10 juni 2011
Palestinian injured in clashes with settlers near Ramallah
A 65-year-old Palestinian was shot and injured Friday during clashes with Israeli settlers and soldiers near Ramallah, witnesses said.
Locals told Ma'an that dozens of settlers tried to enter an illegal outpost near Kafr Malik village, which had been evacuated by Israeli forces.
Villagers tried to stop the settlers, who were supported by Israeli soldiers. Clashes erupted and Yousif Hamad Al-Qaq was shot and injured, onlookers said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395504
UK minister: Mosque arson 'provocative'
UK Foreign Office Minister Alistair Burt on Thursday condemned the torching and vandalizing of a mosque in the West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir.
Villagers said the arson was carried out by local settlers, who spray painted in Hebrew the words "price tag" and the name of a recently evacuated settlement outpost on the walls of the mosque.
Burt said the act appeared to be "the latest of a series of similar attacks aimed at exacerbating tensions and preventing progress in the peace process."
He urged Israeli authorities to investigate the "provocative crime" and to bring the perpetrators to justice.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395464
Palestinian injured in clashes with settlers near Ramallah
A 65-year-old Palestinian was shot and injured Friday during clashes with Israeli settlers and soldiers near Ramallah, witnesses said.
Locals told Ma'an that dozens of settlers tried to enter an illegal outpost near Kafr Malik village, which had been evacuated by Israeli forces.
Villagers tried to stop the settlers, who were supported by Israeli soldiers. Clashes erupted and Yousif Hamad Al-Qaq was shot and injured, onlookers said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395504
UK minister: Mosque arson 'provocative'
UK Foreign Office Minister Alistair Burt on Thursday condemned the torching and vandalizing of a mosque in the West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir.
Villagers said the arson was carried out by local settlers, who spray painted in Hebrew the words "price tag" and the name of a recently evacuated settlement outpost on the walls of the mosque.
Burt said the act appeared to be "the latest of a series of similar attacks aimed at exacerbating tensions and preventing progress in the peace process."
He urged Israeli authorities to investigate the "provocative crime" and to bring the perpetrators to justice.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395464
9 juni 2011
Jewish settlers set fire to agricultural land near Al-Khalil
Jewish settlers from Kiryat Arba settlement started a big fire in Palestinian farms south of Al-Khalil city on Wednesday afternoon, local sources reported.
They said that tens of settlers attacked the farmland located between their settlement and Bani Naim village, south of Al-Khalil city, setting vast areas cultivated with wheat on fire.
The sources noted that the blaze quickly spread in hundreds of dunums surrounding the settlement, adding that Palestinian fire brigades rushed to the scene but the fire was much bigger than their capabilities.
Jewish settlers in the West Bank almost daily assault citizens and damage their cultivated land lots in a bid to terrorize them away and annex the land. Israeli occupation army gives a blind eye to such practices and even protects those settlers.
EU condemns mosque arson
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Thursday condemned the arson attack on a mosque near Ramallah.
On Tuesday, a mosque in Al-Mughayyir was torched and sprayed with anti-Arab graffiti. Witnesses said a group of Israeli settlers arrived in the village before dawn, and shortly after they saw flames rising into the sky.
The vandals spray-painted "Alei Ayin" on the walls, which is the name of a nearby settlement outpost demolished by Israeli police last week, sparking fierce clashes with the settlers.
In a statement issued by her spokesman, Ashton called on authorities to investigate the attack and "bring the perpetrators to justice."
The statement added: "These provocations undermine efforts to promote a comprehensive peace in the region. The EU will continue to focus all its efforts on achieving a peaceful and negotiated resolution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict."
Defacing Palestinian holy sites is a common practice by settlers who also vandalize Palestinian private property and agricultural land.
Although Israeli government officials have criticized the attack, PA officials have noted that Netanyahu has often given his support to members of the religious community who actively incite hatred against Palestinians.
The most recent example came on the celebration of "Jerusalem day," when Netanyahu attended events alongside Rabbis who have advocated the murder of non-Jews.
"While Netanyahu's office has an active department to monitor 'incitement' in the PA, they should invest some efforts in monitoring their own PM's deeds" a spokesman from the PA said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395285
Settler War against South Hebron Hills Shepherd Community
In the past week residents of Khirbet Umm al-Khier in the South Hebron Hills have suffered from attacks by settlers from the nearby Karmel settlement, who are preventing them from taking their flocks out to graze. Preventing access to their lands is done with the full cooperation of the Israeli police and army.
On Sunday 5 June, a new stage in the struggle of Khirbet Umm al-Khier residents began for their right to live in the face of strangulation attempts by the Carmel settlers and occupation forces. Nabil Tapash, an officer of the Israeli Civil Administration, came to Khirbet Umm al-Hir on Sunday and spoke with a resident of the Eid village. According to the settlers, several olive trees they planted earlier this year were damaged by the herds of Umm el-Khier. Settlers demand compensation of NIS 250, although they provided no evidence of the claimed damage or of the responsibility of Umm el-Khier residents for said damage.
Nabil threatened that if compensation was not paid, he would prevent the herds from walking through the pasture, thus obligating the herders to walk on foot via a long bypass route.
And indeed, since Monday morning settlers and the army have prevented passage of the herders. A military captain went even further, kicking several of the goats, including one in the head who died several hours later.
Jewish settlers set fire to agricultural land near Al-Khalil
Jewish settlers from Kiryat Arba settlement started a big fire in Palestinian farms south of Al-Khalil city on Wednesday afternoon, local sources reported.
They said that tens of settlers attacked the farmland located between their settlement and Bani Naim village, south of Al-Khalil city, setting vast areas cultivated with wheat on fire.
The sources noted that the blaze quickly spread in hundreds of dunums surrounding the settlement, adding that Palestinian fire brigades rushed to the scene but the fire was much bigger than their capabilities.
Jewish settlers in the West Bank almost daily assault citizens and damage their cultivated land lots in a bid to terrorize them away and annex the land. Israeli occupation army gives a blind eye to such practices and even protects those settlers.
EU condemns mosque arson
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Thursday condemned the arson attack on a mosque near Ramallah.
On Tuesday, a mosque in Al-Mughayyir was torched and sprayed with anti-Arab graffiti. Witnesses said a group of Israeli settlers arrived in the village before dawn, and shortly after they saw flames rising into the sky.
The vandals spray-painted "Alei Ayin" on the walls, which is the name of a nearby settlement outpost demolished by Israeli police last week, sparking fierce clashes with the settlers.
In a statement issued by her spokesman, Ashton called on authorities to investigate the attack and "bring the perpetrators to justice."
The statement added: "These provocations undermine efforts to promote a comprehensive peace in the region. The EU will continue to focus all its efforts on achieving a peaceful and negotiated resolution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict."
Defacing Palestinian holy sites is a common practice by settlers who also vandalize Palestinian private property and agricultural land.
Although Israeli government officials have criticized the attack, PA officials have noted that Netanyahu has often given his support to members of the religious community who actively incite hatred against Palestinians.
The most recent example came on the celebration of "Jerusalem day," when Netanyahu attended events alongside Rabbis who have advocated the murder of non-Jews.
"While Netanyahu's office has an active department to monitor 'incitement' in the PA, they should invest some efforts in monitoring their own PM's deeds" a spokesman from the PA said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395285
Settler War against South Hebron Hills Shepherd Community
In the past week residents of Khirbet Umm al-Khier in the South Hebron Hills have suffered from attacks by settlers from the nearby Karmel settlement, who are preventing them from taking their flocks out to graze. Preventing access to their lands is done with the full cooperation of the Israeli police and army.
On Sunday 5 June, a new stage in the struggle of Khirbet Umm al-Khier residents began for their right to live in the face of strangulation attempts by the Carmel settlers and occupation forces. Nabil Tapash, an officer of the Israeli Civil Administration, came to Khirbet Umm al-Hir on Sunday and spoke with a resident of the Eid village. According to the settlers, several olive trees they planted earlier this year were damaged by the herds of Umm el-Khier. Settlers demand compensation of NIS 250, although they provided no evidence of the claimed damage or of the responsibility of Umm el-Khier residents for said damage.
Nabil threatened that if compensation was not paid, he would prevent the herds from walking through the pasture, thus obligating the herders to walk on foot via a long bypass route.
And indeed, since Monday morning settlers and the army have prevented passage of the herders. A military captain went even further, kicking several of the goats, including one in the head who died several hours later.
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This is yet another level in the process of sidelining the residents of Umm al-Khier. Until a year ago, residents of this small community had relatively easy access to the pastures of nearby Umm Zaituna and the area of Khirbet Tala.
