A Palestinian allegedly carrying out a car-ramming attack was killed by Israeli forces near the village of Beit Ummar in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron early on Sunday evening. Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri said in a statement that the Palestinian driver was shot and killed after carrying out a car-ramming attack in the vicinity of the illegal settlement bloc of Gush Etzion near Beit Ummar. She said that the Palestinian vehicle "swiftly" approached a group of Israeli police forces who were carrying out a "security mission" in the area, lightly injuring three border police officers before other officers on the scene shot at the Palestinian driver, killing him. 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