RAMALLAH, Wednesday, July 01, 2020 (WAFA) – The widespread outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in the Palestinian territories dominated the front page headlines in Wednesday’s issue of the three Palestinian Arabic dailies.
The dailies reported that a Palestinian man and his mother, in her 60s, died to the virus in the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida reported the Health Ministry confirming that 322 Palestinians tested positive for the virus yesterday, including an infant.
The Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ministry was reported in al-Ayyam announcing that 51 Palestinians in the diaspora contracted the virus in the last 24 hours.
Hinting at the postponement of the implementation of Israel’s illegal move to annex large swaths of the West Bank along with reactions on it hit the front page headlines.
Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu was reported in al-Quds and al-Ayyam that he “will continue to work on ]the annexation plan[ in the coming few days.”
Netanyahu’s main coalition partner, Benny Gantz, was reported in al-Quds and al-Ayyam anticipating the collapse of the coalition government and saying that priority should be given to unemployment in Israel.
Al-Quds said that the Palestinian-Israeli Joint List party has launched an international campaign against the annexation plan, and demands recognition of the Palestinian state.
It said that US churches has requested the US Congress to take action to halt Israel’s annexation move.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida highlighted US lawmakers sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calling for withholding funds to Israel equal to the amount the Israeli spends annually to fund the colonial settlements.
The lawmakers, al-Ayyam added, pledged to work to ensure non-recognition of the annexed territories.
Al-Ayyam said that the Dutch parliament approved a draft resolution rejecting Israel’s annexation move as violation of international law.
Highlighting ongoing Israeli settlers’ assaults, the dailies said that settlers attempted anew to seize a mount in Halhul city, north of Hebron.
Al-Ayyam said that not only did the settlers attempt to seize the mount, but they also attempted to seize Palestinian lands belonging to Sa‘ir town, northeast of Hebron.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam said that settlers took over a Palestinian house in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida said that Israeli forces rounded up 10 Palestinians in multiple raids across the West Bank. According to al-Ayyam, the detainees totaled 11.
According to al-Quds, Israeli military vehicles infiltrated east of Khan Younes city in the southern besieged Gaza Strip.
Al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida said that Israeli occupation authorities issued stop construction orders against several structures in Masafer Yatta in the southern West Bank.
Furthermore, al-Quds spotlighted Haaretz report Lack of Security Camera Footage Mars Israel’s Probe Into Its Killing of Autistic Palestinian.
Commenting on the report, al-Quds said that Israeli occupation authorities are dodging the assassination of Iyad al-Hallaq through concealing the recordings of the surveillance cameras and attempting to close the investigation.
It also reported Palestinian-Israeli lawmaker Ahmad Tibi stating that he could not trust the Israeli police since it is unreasonable that a murderer prosecute the crime and held himself accountable for it.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam highlighted an Israeli court’s decision to force the Sumrain family out of their real estate in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Wadi Hilweh.
It should be reiterated in this regard that Israeli courts, seen as the last judicial recourse against demolitions, in fact are complicit in perpetuating the Israeli policies of forcible transfer against Palestinians.
K.F.
