[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.]
The Occupation Forces
After Killing of Ahmad Erekat: 83 Organizations Demand Accountability For Israel’s Shoot-to-kill Policy On Monday, 13 July 2020, eighty-three Palestinian, regional, and international civil society organizations from across sixteen countries submitted a joint urgent appeal to the United Nations Special Procedures on the extrajudicial execution and willful killing of Ahmad Mustafa Erekat, twenty-six, by the Israeli Occupying Forces, in cooperation with the Erekat family, urging international justice and accountability for Israel’s shoot-to-kill policy targeting Palestinians.
Israeli Army Raids Several Ramallah Neighborhoods, Detains Woman University Student, Others A large Israeli Army force raided early this morning several neighborhoods in the city of Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian Authority, and detained a university student and others, according to local sources. The occupying forces detained Ruba Assi, Majed Neirat, Hussein Abu Kweik, and Jamal Tawil.
Occupation Forces Fatally Shoot Young Man, Injure Another Near Salfit Occupation forces shot Ibrahim Mustafa Abu-Yaaqoub, thirty-four, and critically injured him in the neck while he was at the entrance to the village, and he was rushed to nearby Salfit Public Hospital but was pronounced dead shortly after. The other young man, identified as Mohammad Abdessalam Asaad, seventeen, was also shot and moderately injured in the foot by the occupation forces.
Israeli Army Seals Off Ancient West Bank Mountain For Palestinian Access The Israeli Army sealed off with barbed wire and a metal gate the ancient Jabal al-Firdis, also known as Herodion, near the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem, today said Hasan Breijieh, from the Settlements and Wall Resistance Commission. As a result, Palestinians will not have easy access to the site, which has been controlled by Israel and turned into a national park.
Domestic Policy
‘Sick of His Corruption’: Thousands of Israelis Urge Netanyahu to Resign Thousands of Israelis have joined a protest in occupied Jerusalem, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down as he is on trial over corruption charges and amid anger over his cabinet’s mishandling of economy and a coronavirus outbreak. The anti-corruption activists at some point tried to storm the residence but were dragged away by police officers, resulting in scuffles.
Over 5,000 Active Cases of COVID-19 in Palestine The Palestinian Ministry of Health announced on Thursday the registration of 262 new cases of COVID-19 during the past twenty-four hours, raising the total active cases to 5,105 cases.
Government Orders Two-week Ban on Movement Between Governorates The government announced on 12 July a new set of measures and precautions to fight the unexpectedly rapid spread of the coronavirus pandemic in Palestine, on top of which is a full ban on the movement of passengers and vehicles between governorates. The measures include a ban on all movement between governorates for two weeks, a full closure of all locations where coronavirus is known, a curfew from 8pm to 6am, and a ban on all public gathering.
Israel Threatens to Cut Electricity Supply to Palestinian Towns Israel has threatened to cut the electricity supply to several Palestinian towns in the occupied West Bank to “blackmail” the Palestinian leadership after the latter’s decision to severe coordination with the Israeli authorities over Tel Aviv’s plan to annex large parts of the occupied territories, Palestinian Minister of Local Government Majdi al-Saleh, said.
Palestinian Factions in the West Bank Call For Escalating Popular Resistance In a press release issued on Saturday in Ramallah, national and political parties voiced their rejection of any proposals which legitimize the ongoing occupation, including plans for further annexation of Palestinian land.
Gaza: 40,000 Surgeries in First Half of 2020 Palestinian doctors in Gaza have carried out forty thousand surgeries in the hospitals of the besieged coastal enclave during the first half of 2020, Safa news agency reported on Wednesday.
Foreign Policy
US: Opportunity to Implement Annexation this Month According to Safa news agency, the Israeli newspaper reported the source stating that the US deal of the century team is to meet on Wednesday at the White House to discuss future measures, including the implementation of Israel’s annexation plan. Israeli newspaper Maariv announced that the team plan to meet on several occasions and that President Donald Trump will join the advanced stages of the discussions.
France's Macron Asks Israel to Drop West Bank Annexation Plans French President Emmanuel Macron has asked Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to refrain from annexing Palestinian territory in the occupied West Bank and elsewhere during a telephone call between the two leaders. The foreign ministries of France and Germany, along with those of Egypt and Jordan—the only Arab states to have peace deals with Israel—warned this week that any annexation could have "consequences" for relations.
Palestinian Bishop Named Member of Pontifical Council For Interreligious Dialogue The Catholic Center for Studies and Media announced in a press statement that the Latin Patriarchal Vicar for Jordan Bishop William Shomali was named by Pope Francis a member of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, among other nominations.
Friends of the IDF Received at Least $2 Million in PPP Loans According to data released by the Small Business Administration, Friends of the Israel Defense Forces received a Paycheck Protection Program loan between two and five million dollars in April. The Jewish National Fund also received a loan between two and five million dollars. The pro-settler organization has played a direct role in the dispossession of Palestinian land since its creation in 1901.
