Editorial Note: The following news reports are summaries from original sources. They may also include corrections of Arabic names and political terminology. Comments are in parentheses.

On Day 228 of the US-Backed Israeli Genocidal War on Gaza Strip, 5 Massacres, 85 Palestinians Killed, 200 Injured, with a Death Toll of  35,647 and 79,852 Injuries

May 21, 2024 

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Editor's Notes:  

Here are some initial (not final) statistics, which show the Israeli war crimes against humanity, during the current Israeli genocidal war on Gaza Strip:  

By May 21, 2024, the initial death toll of Palestinians who have been killed by the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza Strip is 42,647+.   

This includes the accounted for deaths (35,647) and those who are still missing under the rubble (Corrected on April 18, 2024: 7,000+). 

By May 21, 2024, the documented injuries exceeded 79,852 and more than 2,520 civilians have been abducted from Gaza Strip. 70% of deaths were for children and women.

By May 21, 2024, 515 Palestinians who were killed, 4,388 who were injured, and 8,895 m, who were abducted by Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank, since October 7, 2023 (Some of the detainees have been released).

By January 17, 2024, about 661 detainees from Gaza are currently languishing in Israeli prisons as “illegitimate combatants” (the Israeli term for Palestinian fighters) in addition to more than 50 women from Gaza, who are detained in the Damon prison, noting that 8 women of whom have been recently released.

By May 21, 2023, the Palestinian death toll in Gaza included 15,000+ children (43%).

By March 4, 2023, the death toll also included 13,420+ children, 8,900+ women (more than 72.8% of the accounted for victims), 364 doctors and medical staff, 132 journalists, and 48 civil defense workers. 

By March 4, 2024, the Government Media Office (GMO) said that the Israeli occupation forces killed 364 health personnel, destroyed 155 health institutions, 32 hospitals, 53 health centers, 126 ambulances, displaced 1.9 million Palestinians, and destroyed 360,000 housing units, about and 60% of the buildings and infrastructure in Gaza Strip.

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GMO reveals latest statistics on Israeli genocidal war on Gaza

Saturday 3-February-2024, GAZA, (PIC)

The Palestinian Government Media Office (GMO) in the Gaza Strip revealed on Saturday the latest and most significant figures on the Israeli ongoing genocidal war on the Gaza Strip since October 7.

This announcement comes as the latest updates from the GMO, showing the scale of human and material damage that resulted from the Israeli genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, on its 120th day.

The statistics demonstrated latest updates on the numbers of martyrs, missing, and wounded people in addition to the sick, displaced and prisoners as well as numbers of damaged structures and infrastructure.

Below are figures released by the GMO about Israel’s violations over the period of 120 days since the start of its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip.

(2,325) Massacres (34,238) Martyrs and missing people. (27,238) Martyrs who arrived in hospitals. (12,000) Child martyrs. (8,190) Female martyrs. (339) Martyrs of medical staff. (46) Civil defense martyrs. (122) Journalist martyrs. (7,000) Missing, 70% of whom are children and women. (66,452) Wounded.

(11,000) Wounded people in need of travel abroad for treatment, (life-saving and critical cases). (10,000) Cancer patients facing the risk of death. (700,000) Wounded with infectious diseases as a result of displacement. (8,000) Cases of viral hepatitis infection due to displacement. (60,000) Pregnant women at risk due to the lack of health care. (350,000) Chronic patients at risk due to blocked medications.

(99) Cases of arrest among health personnel. (10) Cases of arrests among identified journalists. (2 million) Displaced people in the Gaza Strip.

(140) Government headquarters destroyed. (100) Completely destroyed schools and universities. (295) Partially destroyed schools and universities. (183) Completely destroyed mosques. (264) Partially destroyed mosques. (3) Destroyed Churches.

(79,200) Completely destroyed housing units. (290,000) Partially destroyed and uninhabitable housing units. (66,000) tons of explosives dropped on Gaza. (30) Hospitals knocked out of service. (53) Health centers knocked out of service. (150) Partially targeted Health institutions. (122) Destroyed ambulances. (200) Destroyed archaeological and heritage sites.

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An injured Palestinian little girl who was among the victims of the Israeli genocidal air strikes and bombardment on Gaza Strip, on May 21, 2024	8 Palestinians were killed by Israeli genocidal air strikes and bombardment on Gaza city, on May 21, 2024
An injured Palestinian child standing on the rubble of his family home, which was destroyed by Israeli genocidal air strikes and bombardment on Rafa'h, May 21, 2024	Israeli occupation forces bulldozers destroying the infrastructure in the Jineen refugee camp, during their attack, in which they killed 8 Palestinians, on May 21, 2024
Palestinian photojournalist 'Amr Manasra was injured in the lower back by shrapnel from the Israeli occupation forces’ bullets while covering their assault on Jineen, May21, 2024	Eight Palestinians were killed, including a teacher and a medical doctor, by the Israeli occupation forces during their raid on Jineen refugee camp, on May 21, 2024
Israeli occupation forces bulldozers destroying the infrastructure of the Jineen refugee camp, as a collective punishment, during their attack, in which 8 Palestinians were killed and twenty others were injured, May 21, 2024	Funeral of 'Allam Jaradat, a Palestinian teacher who was killed by the Israeli occupation forces raid on the Jineen refugee camp, on May 21, 2024.

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَـٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

"مِنْ أَجْلِ ذَٰلِكَ كَتَبْنَا عَلَىٰ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَنَّهُ مَنْ قَتَلَ نَفْسًا بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ أَوْ فَسَادٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَكَأَنَّمَا قَتَلَ النَّاسَ جَمِيعًا"  (الْمَائِدَةُ ، 5: 32).

"وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُّتَعَمِّدًا فَجَزَاؤُهُ جَهَنَّمُ خَالِدًا فِيهَا وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَلَعَنَهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ عَذَابًا عَظِيمًا" (النِّسَاءُ ، 4: 93).

"إِنْ أَحْسَنتُمْ أَحْسَنتُمْ لِأَنفُسِكُمْ ۖ وَإِنْ أَسَأْتُمْ فَلَهَا ۚ " (الإسْرَاءُ ، 17: 7). 

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

"Because of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul, unless for a soul, or for corruption in the land, it is as if he had killed humankind entirely" (The Holy Quran, Al-Ma-ida, 5: 32).

"And whoever kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, wherein he will abide eternally, and Allah has become angry with him, and has cursed him, and has prepared for him a great torment" (Al-Nisa, 4: 93).

"If you do good, you do good for yourselves; and if you do evil, (you do it) to yourselves" (Al-Isra, 17: 7). 

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While brutal force has been used to create Zionist Israel and sustain it thus far, Zionist claims to Palestine are false. Actually, from the five thousand years of known written human history, there has been a continuous Palestinian-Canaanite presence in the Holy Land. Despite the Zionist false claims, the ancient Israelites ruled part of the land for only 85 years (during the reign of Prophets David and Solomon , peace be upon them, and Solomon's son).

 After that, the Egyptians conquered Palestine-Canaan in 925 BC, followed by Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans, before the Arab Muslim rule, starting from 636 AD.

By the Time Jesus, peace be upon him, started his mission, the three population groups of Canaanites, Palestinians, and Israelites were melted together in religion and language. Most of them became Christians when Constantine converted in 313 AD. Then, most of them became Muslims in the 7th and 8th centuries AD.

So, Palestinian Muslims, Christians, and Jews are the ones who have the right to claim descent from ancient Israelites, Palestinians, and Canaanites, not Zionists from other continents.

No matter what the Zionists and their supporters do, they cannot change the will of God, Who promised the Holy Land to Abraham and his descendants, basically the Palestinian Muslims and Christians.

No matter how much persecution and aggression the Zionists and their supporters inflict upon the Palestinian people, they will never be able to force them out of the Holy Land, which Allah, praise to Him, promised for them, and kept His promise ever since.

This is a necessary brief background to understand the US-Backed Zionist Israeli continuous wars against the Arab nation generally, and the Palestinian people in particular, which included the wars of 1948, 1956, 1967, 1978, 1982, the brutal crushing of the two Uprisings (1987-1993 and 2000-2004), 2009, 2012, 2014, 2021, and the current genocidal war on Gaza (Since October 7, 2023), which has culminated a blockade of Gaza since 2007. In addition, the Israeli occupation and apartheid regime launched so many covert operations, raids, and air strikes on many Arab states since 1948.

The following news stories are just examples, not a systematic record, of the Israeli occupation government abuse, mistreatment, and violations of Palestinian human rights, on daily basis.

More detailed news stories can be found at the following sources:

http://english.wafa.ps/, https://english.palinfo.com/, https://imemc.org/, https://paltoday.ps/ar/


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Editorial Notes about terms & names of people and places:

1. Names of people and places have been standardized to match standard Arabic grammatical rules.

2. Underlined letters and letters preceded by an apostrophe are references to Arabic letter sounds, which does not exist in the English alphabet.

3. The English letter i is equivalent to the Arabic short vowel known as kasra, as in Ibraheem and Qasim as well as in the English words sit and bit. So, it is incorrect to use it as a long vowel for such Arabic names as Jameel and Jibreel.

4. The English letter e is equivalent to the Arabi short vowel known as fat'ha, as in A'hmed and Mu'hammed.

5. It is more accurate to refer to the land-grabbing Israelis, who establish illegal settlements in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank, as illegal Israeli settlers, than referring to them as colonists.

The term colony is a reference to a large entity or a country, such as American states before independence. It was also a reference to Egypt, and India, when they were British colonies.

In addition, the term "colony" represents a positive nostalgic theme, in the minds of native speakers of English, particularly in America and Britain.

6. It is more accurate to use the verb "abduct" than the verb "detain," in reference to taking Palestinian citizens by force to prisons and interrogation centers, by Israeli occupation regime soldiers. This is because the presence of the Israeli occupation regime forces is illegal in the Palestinian territories, and they have no jurisdiction over the Palestinian people.

Click here for more about using the apostrophe and the underlining of letters in the transliteration of Arabic names.

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EU Chief: All States that have ratified the ICC statutes are bound to execute the Court’s decisions

BRUSSELS, Tuesday, May 21, 2021 (WAFA) -

The European Union’s High Representative, Josep Borrell, said the mandate of the International Criminal Court (ICC), as an independent international institution, is to prosecute the most serious crimes under international law, stressing in a post on his X account that: “All States that have ratified the ICC statutes are bound to execute the Court’s decisions,”

Borrell's statement came in response to the ICC prosecutor's announcement that he is seeking arrest warrants against the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and other Israeli leaders for war crimes.

T.R.

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Norway says it would be obliged to arrest Netanyahu and his army minister if ICC issues arrest warrants

OSLO, Wednesday, May 22, 2024 (WAFA) -

Norway's Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide warned Israel that if the International Criminal Court (ICC) issues an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his army minister, Yoav Gallant, his country would be obliged to arrest them should they arrive in Norway.

In a press interview, Eide said It was up to the ICC to decide whether or not to issue an arrest warrant. If arrest warrants are issued, all signatory countries must act accordingly, he stressed.

