RAMALLAH, March 20, 2012 (WAFA) – The three Palestinian Arabic dailies Tuesday focused on the Palestinian request to the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva to form an international commission of inquiry on the impact of the Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian Territory.
“PA moves battle of settlements to Human Rights Council” was the prime headline of al-Hayat al-Jadida’s front page. The daily said the HRC member states will vote on the Palestinian proposal within this week.
The highlight of al-Quds daily was a report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Palestinian Territory (OCHA) on the humanitarian impact of the takeover of Palestinian water springs by Israeli settlers.
The three newspapers highlighted report of a telephone call President Mahmoud Abbas received from US President Barack Obama on the content of the letter Abbas plans to send Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the coming days.
Al-Ayyam reported that Hana Shalabi, the Palestinian prisoner who has been on an open-ended hunger strike for 34 days protesting her arrest without charge or trial, has been admitted to hospital on Monday after her health condition severely deteriorated.
Al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida printed pictures of a demonstration and a set-in organized in Nablus and Hebron in solidarity with Shalabi.
Al-Quds reported that the PA’s published position paper to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) upcoming meeting in Brussels focused on the needed efforts to enable development in Area C of the Palestinian Territory and to contribute in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
Al-Quds editorial slammed the continuous Israeli settlement activities in the Palestinian Territory, including the Israeli government actions to bypass court orders against settlements in the West Bank.
The daily also condemned the attack on a Jewish school in Toulouse, southern France, which left four people dead, including three children, as well as called on the international community to condemn the attacks targeting Palestinian civilians.
R.Q./M.S.
