http://www.imemc.org/article/47250
PM Designate: Consultations on Unity Government Concluded
Friday March 02, 2007 15:19 by Rami Almeghari - IMEMC & Agencies rami at imemc dot org

Palestinian Prime Minister designate, Ismail Haniya, confirmed Friday that consultations on the upcoming unity government have been finalized. He called on both Hamas and Fatah to submit the names of their own candidates.

In the Friday sermon in Gaza City, Haniya maintained that Palestinian efforts are going well and that all parties concerned are keen to conclude a unity cabinet to block any moves to obstruct realization of such a cabinet.

The Palestinian PM pointed out that the Israeli response to the Palestinian factions' agreement meant that the Palestinian people are going in the right direction; protecting their own unity and rejecting outside intervention.

Commenting on the underway Israeli attack on the West Bank city of Nablus, Haniya told worshipers at the Imam Alshafi’y mosque in Gaza: “what is going on in Nablus reflects the Israeli actions in occupied east Jerusalem. The Israeli army has so far destroyed more that 215 Palestinian-owned houses and stores”.

Haniya described the city as ‘traumatized’, stating that the Palestinian government would assist Nablus with half a million US dollars, and calling on all Arab countries to stand by such a traumatized city.

On another front, the Palestinian premier appealed to the Iraqi government to ensure the protection of Palestinian inhabitants, who have been exposed to attacks by unknown Iraqi militias.

All Palestinian factions, excluding some leftist groups and the Islamic Jihad, agreed to join a likely unity government following a Fatah-Hamas power-sharing deal in the Saudi Arabian city of Makkah early in February.

The international Quartet for promoting peace in the Middle East, including the United Nations, European Union and Russia, reiterated demands that any Palestinian government should recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept past signed agreements as preconditions for lifting the economic embargo that has been in place since Hamas came to power last year.

http://www.imemc.org/article/47247
PCHR weekly report on Israeli violations of human rights in the OPT
Friday March 02, 2007 11:24 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC saed at imemc dot org

The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) in Gaza published its weekly report on the Israeli violations in the occupied territories in the period between February 22 - February 28. During the reported period, Israeli troops killed four Palestinians, shot and injured 28 people, including four children and four reporters.

Three of the four killed residents were extra-judicially assassinated by the Israeli forces.

Troops conducted 43 invasions into the West Bank, and launched a wide scale military offensive in Nablus, in the northern part of the West Bank.

On Monday, February 26, an Israeli sharpshooter shot and killed Anan Mohammad Al Teebi, 42, with a bullet to his neck. Ashraf, 24, Anan's son , was shot in his hand as he attempted to rescue his father.

Soldiers prevented ambulances and medical crews from entering the area, and took the injured son prisoner.

During the Nablus offensive, eight civilians, including one child and two women were injured.

Three members of the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad were shot and killed by soldiers in the Jenin refuge camp.

In Hebron, in the southern part of the West Bank, troops attacked an Italian cinema crew, the PCHR reported.

A total of 55 invasions were carried out by the Israeli army into Palestinian cities, villages and refugee camps.

During these attacks, soldiers took prisoner several members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, in Hebron.

Also, soldiers leveled three agricultural areas in Hebron, and annexed 199 Dunams of agricultural land in Jenin in order to establish a road for exclusive use by illegal Israeli settlers.

The Palestinian territories remained under a total siege as the residents continued to be obstructed from travelling between the cities and villages in the West Bank.

Five residents, including two children, were taken prisoner at Israeli military checkpoints.

The Gaza Strip remained under strict siege, suffering shortages in fuels and basic goods.

In Jerusalem, Israeli authorites continued the excavations in the vicinity of the Al Aqsa Mosque, and imposed more restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the city. Soldiers installed more checkpoints at the entrances of the occupied city, especially on Friday morning (February 23).

All men under the age of 45 were not allowed to enter the mosque for Friday prayers.

