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 107 of the US-Backed Israeli Genocidal War on Gaza Strip, 15 Massacres, 178 Palestinians Killed, 293 Injured, with a Death Toll of  25,105 and 62,681 Injuries

January 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 January 21, 2024, the initial death toll of Palestinians who have been killed by the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza Strip is 33,105+.   

This includes the accounted for deaths (25,105) and those who are still missing under the rubble (Corrected on December 23, 2023: 8,000+).   

By January 21, 2024, the documented injuries exceeded 62,681, and more than 2,520 civilians have been abducted from Gaza Strip.

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 Gazan women detained in Damon prison, noting that 8 women of whom have been recently released.

By January 4, 2023, the death toll included 9,730+ children and 6,830+ women (more than 70% of the victims). 

By January 21, 2024, there were 356 Palestinians who were killed, 3,619 who were injured, and 6,170, who were abducted by Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank, since October 7, 2023 (Some of the detainees have been released).

About 12,091 Palestinians, from both the West Bank and Gaza, have been detained in 2023. About half of them were detained after October 7. This included 1,085 children and 300 women.

The total number of detainees in the occupation prisons until the end of December was 8,800, and the number of administrative detainees was 3,291.

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By January 9, 2023,  there was a complete destruction of 69,000+ housing units, and a partial destruction of 290,000+ housing units (60% of Gaza housing units). This forced about 1.5 million people to become homeless, taking refuge in crowded UN schools and ultimately sleeping in the streets.  

The Israeli refusal to allow international aid caravans to enter Gaza freely led the Palestinian population to be on the verge of mass extermination for the lack of food, water, medicine, and fuel.  

By January 9, 2024, 326 health personnel and 97 journalists were killed and hundreds were injured, 121 ambulances were destroyed while on duty, killing and injuring their crews, and destroyed 150 health institutions. As a result of the strikes and lack of fuel, 30 hospitals and 53 primary care centers are not functioning. In addition, 99 health personnel have been abducted by the invading Israeli occupation forces.

Meanwhile, 134 government offices and 95 schools and universities were completely destroyed, while 295 schools and universities were partially damaged.

138 mosques were completely destroyed, while 240 others were partially damaged, in addition to three churches.

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Sites of mass destruction inflicted on the Palestinian city of Khan Younus by Israeli genocidal air strikes and bombardment, January 21, 2024	The Israeli occupation forces blew up homes of the two Palestinian martyrs Nasr and Abdul Qadir Al-Qawasmi, in the city of  Al-Khaleel (Hebron), January 21, 2024
Some of the Palestinian martyrs who were killed by Israeli genocidal air strikes and bombardment on Gaza Strip, January 21, 2024	Some of the Palestinian martyrs who were killed on Day 107 of the by Israeli genocidal war on Gaza Strip, January 21, 2024
In addition to the mass destruction of the Gaza Strip cities, the Israeli occupation forces desecrated and bulldozed at least 16 cemeteries, January 21, 2024	As a result of the Israeli genocidal war, a displaced Palestinian family outside of their tent in southern Gaza Strip, where they suffer shortage of food, water, warmth, and communication, January 20, 2024
The Israeli occupation forces blew up homes of the two Palestinian martyrs Nasr and Abdul Qadir Al-Qawasmi, in the city of  Al-Khaleel (Hebron), January 21, 2024	A Palestinian vehicle which was destroyed in Rafa'h by an Israeli genocidal air strike, on January 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, 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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Women in Gaza resort to using scraps for monthly period amid tragic displacement

GAZA, Saturday, January 20, 2024 (WAFA) – Women and girls in Gaza are resorting to unsafe ways of managing their periods amid a severe shortage of period products and catastrophic humanitarian conditions, ActionAid said in a report today.

The non-governmental organization said it has heard that some displaced women living in Rafa'h are so desperate they are cutting out small pieces of the tents they rely on for shelter from the cold and rain to use as a substitute for period products, risking infection. The lack of water means keeping clean is near impossible, with women telling us they have gone for weeks without showering. 

The NGO quoted one of its staff members as saying, “There is no water. I suffered during my period. There was no water available for me to get clean during my period. I had no sanitary pads for my own needs throughout my period.”

