Almost one week after dozens of extremist Israeli settlers raided and occupied a Palestinian home in the southern occupied West Bank city of Hebron, an Israeli settler declared on Monday that he and his family will be officially moving into the home, despite an ongoing legal battle between the Palestinian homeowners and Israelis. The Israeli settler who made the declaration, according to Hebrew media, was Yossi Dagan, a leader of the Homesh First organization -- an umbrella organization of right-wing settler groups whose goal is to rebuild Homesh settlement, which was destroyed and evacuated by the Israeli government in 2005. Hebrew media reported on Monday that Dagan accused the Israeli government of “stalling” on legal procedures, and called on Israeli leaders to “stop this injustice” and to move the ownership of the home -- which belongs to the Palestinian Abu Rajab family -- to Dagan and the settlers of Hebron. Residents of the Abu Rajab house, located in the Old City of Hebron ...

A Palestinian youth was killed by Israeli border police forces on Thursday morning in the northern occupied West Bank after he allegedly attempted to carry out a stabbing attack. Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri said in a statement that an 18-year-old Palestinian attempted to stab an Israeli border police officer at the Zaatara junction south of the city of Nablus, prompting Israeli forces to shoot at him, killing him instantly. Al-Samri made no mention of any Israelis being injured. Locals identified the slain Palestinian as Jihad Hussein Harb, 19, from Qalqiliya. They added that large numbers of Israeli troops had arrived at the scene following the shooting, and that Israeli forces had closed the Zaatara intersection -- also known as the Tappuah checkpoint -- in both directions. more

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

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man and injured five others in the village of Surif north of Hebron overnight Tuesday, after Israeli soldiers bombarded and destroyed a house he was fortified in, with the Israeli army saying the man was responsible for a deadly drive-by shooting on July 1. Spokesperson for the Israeli army Avichay Adraee said in a statement in Arabic that Israeli troops exchanged fire with Muhammad Faqih after surrounding the house. The Israeli soldiers, he said, fired several anti-tank missiles at the house after the “terrorist” started to return fire. A bulldozer from the Israeli army’s engineering corps then demolished the house before Faqih was killed. It remained unclear by what means Israeli forces ultimately killed Faqih. Eyewitnesses told Ma’an they saw the body of Faqih in the bucket of an Israeli army bulldozer that pulled him out of the rubble. The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported that five Palestinians were shot with rubber-coated bullets duri...

A group of Israelis have reportedly begun setting up an illegal settlement outpost in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, locals told Ma’an on Sunday. Hebron-area local Abd al-Karim al-Zaatari told Ma’an that settlers brought caravans and tents in the area near the villages of Khallat al-Dabi and al-Buera, close to the settlement of Kharsina, earlier this month, not long after a Palestinian teenager stabbed and killed a 13-year-old Israeli girl in the illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba, before being killed himself by a security guard. Al-Zaatari added that the Israeli settlers installed a sign reading “we returned to our home” outside of the outpost. The new outpost may be in the same location as a previously illegal outpost which was evacuated by Israeli forces in 2012. Israel's Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the agency responsible for implementing Israeli policies in the occupied Palestinian territory, responded to a request f...

/ Israeli forces detained six Palestinians from the Hebron district in the southern occupied West Bank in predawn raids Sunday, as Israeli forces continued to impose strict security measures at the entrances to Hebron and its surrounding villages. Local sources told Ma'an that Israeli forces raided the towns of Beit Awwa and al-Samu near Hebron city where they searched the homes of residents, and maintained closures to entrances of several other surrounding villages using gates and dirt berms, in addition to erecting several flying checkpoints used to check ID cards of passing Palestinian residents. Israeli forces raided the Beit Awwa village west of Hebron where they detained Amal Khadir Masalmah, Muhammad Sabri Maluh Masalmah, and Mutasim Faruq Masalmah. The al-Samu municipality confirmed that Israeli forces raided the town and detained Muhammad Hamid Rawashdah, Muhammad Issa al-Daghamin, and Iyad Musa Salamah al-Daghamin from their homes. The municipality added that the sout...

