Palestine Today 071409

Israeli tanks invade Gaza and the military kidnaps civilians in the West Bank, these stories and more coming up stay tuned.

The News Cast

Israeli tanks and bulldozers invaded on Tuesday afternoon farm lands located in the northern Gaza Strip. Witnesses said that Israeli tanks rolled into farm lands in the town of Beit Hanoun and opened fire at residents' homes. Bulldozers came in after to destroy farm lands.

The Al Qassam Brigades the armed wing of the ruling Hamas party in Gaza said that its fighters clashed with the invading troops and fired RPG shells at them. No injuries were reported on both sides.

Elsewhere, the Israeli military kidnapped, on Tuesday, 12 Palestinian civilians during invasions targeting a number of West Bank communities. Palestinian sources said that seven were taken from Qalqilia in the northern West Bank, two from Bethlehem and three from Hebron, located in the southern West Bank.

Witnesses reported that Israeli soldiers searched and ransacked homes in both Bethlehem and Hebron cities. Meanwhile Israeli soldiers attacked homes in Azon Atmah village near Qalqilia and kidnapped seven civilians among them two children. The army claimed that those kidnapped had thrown stones on a nearby settler road.

In other news, Israeli bulldozers destroyed on Tuesday 4.5 acres of Palestinian farm lands near the northern West bank city of Nablus.

Local sources reported that the lands are located near the illegal Israeli settlement of Yitshar and owned by farmers from nearby villages. The villagers say the settlers want to expand their settlement using their land. They added that the settlers attacked them when they tried to stop the bulldozers.

Earlier a group of armed Israeli settlers attacked and injured a Palestinian child on Monday night in the southern West Bank city of Hebron. Medical sources announced on Tuesday that Hanni Abu Hikal, aged 14, sustained light wounds after he was beaten up by settlers.

Witnesses said that the settlers attacked the boy near his home in Tal Rumada area in Hebron city. Doctors said the boy was released from the hospital on Tuesday morning.

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.