Israeli forces storm several areas in Bethlehem
Israeli forces have stormed several areas in the Bethlehem governorate in the occupied West Bank. Wafa, citing security sources, reported that soldiers stormed the areas of al-Ubeidiya, Harmala, Rafidia, and Zaatara in the east.
Israeli forces raided several homes belonging to the Ali family in the Rakhma area to the east. A factory in the industrial zone was also raided, and its contents vandalised.
Israeli forces storm el-Bireh in West Bank
Israeli forces stormed the Saht Marhaba neighbourhood in el-Bireh city in the occupied West Bank, Wafa reports. So far, no clashes or arrests have been reported.
The army announced yesterday that it would conduct a military exercise in various areas of the West Bank during the early hours of Monday.
Rubio to inaugurate controversial tunnel project under Palestinian neighbourhood
On his visit to Israel, Rubio is expected to attend the inauguration of a tunnel for religious tourists that goes underneath the Palestinian neighbourhood of Silwan to the holy sites.
The project has stirred fears among Palestinian residents that it could further dilute their presence and possibly put at risk the physical foundations of their homes.
Fakhri Abu Diab, 63, a community spokesman in Silwan, said Rubio should instead come see homes, such as his own, that have been demolished by Israel in what Palestinians charge is a targeted campaign to erase them.
“Instead of siding with international law, the US is going the way of extremists and the far right and ignoring our history,” he said.
Rubio played down the political implications, calling it “one of the most important archaeological sites in the world”.
Coalition demands global ban on trade with illegal Israeli settlements
A coalition of 84 humanitarian and human rights organisations is demanding countries ban trade with Israeli settlements after July’s ruling by the International Criminal Court that declared Israel’s occupation unlawful.
The report said Israeli settlements now control more than 42 percent of the West Bank’s land, which has been confiscated from Palestinian communities. It added that the occupation by Israel and the settlers has devastated the Palestinian economy, costing an estimated $50b from 2000 to 2020, while Israel provides generous subsidies to settlement businesses through tax breaks and grants.
The report said current European labelling policies have failed – 90 percent of settlement-produced wines sold in Europe are mislabelled as “Made in Israel” – and the EU imports 15 times more goods from settlements, which are illegal under international law, than from Palestinian producers.
The report also identified major European companies enabling settlements: JCB, which makes construction equipment used to demolish Palestinian homes; Siemens, which provides rail services to settlements; Carrefour, which operates stores in occupied territory; and banks like Barclays that provide billions in financing.