The Israeli military continued its siege on the southern West Bank district of Hebron, and invasions of homes, for the twelfth consecutive day, and kidnapped at least six Palestinians, in addition to occupying rooftops and confiscating surveillance tapes. The Hebron office of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) has reported that the soldiers invaded Doura town, southeast of Hebron, before breaking into dozens of homes and searching them, and kidnapped six Palestinians. It said the kidnapped are Khaled Ahmad al-Faqeeh, his wife Taghreed Jabara, his son Mohammad, and his brother Mohammad, in addition to Amir Abdul-Hameed Mitleq, 22. The army also invaded Shiokh town, northeast of Hebron, searched homes and kidnapped one Palestinian, identified as Hamza Rajab Halayqa. The soldiers also fired gas bombs, rubber-coated steel bullets, and concussion grenades during ensuing clashes. more

Israeli forces Friday shot dead a Palestinian woman who allegedly attempted to carry out a stabbing attack near the Ibrahimi Mosque in the Old City of the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, according to Israeli sources -- the third attack to result in a Palestinian being killed in less than two days. Israeli police spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld told Ma'an that the Palestinian woman was shot by border police after revealing a knife at a security checkpoint and attempting to stab the officers. Her condition was initially reported as "critical." It was later reported by Rosenfeld that the Palestinian woman had been killed at the scene. No Israelis were injured during the incident. Israeli media identified the slain Palestinian woman as 27-year-old Sara Hajaj from the village of Bani Naim in Hebron, the same village where a 17-year-old Palestinian boy originated from who carried out a deadly stab attack in the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement just a day before, r...

A Palestinian teenager was killed on Thursday morning in an Israeli settlement in the southern occupied West Bank after carrying out an attack against a 13-year-old Israeli girl who later succumbed to her wounds, as one other Israeli was wounded in the case. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that a “terrorist infiltrated” the illegal Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arba on the outskirts of the city of Hebron, where he attacked an Israeli teenage girl, who was later identified by the Israeli Prime Minister's office as 13-year-old Hallel Yafa Ariel, in her bedroom. The spokesperson said that the Palestinian was then shot and killed, and that "two civilians" had been wounded and evacuated to the hospital. She added that the Israeli army was looking into the case. The Palestinian Ministry of Health later identified the killed Palestinian as 17-year-old Muhammad Nasser Tarayra, from the village of Bani Naim. Shaare Zedek hospital spokeswoman Shoham Ruvio told Ma'an t...

After footage released by human rights organization B’Tselem sparked outrage over the execution-style killing of a Palestinian by an Israeli soldier in March, witnesses said that a second Palestinian killed in the case was also shot in the head, the Israeli NGO revealed on Monday. In a statement, B’Tselem said it had spoken with two witnesses from the Tel Rumeida area of the southern occupied West Bank city of Hebron, where Abd al-Fattah al-Sharif, 21, and Ramzi Aziz al-Qasrawi, 21, were shot and killed after the two allegedly stabbed and moderately wounded an Israeli soldier at a military checkpoint on March 24. A graphic video released by B’Tselem captured the moment when Israeli soldier Elor Azarya shot al-Sharif, who was lying wounded on the ground, in the head, killing him. The footage of al-Sharif’s death was met with wide condemnation from rights groups and international bodies, with the UN demanding an investigation into the soldier's apparent "extrajudicial executi...

