hebron Hills. Also on 26 June, the Israeli military issued a demolition order on a home in At-Tuwani and on four homes in the nearby village of Umm Faggarah. On the following day, 27 June, 2008, at 9 am, the Israeli military returned to the area and blocked the road between At-Tuwani and Yatta village. more.. e-mail
Settlers set ablaze dozens of Olive trees near Ramallah
Laila Ewaiwi & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/27/2008
A group of Israeli settlers set fire to a large number of olive trees owned by the villagers of Deir Nitham near Ramallah. Witnesses reported that most of the burnt olive trees are owned by Ahmad Mizher, and that theses trees have been planted since the Roman era. Wittiness added that the settlere came from the illegal settlement of Halamish, constructed on lands that belong to villagers from Nabi Saleh and Deir Nitham, west of the central West Bank city of Ramallah. The villagers stated that this is not the first time Israeli settlers attck and destroy their orhcards since the begging of the Intifada and that large areas of lands were destroyed. [end]
Israeli forces kill youth in Beit Ummar
Ma’an News Agency 6/28/2008
Hebron – Ma’an – Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian youth in the village of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, on Friday evening. Palestinian medical and security sources reported to Ma’an that 17-year-old Muhammad Anwar Al-’Alami died after being shot in the heart by Israeli forces during clashes that erupted between Palestinian youth and Israeli forces stationed in the village. The sources added that the clashes continued into Friday night. [end]
Nightly invasions throughout the West Bank terrorize residents
Palestine News Network 6/27/2008
Ramallah / PNN -- Israeli forces again invaded cities within the West Bank pre-dawn Friday. Military vehicles burst into Ramallah and neighboring Al Bireh cities, into Jenin’s town of Harthiya, Nablus City and its Al Ein Refugee Camp. It was an ugly morning for hundreds of Palestinians who awoke to the explosions of doors being blown open, the shouts of Israeli soldiers through megaphones and loudspeakers, the unmistakable sound of military jeeps. JeninIn the northern West Bank’s town of Harthiya, Israeli forces broke into the homes of 22 year old Lufti Zayyoud and 45 year old Mohammad Mahmoud Moussa. Waking their families and dragging them outside, Israeli soldiers also destroyed the contents of the homes while searching them for undisclosed property. Both were taken away in blindfolds and handcuffs. more.. e-mail
Israeli army invades Jenin, Ramallah, Al-Bereh and Nablus and kidnaps three
Laila Ewaiwi & other Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/27/2008
Earlier today the Israeli army kidnapped three Palestinian civilians during its invasion of the following West Bank cities: Jenin, Ramallah, Al-Bereh and Nablus. In the early hours of the morning, The Israeli army kidnapped, 22 year old Mo’az Lotfi Zibod and 45 year old Mahmud Mossa from the village of Seleh west of Jenin after searching thier homes. The Israeli Army kidnapped Sameh Barghoti after stopping his car near Birood bridge near the city of Slood near Ramallah. Also, at the break of dawn today the Israeli troops invaded Ramallah and al-Bereh. Local sources stated that the invasion started at 2:00am and ended 3:10 am, no kidnappings were reported. Both the city of Nablus and ’Ain Biet al Ma’ refugee camp were invaded by Israeli troops, without kidnapping any of its civilians. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain two from the town of As Sawahira ash Sharqiya
Ma’an News Agency 6/27/2008
Jerusalem – Ma’an - Israeli forces detained two men from As Sawahira ash Sharqiya, a town southeast of Jerusalem on Friday. Eyewitnesses reported seeing five Israeli military vehicles storme the town, where they launched an extensive campaign of raids on the homes of local citizens. Ahmed Ali Abdel-Kader Khalayla, 21, and Shaher Mohammed Shaher Mhashahra, 23, were detained and taken to an unknown location. Another eyewitness reported that the Israeli forces then searched the homes of the detainees, causing damages to both home and furniture. [end]
Israeli forces detain Palestinian from village near Bethlehem
Ma’an News Agency 6/27/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli soldiers seized 19-year-old Muhammad Ghazi Salah from his home in the village of Dar Salah, east of Bethlehem, at dawn on Friday. His family reported by phone to Ma’an that Israeli forces stormed their home in Dar Salah and ransacked its contents, before detaining Muhammad and taking him to an unknown destination. [end]
Israeli forces detain 2 Palestinians in Bethlehem
Ma’an News Agency 6/27/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an - Israeli forces detained two Palestinians from Bethlehem, early on Friday morning. Security sources said that Israeli troops stormed the town and siezed 25-year-old Fadi Mohammad Ali Salahfrom the village of Al-Shawawrah and 19-year-old Ahmad Ghazi Ismail from the village of Dar-Salah east of the city. [end]
Two projectiles launched at western Negev
Ma’an News Agency 6/27/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an - Two Palestinian-launched projectiles landed in the western Negev on Friday morning, Israeli press sources said. The sources said that one landed near Kibbutz Kfar Aza in the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council, and the second hit an open area. No casualties were reported. No Palestinian faction has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. The truce between Israel and Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip that came into effect on 19 June is looking increasingly fragile with both sides claiming violations have been committed. According to the reported terms of the truce, Israel agreed to allow more vital supplies into Gaza. On Friday morning the Karni crossing, which is the main commercial crossing into the coastal sector, was opened to allow limited quantities of fuel into the territory but the other crossings remain closed. more.. e-mail
Al-Aqsa Brigades affirm statements made by 'Abu Qusay' claiming Thursday attacks
Ma’an News Agency 6/27/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – On Friday afternoon the Al-Aqsa Brigades confirmed the statement of "Abu Qusay" who claimed the Thursday projectile launch as an Al-Aqsa Brigades action. This new information contradicts reports from early Friday, which condemned "Abu Qusay" for delivering false information, and banned him from the Brigades. The latest information holds that Qusay’s claim of responsibility for the Thursday attacks is accurate. An Al-Aqsa Brigades spokesman told Ma’an Friday afternoon that the launch of projectiles on Thursday was meant as a message for Israel that the Palestinian resistance will not stand idle before the Israeli aggression towards Palestinians. Statements from the Brigades received by Ma’an declared that that the truce should be renegotiated to include the West Bank in order to end the aggression of Israeli forces against the Palestinians. more.. e-mail
Mortar shells land near southern kibbutz
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/27/2008
Violations of ceasefire in Gaza vicinity continue: Palestinians fire two mortars into Israel on Friday morning. One lands near Kfar Aza; no injuries or damage reported - Ongoing fire: Two mortar shells were fired from the northern Gaza Strip into Israel on Friday morning. One landed near Kibbutz Kfar Aza in the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council, and the second one hit an open area. There were no reports of injuries or damage. Kfar Aza resident Jimmy Kdoshim, 48, waskilled about a month and a half ago after being hit by a mortar shell. On Thursday afternoon, a Qassam rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, exploding near a gas station in an open area in Sderot’s industrial zone. There were no injuries. The al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, Fatah’s military wing, claimed responsibility for firing the rocket. more.. e-mail
Mortars, closures disrupt shaky Gaza Strip truce
Nidal al-Mughrabi, ReliefWeb 6/27/2008
GAZA, June 27 (Reuters) - Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired two mortar shells into southern Israel on Friday in the latest challenge to a ceasefire deal and the enclave’s Islamist Hamas rulers, who appealed to all factions to abide by the deal. The shells landed in a farming community near the border with the Gaza Strip, causing no casualties, an Israeli police spokesman said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the cross-border fire, the fourth such incident since the Egyptian-brokered ceasefire began on June 19. Israel has kept border crossings used to bring humanitarian and commercial supplies into the Gaza Strip closed since Wednesday, after a cross-border rocket attack by the Islamic Jihad militant group. Israel allowed fuel to reach the territory’s sole power station on Friday. more.. e-mail
3 female paramedics save lives in Gaza
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 6/27/2008
Three young women tell Ynet about their remarkable army service in Gaza Strip - Only a select few know, but amongst the hundreds of Israeli combat soldiers participating in military operations in the Gaza Strip are three female solders. After long years where girls were prohibited from entering battle zones, it was decided to include female paramedics alongside the males serving on the frontlines. This, however, was under the condition that they would never step foot in enemy territories. The solution is that Zohar, Mor and Bat El never step out of the armored vehicles transporting them into Gaza, not even for a minute. Israel doesn’t believe in the Gaza ceasefire, but it’s unable to decide on a large-scale strike in the Strip and needs some quiet time in the south. more.. e-mail
The Israeli army invades Nablus and nearby refugee camp, two civilians kidnapped
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/26/2008
The Israeli army kidnapped two Palestinian civilians during an invasion targeting the northern West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday. Local sources said that Israeli troops searched and ransacked the homes of Thaer Al Nasser, 19, and Hassan Qara’nah, 20, in Nablus city before taking the two to unknown locations. In addition another force invaded Al Ein refugee camp near Nablus; witnesses reported that soldiers searched some homes there. During the search witnesses said that soldiers took personal information about the families living in these homes and took their cell phone numbers. [end]
Israeli forces detain two Palestinians in Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/26/2008
Nablus - Ma’an - Israeli forces detained two Palestinian civilians at dawn on Thursday in the West Bank city of Nablus after storming a number of neighborhoods. Palestinian security sources told Ma’an’s correspondent in Nablus that Israeli forces detained 24-year-old Hassan Hashem Qar’alli and 19-year-old Tha’er Fathi Nasser in Al-Ma’moon Street near the western cemetery in Nablus. [end]
Israeli forces detain seven Palestinians across West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 6/26/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an - Seven Palestinians were detained by Israeli forces in dawn raids across the West Bank on Thursday. Sources said that the Israeli army detained seven people who Israel claims are ’wanted’ from the cities of Tulkarem, Nablus, Ramallah. All the detainees were transferred to interrogation centers for questioning. [end]
Fatah-allied militants fire rocket into Israel from southern Gaza
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/27/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: A rocket fired from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip hit southern Israel on Thursday, the fourth to do so since a truce between Israel and the Islamist movement took effect a week ago. The rocket caused no casualties or damage when it struck an open field near the southern Israeli town of Sderot, which before the truce had weathered near-daily attacks since Hamas seized power in Gaza a year ago. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed group tied to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement, said it carried out the attack and also launched another rocket directed at the southern city of Ashkelon. An Israeli military spokesman confirmed a second rocket was fired but would not say whether it struck Israeli territory. Al-Aqsa railed against the truce in a statement, charging that Hamas had imposed it on other Gaza factions and that Israel did not respect it. more.. e-mail
Al-Aqsa brigades launch projectile at Sderot; call for truce in West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 6/26/2008
Gaza – Bethlehem – Ma’an – Fatah’s military wing, the Al-Aqsa brigades claimed responsibility for launching a projectile at the Israeli town of Sderot on Thursday afternoon, calling for the truce to include the West Bank. Israeli sources said that the projectile was launched next to the industrial area near Sderot but it did not cause any injuries or damage. The Egyptian brokered truce between Palestinian resistance factions in the Gaza Strip and Israel began at 6am on June 19. Israeli forces have opened fire on Palestinian farmers in two separate attacks, injuring 67-year-old Jameel Al-Ghoul and 80-year-old Salem Abu Reideh. In response Islamic Jihad’s Al-Quds brigades launched two projectiles at Sderot. Israel has said it will not reopen the Gaza, allowing essential supplies into the impoverished coastal sector because of the brigades’ recent projectile attacks. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers destroy farm near Beitillu
Ma’an News Agency 6/26/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an – Settlers ransacked seven dunums (seven square kilometers) of land planted with tomatoes and beans in Wadi Az-Zarqa’ib, near the village of Beitillu on Sunday night. The perpetrators are thought to be from the Hallamish settlement, built on the lands of An-Nabi Saleh. The land was looted while its owner, Abu Ziyadea was away. The greenhouses and the farm storehouse were burned down, along with all the farm equipment and fertilizers. The irrigation system and the water pumps were destroyed, and most of the harvest is unsalvageable, including permanent damage to the original olive trees on the property. Since the harvest was destroyed during the fertile season, agricultural experts have estimated losses at approximately $50,000. This is not the first time Abu Ziyadeh has had problems with the nearby settlement. more.. e-mail
Settlers suspected of injuring policeman
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 6/26/2008
Two people detained on suspicion of assaulting police officer in Binyamin region during illegal protest against arrest of other settlers - Two settlers were arrested Thursday after allegedly assaulting and injuring a policeman at the Binyamin region police station on Wednesday night. The attack took place during a protest against the arrest of two settlers suspected of rioting. Two residents of the settlement of Adei-Ad were detained for questioning on Wednesday following riots in the Emek Shilo area. During their interrogation, some 15 youngsters and relatives of the detainees arrived at the police station. According to the police, the crowd began setting fire to dumpsters and blocking the entrance into the station with tables and chairs. Police officials explained to the protestors that their demonstration was illegal and asked them to evacuate the area. more.. e-mail
Israeli hackers penetrate Hamas website
Erez Ronen, YNetNews 6/26/2008
Fanat al-Radical hacking group successfully breaks into sites of Izz al-Din al-Qassam, leftist movements; previous information replaced with words of Israeli national anthem - Israeli hackers boasted Thursday about breaking into the website of Izz al-Din al-Qassam, Hamas’ military wing, which now displays a white screen and words in Arabic announcing technical difficulties. The hacker group, which calls itself Fanat al-Radical (the fanatical radicals), also said that it broke into additional terror organizations’ sites and those of various leftist movements. In a Ynet interview, a group representative who refused to reveal his name said, "We searched for relevant sites with the criteria we look for, whether leftist or anti-Zionist, and looked for loopholes. Our emphasis was always on the al-Qassam site. more.. e-mail
Israeli hackers hack several 'pro-Palestinian'¯ websites
Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/26/2008
Israeli hackers of the Kahana Hai Israeli terrorist group managed on Thursday morning to hack the Arabs48 news website, and the Machsom website which presents an alternative view to the Jewish readers, and uploaded statements of incitement against the Palestinians and Arabs. The hackers also hacked the websites of Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, Al Balad political party in Israel, that of the Hagada Hasmalit (the left bank), the Kibush (occupation) and several other websites. The hackers first uploaded the Israeli national anthem on the sites, and placed the emblem of the terrorist Kach movement which was formed by Meer Kahane, in addition to placing the emblem of Kahana Hai movement which is considered as a successor to Kach movement. The hackers wrote in English: "You are murderers, who put in danger the entire world’" and "You kill without a reason, abduct Israeli. . . more.. e-mail
Rightist hackers place Israeli flag, Kach images on pro-Palestinian Web sites
Yoav Stern, Ha’aretz 6/27/2008
Rightists on Thursday hacked into three Web sites associated with the Israeli Arab and Palestinan causes, and embedded on their pages an image of the Israeli flag, the words to the Israeli national anthem and the symbol of an outlawed ultra-rightist movement. The perpetrators hacked into the Web site of the Israeli Arab Balad party; Arabs48. com, an Arabic-language site; and Mahsom. com, which is written in Hebrew. Both site represent the Israeli Arab and Palestinian cause. In addition to the flag and the words of "Hatikva," the hackers embedded the symbol of the Kach movement, an ultra-rightist organization founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane that was banned from the Knesset in 1988 and later deemed a terrorist organization by Israel. The symbol appeared with the words "Kahane was right. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 062608
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/26/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file|| 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB || Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Thursday June 26th, 2008. A Palestinian patient died in Gaza due to the Israeli siege while the army kidnapped seven civilians from the West Bank. These stories, and more, coming up, stay tuned. News Cast As Israel continues to close the borders leading in or out of Gaza a Palestinian resistance group fired several Qassam home made shells at the Israeli town of Sderot on Thursday afternoon. Israeli sources said that the shells landed in open areas causing no damage or injuries. Al Qudes brigades the armed wing of the Fatah party headed by the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas clamed responsibility for the attack and demanded that Israel should include the West Bank in the truce deal reached last week. more.. e-mail
Qassam hits western Negev
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/26/2008
Two days after first rocket attack since truce agreement, another Qassam fired from Gaza into Sderot. No injuries or damage reported; Fatah’s military wing claims responsibility. Hamas spokesman says Israel’s refusal to reopen crossings constitutes violation of ceasefire - Another ceasefire violation: A Qassam rocket was fired Thursday afternoon from the Gaza Strip into Israel, exploding in an open area in Sderot’s industrial zone. There were no reports of injuries or damage. The al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, Fatah’s military wing, took responsibility for firing the rocket. Sources in the Gaza Strip believe that the firing was meant to embarrass Hamas and to harm the ceasefire efforts. On Tuesday, Palestinians launched more.. e-mail
10,000 apartments to be built in east Jerusalem
Ronen Medzini, YNetNews 6/24/2008
New apartments part of Mayor Lupolianski’s plan to offer low-cost housing to young couples - The Jerusalem District Planning and Construction Committee approved a plan that would see 10,000 new residential units built in east Jerusalem at a cost of NIS 12 million (close to $4 million. )The move aims to boost Arab neighborhoods in the capital, as part of Mayor Uri Lupolinaki’s plan to build 40,000 new residential units that would offer low-cost housing solutions to young couples. Municipal officials in Jerusalem said that the construction plan is part of an effort to address residents’ needs in the Old City in a bid to improve their quality of life. The plan will offer city residents the possibility of quickly securing construction permits, without the need for a detailed blueprint. In addition, the municipal government in the capital was said. . . more.. related.. e-mail
Israeli Forces Kill 2 Palestinians in West Bank
Atef Saad, MIFTAH 6/25/2008
Israeli forces killed two Palestinians, including an Islamic Jihad commander, in the West Bank city of Nablus on Tuesday in the first fatal raid since a ceasefire took hold in the Gaza Strip last week. Islamic Jihad threatened to launch attacks inside Israel to avenge the death of Tarek Juma Abu Ghali, whom the militant group described as one of its most senior commanders in the northern West Bank. A second Palestinian, affiliated with the Islamist militant group Hamas, was also killed in the overnight raid, Palestinian security sources said. The killings, which were confirmed by the Israeli army, could test the fragile ceasefire that took effect last Thursday between Israel and militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. " Calm in Gaza does not mean that we will sit in our seats waiting to be slaughtered one by one," Islamic Jihad said in a statement. "This crime will not pass without punishment and the coming days will be a witness to that. " more.. related.. e-mail
Municipality to add 10,000 apartments in East Jerusalem
Orit Bar-Gil and Ariel Rosenberg, Globes Online 6/25/2008
"We work by consensus. The government deals with political questions. " The Jerusalem municipality has initiated a plan for the construction of 10,000 new apartments in Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. The Jerusalem Regional Planning and Building Commission has approved the plan in principle. The plan covers areas including the northern neighborhood of Shuafat and the southern neighborhood of Beit Zafafa. Jerusalem municipality’s Osnat Post said, "The Old City faces a double problem. It is a World Heritage Site at risk where strict preservation regulations apply to avoid damaging its fabric. However, there is also a shortage of housing. We therefore set strict detailed guidelines for construction and additions, but it will be possible to quickly issue building permits. "Concerning the political sensitivity in East Jerusalem, a municipality representative noted, "We work by consensus. " more.. related.. e-mail
4 Palestinians injured one kidnapped during separate Israeli attacks in Hebron and nearby villages
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/25/2008
Palestinian sources reported that during Israeli attacks on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning four civilians were injured and one kidnapped from the southern West Bank city of Hebron and nearby villages. On Wednesday morning Israeli troops attacked the house of Ghalib Tahha, 19, troops searched his home and then kidnapped him. Sources added that the soldiers beat up Tahha’s brother and damaged the house during the search. Also today Israeli soldiers attacked a mourning house in the village of Sourif located near Hebron, witnesses said that soldiers barged into the house then attacked three men, the men sustained cuts and bruises and were treated at a local hospital. On Tuesday night three Palestinian civilians were injured when Israeli settlers attacked them near Hebron city. Khalied Al Najaar, 55, Khalied Abu I’raam, and his son Na’el, 24, sustained light wounds when. . . more.. related.. e-mail
Gaza truce shaken as four Qassams slam into west Negev
Avi Issacharoff and The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 6/25/2008
Four Qassam rockets fired from Gaza struck Sderot and the surrounding area Tuesday afternoon, further imperiling a brittle truce declared six days ago. One of the rockets struck a vacant house in Sderot and two others hit the city. A fourth rocket exploded in an open area in the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council. Two people was lightly wounded in the barrage, and two others were treated for shock. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the Qassam salvo. Gaza’s Hamas rulers issued a statement saying that they were still committed to the cease-fire with Israel, despite the small militant group’s obvious violation of its terms. Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas official, responded to the attacks by urging "all Palestinian factions to abide by the calm agreement," adding: "Hamas is keen to maintain the deal. more.. related.. e-mail
Israeli army wounds an elderly Palestinian in southern Gaza
Rami Almeghari & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/25/2008
The Israeli army shot and wounded on Wednesday morning a Palestinian elderly man in southern Gaza Strip, less than 24 hours after homemade shells hit the nearby Israeli town of Sderot, as a truce deal between Palestinians and Israel has been agreed upon since last Thursday. Palestinian medical sources confirmed that Salem Abu Raida, 80, was wounded with several live bullets in the shoulder and that he was transferred to hospital for medical attention. Witnesses said that Abu Raida was near his house, which is located close to the Israel-Gaza border lines in the Khuza’a village in southeastern Gaza Strip, when the Israeli soldiers, manning the borders, shot him. This new Israeli shooting came less than 24 hours after two Palestinian homemade shells landed in the nearby Israeli town of Sderot. The Islamic Jihad’s armed wing in Gaza said the firing of shells was an exception. . . more.. related.. e-mail
Israel keeps Gaza crossings shut
Middle East Online 6/25/2008
TEL AVIV - Israel kept three border crossings with the Gaza Strip closed on Wednesday, an Israeli military spokesman said. "We are keeping the Karni, Sufa and Nahal Oz crossings closed for the time being following the firing of rockets in flagrant violation of the truce deal," spokesman Peter Lerner said, despite the fact that according to the Palestinians Israel was first to violate the truce deal. He said however that while the goods terminals were closed, the Erez passenger crossing remained open. Three rockets fired from the Gaza Strip hit southern Israel on Tuesday, causing some damage but no casualties. The rockets were the first to be fired from the Palestinian territory since a truce between Israel and the Gaza Strip’s Hamas rulers went into effect on June 19. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attacks. more.. related.. e-mail
Nasser Brigades calls for joint operations committee to respond to Israeli violations
Palestine News Network 6/25/2008
Gaza / PNN -- The Nasser Salah Addin Brigades, the armed resistance wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, called on Palestinian factions Wednesday to form a joint operations committee to respond to any Israeli violation of the ’calm. ’Brigades’ leader, Abu Abiir, stated that a decision to maintain the ’calm’ should be agreed upon by all Palestinian factions. Every option should be kept open in the event of Israeli invasions and assassinations, he added. "The struggle against the occupation is not yet over therefore we should not organize individually, but rather collectively. We must act with the utmost consideration for others," he said. "We believe that our cause cannot be fragmented if we resist the attempts and policies of the occupation. " Abiir stressed that the blood of all Palestinians is indivisible. more.. related.. e-mail
Israeli forces continue to shoot Palestinian farmers in Gaza Strip
Palestine News Network 6/25/2008
Khan Younis / PNN - Medical sources and eyewitnesses report that after Monday’s shooting of a Palestinian farmer in the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces opened fire at more Palestinian farmers on Wednesday morning. Among them is a critical injury in the Israeli shooting east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. The sources reported that the Israeli army, still surrounding the boundaries of the Strip, opened fire on a number of farmers who were working on their lands. Salim Abu Reeda is in critical condition at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. He is currently undergoing surgery. This is the second Israeli violation of the "calm" declared via Egyptian mediators on Thursday. On Monday they shot another Palestinian farmer. more.. related.. e-mail
Elderly Palestinian man wounded by Israeli gunfire in Gaza
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/24/2008
Palestinian medical sources reported that an elderly Palestinian man was shot and seriously wounded by Israeli military gunfire on Monday evening as he was working on his land near the border fence in the northern Part of the Gaza Strip. The sources identified the man as Jamil Abdul-Rahman Al Ghoul, 68. He was shot in his back and is currently in a serious condition. The man was transferred to Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, and remains in a critical condition. Political sources in Gaza described the attack as the first Israeli violation to the truce which started last Thursday. Only minutes after the truce started, the Israeli navy fired four shells at the Gaza Shore. The Israeli navy said that the shells were "warning shots" after Palestinian fishermen entered "Israeli waters". Palestinian Prime Minister of the Gaza government, Ismail Haniyya, stated earlier on Monday. . . more.. related.. e-mail
Funerals and demonstrations against West Bank assassinations
Ali Samoudi, Palestine News Network 6/25/2008
Jenin-- The demonstrations began last night after the assassinations of Tariq Jumaa Abu Ghali and Iyad Khanfar. Israeli forces targeted the northern West Bank’s leader of Saraya Al Quds, the armed resistance wing of Islamic Jihad, and a 24 year old An Najah University student affiliated with Hamas, Iyad Khanfar, in Nablus’ Makhfyeh neighborhood early on Tuesday. The bodies were taken from Nablus’ Rafidiya Hospital in massive funeral processions, which then continued in the home towns of the men. Further north in the West Bank’s Jenin, the body of Abu Ghali was carried from that city’s Government Hospital where his funeral began. The procession was massive with his body wrapped in the cloth of Saraya Al Quds. The march roamed the city streets amid cries of anger and chants, which condemned the Israeli crime and called for continued resistance. more.. related.. e-mail
Palestine Today 062508
Ghassan Bannoura - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/25/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file|| 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB || Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Wednesday June 25th, 2008. The Israeli army shoots a Palestinian civilian in Gaza and kidnaps nine others from the West Bank, these stories, and more, coming up, stay tuned. The News Cast The Israeli army shot and wounded on Wednesday morning a Palestinian elderly man in southern Gaza Strip, less than 24 hours after homemade shells hit the nearby Israeli town of Sderot, as a truce deal between Palestinians and Israel has been agreed upon since last Thursday. Palestinian medical sources confirmed that Salem Abu Raida, 80, was wounded with several live bullets in the shoulder and that he was transferred to hospital for medical attention. more.. related.. e-mail
Flying checkpoint near Silat adh Dhahr south west of Jenin
Ma’an News Agency 6/25/2008
Jenin – Ma’an – Israeli forces erected a flying military checkpoint near the town of Silat adh Dhahr south west of Jenin Wednesday afternoon. Eyewitnesses informed a Ma’an correspondent in Jenin that Israeli soldiers at the checkpoint were conducting thorough inspections; checking civilians’ identity cards and searching vehicles. Sources added that soldiers carried a list of names which appeared to a list of “wanted” individuals. [end] related.. e-mail
Israeli forces kill two Palestinians in the West Bank city of Nablus; Islamic Jihad threaten retaliation
Ma’an News Agency 6/24/2008
Nablus – Ma’an - The Israeli army assassinated a Palestinians student from An-Najah University and a prominent leader of the Al-Quds Brigades in Nablus early on Tuesday morning. Israeli special forces raided the students’ second floor building in the Al-Sal’ous neighborhood in the Al-Makhfiyeh area of western Nablus and shot dead 24-year-old Iyad Khanfar, a fourth-year student at An-Najah and 23-year-old Tariq Juma’a Abu Ghali, one of the most prominent Al-Quds Bridages commanders in the northern West Bank. He had survived five previous assassination attempts. Five others were also detained for a period of time. Palestinian medical sources told Ma’an’s correspondent in Nablus that the dead bodies were transferred to Rafidya Hospital in Nablus after the Israeli army withdrew from the area. Dr. Ghassan Hamdan, director of Medical Relief in Nablus told Ma’an’s correspondent that the young men were not armed. more.. related.. e-mail
Israeli troops kill two Palestinians in West Bank
Middle East Online 6/24/2008
NABLUS, West Bank - Israeli troops killed two Palestinians at dawn on Tuesday in the West Bank town of Nablus, one of them a senior member of the Islamic Jihad group, the Israeli military said. The Gaza truce does not apply to the occupied West Bank, where Israel keeps up military operations, and many fear an escalation in violence there could jeopardise the agreement. Palestinian medics and security sources identified the men killed as Tareq Abu Ghali, 24, and Iyad Khanfar, a 21-year-old university student. An Israeli military spokesman confirmed troops had killed the two in an "exchange of fire," saying both were armed and that Abu Ghali was an Islamic Jihad fighter wanted by Israel. Islamic Jihad confirmed Abu Ghali was one of its senior members and vowed revenge, saying in a statement that the response "to this righteous blood will be in the heart of the Zionist entity (Israel). more.. related.. e-mail
Soldiers assassinate two Palestinians in Nablus
Ameen Abu Wardeh, International Middle East Media Center News 6/24/2008
Palestinian sources in Nablus, in the northern part of the West Bank reported on Tuesday that Israeli forces shot and killed two Palestinians from Jenin, also in the northern part of the West Bank. Monday night after midnight, Israeli troops surrounded the house where the two reside in Al-Makhfiyeh neighborhood in Nablus and opened heavy fire at their flat killing the two residents and causing excessive damage before kidnapping five civilians, eyewitnesses reported. Palestinian civil defense who found the bodies under the rubble, identified the two as, Eyad Khanfar, 24 a student at An-Najah University, and Tareq Abu Ghali, 25 an operative of the Islamic Jihad in Jenin. Dr. Ghassan Hamdan, head of the Medical Relief Services in Nablus said that the two were shot many times in their bodies and some of the bullets penetrated their heads vertically. more.. related.. e-mail
Dirt barriers removed in West Bank as car-stoning ebbs
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/26/2008
