- 12 oct 2011
UN slams Israel attacks on Palestinians
Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) has called on the Israeli regime to halt its attacks on Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank.
"There appears to be certainly a partial siding with the (Jewish) settlers, and perhaps not intervening strongly enough to protect the Palestinian villagers," Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the UNHCHR, said in Geneva on Tuesday.
He added that Israel was legally obliged to protect Palestinian civilians and their property, the Associated Press reported.
The UN official cited some recent examples of the Tel Aviv regime's collusion with settlers, such as the killing of a Palestinian man in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra on September 23, the beating of two Palestinian children arrested by Israeli troops the same day, and the destroying of 200 olive trees in the village on October 6.
Colville further noted that if Palestinians attack Jewish settlers, a 'very harsh' reaction awaits them from the Israelis, but Tel Aviv has virtually given a freehand to settlers.
In recent weeks, the occupied territories have seen a rise of Israeli violence, with hundreds of Palestinian olive trees and olive harvest ruined, holy sites as well as mosques desecrated and the sanctity of Arab cemeteries dishonored by settlers.
The UNHCHR spokesman stated the upsurge of attacks since the beginning of September was "emblematic of the phenomenon of settler violence throughout the (occupied) West Bank."
A high-ranking Israeli intelligence officer also admitted recently that there has been a dramatic increase in the acts of violence and destruction committed by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
Tel Aviv occupied and then annexed the West Bank and East al-Quds (Jerusalem) -- the promised capital of any future Palestinian state -- in the Six-Day War of 1967, but the move has never been recognized by the international community.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/204101.html
Update: UN: Israel uses 'excessive force' in West Bank
GENEVA (Reuters) -- Israeli security forces escorting settlers into West Bank villages appear to have used excessive force against Palestinians, the UN human rights office said Tuesday.
The global body called on Israel to protect Palestinians and investigate a surge of attacks by Israeli settlers against civilians in the West Bank, particularly in the village of Qusra, near Nablus.
The village had been "targeted by settlers" at least six times in six weeks, said Rupert Colville, spokesman for United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay.
Israeli security forces shot dead a Palestinian civilian in Qusra on Sept. 23 during clashes between Palestinians and settlers in which six Palestinians were also injured, he told a news briefing.
"We do have particular concerns about the way the IDF operates in circumstances, particularly in those surrounding this particular village ... They seem to be very quick to resort to excessive force when it comes to the Palestinians and not to restrain the settlers," Colville said.
On the same day as the shooting, two Palestinian minors were detained for two hours and were allegedly beaten and humiliated by soldiers before being released, he said.
On Oct. 6, Palestinians from Qusra discovered at least 200 trees belonging to four families had been cut down, depriving them of their main source of income, he added.
"The accountability for settler violence against Palestinians is less than adequate let's say and certainly not comparable to the reverse cases. When Palestinians attack settlers there's always very, very strong reaction," Colville said.
Israeli police on Sunday said they arrested a second suspect following an arson attack on a mosque blamed on a pro-settler militant group known by its slogan "price tag".
Israel named a special task force to investigate last week's blaze in the Israeli Arab village of Tuba-Zangariya, amid fears it may exacerbate tensions with Palestinians.
The "Price-Taggers", also blamed for other assaults on mosques, have said they want to avenge the killing of settlers, and protest against Israeli efforts to remove unauthorized settlement outposts built on land Palestinians want for a state.
The violence has coincided with rising tensions over an application for statehood on West Bank land Israel captured in a 1967 war, filed at the UN Security Council last month, despite objections by Israel and the United States.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is due to issue a report in coming days on Israeli settlements, which addresses the lack of accountability for settler violence, said Colville.
"We call on the Government of Israel to fulfill its obligation under international human rights and international humanitarian law to protect Palestinian civilians and property in the occupied Palestinian territory," he said.
"More needs to be done to effectively prevent attacks by settlers against Palestinian civilians and, when they do occur, they should be properly investigated by the Israeli authorities," he said. Victims should be compensated, he added.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=428289
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 13 oct 2011
Israeli soldier 'shoots Palestinian'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5S2sDR1U-Pg
HEBRON (Ma'an) -- An Israeli soldier shot a Palestinian man near Hebron on Wednesday in the occupied West Bank, witnesses in Beit Ummar village near Hebron said.
