File photo: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) sits next to Israeli Public security Minister Gilad Erdan during the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem
The Israeli government has conditioned a public apology from a U.S. student, who is allegedly linked to a global boycott campaign against Israel, to be allowed entry into the country, Israeli daily Haaretz reported.
Last week, Israeli authorities denied entry to Lara Alqasem despite having a student visa from the Israeli consulate in Miami.
''If Alqasem comes forward tomorrow morning with her own voice, not with all sorts of lawyers' wisecracking and statements that could be construed this way or another – and declares that supporting BDS, she thinks today is illegitimate and she regrets what she did on this matter, we will consider our stance,” Minister of Strategic Affairs Gilad Erdan said on Twitter on Tuesday.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement is a global campaign devoted to pressuring Israel -- economically and politically -- to end its ongoing violations of international law.
Israeli officials argue that Alqasem, who was planned to join the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, supports the BDS and took part in campaigns boycotting Israel.
The U.S. student has been detained at Israel’s Ben-Gurion airport since she arrived in the country.
Her first appeal against the Israeli decision to deny her entry was denied last week. A second appeal is expected to be heard in the coming days.
UN refugee agency UNRWA on Tuesday decried as “irresponsible” Israeli plans to close the agency’s offices in the occupied East Jerusalem.“UNRWA is carrying out operations within the framework of the UN Charter and bilateral and multilateral agreements which are still valid as well as relevant resolutions of the UN General Assembly," UNRWA spokesman Christopher Gunness told Jordan’s Petra news agency.He said the refugee agency has been authorized by the UN to provide protection and aid to Palestinian refugees in the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem.“Such messages by top elected figures in Israel are irresponsible and very serious,” he said.Last week, Israel’s Jerusalem municipality announced plans to remove the UN agency from the occupied city.According to Israeli Channel Two, U.S. President Donald Trump's recent decision to end financial aid to UNRWA has encouraged Israel to take move.Three Palestinians martyred along Gaza-Israel buffer zoneThe broadcaster said that the Israeli move was planned in coordination with the U.S. administration and will soon be presented to the Israeli government for approval.In September, the U.S. State Department announced that Washington would “no longer commit funding” to UNRWA.The U.S. had been UNRWA's largest contributor by far, providing it with $350 million annually -- roughly one quarter of the agency's overall budget.Established in 1949, UNRWA provides critical aid to Palestinian refugees in the blockaded Gaza Strip, the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.Jerusalem remains at the heart of the Middle East conflict, with Palestinians hoping that East Jerusalem -- occupied by Israel since 1967 -- might eventually serve as the capital of an independent Palestinian state.'Turkey stepped up when US cut aid to Palestine': UN
UNRWA slams Israeli plans to close Jerusalem office
Israeli forces on Tuesday arrested the mother of a suspected Palestinian shooter, who shot dead two Israelis in the occupied West Bank this weekend, according to local residents.An Israeli military force raided Shawbka neighborhood in the city of Tulkarem and detained Wafaa Naalwa, 45, from her home, the residents said.“Israeli soldiers searched Naalwa’s family and questioned her family members before withdrawing from the area,” one of the residents said.On Monday, Israeli forces briefly arrested the sister of the suspected shooter for questioning.On Sunday, two Israelis were killed and another was injured in a shooting attack in an industrial area near the settlement of Barkan in the central West Bank.The shooter had fled the scene unscathed with Israeli media saying the attacker was a former Palestinian worker from Tulkarem.Meanwhile, Israeli forces rounded up seven Palestinians in overnight raids across the West Bank.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.Palestinian women suffer abuses in Israeli jails
Israel detains mother of West Bank shooter
Taken away from their children, dozens of Palestinian women are suffering abuse in Israeli prisons, according to Palestinian activists.In a recent report, Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association said Israeli authorities are holding 51 women, including nine injured females and two minors.According to the NGO, Israel has detained 516 women since 2015, of whom 90 women have been arrested since the beginning of this year.Last month, Palestinian female journalist Lama Khater was arrested in an Israeli raid on her home in the West Bank city of Hebron.“Dozens of Israeli soldiers surrounded and raided our house before arresting her in front of our children,” her husband Hazem Fakhori told Anadolu Agency.A mother of five, Khater is a Palestinian activist, who writes a series of articles in a number of Palestinian dailies.“We have lost a big part since she was arrested,” Fakhori said. “We are missing her terribly; she is not only a mother of our children but is also a friend.”Fakhori accused Israeli soldiers of abusing his wife, citing that soldiers have kept shouting at her during detention.“She was transferred several times to a doctor, who only gave her some painkillers before sending her back for interrogation,” he said.“Lama’s place is among her family and her kids who need her and miss her,” he said, using the first name of his wife.After 34 days of interrogation, Khater was sent to prison waiting for her trail, which will be held on October 10.According to Addameer, Israel had arrested 10,000 Palestinian women since the 1967 Middle East war.There are approximately 6,500 Palestinians currently languishing in prisons throughout Israel, according to Palestinian figures.Israel vows to take in 1,000 Falasha Jews from EthiopiaIsrael preparing for offensive against Gaza: NetanyahuIsrael arrests sister of West Bank shooterTortureAnother painful story is the case of Israa Jaabis, a Palestinian woman who was disfigured by an Israeli attack on her car and left to suffer in Israel’s Hasharon prison.“Jaabis urgently needs to undergo cosmetic surgeries on her hands, face, ears, and teeth,” Ra’afat Hamdoneh, head of the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies, said.Jaabis was detained by Israeli forces in October 2015 when her car exploded as a result of the explosion of a cooking gas cylinder she was transporting, leaving her with severe burns.Israel authorities accused her of purposefully attempting to blow up her car and sentenced her to 11 years in jail on charges of attempted murder.According to Hamdoneh, Jaabis’ fingers were amputated and she breathes mostly through her mouth due to a gaping hole in her nose.“She also suffers from a nervous breakdown, shock and severe psychological problems aggravated by her imprisonment,” he said.Sahar Francis, director of Addameer, said Israeli soldiers abuse Palestinian women from the first moment of their detention.“Torture and abuse start from the first moment of detention and continue during interrogation,” Francis told Anadolu Agency.She described interrogation as the “most violent part” of the detention.“Prisoners are not only subjected to physical torture -- such as being tied and beaten – but are also targeted because of their gender,” she said.
Palestinian women suffer abuses in Israeli jails
Israeli forces on Tuesday arrested the mother of a suspected Palestinian shooter, who shot dead two Israelis in the occupied West Bank this weekend, according to local residents.An Israeli military force raided Shawbka neighborhood in the city of Tulkarem and detained Wafaa Naalwa, 45, from her home, the residents said.“Israeli soldiers searched Naalwa’s family and questioned her family members before withdrawing from the area,” one of the residents said.On Monday, Israeli forces briefly arrested the sister of the suspected shooter for questioning.On Sunday, two Israelis were killed and another was injured in a shooting attack in an industrial area near the settlement of Barkan in the central West Bank.The shooter had fled the scene unscathed with Israeli media saying the attacker was a former Palestinian worker from Tulkarem.Meanwhile, Israeli forces rounded up seven Palestinians in overnight raids across the West Bank.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.Palestinian women suffer abuses in Israeli jails Israel detains mother of West Bank shooter