Illegal Israeli settlers attack neighborhood in occupied Jerusalem

[ 06/04/2009 - 08:59 AM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)--

Three Palestinians were wounded when dozens of illegal Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian neighborhood of Sa'adiya in occupied Jerusalem on Sunday evening, local sources reported.

They said that fistfights took place between the attacking settlers, who tried to force their way into one of the homes in the suburb, and citizens who defended their homes.

Israeli occupation terrorist forces protected the settlers and later intervened to stop the fight after the citizens forcefully defended their homes, which led to the injury of three of them and the detention of three others.

In a related development, Shaikh Azzam Al-Khatib, the director of Islamic Waqf (Endowment) department in Jerusalem, revealed that the Israeli occupation authority had taken away an ancient rock that dates back to the Umayyad era from the southeast area of the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Al-Khatib said that Israeli technical teams used a giant crane to extract the big rock from one of the ancient Umayyad palaces and took it away in a big lorry.

He said that his department filed a protest with the police department that denied knowledge of the incident.

Illegal Israeli settlers attack homes in Hebron

Monday April 06, 2009 01:01 by IMEMC & Agencies

Local sources in Hebron, in the southern part of the occupied West Bank, reported on Sunday that nearly 150 armed settlers attacked dozens of Palestinian homes in Jaber, Wadi Al-Nassara, Wadi Al-Hasseen, and Al-Ras neighborhoods, in addition to attacking homes near the illegal Israeli settlement of Keryat Arba, northeast of Hebron.

The settlers caused damage to doors and windows of Palestinian homes and vehicles in the attacked areas, while Israeli soldiers failed to intervene.

Eyewitnesses said that the settlers chanted “death to Arabs” and called for deporting all Arabs and Palestinians out of the country.  

The settlers also tried to reoccupy Al-Rajaby building, a Palestinian property they illegally occupied and were forced to evacuate by an Israeli military court ruling implemented last year.

Three Palestinians injured in clashes with East Jerusalem settlers

Date: 06 / 04 / 2009  Time:  09:02
Jerusalem – Ma’an –

Three Palestinians were injured on Sunday evening in the Old City of Jerusalem after Jewish settlers attacked the neighborhood, while Israeli police seized three brothers who tried to confront the settlers.

Ma’an’s Jerusalem correspondent reported that dozens of settlers attempted to reach a home belonging to the Jaber family in Sa’adiyya neighborhood, which Jewish groups and Israeli forces occupied on Thursday.

As a result, three Palestinians sustained bruises. They were identified as Talal Nassar, Abddul Ra-oof Jabir and Ja’far Jabir.

Furthermore, Israeli police arrested the home's owners, Nasser Jaber, and his brothers Alaa and Raja-ei. They were released 24 hours later. As hoards of settlers attacked the home, Palestinian residents of the neighborhood confronted them and clashes erupted as far away as Damascus Gate.

On Thursday morning, dozens of Israeli settlers backed by police originally took over the Palestinian house in the Old City of Jerusalem. A scuffle took place between the owner and the settlers before police intervened, allowing the settlers to take control of the house and sending the owner away.

Israeli police then imposed a neighborhood lockdown, prohibiting residents from entering or leaving their homes. Several youth were seized during ensuing clashes in the tense half hour between the arrival of the settlers and the total closure of the area.

Jaber, the owner, went immediately to the court to put forward his case, saying he was going to demand the removal of the settlers from his residence, which is home to eight residents. Jaber noted that the small area of the Old City is home to seven other families and said there had been a continuous settler presence in the area over the past several months.

Israeli municipality demolishes house in Jerusalem's Old City

Date: 06 / 04 / 2009  Time:  12:54
Jerusalem – Ma’an –

The Israeli municipality of Jerusalem demolished a stone block house owned by Abdul Rahman Al-Fakhouri in the Burj Al-Laqlaq area in the Old City of Jerusalem on Monday afternoon.

