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Forums - Politics Discussion - Israel-Hamas war, Gaza genocide

SvennoJ 1 day ago

Israeli settlers block Palestinian minister’s convoy in West Bank: Report

Israeli settlers blocked the convoy of Local Governance Minister Sami Hijjawi in Masafer Yatta, south of the occupied West Bank city of Hebron, the Anadolu news agency reports.

A statement by Hijjawi’s ministry said his vehicle was stopped by settlers dressed in military uniform. It provided no other details.

The incident followed calls by settlers to launch attacks against Palestinians after a bus shooting attack that killed three Israelis in the northern West Bank, which we have been reporting on.

According to media reports, settlers blocked several roads between the cities of Nablus, Qalqilya, Tulkarem, and Jenin, attacking Palestinian cars with rocks.

Tensions have been running high across the West Bank since Israel’s genocide in Gaza started 15 months ago.


Palestinian Authority shuts down several Al Jazeera websites

The Magistrate Court of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank has ordered the closure of several Al Jazeera websites for four months, a court document shows – the latest restriction by the Palestinian Authority (PA) on the network.

In a letter on Sunday, the attorney general’s office demanded the Palestinian Ministry of Communication implement the court’s decision by shutting down aljazeera.net, aljazeera.net/live, aljazeera360.com and global.ajplus.net.

The order asked all companies licensed for radio and satellite broadcasting to abide by the decision “under penalty of legal accountability”. According to the document, the websites published material that “threaten national security and incite the commission of crimes”.

The latest move came after the PA closed Al Jazeera’s office in the West Bank last week, suspending its work – a decision the network has denounced.


Jenin homes on fire amid ongoing Palestinian Authority raid

Multiple videos circulating online, which have been verified by Al Jazeera, show smoke rising over an area of Jenin amid the ongoing military operation by the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Several homes appear to have been affected as the PA carries on with its crackdown on the Jenin Brigade of armed factions.

The PA has banned Al Jazeera from the occupied West Bank and also ordered the closure of several Al Jazeera websites.

Translation: Local sources: The PA security forces burn a house near Dabat al-Ghabz near Jenin camp.



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SvennoJ 1 day ago

Main events from Januari 6th

  • Israel’s bombardment of Gaza continues, with at least 22 Palestinians killed in attacks on Monday, including four people in a raid on a home in the Bureij refugee camp.
  • The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has condemned Israel’s “blatant disregard” for humanitarian workers in Gaza after its forces attacked a clearly marked World Food Programme convoy on Sunday.
  • The Israeli military confirmed that two of its soldiers were killed and two others seriously wounded during fighting in northern Gaza.
  • Israeli settlers have carried out attacks on Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank, as tensions have risen over a shooting in which three Israelis were killed and eight wounded near the illegal settlement of Kedumim.
  • Lebanon’s Civil Defense has recovered the bodies of seven people after the Israeli military bombed the town of Khiam in its latest violation of a fragile ceasefire deal.
  • Yemen’s Houthis say they have launched a “military operation” targeting US aircraft carrier the USS Harry S Truman using missiles and drones, as well as Israeli targets near Tel Aviv and Ashkelon.

Israel bars lawyers from meeting detained Kamal Adwan director, rights group says

The Israeli military is refusing to allow lawyers to meet Dr Hussam Abu Safia, who was arrested during a raid on the Kamal Adwan Hospital on December 27, according to an Israeli rights group.

Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) said in a post on X that it has sent “urgent requests to send an attorney” to meet the detained doctor to “evaluate his state and detention conditions”.

But “the military says he’s barred from lawyer visits until 10.01.2025”, the group said.

Israel arrested the 51-year-old paediatrician – who gained international attention for his video messages about the dire conditions inside the besieged Kamal Adwan Hospital – claiming he is a Hamas operative.

His whereabouts remain unknown.

Guy Shalev, the executive director of PHRI, told CNN that the Israeli military has refused to reveal where Abu Safia is being held.

