Palestine Today 062607

Tuesday June 26, 2007 16:46 by Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMC - Audio Dept.

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Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www.imemc.org, for Monday June 26th, 2007.

Israel continued its policy of targeted-assassinations of resistance fighters in the Gaza Strip and the kidnapping of activists throughout the West Bank, with today’s attacks leaving one dead, several injured and at least six others kidnapped. These stories and more coming up. Stay tuned.

The Israeli army invaded several cities and towns in the West Bank and kidnapped at least six Palestinians in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Palestinian sources reported that troops attacked Palestinian homes in Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah and Nablus, adding that six were kidnapped and taken to unknown detention camps.

Palestine info- a Hamas linked news website stated that the six kidnapped were Hamas and Islamic Jihad activists.

Last week, the Israeli army conducted at least 32 military invasions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During those invasions, Israeli troops killed two Palestinian resistance fighters and kidnapped 50 Palestinian civilians.
Israeli air-strikes struck Gaza City in the early hours of Tuesday morning, killing one man. While medical sources were initially unable to identify the body due to its mutilated state, the dead man was eventually identified as Husam Harb, 32, a member of Islamic Jihad. Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli air strikes fired one rocket at the activist's car while he was passing through the north of Gaza City.

Earlier on Monday night, Israeli gunboats shelled fishermen’s boats in the Beit Lahia Sea, to the north of Gaza City. Eyewitness reported that Israeli gunboats fired several shells at the fishermen while they were fishing.

In a separate operation on Monday night, the Israeli army fired at residents’ homes in Beit Hanoun town. Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli tanks opened fire at homes located to the northern part of the town, causing economic damage only.
Two Qassam rockets fired from the Gaza Strop struck the Sderot region of the western Negev on Tuesday morning. One of the rockets struck a building in the Sderot area, causing extensive damage, while the second landed in an open area. No injuries were reported in the attack.

In other news, Egyptian official Suleiman Awwad described the outcome of the Sharm-el Sheikh summit as positive. At the summit, Israel agreed to commence with the monthly transfer of Palestinian tax revenue and to release 250 Palestinian prisoners. However, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert remained conspicuously silent on the issue of easing travel restrictions in the West Bank.

Also at the summit, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak surprised many by calling on Hamas and Fatah to re-enter into negotiations with one another, a move that many commentators perceived as embarrassing to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as it stands in direct contradiction to his position of cutting ties with the Hamas movement.

In other news, an interview with the father of the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit has been screened on a Hamas-affiliated television station. In an interview recorded one month ago, Noam Shalit expresses a degree of sympathy with Palestinian prisoners and their families, but argues that this issue will not be resolved by the continued captivity of his son.

Elsewhere, it is widely expected that Tony Blair, the soon to be ex-Prime Minister of the UK, will soon be named as the Quartet’s Middle East Envoy. Blair, who is due to step down as Prime Minister on June 27, is favored by Israeli officials but is far from popular among Palestinian officials and members of the public.

Conclusion

Thank you for joining us from occupied Bethlehem. You have been listening to Palestine Today from the International Middle East Media Center, www.imemc.org, brought to you by John Smith and Ghassan Bannoura

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