Home used as military post
A Palestinian resident of the village of Salem, near the northern West Bank city of Nablus, said that Israeli soldiers occupied his home on Friday and are using it as…
Hamas, Islamic Jihad may join PLO
Monday morning, an Islamic Jihad leader said that the Palestinian Liberation Organization, PLO, is considering allowing Hamas and the Jihad join it for the first time. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas…
Eight arrested in Jenin, one soldier injured
Monday predawn, Israeli soldiers invaded the northern West Bank city of Jenin and surrounding villages. eight residents were reportedly arrested. An Israeli military source stated that one soldier was lightly injured…
Sharon: U.S. reservations will not prevent us retaining settlement blocs
‘We can’t expect to receive explicit American agreement to build freely in the settlements,’ Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said at Sunday’s cabinet meeting. The large blocs of settlement in the…
Knesset votes down the referendum bill
As expected, the Knesset plenum on Monday afternoon rejected the bill on the disengagement referendum by a vote of 72 to 39. The overwhelming majority represents a sound victory for…
Abbas demands Israel to halt settlement construction
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, demanded Israel to announce a truce and to halt all settlement activities. “We agreed to the cease fire, and we demand Israel to calm the situation…
Army to confiscate lands west of Bethlehem
Sunday, Israeli soldiers handed on dozens of residents of Nahhalin, west of Bethlehem, military orders to evacuate from their lands within 45 days. The Popular Committee Against the Wall reported…
Three injured, one detained in Hebron
At least three residents were injured on Sunday morning, one arrested after soldiers invaded several neighborhoods in the old city of Hebron. A medical source at Hebron Governmental Hospital reported…
Mofaz: Palestinians may have smuggled Strela missiles into Gaza
Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said Sunday that Palestinian Authority military intelligence agents were involved in recent attempts to smuggle anti-aircraft missiles into Gaza. Mofaz told Israeli cabinet members at…
Lebanon edging instability, 3 Bomb blasts in 8 days
A bomb exploded in a Beirut industrial suburb, injuring five people and setting a huge fire in the place. Opposition leaders blamed the Lebanese pro-Syrian government for the series of…
Sharon: U.S. committed to understandings on settlement blocs
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Saturday that the American assurances on the major West Bank settlement blocs stands firm. ‘There is nothing to worry about regarding the blocs. There…
Shinui to support Sharon in Knesset budget vote
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Shinui leaders Yosef Lapid and Avraham Poraz arrived at an agreement by which the secular party will vote in favor of the 2005 state…
Protestors in Nazareth call the Greek Orthodox Patriarch to Step Down
Thousands of Palestinians from Nazareth area in the upper Galilee took the streets of the city protesting the alleged sales deal though which the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate sold major church…
UN: Lebanese Gov’t Investigation in Hariri Assassination insufficient
The United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minster Rafik Al-Hariri reported that the investigation carried out by the Lebanese authorities has major deficiencies,…
Etamar settlers; continuous attacks against the residents and their lands
Rashid Sbeih, a resident of Aqraba east of the northern West Bank city of Nablus stated that the residents are suffering of continuous attacks carried out settlers groups from a…
Israel did not ease restrictions on border crossings
Saleem Abu Safiyya, head of the Border Crossings at the P.A said that the Israeli side is still using the border crossings in order to pressure the P.A, and demanded…
Fatah- the clock for change starts ticking
A recent well researched study on Fatah- the main and largest Palestinian faction within the PLO- published by the Jerusalem Institute for Peace Studies, showed that the movement is witnessing…
Beyond all limits
It is all well and good for Palestinian factions to meet, talk things over and agree on a united stand. The need for calm on the frontline is all too…
The isolation of Jerusalem, another catastrophe
It all started as a nuisance in 1993. Twelve years later, this nuisance is becoming a major catastrophe for the over 200,000 Palestinians of East Jerusalem, following the abduction by…
Abbas: all Israeli settlements are illegal
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Friday that all Israeli settlement built on Palestinian territories occupied during the 1967 war are illegal. ‘We have accepted to establish our state within the…
14 Palestinians, one Israeli peace activist wounded in anti-wall protest