Ameer Sabarneh, 19, was shot with a silenced pistol, witnesses said. They added that the young man was taken away in a military car which fled the scene shortly after the incident.
Clashes erupted in Beit Ummar early Wednesday after a general strike in solidarity with Palestinian detainees was announced. Israeli forces fired tear gas grenades toward the Palestinians, onlookers said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=428736
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 13 oct 2011
Israeli Forces Raid Residential Areas South of Jenin
JENIN, October 13, 2011 (WAFA) – Israeli forces raided Thursday a number of residential Areas in Jenin, according to security sources.
Security sources told WAFA that Israeli forces raided villages and towns of; Yabad, Arraba, Kafreet, Kafrai, Fahma, Jaba, Aja, Qabatya and Maythalon, and patrolled their military vehicles in alleys and streets of these towns and villages in provocative steps. No arrests reported.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17763
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 13 oct 2011
Settlers Attack School, Forcing Students to Study at Checkpoint
Hebron School Demonstrates for Third Day: “Without teachers there is no school”
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 14 oct 2011
Captors of Shalit have been warned of increased drone activity
GAZA, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation drone activity have noticeably increased over the Gaza Strip since Thursday evening, despite the conclusion of a prisoner exchange deal, prompting concern that Israelis might have other intentions.
Quds Press quoted a source in Gaza as saying that drones do not leave the skies of Gaza and that they noticed the presence of more than one drone over a small area of Gaza City.
Those drones are able to send detailed pictures to Israeli occupation intelligence agents in operation rooms around the Gaza Strip.
A security source warned that the drones could be on a mission to foil the exchange at the last moment, by trying to discover where Gilad Shalit is being kept and carry out a rescue operation. The source urged Shalits captors not to relax their security measures, but to be extra vigilant.
He said that the remaining days and hours are the most difficult and that any carelessness on the part of Shalit’s captors could foil all their efforts for the past five years.
http://fwd4.me/0VTo
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 15 oct 2011
Israeli forces 'raid Jenin'
JENIN (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces raided the city of Jenin and Qabatiya village to its south at dawn on Saturday, eyewitnesses said.
No detentions were reported.
Security officials told Ma'an that 12 Israeli military jeeps patrolled the streets of Jenin and adjoining Jenin refugee camp.
Youth in Jenin refugee camp pelted the jeeps with stones, with no injuries reported, locals said.
Meanwhile, dozens of military vehicles entered Jenin-district village Qabatiya, and soldiers broke into homes, without making any detentions, villagers told Ma'an.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=429321
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 16 oct 2011
Day 4: When school becomes Israeli Occupation
Israeli Army Closes Palestinian School in Hebron
(1:36) Israel clashes: Police fire tear gas at Palestinian protesters
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 17 oct 2011
Israel’s travel ban harms ‘entire generations’
30 oct 2012, 14:58 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:59 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:59 , Respect -
Maria 20 oct 2011
IOF troops enter the Daheya neighbourhood of Nablus
NABLUS, (PIC)-- Local sources in Nablus said that IOF troops entered the Daheya neighbourhood in the northern West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday and went around the streets of the neighbourhood.
The troops who were on 3 military jeeps went around the home of Sheikh Hamed al-Bitawi, member of the Palestinian Legislative Council for the Change and Reform Bloc. The troops did not raid his home or any of the homes in the neighbourhood.
Palestinian young men hurled stones at the occupation soldiers.
In the morning IOF troops set up roadblocks at the entrances to Nablus causing traffic congestion and delays for those travelling to work or to study. Occupation soldiers manning the roadblocks checked the ID cards of travellers.
http://fwd4.me/0fMN
30 oct 2012, 14:59 , Respect -
Maria 20 oct 2011
'Israel planning 3rd Lebanon war'
Israel is reportedly planning to launch its third war against Lebanon, exploiting the regional countries' current heightened preoccupation with their domestic upheavals.
