Israeli forces on Thursday shot and injured two young Palestinian men in Duheisha refugee camp south of Bethlehem during a dawn arrest raid, locals said. Locals told Ma’an that large numbers of Israeli soldiers stormed the southern West Bank camp ransacking more than 20 homes before detaining 22-year-old Muhammad Nidal Abu Akar. In response to the incursion, young men and teenagers living in the camp hurled stones and improvised explosive devices at the soldiers who deployed heavily in the streets and on rooftops of buildings. Israeli soldiers showered the camp and the main street leading to Bethlehem with tear gas and fired live ammunition at the protesters, hitting two in the feet, according to locals. Witnesses told Ma’an that Israeli soldiers also fired gunshots at security guards of an UNRWA-affiliated school near the main road. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that Israeli forces entered the camp to make an arrest when dozens of residents attacked the soldiers with ro...

Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian from the Duheisha refugee camp Tuesday evening during clashes at the northern entrance of Bethlehem, medics said. Mutaz Ibrahim Zawahreh, 27, was hit with a live bullet in the chest and was taken to hospital in a critical condition, Medical sources at the Beit Jala Governmental Hospital told Ma'an. Zawahreh was rushed to the operation room but quickly succumbed to his wounds, they added. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma'an that Israeli forces "thwarted an attack" by a "Palestinian perpetrator" who attempted to throw a Molotov cocktail at the forces. The spokesperson said Israeli forces were present in the area because they were "responding to a violent riot of around 500 Palestinians throwing rocks." more

Israeli soldiers fired, on Wednesday at dawn, several rounds of live ammunition on a number of homes in the 'Aida refugee camp, north of the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Media sources said the soldiers, stationed on the military tower of the Annexation Wall, overlooking the refugee camp, opened fire on the homes without any apparent justification. The attack caused property damage. In addition, soldiers invaded the northern part of Bethlehem, and drove through several neighborhoods before withdrawing. The army also installed roadblocks on the main entrances of several towns, south and west of Bethlehem, and invaded Harmala area, in addition to al-'Obeydiyya town, east of Bethlehem. more

A Palestinian farmer from the al-Khader town, south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, managed to escape an attack by an Israeli settler who tried to ram him with his car, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem. The farmer, identified as Mohannad Sa’ad Salah, was trying to cross bypass road #60 when a settler shifted his vehicle towards him and tried to run him over. The Palestinian ran toward police barricades on the side of the road, and escaped the attack unharmed, the Maan News Agency said. Salah said he was heading towards his land, as he does every day, when he noticed a settler, driving a red Daihatsu car speeding towards him. The settler’s vehicle struck the barricades, and fled the scene. He added that the incident was not just a traffic accident, as he could see the driver shifting his vehicle towards him, and trying to run him over. more

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian man and injured two across the West Bank early Wednesday, as protests against the ongoing Israeli military assault in Gaza that has left more than 600 Palestinians dead intensified. Mahmud Hamamra, 32, was shot in the chest after clashes broke out early Wednesday following a rally in the Bethlehem-area village of Husan, Palestinian security sources told AFP. Locals told Ma'an that Hamamra received a deadly gunshot in the chest during clashes which continued until the early morning hours on Wednesday. A Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance evacuated Hamamrah to the nearby Beit Jala Governmental Hospital where he was operated on and then transferred to al-Mizan Hospital in Hebron. Director of al-Mizan Hospital Dr. Hazim Shalaldah told Ma'an that the victim was in an extremely critical condition when he arrived and that after several resuscitation attempts, doctors had to announce his death early Wednesday morning...

Several armed Israel settlers have attempted to kidnap a Palestinian child, after chasing him for more than a kilometer along a road near Hebron. A similar report has surfaced in Beit Sahour, near Bethlehem. Al-Haq human rights organization has issued a statement, via press release, regarding the nature of the recent settler attacks as they relate to illegal Israeli settlement policies. According to WAFA Palestinian News & Info Agency, Coordinator of the Anti-wall and Settlement Popular Committee, Ratib Jabour, said that armed settlers chased Hani Al-Ka‘abna, 14, in a car along a rugged road in Al-Ka‘abna, to the east of Yatta, in an attempt to kidnap him. The boy, fortunately, managed to escape. Near Bethlehem, a number of settlers driving an Israeli vehicle into Beit Sahour attempted to kidnap a Palestinian child. The attempted abduction took place near the YMCA Center, in Beit Sahour. The boy has been identified as one Ramadan Rayya, 17 years of age. Al-Haq human rights o...