In August 2010, while constructing a new neighbourhood in the Karmel settlement, a patrol road was paved and a new fence close to Umm al-Khier was constructed. The residents were of course prevented from moving their herds via the patrol road, and since then have been forced to move them through an area to the north of the new neighbourhood. In January Karmel settlers planted olive trees on the hilltop, and attempted to prevent the Palestinians from bringing their herds. |
After several weeks in which we accompanied the herders, the settlers agreed that the shepherds and their herds would pass on their way to and from grazing on the northern part (the furthest away from the settlement) of the hilltop, but would not stop there.
In recent days, settlers have also prevented passage of the shepherds through this section of the hilltop. In a conversation with Avi Biton, head of the Administration of Coordination and Liason, he announced that the aforementioned agreement was annulled. He further stated that he is the one who permitted settlers to plant olive trees on the hilltop, although this does not fall within his authority. When Rabbi Arik Ascherman of Rabbis for Human Rights told him this, the conversation was abruptly ended.
On Tuesday 7 June, activists came to Umm al-Khier and accompanied Palestinian shepherds. Settlers who were on the hilltop brutally scattered the herd and frightened the Palestinians. Afterwards numerous soldiers and police officers arrived to the spot. Soldiers contended both that the hilltop is private land of the settlement but also state land, and threatened detention for any Palestinian or activist who would attempt to return to the hilltop as this is “trespassing”. In the wake of the protest action over killing of the goat the previous day, two activists were detained by the police for several hours, and one of them was fined NIS 1500.
On Wednesday 8 June, a shepherd went out with his herd in the early morning hours. Five settlers prevented him from passing through the hilltop and even threw rocks at him and his herd. The shepherd was forced to walk through a long by-pass path. Later five activists arrived and accompanied the shepherd back to Umm el-Khier, a trip that passed without incident.
On Thursday 9 June, most of the shepherds did not go out to graze as activists were unavailable to accompany them.
For residents of Umm al-Khier, the meaning of not going out to graze their herds is they must purchase food, an unbearable financial outlay for this population which is amongst the most politically and economically weakened in the West Bank.
In recent days, settlers have also prevented passage of the shepherds through this section of the hilltop. In a conversation with Avi Biton, head of the Administration of Coordination and Liason, he announced that the aforementioned agreement was annulled. He further stated that he is the one who permitted settlers to plant olive trees on the hilltop, although this does not fall within his authority. When Rabbi Arik Ascherman of Rabbis for Human Rights told him this, the conversation was abruptly ended.
On Tuesday 7 June, activists came to Umm al-Khier and accompanied Palestinian shepherds. Settlers who were on the hilltop brutally scattered the herd and frightened the Palestinians. Afterwards numerous soldiers and police officers arrived to the spot. Soldiers contended both that the hilltop is private land of the settlement but also state land, and threatened detention for any Palestinian or activist who would attempt to return to the hilltop as this is “trespassing”. In the wake of the protest action over killing of the goat the previous day, two activists were detained by the police for several hours, and one of them was fined NIS 1500.
On Wednesday 8 June, a shepherd went out with his herd in the early morning hours. Five settlers prevented him from passing through the hilltop and even threw rocks at him and his herd. The shepherd was forced to walk through a long by-pass path. Later five activists arrived and accompanied the shepherd back to Umm el-Khier, a trip that passed without incident.
On Thursday 9 June, most of the shepherds did not go out to graze as activists were unavailable to accompany them.
For residents of Umm al-Khier, the meaning of not going out to graze their herds is they must purchase food, an unbearable financial outlay for this population which is amongst the most politically and economically weakened in the West Bank.
8 juni 2011
Pathetitic HASBARA losers: This is my land
Pathetitic HASBARA losers: This is my land
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US condemns mosque arson
In a statement delivered by a White House spokesman, the United States condemned Tuesday "the burning and vandalizing of a mosque in the West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir."
Villagers said the arson was carried out by local settlers, who spray painted in Hebrew the words "price tag" and the name of a recently evacuated settlement outpost on the walls of the mosque.
"This attack is the latest of several such acts of violence against West Bank mosques. These incidents have served to undermine efforts to promote a comprehensive peace in the region. We call on the Israeli government to investigate this attack and bring the perpetrators to justice, and for calm from all parties," the spokesman said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395038
Hamas condemns provocative Aqsa break-ins
Hamas has condemned provocative steps by Jewish extremists who stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday and drank alcohol and broke bottles of liquor on the holy site's courtyards.
The group said in a fresh statement that the break-in was done under protection of the Israel army, which threatened to arrest provoked Muslim worshipers who responded to the attack.
”These marches and break-ins are a link in a chain of conspiracies against Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque and they will be disappointed by Allah's will and support, and by the steadfastness of our people stationed [there] and with the support of their brothers from the Arab and Muslim world.”
Hamas said it has observed a serious hike in attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and warned of the consequences Israel would be responsible for if it continued its policy of Judaizing the holy city.
The group called on the Palestinians to stand united against Israeli projects to Judaize Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque.
For their part, Jerusalem officials seeking asylum at the Red Cross said they were not surprised that the incidents coincided with the arson of a mosque in Al-Mughayyir village near Ramallah by armed Jewish settlers.
The men, who have threatened to be banished from Jerusalem, held that the frequent attacks implied the approval of the Israeli government.
Palestinian legislator Hamid al-Beitawi said the attack was designed to provoke the feelings of a billion and a half Muslims and was in violation of both divine and man-made laws.
Israel recently admitted to digging under Al-Aqsa Mosque to create an underground Jewish city. A new law has also been enforced to close the mosque's doors to anyone under age 45.
Beitawi warned that Israel should have drawn lessons from the second intifada that was triggered from then Prime Minister Sharon's desecration of the mosque.
Israeli youth chant 'slaughter the Arabs' 'death to leftists' by the thousands on Jerusalem Day
In a statement delivered by a White House spokesman, the United States condemned Tuesday "the burning and vandalizing of a mosque in the West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir."
Villagers said the arson was carried out by local settlers, who spray painted in Hebrew the words "price tag" and the name of a recently evacuated settlement outpost on the walls of the mosque.
"This attack is the latest of several such acts of violence against West Bank mosques. These incidents have served to undermine efforts to promote a comprehensive peace in the region. We call on the Israeli government to investigate this attack and bring the perpetrators to justice, and for calm from all parties," the spokesman said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=395038
Hamas condemns provocative Aqsa break-ins
Hamas has condemned provocative steps by Jewish extremists who stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday and drank alcohol and broke bottles of liquor on the holy site's courtyards.
The group said in a fresh statement that the break-in was done under protection of the Israel army, which threatened to arrest provoked Muslim worshipers who responded to the attack.
”These marches and break-ins are a link in a chain of conspiracies against Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque and they will be disappointed by Allah's will and support, and by the steadfastness of our people stationed [there] and with the support of their brothers from the Arab and Muslim world.”
Hamas said it has observed a serious hike in attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and warned of the consequences Israel would be responsible for if it continued its policy of Judaizing the holy city.
The group called on the Palestinians to stand united against Israeli projects to Judaize Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque.
For their part, Jerusalem officials seeking asylum at the Red Cross said they were not surprised that the incidents coincided with the arson of a mosque in Al-Mughayyir village near Ramallah by armed Jewish settlers.
The men, who have threatened to be banished from Jerusalem, held that the frequent attacks implied the approval of the Israeli government.
Palestinian legislator Hamid al-Beitawi said the attack was designed to provoke the feelings of a billion and a half Muslims and was in violation of both divine and man-made laws.
Israel recently admitted to digging under Al-Aqsa Mosque to create an underground Jewish city. A new law has also been enforced to close the mosque's doors to anyone under age 45.
Beitawi warned that Israel should have drawn lessons from the second intifada that was triggered from then Prime Minister Sharon's desecration of the mosque.
Israeli youth chant 'slaughter the Arabs' 'death to leftists' by the thousands on Jerusalem Day
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Report: Wine bottle smashed at Al-Aqsa compound
A bottle of red wine was broken in the grounds of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on Wednesday morning, by "Jewish extremists" who had snuck into the compound, an eyewitness reported.
In Islam, alcohol is forbidden, and bringing it into a Muslim holy site is considered to be desecration.
The report of the incident was made public by the Al-Aqsa Foundation for Heritage and Islamic Endowments. Waqf officials told the official Palestinian Authority news agency WAFA, that the visiting Jewish group was "drinking wine and breaking the empty bottles on its ground to celebrate the Jewish Shavout holiday."
Foundation officials said the Jewish group entered the compound through its Magharbe Gate with Israeli police protection.
Israeli police did not intervene, the WAFA report stated, except to separate the Jewish group from a gathering of Muslim worshipers who were angered by the violation of religious law.
According to the statement of the foundation, mosque guards and Israeli forces were called to the area when the incident was observed.
The Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam, Jews believe the western retaining wall of the compound was once the wall of the Second Temple. While neighborhoods that once stood next to the wall were demolished en masse in 1967 to make way for a large prayer area next to the wall, Jewish groups often request entrance into the Haram Ash-Sharif - the noble sanctuary - where the mosque is located, to worship at what is believed to be the Temple Mount.
