Israeli airstrikes target northern Gaza

[Jefferson23]

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli warplanes targeted an open area in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, after the army reported three rockets fired from the coastal enclave.

There were no immediate reports of injury or damage.

Another airstrike targeted al-Mughazi in central Gaza and an open area in Deir al-Balah.

The strikes came after Israel announced that three rockets from Gaza hit Ashkelon and Beersheva.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=721716

[Jefferson23]

1. Rocket fire at South resumes, IDF strikes Gaza targets in response

snip* Even before the rocket fire, the Associated Press quoted Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum, who hinted of more rocket fire, saying: "If Netanyahu doesn't understand ... the language of politics in Cairo, we know how to make him understand."



The rocket attack came hours before a ceasefire deal was exepcted to be signed in Cairo, but in wake of the attack Israel decided to recall its delegation, which was still in Egypt holding indirect talks with Hamas when rockets began to fall. The move seems to indicate that attempts at reaching a deal have collapsed. Palestinians for their part claim the IDF targeted Gaza before the rocket fire.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4560337,00.html

[Jefferson23]

2. Arab League to discuss possible conference on protecting Palestinian civilians

The Arab League sent a ministerial delegation to Switzerland Tuesday, to discuss the possibility of holding a conference on the protection of civilians in the Palestinian territories.


The departure of the delegation came as hostilities threatened to resume between Hamas and Israel with Palestinian rocket attacks and retaliatory strikes while a ceasefire truce was still active.


According to the Kuwaiti KUNA, the delegation is led by the Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Sabah, whose country hosts the presidency of the Arab League.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4560443,00.html

[Jefferson23]

3. Truce talks end with no deal

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A nine-hour session of indirect negotiations between Palestinian and Israeli delegations in Cairo ended Tuesday evening without achieving progress, a source close to the Palestinian delegation said.

Meanwhile, the head of the Palestinian delegation Azzam al-Ahmad said the delegation proposed a new paper for the ceasefire and is awaiting a response in the coming hours.

Al-Ahmad said that the Israeli delegation was trying to “impose what they want,” and that it continues to stall, which is unacceptable to the Palestinian delegation.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=721793

[Jefferson23]

4. Heavy rocket fire response for 'massacre' at al-Dalou family home, Palestinians say

Hamas' military wing call on Israel to 'reveal the real reason' behind bombing of Gaza City home, that Palestinians say was hit by 5 missiles.

Ynetnews
Published: 08.20.14, 00:26 / Israel News

The three-story home of al-Dalou family was reportedly hit by 5 missiles, Palestinian news agency Ma'an reported. A three-year-old girl and another woman were said to have died in the strike.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4560644,00.html

[Jefferson23]

5. Day 44: Rockets target Jerusalem, Tel Aviv; IDF told to prepare for ground incursion

US blames Hamas for ending truce; 50 rocket attacks on center and south; Israel strikes Gaza, pulls out of talks for long-term ceasefire
By Lazar Berman August 20, 2014, 12:27 am

Read more: Day 44: Rockets target Jerusalem, Tel Aviv; IDF told to prepare for ground incursion | The Times of Israel http://www.timesofisrael.com/day-44-rockets-target-jerusalem-tel-aviv-us-blames-hamas-for-ending-truce/#ixzz3Asb4tc9s
Follow us: @timesofisrael on Twitter | timesofisrael on Facebook

[Jefferson23]

6. Hamas: Israel tried to kill armed wing leader Mohammed Deif

Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzouk charged on Wednesday after Gaza truce talks collapsed in a spasm of violence that Israel had targeted the group's armed wing leader Mohammed Deif in one of its air strikes on Tuesday in the coastal territory.

The IDF would not specify any of the targets of some 30 attacks across Gaza in response to rocket fire aimed at Israel. Marzouk said Israel had ruptured the truce alleging it was in order "to assassinate Mohammed Deif," but that civilians were killed at the site of the attack.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4560644,00.html

[Jefferson23]

7. Serry: Damage to Gaza structures three times that from Cast Lead

UN special envoy to the peace process says Israel must let cement into Gaza noting that material should be monitored.

http://www.jpost.com/Operation-Protective-Edge/Serry-Damage-to-Gaza-structures-three-times-that-from-Cast-Lead-371569

[Jefferson23]

8. Israeli forces deliver 'deportation order' to PFLP lawmaker

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces raided the house of a Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine lawmaker early Wednesday and delivered an order demanding that she leave Ramallah.