[Sunday Morning, June 15, 2014] The Israeli army imposed a strict military siege on the Hebron district, in the southern part of the occupied West Bank, and on the West Bank district of Bethlehem. Palestinian sources said the army installed dozens of roadblocks around Hebron, preventing the Palestinians from entering or leaving their communities, while hundreds of soldiers were deployed in the area, breaking into and searching homes, amidst a massive arrest campaign. However, the army alleged there is no tight siege on Hebron, and that what is happening is a “breathable closure” on a number of areas. On Saturday at night, Israeli Army Chief of Staff, Moshe Ya’alon, said he ordered the army to impose a comprehensive siege on the Hebron district, until further notice, and that the decision was made following extensive security meetings, the Maan News Agency has reported. Israel also closed the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom), and Erez terminals leading to Gaza. Israeli sources sa...

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) – Israeli authorities on Thursday morning announced a decision to confiscate about 1,000 dunams (250 acres) of private Palestinian land in the town of al-Khader south of Bethlehem. Deputy mayor of al-Khader Ismail Issa told Ma’an that high-level Israeli military commanders and Civil Administration officers along with a group of settlers toured private Palestinian fields in areas known locally as Khallat al-Fahm, al-Zaytouna and al-Absiyya. They left yellow posters reading “State properties! No entry,” he said. Issa added that the Israeli officers dropped copies of a statement which explained that 984 dunams of private land was slated for confiscation. Palestinian farmers who wish to contest the decision can object within 45 days, according to the statement. The Palestinian liaison department has been notified of the Israeli decision, added Issa. more

The Bethlehem marathon will host hundreds of runners from around the world in the ancient West Bank city next Friday, with one omission: The Palestinian Authority's top runner, who happens to reside in the Gaza Strip. GAZA (PNN/Haaretz) -- Nader al-Masri, 34, with 14 years of running under his belt, was the only athlete to represent the Palestinian Authority in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The next year, he took part in a competition in Bahrain. But this time, Israel is refusing to let him out of the Hamas-controlled enclave and into the West Bank. Al-Masri is set to petition the Supreme Court on Thursday, demanding the state reverse its decision and let him participate in the competition. "I don't have any security background or anything. I'm an athlete, I represent my country, go out, come back, and that's it," al-Masri told Army Radio. "I'm 34. I only have two, three more years before I retire," he added. more

As the Israeli military continues its invasion of the Aida refugee camp, near Bethlehem, local sources have reported that 8 Palestinians and 2 Israeli soldiers have been injured. One of the wounded Palestinians was hit in the head by a rubber-coated steel bullet, and his injuries were described as moderate. 7 other Palestinians were hospitalized after being hit by Israeli rubber-coated steel bullets. The two Israeli soldiers were lightly wounded when Palestinian youth threw bricks from the roof of a building. The soldiers were wearing helmets and riot gear, so were not badly injured by the bricks. Two Israeli soldiers and a Palestinian youth were injured as clashes with Israeli forces in Aida refugee camp, north of Bethlehem, continued for a second day, Sunday. Locals told Ma'an News Agency that Israeli forces raided several houses in the camp, taking them over and using them as military posts, while firing tear gas grenades throughout the camp. Local youth responded by h...

Dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded the Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem, and clashes with dozens of local youths, local sources have reported. The sources said that dozens of youths hurled stones and empty bottles at the invading soldiers, and that the army fired gas bombs, and rubber-coated metal bullets; no injuries have been reported, the Palestine News Network (PNN) has reported. The soldiers withdrew from the refugee camp later on without conducting any arrests. In related news, Israeli media sources have reported that two Molotov cocktails were hurled at an Israeli settler’s vehicles driving on settler road #60, near the Al-Khader town, west of Bethlehem. more

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces evicted a protest village near the Kfar Etzion settlement compound south of Bethlehem on Saturday, a local committee said. The Popular Struggle Committee Against the Settlements and the Wall said its activists pitched tents on land belonging to the Abu Ayyash family. Four hours later, the Israeli army arrived with an order to evict the protesters, the committee said. The committee said the action sent a message to the Israeli government that Israeli settlements would eventually vanish. It said Palestinian were entrenched in their land, and that they would dictate the next stage in peace talks, not the negotiators. more

Under the pretext of “military considerations”, the Israeli army informed Palestinian residents of Al-Fordaes village, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem, that it intends to seize large areas of their lands in Al-Oqban area, the Palestine News Network (PNN) reported. Hasan Breijieh, coordinator of the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in Bethlehem, stated that the army placed the orders on the targeted lands, and added that the farmers found these orders when they headed there. Israel intends to seize dozens of Dunams in Basin 4, and the order is effective immediately. Breijieh added that he contacted two lawyers identified as Ghayyath Nasser and Mohammad Shqeir, to follow-up on the issue and appeal the Israeli military decision, the PNN reported. more

