This Week in Palestine, October 31st, 2014

Israeli attacks leave one Palestinian killed this week, in the meantime the Palestinian Authority call on support from Muslims worldwide and visit the Alaqsa mosque of Jerusalem. These stories and more, coming up, stay tuned.


The Nonviolence Report

Let’s begin our weekly report as usual with the nonviolent activities organized in the West Bank. This week two civilians were injure when Israeli soldiers attacked with live ammunition and tear gas anti wall protests organized in West Bank villages. IMEMC’s Majd Batajali with the details:

On Friday protests were organized in the villages of al Nabi Saleh, Bil’in, Nil’in, central West Bank and Al Ma’ssara village in southern west Bank.

Two civilians were injured by live rounds fired by Israeli soldiers when they attacked villagers of al Nabi Saleh. Israeli soldiers attacked the villagers and their supporters before leaving the village. Later soldiers invaded the village and fired tear gas into residents’ homes. Many were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation.

At the nearby villages of Bil’in and Ni’lin, residents and their international and Israeli supporters, managed to reach the wall. Soldiers stationed there fired tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets at protesters. As a result many civilians were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation.

Meanwhile Israeli troops attacked the villagers of at al Ma’ssara and their supporters at village entrance then forced them back using rifle buts and batons.

For IMEMC News this is Majd Batajali.


The Political Report

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas hailed Sweden's recognition of the Palestinian state. Meanwhile, an advisor to Abbas emphasized on the need for Muslims worldwide to visit the Alaqsa mosque of Jerusalem. IMEMC’s Rami al Meghari has more:

Amidst growing tension in the occupied East Jerusalem, an advisor to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Mahmoud Alhabbash, maintained that Muslims worldwide should further show support to the Arab occupied city of Jerusalem by visiting the Alaqsa mosque.

The call come after Israeli occupation authorities shut down the Alaqsa mosque's doors this week, preventing worshipers from praying.. The closure is the first since Israel has occupied the holy city in 1967.

Meanwhile, Israeli officials accused President Abbas of triggering the recent tension by what Israel considers to be an incitement by Abbas, following the Israeli killing of an Arab driver in the city. Abbas had called Arabs and Muslims over there, to defend the holy ancient shrine of Alaqsa.

The incident was followed this week by an Israeli extrajudicial killing of another Arab-Palestinian resident, who Israel accuses of orchestrating the killing of an Isareli occupation local leader, in the occupied East Jerusalem.

In the meantime, Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, hailed this week the recognition by Sweden of a Palestinian statehood on the 1967 borders, including the Gaza Strip, West Bank and East Jerusalem, calling on other world nations to follow on the step.

At the interanl Palestinian level, Hamas and Fatah parties are set to hold a new round of talks over national unity that would bring about general elections by January of 2015.

The talks come in the backdrop of calls, by Palestinian locals for the reconstruction of the war-torn Gaza, following this summer's Israeli war on the territory that lasted 51 days and left tens of thousands of Gaza families, homeless.

For IMEMC News, I am Rami Almeghari in Gaza .


The West Bank and Gaza Report

This week Israeli killed a former Palestinian political detainee. Moreover, Israeli forces conducted at least 55 military invasions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank this week. During these attacks, Israeli troops kidnapped at least 40 Palestinians, including a child. IMEMC’s Eman Abedraboo-Bannoura reports:

On Thursday Israeli soldiers shoot and killed a former Palestinian political prisoner from the ath-Thoury neighborhood in Silwan town, in occupied East Jerusalem. Israel alleges that Mo’taz Hijazi, 32 was behind the attempted assassination of fanatic rabbi and militant activist Yehuda Glick. Glick leads the settlers’ movement to take over Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

According to witnesses soldiers assaulted the family of Hijazi after killing him and detained his father and brother. On Friday at dawn Hundreds of Palestinians, including family members held funeral procession for Hijazi although the police and the army imposed a tight siege in an attempt to limit the number of Palestinians attending the funeral.

Fowling the shooting of Hijazi, Israeli soldiers closed the Al Aqsa Mosque for the first time since it occupied the city in 1967. All week Israeli radical groups attempted to storm the third holiest site for Muslims worldwide. As a result clashes erupted all week between Palestinian residents of Jerusalem and Israeli soldiers, many residents were injured and damage was reported to Palestinian property.

Protests on closing Al Aqsa Mosque were organized all over the West Bank on Friday. Near Ramallah city soldiers shot and injured four protesters including two children at the Qalandiya checkpoint separating Ramallah from Jerusalem.

On Wednesday Israeli soldiers assaulted a pregnant woman, causing internal bleeding as they demolished several structures at Khashm ad-Daraj and Um al-Kheir villages, near the southern West Bank district of Hebron.

On Tuesday, 48-year-old Fatima al-Hathalin, from Umm al-Kheir village, near the southern West Bank city of Hebron, was assaulted by Israeli forces, suffering bruises across her body. Soldiers attacked Fatima as they searched and ransacked homes in the village.

In the Gaza Strip, on Tuesday, the Israeli navy again targeted Palestinian fishing boats with gunfire offshore the coast of Gaza, according to witnesses. Soldiers opened fire at a number of Palestinian fishermen, despite the fact that they were within the six-nautical-mile zone allowed for Palestinian fishing off Gaza; no casualties or injuries were reported. The Israeli navy opened fire on Wednesday morning, against Palestinian fishermen, and shot a young man off Beit Lahia shores, in the northern Gaza Strip.

Following the Israeli offensive, this past July, Israel agreed to allow fishing boats from Gaza to go some six nautical miles from the coastline, as well as to gradually expand the zone, over time. Since then, many incidents of the Israeli navy targeting Palestinian fishermen with gunfire and, in certain circumstances, arrests by the Israeli navy were also reported.

For IMEMC News this is Eman Abedraboo-Bannoura.


Conclusion

And that’s all for today from This Week in Palestine. This was the Weekly report for October 25th, to the 31st, 2014. From the Occupied Palestinian Territories. For more news and updates please visit our website at http://www.imemc.org. This week’s report has been brought to you by George Rishmawi, and me Ghassan Bannoura.