Day: 27 June 2022

An upsurge in coronavirus cases in Palestine prompted Health Minister Mai Alkaila to warn of the start of a sixth wave of COVID-19 as 1000 new cases were confirmed yesterday in the West Bank.

Alkaila told WAFA that the situation is worrying and serious following the confirmation of 1000 new cases in the West Bank alone, urging people to take the booster vaccinations and to take precautions such as wearing masks in indoor places.

COVID cases declined in Palestine in recent weeks to reach only in the dozens while none were hospitalized.

Data published yesterday by the Ministry of Health showed 938 new cases of coronavirus in one week with 17 people being hospitalized and three in intensive care.

Neighboring Israel, where tens of thousands of Palestinians go to work or do business, has also been reporting a serious surge of new daily cases put at around 10,000.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

The Israeli occupation authorities seized 25,365 dunums of Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank, destroyed 2931 dunums of land and 17,755 trees, and demolished 93 water wells and tanks, among others during 2021, today said the Palestinian Land Research Center (LRC) in a report.

It said 12,911 dunums of land were seized by 37 military orders, 1986 dunums by colonial settlers either directly or to expand settlements and to use them for agricultural purposes, and 19,166 dunums by the military planning committee to expand illegal settlements, a large part of which is located outside the settlement limits.

Regarding the destruction of land and property, LRC said 2021 dunums of land were swept by sewage water, 116 dunums razed, 140 dunums torched, 83 dunums used by colonial settlers to herd their cattle, 10 dunums during military training, 18 dunums by chemicals and 543 dunums were sabotaged.

LRC said the occupation authorities and settlers committed 225 acts of vandalism against trees destroying as a result 17,755 trees, including 13,845 completely destroyed and 915 olive trees stolen. The rest were partly destroyed.

The Israeli occupation forces also destroyed 93 water wells and tanks that benefitted 1050 people, including 450 children and 470 women, and irrigated more than 1800 dunums of agricultural land that are currently going dry.

The Center said 86 other wells and water reservoirs are currently under threat of destruction by 80 military orders, some for demolition and others by stop-work orders, benefiting 835 people, including 384 children and 255 women, and irrigating 1000 dunums of farmland.

LRC said 74 illegal Israeli colonies dump their wastewater at Palestinian agricultural land damaging 2021 dunums of land, many of which are planted with olive or other trees.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

The results of the Palestinian Monetary Authority Business Cycle Index (PMABCI) revealed a sharp decline in the overall index for Palestine, from 1.7 points in May to -4.7 points in June. This decline may be due to the rise of uncertainty and the high increase in the prices of goods and services, said the PMA in a report published today.

The overall index in West Bank decreased from 4.1 points in May to -1.2 points in June. This decline was headed by the construction index with a notable drop (from 2.9 to -2.4), in addition to a decline in the trade index (from -1.3 to -2.4), and IT and communication index (from 0.5 to -0.2). On the other hand, the index of the agriculture sector increased (from -0.9 to 0.0), followed by the manufacturing index (from 1.6 to 2.1), as well as the transportation and storage index (from 0.6 to 1.1). In the meanwhile, the renewable energy index remained relatively stable at around 0.6 points.

In general, company owners in the West Bank indicated a decline in production levels, as well as in inventory. Furthermore, their expectations were negative about production and employment levels for the next three months, said the PMA.

As for Gaza Strip, the index declined from -10.4 points in May to -22.6 points in June. Hence, most of the sub-indices declined during this period, except for the renewable energy index, which increased (from 0.0 to 1.1). This decline includes the agriculture sector index (from 1.2 to -4.8), manufacturing index (from 0.4 to -2.7), trade index (from -3.3 to -5.7), and transportation and storage index (from 1.5 to 0.0). On the other hand, IT and communications, and construction indices were stabilized at around -0.3 points, and -10.1 points, respectively.

Owners of companies in the Gaza Strip indicated a decrease in both production and sales levels that caused a decline in inventory level. Moreover, their expectations were negative about production and employment levels for the next three months, according to the PMA.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories, Mohammad Hussein, today warned that the ongoing excavations carried out by the Israeli Antiquities Authority (IAA) and Elad settlement group for some time near and under the foundations of Al-Aqsa Mosque could lead to its collapse.

The Mufti said the IAA and Elad, working together in the same area, were removing soil, opening holes adjacent to the southern wall of the Mosque, and clearing the paths under it which would lead to the weakening of the foundations of Al-Aqsa Mosque and eventually its collapse.

He said that these excavations are continuing and did not stop, but were recently increased to include multiple places at the same time, which warns of imminent danger to the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque and the buildings adjacent to it.