On Tuesday, Israeli parliamentarian with the right-wing National Union party Michael Ben-Ari, had toured the mosque with a group of Israeli settlers.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394922
Jewish settlers storm Aqsa plaza
Jewish settlers stormed the holy Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem on Wednesday in large numbers after organizing provocative marches in its vicinity and in the Old City.
Aqsa guards said that the settlers broke into the holy site through the Maghareba gate under police protection and started feasting, which included opening and breaking liquor bottles.
Worshipers inside the mosque rushed to the plaza while chanting Allahu Akbar (God is great), but the policemen kept them away and threatened to arrest them. Tension ran high after the incident.
Leaders of Jewish fanatic groups had called for storming the Aqsa on the occasion of “Alhvuaot Albwakir" feast, which coincides with the forty-fourth anniversary of occupying eastern Jerusalem .
A bottle of red wine was broken in the grounds of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on Wednesday morning, by "Jewish extremists" who had snuck into the compound, an eyewitness reported.
In Islam, alcohol is forbidden, and bringing it into a Muslim holy site is considered to be desecration.
The report of the incident was made public by the Al-Aqsa Foundation for Heritage and Islamic Endowments. Waqf officials told the official Palestinian Authority news agency WAFA, that the visiting Jewish group was "drinking wine and breaking the empty bottles on its ground to celebrate the Jewish Shavout holiday."
Foundation officials said the Jewish group entered the compound through its Magharbe Gate with Israeli police protection.
Israeli police did not intervene, the WAFA report stated, except to separate the Jewish group from a gathering of Muslim worshipers who were angered by the violation of religious law.
According to the statement of the foundation, mosque guards and Israeli forces were called to the area when the incident was observed.
The Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam, Jews believe the western retaining wall of the compound was once the wall of the Second Temple. While neighborhoods that once stood next to the wall were demolished en masse in 1967 to make way for a large prayer area next to the wall, Jewish groups often request entrance into the Haram Ash-Sharif - the noble sanctuary - where the mosque is located, to worship at what is believed to be the Temple Mount.
On Tuesday, Israeli parliamentarian with the right-wing National Union party Michael Ben-Ari, had toured the mosque with a group of Israeli settlers.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394922
Jewish settlers storm Aqsa plaza
Jewish settlers stormed the holy Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem on Wednesday in large numbers after organizing provocative marches in its vicinity and in the Old City.
Aqsa guards said that the settlers broke into the holy site through the Maghareba gate under police protection and started feasting, which included opening and breaking liquor bottles.
Worshipers inside the mosque rushed to the plaza while chanting Allahu Akbar (God is great), but the policemen kept them away and threatened to arrest them. Tension ran high after the incident.
Leaders of Jewish fanatic groups had called for storming the Aqsa on the occasion of “Alhvuaot Albwakir" feast, which coincides with the forty-fourth anniversary of occupying eastern Jerusalem .
7 juni 2011
West Bank mosque targeted in suspected 'price tag' attack by settlers
Palestinians: Jewish youth roll burning tires into a mosque in Maghayer village next to Alei Ayin outpost demolished by IDF last week.
The Civil Administration received reports Tuesday of settlers who carried out a suspected 'price tag' attack in Maghayer village near Ramallah.
An initial investigation showed that in the early morning hours the settlers rolled burning tires into the mosque, which caused some rugs to catch fire. The mosque was also sprayed with graffiti.
The village is located near the Alei Ayin outpost, where the Israeli security forces demolished illegal structures last week. The police is investigating whether the two events are linked.
Civil Administration official have spoken with the head of the village and promised a swift investigation.
About a year ago residents of the village of Bayt Fajar near Bethlehem alleged that a group of settlers, apparently from the nearby Gush Etzion settlement bloc, entered the village before dawn and burned down the local mosque.
Tuesday marks the 44th anniversary of the battles over East Jerusalem in the Six Day war, as the IDF prepares for rallies in the Golan Heights, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Jewish settlers burn Palestinian farmland
Jewish settlers from the settlement of Karmi Tzur built on Palestinian land in Halhul and Beit Ummar villages in Al-Khalil on Tuesday set Palestinian farmland on fire.
Local sources said that the settlers burnt three dunums of land cultivated with wheat and sprayed chemicals on grape vines.
They said that one of the settlers fired gunshots to stop farmers from putting off the fire. The settlers routinely embark on such acts to force farmers to abandon their land and annex it to the settlement.
Hamas: Burning mosques racist policy
Hamas strongly condemned the Israeli settlers’ burning of a mosque in Mughyir village to the northeast of Ramallah on Tuesday as a racist act and a flagrant violation of heavenly religions.
It said that burning the mosque and writing racist slurs on its walls had violated international conventions and human values.
The fire almost destroyed the mosque entirely and its outside walls cracked. Hebrew Graffiti daubed on the walls said that it was an act of revenge.
Hamas said in a press release that presence of the Israeli army before the burning indicated that it was an accomplice.
The movement asserted that the Israeli army and settlers’ crimes would not deter the Palestinian people from insisting on national rights and constants.
It finally called on human rights groups to immediately act to protect the Palestinian people and their holy shrines.
Jewish extremists infiltrate Al-Aqsa Mosque
Jewish extremists infiltrated Tuesday Al-Aqsa Mosque from the south and roamed the squares of the sacred premises as Israeli security forces stood guard.
Sources in the mosque said groups of Jewish settlers entered the Harash area near the Lion's Gate by the Marwani prayer section, as Israeli police encircled the Muslim worshipers there and threatened to arrest anyone who yelled or said 'Allahu Akbar' in the face of the Jews.
Several Jewish organizations had directed calls at Jews to infiltrate Al-Aqsa Mosque to mark the Jewish Shavuot holiday, which coincides this year with the 44th anniversary of the Israeli occupation of Al-Aqsa Mosque, East Jerusalem, and the West Bank.
Separately, a poll released by the Israeli Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs found that more than 77 percent of Israelis oppose pulling back to 1967 borders even if it would lead to a peace agreement with Arab states.
The poll showed that Israelis are also against transferring Al-Aqsa Mosque to Palestinian control, and 82 percent considered security concerns more important than a peace agreement with the Palestinians.
Netanayahu condemns West Bank mosque attack as 'criminal act'
Mosque in village near Ramallah torched and sprayed with graffiti; Ehud Barak echoes PM's condemnation and says will take steps to catch the perpetrators.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday condemned the suspected 'price tag' attack by settlers of a mosque in Maghayer village near Ramallah, calling it a "criminal act".
An initial investigation has shown that in the early morning hours of Tuesday the settlers rolled burning tires into the mosque, which caused some rugs to catch fire. The mosque was also sprayed with graffiti.
"I hope the arsonists will be located as soon as possible and will be punished accordingly," Netanyahu said, adding "this is a criminal act that is meant to provoke."
The prime minister emphasized Israel's commitment to freedom of expression, saying "Freedom of religion is a core tenet of the State of Israel, and we will take action against anyone who attempts to go against this principle."
Defense Minister Ehud Barak echoed the prime minister's condemnations, instructing the Israel Defense Forces and other security forces to take whatever steps necessary to catch the perpetrators of the attack.
"This deplorable act is detrimental to peace," Barak said. The defense minister expressed confidence that security forces would bring the arsonists to justice.
The village in which the attack took place is located near the Alei Ayin outpost, where the Israeli security forces demolished illegal structures last week. The police is investigating whether the two events are linked.
Civil rights organizations have spoken out against the arson as well. Rabbis for Human Rights said Tuesday that this kind violence threatens everyone and may backfire. "This despicable act goes against human morality and our Jewish belief that we must not harm followers of different religion," the organization said in a statement.
The Peace Now movement responded by calling for more decisive actions against violent settlers. "The Shin Bet security service and the police must uproot the 'hill youth' phenomenon," it said.
This condemnation has not, however, been universal. Rightist activist Itamar Ben-Gvir said the arson doesn't come as a surprise. "In the last few months Jewish blood has been spilled like water in Judea and Samaria," he said. "Instead of dealing with enemies, the police tears down one outpost after another. The feelings of anger and discrimination have their consequences."
Palestinian President Pledge to Rebuilt a Mosque Torched by Settlers near Ramallah
The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered the Ramallah governorate to rebuild the al-Mieghar mosque that was torched by settlers on Tuesday at dawn.
According to local sources Israeli settlers rolled burning tires into a mosque causing some of the mosque's rugs to catch on fire and spray-painted graffiti on the mosque walls.
al-Mieghar village near the central West Bank city of Ramallah is located near the Israeli settlement of Alei Ayin, an outpost where Israeli police clashed with settlers last week as they demolished the illegal settlement.
The Israeli online, Haaretz, announced that the Israeli military civil administration has promised leaders of the village a "swift investigation.”
