31 jan 2019
The European Union (EU) made a new contribution of €2.37 million to support Palestinian farmers and agro-businesses in the West Bank. The contribution was channeled through the Palestinian Authority's program "Assistance to Agriculture in the West Bank - AAWB".
The EU said, in a press release, that 241 Palestinian farmers and agro-businesses affected by Israeli occupation in the West Bank will benefit from this new contribution. This support will help the farmers relaunch, repair or replace damaged businesses through different activities including the acquisition of agricultural supplies, rehabilitation of land and other small infrastructure works. This brings the total beneficiaries of the program up-to-date to 365 farmers.
''The agricultural production is a crucial sector of the Palestinian economy. The support to the agricultural sector is essential to build a future Palestinian State with a viable economy. In this context, the EU contributes to program run by the Palestinian Authority to support agro-businesses in the West Bank and Gaza Strip'', said the EU Representative Ralph Tarraf .
The overall financial envelope of the Assistance to Agriculture in the West Bank (AAWB) program amounts to €7.0 million. It is expected to serve about 450 eligible beneficiaries in the West Bank with a focus on Area C. The program is managed by the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture and the Palestinian Agriculture Disaster Risk Reduction and Insurance Fund. The payments are made by the Palestinian Authority's Ministry of Finance and Planning through a network of local banks in the West Bank.
The EU said, in a press release, that 241 Palestinian farmers and agro-businesses affected by Israeli occupation in the West Bank will benefit from this new contribution. This support will help the farmers relaunch, repair or replace damaged businesses through different activities including the acquisition of agricultural supplies, rehabilitation of land and other small infrastructure works. This brings the total beneficiaries of the program up-to-date to 365 farmers.
''The agricultural production is a crucial sector of the Palestinian economy. The support to the agricultural sector is essential to build a future Palestinian State with a viable economy. In this context, the EU contributes to program run by the Palestinian Authority to support agro-businesses in the West Bank and Gaza Strip'', said the EU Representative Ralph Tarraf .
The overall financial envelope of the Assistance to Agriculture in the West Bank (AAWB) program amounts to €7.0 million. It is expected to serve about 450 eligible beneficiaries in the West Bank with a focus on Area C. The program is managed by the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture and the Palestinian Agriculture Disaster Risk Reduction and Insurance Fund. The payments are made by the Palestinian Authority's Ministry of Finance and Planning through a network of local banks in the West Bank.
The Japanese Ambassador for Palestinian Affairs and Representative of Japan to Palestine, Takeshi Okubo, signed a Grant contracts for four Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP), on Tuesday, in the besieged Gaza City.
The contracts were signed along with representatives of Never Stop Dreaming Charity Association, Nasser Medical Complex at Khan Younis, al-Shatee services center at Beach Camp and Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management in Khan Younis, Rafah and the Middle Area (JSC-KRM).
The signing ceremony took place at the UNDP Headquarter in Gaza for a total amount of $341,348.
Never Stop Dreaming Charity Association in the southern area districts will use a fund of $88,665 for building four safe green areas with total area 1250 square kilometers by doing road, fences, concrete, electrical, agriculture, game toys works inside the Khan Younis camp in order to reduce the people crowdedness of the streets through replacing the children and people activities from the streets to inside the areas which are safe.
Nasser Medical Complex will use a fund of $87,426 for providing the physiotherapy and rehabilitation department at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis with modern medical therapeutic equipment and maintenance of physiotherapy and rehabilitation department to enhance the capacity of the department to respond to the increased needs for the services of this department.
Al-Shatee services center will use a fund of $82,864 for providing al-Shatee service center and its facilities at al-Shatee refugee camp with solar electricity system, and to rebuild a wall and cover the ceiling of a Playground (864 square meter), also to rehabilitate the center hall installing air conditioners and furniture (210 square meter). 10,000 populations of al-Shatee refugee camp will be able to use the facilities of the center in safe after the project implementation; also the center will be able to provide better services to the camp population.
Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management in Khan Younis, Rafah and the Middle Area (JSC-KRM) will use a fund of $82,393 for upgrading the existing medical waste treatment system of Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management (JSC) in order to increase the quality and quantity of waste treated daily and reduce tariff in Khan Younis, Rafah and the middle area.
Okubo congratulated Never Stop Dreaming Charity Association, Nasser Medical Complex at Khan Younis, al-Shatee services center at Beach Camp, and Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management in Khan Younis, Rafah and the Middle Area (JSC-KRM), and wished them success in their project. He emphasized Japan’s firm commitment of supporting Palestinian people from human security perspective as well as the importance of implementing social and economic development projects needed for Palestinian communities.
Since 1993 the Government of Japan has extended its official development assistance amounting to approximately $1.86 billion to the Palestinians.
GGP projects have been formulated in collaboration with the Palestinian Authority through Ministry of Finance and Planning since 2010.
The contracts were signed along with representatives of Never Stop Dreaming Charity Association, Nasser Medical Complex at Khan Younis, al-Shatee services center at Beach Camp and Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management in Khan Younis, Rafah and the Middle Area (JSC-KRM).
The signing ceremony took place at the UNDP Headquarter in Gaza for a total amount of $341,348.
Never Stop Dreaming Charity Association in the southern area districts will use a fund of $88,665 for building four safe green areas with total area 1250 square kilometers by doing road, fences, concrete, electrical, agriculture, game toys works inside the Khan Younis camp in order to reduce the people crowdedness of the streets through replacing the children and people activities from the streets to inside the areas which are safe.
Nasser Medical Complex will use a fund of $87,426 for providing the physiotherapy and rehabilitation department at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis with modern medical therapeutic equipment and maintenance of physiotherapy and rehabilitation department to enhance the capacity of the department to respond to the increased needs for the services of this department.
Al-Shatee services center will use a fund of $82,864 for providing al-Shatee service center and its facilities at al-Shatee refugee camp with solar electricity system, and to rebuild a wall and cover the ceiling of a Playground (864 square meter), also to rehabilitate the center hall installing air conditioners and furniture (210 square meter). 10,000 populations of al-Shatee refugee camp will be able to use the facilities of the center in safe after the project implementation; also the center will be able to provide better services to the camp population.
Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management in Khan Younis, Rafah and the Middle Area (JSC-KRM) will use a fund of $82,393 for upgrading the existing medical waste treatment system of Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management (JSC) in order to increase the quality and quantity of waste treated daily and reduce tariff in Khan Younis, Rafah and the middle area.
Okubo congratulated Never Stop Dreaming Charity Association, Nasser Medical Complex at Khan Younis, al-Shatee services center at Beach Camp, and Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management in Khan Younis, Rafah and the Middle Area (JSC-KRM), and wished them success in their project. He emphasized Japan’s firm commitment of supporting Palestinian people from human security perspective as well as the importance of implementing social and economic development projects needed for Palestinian communities.
Since 1993 the Government of Japan has extended its official development assistance amounting to approximately $1.86 billion to the Palestinians.
GGP projects have been formulated in collaboration with the Palestinian Authority through Ministry of Finance and Planning since 2010.
A group of illegal Israeli colonialist settlers attacked, Thursday, many Palestinian shepherds in grazing lands in the al-Farisiyya area, in the Northern Plains of the occupied West Bank.
Palestinian Human Rights activist Aref Daraghma, said the colonists chased the shepherds, and hurled stones at them and the flocks.
He added that the Israeli assailants came from the illegal Rotem colony, which was built on Palestinian lands.
The attack is part of numerous similar violations and assaults by the illegal colonists against the Palestinians, their homes and property in several parts of the occupied West Bank, especially in the Northern Plains.
They are frequently carried out in front of Israeli soldiers, who do not attempt to stop the colonists, and instead resort to the excessive use of force against the Palestinians.
Palestinian Human Rights activist Aref Daraghma, said the colonists chased the shepherds, and hurled stones at them and the flocks.
He added that the Israeli assailants came from the illegal Rotem colony, which was built on Palestinian lands.
The attack is part of numerous similar violations and assaults by the illegal colonists against the Palestinians, their homes and property in several parts of the occupied West Bank, especially in the Northern Plains.
They are frequently carried out in front of Israeli soldiers, who do not attempt to stop the colonists, and instead resort to the excessive use of force against the Palestinians.
30 jan 2019
A Palestinian man was shot on Tuesday by the Israeli occupation forces in northern Gaza.
Gaza's Ministry of Health said that a 45-year-old Palestinian farmer was injured by Israeli gunfire in Beit Lahia city in the northern area of the Gaza Strip.
Local sources said that the man was shot while he was working in his farmland, and was later transferred to a local hospital for treatment.
Gaza's Ministry of Health said that a 45-year-old Palestinian farmer was injured by Israeli gunfire in Beit Lahia city in the northern area of the Gaza Strip.
Local sources said that the man was shot while he was working in his farmland, and was later transferred to a local hospital for treatment.
28 jan 2019
On Monday, Israeli soldiers, stationed across the perimeter fence in the eastern parts of the besieged Gaza Strip, shot and injured one teacher, and opened fire on several Palestinian farmers and shepherds.
Media sources in Gaza said a schoolteacher was injured after the soldiers, in their military bases close to the fence, fired many rounds of live ammunition at a high school, east of Beit Hanoun, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.
They added that the soldiers also fired many live rounds at farmers and shepherds in Malka area, east of Gaza city, and farmlands east of Deir al-Balah, in the central part of the coastal region.
In the occupied West Bank, the soldiers confiscated a tractor, owned by a local farmer identified as Ahmad Thiab Abu Kheizaran, in the ar-Ras al-Ahmar Bedouin community, southeast of Tubas, allegedly for “working in a military zone.”
IOF shoots at school in Gaza, injuring employee
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) on Monday opened fire on a school in the blockaded Gaza strip, injuring a Palestinian, according to local sources.
"The Mahdia Shawa School today came under fire which wounded employee Ramez Za'anin", the Ministry of Education in Gaza said.
Ministry official Ziad Thabet condemned the shooting, which, he said, was part of an ongoing Israeli policy to target Palestinian educational institutions.
The attack came in flagrant violation to international las and norms, he added.
He also called on international community to condemn the incident and to hold Israel accountable for its escalated crimes against the Gaza Strip.
Israel has stepped up attacks in Gaza, which claimed over 295 Palestinian lives in 2018, marking the highest death toll since the 2014 Gaza conflict, many of them were shot during the March of Return protests, amid a deterioration in the humanitarian situation in the besieged enclave.
Media sources in Gaza said a schoolteacher was injured after the soldiers, in their military bases close to the fence, fired many rounds of live ammunition at a high school, east of Beit Hanoun, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.
They added that the soldiers also fired many live rounds at farmers and shepherds in Malka area, east of Gaza city, and farmlands east of Deir al-Balah, in the central part of the coastal region.
In the occupied West Bank, the soldiers confiscated a tractor, owned by a local farmer identified as Ahmad Thiab Abu Kheizaran, in the ar-Ras al-Ahmar Bedouin community, southeast of Tubas, allegedly for “working in a military zone.”
IOF shoots at school in Gaza, injuring employee
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) on Monday opened fire on a school in the blockaded Gaza strip, injuring a Palestinian, according to local sources.
"The Mahdia Shawa School today came under fire which wounded employee Ramez Za'anin", the Ministry of Education in Gaza said.
Ministry official Ziad Thabet condemned the shooting, which, he said, was part of an ongoing Israeli policy to target Palestinian educational institutions.
The attack came in flagrant violation to international las and norms, he added.
He also called on international community to condemn the incident and to hold Israel accountable for its escalated crimes against the Gaza Strip.
Israel has stepped up attacks in Gaza, which claimed over 295 Palestinian lives in 2018, marking the highest death toll since the 2014 Gaza conflict, many of them were shot during the March of Return protests, amid a deterioration in the humanitarian situation in the besieged enclave.
Qatar on Sunday signed with the UN a formal agreement promising $20 million for “cash-for-work programs” in the besieged Gaza Strip.
The UN’s Development and Humanitarian Coordinator Jamie McGoldrick met with the head of Qatar’s Gaza mission, Mohammed al-Emadi, to sign the agreement.
The deal set up a $20 million job creation project with full cooperation and coordination with the United Nations.
The move came after Hamas Movement Hamas refused to receive the third Qatari humanitarian grant to protest against the Israeli political blackmail.
The UN’s Development and Humanitarian Coordinator Jamie McGoldrick met with the head of Qatar’s Gaza mission, Mohammed al-Emadi, to sign the agreement.
The deal set up a $20 million job creation project with full cooperation and coordination with the United Nations.
The move came after Hamas Movement Hamas refused to receive the third Qatari humanitarian grant to protest against the Israeli political blackmail.
Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians in the Masafer Yatta area in the southern occupied West Bank district of Hebron, on Monday.
Coordinator of the National and Popular Committee in southern Hebron, Rateb al-Jbour, reported that a group of Israeli settlers assaulted unarmed Palestinian farmers which caused a fight between the settlers and farmers.
The assaulted Palestinian farmers were left with bruises across their bodies.
Al-Jbour added that Israeli settlers were escorted by armed Israeli forces.
Israeli settlers reportedly places signs on Palestinian lands indicating their intention of expanding nearby illegal settlements.
Around 3,000 Israeli settlers live in illegal Jewish-only settlements in the Yatta region, according to the Applied Research Institute Jerusalem.
The South Hebron Hills, known locally as Masafer Yatta, lie almost entirely in Area C, the 62 percent of the West Bank under full Israeli civil and security control since the 1993 Oslo Accords.
Masafer Yatta residents were expelled at the time of the establishment of a firing zone in the 1970s and were eventually allowed back following a long court battle, but are under the constant threat of being expelled or seeing their homes demolished.
Coordinator of the National and Popular Committee in southern Hebron, Rateb al-Jbour, reported that a group of Israeli settlers assaulted unarmed Palestinian farmers which caused a fight between the settlers and farmers.
The assaulted Palestinian farmers were left with bruises across their bodies.
Al-Jbour added that Israeli settlers were escorted by armed Israeli forces.
Israeli settlers reportedly places signs on Palestinian lands indicating their intention of expanding nearby illegal settlements.
Around 3,000 Israeli settlers live in illegal Jewish-only settlements in the Yatta region, according to the Applied Research Institute Jerusalem.
The South Hebron Hills, known locally as Masafer Yatta, lie almost entirely in Area C, the 62 percent of the West Bank under full Israeli civil and security control since the 1993 Oslo Accords.
Masafer Yatta residents were expelled at the time of the establishment of a firing zone in the 1970s and were eventually allowed back following a long court battle, but are under the constant threat of being expelled or seeing their homes demolished.
27 jan 2019
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip on Saturday condemned the humanitarian organizations' continued neglect of Gaza hospitals' urgent need for fuel.
The Ministry warned of "imminent paralysis" in the health sector due to the worsening crisis.
Spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Ashraf al-Qedra, said in a press statement that the current situation requires an immediate and responsible action by humanitarian organizations to save the lives of hundreds of patients and children.
"The fuel grant supervised by the UN ended in November 2018, and no other grant has been allocated to the hospitals yet," al-Qedra said.
Al-Qedra pointed out that the Ministry of Health has taken tough austerity measures to manage the acute fuel shortage mainly through the use of small power generators and rescheduled services. However, the crisis is worsening, and soon these measures will become useless, he added.
He added that Gaza health facilities now need 300,000 liters of diesel per month, instead of the usual 540,000 liters, in view of the improvement witnessed in the electricity distribution schedule recently thanks to the Qatari fuel grant.
"With every additional hour of power outage we need about 2,000 liters of fuel to ensure the continuation of our health services," the Ministry of Health said.
The Ministry praised the fuel aid offered by the Turkish foundation IHH, Advocacy Committee in Jordan, and some local gas stations to several health facilities in Gaza.
It stressed that individual initiatives are highly appreciated but unfortunately they are not enough.
Five Gaza major hospitals a few days ago closed their doors following the depletion of the fuel used to run alternative generators during power outages.
The Ministry warned of "imminent paralysis" in the health sector due to the worsening crisis.
Spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Ashraf al-Qedra, said in a press statement that the current situation requires an immediate and responsible action by humanitarian organizations to save the lives of hundreds of patients and children.
"The fuel grant supervised by the UN ended in November 2018, and no other grant has been allocated to the hospitals yet," al-Qedra said.
Al-Qedra pointed out that the Ministry of Health has taken tough austerity measures to manage the acute fuel shortage mainly through the use of small power generators and rescheduled services. However, the crisis is worsening, and soon these measures will become useless, he added.
He added that Gaza health facilities now need 300,000 liters of diesel per month, instead of the usual 540,000 liters, in view of the improvement witnessed in the electricity distribution schedule recently thanks to the Qatari fuel grant.
"With every additional hour of power outage we need about 2,000 liters of fuel to ensure the continuation of our health services," the Ministry of Health said.
The Ministry praised the fuel aid offered by the Turkish foundation IHH, Advocacy Committee in Jordan, and some local gas stations to several health facilities in Gaza.
It stressed that individual initiatives are highly appreciated but unfortunately they are not enough.
Five Gaza major hospitals a few days ago closed their doors following the depletion of the fuel used to run alternative generators during power outages.
24 jan 2019
The Israeli security cabinet on Wednesday approved the transfer of $15 million from Qatar to the besieged Gaza Strip.
According to Haaretz newspaper, all security cabinet members except for environmental protection minister Zeev Elkin (Likud) supported the move in an attempt to deescalate the tension on the Gaza border.
Qatari envoy Mohamed al-Emadi arrived late Wednesday in Gaza through the Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing to deliver the funds, which will be used to pay the salaries of civil servants.
According to Haaretz newspaper, all security cabinet members except for environmental protection minister Zeev Elkin (Likud) supported the move in an attempt to deescalate the tension on the Gaza border.
Qatari envoy Mohamed al-Emadi arrived late Wednesday in Gaza through the Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing to deliver the funds, which will be used to pay the salaries of civil servants.