“It is important to think about that for a second, because we are getting this response for hundreds of other detainees. They don’t have Abu Safiya’s high profile. We are requesting their location in order to visit them with our lawyers. Sometimes, it takes months until we locate someone. Sometimes people are dying in custody without us knowing,” he told the broadcaster.

UN officials, doctors and activists around the world are urging Israel to release Abu Safia, with some fearing he may meet the same fate as Dr Adnan al-Bursh, the director of al-Shifa Hospital whose death in Israeli custody triggered accusations of torture and rape.



SvennoJ 1 day ago

Healthcare workers, activists rally in New York in solidarity with Gaza


Healthcare workers and allies protest in support of Gaza outside of New York University’s Tisch hospital in New York City on January 6

US shifts some military aid from Egypt to Lebanon to support ceasefire: Report

The outgoing Biden administration will shift $95m in military aid allocated for Egypt to Lebanon, as it supports the country’s military in its attempts to enforce a fragile ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, the Reuters news agency reports.

Citing a State Department document sent to Congress, Reuters reports that the Biden administration has called the Lebanese armed forces “a key partner” in upholding the ceasefire agreement, which came into effect on November 27.

The move also comes after some Democrats in the Congress expressed deep concern about Egypt’s human rights record, specifically the detention of thousands of political prisoners by the government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

This latest move appears to reverse the Biden administration’s previous announcement in September that it would be granting Cairo its full allocation of $1.3bn in military aid.

Meanwhile providing Israel with over 80 times that, a further 8 billion in military aid.


Sanders condemns Biden’s plan to send Israel more weapons

US Senator Bernie Sanders has spoken out against the Biden administration’s decision to approve $8bn in new weapons for Israel.

“The U.S. must not send more bombs to Netanyahu’s extremist government, which has already killed 45,000 people; destroyed Gaza’s housing, healthcare, and educational systems; and caused starvation by blocking humanitarian aid,” the legislator wrote on X.

“I will do all that I can to block these arms sales,” he said.

The planned weapons shipments – which require approval from Congress – include $6.75bn in precision-guided missiles and small bombs, $300m in 155mm artillery shells, $600m in Hellfire missiles and $300m in Amraam air-to-air missiles, according to The Financial Times newspaper.

Previously, in August, the US also approved the sale of $20bn in fighter jets and other military equipment to Israel.



SvennoJ 1 day ago

Israeli army reiterates evacuation orders for southern Lebanon

The Israeli military has told residents in more than 60 villages in southern Lebanon they’re still prohibited from returning to their homes.

“A new reminder to the residents of south Lebanon that until further notice, you are prohibited from moving south to the village line and its surroundings,” Arabic spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a post on X.

“The [Israeli military] does not intend to target you and, therefore, at this stage you are prohibited from returning to your homes from this line south until further notice. Anyone who moves south of this line – exposes himself to danger.”

The Israeli military has repeatedly violated a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah, in place since September 23, most recently killing seven people in an attack on the town of Khiam.


Lebanese PM says ‘clear message’ sent to ceasefire sponsors over Israeli violations

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati says his country has sent a “clear message” to the international overseers of the ceasefire agreement that “Israeli violations must stop and that Israel must withdraw completely from the occupied Lebanese territories”.

Mikati’s office said on X that implementing United Nations Resolution 1701 was not only “Lebanon’s responsibility but is also binding on the Israeli enemy”.

“We also warned against continuing to violate the ceasefire understanding because it threatens the entire understanding, which is something I do not believe anyone wants to happen,” Mikati said.

The United States, France, and the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) oversee the ceasefire. But since the agreement came into effect at the end of November last year, Israel and Lebanon have traded accusations of breaking the ceasefire.



SvennoJ 1 day ago

Australia cancels hockey tournament over Israel safety threat: Reports

Australia’s ice hockey federation says it cancelled a planned international qualifying tournament because of safety concerns, with local media reporting the decision was linked to the participation of the Israeli national team.

Multiple media outlets cited an internal email from Ice Hockey Australia (IHA) to the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) saying it couldn’t hold the tournament due to security concerns over Israel’s attendance.