Last year a similar attack occurred near Bethlehem at Beit Fajar village, where settlers set the local mosque there on fire and attacked villagers.
Suspected settlers damage West Bank mosque
West Bank mosque targeted in suspected 'price tag' attack by settlers
Palestinians: Jewish youth roll burning tires into a mosque in Maghayer village next to Alei Ayin outpost demolished by IDF last week.
The Civil Administration received reports Tuesday of settlers who carried out a suspected 'price tag' attack in Maghayer village near Ramallah.
An initial investigation showed that in the early morning hours the settlers rolled burning tires into the mosque, which caused some rugs to catch fire. The mosque was also sprayed with graffiti.
The village is located near the Alei Ayin outpost, where the Israeli security forces demolished illegal structures last week. The police is investigating whether the two events are linked.
Civil Administration official have spoken with the head of the village and promised a swift investigation.
About a year ago residents of the village of Bayt Fajar near Bethlehem alleged that a group of settlers, apparently from the nearby Gush Etzion settlement bloc, entered the village before dawn and burned down the local mosque.
Tuesday marks the 44th anniversary of the battles over East Jerusalem in the Six Day war, as the IDF prepares for rallies in the Golan Heights, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Jewish settlers burn Palestinian farmland
Jewish settlers from the settlement of Karmi Tzur built on Palestinian land in Halhul and Beit Ummar villages in Al-Khalil on Tuesday set Palestinian farmland on fire.
Local sources said that the settlers burnt three dunums of land cultivated with wheat and sprayed chemicals on grape vines.
They said that one of the settlers fired gunshots to stop farmers from putting off the fire. The settlers routinely embark on such acts to force farmers to abandon their land and annex it to the settlement.
Hamas: Burning mosques racist policy
Hamas strongly condemned the Israeli settlers’ burning of a mosque in Mughyir village to the northeast of Ramallah on Tuesday as a racist act and a flagrant violation of heavenly religions.
It said that burning the mosque and writing racist slurs on its walls had violated international conventions and human values.
The fire almost destroyed the mosque entirely and its outside walls cracked. Hebrew Graffiti daubed on the walls said that it was an act of revenge.
Hamas said in a press release that presence of the Israeli army before the burning indicated that it was an accomplice.
The movement asserted that the Israeli army and settlers’ crimes would not deter the Palestinian people from insisting on national rights and constants.
It finally called on human rights groups to immediately act to protect the Palestinian people and their holy shrines.
Jewish extremists infiltrate Al-Aqsa Mosque
Jewish extremists infiltrated Tuesday Al-Aqsa Mosque from the south and roamed the squares of the sacred premises as Israeli security forces stood guard.
Sources in the mosque said groups of Jewish settlers entered the Harash area near the Lion's Gate by the Marwani prayer section, as Israeli police encircled the Muslim worshipers there and threatened to arrest anyone who yelled or said 'Allahu Akbar' in the face of the Jews.
Several Jewish organizations had directed calls at Jews to infiltrate Al-Aqsa Mosque to mark the Jewish Shavuot holiday, which coincides this year with the 44th anniversary of the Israeli occupation of Al-Aqsa Mosque, East Jerusalem, and the West Bank.
Separately, a poll released by the Israeli Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs found that more than 77 percent of Israelis oppose pulling back to 1967 borders even if it would lead to a peace agreement with Arab states.
The poll showed that Israelis are also against transferring Al-Aqsa Mosque to Palestinian control, and 82 percent considered security concerns more important than a peace agreement with the Palestinians.
Netanayahu condemns West Bank mosque attack as 'criminal act'
Mosque in village near Ramallah torched and sprayed with graffiti; Ehud Barak echoes PM's condemnation and says will take steps to catch the perpetrators.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday condemned the suspected 'price tag' attack by settlers of a mosque in Maghayer village near Ramallah, calling it a "criminal act".
An initial investigation has shown that in the early morning hours of Tuesday the settlers rolled burning tires into the mosque, which caused some rugs to catch fire. The mosque was also sprayed with graffiti.
"I hope the arsonists will be located as soon as possible and will be punished accordingly," Netanyahu said, adding "this is a criminal act that is meant to provoke."
The prime minister emphasized Israel's commitment to freedom of expression, saying "Freedom of religion is a core tenet of the State of Israel, and we will take action against anyone who attempts to go against this principle."
Defense Minister Ehud Barak echoed the prime minister's condemnations, instructing the Israel Defense Forces and other security forces to take whatever steps necessary to catch the perpetrators of the attack.
"This deplorable act is detrimental to peace," Barak said. The defense minister expressed confidence that security forces would bring the arsonists to justice.
The village in which the attack took place is located near the Alei Ayin outpost, where the Israeli security forces demolished illegal structures last week. The police is investigating whether the two events are linked.
Civil rights organizations have spoken out against the arson as well. Rabbis for Human Rights said Tuesday that this kind violence threatens everyone and may backfire. "This despicable act goes against human morality and our Jewish belief that we must not harm followers of different religion," the organization said in a statement.
The Peace Now movement responded by calling for more decisive actions against violent settlers. "The Shin Bet security service and the police must uproot the 'hill youth' phenomenon," it said.
This condemnation has not, however, been universal. Rightist activist Itamar Ben-Gvir said the arson doesn't come as a surprise. "In the last few months Jewish blood has been spilled like water in Judea and Samaria," he said. "Instead of dealing with enemies, the police tears down one outpost after another. The feelings of anger and discrimination have their consequences."
Palestinian President Pledge to Rebuilt a Mosque Torched by Settlers near Ramallah
The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered the Ramallah governorate to rebuild the al-Mieghar mosque that was torched by settlers on Tuesday at dawn.
According to local sources Israeli settlers rolled burning tires into a mosque causing some of the mosque's rugs to catch on fire and spray-painted graffiti on the mosque walls.
al-Mieghar village near the central West Bank city of Ramallah is located near the Israeli settlement of Alei Ayin, an outpost where Israeli police clashed with settlers last week as they demolished the illegal settlement.
The Israeli online, Haaretz, announced that the Israeli military civil administration has promised leaders of the village a "swift investigation.”
Last year a similar attack occurred near Bethlehem at Beit Fajar village, where settlers set the local mosque there on fire and attacked villagers.
Suspected settlers damage West Bank mosque
|
|
Suspected Israeli settlers
damaged a mosque in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, throwing a
burning tire into it and scrawling Hebrew graffiti on its walls, an
Israeli police spokesman said.
The attackers daubed the walls with the words "price tag", the spokesman said, a phrase militant settlers have adopted to signal retribution for any Israeli moves against settlement-outposts built without government authorization. Israeli authorities demolished a structure at a settlement-outpost in the West Bank last week near the village of al-Mughayyir where the mosque is located. The spokesman said damage was caused to carpets in the early morning |
attack on the mosque and police and the army had launched an investigation.
http://www.jmcc.org/news.aspx?id=2764
http://www.jmcc.org/news.aspx?id=2764
6 juni 2011
Jewish settlers burn 250 Palestinian trees in Nablus village
Jewish settlers started a huge fire in Palestinian farmland in Deir Al-Hatab village east of Nablus on Monday burning 250 olive and almond trees, local sources reported.
They said that Palestinian fire brigades managed to contain and extinguish the fire before it spread to nearby groves.
The firefighters said that the fire destroyed 200 olive trees and 50 almond trees, but hundreds others were protected and saved.
Jewish settlers deliberately target Palestinian plantations at this time of the year when the temperature is high so as to facilitate spread of the blaze.
Settlers Attack Palestinians in Southern West Bank
On Monday morning a group of armed settlers attacked Palestinian farmers from the Um Al Khayr village, to the south of Hebron city in the southern West Bank, and stopped them from herding their sheep and reaching their land.
According to farmers, armed settlers from the Karmel settlement came in the morning, protected by Israeli soldiers and attacked shepherds and prevented them from accessing their land.
Meanwhile, in the Old City of Hebron, Palestinian sources reported that a group of settlers searched people's homes and assaulted bystanders by throwing sewage water at them.
5 juni 2011
Jewish settlers burn 250 Palestinian trees in Nablus village
Jewish settlers started a huge fire in Palestinian farmland in Deir Al-Hatab village east of Nablus on Monday burning 250 olive and almond trees, local sources reported.
They said that Palestinian fire brigades managed to contain and extinguish the fire before it spread to nearby groves.
The firefighters said that the fire destroyed 200 olive trees and 50 almond trees, but hundreds others were protected and saved.
Jewish settlers deliberately target Palestinian plantations at this time of the year when the temperature is high so as to facilitate spread of the blaze.
Settlers Attack Palestinians in Southern West Bank
On Monday morning a group of armed settlers attacked Palestinian farmers from the Um Al Khayr village, to the south of Hebron city in the southern West Bank, and stopped them from herding their sheep and reaching their land.
