No, the problem is that the West recognizes that Israel is a reasonable, moral, peace-loving country (as evidenced by the standard to which it’s held), but insists that it negotiate with the Arabs as if they were too.
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The clashes began when dozens of young men threw stones at the Israeli army forces stationed at the borderline area between Israel and eastern, southern and northern Gaza Strip towns of Khan Younis, Gaza, Jabalia and Beit Hanoun, witnesses said. It said that forces opened fire at the main instigators to stop their advance. Israel has adamantly denied the allegations and accused Palestinian leaders of inciting the violence and spreading lies over the shrines in east Jerusalem.
Four Israelis have been killed in stabbings by Palestinian attackers and a roadside shooting in recent days.
In Jerusalem, a Palestinian wielding a vegetable peeler stabbed and wounded a 14-year-old Israeli on Friday before being arrested.
Local media reports say the knife attacker was shot by security officers after the incident. Another Arab was stabbed near a school, she said.
At one point, a member of the security forces rushes forward, shots ring out and the woman falls to the ground. “YouTube has clear policies that prohibit content like gratuitous violence, hate speech and incitement to commit violent acts, and we remove videos violating these policies when flagged by our users”, said Google spokesman Paul Solomon. Police said she posed an “immediate threat”.
The tension has been going on in east Jerusalem and all over the West Bank between Israel and the Palestinians for more than a week and so far there are 16 Palestinians and four Israelis were killed and more than 1,000 people injured, a lot of them with live ammunition.
“All the rioters and rock-throwers we are seeing have smartphones, computers, websites and Facebook and Twitter accounts”, Palestinian affairs expert Khaled Abu Toameh told The Algemeiner on Thursday, following multiple stabbing attacks against Israelis throughout the day across the country.
Dimona mayor Beni Bitton said the stabber is a “mentally ill man”.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to calm Israelis following a wave of attacks by Palestinians.
Four Israelis have been killed in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank in the past week, and two Palestinians have been shot dead and scores injured in clashes with security services.
Last week Palestinians shot two Israelis to death in front of their children in the West Bank and in a separate attack killed two Israeli men and wounded a mother and toddler in Jerusalem.
The Israeli online site Ynet news quoted Baraket saying that Israeli “civilians with operational combat experience can help foil terror attacks and increase residents’ confidence”.
Israeli officials have said the violence is not on that scale for now, but rather is of the kind unleashed periodically over the decades.
The unrest is largely linked to Muslim agitation over Jewish access to a contested holy site in Jerusalem.
The latest unrest began about three weeks ago, when Palestinians repeatedly barricaded themselves inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City, hurling stones, firebombs and fireworks at police.
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The hilltop religious site is a frequent flashpoint and its fate is a core issue at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is home to the Al-Aqsa mosque and is revered by Muslims as the spot where the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven and by Jews as the site of the two Jewish biblical Temples. Under a longstanding arrangement administered by Islamic authorities, Jews are allowed to visit the site during certain hours but not pray there. Many Muslims view these visits as a provocation and accuse Jewish extremists of plotting to take over the site.
