Israeli forces arrest prominent Palestinian journalist in West Bank
His family strongly denied his involvement and said that in his long career he had never previously faced such an accusation.They said Israeli authorities had not told them the name of the hospital where he was being treated or any other details.He is expected to be brought before a military court next Tuesday.The Israeli military separately announced on Tuesday that security forces had detained a total of 24 wanted individuals "involved in the transfer of funds to terrorist organisations", including three from Jenin, during raids across the West Bank.In May 2022, Samoudi was working with the Palestinian-American Al Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Aqla when she was shot dead by an Israeli sniper at the entrance to Jenin refugee camp. He was shot and wounded in the back.According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Israeli forces have arrested at least 79 journalists in the West Bank and Gaza since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, while Palestinian authorities have arrested five others.Another 176 journalists, almost all of them Palestinian, have been killed in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel and Lebanon during the war, the organisation says.
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Metro
25 minutes ago
- Metro
Man ‘throws water and grabs throat' of protester demanding release of Israeli hostages
Palestinian and Israeli supporters clashed as hundreds marched to demand the release of hostages taken by Hamas on October 7. There was one arrest as tempers flared on the 'national march for the hostages', organised by Stop the Hate UK, through central London on Sunday. The protest came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Israel has no choice but to 'finish the job and complete the defeat of Hamas' in a final military takeover of Gaza. He explained he hopes to demilitarise Gaza, allowing the Israeli military to have 'security control' over the enclave. 26 Palestinians were killed while seeking aid in Gaza, hospitals and witnesses said on the same day Netanyahu spoke. Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to recognise a Palestinian state in September unless the Israeli government meets a series of conditions towards ending the conflict in Gaza. But Stop the Hate urged the Prime Minister to prioritise the release of the 50 remaining Israeli hostages, with 20 of them thought to be alive, before any recognition of a Palestinian state. During the march one man was carried away by police officers after a scuffle broke out close to the gates of Downing Street. The man was seen throwing water over a pro-Israel demonstrator before charging at him. A scuffle broke out and the man then put his hand around the demonstrator's neck, before officers intervened. The man was seen being carried away by the officers. Among those due to attend and give a speech is Noga Guttman, the cousin of 24-year-old Evyatar David, who was kidnapped. Hamas released a video last weekend which showed Mr David looking skeletal and hollow-eyed in a dimly lit Gaza tunnel. Some protesters held Israeli flags and wore yellow ribbons as they congregated in Lincoln's Inn Fields in Holborn from 1.30pm. Earlier, on The Strand, a young man was kept away from the protesters after shouting 'Free Palestine'. The Metropolitan Police said officers were deployed along the route 'to ensure the safety of those attending and to deal with any offences.' A man, who was not part of the march, was arrested for common assault and a racially aggravated public order offence after the march briefly paused just past Charing Cross, the force said. Addressing the crowd in Whitehall, the UK's Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis said: 'To our Government we turn and we say 'how would you ever be able to live with the fact that you would have recognised a Palestinian state, at the head of which is a terrorist organisation, with a stated intention of destroying the state of Israel and harming Jews right around the world and all this at a time when the hostages are still languishing in the tunnels of Gaza?' 'The Labour Party, both in opposition and now in Government, has had a mantra, they have continuously been saying 'don't judge us by our words, judge us by our deeds'. 'And to our Government we say right now this is the time for responsible action, it is not too late.' Ayelet Svatitzky, whose brothers Roi and Nadav Popplewell were murdered, said in her own speech: 'This week I joined a meeting with the UK Government to continue to press our case that the hostages must be freed before the UK Government can recognise the state of Palestine. 'As I said to the Government, to recognise the state without the return of all of the hostages is a prize to Hamas for the murder of my two brothers.' speakers from a progressive Judaism movement were booed at the march after saying that Palestinians have the 'right to self-determination'. Rabbi Charley Baginsky, speaking close to Downing Street, said: 'We call for an end to this war through a deal that brings the hostages home and the permanent restoration of humanitarian aid to Gaza.' Some in the crowd began booing and shouting 'no deal', while one man shouted 'smash Hamas'. Rabbi Josh Levy then said: 'The Palestinian people like us have the right to self-determination. 'But how it is done matters too, we reject a methodology that tries to force this future through violence, terror and the suffering of civilians. More in the crowd joined in the booing, while some shouted 'shame on you' and demanded that the pair be removed. MORE: Netanyahu 'will have blood of hostages on his hands' if more are killed in Gaza takeover MORE: Nearly 500 arrested at central London protest in support of Palestine Action MORE: Israel sets October 7 deadline for Gaza City evacuation ahead of full occupation
