Tag Archives: Violence

Netanyahu Vows to Control Violence Day before “Day of Rage” Attacks

Hours after a teenage Israeli boy was stabbed and in critical condition on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed parliament and angrily accused Israel’s Arab lawmakers for helping incite the weeks of violence.

In past meetings, lawmakers from the Joint (Arab) list have walked out when Netanyahu has stood at the podium. Netanyahu has called for an investigation of several members of the Joint (Arab) list, including MK Hanin Zoabi. Netanyahu claims that she, among others, supports Palestinian acts of terror against Israelis.

“She said to a Hamas magazine just two days ago that the actions of individuals isn’t enough and there needs to be a real intifada,” he went on. “This is unbelievable, honored colleagues. A member of Knesset in Israel calls for wholesale terror attacks against Israeli citizens, and there’s nothing more justified than opening a criminal investigation against her.”

Netanyahu called out to the Arab citizens of Israel, asking them to “kick out the extremists among you.”

While Netanyahu did take action in parliament, many are putting Israel’s Prime Minister under heavy criticism for failing to stop the violence. An opinion poll this week showed that 70% of the public is unhappy with his handling of the situation.

The escalation of violence in Israel began a month ago with a rumor that Israel planned on taking over the Temple Mount, a holy site to both Muslims and Jews. Since then, the violence has spread from the Temple Mount to the Old City, West Bank, and Gaza Strip.

Despite the increase in security, the random nature of the stabbings have made it difficult for Israeli police to stop the attacks. Many of the attackers have been teenagers who are not affiliated with militant groups. Seven Israelis have been killed in stabbings, a shooting, and a stoning attack, while 27 Palestinians have been killed. Out of the 25, 10 were attackers.

It doesn’t seem the violence will stop any time soon. Reports say that on Tuesday, a Palestinian man armed with knives and a gun killed at least three people and wounded others in a wave of attacks in Jerusalem. Palestinian groups declared Tuesday a “Day of Rage.” Within an hour, another Palestinian man stabbed and wounded four other people in Raanana according to Israeli police.

The increased stabbings has raised speculation that Palestinians may be attempting another uprising intifada, showing how the citizens are frustrated over their leadership’s failure of achieving statehood.

Police reported that Netanyahu has scheduled a meeting at 3:00 p.m. to discuss new operational plans.

Violence Escalates; Sweeping Through Israel

At the beginning, the tension in Israel centered at the al-Aqsa the holy site for Palestinians otherwise known as the Temple Mount for the Jewish people in Jerusalem’s Old City.  Palestinians feared that Israel wants to change the status quo there and the violence began with a vengeance.  The cycle now has no answers as to the beginning or end and reports of what is causing the random stabbings and shootings throughout Israel depends on who you are speaking to at the moment.  It has become a never ending cycle.  

Four suspects were shot in three separate attempted stabbing attacks in Jerusalem on Monday, Israeli police said.

Extra police were deployed around the Old City as the latest wave of violence  blankets Israel and the West Bank show no signs of abating.

“To our shock and horror, the cruelty of murderers who attack innocent civilians and children on their way home from school knows no limit, confronting us all with a shocking form of evil,”Jerusalem’s Mayor Nir Barkat said in a statement. “We must act swiftly and decisively.” So far, 23 Palestinians and four Israelis have been killed.

Around 20 Israelis and more than 500 Palestinians have been injured.

A number of rocket attacks have been launched from Gaza in recent weeks amid an escalation in violence against Israeli security forces and civilians in the West Bank and Jerusalem.  

On Sunday, a pregnant Palestinian mother and her 3-year-old daughter were killed when their house in the Gaza Strip collapsed after an Israeli airstrike that allegedly targeted a Hamas weapons site.

Violence in Israel Intensifies; Death on Both Sides

The worst spell of civil unrest that has hit the region in years has resulted in several deaths of both Jewish and Arab citizens.

On Friday, a Jewish man stabbed and wounded four Arabs in south Israel. In the past 10 days, four Israelis have been shot or stabbed in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. At least a dozen Israelis have been wounded by knife and screwdriver wielding Palestinians in various Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv. Attacks have continued on both sides recently resulting in the deaths of four Arab men by a Jewish man in his 20s. A 14-year-old Jewish boy was wounded in a stabbing by a Palestinian while a woman believed to be Palestinian tried to stab an Israeli guard at a bus station.

There have been talks of a third Palestinian uprising after the death of three Palestinians who were killed by Israeli security forces in stone-throwing demonstrations. Many more Palestinians have been wounded in the same demonstrations.