With Rafah currently hosting more than a million displaced people – more than four times its usual population – in extremely overcrowded conditions, there is no privacy. Queues for toilets are extremely long, with UNRWA estimating that at its shelters in Rafa'h there is only one toilet per 486 people. 

Adara, who was displaced from her home with her four children, said: “We suffer a lot whenever we want to go to the bathroom. We stand in line for a long time and the bathrooms are far away.”

Without water, women and girls on their periods are unable to wash themselves and stay clean. This, combined with a lack of soap, and with many women forced to use period products or substitutes for longer than is safe, poses a risk to their health.

People are only accessing an average of 1.5 to 2 liters of water per day – which is below the 3 liters needed for their basic survival, and well below the minimum 15 litres required per person each day to cover all water and sanitation-related needs, including washing.

Riham Al-Ja'fari, Advocacy and Communications Coordinator at ActionAid Palestine said: "Imagine having to manage your period with no period products, toilet paper or soap, and no chance of being able to wash yourself – all while living cheek by jowl with other people without a moment of privacy."

"This is the reality for hundreds of thousands of women and girls in Gaza right now. It isn’t just affront to their dignity – it's a real health hazard too," she added.

"One of our colleagues in Gaza told me it has been weeks since she’s been able to have a shower. Women like her are showing incredible resilience and finding creative ways to manage their periods and needs as best they can, but they shouldn’t have to: it is a fundamental right for women to be able to manage their periods safely and with dignity."

M.N.

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UN Chief: Denial of Palestinian statehood 'unacceptable'

KAMPALA, Saturday, January 20, 2024 (WAFA) –

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said today that the right of the Palestinian people to build their own state "must be recognized by all".

"The refusal to accept a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians, and the denial of the right to statehood for the Palestinian people, are unacceptable," the UN leader told the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Kampala, Uganda.

Such a stance "would indefinitely prolong a conflict that has become a major threat to global peace and security; exacerbate polarization; and embolden extremists everywhere," Guterres warned.

He affirmed, "The right of the Palestinian people to build their own state must be recognized by all."

In its final summit communique, the Non-Aligned Movement today "strongly condemned the ongoing Israeli military aggression against the Gaza Strip", calling for "a lasting humanitarian ceasefire".

Israel's relentless bombardment and ground offensive on Gaza has killed at least 24,927 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

M.N.

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IOF desecrated at least 16 cemeteries in Gaza, satellite imagery and videos reveal

Saturday 20-January-2024, GAZA, (PIC)

The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) have desecrated at least 16 cemeteries in their ground aggression on Gaza, a CNN investigation has found.

CNN has reviewed satellite imagery and social media footage showing the destruction of at least 16 cemeteries in the Gaza Strip since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza on October 7.

The news network said that “the intentional destruction of religious sites, such as cemeteries, violates international law, except in narrow circumstances relating to that site becoming a military objective,” and quoted legal experts as saying, “Israel’s actions could amount to war crimes.”

A spokesman for the Israeli occupation army could not account for the destruction of the 16 cemeteries CNN provided coordinates for.

The CNN’s analysis of satellite imagery and videos showed that Israeli bulldozers turned multiple cemeteries into gathering areas for the IOF, leveled large areas and erected berms to fortify its positions.

Israeli bulldozers were seen leveling the graves of Palestinian martyrs and exhuming graves to extract the bodies and steal some of them under the pretext of searching for the bodies of Israeli captives who may have been killed during the war.

In response to an Anadolu agency correspondent’s question about the issue, the Israeli occupation army acknowledged in a written statement on Friday that its forces have severely damaged a cemetery in Khan Younis in southern Gaza earlier this week, exhuming bodies of martyrs as part of a search for the remains of captives seized by Hamas.

The Israeli army confirmed, however, that it turned out that the bodies in the graves “were not bodies of Israeli captives,” claiming that “they were respectfully returned to the graves.”

The withdrawal of the Israeli military vehicles from the vicinity of the Nasser Medical Complex in the city of Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip, demonstrated that the army destroyed a cemetery in the city and exhumed a number of graves in it.

The Palestinians collected decomposed bodies of martyrs which were removed from graves in bulldozing operations, according to the Anadolu agency correspondent. 

