Latest news with #RolandFriedrich
Saba Yemen
05-07-2025
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
UNRWA warns of escalating violence, risk of forced displacement in Khirbet Umm al-Khair, Masafer Yatta
Al-Quds – Saba: Director of UNRWA Affairs in the West Bank Roland Friedrich warned of the alarming deterioration in the humanitarian situation in Khirbet Umm al-Khair and Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in occupied Palestine, in light of escalating settler attacks, intensified demolition orders, and measures that threaten the imminent forced displacement of hundreds of Palestinian Bedouin families. The official Palestinian News Agency quoted Friedrich as saying that for several years, Palestine refugees in Khirbet Umm al-Khair, located in the hills south of Hebron and adjacent to the Karmiel settlement, have faced harassment and violence by settlers, in addition to home demolitions and administrative measures, all of which undermine the lives of this Bedouin community, which UNRWA provides services to. He added that tensions have escalated in recent days after armed settlers entered the community day and night, vandalized property, and attempted to expand the fence. The settlement is located within the lands of Umm al-Khair. He continued: "This comes at a time when Palestinian communities in Firing Zone 918, adjacent to Masafer Yatta, face the threat of displacement, affecting 200 families, comprising approximately 1,200 people, including 500 children. Under international law, these settlements are illegal. Remote Bedouin and herding communities, such as Umm al-Khair and all Masafer Yatta communities, face imminent forcible displacement. This reflects a broader trend in the occupied West Bank: land seizures in Area C, escalating settler violence, and growing impunity, creating coercive conditions that raise concerns about forced population transfer. Frederick emphasized that Israel, as the "occupying power," bears a responsibility to protect these Palestinian communities from settler violence and to hold perpetrators accountable. Under international law, the demolition of private property must be halted, the escalation of forced displacement must be halted, and the right of Bedouin and pastoral communities, who have lived on these lands for generations, to live in dignity and security must be guaranteed. Whatsapp Telegram Email more of (International)
Qatar Tribune
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Far-right Israelis storm Al-Aqsa, UNRWA compounds amid Jerusalem Day march
Right-wing Israelis in Jerusalem have stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and a United Nations facility for Palestinian refugees as an annual march took place marking Israel's conquest of the eastern part of the city. Some Israelis chanted, 'Death to Arabs' and 'May your village burn,' as they marched through the alleyways of Jerusalem's Old City on Monday, going through the Muslim quarter to mark 'Jerusalem Day', which commemorates the Israeli occupation and annexation of East Jerusalem after the 1967 war. Thousands of heavily armed police and border police were dispatched in advance because settlers regularly assault, attack and harass Palestinians and shops in the Muslim quarter. The settlers live in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem in settlements and outposts, which are illegal under international law. Groups of young people, some carrying Israeli flags, were seen on Monday confronting Palestinian shopkeepers, passers-by and schoolchildren as well as Israeli rights activists and police, at times spitting on people, lobbing insults and trying to force their way into houses. Police detained at least two youths, according to AFP journalists at the scene. A small group of those rallying, including an Israeli member of parliament, stormed a compound in East Jerusalem belonging to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA. Israel has banned the agency from working in occupied Palestinian territory and in Israel, impacting the life-saving work that it has been carrying out for more than 70 years in areas that include the besieged and bombarded Gaza Strip. UNRWA West Bank coordinator Roland Friedrich said about a dozen Israeli protesters, including Yulia Malinovsky, one of the legislators behind an Israeli law that banned UNRWA, entered the compound, climbing its main gate in view of Israeli police. Last year's procession, held during the first year of Israel's assault on Gaza, saw ultranationalist Israelis attack a Palestinian journalist in the Old City and call for violence against Palestinians. And four years ago, the march contributed to the outbreak of an 11-day war in Gaza. Earlier on Monday, Israel's far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and other politicians were among more than 2,000 Israelis who stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and surrounding areas. Negev and Galilee Minister Yitzhak Vaserlauf and Knesset member Yitzhak Kreuzer were among those accompanying the ultranationalist minister. The Jerusalem Waqf – the Islamic authority that oversees the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary) – decried the storming of the compound by Ben-Gvir and other members of the Israeli Knesset and called for a halt to all 'provocative activities' in the area. Under the management of the Jordan-appointed Waqf, only Muslims are allowed to pray at the compound. (Agencies)
India Today
26-05-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Israeli nationalists chant 'Death to Arabs' during annual Jerusalem march
Hundreds of Israeli nationalists took to the streets of Jerusalem's Old City on Monday for the annual Jerusalem Day march, chanting anti-Arab slogans like "Death to Arabs" and "May your village burn," the Associated Press reported. The occasion is being celebrated to commemorate Israel's conquest of East Jerusalem in 1967 during the Six-Day War. It heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians once demonstrators, mostly young ultranationalist Jews, paraded through the Muslim Quarter, dancing, waving flags, and shouting slurs. The procession, known as the "Dance of Flags," has been controversial in recent years due to its provocative route and hostile order to prevent violence, Israeli police were heavily deployed along the Old City's alleys, and Palestinian store owners closed early. According to the news agency AP, some demonstrators harassed locals and got into fights with them in spite of the strict security. A video showed a police officer hugging a marcher, and another clip captured a group of Jewish youths following a Palestinian woman, shouting "charmouta," an Arabic word for "who**." One protester yelled, "This is our home, this is our state," to which the woman responded in Hebrew, "Go away from here!"advertisementIn an effort to deter violence, volunteers from peace organisations like Free Jerusalem and Standing Together attempted to stand between the protesters and COMPOUND BREACHEDA few hours before the march, a small group of Israeli demonstrators, amongst them a member of Israel's parliament, entered an East Jerusalem UN compound. The location is owned by UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency). Roland Friedrich, the coordinator for UNRWA in the West Bank, said the demonstrators scaled the main gate and entered the building in plain sight of Israeli police. A banner demanding changing the compound into an Israeli settlement was held by one officials have been accusing UNRWA of harbouring Hamas operatives. However, the UN has refuted this accusation. In Gaza, the organisation has been the biggest supplier of humanitarian aid. Since employees were instructed not to work at the compound in January due to safety concerns, it has been mainly deserted. According to the UN, the site is still protected by international law, and it has not lies at the heart of the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Each sees the city as a key part of their national and religious identity. It is one of the most intractable issues of the conflict and is often a considers all of Jerusalem to be its eternal, undivided capital. Its annexation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognised. Palestinians want an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Far-right Israelis storm Al-Aqsa, UNRWA compounds amid Jerusalem Day march
Right-wing Israelis in Jerusalem have stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and a United Nations facility for Palestinian refugees as an annual march took place marking Israel's conquest of the eastern part of the city. Some Israelis chanted, 'Death to Arabs' and 'May your village burn,' as they marched through the alleyways of Jerusalem's Old City on Monday, going through the Muslim quarter to mark 'Jerusalem Day', which commemorates the Israeli occupation and annexation of East Jerusalem after the 1967 war. Thousands of heavily armed police and border police were dispatched in advance because settlers regularly assault, attack and harass Palestinians and shops in the Muslim quarter. The settlers live in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem in settlements and outposts, which are illegal under international law. Groups of young people, some carrying Israeli flags, were seen on Monday confronting Palestinian shopkeepers, passers-by and schoolchildren as well as Israeli rights activists and police, at times spitting on people, lobbing insults and trying to force their way into houses. Police detained at least two youths, according to AFP journalists at the scene. A small group of those rallying, including an Israeli member of parliament, stormed a compound in East Jerusalem belonging to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA. Israel has banned the agency from working in occupied Palestinian territory and in Israel, impacting the life-saving work that it has been carrying out for more than 70 years in areas that include the besieged and bombarded Gaza Strip. UNRWA West Bank coordinator Roland Friedrich said about a dozen Israeli protesters, including Yulia Malinovsky, one of the legislators behind an Israeli law that banned UNRWA, entered the compound, climbing its main gate in view of Israeli police. Last year's procession, held during the first year of Israel's assault on Gaza, saw ultranationalist Israelis attack a Palestinian journalist in the Old City and call for violence against Palestinians. And four years ago, the march contributed to the outbreak of an 11-day war in on Monday, Israel's far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and other politicians were among more than 2,000 Israelis who stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and surrounding areas. Ben-Gvir released a video on his X account from the site – Islam's third holiest – saying he 'prayed for victory in the war, for the return of all our hostages, and for the success of the newly-appointed head of the Shin Bet – Major General David Zini'. Negev and Galilee Minister Yitzhak Vaserlauf and Knesset member Yitzhak Kreuzer were among those accompanying the ultranationalist minister. Backed by armed police, Ben-Gvir has carried out similar provocative moves in the compound before, often at sensitive junctures in Israel's war on Gaza, to advocate for increased military pressure and to block all humanitarian aid entering Gaza. The Jerusalem Waqf – the Islamic authority that oversees the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary) – decried the storming of the compound by Ben-Gvir and other members of the Israeli Knesset and called for a halt to all 'provocative activities' in the area. Under the management of the Jordan-appointed Waqf, only Muslims are allowed to pray at the compound. Al Jazeera's Nida Ibrahim said the march is aimed at asserting Israeli dominance over the city. 'Videos show Israeli citizens inside the Old City of Jerusalem attacking Palestinian shops and throwing objects at them,' Ibrahim said, reporting from Doha, Qatar as Al Jazeera has been banned from reporting in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem. 'This is again a reminder that no one has immunity.'
Middle East Eye
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Israeli protesters break into Unrwa facility in occupied east Jerusalem
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) said on Monday that Israeli protesters have broken into its compound in East Jerusalem. The organisation's West Bank coordinator Roland Friedrich said that around a dozen Israeli protesters, including a member of parliament, forcefully entered the compound on Monday. Earlier, hundreds of Israelis stormed Al-Aqsa mosque and its surrounding areas, waving Israeli flags and chanting to celebrate 'Jerusalem Day' and Israel's occupation of East Jerusalem.
