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Welcome to this Week in Palestine, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www.imemc.org, for August 11th, to 17th 2012
Attacks against a Palestinian family and three youth in Jerusalem reach an alarming level, meanwhile, Israeli threats to attack Iran continue despite warnings from some Israeli military and political leaders, these stories and more, coming up, stay tuned.
The Nonviolence Report:
Let’s begin our weekly report with the nonviolent activities in the West Bank. This week Israeli soldiers attacks on anti wall protesters across the West Bank left scores of civilians injured from tear gas inhalation. IMEMC’s Eman Batjali has more:
Anti wall protests this Friday were organized at the villages of Bil’in, Nil’in and Nabi Saleh in central West Bank. As well as the southern West Bank village of Al Ma’ssara.
In central West Bank, troops used tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets against Bil’in, Nil’in and Nabi Saleh residents and their international and Israeli supporters. Many were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation at all three locations.
Soldiers attacked al Nabi Saleh protest before it even left the village to get to the location of the wall. Meanwhile in Bil’in and Nil’in, residents and their international supporters managed to reach the gate of the wall separating local farmers from their lands.
Elsewhere on Friday, in southern West Bank, Al Ma’sara villagers organized their weekly anti wall protest. Israeli forces stationed there forced people back into the village using rifle-buts and batons. No injuries were reported.
For IMEMC News this is Eman Batjali.
The Political Report
As Israeli threats to attack Iran continue, the Iranian President describes Israel as an insult to humanity, meanwhile, tension between Israel and Egypt surfaces following the Rafah deadly attack, the details with IMEMC’s Anne Shirley
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he supports a military strike against Iran regardless of the fact that Israel will not be able to destroy the Iranian nuclear plant.
Israeli newspaper the Jerusalem Post said on its online edition that Netanyahu believes that following a military hit to Iran the nuclear program will need some years of renovation, during which the regime may change in the Islamic Republic.
Netanyahu and Minister of Defence Ehud Barak are among few Israeli leaders who strongly support a Military offensive against Iran. Recently, Amnon Lipkin Shahak, former chief of staff of the Israeli Army joined the camp opposing a military hit against Iran.
On his part Israeli President Shimon Peres said Israel is incapable of carry out an attack on Iran alone, saying that a strike must be coordinated with the United States.
In the meantime, the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad referred to Israel as a western tool to dominate the Middle East and an insult to all humanity. His comments came during a speech given at a Tehran rally marking the annual Jerusalem Day, which coincides with every last Friday of Ramadan in Iran.
In other news, Egyptian-Israeli relations remain in tension following the latest deadly attack on the Egyptian military base in the Sinai desert two weeks ago, which claimed the lives of 15 Egyptian soldiers.
As Egypt launched a military operation against armed groups in Sinai in response to the attack, Israel demanded Egypt to withdraw its heavy military forces from the Sinai Peninsula in accordance with the Camp David Agreement signed between Israel and Egypt in 1978.
The agreement allows a limited number of Egyptian military forces to be in some areas of the Sinai and allows Israel to pursue direct threats up to 10 kilometres into the Sinai.
Following the Egyptian revolution several Egyptian leaders voiced demands that the Camp David agreement must be amended to allow more Egyptian forces in Sinai.
For IMEMC News, this is Anne Shirley
The West Bank & Gaza Report
This week the Israeli military conducted at least 7 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During those attacks soldiers arrested 7 Palestinian civilians, including a child. Moreover attacks on Palestinian civilians reach an alarming level this week. IMEMC’s Vicka Awad with the details:
In a recent development, dozens of Jewish youths attacked three young Palestinians in Jerusalem early on Friday morning, in what one witness described as ‘a lynch’. One of the victims was beaten until he passed out, and is currently in Hadassah hospital in serious condition.
An Eyewitness said on her Facebook wall that she has witnessed a Lynch in Jerusalem. She added the the assailants shouted death to Arabs, and other anti Arab slogans when they attacked the three youths who were walking peacefully in Beh Yehuda street in Jerusalem.
The witness also wrote that some of the Israelis were not happy that paramedics were giving aid to the wounded and performed CPR until he was transferred to the Hospital because as they said he is an Arab.
In related news, Palestinian medical sources in Bethlehem reported Thursday that a cab driver, a Palestinian father, mother and their children, suffered moderate to severe injuries after fundamentalist Israeli settlers hurled a firebomb at the Palestinian cab.
The attack took place when the Palestinian Taxi was driving near the illegal Bat Ayin and Gavot illegal settlements, close to the Etzion settlement block, south the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem.
Earlier in the Week, on Wednesday, a group of extremist Israeli settlers used electric pumps to empty a Palestinian irrigation well and flooded Palestinian farmlands in as-Seer area, east of Sa’ir town, near the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
In the Gaza Strip this week, Israeli tanks invaded parts of the border area of Rafah town and opened fire at nearby residents homes while army bulldozers destroyed local farmers lands. Earlier in the week, Palestinian civilian was wounded, on Saturday, when Israeli troops positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east of Khan Yunis town.
Also this week the Israeli navy continued to fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the Gaza strip shores. This week two such attacks were documented by Palestinian human rights groups. Damage was reported but no injuries.
For IMEMC News, This is Vika Awad
And that’s all for today from This Week in Palestine this was the Weekly report for August 11th to 17th 2012 from the Occupied Palestinian Territories. For more news and updates please visit our website at www.imemc.org. Today’s report has been brought to you by Husam Qassis and me, George Rishmawi
