Palestine Today 061609

As former US President, Jimmy Carter, visited the Gaza Strip, the military injured one civilian and kidnapped others in the West Bank, these stories and more coming up, stay tuned.

News Cast

A Palestinian youth was shot and injured by Israeli military fire on Monday at night in the village of Beit Ummar in the southern West Bank.

Kifah Bahar, 24, sustained light wounds and was moved to a hospital in the nearby city of Hebron for treatment, local sources said.

Witnesses reported that soldiers opened fire at the young man while he was driving his motorbike near his home. Soldiers also beat up both of his parents after shooting him the witnesses added. The Israeli military issued no statement regarding the incident.

Two Palestinian families were given orders on Tuesday by the Israeli municipality of Jerusalem to demolish part of their homes located inside the walls of the old city.

The municipality says the structures added to the houses lack the needed building permission. Israel allows settlers inside the old city to expand and add to their homes but make it very difficult for Palestinian families to do so.

Earlier on Tuesday at dawn Ten Palestinian men were taken by the Israeli army during military invasions in the West Bank. As always the army stated that the men were wanted and that it took them for questioning.

In other news former US President, Jimmy Carter, crossed into the Gaza Strip in a visit that aims at observing the destruction inflicted during the Cast lead Israeli military offensive earlier this year. Carter met with the ruling Hamas leader. He held the U.S responsible for the bad situation in Gaza and called Hamas to renounce violence.

Isma'el Hanyiah, Hamas' deposed Prime Minister, told Carter that establishing a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders may lead to a long-term truce and a prisoner exchange with Israel.

It is thought that Carter is carrying a letter for the Israeli corporal who was captured in Gaza by armed Palestinian resistance groups in the summer of 2006. Israel are currently holding 11, 000 Palestinians, including women and children, in military detention camps.


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.