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, announced yesterday, Monday, that he is seeking to issue arrest warrants against senior Israeli leaders for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel in the occupied Palestinian Territory since October 7, 2023, including its ongoing bloody aggression on the Gaza Strip.

T.R.

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PGMO welcomes ICC arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant

Tuesday 21-May-2024

GAZA, (PIC)

The Palestinian Government Media Office (PGMO) in the Gaza Strip has welcomed the decision taken by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue arrest warrants against Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu and his war minister Yoav Gallant over their responsibility for the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

“We see the issuance of these warrants a legal step in the right direction, albeit belated,” PGMO head Salama Ma'rouf said in a statement on Monday.

Ma'rouf said that such a step came after the ICC received numerous demands, appeals and abundant evidence about the crimes that had been committed since October 7, 2023 by the Israeli occupation army under direct instructions from Israel’s upper political echelons.

Ma'rouf stressed the need for completing this step by issuing arrest warrants and summonses, in accordance with the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, against all the Israeli political and military officials who gave orders to commit war crimes, as well as against the soldiers who committed war crimes.

Ma'rouf, however, denounced the ICC prosecutor for “issuing similar warrants against Palestinian leaders and equating the victim with the executioner.”

The PGMO head explained that the ICC did not clarify the legal basis of its decision against Palestinian resistance leaders and only relied on allegations made and promoted by the Israeli occupation state as part of its propaganda about the October 7 events, although most of those claims were proven to be lies and fabrications.

He added that the ICC chief violated the rules of legal investigation and verification and overstepped the UN charters and resolutions that gave the Palestinian people and all people under occupation the right to resist the entity occupying their lands with all means, including armed resistance.

He called on the ICC chief to retract his decision against Palestinian resistance leaders and cancel the arrest warrants he issued against them.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said on Monday that his office had applied for arrest warrants for Israeli leaders for war crimes committed in Gaza following the Hamas-led October 7 operation in southern Israel.

Khan announced his office had “reasonable grounds” to believe that Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu and defense minister Yoav Gallant bear “criminal responsibility” for “war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

Khan also applied for similar arrest warrants for three resistance leaders from the 'Hamas Movement – Yehya Al-Sinwar, Isma'eel Haniyya, and Mu'hammed Al-Masri (also known as Al-Dhaif). 

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Palestinian pregnant detainees face tragic conditions in Israeli occupation regime jails

Tuesday 21-May-2024

RAMALLAH, (PIC)

The two Palestinian pregnant detainees, 'Aisha Hilal Ghaythan, 34, and Jihad Ma'hmoud Ghawanma, 33, expressed concerns over giving birth in Israeli occupation regime prisons.

The two Palestinian women who are held captive for the charge of “incitement”, are so worried about giving birth behind bars, as detainee Aisha nearing the end of her seventh month of pregnancy and Jihad is in her fourth month.

Both captives are held in Al-Damon prison, amid “tragic conditions with no health care service, which is applicable to at least 80 Palestinian detained women, the majority of whom are held in the same prison.”

The Palestinian Prisoner Society (PPS) indicated that despite the efforts made to demand their release, the Israeli occupation insists on keeping them in captivity, on charges of alleged incitement.

Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) have been using the charge of “incitement” against Palestinian prisoners since the beginning of its genocidal war against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, as a pretext of arresting Palestinians based on no real charges.

The PPS explained that the captive Ghaythan is a mother of five children, and she is the sister of a martyr. She was arrested on April 4. On the same day, her sister was arrested before being released later on.

The Israeli Occupation Army had previously arrested their mother, Khadhra, before she was provisionally released. Two of her brothers have been arrested as well.

Captive Jihad Ghawanma, from the Jalazoan camp north of Ramallah, was arrested on April 26. She is a mother of four children, the youngest is only four years old. Based on medical reports prior to her arrest, the female detainee suffers from anemia and therefore needs special nutrition and health care service.

Ghawanma has four brothers detained in Israeli prisons, two of whom are wounded.

As all Palestinian female prisoners, the two captives Ghaythan and Ghawanma were subjected to all kinds of Israeli retaliatory procedures including humiliation, starvation, solitary confinement, isolation and deprivation of health care, strip searches, assault, and abuse operations right from the moment of arrest.

The PPS condemned the continued detention of the two pregnant detainees, Ghaythan and Ghawanma, describing it as a crime and holding the IOA fully responsible for the fate of all prisoners, especially women. It also called for immediate and urgent intervention to release the two captives.

The PPS urged international human rights organizations to “restore their key role and assume the responsibility they had been established for” in order to end the war of genocide that has been ongoing for more than seven months in the Gaza Strip.

The number of prisoners in Israeli occupation prisons have exceeded 9,300 prisoners by the first of May, including more than 3,400 administrative detainees.

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The Israeli occupation forces continue closing border crossings with Gaza for 15 consecutive days

GAZA, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) -  

For the 15th day in a row, the Israeli occupation forces continued to close the Rafa'h border crossing and Karm Abu Salim commercial crossing in the southern Gaza Strip, amidst warnings of a humanitarian catastrophe.

On May 7, the occupation forces controlled the Palestinian side of the Rafa'h border crossing and stopped the flow of aid to the Gaza Strip.

The Karm Abu Salim commercial crossing, southeast of the city of Rafa'h, has also been shut down by the occupation since May 5, preventing the entry of humanitarian and medical aid into the Strip.

During the period of closure, the occupation forces banned the entry of more than 3,000 aid trucks into the Strip and prevented about 700 sick and wounded people from leaving the besieged Gaza Strip to receive treatment abroad, according to press sources.

On Sunday, the World Health Organization warned that: “Supplies of essential medicines and fuel are very low in the Gaza Strip and movement is limited due to security restrictions [imposed by the Israeli occupation].”