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

On January 21, 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 15 massacres, in which  178 Palestinian civilians were killed, and 293 were injured, in the past 24 hours. This increased the death toll in Gaza Strip to 25,105 and the injuries to 62,681, since October 7, 2023.   

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Gaza: Death toll surges to 25,105 martyrs

Sunday 21-January-2024, GAZA, (PIC)

The health ministry in Gaza said on Sunday that the Israeli occupation army committed 15 massacres in different areas of the Gaza Strip during the past 24 hours, killing at least 178 civilians and injuring over 293 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 added that the death toll from the ongoing Israeli bombardments, which started on October 7, climbed to 25,105 martyrs and the number of the wounded surged to 62,681 people.

For his part, spokesman for the health ministry in Gaza Ashraf Al-Qidra said that there is no progress in the mechanism for the entry of necessary medical aid to the Gaza Strip.

“Hospitals in the southern Gaza Strip are unable to provide health services normally and the situation has far exceeded their capacity,” spokesman Qidra added.

He pointed out that 70 percent of the medical aid that entered Gaza was not within the basic needs of hospitals. 

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US-backed Israeli genocidal war on Gaza enters Day 107

Sunday 21-January-2024, GAZA, (PIC)

As the US-backed Israeli genocidal war on the Gaza Strip entered day 107 on Sunday, massive aerial and artillery strikes continued to pound neighborhoods and homes and massacre more civilians, mostly children and women.

A reporter for the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) said that the Israeli occupation army continued to attack different areas of Gaza last night and on Sunday morning, killing and injuring dozens of citizens.

According to local sources, two civilians were martyred when Israeli snipers shot them in the central area of Khan Younus, south of Gaza.

The Israeli army also killed five civilians in an artillery attack on the east of Jabalya, while Al Jazeera satellite channel said that ambulances failed to reach them.

One martyr and a number of wounded citizens were also transported to Kamal 'Udwan Hospital following an Israeli artillery attack in Al-Karama area, northwest of Gaza City.

Three others were killed when the Israeli army bombed a civilian car in Al-Yarmouk market in Gaza City.

An unknown number of were reportedly killed or injured by Israeli sniper fire in Al-Kateeba area, southwest of Gaza City.

At dawn, the Nasser Hospital received three wounded civilians following an Israeli attack on the house of Talaba family in Al-Amal neighborhood, west of Khan Yunis.

Casualties were also reported during an Israeli attack on a house in Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City.

Earlier, the Israeli army bombed the same neighborhood in Khan Younus, killing one civilian and injuring others.

Other casualties were reported in different areas of Gaza following Israeli aerial and artillery attacks on Sunday morning and later in the afternoon.

The Israeli army also bombed and detonated a number of homes and buildings during its ongoing incursions in Gaza.

In a related context, the Israeli occupation army announced the death of one soldier after he succumbed to a critical injury he sustained yesterday during clashes with resistance fighters in southern Gaza.

The Israeli army also said that one officer and two soldiers were seriously injured at dawn in central and southern Gaza.

According to Israeli official and news reports, 531 soldiers and officers have been killed since October 7, 2023.

 

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Five Palestinians killed in Israeli genocidal artillery shelling on Jabalya

GAZA, Sunday, January 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

Five Palestinian civilians were killed today in an Israeli genocidal artillery shelling that targeted the eastern area of the town of Jabalya in the northern Gaza Strip, according to medical sources.

The sources reported that Israeli artillery fired several shells east of Jabalya, resulting in the murder of five civilians and the injury of dozens more. Israeli occupation forces further prevented ambulance vehicles from reaching the scene.

In addition to the artillery shelling, Israeli warplanes and drones carried out a series of airstrikes on the town of Al-Qarara in the southern province of Khan Younus.

In addition, medical sources reported that the Israeli occupation forces committed 15 massacres, claiming the lives of 178 martyrs over the past 24 hours.

In a preliminary toll, the ongoing Israeli war of genocide on Gaza has claimed the lives of approximately 25,105 individuals since October 7, with 62,680 others injured, the majority of whom are women and children.

Worse still, the aggression has resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly 2 million people from all of the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced by Israel into the densely crowded southern city of Rafa'h near the border with Egypt—in what has become Palestine's largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

M.N.

