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Egypt closes Rafah border crossing in wake of kidnappings

Sat, 18 May 2013 21:04:12 +0300

London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Egyptian police closed the Rafah border crossing with Gaza on Friday after seven Egyptian seurity officers were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in the Sinai Peninsula near the border with Israel earlier this week.Egyptian Security and Bedouin sources said that a group of policemen and army officers travelling in taxis from Arish to Rafah were stopped and kidnapped by armed men. It was later confirmed by police that one of the abducted security officers had been released to dispatch the kidnappers demands. ...

Gaza tunnel collapse kills Palestinian

Sat, 18 May 2013 18:51:00 +0300

A Palestinian youth was killed when a tunnel linking Egypt to the Gaza Strip collapsed on Saturday, Palestinian medical sources said.

Enraged by kidnapping, Egyptian police block Gaza border

Sat, 18 May 2013 14:06:11 +0300

(Adds Hamas statement, clarifies that all 7 men still held) CAIRO, May 18 (Reuters) - Egyptian police angered by thekidnapping of seven colleagues by Islamist gunmen kept acrossing into the Gaza Strip closed again on Saturday, strandinghundreds of Palestinian travellers, witnesses said. The protest began on Friday when police strung barbed wireacross the Rafah border post and chained up the gates, localresidents said, a day after the abductions. ...

Outraged by kidnapping, Egyptian police block Gaza crossing

Sat, 18 May 2013 12:33:16 +0300

CAIRO, May 18 (Reuters) - Egyptian police angered by thekidnapping of seven colleagues by Islamist gunmen kept acrossing into the Gaza Strip closed again on Saturday, strandinghundreds of Palestinian travellers, witnesses said. The protest began on Friday when police strung barbed wireacross the Rafah border post and chained up the gates, localresidents said, a day after the abductions. Gunmen demanding the release of jailed Islamist militantshad seized seven policemen and soldiers on a road between theSinai towns of el-Arish and Rafah. ...

Israeli troops wound 9 Palestinians in W.Bank clash

Fri, 17 May 2013 23:06:08 +0300

Israeli troops shot and wounded nine stone-throwing Palestinians during a clash in the West Bank on Friday night, Palestinian security officials told AFP.

Protesting Egyptian police block Gaza crossing

Fri, 17 May 2013 19:33:12 +0300

(Adds state media, security source) GAZA, May 17 (Reuters) - Egyptian police blocked thecrossing into the Gaza Strip on Friday in protest against thekidnapping of seven of their colleagues by Islamist gunmen,witnesses said. Officers strung barbed wire across the Rafah border post andchained up the gates, leaving hundreds of Palestinians strandedon both sides of the fence, locals told Reuters. Gunmen abducted the seven police and soldiers on a roadbetween the Sinai towns of el-Arish and Rafah on Thursday,demanding the release of imprisoned militants in exchange forthe men. ...

Egypt police shut Rafah crossing to protest abductions

Fri, 17 May 2013 13:37:50 +0300

Egyptian police closed the Rafah border crossing with Gaza on Friday in protest at the kidnapping of colleagues in the Sinai peninsula, a security source and witnesses said.

Angry Egyptian policemen close crossing with Gaza

Fri, 17 May 2013 11:51:06 +0300

GAZA, May 17 (Reuters) - Egyptian policemen blocked thecrossing into the Gaza Strip on Friday to protest against thekidnapping of Egyptian security forces in the Sinai, witnessesand sources said. Locals said police had placed barbed wire across theentrance to the border and closed the gates with chains, leavinghundreds of Palestinians stranded on both sides of the fence. Islamist gunmen abducted seven Egyptian security forces onThursday and have demanded the release of imprisoned militantsin exchange for the men. Three of those abducted have worked atthe Rafah crossing, sources said. ...

Israel limits non-Muslim visits to Jerusalem mosque

Thu, 16 May 2013 20:35:50 +0300

Jerusalem police closed the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound to non-Muslim visitors on Thursday, in what they said was an effort to avoid a repetition of recent Palestinian unrest.

Erdogan plans Gaza visit for June, will also go to West Bank

Thu, 16 May 2013 20:29:14 +0300

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday said he would probably make his planned trip to Gaza in June and that he also planned to visit the West Bank.

Beware the 'birds': Palestinians decry jailhouse informers

Thu, 16 May 2013 14:46:22 +0300

Former Palestinian prisoners are speaking out to warn those still held in Israeli jails about a group of undercover informers seeking to trip them up, who are known as "birds."

Thousands of Palestinians mark 65 years since displacement

Wed, 15 May 2013 23:38:01 +0300

By Noah Browning RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Palestinians clashed with Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday during demonstrations to mark 65 years since what they call the Nakba (Catastrophe) when the creation of Israel's caused many to lose their homes and become refugees. A shell fired from Gaza, which is ruled by the Islamist movement Hamas, exploded in an open area of Israel but caused no injuries, according to an Israeli military spokesman. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. U.S. ...