A group of right-wing Israeli settlers broke into an uninhabited Palestinian house in the southern occupied West Bank city of Hebron on Tuesday and stole wooden furniture, presumably to be burned during bonfire celebrations for the Jewish holiday of Lag BaOmer. A spokesperson for Hebron-based activist group Youth Against Settlement, Issa Amro, told Ma’an that the houses belonged to the the Al-Sayyid Ahmad and Tahboub families, who have been banned from accessing their homes in Hebron’s Old City since Israeli forces sealed the area around al-Shuhada Street in 1994. The holiday of Lag BaOmer, which will take place on Wednesday evening, commemorates the death of second-century Jewish mystic Simeon bar Yochai, and is traditionally celebrated with bonfires It is not uncommon for young Israelis celebrating Lag BaOmer to steal wood from construction sites and other locations ahead of the holiday. Local Palestinian house and shop owners in Hebron’s Old City have been banned from acc...

Israeli authorities delivered four demolition notices on Wednesday ordering several Palestinians to remove water tanks being used for irrigation in the northern and eastern areas of the town of Beit Ummar in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, locals said. The water tanks are used to irrigate lands in the areas of Beir Zaata, al-Furdeis and Thaghret al-Shabak, with an overall area of more than 30 dunams (7.4 acres) dependent on the tanks for irrigation, according to Muhammad Awad, a spokesperson for a local popular committee. The tanks were set up earlier in 2016 under a UN-funded water development program, Awad said. After Israeli authorities deliver a demolition order, the owners of the properties have seven days to remove the structures. If not, Israeli forces demolish the structures at the financial expense of the owners of the property. Awad told Ma’an that the tanks belonged to Wahdi Hamdi Zamel Abu Maria, Jamil Muhammad Amer Abu Maria, Ghassan Muhammad Abed a...

A UN official on Friday condemned in the strongest terms the brutal "extrajudicial execution" of a wounded Palestinian by an Israeli soldier that was captured on camera in Hebron the day before. Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov said he strongly condemned the apparent "extrajudicial execution" of the Palestinian, who was shot in the head at point-blank range despite having already been shot to the ground, where he lay wounded for several minutes, after allegedly stabbing an Israeli soldier. "This was a gruesome, immoral, and unjust act that can only fuel more violence and escalate an already volatile situation," Mladenov said. He welcomed the condemnation of the execution by Israel’s Minister of Defense, Moshe Yaalon, and called on the Israeli authorities to "swiftly bring to justice" the Israeli soldier responsible. The UN official went on: "It is time to stop the negative spiral of violence and t...

Two Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces Thursday morning after allegedly stabbing and injuring an Israeli soldier in the Tel Rumeida area of Hebron's Old City, an Israeli army spokesperson said. The two assailants reportedly stabbed a soldier near a military checkpoint and “forces responded and shot the attackers,” the spokesperson said. Israeli emergency medical services said the soldier, who was about 20 years old, was evacuated for treatment and in moderate condition. The Palestinian Ministry of Health identified the two Palestinian youths as Ramzi Aziz al-Qasrawi, 21, and Abed al-Fattah Yusri al-Sharif, 21. A witness told Ma'an: "I heard gunshots, went outside my house to check what it was, and saw several Israeli soldiers yelling and two youths on the ground. A soldier approached one of the youths that was moving while yelling and opened fire at him from zero range." A video broadcast by Israeli media show the two Palestinians lying on the ground afte...

Three Palestinians were shot dead by Israeli troops on Monday morning after they allegedly carried out two consecutive attacks near an illegal Israeli settlement in the southern occupied West Bank in which four Israeli soldiers were injured. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that Israeli forces shot and killed two Palestinians after they opened fire at Israelis waiting at a bus stop near the settlement of Kiryat Arba on the outskirts of Hebron. Witnesses said two Palestinians in a Peugeot 504 pick-up truck tried to shoot at Israelis at the bus station and that Israeli troops fired back at them, killing them immediately. Shortly afterwards, she added, a car ran into a military vehicle in a “ram attack,” and Israeli soldiers shot and killed the driver. The Israeli army said one soldier was wounded in the shooting attack, while two soldiers and an officer were wounded in the second altercation. She said they were evacuated to a hospital and were believed to be in moderate condit...