IHA said in a statement that it decided to cancel the event, which was set to take place in Melbourne in April, after consultation with police and participating venues.

The statement did not mention Israel, with the body saying it could not comment on “global issues outside the sport”.

“The decision was primarily made to ensure the safety and security of athletes, volunteers, spectators, and other participants,” it said. “IHA does not shy away from making this decision with safety at the forefront.”



Israel signs deals with Elbit to make bombs domestically: Ministry

Israel’s defence ministry says it has signed deals worth about $275m with the country’s largest domestic private arms maker Elbit to make heavy bombs and raw materials needed for defence, reducing dependence on imports.

“These strategic agreements are crucial for enhancing” Israel forces’ “operational endurance and force build-up capabilities”, it said, describing the need to reduce dependence on imports as “a central lesson” from the war in Gaza.

Under one agreement, Elbit will supply the military with thousands of heavy air munitions. The second deal would see it establish a plant to produce raw materials previously sourced mainly from abroad.

The ministry did not specify the raw materials but suggested they were used to make munitions.

Gaza genocide hidden by propaganda: American filmmaker Michael Moore

American documentary filmmaker Michael Moore has accused powerful propaganda campaigns of concealing what human rights groups describe as genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza, following Israel’s attacks on the besieged territory.

Moore highlighted the ongoing humanitarian crisis in a film project called From Ground Zero that includes work by Palestinian filmmakers Aws al-Banna, Ahmed al-Danf, Basil al-Maqousi, and Mustafa al-Nabih.

The film project, which has been released in the US, features 22 short films spanning documentary, drama, action, and animation genres.

In a post on X, Moore said “no filmmaker, writer, or artist should ever have to tell the story of their own extermination”.

“Yet 22 courageous Palestinian filmmakers found a way to film their story this past year in Gaza, using whatever tools they could pull from the rubble of their homes and cities,” he said.

“The extraordinary film From Ground Zero – for which I am proud to be an executive producer – is the collection of these short films, told all together in under 2 hours. The fact that this film exists at all is a human and cinematic miracle. Go see From Ground Zero.”

On his website michaelmoore.com, Moore further criticised media complicity, stating: “These are stories not being told anywhere. You do not see these stories on the evening news. Military leaders prohibit access so that journalists and filmmakers cannot bring us the truth.”



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SvennoJ 1 day ago

Opposition leader slams Israel’s handling of captives’ return

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid has called Israel’s handling of any deal to return the captives from Gaza “a failure” and “contrary to the political and security interests” of the country.

Israeli daily Maariv quoted Lapid as saying Israel needs to clarify goals for its 15-month war on Gaza.

“We should have defined many months ago what international coalition we want – mainly with Arab countries with whom we have agreements – to bring into Gaza, to work with them actively,” he said.

“The fact that the hostages have not yet been returned home is, first and foremost, a failure. There is no other word. You have unparalleled public support. The percentages of support for the hostage deal, including the cessation of the war, are in numbers I can’t remember ever equaling on controversial issues in Israel.

“You have support from the opposition. I’ve said it 1,000 times – he [Prime Minister Netanyahu] will receive a safety net from us, as long as he says what he wants. The main thing is that he brings the hostages home – and he’s not bringing them home.”


‘No hostages in Jabalia, so why are precious soldiers dying there?’ Israeli captive’s mother

The mother of a captive held in Gaza, Einav Tzangauker, has addressed Israel’s Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, demanding the return of her son and other captives.

“The return of the abductees will not happen unless Netanyahu decides to end the war,” Tzangauker said, in advocacy of her son Matan. “There are no hostages in Jabalia, so why are precious soldiers dying there?” she also questioned, referring to the area in the north of the Gaza Strip.


‘Very bold decisions’ needed for Gaza ceasefire deal to happen

Yossi Beilin, Israel’s former justice minister, has told Al Jazeera that a ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel was unlikely without “very bold decisions” on both sides.

“It’s difficult for me to see the deal … there are delegations going to Qatar and Egypt. Important American decision-makers are coming to the region. Eventually, nothing is happening since months and months,” he said.

