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Another Day Brings More Death to Palestine

21/02/09

The past weekend brought more death and misery home to the Palestinian people in both the occupied West Bank and Gaza areas.

On Friday (April 17) in Ramallah, Israeli soldiers killed 16-year-old Mohammad Ali Nuwwara and injured his friend, 19-year-old Mohammad Balasha. The two youths were from the Al-Jalazon refugee camp in the city, just south of the illegal Beit El settlement. Israeli forces later claimed the two had been trying to attack the settlement with petrol bombs.

Another young man was killed in disputed circumstances on Friday. 17-year-old Rabah Hejazi Seder from Hebron was shot dead by zionist settlers. The settlers claim that Rabah had infiltrated the settlement, attacked them with a knife and was then shot by them.

Local Palestinians challenge this account, however, and doubt that Rabah could have gained entry to the settlement, considering the high level of security and the number of armed guards. They believe he was outside the settlement when he was shot by settlers.

There was also violence at the weekly protests against the building of the Apartheid Wall in the West Bank on Friday. During the peaceful protest in the village of Bil’in, Israeli forces opened fire with tear gas canisters and rubber-coated bullets, killing a local resident, 30-year-old Basem Abu Rahmah, as well as injuring dozens of others.

In the nearby village of Nil’in, another protest by locals and international supporters against the wall being built on their land was attacked by Israeli soldiers, leaving 10 injured. The soldiers later stormed the village firing tear gas and rubber-coated bullets.

In Gaza city, 4-month old Ayham Karim Eid died from inhaling poisonous gas caused by an Israeli shell during an attack on the city. He remained in a critical condition for a time before passing away.

On Saturday (April 18), Israeli forces raided a plastics factory in Ramallah and abducted the three brothers who run it. On Sunday, a shepherd from Hebron was seized by zionist settlers and later handed over to Israeli soldiers, who continue to detain him. This pattern of repression has continued with regularity. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights has reported that 23 people were abducted by Israeli forces in the last week alone, including three children.

As Palestinian suffering continues, the Israeli state continues to act with impunity on the international stage. On Friday, a spokesperson announced that they would not be co-operating with the United Nations’ investigation into war crimes allegations from the Israeli onslaught against the Gaza Strip four months ago. Israel is also one of several states, including the United States, that will be boycotting the UN anti-racism conference in Switzerland this week.

Meanwhile, talks between Fatah and Hamas on the creation of a new unity government are set to recommence in Cairo despite several recent setbacks. These talks are not likely to be helped by the recent comments of newly-elected Israeli prime minister Benyamin Netanyahu.

During a visit by US envoy George Mitchell, Netanyahu declared that peace talks could not start again until the Palestinians “recognise Israel as a Jewish state”, essentially demanding that Palestinian refugees give up on the right of return.

One can only hope that such obnoxious and arrogant comments will eventually help the cause of greater Palestinian unity.

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