Palestine Today 090809

Israel began the construction of new settlement units in East Jerusalem as the military kidnapped civilians from the West Bank , these stories and more coming up, stay tuned.

The News Cast

The Israeli government on Tuesday began the construction of 455 units for Israeli settlers in a new neighborhood of Mafseret Adumim, close to the Maaleh Adumim settlement bloc in East Jerusalem. Several members of the Knesset and Israeli ministers participated in the ceremony and called for further construction of illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Israel is planning to construct 3000 units for the settlers in Maaleh Adumim. There are 37,000 settlers living in Maaleh Adumim, and Israel believes that 600 units should be built every year to house new settlers. On Sunday the Israeli government approved the housing units, while the settlers announced the creation of a new settlement in the Jordan valley.

Last week Palestinians and the US administration demanded a halt to settlement construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem before peace talks are resumed. There are 450,000 Israeli settlers living in settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem. All of these settlements are illegal according to international law.

In other news nine Palestinian civilians were kidnapped by Israeli troops on Tuesday during morning invasions in several West Bank communities. Palestinian sources reported that invasions were reported in Ramallah in the central West Bank, Tulkarem, Qalqilia and Tubas in the north, as well as Hebron in the southern West Bank.

In June the Israeli military said it would stop its invasions into the cities of Ramallah and Qalqilia, as well as Bethlehem and Jericho. However, to date, attacks targeting those cities have continued. Israeli military radio announced that those kidnapped were wanted by the Israeli army. They have been moved to military detention camps for questioning.

In the latest of a series of raids over the last three months, Israeli forces attacked the village of Bil'in at 2:30 am on Tuesday morning, allegedly searching for a teenage boy. The village remains under curfew, and organizers of the Popular Committee Against the Wall say that the ongoing attacks on their village are an attempt by the Israeli army to put an end to their non-violent resistance once and for all.

The village of Bil'in has become a focal point for the non-violent resistance movement in Palestine, holding non-violent protests every Friday for the last four years. Israeli forces attack the protests with semi-lethal weapons and experimental weapons each Friday, but the protests have continued.

The village has gained international and Israeli attention, and Israeli peace activists cross the Wall illegally each Friday to take part in the non-violent protests.

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.