“Gaza Burial” photo reaffirmed as prizewinner

Wed, 15 May 2013 20:07:01 +0300

London, Asharq Al-Awsat—The award of the 2012 World Press Photo of the Year to Swedish photojournalist Paul Hansen was reconfirmed this week, after allegations that the picture was a fake were dismissed by forensic analysts.The controversy over the photo, entitled ‘Gaza Burial,’ erupted after the prize was awarded in April, when analysts suggested that Hansen had made extensive use of editing software to alter the lighting in the original photo to such a degree as to breach the rules of the competition. ...

Gaza militants fire into southern Israel: police

Wed, 15 May 2013 17:11:44 +0300

Militants in the Gaza Strip fired a projectile that hit an open field in southern Israel on Wednesday causing no damage or casualties, police told AFP.

Fatah, Hamas agree to form Palestinian unity government

Wed, 15 May 2013 14:55:48 +0300

Rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas have set a three-month timetable to form a unity government and organise elections, officials from both sides said on Wednesday.

Abu Dhabi gives $10 mn for development in Palestine

Tue, 14 May 2013 22:44:29 +0300

Abu Dhabi, May 15 (IANS/WAM) The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) will provide a grant of 39.5 million dirhams (around $10 million) to the Al Noor Association for culture and development in Palestine.

ICC prosecutor opens initial probe into Gaza flotilla

Tue, 14 May 2013 20:28:12 +0300

International Criminal Court prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said Tuesday her office has opened a preliminary probe into Israel's deadly raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla in 2010.

Tuli to lead India in Asian Cup qualifiers

Sun, 12 May 2013 15:24:25 +0300

New Delhi, May 12 (IANS) Defender Tuli Goon will be leading a 23-member Indian women's football team for the AFC Women's Asian Cup qualifiers to be held in Palestine May 21-25.

Assad and Nasrallah threaten new front line in Golan

Fri, 10 May 2013 19:01:20 +0300

By Dominic Evans BEIRUT, May 10 (Reuters) - Threats from Damascus and itsLebanese ally Hezbollah to turn the Golan Heights into a"resistance front" against Israel could end nearly four decadesof calm across the increasingly tense ceasefire line separatingIsraeli and Syrian forces. President Bashar al-Assad, and his father before him, keptthe front line between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golanquiet despite an official state of war between the two countriesand Syria's support for militants in Lebanon and Gaza. ...

Palestinian olive trees targeted in hate crime

Fri, 10 May 2013 13:45:37 +0300

Vandals believed to be Jewish extremists have uprooted dozens of olive trees and scrawled graffiti near a Palestinian village in the southern West Bank, police and witnesses said on Friday.

Kerry says Israel, Palestinians serious about peace

Thu, 09 May 2013 21:34:41 +0300

(Adds Kerry quotes, background) ROME, May 9 (Reuters) - The Israelis and Palestinians areserious about pursuing peace, United States Secretary of StateJohn Kerry said on Thursday. Kerry is due to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas andIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on May 21 or 22 to tryto revive long-stalled Middle East peace talks. The talks collapsed in late 2010 in a dispute over continuedIsraeli building of Jewish settlements on West Bank land thatthe Palestinians want for a state. U.S. ...

Israeli occupation sapping East Jerusalem economy - UN report

Thu, 09 May 2013 19:18:49 +0300

* U.N. releases first report on East Jerusalem economy * Says Israeli authorities neglect Palestinian residents * Finds deep divide between communities' living standards By Noah Browning JERUSALEM, May 9 (Reuters) - The Israeli occupation of EastJerusalem is driving its Palestinian residents into deepereconomic isolation and they face far greater poverty than Jewishneighbours, said a U.N. report on the city at the heart of theMiddle East conflict. The U.N. ...

Top Muslim cleric against ceding 'any of Palestine'

Thu, 09 May 2013 18:15:27 +0300

Influential Muslim cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi warned on Thursday nobody was allowed to cede "any part of Palestine," during a visit to the Hamas-ruled Palestinian enclave of Gaza.

Kerry in new push for Israel-Palestine talks

Thu, 09 May 2013 03:01:43 +0300

US Secretary of State meets Israeli peace negotiators and says Washington seeks to revive peace bid within short time.

Influential Muslim cleric visits Hamas-ruled Gaza

Wed, 08 May 2013 23:59:18 +0300

By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA, May 8 (Reuters) - Leading Muslim cleric Sheikh Youssefal-Qaradawi paid a high-profile visit to Gaza on Thursday,giving a boost to the Islamist group Hamas that runs theenclave, but also laying bare Palestinian rivalries. Qaradawi, chairman of the International Federation of MuslimClerics, is based in Qatar and has been a vociferous supporterof the revolutions that have shaken the Arab world in the lasttwo years, bringing new governments to Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. ...

Influential Muslim cleric Qaradawi visits Gaza

Wed, 08 May 2013 22:31:54 +0300

Influential Muslim cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi on Wednesday started his first visit to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, crossing into the Palestinian territory at Rafah, on the border with Egypt.

