Palestinian national unity talks began in Cairo this week amidst hopes of success while in Gaza patients are dying due to the continued siege. These stories and more, coming up. Stay tuned.

Nonviolent Activities

Let's begin our weekly report with the nonviolent activities in the West Bank with IMEMC's John Muller:

Ramallah

The residents of Bil'in near the West Bank city of Ramallah gathered again after the Friday prayer in a protest joined by international and Israeli activists and groups. The protest left from the center of the village, calling for national unity and supporting the reconciliation process in Cairo.

The protest headed towards the wall which is built on Bil'in's land. An Israeli army unit situated behind the wall prevented the crowd from going through the gate. The army fired tear gas canisters to disturb the crowd, causing dozens to suffer gas inhalation. Five were shot with rubber coated steel bullets.

Recently, the Israeli army decided to confiscate 142 dunams from the villages of Bil’in, Deir Qadis and Kharbatha bin Hareth, all near Ramallah.

Also near Ramallah Scores of villagers from Nil'in, on Friday midday, held their weekly protest against the illegal Israeli wall being built on the village land. At noon, villagers, along with international and Israeli solidarity workers, marched to the village land being confiscated by Israel to build the wall.

As soon as locals and international supporters arrived in the village where Israel is building the wall, soldiers showered them with tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets. Four were moderately injured by the bullets, and dozens were treated for gas inhalation.

Bethlehem

An elderly man collapsed and was rushed to hospital after being beaten to the ground by Israeli soldiers at the demonstration near Bethlehem following midday prayers on Friday.

Local Palestinians from the village of Um Salamounh, south of Bethlehem, protesting against the Annexation Wall, were joined by international and Israeli supporters as they marched towards the point where the wall is proposed to cross Route 60, barring them from access to any of their lands.

The Israeli military prevented the protestors from reaching their destination by throwing razor wire across the road. As one elderly villager tried to present his case to the soldiers, a scuffle broke out and he was knocked to the ground.

After some time, an ambulance arrived and the old man was stretched across the razor wire as the stand-off continued. After treatment on the spot by Red Crescent paramedics, he was driven to the hospital.

For IMEMC.org this is John Muller.



The Political report

Palestinian national unity talks began in Cairo this week amidst hopes of success. The participants, who include representatives of the rival Hamas and Fatah parties, are also expected to tackle a number of contentious issues. Meanwhile, Israeli officials are discussing the possibility of a prisoner swap with the Palestinians. IMEMC's Mary Arthur has the story.


On Friday, Hamas' spokesperson in Gaza, Fawzi Barhoum, reiterated his party's position that current national unity talks in Cairo require longer time for the parties to achieve their stated goal; forming a unity government.

Barhoum's remarks came in response to media reports, suggesting a number of names as possible candidates for prime minister in any upcoming unity government. Included on the list was resigned Prime Minister of the Ramallah based government, Salam Fayad.

Barhoum said that his party does not agree to Fayyad taking that post. The talks in Cairo between the rival Hamas and Fatah parties are backed by a number of Arab countries, including Egypt, which hosts such talks. Among the issues to be tackled are: reformation of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), forming a powered-sharing government, conciliation, security and elections.

Mohammad Braim is a representative of the Popular Resistance Committee, to the Cairo dialogue. On Monday, while leaving for Cairo, he spoke to IMEMC in Gaza.

Actuality (In Arabic).

"We do hope that all such efforts by our sister country, Egypt, and other Arab countries could bring about reconciliation and end such issues. We do hope that when we all return back to our repressed Palestinian people who have suffered a lot from the occupation, we will be united, Fatah alongside Hamas and other forces and that such a division is over once and for all"

Commenting on the dialogue from Gaza, Haidar Eid, a political analyst and a university professor, told IMEMC , that such a dialogue faces a major obstacle.

Actuality (In English)

"Hamas’ government is supposed to accept or rather recognize the state of Israel or accept deals signed between the PLO and the state of Israel and I think that is contradictory with itself. Hamas as a resistance movement can not be a government that represents an Authority and at the same time carries out military operations against the state of Israel. I think what we are doing right now is a temporary success, where both parties will form a government but this government will not last"".

This week, the resigned Palestinian Prime Minister of the Ramallah-based government, Salam Fayyad, stated that the European Union is considering a new strategy for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Also this week, through Egyptian mediation, Israeli officials believe that they are close to a prisoner exchange with Hamas. The Israeli cabinet discussed a list of would-be released Palestinian prisoners. A number of them are on Hamas's original list which was handed over to Israel via Egyptian mediators.