“[The Lebanese resistance movement of] Hezbollah is in a state of alert and it anticipates an Israeli attack on Lebanon at any moment,” Lebanon's English-language newspaper The Daily Star reported on Thursday, citing an exclusive report by Al Joumhouria, another domestic daily.
According to the Arab-language newspaper's sources, Israel sees the 'regional situation' as an opportunity to wage the hostilities.
The reported developments take place amid ongoing anti-regime popular uprisings in Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia, which have been inspired by successful Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions earlier in the year.
Al Joumhouria cited political sources close to Hezbollah as saying the resistance movement had -- in preparation to confront the Israeli offensives -- amassed a wide range of ammunitions, including thousands of rockets, advanced anti-aircraft weapons as well as long-range, surface-to-air, and surface-to-sea missiles.
Tel Aviv launched wars on Lebanon in 2000 and 2006. About 1,200 Lebanese, most of them civilians, were killed in the 33-Day War of 2006.
On both occasions, however, Hezbollah fighters defeated the Israeli forces and Tel Aviv was compelled to withdraw its troops without having achieved any of its objectives.
Hezbollah has announced that it has the capability to hit targets deep inside Israel and to strike Israeli Navy vessels even before they reach Lebanese territorial waters.
In July 2010, Hezbollah's Deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem said the movement knew which locations to target if Tel Aviv waged another war on the country.
"We now hold a large and precise bank of Israeli targets, and Israel will have to pay the price for any step it takes," Qassem told the Arab-language Al Nahar daily.
Al Joumhouria also said that Hezbollah's capabilities in the battleground now equaled those of Israel's, enabling the movement to even deter Israeli Air Force at high altitudes.
The Daily Star reported earlier in the year that Israel had been building up its military capabilities since the end of the 2006 war by introducing new weapons such as a multi-tiered anti-rocket missile system and a tank protection system into its arsenal.
US diplomatic cables of 2009 released by the whistleblower website WikiLeaks show that Israel expects the next war to last two months.
The Arab-language daily noted that Hezbollah members had been partaking in periodical training and service to ensure readiness of such levels, which enables them to confront the enemy, should the war break out as soon as the next day.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/205544.html
- 6 oct 2011
Gazan fishermen protest Israeli ban
(2:39) Gazan fishermen swamped by Israeli gunboats - Press TV News
Gazan fishermen have protested the Israeli naval blockade that deprives them of access to natural resources in the Mediterranean Sea, Press TV reports.
The Israeli navy is threatening the livelihood of nearly 3,300 fishermen working along the 40-kilometer-long coastline of the Gaza Strip.
On an almost daily basis, Israeli gunboats fire at Gaza fishermen, forcing them to cease fishing in the Mediterranean Sea.
Tens of thousands of Gazans depend on fishing, and -- as their desperation has mounted -- some have been going out to sea regardless of the Israeli ban.
In recent days Israeli aggression has surged against the fishermen, who say they risk their lives every time they go fishing.
The Israeli regime claims it is imposing a naval blockade to prevent arms smuggling into Gaza.
"Last year my nephew was killed by the Israeli navy boats while he was fishing,” fisherman Mohammad Bakry told Press TV.
“Israel continues to tighten its restrictions and bully us day after day and only allows us to fish in an area less than 2 nautical miles where fish is scarce," Bakry said.
Under the so-called 1993 Oslo Peace Accords, Israel retained military control of Gaza's territorial waters and agreed to allow fishing boats to sail into the Mediterranean Sea for up to 20 nautical miles.
But in reality, fishing is only permitted within less than three nautical miles.
Environmental experts say confining Gaza fishermen to such a small fishing area is destroying the life of living organisms in the Mediterranean off the Gaza Strip's coast.
"There is a phenomenon of excessive fishing in a very small area and it is destroying the marine life off the Mediterranean coast near the Gaza Strip,” said environmental expert Zekra Ajjor.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) restriction on the zone in which Gazans are allowed to fish is reducing catches and adversely affecting people's diets in Gaza.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/203022.html
30 oct 2012, 14:56 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 7 oct 2011
Official: Navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats
GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- Israeli gunboats opened fire on Friday evening toward Palestinian fishing boats at sea near Beit Lahiya off the coast of northern Gaza; no injuries were reported.
