This Week in Palestine a service of the International Middle East Media Center www.imemc.org for September 6th through the 12th 2008.

Lead:
In This week, Report Palestinian factions fail to settle their differences while, Palestinian officials express uncertainty regarding reaching an agreement with Israel before by the end of this year, and the siege on Gaza remains in place. These stories and more are coming up,, stay tuned.

Nonviolent Resistance
Lede: Let us begin this week's report with the nonviolent actions in the West Bank, where International and Israeli activists join Palestinians in Bethlehem and Ramallah in their nonviolent protests.

Al-Ma’asara
Under the slogan “Boycott Israeli Products,” the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in al-Ma’asara village near Bethlehem organized a protest on Friday, in which a number of the villagers, internationals, and Israelis participated and expressed their rejection to the wall and called for boycotting Israeli products.

During the activity, protestors spilled Israeli products onto the street and destroyed them. Israeli troops seized two protestors identified as Dr. Mohammad Odeh and Mazen al-Azza of the Palestinian Medical Relief Services.

The rest of protestors refused to leave the area before the troops released the two detained men, who were held for two hours. The Israeli soldiers attempted to hit IMEMC photographer Rami Rishmawi and other protestors with a Jeep.

Al-Azza told IMEMC that this demonstration was part of a campaign to encourage Palestinians to boycott Israeli products so that towns, cities and villages would be “Israeli-products free”.

Ni’lin
A number of Palestinians and International human rights activists were wounded during the weekly nonviolent anti-wall protest in the West Bank village of Ni’lin near Ramallah.

The protest was organized by the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in the village to commemorate the killing of two young Palestinians by Israeli army fire in the village two months ago. The protestors held their Friday prayers on land slated for confiscation for the construction of the wall.

Ahed al-Khawaja, coordinator of the committee, said that Israeli settlers carrying Israeli flags and accompanied by Israeli soldiers attempted to disturb the prayers by making noise with their loudspeakers.

Following the prayers, the worshippers lined up to march in protest against the construction of the wall on their land; however, troops showered them with a number of C.S. gas canisters and several of them, including internationals from Belgium, were treated for gas inhalation and choking.

Bil’in
Also in the Ramallah area was the weekly nonviolent protest in Bil’in, where the villagers gathered today, chanting slogans and calling for national unity among the Palestinians.

Israeli troops placed razor wire on the main road in the village to prevent the protestors, who marched after Friday prayers, from reaching the construction site and the gate in the fence.

In a press release, the Popular Committee Against the Wall in Bil’in condemned the recent Israeli decision to confiscate hundreds of acres in the villages of Jayyous and Falamiya near the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia in order to expand Israeli settlements.

When the protesters reached the gate, the army fired C.S. gas, concussion grenades, and rubber-coated steel bullets at them. Dozens suffered from gas inhalation and six protesters were hit by rubber-coated bullets. Five of the six were identified as Tamer el-Khateeb, Eyad Burnat, Abdullah and Adeeb Abu Rahma, and Yaseen Muhmmad.

A group of college professors and journalists from Belgium who had earlier visited Ni’lin also visited Bil'in today. The group listened to a presentation by the local committee about the experience of Bil’in over the past four years of non-stop weekly nonviolent protests.
For IMEMC this is George Rishmawi

West Bank
LEDE: The Israeli military army attacks on the West Bank have continued over the past week, with Israeli troops invading several areas of the region, killing, wounding, and deating a number of residents. Meanwhile, according to a human rights report, Israeli settlement expansion has doubled over the past few years for IMEMC's Jessica Hulsey has details.


On Wednesday, Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian resident and wounded another during an invasion into the city of Nablus. The killing came during an Israeli army attempt to kidnap a fighter of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs brigades of Fatah party.

The attack on Nablus also resulted in the kidnapping of two residents.

This week, Israeli troops carried out several invasions and arrest campaigns in various West Bank cities, towns , villages and refugee camps. On Thursday, the Israeli army invaded the village of Enjaim which lies on the outskirts of Bethlehem city, detaining at least one resident.

Throughout the week, the Israeli attacks were seen in the cities of Hebron, Jenin, Nablus and Tulkaerm. At least a dozen Palestinian residents were rounded up by the Israeli troops.

The Israeli army attacks and arrests come at a time when the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks continue.

Meanwhile, a Palestinian woman attacked two Israeli soldiers with a chemical substance. They were manning the Hewarra checkpoint in Nablus city. The woman escaped the scene and the men were treated for slight injuries.

For the first time in three years, Israeli authorities will allow Israeli and Arab residents of Israel to use their own vehicles inside the West Bank city of Qalqilia.

In the meantime, a report issued by B’etselem, revealed that the Israeli authorities have increased expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank in the past few years. B’etselem is an Israeli center that works for human rights.
For IMEMC this is Jessica Hulsey



Gaza Strip
LEDE: The Israeli blockade on Gaza enters its 15th month as the situation in the Gaza Strip remains unchanged Closures of border crossings remain in place and Israeli army attacks on Gaza's fishermen continue, IMEMC's Rami al-Meghari with the details.

On Thursday evening, a roadside bomb was reportedly detonated along the southeastern Gaza-Israel border lines. A newly-known group, calling itself Saraya Altawhid claimed responsibility for the bombing.

The said bombing was the first in the past three months, since Israel and the Palestinian factions agreed to an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire.

This week in Gaza, a Palestinian fisherman was slightly wounded after an Israeli naval vessel collided with his fishing boat.

Also, Israeli naval forces were reported opening fire at fishing boats on Gaza shores. No causalities were reported.

In the meantime, the international campaign to break the Israeli siege on Gaza, announced their 1-million-signature campaign to be submitted later to the United Nations, in order to lift the blockade.

In addition, the local popular committee to break the siege called for an immediate intervention by the international community for breaking the Israeli blockade, which, according to the committee, has also impacted Gaza's only medicines firm.
The committee was supposed to receive a group of Egyptian solidarity campaigners, who wanted to cross into Gaza, but the Egyptian authorities prevented their access.

For 15 months now, Israel enforces a crippling blockade on Gaza, making the daily living conditions of Gaza's 1.5 million people, the worst in the past several years, with high levels of poverty and unprecedented standards of unemployment.

For IMEMC.org, I am Rami Almeghari in Gaza


The Political Report
LEDE: This week in Palestine, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas expressed his pessimism over the possibility of reaching an agreement with Israel by the end of this year. Meanwhile, Palestinian factions are meeting in Cairo for national agreement talks, more with IMEMC's Saher al-Sous

In his briefing to the meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo this week, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, said that he doesn't expect an agreement with Israel, excluding the status of east Jerusalem, by the end of this year.

On another note, Abbas warned of dissolving the Palestinian legislative council, should current talks among factions fail to achieve a national unity.

Meanwhile, the ruling Hamas party in Gaza said it would receive an official invitation from Cairo for a dialogue by the end of this month.

Hamas insists that any understanding should be based on the Palestinian legitimacy, mainly the parliamentary elections results which brought Hamas to power.

Arab foreign ministers warned of imposing sanctions on the Gaza Strip, if the parties don't reach a solution for their internal turmoil.

In related development, Nayef Hawatma, leader of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine in Cairo, blamed the Hamas party for blocking the national dialogue.

In the meantime, Israeli media sources reported that Israel will set its own list of will-be released Palestinian detainees, in the framework of a possible swap deal with the Palestinians.

The Israeli-made list, according to the sources, include 450 detainees, including 70 of those with long-term sentences. The Hamas party and the Popular Resistance Committees, which jointly holds the captured Israeli soldier Gil'ad Shalit, described the Israeli list as ' an experiment balloon'.

In a special interview with IMEMC's correspondent, Rami Almeghari, leader of the PRC in Gaza, Kamal Alnirab known as Abu Awwad, said that the factions that hold Shalit are demanding a specific list of 1000 prisoners.

Actuality (In Arabic)
" Whatever lists the occupation produces, we have nothing to do with this at all. What we understand that we have already presented a list of our own and we won't recognize any lists , other than that presented by the concerned factions"

In Gaza, the operations director of United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees or UNRWA, Mr. John Ging, stated that the international community should intervene to help the population of Gaza.

Ging believes that the people of Gaza are paying the price for what he termed 'political conflict' in the region.

At the internal level, the Hamas-run health ministry considered the latest strikes by the health sector as politicized and has nothing to do with any rational demands. The ministry's stance was consistent with that of many human rights groups, which dubbed the strikes 'illegal'.

Khaled Radi is the spokesman of the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza:

Actuality (In Arabic):

" This is only a political strike that has nothing to do with rational professional demands and far away from the pure national work in here. We believe that this strike goes with the objectives of the Israeli occupation, mainly undermining or destroying the Palestinian society".

The strike was called for by the Ramallah-based governmental employees syndicate, which is linked with Fatah party of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas. Hamas seized control of Gaza in June2007, rejecting the Fatah party. President Abbas outlawed Hamas immediately and called on Gazans to boycott its government.

On Thursday, Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, said that he would step down from his post if the Kadima party chose a leader during the upcoming Sepetmebr17's convention. Olmert, who is facing a series of corruption charges, vowed this time to genuinely resign.

Conclusion
And that was just some of the news this week in Palestine, for constant update check out our website, www.IMEMC.org thanks for joining us from occupied Bethlehem. This week's report has been brought to you by Hussam Qassis and George Rishmawi.