Israeli forces filmed abducting child

A video which shows Israeli soldiers kidnapping a Palestinian child has emerged.

The footage which was shot by a security camera shows Israeli troops and what are believed to be undercover police abducting the boy as he was out playing football and pushing him into the back of a car.

The incident took place in the Ras Al Amoud neighbourhood in East Jerusalem. The boy, who has been identified as 13 year-old Islam Jaber, was brought to a nearby detention facility where he was blindfolded and interrogated. The teenager also claims he was physically abused and beaten.

The family of the boy have said that they intend to bring criminal charges against the officers. According to the Palestinian government, an estimated 750 children (person under the age of 18) are kidnapped in Jerusalem and the West Bank by Israeli forces annually.

10 killed as situation in Palestine worsens

 
Nine Palestinians and an Israeli have been killed over the course of the last 48 hours.

Following the deaths of two Palestinians in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza last week, Hamas authorised a retaliatory rocket barrage of three military bases along the border, injuring an Israeli soldier. The next day, March 19th ,two Palestinian teenagers were shot dead  by Israeli soldiers. Both teenagers were unarmed when they were shot.

On Monday Israel carried out a sustained series of airstrikes and incursions which so far have killed 9 people, including at least 2 children, and wounded 18. According to initial reports, a grandfather and his two grandsons were killed while out playing football after an Israeli tank opened fire on them. Israeli airstrikes also targeted Hamas security compounds and police training schools.

Today, in what appears to be response to the attacks, a bomb exploded at a bus stop in central Jerusalem killing one person and wounding around 30 others. While not claiming responsibility for the attack, militant group Islamic Jihad called for Palestinians to make efforts to "respond to the crimes against our people".

Hamas responds to Israeli airstrikes

The military wing of Hamas, along with other groups, have fired over 50 rockets and mortars into Israel in response to the killing fo two of it's members earlier in the week by an Israeli airstrike.

The Ezzedeen Al Qassam Brigades said that it's units carried out most of the attacks and that they were directed against four Israeli military bases located on the border. In a statement the group said it's forces fired at least 33 shells in co-ordinated attacks along the Israeli-Gaza border. According to Israeli sources, two soldiers were wounded by shrapnel.

Hamas said that the attacks were a direct response to recent Israeli airstrikes which killed two of their members.

Hamas rarely carries out such attacks although other groups such as Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) continue to fire rockets into Israel.

Unarmed militants killed in Gaza airstrike

Two unarmed members of Hamas's military wing have been killed and two others wounded in an Israeli airstrike on a security forces training facility in central Gaza.

Israel said the attack was in response to a rocket and mortar which were fired into Israel by militants earlier in the day. Neither of the militant attacks caused any injuries or damage.

Hamas has ceased carrying out rocket attacks on Israel and it's security forces have clamped down on other groups which are continuing such activities. Groups like Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine have carried out rocket and mortar attacks on Israel in recent months.

Hamas has confirmed that the two dead men, aged 25 and 27, were active members of the groups military wing and had been involved in succesful attacks on Israeli military forces.

Israel target Palestinian Militants

The Israeli Air Force has launched a missile attack against a unit of Palestinian fighters in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza.

It is understood that a number of rockets were fired at the group who managed to escape uninjured. Hamas fighters have ceased firing rockets into Israel however, smaller groups such as Islamic-Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine continue to carry out rocket and mortar attacks.

Israel claims it only fires into Gaza in response to attacks on it's territory.

Three rockets fired into Israel

At least three rockets have been fired into southern Israel, the Israeli Military claims.

Nobody was injured in the attack which is being blamed on rogue Palestinian Militant groups which are not alligned to either Hamas or Fatah. In recent weeks the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and Islamic Jihad have both carried out rocket attacks. Hamas has called for these attacks to cease.

It is believed that the rocket attacks were a response to a bombing raid by Israel last night. Nobody was injured in the airstrikes.

Israeli Army kills female protester

A female demonstrator has died in hospital following clashes with the Israeli Army in Bil'in during a protest against the building of a separation wall.

