The Israeli army kills two Palestinians in Gaza, and kidnaps five civilians from the West Bank, these stories and more coming up stay tuned.

News Cast

The Israeli army conducted several air attacks targeting different areas in the Gaza Strip on Thursday at dawn, one killed and two injured local sources reported.

Witnesses said that a Palestinian resistance fighter was killed and two others injured when Israeli F16 jet fighters shelled areas in the central part of the Gaza Strip.

On Wednesday night six Palestinians were injured when Israeli jet fighters attacked a group of resistance men gathered in Gaza City. The dawn attack came only two hours before the truce deal between Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip since June 2007, and Israel took effect.

The Egyptian-mediated ceasefire stipulates that Hamas, will halt the fire of homemade shells into Israeli territory, in exchange for Israel lifting the 12 month-blockade and ceasing all military attacks against the Gaza Strip. Both Hamas and Israel have announced that they agree on the conditions.

The Israeli army conducted a military operation targeting the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia on Thursday; during the attack the army destroyed three homes and kidnapped five civilians.

Palestinian sources said that Israeli forces invaded the city on Thursday morning then surrounded the house of Akkel Hassanin, then kidnapped four of his sons before demolishing his home and another nearby empty house.

A fifth man, while walking in the street, was kidnapped along with the four brothers, witnesses said. Hassanin has a son who was a resistance fighter and was killed by the army several years ago.

A group of settlers from the settlement of Yitsahar located near Bureen village south of Nablus city in the northern part of the West Bank set fire to Palestinian owned olive trees on Thursday.

Farmers said that the attack caused them heavy financial losses; they added that settlers also prevented firefighters from reaching the area which increased the damage.

Conclusion

Thank you for joining us from occupied Bethlehem. You have been listening to Palestine Today from the International Middle East Media Center, www.imemc.org. This report has been brought to you by Taylor Bray and Ghassan Bannoura