Mahmud Al-Asi, head of the Tawfiq organization for fishermen, said the gunboats open fire regularly toward the fishing boats, forcing fishermen to head back to shore.
The fishermen have suffered a reduction in earnings due to the navy, he added.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=427039
30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 7 oct 2011
Michael Williams Critical of Israel in Lebanon
(2:05) Williams "Israel is the worst violator of UN resolutions"
30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 7 oct 2011
UN: Israel violates Lebanon airspace
(2:49) UN: Israel violates Lebanon airspace - Press TV News
The outgoing UN special coordinator for Lebanon says Israeli drones violate Lebanon's sovereignty on an almost daily basis in blatant violation of international law, Press TV reports.
“With regard to the over-flights, these are almost daily occurrences and...It is difficult to think of another country anywhere in the world, subject to such a regime of perpetual intrusion and violation of their sovereignty,” Michael Williams told a press conference at United Nations headquarters on Thursday.
Lebanon's government, the Hezbollah resistance movement and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, have repeatedly condemned the flyovers, saying they are a flagrant breach of UN Resolution 1701 and the country's sovereignty.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brokered a ceasefire in the war Israel launched against Lebanon in 2006, calls on Tel Aviv to respect Beirut's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In 2009, Lebanon filed a complaint with the United Nations, presenting over 7,000 documents pertaining to Israeli violation of Lebanese territory.
Williams ends his term after serving three years as UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon.
He told the press conference that the UN peacekeepers in Lebanon have been attacked frequently this year, as separate roadside bombings claimed French lives in one case and Italian casualties in another.
The top UN envoy pointed out that those who pulled off the roadside bombings are still active.
Although Williams said his life was never threatened directly, he noted that he was occasionally under "hostile surveillance" from people he did not know.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/203243.html
30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 10 oct 2011
Man killed in northern Gaza Strip
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A 22-year-old man was killed in the northern Gaza Strip on Monday afternoon, after witnesses reported Israeli troops fired at him near the border with Israel.
The military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine claimed Ahmad al-Azazmeh, from the northern city of Beit Hanoun, as a fighter in their brigades, and said he was on a "jihad mission."
An Israeli army spokesman said soldiers identified two people planting an explosive device near forces at the border in northern Gaza early Monday afternoon, and a loud explosion was heard. She denied Israeli troops opened fire.
Witnesses told Ma'an that al-Azazmeh was by the wall when troops shot him and blocked an ambulance from reaching the man before he died.
Israeli forces impose a no-go zone in the border area of the Gaza Strip.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=427894
Palestinians: Man killed by IDF in northern Gaza
Palestinian sources said that a man in his 20s was killed Monday by IDF forces operating in northern Gaza Strip.
According to the report, the man was about 300 yards from the security fence, near Beit Hanoun, when he was killed by IDF fire.
http://fwd4.me/0DRJ
IDF: Palestinian killed in Gaza died in work accident
The IDF said on Monday that the man that was killed near the Gaza border died when the explosive charge he planted exploded prematurely. Another Palestinian who was with him apparently managed to escape unharmed.
The Palestinians had claimed that he was killed by IDF fire
http://fwd4.me/0DRL
Army Airstrikes On Gaza
The Israeli Air Force bombarded several areas in the northern part of the Gaza Strip on Sunday evening, while the Israeli Navy fired shells at coastal areas; damages were reported, no injuries.
Local sources reported that an Israeli fighter jet fired one missile at an open area north of Beit Lahia.
Also, an Israeli Navy vessel opened fire at Palestinian boats fishing in the area, resulting in excessive damages.
An explosion took place east of Rafah city in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, producing damages; the cause of the explosion remains unknown.
Abu Mujahed, spokesperson of the Popular Resistance Committee, one of the armed resistance groups in Gaza, called on all resistance groups to retaliate against the Israeli attacks, including any attacks carried out by "extremist Israeli settler groups."
