Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=112295&sectionid=351020202

At least four Palestinian civilians have been wounded after Israeli warplanes struck near a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. Gaza continues to suffer from the aftermath of the last massive Israeli military offensive launched at the turn of the years. More than 1,400 Palestinians were killed during three weeks of Israeli land, sea and air assaults. PressTV: PALESTINIAN CONCERNS OF LEAST IMPORTANCE (Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman). Gilad Atzmon: A Night Unto The Nations. Electronic Intifada: "We will have to kill them all": Effie Eitam, thug messiah.

Link: http://desertpeace.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/the-thugs-that-run-israel-today/

With rabbinical sanctions to kill every man, woman and child in Israel that is ‘not of the faith’, it’s no wonder that there are idiots that follow them. Below is a report about just one, but unfortunately one of many...Irish4Palestine: 21st Century Nazi's vs 21st Century Jews. Damien Lataan: Zionists now claim they have a "right" to occupy the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Link: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6932422.ece

Hamas officials have told The Times that Marwan Barghouti, the Palestinian politician who was jailed in 2004 "for murder", is at the top of a list of prisoners that they want released in exchange for the kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit. The Hamas leadership is expected to finalise the list of prisoners it wants freed this morning after days of shuttling between Cairo and Damascus. It hopes to resolve disagreements within its own ranks and confirm a new list of approximately 1,000 prisoners after talks with the Israelis through German mediators. Marco Villa/Instablogs: Will Marwan Save Palestine?

Link: http://www.politicaltheatrics.net/?p=738

The Jerusalem center for social and economic rights (JCSER) warned of Israeli intentions to deport more than 20,000 Palestinians from the West Bank who married from Jerusalemite women at the pretext that their residence in the holy city is illegal. The center said that many of those Palestinian citizens have temporary residence permits issued by the Israeli ministry of interior and until now they have not been given a right to stay permanently with their wives in Jerusalem according to the procedures of reunion.

Link: http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2008/25-11-2009.htm

[PHOTO: Palestinians check the damage at a workshop that was hit by an Israeli air strike in Gaza City] Israeli Occupation Forces Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (oPt) and Continue to Impose a Total Blockade on the Gaza Strip. ►9 Palestinian civilians, including two children, were wounded by Israeli forces in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. ►Israeli warplanes launched 8 strikes on the Gaza Strip. ►A factory, a workshop and a house were destroyed and a number of other civilian facilities were damaged. ►Israeli forces conducted 20 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. ►Israeli forces arrested 19 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children. ►Israeli forces arrested 8 members of the Palestinian security services. ►Israel has continued to impose a total siege on the oPt and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world. ►Israel has continued settlement activities in the oPt and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property. ►Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian civilian vehicle traveling on the Nablus-Qalqilya road.

Link: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1130480.html

The human rights organization Yesh Din says not one of the 69 complaints filed during the past four years on damage to Palestinians' trees in the West Bank has resulted in an indictment. The organization released a report on the matter Tuesday and makes specific reference to damage caused to olive groves, central to the livelihood of Palestinian villagers.

The olive harvest season is coming to an end in most parts of the West Bank this week, with the exception of those areas at higher elevations. Attacks targeting trees harvested by Palestinians - olive trees in particular, but also almond, fig, lemon and others - has been on the rise in recent years.

During the past four years, Yesh Din filed 69 complaints which are under investigation by police in the West Bank. The toll involves many thousands of trees in numerous areas, from Susya in the southern Hebron Hills to Salem in northern Samaria.

Link: http://irish4palestine.blogspot.com/2009/11/quiet-genocide-call-it-what-it-is-folks.html

What is happening in Palestine is nothing short of a planned “Quiet Genocide.” Yes, “Genocide” the taboo word, unable to be uttered by the American Government, the British Government or any of the world’s major Western Players or European heavyweights. Whilst the majority of the world’s governments choose to play word games and run interference for Israel’s crimes, I thought it was time to look at just exactly what a “genocide” is, how to create one, how to make it successful, how to win.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uORRgI9t8eE

Soldiers who took part in Israel's 2008 war on Gaza have spoken out on what they say really happened during the 22-day offensive. Israel has rejected charges that it could be guilty of war crimes. Now the activist group Breaking the Silence has published soldiers' testimonies saying crimes were committed, and even encouraged. PressTV: [24 Nov 2009:] 2 killed, 4 injured in Israeli attack on Gaza. + Israel holds over 370 Palestinian children captive.