“I believe it is a situation from which we cannot get out without very bold decisions are taken on both sides. And both sides will have to take bold decisions.” Beilin said Israel should “accept that the Palestinian Authority is the major force that can renovate and re-establish the current situation in Gaza with Arab forces”.

“On the Hamas side, they will have to accept that they will not govern Gaza any more. That will be a difficult decision for them. After all that’s happened since 7 October 2023, I can’t see how Hamas will continue to govern Gaza as if nothing happened,” he added.

I can't see the PA being effective either, but you got to start somewhere. Same on the other side, Netanyahu needs to go.



SvennoJ 1 day ago

Iceland announces early disbursement of funds to UNRWA

Thorgerour Katrin Gunnarsdottir, the Icelandic foreign minister, says her country will disburse its contribution to the UN agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) ahead of schedule, “in light of the extreme humanitarian need”.

In a post on X, Gunnarsdottir said Iceland values the work that UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini and his staff are doing “under very challenging circumstances”. In a separate post, Gunnarsdottir reiterated her call for a ceasefire in Gaza and said “access to humanitarian aid must be improved”.

The announcement comes as Israel prepares to enforce a widely criticised law banning UNRWA’s operations in the country in late January. Israel accuses the agency’s staff of involvement in the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023.

The allegation has resulted in 16 Western countries suspending their donations to UNRWA, prompting an outcry from rights groups who criticised the move as disproportionate. All of the nations except the US have since resumed payments.

The UN, which launched an immediate probe, later said nine UNRWA staff may have been involved in the attacks and that they had been fired.


UN efforts to save lives in Gaza ‘at breaking point’, says relief chief

Tom Fletcher says the UN humanitarian agency’s (OCHA) aid efforts in Gaza are facing mounting obstacles as Israeli forces continue attacks on relief workers amid a breakdown of law and order in the war-torn enclave.

He gave three examples from the past couple of days alone:

  • An Israeli air attack seriously injured three people at a known food distribution point where a WFP partner was operating.
  • Israeli soldiers fired more than 16 bullets at a clearly marked UN convoy at the checkpoint from the south to the north.
  • Armed Palestinian gangs hijacked six fuel tankers entering from the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing, leaving humanitarian agencies with hardly any fuel for aid operations.

“The reality is that despite our determination to deliver food, water and medicine to survivors, our efforts to save lives are at breaking point,” he said.

“There is no meaningful civil order. Israeli forces are unable or unwilling to ensure the safety of our convoys. Statements by Israeli authorities vilify our aid workers even as the military attacks them. Community volunteers who accompany our convoys are being targeted. There is now a perception that it is dangerous to protect aid convoys but safe to loot them.”


Gaza aid worker died of wounds sustained in Israeli attack on distribution point

In Jabalia, a number of residential houses have been targeted by Israel. It’s not only happening in Jabalia but also in the middle area: Nuseirat and Maghazi.

Jabalia, Beit Hanoon and Beit Lahiya have been under an Israeli siege where no one can reach that area, and we know that there are Palestinians still trapped and not able to leave without food, water, medicine or aid.

UN agencies have been coming out with statements since yesterday afternoon after a couple of attacks targeting the UN convoys and the World Food Programme (WFP) vehicles.

Earlier today, an aid worker working in partnership with the Ma’an distribution organisation that in turn works with the WFP died from wounds he sustained after an attack two days ago in one of the distribution points.

The UN relief chief also says efforts to save the lives of survivors in Gaza are at “breaking point” and nearly impossible because we’re seeing everyone being targeted right now in the Gaza Strip.



SvennoJ 1 day ago

Israeli army again targets Kamal Adwan Hospital in north Gaza

A series of Israeli air strikes targeted the vicinity of the destroyed Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza. Two more public hospitals in the northern Gaza governorate were taken out of service from Israeli attacks, Gaza’s Health Ministry said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, local sources said Israeli tanks also bombed the southern area of the Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood in Gaza City. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Last week, a UN report said Israeli strikes targeting hospitals and their surroundings in the Gaza Strip have pushed the territory’s healthcare system “to the brink of total collapse with catastrophic effect on Palestinians’ access to health and medical care”.


