THE Chair of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with Palestine Martina Anderson has called for East Jerusalem to be placed under immediate international protection after a series of violent clashes have left several dead and tensions heightened to an extreme level.
Anderson said: ‘Every day we read with horror about another violation of Palestinian fundamental rights, another violent clash on a holy site or increasingly, another fatality in the region.’ Three young Palestinians were killed over last weekend alone; the youngest was 13-year-old Abed al-Rahman Obeidallah from Bethlehem. Meanwhile, over 500 Palestinians have been wounded, almost 200 of them with live fire.
She said, ‘This, in the context of the ongoing illegal occupation of Palestine and the brutal repression, collective punishment and humiliation of the Palestinian civilian population, is simply serving to heighten tensions in an already aggravated environment.’
Anderson also demanded lifting the ban being imposed on Palestinians’ entry to Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound. ‘The ban on Palestinians entering the Old City of Jerusalem and the blanket-restriction of Palestinian Muslims and Christians trying to access their Holy Sites in Jerusalem should be lifted immediately as it is in violation of international law and can only further aggravate the situation.’
People of all faiths must be free to worship unconditionally, she insisted. ‘The downhill path to try and present/convert the issue of occupation into a religious conflict is extremely dangerous and should be stopped at its heels. Israeli religious discrimination coupled with an alarming increase in Israeli settler violence is made worse by the total impunity with which they act. The international community cannot stand idly by as the occupying power and settler militias continue their violent crimes against the Palestinian people.’
Anderson demanded that ‘The international community, and in particular the UN Security Council must act immediately and responsibly to insist on respect for international law without exception. The State of Palestine has repeatedly appealed for international protection and it has reiterated that appeal again today. The international community must act decisively to alleviate the immense suffering of the Palestinian people brought about by the occupying power’ violence and utter disregard for the value of Palestinian lives.’
• Jericho – Two Palestinian youth were shot while dozens others suffocated on Wednesday during clashes with Israeli army forces at the southern entrance of Jericho. Israeli forces stationed at the military checkpoint at the southern entrance of Jericho opened fire on Palestinians who marched to express their solidarity with Al-Aqsa Mosque and denunciation of settlers’ attacks against Palestinians.
Israeli soldiers fired rubber-coated steel bullets at demonstrators, hitting and injuring Rami Abu Qamar and Mohammad Barahma. Forces also fired tear gas canisters at demonstrators, causing dozens of them to suffocate from excessive tear gas inhalation. This came as Palestinians, including school and university students, rallied in support of Al-Aqsa Mosque in central Jericho.
Speaking during the rally, Governor of Jericho Majed al-Fetyani said: ‘Israel, the occupying state, has been striving to push us back into a spiral of violence and chaos, carrying out brutal and provocative practices against us, the Palestinian people.’
• Al Bireh – Three injured Palestinian youth were detained Wednesday by Israeli undercover forces during clashes east of Al-Bireh district. A WAFA correspondent reported that three Palestinian young men were detained by Israeli undercover forces after being injured during clashes at Beit El military checkpoint.
One of the injured detainees reportedly sustained a serious injury being hit with a bullet in the head.
Clashes erupted between Palestinians and Israeli forces near the illegal Israeli settlement of Beit El during which forces fired live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets and tear gas canisters at demonstrators. Dozens of demonstrators suffered excessive tear gas inhalation.
• A Palestinian youth was shot dead by Israeli police on Wednesday for allegedly attempting to stab an Israeli soldier in Kiryat Gat, near Beersheba, sources said. Police claimed the youth tried to stab the soldier and snatched his gun before he managed to flee to a nearby building. Police then chased him and shot him dead. The youth was later identified as 17-year-old Amjad Jundi from the town of Yatta near Hebron.
• The Government of Japan has expressed grave concern over the recent clashes in Jerusalem and the West Bank between Israel and Palestine, which has caused casualties for both sides. In a statement issued on Tuesday by Japan’s Foreign Press Secretary Yasuhisa Kawamuraon over the escalation of Violence in Jerusalem and the West Bank, Japan urged both sides to take necessary measures to prevent further escalation of violence.
Japan stressed: ‘The problems of both parties can never be solved through violence but only through negotiations and efforts to build mutual trust.’ It called on both parties to ‘exercise restraint to ensure that the incidents will not lead to further escalation of violence and urges again to act positively to realise peace’.
• PLO Secretary General Saeb Erekat said on Wednesday that Palestinian leadership will not remain silent in the face of the persisting Israeli escalation in the occupied territories, and will continue to report all Israeli crimes committed against Palestinians to the International Criminal Court. Erekat’s statement came after Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced a series of punitive measures aimed at ‘deterring’ Palestinians from carrying out attacks against Israelis, including demolition of the family homes of Palestinians suspected with being involved in attacks against Israelis.
Erekat slammed Netanyahu’s decision as a collective punishment of the Palestinian civilian population, a breach of Israel’s obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention, and a war crime under international law. Netanyahu’s announcement is a reminder to the international community of the urgent need for international intervention to protect the occupied Palestinian people from relentless attack by the Israeli military forces and terrorist settlers,’ Erekat said.
‘Concurrent with this Israeli escalation, Netanyahu insists on consolidating Israel’s racist oppressive policies across occupied Palestine, and particularly in and around occupied East Jerusalem, through further demolitions, expropriation, and murder,’ stated Erekat. He stressed that Netanyahu and his right-wing extremist government ‘cannot and will not break the will of our people to fulfil our inalienable rights in an independent State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital.
‘The Palestinian leadership will not remain silent. We continue to report all Israeli crimes committed against our people to the International Criminal Court, and to call upon world leaders to take immediate action to prevent such crimes.’
