Ref: 59/2018

Date: 08 June 2018

Time: 19:30 GMT 

On Friday, 08 June 2018, using excessive lethal force against the peaceful protesters in eastern Gaza Strip for the 11^th Friday in a row, Israeli forces killed 4 Palestinian civilians, including a child, and wounded 286 other civilians, including 42 children, 9 women, 4 paramedics and 3 journalists, in addition to hundreds suffering tear gas inhalation.  Upon a Decision by the highest political and military echelons, the Israeli forces continued to use excessive force against the peaceful protesters, who posed no threat to the life of the soldiers.

Table of Civilian Casualties due to the Israeli Suppression since the Beginning of the Great March of Return on 30 March

Investigations and observations by PCHR’s fieldworkers during this week emphasize the following:

• On Friday dawn, 08 June 2018, Israeli warplanes fired fire bombs at the Return Camp in eastern Rafah, causing fire in a number of tents and the tires collected by the protesters supposed to be burnt in the afternoon.
• Dozens of Israeli Forces’ snipers continued to position on the hills, behind the sand barriers and in military jeeps along the border fence in front of the peaceful demonstrations in the eastern Gaza Strip.
• According to PCHR’s fieldworkers, the number of youth gatherings near the border fence augmented to reach dozens who set fire to tires and attempted to throw stones at the Israeli forces.
• The Israeli snipers deliberately and selectively opened fire at the participants in the peaceful demonstrations which included thousands of civilians in different areas in the eastern Gaza Strip.
• The Israeli forces continued to target the medical personnel directly and deliberately as they wounded 3 of them this week. Moreover, an ambulance belonging to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) was hit with a tear gas canister in its windscreen in eastern Khan Younis though the medical personnel members, means of medical transport, and field hospitals were distinctively marked and easily identified. The medical personnel was wearing their distinctive medical uniform, and the ambulances were 300 meters away from the border fence.
• The Israeli forces widely used bursts of tear gas canisters and from drones, targeting the center of the demonstrations and near the demonstrators near the border fence. As a result, many civilians were directly targeted and hit with tear gas canisters, causing serious injuries, while the gas coming of them made dozens suffer tear gas inhalation, fainting and seizures. Some of them were transferred to hospitals, including few so far receive medical treatment.
• The demonstrations were as always fully peaceful, and PCHR’s fieldworkers did not witness weapons or armed persons even dressed in civilian clothes among the demonstrators, who were thousands of elderlies, women, children and entire families, demonstrating near the border fence and raising flags, chanting slogans and national songs, flying kites and burning tires.
• Journalists were again targeted with tear gas canisters, wounding 3 journalists; 2 of them were directly hit with tear gas canisters in eastern Khan Yonus. The wounded journalists were identified as Amjad al-Reqeb, a freelance journalist, Ismail Abu ‘Amer, Reporter for al-Aqsa Radio, and Mohammed ‘Abdel Razeq al-Baba (49), a photojournalist for the AFP, who was wounded with a bullet to the right leg, causing bone laceration.
• The Israeli unjustified and fallacious incitement against the peaceful demonstrations and encampments continues, perceiving the demonstration itself as danger. This hereby violates the right to peaceful assembly codified in all International instruments.

The incidents today, 08 June 2018, were as follows:

At approximately 13:30, thousands of civilians, including women, children and entire families, started swarming to 5 encampments established by the Supreme National Authority for the Great March of Return and Breaking Siege in eastern Rafah City; Khuza’ah in Khan Younis; al-Bureij in the Central Gaza Strip; Shija’eyah neighborhood in Gaza City; and eastern Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip.

The participants whose number reached thousands of men, elderlies, women and children, gathered in the five demonstration areas.  They were inside and outside the encampment yards, raising flags, and chanting slogans and national songs in addition to flying kites, while hundreds of them, including children and women, approached the border fence, set fire to tires and attempted to throw stones at the Israeli forces.  Moreover, the protestors removed the barbed wire fence established by the Israeli forces inside the Palestinian territories around 50 meters away from the main border fence.