In the past six weeks there has been a marked drop in stone-throwing aimed at Israeli vehicles traveling on roads near the West Bank town of Qalqilyah and surrounding villages. according to Israeli liaison officials, two months ago the tally stood at many dozens of stoning incidents every month. Over the past month and a half there have been only a handful of such incidents. Israeli army officers attribute the change to activity they term "actual" on the part of Palestinian police forces deployed in Qalqilyah, and more recently also in some of the villages nearby: "They put a really strong emphasis on the informational aspect," the head of the liaison authority in Qalqilyah, Lieutenant Colonel Samir Amar, said on Tuesday. "They go into school classrooms and talk to the pupils, while underscoring that throwing stones at cars will be met by a harsh response. more.. related.. e-mail
Jihad threatens to continue rocket attacks, despite truce
Barak Ravid Amos Harel Yuval Azoulay and Fadi Eyadat, Ha’aretz 6/26/2008
The Islamic Jihad militant group on Wednesday threatened to continue its rocket attacks on western Israel, despite a six-day truce agreement in the Gaza Strip. Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Wednesday ordered the closure of all crossings through which goods enter the Gaza Strip in response to Palestinian Qassam rocket fire on the western Negev a day earlier. The crossings were to have opened at 8 A. M. local time to allow for imports, increased in scale under the truce, to reach the impoverished strip. But Israeli military liaison official Peter Lerner said the crossings would stay closed until further notice. "Any reopening will be in accordance with security considerations," he said. Sami Abu Zuhri, a spokesman for the Gaza Strip’s Hamas rulers, accused Israel of bad faith in closing the crossings, where restrictions were tightened a year ago after the Islamist group took over the territory. more.. related.. e-mail
Lebanon’s oil slick cleaned but headache continues
Middle East Online 6/25/2008
BEIRUT - Two years after the worst oil spill in the east Mediterranean left thousands of tonnes of crude over three-quarters of Lebanon’s coast, the beaches are almost all clean but the troubles continue. In July 2006, in the midst of the month-long war between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Israeli aircraft bombed a coastal power plant at Jiyeh, 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of Beirut. Around 15,000 tonnes of oil flooded into the sea and was carried by the current, leaving 150 kilometres (95 miles) of coastline covered with thick black residue. The once glitzy tourist beaches were covered with a film of filthy discharge and the breathtaking azure sea left blackened with oily deposits. Now after two years’ work dedicated to it, the Mediterranean has recovered its blue and the white sandy beaches are back to their sparkling former glory. more.. related.. e-mail
American tourist stoned by mob after accidentally enering Qalandiyah
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/26/2008
An American tourist was lightly injured by rocks hurled at him when he accidentally drove into the Qalandiyah refugee camp, west of Ramallah, Wednesday afternoon. The man was rescued by Palestinian policemen, and transferred shortly thereafter to the custody of Israeli security forces, who questioned him and treated his injuries. An Israeli inquiry found that the man was on his way to a wedding at Kibbutz Maaleh Hahamisha, but made a wrong turn into Area A territory, which is under full Palestinian control. After entering Qalandiyah he stopped at an intersection, at which point Palestinians approached and threw rocks at his car. Palestinians reportedly tried to force the man from his car. Word quickly reached the Palestinian police, who gained control of the crowd and protected the tourist. more.. related.. e-mail
Soldiers attack the Tulkarem area and kidnaps seven civilians
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/25/2008
Palestinian sources reported that the Israeli army attacked the nothern West Bank city of Tulkarem and the nearby village of Atteel on Wednesday and kidnapped seven civilians. Qiyes Al Khalil, and his brother Qyissar, were kidnapped when Israeli troops searched homes in Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarem city. Meanwhile Jameel Qatesh, 23, Amjad Qallaq, 20, abd Mohaned Yassen, 21, were kidnapped in a separate attack targeting Atteel village near Tulkarem. In Siyda village Israeli troops kidnapped Hanni Al Ashkar, 19, and Sa’eed Al Ashkar, 18, on Wednesday morning. [end] related.. e-mail
Israeli army uproot 500-year-old olive grove in Beit Hanina near Jerusalem
Ma’an News Agency 6/23/2008
Jerusalem – Ma’an - Israeli army bulldozers uprooted more than two hundred olive trees in Beit Hanina north of Jerusalem on Monday morning amid resistance by Fatah activists and other national forces. Spokesman for the leadership of the Fatah movement in the territory of Jerusalem Dimitri Diliani said that Israeli soldiers went into the valley in the southern town of Beit Hanina and razed the 500-year-old olive grove. He added that Fatah activists in cooperation with other national forces tried to stop them. He said that the Israeli authorities aim is to confiscate the lands surrounding Beit Hanina as part of their policy to pressure the Arab community of Jerusalem and its surroundings. The secretary of the Fatah movement in Beit Hanina, Muhammad Hamed Matur, said that Israeli forces have used excessive force against citizens who are defending their land. more.. related.. e-mail
Elderly Palestinian seriously wounded by Israeli army in northern Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 6/23/2008
Gaza – Ma’an - A 67 year-old man was shot and injured by Israeli forces in the north of the Gaza Strip on Monday afternoon. Local sources told Ma’an that Jamil Abdel Rahman Al-Ghoul was shot while he was in his garden which is 350 meters from the eastern border of the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army opened fire on, injuring him in the shoulder and neck. One of his relatives, Abu Ziad Al-Ghoul, said that the man was seriously injured and was taken to Kamal Adwan Hospital in the north of the sector. [end]
Palestine Today 062308
Ghassan Bannoura - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/23/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file|| 4 m 0s || 3. 66 MB || Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Monday June 23rd, 2008. The truce in Gaza continues for the fourth day, while in the West Bank the Israeli army kidnaps five civilians, these stories and more coming up. Stay tuned. The News Cast The Hamas movement warned that if Israel implements the Israeli high court decision not to open the border crossing with Gaza until the abducted Israeli soldier in the Strip is released, the Hamas movement will no longer recognize the truce deal. On Sunday the Israeli High Court of Justice ordered the Israeli government to keep border crossings to the Gaza Strip closed until noon today. The court decision was in response to a petition filed by the family of a captured Israel Soldier in Gaza, Gilad Shalit. more.. related.. e-mail
The Israeli army invades a village near Ramallah and kidnaps five civilians
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/23/2008
Five Palestinian civilians were kidnapped by the Israeli army during an invasion targeting the village of Dier Abu Mish’al located near the central West Bank city of Ramallah on Monday morning. Witnesses said that at least 15 Israeli jeeps invaded the village on Monday at dawn at around 2:00 AM. Witnesses added that soldiers conducted a wide scale house-to-house search in the village and used police dogs. During the search soldiers forced all the families that reside in the attacked homes to stay out, which also included children, local sources said. The military attack ended on Monday morning, troops left the village after kidnapping five civilian men, local sources identified those kidnapped as; Tha’er Abu Taha, 30, Ghassan Abu Taha, 23, Tarik Abu Harb, 21, Fou’ad Shuhadah, 20, and Nasser Attalah, 29. more.. related.. e-mail
IOA bulldozes thousands of dunums of Palestinian lands
Palestinian Information Center 6/23/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation authority’s bulldozers on Monday morning started destroying thousands of dunums of Palestinian lands in Beit Hanina village in occupied Jerusalem. Saleh Da’ajna, head of the village’s municipal council, said that the IOA bulldozers were paving the lands for construction of the separation wall. He pointed out in a statement to the PIC reporter that the destruction was going on in the southern area of the village. Da’ajna said that the Israeli occupation forces were blocking village inhabitants from approaching their lands in the area after it was declared a closed military zone. The municipal council announced that the separation wall seized 2,000 dunums of village lands in the first phase and the new construction would confiscate 5,500 dunums more. more.. related.. e-mail
Israeli bulldozers raze lands in Beit Hanina to construct separation wall
Ma’an News Agency 6/23/2008
Jerusalem - Ma’an - Israeli bulldozers started to raze agricultural lands in the village of Beit Hanina At-Tahta on Monday morning, to construct a new part of the separation wall on the village lands. Beit Hanina’s village council said lands were dug up in part of the village near the Israeli settlement of Ramot. Israeli forces prevented residents from approaching their land, after declaring the area a closed military zone. According to the council, the initial stage of the wall took 2,000 dunums of land from Beit Hanina and the second stage will take another 5,500 dunums. [end]
Israeli forces close Al-Bathan and Checkpoint 17 until further notice
Ma’an News Agency 6/23/2008
Nablus - Ma’an - Israeli forces closed the Al-Bathan Checkpoint and checkpoint 17 to the north and east of Nablus on Monday afternoon until further notice. One civilian at the Al-Bathan checkpoint said that Israeli forces informed civilians that the checkpoint was closed on both sides for security reasons and will stay closed until further notice. Thousands of Palestinians cross Al-Bathan and Checkpoint 17 daily to reach the West Bank city of Nablus. [end]
Mortar fired at Negev despite ceasefire; no injuries
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/24/2008
Shell fired by Palestinian in Gaza lands near Israeli community in first breach of agreed upon truce -A mortar fired by Palestinian gunmen in Gaza Wednesday night landed in Israel’s western Negev region. The shell landed in an open area in close proximity to a community, but no injuries or damage were reported. The incident was the first breach of the ceasefire agreement reached between Israel and armed Palestinian groups in the Strip, which went into effect Thursday morning. According to theEgyptian-mediated deal, after a few days of calm Israel is supposed to begin easing restrictions and allow the transfer of large amounts of food, gas, construction materials and other goods into Gaza through the Karni and Sufa crossings. Residents of the western Negev were skeptical of the ceasefire’s chances to succeed. more.. related.. e-mail
Gunmen reportedly fire mortar shell into Israel in breach of truce
JPOST.COM STAFF, Jerusalem Post 6/24/2008
Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip fired a mortar shell into Israel Tuesday night, several media outlets reported - the first apparent breach of the cease-fire since it went into effect five days ago. There were no reports of casualties or damage. [end]
Al-Aqsa Brigades claim attack by de facto affiliated police in Gaza Strip
Ma’an News Agency 6/23/2008
Gaza – Ma’an - Fatah’s military wing, the Al- Aqsa Brigades, claimed on Monday that the police force affiliated to the de facto government in the Gaza Strip attacked a number of their activists who were staging a sit-in at the Red Cross headquarters in the Gaza Strip. The brigades told Ma’an that the activists were protesting against the treatment of prisoners when they were attacked. "The allied police attacked the Fatah movement activists, taking down the yellow flags and banners and the Palestinian flags and confiscated them," the brigades added. [end]
20 arrests in Palestinian fuel affair
Noam Sharvit, Globes Online 6/23/2008
The suspects are alleged to have evaded tax by buying fuel in the Palestinian Authority and selling it in Israel. Israel Police detectives and Israel Tax Authority investigators this morning arrested 20 people on suspicion of tax evasion amounting to tens of millions of shekels. Investigators believe they used the well-known method of buying fuel in the Palestinian Authority and selling it in Israel, using counterfeit invoices. The suspects were detained in raids carried out by 260 detectives from the Police National Economic Crimes Unit and other units, and by 80 investigators from the Tax Authority Customs and VAT investigations division in Tel Aviv, following an undercover inquiry lasting more than a year. Searches were carried out at 40 homes across Israel, where investigators seized substantial a quantity of documents, accounting paperwork and computers. more.. related.. e-mail
Israeli forces abduct four from village south of Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/22/2008
Nablus - Ma’an – Israeli forces seized four Palestinian civilians during an overnight raid in the village of Ourta, south of Nablus on Sunday. Witnesses said that Israeli forces stormed a number of houses, detaining Bara’ Qussai Yahya ‘Awwad, Majdi Suleiman, Mahmoud Awwad and Nadim Awwad. [end]
Israeli forces seize two Palestinian teenagers in Jenin area
Ma’an News Agency 6/22/2008
Jenin – Ma’an – Israeli forces seized two Palestinian teenagers in Zububa, a village northwest of the West Bank city of Jenin, on Saturday night. Palestinian security sources said that Israeli forces raided civilian houses, ultimately arresting 19-year-old Adnan Sha’abneh and 16-year-old Bader Nabil Jamal. Security sources also said that at dawn on Sunday, Israeli troops invaded the city of Jenin, in the northern West Bank, deploying in city streets and firing their weapons at random. No arrests were reported. Meanwhile five Israeli military jeeps invaded the town of Qabatiya, south of the city of Jenin. Witnesses said Israeli troops hid between houses and among trees, hoping to ambush suspected Palestinian fighters. The Israeli forces later withdrew. No arrests were reported. more.. e-mail
Newly-proclaimed Palestinian resistance faction claims allegiance to PLO, condemns internal divisions
Ma’an News Agency 6/22/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - A statement announcing the formation of the Nusour Palestine Brigades, a new Palestinian resistance faction, was published on Sunday, marking the launch of another resistance faction from within the Palestinian territories during the Al-Aqsa Intifada. For more than forty years, Palestinian resistance factions announced themselves and issued statements from the Arab capitals. Since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada, several resistance factions have been launched from within the Palestinian territories. The statement emphasized that the Nusour Palestine Brigades are independent and not related to any military, political or popular organization or faction, but also said that they consider the PLO to be the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. There is no information concerning the head or spokesperson of this new faction yet. more.. e-mail
3 injured in West Bank shooting attack
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 6/20/2008
Five hikers touring wadi near settlement of Neve Tzuf, northwest of Ramallah, report two terrorists opened fire at them. Wounded settlers conscious; shooters manage to flee scene of attack - Three settlers were injured Friday afternoon in a shooting attack at a wadi near the West Bank settlement of Neve Tzuf, northwest of Ramallah. The incident took place as five people toured the area and encountered two terrorists who they said opened fire at them. Later Friday, the Battalions of Struggle and Return, affiliated with the Fatah’s al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, claimed responsibility for the attack. Magen David Adom rescue services reported that all the injured were fully conscious. One of the settlers was injured in the leg, one in the stomach and the third in the back. One sustained serious wounds, one was moderately injured and the third was lightly hurt. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers launch Qassam projectile at Palestinian village
Ma’an News Agency 6/20/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - Palestinians are not the only ones producing homemade projectiles: Israeli settlers now also have Qassam rockets, according to the Hebrew daily newspaper Ma’ariv. On Friday the newspaper published details of Israeli settlers from the Yitzhar settlement near the West Bank city of Nablus launching projectiles at a nearby Palestinian village. Two weeks ago a religious school student made a Qassam rocket and launched it at a nearby Palestinian village, but it landed in an open area, the newspaper added. The newspaper confirmed that the student, along with the school’s headmaster, was detained on Thursday evening and is being questioned over the incident. Minutes before launching the projectile a group of settlers told Yitzhar residents that they were carrying out an experiment and not to worry about the sound of an explosion. more.. e-mail
IOF troops breach truce in Gaza, shoot at Palestinian fishermen
Palestinian Information Center 6/20/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- At least three Israeli violations of the fresh truce that was sponsored by Egypt in the Gaza Strip were recoded few hours after that truce started on Thursday as IOF troops opened their machinegun fire at Palestinian fishermen, and farmers. Local Palestinian sources said that Israeli gunboats fired at Palestinian fishermen trying to earn a living, no casualties were recorded. East of the southern city of Khan Younis, Israeli tanks and artillery fired at Palestinian farmers in the Khuza’a town who were, according to the sources, exploiting the truce to harvest their crops, in addition to another attack at homes of Palestinian villagers in Qarara town, east of the city, but no casualties were reported in both Israeli attacks. The Hebrew media acknowledged the IOF troops’ violation of the truce, alleging that the Palestinian fishermen were fishing in a "prohibited". . . more.. e-mail
Under rules of calming Israelis now allow themselves only limited shooting at Palestinians in Gaza
Palestine News Network 6/20/2008
PNN - Israeli forces are stationed well within the Gaza Strip, within all of the boundary lines. And although that is an afront, some Palestinians have been able to reach their lands that would have gotten them killed just days ago. Now, due to the ’calm,’ Israeli forces have been instructed to shoot "only on a limited basis. " This means that if the soldiers see Palestinians who they deem are "too near the fence" they are to shoot in the air, and not shoot to kill unless given permission by a higher ranking officer. Israeli warplanes are not allowed to fire missiles into the Strip unless they are specifically targeting someone they think is about to launch a projectile. But like the ground troops that are omnipresent in the Strip, the warplanes can still fly overhead as they like. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad in Ramallah said on Friday that he welcomed this period of ’calm’ and asked that it be extended to the West Bank. more.. e-mail
Settlers riot over removal of mobile home from outpost
Nadav Shragai, Ha’aretz 6/20/2008
A clash between settlers and police in the West Bank settlement Yitzhar ended with 19 injuries yesterday after police came to tear down a mobile home built without a permit. The injured included 11 settlers and eight police officers. In addition, after the destruction of the mobile home, dozens of Yitzhar residents rioted in nearby Palestinian areas, damaging property and cars and setting a wheat field on fire. Eight settlers were detained. After several hours of clashes and after the mobile home had been dismantled, Yitzhar residents blocked the police, poured oil on the road and locked the gate. Police had great difficulty leaving the site. One officer who is religious refused a direct order and was detained by fellow officers. The incident began in the morning when police came to destroy a storage facility and put up eviction notices on two residences. more.. e-mail
Large group of Israeli settlers attempt to enter Palestinian town of Halhul
Ma’an News Agency 6/20/2008
Hebron – Ma’an – Israeli military sources reported that one hundred Israeli settlers gathered on Friday morning at the entrance of Halhul, a Palestinian town near the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and attempted to enter the town for a tour that was not coordinated with the Israeli army. Israeli sources described the settler gathering as violating the order issued by the Israeli military’s central command forbidding Israeli citizens from entering Palestinian Authority territories (Area A under the Oslo Accords), as well as an order declaring the specific area of the gathering a closed military zone. Israeli sources added that a large number of Israeli soldiers, police and border police were deployed in the area to prevent the settlers from entering the Palestinian town. more.. e-mail
Three settlers detained near Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/20/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - Israeli forces detained three settlers trying to enter Joseph’s Tomb near the West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday evening, Israeli sources said. The sources added that an Israeli military force noticed the settlers as they were undertaking routine operations. They detained them, handing them over to Israeli police for questioning. Joseph’s Tomb is a holy site for both Jews, Muslims and Christians but since the start of the second Intifada in 2000 Israelis are banned from visiting the site. Since 2003 the tomb has been repeatedly vandalized. In February 2008 Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared the tomb a Muslim holy site, and downplayed reports of joint Israeli-Palestinian cooperation on restoring the tomb more.. e-mail
Israeli army detain two Palestinians crossing from Gaza to Israel through electric fence
Ma’an News Agency 6/20/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - The Israeli army said on Friday that three Palestinian young men crossed illegally into Israel through the electric fence surrounding the Gaza Strip. The army confirmed that they detained the two infiltrators and troops are searching for a third. The army spokesman said the men were not armed. [end]
Three Israeli hikers hurt in shooting attack near Ramallah
Jonathan Lis Amos Harel and Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/21/2008
Three Israeli hikers were wounded on Friday, one seriously and two lightly, in a drive-by shooting in Zarka valley near the West Bank city of Ramallah. Unknown assailants in a passing vehicle apparently opened fire at the group of hikers, hitting three of them. Security and rescue personnel arrived at the scene and located thevictims, who were hiding in the area after the attack. An initial report from the Magen David Adom emergency medical staff on the scene indicated that one of the victims had been shot in the back and another had sustained gunshots to the stomach. One of the hikers was in serious condition and two others sustained minor wounds. According to paramedics, the victims were fully conscious. Additional hikers that were with the victims suffered from dehydration as they waited for rescue teams in hiding. more.. e-mail
Three Israelis wounded in shooting attack north of Ramallah
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/20/2008
Israeli military sources reported on Friday that three Israelis were wounded, one seriously, in a drive-by shooting that took place on Friday afternoon in Al Zarqa Valley near the central West Bank city of Ramallah. Return and Struggle Brigades, one of the off-shoots of Fateh movement claimed responsibility for the attack. The Israeli sources stated that the gunmen opened fire at a group of Israeli hikers in the area and wounded three of them. The Israeli army rushed to the scene and evacuated the hikers. Medical crews of the Magen David Adomemergency medical response said that one Israeli was wounded in his back while the other was wounded in his stomach. One hiker is currently in a serious condition, while the other twosuffered mild injuries. Army sources stated that the hikers should have coordinated three outing with the Israeli authorities as required by law when Israelis hike in the occupied West Bank. more.. e-mail
IDF: Shooting attack victims saved by miracle
Meital Yasur-Beit Or, YNetNews 6/20/2008
Military officials slam settlers hurt in West Bank shooting attack Friday for failing to coordinate their trip with authorities; attacked yeshiva student: We suspect Arabs in area reported our presence to terrorists - The Israelis targeted by terrorists near Ramallah were saved "by miracle," IDF officials said Friday evening. The army slammed the settlers attacked earlier in the day for failing to report their trip to authorities. The hikers, however, said they coordinated the trip with the security chief in their West Bank community. Following an initial inquiry into the incident, an IDF officer characterized the settlers’ trip as an "irresponsible act," saying that only a miracle prevented the attack from ending on a much grimmer note. "Recently there have been several cases on Fridays. . . " more.. e-mail
Three Israeli settlers injured in shooting north of Ramallah
Ma’an News Agency 6/20/2008
Ramallah - Ma’an - Three Israelis were injured when a group of armed Palestinians opened fire on them near the Israeli settlement of Neve Tsof, north of Ramallah, on Friday. Israeli planes evacuated the injured to hospital. Israeli medical sources reported that one was in serious condition, and the other two sustained moderate injuries. The Israeli army are carrying out an extensive search for the armed Palestinians who fled the scene. Later on Friday afternoon, the Al-Aqsa Brigades, the military wing affiliated to the Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the shooting. In a written statement, the brigades said that one of their groups ambushed a group of Israeli settlers near the illegal Israeli settlement of Neve Tsof and opened fire on them. *** updated at 18:15 Bethlehem time more.. e-mail
Two hours before the truce: One Palestinian killed two injured as the army attacked Gaza
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
The Israeli army conducted several air attacks targeting different areas in the Gaza Strip on Thursday at dawn, one killed and two injured local sources reported. Witnesses said that a Palestinian resistance fighter was killed and two others injured when Israeli F16 jet fighters shelled areas in the central part of the Gaza Strip. On Wednesday night six Palestinians were injured when Israeli jet fighters attacked a group of resistance men gathered in Gaza City. The dawn attack came only two hours before the truce deal between Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip since June 2007, and Israel took effect. Israel has announced late on Tuesday that it accepted the truce deal with Hamas that was mediated by Egypt. The Egyptian-mediated ceasefire stipulates that Hamas, which controls Gaza since June 2007, will halt the fire of homemade shells into Israeli territory, in exchange for. . . more.. e-mail
Two hours before the truce: One Palestinian killed two injured as the army attacked Gaza
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
The Israeli army conducted several air attacks targeting different areas in the Gaza Strip on Thursday at dawn, one killed and two injured local sources reported. Witnesses said that a Palestinian resistance fighter was killed and two others injured when Israeli F16 jet fighters shelled areas in the central part of the Gaza Strip. On Wednesday night six Palestinians were injured when Israeli jet fighters attacked a group of resistance men gathered in Gaza City. The dawn attack came only two hours before the truce deal between Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip since June 2007, and Israel took effect. Israel has announced late on Tuesday that it accepted the truce deal with Hamas that was mediated by Egypt. The Egyptian-mediated ceasefire stipulates that Hamas, which controls Gaza since June 2007, will halt the fire of homemade shells into Israeli territory, in exchange for. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli settler runs over elderly Palestinian citizen in Qalqilya
Palestinian Information Center 6/20/2008
NABLUS, (PIC)-- An Israeli settler driving a car deliberately ran over a Palestinian citizen called Abdellatif Barham, 70, on the main street between Qalqilya and Nablus, near the Israeli Kafr Qaddum settlement, on Thursday morning. Palestinian eyewitnesses reported that the citizen was taken to a hospital, noting that this was not the first time in which Israeli settlers ran over Palestinian citizens on the same street. Meanwhile, a number of Israeli settlers blocked in the morning the main road near the Hawara checkpoint, south of Nablus in the West Bank and threw stones at Palestinian cars which caused heavy traffic congestion and some confrontations. The Hebrew radio also reported that an Israeli officer was injured during raids carried out at dawn Thursday to the east of Nablus. Palestinian local sources said that a large number of IOF troops boarding military armored. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli settler runs over elderly Palestinian citizen in Qalqilya
Palestinian Information Center 6/20/2008
NABLUS, (PIC)-- An Israeli settler driving a car deliberately ran over a Palestinian citizen called Abdellatif Barham, 70, on the main street between Qalqilya and Nablus, near the Israeli Kafr Qaddum settlement, on Thursday morning. Palestinian eyewitnesses reported that the citizen was taken to a hospital, noting that this was not the first time in which Israeli settlers ran over Palestinian citizens on the same street. Meanwhile, a number of Israeli settlers blocked in the morning the main road near the Hawara checkpoint, south of Nablus in the West Bank and threw stones at Palestinian cars which caused heavy traffic congestion and some confrontations. The Hebrew radio also reported that an Israeli officer was injured during raids carried out at dawn Thursday to the east of Nablus. Palestinian local sources said that a large number of IOF troops boarding military armored. . . more.. e-mail
Settlers set olive trees owned by Palestinian farmers on fire near Nablus
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
A group of settlers from the settlement of Yitsahar located near Bureen village south of Nablus city in the northern part of the West Bank set fire to Palestinian owned olive trees on Thursday. Farmers said that the attack caused them heavy financial losses; they added that settlers also prevented firefighters from reaching the area which increased the damage. [end]
Settlers set olive trees owned by Palestinian farmers on fire near Nablus
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
A group of settlers from the settlement of Yitsahar located near Bureen village south of Nablus city in the northern part of the West Bank set fire to Palestinian owned olive trees on Thursday. Farmers said that the attack caused them heavy financial losses; they added that settlers also prevented firefighters from reaching the area which increased the damage. [end]
Four police officers injured in clashes with West Bank settlers
Nadav Shragai, Ha’aretz 6/20/2008
Four Border Police officers were wounded on Thursday in clashes with settlers, which erupted when security forces came to two illegal outposts near the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar in order to post evacuation orders and to demolish one caravan. Settlers said that 11 of the Yitzhar residents were also wounded, and that one lost consciousness. Several settlers were reportedly arrested after they locked police officers inside Yitzhar following the demolition of a caravan at the nearby illegal outpost of Havat Shaked. In addition to closing the settlement’s gate, the Yitzhar residents also punctured the wheels of the police officers’ cars in order to prevent their exit. A Border Police officer taking part in the operation refused orders to assist in the demolition of the caravan, and was arrested by his fellow officers. more.. e-mail
Four police officers injured in clashes with West Bank settlers
Nadav Shragai, Ha’aretz 6/20/2008
Four Border Police officers were wounded on Thursday in clashes with settlers, which erupted when security forces came to two illegal outposts near the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar in order to post evacuation orders and to demolish one caravan. Settlers said that 11 of the Yitzhar residents were also wounded, and that one lost consciousness. Several settlers were reportedly arrested after they locked police officers inside Yitzhar following the demolition of a caravan at the nearby illegal outpost of Havat Shaked. In addition to closing the settlement’s gate, the Yitzhar residents also punctured the wheels of the police officers’ cars in order to prevent their exit. A Border Police officer taking part in the operation refused orders to assist in the demolition of the caravan, and was arrested by his fellow officers. more.. e-mail
Troops attack Qalqilia, five civilians kidnapped three homes demolished
Laila Ewaiwi & Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
The Israeli army started a military operation targeting the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia on Thursday; so far the army destroyed three homes and kidnapped five civilians. Palestinian sources said that Israeli forces invaded the city on Thursday morning then surrounded the house of Akkel Hassanin, and then kidnapped four of his sons before demolishing his home and another nearby empty house. A fifth man, while walking in the street, was kidnapped along with the four brothers, witnesses said. Hassanin has a son who was a resistance fighter and was killed by the army several years ago. Local source in the city added that the military is still operating in the city. [end]
Troops attack Qalqilia, five civilians kidnapped three homes demolished
Laila Ewaiwi & Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
The Israeli army started a military operation targeting the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia on Thursday; so far the army destroyed three homes and kidnapped five civilians. Palestinian sources said that Israeli forces invaded the city on Thursday morning then surrounded the house of Akkel Hassanin, and then kidnapped four of his sons before demolishing his home and another nearby empty house. A fifth man, while walking in the street, was kidnapped along with the four brothers, witnesses said. Hassanin has a son who was a resistance fighter and was killed by the army several years ago. Local source in the city added that the military is still operating in the city. [end]
Such is the meaning of a period of calm for Israeli forces in Gaza
Palestine News Network 6/19/2008
Gaza / PNN -- In a deliberate provocation Israeli forces killed one Palestinian and injured two others in the Gaza Strip Thursday morning, just moments before the beginning of the period of "calm. " Local sources and eyewitnesses report Israeli warplanes attacking the central Strip pre-dawn, targeting Al Bureij Refugee Camp. Rami Abu Sawyerh of the Hamas-linked armed resistance group Al Qassam Brigades was hit by shrapnel and killed. He lived in Nusseirat Refugee Camp. This occurred at approximately 4:00 am. The "calm" was slated to begin at dawn. The sun rises between 5:00 and 5:30 am. Local sources also reported that Israeli forces targeted a "point of union" for the Al Qassam Brigades, an area where they often met. In the air attack Israeli forces injured two other members of the armed resistance. more.. e-mail
Such is the meaning of a period of calm for Israeli forces in Gaza
Palestine News Network 6/19/2008
Gaza / PNN -- In a deliberate provocation Israeli forces killed one Palestinian and injured two others in the Gaza Strip Thursday morning, just moments before the beginning of the period of "calm. " Local sources and eyewitnesses report Israeli warplanes attacking the central Strip pre-dawn, targeting Al Bureij Refugee Camp. Rami Abu Sawyerh of the Hamas-linked armed resistance group Al Qassam Brigades was hit by shrapnel and killed. He lived in Nusseirat Refugee Camp. This occurred at approximately 4:00 am. The "calm" was slated to begin at dawn. The sun rises between 5:00 and 5:30 am. Local sources also reported that Israeli forces targeted a "point of union" for the Al Qassam Brigades, an area where they often met. In the air attack Israeli forces injured two other members of the armed resistance. more.. e-mail
IOF troops kill Palestinian fighter in Gaza one hour before calm starts
Palestinian Information Center 6/19/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The IOF troops killed at dawn Thursday a Palestinian fighter affiliated with the Army of Islam and wounded two others when they shelled, just an hour and a half before the truce went into effect, a group of fighters east of the Bureij refugee camp, central Gaza Strip. Palestinian local sources told the PIC reporter the Israeli shelling led to the death of fighter Rami Abu Swureih and wounded two others affiliated with the Army of Islam who were transferred later to the Aqsa Martyrs hospital. In the West Bank, Palestinian eyewitnesses in the Hawara town, south of Nablus, reported that about 200 Zionist settlers from the Yitzhar settlement outpost set fire to three dunums of agricultural lands and other property. They also threw a volley of stones and rocks at one of the houses in the town. According to the eyewitnesses, the settlers’ rampage caused serious material damage to a house belonging to Attallah Tako family in the town. more.. e-mail
IOF troops kill Palestinian fighter in Gaza one hour before calm starts
Palestinian Information Center 6/19/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The IOF troops killed at dawn Thursday a Palestinian fighter affiliated with the Army of Islam and wounded two others when they shelled, just an hour and a half before the truce went into effect, a group of fighters east of the Bureij refugee camp, central Gaza Strip. Palestinian local sources told the PIC reporter the Israeli shelling led to the death of fighter Rami Abu Swureih and wounded two others affiliated with the Army of Islam who were transferred later to the Aqsa Martyrs hospital. In the West Bank, Palestinian eyewitnesses in the Hawara town, south of Nablus, reported that about 200 Zionist settlers from the Yitzhar settlement outpost set fire to three dunums of agricultural lands and other property. They also threw a volley of stones and rocks at one of the houses in the town. According to the eyewitnesses, the settlers’ rampage caused serious material damage to a house belonging to Attallah Tako family in the town. more.. e-mail
Two Palestinians wounded in an IOF air strike on Gaza; resistance retaliates
Palestinian Information Center 6/19/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- At least two Palestinian citizens were wounded on Wednesday in an Israeli air strike on northern Gaza Strip in spite of the tremendous efforts exerted by the Egyptian government to reach a "temporary" calm between the Israelis and the Palestinians. One of the wounded Palestinians was a member of the Popular Resistance Committees, one of the Palestinian resistance factions in occupied PalestineThe PRC’s military wing retaliated to the IOF air strike by firing two locally-made rockets on the Israeli settlement of Nahal Oz settlement. The Israeli occupation government acknowledged that at least one Israeli settler was wounded in the Palestinian reprisal. For its part, the Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad announced it launched 18 of its home-made "Quds" rockets on the cities of Ashkilon and the Israeli settlement of Sderut The Israeli occupation. . . more.. e-mail
Two Palestinians wounded in an IOF air strike on Gaza; resistance retaliates
Palestinian Information Center 6/19/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- At least two Palestinian citizens were wounded on Wednesday in an Israeli air strike on northern Gaza Strip in spite of the tremendous efforts exerted by the Egyptian government to reach a "temporary" calm between the Israelis and the Palestinians. One of the wounded Palestinians was a member of the Popular Resistance Committees, one of the Palestinian resistance factions in occupied PalestineThe PRC’s military wing retaliated to the IOF air strike by firing two locally-made rockets on the Israeli settlement of Nahal Oz settlement. The Israeli occupation government acknowledged that at least one Israeli settler was wounded in the Palestinian reprisal. For its part, the Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad announced it launched 18 of its home-made "Quds" rockets on the cities of Ashkilon and the Israeli settlement of Sderut The Israeli occupation. . . more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 061908
Ghassan Bannoura - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB ||Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Thursday June 19th, 2008. The Israeli army kills two Palestinians in Gaza, and kidnaps five civilians from the West Bank, these stories and more coming up stay tuned. News Cast The Israeli army conducted several air attacks targeting different areas in the Gaza Strip on Thursday at dawn, one killed and two injured local sources reported. Witnesses said that a Palestinian resistance fighter was killed and two others injured when Israeli F16 jet fighters shelled areas in the central part of the Gaza Strip. On Wednesday night six Palestinians were injured when Israeli jet fighters attacked a group of resistance men gathered in Gaza City. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 061908
Ghassan Bannoura - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/19/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB ||Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Thursday June 19th, 2008. The Israeli army kills two Palestinians in Gaza, and kidnaps five civilians from the West Bank, these stories and more coming up stay tuned. News Cast The Israeli army conducted several air attacks targeting different areas in the Gaza Strip on Thursday at dawn, one killed and two injured local sources reported. Witnesses said that a Palestinian resistance fighter was killed and two others injured when Israeli F16 jet fighters shelled areas in the central part of the Gaza Strip. On Wednesday night six Palestinians were injured when Israeli jet fighters attacked a group of resistance men gathered in Gaza City. more.. e-mail
VIDEO: Hamas TV shows how to abduct an Israeli soldier
Palestine Media Watch, Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/19/2008
A Hamas video broadcast on the militant group’s Al-Aqsa television station includes a simulated abduction of an Israel Defense Forces soldier. The video, which was released online by Palestinian Media Watch, shows the explosion of a mock IDF tank, after which Hamas fighters practice snatching a soldier from inside the tank and escape. Last month, Al-Aqsa TV aired a documentary that claimed that the "satanic Jews" planned and perpetrated the Holocaust in order to rid themselves of the "burden" of the weak and disabled. The accompanying commentary claims David Ben Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel, said that "the disabled and handicapped are a heavy burden on the state. "That movie also claimes that the "Jews thought up an evil plot to be rid of the burden of the disabled and handicapped in twisted criminal ways. more.. e-mail
VIDEO: Hamas TV shows how to abduct an Israeli soldier
Palestine Media Watch, Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/19/2008
A Hamas video broadcast on the militant group’s Al-Aqsa television station includes a simulated abduction of an Israel Defense Forces soldier. The video, which was released online by Palestinian Media Watch, shows the explosion of a mock IDF tank, after which Hamas fighters practice snatching a soldier from inside the tank and escape. Last month, Al-Aqsa TV aired a documentary that claimed that the "satanic Jews" planned and perpetrated the Holocaust in order to rid themselves of the "burden" of the weak and disabled. The accompanying commentary claims David Ben Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel, said that "the disabled and handicapped are a heavy burden on the state. "That movie also claimes that the "Jews thought up an evil plot to be rid of the burden of the disabled and handicapped in twisted criminal ways. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers attack Palestinians, burn agricultural lands in Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/18/2008
Nablus - Ma’an - Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian civilians and burnt three dunums of agricultural lands near the Israeli settlement of Yatsahar south of Nablus. Eyewitnesses said that around 200 settlers attacked civilians, destroying property and setting fire to agricultural lands. They also threw stones at houses causing a large amount of damage to the house owned by ’Atallah Taqo, a resident of Huwwara. The settlers disrupted the movement of pedestrians, erecting checkpoints. They also attacked Arab cars passing through the area. [end]
Rocket barrages day before truce: Sderot house hit; IDF retaliates
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 6/18/2008
At least 29 Qassam rockets land in western Negev less than 24 hours before ceasefire agreement between Israel, Hamas goes into effect. House in Sderot directly hit, residents suffer shock. IDF retaliates by striking rocket-launching cells, injuring 3 gunmen - Despite the formal announcements from Jerusalem, Gaza and Cairo announcing the ceasefire agreement will go into effect at 6:00 am on Thursday, it was the routine of incessant attacks Israel’s South awoke to on Wednesday. In the most recent attack a house in Sderot was hit directly, and ten residents suffered from shock. A woman lightly injured her leg while running for cover. The Air Force (IAF) attacked two different rocket-launching cells in the northern Gaza Strip, which Palestinian sources said were responsible for the rocket barrage. The IDF stated that in both cases hits were identified. more.. e-mail
IOA demolishes 3 Palestinian homes in Jerusalem
Palestinian Information Center 6/18/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- Bulldozes of the Israeli-controlled municipality of occupied Jerusalem on Tuesday razed to the ground three Palestinian homes in Beit Hanina and Wadi Kaddoum at the pretext of lack of permit. The Israeli occupation authority sanctioned the demolition of the home of Ihab Al-Tawil north of Beit Hanina north of occupied Jerusalem for the second time. The 50-square-meter house provided shelter for Tawil’s family that comprised five children the eldest being only nine years old and the youngest five months old. Israeli security escorting the municipal team forcibly evacuated the house and kept the family members 100 meters away before starting the demolition that damaged the electricity wires and water network. Tawil, who reported the incident, said that he was surprised at the presence of the municipal team and security men without prior notice. more.. e-mail
The Israeli army kidnaps 8 Palestinian civilians from the West Bank
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/18/2008
Israeli sources said that the Israeli army has kidnapped 8 Palestinian civilians during pre dawn invasions targeting West Bank cities and towns on Wednesday. The sources said that all those kidnapped have political affiliations with Palestinian political factions. Meanwhile Palestinian sources said that those kidnapped are civilians, the sources added that the kidnappings took place in the northern West Bank city of Hebron, and in the central West Bank city of Ramallah, in addition to Nablus and Jenin in the northern part of the West Bank. The army said that those kidnapped were taken to detention camps for questioning and gave no further details. [end]
Israeli forces storm house in Hebron
Ma’an News Agency 6/18/2008
Hebron - Ma’an - Israeli force stormed the house of Diab Shaker Al-Qudsi located in As-Salam street in Hebron on Wednesday afternoon. Al-Qudsi told Ma’an that an Israeli force entered his home and detained fifteen men in one room and twenty women and children in another room. According to the house owner, soldiers destroyed furniture in the seven apartments in the building and took photographs of all family members before leaving. [end]
Army of Islam leader killed in Gaza
and AP, By Avi Issacharoff and Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/19/2008
At least seven Palestinians were killed yesterday in three Israel Air Force strikes in the Gaza Strip that seemed to target the radical Army of Islam organization. Six militants were killed when the IAF attacked a blue Subaru in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Yunis. The strike destroyed the car and the Palestinian Health Ministry said all of its occupants were killed. Among the dead was Muataz Durmush, the second in command of Army of Islam, an organization that was involved in the 2006 kidnapping of Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit. The other casualties were also apparently members of the group. Muataz’ half-brother Mumtaz is considered the commander of the Army of Islam. Another militant was killed in an attack on the central Gaza town of Deir el-Balah. The dead man was also identified as a member of the Army of Islam. more.. e-mail
Negev battered by dozens of Qassams, mortars as Gaza truce deadline nears
Mijal Grinberg, Ha’aretz 6/19/2008
Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired some 40 Qassam rockets and 10 mortar shells at the western Negev over the course of Wednesday, just hours after Israel and Hamas agreed to a temporary cease-fire deal. Tensions remained high a day before the truce was to go into effect, with an especially high one-day total of fire from Gaza. No serious injurieswere reported. One of the Qassams scored a direct hit on a house in the western Negev town on Sderot and several people were treated for shock. Most of the rockets struck open fields in the western Negev, and one caused light damage to a nearby greenhouse. Palestinian militants also opened fire on Israel Defense Forces troops operating near the Gaza-Israel border fence, but none were wounded. more.. e-mail
VIDEO - News / Hours before truce takes effect, Israel-Gaza violence continues
Haaretz Staff and Channel 10, Ha’aretz 6/19/2008
Haaretz. com/Channel 10 news roundup for June 18, 2008. In this edition:Hours before a cease-fire takes effect, violence between Israel and Gaza Strip militants continues. The families of abducted Israel Defense Forces soldiers are briefed on a deal that would see them released. Attorney General Menahem Mazuz has harsh words for Vice Premier Haim Ramon. [end]
Palestinians Killed in Gaza Raids
Al Jazeera English, MIFTAH 6/18/2008
Six Palestinians have been killed in three Israeli air strikes targeting the Gaza Strip, according to medics and witnesses. Five people were killed and several others were wounded on Tuesday in one air raid near Qarara village east of the southern town of Khan Yunis, Muawiya Hassanein, the head of Gaza emergency services, said. " The number of dead has risen to five and a number of civilians have been wounded in an Israeli air strike that targeted a civilian car in the Qarara area," he said. The Israeli army confirmed carrying out air raids, saying that one attack - carried out in southern Gaza - destroyed a blue Subaru. Islamic Jihad said all the five victims were its members. Another two Israeli air attacks in the nearby town of Deir al-Balah killed a sixth person and wounded five people, local Palestinian hospital officials said. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 061808
Ghassan Bannoura - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/18/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB ||Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Wednesday June 18th, 2008. As Israel and Hamas agrees on truce deal in Gaza the Israeli army kidnaps 8 civilians from the West Bank, these stories and more coming up stay tuned. The News Cast The Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad of the care taker government welcomed on Wednesday the truce deal between Hamas, which controls Gaza, and Israel. Fayyad made his comments during a speech in the opening of the Development of Small Projects conference being held today in the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem. Israel has announced late on Tuesday that it accepted the truce deal with Hamas that was mediated by Egypt. Fayyad welcomed the truce and said that it will relieve the residents of Gaza that have been living under the Israeli siege since June 2007. more.. e-mail
Palestinian armed groups in Gaza launch barrage of projectiles at Israeli towns
Ma’an News Agency 6/18/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, claimed responsibility for launching nine homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of Sderot, which borders the northern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday night. Later on Wednesday morning, the Al-Quds Brigades claimed responsibility for launching four more projectiles at Sderot and the Negev desert. The group said that the barrage of homemade rockets was a response to Israeli military attacks on Palestinian. Israeli fire killed ten Palestinians in Gaza on Monday and Tuesday. Also on Monday night the Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) claimed responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at Sderot and Kfar ’Azza, both Israeli towns that border the Gaza Strip. Both attacks came after news leaked that Israel and Hamas, the governing party in Gaza, had agreed to a truce. more.. e-mail
Before calm begins Israeli forces and armed resistance take their last shots
Palestine News Network 6/18/2008
Gaza / PNN -- On the fourth day of consistent air attacks on the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces injured two Palestinians. They were in Jabaliya, northeast of Gaza City. The period of "calm" is just hours away, slated to begin at dawn Thursday, yet the armed resistance has not stopped, nor have Israeli forces. The Israeli military threatened this afternoon to conduct a major attack on Gaza between now and tomorrow morning. Saraya Al Quds of Islamic Jihad claims to have 12 launched projectiles at Israeli military targets and towns, while Al Qassam says it launched 17. Over the past three days Israeli forces killed nearly 20 Palestinians in the Strip, including a four-month of girl, and injured about a dozen people. Eyewitnesses confirmed that the two Palestinians injured were members of the Al Qassam Brigades, the armed resistance wing of Hamas, and that the Israeli air strike targeted a group of fighters. more.. e-mail
Hours before ceasefire starts 6 injured in Israeli airstrikes; projectiles target Sderot and Ashkelon
Ma’an News Agency 6/18/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - Six Palestinians were injured, including four resistance fighters, on Wednesday evening in a series of Israeli airstrikes on different areas of the northern Gaza Strip. Head of ambulance and emergency services in the Palestinian Health Ministry Mu’awiyya Hassanein said that six Palestinians, including four resistance fighters, were hit in three different Israeli air strikes on Qleibo, Ash-Sheikh Zayed and As-Sudaniyyeh areas of the northern Gaza Strip. He said two of the injured are in a serious condition. Islamic Jihad’s military wing, the Al-Quds Brigades announced that three activists were injured in Qleibo north west of Jabalia. They also claimed they shelled an Israeli kibbutz in the western Negev with dozens of projectiles, just hours before the ceasefire between the Palestinian resistance factions and Israel is due to start. more.. e-mail
Projectile salvos continue, PFLP and Islamic Jihad say
Ma’an News Agency 6/18/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – The Abu Ali Mustafa brigades the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), claimed responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at Israeli targets in the Western Negev desert on Wednesday afternoon. Also on Wednesday afternoon, the Al-Quds Brigades the military wing of Islamic Jihad, claimed responsibility for launching eight homemade projectiles at Sderot, east of Gaza, and Ashkelon, north of Gaza on Wednesday afternoon. The brigades confirmed that these projectiles came in retaliation for ’ongoing Israeli atrocities’ against Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. [end]
Al-Aqsa brigades claim launched two projectiles at Ashkelon and Zikim military base
Ma’an News Agency 6/18/2008
Gaza- Ma’an- Al-Aqsa brigades the military wing of Fatah claimed responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at Ashkelon city and the Israeli military base of Zikim on Wednesday evening. The brigades said that this came in retaliation for ongoing Israeli atrocities. [end]
Six killed as Israeli warplanes strike Gaza Strip
Ma’an News Agency 6/17/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – Six Palestinians were killed in three Israeli air strikes on civilian cars in the southern and central Gaza Strip on Tuesday afternoon. Witnesses said the first attack targeted a jeep near the town of Al-Qarara, north of the city of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, killing five and injuring others. The director of the ambulance and emergency department in the Palestinian Health Ministry, Mu’awiyya Hassanein, said the bodies arrived in "charred pieces" at the hospital. Meanwhile, a second air strike targeted another jeep near the Mediterranean coast in Deir Al-Balah governorate in the central Gaza Strip, killing one and injuring another. The third attack targeted a Hyundai on Al-Baraka street in the city of Deir Al-Balah, less than half an hour after the other attacks. Medical sources confirmed that three people were wounded in the raid, one of them seriously. more.. e-mail
’Three Dead’ in Fresh Gaza Clash
BBC News, MIFTAH 6/17/2008
The Israeli military says it has killed three Palestinian militants in fighting in the southern Gaza Strip, near the town of Khan Younis. Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad said three fighters were missing and another three were injured. They had been on a mission to plant explosives along the border fence with Israel, the group says. Militants frequently target the border fence, part of the Israeli defences used to impose its closure on Gaza. Egypt has been trying to broker a truce to calm the situation between Israel and Gaza which is controlled by the militant Hamas organisation. Palestinian medical officials were unable to confirm the fate of the three Islamic Jihad men, as their bodies lay in an area closed off by the Israeli military. Monday’s clashes included an Israeli air strike in which three Hamas members were injured, one critically, Hamas said. Last week Israel’s cabinet said they would give the Egyptian mediation a chance to succeed but would also instruct the military to prepare for a large-scale invasion. more.. e-mail
Gaza: IDF kills operatives from group involved in Shalit kidnapping
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 6/17/2008
Palestinians report six people killed, several others injured in three IAF strikes near Khan Younis; five of those killed reportedly operatives from Army of Islam, which was behind kidnapping of IDF soldiers, BBC journalist Alan Johnston. Three Qassams fired at Negev; no injuries -Palestinian sources reported Tuesday the IAF struck Gaza Strip three times, killing six people and injuring several others. The first strike on a car travelling near the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis killed five Palestinian militants and wounded three others, threatening to upset truce talks between Israel and Gaza’sHamas rulers. The IAF confirmed attacking a terror cell and hitting its target. Turce? Senior IDF officer warns lull will be temporary, fragile / Attila Somfalvi IDF chief briefs Knesset’s Foreign Affairs, Defense Committee on pending ceasefire. . . more.. e-mail
7 Qassams fired toward Negev region
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/17/2008
Rocket fire on Sderot, nearby areas comes just hours after IDF strikes kill six Palestinians in Gaza; child lightly hurt while running for cover -Seven Qassams were fired by Palestinians in northern Gaza Tuesday evening toward Sderot and the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council area. During the latest Qassam barrage at around 9 pm, one rocket landed near Sapir College while another one landed near Sderot. A child who was rushing to take cover was reportedly lightly bruised. Qassam landing site in Negev (Photo: Ze’ev Trachtman) At approximately 6:55 pm the "Color Red" warning system in Sderot sounded twice. A number of rockets landed in open areas outside the city and within Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council limits. Earlier in the day a mortar fired from north Gaza landed near a western Negev kibbutz. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces kill 7 Palestinians and injure several more in separate attacks on the Gaza Strip
Palestine News Network 6/17/2008
Gaza / PNN - Palestinian medical sources in Gaza reported on Tuesday afternoon that five citizens were killed and at least five others injured in separate Israeli air attacks on the southern and central Gaza Strip. The sources stated that five Palestinians were killed at the same time in an Israeli bombing that targeted a civilian car east of the southern Gaza Strip’s city of Khan Younis. However as the day wore on, the death toll had become seven by evening. Director of Emergency and Ambulance in the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Dr. Muawiyah Hassanein, said this afternoon, "The five martyrs are difficult to identify as their remains are not in tact. "Dr. Hassanein continued, "They have been transferred to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis after an Israeli shelling which targeted a civilian car in Khan Younis. more.. e-mail
VIDEO - Israeli air strike kills five in Gaza
The Guardian 6/17/2008
Strike on car carrying alleged militants comes amid reports that Israel and Hamas have agreed truce - Israel and Hamas agree Gaza truce, Egypt claims - Two sides agree on first phase of package to end violence in Gaza Strip, senior official tells news agency. more.. e-mail
IOF troops kidnap entire family in Nablus
Palestinian Information Center 6/17/2008
NABLUS, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces on Tuesday advanced into the West Bank city of Nablus and stormed a number of suburbs before kidnapping the family of Dhawia in the Old City. Local sources said that the IOF soldiers entered the city before dawn in a white bus loaded with special forces, and added that sounds of explosions and shootings were heard during the incursion. They said that the soldiers encircled a number of buildings for a few hours before arresting Ziyad Al-Dhawia, his wife Maysun and his brothers Ayman and Emad and wreaked havoc in his home before leaving. A fifth 22-year-old youth was taken from his family’s home in the city, the sources said, noting that the soldiers destroyed the furniture in the apartments stormed in another residential building. The IOF troops also broke into the Nablus villages of Beit Furik and Assira and kidnapped two young men from the latter including the son of Hamas MP Anas Al-Bourini. more.. e-mail
Israeli troops invade Nablus, seizing seven Palestinians
Ma’an News Agency 6/17/2008
Nablus - Ma’an – Israeli forces haveseized seven civilians during an overnight raid in the West Bank city of Nablus and surrounding villages. Palestinian security sources said Israeli troops entered Nablus at one on Tuesday morning. Israeli special forces were deployed heavily in Nablus’ old city. The sources said that that Israeli forces ’exploded bombs’ inside civilian houses. Among others, the Ad-Dardouk building, in the Ras Al-Ein area, was damaged. Also in the old city, Israeli troops detained 23-year-old Maysoon Qadoumi, her 26-year-old husband Ziyad Dawaya, and his 28-year-old and 30-year-old brothers Aiman and Imad. In the village of Asira Ash-Shamilia, north of Nablus, Israeli troops seized 20-year-old Mohammad Anas Hussni Al-Burini and 22-year-old Ihab ’Awwad Ash-Shuli. In the Al-Juneid area, west of the city, Israeli soldiers seized 24-year-old Sami Mustafa Abu Baker. more.. e-mail
Israeli military kidnaps three Palestinians from Hebron, three from Jenin
IMEMC Staff, International Middle East Media Center News 6/17/2008
Israeli military invaded several West Bank cities in the early hours of Tuesday morning and kidnapped allegedly wanted Palestinians. The Israeli Army kidnapped three Palestinians from the southern West Bank city of Hebron as they broke into the area early on Tuesday morning. Troops attacked civilians’ homes, searched them and confiscated properties before the kidnapping of Faysal Mahfouz,22 Maher al-Qawasmeh,24 and Nader Abu Mayyala,28. Elsewhere, the military invaded the northern part of the West Bank and kidnapped another three Palestinians from Jenin city after searching their homes. Palestinian sources reported that at least 15 military vehicles invaded the city and the nearby refugee camps on Tuesday at dawn and kidnapped Ramzy Abu Ghali,32, Wassim Abu Ghali,31 and Aman Hardan,25. The Army moved the abducted Palestinians to an undisclosed detention center. more.. e-mail
The Israeli army kidnaps 14 Palestinians from different parts of the West Bank
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/17/2008
The Israeli army conducted several parts of the West Bank and kidnapped 14 Palestinian civilians on Tuesday at dawn. Palestinian sources said that seven of those kidnapped among them one woman were kidnapped during an Israeli attack targeting the West Bank city of Nablus and near by villages. In addition the sources said that Israeli troops attacked a building in central Nablus city and left some damage there. Israeli army sources said that all those kidnapped were on what the army calls "Wanted List", meanwhile Palestinian sources confirmed that the kidnapped are all civilians. [end]
One injured, one detained as Israeli forces invade two towns near Tulkarem
Ma’an News Agency 6/17/2008
Tulkarem - Ma’an – A Palestinian boy was injured by Israeli fire on Monday evening when Israeli forces stormed the town of Anabta east of the northern West Bank town of Tulkarem. Witnesses said four military jeeps stormed the town. Stone-throwing Palestinians confronted the troops. Israeli soldiers fired on the demonstrators, injuring 16-year-old Majdi Nu’aman Melhem. Melhem was treated at Thabet Thabet hospital in Tulkarem. On Tuesday morning Israeli forces stormed the town of Seida, north of Tulkarem and seized 27-year-old Mahmoud Saleh Abdalah Al-Ashqar. [end]
Civil Administration officials indicted in West Bank land steal
Akiva Eldar, Ha’aretz 6/18/2008
Two senior officials in the Civil Administration allegedly illegally collaborated with Jewish land dealers to take over land in the West Bank, according to an indictment issued Tuesday in the Jerusalem District Court. Lieutenant Colonel Yair Blumenthal and Major Ehud Brosh have been charged with taking bribes and favors from the dealers, brothers Yosef and Yaakov Amram. Blumenthal, who headed of the Civil Administration’s infrastructure department, is charged with helping the brothers further fraudulent business deals by providing them with internal documents and equipment belonging to the Civil Administration in exchange for over $40,000. Brosh, who was head of the lands department in the unit providing legal counsel to the Israel Defense Forces’ Judea and Samaria division, stands accused of taking bribes in the form of vacations. . . more.. e-mail
Extremist settlers occupy two Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem
Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/17/2008
The Popular (Folk) Committees issued a press release on Tuesday slamming an extremist Israeli settler group for attacking and illegally occupying two Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem. The settlers are members of an extremist group which calls itself Yeshiva Haim Ha’olam. The group claims that its members owned the two houses, which are located close to the Al Aqsa Mosque, since 1948. Secretary-general of the Committee, Azmi Shiokhy, stated that the tow homes belong to the families of Castero and Al Hasheem, and added that both families headed to Palestinian legislator, the advisor of president Mahmoud Abbas for Jerusalem Affairs, Hatim Abdul-Qader, who in turn handed their file to lawyer Mohammad Dahla and requested him to file an urgent appeal to the Israeli court. Abdul-Qader stated that the recent attack and the ongoing Israeli violations against the Palestinians in Jerusalem. . . more.. e-mail
Demolishing notices handed to two families of Jerusalem
Mays Abu Ghazala, International Middle East Media Center News 6/17/2008
Two Palestinian families from Jerusalem received on Tuesday demolishing notes from the Israeli high Court of justice. The note that was submitted to the al-Qastero and al-Hashim families ordered them to leave their homes that are located in the old city of Jerusalem within 14 days. The court order was based on a petition submitted by Yishva Hiyim Oaleem, an Israeli settler’s organization, on claims that the two families’ homes are owned by the organization prier 1984. The families informed the Palestinian Prime Minister Advisor for Jerusalem affairs Hatem abed al-Qader who for his part assigned a lawyer to issue an urgent court rolling against the evacuation order. The families said that they lived in their homes before 1976. Abed al-Qader reported that by these demolishing notices are considered as a new escalation against the civilians of the Jerusalem old city. more.. e-mail
Right-wing activist pours boiling water on Meretz MKs in Hebron
Nadav Shragai and Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/18/2008
A right-wing activist on Tuesday poured boiling water on MKs belonging to the left-wing Meretz party during a tour of the West Bank city of Hebron. The incident occurred while Hebron setters clashed with the MKs and other members of a tour led by "Breaking The Silence," an organization of demobilized Israel Defense Forces soldiers who document alleged harassment of Palestinians in the territories. Hebron’s settlers, however, denied any connection to the violence. "Members of the settlement and their guests did not curse or pour a cup of tea [on the tour]," said Noam Arnon, the spokesman for the West Bank town’s settlers. According to the tour’s guides, settlers encircled the group, called them "traitors," and poured boiling water on the group. A police officer and a Spanish journalist were wounded in the incident. more.. e-mail
News in Brief II
Ha’aretz 6/18/2008
An Israel Defense Forces boot camp located near the Gaza Strip will be relocated elsewhere following a Qassam rocket strike that wounded 70 new conscripts at the compound last September. The Zikim base, where soldiers who will take on non-combatant positions are given basic military training, will be manned with combat soldiers. "Zikim will continue to be manned by units, commanders and soldiers in full capacity and we have no intention of leaving the base," the IDF Spokesperson said. New recruits bound for non-combatant positions that would have been sent to Zikim will instead be trained at bases closer to where they will serve. (Yuval Azoulay) The Knesset passed the first reading of a bill that would make offering bribes to a civil servant of a foreign government or an international organization a criminal offense, punishable by a maximum jail term of three and a half years. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 061708
Ghassan Bannoura - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/17/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB ||Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Tuesday June 17th, 2008. The Israeli army kills five Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and kidnaps 14 others in the West Bank, these stories and more coming up stay tuned. The News Cast Palestinian sources said that the Israeli army conducted two air raids targeting the southern part of the Gaza strip on Tuesday, midday. Five were killed and two injured. In the first attack Israeli jet fighters attacked a car east of Khan Younis city, five were killed; reports said that those five are activists of Islamic Jihad. Meanwhile another Israeli air attack targeted the town of Dier Al Balah. Medical sources said that two Palestinian civilians were injured, one critically. more.. e-mail
Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades claim projectile attack
Ma’an News Agency 6/17/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) claimed responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at Ashkelon and the western Negev desert. The group said the attack was a message to Israel that Palestinians would resist any incursion in the Gaza Strip. [end]
Israeli Arab jailed for 17 years for driving suicide bomber
Jack Khoury, Ha’aretz 6/17/2008
The Haifa District Court on Tuesday sentenced Israeli Arab Fahri Manzur to 17 years jail time for driving a Palestinian terrorist to Hadera in 2005, where he perpetrated a suicide bombing. Six people were killed and dozens were wounded in the attack. Manzur, a 29-year-old resident of the northern village of Jatt, was earlier convicted of aiding the enemy in wartime and aiding murder. The Jatt resident was arrested following a joint investigation by the Shin Bet Security service and police. His indictment stated that in October 2005 Hassan Abu Zeid, the suicide bomber, left the West Bank for Israel in possession of a bag containing explosives. Zeid subsequently met Manzur and another man in Israel, at which point Manzur drove him to the market in downtown Hadera, where the bomber subsequently blew himself up in front of a felafel stand. more.. e-mail
The new sheriffs
Avirama Golan, Ha’aretz 6/18/2008
Yesterday morning, when President Shimon Peres’ motorcade arrived at Kibbutz Nir Am, four pick-up tricks were waiting there, covered with a red banner. "If I am not for myself, who will be for me," the farmers of the western Negev had written across the banner, quoting from the Ethics of the Fathers. The demonstrators explained that they were fed up with seeing construction materials being transferred from Israel to the Gaza Strip and then used, according to them, in terrorist attacks. They also said that they are fed up with the firing from the Strip. Since the country has deserted the South in general and the farmers living near the border with Gaza in particular, they said, the members of the kibbutzim and moshavim as well as private farmers have set up a protest movement. They refused to divulge their future intentions but promised that there was "a bank full of plans that you will hear about. " more.. e-mail
IAF Gaza strikes kill 6 including gunmen linked to Shalit kidnap
Avi Issacharoff and Yuval Azoulay and News Agencies, Ha’aretz 6/18/2008
At least six Palestinian militants were killed on Tuesday in a series of Israel Air Force attacks on the Gaza Strip, just as Israel and Hamas were in the final stages of an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire dealAmong the dead was Muataz Durmush, the second in command of the militant organization Army of Islam. The other casualties were also apparently members of the group. Muataz’ half brother Mumtaz is considered the commander of the Army of Islam, which was involved in the 2006 kidnapping of Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit. Five militants were killed when the IAF attacked a blue Subaru in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Yunis. The strike destroyed the car and the Palestinian Health Ministry said all of its occupants were killed. Another militant was killed in an attack on the central Gaza town of Deir el-Balah. more.. e-mail
Six Palestinians killed by Israeli shells in Gaza on Tuesday
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/18/2008
Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip reported that six Palestinians were killed by Israeli shells in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday. The statement came after one resident died of his wounds at a local hospital in Gaza; several injuries were reported. The Israeli air force fired missiles at two vehicles in the southern and central parts of the Gaza Strip killing five residents and wounding several others. Four of the killed were resistance fighters and one was a civilian. Later on, sixth residents died of his wounds, medical sources reported. Eyewitnesses reported that the Israeli air force fired a missile at a vehicle driving on Al Qarara Junction, north of Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip. The missile directly hit the vehicle which was carrying four members of the Army of Islam Group. They were all killed and their bodies were severely mutilated. more.. e-mail
Israeli missile attack kills Palestinian fighter, wounds others in Jabalia
Palestinian Information Center 6/17/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- A Palestinian fighter affiliated with the Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement, was killed and a number of citizens were wounded after the IOF troops fired Monday evening a ground-to-ground missile on a residential area in the northeast of the Jabalia town, northern Gaza Strip. Palestinian eyewitness reported that the IOF troops at the Nahal Oz military post fired the missile on a group of fighters in the vicinity of the martyrs’ cemetery which led to the death of Muataz Tafesh, 28, affiliated with the Quds Brigades, and the injury of a number of citizens. A communiquĆ© issued by the Brigades stated that the IOF troops targeted its fighters after they managed to fire two homemade rockets on the Israeli Sderot settlement. Israeli military helicopters also fired on the same evening missiles at two foundries in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, which led to their destruction without any reported casualties. more.. e-mail
Israeli air strikes kill five Palestinians and wound five others in Gaza
Palestinian Information Center 6/17/2008
KHAN YOUNIS, (PIC)-- Five Palestinians were killed, four of them reportedly affiliated with the Army of Islam, and five others were wounded following two Israeli aerial attacks carried out Tuesday afternoon on two cars in southern and central Gaza Strip. Palestinian eyewitnesses in Khan Younis city where the first strike took place told the PIC reporter that an Israeli military drone fired one air-to-ground missile on a car traveling at the crossroads of Al-Qarara, north of the city, which resulted in the death of four Palestinians in the car and one passerby and the injury of three others. Medical sources also told the PIC reporter that the victims were not yet identified because their bodies were charred and mutilated beyond recognition. The second air strike targeted a car in the Berka area in Deir Al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, which led to the injury of two Palestinians, also thought to be affiliated with the Army of Islam. more.. e-mail
Israeli air strikes kill six in Gaza
Middle East Online 6/17/2008
GAZA CITY - Six Palestinians were killed and several wounded in a string of Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, according to medics and witnesses. Five people were killed and several others were wounded in an air strike near Qarara village east of the southern town of Khan Yunis, according to Muawiya Hassanein, the head of Gaza emergency services. "The number of dead has risen to five and a number of civilians have been wounded in an Israeli air strike that targeted a civilian car in the Qarara area," Hassanein said. Another two Israeli air strikes in the nearby town of Deir al-Balah killed a sixth person and wounded five people, local hospital officials said. An Israeli army spokeswoman said "there were three aerial attacks. . . two of them were against vehicles carrying terror operatives and one of them was against terror operatives without a vehicle. more.. e-mail
Palestinians killed in Gaza raids
Al Jazeera 6/17/2008
Six Palestinians have been killed in three Israeli air strikes targeting the Gaza Strip, according to medics and witnesses. Five people were killed and several others were wounded on Tuesday in one air raid near Qarara village east of the southern town of Khan Yunis, Muawiya Hassanein, the head of Gaza emergency services, said. "The number of dead has risen to five and a number of civilians have been wounded in an Israeli air strike that targeted a civilian car in the Qarara area," he said. The Israeli army confirmed carrying out air raids, saying that one attack - carried out in southern Gaza - destroyed a blue Subaru. Islamic Jihad said all the five victims were its members. Another two Israeli air attacks in the nearby town of Deir al-Balah killed a sixth. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli army invades Nablus and nearby villages
Ameen Abu Wardeh, International Middle East Media Center News 6/17/2008
Israeli military invaded the city of Nablus and two nearby villages Tuesday morning and took prisoner six Palestinians including a man and his wife. In the city of Nablus, troops kidnapped four Palestinians. Eyewitnesses reported that troops broke into the home of Ziad Dawaya and kidnapped him, his wife Maysoun Qaddumi and his brother Ayman, and kidnapped also Sami Abu Baker. Meanwhile, the Israeli military invaded the village of Asseera Al-Shamaliya and kidnapped two Palestinians identified as, Ihab Al-Shouli and Mohammad al-Bourini son of lawmaker Husni Al-Bourini. Eyewitnesses also reported that paratroopers invaded the nearby village of Beit Furik and blocked the mainroad connecting the vilage with Nablus city. Unconfirmed reports state that troops are invading homes of the villagers. No further detailes are available as of writing this report. more.. e-mail
Four Palestinians killed in Israeli army attacks on Monday
Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/16/2008
Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip reported that one fighter of the Islamic Jihad was killed on Monday evening after the Israeli army fired a missile at an area close to Jabalia, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Earlier in the day, three fighters were killed in clashes with Israeli forces east of Khan Younis. The sources stated that Mo’taz Fuad Tafish, 28, member of the AL Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad, was killed on Monday evening when the army fired a missile at a group of residents who gathered near Al Shuahada graveyard, north east of Jabalia. Tafish is from AL Zeitoun neighborhood in Gaza City. Several residents were wounded in the attack. The Al Quds Brigades issued a press release stating that the shelling targeted its fighters after they fired homemade shells at the Israeli Negev town of Sderot. more.. e-mail
Police: Leftists in Hebron more dangerous than right-wing counterparts
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 6/16/2008
Peace Now calls for suspension of police commander who said extreme left-wing activists provoke settlers in hope of producing violent response. ’They have become an even greater threat than the anarchists,’ said Commander Peled - "The activity of some leftist organizations in Hebron is more dangerous that which is being conducted by their right-wing counterparts," a senior Shai District Police official told Ynet Monday. "Organizations such as Bnei Avraham (which is committed to ’disturbing the occupation, disrupting the segregation and apartheid regime’) and Breaking the Silence are wolves in sheep’s’ clothing", the official said in light of the growing tensions between left and right-wing activists in the West Bank city. The head of the Israel Police’s Hebron district, Commander Avshalom Peled told Ynet that "from my experience in the Hebron and Gush Etzion. . . " more.. e-mail
Report: Settlers assaulted Palestinian shepherds
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 6/17/2008
Palestinian shepherds claim they were attacked by settlers from Yitzhar that threw stones, stabbed their donkey. In response, settlement states it knows nothing of incident or any residents involved in such an act - Palestinian shepherds complained Monday that settlers attacked them near the west Bank settlement of Yitzhar. The residents of Yitzhar responded by stating: "Our investigation shows no evidence of any resident or youth involved in such an incident. " At 8 pm the IDF reported to police that some settlers attacked shepherds close to Yitzhar and stabbed their donkey. The donkey’s status was not reported. Police forces set off to investigate the circumstances of the case. Two shepherds told police that they had been herding near the settlement when eight settlers stopped their truck nearby and began to throw stones at them. more.. e-mail
Israeli hurt as Grad-type rockets hit Ashkelon
Yuval Azoulay and The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 6/17/2008
A Grad-type rocket fired from the Gaza Strip on Monday struck an Ashkelon cemetery leaving one person lightly to moderately wounded. Another rocket exploded inside the city. The victim suffered shrapnel wounds to his neck. Several other people suffered from shock and were treated by emergency medical staff at the scene. Gaza’s Hamas rulers took responsibility for the strike. In the past, Israel has charged that Iran has supplied Hamas with Grads, smuggled into Gaza under the border with Egypt. The attack came as Egypt pressed ahead with efforts to arrange a truce to stop the daily Palestinian rocket barrages and Israel’s reprisal attacks, but Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said the Hamas goal is to deliberately target innocent civilians. "It appears today’s attack is a deliberate attempt to undermine the Egypt initiative to achieve calm," the spokesman said. more.. e-mail
Deputy Defense Min.: Residents of southern Israel should stop complaining about Qassams
Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/17/2008
Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai on Monday criticized the Southern residents’ lack of endurance in the face of the ongoing Qassam rocket fire from the Gaza Strip. Speaking before the Knesset plenum, MK Vilnai, a Jerusalem resident, addressed calls for a government no-confidence vote, saying: "In Jerusalem we counted hundreds of victims of suicide bombings on buses. Did we complain we were unable to sleep at night? ! Did we complain there was nothing to be done? ! Did we say we’ve been abandoned? !"On Sunday, over 200 residents of the Qassam-stricken western Negev blocked the Sufa and Karni crossings into Gaza for several hours to protest the recent escalation in rocket fire from the Strip. Protesters clashed with police at Sufa crossing, and refused to allow the passage of trucks carrying goods into the Hamas-ruled territory. more.. e-mail
VIDEO - Negev towns give up on gov’t and find their own protection
Haaretz Staff and Channel 10, Ha’aretz 6/17/2008
Haaretz. com/Channel 10 daily feature for June 16, 2008. The residents of the western Negev, who endure daily Qassam rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip, have taken matters into their own hands in order to protect themselves. Despite that fact that the Defense Ministry set aside money to provide small aboveground concrete shelters for the communities near the Gaza border, it gave the government contract to only one company. And that company, which is expected to serve 50,000 residents, doesn’t have the capacity to build more than ten shelters a week. more.. e-mail
Islamic Jihad: Zikim evacuation a victory
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/16/2008
IDF decision to withdraw new recruits from base perceived as triumph by Gaza terror group. ’Our rockets on Zikim and the rest of the region have forced the enemy to flee. This is a massive achievement for the resistance,’ says spokesman - "The decision to evacuate recruits from the Zikim base is yet another victory for the Palestinian resistance. Yesterday Erez, tomorrow Zikim - what will be next? I leave that decision to the Israelis," a spokesman for the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad, told Ynet on Monday. The spokesman, Abu Ahmed, said the new victory proves the Palestinian strategy is working, and that Israelis cannot bear the incessant attacks. "This is the kind of decision we have never seen before, and this is a massive achievement for the resistance," he said. The IDF is preparing to stop training new recruits at Zikim within several short months, Ynet reported on Sunday. more.. e-mail
Upgraded Qassam crashes into Ashkelon, 1 wounded
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/16/2008
Rocket lands in Muslim Cemetery near city’s urban market while Hamas announces ceasefire agreement at hand - One man was lightly-to-moderately wounded after an upgraded Qassam rocket landed in the Old Muslim Cemetery near Ashkelon’s city market on Monday. The wounded man evacuated himself independently to the Barzilai Hostpial for treatment. MDA paramedics treated several people at the scene for shock. Warning sirens blared throughout the city immediately prior to the landing. Several residents reported hearing a number of blasts. "The siren went off and we ran for the fortified room. The kids have gotten used to it by now," recalled Motti, a resident of Ashkelon. "The government is making a joke out of us," he charged, "they’re talking about ceasefires while the other side is bombing us; what kind of a truce is this? It’s either a truce or war. more.. e-mail
Nafha: Israel killed 18 Palestinians during the first two weeks of June
Palestinian Information Center 6/16/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Nafha society for the defense of human and prisoners’ rights reported that the IOF troops have killed during artillery and aerial attacks 18 Palestinians mostly in the Gaza Strip and kidnapped about 100 others in the West Bank alone and dozens in the Strip since the beginning of June. According to the monthly report issued by the society, the IOF troops killed 17 Palestinians in Gaza and one in the West Bank. The report said that among those who were kidnapped in the West Bank, there were 15 children under age 18 as well as 16-year-old girl, Salwa Salah, and Melissa Hmamra, who was kidnapped along with her husband Basim Hmamra. The IOF troop also kidnapped journalist Mohamed Al-Qiq at the container checkpoint on the outskirts of occupied Jerusalem and lawyer Fareed Hawash who works for a center concerned with prisoners’ affairs in Jenin. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces kill three Palestinian fighters near Khan Younis
Ma’an News Agency 6/16/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Palestinians mourned three Islamic Jihad fighters during a funeral procession in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday afternoon. The three, Yasser Abu Ulayyan, Ara Al-Breim, and Mahmoud Abu Shab, were killed during a fight with Israeli forces east of the city on Moday morning. Three other Palestinian fighters were wounded by Israeli warplanes east of the city of Rafah on Monday. The Israeli military said soldiers spotted three armed Palestinian men approaching the border wall east of Khan Younis, and shot them dead. The Israeli army mentioned that two explosive devices and rifles were found on the bodies of the three. Palestinian medical sources say that the bodies of the victims are still on the ground, because Israeli forces are shooting heavily in the area, preventing medical crews from evacuating the bodies. more.. e-mail
3 resistance fighters killed in clash with IOF troops
Palestinian Information Center 6/16/2008
KHAN YOUNIS, (PIC)-- Palestinian resistance fighters blasted an explosive device in an Israeli army jeep east of Khuza’a town, south of the Gaza Strip, at an early hour on Monday and clashed with the soldiers before being shot dead. Sources in the Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad Movement, told PIC reporter that its members managed to hit the IOF jeep which was then seen ablaze before clashing with the occupation forces then contact with three of them was lost. The IOF command said its troops killed three armed men in the same area after spotting them while approaching the security fence that separates Gaza Strip from the Palestinian lands occupied in 1948. An IOF source told the website of Hebrew daily Yedioth Ahronoth that the soldiers entered the Palestinian side of Sufa crossing and killed the three armed men. more.. e-mail
IDF strikes rocket launchers, 1 dead
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/16/2008
Hamas leader says ceasefire underway but meanwhile clashes continue to rage in Gaza. In response to attacks against Israel earlier in day, IDF targets gunmen responsible for rocket fire - one Islamic Jihad operative reported killed - The truce in Gaza remains limited to rhetoric for the time being - In response to rocket attacks on Israeli communities in the western Negev throughout Monday, the IDF struck the Palestinian cell responsible for launching the attacks. Palestinian sources report that the gunman killed belongs to the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad. The Palestinians also reported a second gunman was seriously wounded. The IDF confirmed the strike, saying forces had targeted a Qassam launching cell in northern Gaza, from where rockets had been fired towards Israel. more.. e-mail
Palestinians killed in Gaza clash
Al Jazeera 6/16/2008
Three Islamic Jihad armed men have been killed by the Israeli army at the Gaza Strip border fence, Al-Quds brigades has said. The armed wing for the Islamic Jihad movement confirmed that a number of its fighters had clashed with Israeli forces on Monday and detonated an explosive device at an Israeli position. It said the three, operating near the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis, were trying to plant a bomb that could be detonated against Israeli patrols when they came under fire. Al Jazeera’s reporter inGaza quoted Palestinian medical sources as saying that three other Palestinians were also wounded in the attack. Ceasefire attemptAn Israeli military spokesman said that troops shot three gunmen at the border fence. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces kill 3 Palestinian armed resistance members
Palestine News Network 6/16/2008
Khan Younis / PNN -- Israeli forces shot and killed three members of the Palestinian armed resistance on Monday morning in the southern Gaza Strip. Israeli forces invaded eastern Khan Younis and shot the Palestinians near the Sofa Crossing. Israeli sources report that the men were attempting to plant explosives near the occupation base. Three members of Islamic Jihad have gone missing after they fought back against the latest invasion, while Israeli forces fired a rocket injuring three members of the Hamas-linked armed resistance. [end]
Unknown gunmen attack a beauty-shop in Gaza
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/16/2008
Unknown gunmen attacked women beauty shop located in Rafah city in the southern part of the Gaza Strip on Monday morning. Local sources said that masked gumen planted a home made bomb in the shop and detonated it, the shop was damaged. The sources added that no Palestinian group has clamed responciblity. In recint month a series of attacks against beauty-shops and internet-coffeeshops were reported in Gaza. On late May the Palestinian Police announced that they managed to arrest a group that was attacks local shops. [end]
Islamic Jihad fighters launch three homemade projectiles
Ma’an News Agency 6/16/2008
Gaza – Ma’an - The Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad movement, announced on Monday that they shelled at anIsraeli military site east of the northern Gaza Strip, with three homemade projectiles. In a statement the Brigades said "this shelling comes in response to the Israeli attacks and invasions of the Gaza Strip. "The group said it would continue to resist Israeli occupation and attacks. [end]
Israel closes two checkpoints around Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/16/2008
Nablus – Ma’an - Israeli forces closed two of the main entrances to the West Bank city of Nablus, Asira Ash-Shamalia (known as "Checkpoint 17") to the north and the Huwwara checkpoint to the south, on Monday afternoon. At the Huwwara checkpoint, witnesses said Israeli soldiers closed the checkpoint for over an hour while the troops carried out what the Israelis said was a training exercise. Huwwara separates Nablus from the main Palestinian population centers to the south, such as Ramallah and Jerusalem. The Asira Ash-Shamalia checkpoint was only opened by Israeli forces in late April as a part of an Israeli pledge to east civilian movement in the occupied West Bank. The checkpoint, which consists of a metal gate that completely blocks the road, separates Nablus from villages to the north. more.. e-mail
The Israeli army invades Bethlehem and kidnaps two civilians
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/16/2008
The Israeli army invaded the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem on Monday morning and kidnapped two civilians. Local sources said that Israeli troops invaded the city and surrounded a house in Deheisheh refugee camp located in Bethlehem; troops searched the house of Isssa Al Hiroup, 57, then kidnapped him along with his friend Wahed Isma’el, 30. On Saturday the Israeli army attacked Deheisheh refugee camp and tried to kidnap a 16 year old boy, the boy was not in his house. Ten Palestinian civilians were injured by the army fire on Sunday due to the Israeli attack on the refugee camp. [end]
The Israeli army kidnaps two civilians from Hebron
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/16/2008
The Israeli army kidnapped two Palestinian civilians from the southern West Bank City of Hebron on Monday. Local sources said that Israeli soldiers invaded the city center searched and ransacked homes then took the two men to unknown location. Witnesses to the attack identified the two men as Maher Al Qaqsmi, 24, and Fyisal Mahfuth, 23. Witnesses added that when soldiers attacked the house of Maher the forced the 11 members of his family in one room and kept them there for several hours. [end]
Israeli forces seize two Palestinians from Ad-Duheisha refugee camp
Ma’an News Agency 6/16/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli forces seized two Palestinians from Ad-Duheisha refugee camp in the West Bank city Bethlehem on Monday morning. Palestinian security sources said that 12 Israeli military vehicles entered the camp and apprehended Wahid Shatta and ’Isa Al-Hroub, and took them to unknown destination. Ad-Duheisha was the location of an hours-long Israeli incursion on Saturday afternoon in which five Palestinian demonstrators were injured by Israeli fire. [end]
Hamas: 'P.A Security forces arrested two members of the movement'¯
IMEMC News, International Middle East Media Center News 6/17/2008
Sources close to Hamas movement in the West Bank reported that Palestinian security forces, loyal to Fateh movement in the West Bank, arrested two members of Hamas on Sunday. The sources stated that in Hebron, in the southern West Bank, security forces arrested Ashraf Zohour, a student at the Polytechnic University. He was arrested at a security center after he was ordered to head there for questioning. Three days ago, security forces arrested Miqdad Abu Jheisha, the son of legislator Mohammad Abu Jheisha, who is imprisoned by Israel. In Bethlehem, security forces arrested Ibrahim Salim Al Zeer, member of Janata village council. Moreover, security forces are still holding captive Ammar Al Masry, head of the Islamic Solidarity Society, since more than 45 days. Al Masry is imprisoned at Jneid Palestinian prison. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 061608
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/16/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB ||Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Monday June 16th, 2008. The Israelis killed three Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and kidnapped four from the West Bank. These stories and more, coming up, stay tuned. The News Cast Three Palestinian resistance fighters were killed and three others injured in two separate Israeli attacks in northern Gaza strip on Monday morning. Three fighters said to be members of the Al Qudes Brigade, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad group were killed when the Israeli army opened fire at a group of fighters at the border between northern Gaza Strip and Israel. Palestinian sources said a group of resistance men were planting a home made bomb when Israeli soldiers spotted them and opened fire killing all three. more.. e-mail
Israel wounds AFP, Reuters photographers
Middle East Online 6/15/2008
BETHLEHEM, West Bank - At least seven Palestinians were wounded on Saturday when hundreds of people clashed with Israeli troops near Bethlehem, in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian security officials said. The fighting broke out when around a dozen Israeli military jeeps surrounded an apartment building in Al-Doha village and closed off nearby roads, according to Palestinian witnesses. Hundreds of Palestinians massed in the area and hurled rocks at the soldiers, who responded with gunfire and called in another dozen vehicles, including armoured bulldozers, they said. The seven wounded were hit by live rounds and rubber bullets, a security official said. Later the soldiers began throwing rocks at the protestors, hitting several people, including an AFP photographer, whose camera was broken, and a photographer from the Reuters news service. more.. e-mail
Plan approved to build 40,000 housing units in East J’lem
Jonathan Lis, Ha’aretz 6/16/2008
The proposal of Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupolianski for the construction of 40,000 residential units in various Jewish neighborhoods of the capital was approved yesterday by the District Planning and Building Committee. The plan includes construction in neighborhoods over the Green Line. Lupolianski has said in recent weeks that the plan aimed to deal with the serious shortage young couples face in hunting for affordable housing. For the first time this will include housing for Arabs in East Jerusalem, in the northern neighborhoods of A-Tur, Issawiyeh and Shuwafat. To date, Arabs in East Jerusalem experienced serious housing problems forcing them to resort to build without permits. The new plan is meant to legalize some of that illegal construction. "Jerusalem is not a settlement and construction in the capital will continue with the aim of encouraging young [persons] to live there," Lupolianski said yesterday. more.. e-mail
No murder charges for suspects in lynch of Jewish terrorist
Jack Khoury and Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/16/2008
The 12 suspects in the death of Jewish terrorist Eden Natan-Zada, who was lynched by an Israeli Arab mob in 2005 will be charged with violent assault rather than murder, it emerged on Sunday. AWOL Israel Defense Forces soldier Natan-Zada, 19, was killed after murdering four Israeli Arabs on a bus in the northern town of Shfaram in August 2005, days before Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. The suspects were instructed Sunday to appear at a court hearing on July 13, where they will be indicted. Hadash chairman MK Mohammed Barakeh, slammed the court’s decision to charge the suspects with any sort of crime. "The whole world knows that the citizens of Shfaram were the victims and targets of an abominable massacre," Barakeh said. "I emphasize the need to indict those same military officials that knew of the danger of the terrorist as well those who allowed him a warm home as a army deserter. more.. e-mail
Israel sanctions construction of 40,000 housing units in occupied Jerusalem
Palestinian Information Center 6/15/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSASLEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli-controlled municipality of occupied Jerusalem has sanctioned a plan tabled by its mayor Uri Lupolianski to build around 40,000 housing units in a number of suburbs in the holy city. Lupolianski told the Hebrew radio on Sunday that Jerusalem is not a settlement and that construction would continue in all its suburbs in order to encourage Israeli youths to settle in it. He elaborated that the new units would be established in the suburbs of Tur, Eisawia, and Sha’fat in addition to the settlement suburbs of Jilo and Ramot. The Hebrew daily Ha’aretz had quoted a report by IR AMIM, a society dealing with Israeli-Palestinian relations in Jerusalem, as revealing that Israel had authorized the construction of 7,974 housing units since the Annapolis conference in November 2007 other than the ones announced today. more.. e-mail
Armed Palestinian groups claim responsibility for projectile attack
Ma’an News Agency 6/15/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the armed wing of the left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and the An-Nasser Brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, claimed responsibility on Sunday for attacking the Israeli city of Ashkelon with two homemade projectiles fired from the Gaza Strip. The Brigades affirmed in a statement that the attacks were in response to "the Israeli escalation and massacres against the Palestinians. " [end]
Brigades claim responsibility for firing homemade rockets at Sderot
Ma’an News Agency 6/15/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The National Resistance Brigades and the Al-Aqsa Brigades, the military wings of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) and Fatah parties respectively, on Sunday evening announced firing two homemade rockets at the Israeli town of Sderot in the western Negev. The brigades told Ma’an in a joint statement that this shelling came as a response to the Israeli daily attacks on Palestinians. [end]
VIDEO - Israeli farmers try to block transport of goods to Gaza
YNetNews 6/15/2008
More than 100 farmers from Gaza-vicinity communities rally near Sufa crossing in attempt to block transporting of goods from Israel into Strip to protest ongoing rocket fire (06. 15. 08) Video: infolive. tvAuthor: Ynetnews [end]
Israeli forces have warning system in place
Palestine News Network 6/15/2008
Gaza / PNN -- After an agreement was reached between US President Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Olmert to increase military aid to Israel, including fighter planes that defy detection and advanced radar systems, Israeli radio reported Sunday morning that they now have projectile detectors and warning systems in place. Israeli forces have killed over 20 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in the last two weeks. Meanwhile, Israelis are protesting against a small shipment of fuel and food that is being allowed in through the Sofa Crossing to the 1. 5 million residents living under closure. The "southern region command" of the Israeli military has begun to operate a warning system is a mortar is launched toward military installation or if projectiles are launched by the armed resistance from the Gaza Strip toward the surrounding Israeli settlements. more.. e-mail
IDF to withdraw new recruits from Zikim
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 6/16/2008
Army says decision unrelated to Qassam threat -The army is preparing to remove all new recruits from the Zikim base near Gaza within several short months, Ynet has learned. IDF officials denied decision is unrelated to the threat of Qassam rockets from the Gaza Strip, even though the Zikim base has already been struck in the past. Other troops will be stationed at the base, the army said. The final decision on the matter was made several days ago in a meeting chaired by IDF Deputy Chief of Staff, Maj. Gen. Dan Harel. The proposal to stop training recruits at Zikim is part of a wider program seeking to minimize the number of younger soldiers in the ’archetypal’ recruit bases. The new policy would see soldiers being assigned directly to their designated units immediately after being drafted, and those units would also be responsible for their basic training. more.. e-mail
Shfaram residents blast state for ’turning the victims into the accused’
Jack Khoury, Ha’aretz 6/16/2008
Shfaram residents and Arab MKs slammed the judicial system yesterday for planning to indict Israeli Arabs accused of lynching Jewish terrorist Eden Natan-Zada after he opened fire on a bus heading toward Shfaram in August 2005, killing four and wounding 14. Twelve suspects in Natan-Zada’s death were instructed yesterday to appear at a court hearing on July 13, where they will be charged with violent assault. It emerged yesterday that prosecutors had decided against charging them with murder. Faiza Turki, whose two daughters were killed in the attack, said the Shfaram residents should not be punished for acting in self-defense. "My wound is still bleeding, but nonetheless, such a decision just adds pain," Turki said with tears in her eyes. "If they want to indict someone, they should indict the government and the army, those who let a deserter with the most radical views wander around freely with a gun, and not the residents of Shfaram. more.. e-mail
Natan-Zada family: Those responsible for Eden’s death should be charged with murder
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/16/2008
Family members of Eden Natan-Zada, who was lynched by an Israeli Arab mob in 2005 after he killed four passengers on a bus in the northern town of Shfaram, condemned the decision by the State Prosecutor’s Office not to indict the people who killed Natan-Zada for murder. The lawyer representing Natan-Zada’s family said the parents, Yitzhak and Dvora, heard about the decision not to indict the 12 Shfaram suspects for murder through the media. "A murder was perpetrated here," attorney Yaakov Menken said. "We are outraged because Eden never went there to kill himself and it isn’t at all certain that he shot the people who got shot. He did not deserve to die at the hands of an angry mob. "The father, Yitzhak, complained about the police performance in the case. "Why did they cuff him and put him on the bus, at the mercy of the crowd," he said in a radio interview yesterday. more.. e-mail
Haifa prosecution considering new indictments in death of Eden Natan Zada
Ahiya Raved, YNetNews 6/15/2008
Haifa District Prosecution subpoenas 12 men allegedly involved in lynching Zada, who killed 4 people in Shfaram in 2005. ’If prosecution indicts they’ll have riots on their hands,’ warns Balad chair -The Haifa District Prosecution subpoenaed Sunday 12 of Shfaram’s residents to a pre-trial hearing in connection with the killing of IDF soldier Eden Natan Zada. Zada, a military deserter, boarded a bus in Shfaram in August of 2005 and began shooting its passengers, killing four people and wounding nine, before he was apprehended by some of the passengers. He was later captured by a local mob and beaten to death. [end]
Ten Palestinian injured, as army invades Bethlehem
IMEMC Staff, International Middle East Media Center News 6/14/2008
Ten Palestinians were injured when Israeli troops invaded the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem on Saturday afternoon. . IMEMC correspondent in Bethlehem Ghassan Bannoura reported that at least 14 Israeli military jeeps invaded the city and surrounded the house of Muath Abu Aker family. Abu Aker is claimed wanted by the Israeli army, for being involved with the Palestinian armed resistance groups. Clashes between local youth and the invading troops erupted nearby Deheisheh refugee camp. Palestinian youth hurled stones at the Israeli jeeps, while troops responded with tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets injuring ten civilians, one seriously. Eyewitnesses told IMEMC that a 17-year old boy was shot in the head and was taken to Beit Jala hospital for treatment. Additionally and elderly woman was treated for gas inhalation. more.. e-mail
IDF launches airstrike against gunmen in northern Gaza
Ynet, YNetNews 6/14/2008
Forces spot cell near border fence by Beit Hanoun during night, no report on state of casualties as of far. Earlier on Thursday IDF troops kill three Hamas operatives preparing to launch Qassam rockets towards Israel - IDF forces targeted a cell of Palestinian gunmen in northern Gaza in the early hours of Saturday morning. The cell had been spotted advancing along the border fence near the town of Beit Hanoun. IAF aircraft targeted the cell a short while afterwards and reported they had identified hitting their mark. No reports have been received regarding the Palestinian casualties thus far. A reported 14 Palestinians were killed in Gaza on Thursday in a series of clashes and incidents. Massive barrages - than 50 mortar shells and 25 Qassam rockets - rained on Israel’s southern communities in the vicinity of the Gaza Strip, wounding one Israeli woman in Kibbutz Yad Mordechai. more.. e-mail
Five arrested as PA forces move into village near Tulkarem
Ma’an News Agency 6/14/2008
Tulkarem – Ma’an – Palestinian security forces from the West Bank city of Tulkarem, led by police chief Ma’rouf Al-Barbari, entered the town of Bal’a, east of Tulkarem, on Saturday, Tulkarem officials said. The Tulkarem governorate sate that the security forces arrested five people on criminal charges as a part of a larger effort to impose security and order in the Tulkarem area. [end]
Gaza Fighters Bombard Israel After Deadly Blast
Agence France Presse, MIFTAH 6/14/2008
GAZA CITY (AFP) - Palestinian fighters bombarded southern Israel on Thursday after a Hamas commander’s house in northern Gaza was blown up in a blast which killed seven people, including a four-month-old baby. The attacks started immediately after the explosion which Palestinian medics said also wounded 51 people, among them women and children, in and around the two-storey building. The Israeli military said nearly 50 rockets and mortar rounds were fired from the Gaza Strip following the explosion, which Hamas blamed on the Jewish state despite its denial of involvement. “Only yesterday, Israel decided to give a chance to the Egyptian initiative which could have brought calm to the south,” the Israeli prime minister’s spokesman Mark Regev told AFP. “The barrage of rockets today shows that Hamas has no interest in calm and is committed to violence, terror and murder. more.. e-mail
Report: Israel killed 635 Palestinians in Gaza in one year
Palestinian Information Center 6/14/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Quds Press news agency revealed in a report issued Saturday that the IOA troops had killed since June 2007 until this current month 635 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip alone while 83 others were killed during the same period in the West Bank. The report illustrates that the IOF troops had killed 235 Palestinian citizens during the period extending from last mid-June until the end of 2007 and 400 others since the beginning of 2008 in Gaza as a result of the Israeli military escalations. In a new development, the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced in a communiquƩ received by the PIC that its fighters managed at noon Saturday to blow up an Israeli armored bulldozer by firing four successive anti-armor RPGs at it in the east of Al-Maghazi area, central Gaza Strip. The Brigades said that this operation was carried out in retaliation to the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people in Gaza. more.. e-mail
Israel launches two air strikes on Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 6/14/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Israeli warplanes launched two attacks on Palestinian fighters in the Gaza Strip on Saturday morning, witnesses and medics said. No injuries were reported in either attack. In the northern Gaza Strip, Israeli planes fired missiles at Palestinian fighters near Gaza’s eastern border. No injuries were reported. In a second strike in the southern Gaza Strip, witnesses said the Israeli air force bombed Palestinian fighters in the Al-Samiri area, east of the city of Khan Younis. While Israeli warplanes bombed Gaza from the air, witnesses said that Israeli tanks are stationed on the ground inside the eastern border of the Strip, shelling Palestinian areas "at random." more.. e-mail
Al-Qassam brigades shell Israeli bulldozer in central Gaza Strip
Ma’an News Agency 6/14/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, claimed responsibility on Saturday evening for shelling an Israeli military bulldozer with four homemade projectiles in the Abu Safiya base, east of Al-Maghazi refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. The brigades said in a statement that they will continue striking Israeli targets in response to the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Palestinians. [end]
DFLP fighters ’shell Israeli forces’ in Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 6/14/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The National Resistance Brigades, the armed wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) claimed responsibility on Saturday for shelling Israeli armored vehicles east of the Az-Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City. The brigades said that this shelling was a response to the ongoing Israeli attacks and as an affirmation of a strategy of resistance. [end]
Al-Aqsa Brigades claim responsibility for shelling Erez crossing
Ma’an News Agency 6/14/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – A group of Al-Aqsa Brigades fighters claiming allegiance to "the martyr Ayman Joudeh" claimed responsibility for launching two mortar shells at the Erez border crossing, at the northern end of the Gaza Strip on Saturday. The group said the attack was in response to ongoing Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people. more.. e-mail
IDF activates warning system meant to spot mortars from Gaza
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/15/2008
The Israel Defense Forces Southern Command activated an alert system over the weekend that is designed to forewarn of incoming mortar shells fired by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The system, which was given the code name "Nurit," has already been put to use by the Northern Command in an effort to detect and warn against mortar and Katyusha rocket fire. Nurit was prepared to go on line this weekend for a trial run, and IDF officers are hopeful it will provide adequate warning to residents of communities in the western Negev that have been pounded by Palestinian rocket and mortar fire. Recently, the threat of mortar fire against the western Negev communities has grown, with dozens of rounds being fired each week at kibbutzim which lie adjacent to the Gaza security fence. more.. e-mail
Hamas says bomb-makers caused fatal blast in Gaza
Donald Macintyre, The Independent 6/14/2008
Hamas has admitted that an explosion which killed eight Palestinians in northern Gaza was an accident during preparations for a bomb attack. The explosion on Thursday -- which in the immediate aftermath the Islamic faction claimed was caused by an Israeli air strike -- killed a four-month-old girl, six Hamas militants and a civilian adult. It destroyed the house of a prominent militant, Ahmed Hamouda, who was not there. As Hamas’s military wing said the militants were preparing for a "special jihadi mission", Abu Obeida, a spokesman, said: "An error occurred and led to the explosion and they were martyred. "Hamas fired about 20 rockets at Israel shortly after the explosion in Beit Lahiya. The Israeli military killed five other militants in two strikes on the Gaza Strip on Thursday. Ehud Barak, the Israeli Defence Minister and Labour leader, told party activists yesterday. . . more.. e-mail
New study says cluster bombs have cost Southern farmers at least $22 million
Colin Chazen, Daily Star 6/14/2008
BEIRUT: Cluster bomb contamination has caused at least $22. 6 million in agricultural losses to South Lebanon’s farmers, according to a report released in late May. The report, issued by the London-based advocacy group Landmine Action, says that the conflict between Lebanon and Israel in July-August 2006 contaminated 4. 8 percent of the agricultural land in Southern Lebanon, rendering it unsafe to use. Despite the dangers posed by cluster munitions in this area, the report estimates that between 15 percent and 30 percent of contaminated land has been used in advance of it being cleared. "People need their land; it’s their main source of livelihood. Based on that people risk their life and still use their land even though they know there are cluster munitions," says Dalya Farran, the United Nations Mine Action Coordination Center’s (UNMACC) media and clearance officer. more.. e-mail
Security forces arrest three Israelis who enter Nablus
Jerusalem Post 6/14/2008
Security forces arrested three Israelis at the Hawari checkpoint after they were discovered to have entered Nablus. The IDF has banned Israelis from entering certain areas of the West Bank, defined as Area A, of which Nablus is a part. [end]
Israel to build 1,300 new settler homes in Jerusalem
Stephen Myles, ReliefWeb 6/13/2008
JERUSALEM, June 13, 2008 (AFP) - Israel announced on Friday its second settlement project in occupied east Jerusalem this month, enraging Palestinians and drawing criticism from Washington just ahead of a US visit aimed at rescuing the stalemated peace process. Jerusalem municipality confirmed a report in Haaretz newspaper that the green light had been given for 1,300 new homes for Jewish settlers in the annexed east of the city. The houses will be built in Ramat Shlomo where there are already 2,000 settler homes, Haaretz reported. The paper said the decision to proceed was taken on Tuesday by the Jerusalem urban planning commission, which reports to the interior ministry. Haaretz called it one of the most ambitious expansion plans for settler homes in east Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and whose annexation is not recognised by the international community. more.. e-mail
Three Hamas fighters killed in Israeli air strike on Jabalia
Ma’an News Agency 6/13/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Three Palestinian activists affiliated to Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades were killed on Friday morning and two others were injured in an Israeli air strike against a group of fighters near Abu Bakr As-Siddiq mosque in Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip. Mu’awiya Hassanein, director of Ambulance and Emergency Services in the Palestinian Ministry of Health, identified the dead activists as Mustafa Al-Batsh, Mousa Hamoudeh and Mahmoud Khadir. He said that the corpses were transferred to Kamal Udwan Hospital, as well as the two injured fighters. In a separate development, an unidentified Palestinian citizen died on Friday from injuries sustained in Thursday’s explosion at the Hamoudeh family home in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza. Hassanein affirmed that the death toll from the Beit Lahiya explosion rose to eight after the unidentified man died from his wounds on Friday morning. more.. e-mail
Hamas claims responsibility for deadly blast in Gaza house
The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 6/14/2008
Hamas on Friday claimed responsibility for an explosion a day earlier in a house in northern Gaza that killed seven Palestinians, one of them an infant girl. An announcement Friday on the official Web site of Hamas’ military wing says the group’s martyrs died while putting the final touches on a plan to carry out a special holy war mission. Five militants were among those who died in the explosion that flattened the house Thursday. Immediately after the blast, Hamas blamed Israel, and militants in Gaza launched a barrage of rockets and mortar shells at the western Negev in apparent response. But Israel denied involvement and said explosion was caused while militants were making bombs. The militant group later suggested the explosion was accidental. Friday’sstatement was the first explicit acknowledgment that the blast was caused by explosives in the house. more.. e-mail
Gaza death toll climbs to 14 with three Hamas deaths
Deutsche Presse Agentur - DPA, ReliefWeb 6/12/2008
Gaza/Tel Aviv_(dpa) _The death toll from violence in Gaza climbed to 14 by late Thursday after an Israeli air attack killed three members of the radical Islamic Hamas organization, a Palestinian hospital spokesman in Gaza said. Earlier in the day, seven Palestinians died in an unexplained explosion in the house of a Hamas bomb-maker in the northern Gaza Strip that wounded more than two dozen others, medical officials and witnesses said. The earlier death toll from the explosion had been reported as four. Earlier Thursday, Israeli troops killed two Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip identified as members of the armed wing of the Fatah movement and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine. A military spokeswoman in Tel Aviv said soldiers stationed on the border spotted the two gunmen approaching the fence and opened fire. more.. e-mail
IDF arrests 9 Israelis who entered Joseph’s Tomb
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 6/13/2008
Soldiers nab nine Breslov Hasidim who entered the tomb against military orders; four other flee. ’These kinds of events make IDF divert forces from fighting terror,’ says military source - Nine Israeli citizens were arrested by IDF soldiers Thursday night after entering Joseph’s Tomb in the West Bank city of Nablus. They were turned in for police questioning. Four other Israelis spotted on the premises managed to escape the troops through the Balata refugee camp in the city. A military source told Ynet that "incidents in which Israelis enter Nablus, and Joseph’s Tomb in particular, are very troubling"¦ just yesterday we had a very close call, which could have resulted in a lynching. These kinds of events make the IDF divert forces from fighting terror to searching after Israelis who enter the city. more.. e-mail
Israeli woman lightly injured after youth throw stones at her car near Bethlehem
Ma’an News Agency 6/13/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – An Israeli woman was lightly injured on Friday at noon when Palestinian youths pelted her car with stones on the bypass road near the village of Husan west of Bethlehem. Israeli sources reported that a group of Palestinian youths from the village threw stones at Israeli settlers’ cars on the bypass road near the Israeli settlement of Beitar Ilit, which is built on lands belonging to Husan and other neighboring villages from the western Bethlehem district. [end]
Israeli forces storm Nablus; injure Palestinian in Al-Fari’a camp
Ma’an News Agency 6/13/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Israeli forces raided the northern West Bank city of Nablus and patrolled its streets late on Thursday evening, Israeli and Palestinian sources said. According to Israeli sources, two hand grenades and stones were thrown at Israeli military vehicles operating in the city. No Israeli casualties were reported. Palestinian medical sources stated that 18-year-old Ahmad KayidA’yid from Al-Fari’a refugee camp in Nablus was hit in the face by a rubber-coated metal bullet fired by Israeli soldiers who stormed the camp. He was evacuated to Rafidia Hospital in western Nablus for medical treatment. [end]
Israeli forces apprehend Fatah activist in Ramallah
Ma’an News Agency 6/13/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli forces arrested a Palestinian activist affiliated to the Al-Aqsa Brigades, the military wing of the Fatah movement, on Thursday evening in Ramallah in the central West Bank. Israeli military sources said that the detainee, Amjad Badarin, was suspected of firing at an Israeli military force operating in Ramallah in late 2007. Separately, Israeli forces on Thursday evening seized a cache of weapons and ammunition in Al-Azariyya, east of Jerusalem. [end]
Israeli forces arrest Hebron resident
Ma’an News Agency 6/13/2008
Hebron – Ma’an – Israeli forces on Friday morning apprehended 28-year-old Nadir Abdel Hafez Abu Mayyala, a Palestinian from Hebron in the southern West Bank. Abu Mayyala’s family told Ma’an that Israeli soldiers stormed the house at dawn, damaging the family’s belongings and leaving chaos in their wake before taking him to an unknown location. [end]
The Israeli army attacks a village near Bethlehem and kidnaps a man and his Jewish wife
Najeep Farajj "“ Bethlehem, International Middle East Media Center News 6/12/2008
The Israeli army invaded the village of Hussan located near Bethlehem city in the southern part of the West Bank. During the invasion on Thursday morning the soldiers kidnapped a Palestinian man and his wife that is from Jewish origins. Mohamed Hamamerh, 25, met his wife Melissa, 23, several months ago when he used to work at the settlement of Bitar Illit, an Israeli settlement built illegally on the land of Hussan village. When the young couple decided to get married, they came to Bethlehem city were Melissa converted to Islam. They were married last month during a large wedding at Hussan village, Hamamerh’s family reported. The settlers of Bitar Illit attacked the village of Hussan, demanding that Melissa was kidnapped and forced to get married, which the family of Hamamerh denies. The village told media sources in Bethlehem that the settlers threatened to send the Israeli army to get Melissa out using force, which was done today. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 061208
Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMc - Audio, International Middle East Media Center News 6/12/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file|| 4 m 0s || 3. 66 MB || Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Thursday June 12th, 2008. Seven Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip and Israeli soldiers kidnap a Palestinian and his wife from the west Bank, these stories and more coming up stay tuned. The News Cast Four Palestinian civilians, among them a baby were killed on Thursday midday as an explosion ripped a house in Beit Lahyia town located in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Witnesses said that the explosion left a house comprised of their apartments totally destroyed. Medical sources said that four were killed, among them Nur Hamudah, four months old and another three men; 40 other civilians were injured at least among them 6 in critical condition, Dr. more.. e-mail
Israelis plan another 1,300 new homes for Jerusalem colonists
The Daily Star and Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/14/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israel on Friday announced its second settlement project in Occupied East Jerusalem this month, enraging Palestinians just ahead of a US visit aimed at rescuing the stalemated peace process. Jerusalem’s Israeli municipality confirmed a report in the Haaretz newspaper that the green light had been given for 1,300 new homes for Jewish colonists in the occupied and illegally annexed east of the city. The houses will be built in Ramat Shlomo, where there are already 2,000 settler homes, Haaretz reported. The paper said the decision to proceed was taken Tuesday by the city’s urban planning commission which reports to the Interior Ministry. Haaretz called it one of the most ambitious expansion plans for settler homes in East Jerusalem, which was conquered by Israel in the 1967 war. Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat expressed outrage at the decision. more.. e-mail
Israel approves the construction of 1300 units in East Jerusalem
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/13/2008
The Israeli Authorities approved this week the construction of 1300 settler-only homes in the illegal settlement of Ramat Shlomo, near Beit Hanina Palestinian neighborhood in the occupied East Jerusalem, the Arabs38 news website reported. The new constructions were approved by the so-called The Regional Committee for Construction and Planning. The new decision raises the number of settler homes approved for construction since the Annapolis summit in November 2007 to 7974. It is worth mentioning that there are nearly 2000 settler homes in Ramat Shlomo and this new construction plan will expand the settlement by more than 55%. The new plan is another Israeli violation to the Road Map Peace Plan and the understandings of the Annapolis Summit as Israel is creating new forced realities in East Jerusalem in order to block any withdrawal from the occupied city under any future peace deal. more.. e-mail
Israeli occupation decides to build 1300 new settlement units in East Jerusalem
Palestinian Information Center 6/13/2008
NAZARETH, (PIC)-- A Hebrew paper revealed on Friday that City Planning committee of the Jerusalem municipality gave the go ahead for building 1300 settlement units at the Ramat Shalom settlement in east Jerusalem. Yediot Ahronot quoted the Jerusalem municipality spokesman as saying that the decision was supported by the majority of members of the planning committee and that the expansion was needed by the residents including young couples. The Israeli occupation government continues to expand settlements in the West Bank and especially in Jerusalem ignoring all international resolutions which consider east Jerusalem as occupied territory. The expansion of settlements also is considered a slap in face of Mahmoud Abbas, who insists on negotiating with the Israeli occupation despite the accelerated Judization of the holy city to prevent any future withdrawal. more.. e-mail
This Week In Palestine - Week 24 2008
Ghassan Bannoura - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/13/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 13 m 0s || 11. 9 MB ||This Week In Palestine, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www. IMEMC. org, for June 7th, through June 13th , 2008. Hamas is still committed to its ceasefire initiative with Israel as the Israeli army attacks leave eight Palestinians killed. These stories and more, coming up, stay tuned. Nonviolent Resistance We begin our weekly report with the nonviolent actions in the West Bank. IMEMC’s Jane Orwell has the details: Bethlehem Five Palestinians were injured and an American peace activist was kidnapped when the Israeli army attacked a peaceful protest organized in the village of Um Salamunah, located near the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem on Friday. 150 villagers, international, and Israeli peace activists marched in the morning to protest the illegal Israeli wall being built on land owned by the villagers. more.. e-mail
Hamas: Explosion in Beit Lahiya preparation for 'quality’ attack
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/13/2008
Hamas confirms operatives killed in northern Strip’s Thursday explosion preparing "special mission’; Mofaz urges cabinet to change view on Gaza op - Hamas’ Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades confirmed Friday that the operatives who died in Thursday’s explosion in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahiya were making last-minute preparations for a "special mission"¯, a Hamas codename for a "high-quality"¯ attack. According to the statement, the dead were operatives of a special Hamas unit. The organization promised that its people will "continue following in the path of those killed." ¯ A Hamas gunman who was wounded in Thursday’s died Friday morning. Hamas’ announcement does not refer to the blast’s circumstances even though the group’s media has begun using the term "explosion"¯ and not just "attack,"¯ the term repeatedly used on Thursday. more.. e-mail
3 Qassam fighters killed, raising the death toll to 10
Palestinian Information Center 6/13/2008
GAZA, (PIC)--Three Qassam fighters were killed on Thursday in Israeli shelling that targeted a group of resistance fighters east of Jabalya in the northern Gaza Strip. Eyewitnesses said that IOF troops stationed at Nahal Oz to the east of Gaza fired two missiles at the group of Qassam fighters near Abu Baker’s mosque to the east of Jabalya town in northern Gaza killing three of them. The Qassam Brigades announced that its fighters fired five mortars at Israeli troops stationed east of the Zaitoun suburb, adding that its fighters on Thursday fired a total of 13 Qassam rockets and 92 mortars at Israeli targets in retaliation to Israeli attacks. Seven others, including five Qassam fighters, were killed in a mysterious explosion in Beith Lahya in the northern Gaza Strip. more.. e-mail
Three Palestinians killed during the Israeli shelling targeting the Gaza Strip
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/13/2008
Three Palestinian resistance fighters were killed on Friday morning during an Israeli shelling targeting the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Local sources said that Israeli jet fighters fired missiles at a group of resistance men while gathered at Jabaliya refugee camp, killing three of them and injured another two civilians. Al Qassam Brigades the armed wing of the Hamas movement said all three fighters were members of the group. [end]
PFLP military wing fires two homemade projectiles at Miftahim
Ma’an News Agency 6/13/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the military wing affiliated to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), claimed responsibility on Friday morning for firing two homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of Miftahim in the western Negev. The brigades said in a statement that the shelling came in response to Israel’s criminal acts against the Palestinian people. [end]
Twelve killed, including a baby, as an unknown explosion rips a Gazan home
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/12/2008
Twelve Palestinian civilians, among them a baby were killed on Thursday midday as an explosion ripped through a house in Beit Lahyia town located in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Witnesses said that the explosion left a house comprised of their apartments totally destroyed. Medical sources said that 12 were killed, among them Nur Hamudah, four months old and another three men; 40 other civilians were injured at least 6 of them in critical condition, Dr. Mo’awiah Hassanen, of the Palestinian Ministry of health in Gaza reported. The Hamas movement said that Israeli F16’s shelled the house which belongs to a leader of the movement armed wing Al Qassam Brigades. The movement identified the owner of the house as Kaled Hamoudah. Meanwhile the Israeli army denied any responsibility and said that the house was destroyed because the Hamas fighter had bombs stored there. more.. e-mail
4 Palestinians killed, 1 Israeli hurt as clashes continue in south
Avi Issacharoff and Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/13/2008
Clashes between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank continued yesterday as the government decided to avoid a broad offensive in Gaza for the time being and to try to reach a truce with Hamas instead. Four Palestinians were killed, including two civilians, and an Israeli was wounded in a mortar shell attack. Yesterday morning, a man was lightly wounded by mortar shrapnel fired by Palestinian militants in Gaza at Kibbutz Nir Oz’s Nirlat factory. The man was wounded at the exact spot where Nirim resident Amnon Rosenberg was killed last week by a mortar shell. Defense Ministry official Amos Gilad is expected to travel to Cairo today to try to further a truce, according to defense officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because the contacts are secret. Israel Defense Forces troops launched an incursion into the Gaza town of Khan Yunis in response, to search for the Palestinian militants who fired the mortars. more.. e-mail
Two resistance fighters die in armed clashes with IOF troops in Beit Lahia
Palestinian Information Center 12/6/2008
BEIT LAHIA, (PIC)--Two Palestinian resistance fighters were killed Thursday morning during ferocious armed confrontations with IOF troops to the east of Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, which increased the number of martyrs to nine Palestinians since Tuesday. The Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and the National Resistance Brigades claimed their joint responsibility for the armed clashes with the IOF troops, adding that their fighters managed to detonate an explosive device in an Israeli military jeep which led to the injury of a number of the infiltrating troops. Four Palestinians including a child and an elderly man were killed Wednesday during Israeli military assaults on the northern and southern parts of the Gaza Strip. In the West Bank, the IOF troops stormed at dawn Thursday Nablus city and its refugee camps and kidnapped two Palestinian young men called Mohamed Al-Bukhari, 22, and. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain three Palestinians in Nablus and Ramallah
Ma’an News Agency 6/12/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - Israeli forces detained three civilians from different parts of the West Bank at dawn on Thursday, claiming they were "wanted". Israeli sources said that the Israeli army seized three so-called "wanted" Palestinians in Nablus and Ramallah and transferred them to interrogation centers. [end]
Eleven killed and dozens injured in bloody day in Gaza, explosion destroys house in Beit Lahiya
Ma’an News Agency 6/12/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The number of Palestinians killed in the explosion on Thursday at a Beit Lahiya home in the northern Gaza Strip increased to seven, after three members of the Hamas-affiliated Al-Qassam Brigades died from their injuries. The announcement of the deaths of Al-Qassam fighters Muhammed Hamdan Maqdad, Muhammed Sabri Abu Naja, and Ahmad Munir Subeih in the explosion brought the death toll on Thursday in Gaza to 11, with dozens injured. Medical sources had earlier announced that the body of Al-Qassam fighter Ashraf Na’im Mashtahi was also retrieved from the rubble of the two-storey Hamoudeh family home in Beit Lahiya, which was destroyed by a massive explosion on Thursday afternoon. More than 40 people were reported wounded in the explosion, at least six of them seriously. Four-month-old Nour Majdi Hamoudeh, 22-year-old Mahmoud ’Ataya Hamoudeh, and 27-year-old Omar Abdel Ra’ouf Abu Shaqfeh were also killed in the explosion. more.. e-mail
Infant among dead as Gaza blast kills seven people
The Daily Star and Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/13/2008
GAZA CITY: Palestinian militants bombarded southern Israel on Thursday after a Hamas commander’s house in northern Gaza was blown up in a blast which killed seven people, including a four-month-old baby. The attacks started right after the explosion, which Palestinian medics said also wounded 51 people, among them women and children, in and around the two-story building. The Israeli military said nearly 50 rockets and mortar rounds were fired from the Gaza Strip following the explosion, which Hamas blamed on the Jewish state despite its denial of involvement. "Only yesterday, Israel decided to give a chance to the Egyptian initiative which could have brought calm to the south," the Israeli prime minister’s spokesman Mark Regev told AFP. "The barrage of rockets today shows that Hamas has no interest in calm and is committed to violence, terror and murder. more.. e-mail
J-Post: Ofra rabbi permits Shabbat construction
International Solidarity Movement 6/12/2008
Jerusalem Region hereIn a dramatic halachic ruling, the rabbi of Ofra, a settlement in the West Bank northeast of Ramallah, has ruled that Palestinian construction workers can build houses in the settlement on Shabbat, in order to "establish facts on the ground" ahead of a Supreme Court review of petitions against building in the settlement submitted by human rights groups Yesh Din and B’Tselem, Army Radio reported early Thursday morning. The ruling became effective last Saturday and also on Shavuot, which fell on Monday this week. Avi Gisser, the rabbi of Ofra, made the decision after consulting residents of Ofra. The Supreme Court discussion is slated for Sunday. Yesh Din and B’Tselem seek to halt the building of nine housing units. In a petition against the defense minister and the military’s OC Central Command, the two organizations, acting on behalf of five Palestinians. . . more.. e-mail
Cluster bombs claim another victim in South Lebanon
The Daily Star and Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/13/2008