Y.S.

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OCHA: We are running out of words to describe what is happening in Gaza

NEW YORK, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) -

Edem Wosornu, Director of OCHA's Operations and Advocacy Division, said in a briefing to the UN Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Rafa'h: “To be frank, we are running out of words to describe what is happening in Gaza. We have described it as a catastrophe, a nightmare, as hell on earth. It is all of these, and worse.”

Speaking at the briefing on behalf of Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Wosornu stressed that the “living conditions continue to deteriorate as a result of heavy fighting, particularly in Jabalya and eastern Rafah, as well as Israeli bombardment from air, land and sea.”

The number of casualties continues to increase by the day, she stressed, adding that 1.1 million people face catastrophic levels of hunger and Gaza remains on the brink of famine.

Since October 2023, 75 percent of the population in Gaza – 1.7 million people – has been forcibly displaced within Gaza, many of them up to four or five times, including as a result of repeated Israeli military-issued evacuation instructions, she said.

“I must also emphasize, unequivocally, that persons forcibly displaced within or from Gaza must be guaranteed the right to voluntarily return, as international law demands.”

“I must also emphasize, unequivocally, that persons forcibly displaced within or from Gaza must be guaranteed the right to voluntarily return, as international law demands.“ stressed the Director of OCHA's Operations and Advocacy Division.

As the conflict persists and lives are threatened, civilians must be allowed to seek protection, she added.

The toll of death, injury and destruction in Gaza is utterly unconscionable, she stressed, adding: “We demand that civilians, their housing and the vital infrastructure they depend on be protected, as international humanitarian law requires. All feasible precautions must be taken to avoid and minimize civilian harm.”

She also underscored "the need for the facilitation of rapid, unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief into and within Gaza – also as a matter of international humanitarian law.”  All available access points must be open and kept open for a sustained period to allow aid to enter at scale, said Wosornu.

She also affirmed the need to be assured of the protection of humanitarian and UN staff, all of whom are working under extreme conditions in Gaza.

The OCHA official further emphasized the need for adequate funding, particularly for UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which he stressed is the central pillar of our aid operation.

T.R.

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Urgent appeal: Al-Awda Hospital in Gaza is under attack – ActionAid

RAMALLAH, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) -

ActionAid, a partner of Al-'Awda Hospital in Jabalya, in the northern Gaza Strip, urgently appealed for an immediate intervention in the critical situation facing the hospital.

“Al-'Awda Hospital, one of our vital partners, is currently under siege by the Israeli army, resulting in the complete blockade of access to and from the facility. This blockade severely impedes the hospital's ability to provide essential medical services to the most vulnerable populations in the north of Gaza,” said ActionAid.

Mu'hammed Sal'ha, acting director of Al-'Awda Hospital, reported that the hospital is under siege again by the Israeli military, with shooting and shelling in its vicinity, ambulances unable to leave the hospital and injured people unable to enter, reported ActionAid.

Al-'Awda Hospital is the only hospital in northern Gaza still providing maternity services and orthopedic surgery services. “He describes the emergency situation at Al-'Awda, with no remaining fuel or clean water and patients and staff in fear that the hospital would be targeted,” said ActionAid.

Reports from our colleagues at Al-'Awda Hospital highlight the dire consequences of this siege. Previous attacks, including an 18-day siege last December during which three medical personnel were sniped, have forced the hospital to take extreme measures to protect patients and staff. Despite these efforts, the hospital is struggling to meet the urgent medical needs of the community, with 80% of injuries requiring immediate orthopedic intervention, added ActionAid.

ActionAid stressed that the capacity of Al-'Awda Hospital has been severely compromised due to the bombing of its accommodation floors, resulting in the killing of three doctors and the loss of 48 beds. “Despite these challenges, 93 medical personnel continue to work tirelessly under extremely difficult conditions.”

T.R.   

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Israeli occupation forces shoot Palestinian photojournalist during assault on Jineen

Jineen, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

A Palestinian photojournalist was injured today by the Israeli occupation forces while he was on duty covering the ongoing Israeli assault on the city of Jineen.

Local sources said 'Amr Manasra was injured in the lower back by shrapnel from the occupation forces’ bullets while covering the military assault in the vicinity of Jineen Hospital.

His condition was reported to be stable.

According to WAFA correspondent, the occupation snipers continued to fire bullets at journalists in the vicinity of Jenin Hospital.

Seven Palestinian civilians, including a doctor, a schoolteacher and a student, were killed this morning and 12 others were injured, including two seriously, as a result of the ongoing Israeli occupation aggression against the city of Jenin and its camp.

K.T.

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"No long-term solution in Gaza that is not political," UN's Middle East Coordinator

NEW YORK, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

The UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, reiterated that "there can be no long-term solution in Gaza that is not fundamentally political."

"The new Palestinian Government, with eight ministers from Gaza, represents an important opportunity to support tangible steps towards unifying Gaza and the occupied West Bank politically, economically, administratively," he added at a UN Security Council session.

"The international community should provide support to the new Government to address its fiscal challenges, strengthen its governance capacity and prepare it to reassume its responsibilities in Gaza and, ultimately, govern the whole of the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The Palestinian Authority must also be an integral part of planning for Gaza’s recovery and reconstruction."

"The devastation and misery of the past seven months have reinforced a simple truth. Palestinians and Israelis can no longer wait to establish a viable political horizon to end the conflict and establish a two-state solution," he noted.

"I am very concerned that the failure to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and a large-scale military operation in Rafa'h exacerbates the risk of escalating regional tensions," Wennesland added, saying that "the situation is becoming increasingly desperate and dangerous for the already besieged population."