Link: http://palestinianprisoners.blogspot.com/2009/11/blind-prisoner-exposed-to-harsh.html

The information committee of Hamas in Israeli jails revealed Monday that prisoner Obadah Bilal, who is a blind 30-year-old young man, has been exposed to harsh interrogation by Israeli officers since he was transferred a week ago to Petah Tikva interrogation center where his wife is also detained. The committee said that after the kidnapping of Bilal’s wife last week, he was transferred from Negev prison to join his wife in Petah Tikva, where Israeli interrogators maltreated and physically assaulted him despite the fact that he cannot see.

Link: http://marcovilla.instablogs.com/entry/welcome-to-the-palestinian-islands/

So, you’re looking for that perfect chain of islands to unwind next summer? Well, unbeknownst to many people but the Middle East region has its very own collection of find islands. Decades of Israeli occupation has proceeded that perfect destination where you can wait for two yours in a checkpoint and then finally cross over into a blissful universe disconnected from the next town. After all, aren’t vacations all about disconnecting from the world and forgetting it all?

Start in the holy city of Bethlehem. Because of its low sea level, a giant wall has been built around 3/4 of the city. But while some views are obstructed, the locals have adopted and surely you can too! If anything there is more too love without all those panoramic distractions.

Then continue onto Nablus known as the “Damascus of Palestine”. Situated on the Grand Palestinian Island, this thriving city has the best hummus south of Tubas.

The head Hebron where you can enjoy a nice ferry ride along the Kiryat Arba canal. While in Hebron you may be pelted with rocks and your belongs trashed by Jewish settlers near by, but that’s just their way of saying hi or “Shalom”.

While Ramallah is great, one big city is usually another. So for your final destination head all the way north to Jenin. While there take in the history and go to the “Refugee Camp” and take in all the magnificent ruins. Rome has got nothing on Jenin when it comes to ruins, trust me.

Or just create your own itinerary, I am not your travel agent. If if the Israeli border guards keep you waiting too long at checkpoints or randomly arrest you, it is only because they enjoy your company. Do not be offended, they only mean well.

Link: http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=241684

On Sunday, the Israeli human rights group B'Tselem commemorated 20 years since its founding with release of data collected by the organization from 1989-2009. This period includes many of the main events of the first intifada, the Oslo period and the second intifada, as well as the recent Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip. B'Tselem's executive director, Jessica Montell, said that "a 20-year perspective leaves one with a heavy heart, especially due to the ongoing violation of the right to life of Palestinians and Israelis resulting from the conflict. B'Tselem: B'Tselem [HomePage].

Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=111869&sectionid=351020202

Israeli jets have carried out air strikes against targets in the Gaza Strip, injuring seven Palestinians. On Sunday, Palestinian medical workers and witnesses said other areas targeted by Israeli planes included a caravan in the northern Gaza Strip and smuggling tunnels in the south under the border with Egypt, the New York Times reported. In addition, the Press TV correspondent in Gaza reported that Israeli gunboats were approaching the coast of Gaza.

The attacks occurred one day after Hamas said it had reached an agreement with smaller armed groups in the territory to halt sporadic rocket fire toward Israel. In July, the Israeli military offensive into the impoverished Palestinian coastal sliver, dubbed Operation Cast Lead, claimed the lives of over 1,400 people and injured many others. According to UN figures, a large number of the victims were civilians, including women and children. Al Jazeera: Palestinians hurt in Gaza raid. PCHR: Weekly Report: On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Link: http://www.uruknet.info/index.php?p=m60301&hd=&size=1&l=e

Gaza – Ma’an – Palestinian Ambassador to Iraq Dalil Al-Qasus called on Arab countries to close their embassies in Israel as a sign of support to the Palestinian people during a celebration of Palestinian culture in Baghdad on Saturday. Uruknet: New poll: 53% of Israelis think ethnic cleansing is the solution to the conflict.

Link: http://www.pchrgaza.org/images/2008/w45-09.jpg

Israeli Occupation Forces Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and Continue to Impose a Total Siege on the Gaza Strip. 1.5 million people are being denied their basic rights, including freedom of movement, and their rights to appropriate living conditions, work, health and education. FORA.TV: Sara Roy - Beyond Occupation -VIDEO. [You may want to skip the introduction. Sara Roy's lecture begins @ 10:05]

Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=111747&sectionid=351020202

More international community members condemn Israel over plans to authorize construction of 900 new housing units at Gilo, a settlement built illegally on Palestinian land occupied in the 1967 war. China criticized the Israeli government's move to expand a Jewish neighborhood in the part of Jerusalem, Al-Quds, claimed by Palestinians, saying it poses new obstacles to the Middle East peace process. "Switzerland is deeply concerned about the destruction of Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem near the old town and the planned eviction of Palestinian families," the Swiss Foreign Ministry said Thursday in a statement. It added East Jerusalem, Al-Quds, is an integral part of the Palestinian territories and under international humanitarian law Israel must protect the local civilian population. The Brazilian government also added to a chorus of international demands that Israel stop settlement activity in the disputed part of Jerusalem, Al-Quds. In a statement, the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Tel Aviv's decision to expand Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory violates the UN Security Council's resolutions on the issue and contradicts the Israeli obligations within the context of the "roadmap" towards the peaceful settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. PressTV: Austria: Israel undermining any peace process.

