Newspapers review: Push for international recognition of Palestinians focus of dailies

President Mahmoud Abbas’ decision to step up his push for international recognition of Palestinians through signing accession papers to a number of international organizations and conventions dominated the front page headlines in Palestinian Arabic dailies on Friday.

The dailies reported that Abbas signed accession papers to a number of specialized international organizations.

He reportedly stated: “Our goal is to spare our people more massacres and war crimes ]committed by the Israeli occupation authorities[.”

He was also reported in al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida stressing US President Donald Trump’s Mideast plan, dubbed deal of the century, along with the Israeli occupation and apartheid settlements are doomed to collapse.

Abbas made his remarks at the start of the meeting of the higher national committee mandated to implement the Palestinian Central Council’s decisions to sever ties with Israel.

According to al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida, Abbas received a phone call from his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyeb Erdogan.

Additionally, the dailies highlighted the Israeli Supreme Court’s ruling giving a green light to Israel to demolish Challenge 5 School in Jubbet al-Dib in the southern West Bank district of Bethlehem.

The school was reportedly named “Challenge 5 School” because it was the fifth school to be built by the Palestinian Education Ministry in areas threatened by Israeli settlement construction.

Furthermore, al-Quds and al-Ayyam highlighted media reports indicating that the US administration will roll out its Mideast plan, dubbed deal of the century, by the end of 2018.

Spotlighting daily detention raids, al-Quds reported that Israeli forces detained several Palestinians and injured others during multiple raids across the West Bank.

It added Israeli forces also raided the Nablus-district Balata refugee camp, triggering confrontations with Palestinians.

According to al-Hayat al-Jadida, Israeli forces detained three Palestinians and seized ILS500,000 ($135,000) during raids across the southern West Bank district of Hebron.

The dailies added that Israeli police continued to pursue family members of Abdul-Rahman  Abu Jamal during a raid into the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir, detaining some of them.

Abu Jamal was shot and critically injured by Israeli police after he allegedly attacked a police station in an illegal settlement in the same neighborhood.

Also in Jerusalem, al-Quds and al-Ayyam said that Israeli police banned six Palestinians entry into Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, also known as Al-Haram Al-Sharif, for a month.

Al-Quds also said that 71 Israeli Jewish settlers forced their way into the flashpoint site.

Yet, al-Quds highlighted media reports that Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the armed military wing of Hamas, uncovered and dismantled a spying network responsible for the recent botched deadly Israeli operation in Khan Younes.

Regarding Egyptian efforts to consolidate ceasefire, al-Ayyam said that the Egyptian security delegation met Palestinian factions in Gaza for this purpose.

Furthermore, al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida reported UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krähenbühl announcing that the UN relief agency has overcame the big $446-million deficit left by a cut in the American aid funding.

Besides, al-Hayat al-Jadida spotlighted Jerusalem Post’s report Former U.S. Envoy: A Military Defeat of Hamas Now is Bad for Israel.

According to al-Ayyam, the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee has approved a draft resolution on the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination.