Tag Archive for Gaza

| May 2, 2012
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Haniyeh Calls for Another Intifada to Support Prisoners

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called for another Intifada, aimed at supporting Arab prisoners on hunger-strike against administrate detention.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called for another Intifada on Monday, this time aimed at supporting Arab prisoners in Israeli jails, who initiated a mass hunger strike two weeks ago, the Ma’an news agency reported.

The hunger strike is the Palestinian Authority’s latest ploy to garner international sympathy in an attempt to bypass negotiations with Israel and win UN recognition as an independent state.

At a rally in Gaza City, Haniyeh urged Arab and Islamic nations to intervene and support detainees.

He called on ‘human rights groups’ to “break their silence” to free all ‘Palestinians’ jailed in Israel. Continue Reading »

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| May 2, 2012
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Meshal loses control of Hamas military wing as authority moves to Gaza leadership

Hamas denies Haaretz report on results of a secret election but senior officials confirm Ismail Haniyeh won by significant margin; Khaled Meshal expected to keep post but lose control of budget, military.

Hamas political bureau head Khaled Meshal, who now resides in Qatar, is expected to keep his post after an internal vote by the organization’s leadership later this month. But sources have told Haaretz that Hamas leaders have decided to transfer some of Meshal’s critical areas of authority to the leadership in the Gaza Strip, including control of the organization’s budget and of its military wing.

Hamas political bureau head Khaled Meshal

Hamas political bureau head Khaled Meshal - Photo by AP

Meshal’s sole control of Hamas’ purse strings has effectively given him control over Iz al-Din al-Qassam, the Gaza-based military wing of Hamas.

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Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , ,
| May 2, 2012
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IAF Strikes Terror Tunnel in Northern Gaza

IAF aircraft strike a terror tunnel in northern Gaza, after terrorists fire Qassam rockets at southern Israel.

IAF aircraft struck a terror tunnel in northern Gaza on Tuesday night, according to a statement by the IDF Spokesman.

The statement said that direct hits were identified and that all aircraft safely returned to their bases.

The attack came in response to recent rocket fire from Gaza at Israeli territory. Earlier on Tuesday, Gaza-based terrorists fired a Qassam rocket at southern Israel. The rocket exploded in an open area in the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council.

There were no reports of physical injuries or damages. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , ,
| May 1, 2012
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IDF closes probe into Israeli air strike that killed 21 members of Gaza family

Military prosecution says will take no legal steps against those responsible for deaths of Samouni family, killed in their home during Operation Cast Lead.

 

Israel’s military prosecution announced Tuesday that no legal steps will be taken against those responsible for the killing of 21 members of the Samouni family during the 2009 Operation Cast Lead in Gaza.

A letter was received by the human rights group B’Tselem from Major Dorit Tuval, Deputy Military Advocate for Operational Matters. Tuval said that the case has been closed after the investigation has found that the attack on the civilians, “who did not take part in the fighting,” and their killing were not done knowingly and directly, or out of haste and negligence “in a manner that would indicate criminal responsibility.”

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| April 29, 2012
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Navy takes suspicious Hamas vessel to Ashdod port

IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said Palestinian fishing boat had swerved from Gazan territorial waters.

 

The Navy escorted a suspicious Palestinian sea vessel to a naval port in Ashdod on Sunday after the boat failed to heed orders to return to its allocated waters.

Illustrative - Photo: Andreas Manolis / Reuters

Illustrative Photo: Andreas Manolis / Reuters

The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said the Palestinian fishing boat from Gaza had swerved from Gazan territorial waters, and that a Navy boat first asked it to turn back.

After the request was ignored, shots were fired at the Palestinian boat’s engine, striking it. No injuries were reported.

The vessel was towed to Ashdod and its occupants were questioned by security services. Continue Reading »

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| April 28, 2012
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Iran seeks expanded IRGC presence in Gaza Strip

LONDON — Iran has been pressing to expand its presence in the Gaza
Strip.

Arab diplomatic sources said the Iranian leadership was urging the Hamas
government of Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh to allow additional military
trainers into the Gaza Strip.

The sources said Iran, particularly its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, wants to build a credible military force in the Gaza Strip to confront Israel in any future regional war.

Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei greets Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh. /AFP

Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei greets Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh. /AFP

“Iran wants Gaza to be as capable as Hizbullah,” a diplomatic
source said. “This means that Hamas and its allies would have tens of thousands of missiles and rockets that could paralyze central and southern Israel.” Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , ,
| April 24, 2012
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Gaza’s Hamas rulers will begin teaching Hebrew in schools

Education Ministry official says students should be introduced to as many languages as possible. PA: Shame Hamas-Fatah row affecting education

 

A senior Hamas official in Gaza said the territory’s terrorist rulers intend to begin teaching Hebrew for high school students beginning next year.

Students in Gaza Photo: AP

Students in Gaza - Photo: AP

Ziad Thabet, the Education Ministry undersecretary, said Monday the government is trying to find and train teachers. He says students should be introduced to as many languages as possible.

Hebrew, the chief language of Israelis, is now only offered as a university course.

Thabet says the Gaza government still needs to approve the decision, but it is likely to go ahead. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| April 23, 2012
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Termination of Israeli-Egyptian natural gas agreement serves dangerous precedent

Move may be intended to pressure Israel to give up lawsuit for $8 billion in compensation for damages.