The escalation in violence seems to be over the events at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City. Palestinians fear that Israel is trying to change the status quo at the holy site. The current conditions are that Jews are allowed to visit the site, but only Muslim prayer are allowed.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied that conditions at the holy site are being changed, but his assurances have done little to keep the peace.

Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have called for calm and for Israeli security forces and Palestinian police to continue working together to restore order. However, signs indicate that the violence will continue.

Spreading Violence in Israel Forces Netanyahu to Cancel German Visit

A rise in street violence has prompted the Prime Minister to cancel his visit to Germany planned for Thursday.

Israeli and Palestinian leaders have been attempting to calm the fueled confrontations that have been surrounding Jerusalem’s al Aqsa mosque complex, Islam’s third holiest site which is considered as a holy place called the Temple Mount by Jews and the site of their two ancient temples.

The prospect that Israel is trying to expand the Jewish presence at the hilltop compound has led to ongoing clashes, including Palestinians barricading themselves inside the mosque and throwing stones and firebombs at Israeli forces.

Several incidents throughout Israel including a Palestinian man was shot dead in southern Israel on Wednesday after he stabbed an Israeli soldier and attempted to grab his weapon.

Earlier Wednesday, a Palestinian woman stabbed an Israeli man who then shot and wounded her in Jerusalem’s Old City and a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli man outside a mall in central Israel, police said. The attacker was arrested.

Four Israelis have been killed in stabbings in Jerusalem and a drive-by shooting in the occupied West Bank since Thursday, and two Palestinians have been shot dead and scores injured in clashes with security services, triggering fears of an escalation.

Palestinians fear increasing visits by Jewish groups to al-Aqsa are eroding longtime Muslim religious control there. Netanyahu has said he is committed to maintaining the status quo.

Tensions Rise between Palestinians and Israelis after Death of Palestinian Teen

Clashes between Israelis and Palestinians on the West Bank resulted in hundreds of injuries and the death of a Palestinian teenager on Sunday. The recent escalation in violence is a reaction to Israel’s decision of restricting Palestinians from entering Jerusalem’s Old City with the exception of residents.

The clashes intensified on Monday after Israeli forces shot and killed Huthayfa Soliman, 18. According to the Israeli military, he and others were throwing firecrackers, rocks, and firebombs at the soldiers at a checkpoint near Tulkarm, in the northern West Bank.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society told Al Jazeera that nearly 400 people have been injured in the recent clashes. The humanitarian organization reported that in two incidents, Jewish settlers have smashed ambulances and physically attacked their staff members.

The escalation in violence began Thursday when Palestinian gunmen killed a Jewish couple near a settlement in the occupied West Bank. Two days later, two ultra-Orthodox Jewish men were fatally stabbed by a Palestinian teenager in the Old City of Jerusalem. Hours later, a Palestinian man stabbed and wounded a 15-year-old Jewish boy in a Jerusalem neighborhood. Palestinians have also shut themselves inside the Al-Aqsa mosque, blocking all entrances and throwing firebombs at police.

The Guardian reported that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed a harsh offensive against “Palestinian Islamic terror” on Sunday. In a televised announcement, he said there would be a series of measures, including the “speeding up of the process for the demolition of the homes of terrorists.”

The Palestinian state news agency reported that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas appealed the United nations for an international force to be deployed in the West Bank. Abbas has increasingly asked for outside forces.

Nepal Suffering from Supply Shortage; Tensions Rise between Nepal and India

Nepal is low on gasoline and medical supplies due to an unofficial economic blockade imposed by the neighboring country where they get most of their supplies, India.

Many Nepalese believe that the blockade is a way of retaliating against the Nepalese government after they approved a new constitution that New Delhi believed to be discriminatory to an Indian community living in Nepal’s border districts., the Madhesi.

Violent protests by the Mahesis that killed at least 45 people have taken place for months while Nepalese lawmakers debated the constitution. The violence escalated after the constitution was made official.

Shortly after, Indian trucks stopped crossing the border. Only about 100 or so have crossed the border since Wednesday, but more than 1,000 are sitting at the border with medicine, gasoline, produce, and cooking fuel. Currently, fuel is being rationed in Nepal, and is no longer being sold for the use of private vehicles for the next three days.

“Why is India imposing a blockade against us? Don’t we have the right to draft our constitution?” asked Nirmala Rai, a school teacher who participated in a demonstration near the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu on Monday.

India has stated that there is no blockade against Nepal. They blame protesters for blocking the roads and scaring their truck drivers.

