Palestinian Gov’t Accuses Israel of ‘Frantic Escalation’

A Palestinian clashing with an Israeli border guard in West Bank town of Huwara on Friday, May 27, 2022. (AFP)
A Palestinian clashing with an Israeli border guard in West Bank town of Huwara on Friday, May 27, 2022. (AFP)
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Palestinian Gov’t Accuses Israel of ‘Frantic Escalation’

A Palestinian clashing with an Israeli border guard in West Bank town of Huwara on Friday, May 27, 2022. (AFP)
A Palestinian clashing with an Israeli border guard in West Bank town of Huwara on Friday, May 27, 2022. (AFP)

The Palestinian government has accused Israel of fueling tension between both peoples.

This comes in light of clashes that took place in the central West Bank town of Huwara, near the city of Nablus on Friday, in which more than 100 Palestinians were injured.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry released a statement condemning Israel's repression and abusive acts.

It blamed the occupation forces for giving the settlers a free hand to attack Palestinian civilians who are launching peaceful protests against expanding Jewish settlements and the confiscation of Palestinian land.

It also held the US administration and the international community accountable for their mismanagement of the conflict and for undermining any chance to achieve political settlement based on the international references for peace, topped by the two-state solution and the “land for peace.”

It urged them to press Israel and take the necessary measures and steps to halt the “frantic escalation" against Palestinians.

Videos posted on social media this week showed Jewish settlers and Israeli soldiers taking down Palestinian flags in the town. In response, Palestinians organized a march with people waving flags, leading to confrontations with Israeli forces.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said on Friday that the medics had dealt with 88 injuries from the Israeli fire in Nablus and nearby towns and villages.

It recorded one injury with live fire, 10 injuries with rubber-coated metal bullets, 72 injuries from tear gas inhalation, two injuries with pepper gas, one stun grenade wound, and two burn injuries.

These casualties were reported in the towns of Beit Dajan, Jabal Sabih, Beita, and Huwara in Nablus during violent confrontations with the occupation forces.

Four people were also injured by rubber-coated metal bullets and dozens have reportedly suffered from smoke inhalation during the Israeli occupation forces' suppression of the weekly Kafr Qaddum march, east of Qalqilya.



Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
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Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed

The Palestinian Authority said internet and fixed-line communication services were down in Gaza on Thursday following an attack on the territory's last fibre optic cable it blamed on Israel.

"All internet and fixed-line communication services in the Gaza Strip have been cut following the targeting of the last remaining main fibre optic line in Gaza," the PA's telecommunications ministry said in a statement, accusing Israel of attempting to cut Gaza off from the world, AFP reported.

"The southern and central Gaza Strip have now joined Gaza City and the northern part of the Strip in experiencing complete isolation for the second consecutive day," the ministry said in a statement.

It added that its maintenance and repair teams had been unable to safely access the sites where damage occurred to the fibre optic cable.

"The Israeli occupation continues to prevent technical teams from repairing the cables that were cut yesterday", it said, adding that Israeli authorities had prevented repairs to other telecommunication lines in Gaza "for weeks and months".

The Palestinian Red Crescent said the communication lines were "directly targeted by occupation forces".

It said the internet outage was hindering its emergency services by impeding communication with first responder teams in the field.

"The emergency operations room is also struggling to coordinate with other organisations to respond to humanitarian cases."

Maysa Monayer, spokeswoman for the Palestinian communication ministry, told AFP that "mobile calls are still available with very limited capacity" in Gaza for the time being.

Now in its 21st month, the war in Gaza has caused massive damage to infrastructure across the Palestinian territory, including water mains, power lines and roads.