Palestinians in Gaza City search for the missing after Israeli attack

People are still searching for any survivors after an Israeli attack on the Sheikh Rawan neighbourhood in northern Gaza City.

Al Jazeera’s Ibrahim al-Khalili, reporting from the scene, says four Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded in Israeli air raids on Monday as their siege and bombardment that began in October continues.

Residents could be seen removing debris using their bare hands to find any survivors or bodies.

“There are many people still missing under the rubble. Palestinians are trying to dig to rescue the trapped civilians from under the destroyed building,” said al-Khalili.

Israel’s military has repeatedly targeted first responders.

“The situation is becoming much more catastrophic in light of these brutal attacks on civilians on a daily basis at midnight without any warning. It’s an ongoing tragedy in the Gaza Strip,” al-Khalili said.


Gaza death toll rises

Israel has killed at least 45,885 Palestinians and injured 109,196 others in Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the besieged enclave’s Health Ministry. At least 31 people have been killed in the past 24 hours, it added.


Gaza hospitals face ‘real disaster’ due to fuel shortage: Ministry

Gaza’s Health Ministry has warned of “a real disaster” as none of the remaining operational health facilities in the enclave has any fuel stock left, “threatening hospitals, oxygen stations, medicine refrigerators, and nurseries”.

“The [Israeli] occupation forces aid convoys, including fuel trucks, to take roads filled with thieves and bandits to steal them under its protection,” the ministry said, adding that the latest shipment of fuel was stolen yesterday as it was on its way to hospitals.

“We reiterate our appeal to all concerned international and humanitarian institutions to urgently intervene to provide and secure fuel to operate generators in hospitals and health centres in the Gaza Strip,” the ministry added.


UN staffer describes despair among aid workers in Gaza

I have spent a total of four years in Gaza, six months of them during the ongoing war. I have never felt so helpless in the face of the formidable war machine that shoves a new bullet into its gun as soon as it has fired the previous one, while having a seemingly unlimited supply of ammunition.

In September, I spoke to a matriarch who ran a shelter for displaced people in Khan Younis. I asked her what hope she had about the prospect of peace. She pointed at a small girl holding her mother’s hand and sucking her thumb.

“Her father was killed when their house was bombed five days ago, and they’ve not been able to retrieve his body from the rubble because the area is under constant fire,” she said. “What hope?”

Displaced family shelters from Israeli strikes underground


Palestinian Tayseer Obaid eats with his family in an underground pit he dug to protect from Israeli attacks at the tent encampment in Deir el-Balah, central Gaza

Eight people killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza City: Report

At least eight people have been killed by Israeli shelling on the Shaghaf and Tuffah neighbourhoods east of Gaza City, according to the Wafa news agency.

Five people were killed and several others were injured in a drone attack on the Shaghaf neighbourhood.

In the eastern Tuffah neighbourhood, three people were killed, and others were injured and transferred to the Baptist Hospital after a bombing attack targeted a group of people.



SvennoJ 1 day ago

Israeli minister calls for launch of ‘large-scale operations’ in occupied West Bank

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has called for the launch of “large-scale operations” in the occupied West Bank.

Smotrich wrote on X that a cabinet meeting will take place today which “will deal with steps to eradicate terrorism in Judea and Samaria [a biblical term referring to the occupied West Bank]”.

His comments follow yesterday’s bus shooting attack there that killed three Israelis.

“In Judea and Samaria, as in other arenas, we must move from defense to offense and launch extensive operations within the terrorist nests until the weapons and terrorists are completely destroyed,” Smotrich said.


West Bank should be treated like Gaza: Israeli settler official

Ozal Vatik, head of the local council of Kedumim, an illegal Israeli settlement, says Tulkarem and the village of Funduq in the occupied West Bank should be treated like Jabalia in Gaza, referring to the mass destruction there.

