RAMALLAH, June 7, 2017 (WAFA) – The killing of two Palestinians; a Palestinian in the besieged Gaza Strip and a Palestinian citizen of Israel in the Israeli town of Kafr Qasem, hit the front page headlines in Palestinian dailies.
The three dailies said Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian young man and wounded seven others during clashes on the borders of Khuzaa town, east of Khan Younes in the besieged Gaza Strip on Tuesday evening.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam reported Israeli police shot dead a Palestinian young man from Kafr Qasim town in central Israel on Monday night.
They added the High Follow-up Committee for Arab Citizens of Israel called for a general strike in all Palestinian-majority towns in Israel on Wednesday and protests on Thursday and Saturday.
On the other hand, al-Ayyam reported Israeli authorities approved a plan to construct a new settlement comprising of 1,800 settler units in the West Bank.
The plan was reportedly approved by the “Israeli Civil Administration”, the name Israel gives to the body administering its military occupation of the West Bank.
It added Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed that he would proceed with settlement construction across the West Bank.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida and al-Ayyam reported Palestinian presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh slamming Netanyahu’s recent remarks that Israel would maintain “security control” over the West Bank in any future peace deal with the Palestinians as “unacceptable”
Al-Hayat al-Jadida also reported him the meetings between President Mahmoud Abbas and his US counterpart Donald Trump were “serious and clear and paved the way for creating a rare opportunity to achieve peace.”
Al-Ayyam reported member of PLO’s Executive Committee Wassel Abu Youssef saying Abbas and Trump agreed to form a five-member Palestinian-US committee to discuss the prospects for political settlement.
Al-Quds said a delegation of Hamas officials, including deputy chief of Hamas’ politburo Mousa Abu Marzouk, continued meetings with Egyptian officials in Cairo.
It added Israeli forces quelled a protest organized by the National Campaign to Lift the Closure of Hebron.
Al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida said Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah briefed the cabinet about the results of his recent meeting with Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.
The dailies also highlighted statements of some United Nations (UN) officials marking 50 years of Israeli occupation of Palestinian and Arab territories in 1967.
Al-Quds reported UN Coordinator for Humanitarian Aid and Development Activities Robert Piper slamming the Israeli occupation as “the most longstanding protection crisis in the UN’s history.”
Highlighting a Norwegian Refugee Council’s (NRC) report on 50 years of Israeli occupation, al-Quds reported NRC saying Israel demolished over 1,000 Palestinian homes in 2016.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam reported the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urging Israel to end its occupation of the Palestinian territories and saying: “Now it is the time to ]end the conflict[ by establishing an independent Palestinian state.”
Al-Hayat al-Jadida also reported UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein stating at the UN Human Rights Council’s 35th session in Geneva: “end of Israeli occupation would benefit both sides.”
Al-Ayyam said the United States Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley threatened to pull out from the UN Human Rights Council over the council’s alleged “chronic anti-Israel bias”.
K.F.