Mohamed Shoeb, head of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company, announced Sunday evening, that the company will terminate the agreement to provide natural gas to Israel, after a decision had been made on Thursday, due to what he had termed “Israel’s repeated breaching of the agreement.”

Shoeb, in interview on Al-Hayat television, stressed that the deal termination was due to failure on the part of the Israeli side to transfer the payments owed by Israel for some months and “had nothing to do with the repeated attacks on the pipeline.”

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| April 22, 2012
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Sinai Bedouin factions demand Egypt amend peace accord with Israel

Demands come as Israel Counterterrorism Bureau calls on Israelis to leave Sinai, citing immediate threats.

The heads of Bedouin communities in northern Sinai are demanding the Egyptian parliament amend the Camp David Accords with Israel, claiming they do not guarantee national security and do not provide for the Bedouin population’s participation in security plans for the Peninsula.

Bedouin Sinai - Reuters - 15.3.12

Bedouin squat over a hilly area overlooking Gaza, in Rafah city, north Sinai - Photo by: Reuters

The Bedouins’ demands were made on Thursday, when members of the Egyptian national Security Council visited the coastal town of Al-Arish to inspect the community’s economic situation and assess the security situation. Continue Reading »

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| April 19, 2012
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No compensation for Gaza businesses damaged in raid

Court deems state not liable for chicken coops destroyed in 2006 air attack on terrorist tunnels.

 

Israel is not liable to pay damages to two Gaza companies whose property was demolished during a July 2006 IDF aerial raid on the southern Gaza Strip, the Beersheba District Court ruled on Wednesday.

Gaza Tunnel Destroyed - Photo: REUTERS

Gaza Tunnel Destroyed - Photo: REUTERS

The air force conducted the raid on July 16, 2006, to destroy the infrastructure of a tunnel intended to be used to carry out terrorist attacks in Israel. Three days later, on July 19, 2006, the IDF bulldozed the tunnels. The army said it carried out these military actions to prevent terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians.

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| April 7, 2012
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Hamas executes 3 in Gaza, including Israel ‘collaborator’

Islamist group Hamas executed three men on Saturday, hanging two convicted murderers and a Gazan found guilty of collaborating with Israel, the Hamas-run ministry of interior said.

Khaled Meshal

Khaled Meshal - Photo by: AP

It did not name the men and gave few details of the allegations against them, but said one of trio was convicted of kidnapping a boy, raping him and then killing him.

It denounced the man who helped Israel as a “traitor.”

The ministry said in a statement the families of the murder victims had refused to offer an amnesty to the killers.

The executions were carried out “in accordance with our religion, rulings of the Palestinian law and in preserving the rights of citizens and achieving the security of the community”, the statement said. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| April 4, 2012
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PA, Hamas reach deal to end power crisis in Gaza

Israeli firm to supply Gaza with fuel; Palestinian Authority to act as middleman for Hamas’ bill payments

The Gaza Strip’s Hamas government and the rival Palestinian Authority (PA) agreed to an Egyptian-brokered deal on Tuesday to end a fuel crisis that has caused daily power cuts in the territory, officials said.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas Photo: EPA

PA President Mahmoud Abbas - Photo: EPA

Under the agreement, an Israeli company will supply industrial diesel for the Gaza Strip’s only power plant and a temporary mechanism will be put in place whereby Hamas can pay the bill without dealing directly with its enemy, Israel.

“The Hamas authorities in Gaza will pay the money … to the PA and the PA will take care of the payment to the Israeli side,” said the official, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the deal. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News, Mid-East News | Tags: , , ,
| April 4, 2012
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IDF Shoots, Kills Terrorist Near Gaza Border

An IDF force shoots and hits a terrorist who was crawling towards Israel’s border with Gaza.

An IDF force shot and killed a terrorist near the security fence in northern Gaza on Tuesday night.

The force, which was conducting routine activity along the border fence, identified a suspicious man crawling toward the border. The force fired a tank shell at the terrorist and the IDF Spokesman said, according to a report on the Ma’ariv newspaper’s website, that the suspect was hit.

Over the past week, terrorists have tried to carry out several attacks. The IDF has foiled them.

On Saturday, an IDF unit identified a terrorist near the central section of the security fence separating Gaza from Israel. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| April 2, 2012
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Gaza: 3 children burn to death as energy crisis bites

Emergency services spokesman says candle that apparently caused blaze was used after electricity was cut

Three Palestinian children were found dead Sunday in a fire in their room caused by a candle being used due to lack of electricity in Gaza, an emergency services official said.

“A fire broke out in the children’s room,” said Adham Abu Selmiya, emergency services spokesman for the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.

Archives Photo: AFP

Archives Photo: AFP

“Apparently the fire was caused by a candle which was being used after the electricity was cut,” he said, adding that the tragedy occurred in the town of Deir Balah, in the center of the coastal strip. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags:
| April 1, 2012
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IDF: Gaza Terrorist Shot Dead

Gun-toting terrorist was spotted digging in the ground. He was shot.

 

The IDF Spokesman’s Unit said Sunday that an IDF unit identified a terrorist Saturday evening near the central section of the security fence separating Gaza from Israel.

He was spotted as he was digging in the ground. The IDF unit fired at him and identified a hit on target. In the morning, the IDF combed the area and found the terrorist’s body. He had been carrying a Kalachnikov rifle.

No IDF soldiers were hurt.

The IDF Spokesman noted that an IDF force discovered three explosive charges near the security fence separating Gaza from Israel Thursday, near Kibbutz Sufa. Continue Reading »

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