Israeli Army Radio quoted the council head a day after three Israelis were killed and eight others wounded in a shooting attack near Kedumim and Funduq.

“We need to change our approach. Instead of thinking about how to settle accounts with the terrorists, we need to think about how to prevent future attacks,” Vatik said. “The state of Israel is the sovereign on the ground and that’s how it should be conducted. Like the treatment in Jabalia – that’s how it should be in Tulkarem and Funduq.”


Palestinian presidency condemns Israeli calls to annex West Bank: Report

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, has condemned Israeli social media accounts affiliated with the Israeli government that are calling for the annexation of the occupied West Bank and the establishment of settlements in the Gaza Strip, according to the Wafa news agency.

Abu Rudeineh said that these Israeli policies are what led to the wars “we are currently witnessing”.

He called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the state of Palestine to assume full responsibility for the enclave on the path towards implementing the Arab Peace Initiative to bring security and stability to the region.

He also called on the incoming US administration to stop Israeli policies, actions and procedures that do not bring peace to the region.

Abu Rudeineh added that the actions of Israeli forces in the West Bank, including the frequent raids, the Israeli settler attacks and the incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, require an urgent response from the international community.


Jordan condemns Israeli social media posts on ‘greater’ Israel

Jordan’s Foreign Ministry condemns Israeli social media accounts for publishing what they are claiming are historical maps of Israel.

The published maps include the occupied Palestinian territory, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, with racist statements from the far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who called for annexation.

Sufyan Qudah, a spokesman for Jordan’s Foreign Ministry, stressed his country’s absolute rejection of the “provocative policies and statements that aim to deny the Palestinians’ right to establish their independent and sovereign state” with Jerusalem as its capital.

Qudah added that the claims by the Israeli social media outlets are a “flagrant violation of international laws”.



SvennoJ 1 day ago

One dead following Israeli military attack in Tubas

An Israeli fighter jet has bombed the occupied West Bank town of Tammun, south of Tubas, killing at least one person, our Al Jazeera Arabic colleagues report.

Israel’s Air Force claimed it “attacked a squad of armed terrorists”, without providing further details. Israeli forces are preventing ambulance crews from reaching the site of the attack, according to the Quds News Network.


Palestinian youths attack settler vehicles near Nablus

As we have been reporting, Israeli settlers have carried out attacks on Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank amid an apparent retaliation for a shooting attack earlier on Monday that killed three Israelis.

Al-Aqsa TV now reports that Palestinian youths have thrown Molotov cocktails at Israeli settler vehicles in the occupied West Bank town of Huwara, south of Nablus, as tensions continue to escalate.

No casualties have been reported so far.


‘Horrific night’ in West Bank as Israeli settlers set fire to homes, vehicles

As we have been reporting, Israeli settlers have attacked several Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank, in apparent retaliation for a shooting attack near the illegal settlement of Kedumim that killed three people.

Palestinian human rights activist Ihab Hassan says that Israeli settler attacks have occurred in the villages of Fara’ata, Amatin, Hajjah, Turmus Aya, Kafr Qaddum and Funduq.

“A horrific night in the West Bank,” Hassan wrote in a post on X along with videos of the attacks.

The footage shows Palestinian villagers trying to extinguish raging fires as their vehicles and homes burn.


Israeli forces arrest 2 men in Nablus, storm Far’a camp

The Israeli military has stormed the occupied West Bank city of Nablus and arrested two Palestinian men in separate raids, according to the Palestinian Information Center and the Quds News Network.

In the Far’a refugee camp, south of Tubas, Israeli forces destroyed the entrance to the Far’a Camp Services Committee and stormed the building, according to the same sources. Israeli military bulldozers have also begun destroying infrastructure in the camp, including roads.

Israeli raids have been reported in locations across the West Bank in recent hours, including:

  • the town of Kafr Laqif, east of Qalqilya;
  • the centre of the city of Ramallah and the Qaddoura camp;
  • the town of Birzeit, north of Ramallah, where a female student dormitory has been raided;
  • the industrial zone in el-Bireh city; and
  • the town of Marda, west of Salfit.