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Welcome to this Week in Palestine, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www.imemc.org, for August 29th, to September 4th, 2015.
The United Nations warns that the Gaza Strip will be uninhabitable in five years; meanwhile ten Palestinian civilians are injured this week during Israeli attacks targeting West Bank communities. These stories, and more, coming up, stay tuned.
The Nonviolence Report
Let’s begin our weekly report as usual with the nonviolent activities organized in the West Bank. A Palestinian civilian was injured and many more were treated for the effects if tear gas inhalation as Israeli troops attacked anti wall and settlements protests organized in West Bank villages. Soldiers also kidnaped 4 protesters. IMEMC’s Majd Batajali reports:
This week anti wall and settlements protests were organized in the central west Bank villages of Bil’in, Ni’lin, and al Nabi Saleh. In addition, protests took place in the villages of Kufer Qadum in northern West Bank and Al Ma’ssara in the south. Israeli soldiers used live rounds, tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets against the unarmed protesters.
one villager were injured with a live round fired by Israeli soldiers and many more were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation as troops attacked the weekly protest organized in Kufer Kadum village.
In Bil’in and Ni’lin protesters managed to reach the Israeli wall. Meanwhile in al Nabi Saleh village, Israeli troops fired several rounds of rubber-coated steel bullets at the villagers as soon as they reached the village entrance. in al Nabi Saleh village, Israeli troops kidnapped four protesters among them a young girl.
For IMEMC News this Majd Batajali.
The Political Report
The United Nations warns this week that the Gaza Strip will be uninhabitable in five years, and Israeli Prime Minister calls for loosing restrictions on the use of arms by Israeli military in Jerusalem, IMEMC’s George Rishmawi with the details:
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development Agency (UNCTAD) said this week that living conditions in the Gaza Strip are so bad that they’ve been described as ‘less than human’ and potentially uninhabitable by 2020.In addition to severe crises linked to water and electricity shortages, the UN agency says that Gaza’s 1.8 million residents have yet to recover from the destruction of last year’s Israeli offensive which claimed the lives of more than 2100 Palestinians in 51 days between July 8 and August 28.
The UN Agency said in a report into the Palestinian economy in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, published this week that three Israeli wars against Gaza in six years and eight years of economic blockade have been blamed for terrible living conditions in the coastal enclave. Despite claims of an internationally-sponsored reconstruction process, UNCTAD experts also warn that development in the Gaza Strip is not merely hindered, but reversed.
In the year 2000, 72,000 people depended on food aid, but now that number has risen to almost a million, in a clear sign of the deteriorating conditions on the ground. In the meantime, Israeli media sources said the government is looking into easing restrictions of the rules of engagement of the Israeli military which will give the soldiers free-hand to open fire at Palestinian stone-throwers.
The statement appeared to be a response to recent calls by hawkish cabinet ministers and Jewish settler leaders to crack down on Palestinian protests. The Israeli army says such incidents have increased in the recent weeks since a Palestinian toddler and his father were burned to death when their house was firebombed in late July by Israeli settlers in the village of Douma near Nablus.
Local observers say, the term by itself is misleading as Israeli soldiers already have free-hand to shoot at stone-throwers which explains the high number of deaths among young Palestinians. Defense for Children International, Palestine Chapter said 1800 children were killed across the occupied Palestinian territories by Israeli military since 2000 with an average of one child every three days.
In other news, the Palestinian leadership has confirmed that the Palestinian National Council, the highest legislative authority of the Palestinian People is set to meet on 14 and 15 of this month in Ramallah.
The council will discuss the report of the Executive Committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization in light of the stalemate of the peace process, and will elect new members for the executive committee after 11 out of 18 members submitted their resignation including the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas who is also the chairman of the committee.
For IMEMC News this is George Rishmawi
The West Bank and Gaza Report
This week Israeli attacks targeting West Bank communities left at least ten Palestinian civilians injured. In Gaza, air and ground attacks by the Israeli army were also reported this week. IMEMC’s Eman Abedraboo-Bannoura has more:
This week the Israeli army conducted at least 57 invasions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During these attacks, Israeli troops kidnapped 55 Palestinians, including 12 children.
On Saturday, four Palestinian young men were injured as Israeli soldiers invaded Tall village near the northern West Bank city of Nablus. Local sources said that invading troops opened fire at youth who clashed with the invading force using stones. Medical sources said that among those injured one young man was shot in the head by a rubber-coated steel bullet fired by Israeli troops.
later in the week, Israeli soldiers invaded Jaba’ town, near occupied East Jerusalem, on Monday, and demolished fifteen sheds and structures, belonging to Bedouin families of the al-‘Ara’ra family. Most of the demolished structures were installed in 1975 and 1976, residents told local media.
On Wednesday night, Israeli soldiers shoot and injured a Palestinian teenager in the city of Bethlehem, southern West Bank. According to local sources, the 15 year old boy was shoot at the entrance of Ayidah refugee camp near the Israeli wall separating Bethlehem from Jerusalem.
Earlier on Wednesday, Israeli soldiers attacked and injured, Wednesday, an elderly Palestinian woman, in Salem village, near the northern West Bank city of Nablus. The woman suffered various cuts and bruises, and was moved to a local hospital in Nablus.
Also on Wednesday a Palestinian shepherd was injured, and eight of his sheep were killed, after being rammed with a speeding settler’s car, east of Yatta, in the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Moreover, two young men were injured, on Thursday at dawn, after Israeli soldiers invaded the al-Am’ari refugee camp, in the central West Bank district of Ramallah. On Friday at dawn Palestinian medical sources have reported that a young man was shot and injured after dozens of soldiers invaded the Qalandia refugee camp, north of occupied East Jerusalem.
In the Gaza Strip this week, Israeli soldiers, stationed across the border fence, opened fire on Monday morning at a number of Palestinian farmers, in their lands, and at several homes, east of Khan Younis in the southern part of the Gaza Strip. According to local media, farmers had to leave their lands, and try to seek shelter in their homes that also came under Israeli army fire.
Later in the week, the Israeli Air Force fired, on Thursday at dawn, two missiles into a site for the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Damage was reported but no injuries.
For IMEMC News this is Eman Abedraboo-Bannoura.
Conclusion
And that’s all for today from This Week in Palestine. This was the Weekly report for August 29th, to September 4th, 2015. From the Occupied Palestinian Territories. For more news and updates please visit our website at www.imemc.org, This week’s report has been brought to you by Maher Qasiess and me Ghassan Bannoura.
