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Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www.imemc.org, for Wednesday February 14th, 2007.
Army abducts 17 Palestinian men during invasions of several parts of the West Bank, and in the Gaza strip unknown gunmen shoot and injure a Palestinian officer. These stories and more coming up, stay tuned.
The Gaza update
Palestinian sources reported that a group of unknown gunmen attacked the car of a Palestinian officer while he was traveling to work via the Dier Al Balah – Rafah road in the southern Gaza strip on Wednesday morning.
Hazim Abu Saleem, who is the liaison officer with the Egyptian side at the Rafah crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, sustained moderate wounds when he was attacked by six masked gunmen.’They shot me and fled the scene’, Abu Saleem stated.
Abu Saleem said he is not taking the case to court, as nobody knows the attackers.
The West Bank update
Palestinian sources reported that Israeli forces invaded a number of cities and villages in the northern and southern parts of the West Bank, and abducted 17 men on Wednesday morning.
The sources reported that Israeli troops invaded Yatta, Hallul and Hebron city in the southern part of the West Bank, and abducted 14 men on Wednesday morning.
Israeli soldiers attacked and searched Palestinian homes and shops in the old city of Hebron, and abducted Sameer Al Dweik, 27, Abd Al Atheem Al Natsha, 26, and Adnan Abu Tabanah, 41.
Khaled Al Suwiti, 30, Ahmad Al Suwiti, 17, and Mu’ath Al Fahush, 15, were abducted when Israeli troops and jeeps stormed the village of Beit Awa near Hebron, and searched scores of houses in the early dawn hours of Wednesday.
Azmi Abu Zaltah, 44, was abducted when Israeli troops surrounded and searched his house located in Hallul village south of Hebron city, local sources reported.
In the meantime, another Israeli army force invaded the village of Yatta, also located south of Hebron. Soldiers searched and ransacked the house of Taysser Reb’i, 35, then took him to an unknown location. Reb’i’s family stated that he works in the local Islamic Charitable Society organization.
Six Palestinian men were abducted from the old city are of Hebron on Wednesday afternoon. According to sources, troops disrupted a funeral then abducted six men who were attending it. Troops took them to an unknown location.
The Israeli army claimed that the men had hurled stones at the soldiers, a claim that was contradicted by eyewitnesses.
Another two people were abducted by the Israeli army when a massive force invaded Tulkarem and Nur Shamss refugee camps near the northern West Bank city of Tulkarem, on Wednesday morning.
Soldiers attacked and searched houses after forcing families outside, and abducted Nasser-Allah and Atiah Zayit. Both were taken to unknown detention camps.
Al Obadiyah village east of Bethlehem in the southern part of the West Bank was also attacked on Wednesday. Local sources reported that troops entered the village from several directions, searched houses then took Ahmad Al Assa, 32, to an unknown location.
Nablus city was also invaded on Wednesday morning. Soldiers and armored vehicles stormed downtown Nablus and the nearby Balata and Askar refugee camps; eyewitnesses stated that soldiers opened fire at residents’ houses and shops. No injuries were reported.
After some time the Israeli army left the city. According to local sources, the Israeli army still does not allow men who are under the age of 35 to leave the city of Nablus.
Conclusion
Thank you for joining us from Occupied Bethlehem. You have been listening to Palestine Today from the International Middle East Media Center, www.imemc.org, brought to you by Jake Talhami and Ghassan Bannoura.
