23 feb 2014
The Fatah movement and the Palestine Liberation Organization have lost control of the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, a Lebanon-based Fatah official said on Saturday.
Fatah leader in Lebanon Muneer Maqdah told Ma'an on Saturday that Lebanese authorities told the PLO to adjust the situation in order "to avoid more aggravations" which they warned could have "negative impacts" on the refugee camps and on Lebanon more broadly.
The statement comes two days after a Palestinian was identified as one of the culprits of a double suicide bombing targeting the Iranian cultural center in southern Beirut. Officials are increasingly worried that economic deprivation in the Palestinian camps in Lebanon has laid fertile ground for Wahhabi militant groups.
Asked whether PLO officials have prepared a security plan to neutralize "extremists" in the refugee camps, Maqdah said such plans could be set up in cooperation with Fatah Central Committee member Azzam al-Ahmad when he visits Lebanon.
Maqdah highlighted that al-Ahmad is in charge of the refugee camps in Lebanon, and that a delegation headed by al-Ahmad is expected to visit Lebanon soon in order to address the situation in the camps.
The Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon are technically under the control of PLO since a 1969 agreement, and as a result the Lebanese army largely refrains from entering or policing them.
However, Maqdah said that although there were previously 2,000 Palestinian soldiers guarding the Palestinian refugee camps, they have since been integrated into the Palestinian national security forces.
Only 70 guards remain, and all they do is organize traffic in the camps, he said, highlighting that about half of the guards are based in the notoriously violent Ein el-Hilweh refugee camp near Sidon in southern Lebanon.
Meanwhile, 2,000 officers who each receive a salary of $200 a month, are not qualified to keep security and order and prevent chaos in the camps, he added.
There are an estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and they are denied the right to own property and work in many fields under strict laws established to prevent their naturalization in the country.
Around 800,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes inside Israel during the 1948 conflict that led to the creation of the State of Israel, and today their descendants number around five million, spread across the world.
Fatah leader in Lebanon Muneer Maqdah told Ma'an on Saturday that Lebanese authorities told the PLO to adjust the situation in order "to avoid more aggravations" which they warned could have "negative impacts" on the refugee camps and on Lebanon more broadly.
The statement comes two days after a Palestinian was identified as one of the culprits of a double suicide bombing targeting the Iranian cultural center in southern Beirut. Officials are increasingly worried that economic deprivation in the Palestinian camps in Lebanon has laid fertile ground for Wahhabi militant groups.
Asked whether PLO officials have prepared a security plan to neutralize "extremists" in the refugee camps, Maqdah said such plans could be set up in cooperation with Fatah Central Committee member Azzam al-Ahmad when he visits Lebanon.
Maqdah highlighted that al-Ahmad is in charge of the refugee camps in Lebanon, and that a delegation headed by al-Ahmad is expected to visit Lebanon soon in order to address the situation in the camps.
The Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon are technically under the control of PLO since a 1969 agreement, and as a result the Lebanese army largely refrains from entering or policing them.
However, Maqdah said that although there were previously 2,000 Palestinian soldiers guarding the Palestinian refugee camps, they have since been integrated into the Palestinian national security forces.
Only 70 guards remain, and all they do is organize traffic in the camps, he said, highlighting that about half of the guards are based in the notoriously violent Ein el-Hilweh refugee camp near Sidon in southern Lebanon.
Meanwhile, 2,000 officers who each receive a salary of $200 a month, are not qualified to keep security and order and prevent chaos in the camps, he added.
There are an estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and they are denied the right to own property and work in many fields under strict laws established to prevent their naturalization in the country.
Around 800,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes inside Israel during the 1948 conflict that led to the creation of the State of Israel, and today their descendants number around five million, spread across the world.
22 feb 2014
Ahmed Ismail Al-Robh
Three Palestinians from Al-Yarmouk refugee camps in Damascus were proclaimed dead on Saturday, one of them was killed under torture.
The action group for the Palestinians in Syria stated that 27-year-old Mohamed Bahtaiti, a refugee from Al-Yarmouk camp, was tortured to death by the Syrian security, pointing out that he was kidnapped one year ago at a checkpoint in the camp.
The group added that two elderly persons, man and woman, died of hunger and lack of medical care because of the tight blockade imposed by the Syrian regime and its militias on Al-Yarmouk camp.
