RAMALLAH, November 7, 2017 (WAFA) – Israeli plans to spend millions of dollars to build roads for the illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank was highlighted on the front page of the Palestinian Arabic dailies in their Tuesday issue.
While al-Ayyam said Israel plans to spend 200 million shekels ($57 million) for the settlement road, al-Quds said the amount allocated was 800 million shekels ($228 million).
The third daily, al-Hayat al-Jadida did not give a figure in its headlines for this subject, but said Israel is ready to approve construction of 292 settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem.
The main headline in al-Hayat al-Jadida that went across the entire front page had to do with President Mahmoud Abbas’ meeting with his Egyptian counterpart President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. It also said Abbas arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday for an official visit.
It also quoted Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah saying that the issue of security in Gaza has not been resolved yet with Hamas.
It said the Ministry of Tourism has accused Hamas members of resuming razing land in the archeological Tel al-Sakan area in Gaza.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam also reported on the same subjects with al-Ayyam quoting Hamdallah saying that implementation of the reconciliation with Hamas is going smoothly.
However, the paper quoted Hamas official and lawmaker Ahmad Bahr saying his movement rejects the presence of European police at Rafah crossing with Egypt as stipulated in the 2005 movement and access agreement.
It also said on a different subject that Jerusalem’s Palestinian institutions reject Israel’s formation of a special police unit for Al-Aqsa Mosque, one of Islam’s holiest sites which Jewish groups want to turn into a temple.
It said Israeli police raided and shut down a school in Beit Hanina neighborhood of the occupied city of Jerusalem and arrested its principal and three teachers.
Al-Quds said, quoting attorney Mohannad Jbara, that the Israeli municipality of West Jerusalem seized five dunums of land near Shimon Hazdik cave in the heart of the Arab neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah for what it described as public use but with a goal to build a hotel for Israelis.
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