Local sources in Dier Balout village, south of the West Bank city of Qalqilyah, reported that 14 Palestinians and an Israeli peace activist were wounded to various degrees on Friday…
Settlers attack a Palestinian woman near Nablus
Israeli settlers attacked Friday with wooden sticks Rahmah Howari, 50, while standing near her home in the village of Einyabous south of the West Bank city of Nablus. Howari, who…
Israeli Border Police provokes violence in a Palestinian village
Palestinian villagers of Belein, a village close to the West Bank city of Ramallah, has recorded the voice of an Israeli border police officer, who was speaking through a loudspeaker…
Around 20,000 gathered in Nablus to commemorate assassinated Hamas Leader
More than 20,000 Hamas supporters attended a Friday rally in the soccer stadium of the West Bank city of Nablus to commemorate the anniversary of the assassination of Hamas spiritual…
Armed settlers raid a village, terrorize villagers
Settlers from Yitzhar attacked once again in 48 hours the village of Asira al-Kabaliya. a group of armed settlers broke into the village on Saturday night opened fire at homes…
U.S. to publish policy statement on Israel settlement expansion
The United States will release a statement on U.S. policy regarding Israel’s construction plans in West Bank settlements as early as today, Israel’s Ambassador to the U.S. Danny Ayalon told…
14 injured near Salfit
A local source in Dir Ballout, near Salfit, reported that at least 14 residents were injured during clashes which erupted after Israeli soldiers attacked a peaceful protest against the Separation…
This Week in Palestine – March Week 3
Download Mp3 http://radio.indymedia.org/news/2005/03/4170.php This Week in Palestine – a service of the International Middle East Media Center, for the week of Friday, March 18th to Thursday, March 24th, 2005. As leaders…
Five residents, including two children hurt in Bodrus
Friday afternoon, Israeli soldiers invaded the village of Bodrus, west of the northern West Bank city of Ramallah and injured five residents, including two children. A medical source in Bodrus…
Israel expropriates more land for settlements near Qalqilia
The Israeli civil administration in the northern West Bank area revealed plans to expropriate some 224 Dunams, (60 acres) in the village of Kufur Thulth and many other villages east…
Israeli right fear losing power if conflict ends
When all Israelis feel the radical change in the security situation since Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas took power, the government of Israel stepped up criticisms against him, accusing the new…
EU: `“Israel is breaching the road map plan`
High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy at the EU, Javier Solana, accused Israel of breaching the Road Map Plan, which is backed up by the international community,…
Mubarak: Assassinating Hariri could have been meant to setup Syria
Speaking at a press conference in Paris, the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak warned on Thursday that the assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Miniser Rafik Al-Harriri in Beirut lat month…
P.A security arrests three members of Al-Aqsa brigades
A Palestinian security source in Bethlehem stated that the Palestinian Security arrested three resistance fighters of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the military wing of Fatah. The source reported that the three…
360 child detainees in Israeli prisons
Minister of Detainees at the Palestinian Authority Sufian Abu Zaida, said that there are currently 360 child detainees in Israeli prisons and detention camps; at least half of them are…
Settler woman attack a child in Hebron
A Palestinian medical source in Hebron reported that a settler woman of the illegal outpost of ‘Ramat Yeshai’ in Hebron attacked and stoned a 9-year-old child, while the soldiers, present…
Abbas: Factions committed to ‘calm’, climate changed after Cairo talks
The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas remarked that all Palestinian factions are still committed to the agreements they reached in Cairo last week of maintaining calm until the end of the…
Kurtzer denies dismissing US-Israeli understandings over major WB settlements
According to Israel radio, U.S. Ambassador in Tel Aviv Dan Kurtzer accused that the report published by Israeli newspaper Youdot Ahranot, in which he was quoted as saying there were…
Top Greek Orthodox Church leader calls Patriarch Irinous to step down
The General Secretary of the Greek Orthodox Chruch Archbishop Arastachios called Thursdays Patriarch Irinous to resign following the scandal of a ‘viscous’ land bargain in Jerusalem, through which major church…
Streets Commandos
‘We don’t ask questions; we just follow orders. We can block any intersection at any time; no one can stop us. We are inspired by Lihi (a historical terrorist Jewish…
Who pays for army ‘mistakes?’