Thanks to the ongoing relief efforts, some number of students and humanitarian cases were able on Saturday to leave Al-Yarmouk refugee.
Despite siege lift, hunger claims more Palestinians in Syria
Two Palestinians on Friday died, one due to dehydration and lack of medical care in al-Yarmouk refugee camp south Damascus, and the other under jail torture. Action Group for Palestinians of Syria said in a statement that Ahmed al-Rouba passed as a result of the ongoing siege on Yarmouk refugee camp and the ensuing lack of food and medical welfare.
While Mohamed Abu Shela died under torture in a Syria Army prison, according to the monitoring group.
Operations to move the humanitarian cases out of the camp to Damascus hospitals resumed on Saturday morning, as most of the camp hospitals have stopped working after medical supplies run out, it added.
In Dera’ refugee camp, Palestinians and Syrians are still suffering a persistent lack medical and food supplies, in addition to power outages for over a month.
The statement said that Aleppo’s Handarat refugee camp was bombed with the explosive barrels, leaving a number of injuries, unconfirmed deaths, and mass structural destruction.
The militants affiliated to the Al-Qaeda's Al-Nusra Front agreed on Feb. 22 to leave the Yarmouk camp in two stages, allowing entry of relief aids, However, residents of the camp recently staged a protest at the slow-paced enforcement of the militants’ exit agreement.
Two Palestinian refugees killed in Syria
Action Group for Palestinian Refugees in Syria declared the martyrdom of two Palestinian refugees in Syria's refugee camps.
Ahmed Ismail Al-Robh was starved to death Yarmouk refugee camp that is still subjected to tight siege, while Mohammed Ali Abu Shalla from Daraa camp was killed under torture in Syrian prisons, according to the sources.
The sources added that many critical cases were brought out of Yarmouk camp to receive treatment in Damascus' hospitals in light the camp's medicines crisis.
In this regard, Palestinian refugees organized a sit-in on Friday calling for an immediate implementation to the agreement reached to neutralize the camp and to lift the siege.
On the other hand, the Charity Commission for the Relief of the Palestinian People in Yarmouk refugee camp continued to distribute aid and food supplies for the needy families.
Daraa refugee camp is still suffering an acute shortage in food and basic human needs in light the power outages for more than a month.
Handarat refugee camp in Aleppo has been subjected to explosive barrels, led to a number of martyrs and injuries, in addition to huge damage in the buildings.
Three Palestinians from Al-Yarmouk refugee camps in Damascus were proclaimed dead on Saturday, one of them was killed under torture.
The action group for the Palestinians in Syria stated that 27-year-old Mohamed Bahtaiti, a refugee from Al-Yarmouk camp, was tortured to death by the Syrian security, pointing out that he was kidnapped one year ago at a checkpoint in the camp.
The group added that two elderly persons, man and woman, died of hunger and lack of medical care because of the tight blockade imposed by the Syrian regime and its militias on Al-Yarmouk camp.
Thanks to the ongoing relief efforts, some number of students and humanitarian cases were able on Saturday to leave Al-Yarmouk refugee.
Despite siege lift, hunger claims more Palestinians in Syria
Two Palestinians on Friday died, one due to dehydration and lack of medical care in al-Yarmouk refugee camp south Damascus, and the other under jail torture. Action Group for Palestinians of Syria said in a statement that Ahmed al-Rouba passed as a result of the ongoing siege on Yarmouk refugee camp and the ensuing lack of food and medical welfare.
While Mohamed Abu Shela died under torture in a Syria Army prison, according to the monitoring group.
Operations to move the humanitarian cases out of the camp to Damascus hospitals resumed on Saturday morning, as most of the camp hospitals have stopped working after medical supplies run out, it added.
In Dera’ refugee camp, Palestinians and Syrians are still suffering a persistent lack medical and food supplies, in addition to power outages for over a month.
The statement said that Aleppo’s Handarat refugee camp was bombed with the explosive barrels, leaving a number of injuries, unconfirmed deaths, and mass structural destruction.
The militants affiliated to the Al-Qaeda's Al-Nusra Front agreed on Feb. 22 to leave the Yarmouk camp in two stages, allowing entry of relief aids, However, residents of the camp recently staged a protest at the slow-paced enforcement of the militants’ exit agreement.
Two Palestinian refugees killed in Syria
Action Group for Palestinian Refugees in Syria declared the martyrdom of two Palestinian refugees in Syria's refugee camps.