Nicaragua Rejects Israel’s Annexation Plans, Stands With Palestine Nicaragua rejected Israel’s plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank warning there will be no peace and stability in the region until the Palestinian people establish an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Far-right Jewish Terror Group Leads Hate Campaign Against pro-Palestine Shop An attack on pro-Palestine activists by lobby groups favoring the state of Israel took a violent turn in Canada over the weekend as the right-wing Jewish terrorist group the Jewish Defense League, took to the streets in an effort to bankrupt a Toronto food store and take away restaurant which has taking an anti-racist stance.
Settlers and Illegal Settlements
Israeli Settlers’ Destruction of Palestinian Property Continues With the Axing of 70 Olive Trees Israeli settlers continued today their carnage in the occupied West Bank with the cutting down of seventy fully grown olive trees in the town of Sair, in the south of the West Bank, said the owner of the land and trees Yousef Jaradat.
Israel Arrests Palestinian Expert on Settlements in Jerusalem Israel yesterday arrested Khalil Tafakji, head of the maps department at the Arab Studies Society in Jerusalem, Anadolu reported. The source, who preferred not to be named, explained that “the Israeli police and intelligence services did not provide reasons for the raid or Tafakji’s arrest.
Boycott, Divest, and Sanction Movement
UK Universities Continue to Invest Over £450m in Companies Complicit in Israel’s War Crimes Research released on 13 July by Palestine Solidarity Campaign has revealed UK universities continue to hold nearly 450 million pounds in companies complicit in Israel’s violations of international law and Palestinian human rights. The database lists the investments of forty-nine UK universities.
Saudi Professor Publishes Article to Israel Academic Journal In an unprecedented move, Mohamed Ibrahim Alghbban, a senior Saudi Arabian professor from King Saud University in Riyadh, has published an article in an Israeli journal, according to Tel Aviv University. The article’s publication comes amid increasingly warming ties between Israel and a number of Gulf states in recent years, including Saudi Arabia, and violates the academic and cultural boycott of Israel.
Law
Systematic Medical Negligence Continues to Kill Palestinian Prisoners With the death of the Palestinian prisoner, Saadi al-Gharabli from Gaza Strip on Monday, the number of prisoners who have passed away due to the systematic medical negligence policy by the Israeli Prison Service increased to sixty-eight.
Israeli Court Lets NSO Keep Selling Spyware to Repressive Gov'ts An Israeli court has rejected a request to strip the controversial Israeli spyware firm NSO Group of its export license over the suspected use of the company's technology in targeting journalists and dissidents worldwide. The case, brought by Amnesty International in January, called on the court to prevent NSO from selling its technology abroad, especially to repressive governments.
Israel Has Made a New Offer to Exchange Prisoners with Hamas, Claims Local Radio According to an anonymous source said to be familiar with the details of the negotiations to return four of its citizens held by the Palestinian movement, Israel has apparently made a new exchange offer through intermediaries. So far, no response has been made by Hamas. No details of the offer were provided.
Israel: Netanyahu Banned From Naming Police, Judges On Thursday, the Israeli government’s legal adviser, Avichai Mandelblit, informed Netanyahu of the ban on appointing senior officials in the judiciary and police. The Times of Israel quoted Mandelblit as saying: “Netanyahu must not be involved in the nomination of judges or the police commissioner, as well as any other appointments that would meddle with the work of the state prosecution, the Attorney General’s Office, or police investigations.”
Palestinian Prisoner in Texas ‘lacks medical care’ Despite Having Covid-19 The health of a Palestinian prisoner held at the Federal Correction Institute in Seagoville, Texas has been deteriorating due to a “lack of appropriate treatment” for COVID-19, Shehab news agency reported on Monday. Mofeed Meshaal is serving twenty years for allegedly channeling charitable funds to Hamas.
Environment, Economy, and Other
Celebrations in Palestine As General Certificate Exam Results Are Announced; Success Rate 71% Fireworks celebrations rocked Palestine this morning once the results of the general certificate exam for high schools, known as tawjihi, were announced by the Palestinian Ministry of Education, which said that overall success rate was 71.32 percent.
Instagram Apologizes to Supermodel Bella Hadid Over Removed Post Instagram has apologized to Palestinian-Dutch supermodel Bella Hadid after she criticized the social media platform for removing a post she shared that showed a picture of her father's passport with his birthplace listed as Palestine. "To protect the privacy of our community, we do not allow people to post personal information, such as passport numbers, on Instagram. In this case, the passport number was blurred out, so this content should not have been removed," an Instagram spokesperson said. "We've restored the content and apologized to Bella for the mistake."
About 13.5 Million Palestinians in Historical Palestine And Diaspora - PCBS On the occasion of the International Population Day, which coincides on Saturday, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said in a report today that based on its estimates there are about 13.5 million Palestinians in the world, of whom about 5.1 million in the State of Palestine—3.05 million in the West Bank and 2.05 million in the Gaza Strip—divided almost equally between males and females.