TYRE: A Lebanese man was killed on Thursday by a cluster bomb dropped by Israeli forces during the 2006 war in Lebanon, a police official said. Hisham al-Ghossein, 39, was killed in the village of Qantara, near the Southern town of Marjayoun, after stepping on the bomb while working in his field, the official said. The munitions dropped by Israel during its devastating air war against Lebanon in July-August 2006 included at least a million cluster bomblets, according to the United Nations. Unexploded ordnance has killed or injured 257 people since the conflict ended in August 2006, according to the UN Mine Action Coordination Centre (MACC). Of those killed, at least 30 were civilians. Cluster munitions spread bomblets over a wide area, though they often do not explode on impact, effectively turning them into anti-personnel land mines. more.. e-mail
Mortar shells, Qassam rockets rain on Israel’s south
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/12/2008
One woman wounded as Palestinians bombard Gaza-vicinity communities with dozens of mortars, rockets in response to explosion in Beit Lahiya, though IDF continues to maintain Israel wasn’t involved - A 59-year-old Israeli woman was lightly-to-moderately wounded in the Yad Mordechai area on Thursday afternoon as Palestinian terror groups launched a barrage of mortar shells and Qassam rockets against Israeli communities near the Gaza border. The injured woman was evacuated to the Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon for treatment. At least 40 mortars and 25 Qassams landed in Israel, primarily in the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council, a number of fires have broken out as a result. A member of Kibbutz Nahal Oz told Ynet that residents have currently been instructed to remain in bomb shelters and fortified rooms. more.. e-mail
IDF furious after settlers fabricate kidnapping
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 6/12/2008
IDF, police, Shin Bet forces launch massive search for two settlers who reported their own kidnapping. After being found, settlers change story to say a third friend was abducted. Only 90 minutes later did they confess to lying - Two settlers are suspected of having given a false report of their own kidnapping, resulting in the launching of a large-scale manhunt that included the participation of IDF, police and Shin Bet forces. The two men began by entering the village of Ein Abus near Nablus. At around 4:00 am they called in a report and alleged that they were bound and trapped inside a car. IDF troops carrying out an arrest operating in Nablus were dispatched to the neighboring village and located the two settlers, though they were found to be unrestrained. When confronted by the soldiers, the settlers fabricated yet another story - they reported that. . . more.. e-mail
Four Palestinians killed and 25 hurt in northern Gaza blast
Haaretz Service and News Agencies, Ha’aretz 6/13/2008
An explosion destroyed a Hamas bomb-maker’s house in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing at least four people, including a baby, in what Hamas called an Israeli air strike and Israel described as an internal blast. The explosion, which also wounded about 25 people, destroyedthe two-story dwelling and damaged several other homes in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya, an area from which militants frequently fire rockets into southern Israel. Hamas said an Israel Air Force aircraft attacked the house belongingto Ahmed Hamouda, whom it described as one of its senior bomb-makers. It was not clear whether Hamouda, was inside the house at the time of the explosion. The Hamas-run Interior Ministry said a 4-month-old niece and teenage nephew of Hamouda were among the dead, along with an assistant to Interior Minister Said Siyam, a top Hamas figure in Gaza. more.. e-mail
Palestinians killed in Gaza clashes
Al Jazeera 6/12/2008
Two Palestinian gunmen have been killed in a firefight with Israeli troops in the northern Gaza Strip. Palestinian emergency services said the clash on Thursday occurred in the Beit Lahya area, near the fence that separates Israel from the Palestinian enclave. The gunmen killed were from al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Palestinian groups said. The new outbreak of violence came as a key Israeli envoy headed to Egypt in a bid to wrap up a cease-fire with the Hamas movement. An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed soldiers opened fire on a group of Palestinians who approached the fence. Air strike An Israeli aircraft also attacked a two-story house belonging to a Hamas member in the northern Gaza Strip. . . more.. e-mail
Gaza: 7 killed, 40 wounded in explosion
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/12/2008
Palestinian sources say at least seven killed in powerful explosion in Beit Lahiya home of Hamas military wing commander. Army denies forces struck, attribute explosion to ’work accident’; total of 14 Palestinians killed in several incidents throughout Strip Thursday -Palestinians reported that at least seven people have been killed and 40 more wounded in a large explosion in northern Gaza on Thursday afternoon. Hamas sources told Ynet that two of the seven people killed were senior operatives from the organization: Hassan Abu-Shakfa, one of the organization’s commanders in northern Gaza, and Ashraf Mushtaha, another of Hamas’ senior operatives. [end]
PFLP and PRC brigades claim attacks on Israeli targets in Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 6/12/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), claimed responsibility on Thursday afternoon for sniping an Israeli soldier east of Gaza city as well as launching two homemade projectiles at Ashkelon. Meanwhile, the An-Nasser Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), claimed responsibility for shelling an Israeli aircraft landing point east of Al-Bureij refugee camp with two homemade projectiles. [end]
PFLP, PRC affiliated brigades shell As-Sureij gate in Kisufim base
Ma’an News Agency 6/12/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades and the An-Nasser Brigades, the military wings of the PFLP party and the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) respectively, claimed responsibility for launching three mortar shells at the As-Sureij Gate in the Kisufim military base on Wednesday evening. The brigades said in a joint statement that this came in retaliation for the ongoing Israeli atrocities. [end]
Gaza: Four Palestinians killed in Israeli invasion of Al-Qarara, air strikes on Jabalia
Ma’an News Agency 6/11/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Four Palestinians have been killed since Wednesday morning by Israeli bombing and artillery in the Gaza Strip, and at least six others have been wounded. 26-year-old Yasser Abu Haleeb was killed and three other civilians were injured by Israeli artillery shelling targeting a group of civilians east of the town of Al-Qarara near Khan Younis on Wednesday afternoon. Head of Ambulance and Emergency Services, Dr Mo’awiya Hassanein, told Ma’an that Abu Haleeb’s body and those injured were transferred to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, describing their cases as serious. Among those received at the hospital was 3-year-old Wa’ed Fayyad, who suffered serious shrapnel injuries from Israeli tank shelling. Earlier on Wednesday, an Al-Qassam brigades fighter and a young girl were also killed by Israeli bombing in Al-Qarara. more.. e-mail
Israeli tank fire kills girl in Gaza, Palestinians say
Reuters, YNetNews 6/11/2008
Medics say 9-year-old girl’s remains recovered from house hit by IDF tank east of Khan Younis; army spokesman says ground force attacked gunmen attempting to launch rockets into Israel from built-up area -Israeli tank fire killed a 9-year-old Palestinian girl in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip on Wednesday, Palestinian medical workers said. They said the girl’s remains had been recovered from a house in the village of Qarara, east of Khan Younis, which had been struck by the tank fire. She was inside at the time of the shelling. An Israeli military spokesman said a ground force had attacked Palestinian militants in the central Gaza Strip who had been attempting to fire rockets into Israel from a built-up area. He said he was unaware of any civilian casualties. Israel regularly sends its ground and air forces into Gaza in what the military says is a necessary. . . more.. e-mail
Cabinet Ministers: Large-Scale Gaza op Needed
Roni Sofer, MIFTAH 6/11/2008
"Israel must launch a large-scale operation in Gaza against Hamas and the rest of the terror organizations," Housing Minister Ze’ev Boim said prior to Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, "everyone understands that any ceasefire would only be temporary. Hamas is under pressure. The blockade did its job." According to Boim , any truce agreement would only serve Hamas’ interests and give it time to regroup. At the onset of the meeting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert updated the ministers on his recent trip to Washington and the State Budget, but did not raise the Gaza issue. Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit said he too was against a ceasefire agreement with the Islamist group. "It (truce) won’t last. Hamas will violate it and say that it has no control over the other groups on the ground," he said, but added that the release of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit would change matters. According to Deputy Prime Minister and Shas chairman Eli Yishai, Israel "cannot agree to a virtual ceasefire agreement without Shalit. more.. e-mail
An old man killed in fresh Israeli raid
Palestinian Information Center 6/11/2008
JABALIA, (PIC)-- A 60-year-old Palestinian man was killed along with an Islamic Jihad activist while two other citizens were injured one of them a child, who is reportedly in a serious condition, as a result of a fresh Israeli air raid on Jabalia, north of the Gaza Strip. Medical sources told PIC reporter that Mohammed Asalia was killed when an Israeli warplane fired a missile at a group of people east of Jabalia on Wednesday afternoon while two other civilians were wounded. They said that the girl was in a very serious condition. An Islamic Jihad activist, Yasser Abu Halib, was killed when IOF special forces, entrenched in one of the citizens’ houses east of Qarara, fired at him killing him instantly on Wednesday evening. A member of the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, and an 8-year-old girl had been killed at dawn Wednesday in an Israeli occupation forces’ incursion into Qarara, Khan Younis district, southern Gaza. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces arrest two Palestinians from Balata camp near Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/11/2008
Nablus - Ma’an - Israeli forces invaded Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus, and arrested two Palestinian youth on Wednesday at dawn. Palestinian security sources told Ma’an’s reporter in Nablus that Israeli forces arrested 17-year-old Anas Bassam ’Oweis and 18-year-old Fahmy Salah Musallam after storming their houses shortly after midnight. [end]
Man lightly injured in mortar attack on Negev kibbutz
Yonat Atlas, YNetNews 6/11/2008
Factory in Nir Oz hit for second time in a week by two mortars fired from Gaza; workers evacuated after fire breaks out. ’Government must put an end to the attacks launched against us,’ kibbutz secretary says - A week after the deadly attack on the Nirlat factory in the western Negev kibbutz of Nir Oz, two mortars fired from Gaza landed at the site Wednesday morning, leaving one person lightly wounded from shrapnel. Factory workers were evacuated from the area after a fire erupted as a result of the mortar landing. Magen David Adom paramedics treated the wounded man at the scene and then evacuated him to Beersheba’s Soroka Medical Center. Kibbutz secretary Haim Peri told Ynet following the attack that "the factory is within the (mortars’) range and there is nothing we can do about it, unless the government decides to act toward putting an end to the attacks launched against us. more.. e-mail
Al-Aqsa brigades fire two mortar shells at Erez crossing
Ma’an News Agency 6/11/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - A unit of the Al-Aqsa Brigades, the military wing affiliated to the Fatah party, claimed responsibility for firing two mortar shells at the Israeli intelligence base in the Erez crossing in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday evening. The brigades said in a statement that this action reaffirmed their commitment to confronting the Israeli occupation, and came in response to recent Israeli invasions of Gaza. [end]
PFLP-affiliated fighters launch projectile at Nativ Ha’asara
Ma’an News Agency 6/11/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) claimed responsibility for launching one homemade projectile at the Israeli community of Nativ Ha’asara, which borders the Gaza Strip, on Wednesday noon. The group said in a statement that this came in retaliation for ongoing ’Israeli atrocities. ’[end]
Hamas fighters launch homemade projectiles at Israel
Ma’an News Agency 6/11/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of “Ayn Shlishit” from the Gaza Strip at noon on Wednesday. The Brigades said in a statement that this came in retaliation for ongoing Israeli attacks along the eastern border of the Gaza Strip. [end]
Israel Strike Kills 3 Gaza Militants Firing Mortar
Matti Friedman, MIFTAH 6/11/2008
An Israeli airstrike killed three Palestinians firing mortars at southern Israel on Tuesday, while Israel’s leaders debated whether to pursue a truce with Gaza’s Hamas rulers or launch a broad military offensive against militants in the coastal strip. In a related development, the father of an Israeli soldier held captive in Gaza by Hamas said his son pleaded for his life and appealed to the government not to abandon him in a newly received letter. The Israeli attack came after militants bombarded southern Israel with 20 mortar rounds in the space of an hour, and Hamas said the strike killed three members of one of its mortar squads. At the time, Israel’s top three officials - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni - were discussing what to do about Gaza. With four Israeli civilians killed by rocket and mortar attacks this year, Israel’s more.. e-mail
IOF troops kill Qassam fighter and 6-year-old girl in Khan Younis
Palestinian Information Center 6/11/2008
KHAN YOUNIS, (PIC)-- The IOF troops killed at dawn Wednesday a Palestinian fighter affiliated with the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, called Ibrahim Al-Masri and a 6-year-old girl called Hadeel Sumairi during an incursion in Qarara town, east of Khan Younis. Palestinian medical sources told the PIC reporter that the little girl was killed and a number of her relatives were wounded by an Israeli tank shell fired at their house east of Qarara, adding that the ambulance crews had difficulty in reaching the targeted scene where they transported the casualties one hour after the shelling. Local sources reported that the Israeli military helicopters which reinforced the IOF troops on the ground started at dawn to fire their machine guns at the resistance’s advanced points to pave the way for tanks and bulldozers to penetrate into the area, adding that the invading troops stormed a number of houses and bulldozed agricultural lands. more.. e-mail
Palestinians: Jihad gunman killed in Gaza
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/11/2008
Gaza sources report Jihad military wing operative killed by IDF fire near southern Strip town of Khan Younis; overall death toll in Gaza said to be four -Palestinian sources reported earlier that an Israeli Air Force fighter jet fired at a group of Palestinians east of northern Gaza neighborhood of Northern Gaza neighborhood of Jabalya, killing one man. The western Negev saw fire Wednesday as well, as Palestinians fired two mortar shells at Kibbutz Nir Oz, just one week after the deadly attack on the Nirlat factory. One man suffered light shrapnel injuries. Palestinian sources reported earlier that an Israeli Air Force fighter jet fired at a group of Palestinians east of northern Gaza neighborhood of Northern Gaza neighborhood of Jabalya, killing one man. The western Negev saw more.. e-mail
Sderot protest draws small crowd, community leaders undeterred
Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/12/2008
Some 30 protesters showed up on Wednesday to demonstrate outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem to demand that the government reach a decision regarding rocket attacks, Army Radio reported. The turnout was much smaller than expected, compared to other protests held over the last month which drew crowds in the hundreds. The state had prepared itself for a large demonstration, stationing police officers on horseback outside the office from the early hours of the day. Photographers were ready with their cameras and an ice cream truck stood nearby prepared to serve a large crowd. Sha’ar Hanegev regional council head Alon Schuster said he was not discouraged by the sparse turnout, adding that Gaza area residents were resilient and would keep fighting for their demands. more.. e-mail
Southern residents: Politicians are scared
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/11/2008
In wake of Wednesday’s cabinet meeting, Gaza-region residents fed up with government indecision in face of ongoing rocket attacks. Southern farmer says "politicians chose not to decide because they are scared to make dramatic moves’ - Southern residents fed up:Gaza-region residents are infuriated over Wednesday’s cabinet meeting, which ended on an indecisive note with ministers agreeing to give lull efforts a chance while preparing for a military operation in Gaza. The residents, who have been dealing with ongoing rocket and mortar attacks, are already planning their next protest moves and charge the government with ignoring them in favor of political interests. Shaar Hanegev Regional Council Head Alon Shuster, who protested along with other southern residents outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem Wednesday, says he fails to understand the cabinet’s hesitant decision. more.. e-mail
Negev residents demand cabinet’s final decision on Gaza
Ronen Medzini, YNetNews 6/11/2008
Gaza vicinity residents stage demonstration outside cabinet meeting in protest of government’s lack of action in southern front. It’s time to end south’s Russian roulette, they say - Some 100 of the western Negev’s residents demonstrated Wednesday across from the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem, demanding the government take the necessary actions to ensure their safety, in view of the mortar barrages that hit the area in the last few days. The protestors, carrying signs reading " Israel needs leaders who can make up their mind," called on the cabinet, which was discussing the escalating situation in Gaza at the time, to stop procrastinating and come to am immediate decision on whether Israel will launch a military operation in the Strip or opt for accepting the temporary ceasefire brokered byEgypt. more.. e-mail
Israel mulls onslaught as strike kills three Hamas men
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/11/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israeli troops killed three Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip Tuesday as Premier Ehud Olmert met with top ministers to weigh up a possible military offensive on the besieged territory. The meeting came a day after the parents of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, held at a secret location by Gaza militants, received a letter from their son who was captured two years ago. Israel’s political and military leaders have for months been mulling a wider military blitz in the Gaza aimed at ousting its Hamas-run government. The Israelis have been trying to unseat Hamas since the Islamist group won democratic elections across the Palestinian territories in January 2006, stepping up their siege last June after Hamas took control of the enclave by routing forces loyal to the rival Fatah faction which had refused to accept the results of the polls. more.. e-mail
Israeli troops shoot Palestinian man near Hebron
Ma’an News Agency 6/10/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli soldiers shot a young Palestinian man in the feet at midnight on Monday near the West Bank village of Beit Ummar, near the city of Hebron, Israeli sources reported. The Israeli military claims that the man threw a Molotov cocktail at an Israeli military position, provoking the shooting. In a separate incident, An Israeli settler’s car was pelted with stones near the West Bank town of Tarqumiya, west of Hebron. The car was reportedly damaged, although no one was injured. [end]
Two Palestinians killed in Rafah underground tunnel system
Ma’an News Agency 6/10/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – A Palestinian man was killed on Monday evening when an underground tunnel collapsed in the city of Rafah, underneath the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. Palestinian medical sources identified the victim as 20-year-old Fadi Khalifa. His body was taken to Abu Yousif An-Najjar Hospital in Rafah. Earlier on Monday, Palestinian sources said that 27-year-old Majdi Khdair was killed in a similar tunnel collapse in the Salam neighborhood of Rafah. Palestinian resistance groups use tunnels to move weapons and personnel into the blockaded Gaza Strip. [end]
18 mortars hit Negev; 3 Hamas men killed in IAF strike
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/10/2008
Palestinians fire two separate salvos toward south Israel as ’Kitchen Cabinet’ discusses possible military operation in Gaza; no injuries or damage reported. Three Hamas operatives killed in ensuing IAF strike - Eighteen mortar shells were fired from Gaza toward the Nahal Oz area noon Tuesday, as the "Kitchen Cabinet" - consisting of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni - was expected to reach a decision on whether or not to launch a military operation against Palestinian terror groups in the coastal enclave. Hamas claimed responsibility for the mortar fire, and shortly after the attacks Palestinian sources reported that three Hamas operatives were killed and a number of others were wounded in an Israel Air Force strike in the Gaza City neighborhood of Sajaiya. more.. e-mail
Hamas members killed in Gaza raid
Al Jazeera 6/10/2008
Three members of Hamas’s armed wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, have been killed in an Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip, Palestinian officials say. Health officials said at least four other Palestinians were wounded on Tuesday in separate Israeli air raids. The Israeli military said it targeted fighters who had fired mortar rounds across the border. Hamas said 16 mortar shells were fired towards an Israeli-controlled border crossing in retaliation for the killings. Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman said Israel’s military action "clearly indicates that Israel [is] not interested in achieving calm." "Therefore they must be ready to pay the price," he told the Associated Press news agency. The attacks occurred east of the town of Jebaliya, in northern Gaza. more.. e-mail
Three Qassam fighters killed, 5 civilians wounded in IOF tank shelling
Palestinian Information Center 6/10/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- Three Qassam fighters were killed, Tuesday afternoon, in the Shejaeyyah suburb in east Gaza city, while five civilians were wounded when an IOF tank fired artillery shells at a group of Qassam fighters. Palestinian medical sources confirmed the death of the three fighters and said there were children amongst the wounded, adding that emergency services hurried to the scene and carried the dead and wounded to the Shifa hospital in west Gaza city. One of the fighters killed was identified as Yahya Hamida of the Qassam information office, while the bodies of the two others were mutilated beyond recognition. Following the shelling, an Israeli airplane bombed a target in eat Gaza city wounding a civilian. more.. e-mail
Gaza groups unfazed by possible IDF op
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/10/2008
As security cabinet prepares to decide on future military operation in Strip, militias seem unwary. ’The Israelis know that any large operation would carry severe consequences,’ says militant source - Israel’s security cabinet is expected to make the pivotal decision of when - and more importantly if - the Gaza will see a wide-scale military operation meant to crush militant infrastructure; but the various armed groups in the Strip seem unfazed by the prospect. Hamas, the Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) all believe that the political state of mind in Israel will not allow such an operation to materialize. "The letter relayed from more.. e-mail
PFLP fighters shelled Nahal Oz, group says
Ma’an News Agency 6/10/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the armed wing of the left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), claimed responsibility for shelling Nahal Oz border crossing with eight mortar shells, on Tuesday at 12:40 pm. In a statement the group said it would "wildly respond to the occupation’s crimes." Three Hamas-affiliated fighters were killed by Israeli forces in the vicinity of the crossing at around noon on Tuesday. [end]
Al-Quds Brigades ’fire projectile’ at Sderot
Ma’an News Agency 6/10/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Al-Quds brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, claimed responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles on Tuesday morning at the Israeli town of Sderot, which borders the Gaza Strip. The Brigades said in a statement that this action came in the retaliation for ’ongoing Israeli atrocities’ in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. [end]
Hamas fighters attack Israeli bulldozer in Gaza Strip
Ma’an News Agency 6/10/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for launching an rocket-propelled grenade at an Israeli bulldozer next to east of the city of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday morning. The Brigades said in a statement, that they attacked the invading bulldozer at 9am. [end]
Israel starts to build a big settlement project near the Aqsa Mosque
Palestinian Information Center 6/10/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Aqsa foundation for the reconstruction of Islamic shrines warned that Zionist organizations are embarking on establishing and marketing a massive settlement project overlooking the Aqsa Mosque on the Mount Zeitoun in the Ras Al-Amud area. During an inspection tour of the Mount Zeitoun, a commission of the Aqsa foundation found out that Zionist settlement organizations were accelerating the construction of 60 settlement units where they started to build the foundations of the project that are located in the middle of Arab houses. The foundation pointed out that the Zionist organizations confiscated the Palestinian lands on which these settlement units are being built. The foundation also discovered that Jewish organizations and companies are marketing this settlement project through many promotional materials including a documentary film showing. . . more.. e-mail
UN helps replace livestock lost in 2006 hostilities
Mohammed Zaatari, Daily Star 6/11/2008
SOUTH LEBANON: The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in collaboration with the Agriculture Ministry, held a ceremony Tuesday to distribute cows to livestock farmers who suffered significant losses during the summer 2006 war with Israel, as part of the international body’s program to aid South Lebanon’s agriculture industry improve productivity. Organizers of the project drew lots to distribute 100 pregnant cows - from Germany and Holland - to Southern farmers. Samir Chami, representing resigned Agriculture Minister Talal Sahili, said the step "constitutes a small compensation to Southern farmers following the losses they have incurred during the 2006 hostilities. ""We hope to implement further projects in a bid to cover the needs of the whole South," he added. Beneficiaries of the project should meet three conditions, Chami said. more.. e-mail
Three Palestinian military groups fire attack Israeli targets bordering Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 6/9/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Three Palestinian military groups claimed responsibility on Sunday and Monday for launching projectiles at Israeli targets bordering the Gaza Strip. The National Resistance Brigades, the military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) claimed responsibility for firing a homemade projectile at the Israeli military post at Kisufim on Monday morning. Separately, the Dalal Al-Mughrabi Brigades, a group claiming allegiance to Fatah, said their fighters fired three mortar shells at Israeli military vehicles as they were withdrawing from the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday evening. In the same regard, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, the An-Nasser Salah Addin Brigades claimed responsibility on Sunday evening for firing two mortar shells at the Karni crossing point. more.. e-mail
Palestinian caught with pipe bombs at W. Bank checkpoint
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/10/2008
A Palestinian youth was caught at a West Bank checkpoint carrying six pipe bombs and a magazine on Sunday. The youth, 18, arrived at the Hawara checkpoint from Nablus carrying a bag. Soldiers at the checkpoint told him to put the bag in the screening device, where the bombs and magazine were discovered. "He looked tense and his behavior was suspicious when he put the bag into the screening device," said Corporal Ron Bezalel, who conducted the security check. "He kept moving and now one can understand why. I have no doubt that he knew he was carrying the explosives," he said. The soldiers closed off the area and sappers were called in to detonate the bombs. The Palestinian was taken to the Shin Bet security service for interrogation. This is the second time in the past month that a youngster tried to smuggle explosives into Israel through the Hawara checkpoint. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers escalate their assaults and build new settlement in Al-Khalil
Palestinian Information Center 6/9/2008
AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- Several Palestinian local sources reported that Zionist settlers in complicity with the IOA escalated their racist assaults and settlement activities in Al-Khalil city, southern West Bank. The municipality of Al-Khalil city reported that a group of Zionist extremists uprooted Sunday 30-year-old ornamental trees from a garden near the Ibrahimi Mosque in the old town in the city. Khaled Al-Asili, the head of the municipality, stated in a press release received by the PIC that this act is a serious assault on the municipal property, adding if the IOA did not punish the assailants, more violations would be committed in the city. Israeli settlers wearing masks also severely beat a number of Palestinian shepherds in the Susya area near the Samua village, south of Al-Khalil, which led to the injury of four of them, according to Palestinian eyewitnesses. more.. e-mail
Masked Israeli settlers attack Palestinian shepherds near Hebron
Ma’an News Agency 6/9/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an – Four Palestinians, including a woman, were injured when masked Israeli settlers attacked shepherds on Sunday in the West Bank village of Sussia, south of the city of Hebron. Shepherds told to the Israeli police, who were present during the attack, that the attackers were Israeli settlers and they beat them with sticks and clubs. The shepherds fainted and were transferred to Soroka hospital in the Israeli city of Beer Sheva for treatment. Other shepherds were treated at a Hebron hospital. [end]
The Israeli army attack Atteel village near Tulkarem city
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/9/2008
Israeli troops invaded the village of Atteel located near the northern West Bank city of Tulkarem on Monday morning. Local sources said that around 20 Israeli army vehicles stormed the village; the sources added that troops searched and ransacked a number of homes there in addition to stopping local cars and searching them. Witnesses to the invasion said that troops attacked Na’el Riyad who works at a local mechanic shop during their search in the village. Riyad sustained broses, witnesses added. [end]
Qassam fighters survive Israeli missile attack during incursion in Beit Lahia
Palestinian Information Center 6/9/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- A group of Al-Qassam fighters survived an Israeli ground-to-ground missile attack shortly after a large number of IOF troops reinforced by Israeli tanks and armored vehicles advanced into Beit Lahia city, northern Gaza Strip, at midnight Sunday. Palestinian local sources told the PIC reporter that 25 Israeli tanks and armored personnel carriers in addition to bulldozers reinforced by aerial cover invaded the city amid heavy gunfire, adding that a number of Israeli soldiers broke into and ransacked Palestinian houses during the incursion. The popular resistance committees warned that the Israeli occupation would pay dearly if it thought of venturing into Gaza, highlighting that in case some of the invading IOF troops succeeded in getting out of the Strip alive, their tongues would surely fail to describe the heroics of the resistance fighters. more.. e-mail
Fatah-linked fighters claim mortar attack
Ma’an News Agency 6/9/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – The Ahmad Abu Ar-Rish brigades a military group affiliated to Fatah claimed responsibility for launching two mortar shells at Kibbutz Megan, east of theGaza Strip on Monday morning. The brigades said in a statement that this shelling came in retaliation for ongoing ’Israeli atrocities’ against Palestinians. [end]
Al-Quds Brigades claim mortar attack
Ma’an News Agency 6/9/2008
Gaza - Ma’an – The Al-Quds brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, claimed responsibility for launching three mortar shells at the Israeli town of Kfar Aza, east of the Gaza Strip, at noon on Monday. The brigades said in a statement that this came in retaliation for ongoing Israeli atrocities against Palestinians. [end]
Gaza op likely before J’lem signs truce
Yaakov Katz And Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post 6/8/2008
In response to the recent string of fatal Hamas rocket attacks, Israel is likely to conduct a medium-size military operation against the Islamist group before agreeing to a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, senior defense officials told The Jerusalem Post on Saturday. A final decision on Israel’s course will be made on Tuesday during a meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. Barak, officials said, favored first striking at Hamas and only then agreeing to a truce. "Under the current circumstances, accepting a cease-fire would appear as if. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli killed in Negev mortar strike; Gazan girl, 4, dies in IAF attack
Fadi Eyadat and Mijal Grinberg, Ha’aretz 6/7/2008
An Israeli man was killed and four other people were wounded on Thursday when Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a mortar shell into Kibbutz Nir Oz in the western Negev. The fatality was named as Amnon Rosenberg, 51, a father of three from nearby Kibbutz Nirim. He was killed when the shell hit outside the paint factory at Kibbutz Nir Oz. Three of the casualties were moderately wounded and the fourth sustained minor wounds in the strike. All the victims were hit with shrapnel from the shell. Not long after the mortar shell strike, Palestinian doctors said a 4-year-old girl was killed and her mother wounded by an Israel Air Force attack on the Gaza Strip. Hamas security said the Israeli aircraft targeted a group of militants in the southern Gaza Strip but missed them. more.. e-mail
Witnesses: Palestinian man killed by IDF fire in Hebron
Reuters, Ha’aretz 6/6/2008
Israel Defense Forces soldiers shot dead a Palestinian man in the West Bank city of Hebron, Palestinian witnesses and medical workers said on Thursday. Witnesses said the man, Adham al-Rajabee, was armed and was fighting in a clan feud that has killed two people in the past two days. They said soldiers appeared to mistake him for a wanted militant and shot him. An IDF spokeswoman said soldiers opened fire on three armed Palestinians that came close to troops operating in the West Bank city. Earlier on Thursday, Israeli soldiers seriously injured a Palestinian teenager during a raid in a village north of Hebron. An army spokesman said the soldiers opened fire on a group of Palestinians who hurled fire-bombs towards IDF forces during a raid in the area. more.. e-mail