Ahmed Ismail Al-Robh was starved to death Yarmouk refugee camp that is still subjected to tight siege, while Mohammed Ali Abu Shalla from Daraa camp was killed under torture in Syrian prisons, according to the sources.
The sources added that many critical cases were brought out of Yarmouk camp to receive treatment in Damascus' hospitals in light the camp's medicines crisis.
In this regard, Palestinian refugees organized a sit-in on Friday calling for an immediate implementation to the agreement reached to neutralize the camp and to lift the siege.
On the other hand, the Charity Commission for the Relief of the Palestinian People in Yarmouk refugee camp continued to distribute aid and food supplies for the needy families.
Daraa refugee camp is still suffering an acute shortage in food and basic human needs in light the power outages for more than a month.
Handarat refugee camp in Aleppo has been subjected to explosive barrels, led to a number of martyrs and injuries, in addition to huge damage in the buildings.
21 feb 2014
Head of the Hamas's refugee affairs office Isam Adwan called on de facto president Mahmoud Abbas to resign from all his posts if he wanted to persist in his reprehensible remarks on the issue of the Palestinian refugees and waive their right to return. Abbas stated in a meeting with Jewish students last Sunday that he had a creative solution to the problem of the Palestinian refugees and their right return to their homes they had been expelled from in the 1948 occupied lands.
After he described the issue of the refugees' return as a problem and said he does not think of flooding Israel with five million refugees and change its social structure, Abbas pointed out, while rubbing his fingers in reference to money, to the possibility of making the refugees feel [financially] satisfied through such a creative solution.
"It was not the first time Abbas declared his readiness to relinquish the right of the Palestinian refugees to return. He had already twisted [the UN] resolution 194 in order to hit his target when he said that the resolution calls for either return or compensation," Hamas official Isam Adwan stated.
Adwan noted that the number of refugees is about eight million Palestinians and not five million as Abbas kept repeating during his recent meeting with Jewish university students.
"Abbas should not have personal opinions because once he took office as a head of the Palestinian authority and the organization (PLO), the smallest details of his life are the property of the Palestinian people. He should be a spokesman for the Palestinian people if he respects them," the Hamas official emphasized.
"On behalf of whom does Abbas speak? What is the value of his statements? Are his action, signings and pledges are legal? Abbas can do one right thing for his people through stepping down from his posts, and then he could persist in his personal mind missteps if he wanted so," Adwan added.
He also stated that Abbas is no longer a legitimate president of the Palestinian authority because his term of office had expired five years ago, and thus the speaker of the legislative council should have replaced him for sixty days, during which new presidential elections were supposed to be held.
After he described the issue of the refugees' return as a problem and said he does not think of flooding Israel with five million refugees and change its social structure, Abbas pointed out, while rubbing his fingers in reference to money, to the possibility of making the refugees feel [financially] satisfied through such a creative solution.
"It was not the first time Abbas declared his readiness to relinquish the right of the Palestinian refugees to return. He had already twisted [the UN] resolution 194 in order to hit his target when he said that the resolution calls for either return or compensation," Hamas official Isam Adwan stated.
Adwan noted that the number of refugees is about eight million Palestinians and not five million as Abbas kept repeating during his recent meeting with Jewish university students.
"Abbas should not have personal opinions because once he took office as a head of the Palestinian authority and the organization (PLO), the smallest details of his life are the property of the Palestinian people. He should be a spokesman for the Palestinian people if he respects them," the Hamas official emphasized.
"On behalf of whom does Abbas speak? What is the value of his statements? Are his action, signings and pledges are legal? Abbas can do one right thing for his people through stepping down from his posts, and then he could persist in his personal mind missteps if he wanted so," Adwan added.
He also stated that Abbas is no longer a legitimate president of the Palestinian authority because his term of office had expired five years ago, and thus the speaker of the legislative council should have replaced him for sixty days, during which new presidential elections were supposed to be held.
20 feb 2014
Nahr al-Bared camp in northern Lebanon
By Elise Knutsen
Nearly seven years after their homes were destroyed, more than 100 families living near the Nahr al-Bared camp in northern Lebanon have received new housing units, marking the first time a destroyed Palestinian refugee neighborhood in the country has ever been rebuilt.
Some residents, however, still long for the homes they lost.
