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Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www.imemc.org for Tuesday January 10th, 2012.
Israeli Prime Minister says he will make good-will gestures to resume talks with the Palestinians, meanwhile, Israeli troops intercept the freedom riders in Jericho, these stories and more, coming up, stay tuned
Israeli forces detained dozens of Palestinian peace activists who were involved in the Freedom Ride, a car protest organized to defy the Israeli decision to ban Palestinian vehicles from driving on some routes in the West Bank, claiming that these routs are Jewish-only routes.
The protest started Tuesday morning from Hebron to Jericho raising Palestinian flags and signs reading “Freedom and Sovereignty” for the Palestinians on the bypass roads. Israeli troops intercepted the freedom riders at the entrance of Jericho and prevented them from entering the the city and detained the protestors.
Local sources said that Israeli troops arrested two men and one girl. The two men were identified as Azmi Shiyukhi and Omar Tamimi, while the girls name remained unknown.
Settlers can use a network of roads all built on lands owned by Palestinians in the West Bank, however, Israel prohibits Palestinians from using most of these roads.
Few months ago, a number of Palestinian peace activists rode busses used by Israeli settlers only and attempted to enter Jerusalem to protest the ban on Palestinians from using these busses and entering Jerusalem. Palestinians can not enter Jerusalem without a permit issued by the Israeli military for a limited time.
In other news, the Israeli Peace Now movement said in a press conference on Tuesday that 1850 settlement units are currently under construction in a number of West Bank settlements.
35 per cent of these units are being built in satellite settlements, all on the Palestinian side of the planned route of the wall. These units will change the route of the wall to include them on the Israeli side, which will cost the Palestinians more lands.
The Peace Now movement said this is an unprecedented construction adding that there are huge plans for construction of more settlement units in East Jerusalem.
Such statements by Peace Now come as the Israeli Prime Minister claimed that he is willing to make some good-will gestures to the Palestinians if the Palestinians promise not to file more applications to the UN and to resume talks with Israelis in Amman.
Palestinian sources said the good-will gestures may include releasing some Palestinian prisoners and handing over control over more West Bank territories to the Palestinian Authority.
A Jordanian initiative arranged two meetings for Palestinian and Israeli officials in Amman and a third meeting is expected to be held on Saturday to prepare for a meeting that will join the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu.
That’s all for today from the IMEMC News, this was the Tuesday January 10th daily roundup of news from the Occupied Palestinian Territories. We hope you will join us again tomorrow. This was brought to you by Husam Qassis, and me, George Rishmawi