Israeli military blocks main access road in south Hebron hills
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – The Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) reported on Friday that the Israeli military blocked the main road between At-Tuwani and Yatta, in the southern Hebron district of the West Bank, on Thursday morning. CPT, which has a team of international civilian observers in the village of At-Tuwani to monitor actions of the Israeli military and settlers in the region, reported that at 11am on Thursday an Israeli military bulldozer created a six-foot-high mound spanning the width of the road using concrete slabs, boulders and earth. This new roadblock greatly expands a mound placed by the Israeli army on 28 May 2008, and is the largest in a series of obstructions erected by Israeli forces on the road linking At-Tuwani and surrounding villages with Yatta, the main town in the area, over the past three months. more.. e-mail
One Palestinian killed, at least 29 injured in night strikes on Gaza
IMEMC Staff, International Middle East Media Center News 6/6/2008
Palestinian sources said that a Palestinian man was killed and at least 29 others were injured during several Israeli air raids targeting the Gaza Strip on Thursday night. Medical sources said that among those injured was a three- month old baby. Khalil Sokkar 27, was killed when Israeli troopsattacked the Al Shuja’iyaneighborhood in Gaza City in the north the Gaza Strip, late on Thursday night. Eyewitnesses said that Sokkar was on his way to rescue two injured civilians when the Israeli army shot him dead and opened fire on civilians in the area. Israeli warplanes targeted a Palestinian security post, north of Beit Lahyia, belonging to the Palestinian Hamas run government in Gaza. Nine civilians were injured in the attack. The post nearby houses suffered damage. Meanwhile an Israeli soldier was mildly injured during an Israeli army attack in the southern part of the Gaza Strip. more.. e-mail
New radar system in the works to detect mortars from Gaza
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/7/2008
An Israeli defense contractor is developing a new radar system for the defense establishment that will identify mortar fire toward Israel. The existing "Color Red" alert system does not warn of mortar fire from the Gaza Strip, only longer-range weapons such as Qassam rockets and Grad missiles. The need for a system that identifies mortar fire has risen in recent months with increased mortar attacks on Israel Defense Forces troops near the Gaza border fence and towns close to the fence. Thursday, Gaza-area towns lost another victim to mortar fire at Kibbutz Nir Oz’s Nirlite factory, when Amnon Rosenberg, 51, a father of three from nearby Kibbutz Nirimwas killed by an incoming mortar , just a few weeks after the death of Kibbutz Kfar Aza’s Jimmy Kadoshim in his own yard. more.. e-mail
Continual air attacks on Gaza Strip
Palestine News Network 6/6/2008
Gaza / PNN - Palestinian medical sources report that a Palestinian died Friday morning in the northern Gaza Strip. In an ongoing series of air raids on the Strip, Israeli forces targeted a police station in Beit Lahiya at dawn today, entirely destroying the building and injuring 10 people. Yesterday in another air raid they killed a four year old girl. The Israelis also incurred into eastern Gaza City’s Al Shajayiah neighborhood, killing a member of the Hamas armed resistance wing, Al Qassam Brigades and injuring several others. An Israeli soldier was injured as members of the armed resistance shot at a military post along the boundary. Since the early morning Israeli attacks, factions from the armed resistance ranging from the leftists to the Islamists have been firing projectiles. more.. e-mail
Rocket barrage hits Negev
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 6/6/2008
Altogether 10 rockets fired at Negev on Friday; one hits Sapir College causing damage, shock among witnesses - Four Qassam rockets were fired on Friday afternoon at Sderot and its area. One rocket fell near Sapir College, and Magen David Adom (MDA) evacuated a number of people who suffered from shock. The building was also damaged. A second rocket landed in Sderot, and a third landed in open spaces. The fourth rocket has not yet been found. It apparently landed in Shaar HaNegev Regional Council. The rocket that landed in Sderot caused a 50-year old man to be injured by falling as he ran for cover. A few minutes earlier, three mortar shells were fired towards the Negev. No injuries or damage were reported. On Friday morning three mortar shells were also fired towards the western Negev. more.. e-mail
Al-Aqsa brigades activist injured in clashes with Israeli special force in Gaza Strip
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - Fatah’s Al-Aqsa brigades have announced that one of their activists was injured during clashes with an Israeli special force in the Ash-Shuja’iyya neighborhood of Gaza city on Friday morning. They said that around 5. 20 am one of their fighters threw a Molotov cocktail at an Israeli bulldozer which was razing lands in the An-Nahda neighborhood of the city of Rafah. Meanwhile, another group of Al-Aqsa fighters clashed with an Israeli special force that infiltrated east of Beit Lahia at 5 am on Friday and was shelling civilian houses. [end]
Negev pounded with Qassams, mortar shells fired from Gaza
Mijal Grinberg, Ha’aretz 6/7/2008
A barrage of four Qassam rockets and five mortar shells fired by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip slammed into the western Negev on Friday. No injuries were reported, but several people were treated for shock and cars in the area sustained damage. Another Qassam rocket struck an open area in the Eshkol region in the western Negev. No injuries or damage were reported. Earlier Friday, an Israel Defense Forces soldier was wounded and a Palestinian gunman was killed in clashes near the Gaza Strip border fence. An IDF spokeswoman said troops operating close to the border east of Gaza City spotted an armed man and shot him. she said an Israeli soldier was lightly to moderately wounded in the exchange. In an air strike earlier Friday, a missile destroyed an outpost belonging to Hamas militants, critically wounding one gunman. more.. e-mail
Olmert threatens Gaza offensive
Al Jazeera 6/6/2008
Israel’s prime minister has said that the country’s military could launch fresh large-scale military operations in the Gaza Strip. Ehud Olmert’s warning on Friday came as Israeli raids on the occupied Palestinian territory left at least one person dead and at least 17 injured. "According to the information we have now, the pendulum is much closer to a decision on a harsh operation," Olmert said, soon after he returned from the United States. He had earlier told US reporters that Israel was heading towards a military operation in Gaza. He said that Egyptian peace efforts on the Gaza Strip were "not ripening in a way that can bring a ceasefire". Gaza clashes In Friday’s raids, a member of the armed wing of Hamas died in an exchange of fire between. . . more.. e-mail
Eight-year-old Palestinian girl killed by an Israeli rocket
Palestinian Information Center 6/6/2008
Khan Younis, (PIC)-- The body of 8-year-old Aya al-Najjar was mutilated on Thursday afternoon by a rocket fired from an Israeli airplane while she was playing in the garden outside her house in the village of Khuza’a in the southern Gaza Strip. The little girl had just finished her school exams and went home eager to play as she had no more revision to do. She asked her mother if it was ok for her to play in the garden and the mother agreed. An apache helicopter hovered over the place, Aya looked at it and carried on playing. Neither her nor her mother expected to be the target of a rocket fired from the apache. It seems, however, that Zionist hate for everything Palestinian has no limits as Aya was hit directly with the rocket causing her young body to be shredded into little pieces. Aya was not the first Palestinian child to be targeted by the IOF and will not be the. . . more.. e-mail
One Palestinian killed, 16 others, including baby, wounded in Gaza
Palestinian Information Center 6/6/2008
GAZA, BEIT LAHYA, KHAN YOUNIS, (PIC)-- One Palestinian man was killed on Friday morning and 16 others were wounded during two IOF incursions to the eat of Gaza and Khan Younis as well as an air raid. The two incursions were met with fierce resistance from the Palestinian resistance and a number of armoured vehicles were blown up, parts of which were found after the withdrawal of the occupation forces. IOF troops raided the Shejaeyyah neighbourhood near the Nahel Oz crossing were a Palestinian man who was trying to give first aid to a wounded fighter. Eyewitnesses said that 27-year-old Muhammad Sokkar was hit with an Israeli sniper’s bullet when he was trying to help the wounded Qassam fighter. Four fighters were wounded while confronting the invading forces, some of them were wounded in an airstrike that targeted a number of Qassam fighters. more.. e-mail
Third fatality from Gaza mortars in last month
Ha’aretz 6/6/2008
Amnon Rosenberg, 51, who was killed yesterday when a mortar shell fired by Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip hit a paint factory at Kibbutz Nir Oz in the western Negev, was a father of three from nearby Kibbutz Nirim. He worked as the warehouse manager of the Nirlat paint factory. He is the third person to be killed by mortar fire from Gaza in the last month; the other two were Jimmy Kedoshim of Kibbutz Kfar Aza and Shuli Katz of Kibbutz Gvaram. "We were devastated by the news," kibbutz member Dedi Rubinstein said. "Amnon was the pillar of his family, a strong, hard working man. "While serving as a career army officer, Rosenberg married a member of Kibbutz Tal and the couple moved to Nirim. They had three children, Dor, 27, Eldad, 22, and Yarden, 12. Rosenberg liked karate and was a black belt, fourth dan. more.. e-mail
DFLP and Fatah affiliated brigades target Israeli military post
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The National Resistance brigades, the military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and Fatah’s Al-Aqsa brigades claimed joint responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at Ozokim Israeli military post early on Friday morning. The brigades said in a statement that they came under Israeli shelling after performing their operation but no one was injured. They confirmed that the attack was in response to Israeli incursions and air strikes, and the blockade of the Gaza Strip. [end]
Abu Ali Mustafa and Al-Aqsa brigades launch projectiles at Sderot, western Negev, Ashkelon and Yad Mordechai
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza – Ma’an - The Abu Ali Mustafa brigades, the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) claimed responsibility for targeting Sderot with a Sumud missile on Friday. Also on Friday, in an attack coordinated by the Abu Ali Mustafa and Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Brigades two projectiles were launched at the western Negev. The Abu Ali Mustafa and the Al-Aqsa Brigades also claimed responsibility for targeting the Israeli towns of Ashkelon, Sderot and Yad Mordechai with five projectiles. [end]
Al-Aqsa brigades clash with Israeli forces near Kisufim base
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Al-Aqsa brigades, the military wing affiliated with the Fatah movement, claimed responsibility on Friday afternoon for clashing with Israeli forces near the Kisufim base, east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. The brigades told Ma’an that a group of Palestinian fighters confronted a number of Israeli military vehicles and jeeps near the main gate of the Kisufim base, next to the Gaza border. [end]
Abu Ali Mustafa and Al-Aqsa brigades fire two homemade projectiles at Sderot
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Abu Ali Mustafa and Al-Aqsa brigades, affiliated with the PFLP and Fatah parties respectively, announced their joint responsibility for firing two homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of Sderot in the western Negev on Friday afternoon. The brigades told Ma’an that the shelling was carried out in response to the continuous Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people. [end]
Fatah and Hamas affiliated brigades claim launching projectiles at Kissufim
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Al-‘Asifa brigades, a military wing affiliated to Fatah, and the Al-Quds brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, claimed joint responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at Kissufim military post, east of Khan Younis, on Friday morning. The brigades said in a statement that the attack was in retaliation for ongoing Israeli atrocities against Palestinians. [end]
Brigades attack Sderot and Netiv Ha’asara
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Al-Qassam brigades, the military wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for firing four homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of Sderot, and launching two projectiles at the town of Netiv Ha’asara on Friday. The Al-Qassam Brigades said that the attacks were in retaliation for Israeli incursions in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. [end]
Al-Aqsa brigades claimed launched two mortar shells at Erez
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - Fatah’s military wing, the Al-Aqsa brigades, claimed responsibility for launching two mortar shells at the Erez crossing on Friday afternoon. The brigades confirmed in a statement that this came in retaliation for Israeli aggressions. [end]
Palestinian police officer and two drug dealers, killed in Gaza gang clashes.
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/6/2008
One Palestinian police officer and two drugs dealers were killed during clashes that took place between Palestinian police forces and drug gangs in Gaza City on Friday. [end]
VIDEO - News / Gaza militants kill Israeli in mortar attack on Negev kibbutz
Haaretz Staff and Channel 10, Ha’aretz 6/5/2008
Haaretz. com/Channel 10 news roundup for June 5, 2008. In this edition: Palestinian militants kill an Israeli man in a mortar attack on a Negev kibbutz. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemns U. S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama for saying Jerusalem will remain Israel’s undivided capital. Channel 10 releases the first images of suspected child abuser Elior Chen under arrest in Brazil. [end]
New Gaza violence claims man, toddler
Mehdi Lebouachera, Daily Star 6/6/2008
Agence France Press - NIR OZ, Israel: An Israeli man was killed in a mortar attack by Gaza militants on Thursday, triggering an air raid on the impoverished territory that left a 4-year-old Palestinian girl dead. The Israeli was killed when two mortar rounds slammed into a kibbutz in southern Israel in an attack claimed by the armed wing of the Islamist Hamas that rules the Gaza Strip. A military spokesman said three mortar bombs were fired from Gaza, with two hitting near a factory in the Nir Oz kibbutz, east of the southern Gaza Strip, in what was the first such deadly attack by militants since May 12. Israel’s military initially said rockets had hit the kibbutz but later corrected the statement. Several hours later, Aya al-Manjar, age 4, was killed and her mother critically wounded in an air strike by an Israeli drone which the Israelis said was targeting militants in southern Gaza. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces attack Beit Ummar, shoot 15 year old on his way to school
Palestine News Network 6/3/2008
Hebron / Bekah Wolf - At approximately 1am Thursday Israeli soldiers, with their faces painted in camouflage (to blend in with the gray concrete and tan stone walls of Palestinian homes? ) invaded the home of Mohammed Fuwad Al-Qoom near the central mosque in Beit Ommar, Hebron District. The family was forced from the home and the soldiers remained all night. At approximately 8am, seven hours after soldiers first entered the village, an Israeli soldier shot Tariq Jamal Abu Maria, 15, in the abdomen on his way to school. He was taken to the hospital in Hebron, where he underwent surgery and is still in critical condition. By 9:30am 4 large Armored Personnel Carriers and 4 jeeps were in the center of the village, shooting copious amounts of tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets and throwing sound grenades. The youth of the village came out in force, throwing stones, paint, and oil at the APC from which Tariq was shot. more.. e-mail
One Palestinian killed, 29 injured in Israeli strikes on Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - One Palestinian civilian was killed and 29 others were injured in a series of Israeli airstrikes and ground attacks during Thursday night in the Beit Lahia area in the northern the Gaza Strip and east of Gaza City. Palestinian medical sources said that 27-year-old Khalil Sokkar was shot dead by special Israeli forces who invaded the Ash-Shuja’iyya neighborhood in eastern of Gaza City. Eyewitnesses said that Sokkar was on his way to rescue two injured civilians when the Israeli army shot him dead and opened fire on other civilians in the area. Meanwhile, Israeli warplanes targeted a security post related to the foreign ministry of the Hamas-run de facto government in Al-‘Atatreh, north of Beit Lahia, destroying the post and damaging neighboring houses. Medical sources announced that at least nine injured civilians were transferred to hospitals for treatment, while another twenty were treated in the field. more.. e-mail
IDF soldier wounded by Palestinian gunmen
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 6/6/2008
Palestinians fire at army patrol working on Gaza border fence, wounding one; different patrol kills Hamas gunman near Nahal Oz. Palestinians report at least 10 people injured in overnight Gaza airstrikes - An IDF soldier was lightly to moderately wounded after Palestinian gunmen opened fire at an army patrol doing engineering work on the border security fence in the northern Gaza Strip. The soldier was evacuated to the hospital for treatment. Meanwhile, an IDF patrol operating in the Nahal Oz area shot and killed a Hamas gunman. Earlier, Palestinian sources reported at least 10 Palestinians injured in an Air Force (IAF) strike on a Hamas firing post in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahiya early Friday morning. The sources said an infant was among those injured. Palestinian sources also reported an IDF strike that occurred in the central Gaza Strip, but no injuries were reported. more.. e-mail
A 4-year-old girl killed, her mother wounded in an Israeli air strike on Gaza
Rami Almeghari & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/5/2008
The 4-year-old Aya Alnajjar, was killed on Thursday after noon, and her mother was wounded after an Israeli air strike hit the southern Gaza Strip village of Kheza’a. Palestinian medical sources confirmed that Aya arrived at the hospital with many wounds in her little body as her mother was wounded critically. The source said that a third residsdnt was also wound. Witnesses said that the victim child was walking along with her mother down the street in the Kheza’a town in southeastern Gaza Strip, when an Israeli missile mistaken a group of resistance fighters in the area. The targeted area has been witnessing an Israeli army invasion since the early hours of Thursday morning, as several Israeli tanks rolled few hundred meters depth into this Palestinian village. The latest Israeli air strike came hours after a Palestinian homemade shell landed on the Israeli settlement. . . more.. e-mail
One Israeli killed, five others wounded in a shell attack on nearby Israel
Rami Almeghari & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/5/2008
One Israeli citizen was killed and five others wounded after a homemade shell landed on the Israeli settlement town of Nir Auz, in the southern Israeli region of Negev, near the Gaza Strip. Israeli media sources reported that all wounded people were evacuated to the Suruka hospital of Beer Sheva’. Haieam Ramon, head of the so-called Israeli regional council, was quoted by the media outlets as saying " the alarms didn’t not work as the shell was falling, therefore, there occurred causalities". The Alqassam brigades, the armed wing of the ruling Hamas party, claimed responsibility for such an attack, saying it is a response to the Israeli army attacks on Gaza. Also on Thursday, several armored Israeli army vehicles invaded the southeastern part of Khan Younis city in southern Gaza Strip. Israeli political analyst Tsikiva Bahzakly, of the Israeli channel ten, commented. . . more.. e-mail
Hamas vows to continue attacks
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/5/2008
After claiming responsibility for shelling of kibbutz factory that killed Israeli father of three, senior official in Islamist group says attacks will only stop when ceasefire agreed on. ’But if that truce never comes, we have no intention of holding back our fire,’ he says - Hamas warned on Thursday afternoon that it would continue to launch attacks against Israeli communities near the Gaza border. "The firing will stop only when the zero-hour of a ceasefire goes into effect, but if that hour never comes - we have no intentions of holding back our fire," said a senior Hamas official following the shelling of a paint factory in Kibbutz Nir Oz earlier in the day in which 51-year-old Amnon Rosenberg was killed. The source emphasized that the attacks would continue "in particular if the enemy’s army continues its ground operations and airstrikes against Palestinians. more.. e-mail
Father of 3 killed in mortar attack, IAF strike kills girl in Gaza
Yonat Atlas, YNetNews 6/5/2008
Mortar shell crashes into kibbutz factory, claims life of 51-year-old Amnon Rosenberg. Hamas claims responsibility for attack. IAF strikes gunmen in Gaza, Palestinians say young girl killed - The man killed Thursday morning by a Palestinian mortar shell attack has been identified as 51-year-old Amnon Rosenberg of Kibbutz Nirim. Rosenberg, a member of the kibbutz since 1982, is survived by a wife, Tali, and three children - Dor, Eldar and Yarden. Hamas’ Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades have claimed responsibility for the firing of the mortar, which crashed into the Nirlat factory in Kibbutz Nir Oz, which is located within Eshkol Regional Council limits. Five other employees sustained light-to-moderate shrapnel wounds and were evacuated to the Soroka Hospital in Beersheba for treatment. Several people were reported as suffering from shock at the scene. more.. e-mail
Report: Palestinian girl killed in Gaza strike
Associated Press, YNetNews 6/5/2008
Hamas security reports Israeli aircraft fired on militants in southern Strip, missed. IAF confirms striking east of Khan Younis, says hit gunmen near mortar shell launch pad. Strike said to follow deadly attack on western Negev kibbutz - Palestinian doctors reported Thursday that a 4-year-old girl has been killed and her mother wounded in an Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip. Hamas security said that an Israeli aircraft targeted a group of militants in the southern Gaza Strip but missed them. Relatives of the girl said that she and her mother were in the yard of a house that was hit by the errant missile. Thursday’s airstrike came shortly after Palestinian mortar fire on a southern Israeli community killed one person. The violence dealt a new setback to Egyptian efforts to mediate a truce between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers. more.. e-mail
Brigades target Migin military post
Ma’an News Agency 6/5/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The military wing of Islamic Jihad, the Al-Quds Brigades and the Fatah-affiliated As-Sa’idani Martyr Brigades claimed joint responsibility for launching three homemade projectiles at the Migin Israeli military post on Wednesday night. The Brigades said that the attacks were retaliation for the ongoing Israeli crimes against Palestinians. [end]
PFLP military wing launches homemade rocket at Sufa military base
Ma’an News Agency 6/5/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Abu Ali Mustafa brigades, the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) party, claimed responsibility on Thursday for launching a homemade projectile at the Sufa military base east of Rafah. The brigades said in a statement that this came as a natural response to the ongoing Israeli aggression. [end]
Al-Quds brigades announce shooting Israeli soldier near Kisufim
Ma’an News Agency 6/5/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Al-Quds brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad movement, said on Thursday that they were able to shoot an Israeli soldier in the area of Kisufim, east of the central Gaza Strip. The brigades said in a statement that the operation came in response to the ongoing Israeli atrocities. [end]
Al-Qassam launch three mortar shells at Israeli military post
Ma’an News Agency 6/5/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Al-Qassam brigades, Hamas’ military wing, claimed responsibility for launching three mortar shells at an Israeli military post east of Khaza’a southern of the Gaza Strip on Thursday. [end]
IDF stops flow of fuel into Gaza Strip
ASSOCIATED PRESS, Jerusalem Post 6/4/2008
A rocket fired into the Nahal Oz fuel terminal on Wednesday prompted the IDF to cease transferring industrial fuel, cooking gas and diesel to the territory. Fuel trucks drive in and out of the Nahal Oz fuel depot, used by Israel to pump fuel into Gaza, between Israel and the Gaza Strip, Wednesday. The rocket hit the Gaza side of the crossing, wounding a Palestinian worker there, Palestinian doctors said. Government spokesman David Baker said Wednesday’s attack showed terrorist groups’ "total disregard for the well-being of the Palestinian people." In late May a potentially disastrous terror attack at the Erez Crossing into Gaza was averted. . . more.. e-mail
Palestinian girl, 6, killed as Israel retaliates for fatal kibbutz attack
Ibrahim Barzak in Gaza City, The Independent 6/3/2008
An Israeli man was killed and four other people were wounded yesterday when Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip fired a mortar shell at a kibbutz in the western Negev desert. Amnon Rosenberg, 51, who had three children, died when the shell landed outside a paint factory at the Kibbutz Nir Oz. The other casualties were hit by shrapnel. Not long after the attack, a six-year-old Palestinian girl was killed and her mother wounded as Israeli warplanes launched a strike on the militants suspected of firing the mortar. A missile missed its target and landed in the garden of the family’s home in Gaza. The violence dealt a new blow to Egyptian efforts to broker a truce between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas, which seized control of Gaza a year ago. The attacks came a day after the moderate Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, called for renewed dialogue with Hamas, which claimed responsibility for the kibbutz attack. more.. e-mail
Israeli killed in rocket attack from Gaza
Middle East Online 6/3/2008
NIR OZ - An Israeli was killed on Thursday when a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip hit a kibbutz in southern Israel, the army and medics said, in an attack claimed by the armed wing of Hamas. The home-made Qassam-style rocket hit an industral zone in the Nir Oz kibbutz east of the southern Gaza Strip, an army spokeswoman said. The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas which has ruled inside Gaza for almost a year (although the Strip is still under Israeli occupation), claimed responsibility. "There is one dead and four wounded - three seriously," said Itzik Elfassi, deputy head of the Magen David Adom emergency service in the Negev. Kibbutz official Haim Dery told reporters three rockets were fired, and that the first hit a local cemetery. "The second struck the factory perimeter. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces bulldozing southern Gaza Strip’s Absan
Palestine News Network 6/3/2008
Gaza / PNN -- Palestinian security sources and eyewitnesses reported that Israeli forces again invaded eastern Khan Younis’ town of Absan on Thursday. This southern Gaza Strip area has been under particular target for weeks. Israeli bulldozers began razing homes and agricultural lands while soldiers opened fire. During a similar scenario just days ago Israeli forces killed a 70 year old man while opening random fire on the homes that are now being destroyed. A two-story home was destroyed while another was overtaken for a military outpost. The armed resistance attempted to intervene. As the attack continued on Thursday afternoon, Israeli forces arrested four Palestinians from the town of Absan. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain four civilians in Hebron; weapons seized
Ma’an News Agency 6/6/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - Israeli press sources said that Israeli forces detained four civilians in the southern West Bank city of Hebron on Friday morning. The sources added that Israeli forces claimed the detainees werein possession of a number of different kinds of weapons, including knives and homemade arms. The detainees were taken to an unknown destination. [end]
The Israeli army kills a Palestinian gunman and injures two in Hebron
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/5/2008
The Israeli army opened fire at a group of Palestinian gunmen killing one and injuring two in the old part of the southern West Bank city of Hebron on Thursday. Security sources told IMEMC that armed clashes took place between armed men from two Palestinian rival families, Al Rajabi and Al Ajloni, on Thursday, in the old part of Hebron city near an Israeli illegal settlement. The sources added that Israeli troops from a nearby military tower opened fire at a group of armed men from Al Rajabi family, three were injured, one critical. Medics said that 22-year-old Adham Al Rajabi died before reaching the hospital due to the wounds he sustained; doctors said that Al Rajabi sustained deadly wounds in his chest. Israeli army sources said that its troops opened fire at a group of armed men near the settlement; soldiers confirmed that their fire was aimed at killing those men and not stopping the fight. more.. e-mail
Palestinians: Man killed by IDF fire near Hebron
Ali Waked, YNetNews 6/5/2008
Sources in Hebron say Israeli soldiers intervened in violent clashes between rival clans, killed armed Palestinian -Palestinian sources said a man was shot dead Thursday by IDF soldiers who intervened in clashes between rival clans near the West Bank city of Hebron. The IDF said soldiers came upon a group of armed Palestinians in the Jabel Juar area, opened fire in their direction and identified a hit. According to the Palestinians, during clashes that erupted between members of the Rajabi and Ajlouni clans, Israeli soldiers that arrived at the scene opened fire at an armed Palestinian from the Ajlouni clan and killed him on the spot. In a previous clash that took place between the clans a few months ago IDF soldiers shot and killed and armed member of the Rajabi family. "The army has evened the score with the killing of an Ajlouni clan. . . more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 060508
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/5/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 4 m 0s || 3. 66 MB ||Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Thursday June 5th, 2008. As Palestinians mark the 41st anniversary of Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israeli military attacks leave a child and a man killed. These stories and more, coming up. Stay tuned. The News Cast On June 5th 1967, Israel occupied the Gaza Strip, the city of Jerusalem and the rest of the West Bank. For 41 years, Palestinians have marked this day with protests against the ongoing Israeli occupation of their lands. Meanwhile, a four-year-old girl has been killed and her mother wounded in an Israeli air strike on the Gaza Strip. Another woman was also wounded in the attack, which Israelis authorities reported had targeted Palestinian armed groups. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain seven Palestinians from several districts in Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/5/2008
Nablus – Ma’an - Israeli occupation forces detained seven Palestinians including a father and his two sons at dawn on Thursday from several districts in Nablus, after storming the homes of dozens of citizens. Palestinian security sources said that the Israeli forces stormed the city from several sides at 2 am on Thursday, raiding homes in the Balata refugee camp and the old town of Nablus, as well as the village of Beit Ibba, west of the city. The sources confirmed that the detainees are: 25-year-old Ammar Mahmoud Sa’ida, 52-year-old Khalil Al-Nawwas and his sons Samir and Hassan Al-Nawwas from the Balata refugee camp, 21-year-old Ali Salim Adib, 21-year-old Mutaz Ismail Adib and 28-year-old Haitham Monib As-Sayeh from the Al-Qassareyah neighborhood in the old town. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain citizens from Tulkarem district
Ma’an News Agency 6/5/2008
Tulkarem – Ma’an – Israeli forces detained two Palestinian citizens from Tulkarem and the town of ’Allar north of the city on Thursday morning after an extensive search of their homes. Security sources said that an Israeli military force raided the west side of the city and stormed the house of Yousef ’Odeh and detained his 22-year-old son, Mu’tassem. The source added that an Israeli force raided the town of ’Allar north of Tulkarem and detained 22-year-old Nader Ibrahim Al-Kharouf, taking him to an unknown destination. [end]
Israel says more military action likely in Gaza
Agence France-Presse - AFP, ReliefWeb 6/5/2008
ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, June 5, 2008 (AFP) - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Thursday Israeli military operations on the Gaza Strip were more likely than a ceasefire agreement, after the killing of an Israeli civilian. ’As it seems now, we are closer to a military operation than to another arrangement,’ Olmert told reporters as he prepared to end a US visit, referring to efforts by Egypt to mediate a truce. ’We are nearing the decision point,’ Olmert said. ’We are not happy about a military option but we certainly not afraid of one. It is my impression that Israel’s conditions for a truce are not bearing fruit in the way that could lead to a ceasefire. ’ Olmert spoke after an Israeli man was killed in a mortar attack by Gaza militants, triggering an air raid on the impoverished territory that left a four-year-old Palestinian girl dead. more.. e-mail
Barak predicts operation in Gaza ’closer than ever’
Yonat Atlas, YNetNews 6/5/2008
Defense minister tours factory hit by Hamas mortar barrage, says Israel likely to launch act against Gaza terror groups before ceasefire agreement can be reached. Municipal leaders of bombarded communities in South demand government ’start putting safety of our residents first. ’ Meanwhile, Israel files formal complaint with UN over Palestinian attack - Defense Minister Ehud Barak arrived at the Nirlat paint factory in Kibbutz Nir Oz on Thursday evening to examine the site where a Hamas mortar barrage killed 51-year-old Amnon Rosenberg and wounded five other employees earlier in the day. Barak also visited the neighboring Kibbutz Nirim, of which Rosenberg and his family had been members since 1982. The defense minister sounded pessimistic regarding chances to secure a ceasefire deal with terror groups in Gaza in the near future. more.. e-mail
Wild pigs prevent civilians from leaving their homes