“All the time I cried. For one-and-a-half years I cried,” said Rania, who fled her home “when the war began” in the summer of 2007, and is now among 111 Palestinian families in the area known as Muhajireen that will be rehoused.
Almost every generation in Muhajireen, which abuts the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp, has known some kind of displacement. The initial refugees from Palestine fled to the area with their children in 1976 when the Tal al-Zaatar camp in Beirut was destroyed. Then in 2007, much of Nahr al-Bared and the surrounding area was flattened and pitted with mines during hostilities between the Lebanese Army and local hard-line Sunni group Fatah al-Islam. More than 35,000 people were displaced.
While grateful, Rania is not completely satisfied: “They said to me that they would rebuild it the same, but it’s not the same. It’s very small.”
Sources explained that the Lebanese government imposed strict conditions for the reconstruction of the neighborhood, which was financed by the European Union and the Norwegian government and implemented by the Norwegian Refugee Council. In part because of heightened security concerns, the government stipulated that once-narrow, rambling streets be rebuilt to accommodate vehicles. Lebanese authorities also insisted no building in the new complex exceed four stories.
This combination means many of the housing units are smaller than the pre-2007 dwellings.
For some, like elderly Hilweh, size is not a problem.
“It’s smaller, but I am satisfied,” she said.
While the units were designed according to the number of families in 2007, many of them have expanded.
“When we started the project in 2009 there were more than 500 family members to be housed in Muhajireen. At last count, more than a year ago, the number exceeded 600,” said Niamh Murnaghan, NRC’s director of operations in Lebanon.
Indeed, many young children and babies could be seen at the neighborhood’s ribbon cutting ceremony Wednesday.
“Because of building conditions imposed by the government of Lebanon, the families have lost some space they had in 2007 but have gained the possibility of secure tenure in their homes in Muhajireen for the duration of their displacement in Lebanon,” Murnaghan said.
Because of the complex legal negotiations between Islamic endowment institution Awqaf, the Lebanese government, the Army and European backers, the reconstruction of Muhajireen took longer than anticipated.
“[Muhajireen] is the longest running project in the Norwegian Refugee Council’s 67-year history,” Murnaghan said.
Residents are expected to sign agreements and move into the new units in the coming weeks once legal agreements are finalized, a source at the event told The Daily Star.
The development, which cost some 4 million euros, includes a small playground and a community center, but the houses come empty.
“There’s no furniture, and we have no money to buy it,” said one woman.
At the ribbon cutting ceremony, Palestinian Ambassador Abbas Ibrahim announced the Palestinian Authority would bequeath $1,500 to each of the 111 families for furniture.
“From the ashes of war, destitution, despair and hopelessness ... people can look forward to dwellings and accommodation that are modern and ... fitting for family life,” rhapsodized Norwegian Ambassador Svein Aass.
Source: The Daily Star
By Elise Knutsen
Nearly seven years after their homes were destroyed, more than 100 families living near the Nahr al-Bared camp in northern Lebanon have received new housing units, marking the first time a destroyed Palestinian refugee neighborhood in the country has ever been rebuilt.
Some residents, however, still long for the homes they lost.
“All the time I cried. For one-and-a-half years I cried,” said Rania, who fled her home “when the war began” in the summer of 2007, and is now among 111 Palestinian families in the area known as Muhajireen that will be rehoused.
Almost every generation in Muhajireen, which abuts the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp, has known some kind of displacement. The initial refugees from Palestine fled to the area with their children in 1976 when the Tal al-Zaatar camp in Beirut was destroyed. Then in 2007, much of Nahr al-Bared and the surrounding area was flattened and pitted with mines during hostilities between the Lebanese Army and local hard-line Sunni group Fatah al-Islam. More than 35,000 people were displaced.
While grateful, Rania is not completely satisfied: “They said to me that they would rebuild it the same, but it’s not the same. It’s very small.”
Sources explained that the Lebanese government imposed strict conditions for the reconstruction of the neighborhood, which was financed by the European Union and the Norwegian government and implemented by the Norwegian Refugee Council. In part because of heightened security concerns, the government stipulated that once-narrow, rambling streets be rebuilt to accommodate vehicles. Lebanese authorities also insisted no building in the new complex exceed four stories.
This combination means many of the housing units are smaller than the pre-2007 dwellings.
For some, like elderly Hilweh, size is not a problem.
“It’s smaller, but I am satisfied,” she said.
While the units were designed according to the number of families in 2007, many of them have expanded.