Israel continued the construction of the Annexation Wall in the West Bank, and attacked dozens of Palestinian, Israeli and International peace activists during protests against the Wall in Bil’in village, west of Ramallah.

The protestors were also marking the second anniversary of their peaceful protests against the Wall in Bil’in. The Israeli army fired rubber-coated bullets, sound bombs, and gas canisters, in addition to violently beating several protestors. Thirteen civilians, including two children and two reporters, were injured.

http://www.imemc.org/article/47238
Non-Violent Protestors Defeat Israeli Bulldozer by Sitting on It
Thursday March 01, 2007 13:13 by Polly Bangoriad - IMEMC & Agencies polly_1207 at hotmail dot com

On Thursday the Palestine Solidarity Project released information about yesterday's events in Um Salamoneh village. The Palestinian village stands to lose 700 dunams of vital farmland to the construction of the illegal Israeli Wall and settlements.

Israeli bulldozers started destroying the land on Tuesday. Palestinian farmers and villagers from Um Salamoneh and the surrounding area have been continuously protesting this action at the site, and have been joined by Israeli and International supporters.

On Thursday two Palestinians, five Internationals and six Israelis climbed upon a bulldozer while it was stationary and succeeded in preventing it from destroying the farmland. The non-violent protestors remained in place for two hours before Israeli troops forced them down. Another bulldozer was stopped when Palestinian, international and Israeli activists stood in front of it for some time.

Two international and four Israeli activists were abducted by the Israeli army and taken to Gush Etzion prison. They were released after a few hours on the condition that they do not return to the site of the non-violent demonstration for 15 days.

Updated from:
Israeli army bulldozers destroy farm lands near Bethlehem
Wednesday February 28, 2007 12:32 by Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMC

Several army bulldozers resumed on Wednesday morning, destroying farm lands that is privately owned by Palestinian farmers from the village of Um Salamunah near the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem.

Farmers from Um Salamunah village and nearby villages of Wadi Al Niss and Al Ma'sara tried to stop the bulldozers uprooting their trees and destroying their land, which also their only source of income.
Side by side with Israeli and international supporters, the villagers managed to stop the bulldozers from working. Israeli soldiers providing protection for the bulldozers clashed with the unarmed protesters, using rifle butts and batons, no injures were reported.

The bulldozers were forced to leave the area, Mohamed Ibrijia, a local activist in the village told IMEMC. Ibrijia added that more Israeli army enforcements are being called in, but villagers are still in the construction Wall area in order to protect their lands in case the bulldozers come back. He expected that a stand-off between the army and the local villagers may occur later during the day.
Ibrijia concluded by encouraging residents of Bethlehem district and international supporters to head to Um Salamunah to help the farmers save their lands.

Several weeks ago, the Israeli army started uprooting trees and orchards in the area in order to construct the illegal Wall in the southern part of Bethlehem. The Wall will lead to the isolation of several villages south of Bethlehem, especially the villages of Wad Rahhal, Um Salmouna, Al Ma'sara and Wad Al Niss.

Um Salamuna stands to have 700 dunums of agricultural land annexed and 270 dunums confiscated for the route of the Wall. Ten villages surrounding Bethlehem stand to lose 70,000 grape vines and 1000 olive trees in total.

http://www.imemc.org/article/47192

PSIS Report Documents One Week of Israeli Violations Against Palestinians
Monday February 26, 2007 12:37 by Rami Almeghari - IMEMC & Agencies rami at imemc dot org

The Israeli army has killed one Palestinian, wounded 16 and taken prisoner 122 others over a period of one week, the Palestinian Authority-run 'Palestinian State Information Service' documented.

The report documents the Israeli violations against the Palestinian people from February 13th to February 19th, in which Israel ‘has employed all possible means at its disposal’.

The Israeli army has used excessive lethal force against Palestinian civilian populations across the occupied Palestinian territories. The force included heavy shooting at residential buildings, frequent raids on cities, towns, villages and refugee camps, installing roadblocks and checkpoints and expropriating farm lands, the report confirms.