Preparations were underway in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron Saturday morning for the burial of 17 bodies of Palestinians returned by Israeli authorities the night before. Relatives and friends of the Palestinians whose bodies were returned gathered in the early hours of morning at Hebron's al-Ahli hospital in order to retrieve bodies from the morgue and bring them home in preparation for the funeral. Hebron District Attorney Alaa Tamimi told Ma’an that since the bodies were transferred Friday evening, forensic doctors had examined the bodies in the presence of Hebron's District Attorney and the Palestinian Attorney-General Abd al-Ghani Uweiwi. Tamimi said that the autopsies showed that all 17 had been “executed” without being given any medical treatment after being shot. Amid accusations that Israel has harvested organs from the bodies of Palestinians shot while suspected of carrying out attacks on Israelis, Tamimi said: “Autopsies showed that the Israeli occupation...

Israeli forces on Sunday shot a Palestinian near an Israeli military checkpoint at the entrance of al-Shuhada street in Hebron’s Old City after she attempted to carry out a stabbing attack. Witnesses told Ma'an that a 35-year-old woman from a Hebron-area village attempted to stab a soldier before she was shot in the head with a rubber-coated steel bullet. According to witnesses, a young Palestinian man approached the woman and attempted to help her but was prevented when he was also shot by a rubber-coated steel bullet.vvvv Palestinian Red Crescent paramedics then gave the woman medical treatment on site before she was taken into custody by Israeli soldiers, witnesses added. Israeli media reported that the woman was in moderate to serious condition after being shot. An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed the incident but told Ma’an they were still investigating details of the attempted attack. more

Israeli forces deployed across Hebron’s Old City Wednesday after a Palestinian reportedly opened fire at an Israeli vehicle, locals told Ma’an. A Palestinian sniper opened fire at the vehicle of an Israeli settler parked near the Ibrahimi Mosque, causing damage to the car, according to Israeli media reports. No injuries were reported. Locals told a Ma’an reporter in the area that Israeli forces were deployed in search of the suspect. Israeli forces fired tear gas when clashes erupted between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian students en route to school at the time, locals said. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that the army received reports of gunshots in an area nearby Hebron, shortly before an Israeli reported damage to his vehicle outside of the Ibrahimi Mosque, adding that bullets were found inside the car. more

Undercover Israeli forces on Thursday shot dead a Palestinian during a hospital raid in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron, witnesses and hospital staff said. Abdullah Azzam Shalaldah, 28, was shot several times by forces who raided the surgery unit of al-Ahli hospital in order to detain his cousin, Azzam Ezzat Shalaldah, 20, who was shot by an Israeli settler last month, hospital staff told Ma’an. Abdullah and another relative were in the hospital visiting Azzam when around 20 undercover Israeli soldiers entered the hospital at 3:00 a.m., witnesses said. The forces tied up the relative while Abdullah, who was in the bathroom at the time, entered the room and was shot dead on scene. The undercover forces then retreated from the hospital with Azzam, taking him into custody, witnesses added. An Israeli army spokesperson was unable to comment on the presence of undercover forces during the raid, while Israeli media reported that the forces arrived in two large vans with someone pr...

Israeli forces on Saturday denied Palestinian entry to the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron’s Old City and stormed Palestinian homes as Jewish worshippers entered the area, locals said. Local sources told Ma’an that Jewish worshipers continued entrance to the occupied West Bank city for a Jewish holiday for the second day in a row. Over 4,000 Jewish worshipers reportedly visited the city Friday night, accompanied by a heavy Israeli military presence in the area, when two Israelis were shot and injured near the mosque. The assailant reportedly fled the scene and Israeli forces searched the area following the attack. Israeli news sites reported that Israeli soldiers deployed on the rooftops of Palestinian houses overlooking the holy site in order to protect Jewish worshipers in the area Saturday morning. Eyewitnesses also told Ma’an that an Israeli soldier was shot by friendly fire in the al-Ras area east of the Ibrahimi Mosque. Resident of the area, Jamal Abu Iseifan, told Ma’an that he ...