U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice states that she hopes to see a peace deal in the region before U.S. President George Bush leaves office, and the Israeli army kills six Palestinians this week in Gaza and the West Bank these stories and more coming up stay tuned.

Nonviolent Resistance in West Bank

Let's begin our weekly report with the nonviolent actions in Bethlehem and Ramallah. IMEMC's Manar Jebreen with the details:

Bethlehem

The villagers of Um Salamunah, located near the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem, along with Israeli and international peace activists gathered on Friday in a peace protest against the illegal wall Israel is constructing on the village land.

The protesters marched from the village towards their lands where the illegal wall is due to be built. During the march, the protesters closed the settlers nearby road, known as road 60, which separates the village from its lands. Shortly after, Israeli soldiers arrived at the location and attacked the unarmed civilians.

As a result of the short scuffle, three villagers sustained light wounds and another two Israeli activists were kidnapped by the Israeli soldiers. The protest of today was to commemorate the third anniversary of the death of the late Palestinian president, Yasser Arafat. The protest ended after speeches were delivered in both Arabic and English.


Bil'in

Also on Friday, the villagers of Bil'in joined their international and Israeli supporters and marched against the wall that is built illegally on the village land.

The protest started from the village mosque went through the village towards the lands that have been cordoned behind the wall. At the road, Israeli soldiers were waiting at a razor wire barricade, they had put there. As soon as the unarmed protesters approached, Israeli troops showered them with tear gas, rubber bullets and sound bombs. Five protesters, among them two internationals, were injured.

Israeli soldiers managed to kidnap Adeeb Abu Rahmah and Abdalfatah Burnat after beating them up with their rifle butts and batons. Two hours later, both were released.

Mustafa Al Baghuoti, a Palestinian law maker, joined the protest of Bil'in on Friday and was subjected to a lot of tear gas. Also near Ramallah, the villagers of Beit Liqia Al Tira and other nearby villagers protested on Friday at the proximal settlers' road, that connects those villages with the rest of the West Bank. During the protest, troops forcibly removed the protesters from the road and detained three of them for several hours and released them later.

For IMEMc.org this is Manar Jebreen.




Political report

In Political news this week, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice states that she hopes to see a peace deal in the region before U.S. President George Bush leaves office in 2009. Meanwhile, Israeli media suggests that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will consider the release of up to 2000 Palestinian political prisoners. IMEMC's John Smith has more.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Monday expressed her wishes for the future of the Middle East peace process, stating that she hoped to see a peace deal before U.S. President George Bush leaves office in 2009. Speaking at a press conference with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Rice spoke of the 'opportunity' presented by the forthcoming Annapolis conference, arguing that the negotiations could see both sides fulfill the obligations laid down to them in the so-called 'road map for peace.' Rice spoke to gathered reporters on Monday.

Rice Audio – 13 seconds

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, for his part, on Tuesday indicated he was prepared to deal with the "fundamental issues" of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict after the conference. While Olmert also urged other countries to participate in the summit, particularly Syria, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, in a separate meeting with European Union Officials, declared that the Arab world must dispose of all preconceptions, and "support any decision or compromise reached by the Palestinians."

Palestinian and Israeli negotiating teams on Thursday agreed that key to any future peace deal was the implementation of the U.S.-brokered Road Map plan. The first stage of the plan demands that Israel halts all settlement activity, abandons illegal outposts, and withdraws from all Palestinian cities, and that the Palestinian Authority (PA) destroy the military capability of armed groups, collect weapons, and arrest so-called militants.

In related news, the PA on Thursday indicated that it hopes for a final settlement within six months of holding the Annapolis summit. Under the terms of a proposal obtained by the Israeli daily Haaretz, the Palestinian negotiating team demands that Israel fulfill its road map obligations within six months of the upcoming conference, a timetable previously rejected by the Israeli and American administrations.
Israeli media sources on Monday suggested that Israeli Prime Minister Olmert intends to release an undefined number of Palestinian political prisoners before the forthcoming peace talks. While the number of detainees to be released remains unknown, the Israeli daily Haaretz claimed that Olmert is considering a request from Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad to release some 2000 prisoners.

Israeli Opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday claimed that the PA was far from being a true partner for peace, and warned the current Israeli administration against making concessions. The opposition leader further added that the body was incapable of controlling and curbing the spread of Hamas, adding that the movement would establish control in any area that Israeli authorities withdrew from.

Elsewhere, Jamil Mizhir, an official of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), on Thursday warned that U.S. and Israeli expectations for the upcoming conference stand in direct contradiction to Palestinian interests. In a political seminar organized by Hamas media office in the Gaza Strip, Mizhir stated that the American administration wishes to cover its failures in Afghanistan and Iraq in order to improve its image before nationwide elections.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Tuesday announced that there would be no major offensive on the Gaza Strip in the coming weeks, arguing that the time was not ripe for such an attack. Speaking at a Knesset Committee, Barak told other MKs that such an assault would be delayed in light of the upcoming Annapolis conference, scheduled for late November.

