Razan al-Najjar
The Israeli army has launched a criminal investigation into the killing of Palestinian medic Razan al-Najjar during anti-occupation protests in the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli media on Tuesday.
Al-Najjar was shot in the chest by Israeli snipers last June while running to help a wounded Palestinian in the southern city of Khan Younis.
A preliminary probe by the Israeli army concluded that Israeli soldiers did not fire directly at the Palestinian medic.
But the findings were rejected by the army’s Military Advocate General, Brigadier-General Sharon Afek, who ordered a criminal investigation into the killing, according to Israeli daily Haaretz.
Israeli voters went to polling stations on Tuesday in the country’s municipal election, amid a boycott by Palestinian residents.Polling stations opened at 7:00 a.m. local time and will close at 10 p.m. local time.More than 6.6 million Israelis are eligible to cast their ballot in the vote.According to the Israeli Interior Ministry, around 11,000 polling stations have opened in 251 municipalities across Israel for the vote.Druze on Golan Heights protest against Israeli municipal electionA total of 863 candidates are vying for some 251 city, town and regional councils nationwide during the vote.Local elections are held every four years in Israel amid partisan rivalries.Like every year, attention is drawn to the Israeli-occupied city of East Jerusalem, where the vast majority of Palestinians boycott the vote since Israel captured the city during the 1967 Middle East war.Palestinians, who are considered as "permanent residents" under Israeli law, are entitled to cast ballot, but not to run in the vote.Israel arrests 12 Palestinians in West Bank raidsAccording to Israeli official figures, Palestinians make up around 40% of Jerusalem's population in its both eastern and western parts.In the recent weeks, Palestinian religious figures have urged Palestinian residents in Jerusalem to boycott the vote.The Palestinians view the participation in the Israeli election as an endorsement of the Israeli occupation of the holy city.Meanwhile, hundreds of Druze Arabs in the village of Majdal Shams in Israel-occupied Syrian Golan Heights demonstrated against the Israeli polls.The municipal polls in the village have been already cancelled after all candidates withdrew from the vote.Israel martyrs Palestinian amid protests in GazaPLO suspends recognition of Israel
Israelis vote in local polls amid Palestinian boycott
For the last seven months, Palestinians in Gaza have been staging regular demonstrations along the Gaza-Israel buffer zone to demand the right to return to their homes in historical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948.
They also demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its two million inhabitants of many basic commodities.
Since the rallies began on March 30, more than 200 Palestinians have been martyred-- and thousands more injured -- by Israeli troops deployed along the other side of the buffer zone.
Twenty-one-year-old Palestinian paramedic Razan al-Najjar, who was martyred by Israeli sniper fire while tending to the wounds of a Palestinian protester during the Great March of Return protests near the Gaza border, has become a symbol of resistance to Israeli occupation and oppression.
‘Angel of mercy’ Razan al-Najjar becomes symbol of Palestinian resistance
Israeli forces rounded up 12 Palestinians in overnight raids across the occupied West Bank, according to the Israeli military on Tuesday.The individuals were arrested for “suspected involvement in popular terrorist activities”, the army said in a statement, without elaborating on the nature of these activities.The Israeli army frequently carries out wide-ranging arrest campaigns across the occupied West Bank on the pretext of searching for “wanted” Palestinians.According to Palestinian figures, some 6,500 Palestinians continue to languish in Israeli detention facilities, including scores of women and hundreds of minors.Israel martyrs Palestinian amid protests in GazaPLO suspends recognition of Israel
Israel arrests 12 Palestinians in West Bank raids
The Israeli army martyred a Palestinian man on Sunday in the northern coastal area of the Gaza Strip amid ongoing demonstrations against Israel's air, land, and sea blockade.Ashraf al-Qidra, spokesman for Palestine’s Health Ministry, said in a written statement that Mohammad abu-Ibadah, 27, was shot dead by the Israeli army during today’s demonstration.Gaza’s National Committee for Breaking the Siege launched the event from the Gaza Strip’s northern coast, not far from the heavily fortified Gaza-Israel buffer zone.It was the 13th time this year Gaza activists held the event, in which boats slowly approach the maritime border before hastily retreating in the face of intense machine-gun fire.Israel first imposed its Gaza blockade in 2006 after Palestinian movement Hamas, which supports armed resistance against Israel’s decades-long occupation, swept Palestinian legislative polls.The following year, Israel ratcheted up the blockade after Hamas seized the entire Gaza Strip -- which it still holds today -- from rival Palestinian faction Fatah.Still in effect, the blockade has crippled Gaza’s economy, depriving the enclave’s more than 2 million inhabitants of many basic commodities.PLO suspends recognition of Israel
Israel martyrs Palestinian amid protests in Gaza
The Central Council of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) said late Monday it is suspending its recognition of Israel until it recognizes a state of Palestine based on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, according to Palestine’s official Wafa news agency.Following a two-day meeting in Ramallah, the council said the PLO and Palestinian Authority will also end security coordination and suspend economic agreements as set out under the 1994 Paris Economic Protocol. It also decided to revoke the validity of the Oslo Accords.The council said the decision was made “in light of Israel’s continued denial of the signed agreements”.The decision must be approved by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the PLO Executive Council.The council also called on Palestinian group Hamas to adhere to all agreements that have been reached under Egypt's mediation to prevent divisions between Palestinian factions.A delegation from Egypt’s intelligence service arrived in the Gaza Strip last Wednesday to continue talks with Hamas leaders.The Egyptian delegation has been engaging in shuttle diplomacy between the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and Israel for several days, during which they have been meeting with officials of Hamas, Fatah and the Israeli government.The talks are being held with a view to reaching a truce between Hamas and Israel on one side and achieving reconciliation between rival Palestinian factions.Wednesday's visit is the third by the Egyptian delegation to the Gaza Strip within a week.On Oct. 3, a Hamas delegation concluded a four-day visit to Cairo, where they held talks with Egyptian officials on the truce and Palestinian reconciliation.The rift between Fatah and Hamas has prevailed since the latter won an overwhelming majority in parliamentary elections in 2006 and seized control of Gaza after deadly infighting a year later.PLO urges ICC probe into Gaza child killings by Israel
PLO suspends recognition of Israel