Palestine Today 082009

The Israeli military leaves one man injured in Gaza and kidnaps civilians in the west Bank, these stories and more, coming up, stay tuned.

The News Cast

A Palestinian man was injured on Thursday by Israeli military fire during an invasion targeting areas in the central regions of the Gaza Strip.

Local sources reported that Israeli troops and tanks invaded areas in central Gaza Strip then opened fire on nearby homes. One man was moderately injured and moved to a hospital in Gaza City. Palestinian armed groups announced that they clashed with the invading forces. No injures were reported from either side.

In the West Bank the Israeli military kidnapped on Thursday morning four Palestinian civilians during an invasion targeting the southern city of Hebron. Local sources reported that troops stormed a number of homes in the city then took the four men and left. The military announced that the men had been taken to military detention camps for questioning and that all four of them were on the army's wanted list.

In related news, the Israeli military attacked at dawn on Thursday, Bil'in village, in central West Bank.

Soldiers attacked the house of Mohammad Abu Rahma, age 48, and kidnapped him. Abu Rahmah is the vice president of the Bil’in village council and an organizer of the weekly nonviolent protests against the wall.

During the arrest, the soldiers where confronted by the village's camera man Haitham Khatib who was joined by international solidarity activists who live in the village. As Haithem was filming the arrest, one soldier hit him, broke his camera and hit two of the activists.

During the daily invasions that started last month the Israeli military have arrested 28 people, most of whom are under 18. Nineteen residents of Bil'in remain in Israeli detention. The military is trying to stop the weekly protest against the wall around the village.

The Palestinian village of Bil’in has become an international symbol of the Palestinian popular struggle. For almost 5 years, its residents have been continuously struggling against the de facto annexation of more than 50% of their farmlands for the construction of the Apartheid Wall.

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.