“When we started the project in 2009 there were more than 500 family members to be housed in Muhajireen. At last count, more than a year ago, the number exceeded 600,” said Niamh Murnaghan, NRC’s director of operations in Lebanon.
Indeed, many young children and babies could be seen at the neighborhood’s ribbon cutting ceremony Wednesday.
“Because of building conditions imposed by the government of Lebanon, the families have lost some space they had in 2007 but have gained the possibility of secure tenure in their homes in Muhajireen for the duration of their displacement in Lebanon,” Murnaghan said.
Because of the complex legal negotiations between Islamic endowment institution Awqaf, the Lebanese government, the Army and European backers, the reconstruction of Muhajireen took longer than anticipated.
“[Muhajireen] is the longest running project in the Norwegian Refugee Council’s 67-year history,” Murnaghan said.
Residents are expected to sign agreements and move into the new units in the coming weeks once legal agreements are finalized, a source at the event told The Daily Star.
The development, which cost some 4 million euros, includes a small playground and a community center, but the houses come empty.
“There’s no furniture, and we have no money to buy it,” said one woman.
At the ribbon cutting ceremony, Palestinian Ambassador Abbas Ibrahim announced the Palestinian Authority would bequeath $1,500 to each of the 111 families for furniture.
“From the ashes of war, destitution, despair and hopelessness ... people can look forward to dwellings and accommodation that are modern and ... fitting for family life,” rhapsodized Norwegian Ambassador Svein Aass.
Source: The Daily Star
19 feb 2014
Two Palestinian refugees were killed on Tuesday evening during a shelling by the Syrian regime forces targeting Hanano neighborhood in the city of Aleppo, northern the Syrian capital Damascus. According to the working group for the Palestinians in Syria, the two martyrs Omar Azzam and Ahmed Shurayh were killed by the shelling on the Hanano neighborhood.
Meanwhile, 30 people, including 15 Palestinian refugees, were killed yesterday afternoon in shelling on the town of Muzeireeb near the Daraa camp, in the south of Syria.
Meanwhile, 30 people, including 15 Palestinian refugees, were killed yesterday afternoon in shelling on the town of Muzeireeb near the Daraa camp, in the south of Syria.
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30 Palestinians and Syrians have been killed after Syrian Army dropped a barrel bomb on al-Mzaireeb town near suburban refugee camp of Der’a.
Witnesses said Syrian air forces raided a two-floor building near UNRWA’s Ain Ezzayton School with an explosive barrel, leaving 30 of its inhabitants, including 15 Palestinians killed, and 50 injured. Facebook page “Yarmouk camp news” named 11 Palestinians out of the 30 martyrs: Hanan el-Khatib, Mohammed al-Daly, Horeyyah Esseid, Hasna al-Kharroubi, Zakariyya al-Mesawi, Mohammed Shattleh, Eidah Shatleh, Zad Shattleh, Amshah Abdullah and Yazan el-Ghourani. Al-Mzayreeb town is located in northern Syria near Der’a refugee camp, which is home to 9000 Palestinian refugees |
18 feb 2014
At least seven civilians have died of hunger and lack of medical care in two days in besieged areas in and around Syria's capital Damascus, activists said Tuesday.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said medical sources reported three deaths at the Yarmuk Palestinian refugee camp in southern Damascus and another four in the eastern Ghouta suburb between Monday and Tuesday.
"Two men, one of them elderly, and a young girl died on Monday after a deterioration in their health as a result of lack of food and medicine in Yarmuk," said the Britain-based group, which relies on a network of activists and other sources inside Syria.
The camp, a built-up residential neighbourhood once home to some 150,000 Palestinians as well as Syrian residents, has been under a tight army siege for seven months.
The restrictions have led to the deaths of more than 100 people in the camp, much of which has been destroyed by fighting between regime and opposition forces.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA began distributing aid to the camp in mid-January, but operations were suspended on February 8 after fighting erupted.
On Sunday, a Palestinian official said all non-Palestinian gunmen had left the camp, but UNRWA said it had not been given permission to resume operations.
On Monday night, UNRWA urged all sides to allow renewed access.
"UNRWA strongly appeals to all parties to give the utmost priority to addressing the hunger, malnutrition and protracted suffering of civilians inside Yarmuk," UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said.
"The authorities and concerned parties can do this by allowing UNRWA unrestricted, uninterrupted and substantial humanitarian access."
In eastern Ghouta meanwhile, the Observatory said a girl, a woman and a man had died on Monday and another man died Tuesday as a result of shortages of food and medicine.
The opposition stronghold was targeted in a chemical weapons attack last August that is believed to have killed hundreds of people.
The attack prompted the United States to threaten military action that was forestalled when Syria agreed to give up its vast chemical arsenal for destruction.
Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said a trickle of aid had entered eastern Ghouta, but not enough to alleviate widespread humanitarian suffering.
"There are some who are less able to resist than others, and people are succumbing for lack of food and medical care. It's a real war crime," he said.
The Syrian army has used siege tactics against a number of rebel strongholds, including the central town of Homs.
Nearly half of the estimated 3,000 people trapped inside the Old City of Homs were evacuated by the United Nations and Red Crescent last week and aid was allowed in as the warring sides observed a temporary local truce.
But the operations came to a halt at the end of last week and have yet to resume.
Homs governor Talal Barazi told AFP on Tuesday that humanitarian operations "could restart next week" adding that a truce in place during the aid work "might be extended."
He blamed the interruption of the work on "armed men inside (the city) who have stopped people from leaving."
There was no immediate confirmation of the claim.
"Two men, one of them elderly, and a young girl died on Monday after a deterioration in their health as a result of lack of food and medicine in Yarmuk," said the Britain-based group, which relies on a network of activists and other sources inside Syria.
The camp, a built-up residential neighbourhood once home to some 150,000 Palestinians as well as Syrian residents, has been under a tight army siege for seven months.
The restrictions have led to the deaths of more than 100 people in the camp, much of which has been destroyed by fighting between regime and opposition forces.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA began distributing aid to the camp in mid-January, but operations were suspended on February 8 after fighting erupted.
On Sunday, a Palestinian official said all non-Palestinian gunmen had left the camp, but UNRWA said it had not been given permission to resume operations.
On Monday night, UNRWA urged all sides to allow renewed access.
"UNRWA strongly appeals to all parties to give the utmost priority to addressing the hunger, malnutrition and protracted suffering of civilians inside Yarmuk," UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said.
"The authorities and concerned parties can do this by allowing UNRWA unrestricted, uninterrupted and substantial humanitarian access."
In eastern Ghouta meanwhile, the Observatory said a girl, a woman and a man had died on Monday and another man died Tuesday as a result of shortages of food and medicine.
The opposition stronghold was targeted in a chemical weapons attack last August that is believed to have killed hundreds of people.
The attack prompted the United States to threaten military action that was forestalled when Syria agreed to give up its vast chemical arsenal for destruction.
Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said a trickle of aid had entered eastern Ghouta, but not enough to alleviate widespread humanitarian suffering.
"There are some who are less able to resist than others, and people are succumbing for lack of food and medical care. It's a real war crime," he said.
The Syrian army has used siege tactics against a number of rebel strongholds, including the central town of Homs.
Nearly half of the estimated 3,000 people trapped inside the Old City of Homs were evacuated by the United Nations and Red Crescent last week and aid was allowed in as the warring sides observed a temporary local truce.
But the operations came to a halt at the end of last week and have yet to resume.
Homs governor Talal Barazi told AFP on Tuesday that humanitarian operations "could restart next week" adding that a truce in place during the aid work "might be extended."
He blamed the interruption of the work on "armed men inside (the city) who have stopped people from leaving."
There was no immediate confirmation of the claim.
Israel's Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz said in statements that "Israel will never agree to recognize the right of return of Palestinian refugees."
The Israeli minister said during a radio interview on Tuesday afternoon that the aim of the two-state solution is to make way for the absorption of refugees in the independent Palestinian state.
He said "if Israel recognizes the right of return and allows a symbolic number of refugees to enter Israel, the Palestinians will try to persuade the international community to exert pressure on Israel to absorb tens of thousands of refugees each year."
For his part, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel is capable of defending itself without any help from Western forces.
He warned, in a speech delivered on Monday evening before the Conference of heads of American Jewish Organizations in occupied Jerusalem, that in case of security collapse, the peace and the Palestinian Authority in the region will collapse as well.
The Israeli minister said during a radio interview on Tuesday afternoon that the aim of the two-state solution is to make way for the absorption of refugees in the independent Palestinian state.
