RAMALLAH, May 17, 2017 (WAFA) – President Mahmoud Abbas’ statements during his meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the deteriorating health condition of the Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike dominated the front page headlines in local Palestinian newspapers on Wednesday.
Abbas was reported in al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida stating the Palestinians count on India’s support to translate the two-state solution into a reality.
He was also reported in al-Hayat al-Jadida stating bringing the Israeli occupation that started in June 1967 to an end would pave the way to implementing the Arab Peace Initiative.
On the other hand, al-Ayyam opted to highlighted hunger strikers’ condition in the main front page news article.
It said as the prisoners entered their 31st day of hunger strike, the health condition of the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons has further deteriorated.
Al-Quds said in this regard Israel Prisons Service (IPS) transferred dozens of hunger strikers from Nafha prison in the south and Ofer prison near Ramallah to field clinics following decline in their health.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam reported the head of the Prisoners’ Affairs Commission Issa Qaraqe denying reports that leader of the strike Marwan Barghouti submitted a new list of demands for the hunger strike.
Al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida said the cabinet would remain in an open session to follow-up on the issue of hunger strikers.
Highlighting solidarity activities, al-Hayat al-Jadida said Fatah movement called on Palestinians to step up popular resistance and has announced a partial strike on Sunday.
Referring to a Wall Street Journal report, al-Quds said the Gulf countries have offered normal relations with Israel in exchange for freezing settlement construction in the West Bank and serious offer to make peace with Palestinians.
Al-Quds said more activities were organized across the occupied Palestinian territories and abroad to commemorate the 69th anniversary of the Nakba.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam reported Hamas’ Minister of Interior published a video footage showing three Palestinian collaborators making detailed confessions about the killing of Hamas leader Mazen Fuqaha.
Al-Ayyam said Israeli forces detained seven members of the Palestinian customs police to the east of Nablus and uprooted over 60 olive saplings to the east of Tubas.
It added Israeli settlers started to set up a new settler outpost on expropriated Palestinian land in Khirbet al-Sweidah in the northern Jordan Valley.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida said Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip took part in the funeral procession of 26-year-old Muhammad Bakr, a fisherman who was fatally shot by Israeli naval forces a day before while sailing off the coast of northern Gaza.
K. F./M.K.