At the same time, the Mufti condemned Israeli plans to register ownership of property in the vicinity of the Old City of Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque in the name of extremist settlers, warning of the danger of this measure targeting real estate that the Israeli occupation authorities seek to take control over in occupied Jerusalem.

He called for an immediate end to the excavations around and below Al-Aqsa Mosque, and to restrain the Israeli occupation from its blatant measures practiced against Al-Aqsa Mosque in particular and the holy city in general, holding the Israeli occupation authorities responsible for the consequences of these acts that exceeded all limits in provoking the feelings of Muslims all over the world.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

The Israeli occupation forces today demolished a Palestinian-owned water pond in the town of Birzeit, north of Ramallah, which a local landowner was using to irrigate his grape field, according to the landowner Lafi Qassis.

He told WAFA that soldiers accompanied by a bulldozer came to his land and demolished the pond, which can hold up to 250 cubic meters of water, Qassis had built to collect rainwater he was using to irrigate his 45-dunum plot planted with grapes.

He said the demolition took place without any prior notice.

Israel, in its bid to have total control over Palestine’s water resources, does not allow Palestinians to even collect rainwater for their fields and farms.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

Israeli occupation forces today delivered stop-construction notices against a number of houses belonging to Palestinian residents in the village of Qasra to the south of Bethlehem, in the southern occupied West Bank, according to a local activist.

Coordinator of the National Committee against the Wall and Settlements, Hassan Brijieh, said Israeli forces ordered residents to stop work on a number of houses, citing unpermitted construction as a pretext.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

The presidency today welcomed the position of South Africa which affirmed the rejection of Israeli crimes committed against the Palestinian people.

The presidency in a statement issued today highly appreciated the call made by the South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Naledi Pandor, for the international community to take the necessary measures to put an end to ongoing grievances that the Palestinians face under the illegal Israeli occupation, and to ensure holding Israel accountable for the suffering and inhumane conditions that the Palestinians are subjected to for 73 years.

The presidency greatly valued the firm position of the government and the people of South Africa in support of Palestinian rights.

Naledi Pandor, speaking during a conference organized by the UN Committee on the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, said: ”We are responsible now as member states of the United Nations to take the necessary measures, the same way the United Nations eventually acted concerning the apartheid regime in South Africa.”

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

Palestinian residents in the village of Yatma to the south of Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank, fended off today evening an attack by Israeli settlers against the village, according to a local activist.

Ghassan Daghlas, who monitors Israeli settlement activities in the north of the West Bank, said the villagers managed to fend off an attack carried out against residents’ homes by a group of Israeli settlers.

Settlers’ violence against Palestinians and their property is routine in the West Bank and is rarely prosecuted by Israeli authorities.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)

Palestine Broadcasting Corporation (PBC), in partnership with the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS) and the General Union of Palestinian Writers, honored today the Head of the PJS, Nasser Abu Baker, for his election as Vice President of the International Federation of Journalists.

Minister Ahmad Assaf, the General Supervisor of the Official Media, said that this international achievement is important and significant for Palestine, the press movement, the Palestinian media, and all the friends and free people of the world.

He added that it is a culmination of all the struggles and efforts made by the journalists over decades, especially at this time when the occupation wages a battle against the Palestinian media with all its components.

Assaf stressed that the occupation does not want the Palestinian media to work and started targeting journalists to intimidate them in order to hide the truth and commit all its crimes silently while maintaining its image in front of the world.

However, he said, journalists did not give up, and kept chasing the occupation to prove its crimes and terrorism against a defenseless people, which annoyed the occupation that directly targeted and killed journalists, such as Majed Abu Sharar, Kamal Nasser, Hanna Moqbel, and most recently Shirin Abu Akleh, and Ghufran Awarasna, in addition to targeting headquarters of media outlets, bombing and shutting them down, arresting and wounding hundreds of journalists, assaulting press crews, restricting their movement, and seizing their equipment.

“When the occupation bombed the headquarters of the PBC in Um al-Sharayet neighborhood [in Ramallah], journalists worked for a long time in headquarters that was not suitable for human use, and after that, we were able to build better headquarters and possess all the tools that qualify us to work in a professional manner to deliver the message of the Palestinian people everywhere in the world; we did not give up,” the minister said.

He pointed out that the Israeli occupation moved to globally fight the Palestinian content on digital platforms, stressing that he raised this matter in all the meetings that were organized at the Arab and international levels.

“This is a war against content that uses the Arabic language, and therefore it targets Arab content. On the other hand, the Israeli content is not targeted, despite the incitement and calls for killings which it contains,” Assaf said.

“We have engaged with a company whose job is to monitor the Israeli media every day in order to provide periodic reports to the whole world,” said the General Supervisor of the Official Media.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA)