RAMALLAH, September 7, 2017 (WAFA) – Israel’s approval of a plan to construct thousands of new settler units in occupied East Jerusalem dominated the front page headlines in Palestinian Arabic dailies on Thursday.

Al-Quds and al-Ayyam reported Israel’s National Council of Planning and Building approved a plan to construct 4,500 new settler units on the hills of occupied East Jerusalem.

They added the Israeli West Jerusalem Planning and Building Committee was slated to approve a plan to construct 176 news settler units in the heart of East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir.

Al-Ayyam added Israeli forces handed forced eviction orders to six Palestinian families in East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

It added Jerusalemite Palestinians were called to perform Friday noon prayer in front of the home from which the Shamasneh family was forcefully evicted in East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah and their house was turned over to Jewish settlers.

Al-Quds said Israeli forces detained a Palestinian child near the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron for allegedly being in possession of a knife.

The dailies added Israeli forces clashed with Palestinians in Abu Dis, east of Jerusalem, causing suffocation cases and burns among Palestinians.

Al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida reported a group of Jewish Israeli settlers assaulted and wounded a Palestinian teen in the northern West Bank district of Nablus identified as 16-year-old Osama Daghlas from the village of Burqa.

They added Israeli forces shut down a blacksmith shop and seized the contents of three lathing shops, vehicles and cash during multiple overnight raids across the West Bank.

Al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida highlighted Palestinian official responses to Israeli military’s decision to establish a new municipal service administration for Israeli Jewish settlers who live illegally in Hebron’s old town.

Al-Quds reported Palestinian cabinet pledging ongoing support for Palestinians in East Jerusalem and Hebron.

Al-Hayat al-Jadida reported Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah warning the Israeli military’s decision to grant administrative authority to settlers in Hebron “would cause the security situation to deteriorate.”

It also reported Governor of Hebron Kamel Hamid stating the Israeli government was moving closer to “annexing” Hebron’s old town.

It also reported Secretary-General of PLO’s Executive Committee Saeb Erekat calling for concrete actions to be taken to deter Israeli violations against Palestinians.

He was also reported slamming comments by US ambassador to Israel David Freidman in which he referred to the “alleged occupation” of the Palestinian territories.

Al-Quds published an interview with the Special Representative to UNDP’s Program of Assistance to the Palestinian People (PAPP) Roberto Valent.

It reported him warning the besieged Gaza Strip would become uninhabitable by 2019 as a result of the deterioration in humanitarian conditions.

Al-Quds and al-Ayyam said US President Donald Trump will meet separately with President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines on the UN General Assembly meetings later this month.

Al-Quds and al-Ayyam reported an Israeli court has ruled to extend the detention of Sheikh Raed Salah, head of the Islamic Movement in Israel which was outlawed, and reported him saying that he is being held in the prison’s toilet.

The dailies also covered Israeli parliamentarian Bezalel Smotrich’s plan, which calls on the Israeli government to annex the entire West Bank and pay Palestinians on both sides of the “Green Line” to emigrate.

K.F./M.K.