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Israeli settler attacks fuel the fire as Gaza war rages

Israeli settler attacks fuel the fire as Gaza war rages

MOURNING his father and brother, Mohammed Wadi says armed Israeli settlers from outposts overlooking his olive-growing West Bank village no longer aim low when they shoot at Palestinian neighbours. "Now, they shoot to kill," he said. Violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, already at a more than 15-year high this year, surged further after Israel hurtled into a new war in the separate enclave of Gaza in response to Palestinian militant group Hamas unleashing the deadliest day in Israel's history on October 7. Days later, on October 12, Wadi's father and brother were shot dead when armed Israeli settlers and…
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Arab states say Palestinians must stay on their land as war escalates

Arab states say Palestinians must stay on their land as war escalates

CALLS for a humanitarian corridor or an escape route for Palestinians from Gaza as a conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has escalated have drawn a blunt reaction from Arab neighbours. Egypt, the only Arab state to share a border with Gaza, and Jordan, which is next to the Israeli-occupied West Bank, have both warned against Palestinians being forced off their land. It reflects deep Arab fears that Israel's latest war with Hamas in Gaza could spark a new wave of permanent displacement from the land where Palestinians want to build a future state. "This is the cause of all causes, the…
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‘Sea of bodies’ in Israel, scores dead in Gaza as shock Hamas attack unleashes war

‘Sea of bodies’ in Israel, scores dead in Gaza as shock Hamas attack unleashes war

GUNMEN from the Palestinian group Hamas rampaged through Israeli towns killing and capturing scores of civilians and soldiers in a surprise assault, met by Israel with massive retaliatory air strikes that killed scores in the Gaza Strip. The worst attack on Israel for decades unleashed a war that both sides vowed to escalate. At least 200 Israelis were reported killed and 1,100 wounded by gunbattles raging in more than 20 locations inside Israel. In Gaza, health officials reported more than 230 people killed and 1,600 wounded. "Our enemy will pay a price the type of which it has never known," Prime Minister…
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Israel reopens Gaza crossings, lets Palestinians back to work after two weeks

Israel reopens Gaza crossings, lets Palestinians back to work after two weeks

ISRAEL reopened crossing points with Gaza, allowing thousands of Palestinian workers to get to their jobs in Israel and the West Bank, after nearly two weeks of closure prompted by violent protests along the border. Around 18,000 Gazans have permits from Israeli authorities to work outside the blockaded enclave, providing an injection of cash amounting to some $2 million a day to the impoverished territory's economy. The move comes amid stepped-up international efforts by Egypt and the United Nations to defuse tensions and prevent a new round of armed conflict in the enclave. For around two weeks, protesters throwing stones…
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Eight hurt in Palestinian car-ramming, stabbing in Tel Aviv

Eight hurt in Palestinian car-ramming, stabbing in Tel Aviv

A Palestinian rammed a pickup truck into pedestrians in Tel Aviv and then went on a stabbing rampage, wounding eight people on Tuesday in an attack claimed by the Hamas militant group. The 20-year-old Palestinian, from the Israeli-occupied West Bank, was shot dead by an armed civilian, police said. Israel's Shin Bet security agency said he entered Israel without a permit and had no record of security offences. Hamas claimed him as a member, saying he struck Israel's commercial capital in retaliation for the ongoing military raid in the flashpoint West Bank town of Jenin, in which 10 Palestinians have been killed…
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Morocco delays ‘Abraham Accords’ summit until after summer

Morocco delays ‘Abraham Accords’ summit until after summer

MOROCCO will delay a summit it is hosting between Israel and Arab states that have signed "Abraham Accords" peace pacts, its foreign minister said, amid rising strife in the West Bank. The decision to postpone the summit until after the summer comes after Israel decided to expand settlement-building in the occupied West Bank and after an Israeli raid on Jenin in which five people were killed. Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said the decision was partly over scheduling but also because of what he called "provocative and unilateral acts" that "undermine peace efforts in the region". He condemned the Israeli army raid on Jenin,…
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Israeli forces kill Palestinian officer in clashes

Israeli forces kill Palestinian officer in clashes

ISRAELI forces killed a Palestinian security officer during clashes in the occupied West Bank flashpoint city of Jenin on Monday, the Palestinian Fatah faction said in a statement. The Israeli military said its forces had come under heavy Palestinian fire while seeking the arrest of security suspects in Jenin and had returned fire at the gunmen. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party identified the officer as Ashraf Sheikh Ibrahim, saying he had died "as he confronted the aggression and the occupation's storming of the city of Jenin". Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade militant group, associated with Fatah, claimed him as a member.…
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Israeli settler kills Palestinian who army says attempted stabbing, amid rise in violence

Israeli settler kills Palestinian who army says attempted stabbing, amid rise in violence

AN Israeli settler shot dead a Palestinian man who the military said tried to carry out a stabbing attack in a settlement in the occupied West Bank. The incident came as several European countries condemned Israeli demolitions and settler violence in the West Bank, which flared again as Palestinian farmers said Jewish settlers fired at them while they were working on their agricultural land. The military said a suspect infiltrated the gated area in the southern West Bank near the city of Hebron on Friday morning and tried to stab a resident before being "neutralised". There were no Israeli casualties,…
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A new intifada? Young Palestinian fighters rise as West Bank boils

A new intifada? Young Palestinian fighters rise as West Bank boils

ALI SAWAFTA and JAMES MACKENZIE BEFORE a group of young men from Aqabat Jabr refugee camp mounted a botched attack on a restaurant in Jericho popular with Israeli settlers in January, they declared allegiance to Hamas. That was a surprise to their families - and to Hamas. "They weren't members of Al Qassam until that moment," said Wael Awdat, father of Ibrahim and Rafat, two members of the group, using the name of the armed wing of Hamas. "They had a normal life. This was something personal." Their story illustrates the complex mix of spontaneous action and association between established…
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Israel’s Netanyahu pledges more action against Palestinian attackers

Israel’s Netanyahu pledges more action against Palestinian attackers

PRIME Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised a stronger Israeli response in dealing with a spate of Palestinian attacks in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank, as pressure swelled within his right-wing government to employ more severe tactics. His remarks came two days after a car-ramming attack in the Jerusalem outskirts killed three Israelis and two weeks after a lone Palestinian gunman killed seven people outside a synagogue, adding to rising anxiety in Israel over security. Tensions are also high in the West Bank, where Israeli forces have carried out hundreds of arrests in recent months during near-daily raids that have seen…
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