Khalida Jarrar told Ma'an that dozens of soldiers raided her house in Ramallah early Wednesday and delivered a deportation order "by an Israeli court" to Jericho for an unspecified period of time.

Jarrar added that the place of residence in Jericho was specified in the order.

She said the order was in Hebrew and that she refused to sign it when soldiers told her to, and that she was also provided a map for her movement inside Jericho.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=721927

[Jefferson23]

9. Official: 20 killed by Israeli strikes since truce collapsed

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Renewed Israeli attacks on Gaza have killed 20 Palestinians since a temporary ceasefire collapsed on Tuesday, a health ministry spokesman said Wednesday.

Ashraf al-Qidra said that Zaki Suleiman al-Rai, 54, died from wounds sustained early Wednesday.

The bodies of Mustafa Rabah al-Dalou, 14 and Wafaa Hussein al-Dalou were also recovered from the wreckage of the al-Dalou family home in Gaza City.

Earlier, a two-year-old Palestinian girl was killed in Israeli shelling on the al-Zaytoun neighborhood of Gaza City, al-Qidra said.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=721960

[Jefferson23]

10. Witnesses: Gaza rockets hit Israeli settlement near Ramallah

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Four rockets fired from Gaza late Tuesday hit an illegal Israeli settlement west of Ramallah, causing a fire, witnesses told Ma'an.

Witnesses said a rocket landed in the settlement of Modiin Illit, and that Israeli ambulances and firetrucks rushed to the area.

They said they saw clouds of smoke rising from the settlement, and added that rocket warning sirens could be heard from several Israeli settlements in the Ramallah area.

An Israeli police spokesman did not answer calls seeking comment.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=721905

[Jefferson23]

11. Hamas: Only Deif will decide when Israelis can return home

Thousands attend funeral procession for wife, baby son of Hamas armed wing leader, call for al-Qassam Brigades to respond to 'massacre'.

Elior Levy
Published: 08.20.14, 15:13 / Israel News

Thousands of Palestinians participated Wednesday afternoon in the funeral procession of the wife and 8-month-old son of Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif. The two were killed in an IDF attack Tuesday night on a house in Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza City.

The funeral procession left from a mosque in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip. Deif's condition remains unknown, but Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri warned that "residents of Gaza-border communities will not return to their homes until Mohammed Deif decides."


An Al Jazeera reporter claimed that Israel used the ceasefire and the talks in Cairo in order to collect information on Deif and make an attempt on his life. According to the reporter, Deif had four children who were inside the residence during the IDF attack – one son was killed, a daughter was injured, and two were unharmed.


http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4561087,00.html

[Jefferson23]

12. Livni: No negotiations with Hamas

Justice minister expresses support for targeted killings of terror leaders, after Gaza group claims Israel attempted to assassinate al-Qassam Brigades chief.

Attila Somfalvi
Published: 08.20.14, 10:13 / Israel News

"The targeted killing of any person who deals in terror is not only legitimate but desirable in my eyes. Throughout these periods I always support the targeted killings of terror leaders," said Justice Minister Tzipi Livni on Wednesday morning, after Hamas claimed Israel tried to kill al-Qassam Brigades chief Mohammed Deif.

Livni emphasized that she did not believe diplomacy would be able to neutralize Hamas. "I remember walking to elementary school with under fire during the Six Day War; I was in high school for the Yom Kippur War. Wars are not a choice we make for no reason."

Livni said she opposed the indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians in Cairo. "I do not negotiate with Hamas; I do not believe they would agree to it, and I would not deal with them but with international officials."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4560769,00.html

[Jefferson23]

13. Report: Qatar threatened to expel Mashal

Senior Fatah official claims Qatar claimed it would banish Hamas leader if he agrees to Egypt's compromise offer in indirect negotiations.