Wennesland expressed concern over the security situation in Rafah, saying that "it has rapidly worsened as the Israeli operations and military maneuvers in and around the city have intensified."

According to incomplete casualty data, the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip, by land, sea and air, which began on October 7th, has so far resulted in the killing of 35,562 Palestinian civilians, the majority of whom were children and women, and the injury of 79,652 others, as thousands of victims are still under the rubble.

K.T. 

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Killing and Injuring of Palestinians in Ghazza (Gaza) by Israeli Occupation Regime Forces

On May21, 2024, Dr. Ashraf Al-Qidra, the Spokesperson of the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza announced that the Israeli genocidal air strikes and bombardment on Gaza Strip resulted in 5 massacres, which resulted in the killing of 85 Palestinian civilians, and the injury of 200 others, in the past 24 hours. This increased the accounted for death toll in Gaza Strip to 35,647 and the injuries to 79,852, since the start of the Israeli genocidal war on October 7, 2023.   

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Gaza: Death toll surges to 35,647 martyrs

Tuesday 21-May-2024

GAZA, (PIC)

The health ministry in Gaza said on Tuesday that the Israeli occupation army committed five massacres in different areas of the Gaza Strip during the past 24 hours, killing at least 85 civilians and injuring over 200 others, while a large number of victims are still under the rubble of bombed buildings or lying on roads.

In a statement, the health ministry said that the Israeli army killed and injured a large number of civilians in different areas of Gaza during the past 24 hours, but at least 285 of them, including 85 martyrs, were transported to hospitals.

The health ministry added that the death toll from the ongoing Israeli bombardments and shooting attacks, which started on October 7, climbed to 35,647 martyrs and the number of the wounded surged to 79,852 people.

The Gaza Strip has been under brutal bombardment since a cross-border operation was launched by Hamas’s armed wing, al-Qassam Brigades, on October 7.

Besides the large number of casualties and the huge displacement of people, basic food, fuel, water and medical supplies have run out for the 2.3 million residents in Gaza due to the tight Israeli blockade and the massive destruction of infrastructure and facilities.

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US-backed Israeli genocide in Gaza enters day 228

Tuesday 21-May-2024

GAZA, (PIC)

As the US-backed Israeli genocidal war on the Gaza Strip entered day 228 on Tuesday, aerial and artillery strikes continued to pound and target different areas and massacre more civilians, especially in northern Gaza.

Reporters for the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) said that the Israeli occupation army continued to bomb homes in different areas of Gaza during the past 24 hours, amid ongoing attacks in Rafa'h and Jabalya.

According to media sources, four civilians, including two women and one child, were massacred when the Israeli army bombed a house in al-Tuffa'h neighborhood in Gaza City.

Meanwhile, an Israeli tank bombed the gate of the Kamal 'Udwan Hospital’s emergency department, amid Palestinian efforts to evacuate the patients and medical crews from the hospital. The Israeli army recently ordered all the people inside the hospital to leave it.

A baby girl reportedly died for lack of oxygen at the Kamal 'Udwan Hospital’s nursery, which has been under Israeli military siege for several days.

The Israeli army also targeted a group of citizens near the Awadhallah junction in Yibna refugee camp in central Rafa'h, killing three of them and injuring others.

In Bait Lahya, an Israeli attack on an apartment claimed the lives of a citizen, his wife and kids, while at least three children were killed and many others were injured or went missing following an attack on a house in the east of 'Abasan in Khan Younus.

Other casualties were reported in other areas of Gaza following Israeli aerial, artillery and shooting attacks last night and today. 

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Day 228 of Genocide: Children, women, killed in Israeli bombardment in Gaza

GAZA, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

Dozens of citizens, most of them children and women, were killed, and others were injured, at dawn Tuesday, in various parts of the Gaza Strip, which continues to be under Israeli violent bombardment, by air, land and sea, for the 228th day in a row.

WAFA correspondent reported that three people were killed and a number of injuries were reported as a result of the occupation aircraft targeting a house owned by Al-Ka'hloot family in the Bait Lahya project in the northern Gaza Strip.

One person was killed and others were injured as a result of a missile strike that targeted two homes belonging to Abu 'Aamer and Abu Tair families, east of the city of Khan Younus, in the southern Gaza Strip.

There are still missing people under the rubble of the two destroyed homes.

The Israeli occupation military navy fired machine guns towards the sea of the city of Khan Younus.

Ambulance and civil defense crews recovered a number of casualties as a result of gunfire from a Quadcopter aircraft on a group of citizens behind the Association for the Disabled on the Palestinian-Egyptian border, south of the city of Rafa'h, south of the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli occupation aircraft carried out a series of raids on the northern area of Buraij camp in the central Gaza Strip, killing and injuring dozens.

The Israeli occupation army artillery continues to bomb various areas in the Jabalya camp in the northern Gaza Strip.

By May 20, 2024, the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip, by land, sea and air, which began on October 7th, has so far resulted in the killing of 35,562 Palestinian civilians, the majority of whom were children and women, and injuring 79,652 others, in an infinite toll, as thousands of victims are still under the rubble.

K.T.

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Israeli relentless bombardment of Gaza kills eight, injures others

GAZA, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

Israeli relentless bombardment of the blockaded Gaza Strip Tuesday evening killed eight Palestinians and injured others, according to a medical source.

He said that Israeli missiles targeted a house of all-Shobaki family in the Gaza city neighborhood of ad-Daraj, killing four Palestinians, including a toddler whose age did not exceed a year.

All of the fatalities were taken to the al-Ahli hospital, which used to be called Al-Mamadani.

