Hamas accepts the Egyptian initiative, while the Israeli military continues to pound Gaza. The death toll is now over 1,100. These stories and more coming up. Stay tuned.

Nonviolent Activities

Let us begin our weekly report with the nonviolent activities in the West Bank with IMEMC's Corey Balsam:

On Friday, scores of Palestinians from the village of Nil'in, located near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, conducted a protest against the illegal Israeli wall being built on village land, part of the Israeli settlement and annexation project. The people conducted Friday prayers near the village lands, and then proceeded to march to the land being confiscated by Israel.

Demonstrators carried banners calling Israel to stop its attacks on Gaza. As soon as locals and their international supporters arrived to the village where Israel is building the wall, soldiers showered them with tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets. 11 were reported injured. Local organizers said that this week about 1000 people participated in the protest. They added that the people marched peacefully and the soldiers attacked them without reason.

Also near Ramallah on Friday, the residents of Bil'in village along with international supporters demonstrated against the Israeli rejection of the international efforts for ceasefire. The protesters carried Palestinian, Venezuelan, and Bolivian flags, in a show of support for the two South American countries who, this week, cut diplomatic ties with Israel due to the war on Gaza.

The demonstration was symbolically silent, as the protesters wore the UN, EU, and the Arab League flags on their chests and carried shoes bearing Israeli and American flags in their mouths, to symbolize the power the two countries have to gag the rest of the world

The protesters marched towards the wall which is built on Bil'in's land. The Israeli army was behind concrete blocks and fired tear gas canisters as soon as the crowd got closer. The army chased the protesters back to the village using rubber coated steel bullets and tear gas. Dozens suffered tear gas inhalation and five were shot with live bullets.

Meanwhile Scores of villagers from Al Ma'ssara located near the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem conducted their weekly protest on Friday. The villagers gathered at the village entrance and then marched towards their land where the army is building the illegal wall.

The protesters demanded the halt of the Israeli attacks on Gaza and waved Palestinian flags. Troops stopped them from reaching the location of the wall and assaulted them with batons. Local sources reported that two women from the village where lightly injured by the Israeli troops. The march ended shortly after speeches were delivered by the local organizers.


For IMEMC.org this is Corey Balsam.

Political Report

Hamas accepts the Egyptian initiative, but insists on its conditions, while Israel says that they will handle it positively. An urgent Arab summit is being held in Qatar as the war on Gaza enters its fourth week. The details and more with IMEMC's Jessica Hulsey.

Following talks in Cairo with Egyptian officials over the cease-fire, Hamas declared its acceptance to the Egyptian initiatives to end the war on the Gaza Strip. Hamas on one-hand, insisted that any agreement should include an immediate cease-fire and withdrawal of Israeli troops. Also they want Israel to open all border crossings of the Gaza Strip especially the Rafah terminal in addition to ending the 20-month siege on the Gaza Strip.

Israel on the other hand, did not officially accept the Egypt initiative yet. Israeli officials said that they will handle it positively. Yet Israeli leaders are still divided over the Egyptian proposal, despite promises by Egypt to crack down on arms smuggling from Egypt into the Gaza Strip.

The Egyptian proposal consists of three major issues. First, both parties will agree to an immediate, time-limited cease-fire, during which the border crossings will be opened for humanitarian aid and Egypt will lead negotiations on a long-term truce. Secondly, the long-term truce must include provisions on both border security and an end to the blockade of Gaza. And third issue is that Fatah and Hamas should resume reconciliation talks.

In the meantime, the United Nations General Assembly slammed the war on Gaza accusing Israel of grave violations of Human Rights and International Law. On his part, UN Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon arrived into the country to follow up on the implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolution 1860 which calls for an immediate cease fire in the Gaza Strip.

As Ban Ki-moon was meeting Israeli officials in Jerusalem, Israeli military shelled a UN compound in Gaza city. The building belongs to the United Nation's Relief and Work Agency of the Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA).
Secretary Ban Ki-moon expressed great disappointment of Israel's shelling of the UN compound which resulted in wounding three UN workers there.

UN officials in Gaza believe the building was shelled with a phosphorus bomb as it caused a huge fire in the building which burned almost all the food and medical supplies. The UN managed to enter the Gaza strip to help provide relief to the besieged Palestinian population.

Officials also confirmed that no fighters were present in the building when Israel bombarded the facility and insisted that only refugees who lost their homes were hosted there.Meanwhile, Israeli defense minister Ehud Barak said it was a big mistake to bomb the UN building. However, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told Secretary Ban Ki-moon that the Israeli army responded to gunfire from that building.

As the Israeli war on Gaza enters its fourth week, claiming the lives of more than 1100 Palestinians and 13 Israelis, an emergency Arab Summit is being held in Qatar. The Arab leaders were hesitant to attend this summit, saying they can discuss the situation in Gaza when they attend an economic summit in Kuwait scheduled for Monday. The summit was boycotted by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait, Tunis and Yemen among some others.

On his part, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas refrained from attending the Doha summit. The Palestinian Ambassador to Qatar Muneer Ghannam said Abbas will not participate in the summit, without adding further details. On the other hand, Khaled Masha'al chair of the Politburo of Hamas, and Ramadan Shallah, member of the politburo of the Islamic Jihad and representatives of eight Palestinian factions attended the summit.

