Bi-Weekly Brief for August 11, 2020
At a time when the Corona virus crisis has crowded out other news, the Alliance is producing news briefs every two weeks to keep our members informed about the situation in occupied Palestine.
Covid-19 upsurge
Israel’s hospitals are reportedly struggling as its Covid-19 cases have increased by 20,000 over the past 2 weeks to 82,670, with deaths reaching 600 by August 9. In the Occupied Territories there are now over 18,841 cases (78 in Gaza) and at least 110 deaths (1 in Gaza and 77 in Hebron district). DCI-Palestine reports that a 15-year-old Palestinian being held in an Israeli prison has tested positive for the virus.
Israel’s coalition government could be on the brink of collapse
After a month of smaller protests, up to 30,000 Israelis demonstrated on August 8 demanding Netanyahu’s ouster for mismanaging the economy and virus. The Aug. 9 Times of Israel reports support for the far right and centrists is growing, as Netanyahu and his coalition partner Benny Gantz - who declared it wrong for Israel to have a prime minister facing 3 indictments - are at odds over the budget, which Netanyahu refuses to approve. Unless an extension is agreed to, the government will be automatically dissolved if the budget is not approved by August 25.
Whatever happened to annexation?
While Netanyahu in early August said that annexation is still on the table but the White House must back it, Haaretz (Aug. 5) reported that under half of Israelis are in favor of it. Whether or not annexation is made ‘official,’ Israeli forces are reportedly preparing to demolish the entire village of Faraseen near Jenin, where soldiers destroyed a house and water well on August 10, and 8 Palestinian hamlets in the southern Hebron hills to make way for a firing zone.
This is what the Occupation looks like
On July 30, Human Rights Defender Mahmoud Nawajaa, the coordinator of the BDS Committee in the West Bank, was arrested when some 50 soldiers invaded his home near Ramallah. Over a dozen Palestinians were arrested in raids around the time of Eid al-Adha, and a dozen more on August 10. On August 7, 23-year-old Dalia Samudi was shot and killed by soldiers as she was trying to close her window to keep out tear gas during a raid in Jenin. Soldiers then shot at the ambulance that arrived on the scene. Dozens were injured when, on August 8, an anti-annexation march in a village near Qalqiliya was attacked by the army. Settlers set up roadblocks and attacked civilians and torched cars in various locations. In the Gaza Strip, Israel conducted air strikes on August 3rd and 6th, and tank artillery pounded central Gaza on August 9th with more airstrikes the following day, reportedly in response to balloons sent from Gaza carrying incendiary materials.
See Wafa News Agency and Palestine Chronicle
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