He added that the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank is hindering the activities of the resistance, and stated that "extremist Israeli settler groups" in the 1948 territories are carrying out attacks against the Arab residents and holy sites.
“We are sure that these attacks and escalating violations will lead to another revolution,” Abu Mujahed stated. “A revolution to liberate the land, remove those settlers, and end the occupation”.
He further stated that peace agreements between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank “granted the settlers and the occupation more chances to escalate their attacks and violations.”
http://www.imemc.org/article/62230
30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 11 oct 2011
Ten Palestinian female students hospitalized after IOF assault
AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- Ten Palestinian female students were hospitalized in Al-Khalil on Tuesday morning after Israeli occupation forces assaulted and beat them up for refusing to pass through metal detectors.
Medical sources in Al-Khalil government hospital said that ten female students were admitted into the hospital’s emergency ward with various injuries.
Eyewitnesses said that the IOF soldiers at the Old City of Al-Khalil tried to force the students and teachers to pass through the electronic gates but they refused prompting the soldiers to attack them and fire gas bombs at them.
In another incident in Al-Khalil, IOF soldiers arrested Ahmed Abu Hashem, the secretary general of the popular resistance committees, from his home in Beit Ummar village at dawn Tuesday.
Local sources said that special forces backed by a large number of soldiers and a reconnaissance plane stormed the home of Abu Hashem, 44, and took him away after beating him and two of his sons.
They said that the attacking forces used hounds in searching the house and wreaked havoc in it.
The sources said that clashes then took place between the inhabitants and the invading troops in which the troops used live bullets, sonic bombs, and teargas canisters, adding that the soldiers searched a number of other houses in the same village and in Yatta, south of Al-Khalil.
http://fwd4.me/0DUp
Israeli forces attack school girls
Israeli forces have attacked school girls in the West Bank City of al-Khalil (Hebron), injuring 10 female students.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/203936.html
30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 11 oct 2011
Seven school children injured over tightened “security” measures in Tel Rumeida
Jordan Valley mosque demolished for the 3rd time this year
30 oct 2012, 14:57 , Respect -
Maria 12 oct 2011
Israeli Soldiers Shoot, Arrest Palestinian during Confrontations in Hebron
HEBRON, October 12, 2011 (WAFA) – A Palestinian, Ameer Sabarneh, 20, Wednesday was shot and arrested during confrontations that erupted between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians at the entrance of the town of Beit Ummar, south of Hebron, according to local activists.
Spokesman of the National Committee against the Wall and settlement, Mohammed Awad said that the Israeli soldiers fired at Sabarneh from a distance of few meters after already arresting him, injuring him in the back.
He added that soldiers fired rubber bullets, tear gas and acoustic bombs toward Palestinians, causing suffocation cases among several Palestinians. They were all treated on the spot.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=17744
Israel version
Palestinian injured from IDF fire near Hebron
An IDF officer shot and moderately injured a 19-year-old Palestinian during clashes in the village of Beit Ummar, near Hebron. According to an initial investigation, some 100 Palestinians rioted in the area and hurled stoned at security forces.
The officer, who was assaulted by several protesters, opened fire in self defense. The injured man, Amir Ibrahim, was treated on the scene and taken to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem.
http://fwd4.me/0FFl
- 1 oct 2011
3 injured in Israeli airstrike on northern Gaza
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces launched an airstrike on northern Gaza on Saturday evening seriously injuring one man and wounding two others, medical officials said.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said forces struck Beit Hanoun targeting militants attempting to fire a rocket into Israel.
Gaza emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Salmiya said three men were hospitalized, adding that one man sustained serious injuries in the attack.
On Friday morning, Israeli warplanes raided the central Gaza Strip causing damage but no injuries.
The Israeli military said it targeted "a terror activity site" in Gaza in response to a rocket fired into southern Israel on Thursday.
Witnesses told Ma'an that fighter jets fired on a site used by the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, near al-Maghazi refugee camp.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=425206
Israeli airstrike injures three Gazans
Israeli forces have launched an airstrike on the impoverished Gaza Strip, injuring at least three Palestinians.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/202237.html
Gaza 2009: We Will Never Forget
(8:58) Gaza 2009: We Will Never Forget
Montage documenting the genocide commited by Isreal in "Operation Cast Lead".