While the threat of a Gaza invasion has been delayed, many political analysts have expressed doubt that such an attack would bring an end to resistance activity by Palestinian factions. IMEMC asked Sergio Yanni, an Israeli political commentator, what he thought such an attack could achieve.

Sergio Yanni audio – 20 seconds

A number of Palestinian factions on Thursday called on the Hamas movement to relinquish control in the Gaza Strip for the sake of Palestinian unity. The groups, including the PFLP and DFLP, called for a return to comprehensive national talks in the hope of establishing a transitional government that would pave the way for early presidential and legislative elections in the Palestinian territories.
For IMEMC.org, this is John Smith.

The Israeli attacks

The West Bank

The Israeli army this week conducted at least 24 military invasions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During those invasions, Israeli troops kidnapped at least 68 Palestinian civilians. IMEMC's Louisa White with the details:

Israeli military forces this week kidnapped at least 68 Palestinian across the West Bank, including seven children and one woman. Thus, the number of Palestinians kidnapped by the Israeli army in the West Bank since the beginning of this year has mounted to 2,329.

Palestinian sources reported Thursday that one civilian was killed, and a further three injured, when a bomb left by the Israeli army exploded in the northern West Bank city of Nablus. Witnesses said that Rami Hamadan, 32, was working on renovating an old house in the city when the bomb exploded, killing him and injuring three of his colleges. Local sources added the powerful explosion ripped the man's body apart.

Near Bethlehem meanwhile, Israeli troops attacked the village of al-Fourdess, located to the east of the city, sealed all routes in and out of the village, and demolished two homes, despite an ongoing court case regarding their legality.

On Wednesday a Palestinian youth was shot and wounded by the Israeli army in Kufer Dan village, to the west of Jenin city in the northern West Bank. The youth was shot during clashes between local resident and invading Israeli forces.

Palestinian sources reported that a teenager from the village of Taqu'a, located near the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem, was injured on Monday afternoon when an Israeli army mine exploded in his immediate vicinity. According to the family, the boy was with his Grandfather near their home in the village when the explosion took place.

For IMEMC.org, this is Louisa White.


The Gaza strip

The Israeli army this week killed five Palestinian civilians, in addition to invading several parts of the Gaza strip. From Gaza, IMEMC's Rami al-Mughari has more:

Four Palestinians, including a father and a child, were killed when Israeli warplanes struck a factory in northern Gaza on Sunday. Palestinian medics identified the dead as Hesham Khadoura, 25, who is believed to be a member of the al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad.

Earlier in the day, Israeli warplanes hit the entrance of another factory in northern Gaza, killing three workers, including a father and his son. The dead were later identified as Zaher Al’er, 40, his son Yousef, 18, and Mohammad Abu Harbeed, 23.

One Palestinian police officer was killed and three others injured in an Israeli air strike near the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Sunday morning. The police officer was later identified as Mohammad Siyam, 22. Three other police officers were lightly wounded in the attack.

Eyewitnesses told IMEMC that the air strike hit a car in a crowded area near a Palestinian police station.

During the week, ground invasion by the Israeli army left 3 houses completely destroyed, a further four badly damaged, at least 80 Dunums of agricultural land razed, and a large, as yet unidentified, number of civilians kidnapped.

For IMEMC.org this is Rami al-Mughari from Gaza.

Civil unrest

One Palestinian was killed in a new wave of internal unrest in Gaza, while six others were injured across the West Bank. IMEMC's Jane Sahouri has more.

One Palestinian was killed and two others wounded after mourners belonging to the Islamic Jihad movement traded gunfire with Palestinian policemen in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

Clashes erupted during the funeral of an Islamic Jihad activist who had died from wounds sustained during earlier fighting with Hamas-affiliated forces. Eyewitnesses reported that mourners opened fire on a Hamas-controlled police station, sparking the violence.

Elsewhere, a group of unknown assailants kidnapped Suheib Yousef, 23, the son of West Bank Hamas leader Sheikh Hasan Yousef, on Tuesday afternoon. The young man, a student at the al-Quds university, was abducted while participating in an activity on-campus. Before being released, the man was stabbed in the hand several times and interrogated. His attackers remain unknown.

Local sources on Monday reported that five Palestinians were injured during internal clashes that broke out between gunmen and Palestinian police in the Balata refugee camp, located in the northern West Bank city of Nablus. Armed confrontations erupted after policemen surrounded and attempted to search the camp.

Elsewhere, Fatah-allied security forces arrested two journalists on Wednesday. The two men, from Hebron and Bethlehem, traveled to Hebron city on Wednesday. After several hours of no contact, a family search established that they been arrested by PA security forces. The two had previously worked for the Hamas-affiliated al-Aqsa TV.

In other news, Hamas sources reported that at least 30 of its West Bank members had been arrested during the week, with arrests taking place in Tulkarem and Jenin, in the northern west Bank, and Hebron, in the southern West Bank. Of those seized, one was transferred to a local hospital for injuries sustained during his arrest.

For IMEMC.org, this is Jane Sahouri.

Conclusion

And that’s just some of the news this week in Palestine. For constant updates, check out our website, www.IMEMC.org. Thanks for joining us from Occupied Bethlehem, this Nate Bremen and Ghassan Bannoura.