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. 20/2006

18- 24 May 2006



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



· 11 Palestinians, including a child, killed by IOF.



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



· IOF continued to shell Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip, especially the northern area.



· IOF conducted 42 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, particularly Nablus, and one incursion into the Gaza Strip.



· IOF killed 4 Palestinians inside the northern Gaza Strip in the first military operation of its kind, since the IOF’s redeployment around the Gaza Strip.



· 60 Palestinian civilians, including 4 children and 2 women, were arrested by IOF.



· 3 houses were transformed by IOF into military sites.



· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT; IOF have continued to close border crossings of the Gaza Strip; the north of the West Bank has been separated from the south; and IOF arrested 8 Palestinian civilians, including two children, at checkpoints in the West Bank.



· IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall in the West Bank; IOF confiscated more razed areas of agricultural land in Hebron; the Israeli High Court gave a green light to IOF to continue to construct a section of the Wall near “Shavi Shomron” settlement in the north of the West Bank; IOF razed two bird farms near Bethlehem.



· Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property in the OPT; 3 houses were demolished by IOF allegedly because they were built without licenses, and 5,400 square meters of land in Northern ‘Assira village were confiscated.



Summary



Israeli violations of international law continued in the OPT during the reported period (25–31 May 2006):



Killing: During the reported period, IOF killed 11 Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.



In the Gaza Strip, IOF killed 8 Palestinians. On Friday, 26 May 2006, a Palestinian farmer was killed by IOF artillery shelling that targeted the northern Gaza Strip. Later on the same day, 3 Palestinian civilians, including a child, were killed and two children and a woman were wounded in Beit Lahia, when one of the victims attempted to check a shell fired by IOF at the northern Gaza Strip. Late on Monday, 29 May 2006, 3 members of the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad, were killed when they clashed with an IOF undercover unit that moved into the northern Gaza Strip. A few hours later, a Palestinian security man was killed in the same area when an IOF aircraft fired a missile at him.



In the West Bank, IOF killed two Palestinian militants in two separate incidents in Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus, and Qabatya village, southeast of Jenin, on Tuesday morning, 30 May 2006. Earlier, on Friday, 26 May 2006, a third Palestinian civilian from Balata refugee camp died from a wound he had sustained by IOF on 15 April 2006.



During the reported period, IOF continued to shell Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip. As a result, 4 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children, were wounded. Six other civilians (4 medical personnel and 2 journalists) were wounded during the IOF incursion into the northern Gaza Strip. In the West Bank, 18 civilians, including two international solidarity activists and an Israeli, were wounded by IOF gunfire.



Incursions: During the reported period, IOF carried out repeated incursions into Nablus. IOF also conducted at least 40 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During these incursions, IOF raided houses and arrested 60 Palestinian civilians, including 4 children and 2 women. The women were arrested in order to exert pressure on their husbands to surrender to IOF. Thus, the number of Palestinians arrested by IOF since the beginning of 2006 has increased to 1,630. In addition, IOF transformed 3 houses into military sites. IOF used undercover units and trained dogs during these incursions. During the reported period, IOF moved twice into Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip, and leveled areas of land near the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel. During the reported period, IOF conducted a military operation, which was the first of its kind since the IOF’s redeployment around the Gaza Strip in September 2005. An IOF undercover unit, supported by helicopter gunships, moved into Beit Lahia town. Before this latest incursion, IOF had repeatedly moved several meters into some areas in the Gaza Strip.



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. Although IOF have allowed the transportation of food aid from Egypt into the Gaza Strip through Kerem Shalom commercial crossing, southeast of Rafah, the crossing has not yet 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 have partially operated al-Mentar (Karni) commercial crossing, east of Gaza City. As a result of the repeated closures 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. 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 the north and south of the West Bank. For this purpose, they have closed Za’tara checkpoint, south of Nablus, and re-established their presence at ‘Attara checkpoint, north of Ramallah. They have also erected two new checkpoints near Ramallah. During the reported period, IOF positioned at various checkpoints around Nablus imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. IOF positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank abused a number of Palestinian civilians. During the reported period, IOF at checkpoints in the West Bank arrested 8 Palestinian civilians, including two children.



Annexation Wall: IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall inside the West Bank. On 29 May 2006, IOF issued a military order confiscating nearly 30 dunums[1] of Palestinian agricultural land in al-Ja’ba village, northwest of Hebron. Also on the same day, IOF handed notices to 4 Palestinian civilians in Sameeramis area, south of Ramallah, informing them that their houses would be demolished as they were allegedly built without licenses. According to local sources, the houses are located near a section of the Wall being constructed by IOF in the area. On 30 May 2006, IOF destroyed two bird farms in al-Walaja area, northwest of Bethlehem. The two farms stood on areas which were confiscated by IOF for construction of the Wall. Also on 30 May 2006, the Israeli High Court approved the construction of a section of the Wall around “Shavi Shomron” settlement, northwest of Nablus, near the Nablus–Jenin road. The court rejected petitions by local councils of Palestinian villages on whose lands the settlement stands. This court ruling came 3 weeks after statements made by the Israeli Minister of Justice Haim Ramon before Israeli security officials on 9 May 2006, in which he vowed to make efforts with the judiciary to accelerate legal procedures to construct the remaining sections of the Wall. The Israeli High Court issued two new decisions in this regard. On 19 May 2006, IOF used forced to disperse a peaceful demonstration organized in protest to the construction of the Wall in Bal’ein village, west of Ramallah Wall. IOF fired rubber-coated metal bullets, tear gas canisters and sound bombs at the demonstrators. As a result, 4 Palestinians civilians, 2 international solidarity activists and an Israeli were wounded.



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, IOF demolished two houses in Brouqin village, southwest of Nablus, and a third one in Um al-Safa village, south of Hebron, claiming that these houses were built without licenses. IOF also confiscated 5,400 square meters of land in Northern ‘Assira village, north of Nablus.











The full report is available online at:

html format:

http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2006/01-06-2006.htm

pdf format:

http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2006/pdf/weekly%20report%2021.pdf