Israel, Hamas trade blame for delays in reaching Gaza ceasefire deal
Israel and Hamas exchanged accusations on Wednesday, each blaming the other for delays in reaching a Gaza ceasefire deal.
Palestinian teenager Ahed Tamimi, who was convicted for slapping and kicking Israeli soldiers, was released on Sunday morning after serving an eight-month jail term, prison officials said.
Palestinian activists had described Ahed, 17, as a “symbol of resistance against Israeli occupation”.
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The teenager and her mother were arrested together in December 2017 with another relative — 20-year-old Nour Tamimi — after they were filmed slapping and kicking Israel Defence Forces (IDF) soldiers in their village of Nabi Saleh in the West Bank.
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Ahed was sentenced in March to eight months in prison after a plea bargain, under which she pleaded guilty to one account of assault, one account of incitement, and two accounts — unrelated to the December incident — of obstructing soldiers. She also agreed to pay fine.
Ahed’s mother filmed the incident and posted it on social networking site Facebook. The video went viral and instantly turned her for many into symbol of resistance to Israel’s half-century-old military rule over the Palestinians.
The Tamimi family and Palestinian activists are preparing a hero’s welcome for Ahed and her mother in Nabi Saleh, Arab News reported.
Dozens of family members and supporters are expected to receive the two upon their release at an IDF checkpoint near Tulkarm and go in a convoy to Ramallah to place a wreath on the late President Yasser Arafat’s grave.
Afterwards, the convoy will head to Nabi Salah where there will be a festive reception and in the evening a press conference will be held at their house.
(With agency inputs)
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