The owner of the house, Um Omran Al-Fakhouri, said she received a demolition notice last Thursday and was scheduled to demolish it herself, but was surprised when municipality staff arrived early on Monday morning and began demolishing the home.

The 120-square-meter house, which was an addition to her 150-square-meter home, was hope to 14 people.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ aide for Jerusalem Affairs Hatem Abdul Qader said that the demolition order came after the family "had exerted every efforts to get a license."

Abdul Qader had previously appealed to the residents of the Al-Laqlaq area not to construct any additional rooms on to their homes because "this threatens them, as the neighborhood becomes targeted by Israeli authorities, which, for their part, look for any pretext to establish a new settlement there."

He added that new plans are being drawn up to establish a local committee within the Israeli municipality in order to protect civilian homes in the neighborhood, where hundreds of Palestinian houses and organizations are located.

Israeli authorities destroy fields owned by Arabs in Naqab

Date: 06 / 04 / 2009  Time:  13:36
Gaza – Ma’an –

For the second consecutive day, the Israeli Lands Department and police forces continued on Monday to plough and demolish groves owned by residents of unrecognized Arab villages in the Naqab (Negev) desert.

On Sunday, demolition was concentrated on lands owned by the Touri family in the Al-Araqib area, and on Monday it was concentrated in different parts of Ar’ara in the Negev. Parts of the lands demolished on Monday are owned by Abu Muqairih family in eastern Ar’ara.

The director general of the Regional Council of Unrecognized Villages, Atwah Abu Freih, said, “We are surprised at this frivolous behavior of the Israeli Lands Department, demolishing lands of people who owned that land before the creation of Israel.

"Furthermore, Israeli military patrols from the Ministry of Agriculture have been chasing cattle owners, depriving them of pasture for their herds unless they register and pay taxes. To make it more difficult in light of a drought this year, they ploughed and demolished fields of wheat and barley,” Abu Fraih added.

Palestinian teen in critical condition after being shot in head by Israeli forces

Sunday April 05, 2009 22:49 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC News

A 14-year old Palestinian boy from Qalqilia was shot by a rubber-coated steel bullet during an Israeli terrorist raid on the town on Saturday, and is in critical condition at a United Nations hospital.

According to local sources, Imad Al-Shanti was among a group of youths who were in the street in the south-eastern part of the city of Qalqilia when the Israeli army invaded.  When some of the youths began throwing stones at the invading tanks and armoured vehicles, Israeli forces fired rubber-coated steel bullets at them.

 Al-Shanti was rushed to the UN hospital after being shot, and remains in critical condition.

 The incident is eerily reminiscent of the protest three weeks ago in the village of Ni’lin, at which U.S. activist Tristan Anderson was shot by a high-velocity tear gas canister in the head by Israeli forces.  Three weeks later, Anderson remains in critical condition in an Israeli hospital.

 Israeli forces frequently fire rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition at unarmed protesters and children armed only with stones.  A number of teenagers and younger kids have been killed by these so-called ‘less-than-lethal’ weapons – calling into question the classification of these weapons as ‘less-than-lethal’.

Israeli forces kidnap five civilians near Hebron

Date: 06 / 04 / 2009  Time:  11:12
Hebron – Ma’an –

Israeli occupation forces kidnapped five civilians on Sunday evening and early on Monday morning from the town of Ithna, south of Hebron.

Ma’an’s Hebron correspondent reported that Israeli forces stormed the town early on Monday morning and detained 35-year-old Tareq Ibrahim Awadh and 28-year-old Abdul Fattah Mohammad Abu Juhaishah after entering their houses.

Meanwhile, Israeli occupation soldiers detained 55-year-old Samir Mohammad Tumaizi and his 20-year-old sons Mohammad and Younis late on Sunday. Eyewitnesses reported that the three were working on their land near the separation wall when Israeli forces suddenly appeared and detained them.