Palestinian medical sources in Bethlehem reported that a young Palestinian man was shot and injured, on Monday afternoon, by Israeli military fire near Beit Jala city, northwest of the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Local sources reported that undercover soldiers of the Israeli military opened fire at Sakhr Hussein and Al-Allamy, 26, while he was heading to work at the Gilo nearby Israeli settlement, the Maan News Agency reported. Mohammad Ayyad, media spokesperson of the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements, told Maan that the soldiers shot Al-Allamy, and chased him after he was wounded but did not arrest him. more

BETHLEHEM, (PIC)-- A group of Jewish settlers pumped, on Thursday morning, wastewater from a settlement in the west of Bethlehem in southern West Bank, onto Palestinian agricultural land. Ahmed Sukkar, head of the village council in Fukin village, told "Quds Press" that settlers pumped wastewater on lands in the village, damaging an area of ​​50 dunums. He pointed out that this is not the first time the settlers pump industrial waste or wastewater through pipes installed in the region, which led to damaging the lands and the crops. more

Today, 26th June. The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the President of Russia Vladimir Putin in Bethlehem today for a historical visit to the Palestinian territories. A Russian broadcast has reported that the President of the Palestinian Authority Abbas said in an interview that Netanyahu hasn't responded to the pre-conditions to resume negotiations, and that Israeli settlements are on the top of the list of such pre-conditions. President Abbas told Russian news agency Interfax that the freezing of the political situation is due to Israeli settlement activities that Netanyahu has refused to cease. He also said that Netanyahu is considering Putin's invitation to meet Abbas for "public relations" but this has been totally refused by the Palestinian leadership. Abbas has once again called for the freeze of settlements if Israel is serious about the peace process. President Abbas welcomed Putin, who arrived in Bethlehem at 10 am this morning. The two Presiden...

A group of armed extremist Israeli settlers occupied at gunpoint privately-owned Palestinian farmland that belongs to a resident of Al-Khader city, south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem. File - Settlers Hurl Stones At Palestinian - Wattan.tv Coordinator of the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in Al-Khader, Ahmad Salah, stated that a settler, known as Hanania, and several armed settlers who accompanied him, occupied 6 Dunams of farmland west of Al-Khader. The land, located in Ein Al-Qassis area, belongs to resident Mohammad Mustafa Ghneim. Salah stated that when Ghneim went to his land on Saturday morning, he found “Hanania” in his land preventing him from entering it, and told him that “this land is now his own property”, and threatened to shoot Ghneim should he return to the land. Hanania even ploughed the land and was preparing to plant it. more

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The mayor of Bethlehem on Tuesday urged Israel not to humiliate hundreds of tourists invited to a week-long tour of Palestine. Some 25 Palestinian organizations have invited internationals to visit Palestine from April 15 - 21 and Mayor Victor Batarseh urged Israel to let them enter and not to humiliate them, at a news conference in Bethlehem. "We demand our international friends have access to Bethlehem," the mayor said. "It is our right to welcome visitors." Israel's public security minister, Yitzhak Aharonovitch, said Tuesday that guests of the Welcome to Palestine initiative would be detained and deported, the Israeli news site Ynet reported. "If they arrive in Israel they will be identified, removed from the plane, their entry into Israel will be prevented and they will be moved to a detention facility until they are flown out of Israel," Aharonovitch said. more

PNN - Bethlehem – Najib Farraj - The Israeli forces arrested 9 foreign activists including 4 Israeli peace activists, in the process of suppressing of a demonstration in al-Walaja village to the north west of Bethlehem. Tens of Palestinian activists and foreigners had organized an unexpected demonstration that started in the early hours of the morning. It went from the village towards the apartheid wall, where Israeli bulldozers have been working for several months to build the wall and isolate thousands of acres from the village; to take over and later build huge settlement projects on. The activists sat in front of these bulldozers to stop them from working, which went on for over 2 hours. Then reinforcement came, from policemen to soldiers to border guards, all armed with guns and sticks. They attacked the protesters and beat them up with the sticks and the bottom sides of their guns, which led to injuring 3 protesters at least, who had to be treated on field. The situation then esc...

Attacks across the West Bank by Israeli troops on non-violent demonstrations at Al Ma'sara , Bi'lin and Nabi Saleh (story below). Israeli troops attacked on Friday the weekly nonviolent protest against settlements and the Annexation Wall in Nabi Saleh village, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Several residents were kidnapped by the army, and several others were wounded. Army also kidnapped several residents. The army was extensively deployed in the village and the orchards Israel intends to annex for illegal construction of settlements and the Wall in the area. The protestors chanted slogans rejecting the illegal policies of the Israeli occupation, and in support to the Palestinian detainees held by Israel, demanding their freedom. Soldiers and members of the so-called Border Guard Units closed all roads leading to the village and declared it a “closed military zone” before firing gas bombs and concussion grenades at random. more