RAMALLAH, August 10, 2018 (WAFA) – The killing of a Palestinian pregnant mother and her 18-month-old toddler in renewed Israeli airstrikes on the besieged Gaza Strip hit the front page headlines in Palestinian daily newspapers on Friday.
The dailies reported that a Palestinian pregnant mother and her toddler were killed in an overnight Israeli barrage of airstrikes on Gaza.
Inas Abu Khmash, a 23-year-old pregnant woman, and her 18-month toddler, Bayan, were reportedly killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Jaafari area in the central Gaza Strip. Inas’ husband, Muhammad, suffered moderate to serious injuries.
Al-Quds and al-Ayyam added that scores of other Palestinians were injured in renewed Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.
The dailies also reported bombed and destroyed a cultural center in Gaza City. The center was identified as al-Meshaal Center for Culture.
They printed a photo showing Palestinians inspecting the obliteration of the center, that was reduced to the ground, while al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida printed a photo for the funeral procession of Inas Khmash and her toddler, Bayan.
Additionally, the dailies reported that President Mahmoud Abbas discussed the latest developments with Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida added that Abbas conducted intensive contacts to stop the Israeli escalation in Gaza.
Also with regards to the situation in Gaza, al-Hayat al-Jadida reported Secretary-General of the PLO Executive Committee Saeb Erekat urging all states to reconsider their bilateral relations with Israel.
It also reported Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah urging the international community to intervene ]and put an end to the Israeli aggression on Gaza[.
Moreover, al-Quds reported that several Palestinians were injured with rubber-coated steel bullets and other suffocated during Israeli military raids in Tuqu‘ town, southeast of Bethlehem, and Kafr Qaddum, a town to the east of Qalqiliya.
Al-Ayyam said that scores of Palestinians were injured during confrontations with Israeli forces in Kafr Qaddum.
It added that Israeli forces detained 12 Palestinians during multiple overnight raids across the West Bank.
It also reported that an Israeli military bulldozer demolished a Palestinian-owned shop in Marj Na‘ja, a village located to the north of Jericho.
It said that Israeli forces conducted drills to the east of the northern West Bank city of Jenin and displaced four Palestinian families from their homes under the pretense of military drills in the northern Jordan Valley.
Yet, al-Quds reported Minister of Waqf and Religious Affairs Yusef Id‘eis calling on Palestinian Muslims to en mass perform Friday prayer at the Ibrahimi Mosque in the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Id‘eis’ statements came in response to Israel’s decision to shut down the mosque for Muslims, allowing only Jews into the site under the pretense of Jewish holidays.
It also reported that the Russian Council of Muftis has promised to enlist East Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque as a destination for Russian tourists.
According to al-Quds, the American Association of University Professors’ (AAUP) Committee on Academic Freedom & Tenure has warned against attempts to squelch the supporters of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement in universities.
Furthermore, al-Ayyam said that US President Donald Trump’s administration is reluctant about rolling out the Mideast plan, dubbed deal of the century, due to vehement Palestinian opposition.
Finally, al-Hayat al-Jadida covered Reuters’ report Palestinians turn to the sun to reduce their power shortfall.
K.F.