Roi Kais
Published: 08.20.14, 09:31 / Israel News

A senior Fatah official claimed in a conversation with the Al-Hayat newspaper that Qatar recently threatened Hamas' political bureau chief Khaled Mashal that it would expel him if Hamas accepts the Egyptian ceasefire truce deal in its current format.

The same source also stated that Hamas asked Egypt that Qatar assist in ending the conflict between Israel and Hamas, adding that Cairo should invite Qatar's Foreign Minister or Qatar's head of Intelligence to take part in the indirect negotiations.

Egypt, according to the same source, refused outright to consider the proposal, conditioning its implementation on Qatar's apology over the policy it adopted since the overthrow of former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4560750,00.html

[Jefferson23]

14. Sides trade blame over Gaza truce breakdown

Palestinian negotiator and Israeli spokesman blame each other over responsibility for Gaza ceasefire collapse.

Last updated: 20 Aug 2014

Israel has said rocket fire from Gaza has "made continuation of talks impossible," trading blame with Palestinian negotiators over the collapse of the ceasefire.

Spokesman Mark Regev responded to Palestinian negotiator Azzam al-Ahmed's charge that Israel had thwarted the talks that broke down on Tuesday after Israel recalled its negotiators from Egypt, accusing Hamas of violating a truce.

"The Cairo process was built on a total and complete cessation of all hostilities and so when rockets were fired from Gaza, not only was it a clear violation of the ceasefire but it also destroyed the premise upon which the talks were based," Regev said, according to the Reuters news agency.

A week-long truce in Gaza collapsed with both sides blaming each other after Palestinian fighters launched rockets into Israel and Israel attacked "terror sites" inside the enclave.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/08/israel-orders-army-gaza-after-rocket-fire-2014819131442120578.html

[Jefferson23]

15. Israeli airstrike kills 2 Gaza boys: medics

Agence France Presse

GAZA CITY, Palestine: An Israeli airstrike on a house in the central Gaza Strip killed two Palestinian boys aged 11 and 16 Wednesday, medics said.

According to emergency services spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra, the attack happened close to Deir al-Balah in the center of the Palestinian enclave.

He identified the victims as Mohammad al-Abeet, 16, and his 11-year-old cousin Saher.

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2014/Aug-20/267853-israeli-airstrike-kills-2-gaza-boys-medics.ashx#ixzz3AwRhh8kn
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)

[Jefferson23]

16. Analysis || Israel gambled on a morale boost, but it looks like Hamas' military chief got away

Surviving Israel's latest attempt on his life, will only serve to reinforce the myth surrounding Mohammed Deif, a serial assassination-attempt-survivor.

By Amos Harel

The most interesting question in the region at the moment concerns the identity of the third person who was killed Tuesday in the Israel Air Force attack on the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza. Israel attempted to kill Mohammed Deif, head of the Hamas military wing, and succeeded in killing...


http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.611539

[Jefferson23]

17. Blame Israel's schools for the racism

Young people shouting 'Death to Arabs' prove the success of the educational system more than its failure.

By Or Kashti

At the order of the Education Ministry, on September 1 and during the days that follow, schools will discuss “the events of the summer,” a mixture of fun activities addressing “phenomena of racism and incitement,” and last but not least, a little “Jewish national identity.”

http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-1.611395

[Jefferson23]

18. Hamas claims it fired two rockets at Israeli gas field off Gaza coast

The Israeli military said it no information of missiles striking any gas platforms at sea.

By Gili Cohen and Reuters | Aug. 20, 2014 | 5:09 PM

The Palestinian militant group Hamas said it fired two rockets at an Israeli gas installation about 30 km (19 miles) off the coast of Gaza on Wednesday in the first apparent attack of its kind.

The Israeli military said it no information of missiles striking any gas platforms at sea.

The armed wing of Hamas, engaged in a six-week war with Israel, said on its website it had fired two rockets at Noa, a gas well owned by Noble Energy and Delek.

Noa lies northwest of the Gaza Strip in Yam Tethys, a largely depleted gas field. "The gas is flowing, business as usual," a spokeswoman for Noble said in an emailed statement. Delek had no immediate comment.

While Noa is technically within range of Hamas rockets, the weapons are highly inaccurate and the chances of hitting a relatively small platform at sea are extremely unlikely.

At the same time, Israel's offshore gas reserves have attracted substantial foreign investment and the country is keen to ensure security, with the navy believed to provide heavy protection. Defence officials are reluctant to provide details.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.611609

[Jefferson23]

19. Israeli source: IAF did kill Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif

The shadowy commander of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, who survived at least five Israeli assassination attempts, was apparently killed in attack on Gaza City on Tuesday together with his wife and infant son.

Ynetnews, AFP
Latest Update: 08.20.14, 18:26 / Israel News

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4560609,00.html

Hamas: Mohammed Deif wasn't killed or injured in IDF attack

Thousands attend funeral procession for wife, baby son of Hamas armed wing leader, call for al-Qassam Brigades to respond to 'massacre'.

Elior Levy
Latest Update: 08.20.14, 19:24 / Israel News
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4561087,00.html

[Jefferson23]

20. Report: Israeli delegation arrives in Cairo for ceasefire talks

Arab media report claims Israel sent delegation to Egypt; Arab League accuses Israel of 'blocking' Gaza peace efforts after US blames Hamas for renewed aggressions in Gaza.

Roi Kais, AFP
Latest Update: 08.20.14, 18:39 / Israel News

An Israeli delegation has landed in Egypt, a local report claimed, indicating Israel could be considering renewing diplomatic efforts to reach a long term ceasefire in Gaza despite renewed rocket fire on Israel which promted the return of the previous delegation Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi accused Israel on Wednesday of "blocking" all attempts to end the Gaza conflict, a day after the collapse of a ceasefire in the Palestinian territory, which the US and Israel blame Hamas for.

The Egyptian news source Al-Youm al-Sabea reported Wednesday afternoon that an Israeli delegation led by Eyal Danino, a policy advisor at the Israeli embassy, had landed at Cairo's airport to hold meetings with Egyptian officials for discussions on finding a way to reach a ceasefire agreement with Hamas.

The delegation, which flew to Egypt through Cyprus, reportedly included five Israeli representatives.

"Israel is blocking any kind of agreement leading to calm" in the Gaza Strip, Arabi told journalists, after Egypt urged parties to resume negotations. Meanwhile, A source close to Hamas said it was likley talks would resume.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4561153,00.html

[azurnoir]

21. In truce breach, a whodunit of little consequence to Israel

Hamas claims to have been just as surprised at the resumption of rocket fire Tuesday afternoon as Israel was, with the movement’s leaders declaring that it had nothing to do with a volley of missiles fired at Beersheba eight hours before a day-long truce extension was set to expire.

Israel holds Hamas responsible for all rockets fired out of Gaza, whether or not the group is directly involved, but signs point to the possibility that a smaller group, fed up with ceasefire talks, launched the rockets Tuesday.

On Facebook, Hamas deputy political bureau chief Moussa Abu Marzouk accused Israel of breaking the truce, saying it couldn’t resist a golden opportunity to assassinate Hamas military chief Muhammad Deif. “In an unexpected move, Israel announces that three missiles landed in it. Netanyahu declares the end of negotiations, pulls the [Israeli negotiation] delegation, and ends the ceasefire to everyone’s astonishment,” Narzouk wrote, recounting the events that unfolded in Cairo. “We do not know the reason for these steps, but not long after that, news came that no rockets were launched from Gaza. That was just an excuse to target an important figure in Hamas.”

http://www.timesofisrael.com/in-ceasefire-breach-a-whodunit-of-little-consequence-to-israel/#ixzz3Ax9dGPjW

[Jefferson23]

22. Thanks.

[Jefferson23]

23. Netanyahu: Regional changes promise new 'diplomatic horizon'

Speaking at a press conference in Tel Aviv, Israeli prime minister says Gaza operation "not over," denies U.S.-Israel ties
under strain.

By Haaretz | Aug. 20, 2014 | 10:02 PM

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that dramatic changes in the region promise a "new political horizon," even as Hamas and Israel continued to exchange fire after the collapse of truce talks on Tuesday.

