RAMALLAH, April 28, 2012 (WAFA) – The three Palestinian Arabic dailies Saturday focused on the Israeli government’s appeal to the Supreme Court to postpone an eviction order against the Ulpana settlement, near the Beit El settlement in the West Bank.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida highlighted on its front page an Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu call on the Supreme Court to postpone the demolition of the setttlement, built without permisssion, for three months claiming that demolishing housing units will have severe repercussions on the settlers.
The daily reported on a demonstration in the all-Arab East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina to protest the takeover of Palestinian homes by Israeli settlers after evicting the residents from the houses. The daily printed a picture of a protester and a settler arguing in front of the house.
The situation in Israeli jails and the hunger strike of the prisoners also dominated the front page of the dailies as more prisoners are joining the open hunger strike more than 1000 prisoners had started on April 17. The newspapers featured Israeli punitive measures against the striking prisoners.
Al-Quds featured a statement by President Mahmoud Abbas on the striking prisoners, calling on Israel to immediately release all Palestinians in Israeli prisons, especially those imprisoned before the Oslo accords signed in 1994, along with the sick, women and minors.
Featuring the letter as well, al-Hayat al-Jadida quoted Abbas’ stressing that the Palestinians will not sign a peace agreement with Israel unless it releases all prisoners.
The three dailies reported on the Israeli army assaults against the weekly non-violent demonstrations against settlements and the Apartheid Wall across the West Bank. Al-Ayyam said six Palestinians were injured with rubber-coated steel bullets and dozens were suffocated by tear gas.
Al-Quds editorial discussed the forced removal of a Palestinian family from the Jordan Valley by the Israeli army, and described the expulsion as part of the new Israeli “ethnic cleansing” policy that will bury any chance for peace with the Palestinians.
R.Q.