North Wales Chronicle
27 minutes ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Proscribing Palestine Action has 'empowered' far-right, say protesters
An organiser of the Friends of Al-Mawasi group, based in Hastings, East Sussex, said the UK Government has 'empowered' extremists by trying to 'demonise' Palestine supporters. In July, Hastings Borough Council passed a motion to back an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, an end to all arms sales to Israel and to support the town's friendship links with the people of Al-Mawasi – a section of the Gaza Strip. Last month, at a fundraising walk, there were multiple alleged incidents of verbal and physical abuse from counter-protesters which were reported to the police. A woman, waiting for the demonstrators at De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill, was pushed to the ground and called a 'f****** terrorist' for wearing a keffiyeh, while a Jewish man, whose father escaped the Holocaust, was repeatedly called a Nazi by Israel supporters. Both incidents were reported to Sussex Police after the walk on July 20. On Sunday, roughly 100 protesters ran a second fundraising walk from Hastings beach along the coast to Bexhill 'in defiance' of the abuse. Grace Lally, who helped set up the group and campaigned for the town to twin with Al-Mawasi, believes there is a 'clear link' between the Government action and the abuse. She said: 'Those extremists have been empowered by a Government that says, people supporting Palestine are terrorists, d'you know what I mean?' Ms Lally added: 'The reason it's being challenged in the court and the reason the court has given permission for a judicial review to be held is because of the chilling effect of that ruling which blurs the line between protest and terrorism.' She said it did not matter that the Government had only proscribed Palestine Action rather than all protesters. 'That (the decision) I think has emboldened people on the far-right, extremists, to sort of see anyone who's supporting Palestine as a legitimate target,' Ms Lally said. On Saturday, more than 500 people were arrested in central London for showing support for Palestine Action. Richard Wistreich, a member of Jews for Justice Hastings, was one of the demonstrators who faced abuse in the July fundraising march. He told the PA news agency that cars had parked on their route to Bexhill, with a couple of people waving Israeli flags and shouting abuse as the protesters passed by. Mr Wistreich, whose father escaped Poland in the late 1930s, said: 'At one point one of them got out of the car and saw my T-shirt, which made it quite clear that I am proclaiming myself to be Jewish. 'So I was then very loudly told that I was not a Jew and in fact I was a Nazi, in a very, very aggressive manner.' The woman wearing the keffiyeh, who wishes to remain anonymous, said a man approached her on the pavilion aggressively and said 'that scarf', which she ignored. She said: 'I wasn't responding to him at all because he looked so angry and then he went 'you're a f****** terrorist' and then he proceeded to grab the scarf and pull me close to him.' The woman said she tried to get his hands off her, but he pushed her to the ground and she hit her head, before two people intervened and pulled the man off her. On Sunday afternoon, the protesters were wary of further incidents but bolstered by much greater numbers, and the vast majority of passers-by seemed supportive. A few made comments which the protesters ignored. Before the walk, Green Party councillor Yunis Smith said: 'We may see some people trying to antagonise us, cause issues, trying to be abusive, aggressive, offensive, let's remember the strength, perseverance and patience that our Palestinian brothers and sisters have when we face this.' When links between the towns were first set up in 2022, Al-Mawasi, located in western Khan Younis, was a rural farming and fishing town with a population of 12,000. According to the United Nations, there were 425,000 displaced Palestinians living in the area as of June 19, and the protesters said the figure is now closer to 600,000. Israel is obliged under international humanitarian law to ensure adequate and safe shelter for internally displaced people, as well as access to food, water, and medical care, until they can return to their homes. A United Nations report released in June said that Israel had not made 'any effort' to comply with those laws since its offensive began. 'I can't understand how anybody, regardless of your political persuasion, can see this level of injustice and not break inside, I just don't, I don't get it,' said councillor Smith. Ms Lally said it was 'bittersweet' to have the council finally twin with Al-Mawasi given the devastation in the area, but still felt it was a positive step. 'Palestine is made up of communities of people and those people, they're not going away, they will rebuild, this will end, there will be a future for them and twinning sort of is just a testament to that,' she said.
Western Telegraph
28 minutes ago
- Western Telegraph
Proscribing Palestine Action has 'empowered' far-right, say protesters
An organiser of the Friends of Al-Mawasi group, based in Hastings, East Sussex, said the UK Government has 'empowered' extremists by trying to 'demonise' Palestine supporters. In July, Hastings Borough Council passed a motion to back an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, an end to all arms sales to Israel and to support the town's friendship links with the people of Al-Mawasi – a section of the Gaza Strip. Those extremists have been empowered by a Government that says, people supporting Palestine are terrorists, d'you know what I mean? Grace Lally, protest organiser Last month, at a fundraising walk, there were multiple alleged incidents of verbal and physical abuse from counter-protesters which were reported to the police. A woman, waiting for the demonstrators at De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill, was pushed to the ground and called a 'f****** terrorist' for wearing a keffiyeh, while a Jewish man, whose father escaped the Holocaust, was repeatedly called a Nazi by Israel supporters. Both incidents were reported to Sussex Police after the walk on July 20. On Sunday, roughly 100 protesters ran a second fundraising walk from Hastings beach along the coast to Bexhill 'in defiance' of the abuse. Grace Lally, who helped set up the group and campaigned for the town to twin with Al-Mawasi, believes there is a 'clear link' between the Government action and the abuse. She said: 'Those extremists have been empowered by a Government that says, people supporting Palestine are terrorists, d'you know what I mean?' Ms Lally added: 'The reason it's being challenged in the court and the reason the court has given permission for a judicial review to be held is because of the chilling effect of that ruling which blurs the line between protest and terrorism.' She said it did not matter that the Government had only proscribed Palestine Action rather than all protesters. We may see some people trying to antagonise us, cause issues, trying to be abusive, aggressive, offensive, let's remember the strength, perseverance and patience that our Palestinian brothers and sisters have when we face this Yunis Smith, Green Party councillor 'That (the decision) I think has emboldened people on the far-right, extremists, to sort of see anyone who's supporting Palestine as a legitimate target,' Ms Lally said. On Saturday, more than 500 people were arrested in central London for showing support for Palestine Action. Richard Wistreich, a member of Jews for Justice Hastings, was one of the demonstrators who faced abuse in the July fundraising march. He told the PA news agency that cars had parked on their route to Bexhill, with a couple of people waving Israeli flags and shouting abuse as the protesters passed by. Mr Wistreich, whose father escaped Poland in the late 1930s, said: 'At one point one of them got out of the car and saw my T-shirt, which made it quite clear that I am proclaiming myself to be Jewish. 'So I was then very loudly told that I was not a Jew and in fact I was a Nazi, in a very, very aggressive manner.' The woman wearing the keffiyeh, who wishes to remain anonymous, said a man approached her on the pavilion aggressively and said 'that scarf', which she ignored. She said: 'I wasn't responding to him at all because he looked so angry and then he went 'you're a f****** terrorist' and then he proceeded to grab the scarf and pull me close to him.' The woman said she tried to get his hands off her, but he pushed her to the ground and she hit her head, before two people intervened and pulled the man off her. Palestine is made up of communities of people and those people, they're not going away, they will rebuild, this will end, there will be a future for them and twinning sort of is just a testament to that Grace Lally, protest organiser On Sunday afternoon, the protesters were wary of further incidents but bolstered by much greater numbers, and the vast majority of passers-by seemed supportive. A few made comments which the protesters ignored. Before the walk, Green Party councillor Yunis Smith said: 'We may see some people trying to antagonise us, cause issues, trying to be abusive, aggressive, offensive, let's remember the strength, perseverance and patience that our Palestinian brothers and sisters have when we face this.' When links between the towns were first set up in 2022, Al-Mawasi, located in western Khan Younis, was a rural farming and fishing town with a population of 12,000. According to the United Nations, there were 425,000 displaced Palestinians living in the area as of June 19, and the protesters said the figure is now closer to 600,000. Israel is obliged under international humanitarian law to ensure adequate and safe shelter for internally displaced people, as well as access to food, water, and medical care, until they can return to their homes. A United Nations report released in June said that Israel had not made 'any effort' to comply with those laws since its offensive began. 'I can't understand how anybody, regardless of your political persuasion, can see this level of injustice and not break inside, I just don't, I don't get it,' said councillor Smith. Ms Lally said it was 'bittersweet' to have the council finally twin with Al-Mawasi given the devastation in the area, but still felt it was a positive step. 'Palestine is made up of communities of people and those people, they're not going away, they will rebuild, this will end, there will be a future for them and twinning sort of is just a testament to that,' she said.
