RAMALLAH, Sunday, February 28, 2021 (WAFA) – The three Palestinian Arabic dailies focused today on the new set of partial lockdown measures announced yesterday by Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh in response to a spike in coronavirus infections and the spread of new mutations.

Al-Hayat al-Jadida and al-Ayyam said under the new restrictions, a 12-day lockdown of all public and private schools and kindergartens for all classes, as well as universities and colleges, will go into effect as of today.

Al-Hayat al-Jadida said the Palestinian Ministry of Health yesterday reported 1623 new infections and nine deaths from coronavirus across Palestine.

On a different subject, al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida quoted Jibril Rajoub, Secretary-General of the Central Committee of the ruling Fatah Movement, as saying that the movement was seeking the composition of a single list of all factions and the other active national forces to run for upcoming legislative elections.

Al-Hayat al-Jadida said in its main news story that President Mahmoud Abbas urged Palestinian businessmen at home and abroad to invest in the national economy at home.

The three dailies said the United Nations and European members of the UN Security Council have called on the occupying state of Israel to halt demolitions of Bedouin communities in the Jordan Valley, and for humanitarian access to the community of Humsa Al-Baqaia.

Al-Ayyam and al-Quds said Israeli occupation forces dispersed Palestinians demonstrating yesterday in the village of al-Sakut, in the Jordan Valley region of the occupied West Bank, against the Israeli colonial settlement activities.

The two dailies said Israeli "Defense"Minister Benny Gantz claimed that his “initial assessment” indicates that Iran was responsible for an explosion on an Israeli-owned ship in the Gulf of Oman.

M.N