Ref: 31/2011
In the last 48
hours, Israeli forces have escalated attacks on the Gaza Strip; intensified
artillery shelling and aerial bombardment in populated areas has resulted in
the apparent targeting of Palestinian civilians. Ten Palestinian civilians,
including a woman and her daughter, and another two children were killed. Four Palestinian
fighters have also been killed.
According to
primary information made available to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
(PCHR), at approximately 16:00 on Thursday, 07 April 2011, Israeli forces targeted
areas surrounding Gaza International Airport; Israeli forces positioned along
the border fired approximately 10 artillery shells, while Apache helicopters
opened machine gun fire. The Airport is located in the far southeast of Rafah
city, in the southern Gaza Strip. A number of the artillery shells landed near
three Palestinian civilians who were sitting near the Airport. Two of them were
killed immediately and the third civilian died of his wounds on the evening of
the same day. The dead are:
1. Mohammed
Eyada Eid al-Mahmoum, 25;
2. Khaled
Ismail Hamdan al-Dabari; 17;
3. Saleh
Jarmi Ateya al-Tarabin, 38, who died of his wounds in Gaza European Hospital in
Khan Younis city.
Israeli forces
continued to fire as a number of Palestinian civilians attempted to rescue the
wounded; Musaab Mohammed Ubeid Sawwaf, 20, was killed and another 14 civilians,
including five children and a paramedic from the Palestinian Red Crescent
Society, were wounded. Medical sources at Martyr Mohammed Yousef al-Najjar in
Rafah city described the injuries of a number of the wounded as serious. In the
evening of the same day, Faten Subhi al-Ledawi, 44, was wounded in her house in
al-Salam neighborhood of Rafah city as Israeli forces continued to target tunnels
along the border with Egypt.
In Khan Younis,
at approximately 16:00 on Thursday, 07 April, Israeli tanks fired several
shells at populated areas and at farms in the east of al-Qarara village, to the
northeast of Khan Younis. A child, Yousif Ahmed al-Smeiri, 10, sustained
shrapnel wounds to the hands, while in his house. The shelling targeted all the
farms in the east of Khan Younis along the border but no further casualties
were reported.
In central
Gaza, at approximately 15:30 on Thursday, 07 April, the east of Juhr Addik
village, the east of Wadi al-Salqa village and a vacant area near al-Aqsa
Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah city were targeted with artillery shells and air
launched missels. The shelling and bombardment continued for approximately half
an hour. No casualties were reported.
At
approximately 15:00 on Thursday, 07 April, Israeli forces began to target different
locations in the east of al-Shejaeya neighborhood, in the east of Gaza city.
One of the shells struck a house belonging to Mahmoud Mansour al-Manasra, 58,
near al-Korba crossroads in the east of al-Shejaeya neighborhood. Fawaz, 15,
who is al-Manasra’s son sustained shrapnel wounds in his right hand as a
result. Immediately after this initial attack, the house was struck by three further
shells, immediately killing Mahmoud Mansour al-Manasra. The al-Manasra house is
approximately 1,200 meters from the border with Israel. Israeli forces then continued
to intermittently fire shells at the area and Subhi Abdul Rahman Abu Shanab,
60, sustained shrapnel wounds in the right foot as a result. Training sites
used by Palestinian armed groups in the east of Gaza city were also targeted
but no casualties were reported.
In the northern
Gaza Strip, at approximately 16:00 on Thursday, 07 April, Israeli forces fired
six artillery shells. Four of these shells landed near the Martyrs Cemetery in
the east of Jabalia. Rafat Taiseer Juneid, 21, from al-Salam neighborhood in
Jabalia, sustained bruises in the left hand as a result. He was transferred to
Kamal Odwan Hospital in Beit LAhia and his wounds were described to be light. Israeli
forces continued to shell open areas in northern the Gaza Strip but no
casualties were reported.