Kerry sees "short time" to revive Middle East peace bid

Wed, 08 May 2013 22:27:24 +0300

(Adds Livni quotes, meeting ran for three hours) By Arshad Mohammed and Philip Pullella ROME, May 8 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerrysuggested on Wednesday that Washington hoped to reviveIsraeli-Palestinian peace talks within a short time frame, as heannounced his fourth visit to the region this year. Kerry will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuand Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on May 21 or 22, he saidas he began three hours of talks with Israeli Justice MinisterTzipi Livni, who is overseeing the Israeli effort to relaunchnegotiations. ...

Hawking snubs Israeli conference to back Palestinians

Wed, 08 May 2013 19:34:48 +0300

(Adds university statement clarifying reason for withdrawal) JERUSALEM, May 8 (Reuters) - The British cosmologist StephenHawking has pulled out of a prestigious Israeli conference aspart of an academic boycott to protest against Israel'soccupation of Palestinian lands, Cambridge University said onWednesday. After conflicting explanations were given for Hawking'sdecision, a spokesman for the British university confirmed thatthe wheelchair-bound scientist was snubbing the annual event,organised by President Shimon Peres, as part of the boycott. ...

Hamas looks to root out Israel's spy networks

Wed, 08 May 2013 17:00:00 +0300

* Hamas hails first ever amnesty drive for alleged spies * Drive provides alternative to opaque legal system * Israel says Hamas metes out cruel violence to suspects By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA, May 8 (Reuters) - The alleged spy buried his face inhis hands inside a Gaza jail as he admitted passing intelligenceto Israel during its battles with armed Palestinian groups. ...

Kerry to visit Mideast to see Netanyahu, Abbas later this month

Wed, 08 May 2013 16:57:53 +0300

(Adds quotes, details, background) ROME, May 8 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerrysaid on Wednesday he would return to the Middle East later thismonth for talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas andIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as he seeks to revivepeace talks. "I will be travelling back to Israel to meet with both PrimeMinister Netanyahu as well as President Abbas around the 21st or22nd of this month," Kerry told reporters as he sat down fortalks with Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who has specialresponsibility for peace talks within the Israeli cabinet. ...

Israeli forces detain top Palestinian cleric

Wed, 08 May 2013 11:02:47 +0300

JERUSALEM, May 8 (Reuters) - Israeli police detained onWednesday the Palestinians' top Muslim religious leader from hisJerusalem home, a day after a scuffle between Palestinians andIsraelis outside the city's main al-Aqsa mosque. Sheikh Mohammad Hussein, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem,serves under the Palestinian Authority which exercises limitedrule in the Israeli-occupied West Bank as well as neighbouringJordan, long a custodian over Jerusalem's Muslim holy places. ...

China urges resumed Palestine-Israel talks

Tue, 07 May 2013 17:48:12 +0300

Beijing, May 7 (IANS) China Tuesday reiterated its call for necessary conditions for resuming peace talks between Palestine and Israel, reported Xinhua.

Kerry to meet Livni, Judeh in Rome on Wednesday

Mon, 06 May 2013 21:30:43 +0300

WASHINGTON, May 6 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State JohnKerry will meet Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who hasspecial responsibility for the Israeli-Palestinian peaceprocess, in Rome on Wednesday, the U.S. State Department said onMonday. Kerry will also meet Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judehin Rome. The meetings are part of Kerry's effort to find a wayto revive Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations, which fellapart in 2010 in a dispute over Israel's construction of Jewishsettlements on West Bank land the Palestinians want for a state. ...

Chinese Premier underscores support for Palestinian cause

Mon, 06 May 2013 19:45:36 +0300

Beijing, May 6 (IANS) Chinese Premier Li Keqiang Monday reaffirmed the country's support for the just cause of the Palestinian people, reported Xinhua.

Turkey, Israel hold fresh flotilla compensation talks

Mon, 06 May 2013 14:28:42 +0300

Turkish and Israeli officials were meeting in Jerusalem on Monday for another round of talks over compensation for the Jewish state's deadly 2010 raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla, an Israeli official told AFP.

China criticises Syria raid as Netanyahu, Abbas visit

Mon, 06 May 2013 14:23:08 +0300

China on Monday implicitly criticised Israel's air strikes in Syria as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas both visited the country to meet top leaders.

Netanyahu and Abbas in separate China visits

Mon, 06 May 2013 13:28:59 +0300

Head of Palestinian Authority and Israeli PM arrive in country in possible opportunity for Beijing to play peacemaker.

Palestinian leader Abbas meets China's Xi

Mon, 06 May 2013 08:18:18 +0300

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas in Beijing on Monday, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu due to follow him later this week.

EU police mission trains 2,000 Palestinian cops

Sun, 05 May 2013 22:48:15 +0300

Brussels, May 6 (IANS/WAM) The EU Police Mission in the Palestinian Territories has trained over 2,000 Palestinian police personnel and 125 judges, an official said.

Palestinian health minister visits Israeli hospital

Sun, 05 May 2013 21:08:11 +0300

Palestinian health minister Hani Abdeen on Sunday paid a visit to the Hadassah hospital in west Jerusalem, the first visit by a Palestinian minister to Israel's largest medical facility, it said in a statement.