Monday at night [September 30, 2013] Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian man, injured and kidnapped another, near the border fence, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Israeli media sources said that the soldiers opened fire at two Palestinians who approached the border fence, and attempted to cut a hole in it before the army chased them. The sources added that the army did not mention anything about whether the Palestinians carried any weapons or explosives, an issue that indicates they might have been trying to enter Israeli territory searching for work. Israeli Ynet News has reported that the army initiated an investigation into the incident, under the assumption that the two “might have been trying to plant an explosive in the area”. After searching the area, the army could not locate any explosives or weapons. more
Until now, the besieged Gaza Strip has stayed free of the novel coronavirus spreading across the world. As the Gaza Strip has been under a stringent Israeli-led blockade for nearly 13 years, the spread of the coronavirus - officially known as COVID-19 - has become the topic of discussion for many Palestinians, with some joking that the blockade was preventing them from being exposed.But as authorities in the coastal Palestinian enclave gear up to contain any potential outbreak, serious questions have arisen about the risks and implications of such a scenario. But given its already difficult humanitarian situation and high population density, an outbreak in the Gaza Strip could prove to be catastrophic, health officials have warned. "If the virus enters Gaza and spreads, it will get out of hand," Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson Majdi Thuhair told Middle East Eye, as he explained that a severe shortage of resources and personnel would make it near impossible