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. 16/2006

20- 26 Apr. 2006



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





· 3 Palestinians killed by IOF.



· Two Palestinians were extra-judicially executed by IOF in Bethlehem.



· 20 Palestinian civilians, including 10 children, were wounded by the IOF gunfire.



· IOF continued to shell Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip, especially the northern area, wounding 3 Palestinian civilians and damaging a number of houses and civilian facilities.



· IOF conducted 38 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, especially Nablus.



· 72 Palestinian civilians, including 5 children and 4 women, were arrested by IOF.



· One house was transformed by IOF into a military site.



· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT; a Palestinian civilian drowned in rain floods when he attempted to bypass a checkpoint near Nablus; IOF have closed border crossings of the Gaza Strip; the north of the West Bank has been separated from its south; and IOF arrested 5 Palestinian civilians, including a girl, at checkpoints in the West Bank.



· IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall in the West Bank; IOF razed areas of land in Yatta village, south of Hebron, and IOF used force against peaceful demonstrations organized in protest to the construction of the Wall.



Summary



Israeli violations of international law continued in the OPT during the reported period (20 – 26 April 2006):



Killing: On Sunday evening, 23 April 2006, Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) extra-judicially executed two members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the military wing of Fatah, in Bethlehem. IOF also wounded and arrested a third member. IOF later claimed that one of the victims had died from his wounds following his evacuation to Hadasa Hospital in Jerusalem, but investigations conducted by PCHR refute this claim and indicated that IOF might have executed the victim after his arrest. On Wednesday evening, 26 April 2006, IOF shot dead a Palestinian in al-Yamoun village, west of Jenin, as he raided a pistol when IOF were surrounding a house in the village.



During the reported period, 17 Palestinian civilians, including 13 ones in Nablus, were wounded by the IOF gunfire in the West Bank.



During the reported period, IOF continued to shell Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip. A number of houses and civilian facilities were damaged and 3 civilians, including two children, were wounded.



Incursions: During the reported period, IOF repeatedly moved into Nablus. IOF also conducted 41 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During these incursions, IOF raided houses and arrested 72 Palestinian civilians, including 5 children and 4 women. In addition, IOF transformed a house into a military site. IOF used undercover units and trained dogs during these incursions. In an attempt to exert pressure on allegedly wanted Palestinian to surrender, IOF arrested 4 of their wives and mothers.



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. IOF have continued to monitor the movement of Palestinian civilians through Rafah International Crossing Point on the Egyptian border. Even though IOF allowed the transportation of food aids from Egypt into the Gaza Strip through Kerem Shalom commercial crossing, southeast of Rafah, the crossing have not been officially opened. IOF have also continued to prevent Palestinian workers from the Gaza Strip from reaching their work places in Israel through Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing. They have continued to prevent hundreds of thousands of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip from traveling to the West Bank. IOF closed al-Mentar (Karni) commercial crossing, east of Gaza City, on 26 April 2006, after it had been opened for a few days. As a result of the repeated closure of the crossing, the economic conditions in the Gaza Strip have deteriorated.



IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on Palestinian communities in the West Bank. They have imposed additional restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the West Bank as they imposed a total siege on the OPT. IOF positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. IOF have continued to separate between the north and south of the West Bank. IOF claimed that this measure is temporary and was taken following the bombing in Tel Aviv on 17 April 2006. However, Palestinians wishing to travel from the north to the south of the West bank are required by IOF to obtain permits from the IOF civil administration. A Palestinian civilian died as rain floods pushed him when he attempted to bypass a checkpoint near Nablus, which was closed by IOF. During the reported period, IOF positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank arrested 5 Palestinian civilians, including a girl.



Annexation Wall: IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall inside the West Bank. During the reported period, IOF razed areas of Palestinian land to the east of Yatta village, south of Hebron, to construct a new section of the Wall. IOF also used force against peaceful demonstrations organized in protest to the construction of the Wall. One demonstrator was wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet, and 11 others sustained bruises as they were beaten by IOF. In addition, IOF arrested 11 demonstrators, including a number of international and Israeli solidarity activists.







The full report is available online at:

html format:

http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2006/27-04-2006.htm

pdf format:

http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2006/pdf/weekly%20report%2016.pdf







Public Document

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