Monday, July 11, 2016
Monday, July 4, 2016
Land Grab: Israel destroyed Hundreds of new settler homes
JERUSALEM: Israel has approved hundreds of new settler homes in the occupied West Bank, an official said Monday, in a move likely to further raise tensions following a series of Palestinian attacks.
The approval comes days after a key international report warned that Israel’s settlement expansion and confiscation of Palestinian land were eroding the possibility of a two-state peace settlement. The report from the diplomatic Quartet — the US, EU, UN and Russia — also called on Palestinians to halt attacks and incitement to violence.
Under the new approval granted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, planning for 560 new Jewish homes in the large Maale Adumim settlement east of Jerusalem will be allowed to move forward. The Maale Adumim mayor was informed of the decision on Sunday night, a spokesman for his office told AFP. The settlement founded in 1975 already has a population of more than 37,000.
Netanyahu also gave approval for the planning of 240 new homes in settlement neighborhoods of annexed east Jerusalem, as well as for 600 units for Palestinians in the city’s Beit Safafa district, media reported.
The offices of Netanyahu and Lieberman refused to comment on the reported approvals, which follow calls inside Israel for a harsh response to the latest spate of Palestinian attacks.
Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, condemned the new settlement approvals as well as the lockdown on the Hebron region. “The reason for the continuation and the diminishing and declining prospects for the two-state solution is not incitement. It is the occupation itself,” Erekat told journalists in the West Bank town of Ramallah.
“A good example, just 24 hours after the release of the Quartet report (on Friday), the governorate of Hebron with its population of around 700,000 people is under total military siege.”
Source : Arabnews
Suicide attacks hit Madinah, Qatif; allegedly 6 killed
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| Suicide attacks hit Madinah, Qatif; 6 killed |
JEDDAH: Suicide bombers blew themselves up in Qatif and Madinah after sundown on Monday, several hours after Saudi security officers foiled an attack near the US Consulate in Jeddah.
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In Madinah, a bomb exploded in the vicinity of a police post outside the Prophet’s Mosque, killing four policemen and two civilians, reports said.
A police source told Arab News that the officers manning the post were having their iftar meal when the suicide bomber struck.
The bomber reportedly asked to join the policemen in having iftar and he was welcomed. As soon as he got near, he exploded his suicide vest.
A video circulated on social media showed a car burning and at least two security officers were seen lying on the open ground and two others lay crumpled near a burning car.
Security forces have cordoned off the Prophet's Mosque and worshippers were not allowed to get in or out.
Madinah Governor Prince Faisal bin Salman arrived at the blast location and visited Al Ansar Hospital where the victims of the blast are being treated.
In Qatif, a governorate in the Eastern Province, two suicide bombers blew themselves up one after the other outside the Faraj Al-Omran Mosque. No casualties were reported.
The number of fatalities reported does not include the three suicide bombers.
Earlier Monday at 2:15 a.m., a suicide bomber blew himself up near the US Consulate when security officers confronted him as he moved suspiciously at a parking lot of the Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital.Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki, spokesman of the Ministry of Interior, said the bomber, in his 30s, was identified as an expatriate from the United Kingdom.
Photos taken from the scene showed the bomber’s body partially dismembered by the blast.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks so far. Previous mosque attacks in the past months in the kingdom have been claimed by Daesh militants.
Bom Suicide in foiled attack near US consulate an expat: MOI UEA
JEDDAH: Diplomatic security officers thwarted a possible suicide bomb attack on the US consulate in Jeddah in the early hours of Monday morning, the Ministry of Interior said.
Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki said the bomber managed to kill only himself as he detonated his suicide vest at 2:15 a.m. when security guards approached him near the parking lot of a hospital nearby.
Cars were damaged and two security men suffered injuries, but they were declared safe after treatment, the MOI said in a statement posted on its website.
Al-Turki said the suicide bomber was identified as an expatriate in his 30s. He did not disclose the nationality.
Investigators found that the suicide vest only partially exploded and a controlled secondary explosion had to be done by bomb experts in the scene. Security forces also detonated several other explosive devices found at the scene.
Al-Turki said the attacker caught the attention of the security officers, who noticed he was acting suspiciously at an intersection located on the corner of the heavily fortified US consulate in Jeddah, located by the Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital. Most of the consulate’s staff had reportedly moved offices to a new location.
Security officials cordoned off the area around the consulate, which is surrounded by Palestine, Al-Andalus, Al-Hamra and Hail roads. The US Embassy in Riyadh confirmed in a statement for US citizens that there were no casualties or injuries among consular staff. The embassy said it remains in contact with Saudi authorities as they investigate the attack.
The Interior Ministry did not specify if the attacker was intending to target the US diplomatic compound, saying an investigation was underway to determine his identity. A 2004 Al-Qaeda-linked militant attack on the US consulate in Jeddah killed five locally hired consular employees and four gunmen. The three-hour battle on the compound came amid a wave of Al-Qaeda attacks targeting Westerners and Saudi security posts. More recently, Saudi Arabia has been a target of Daesh group attacks that have killed dozens of people.
In June, the Interior Ministry reported 26 terror attacks had taken place in the kingdom in the last two years. Local affiliates of the Daesh group have targeted minority Shiites and security officials. The attack comes just days before the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in which observant Muslims fast daily from dawn to dusk. The US Embassy regularly issues advisory messages for US citizens in Saudi Arabia.
