Boats in Gaza harbor, June 2018 Credit: B’tselem
It’s not just about the Great March of Return on Fridays. Every day is full of surprises – it is as though Israel’s leaders lie awake at night, coming up with new ways to make Palestinians’ lives difficult. Read summaries here, click for full articles.
from If Americans Knew
There’s not a massacre every day, but there’s something every day, an it adds up. Instability, anger, uncertainty, humiliation, and impatience are just a few of the emotions that must be a part of every day because the Occupation is a part of every day.
Here are brief summaries of just 9 stories from the week of August 12 – 18, fairly representative of what many Palestinians experience on a regular basis.
Middle East Monitor, August 13: Israeli occupation forces raided the Said Bin Al-As School in Bethlehem during exams, and detained teachers and students. It was not clear how many people had been held as a result of the raid.
Occupation forces often raid the school claiming they are looking for Palestinian stone throwers who target vehicles of illegal Israeli settlers in the area.
Ma’an News Agency, August 13: Israel suspended a German-backed construction project to build a landfill site for waste disposal in the West bank district of Ramallah.The Israeli Minister of Environmental Protection informed the German government that Israeli settlement residents would also use the planned landfill to dispose of their waste.
The German government rejected the Israeli “proposition.” Germany recognizes these Israeli settlements as illegal under international law. The funds are estimated at €10 million ($11.3 million).
Middle East Monitor, August 13: The Palestinian Health Ministry reports that 8,260 cancer patients in Gaza are unable to access chemotherapy treatment after the drugs needed ran out. 80% of cancer medicines are not available in the enclave as a result of the siege.
Middle East Monitor, August 14: Israeli forces raided a Palestinian school in Bethlehem while students were taking exams. Some teachers and students were detained.
Occupation forces often raid the school claiming they are looking for Palestinian stone throwers who target settlers’ vehicles.
IMEMC News, August 16: Israeli gunboats chased Palestinian fishing boats sailing within 1 nautical mile of the shore, arrested 4 fishermen, and detained a fishing boat.
These actions refute the Israeli authorities’ claims that they have eased the naval blockade and expanded the fishing area [from 3 nautical miles] to 9 nautical miles off the Gaza shore. [According to the Oslo Accords, the Gazan fishing zone should be 20 nautical miles.]
IMEMC News, August 16: The “unrecognized” Bedouin village of al-Araqib was demolished by Israeli bulldozers for the 132nd time. Dozens of officers surrounded the village, demolished, and removed residential structures, tents, and barns. The police also abducted 3 people for obstructing the work of the officers.
Israeli demolitions of al-Araqib are carried out in the attempt to force the Bedouin population to relocate to government-zoned townships.
Like the 34 other Bedouin villages “unrecognized” by Israel, al-Araqib does not receive any services from the Israeli government, and is constantly subjected to the threats of expulsion and home demolition.
Ma’an News, August 17: The Israeli military court of Ofer extended the detention of Palestinian journalist Ali Dar Ali, age 34, for five days for “further interrogation” after accusing him of incitement via his social media pages.
Palestine TV, Ali’s employer, condemns Ali’s detention, adding that it is part of Israel’s policy of targeting the Palestinian media.
Palestinian Prisoners and Former Prisoners’ Affairs Committee reports that there are currently more than 20 Palestinian journalists in Israeli prisons.
IMEMC News, August 17: Extremist Israeli settlers chopped down 200 fruitful olive trees belonging to Al-Lubban Ash-Sharqiya village, south of Nablus. Settlers also torched a bulldozer passing nearby and hurled stones and glass bottles at Palestinian vehicles, damaging some 40 vehicles.
August 18: Another group of settlers cut down dozens of Palestinian olive trees in ‘Arraba town, south of Jenin.
IMEMC News, August 17: Fida’ Mohammad Ekhlayyel, 21, was taken prisoner by Israel on May 29th, charged with “incitement against Israel on social media outlets,” and sentenced to 95 days in prison. The young woman is also a former political prisoner who spent a year in Israeli prisons.
Just hours before her scheduled release, Israeli authorities issued an Administrative Detention order against her. Her family had come to meet her, but were informed that she will not be released. It is unknown how long she will be held.
It is worth mentioning that Israel has issued more than 4.000 administrative detention orders during the last three years, 456 of which were issued since the beginning of 2018.