[This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on Palestine and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the Palestine Page co-editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each roundup to Palestine@jadaliyya.com.]
The Occupation Forces
18 Palestinians Injured in Gaza Protests At least eighteen Palestinians were injured by Israeli forces' live fire during the thirty-sixth Friday of "The Great March of Return" protests alongside the eastern borders of the besieged Gaza Strip. Israeli forces fired live bullets and tear-gas bombs to suppress protesters, while youths set fire to tires in the Malaka area in eastern Gaza City in the central Gaza Strip, and Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.
9 Palestinians Injured As Israel Suppresses 18th Naval March At least nine Palestinians were injured with Israeli live ammunition and rubber-coated steel bullets, while dozens of others suffered from tear-gas inhalation, on Monday, as Israeli forces suppressed the seventeenth naval march setting off from the Gaza seaport in an attempt to break the nearly twelve-year Israeli siege.
IOF Begin Operation Northern Shield Under the Pretext of Destroying Hezbollah Tunnels The IOF began its military “Northern Shield” operation on Tuesday morning which they claim is to combat Hizballah tunnels in the north of Israel. IOF states in their propaganda video released today that Hizballah has spent years building “cross-attack” tunnels between Lebanon and Israel. It also accused the Lebanon government for failing to bring the militant movement under control.
Operation Northern Shield to Continue For Weeks, Says IDF Israel’s “Operation Northern Shield” to search for tunnels dug by Hizballah on the border of Lebanon will last for weeks, a spokesperson for the Israeli Defense Forces announced yesterday. “We have to be ready for any scenario to neutralize the offensive tunnels, some of which will not be on our land,” said Brigadier General Ronen Manelis.
Israeli Forces Kill Palestinian, 22, in Tulkarem Raid Israeli forces have killed a young Palestinian man during a predawn raid in Tulkarem in the occupied West Bank. Mohammed Hossam Abdel Latif Habali, twenty-two, was shot in the head and lower limbs with live ammunition early on Tuesday, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported. He was rushed to Thabet Thabet Hospital in Tulkarem, where he was pronounced dead.
Domestic Policy
Israel Issues Military Order Against Khan al-Ahmar Israeli authorities issued a military order, on Monday, to extend the period of the closure of roads, leading to the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, east of Jerusalem district in the central occupied West Bank. According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Committee, the Israeli military order seeks to seize Palestinian-owned lands for military purposes. The closure will continue until 15 January 2019.
Israel Backs Out from Decision to Recognize Degrees From Al-Quds UniversityAfter the initial hope that degrees from the al-Quds University, located in Abu Dis, East Jerusalem would be officially recognized by the Israeli government, the latter’s Ministry of Labor and Welfare Services has revoked its decision. This retracting decision comes within the pretext that the Palestinian Authority-controlled college named after Jerusalem, allegedly supports terrorism against the state of Israel.
Palestinians Mark 40th International Solidarity Day The day, which the General Assembly has marked since 1978, falls on November 29, the same day that the United Nations adopted Resolution 181, the Partition Plan for Palestine, in 1947. In a statement, Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestinian National Council, said the "suffering, dispossession, displacement and victimization of the Palestinian people began when the state of Israel was established on the land of historical Palestine." "Solidarity is not just an abstract expression of empathy," she said. "Rather, it is an active, positive and concrete engagement."
Foreign Policy
Japan Funds Project to Enhance Water Quality in West Bank Town The Grant Contract for Grassroots Human Security Projects was signed, on Thursday, by Takeshi Okubo, Ambassador for the Palestinian Affairs and Representative of Japan to Palestine, and al-Eizariya Municipality at the Representative Office of Japan to Palestine, in the central occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, for a total amount of 88,937 dollars. According to a statement by the Japan Representative Office, al-Eizariya Municipality will use a fund for rehabilitation of the main water network in the town to improve tap water supply and to enhance the water quantity and quality for two hundred fifty households as direct beneficiaries.
Erekat Praises Canada's Commitment to Not Transfer Its Embassy Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization's Executive Committee, Saeb Erekat, met with Canadian ambassadors, on Monday, and called on the Canadian government not to regard the independence of the State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital on the 1967 borders and the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination as a "threat" to it. Erekat further praised a letter in which Canada affirmed its commitment to not transfer its embassy from Tel Aviv to East Jerusalem.
PLO Welcomes Saudi Contribution to UNRWA Projects in Gaza, West Bank and Jordan The Palestine Liberation Organization’s head of its refugee department, Ahmad Abu Holy, welcomed on Saturday Saudi Arabia’s contribution of sixty-three million dollars for projects to be implemented by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, and Jordan.
Turkey's Red Crescent Sends Gaza 8.5 Tons of Medicine, Medical Supplies The Ministry of Health sent on Monday from its warehouses in the West Bank city of Nablus eight and a half tons of medical aid donated by the Turkish Red Crescent to its warehouses in the besieged Gaza Strip, announced Health Minister Jawad Awwad.
Germany Allocates 55 Million Euros to Palestinian Development Projects Germany allocated fifty-five million euros to be dispersed to Palestinian development projects in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2019, Klaus Kramer, Head of Division in the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, said on Tuesday. He also said that Germany is going to get more active this year in the Gaza Strip, which is going to get forty percent of the total allocations, due to its severe humanitarian situation.
