Israeli troops kidnap civilians and a military court sentences a Palestinian youth, these stories and more coming up stay tuned.

The News Cast

Israeli troops captured 14 Palestinians during pre-dawn invasions of different areas of the West Bank, on Thursday. Raids were carried out in the village of Attil, close to Tulkarem in the northern West Bank and in several communities in the Jordan Valley.

In Attil the Israeli army drove through the village photographing mosques and government buildings, Palestinian security sources reported.

A Palestinian youth was brought before Israel’s Ofer military court and sentenced to three year imprisonment for alleged affiliation with Al Aqsa martyrs brigades, the armed wing of Fatah.

The 18-year old from Al-Khader village, close to Bethlehem southern West Bank, will also receive a fine of 500 US dollars.

Most Palestinians that are detained by Israel are never brought before court and are neither informed of any charges the Israeli state holds against them.

This process of administrative detention is heavily criticized by Israeli human rights organization B’tselem that states that Israel blatantly violates international law.

Internally the Hamas movement reported on Thursday that forces from the Palestinian Authority seized five of the party’s affiliates from their communities in the West Bank. The men that were detained were from the areas of Jenin, Ramallah, Salfit and Tulkarem.

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 Ghassan Bannoura.