In a message issued Sunday and another one issued after the attack Monday, the embassy urged Americans to “remain aware of their surroundings, and take extra precautions when traveling throughout the country.” It also advised citizens to “carefully consider the risks of traveling to Saudi Arabia.”
Source : Arabnews
Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki said the bomber managed to kill only himself as he detonated his suicide vest at 2:15 a.m. when security guards approached him near the parking lot of a hospital nearby.
Cars were damaged and two security men suffered injuries, but they were declared safe after treatment, the MOI said in a statement posted on its website.
Al-Turki said the suicide bomber was identified as an expatriate in his 30s. He did not disclose the nationality.
Investigators found that the suicide vest only partially exploded and a controlled secondary explosion had to be done by bomb experts in the scene. Security forces also detonated several other explosive devices found at the scene.
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| Bom Suicide in foiled attack near US consulate an expat: MOI UEA |
Al-Turki said the attacker caught the attention of the security officers, who noticed he was acting suspiciously at an intersection located on the corner of the heavily fortified US consulate in Jeddah, located by the Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital. Most of the consulate’s staff had reportedly moved offices to a new location.
Security officials cordoned off the area around the consulate, which is surrounded by Palestine, Al-Andalus, Al-Hamra and Hail roads. The US Embassy in Riyadh confirmed in a statement for US citizens that there were no casualties or injuries among consular staff. The embassy said it remains in contact with Saudi authorities as they investigate the attack.
The Interior Ministry did not specify if the attacker was intending to target the US diplomatic compound, saying an investigation was underway to determine his identity. A 2004 Al-Qaeda-linked militant attack on the US consulate in Jeddah killed five locally hired consular employees and four gunmen. The three-hour battle on the compound came amid a wave of Al-Qaeda attacks targeting Westerners and Saudi security posts. More recently, Saudi Arabia has been a target of Daesh group attacks that have killed dozens of people.
 |
| Bom Suicide in foiled attack near US consulate an expat: MOI UEA |
In June, the Interior Ministry reported 26 terror attacks had taken place in the kingdom in the last two years. Local affiliates of the Daesh group have targeted minority Shiites and security officials. The attack comes just days before the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in which observant Muslims fast daily from dawn to dusk. The US Embassy regularly issues advisory messages for US citizens in Saudi Arabia.
In a message issued Sunday and another one issued after the attack Monday, the embassy urged Americans to “remain aware of their surroundings, and take extra precautions when traveling throughout the country.” It also advised citizens to “carefully consider the risks of traveling to Saudi Arabia.”
Source : Arabnews
Terror strikes Madinah; 4 cops dead; all worshippers safe
Four policemen were killed and five others were injured in Madinah when a suicide bomber struck in the vicinity of a police post outside the Prophet’s Mosque, according to the interior ministry.
The bombing took place in a parking lot between the city court and the mosque, visited by millions every year.
Videos circulated on social media showed a car burning and at least two security officers lying on the ground and two others lay crumpled near a burning car. The bomber also died in the attack, which took place at the time of iftar.
A police source told Arab News that the officers manning the post were breaking their fast when the bomber struck. Security forces immediately cordoned off the Prophet's Mosque and worshippers were not allowed to get in or out.
No worshipper was injured in the attack, said a press correspondent from the scene.
Undeterred by the incident, worshippers continued heading to the mosque for the Isha prayer.
Earlier, in Qatif, two suicide bombers blew themselves up one after the other outside the Faraj Al-Omran Mosque. No casualties were reported. A witness said a car bomb was detonated near the mosque, which was followed by a suicide attack just before 7 p.m. Police have launched an investigation into the attack.
Before that at 2:15 a.m., a suicide bomber blew himself up near the US Consulate in Jeddah. Security officers confronted him as he moved suspiciously at a parking lot of the Dr. Soliman Fakeih Hospital. Two policemen were wounded lightly in the attack.
Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki, Interior Ministry spokesman, said the bomber, in his 30s, was identified as an expatriate from the United Kingdom.
source : arabnews.com
The bombing took place in a parking lot between the city court and the mosque, visited by millions every year.
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| Terror strikes Madinah; 4 cops dead; all worshippers safe |
Videos circulated on social media showed a car burning and at least two security officers lying on the ground and two others lay crumpled near a burning car. The bomber also died in the attack, which took place at the time of iftar.
A police source told Arab News that the officers manning the post were breaking their fast when the bomber struck. Security forces immediately cordoned off the Prophet's Mosque and worshippers were not allowed to get in or out.
No worshipper was injured in the attack, said a press correspondent from the scene.
Undeterred by the incident, worshippers continued heading to the mosque for the Isha prayer.
Earlier, in Qatif, two suicide bombers blew themselves up one after the other outside the Faraj Al-Omran Mosque. No casualties were reported. A witness said a car bomb was detonated near the mosque, which was followed by a suicide attack just before 7 p.m. Police have launched an investigation into the attack.
Before that at 2:15 a.m., a suicide bomber blew himself up near the US Consulate in Jeddah. Security officers confronted him as he moved suspiciously at a parking lot of the Dr. Soliman Fakeih Hospital. Two policemen were wounded lightly in the attack.
Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki, Interior Ministry spokesman, said the bomber, in his 30s, was identified as an expatriate from the United Kingdom.
source : arabnews.com
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