Palestine Today 021209

The Israeli military bombs targets in Gaza and kidnaps civilians from the West Bank. These stories and more coming up, stay tuned.

The News Cast

21 Palestinians where kidnapped in Israeli military invasions on Wednesday morning that targeting several areas in the West Bank, Palestinian sources reported. In Fahma village near the northern West Bank city of Jenin, Israeli troops kidnapped 15 men. Villagers said that troops stormed the village, put a curfew in place and searched homes, taking 15 men with them when they left.

Five men where kidnapped when Israeli troops searched and ransacked homes in villages near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, local sources added. Meanwhile another two men were taken from the village of Marda located near the northern West Bank city of Tubas.

The Israeli army decided to jail an Israeli soldier after he opened fire at Palestinian farmers while he was off-duty, Israeli media sources reported on Wednesday. The soldier was captured on camera by the Israeli human right group B'tselem. The footage showed that the soldier was in civilian clothes when he opened fire twice at Palestinian farmers near a settlement in the southern part of the West Bank. The army said that the soldier will face a military court in a few days and will be sentenced to jail.

An Israeli army spokesman told reporters that the soldier behaved in a very careless manner, adding that there was no good reason for the soldier to open fire. The incident took place last November, according to the Israeli human right group.

Israeli warplanes attacked a Palestinian police target in southern Gaza Strip on Thursday, with no injuries reported. Witnesses said that an Israeli warplane fired two missiles at headquarter of the Palesitnian police in Khan Younis city. The building was damaged during the Israeli Cast Lead offensive last month, which lasted 22 days.

On Thursday, Israel allowed the export of a small quantity of flowers from the Gaza Strip to be shipped abroad for the first time in 3 years. According to Mahmoud Khalil, head of the Palestinian Society for Flower Producers in Gaza, flower producers in Gaza have the ability to produce 40 millions flowers every year.

Three years ago, the Palestinian farmers lost their source of income due to the Israeli blockade of Gaza, Khalil added. The quantities allowed for export today were estimated at 25,000 flowers, a very small quantity, compared with the period before the Israeli closure of Gaza in June 2007. Last season, farmers of flowers had to destroy large quantities of their products due to the Israeli closure of the region.


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 and George Rishmawi.