He added that Israeli missiles also targeted a house in al-Tuffa'h neighborhood in central Gaza, killing four others, including two women and a minor.

Sued at the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7, killing at least 35,647 Palestinians and injuring over 79,852 others, noting that the figures only refer to the cases transported to hospitals and registered in the records of the Ministry of Health.

Just within the last 24 hours, the Israeli occupation committed five massacres against families in the Gaza Strip, resulting in 85 documented fatalities and 200 injuries.

Moreover, at least 7,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.

Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.

The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

K.F.

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Five civilians killed and others injured in Israeli bombing of Rafa'h

GAZA, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –  

At least five civilians today were killed and others were injured in Israeli airstrikes targeting a group of citizens near 'Awadhallah Junction in the Yibna refugee camp in the center of the city of Rafa'h in the southern Gaza Strip.

The occupation artillery bombed the eastern areas of the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City.

Meanwhile, the city of Rafa'h has been subjected to a series of raids since Tuesday morning.

The Israeli occupation continued today its aggression on the Gaza Strip, by land, sea and air, since October 7, 2023, which so far has resulted in the killing of 35,562 people, mostly children and women, and the injury of 79,652 others, with thousands of victims still under the rubble.

Y.S.

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Killing, Injuring, and Abduction of Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli Occupation Regime Forces 

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Death toll rises to eight as Israeli forces continue their onslaught on Jineen and its camp

JENIN, Wednesday, May 22, 2024 (WAFA) –

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) confirmed at midnight on Wednesday the killing of a Palestinian by the Israeli army in the Al-Hadaf neighborhood in Jineen, as the army’s onslaught on the Jenin governorate continued since early Tuesday morning, bringing the number of Palestinians killed in the ongoing onslaught to eight.

The number of people injured in the ongoing onslaught on Jineen City and its refugee camp has also resulted in the wounding of at least 21 people, including some seriously.

PRCS said the occupation forces detained the ambulance while it was transporting the body of the slain Palestinian to the hospital. The identity of the slain Palestinian remains unknown until the moment.

According to PRCS, the occupation forces targeted the ambulance with live ammunition in the said neighborhood, causing damage to the ambulance. No injuries were reported among its crews during the shooting attack.

T.R.

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Israeli forces kill seven Palestinians, including doctor, teacher, student, during assault on Jineen

Jineen, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

Seven Palestinian civilians, including a doctor, a schoolteacher, and a student, were killed on Tuesday morning, and 12 others were injured, including two seriously, as a result of the ongoing Israeli occupation aggression against the city of Jineen and its camp.

The Ministry of Health said that seven people were killed and 12 others were injured by occupation forces, including two with serious injuries, during confrontations that broke out after the occupation forces stormed Jineen refugee camp.

The director of Jenin Governmental Hospital, Wisam Bakr, said that among the slain civilians was the surgical specialist at Jenin Hospital, Ousaid Jabbareen, who was targeted in the vicinity of the hospital, teacher 'Allam Jaradat, who was on duty in a school, and Ma'hmoud 'Hamadna, a student in the 9th grade, while he was on his way back home.

According to the Red Crescent, there are school students among the injured in Jenin, and the occupation army is obstructing medical crews from reaching them.

The Director of Education in Jenin, Salam Al-Tahir, said that all schools in the city of Jenin and its camp were evacuated, with the exception of some students in Al-Karama and Al-Zahraa schools due to the seriousness of the current events.

The head of the Popular Committee for Jenin Camp Services, Mu'hammed Al-Sabbagh, explained that students from UNRWA schools are still besieged.

WAFA correspondent said that the occupation bulldozers continue to raze and destroy the infrastructure near Jenin Governmental Hospital, noting that in the almost daily incursions into the Jenin camp, the Israeli bulldozers and vehicles deliberately destroy the infrastructure in the main and secondary streets, and in the city’s neighborhoods.

According to security sources, the occupation forces stormed the city of Jenin and its camp, and drove through the streets of Jenin, Haifa, Nablus, and Burqin Road, sparking confrontations, which took place in the vicinity of Jenin camp and Wadi Burqeen.

With the killing of the seven civilians, the death toll in the West Bank since October 7th rises to 513.

K.T. 

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Israeli forces detain 15 Palestinians across the West Bank

RAMALLAH, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) – 

Israeli occupation forces Monday evening and dawn Tuesday detained at least 15 Palestinians from various parts of the occupied West Bank, according to the Commission of the Detainees and the Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Palestine Prisoner’s Society (PPS).

They said that the occupation forces rounded up at least 15 Palestinians, with the majority of the detainees coming from the West Bank district of Ramallah, Nablus, Tubas, and Jerusalem.

The prisoners' institutions added that the military raids were accompanied by assaults against civilians, threats against detainees and their families, the destruction and vandalism of Palestinian properties and field investigations.

According to the Commission and PPS, the occupation forces have detained over 8815 Palestinians since October 7, 2023. This figure includes Palestinians who were detained from their houses, at checkpoints, were forced to turn themselves in under pressure, or were held as hostages.

The prisoners’ institutions warned in previous statements against the Israeli occupation's continued crime of enforced disappearance committed against Gaza detainees who were detained after October 7, 2023.

Y.S.

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Israeli forces injure six, detain another in ongoing assault on Jineen

Jineen, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

 Israeli occupation forces Tuesday evening injured six Palestinians and detained another in the ongoing assault on Jenin city and refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank, according to security and medical sources.

They said that the four youths sustained gunshot injuries from Israeli forces gunfire to the shoulder, abdomen and thigh in the city and refugee camp of Jenin in the course of the assault, which began in the early hours of Tuesday.