The woman, named as 36 year-old Jawahir Abu Ramah, died in hospital after inhaling tear gas which was fired by Israeli troops during the protest. Locals claimed that the demonstration was non-violent and Israeli forces fired tear gas without provocation.

A local spokesperson for the PFLP claimed that the tear gas which was used by Israeli troops has been banned in several European countries.

Around 1,000 people took part in the protest yesterday. Israeli soldiers attempted to disperse the crowd with tear-gas. One Palestinian youth was shot in the face with a gas canister and required medical treatment. Protests against the separation wall occur almost weekly in Bil'in. The wall was declared illegal in 2004 by the International Court of Justice.

PFLP shells Israeli Army posts

The military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) has claimed responsibility for shelling two Israeli Army posts close to the Gaza border.

Fighters from the Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades fired four mortar shells at Israeli military installations located at Sofa and Kisufim. A spokesperson for the Israeli military said there were no injuries in the attacks and also confirmed that a shell landed in the Sdot Negev regional council.

The PFLP's military wing added that it would continue to confront Israeli oppression.

Islamic Jihad call temporary ceasefire in Gaza

Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad has said that it's forces will cease all rocket attacks on Israel.

Small militant groups based in Gaza frequently fire rockets into Israel. The military wing of the ruling Hamas party has attempted to stop such attacks over the last number of months however smaller organisations such as the Popular Resistance Committee's and Islamic Jihad have continued.

In a statement, Islamic Jihad leader Dawood Shihab said that: "We agreed to halt one of the means of armed resistance, which is firing rockets at Israel, to avoid the Israeli threats, but the armed resistance will keep active in other means such as confronting raids and incursions."

Shihab also insisted that the ceasefire was only "temporary" and was in response to the current conditions on the ground.

UN to be asked to condemn Israeli settlements

The Palestinian Authority will ask the United Nations Security Council to reaffirm it's position on illegal Israeli settlements in the coming days.

The bill will call on the UN to condemn the settlements and demand that construction on new homes in these areas cease. Under UN law, settlements built on Palestinian land by the Israeli government are illegal. Many of the settlements are built by evicting Palestinian families from their land and replacing them with large apartment blocks which are fortified with heavy defences and security cordons. This process of building illegal settlements in occupied territory has continued despite it being considered illegal by the UN and being recognised as a major issue in negotiating a lasting peace. The continued settlement expansion onto Palestinian land is also used to justify continuing rocket attacks on Israel by small militant groups.

The US Secretary of State has already confirmed that it will oppose the bill when it is brought before the Security Council despite agreeing that Israeli settlement is seen as "corrosive". Meanwhile a spokesperson for the Israeli Foreign Ministry claimed that this resolution was akin to "renouncing peace altogether".

A spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority said that "settlements are the major obstacles before a peace deal".

PRC member killed by Israeli tanks

A member of the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) has been killed by Israeli troops in southern Gaza. Five civilians were also wounded.

Israeli Army spokespersons said that a group of individuals who were approaching the border were fired on by an Israeli tank unit. The spokesman claimed that the individuals were attempting to carry out a bomb attack along the border.

A spokesperson for the Gaza Ministry for Health identified the dead man as 22 year-old Hassan Abu Rook.

The PRC militant group has confirmed that Mr. Rook was a member of their organisation and said he was taking part in a "Special Operation" when he was killed.

Hamas ready to "strike back" with deadly new weapons

A commander of Hamas' military wing has said that his organisation is ready to strike back against Israel if incursions into the Gaza Strip continue.

Speaking to reporters, Al-Qassam Brigades Commander Abu Obeideh said:

"There is a truce in effect in the field. It is real if Israel stops its aggression and ends its siege. But if there is any Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip we will respond strongly. We are completely ready to answer any Israeli aggression. Our weapons are few compared to those of the Israeli occupation, but we have something that will worry the occupation.

We are now stronger than before and during the war, and our silence over the past two years was only for evaluating the situation,We won’t face the current attempts of the enemy to escalate the situation with silence. We now have an arsenal of missiles and rockets. We began manufacturing our own arms and we developed our abilities in extremely difficult and complicated conditions, Our resistance will continue as long as the Zionists remain."

Earlier this week, the Al Qassam Brigades hit an Israeli tank, which had entered the Gaza Strip, with a Russian-made Kornet anti-tank missile, it is the first time such a weapon has been used in Palestine.

Israeli troops shoot dead Palestinian shepherd

Israeli troops have shot dead a Palestinian shepherd on the Gaza border today.

The 22 year old man, named locally as Salama Abu Hashish, was shot in the back after entering a "no-go zone". Three other people including a 14 year-old boy were shot and wounded. Israeli troops said the group of people ignored a warning shot which was fired after they entered the restricted area.

A spokesman for a hospital in Gaza said that one of the wounded individuals, believed to be a 17 year-old boy, was in a serious condition. It is understood that the youths were out collecting gravel to sell to the contruction industry.

Robert Serry, the UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process said:

"I am distressed that incidents continue in the perimeter area of Gaza, and deplore the killing of one apparently unarmed Palestinian civilian and the injuring of a number of others by Israeli gunfire,"

"I call for maximum Israeli restraint and protection of civilians. I reiterate my appeal for calm and an end to violence, to bring about the de-escalation that all parties have stressed they wish to see."

"The UN does not want to see any renewed intensification of conflict," 

Five killed in Israeli airstrike

Medics have confirmed that five people have been killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City.

Israel claims that it killed five members of a radical Salafist group who were preparing to fire a rocket across the border. There has been no independent verification of this however.

Local radio stations have claimed the men were members of the Jaljalat resistance group. All are believed to be in their early 20's.

Meanwhile in Halhul. north of Hebron, an Israeli soldier was injured after he was struck in the head with a brick during street disturbances.

Israeli forces launch incursion into southern Gaza

 Israeli forces have crossed into southern Gaza this morning.

Using tanks and armoured bulldozers, Israeli soldiers targeted the village of Al-Qarara.

At least one Rocket was fired by Palestinian fighters at the Israeli unit. It is not clear if there were any injuries.

Israeli jet crashes in Negev desert

An Israeli F-16 fighter jet has come down on the southern Gaza/Israeli border. The Israeli Defence Forces have confirmed that both pilots have been killed.

The jet is believed to have suffered an electronics malfunction.

Israeli officials are investigating the incident.

Israeli soldiers shoot teenager in Gaza

A Palestinian civilian was shot and injured yesterday by an Israeli soldier in northern Gaza.

The 19 year old was shot in the leg by Israeli soldiers as he and other workers collected stone from an abandoned settlement. Cement is banned from entering the Gaza strip, as such, young men are often employed to collect gravel and rubble for use in construction.

The Israeli Military said it fired at two Palestinians who approached the border security fence.

Palestinian man killed in Israeli drone attack

 

A Palestinian man has been killed in an Israeli drone attack in the Gaza strip.

The man was travelling in a car when it was struck by a missile fired from a drone aircraft. The man has been named locally as Mohammed Jamal Al Nimnim, 27, from the Beach refugee camp in west Gaza.

Israeli forces have claimed he was a member of the Army of Islam militant group, this has been denied by Hamas who have said he was a civilian.

PFLP attacks Israeli base

The military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine has claimed that it was responsible for a mortar attack on an Israeli outpost east of Al-Maghazi in central Gaza.

Two 90 millimetre shells were fired at the compund. The PFLP has said that it will continue to carry out attacks against Israeli military targets.

Israeli settlers firebomb Chritsian Church

Israeli settlers have firebombed a Christian church, completely destoying it's ground floor, it has emerged. The attack took place late last night in western Jerusalem.

Hamas has said that it holds the Israeli Defence Forces fully responsible and condemned the attack calling on the Palesinian people to: " ...stand up to such racist practices," 

They also called on :"international organizations to assume their responsibilities and pressure the IOA [Israeli Occupation Authority - Israeli Army] to halt its incessant crimes against the Palestinian people and their Islamic and Christian holy shrines."

Israeli settlers are provided with weapons, including assault rifles, by the Israeli government for self-defence.