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Dozens of civilian casualties in Gaza on Day 107 of the genocide

GAZA, Sunday, January 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

Dozens of innocent civilians were killed and others injured over the past hours as the ongoing Israeli war of genocide on Gaza enters its 107th consecutive day, according to local and medical sources.

In Gaza City, local sources reported that three civilians were killed when an Israeli military drone targeted the vehicle they were traveling in at the Yarmouk market.  

Simultaneously, medical sources confirmed casualties and injuries resulting from an Israeli airstrike targeting a residential building in the Zaytoun neighborhood, east of Gaza City.

In the meantime, a number of civilians were killed and others injured by Israeli sniper fire in the vicinity of the Al-Kateeba Square southwest of Gaza City.

Concurrently, Israeli warplanes carried out airstrikes on the Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City. The attack resulted in massive destruction, with no confirmed reports of casualties.

Meantime, Israeli artillery shelling targeted the Al-Manara neighborhood in the city of Khan Younus in the southern region of the Gaza Strip.

Also in Khan Younus, a civilian was killed and others were injured in an airstrike that hit the Al-Amal neighborhood west of the city.

Further, Israeli naval forces also reportedly shelled the coastal areas of Dair El-Bala'h in the middle of the enclave.

Meanwhile, eyewitnesses reported that Israeli artillery has been shelling the vicinity of Nasir Hospital in Khan Younus for several hours.

Israeli occupation forces also continued the destruction of residential areas in the central and eastern areas of Khan Younus, leading to further displacement and loss of homes for the already vulnerable population.

By January 20, 2024, in a preliminary toll, the ongoing Israeli war of genocide on Gaza has claimed the lives of approximately 24,927 individuals since October 7, with 62,388 others injured, the majority of whom are women and children.

Worse still, the aggression has resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly 2 million people from all of the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced by Israel into the densely crowded southern city of Rafa'h near the border with Egypt—in what has become Palestine's largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

M.N.

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Scores of civilian casualties in Israeli shelling on Khan Younus

GAZA, Sunday, January 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

 A number of civilians were killed and dozens injured late last night as Israeli warplanes bombarded multiple areas in the city of Khan Younus in the southern Gaza Strip, according to medical sources.

The sources explained that Israeli warplanes targeted the Al-Amal neighborhood west of Khan Younus, resulting in the tragic loss of several innocent lives and leaving many others wounded.

Meantime, Israeli occupation forces continued their artillery shelling in the vicinity of Nasir Hospital in Khan Younus.

Furthermore, warplanes bombarded the Jabalya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, leading to a large fire breaking out in one of the homes and factories struck by the bombardment. Additionally, Israeli fighter jets targeted a house in the Al-Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City.

By January 21, 2024, in a preliminary toll, the ongoing Israeli war of genocide on Gaza has claimed the lives of approximately 24,927 individuals since October 7, with 62,388 others injured, the majority of whom are women and children.

Worse still, the aggression has resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly 2 million people from all of the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafa'h near the border with Egypt—in what has become Palestine's largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

M.N.

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Abduction of Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli Occupation Regime Forces

6,170 Palestinians arrested by Israel since October 7, say prisoner rights groups

RAMALLAH, Sunday, January 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

The Palestinian Prisoner's Society (PPS) and the Prisoners Detainees Affairs Authority reported today that the Israeli occupation regime forces have detained more than 6,170 Palestinians since October 7th of last year.

In a joint statement, the two organizations said that, from yesterday evening until this morning, the Israeli occupation regime forces detained at least 15 individuals in the occupied West Bank, including former prisoners.

The detentions were carried out in various governorates, including Jineen, Nablus, Ramallah, Al-Khaleel (Hebron), and Al-Quds (Jerusalem).

The operations were marked by raids, widespread intimidation, brutal assaults, and threats against the detainees and their families, the statement said. The Israeli forces also engaged in extensive acts of vandalism and destruction in the homes of the targeted individuals.

M.N.

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IOF kidnaps several Palestinians in the West Bank raids

Sunday 21-January-2024, WEST BANK, (PIC)

The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) kidnaped at dawn Sunday at least 16 Palestinian citizens during raids in the West Bank, amid resistance operations and clashes with local youths.

According to local sources, resistance fighters opened fire at the Dotan checkpoint near Ya’bad town in Jenin and withdrew from the area.

The sources added that the IOF stormed Maythaloan town in southern Jenin, which provoked clashes with local youths and prompted resistance fighters to detonate explosive devices at their vehicles and open fire at them.

Four citizens were reportedly kidnaped following IOF raids on their homes in Maythaloan town.

In Nablus, the IOF stormed the eastern area of the city and kidnaped three citizens from their homes.

IOF vehicles came under fire from resistance fighters in Khilat Al-'Amoud area upon their withdrawal from Nablus City. Footage showed an IOF vehicle being towed after it sustained damage.

The IOF kidnaped two citizens from their homes in Khilat Al-'Amoud and another one from Amman street in Nablus.

In Qalqilya, Israeli forces stormed the city and raided homes, with no reported detentions.

In Salfeet, Israeli occupation forces also ransacked homes in Marda village and interrogated members of families before withdrawing without making arrests.

In Ramallah, two Beer Zait University students were taken prisoners following an IOF raid in 'Aroura village.

Another young man was kidnaped from his home after the IOF raided his home in Al-Am’ari refugee camp, south of Ramallah.

In al-Khalil, the IOF stormed Al-Shuyoukh town and kidnaped a father and his son during raids on several homes.

In east Jerusalem, Israeli police forces kidnaped one citizen from his home in Qalandya refugee camp.  

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Aggression and Attacks by Illegal Israeli Settlers and Soldiers

Illegal Israeli settlers attack farmers in Toulkarm, inflicting injuries

Toulkarm, Sunday, January 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

Illegal Israeli settlers assaulted Palestinian farmers today while they were present in their own land near the village of Rameen, in the northern West Bank province of Toulkarm, according to local sources.

Iyad Mu'hammed 'Hamad, one of the farmers, told WAFA correspondent that he and his brother Yasir were working on their olive grove in the plains of Rameen.

Settlers attempted to coerce them into leaving their land, he added, leading to verbal altercations. When 'Hamad and his brother resisted, one of the settlers called others, who arrived armed.

According to 'Hamad, one of the settlers kicked him, pressed a weapon against his chest, and threatened to open fire if they did not vacate the premises.

'Hamad further explained that one of the illegal Israeli settlers attacked his brother Yasir, striking him with an iron piece on his back, shoulder, and hands.

As a result, Yasir was transported to Thabit Thabit Governmental Hospital in Toulkarm, where examinations revealed severe bruises and contusions. His condition was described as stable.

M.N.

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Israeli occupation forces blow up homes of two Palestinian martyrs in Al-Khaleel (Hebron)

Al-Khaleel (Hebron), Sunday, January 21, 2024 (WAFA) –

Israeli occupation forces used explosives and bulldozers last night to demolish the homes of Palestinian martyrs Nasr and Abdul Qadir Al-Qawasmi in the city of  Al-Khaleel (Hebron), located south of the occupied West Bank.

WAFA correspondent reported that an Israeli military unit, accompanied by heavy machinery, invaded the Ras Al-Joura and Bir Al-Ma'hjar neighborhood in Hebron. He said the forces imposed a military cordon in the area, closed major roads, and restricted the movement of civilians.

Subsequently, the forces proceeded to demolish the home of the martyr Abdul Qadir using bulldozers and heavy machinery. They also detonated the home of the martyr Nasr Al-Qawasmi after forcing residents in the area to evacuate their homes.

The Israeli occupation forces had previously taken measurements of the homes of the martyrs Abdul Qadir and Nasr Al-Qawasmi at the end of last month in preparation for their punitive demolition.

Of note, the two Palestinians were killed by Israeli gunfire at the military checkpoint of Al-Nafaq located south of occupied Jerusalem on November 16 last year.

Israeli occupation authorities have long used to punitively demolish the homes of Palestinians accused of carrying out attacks on Israelis, a policy that Israel does not apply to Israeli settlers who are involved in fatal attacks against Palestinians.

The policy has been widely condemned by human rights groups as a collective punishment and a war crime.

B’Tselem, an Israeli human rights group, says: “The people who bear the brunt of the [punitive] demolitions are relatives – including women, the elderly, and children – whom Israel does not suspect of involvement in any offense.”

“In the vast majority of cases, the person whose actions prompted the demolition was not even living in the house at the time of the demolition,” adds the group.

M.N.

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