They elaborated that one of the four youths was shot and injured by a sniper stationed at a house while exiting the Jenin Hospital and two others of them were shot inside the camp. The fourth one sustained bruises and cuts after being rammed by an Israeli army vehicle.

In addition, a female paramedic sustained shrapnel injuries in the refugee camp and a 17-year-old teen was seriously injured from Israeli gunfire, and both were rushed to a hospital for treatment.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said that its paramedics provided first aid treatment to two injuries; one in the chest and the other in the hand, and evacuated them to the hospital.

This came as the heavily armed soldiers showed up at a house in the Jenin city neighborhood of al-Marah, went inside, wreaked havoc inside, assaulted the family members and eventually detained a 50-year-old female family member.

Earlier, Amr Manasra, a photojournalist, was injured in the lower back by shrapnel from the occupation forces’ bullets while covering the military assault in the vicinity of Jineen Hospital. His condition was described as stable.

Meanwhile, security sources confirmed that the occupation forces continued the deliberate destruction of infrastructure and property, including streets, vegetable stalls and commercial shacks, and occupied scores of houses and turned them into outposts amid violent confrontations.

Israeli snipers deployed on the rooftops or windows of houses and opened fire at Palestinians, ambulances, medics and media staff.

The Israeli military demolished the house of A'hmed Barakat, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the town in March this year.

Barakat’s mother told WAFA that the bulldozers destroyed and demolished their 280 square meters two-storey house, without any prior notice.

She said the occupation forces did not allow them to remove the contents of the house; a home for ten family members, thus rendering them homeless.

Schools in Jenin as well as its refugee camp have been evacuated.

WAFA correspondent reported that the Jenin Government Hospital was under siege with surrounding streets bulldozed.

He added that Israeli snipers were extensively deployed and opened fire on anyone seen in the vicinity of the Khalil Suleiman Hospital in Jenin and randomly opened fire towards those present in the courtyard of the Jenin Government Hospital.

Mustafa Hamarsha, the Medical Director at Jineen Hospital, said that the situation was difficult because medical staff were insufficient to handle the large number of injuries, as the occupation forces  continued to prevent ambulances from reaching the injured, and the injured and medical personnel were prevented from entering the hospital premises.

Earlier, in the morning hours, the occupation forces shot and killed seven Palestinians, including a doctor, a teacher and two youths, and injured 19 others, including a journalist who was shot after the soldiers opened fire on a group of journalists covering the assault which began in the early hours of Tuesday.

Among the fatalities was Osayd Kamal Jabbareen, the Head of the Surgery Department at Jenin Governmental Hospital, who was killed in the vicinity of the hospital, and Allam Jaradat, a 48-year-old school teacher, who was shot and killed whilst in his vehicle on his way to work.

Two youths, Ma'hmoud Amjad 'Hamadnah, 15, and Osama Mu'hammed, 16, were also shot and killed. The other slain Palestinian are Mu'ammar Mu'hammed Abu 'Omaira, 50, Ameer 'Isam Abu 'Omaria, 22, and Basim Ma'hmoud Turkman, 53.

K.F.

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'Hamas: Our resistance in the West Bank is ongoing despite big sacrifices

Tuesday 21-May-2024

Jineen, (PIC)

The 'Hamas Movement said the Israeli massacre in Jenin will not dissuade our people, stressing that the resistance in the West Bank is ongoing and escalating, no matter how big the sacrifices are.

'Hamas said in a statement on Tuesday that the Israeli massacre in Jenin camp this morning, resulting in the martyrdom of seven citizens and the serious injury of several others, “is an Israeli desperate attempt to dissuade our heroic people and our valiant resistance.” It is a continuation of the Israeli series of crimes including killing, tightening the siege, and using starvation as a weapon in Rafa'h, Jabalya and various regions of the Gaza Strip, 'Hamas added.

'Hamas mourned the martyrs, extended condolences to their families, and hailed the resistance fighters in Jineen and its camp as well as across the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Seven Palestinians have been martyred and ten others injured by Israeli gunfire after Israeli occupation forces raided Jenin city and camp on Tuesday morning. The casualties included two critical injuries, and three martyrs: a child, a teacher, and a surgeon.

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'Haneeni: Jineen massacre will not stop our people from supporting resistance

Tuesday 21-May-2024

Jineen, (PIC)

Senior Hamas official Abdul Kareem 'Haneeni has affirmed that the new massacre that was committed on Tuesday morning against citizens in Jenin will not dissuade the Palestinian people from upholding the resistance option and supporting resistance fighters.

“All the occupation’s efforts to eradicate the resistance and embellish its ugly image that has been smashed since October 7 are desperate attempts that will never expunge the shame it has brought upon itself and will not bring security for itself in Gaza or the West Bank. Rather, such attempts will be a nightmare haunting it,”' Haneeni said in press remarks on Tuesday.

'Haneeni expressed his belief that the resistance would respond to the Jenin massacre in the coming days.

“The West Bank, despite all the occupations’ crimes, restrictions and aggressive raids, will remain engaged in the blessed Al-Aqsa Flood battle, curbing its aggression in all areas and supporting our people’s resistance in Gaza,” the Hamas official said.

He urged the Palestinian masses in the West Bank to support Jenin and its resistance and use all possible means of resistance to fend off attacks by Israeli forces and settler groups.

The 'Hamas official made his remarks after Israeli forces stormed Jenin refugee camp in the morning and embarked on opening fire randomly at local residents as they were going to their workplaces and schools, killing at least seven of them and injuring many others.

Meanwhile, resistance fighters from al-Qassam Brigades of Hamas and other resistance groups have been engaged in fierce clashes with Israeli soldiers in Jenin City and its refugee camp since the morning.

