JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — Israel informed the Jerusalem District Court that it will retroactively legalize structures built in part on private Palestinian lands in the illegal Israeli settlement of Alei Zahav in the occupied West Bank, and will for the first time invoke a legal mechanism approved in December 2018. Alei Zahav is an illegal settlement […]
UNICEF Demands End to Violence against Palestinian Children
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) demanded, on Saturday, the end of violence against Palestinian children after Israeli forces shot and killed two minors in the besieged Gaza Strip. During “The Great March of Return” protests, Hassan Iyad Shalbi, 13, and Hamza Muhammad Ishteiwi, 17, were shot and killed with […]
Saudi Arabia Creates App to Track Women’s Movements
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Saudi Arabia has created an application that allows male guardians to track and prevent women from travelling due to the rise in the number of women recently fleeing the ultra-conservative kingdom. The app, called Absher, meaning “Good Tidings” in Arabic, has been in operation for several years, however, it has only recently […]
Israeli Ministers Sign Petition to Settle 2 Million Israelis in Palestinian West Bank
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Dozens of Israeli ministers and senior officials from the Likud political party and other right-wing parties have signed a petition to settle two million Jews across the occupied West Bank. Israeli Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein and ministers Gilad Erdan, Miri Regev, Yisrael Katz of the Likud party, Ayelet Shaked and Naftali Bennett […]
Palestinians Fear Caravan of Illegal Immigration – of Israeli Squatters to Palestine
JENIN (Ma’an) — Israeli settlers set up new mobile caravans, on Wednesday, on Palestinian-owned agricultural lands between the Yaabad town and Zabda village, south of the northern occupied West Bank district of Jenin. The mayor of Yaabad, Samer Abu Bakr, said in a statement that Israeli settlers set up caravans under the heavy protection of […]
“Gaza” Documentary on “largest open air prison” wins 33rd Goya Award
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — The documentary film “Gaza” directed by Gary Keane and Andrew McConnell won the “Best Documentary Short Film” Premios Goya Award, on Sunday, at the Goya Awards in Spain. The documentary film, Gaza, first premiered in Sundance Film Festival early 2019. The documentary depicts the lives of Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip […]
Meet Amani: A Palestinian Human Rights Defender
(Ma’an News Agency) – Meet Amani, 26, who works at the Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counseling, Amani’s days are very full; she is pictured below picking up her two sons Hussam, 7, and Muhannad, 5, from school. For Amani, being a Human Rights Defender means caring for others, “even if their needs don’t […]
Spanish Firm Rejects Israeli Tender for Jerusalem Railroad as Stealing Palestinian Land
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Spanish rail equipment manufacturer CAF announced, on Friday, that it had refused to participate in a tender to build a section of the railway in occupied East Jerusalem as it violates international law. An international tender to build and operate Jerusalem’s second light rail line has many companies rejecting to participate as […]
UN: Israeli Forces’ Violence Interfering in Palestinian Children’s Safe Access to Education
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — United Nations officials from UNICEF and UNESCO expressed deep concern by rise in ongoing Israeli interference in Palestinian schools. The Humanitarian Coordinator, Jamie McGoldrick, UNICEF Special Representative, Genevieve Boutin, and UNESCO in a joint statement, “As the second school term resumes in the State of Palestine, we remain deeply concerned by the […]