According to farmers, armed settlers from the Karmel settlement came in the morning, protected by Israeli soldiers and attacked shepherds and prevented them from accessing their land.
Meanwhile, in the Old City of Hebron, Palestinian sources reported that a group of settlers searched people's homes and assaulted bystanders by throwing sewage water at them.
3 juni 2011
3 hurt in clash with settlers
Three Palestinians were injured Thursday in clashes after settlers set fire to farmland west of Nablus.
Ghassan Doughlas, a Palestinian Authority official in the northern West Bank, said the Palestinians' injuries were moderate.
Settlers blocked a road between Nablus and Qalqiliya and prevented Palestinians from crossing it, he said.
As’ad At-Taweel, 15, Adnan At-Taweel, 35, and Awad At-Taweel, 40, were hospitalized, medics said.
For the second time this week, meanwhile, villagers reported fires set by settlers in farmlands south of Nablus, with Burin residents pointing the finger at residents of the Yitzhar.
Also Thursday, 12 Palestinian vehicles were vandalized along the Nablus-Ramallah road not far from the Shilo settlement, where violence erupted before dawn as Israeli soldiers evacuated an illegal settlement outpost there.
The cars' windshields were broken by rocks, bats and sticks, locals told Ma'an, doors dented, paint scraped and decals ripped off in what residents blamed on settler aggression.
Israeli news sites reported that overnight in the same area, six Israeli border guards and five settlers were injured in confrontations that erupted during the evacuation of an illegal settlement outpost known as Ali Ayin, part of the Shilo settlement. Four structures were demolished during the evacuation, reports said, noting three settlers were detained for violent behavior.
According to Israel's Ynet news site, "settlers claim police used excess force, beat them, and used stun grenades unnecessarily," while police were said to have reported "massive resistance" including the blocking of roads and stone throwing.
"This incident marks an increase in violence," a police source told the news site, which said a Molotov cocktail had also been launched at a police vehicle shortly after the evacuation.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393387
Settlers attack Palestinian villagers to the south of Nablus
Dozens of fanatic Jewish settlers attacked Palestinian villagers to the south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus resulting in clashes in which two Palestinians were injured and three others were arrested by the IOF.
Hebrew sources said that dozens of settlers from Havat Gilad, which is built on confiscated Palestinian land belonging to the villagers of Kasra and neighbouring villages, attacked Palestinian homes at a late hour Thursday resulting in the injury of two Palestinians who were taken to hospital for treatment.
Local sources said that the IOF intervened to protect the settlers and arrested three Palestinian youth who clashed with the attacking settlers.
Settlers Clash With Israeli Police, 11 injured
Israeli Police spokesperson, Micky Rosenfeld, stated that six Israeli policemen and five settlers were injured during violent clashes that took place on Thursday when the Israeli police dismantled an illegal settlement outpost near the central West Bank city of Ramallah.
The Israeli police moved into the illegal outpost in an attempt to dismantle it, while extremist Israeli settlers attacked them. The illegal outpost, Ali Ayan, was recently installed on private Palestinian property.
Rosenfeld said that as soon as the police moved into the outpost, the settlers started throwing stones and empty bottles at them.
During the clashes, six police officers and five settlers were injured.
Later on, a firebomb was hurled at a police vehicle that was parked several kilometers away; the police believes that the attack was carried out by Jewish settlers in response to dismantling the outpost. The police initiated a probe and arrested six settlers.
A similar outpost was dismantled by the police in the West Bank on March 30. Clashes also took place and nine settlers were detained.
Also on Thursday, a group of extremist settlers of the Yitzhar illegal settlement, near the northern West Bank city of Nablus, attacked Madama Palestinian village, and torched Palestinian fields, planted with wheat.
Following the attack, the police arrived at the scene and fired gas bombs at local Palestinians who clashed with the settlers; no injuries were reported.
Under international law, all settlements in the occupied territories, including in occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal.
http://www.imemc.org/article/61374
Clashes during raid on village near Salfit
Israeli settlers raided a village near Salfit on Wednesday, and soldiers fired live bullets and gas canisters at residents of Yasuf who clashed with the settlers, onlookers said.
Abed Ar-Rahman Saleh, head of the village council, said the settlers tried to damage farmland.
Four Israeli military jeeps accompanied the settlers and installed a checkpoint, where they checked the IDs of those passing through and fired tear gas canisters at youths who threw stones.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393457
Jewish settlers burn 250 Palestinian trees in Nablus village
Jewish settlers started a huge fire in Palestinian farmland in Deir Al-Hatab village east of Nablus on Monday burning 250 olive and almond trees, local sources reported.
They said that Palestinian fire brigades managed to contain and extinguish the fire before it spread to nearby groves.
The firefighters said that the fire destroyed 200 olive trees and 50 almond trees, but hundreds others were protected and saved.
Jewish settlers deliberately target Palestinian plantations at this time of the year when the temperature is high so as to facilitate spread of the blaze.
Settlers Attack Palestinians in Southern West Bank
On Monday morning a group of armed settlers attacked Palestinian farmers from the Um Al Khayr village, to the south of Hebron city in the southern West Bank, and stopped them from herding their sheep and reaching their land.
According to farmers, armed settlers from the Karmel settlement came in the morning, protected by Israeli soldiers and attacked shepherds and prevented them from accessing their land.
Meanwhile, in the Old City of Hebron, Palestinian sources reported that a group of settlers searched people's homes and assaulted bystanders by throwing sewage water at them.
5 juni 2011
Jewish settlers burn 250 Palestinian trees in Nablus village
Jewish settlers started a huge fire in Palestinian farmland in Deir Al-Hatab village east of Nablus on Monday burning 250 olive and almond trees, local sources reported.
They said that Palestinian fire brigades managed to contain and extinguish the fire before it spread to nearby groves.
The firefighters said that the fire destroyed 200 olive trees and 50 almond trees, but hundreds others were protected and saved.
Jewish settlers deliberately target Palestinian plantations at this time of the year when the temperature is high so as to facilitate spread of the blaze.
Settlers Attack Palestinians in Southern West Bank
On Monday morning a group of armed settlers attacked Palestinian farmers from the Um Al Khayr village, to the south of Hebron city in the southern West Bank, and stopped them from herding their sheep and reaching their land.
According to farmers, armed settlers from the Karmel settlement came in the morning, protected by Israeli soldiers and attacked shepherds and prevented them from accessing their land.
Meanwhile, in the Old City of Hebron, Palestinian sources reported that a group of settlers searched people's homes and assaulted bystanders by throwing sewage water at them.
3 juni 2011
3 hurt in clash with settlers
Three Palestinians were injured Thursday in clashes after settlers set fire to farmland west of Nablus.
Ghassan Doughlas, a Palestinian Authority official in the northern West Bank, said the Palestinians' injuries were moderate.
Settlers blocked a road between Nablus and Qalqiliya and prevented Palestinians from crossing it, he said.
As’ad At-Taweel, 15, Adnan At-Taweel, 35, and Awad At-Taweel, 40, were hospitalized, medics said.
For the second time this week, meanwhile, villagers reported fires set by settlers in farmlands south of Nablus, with Burin residents pointing the finger at residents of the Yitzhar.
Also Thursday, 12 Palestinian vehicles were vandalized along the Nablus-Ramallah road not far from the Shilo settlement, where violence erupted before dawn as Israeli soldiers evacuated an illegal settlement outpost there.
The cars' windshields were broken by rocks, bats and sticks, locals told Ma'an, doors dented, paint scraped and decals ripped off in what residents blamed on settler aggression.
Israeli news sites reported that overnight in the same area, six Israeli border guards and five settlers were injured in confrontations that erupted during the evacuation of an illegal settlement outpost known as Ali Ayin, part of the Shilo settlement. Four structures were demolished during the evacuation, reports said, noting three settlers were detained for violent behavior.
According to Israel's Ynet news site, "settlers claim police used excess force, beat them, and used stun grenades unnecessarily," while police were said to have reported "massive resistance" including the blocking of roads and stone throwing.
"This incident marks an increase in violence," a police source told the news site, which said a Molotov cocktail had also been launched at a police vehicle shortly after the evacuation.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393387
Settlers attack Palestinian villagers to the south of Nablus
Dozens of fanatic Jewish settlers attacked Palestinian villagers to the south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus resulting in clashes in which two Palestinians were injured and three others were arrested by the IOF.
Hebrew sources said that dozens of settlers from Havat Gilad, which is built on confiscated Palestinian land belonging to the villagers of Kasra and neighbouring villages, attacked Palestinian homes at a late hour Thursday resulting in the injury of two Palestinians who were taken to hospital for treatment.
Local sources said that the IOF intervened to protect the settlers and arrested three Palestinian youth who clashed with the attacking settlers.
Settlers Clash With Israeli Police, 11 injured
Israeli Police spokesperson, Micky Rosenfeld, stated that six Israeli policemen and five settlers were injured during violent clashes that took place on Thursday when the Israeli police dismantled an illegal settlement outpost near the central West Bank city of Ramallah.
The Israeli police moved into the illegal outpost in an attempt to dismantle it, while extremist Israeli settlers attacked them. The illegal outpost, Ali Ayan, was recently installed on private Palestinian property.
Rosenfeld said that as soon as the police moved into the outpost, the settlers started throwing stones and empty bottles at them.
During the clashes, six police officers and five settlers were injured.
Later on, a firebomb was hurled at a police vehicle that was parked several kilometers away; the police believes that the attack was carried out by Jewish settlers in response to dismantling the outpost. The police initiated a probe and arrested six settlers.
A similar outpost was dismantled by the police in the West Bank on March 30. Clashes also took place and nine settlers were detained.
Also on Thursday, a group of extremist settlers of the Yitzhar illegal settlement, near the northern West Bank city of Nablus, attacked Madama Palestinian village, and torched Palestinian fields, planted with wheat.
Following the attack, the police arrived at the scene and fired gas bombs at local Palestinians who clashed with the settlers; no injuries were reported.
Under international law, all settlements in the occupied territories, including in occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal.
http://www.imemc.org/article/61374
Clashes during raid on village near Salfit
Israeli settlers raided a village near Salfit on Wednesday, and soldiers fired live bullets and gas canisters at residents of Yasuf who clashed with the settlers, onlookers said.
Abed Ar-Rahman Saleh, head of the village council, said the settlers tried to damage farmland.
Four Israeli military jeeps accompanied the settlers and installed a checkpoint, where they checked the IDs of those passing through and fired tear gas canisters at youths who threw stones.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393457
2 juni 2011
Settlers torch crops in Nablus villages
For the second time this week, villagers reported fires set by settlers in farmlands south of Nablus, with Burin residents pointing the finger at residents of the Yitzhar settlement.
Farmlands near the Madama and Burin villages, both south of Nablus, were ablaze Thursday afternoon, and villagers told settlements observer Ghassan Doughlas that settlers were seen in the area.
Palestinian fire crews were able to contain the blazes, but several dunums of lands were wrecked, the official said.
The fires came following the evacuation of a settlement outpost fifteen kilometers south of the villages. Locals near the Shilo settlement, where four illegal structures were dismantled, said 12 cars were vandalized by settlers.
On Monday, settlers visiting a shrine inside Nablus rioted against Israeli forces escorting the 1,600-strong group, and according to Palestinians, later set fire to lands near Madama.
The incidents mark a jump in settler violence against Palestinians in the area.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393323
Jews march provocatively to mark Jerusalem occupation
Hundreds of Jewish settlers have flooded the streets of Jerusalem waving Israeli flags and marching provocatively and chanting, “death to Arabs”, as the Israeli army stood guard.
They gathered Wednesday evening to celebrate the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank in 1967.
The marchers erupted in violent clashes with the Palestinian population. Police arrested five youths in the Sheikh Jarrah district, an Arab district with several settlement outposts, after fistfights took place and the youths hurled stones at a settler who tried to enter a local mosque.
Police closed many streets leading to the Old City, and large numbers of police and border guards were deployed throughout the city, particularly near Al-Aqsa Mosque and what Jews call the wailing wall and where the marches were most prevalent.
According to a recent poll, most Israelis oppose freezing settlement construction in the occupied east Jerusalem and handing over any part of Jerusalem to the Palestinians.
The poll taken by Israeli Channel One showed that 73 percent of Israelis would not like to see Jerusalem under international supervision, as suggested in previous peace initiatives; and 66 percent are against a settlement freeze and turning over land to Palestinians to use for an independent state.
Israeli march breaks into violence on Jerusalem Day
In the first Israeli "Jerusalem Day" rally to go through the heart of Palestinian East Jerusalem, marchers chanted "death to the Arabs" and lobbed vegetables at Palestinians.
Wednesday’s march saw 40, 000 Israelis, mainly young men, wearing white and blue in the colors of the Israeli flag, and flooding toward flashpoint neighborhood Sheikh Jarrah, where they continued to the Jewish-revered Western Wall inside Jerusalem’s Old City.
The annual event, which celebrates the capture of Palestinian Jerusalem in 1967, usually passes through West Jerusalem, and its re-routing saw 3,000 Israeli police deployed to avert violence, the force’s spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.
Rosenfeld said an hour into the march that five people had been arrested, including two leftist protesters and one marcher who entered an East Jerusalem mosque waving an Israeli flag.
"An Arab woman was arrested for chanting anti-Semitic slogans and an Arab man was arrested for spitting at a marcher," he added.
Israeli press later reported 24 arrests of Palestinians and Israelis during the day.
Meanwhile Israeli peace group Gush Shalom called the event a “fake holiday, the day of extreme nationalists and racists, settlers and provocateurs.”
The statement was part of an outcry against the provocative march, in which dozens of Israelis were filmed chanting and singing slogans including “Muhammad is dead,” “May your village burn,” “Death to leftists,” and “Butcher the Arabs,” Israeli news site Ynet reported.
Several hundred activists gathered in Sheikh Jarrah traded insults with a protest group of around 30 left-wingers holding banners reading: "Jewish-Arab solidarity against Fascism" and "Illegal settlements in east Jerusalem are an obstacle to peace."
"The whole sight of it is a provocation. I can't get to my house, everything is closed off," local resident Reema Abu Sherif told AFP.
As the demonstrators arrived, Palestinians in the Old City and elsewhere in East Jerusalem shut their shops to avoid confrontation, leaving the area almost empty of locals.
At Damascus Gate, the main entrance to the Old City from East Jerusalem, flag-waving Israelis threw vegetables, sticks and stones at Palestinians, some of whom flung stones back.
The march, which usually follows western Jaffa Street, was shifted east as a new light rail system has been installed on the previous route.
"Jerusalem will never again be divided," Netanyahu Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin told revelers on Tuesday night.
At a special session of the Israeli parliament to mark the occasion, Netanyahu vowed to continuing building in Jerusalem, and said that Israel’s conquest of Jerusalem had benefited Israelis and Arabs.
"We are building and we will build still more," he said. "A real city is being build [sp] here."
Netanyahu used a play on words of a 2,000-year-old Jewish prayer yearning for a return to Jerusalem, saying "next year in a more built up Jerusalem," according to Israeli daily Haaretz.
But at the same session Knesset speaker and Likud-member Reuven Rivlin said Israel had “failed to deliver” a united Jerusalem, highlighting disparities between the city’s east and west sectors, Haaretz reported.
Israeli peace association Gush Shalom called Wednesday for Jerusalem Day’s “removal from the Israeli calendar.”
“What is called ‘The Unification of Jerusalem’ was in fact but the creation of a regime of occupation and oppression over the Palestinians of East Jerusalem,” the group said in a statement.
The occasion of a peace agreement between independent Palestine and Israel would be “true Jerusalem Day” that could be celebrated by all who love Jerusalem, including Israelis and Palestinians, the statement said.
The status of Jerusalem is a sticking point for a peace deal. Palestinians regard East Jerusalem as the capital of their promised state, but Israel, which annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community, lays claim to the entire city as its "eternal, indivisible capital."
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393118
Jewish celebrations organized near banished Jerusalem officials
Palestinian lawmakers' protest tent at the Red Cross compound
Jewish settlers celebrated Wednesday morning the occupation of Jerusalem near where the Palestinian officials have been seeking sanctuary at the Jerusalem Red Cross.
The officials, two members of the Palestinian Legislative Council and a former Palestinian Authority minister, have been sitting in for almost a year after Israeli authorities ordered them to leave their native holy city.
The Jewish group set up a podium and speakers announcing the beginning of a noisy celebration of the occupation of East Jerusalem in 1967, said Palestinian journalist Rassem Abdul-Wahhed.
Ahmed Attoun, one of the PLC members stationed at the site, called choosing the location for the celebrations a ”provocative move that reflects an extremist mentality”. He added that such measures would not affect the men's stand against Israel's decision to banish them.
Several clashes broke out in Jerusalem's Silwan district as Jews provocatively marched through the city and danced noisily across the settlement outposts erected in East Jerusalem.
Israeli soldiers protecting the ceremony hurled a barrage of toxic gas and stun grenades at Palestinians during the clashes.
Jewish settlers assault Palestinian teacher
Jewish settlers ganged up on a Palestinian teacher in occupied Jerusalem’s Old City on Wednesday and beat her up, eyewitnesses reported.
They said that the settlers attacked and assaulted Nur Al-Husseini, who works as a teacher in a school for special needs.
The witnesses said that the settlers kicked the woman, who was only saved by a group of Palestinian passersby, adding that the settlers tried to ignite a bigger scuffle.