Link: http://irish4palestine.blogspot.com/2009/11/lookout-its-anti-semitic-fallout.html

Just as I’d expected and hoped for. The Channel 4 Dispatches program that investigated the Israeli Lobby in Britain is now experiencing the usual “hasbara” and “anti-Semitic” crapola. But, just as I expected this, I also expected the British people to come out swinging against what they surely saw as attempts to control Britain’s foreign policy, by and for a foreign power. And swinging they are. Why the pro-Israel writer at the Guardian wrote an Israeli Hasbara piece trashing Dispatches and as expected, hauled out the Anti-Semitic defence shield. This failed miserably, judging from the comments section under the article, a selection of my favourites which I will post below for your enjoyment. The People's Voice: Zionist Control of Britain’s Government: 1940-2009.

Link: http://www.btselem.org/english/video/20090111_ariel_sewage_in_salfit.asp

Israel does not only steal Palestinian water, they pollute the water that does go through to Palestinians to prevent them from using it. The West Bank town of Salfit has suffered for years from wastewater channeled its way from the Ariel settlement, as depicted in the video. This case is not unusual in the West Bank: as detailed in B'Tselem's report on the subject, tens of millions of cubic meters of wastewater flow freely in the West Bank, from settlements, from Jerusalem and from Palestinian communities, greatly damaging the environment. In many settlements, the wastewater treatment plants are outdated and cannot treat the load currently placed on them; other settlements have never built plants. Israel has placed obstacles before efforts made by the Palestinian Authority to build treatment plants in Palestinian communities, including the condition that some plants serve adjacent settlements as well. The PA objects, on the grounds that establishing joint plants would legitimize the existence of the settlements.

The neglect of wastewater treatment in the West Bank has already polluted water sources used by Palestinians and in the long run, is expected to pollute water sources shared by Israelis and Palestinians. Give the urgency of the problem, B'Tselem calls on Israel and the PA to advance Palestinian treatment projects as quickly as possible. This includes projects that will serve settlements too, with the understanding that they will continue to serve the Palestinian communities in the future, if the settlements are evacuated.

Link: http://www.uruknet.com/index.php?p=m60227&hd=&size=1&l=e

Uruknet: Sarah Palin, the failed Republican vice presidential candidate in the headlines again with a new book, disagrees with the Obama administration's call for an end to Jewish settlements in the Palestinian territories. 'I believe the Jewish settlements should be allowed to be expanded upon, because that population of Israel is going to grow. More and more Jewish people will be flocking to Israel in the days and weeks and months ahead,' she told ABC News' doyen Barbara Walters in interview excerpts released Wednesday. Hybrid States: Ethnic cleansing formula: Build Jewish areas, demolish Palestinian ones. FORA.TV: Sara Roy - Beyond Occupation -VIDEO. [You may want to skip the introduction. Sara Roy's lecture begins @ 10:05]

Link: http://didiremez.wordpress.com/2009/11/09/settler-rabbi-publishes-the-complete-guide-to-killing-non-jews/

The ultra-fundamentalist Od Yosef Hai yeshiva in the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar is infamous for its involvement in settler violence against Palestinians. Memorably, one of the students fired a homemade “Kassam” rocket at the neighboring village of Burin in June 2008. This morning, Maariv reports that the Yeshiva’s dean has just published on the proscribed dos and don’ts (mainly the former) regarding the killing of gentiles. Here are some choice excerpts. The People's Voice: The Complete Guide to Killing Non-Jews.

Link: http://www.uruknet.com/index.php?p=m60187&hd=&size=1&l=e

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's threat to take unilateral action against Palestinians were they to declare statehood is "ridiculous," according to Mustafa Barghouthi, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative. "There aren't any Palestinian territories left to threaten - they're all occupied," Barghouthi said in a statement on Monday. Palestine Telegraph/Islam Times: Israel: We want no-peace nor Palestinian State. Palestine Telegraph: The US andThe US And Israel Want A War With Iran And Another Conflict With Gaza.