30 oct 2012, 14:52 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:52 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:52 , Respect -
Maria 3 oct 2011
Medics: Teenager shot by soldiers near Gaza City
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli soldiers shot and injured a Palestinian teenager southeast of Gaza City on Monday, medics said.
Spokesman for Gaza's ambulance and emergency committee Adham Abu Salmiya told Ma'an that a 16-year-old boy was shot in his left leg while collecting scrap metal in the Juhor ad-Dik area southeast of Gaza City.
The victim was taken to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City where medics said his injuries were moderate.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said there were no immediate reports of the incident.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=425601
30 oct 2012, 14:56 , Respect -
Maria 30 oct 2012, 14:56 , Respect -
Maria 4 oct 2011
Witnesses: Israeli helicopters fire on southern Gaza
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli helicopters fired at homes in southern Gaza on Tuesday morning as bulldozers crossed the border and started digging up land, witnesses told Ma'an.
Residents of Khan Younis said several military jeeps and bulldozers entered al-Qarara north of Khan Younis and started leveling agricultural land as the helicopters hovered overhead firing randomly at homes.
An army spokeswoman said there had been military activity in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday but could not provide further details.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=426015
UN reports alarming increase in Israeli violence
Israeli troops aim their weapons during clashes with Palestinian stone throwers in the West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, on September 23, 2011. A Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli troops in clashes which erupted after settlers attacked a village near Nablus, Palestinian hospital sources told AFP.
The Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip has become increasingly hazardous to Palestinians, with attacks by settlers and heavy-handed tactics on the part of Israeli security forces on the rise, according to the latest UN statistics.
In the West Bank village of Quasra, Israeli forces shot and killed a 37-year-old Palestinian on September 23 while trying to break up a dispute between residents and Jewish settlers. On the same day, an eight-year-old Palestinian child in Hebron was struck by a settler’s vehicle. He died four days later. During the same week in Bethlehem and Nablus, a Palestinian was injured when settlers stoned his car, while two others were hurt after being physically assaulted.
These are some of the latest incidents reported by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the occupied territories (UNOCHA), whose statistics show that aggressive Israeli actions against Palestinians have increased across the board over the last year.
The number of Palestinian civilians killed or injured by Israeli forces rose by nearly a third in the West Bank and Gaza from 2010 to 2011.
During the same period, hostilities instigated by Jewish settlers have also contributed to a steep rise in the number of instances of injury and damage to property, with the UNOHCA reporting a 38 per cent increase in such episodes.
The latest indicators of mounting aggression by Jewish settlers come as militant Jews set fire to a mosque in northern Israel on Monday, prompting clashes between ethnic Arab citizens from the village of Tuba-Zangaria and police.
And as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas seeks UN recognition for an independent Palestinian State based on 1967 borders, Israel’s refusal to halt settlement expansion could very well lead to more violence.
While the Israeli government has approved the construction of 1,100 new housing units in East Jerusalem, the UNOCHA found that the number of Palestinian homes and buildings demolished had risen significantly, while the total number of Palestinians displaced by such actions has more than doubled.
Palestinian casualties by Israeli forces in West Bank and Gaza
Killed in 2011 vs. same period in 2010: 95 vs. 62
Injured in 2011 vs. same period in 2010: 1577 vs. 1119
Settler-related incidents
Incidents resulting in Palestinian injuries or property damage in 2011 vs. same period in 2010: 326 vs. 202
Palestinians injured in 2011 vs. same period in 2010: 139 vs. 74
Palestinian-owned structures demolished
Structures demolished in 2011 vs. same period in 2010: 409 vs. 290
People displaced in 2011 vs. same period in 2010: 804 vs. 374
http://rt.com/news/palestine-israel-occupation-violence-001/
Twitter
RichardDufek NEWS | Israeli helicopters fired at houses east of Khan Younis on Tuesday morning as bulldozers and tanks crossed the Gaza border.