Resistance fighters reportedly detonated a number of explosive devices at IOF vehicles in different streets of Jineen.

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IOFs kidnap several Palestinians in West Bank raids

Tuesday 21-May-2024

WEST BANK, (PIC)

The Israeli occupation forces (IOFs) stormed last night and at dawn Tuesday different West Bank areas and kidnaped a number of Palestinian citizens, amid clashes with resistance fighters.

According to local sources, resistance fighters clashed with Israeli forces and showered them with bullets during an IOF raid in Tubas City.

The fighters in Tubas also detonated a booby-trapped car and some explosive devices at IOFs vehicles, damaging two of them.

In Ramallah, Israeli occupation forces kidnaped at least 10 citizens and assaulted a number of them during raids on homes in Sinjil town.

In Jineen, the IOFs kidnapped a female ex-detainee identified as Yasameen Sha'ban, a 41-year-old from Jalamah village, after she responded to a summons for interrogation at the Jalamah military base.

The IOFs also carried out raids in other West Bank areas, with no reported arrests.

In a related context, al-Quds website said that the IOFs kidnapped 15 citizens during night and dawn raids in the West Bank and Al-Quds (Jerusalem), adding that most of them were from Sinjil town. 

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Israeli occupation apartheid regime releases Palestinian captive with cancer after 22 months under administrative detention

Tuesday 21-May-2024

RAMALLAH, (PIC)

The Israeli occupation apartheid regime released on Monday evening the Palestinian cancer patient and detainee, Abdul Basit Ma’tan, 50, from the town of Burqa near Ramallah, after spending 22 months in administrative detention in Israeli jails.

The Palestinian Prisoner Society (PPS) said that Ma’tan was released from Negev Prison, where most stories of torture and abuse against Palestinian prisoners have been taking place.

The PPS added in a statement that the released prisoner was subjected to a series of criminal practices during his arrest including medical negligence in addition to starvation policy that caused Ma’tan to lose weight severely. He was left with bruises throughout his body as part of the Israeli revenge and torture procedures pursued against Palestinian detainees since the beginning of the aggression on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023.

The PPS pointed out that Ma’tan has been subjected, along with thousands of prisoners, to brutal assaults by Israeli occupation forces (IOF) despite the fact that he has been suffering from colon cancer. He was denied the minimum treatment required, it added.

The freed captive Ma’tan spent more than 10 years in Israeli jails. Only one of his arrests was based on a charge whereas the rest had no trials or charges as he was held under the illegal administrative detention. His last detention was shortly after being released from a previous detention during which he did not receive the necessary treatment.

The Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails are currently living under hard detention conditions, with escalating numbers of sick prisoners, the majority of them are suffering from diseases of varying degrees in addition to torture, starvation and medical crimes. 

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Health Ministry slams Israeli killing of Palestinian doctor in Jenin

RAMALLAH, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) – 

The Ministry of Health today confirmed the killing of Ousaid Kamal Jabbareen, a surgical specialist at Jenin Hospital, by Israeli occupation forces' fire while on his way to work at the hospital.

The Ministry of Health confirmed in a statement that the deliberate killing of Jabbareen, 50, by the occupation forces is added to the series of daily Israeli occupation crimes and its ongoing attacks on the Palestinian health sector with all its components in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

It said that Jabbareen had been working as a general surgery specialist for 17 years in the Ministry’s hospitals.

The Ministry urgently appealed to the international community and human rights and humanitarian institutions to intervene immediately to protect Palestinian people, medical personnel and hospitals, as stipulated in the Fourth Geneva Convention.

K.T.

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Aggression and Attacks by Illegal Israeli Settlers and Soldiers

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Israeli forces demolish a Palestinian home in Jineen refugee camp

Jineen, Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

 Israeli bulldozers today demolished a privately-owned Palestinian home during the occupation army's ongoing military offensive on Jenin city and its refugee camp, in the northern occupied West Bank.

The wife of a Palestinian detainee in Israeli jails, who was identified as Hani Barakat, and whose son, Ahmed, was killed by the Israeli forces told WAFA that the occupation bulldozers destroyed and demolished their 280 square meters two-storey house, without any prior notice.

She added that the military soldiers did not allow them to remove the contents and furniture of the house; a home for ten family members, thus rendering them homeless.

The husband has been placed under administrative detention for six months. Their son, Ahmed, was killed on March 20 along with three others after being targeted by an Israeli drone attack near the camp.

Since the early morning hours, seven civilians, including a doctor and a teacher, were killed and 12 others were injured, including two seriously, as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression against Jenin city and its camp. The ongoing aggression has caused massive destruction to infrastructure.

Israel resorts to punitively demolish the family homes of any Palestinian – as a means of deterrence - accused of being involved in attacks against Israelis, a policy that Israel does not use against Israeli settlers who were involved in fatal attacks against Palestinians.

Amnesty International had previously argued that “Collective punishment is never permissible under any circumstances.”

T.R.

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Palestinian man injured during confrontations near Al-Khaleel (Hebron)

Al-Khaleel (Hebron), Tuesday, May 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

A Palestinian man today was injured by live bullets, and another was detained during Israeli military incursion into the town of Bait Ummar, north of Al-Khaleel (Hebron).

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported that a young man was injured by live bullets in the thigh, and his condition was described as moderate.

Meanwhile, dozens of school students and others suffered from suffocation as a result of inhaling tear gas during the confrontations that broke out following Israeli incursion into the town.

Media activist Mu'hammed 'Awadh said that the occupation forces further detained a Palestinian youth after raiding and searching his house in the Al-Musrara area, north of the city. 

Y.S

 

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