"I hope [Palestinian President] Abbas will have a significant part in the new diplomatic horizon. I expect to start talks with a Palestinian government which can abandon the path of terror," Netanyahu said in a press conference in the Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv.

Answering a reporter's question, the prime minister denied that ties between Israel and the United States have become strained during the Gaza operation, and commended the U.S. for its support of Israel's "right to self-defense" and for approving more funds for Iron Dome batteries.

The prime minister discussed the Gaza operation, Operation Protective Edge, and said that though it was not over, Hamas has been dealt a "heavy blow."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.611669

[Jefferson23]

24. Hamas armed wing calls for negotiations delegation to leave Cairo

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Hamas spokesman Abu Ubaida said in a televised speech on Wednesday that Israel had "failed" in its assault on Gaza and called upon the Palestinian negotiating delegation in Cairo to return home.

The speech comes after Israeli airstrikes killed 22 Palestinians over the course of the day, including the wife and baby child of Hamas military chief Muhammad Deif, after a temporary ceasefire unraveled late Tuesday.

Abu Ubaida slammed Israel for the killings, which Israeli military sources had previously claimed had killed Deif himself.

"We tell Israel: you have failed. All you can do is kill children and women. You have failed in all your missions," Abu Ubaida said in his speech.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=722137

[Jefferson23]

25. Analysis: Breaking the Gaza stalemate

By John V. Whitbeck

John V. Whitbeck is an international lawyer who has advised the Palestinian negotiating team in negotiations with Israel.

After the breakdown in the six-day "pause" to permit negotiations on a long-term Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire and the resumption of Israel's onslaught against the caged people of Gaza, concerned people everywhere are wondering how the conflicting demands of the two sides can possibly be reconciled.

Each side feels a compelling need to achieve some gain to justify its sacrifices -- on the Palestinian side, over 2,000 dead, over 10,000 wounded and massive destruction of homes and infrastructure and, on the Israeli side, 64 dead soldiers and two dead civilians -- and not to agree to anything that its own people could view as accepting failure or defeat.

Considering the reasonableness or unreasonableness of the respective demands may assist any foreign governments which are genuinely interested in ending the infernal cycle of violence and making progress toward a durable peace with some measure of justice to decide which side they should be seeking to convince or compel to be reasonable.

Is it unreasonable to demand, as Palestine does, that residents of Gaza be permitted to leave their cage; to build a proper port; to rebuild their airport (destroyed by Israel in 2002); to farm their fields, even within three kilometers of their border with Israel; to fish their waters more than three nautical miles offshore; to export their produce and to import basic necessities?

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=722158

[Jefferson23]

26. After Strike on Family, Fate of Hamas Commander Is Unknown

JERUSALEM — The fate of Muhammed Deif, the commander in chief of Hamas’s military wing, remained a mystery on Wednesday, like much of his life spent in the shadows.

The Israeli warplanes that dropped at least five bombs on a house in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City late Tuesday were seeking Mr. Deif, in at least the fifth Israeli attempt to assassinate him.

Eight years ago, as Mr. Deif met with other top Hamas military officials on the ground floor of a three-story house in Sheikh Radwan, the Israeli Air Force struck at 3 a.m. Nine members of a family on the upper floors of the house were killed, but Mr. Deif and his comrades escaped.

The latest bombing struck closer: One of Mr. Deif’s wives, Widad, 28, and their infant son, Ali, were killed along with fellow residents Wafaa al-Dalo, 48, and her two sons, Ahmed 18, and Mustafa 14, according to the Gaza Health Ministry and neighbors. The house was reduced to rubble.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/21/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-strip.html?_r=0

[oberliner]

27. Hamas using open fields to launch their rocket attacks is a step in the right direction

If they stuck exclusively to this approach, maybe it would save some Palestinian lives.

Although not firing rockets at all would probably be the smarter tactical move if they wanted to maximize the chance of no Palestinian civilians being hurt or killed.

