Weekly Summary of israeli War Crimes

PCHR
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights

http://www.pchrgaza.org



Weekly Report: On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory



No. 43/2005

27 Oct.- 09 Nov. 2005



Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Launch More Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT)



· 18 Palestinians, including 5 children, were killed by IOF.



· 9 of the victims were extra-judicially executed by IOF in the northern Gaza Strip.



· 58 Palestinian civilians, including 5 children, were wounded by IOF.



· IOF launched 21 aerial attacks on civilian targets in the Gaza Strip.



· IOF conducted 63 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank.



· Houses were raided and 108 Palestinian civilians, including 10 children, were arrested by IOF.



· 17 houses were transformed by IOF into military sites.



· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT; they have closed all border crossings of the Gaza Strip; they expanded Za'tara checkpoint to separate the north of the West Bank from other areas; and they arrested 16 Palestinian civilians, including two children, at various checkpoints in the West Bank.



· IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall in the West Bank.



· Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property in the OPT; 5 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children, were injured; and 8 houses were damaged.

Summary



Israeli violations of international law continued in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) during the reporting period (27 October – 9 November 2005):[1][1]



Killings: During the reported period, IOF killed 17 Palestinians, including 5 children, in the West Bank. An 18th Palestinian died from a wound he sustained last September. In addition, 58 Palestinian civilians, including 21 children, were wounded by the Israeli gunfire.



In the Gaza Strip, IOF killed 11 Palestinians. Nine of the victims, including 5 civilian bystanders, 3 of whom were children, were extra-judicially executed by IOF. A Palestinian gunman was killed in the northern Gaza Strip when IOF fired an artillery shell at him. A Palestinian civilian died from a wound he sustained by IOF last September. These extra-judicial executions followed a statement by the Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon that he gave the Israeli military a green light to launch a wide scale operation against what he called "Palestinian Terrorism," and a focused offensive, including extra-judicial executions, against the Islamic Jihad. The Israeli military Chief of Staff Dan Halutz admitted committing extra-judicial executions against Palestinian in the context of a policy rather than as a response to bombings carried out by Palestinians. Halutz stated at a meeting of the Committee of Foreign and Defence Affairs at the Israeli Knesset on Tuesday, 8 November 2005, that executing activists of Islamic Jihad "would continue as a policy adopted by the army rather than in response to attacks only." Extra-judicial executions involve executing a person without trial and without allowing him/her to defend him/herself and as such constitute a war crime under the Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of 1949. This policy also violates international human rights law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 1966.



In the West Bank, IOF killed 7 Palestinians, including 2 children, in 5 separate attacks in Qabatya village near Jenin; Jenin refugee camp; Nablus; and al-'Eisawiya village near occupied East Jerusalem.



Shelling: During the reported period, IOF carried out 21 aerial attacks on Palestinian civilian targets in the Gaza Strip. They also carried out a series of mock air raids throughout the Gaza Strip, which terrified Palestinian civilians and damaged property. IOF positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel fired artillery shells at Palestinian areas twice.



Incursions: IOF conducted 63 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During these incursions, IOF raided houses and arrested 108 Palestinian civilians, including 10 children. IOF employed undercover units and trained dogs in these incursions. IOF also transformed 17 houses into military sites.



Restrictions on Movement: IOF have continued to impose a comprehensive siege on the OPT, in violation of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of Palestinian civilians.



IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on the Gaza Strip, transforming it into a large prison. Rafah International Crossing Point on the Egyptian border, the sole outlet for the Gaza Strip to the outside world, has remained closed for nearly two months. During the reported period, there were reports concerning a deal to be reached shortly regarding the operation of the crossing point. According to media reports, the crossing point will be operated by the Egyptians and Palestinians with the presence of a European force as a third party, whose responsibilities have not been determined. Goods and foreigners will not pass through the crossing point, rather they will pass through Kerem Shalom crossing point to the southeast of Rafah. Israel insists on having some authority at Rafah International Crossing Point, including fixing cameras to monitor the movement at the crossing point and handing lists of those who are banned from travelling due security claims to the Europeans to ensure their ban. In the past weeks, IOF allowed Palestinians to operate the crossing point for several hours to solve the problem of those who had been blocked on both sides of the crossing point. The continued closure of the crossing point has deprived hundreds of Palestinian civilians of their rights to education, health, work and social communication. In the meantime, IOF have continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing for Palestinian workers and patients for several weeks. Only a few patients who suffer from serious diseases are allowed to travel to Israeli hospitals through the crossing. IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions at commercial border crossings and have also imposed severe restrictions on fishing in the Gaza Strip.



In the West Bank, IOF have imposed more restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. These restrictions have deprived Palestinian civilians of praying at the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. In the context of restrictions on movement, IOF have started to establish a huge checkpoint near Za'tara crossroads, south of Nablus, to separate the north and middle of the West Bank. According to Israeli sources, the checkpoint will include 10 routes; 8 will lead to the south while the other two will go to the north. Two of the routes leading to the south will be designated for the movement of settlers and humanitarian agencies. Palestinian civilians will be banned from crossing the checkpoint on foot, including the prohibition of the movement of private cars on roads, and limiting transportation to taxis only. IOF have also erected dozens of military checkpoints on the main roads. IOF re-erected checkpoints that had previously been dismantled and installed dozens of new ones. In the last 10 days of Ramadan, IOF imposed severe restriction on the travel of Palestinian pilgrims to Saudi Arabia. During the reported period, IOF positioned at various checkpoints arrested 16 Palestinian civilians, including two children.



Annexation Wall: IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall inside the West Bank. During the reported period, IOF issued a military order seizing 292 dunums[2][2] of Palestinian land in the villages of Dura, al-Zahiriya and Arab al-Ramadin near Hebron for the purpose of the construction of a section of the Wall in the area. IOF also surveyed areas of Palestinian land in Kufor Thuluth village, southeast of Qalqilya, for the same purpose. In addition, they imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians on both sides of the Wall. They prevented Palestinian farmers from reaching their agricultural land.



Illegal Settler Activities: Israeli settlers in breach of international humanitarian law continue to reside in the OPT and have launched a series of attacks against Palestinian civilians and property. During the reported period, Israeli settlers launched 7 attacks against Palestinian civilians and property in Hebron and Nablus. Five Palestinian civilians, including 3 children and an old man, were injured. Israeli settlers also burnt an office of a lawyer, damaged 8 houses and uprooted 40 trees.



The full report is available online at:

html format:

http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2005/10-11-2005.htm

pdf format:

http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2005/pdf/weekly%20report%2043.pdf





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