Palestine Today 062309

As the military frees a Palestinian law maker, troops kidnap civilians in the West Bank, these stories and more coming up, stay tuned.

The News Cast

Israeli troops kidnapped two children and two adults during an invasion targeting the village of Bil'in in the central West Bank on Monday night and Tuesday morning.

Local sources said that Israeli troops stormed the village on Tuesday at dawn searched a number of homes then kidnapped Khalil Yassen, 15, and Kamel Al Kahteeb. Both children were taken to unknown detention camps, their families reported.

Earlier on Monday night, two men, Hissen Mansour and Kifah Mansour, were going from their land located behind the wall that cuts the village off from its lands. Troops stopped the two men and kidnapped them, local sources reported.

Bil'in has been the scene of weekly nonviolent protests against the Israeli wall for over four years. The Israeli court gave the famers the right to reach their lands behind the wall and ordered the army to remove the wall. The Israeli army still refuses to dismantle the Wall.

In other news the speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council Dr Aziz Dweik was released on Tuesday from Israeli military detention.

Dr. Dweik arrived at a military checkpoint near his home city of Tulkarem, in the northern West Bank on Tuesday afternoon, along with another Hamas law maker Jamal Hawel, where they were greeted by their families, city officials and journalists.

Both were kidnapped by the Israeli military three years ago when the latter conducted a campaign in which 40 Hamas law makers were kidnapped in response to the Palestinian resistance group's capture of an Israeli soldier in the Hamas run Gaza Strip.

In a short speech at the welcoming ceremony Dr. Dweik promised the Palestinian people a “pleasant surprise" that he will announce later at the headquarters of the Palestinian parliament in the central West Bank city of Ramallah. Dr. Dweik is a Hamas political leader and has the respect of all other factions.


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.