Live Updates from Occupied Palestine

1545: An ambulance has just come under fire in Ramallah trying to get around IDF tanks and internationals and mediacal staff were told over a loudspeaker to stay inside the hospital and then the IDF proceeded to open live fire on the hospital. A CBS news television crew was forcibly escorted out of Ramallah by the IDF. As a result, the remaining news crews in the area are concerned that they too may be expelled from the area, a concern which is affecting their ability to cover breaking news to the best of their ability.

1255:The one aid truck the Occupation Forces they then attacked. Soldiers took out the medical aid and stomped it into the ground they took out sugar, flour and other food aid and dumped it out and threw tea gas again at the group. Earlier they shot at a UN convoy. Now they are beating the protestors with batons.

1230: 2,000 people including internationals, Israeli and Arab civilians in 30 busses have arrived at Aram checkpoint located just before the Calandia checkpoint near Ramallah. Despite the horrible weather, rain, hail and wind they have attempted to through the siege of Ramallah to deliver humanitarian aid.
At Aram they were faced with an onslaught of tear gas so horrible that people are choking and have been made sick. Yet they are still committed to getting through and are still protesting at Aram with the demand to be allowed into Ramallah.
Israeli occupation forces have allowed one truck load of aid out of dozens that the human rights protesters brought to go through, loaded with aid.
Meanwhile on the ground in Ramallah there is one ambulances still free in the city attempting to provide assistance. We have internationals on that ambulance and more international civilians are going to try to attempt to deliver bread to families who have been unable to leave their homes for food or other assistance.


0130: The Occupation forces are shelling a local security building Al Ammen Al Weka'ai [Preventitive Security]. This is a government building and there are 400+ people inside, 60 of whom are women. People reporting from the inside say that it is on fire and Huwaida Arraf is reporting that they are still hearing constant shelling very close to where they live near the city's main hospitals. It seems to be coming from the area of Amaari Refugee camp.
Please phone Neta Golan in the Presidential compound at 972 (0) 55 385 257

Ashraf in Ramallah
The world is seeing what is happening. History is repeating itself. It’s a fascist world. This is fascism, how they [the Israeli soldiers] are dealing with people, detaining them in big schools and interrogating each one, writing numbers on them.
And the shocking thing is this silence about what they are doing.
These Israeli operations are targeting innocent civilians. People are terrified. The Israeli soldiers are shooting everything. Life here has totally stopped; it’s dead.




UPDATE: War in Bethlehem
1840: Wounded Palestinians remain in the churches at Manger Square, Bethlehem, waiting for the IDF to admit ambulances and other humanitarian aid. Many of the wounded fled across the square when the Umar Ibn al-Khattab mosque was heavily shelled by IDF tanks last night. The Mosque was so damaged people can no longer stay inside. While they have been cared for by the priests and nuns of the churches no official medical assistance has been able to reach them and the option of venturing out into the square for help is impossible due to the presence of Israeli snipers and nearby tanks who now have an official shoot to kill policy. Several of the injuries are critical and those trapped inside the churches are calling for immediate emergency assistance.
A group of eleven international civilians and one Palestinian man attempting to deliver medical supplies and food to the injured had to stop when the group came under fire upon embarking from Al-Husayn Hospital. Earlier in the day an Israeli tank crushed an ambulance en route to Manger Square in Wadi Ma’ali. Several journalists attempting to cover the situation from Manger Square were arrested in the Bethlehem municipality building this morning. ">