Uruguay Affirms Support for Palestinians Rights Uruguay’s Vice-President, Lucia Topolansky has affirmed her country’s support for the Palestinian people’s rights and the importance of cooperation in various fields. Topolansky made the remarks during a meeting with Palestinian Ambassador, Walid Abdel Rahim.
US Congresswoman to Visit West Bank Instead of Traditional Trip to Israel First Palestinian-American Congresswoman in the United States, Rashida Tlaib, announced that she will be leading the delegation group to visit the West Bank rather than the traditional trip to Israel. Under usual circumstances, newly elected delegate members go on a trip to Israel, under the guidance of American Israeli Political Action Committee to better understand the Middle Eastern political context and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Settlers and Illegal Settlements
Palestinians Succeed in Halting Demolition of Tahaddi 5 School The Wall and Settlement Resistance Committee on Monday has succeeded in taking a decision from the Israeli Civil Administration and the Custodian of Absentees’ Property and Infrastructure to approve the plans of Tahdi fifth School in the Beit Ta’mar area east of Bethlehem.
Israel Demolishes 5 Palestinian Buildings Israeli bulldozers demolished five Palestinian-owned commercial buildings in the Haris village, west of the northern occupied West Bank district of Salfit today. Local resident, Muhammad Suleiman, told Ma’an that Israeli bulldozers demolished five commercial buildings, a laundry place, carpentry workshop, blacksmith workshop, aluminium workshop, and greenhouses, under the pretext that the structure was built in “Area C” without the near impossible to obtain Israeli permit.
Israel Allocates $187m in Support For Settlements Near Gaza The Israeli government has allocated seven hundred million shekels in support of Israeli Jewish settlers in the illegal settlements near the Gaza Strip, local media reported yesterday. The Times of Israel reported Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that this allocation was meant for economic programs that “strengthen the resilience” of the settlers.
Knesset Speaker Tells Settlers Israel Must Annex the West Bank Knesset speaker Yuli Edelstein declared on Sunday that Israel should annex the occupied West Bank, speaking to the annual conference of Beit El settlement yeshiva in Manhattan. Edelstein stated that “Above all, we need to extend Israeli sovereignty to Judea and Samaria [the West Bank].” He also pointed to the Likud-led government as having done “so much” to complete this project.
Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions Movement
Arab League Calls on UN to Unveil pro-Israeli Settlement Firms An Arab League official on Tuesday called on the United Nations to release a list of firms which cooperate with the Israeli settlement in the occupied Arab territories, Egyptian media reported. Abu Ali, according to MENA, said that the international Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement has expanded its activities in support of the Arab boycott of Israel.
Draconian anti-BDS Law May be Slipped into Congress Spending Bill Democratic Senator Ben Cardin is “making a behind-the-scenes push to slip an anti-boycott law into a last-minute spending bill,” reported the Intercept citing “sources familiar with the negotiations.” The “Israel Anti-Boycott Act” was originally shelved after opposition from civil liberties groups who argued that the legislation would allow “criminal penalties for Americans who participate in a political boycott of Israel.”
BDS Hails South Africa ANC’s Agreement with Hamas The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement has hailed the decision of South Africa’s African National Congress Parliamentary Caucus to sign an agreement with Hamas. BDS welcomed the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the two parties, calling it “a success for Palestine solidarity.” The MoU seeks to “introduce practical steps in mobilizing the international community to pressure Israel to end its occupation of Palestine, including working towards the full boycott of all Israeli products,” AfroPal Forum reported.
CNN Fires Marc Lamont Hill in Wake of Remarks Criticizing Israel And Calling For a ‘free Palestine’ CNN fired Marc Lamont Hill on Thursday after the longtime contributor made comments about Israel during a UN speech. Hill, a media studies professor at Temple University, had drawn scrutiny for calling for a “free Palestine from the river to the sea.” The words drew criticism from some conservatives and staunch Israel advocates, who said such remarks echoed language used by Hamas and other groups that seek to eliminate Israel. Hill has since been pushing back at their criticisms.
Law
In Photos: Israel Releases Two 15-year-old Palestinian Boys After Three Years of Prison Two fifteen-year-old Palestinian boys, Shadi Farrah and Ahmad al-Zaatari, were released on Thursday after almost three years of imprisonment by Israeli authorities in different juvenile detention centers. The two Jerusalemite minors were arrested at a bus stop in the city of Jerusalem in December 2015 and were later accused of “possessing sharp tools and endangering public security,” a claim that the families deny to this day.
Environment, Economy, and Other
WHO: 'Israel approved only 15% of medical permits for injured Gazans' The approval rate in October for injured Palestinians during protests near the Gaza border fence with Israel to exit Gaza through Erez (Beit Hanoun) crossing to access medical care in Jerusalem, the West Bank, or Israeli hospitals was significantly lower. The World Health Organization said in its monthly report on Health Access that only eight of fifty-two applications for Palestinians to receive medical treatment outside Gaza. There were 3,285 permit applications to Israeli authorities to cross Erez to accompany patients, which include parents or other companions applying to accompany children.