At
approximately 16:45 on Thursday, 07 April, an Israeli warplane fired a missile
at the Martyr Abdul Aziz al-Rantisi Site near al-Twam crossroads in the west of
Jabalia. Mohammed Khalil Ibrahim al-Madhoon, 35, from al-Saftawi neighborhood,
sustained shrapnel wounds in the face and the front; he was in his cousin’s
house, approximately 1,500 metres from the aforementioned site.
At
approximately 18:15, an Israeli drone targeted, Mohannad Ahmed Yusef
al-Jerjawi, 18, a farmer from the al-Sedrah area of the al-Daraj neighhourhood
in Gaza City. He was attacked as he was
leaving his father’s farm, which is located 500 meters to the east
of the desalination plant in the vicinity of al-Waha resort, northeast Beit
Lahia. This attack resulted in the amputation of al-Jerjawi’s left leg. He also
sustained shrapnel injury to other parts of his body; he was transported to
Martyr Kamal Odwan hospital.
Israel continued
its retaliatory attacks on Friday, 08 April 2011. In Rafah, at approximately 08:00, Israeli
forces launched two artillery shells targeting the vicinity of Gaza
International Airport, due to which, 4 civilians, including a child, were
wounded. Medical sources in Martyr
Mohammed Yusef al-Najjar hospital described the wounds of two of them as
severe. At approximately 14:00, an
Israeli drone lunched two missiles on a tunnel near Yebna refugee camp, along the
Palestinian-Egyptian border, near southern Rafah City. The targeted tunnel was set on fire, however,
no injuries were reported.
In Khan Yunis,
at approximately 09:00, an Israeli drone attacked a group of “al-Qassam
Brigades” members who were at the entrance of Khuza’a village, in the east
of Khan Yunis. As a result, two of them
were killed. The dead are:
1. Abdullah
Mahmoud Mohammed al-Farrah, 20, from Khuza’a village, eastern Khan Yunis; and
2. Mo’taz
Jamal Mohammed Abu Jame’, 22, from Bani Suhaila, eastern Khan Yunis.
At
approximately 12:20, a shell fell on a house belonging to Ibrahim Hamdan
Ibrahim Qdeih, which is located in ‘Abasan village, eastern Khan Yunis. Qdeih’s wife and daughter were killed, and two
other daughters were wounded by shrapnel in different parts of their bodies,
one of them severely. The two killed
are:
At
approximately 12:30, Israeli forces shelled a farm in al-Manarah neighborhood
in the southeast of Khan Yunis, due to which, Talal Rabee’ Isa Abu Taha, 56,
from Khan Yunis, was killed as he was wounded by shrapnel in different parts of
his body. Moreover, his nephew, Hamadah
Salamah Isa Abu Taha, 25, was wounded by shrapnel in his legs while he and his
uncle were in the farm.
In Gaza, at
approximately 00:00, Israeli forces targeted the house of Rami Jawad Helles,
35, which is 1200 meters
away from the Isreal-Gaza border at al-Shaja’iyah neighborhood. The two-storey house was damaged, but no
injuries were reported.
Additionally,
at approximately 19:10, an arterially shell fell on al-Beltaji Street, opposite
to Hettin School in the east of al-Shaja’iyah neighborhood, 200 meters from the
border. As a result, two children were
killed and 10 more civilians were wounded, including 6 children and a paramedic,
Rami Dababesh, who works at Shifa hospital. One of the killed children is identified asMahmoud Wa’el al-Jaro, 10,
while the identity of the other is currently uncertain.
In the northern
governorate, at 16:00, an Israeli plane lunched a missile on a group of
al-Qassam Brigade members near al-Karamah buildings, western Jabalia. A member
of the group, Ra’ed Mahmoud Mohammed Shhadah, 27, from al-Shati’ refugee camp,
western Gaza City was killed. Another
member, Ahmed Mohammed Ali Ghurab, 30, later died of his wounds.
PCHR condemns Israel’s
retaliatory and indiscriminate targeting of civilian targets in the Gaza Strip:
