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Israeli forces rounded up nine Palestinians in overnight raids carried out across the occupied West Bank, according to the Israeli military on Wednesday.
The individuals were arrested for “suspected involvement in popular terrorist activities”, the army said in a statement without elaborating on the nature of said activities.
The detainees have since been remanded into custody for further investigation, the statement added.
The Israeli army frequently carries out sweeping arrest campaigns across the occupied West Bank on the pretext of searching for “wanted” Palestinians.
According to Palestinian figures, approximately 6,500 Palestinians are currently languishing in Israeli prisons, including scores of women and some 350 minors.
A second Druze officer on Tuesday quit the Israeli military in protest of a recently passed law that recognizes Israel as the “nation-state of the Jewish people”.“I have been serving in the IDF (army) for almost five years,” Zidan Shadi wrote on his Facebook page. “Today, I’m a deputy commander in a combat battalion and I have served in all over the country.”Israeli Arab MP resigns to protest Jewish state law“Until this day, I have given the state my soul, I have risked my life. Until this day I stood by the state’s flag,” he said. “But today, I refused for the first time in my service to salute the flag; I refused for the first time to sing the national anthem.”The army officer said he felt he was a second-class citizen in Israel after the approval of the “Nation-State” law.“I have decided to stop serving this country. Thank you State of Israel!" he said.On Sunday, Druze officer Capt. Amir Jmall announced his resignation from the Israeli army in protest of the controversial law. The legislation, approved last week by the Knesset (Israel's parliament), has angered Israel’s sizeable Druze community, members of which have long served in Israel’s military.Video: Palestinian deputies rip copy of Israeli Nation-State lawAn Arabic-speaking ethnic group which adheres to its own monotheistic faith, Israel’s Druze -- estimated at some 120,000 people -- are concentrated largely in the country’s northern regions.Unlike Israel’s Arab Muslim and Christian minorities, Druze men typically serve in the Israeli military and generally consider themselves loyal citizens of the state.
2nd Druze officer quits over Israel’s Nation-State law
Lebanese Army Commander Gen. Joseph Aoun on Tuesday called on the military to remain alert.“The doctrine of the army is constant and remains directed towards the Israeli enemy and terrorism, which only serves Israel and its interests and goals,” Aoun said in a speech marking the 73rd Army Day.Lebanon considers Israel an “enemy state”.Israel last launched war on Lebanon in 2006 against Shia group Hezbollah during which at least 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and 160 Israelis, mostly troops, were killed in the conflict.Israel arrests seventeen Palestinians in overnight raidsAoun said the Arab region was going through many crises and conflicts.“If Lebanon has achieved a decisive victory on terrorism, then this doesn’t mean at all that it has become safe,” he said.“The Israeli enemy is the biggest beneficiary of terrorism in the region and has its eyes on our land and natural resources, and it will not miss a chance to attempt to fulfill its greediness,” Aoun added.Lebanon celebrates the Army Day on August 1, when the army was founded by France in 1945.
Doctrine of Lebanon army focuses on Israel: Commander
The Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) on Tuesday denounced the mistreatment to which Palestinian inmates in Israeli prisons are regularly subjected.Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Issa Qaraqe, head of the PA's Commission for Prisoners Affairs, said that Israel regularly subjects Palestinian prisoners to “severe measures”, including depriving them of water.He went on to describe such measures as “illegal”, accusing Israeli prison authorities of systematically mistreating prisoners and depriving them of their basic rights.Palestinians imprisoned by Israel are generally subjected to tight restrictions, including limits on visits by family members.Israel’s Channel 10 recently reported that Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan had directed the Israeli Prisons Authority to reduce shower time for inmates with the ostensible aim of conserving water.
Palestinian Authority slams Israeli abuse of prisoners