[Jefferson23]

28. LIVE UPDATES: Body of Mohammed Deif's daughter found; 3 Hamas commanders killed

Ya'alon: Israel will chase and hit Hamas leaders wherever they are; Israeli moderately-to-seriously wounded by mortar in Eshkol; Slain commanders Mohammed Abu Shamaleh and Raed Al-Attar were involved in Shalit and Goldin abductions.

By Haaretz | Aug. 21, 2014 | 2:33 PM

Latest updates [Thursday]:

2:53 P.M. Since midnight last night, 55 rockets and mortar shells have been fired into Israel from Gaza. Eight of them have been shot down and the rest fell into open areas. (Gili Cohen)

2:34 P.M. Five rockets intercepted by the Iron Dome system in the Ashkelon region. (Shirley Seidler)

2:31 P.M. Sirens sound in the Be'er Sheva region.

2:15 P.M. A Hamas website reports that the body of Mohammed Deif's daughter, Sarah, has been recovered from the ruins of the building struck by Israel on Tuesday night. The bodies of Deif' wife and young son were retrieved earlier. The whereabouts of Deif, head of the Hamas military wing, are unknown.

2:02 P.M. Rocket barrage fired at Gaza border communities, as well as the Ashkelon area.

1:40 P.M. Rocket intercepted over Sdot Negev. Mortar shell causes damage in a community in Shaar Hanegev. (Shirley Seidler)

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.611710

[Jefferson23]

29. Assassinations of Hamas commanders could make Netanyahu the hero

Such successes sink both the group’s morale and ability to carry out operations from Gaza. They’re also popular with Israelis suffering in the south.

By Amos Harel

The killing of two top Hamas commanders, Mohammed Abu Shamaleh and Raed al-Attar, could be the tiebreaker that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been seeking in the Gaza war.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.611791

[Jefferson23]

30. 4 killed by airstrikes while burying relatives in Gaza cemetery

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces killed four Palestinians in Gaza City on Thursday after targeting a cemetery in the Sheikh al-Radwan district, Gaza health official Ashraf al-Qidra said.

The bodies of Muhammad Talal Abu Nahl, Rami Abu Nahl, Haitham Tafesh and Abed Talal Shuweikh were taken to al-Shifa medicial center.

The victims were burying relatives who had been killed overnight by Israeli airstrikes.

The latest airstrikes bring the total death toll since midnight to 24 Palestinians.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=722250

[Jefferson23]

31. US State Department says Israel appears to be targeting family of murdered Arab teen

A State Department spokeswoman accused Israel of targeting the family of murdered Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir in recent arrests.

Following the teen’s abduction and murder in a Jerusalem forest on July 2 by three Israelis, Israeli police arrested his cousin Tariq Abu Khdeir, an American citizen, at a protest on July 5. Tariq Abu Khdeir, who has since returned to the United States, says police beat him while he was held. On July 28, Israel arrested another American cousin, also named Mohammed Abu Khdeir.

http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/US-State-Department-says-Israel-appears-to-be-targeting-family-of-murdered-Arab-teen-371816

[Jefferson23]

32. Mashal: Won't return to talks until Israel surrenders to our demands

Hamas leader says they pay no mind to detractors as long as the Palestinians are happy and proud of the resistance's achievements; Palestinian delegation member says Israel sabotaged talks.

Roi Kais
Published: 08.21.14, 13:26 / Israel News

The Palestinians won't return to the negotiating table until Israel surrenders to their demands, Hamas leader Khaled Mashal said Thursday.

He accused Israel of violating the ceasefire. "We didn't break the ceasefire as Israel claims. Israel's lying to the international community once again, as it has done in the past when it deceived the international community and broke the ceasefire," Mashal said.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4561653,00.html

[Jefferson23]

33. Cabinet approves call-up of 10,000 IDF reservists

Netanyahu hails IDF, Shin Bet for killings of three top Hamas commanders in overnight strikes.

Moran Azulay, Yoav Zitun
Latest Update: 08.21.14, 16:33 / Israel News

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4561660,00.html

[Jefferson23]

34. The cost of Israel’s Gaza op: $60 million a day

Overall cost of Operation Protective Edge has passed $2.5 billion after 41 days of fighting, leaving big hole in state budget.
By Moti Bassok

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.611930