Link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/18/israel-gilo-houses-us-reaction

The White House yesterday expressed exasperation with Israel over a plan to build 900 new houses on the West Bank at a time when Barack Obama is trying to broker a Middle East peace agreement. Although Obama is mainly focused on a tour of south-east Asia, the White House took time out to express disappointment over approval of the new houses at Gilo, a controversial settlement on the outskirts of east Jerusalem. Xymphora: End gaming.

Link: http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/10627

Israeli settlers in the South Hebron Hills of the West Bank have been harassing a Palestinian family walking home, then beat and robbed two internationals who accompanied them.

Link: http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=240187

Israeli ministers continued threatening to take unilateral measures if the Palestinian Authority (PA) declares statehood without a negotiated peace agreement. According to Israeli sources, Benjamin Netanyahu's administration may even consider withdrawing from the Oslo Accords. Israeli Minister of Environment Gilad Erian on Monday threatened to stop delivering taxes collected on behalf of the PA. He also threatened to erect more military checkpoints in the West Bank. "We will not allow the Palestinians to declare a state unilaterally."

Link: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/palestinian-push-for-an-independent-state-causes-israeli-alarm-1821261.html

Netanyahu to "denounce" Prime Minister's drive to sidestep Israel and secure support from UN Security Council. Al Jazeera: Palestinians warned threatened over UN move. IPS: No Unilateral Declaration of Palestinian State, Says Erekat.

Link: http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=49265

A coalition of 11 U.S., Israeli and Palestinian groups are calling on the New York Mets baseball team to cancel a fundraiser by the "violent and racist" Israeli Hebron Fund which is scheduled to be held at the Mets' stadium, Citi Field, on Nov. 21. The Hebron Fund participates in "the raising of capital for the improvement of daily life for the residents of Hebron, Israel", a city in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, according to its website, but the Fund has been accused of encouraging violence towards Palestinians and participating in illegal settlement expansion.

Link: http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2008/12-11-2009.htm

[Aaida refugee camp, Bethlehem – A Palestinian civilian walks near the Annexation Wall established by Israel in the West Bank] Israeli Occupation Forces Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and Continue to Impose a Total Blockade of the Gaza Strip. ►6 Palestinian civilians were wounded by Israeli forces in the West Bank. ►5 of these civilians were wounded when Israeli forces used force against peaceful demonstrations organized to protest the construction of the Annexation Wall in the West Bank. ►Israeli forces conducted 28 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, and one into the Gaza Strip. ►Israeli forces arrested 40 Palestinian civilians, including 12 children. ►Israeli naval troops continued to attack Palestinian fishermen and boats in the Gaza Strip. ►Israel has continued to impose a total siege on the OPT and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world. ►Israeli troops positioned at military checkpoints and border crossings in the West Bank arrested 8 Palestinian civilians. ► Israel has continued measures aimed at creating a Jewish majority in Jerusalem. Israeli forces issued evacuation and demolition orders against 15 houses in the Silwan quarter. Israel has continued settlement activities in the West Bank and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property. ►Two Palestinian children were injured as a result of attacks by settlers.

Link: http://www.innworldreport.net/inn/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1679:kill-enemy-children-jewish-edict&catid=36:international&Itemid=1

A Jewish rabbi has issued a book giving Jews permission to murder non-Jews, including babies and children who pose an actual or potential threat to Jews or Israel. Rabbi Yitzhak Shapiro, head of the Yitzhar settlement in the occupied West Bank, says: “It is permissible to kill the Righteous among non-Jews even if they are not responsible for the threatening situation.”

Link: http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/11/2009111174626931966.html

Why would the House go so far out of its way to stamp out even the consideration of war crimes accusations against Israel? And why would Barack Obama, the US president, have pressured Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, not to push the report in the UN when he had to know that such actions would cost Abbas most of his little remaining credibility among Palestinians? There are two reasons for this. If Israel is guilty of committing systematic war crimes across Gaza and the West Bank, then the US, which supported, funded and armed Israel during the war, is an accessory to those crimes. Put simply, if there is blood on Israel's hands, than it is has dripped all over America's shirt.

Link: http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/11/2009111091058657517.html

The track leading from the school to the new main road joining Jerusalem to Israeli settlements on the south eastern slopes of Palestine is now paved. There are two new school rooms being built where pupils will be taught up to Grade 9, rather than having to leave after Grade 4. They now have a playground. But for the 32 children who live in Tuba and Magher Al Abeed, Palestinian villages encircled by three Israeli settlements, getting to school remains problematic.

Link: http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/11/leverage-against-netanyahu.html

Andrew Sullivan (The Atlantic), Joe Klein (Time), Thomas Freidman (NYT) and Glenn Greenwald (Salon): If Israel isn't going to stop expanding settlements as the US has requested, it is time to cut off US aid to Israel.

