The Palestine Chronology

In the West Bank, Israeli forces demolished a water line and irrigation network in ‘Ayn al-Bayda in the Jordan Valley. Israeli forces also arrested 7 Palestinians during raids in and around Bethlehem and Qalqilya. In East Jerusalem, 1 Palestinian was arrested near Bab al-Rahma on the Haram al-Sharif compound. It was reported that he was injured and hospitalized during the arrest. In Gaza, Israeli forces made 2 incursions to level land east of al-Buraij refugee camp. (WAFA, WAFA 8/7; PCHR 8/8)

PA president Mahmoud Abbas met with a delegation of U.S. representatives in Ramallah. (WAFA 8/7; WAFA 8/8)

PA foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki announced that Nicaragua will be opening an embassy in Palestine and that a Nicaraguan citizen of Palestinian decent will be the ambassador to Palestine. (WAFA 8/7)

In the West Bank, Israeli forces halted construction of 6 houses and an agricultural structure in Rumana near Jenin. Israeli forces arrested 1 Palestinian in Tulkarm. Near Hebron, Israeli forces damaged a house during a raid and handed 1 house demolition order and a halt construction order. 2 Palestinians were injured by live ammunition when Israeli forces raided Dheisheh refugee camp. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces and protesters clashed when Israeli authorities removed a protest tent in Sur al-Bahir, where Palestinians are protesting against the planned demolition of hundreds of apartments. In Gaza, Israeli forces opened fire against Palestinians in Bayt Hanun near Khan Yunis, and against fishermen off the coast of al-Sudaniyya. 1 Palestinian shot in Bayt Hanun succumbed to his injuries. Israeli military announced that a soldier had “misidentified” the deceased Palestinian as a threat. (AJ, HA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 7/11)

PA spokesperson for President Mahmoud Abbas, Nabil Abu Rudayna, said that the Palestinian leadership was ready to resume talks with the U.S. administration if it agreed to abide by the international peace references “based on a 2-state solution on the borders of June 4, 1967, and within the framework of international legitimacy resolution and the Arab Peace Initiative, which consider[s] East Jerusalem an occupied territory.” (WAFA 7/11)

In the West Bank, an Israeli soldier assaulted a Palestinian shepherd in Hadidiya in the Jordan Valley. Elsewhere in the West Bank, a 17-year-old Palestinian was injured after being hit in the head by an Israeli fired rubber-coated bullet. The attack happened as Israeli forces raided Muthalath al-Shuhada south of Jenin; Palestinians in the village responded to the raid by throwing stones at the soldiers. At least 4 Palestinians were detained in late-night raids in and around Hebron, Hizma, and Tulkarm. In East Jerusalem, a Palestinian family demolished their own home to avoid the excessive Israeli demolition fees. Along the coast of Gaza, Israeli naval forces opened fire at Palestinian fishermen. (MNA, MNA, WAFA, WAFA 4/6; MNA 4/7)

The Israeli Higher Planning Committee approved the construction of 770 new housing units in the Bitar Elit settlement west of Bethlehem. (WAFA 4/6)

Hamas political leader Yahya Sinwar said Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement through Egyptian mediators that included expanding the list of items allowed into Gaza and easing restrictions on import and export and passage of traders. (HA 4/6)

In a controversial interview with Israeli Channel 12, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that if he wins the upcoming Israeli elections, he “will extend sovereignty but I don’t distinguish between the settlement blocs and the isolated ones, because each settlement is Israeli and I will not hand it over to Palestinian sovereignty.” Netanyahu further stated, “I will not divide Jerusalem, I will not evacuate any community and I will make sure we control the territory west of Jordan.” Netanyahu also said that the evacuation of Khan al-Ahmar “it will happen, I promised and it will happen at the soonest opportunity.” Netanyahu’s statements were largely understood as a pledge to annex the West Bank. Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki responded that Netanyahu would face a “real problem” if he is serious, adding that Palestinians would resist such policy. (WAFA 4/6; AJ, HA, HA 4/7)

At the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa in Jordan, the Omani foreign minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah said at a panel that Palestinians should reassure Israel that it is not under threat in the Middle East. Yusuf bin Alawi’s comment was quickly rebuked by Jordanian foreign minister Ayman Safadi, stating that the Arab Peace Initiative stipulates that normalization with Israel is based on Israeli withdrawal of occupied Palestine. Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas discussed the situation in Palestine with representatives from around the Middle East, including Yusuf bin Alawi. (HA, WAFA 4/6; AJ, MNA 4/7)

In a speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas, NV, President Donald Trump told the audience that in the lead-up to announcing that U.S. was moving its embassy to Jerusalem, he ignored calls from world leaders. Trump further referred to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu as “your prime minister” to the largely Jewish-American audience. (MDW, 4/7)

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers uproot 473 olive trees from Palestinian groves near Hebron. IDF troops arrest 3 Palestinians during late-night raids near Qalqilya, Jenin, and Nablus; and patrol near Qalqilya and Salfit. In East Jerusalem, right-wing Jewish activists tour Haram al-Sharif in the morning. Along Gaza’s border, Israeli forces conduct a limited incursion to level land near Dayr al-Balah and open fire on Palestinian farmlands near al-Maghazi refugee camp, causing no damage. (MNA, MNA, WAFA 2/5; PCHR 2/7)

A senior U.S. official says the U.S. president Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner is planning to discuss the Trump administration’s long-awaited Palestinian-Israeli peace plan at an international security conference in Warsaw on 2/14. The Trump administration is co-organizing the conference on 2/13–14 and has invited Israel and a number of Arab states to attend (The Palestinians are not invited). A principle focus of the conference is Iran and its influence across the Middle East. In response, PA president Mahmoud Abbas calls for the international community to come together for a peace conference to devise a multilateral mechanism to advance the Palestinian-Israeli peace process. “This is where the European Union and its member states can play an important role alongside the [UN] Security Council,” he says. Abbas also says that the Palestinians will not participate in any peace conference not based on past UN resolutions. (JP 2/5; MNA, WAFA 2/6)