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Nablus - Salfit - Ma’an - Herds of wild pigs dumped in the outskirts of the West Bank city of Salfit by residents of the nearby Ariel Israeli settlement, are preventing civilians from leaving their homes in the evening, for fear of being attacked. Eyewitnesses from the Al-Freiz neighborhood near the settlement said that in the evening after the sunset prayer the pigs attack gardens. Farmer Abu Ma’zouz Ad-Demes said that he prevented a herd of pigs from attacking a child in the Aj-Jahareer neighborhood, confirming that they had destroyed his field. [end]
Report: the Israeli Siege on Gaza leaves 32 patients dead during the month of May
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/2/2008
The European Campaign to end the Siege on Gaza issued a report on Monday stating that the Israeli 11 months longs siege on the Gaza Strip have left 32 patients dead during the month of May 2008. The report added that with the May death toll, the over all patients who died in Gaza due to the Israeli siege that started in June 2007, now stands at 171. According to the report there are 1329 patients that have chronic disease in Gaza who are now in great danger to 6the continues Israeli siege on the Palestinian coastal Region. more.. e-mail
Palestinian dies of wounds sustained during continual Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip
Palestine News Network 6/2/2008
Gaza Strip / PNN - The Hamas armed resistance movement, Al Qassam Brigades, reported Monday that one of its members died of wounds sustained during an Israeli attack on the northern Gaza Strip’s Beit Lahia, an area under serious assault since at least late 2002. The young man who was killed is reported as 25 year old Sari Abu Samra. He was injured two days ago. Additionally, the leftist National Resistance Brigades of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), claimed responsibility for launching a projectile at Askelon in protest of the killings, the siege and the occupation in general. [end]
Hamas activist dies of wounds sustained during exercise in Beit Lahia
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - Hamas’ Al-Qassam brigades announced on Monday that25-year-old Sari Abu Samra died of injuries sustained days ago during special training in the town of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, the resistance factions continued shelling the Israeli settlements bordering the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, the National Resistance brigades claimed responsibility for launching a homemade projectile at Ashkelon on Sunday in retaliation for ongoing Israeli atrocities. [end]
A Palestinian dies of wounds he sustained several days ago during an Israeli attack
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/2/2008
Palestinian medical sources reported on Monday that a Palestinian man died of wounds he sustained during an Israeli attack targeting the Beit Lahiya town in the northern part of the Gaza Strip several days ago. Sari Abu Samrah was a Qassam brigade’s fighter, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, Hamas sources reported. The brigades said that Abu Samrah was critically wounded during clashes with the Israeli army days ago, and that doctors announced his death on Monday at dawn. [end]
An-Nasser brigades shell Nahal Oz military post
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The An-Nasser brigades, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), claimed responsibility for launching three homemade projectiles at the Nahal Oz Israeli military post, east of the Gaza Strip on Sunday evening. The brigades said in a statement that this came in retaliation for ongoing Israeli aggressions towards Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. [end]
The Israeli army kidnaps seven civilians from several West Bank areas
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 6/2/2008
The Israeli army kidnapped seven Palestinian civilians during pre dawn attacks targeting several West Bank cities and towns on Monday. Palestinian sources said that Israeli forces attacked and searched homes in villages near Ramallah, in Bethlehem city, Jenin, and Nablus. The sources added that during those attacks the Israeli army kidnapped seven civilians and took them to unknown locations. Among those kidnapped ere Ali Suman, 29, and Ibrahem Hassan, 25, from Bethlehem city. [end]
National Resistance brigades launch projectile at Ashkelon
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - Sa’eed Hajjouj, a group affiliated to the National Resistance brigades, the military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), claimed responsibility for launching a homemade projectile at Ashkelon on Monday morning. The brigades said in a statement that this came in retaliation for ongoing Israeli atrocities against Palestinians. [end]
Palestine Today 060208
Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMc -Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 6/2/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB ||Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Monday June 2nd, 2008. A Palestinian man dies of wounds in Gaza, and in the West Bank the Israeli army kidnaps seven civilians, these stories and more coming up stay tuned. The News Cast Palestinian medical sources reported on Monday that a Palestinian man died of wounds he sustained during an Israeli attack that targeted Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip several days ago. Sari Abu Samrah was a fighter from Hamas’ armed wing - the Al- Qassam brigades, Hamas sources reported. The brigades said that Abu Samrah was critically wounded during clashes with the Israeli army days ago. Doctors announced his death on Monday at dawn. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain five civilians across the West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - Israeli forces detained five civilians across the West Bank on Monday. Israeli sources said that the Israeli army detained five "wanted" Palestinians in Bethlehem and in the town of Beit ’Awwa south of Hebron. They were taken in for questioning. [end]
Israelis charged with planning to murder soldier
Raanan Ben-Zur, YNetNews 6/2/2008
According to indictment, three young Lod residents planned to kidnap IDF soldier, murder him and demand release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for his body - The Petah Tikva Magistrates Court on Monday indicted three young residents of the city of Lod for planning to kidnap a soldier, murder him and demand the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for his body. According to the indictment, filed by Attorney Keren Wexler from the Central District Prosecutor’s Office, Ayman Kadoura, 26, Amir Nafar, 20, and Yassin Hinawi, 19, were the members in a religious group at Lod’s El-Omri Mosque. Nafar, the indictment stated, took religion studies in Jordan in 2007 and would return to Israel for short vacations. During his studies, he allegedly contacted a person hostile to the State of Israel and agreed to help him kidnap an Israeli. . . more.. e-mail
Three Israeli Arabs charged with planning to kidnap, kill soldier
Yuval Azoulay and Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/3/2008
The Shin Bet security service and the police arrested three Israeli Arabs over the course of the last three weeks on suspicion that they planned to kidnap an Israel Defense Forces soldier, murder him and demand the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the body. The men, all residents of Lod, are Amir Nafar, 20, who studies sharia at a Jordanian university, Iman Kadura, 26, and Yassin Hinawi, 19. Indictments were filed against the three suspects at the Petah Tikva District Court on Monday. The suspects, activists in the Islamic movement, allegedly planned to use a knife and a gun to commit the murder, after which they would videotape the soldier and bury him in an undisclosed location. According to the indictment, the suspects then planned to give the soldier’s identification card to an accomplice whose identity is as yet unknown. more.. e-mail
Israeli Security Services charges three Arabs of planning to kidnap and kill a soldier
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/3/2008
Israeli sources reported on Monday that the Shin Bet Security Services and the Israeli police arrested, during the three past week, three Arab residents of Israel on suspicion that they planned to kidnapped an Israeli soldier, kill him and demand the release of Palestinian detainees in exchange for his body. Israeli online daily, Haaretz, stated in a report published on Monday evening that the three men are all residents of Lod. Haaretz identified the three as Amir Naffar, 20, Iman Qadoura, 26, and Yassin Hinnawi, 19. The prosecution filed indictments against the three at the Petah Tikva District Court on Monday. Haaretz also reported that the three are activists of the Islamic Movement in Israel, and that they allegedly planned to use a knife and a gun to kidnap and kill the soldier. They also allegedly planned to videotape the captured soldier and bury him in an undisclosed location. more.. e-mail
Four Palestinians hospitalized after tunnel collapse on Gaza-Egypt border
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - Four Palestinians were hospitalized following after a tunnel running under the Gaza-Egypt border collapsed at 11. 30 am on Monday. Eyewitnesses said that medical personnel took four people to hospital, suffering from asphyxiation an hour after the collapse in the As-Salam neighborhood of the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. [end]
Fatah affiliated brigades launch projectile at Ashkelon
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The Abu ’Ammar, brigades a military wing of Fatah, claimed responsibility for launching a homemade projectile at Ashkelon on Monday. The brigades confirmed in a statement that this came in retaliation for ongoing Israeli incursions and aggressions in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. [end]
An-Nasser brigades launch projectiles at Nahal Oz
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Gaza - Ma’an - The An-Nasser brigades, the military wing of Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), claimed responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at the Nahal Oz Israeli military post on Monday morning. The brigades said in a statement that this came in retaliation for Israeli crimes. [end]
Israel to build new houses in east Jerusalem
Middle East Online 6/2/2008
JERUSALEM - Israel will build 884 more houses in east Jerusalem, the housing ministry said on Sunday, in a move that enraged the Palestinians who have demanded the area as the capital of their promised state. "We will invite tenders for the construction of 121 housing units in Har Homa and 763 others in Pisgat Zeev," ministry spokesman Eran Sidis said, referring to two neighbourhoods in Arab east Jerusalem. Israel occupied and annexed the eastern half of the city after the 1967 war in a move not recognised by the international community or the Palestinians, who have demanded it as their capital in recently revived peace talks. "These offers are being published for the occasion of Jerusalem Day (on Monday), celebrating the 41st anniversary of the reunification of the city," Sidis said, referring to the occupation of east Jerusalem in the Six-Day War. more.. e-mail
Ten Palestinians injured as police confiscate unregistered cars near Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Ten Palestinians were injured, including three police officers, on Sunday as clashes erupted between Palestinian security forces and a group of citizens in the northern West Bank village of Beit Fureik, east of Nablus, during a campaign to confiscate unregistered cars. Nablus governor Jamal Muhaisin said that Palestinian police in Nablus began a wide-scale campaign to confiscate all unregistered cars in the area. The campaign is part of an overall security plan. Before the campaign began, citizens who drive unregistered cars were warned to turn them in. Muhaisin told Ma’an’s reporter that that ten people were injured as citizens pelted police officers with stones during the confiscation campaign. However, the governor affirmed that police will go ahead with the campaign denying that police stormed houses during the investigation. more.. e-mail
Hamas report: PA security seized 89 Hamas affiliates in May
Ma’an News Agency 6/2/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Palestinian police affiliated to the West Bank-based caretaker government arrested 89 Hamas affiliates in May, Hamas said on Monday. The Hamas information office released a report claiming that Palestinian security services in the West Bank also detained and interrogated the wives of detained Hamas members. The report also pointed out that the Palestinian Authority’s security forces insist on classifying the Hamas movement as a "banned illegal organization" and continue to ban the Hamas-affiliated Al-Aqsa satellite television channel and Hamas’ daily newspaper Ar-Risalah. [end]
Israel plans more settlement units
Al Jazeera 6/1/2008
The Israeli housing ministry has announced that it will build 884 more houses in East Jerusalem, an area that Palestinians want as the capital of their promised independent state." We will invite tenders for the construction of 121 housing units in Har Homa and 763 others in Pisgat Zeev," Eran Sidis, a ministry spokesman, said on Sunday. Both the settlements are part of Palestinian territories occupied by Israel in the 1967 war. Har Homa is built on Jabal Abu Ghnein in East Jerusalem. In 1968 Israel unilaterally annexed East Jerusalem - a move that was condemned as illegal by the UN Security Council. All settlements in both the West Bank and East Jerusalem are considered illegal under international law. Ehud Olmert, the current prime ministers, has said he considers settlements blocs in East Jerusalem as part of Israel. more.. e-mail
IOF soldier, 3 Qassam fighters wounded in Gaza
Palestinian Information Center 6/1/2008
KHAN YOUNIS, (PIC)-- Three members of the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, were wounded in an Israeli aerial raid that targeted their position east of Khan Younis, south of the Gaza Strip, on Sunday. Medical sources told PIC reporter in the area that the three Qassam fighters were moderately wounded in the missile raid at dawn while another group escaped unharmed in a similar attack. Local sources said that ten IOF tanks and five military bulldozers advanced into Qarara, east of Khan Younis, amidst violent shelling and intensified hovering of choppers. The armed wing, however, said that its fighters engaged the invading troops, detonated two explosive devices in two armored vehicles and fired two mortar shells and four RPGs at the occupation forces. The IOF command acknowledged that one of its soldiers was moderately injured in the Qassam shooting, and added that he was carried to hospital in a helicopter. more.. e-mail
Tadamun: IOF troops killed 45 Palestinians including five children last month
Palestinian Information Center 6/1/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- International Tadamun (solidarity) society for human rights reported that the IOF troops killed 45 Palestinian citizens during last May including five children and two women, adding that most of the victims were murdered in the Gaza Strip. In a monthly report received by the PIC, the society said that this large number of victims in one month clearly indicates that the Israeli occupation is persistent in its aggression through pursuing the policy of execution and assassination against the Palestinians despite it is proscribed by international conventions and charters. Tadamun expressed its deep concern over this high number of victims killed by Israel in Gaza, considering what is happening part of the Israeli policy of ethnic cleansing and war crimes against humanity. The society called on all parties concerned with human rights to urgently intervene to stop the. . . more.. e-mail
VIDEO - Alleged Palestinian collaborator exposes Shin Bet activity in Gaza
YNetNews 5/31/2008
Islamic Jihad detains man who allegedly passed on information on tunnels dug by Hamas to carry out suicide attacks, forces him to continue contact with Israeli agent (06. 01. 08) Video: infolive. tvAuthor: YnetnewsEditor: infolive. tv [end]
Three Qassam fighters wounded during an Israeli army invasion into southern Gaza
Rami Almeghari & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/1/2008
Three fighters of the aL-Qassam brigades, the armed wing of the ruling Hamas party in Gaza have been reportedly shot and wounded by the Israeli army in southern Gaza. Medical sources said that the at least two wounded people were admitted Sunday morning to the Naser hospital in Khan Younis city to the south of Gaza Strip. Witnesses said that a column of Israeli tanks rolled earlier on Sunday morning into the aL-Qarrara village, east of Khan Younis city, on Israel-Gaza border line. Witnesses added that accompanying bulldozers began razing vast areas of Palestinian-owned farm lands, as local resistance fighters attempted to force the tanks back by opening heavy fire. Israeli media sources sad that one Israeli soldier during today’s invasion was moderately wounded. Israeli army ground invasions and air strikes have increased over the pat week, as the crippling Israeli blockade on the coastal region entered its 12 moth. more.. e-mail
PRC vows to strike back against any Israeli army attack
Rami Almeghari & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/1/2008
The Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) vowed on Sunday to strike back against any Israeli army attack on Gaza. Abu Ataya, spokesman of the PRC’s armed wing, Annaser Salaheldin brigades, said in a statement, faxed to press, that his committees will not allow any Israeli army’ stupidity’ against Palestinian civilians in Gaza, by striking back against an likely offensive. " the Palestinian resistance has the right to retaliate against the Israeli army actions", the statement read. Abu Ataya also highlighted his group’s recent attacks on Israel, saying that 19 homemade shells have been fired onto nearby Israeli towns. The PRC’s warning came in the backdrop of Israeli officials’ threats to carry out a massive ground military offensive, which Israel says necessary to end homemade shells fire from Gaza onto Israel. more.. e-mail
IDF soldier moderately wounded by Palestinian fire in south Gaza
Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 6/1/2008
An Israel Defense Forces soldier was moderately wounded on Sunday by Palestinian fire in the southern Gaza Strip. The soldier, from the Givati infantry brigade, was given first aid on the spot. He was then evacuated by helicopter for treatment at a hospital. IDF troops operated early Sunday east of Khan Yunis, as well as in other parts of the coastal strip, against Palestinian rocket squads. According to Gaza sources, two Palestinians were wounded in clashes with the IDF soldiers. Also Sunday, a Grad-type Katyusha and two Qassam rockets struck the western Negev. There were no injuries or damages reported any of the incidents. Dozens of Negev residents demonstrated on Sunday near the Sufa Crossing to Gaza, calling on the government to stop transfer of food to Gaza so long as rocket fire continues. more.. e-mail
Military wings of Fatah and PFLP-GC fire projectiles at Sderot and Ashkelon
Ma’an News Agency 6/1/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The military wing affiliated to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, the Jihad Jibreel Brigades, claimed responsibility on Sunday morning for firing a homemade projectile at the Israeli city of Ashkelon. Separately, Fatah’s military wing, the Al-Aqsa Brigades, said on Sunday that their fighters launched a homemade projectile at the Israeli town of Sderot in the western Negev. The military groups said in separate statements that their actions came in retaliation for the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. [end]
Fatah’s military wing fire five projectiles at Israeli targets
Ma’an News Agency 6/1/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Al-Aqsa Brigades, the military wing affiliated to the Fatah movement, claimed responsibility on Sunday morning for launching five homemade projectiles at Israeli targets. Two rockets were fired at the Israeli town of Sderot, and three at Israeli military posts near the Nahal ’Oz crossing. The military group affirmed in a statement that the shelling came in response to the Israeli escalation against the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and emphasized their choice to resist the Israeli occupation. [end]
PFLP military wing fires three projectiles at Israeli targets
Ma’an News Agency 6/1/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The military wing affiliated to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), the Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, claimed responsibility on Sunday morning for firing two homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of Sderot in the western Negev and another at an Israeli military post east of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. The military group said in a statement that the operation came in response to the ongoing Israeli atrocities and assassinations in Palestinian cities and villages. [end]
Islamic Jihad’s military wing fires two homemade projectiles at Sderot
Ma’an News Agency 6/1/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The military wing affiliated to the Islamic Jihad movement, the Al-Quds Brigades, claimed responsibility on Sunday afternoon for firing two homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of Sderot in the western Negev. The Al-Quds Brigades said in a statement that the shelling came as part of their retaliation for the ongoing Israeli hostilities against the Palestinian people. They also emphasized that their resistance will continue until the whole Palestinian land is freed. [end]
Jewish state announces new Jerusalem land-grab
Charly Wegman, Daily Star 6/2/2008
Agence France Presse - OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israel will build 884 more houses in Occupied East Jerusalem, the Housing Ministry said on Sunday, in a move that enraged the Palestinians who have demanded the area as the capital of their promised state. "We will invite tenders for the construction of 121 housing units in Har Homa and 763 others in Pisgat Zeev," ministry spokesman Eran Sidis told AFP, referring to two illegal colonies in Arab East Jerusalem. Israel occupied and annexed the eastern half of the city after the 1967 war in a move not recognized by the international community or the Palestinians, who have demanded it as their capital in recently revived peace talks. Sidis said the timing of the announcement was aimed at coinciding with the 41st anniversary of the conquest of Arab East Jerusalem. more.. e-mail
Jerusalem’s demolition derby
Meron Rapoport, Ha’aretz 6/2/2008
Leave the huge and illegal house that the settlers built in East Jerusalem alone, and we won’t touch your authority. This, says the legal adviser of the Jerusalem Municipality, Yossi Habilio, was the deal offered him by the city’s deputy mayor, Yehoshua Pollack. Habilio says he turned it down because the decision to demolish the house had already passed through all possible legal channels - including the High Court of Justice. The deputy mayor denies there was such a suggestion, but what is clear is that the authority of the legal adviser has been significantly undermined. It is not he, but rather political representatives on the city council who will decide which of the demolition orders will be implemented. The settlers’ house in question is apparently at the bottom of their demolition list. The building is seven stories high and is located in the Silwan quarter of East Jerusalem. more.. e-mail
Israel to build new homes in occupied West Bank
Reuters Foundation, ReliefWeb 6/1/2008
JERUSALEM, June 1 (Reuters) - Israel announced plans on Sunday to build hundreds of new homes in an area of the occupied West Bank the Israeli government considers part of Jerusalem, despite U. S. and Palestinian calls to halt settlement expansion. There was no immediate Palestinian comment on the announcement, issued two days before Olmert embarks on a three-day visit to Washington. The 2003 peace "road map", reaffirmed by Israeli and Palestinian leaders at a conference hosted by U. S. President George W. Bush in November, requires a halt to all settlement activity on occupied land where Palestinians seek statehood. Housing Minister Zeev Boim instructed his office to publish a tender to build an additional 763 housing units in Pisgat Zeev and 121 housing units at Har Homa, an area Palestinians refer to as Jabal Abu Ghneim. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces evacuate illegal settlement outpost in northern West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 6/1/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Israeli forces evacuated late on Saturday evening settlers and right-wing activists from the illegal settlement outpost of Shvut Ami, which had been established on lands belonging to the northern West Bank village of Talfit near the Israeli settlement Kedumim. Shvut Ami was not listed as one of the illegal settlement outposts that Israel had pledged to evacuate. Clashes erupted near the outpost between Palestinian youths and Israeli forces on Saturday evening. Two young Palestinians from Nablus were moderately injured by Israeli forces. The Shvut Ami outpost covers 35 dunums of land belonging to Talfit (one dunum is equal to 1km²), near the settler bypass road leading to the Kedumim settlement. The outpost was occupied by Israeli settlers in 2006. more.. e-mail
Palestinian security seize three Hamas members in the West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 6/1/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – The Hamas movement said on Sunday morning that Palestinian security forces of the West Bank-based caretaker government had seized three people affiliated with Hamas on Saturday evening. The movement released a statement saying that in the Ramallah district Palestinian security forces detained Sa’id Qasrawi, a Birzeit University student and coordinator of the Islamic bloc at the university, after searching his home in Beitunia. The statement added that in Tubas in the northern West Bank, Palestinian security apprehended Wa’il Muhammed Abu Salah after he was summoned for questioning. In the Hebron district in the southern West Bank, Palestinian security forces detained Muhammed Al-Awawdah, principal of As-Siddiq school in the town of Dura. more.. e-mail
Diplomacy
Israeli Cabinet approves prisoner swap with Hizbullah
Marius Schattner, Daily Star 6/30/2008
Agence France Presse OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: The Israeli Cabinet gave its green light Sunday for a prisoner exchange with Hizbullah, even though two soldiers captured by the resistance two years ago are assumed by Israeli officials to be dead. Twenty-two of the 25 Cabinet members voted in favor of the deal under which the two soldiers - or their remains - are to be handed over in exchange for five Lebanese fighters and a yet undetermined number of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. The deal was approved even though Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told his Cabinet the two soldiers, Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, were dead. "Our initial theory was that the soldiers were alive. . . Now we know with certainty there is no chance that is the case," said Olmert, who nonetheless urged his ministers to approve the deal. more.. e-mail
Israel reopens Gaza crossings after closures over Qassams
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 6/29/2008
Israel reopened its border crossings with the Gaza Strip on Sunday to allow a trickle of goods into the territory, putting a rocky cease-fire back on course after Palestinian rocket fire last week led to a closure of the passages. Defense Minister Ehud Barak has decided to open the border, which were closed last Wednesday after Gaza militants fired three rockets into Israel - the first such attack since the truce went into effect on June 19. More rockets were fired the next day. The decision was made following telephone security consultations between Barak, Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai and intelligence officials from the Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet security service. Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces’ sensing equipment picked up the launch of a mortar shell from Gaza late Saturday, the military said, but it was unclear where it hit. more.. e-mail
De facto Minister of Agriculture confirms Israeli aggression against Gazan farmers; promises help
Ma’an News Agency 6/29/2008
Gaza- Ma’an- Minister of Agriculture in the de-facto Hamas lead government Mohammad Ramadan Al-Agha confirmed on Sunday, rumors that Israel—despite the truce—is shooting at Gazan farmers whenever they go to their lands near the borders. Al-Agha asked the Egyptian government, as broker of the truce, to affirm the seriousness of the incidents as breaches of the truce. The statement came during Al-Agha’s inspection visit to Shokat as Sufi area and the neighbourhoods around the Sufa crossing in the south of the Gaza Strip. The visit is one of the initiatives of the Hamas lead de facto government to support the residents of Gazan border-villages and cities suffering from the current circumstances. These civilians, he said, are legendary in their ability to endure, and the de facto government wishes to support them in any way they can. more.. e-mail
US 'concerned'¯ over a UN draft demanding Israel to halt settlement activities
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 6/29/2008
On Friday, the United States and several member countries of the Security Council, expressed what they described as "concern" over a draft demanding Israel to immediately halt its settlement planning, expansion and construction in the West Bank. The draft was discussed during unofficial talks among several countries that are members of the security council as representative of these countries presented their monthly report on the situation in the Middle East. The draft was presented by Libya through the Arab League and included a demand to condemn the Israeli settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories. The draft was supposed to be discussed on Thursday but the Russian envoy demanded to delay the discussions because he wanted to watch a soccer match between Russia and Spain. The draft might be discussed in the middle of the coming week. more.. e-mail
Report: Hamas rejects Israeli bid to free 450 prisoners for Shalit
Amos Harel, Ha’aretz 6/30/2008
Hamas has rejected Israel’s offer to free 450 Palestinian militants in exchange for abducted Israel Defense Forces soldiers Gilad Shalit, according to a report published Sunday in Al-Hayat - According to the report, Israel negotiator Ofer Dekel presented a list comprising 450 names of Palestinian prisoners Israel is prepared to release. Hamas had requested 1,000 prisoners be freed. A senior Hamas official said any deal with Israel must include the release of Fatah leader Marwan Barghouthi, who is currently serving five life terms in an Israeli jail, and Ahmad Sadat, of the PFLP. "Shalit had begun his third year in jail and as far as we’re concerned, he can begin a fourth year there," said the official. Shalit was kidnapped by Gaza militants in a June 2006 cross-border raid. more.. e-mail
Israelis refuse 75 percent of names presented by Hamas for release from prison
Palestine News Network 6/29/2008
Jerusalem / PNN - Sources from the Israeli Prisons Department said on Sunday that moves are taking place within the prisons with the aim of compiling a list of who will be released. Among the 450 Palestinians in the exchange with Hamas, some names are known. Others are not and a sense of tension prevails within the prisons as not much information is forth coming. The only prisoner that Hamas has is the Israeli soldier captured while invading the southern Gaza Strip’s Rafah two years ago. It has been learned that some Palestinians serving life sentences, and women and children, are being moved to a different prison. They have not been informed of the purpose of the move, but it seems that those being transferred will be released. The Israeli sources confirmed that their government agreed to release 71 prisoners of the 350 requested by Hamas whom the Israelis consider to have "blood on their hands. more.. e-mail
Khateeb slams’ Muslims’ weak stand on Aqsa
Palestinian Information Center 6/29/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- Deputy-head of the Islamic Movement in the 1948-ocupied Palestinian lands Sheikh Kamal Al-Khateeb has strongly condemned the Arab and Muslims’ feeble stand on the Aqsa Mosque, asserting that Israel was imposing its sovereignty on it. Khateeb also slammed the PA leadership and the PA negotiating team who sits with the Israelis despite the Israeli occupation government’s construction of more than 9,000 settlement units around the sacred Muslim shrine. He also deplored those who say that they were surprised by the Israeli construction activities in occupied Jerusalem, adding that those officials should know better than anyone else that the Israeli construction activities didn’t come to a stop since the holy city fell under the Israeli occupation in 1967. "They are indeed ignorant about the Israeli policies that prioritize the judaization of Jerusalem,. . . more.. e-mail
Hamas warns: Israeli excavations in Jerusalem will destroy the Aqsa Mosque
Palestinian Information Center 6/29/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement warned that the ongoing Israeli excavations which are aimed to Judaize occupied Jerusalem would destroy the Aqsa Mosque, highlighting that the Arab and Muslim countries will not be excused for not acting to save the holy Mosque from this systematic destruction. In an exclusive statement to the PIC, Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, underlined that the Israeli excavations and judaization schemes overstepped the red lines and therefore the Movement and the whole Palestinian people will not condone to see the holy Mosque being destroyed and the Israeli occupation will have to face the consequences. Barhoum pointed out that the Israeli occupation exploits the agreements it signed with Arab countries as well as the American support and the European complicity to obliterate Islamic features in the holy city, adding that Israel also took advantage of the inter-Palestinian discord which it had created and entrenched. more.. e-mail
Assad to host Abbas for talks in July
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/30/2008
RAMALLAH, Occupied West Bank: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is to hold talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad next month during a tour of Arab and European countries, his spokesman said on Saturday. Syria provides shelter to Hamas supreme leader Khaled Meshaal, whose movement won democratic elections in January 2006 and then touted gunmen loyal to Abbas’ Fatah faction in the Gaza Strip a year ago, effectively splitting the Palestinians into two entities. [end]
Syria put troops in Lebanon ahead of Israeli drill - report
Daily Star 6/30/2008
A publishing house specialized in military matters reported that commercially available satellite imagery shows Syrian troops deployed on Lebanese territory along the border in early 2008, just ahead of Israel’s largest ever military drill. The report, published in Jane’s Defense Weekly earlier this month, said that images obtained through DigitalGlobe show Syrian troops being deployed in the remote and rugged hills north of the Lebanese town of Rashaya al-Wadi. The report added that these maneuvers took place just before Israel was due to hold a five-day nationwide response drill in early April. According to the report, entitled "Middle ground: Lebanon plays buffer as Syria and Israel simmer," the Syrian bases are "aimed solely at creating a defensive line in the event of an Israeli military advance and are not conduits for weaponry" smuggled from Syria to Hizbullah. more.. e-mail
US steps up funds for covert action against Iran - report
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 6/30/2008
The US Congress last year approved President George W. Bush’s funding request of $400 million for a dramatic increase i