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A30 world news
Diahuebs 17 Juni 2021

Israeli airstrikes target Gaza sites, first since cease-fire

at the holy city on May 10. Hamas called on Palestinians the balloons, Hamas is also
The fighting claimed more to “resist” the parade, which angry because Israel has
than 250 Palestinian lives and was meant to celebrate Isra- tightened its blockade of the
killed 13 people in Israel. el’s capture of east Jerusalem territory since the cease-fire.
in 1967. Palestinians consider The restrictions include a
An Egyptian security official it a provocation. ban on imports of fuel for
said his government has been Gaza’s power plant and raw
in “direct and around-the- In a scathing condemnation materials.
clock” contacts with Israeli on Twitter, Foreign Minis-
officials and the Gaza rulers ter Yair Lapid, who heads the Israel imposed the blockade
to keep the cease-fire and to centrist Yesh Atid Party, said after Hamas, a militant group
urge them to refrain from those shouting racist slogans that seeks Israel’s destruc-
provocative acts. were “a disgrace to the Israeli tion, seized control of Gaza
people.” from the internationally rec-
The official, speaking on ognized Palestinian Author-
condition of anonymity be- Bennett, who will hand over ity in 2007. Israel and Hamas
cause he was discussing be- the prime minister’s job to have fought four wars and
(AP) — Israeli airstrikes for meetings to plan attacks, hind-the-scenes diplomacy, Lapid after two years, is a numerous skirmishes since
hit militant sites in the the army said. There were no said the U.S. administration hard-line Israeli nationalist then. Israel says the block-
Gaza Strip early Wednes- reports of injuries. has also been in touch with who has promised a prag- ade, enforced with Egypt, is
day, and Palestinians re- Israel as part of the efforts. matic approach as he presides needed to prevent Hamas
sponded by sending a se- “The Hamas terror orga- over a delicate, diverse coali- from importing and develop-
ries of fire-carrying bal- nization is responsible for The two sides seem to agree tion government. ing weapons.
loons back across the bor- all events transpiring in the “not to escalate to the tipping
der for a second straight Gaza Strip, and will bear the point,” he said. “And we do Though there were concerns One of the masked activists
day — further testing the consequences for its actions,” every effort to prevent this.” the march would raise ten- firing the balloons said they
fragile cease-fire that end- the army said. It added that it sions, canceling it would have launched hundreds of them
ed last month’s war be- was prepared for any scenar- The flare-up also has created opened Bennett and other Tuesday and will continue
tween Israel and Hamas. io, “including a resumption a test for Israel’s new govern- right-wing members of the sending them in response to
of hostilities.” ment, which took office early coalition to intense criticism what he described as Israeli
The latest round of violence this week. The diverse coali- from those who would view provocations in east Jerusa-
was prompted by a parade By Wednesday afternoon, tion includes several hard- it as a capitulation to Hamas. lem.
of Israeli ultranationalists masked Palestinians sent a line parties as well as dovish Mansour Abbas, whose
through contested east Jeru- number of balloons, laden and centrist parties, along Raam party is the first Arab After capturing east Jerusa-
salem on Tuesday. Palestin- with fuses and flaming rags, with the first Arab faction faction to join an Israeli coali- lem in 1967, Israel annexed
ians saw the march as a prov- into Israel. Several fires were ever to be part of an Israeli tion, said the march was “an the area in a move not rec-
ocation and sent balloons reported. government. attempt to set the region on ognized by most of the in-
into southern Israel, caus- fire for political aims,” with ternational community. It
ing several blazes in parched The unrest provided the first Keeping the delicate coalition the intention of undermining considers the entire city its
farmland. Israel then carried test of the cease-fire at a time intact will be a difficult task the new government. capital, while the Palestinians
out the airstrikes — the first when Egyptian mediators for the new prime minister, want east Jerusalem to be the
such raids since the May 21 have been working to reach Naftali Bennett. Abbas said the police and capital of their future state.
cease-fire ended 11 days of a longer-term agreement. It public security minister The competing claims over
fighting — and more bal- comes as tensions have risen In Tuesday’s parade, hun- should have canceled the east Jerusalem, home to Jew-
loons followed. again in Jerusalem, as they dreds of Israeli ultranation- event. ish, Christian and Muslim
did before the recent war, alists, some chanting “Death holy sites, lie at the heart of
The airstrikes targeted facili- leading Gaza’s Hamas rulers to Arabs,” marched in east While the parade provided the conflict and have sparked
ties used by Hamas militants to fire a barrage of rockets Jerusalem in a show of force. the immediate impetus for many rounds of violence.

Junta troops burn Myanmar village in escalation of violence

(AP) — Government military rule, but the junta’s central government. power-holding majority, is
troops in Myanmar have attempt to repress it with The village defense force gave predominant in the Magway
burned most of a village deadly force fueled rather residents advance warning of The incident in Kinma at- region and it is unusual for
in the country’s central than quelled resistance. the troops’ arrival, when they tracted special attention be- them to be targeted for such
heartland, a resident said found nothing, they began cause the Burman, or Barmar severe measures.
Wednesday, confirming A villager contacted by phone setting the homes on fire, he ethnic group, the country’s
reports by independent said only 10 of 237 houses said.
media and on social net- were left standing. The vil-
works. The action ap- lager, who asked that his The villager said he believed
peared to be an attempt name not be used because there were three casualties,
to suppress resistance of fear of government repri- a boy who was a goat-herder
against the ruling military sals, said most residents had who was shot in the thigh,
junta. already fled when soldiers and an elderly couple who
firing guns entered the vil- were unable to flee. He be-
The attack is the latest ex- lage shortly before noon on lieved the couple had died
ample of how violence has Tuesday. but several media reports said
become endemic in much of they were missing.
Myanmar in recent months He said he believed the troops
as the junta tries to subdue an were searching for members The village defense forces are
incipient nationwide insur- of a village defense force that committed to forming a fu-
rection. After the army seized had been established to pro- ture opposition federal army,
power in February, over- tect against the junta’s troops and some have allied them-
throwing the elected govern- and police. Most such local selves with ethnic minority
ment of Aung San Suu Kyi, a forces are very lightly armed groups in border areas that
nonviolent civil disobedience with homemade hunting have been fighting for de-
movement arose to challenge rifles. cades for autonomy from the