He said "if Israel recognizes the right of return and allows a symbolic number of refugees to enter Israel, the Palestinians will try to persuade the international community to exert pressure on Israel to absorb tens of thousands of refugees each year."
For his part, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel is capable of defending itself without any help from Western forces.
He warned, in a speech delivered on Monday evening before the Conference of heads of American Jewish Organizations in occupied Jerusalem, that in case of security collapse, the peace and the Palestinian Authority in the region will collapse as well.
Mahmoud Muhammad Mawid
A Palestinian refugee has been tortured to death by the Syrian regime’s intelligence and three others died of malnutrition and lack of healthcare in the blockaded Yarmouk refugee camp in the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus, a monitoring group says.
The Workforce for Palestinians in Syria said in a statement Tuesday that Mahmoud Muhammad Mawid had been detained five months ago in al-Mazza neighborhood of Damascus. He was reported dead on Monday.
A Palestinian refugee has been tortured to death by the Syrian regime’s intelligence and three others died of malnutrition and lack of healthcare in the blockaded Yarmouk refugee camp in the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus, a monitoring group says.
The Workforce for Palestinians in Syria said in a statement Tuesday that Mahmoud Muhammad Mawid had been detained five months ago in al-Mazza neighborhood of Damascus. He was reported dead on Monday.
The group added that 5-year-old Raghad Muhammad al-Masri, 85-year-old Hamid Salih and Muhammad Hussein Kayid Zaghmout died on Monday of hunger and lack of healthcare.
The statement quoted a spokesman of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command Anwar Raja as saying that the withdrawal of Palestinian gunmen from the Yarmouk camp will start soon.
The statement quoted a spokesman of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command Anwar Raja as saying that the withdrawal of Palestinian gunmen from the Yarmouk camp will start soon.
The statement highlighted that fierce clashes continued in Daraa refugee camp between rebels of the Free Syrian Army and Syrian regime’s forces for the third day. Shells have been fired repeatedly into the camp causing serious damage to buildings and streets.
The regime’s forces detained 24-year-old Osama Mashharawi, a Syrian from Palestinian origin, on Saturday.
In addition, a Palestinian engineer in his 50s named Tariq Muhammad Zaydan was detained from his home in al-Aedeen refugee camp in Homs.
The regime’s forces detained 24-year-old Osama Mashharawi, a Syrian from Palestinian origin, on Saturday.
In addition, a Palestinian engineer in his 50s named Tariq Muhammad Zaydan was detained from his home in al-Aedeen refugee camp in Homs.
17 feb 2014
The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) dismissed Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas’s statement over refugees’ issue and the Jewish character of (Israel). The PFLP Monday said in a press release that “Abbas’s remarks contradict with Palestinian people’s rights and related national consensus programme and decisions,”
“Abbas’s speech signified a serious concession and is nothing more than a personal position; it’s not binding for anyone,” the statement added.
The movement called upon the PLO executive committee and all Palestinian movements “to stand firmly against this position,”
“The refugees’ issue and their return represents a national and personal right that president Abbas views the call for it according to UN resolution 194 as “an obvious propaganda,” the statement explained.
PFLP stated that they reject all forms of normalization with the Israeli occupation including such meetings that yielded nothing but more Zionist extremism.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday said in a meeting with 300 young Israelis visiting him in the West Bank that he “does not want to drown Israel with millions of (Palestinian) refugees to change its nature,”
The Palestinian refugees and their descendants number about five million people.
According to AP, Abbas told his Israeli visitors he seeks a "creative solution" for refugees, suggesting he is not demanding a blanket "right of return."
“Abbas’s speech signified a serious concession and is nothing more than a personal position; it’s not binding for anyone,” the statement added.
The movement called upon the PLO executive committee and all Palestinian movements “to stand firmly against this position,”
“The refugees’ issue and their return represents a national and personal right that president Abbas views the call for it according to UN resolution 194 as “an obvious propaganda,” the statement explained.
PFLP stated that they reject all forms of normalization with the Israeli occupation including such meetings that yielded nothing but more Zionist extremism.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday said in a meeting with 300 young Israelis visiting him in the West Bank that he “does not want to drown Israel with millions of (Palestinian) refugees to change its nature,”
The Palestinian refugees and their descendants number about five million people.
According to AP, Abbas told his Israeli visitors he seeks a "creative solution" for refugees, suggesting he is not demanding a blanket "right of return."
16 feb 2014
Abbas during his meeting with Israeli students
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has told some 300 young Israelis visiting him in the West Bank that he does not want to "drown Israel with millions of (Palestinian) refugees to change its nature." Abbas' comment Sunday was his most conciliatory yet on the fate of Palestinian refugees who were uprooted from homes in what is now Israel, including in the 1948 war over Israel's creation.
Today, the refugees and their descendants number about five million people. In Israel, there is broad consensus against accepting a large-scale resettling of these refugees in any future peace deal with the Palestinians, amid fears the returnees would dilute Israel's Jewish majority.
Abbas told his Israeli visitors he seeks a "creative solution" for refugees, suggesting he is not demanding a blanket "right of return."
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has told some 300 young Israelis visiting him in the West Bank that he does not want to "drown Israel with millions of (Palestinian) refugees to change its nature." Abbas' comment Sunday was his most conciliatory yet on the fate of Palestinian refugees who were uprooted from homes in what is now Israel, including in the 1948 war over Israel's creation.
Today, the refugees and their descendants number about five million people. In Israel, there is broad consensus against accepting a large-scale resettling of these refugees in any future peace deal with the Palestinians, amid fears the returnees would dilute Israel's Jewish majority.
Abbas told his Israeli visitors he seeks a "creative solution" for refugees, suggesting he is not demanding a blanket "right of return."
The Jordan Engineers Association (JEA) called for adopting a firm position against the calls by MKs to enact a law ending the Jordanian sovereignty over the Aqsa Mosque, and imposing the Israeli sovereignty over it. JEA chairman and president of the Arab Federation for Engineers Abdullah Obeidat said in press statements: "The Jordanian government should take a firm stand regarding those calls and schemes that aim at ending the sovereignty of Jordan over al-Aqsa Mosque."
He added that these calls came in conjunction with Kerry's project, which aims to liquidate the Palestinian cause and cancel right of return.
Obeidat asserted that the association will continue its activities to expose the plots targeting the Palestinian cause.
He added that these calls came in conjunction with Kerry's project, which aims to liquidate the Palestinian cause and cancel right of return.
Obeidat asserted that the association will continue its activities to expose the plots targeting the Palestinian cause.
Ahmed Salehal-Abtah,62
Four Palestinians were killed Saturday, two of them of dehydration and lack of medical care in Yarmouk refugee camp to the south of Damascus.
The Working Group for Palestinians in Syria said in a statement that both Ahmed Salehal-Abtah,62, and Soad Hasan Falion,50, died as a result of dehydration and lack of medical care in YarmoukPalestinian refugee camp.
The group added that Mohammed Fo’ad al-Sheikh was shot by a sniper while picking grass from orchards in Zein neighborhood, Southern of Yarmouk camp. The Palestinian Naief Abu Dhais, from al-Nayrab refugee camp, died of injuries sustained in clashes near the Central Prison of Aleppo.
Deraa refugee camp is exposed to continuous bombards with no injuries reported, the group pointed out, while several injuries reported in al-Wafideen refugee camp due to bombarding it with barrel bombs.
At least 1,500 Palestinians have been killed in the ongoing Syria conflict, and around 250,000 Palestinian refugees have been forced to leave their homes in Syria due to violence in the country.
Prior to the conflict, 600,000 Palestinian refugees lived in Syria.
Four Palestinians were killed Saturday, two of them of dehydration and lack of medical care in Yarmouk refugee camp to the south of Damascus.
The Working Group for Palestinians in Syria said in a statement that both Ahmed Salehal-Abtah,62, and Soad Hasan Falion,50, died as a result of dehydration and lack of medical care in YarmoukPalestinian refugee camp.
The group added that Mohammed Fo’ad al-Sheikh was shot by a sniper while picking grass from orchards in Zein neighborhood, Southern of Yarmouk camp. The Palestinian Naief Abu Dhais, from al-Nayrab refugee camp, died of injuries sustained in clashes near the Central Prison of Aleppo.
Deraa refugee camp is exposed to continuous bombards with no injuries reported, the group pointed out, while several injuries reported in al-Wafideen refugee camp due to bombarding it with barrel bombs.
At least 1,500 Palestinians have been killed in the ongoing Syria conflict, and around 250,000 Palestinian refugees have been forced to leave their homes in Syria due to violence in the country.
Prior to the conflict, 600,000 Palestinian refugees lived in Syria.