The incident follows heightened tension in occupied Jerusalem after the Israeli occupation authority announced plans to construct more settlement units in the holy city and escalated arrest campaigns in lines of its inhabitants. The settlers have also soared their provocations in the city’s Arab suburbs.
After outpost evacuation, settlers smash 12 cars
Twelve Palestinian vehicles were vandalized Thursday morning, along the Nablus-Ramallah road not far from the Shilo settlement, where violence erupted before dawn as Israeli soldiers evacuated an illegal settlement outpost there.
The cars' windshields were broken by rocks, bats and sticks, locals told Ma'an, doors dented, paint scraped and decals ripped off in what residents blamed on settler aggression.
Israeli news sites reported that overnight in the same area, six Israeli border guards and five settlers were injured in confrontations that erupted during the evacuation of an illegal settlement outpost known as Ali Ayin, part of the Shilo settlement. Four structures were demolished during the evacuation, reports said, noting three settlers were detained for violent behavior.
According to Israel's Ynet news site, "settlers claim police used excess force, beat them, and used stun grenades unnecessarily," while police were said to have reported "massive resistance" including the blocking of roads and stone throwing.
"This incident marks an increase in violence," a police source told the news site, which said a Molotov cocktail had also been launched at a police vehicle shortly after the evacuation.
While all of Israel's settlements are illegal in international law, under the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibiting the transfer of a population to an area under occupation, Israel considers the majority of settlements legal. Over 90 percent of settlement outposts -- structures erected outside of the settlement boundaries in an attempt to expand the area under settler control -- were retroactively legalized earlier in the year.
Four outposts were set for demolition, however, sparking a wave of settler violence targeting Palestinians.
Right-wing settlers often target Palestinians, under a strategy that has been termed a "price-tag policy" that sees settlers attack Palestinians and their property in retribution for Israeli government or military action limiting settler action.
Under the policy, settlers make Palestinians "pay" for each evacuation of an outpost. In the past, the "price" has included arson, shootings, beatings, burning fields, uprooting trees and poisoning water wells belonging to Palestinians.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393096
Settlers, police clash at West Bank outpost
Six Israeli police officers and five settlers were injured Thursday in clashes that erupted as police dismantled an illegal settlement outpost, a police spokesman said.
Police moved in to the Ali Ayan outpost in the West Bank, north of Ramallah, early on Thursday, spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.
"Police, border police, and the army moved in there in the early morning in order to take down four illegal buildings that were built recently," he said. "Immediately upon arriving in the area there was a strong response from settlers, who threw stones."
He added: "Six police officers were injured lightly from stones and five settlers were also injured lightly (while) trying to attack police, who defended themselves."
Shortly afterwards, a firebomb was thrown at a parked police car which was destroyed. No one was inside.
"It happened a few kilometers away and was probably in response" to the outpost demolition, Rosenfeld said.
Six people were arrested in connection with the clashes and the firebombing.
On March 30, Israeli police arrested nine settlers after similar clashes at a settlement outpost in the northern West Bank.
Israel considers outposts built in the West Bank without government approval to be illegal, and often sends security personnel to demolish them. They usually consist of little more than a few trailers.
The international community considers all settlements built in the West Bank, which Israel captured from Jordan in the 1967 Six Day War, to be illegal.
Meanwhile Palestinians in the village of Madama, just south of Nablus, said Thursday that a group of settlers from the nearby Yitzhar settlement had deliberately set fire to Palestinian wheat fields.
The Israeli military confirmed it had received a complaint from Palestinians in the area and arrived to find Palestinians and settlers throwing stones at each other.
"Security forces arrived at the scene and dispersed the riot using riot disposal means," a spokesman told AFP. "There was no injury or arrests as far as I know," he added.
He said the cause of a fire at the scene was being investigated.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393376
Outpost evacuated; 5 settlers arrested
Reporter for extreme right-wing website among detainees, suspected of torching police vehicle.
Security forces evacuated Thursday the Geon HaYarden outpost established several weeks ago. A tent and several temporary structures were dismantled at the site.
Earlier on Thursday, six Border Guard officers and five settlers were wounded during the evacuation of Ali Ayin. Eight settlers were arrested for rioting.
A Molotov cocktail was later hurled at the vehicle of the Binyamin police station chief. the car was burned down to the ground.
Five more settlers suspected of rioting were arrested later on. One of the detainees is Elhanan Gruner, a reporter in the extreme right-wing website "Jewish Voice."
The website claimed that police forces confiscated two cameras and a computer.
"This is not the first time Shai District Police officers destroy incriminating evidence. This is a silencing attempt to prevent the distribution of what really went on during the evacuation," the a member of the site said.
However, a police official rejected the claims. "The reporter was arrested for alleged involvement in the torching of a police vehicle. The cameraman's equipment was seized for investigation purposes only and not as claimed. The suspect's belongings will be returned after the inquiry is completed."
The movement for the construction of Judea and Samaria said in response: "We will not be discourage by violent demolition attempts. We are determined to keep building the land."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077629,00.html
1 juni 2011
2 hurt in attack in Palestinian village
Israeli settlers injured two Palestinians in the Sinjil village Tuesday, residents said.
The settlers filmed an attack on one of the Palestinians, according to onlookers in the Ramallah village.
The mayor called the Palestinian Authority, which coordinated with Israel the settlers' evacuation.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=392545
Settlers torch crops in Nablus villages
For the second time this week, villagers reported fires set by settlers in farmlands south of Nablus, with Burin residents pointing the finger at residents of the Yitzhar settlement.
Farmlands near the Madama and Burin villages, both south of Nablus, were ablaze Thursday afternoon, and villagers told settlements observer Ghassan Doughlas that settlers were seen in the area.
Palestinian fire crews were able to contain the blazes, but several dunums of lands were wrecked, the official said.
The fires came following the evacuation of a settlement outpost fifteen kilometers south of the villages. Locals near the Shilo settlement, where four illegal structures were dismantled, said 12 cars were vandalized by settlers.
On Monday, settlers visiting a shrine inside Nablus rioted against Israeli forces escorting the 1,600-strong group, and according to Palestinians, later set fire to lands near Madama.
The incidents mark a jump in settler violence against Palestinians in the area.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393323
Jews march provocatively to mark Jerusalem occupation
Hundreds of Jewish settlers have flooded the streets of Jerusalem waving Israeli flags and marching provocatively and chanting, “death to Arabs”, as the Israeli army stood guard.
They gathered Wednesday evening to celebrate the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank in 1967.
The marchers erupted in violent clashes with the Palestinian population. Police arrested five youths in the Sheikh Jarrah district, an Arab district with several settlement outposts, after fistfights took place and the youths hurled stones at a settler who tried to enter a local mosque.
Police closed many streets leading to the Old City, and large numbers of police and border guards were deployed throughout the city, particularly near Al-Aqsa Mosque and what Jews call the wailing wall and where the marches were most prevalent.
According to a recent poll, most Israelis oppose freezing settlement construction in the occupied east Jerusalem and handing over any part of Jerusalem to the Palestinians.
The poll taken by Israeli Channel One showed that 73 percent of Israelis would not like to see Jerusalem under international supervision, as suggested in previous peace initiatives; and 66 percent are against a settlement freeze and turning over land to Palestinians to use for an independent state.
Israeli march breaks into violence on Jerusalem Day
In the first Israeli "Jerusalem Day" rally to go through the heart of Palestinian East Jerusalem, marchers chanted "death to the Arabs" and lobbed vegetables at Palestinians.
Wednesday’s march saw 40, 000 Israelis, mainly young men, wearing white and blue in the colors of the Israeli flag, and flooding toward flashpoint neighborhood Sheikh Jarrah, where they continued to the Jewish-revered Western Wall inside Jerusalem’s Old City.
The annual event, which celebrates the capture of Palestinian Jerusalem in 1967, usually passes through West Jerusalem, and its re-routing saw 3,000 Israeli police deployed to avert violence, the force’s spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.
Rosenfeld said an hour into the march that five people had been arrested, including two leftist protesters and one marcher who entered an East Jerusalem mosque waving an Israeli flag.
"An Arab woman was arrested for chanting anti-Semitic slogans and an Arab man was arrested for spitting at a marcher," he added.
Israeli press later reported 24 arrests of Palestinians and Israelis during the day.
Meanwhile Israeli peace group Gush Shalom called the event a “fake holiday, the day of extreme nationalists and racists, settlers and provocateurs.”
The statement was part of an outcry against the provocative march, in which dozens of Israelis were filmed chanting and singing slogans including “Muhammad is dead,” “May your village burn,” “Death to leftists,” and “Butcher the Arabs,” Israeli news site Ynet reported.
Several hundred activists gathered in Sheikh Jarrah traded insults with a protest group of around 30 left-wingers holding banners reading: "Jewish-Arab solidarity against Fascism" and "Illegal settlements in east Jerusalem are an obstacle to peace."