For IMEMC.org this is Mary Arthur.



The Gaza Repot

As European and American aid convoys enter Gaza this week, patients from the costal region are dying due to the continued siege. From Gaza, IMEMC's Rami Al Meghari reports.

British MP George Galloway met with deposed Palestinian Prime Minister Isma'el Hanniya of Hamas late Tuesday night, Palestinian sources reported on Wednesday.

Hanniya also met members of the British aid convoy, Viva Palestina, with whom Galloway came to Gaza. The Hamas official gave Galloway a Palestinian passport to thank him and those who came with him. Viva Palestina's convoy left London several weeks ago and arrived to Gaza late Sunday afternoon delivering a variety of vehicles loaded with much needed humanitarian supplies.

The Gaza strip, home to 1.5 million Palestinians, has now been under siege by Israel for a total of 21 months.

Two children with heart conditions and an old woman with cancer were pronounced dead on Thursday in Gaza after Israeli authorities did not allow then to leave the coastal region for medical care, Palestinian sources reported. The doctors added that the three patients had completed all the required documents to leave Gaza for treatment but the Israeli army delayed them.

Meanwhile, doctors say that they have many cases in Gaza that they can't treat because of the continuing Israeli siege. They added that patients wait for a long time to get the necessary permissions to leave Gaza for treatment, putting their lives at risk.

On Wednesday two residents were wounded in an Israeli shelling that targeted the tunnels area in the Al Brazil neighborhood of Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip. Also on Wednesday a Palestinian man was reported injured during an Israeli shelling targeting Gaza city. Local sources said that Israeli tanks stationed at the Gaza-Israeli borders shelled a group of people, injuring one. Medical sources said that the man sustained light wounds.

Two Palestinian men were reported dead on Tuesday after the Israeli army refused to allow them to leave Gaza for medical treatment. Additionally two Palestinian patients from Gaza were pronounced dead at Egyptian hospitals, Palestinian medical sources reported on Monday. Both were suffering from cancer.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza has said that the number of patients who died due to the Israeli siege on Gaza since June 2007 has now reached 304. Of those, 304, 12 patients have died since the beginning of March 2009.

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



The West Bank report

Throughout the week, the Israeli military conducted at least 40 invasions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. Troops kidnapped 54 Palestinian civilians. This and more by IMEMC's Jane Orwel.

Israeli soldiers kidnapped on Friday at night a fighter of the Al Aqsa Brigades, the armed wing of Fateh movement, after surrounding his home, in Silwad town, east of the central West Bank city of Ramallah. Local sources reported that Roshdi Mohammad Hammad was taken prisoner after more than fifteen military jeeps surrounded his home for several hours.

At least 38 Palestinian civilians were kidnapped on Wednesday by the Israeli military during invasions targeting a number of West Bank areas. In Bit Omer village near the southern city of Hebron, Israeli troops kidnapped 35 civilians.

Witnesses said that Israeli troops stormed the village, imposing a curfew and searching homes. They added that soldiers rounded up 35 men between the ages of 15 to 45 and took them away.

In Jerusalem, tension was high on Wednesday. Palestinian sources said that the Israeli police closed several roads and a number of Arab shops in the Old City in order to allow Israeli settlers to reach the Western Wall for prayers. The Palestinians were not allowed to reach the Al Aqsa Mosque or the Arab areas around it, the sources added.

Dozens of merchants and shop owners had to close the businesses, especially in the area adjacent to the Western Wall.

Meanwhile Monday midday, a group of 30 Israeli extremists' settlers stormed the courtyard of the Al Aqsa mosque in the old city of Jerusalem. Palestinian worshippers said that the group were disguised as tourists and as soon as they were in the main courtyard, they started to conduct prayers for the Jewish holiday Purim.

This week the military took over 12.5 acres of Palestinian farmland belonging to villagers near the southern West Bank city of Hebron on Monday. Locals say the lands will be used to open a road for settlers living at the illegal settlement of Karme'el near Yatta village.

Villagers said that soldiers started the work on Monday morning. They added that two members of the American based group Christian Peace-makers were kidnapped by the troops when they tried to stop the work.

For IMEMC.org this is Jane Orwell.


Conclusion

That's 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 Jessica Hulsey and Ghassan Bannoura.