The PSIS’s data refers to 65 Israel raids, 47 checkpoints, 87 mobile roadblocks, 6 Israeli settlers’ attacks and 294 cases of crossing and road closures.

The report reads that the Israeli army has carried out tens of other violations over the said period of time, including breaking into houses, holding hundreds of residents at checkpoints, and denying access of hundreds others through crossings.

With the latest Israeli violations, the total number of Israeli violations since the signing of the Sharm Elsheikh memorandum of understanding between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in February 2005, has mounted to 77,455. This includes 7,249 shootouts, 10,279 installations of mobile checkpoints, 10,805 people taken prisoner, 40,477 dunums of land confiscated, and 851 incidents of Israeli armed settlers attacking Palestinian civilians.

Israeli shootouts during the past couple of years have claimed the lives of 890 Palestinian men, women and children and wounded 4,166 others, the report concludes.

http://www.imemc.org/article/47118

PSIS Report Highlights Palestinian Losses since the Outbreak of Uprising

Wednesday February 21, 2007 09:53 by Rami Almeghari - IMEMC&Agencies rami at imemc dot org

Since the outbreak of the Palestinian uprising in September 2000, until late January 2007, the Israeli army has killed 5050 Palestinian men, women and children, wounded 49760 others and detained 10.4000, a report by the Palestinian State Information Service (PSIS) revealed.

The report, prepared by the Palestinian National Information Center, an organ of the PSIS, showed that 351 Palestinian women have been killed, 150 patients have died at checkpoints, 66 others have been killed due to beating by Israeli settlers, 36 others have been medical crews, 9 others belonged to press, while 220 others have been athletics.

According to the report, the number of Palestinians being detained by the Israeli army authorities has mounted to 10,400 including 553 detained prior to the outbreak of the Intifada.

Among the prisoners there have been 1150, suffering from chronic diseases, 1175 students, 330 under the age of 18, 106 teachers and 118 female prisoners.

The report also highlighted the amount of damage among the Palestinian public buildings up until July 31, 2006, by stating that 645 civil and security installations have been damaged, 72437 houses have been partially or completely damaged, including 30871 completely and 4785 partially in the Gaza Strip alone up until October31, 2006.

The number of schools and universities sealed off by the Israeli authorities has reached 12 onl August 8th, 2006, while working hours of 1125 others have been blocked, the report pointed out.

Number of educational facilities that have been shelled has mounted to 359 as 43 schools have been turned into military outposts, according to PSIS’s data.

Such data also included students and educational staff shot dead by the Israeli army, totaling 848, while those wounded have mounted to 4792.

As for farm lands that have been exposed to Israeli actions up until July 31, 2006, 80,712 dunams were bulldozed, 13572896 trees were uprooted, 784 stores demolished, 788 poultries destroyed completely, as 14829 live stocks died, including 12151 cows.

15549 bee hives have been devastated, 425 water wells destroyed completely, while 207 farmers’ houses demolished totally.

The Israel authorities, the report disclosed, have also destroyed 33792 dunums of irrigation networks, demolished 1360 water wells, bulldozed 631182 meters of barbed wire fences and razed 979239 meters of water pipes.

The report also revealed that the number of Palestinian farmers to suffer losses has reached 16195, while the number of damaged plants mounted to 16, as the Israeli army has devastated a total of 16 agricultural equipment.

From January 2001until June2006, the Israeli army destroyed 9547 workshops.

Concerning unemployment, the report stated that 30.3% of Palestinian workers have been unemployed with a total number of 288300 up until September 30, 2006. The poverty rate across the occupied Palestinian territories has reached 70%, according to data gathered UP until the third quarter of 2006.

As for Israeli violations against journalists, the report recorded 1147 attacks.

The Israeli army has erected 5001 checkpoints since October1, 2001.

The report concluded that a total of 247291 dunums of Palestinian-owned lands have been confiscated for the construction of the Apartheid Wall in West Bank and east Jerusalem, while 432 industrial facilities have been damaged, according to the Palestinian ministry of national economy.