Masha'al told the summit that Hamas will not accept Israel's conditions for cease-fire and called on all Arab countries to sever their relations with Israel. As Arab leaders are uncertain of holding an emergency summit for Palestine, two non-Arab countries took action.

Bolivia has decided to sever ties with Israel in protest to the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip. Bolivia's President Evo Morales spoke at a ceremony for ambassadors to Bolivia at the government palace in La Paz on Wednesday. Morales announced Wednesday that he was breaking relations with Israel over its invasion of the Gaza Strip and said he will ask the International Criminal Court to bring genocide charges against top Israeli officials.

Venezuela has also joined Bolivia in severing ties with Israel for its war on Gaza. Venezuela was the first country to expel the Israeli ambassador and to withdraw its ambassador to Israel in protest to the war launched against the people in the Gaza Strip.

For IMEMC.org this is Jessica Hulsey.




The Gaza Report

On Friday the Israeli operation in Gaza entered its 21st day, the military intensified its attacks this week, while the number of those killed by the continued shelling has exceeded 1,135, IMEMC's Rami Al Meghari in Gaza reports:
As Israel continues its random shelling to the Palestinian Costal region, the Ministry of Health in Gaza, announced that the death toll in Gaza by Friday is now exceeding 1,135, among them at least 335 children. In addition, the number of those injured has reached a total of 5200, with 400 of those in critical condition. Among those killed this week was Sa'ed Sayam, the Palestinian Interior Minster in the Hamas-led deposed government. He was killed along with his son and brother in addition to four other people when Israeli jet fighters attacked his home in Gaza City.

This week the military pushed more troops into Gaza. Grounds forces tried to enter the City of Gaza, Jabalyia and areas near Rafah. Also this week Arial bombardment continued, among the targets were a AL Aqsa hospital, the Palestinian Red Cross HQ, Media offices and the UN center in addition to residential areas in Gaza City. Two journalist where injured by the Israeli shelling to media offices in Gaza City.

For the third time in less than two week the Israeli army attacked the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNRWA, main headquarters in Gaza City on Thursday. Three civilians where injured and fire destroyed some of the aid supplies stored there. Sami Al Mishashi, the Spokesman of the UNRWA talked to IMEMC minutes after the bombardment:



"This is not the first or second time they have attacked us, in the past 48 hours they continue to shell our centers, the latest was the main headquarters, where our main aid and fuel supplies were, they shelled it, there are also 750 civilians hiding inside, we have lost a lot of our food supply due to the fire, we are now trying to put out the fire and trying to get the center working again."

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency is providing 700, 000 Palestinian refugees living in Gaza with their daily food requirements. Since the Israeli attack on Gaza began, UNRWA schools became a shelter for those that fled the shelling. On Tuesday of last week, a UN run school was attacked. At least 43 civilians were killed and 100 others wounded, when the Israeli troops launched an attack on the school in the northern Gaza town of Jabaliya. Last Thursday, the military attacked an aid convoy for UNRWA, killing a driver and injuring another. The Israeli Army embarked on its military offensive on Saturday, December 27th, 2008.

Thousands of Gazans left their homes and fled from Gaza City this week as Israeli military tanks stormed and shelled their homes, while others were trapped inside their homes. Mohamed Al Hadad talked to IMEMC as tanks were shelling the building he lives in along with his wife and 4month old daughter:



"There is two tanks under the building where I live and they are shooting at anything that moves, we have had no electricity since last night, there is also no water, now we do not think about food or water, our concern is just to stay alive, because they shoot at anything"

The Palestinian resistance continued to respond to the Israeli attacks on Gaza this week. Palestinian resistance groups have fired home-made shells at Israeli targets near the Costal region and in the Negev. Israeli sources said that at least 10 Israelis were wounded from those shells. While in Gaza, the Israeli troops clashed with the Palestinian fighters. The army stated that 10 soldiers were injured in the course of this week. 10 Israeli soldiers and six civilians were killed by the Palestinian resistance fire since Israel started its offensive targeting Gaza 21 days ago.

For IMEMC.org this is Rami Al Meghari in Gaza.

The West Bank Report

In the West Bank this week the Israeli military shot and killed a Palestinian child while troops kidnapped at least 40 other during pre dawn invasions, IMEMC's John Smith with the story:

On Friday morning Israeli troops shot and killed Mos'ab Da'nna aged 15 years old in the southern West Bank city of Hebron. Local sources said that local stone-throwing-youth clashed with the Israeli troops controlling the city after the midday prayers. Soldiers opened fire using live rounds and tier gas killing the boy and injuring 15 others.

This week, the Israeli army continued to target Palestinian communities in the West Bank. At least 40 Palestinian civilians were kidnapped by Israeli forces during pre-dawn and night invasions. The attacks were focused in Hebron, Jenin and Ramallah this week.

Meanwhile thousands continued to protest in the West Bank against the Israeli attacks on Gaza. Demonstrations were reported in the central West Bank city of Ramallah, Hebron, and Bethlehem, all located in the southern part of the West Bank.

Israeli army and police cracked down on those protests. Palestinian sources reported that on several occasions they opened fire injuring a number of unarmed civilians.


For IMEMC.org this John Smith.



Conclusion

And that was just some of the news this week in Palestine. For constant updates, please check out our website, www.IMEMC.org. Thank you for joining us from occupied Bethlehem. This week's report has been brought to you by Dinna Awwad and Ghassan Bannoura.