Welcome to this Week in Palestine, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www.imemc.org, for June 17, to the 23rd, 2017.
This week while the US advisors on the Middle East meets Palestinian and Israeli leaders, Israeli attacks leave one Palestinian killed as the Israeli government announces more settlements. 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. One youth was injured on Friday, scores others were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation fired by Israeli troops who attacked anti wall and settlements protests organized in West Bank villages.
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 village of Kufer Qadum in northern West Bank. Israeli soldiers used live rounds, tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets against the unarmed protesters.
A 17-year-old youth was injured rubber-coated steel bullets, meanwhile scores others were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation as Israeli soldiers attacked the weekly protest organized in Kufer Kadum village. Troops also fired tear gas into residents’ homes after invading the village. The boy was moved to Nablus hospital for treatment after being hit with a rubber-coated steel bullets in his hand.
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.
The Political Report
This week, Palestinian leadership meets with American advisors as Israel announces news settlements. IMEMC’s Rami Al Meghari has more:
Palestinian leadership objected this week to an Israeli plan to build a new large settlement in the West Bank. The Palestinian objection came during a meeting with advisors for US President, Donald Trump, in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
The advisors’ mission to the region is meant to explore thoughts of both Israelis and Palestinians, within US’s drive for peace between the two sides.
Palestinians insist that illegal Israeli settlements construction remains an obstacle towards peace and that peace talks could not resume, unless such activities are halted.
In the meantime, Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, asserted on his willingness to reach a peaceful settlement, based on the two-state solution, envisioned by Washington, long ago.
At the local Palestinian level, the PA’s president demanded the ruling Hamas party in Gaza to dissolve an administrative committee of it’s own , in order to allow the three-year-old consensus government takes responsibility for the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
His demand comes in the backdrop of an electricity crisis in Gaza, after PA requested Israel to reduce Mega Watts, Israeli lines supply for the territory, in return for PA funds.
In the Gaza Strip, the Hamas-led government was able to bring Egyptian fuel into Gaza’s sole power plant, following what Hamas called understandings with the Egyptian authorities.
For IMEMC News, I am Rami al Meghari in Gaza.
The West Bank and Gaza Report
This week Israeli troops killed a Palestinian man and injured a dozen others in separate attacks in the West Bank meanwhile in Gaza invasions were reported near the borders. IMEMC’s Ghassan Bannoura reports:
Israeli soldiers shot and killed, on Tuesday evening, a young Palestinian man near Jaba’ military roadblock, northeast of occupied East Jerusalem. Baha’ al-Harbawi, 23, from the town of al-‘Ezariyya, east of Jerusalem. The Israeli army claimed that the soldiers killed the Palestinian after “he attempted to stab them, while they were conducting routine searches.”
The family denounced the murder of its son, and the military allegations. Eyad al-Harbawi, the uncle of the slain Palestinian, said Baha’ left al-‘Ezariyya after finishing his work in the evening, and told the family that he was heading to Ramallah to visit his brother, and to do some shopping there. Baha’ was never detained and imprisoned by Israel, and had no political affiliation.
On Wednesday, Israeli soldiers invaded Abu Dis town, east of occupied East Jerusalem, and clashed with local youths, wounding three with rubber-coated steel bullets, and causing twenty-six others to suffer the severe effects of teargas inhalation. Media sources in Abu Dis said clashes erupted after several Israeli army jeeps invaded the town, and searched many homes and cars.
Also on Wednesday, Israeli soldiers invaded Palestinian agricultural lands, especially olive orchards, belonging to the villagers of Jaloud, south of the northern West Bank governorate of Nablus, in preparation for building a new illegal colony. Several military jeeps and nine bulldozers invaded the lands, and started uprooting them, to prepare for the new colony, which will be built on lands Israel illegally confiscated and designated as “government-owned property.” The decision to illegally confiscate the lands was made in late March this year, and targets at least 977 dunams of Palestinian lands.
During the week Israeli forces conducted at least 50 military invasions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, and Jerusalem. During these invasions troops detained at least 65 Palestinian civilians, including 6 children.
In Gaza, Several Israeli military vehicles invaded, Monday, Palestinian agricultural lands, in the southern and northern parts of the Gaza strip, and fired many live rounds while bulldozing the lands, close to the border fence. Also on Monday, Israeli navy ships fired many live rounds at Palestinian fishing boats, in Gaza territorial waters, in the northern part of the coastal region, forcing them back to shore.
Later in the week, four D9 bulldozers, and three tanks, advanced, on Thursday, at least 150 meters into the Palestinian agricultural lands, and uprooted various sections, especially close to the border fence. The sources added that military drones hovered over the entire area throughout the invasion, while the soldiers also fired live rounds.
Conclusion
And that’s all for today from This Week in Palestine. This was the Weekly report for June 17, to the 23rd, 2017. From the Occupied Palestinian Territories. For more news and updates please visit our website at www-dot-imemc-dot-org, This week’s report has been brought to you by George Rishmawi and me Eman Abedraboo-Bannoura.
