Dailies Highlight Settlers’ Vandalism of Trees

Settlers uprooting and cutting down of olive trees in the Nablus area village of Burin was the highlight of Monday's front page story in two of the three Palestinian Arabic dailies, Palestinian official news agency WAFA reported. Al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida said Jewish settlers uprooted dozens of olive trees in Burin, south of Nablus, with al-Hayat al-Jadida describing this act as "a massacre" against trees. Al-Quds, the third Palestinian daily, made reference to this subject within a more inclusive story of Israeli measures against Palestinians in East Jerusalem and elsewhere in the West Bank. While al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida printed pictures on their front page of the cut down olive trees in Burin, al-Quds printed a picture of Muhammad Abu Shamasneh holding a court decision ordering him and his family to evacuate their home of 50 years in Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem for the benefit of Jewish settlers, who claimed ownership. The main story in al-Quds touched on this court decision and reported on the battle the Shamasneh family had to go through over the years to keep their home but to no avail. The police is expected to force evict the family anytime if they do not leave on their own. Al-Quds also quoted Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal denying reports that Hamas has agreed to a Palestinian state with provisional borders. Meshaal made these comment to Jordan TV. Telephone calls US Secretary of State John Kerry made to President Mahmoud Abbas and other area leaders, including Israelis, on Sunday were highlighted on the front page of the dailies. The papers quoted presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh confirming the phone call and saying that Kerry told Abbas that he plans to meet with him as soon as possible. The papers also said the Ministry of Finance intends to pay the second half of the December salary for its public servants on Monday. Other front pages stories in the dailies focused on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu working on forming a new government after he was entrusted with this mission. The upcoming Islamic summit that will open in Cairo in two days and Palestinian expectations from it was highlighted on the front page of the dailies, which also covered the latest events in Syria, Egypt and Jordan following the parliamentary elections there.