Shnider children hospital demands the family of Batoul Tibi, who sustained serious wounds on April 17, 2004, when soldiers ‘mistakenly’ opened fire as she was coming back from school, to…
Sharon aides: we may have to go to early elections
Senior aides of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon expressed Thursday concerns that the government might fail to muster a Knesset majority for the budget, leaving the country with one choice;…
Israel considering delaying Qalqilyah transfer to PA
Israel is considering delaying the handover of the West Bank city of Qalqilyah to the Palestinian Authority, claiming that the PA did not fulfill the terms of the last week…
P.A to discuss settlements file with the US envoys
Palestinian officials are to discuss settlements file with the American envoys Elliot Abrams, assistant Secretary of State, and David Welch, responsible of the Middle-East file at the US Foreign Ministry.…
Atallah Hanna: Death Threats won’t change my Stance
Archimandrite Atallah Hanna, spokesperson of the Orthodox Church in Jerusalem stated on Wednesday that he does not pay a lot of attention to the death threats he has been receiving…
Qurei: `“No solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict without Jerusalem`
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmad Qurei said that there can be no solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict without Jerusalem, and added that settlements and the separation Wall and buying lands which…
Mofaz: `“P.A is not investing enough efforts to counter terrorism`
The Israeli Defense Minister, Shaul Mofaz, claimed that Israel is facing difficulties in handing the security responsibility over the Palestinian territories to the Palestinian authority because “it is not investing…
Soldiers attack a protest against the Wall near Ramallah
Thursday afternoon, Israeli soldiers attacked a protest against the Wall in the village of Safa, south west of Ramallah. A local source in the village reported that soldiers fired gas…
Qurei: `“No solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict without Jerusalem`
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmad Qurei said that there can be no solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict without Jerusalem, and added that settlements and the separation Wall and buying lands which…
Around 17 arrested in peaceful Anti-Wall protest in Budrus
A Palestinian non-violent protester, Mansour Mansour from the village of Budrus northwest of Jerusalem and another German activist were badly beaten and at least 15 Israeli activists have been arrested…
Israeli Arab arrested over transporting Tel Aviv bomber
An Israeli Arab has been arrested on suspicion of transporting the Islamic Jihad operative who carried out the last month bombing in Tel Aviv, which took the lives of five…
Sharon, Lapid to meet over state budget
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Shinui chairman Yosef Lapid were slated to meet Saturday evening to discuss the 2005 state budget Cracks in Likud widen, Olmert slams Netanyahu Israeli…
Arab leaders re-launch Saudi peace initiative
Arab leaders on Wednesday re-launched a 2002 peace initiative which offered Israel normal relations in return for full withdrawal from areas occupied in 1967 war. The closing statement of the…
Palestinian factions ask Arab leaders not to normalize with Israel
Palestinian factions demanded the Arab leaders meeting in Algeria not to normalize relations with Israel , and to have the issue of Jerusalem as a top priority of the conference.…
New section in Ansar 3 detention camp
The Palestinian Prisoners Society revealed that the Israeli Authorities has decided to open a new section in Ansar 3 detention camp in the Negev desert, to accomodate additional 1200 detainees. The…
15 families surrounded, isolated in the Gaza Strip
Israeli soldiers placed barbed wires and iron gates surrounding 16 families, south of Wadi Al-Salqa village, near the Kissufim settlement road, in the central Gaza Strip. A local source in…
Hamas members, supporters, commemorate Yassin
At least 5000 members and supporters of Hamas participated on Monday in a ceremony commemorating Sheikh Ahmad Yassin, the wheelchair bound spiritual leader of Hamas, who was assassinated by the…
Annan Demands a timetable for Syrian pullout
United Nations Secretary General Kufi Annan on Tuesday reiterated his demand to Syria to provide timetable for its pullout from Lebanon. Annan demanded a that by early next month, Syria…
Three arrested in Qalqilia
Thursday at dawn, Israeli soldiers, supported by dozens of military vehicles and jeeps the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia , and broke into dozens of homes. A local source…
Army invades Nablus, arrests four
Wednesday at dawn, Israeli soldiers invaded the old city of Nablus and Balata refugee camp and broke into dozens of homes. An Israeli military source claimed that a number of…
U.S. envoys meet with Sharon over settlement expansion
Two senior U.S. envoys met with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Wednesday to ask pointed questions about plans to expand the settlement of Ma’ale Adumim in violation of the…
Knesset Finance Committee approves State Budget
The Israeli Knesset Finance Committee passed the State Budget and the Economic Arrangements bill Wednesday night by a majority of ten to nine. The Israeli government so far lacks majority…
King Abdullah: Syria, Hezbollah promote attacks against Israel
Jordan’s King Abdullah II warned Tuesday that Syria and Hezbollah are trying to divert attention from the situation in Lebanon by encouraging Palestinian activists to carry out attacks against Israel. …
Military court convicts two Israeli peace activists
An Israeli court convicted two Israeli residents after charging them with obstructing army while attempting to demolish a Palestinian home near Jerusalem. Head of the “Hakhams for Peace†organization Erik Ahserman and…
Israel to close the entire Palestinian territories during Purim
Israeli decided to impose a full closure over the West Bank and Gaza Strip starting on Wednesday morning over “Purim†celebrations in Israel. Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz ordered the…
Settlers attempt to block roads across Israel, Police detain 66
Israeli Police detained Tuesday evening 66 settlers at the Glilot junction north of Tel Aviv. Police believes were in way to block traffic in an unauthorized protest against the disengagement…
Soldiers burn Palestinian home in Belein village
Israeli Soldiers, who used force to disperse a peaceful anti-wall protest, fully burned a Palestinian home in the village of Belein, west of the city of Ramallah. Home owner, Marzoq…
Palestinian Medical source: Israel uses harmful radiation at border crossings
Palestinian medical source warned Tuesday that Israel uses radiant glass rooms to inspect Palestinian passengers at border crossings. Dr. Juma’ Saqa, the head of emergency section at Shifa medical center…
Knesset Constitution Committee Okays pullout referendum
The members of the Israeli Knesset’s Law, Justice and Constitution Committee on Wednesday approved a bill that would allow a national referendum on the disengagement plan. The bill passed by…
Hebron Residents: `Settlers attempted to poison our sheep`
Tuesday morning, residents of the southern Mount Hebron area reported that Jewish settlers attempted to poison flocks of sheep owned by local shepherds. The settlers reportedly dispersed contaminated seed over…
Confirm kill casts Shadow over military police investigations
Trial of captain R, the Israeli military commander charged of the confirmed kill scandal of the 13 years old girl, Iman Al-Hams, has surfaced again as the military trial continued…
Army invades Dahiat Al-Barid
Tuesday morning, Israeli soldiers invaded Dahiat Al-Barid, north of Jerusalem and started marking the lands to erect the separation wall in the area. Resident Hamdi, Al-Masrawi, said that the news…
Collaborators to be moved to Israel after Gaza pullout
An Israeli security source reported on Tuesday that the military intends to dismantle a village protected by the army in the southern Gaza Strip, and move Palestinian and Egyptian collaborators…
Israeli Intelligence: PA security prevented as many attacks as Israeli security
Head of the Israeli army intelligence stated that the Palestinian Authority security forces are actually foiling attacks against Israel. Brigadier General Yossi Kuperwasser, told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security…
Army invades Dahiat Al-Barid
Tuesday morning, Israeli soldiers invaded Dahiat Al-Barid, north of Jerusalem and started marking the lands to erect the separation wall in the area. Resident Hamdi, Al-Masrawi, said that the news…
Arabs to Normalize ties with Israel if it reciprocates
For the second time in less than two years, the Arab world offers Israel a chance to end the occupation in return of full-scale normalization of ties. The Arab leaders…
Netanyahu confident budget will pass in Knesset
Israeli Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed confidence Tuesday that the state budget would be approved by the Knesset next week. Netanyahu also said the Likud would remain united, despite the…
Palestinian Mothers on ‘Mothers Day’
Half of the Palestinian Society is composed of women, while the world and the Palestinians celebrate the Mothers Day; Palestinian women are suffering of imprisonment, death and refuge in their…
Poll: `“70% of Palestinians will vote in upcoming legislative elections`
A poll conducted by the Center for Opinion Polls and Survey Studies An-Najah University in Nablus during the period from March 16 to 19, 2005 revealed that 70.2% of the…
PA places limits on possessing and displaying weapons
Palestinian Interior Minister Nasser Yousif placed Monday restrictions on possessing weapon and publicly displaying them. The move was welcomed by Israel. A Palestinian security official, speaking on condition of anonymity,…
child abuse in Israeli jails
The Palestinian Prisoners Society revealed on Monday that a child detainee from Jenin was severely tortured causing sever bleeding, while prison administration refuses to provide him with the needed medical…
New Zealand Parliament member calls for granting Vanunu NZ citizenship
A member of the New Zealand parliament suggested his country grant the nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu a NZ citizenship after Israeli claimed that Vanunu attempted to obtain forged NZ passports.…
Despite PA objections, Plans to link J’lem with Ma’ale Adumim settlement move forward
Israeli security sources said Monday that the plan to establish two new settlements between Ma’ale Adumim and Jerusalem will be completed within a few weeks. Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz…
Sharon allows Likud MKs freedom to vote on budget
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon agreed to allow Likud MKs to vote their conscience on the 2005 state budget and on a bill mandating a referendum on the disengagement plan…
Gaza settlers hand names of extremists to security authorities
A group of Gush Katif settlers have handed the Israeli security service a list of names of Israeli right wing extremists, demanding moving them out of their settlement. The Settlers…
Bush supports Sharon against `“leaping` to final status talks
Israeli official source predicted Sunday that U.S. President George W. Bush will reiterate his commitment to the staged Israeli-Palestinian peace process laid out in the road map peace plan. Bush…
Army arrests 4 Palestinians ahead of leaving Tul-Karim
Israel handed over the West Bank city of Tul-Karim to Palestinian Authority security control on Monday night, Israeli and Palestinian officials said. Under the terms of the agreement, the Israeli…
Three soldiers, policeman wounded in a Ramallah refugee camp
Four Israeli security agents were wounded early Sunday morning during a military operation in the Amari refugee camp south of the West Bank city of Ramallah, one of them very…
PA to investigate the Greek Orthodox Church’ Jerusalem bargain
The Palestinian cabinet decided Saturday to for a committee to investigate the selling of Omer Ben Al-Khatab square in East Jerusalem to Jewish investors. Most of the sold property belongs…
Jordan accepts amendments to normalization strategy
Jordan accepted amendments to its proposal, which called for revising the long-standing Arab strategy to normalize relations with Israel, Arab diplomatic source in Alger said on Saturday. According to the…
EU to bribe Israel to ease Palestinians’ lives
The European Union intends to offer Israel economic benefits in exchange for easing Palestinian living conditions, EU sources said. An EU delegation is due to arrive in Israel in about…
Aerial photos show extensive building in settlements
The Israeli Defense Ministry has completed a widespread aerial photography operation revealing extensive building in West Bank settlements and unauthorized outposts in recent months. The operation was ordered following a…
10,000 attend pro-pullout rally in Tel Aviv
About 10,000 people attended a rally in support of disengagement Saturday night at Dizengoff Square in Tel Aviv. The rally was organized by the Coalition of the Majority, the umbrella…
PA delegation Postpones visit to Beirut
The Palestinian delegation delayed their planned visit to Lebanon till after forming a new Lebanese government. The deputy of the Palestinian Ambassador to Amman Atallah Kheiry stated that during this…
Zahhar: `“Talks with Israel are not Haram (taboo)
Dr. Mahmoud Zahhar, one of the leaders of the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, said that talks with Israel are not a taboo, but the negotiators should aware of what are…
A story of challenge, Child VS father jailors
In spite of his childhood, Ehab Riyadh Marhsoud, 5 year old, speaks as a professional politician as a result of his repeated participation in talks about detainees at home in…
Eight people injured in Beirut explosion
A car bomb wrecked the front of a building in the northern suburbs of the Lebanese capital early Saturday, wounding eight people, Lebanese police said. The explosion left a crater…
No surprise; Palestinian photographer wins the most sad photo prize
Palestine won the prize of the saddest photo in the BBC ‘sadness and joy’ photography competition. The photo captured by Palestinian TV producer Abdul-Rahman Al-Humran, which shows three young girls…
The Cairo agreement
The Palestinian Authority and Palestinian Political factions signed Thursday in Cairo a document that calls for extending the ‘calm’ period until the end of the year, calling Israel to halt…
Greek Orthodox Church sold a Jerusalem’ square to Jewish investors
Israeli newspaper Ma’ariv revealed in a report published on Friday that the Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem secretly sold Omar Ben Al-Khatab square to Jewish investors. The square includes restaurants,…