"The whole sight of it is a provocation. I can't get to my house, everything is closed off," local resident Reema Abu Sherif told AFP.
As the demonstrators arrived, Palestinians in the Old City and elsewhere in East Jerusalem shut their shops to avoid confrontation, leaving the area almost empty of locals.
At Damascus Gate, the main entrance to the Old City from East Jerusalem, flag-waving Israelis threw vegetables, sticks and stones at Palestinians, some of whom flung stones back.
The march, which usually follows western Jaffa Street, was shifted east as a new light rail system has been installed on the previous route.
"Jerusalem will never again be divided," Netanyahu Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin told revelers on Tuesday night.
At a special session of the Israeli parliament to mark the occasion, Netanyahu vowed to continuing building in Jerusalem, and said that Israel’s conquest of Jerusalem had benefited Israelis and Arabs.
"We are building and we will build still more," he said. "A real city is being build [sp] here."
Netanyahu used a play on words of a 2,000-year-old Jewish prayer yearning for a return to Jerusalem, saying "next year in a more built up Jerusalem," according to Israeli daily Haaretz.
But at the same session Knesset speaker and Likud-member Reuven Rivlin said Israel had “failed to deliver” a united Jerusalem, highlighting disparities between the city’s east and west sectors, Haaretz reported.
Israeli peace association Gush Shalom called Wednesday for Jerusalem Day’s “removal from the Israeli calendar.”
“What is called ‘The Unification of Jerusalem’ was in fact but the creation of a regime of occupation and oppression over the Palestinians of East Jerusalem,” the group said in a statement.
The occasion of a peace agreement between independent Palestine and Israel would be “true Jerusalem Day” that could be celebrated by all who love Jerusalem, including Israelis and Palestinians, the statement said.
The status of Jerusalem is a sticking point for a peace deal. Palestinians regard East Jerusalem as the capital of their promised state, but Israel, which annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community, lays claim to the entire city as its "eternal, indivisible capital."
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393118
Jewish celebrations organized near banished Jerusalem officials
Palestinian lawmakers' protest tent at the Red Cross compound
Jewish settlers celebrated Wednesday morning the occupation of Jerusalem near where the Palestinian officials have been seeking sanctuary at the Jerusalem Red Cross.
The officials, two members of the Palestinian Legislative Council and a former Palestinian Authority minister, have been sitting in for almost a year after Israeli authorities ordered them to leave their native holy city.
The Jewish group set up a podium and speakers announcing the beginning of a noisy celebration of the occupation of East Jerusalem in 1967, said Palestinian journalist Rassem Abdul-Wahhed.
Ahmed Attoun, one of the PLC members stationed at the site, called choosing the location for the celebrations a ”provocative move that reflects an extremist mentality”. He added that such measures would not affect the men's stand against Israel's decision to banish them.
Several clashes broke out in Jerusalem's Silwan district as Jews provocatively marched through the city and danced noisily across the settlement outposts erected in East Jerusalem.
Israeli soldiers protecting the ceremony hurled a barrage of toxic gas and stun grenades at Palestinians during the clashes.
Jewish settlers assault Palestinian teacher
Jewish settlers ganged up on a Palestinian teacher in occupied Jerusalem’s Old City on Wednesday and beat her up, eyewitnesses reported.
They said that the settlers attacked and assaulted Nur Al-Husseini, who works as a teacher in a school for special needs.
The witnesses said that the settlers kicked the woman, who was only saved by a group of Palestinian passersby, adding that the settlers tried to ignite a bigger scuffle.
The incident follows heightened tension in occupied Jerusalem after the Israeli occupation authority announced plans to construct more settlement units in the holy city and escalated arrest campaigns in lines of its inhabitants. The settlers have also soared their provocations in the city’s Arab suburbs.
After outpost evacuation, settlers smash 12 cars
Twelve Palestinian vehicles were vandalized Thursday morning, along the Nablus-Ramallah road not far from the Shilo settlement, where violence erupted before dawn as Israeli soldiers evacuated an illegal settlement outpost there.
The cars' windshields were broken by rocks, bats and sticks, locals told Ma'an, doors dented, paint scraped and decals ripped off in what residents blamed on settler aggression.
Israeli news sites reported that overnight in the same area, six Israeli border guards and five settlers were injured in confrontations that erupted during the evacuation of an illegal settlement outpost known as Ali Ayin, part of the Shilo settlement. Four structures were demolished during the evacuation, reports said, noting three settlers were detained for violent behavior.
According to Israel's Ynet news site, "settlers claim police used excess force, beat them, and used stun grenades unnecessarily," while police were said to have reported "massive resistance" including the blocking of roads and stone throwing.
"This incident marks an increase in violence," a police source told the news site, which said a Molotov cocktail had also been launched at a police vehicle shortly after the evacuation.
While all of Israel's settlements are illegal in international law, under the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibiting the transfer of a population to an area under occupation, Israel considers the majority of settlements legal. Over 90 percent of settlement outposts -- structures erected outside of the settlement boundaries in an attempt to expand the area under settler control -- were retroactively legalized earlier in the year.
Four outposts were set for demolition, however, sparking a wave of settler violence targeting Palestinians.
Right-wing settlers often target Palestinians, under a strategy that has been termed a "price-tag policy" that sees settlers attack Palestinians and their property in retribution for Israeli government or military action limiting settler action.
Under the policy, settlers make Palestinians "pay" for each evacuation of an outpost. In the past, the "price" has included arson, shootings, beatings, burning fields, uprooting trees and poisoning water wells belonging to Palestinians.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393096
Settlers, police clash at West Bank outpost
Six Israeli police officers and five settlers were injured Thursday in clashes that erupted as police dismantled an illegal settlement outpost, a police spokesman said.
Police moved in to the Ali Ayan outpost in the West Bank, north of Ramallah, early on Thursday, spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.
"Police, border police, and the army moved in there in the early morning in order to take down four illegal buildings that were built recently," he said. "Immediately upon arriving in the area there was a strong response from settlers, who threw stones."
He added: "Six police officers were injured lightly from stones and five settlers were also injured lightly (while) trying to attack police, who defended themselves."
Shortly afterwards, a firebomb was thrown at a parked police car which was destroyed. No one was inside.
"It happened a few kilometers away and was probably in response" to the outpost demolition, Rosenfeld said.
Six people were arrested in connection with the clashes and the firebombing.
On March 30, Israeli police arrested nine settlers after similar clashes at a settlement outpost in the northern West Bank.
Israel considers outposts built in the West Bank without government approval to be illegal, and often sends security personnel to demolish them. They usually consist of little more than a few trailers.
The international community considers all settlements built in the West Bank, which Israel captured from Jordan in the 1967 Six Day War, to be illegal.
Meanwhile Palestinians in the village of Madama, just south of Nablus, said Thursday that a group of settlers from the nearby Yitzhar settlement had deliberately set fire to Palestinian wheat fields.
The Israeli military confirmed it had received a complaint from Palestinians in the area and arrived to find Palestinians and settlers throwing stones at each other.
"Security forces arrived at the scene and dispersed the riot using riot disposal means," a spokesman told AFP. "There was no injury or arrests as far as I know," he added.
He said the cause of a fire at the scene was being investigated.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=393376
Outpost evacuated; 5 settlers arrested
Reporter for extreme right-wing website among detainees, suspected of torching police vehicle.
Security forces evacuated Thursday the Geon HaYarden outpost established several weeks ago. A tent and several temporary structures were dismantled at the site.
Earlier on Thursday, six Border Guard officers and five settlers were wounded during the evacuation of Ali Ayin. Eight settlers were arrested for rioting.
A Molotov cocktail was later hurled at the vehicle of the Binyamin police station chief. the car was burned down to the ground.
Five more settlers suspected of rioting were arrested later on. One of the detainees is Elhanan Gruner, a reporter in the extreme right-wing website "Jewish Voice."
The website claimed that police forces confiscated two cameras and a computer.
"This is not the first time Shai District Police officers destroy incriminating evidence. This is a silencing attempt to prevent the distribution of what really went on during the evacuation," the a member of the site said.
However, a police official rejected the claims. "The reporter was arrested for alleged involvement in the torching of a police vehicle. The cameraman's equipment was seized for investigation purposes only and not as claimed. The suspect's belongings will be returned after the inquiry is completed."
The movement for the construction of Judea and Samaria said in response: "We will not be discourage by violent demolition attempts. We are determined to keep building the land."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4077629,00.html
1 juni 2011
2 hurt in attack in Palestinian village
Israeli settlers injured two Palestinians in the Sinjil village Tuesday, residents said.
The settlers filmed an attack on one of the Palestinians, according to onlookers in the Ramallah village.
The mayor called the Palestinian Authority, which coordinated with Israel the settlers' evacuation.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=392545