Link: http://www.uruknet.com/index.php?p=m59859&hd=&size=1&l=e

Uruknet: Zionist massacres, 1948-2009. This is what Israel thinks of peace...

Link: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/11/200911814513944755.html

Hani Amer, a Palestinian resident of the West Bank village of Mas'ha, must pass through padlocks, fences and two gates to get from his home on one side to any other part of town. Israel's separation barrier has cut off Amer's home from those of his neighbours and the view of his village has been replaced by the wall. Israel says it built the wall to protect its citizens from Palestinian attacks, but Amer, who lives on the same side as Israeli settlers in the West Bank, says it is his family that needs protection.

Link: http://almanar.com.lb/NewsSite/NewsDetails.aspx?id=110141&language=en

Israeli President Shimon Peres telephoned Abbas on Wednesday night in an effort to persuade the Palestinian leader to change his mind. Peres told Abbas that he was worried that the decision would trigger political crisis in the Palestinian Authority, leading to a Hamas takeover in the occupied West Bank. Most of the Israeli press, however, dismissed Abbas's announcement as a tactical maneuver meant to pressure the United States to maintain its pressure on Israel for a total freeze on settlement construction in the whole West Bank. "The Abu Mazen Threat Show," said a headline in Maariv.

Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=110576&sectionid=351020202

The United Nations General Assembly has voted overwhelmingly in favor of a report, which accuses Israel of war crimes as well as crimes against humanity during the weeks-long onslaught on the Gaza Strip. 114 states endorsed a resolution supporting the report by a Human Rights Council panel led by the South African judge Richard Goldstone in Thursday's UN vote while only 18 states including the US objected to the report's adoption. Forty-four countries also abstained including France, Britain and Russia. The assembly's resolution demands that both the Israelis and the Palestinians carry out investigations within three months. It also pushes for Security Council attention. "In three months, we will reconvene at the General Assembly to consider the report of the Secretary General for further action. The United Nations Security Council will also be in attendance,” he was quoted as saying by Voice of America. Al-ManarTV: UN General Assembly Adopts Goldstone Report; Israel Rejects It.

Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-dennis-kucinich/standing-against-the-wron_b_344092.html

How can we ever expect there to be peace in the Middle East if we tacitly approve of violations of international law and international human rights, if we look the other way, or if we close our eyes to the heartbreak of people on both sides by white-washing a legitimate investigation? How can we protect the people of Israel from existential threats if we hold no concern for the protection of the Palestinians, for their physical security, their right to land, their right to their own homes, their right to water, their right to sustenance, their right to freedom of movement, their right to the human security of jobs, education and health care?

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EISikrLcSw8

Israel keeps up Palestinian evictions. The United Nations, the United States and the European Union have all called on Israel to stop the illegal eviction of Palestinians and the demolition of their homes. Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, urged Israel to end its "provocative actions" in East Jerusalem, while calling for it to freeze all settlement activity in the occupied West Bank. Despite that, the sight of Palestinians in East Jerusalem being forced out of their homes has become an all too familiar scene. Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland reports from occupied East Jerusalem.

Link: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1256799075128&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Academics in Israel and worldwide are fighting against a proposed academic boycott against Israel by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway. The motion for a boycott will be made public on Wednesday, and voted upon at a meeting of the university's board of governors next Thursday, November 12. The boycott would be the first of its kind at a European university. The boycott initiative started with a letter, signed by 34 professors and assistant professors at NTNU and the University College of Sør-Trøndelag, also in Trondheim. NTNU is Norway's second-largest university.

Link: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1125244.html

It's reasonable to assume that if Yaakov (Jack) Teitel had focused only on attacking Palestinians, he would have encountered few problems with law-enforcement authorities. His big mistake, it seems, was targeting non-Arabs as well.

Link: http://www.counterpunch.org/shaaban11022009.html

"The Palestinians have been under a racist settler form of colonialism for over sixty years; and they are targeted with a campaign of ethnic cleansing launched by armed gangs of settlers supported by Israel’s police and army."

Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8338656.stm

Some of those who were freed, who were members of Hamas, were never charged with an offence. Israel arrested 45 Hamas MPs in the occupied West Bank after the group's military wing in Gaza captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Schalit in 2006. Israeli officials say the Hamas MPs had completed their prison terms and were not part of a prisoner-swap. About 20 Palestinian parliamentarians remain in Israeli custody, including at least 15 from Hamas. Ma'an News Agency: Israel bans lawmaker from leaving West Bank.