Officials on both sides announced that they are working on the situation and that supplies will resume soon, but neither side had a time estimate for when the trucks will cross the border again.

Central African Republic Children Directly Targeted in Inter-Religious Clashes

The United Nations reported that teens in the Central African Republic have become targets in a new surge of violence that has left many of the teens beheaded, shot, and burned.

Inter-religious clashes began again in Africa’s capital after a Muslim man’s dead body was found. Three dozen people have died in the violence.

UNICEF stated that children were being targeted and initial reports showed that several children between the ages of 7 and 17 had been decapitated, shot, and/or burned.

“Nothing can justify the deliberate targeting of children,” said Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF’s West and Central Africa Regional Director. “These appalling crimes against boys and girls who are caught between warring factions must stop, and those carrying them must be held responsible.”

Children have also been forced to fight for armed groups in the Central African Republic. The U.N. estimates that up to 10,000 children have been forced to join militia groups in Central African Republic since the conflicts began.

Hundreds of thousands have been displaced and thousands have died because of the violence in Central African Republic. The violence began in 2013 after mainly-Muslim Seleka rebels took over the country which had been primarily Christian.

Violence at Temple Mount During Start of Jewish Holiday Sukkot

Violence once again erupted between Palestinians and Israeli riot police after young protesters barricaded themselves inside the Al-Aqsa mosque on the Temple Mount, despite an order permitting only men over the age of 50 to enter the compound for prayers.  Women of any age are also allowed entry.  Israel has imposed the ban during times of unrest because it is for the most part, young palestinian men who throw rocks at the holy site. This comes as Jerusalem is filled with those who have come to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.  

The Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City has been a sore point for both Palestinians and Jews.  This ground is very much a center point of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  Muslims revere it as the place they believe the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven, while the Jews call it the Temple Mount, the site of the two biblical Jewish temples.  

Palestinians stockpiled rocks and other projectiles at the Al-Aqsa mosque overnight, according to police spokeswoman Luba Samri.

Palestinians threw rocks, firebombs and firecrackers from within the mosque at the police, Samri also added that the fire bombs sparked a fire at the entrance to the mosque. Waqf guards did not prevent the “desecration of the sanctity of the place,” she said .

Police had tried to negotiate with the Waqf – the Islamic religious authority that oversees the compound – to call for calm, but talks failed and police entered the compound to seize the “dangerous devices intended to harm visitors to the site and police and endanger their lives,” Samri added.

Israeli Police were able to restore calm  but occasional stone throwing continued throughout the morning.  They reported that by noon the site was quiet.

Violence in Nepal Following Constitutional Announcement

On Monday at least three protesters were shot and injured, a day after the Himalayan nation adopted its first democratic constitution, the violence diminished hopes that the historic event would put a stop to weeks of clashes.

The demonstrators are in critical condition after police opened fire at an anti-constitution protest in the city of Biratnagar, said Pramod Kharel, a deputy police superintendent in the Morang district of southern Nepal.

The three biggest forces in parliament — the Nepali Congress, UML and Maoist parties — finally reached agreement in June, spurred by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake two months earlier that killed nearly 8,900 people and destroyed around half a million homes. The new constitution is the final stage in a peace process that began when Maoist fighters laid down their arms in 2006 after a decade-long insurgency aimed at abolishing an autocratic monarchy and creating a more equal society.

President Ram Baran Yadav on Sunday promulgated Nepal’s new constitution, despite fierce opposition by minority groups in the southern plains whose homeland will be split up under the charter. It creates seven states in a secular, federal system, but is opposed by some groups who wanted to re-establish Nepal as a Hindu nation and others who feel it is unfavourable to people in the plains, near India.

More than 40 people, mostly protesters, have been killed in recent weeks in clashes over the plan.

Palestinians Attack Israelis on “Day of Rage”

Palestinians attacked Israelis with Molotov cocktails, rocks and other projectiles after Islamic terrorist group Hamas called for a “day of rage.”

The terrorist group was capitalizing on days of tension around the Al-Aqsa mosque during the Jewish new year.

Israeli officials had prepared in advance for the terrorist-initiated violence by adding 800 extra police to patrols in the middle of Jerusalem and surrounding Arab areas.

“The Israeli police have heightened security in and around Jerusalem and the Old City in order to prevent and respond to any incidents that could take place,” said spokesman Micky Rosenfeld, adding that undercover units had been deployed.

Three people were wounded by a firebomb according to police officials.  Five Palestinians have been arrested for the attack.

Palestinian leaders had been claiming that Israel was attemping to change the status quo at the site, where Jews can visit under police guard but are not allowed to stop and pray.