The Israeli shooting which continued until 19:30 resulted in the killing of 4 civilians, including a child, in eastern Rafah and Khan Younis, Gaza and Jabalia in the eastern Gaza Strip when they were among other protestors around 100-200 meters away from the border fence.

Those civilians killed were identified as:

1. Haitham Mohammed Khalil al-Jamal (15) from Rafah was hit with a bullet to the abdomen when he was in eastern Rafah.
2. Ziyad Jadallah ‘Abdel Qader al-Brim (28) from Bani Suhaila in Khan Younis was wounded at approximately 17:30 with a bullet to the abdomen in eastern Khuza’ah and succumbed to his wounds around half an hour later from his arrival at Naser Hospital;
3. Yousif Salim Khalil al-Fasih (29) from Gaza City was wounded with a bullet to the pelvis in eastern Shija’iyah neighborhood; and
4. ‘Emad Nabil ‘Ali Abu Darabi (20) from Beit Lahia was hit with a bullet to the head in eastern Jabalia.

Moreover, 286 civilians, including 42 children, 9 women, 4 paramedics and 3 journalists, were wounded in the eastern Gaza five demonstration areas.  Among those wounded, 143 civilians were wounded with bullets and 143 were hit with tear gas canisters.  In addition, hundreds suffered tear gas inhalation and seizures, including PCHR’s fieldworkers while covering the suppression of demonstrations, after Israeli forces fired tear gas canisters.

PCHR condemns this new crime committed by the Israeli forces, believing it is as a result of Israel’s enjoying impunity thanks to the U.S. and so encouraging the Israeli forces to commit further crimes upon an official decision by the highest military and political echelons.

PCHR emphasizes that continuously inflicting casualties, either killed or wounded, is unjustified and targeting and killing civilians, who exercise their right to peaceful assembly or while carrying out their humanitarian duty, using lethal force is a serious violation of the rules of intentional law and international humanitarian law.

PCHR emphasizes that ongoing attacks against the Palestinian medical personnel, especially those working in the field, constitute a serious violation of the international human rights and humanitarian laws and the international standards regulating the protection rules of medical personnel, including paramedics, their vehicles and medical facilities.  The serious violations and deliberate attacks against the medical personnel amount to war crimes according to the 1949 fourth Geneva Convention, particularly the scope of protection provided to them.

PCHR emphasizes that continuously inflicting casualties, either killed or wounded, is unjustified and targeting and killing civilians, who exercise their right to peaceful assembly or while carrying out their humanitarian duty, using lethal force is a serious violation of the rules of intentional law and international humanitarian law.

PCHR believes that continuously targeting journalists while on duty with bullets and tear gas canisters proves that there is an Israeli policy to target journalists in order to prevent them from covering the Israeli suppression of the peaceful protestors, in violation of the rule of international humanitarian law.

PCHR emphasizes that the demonstrations are fully peaceful and civilians have the right to raise their voices against the Israeli forces and closure and enjoy their right to return.  Thus, PCHR stresses that Israel shall be held accountable and prosecuted through investigating with it into these crimes.

PCHR also stresses that this ongoing policy by Israel violates the Rome STATUTE OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT (ICC) and Fourth Geneva Convention, and its practices qualify to war crimes. Thus, PCHR calls upon the ICC Prosecutor to open an official investigation into these crimes in addition to prosecuting and holding accountable all of those involved in issuing decisions and orders in the Israeli forces at the political and security level and those applying the orders.

PCHR asks for the presence of international observers from the United Nations (UN) bodies in the Gaza Strip to make sure that these demonstrations are totally peaceful and even if the Israeli authorities denied their access to Gaza, they can observe from the Israeli side of the borders.

PCHR calls for the prompt formation of an international commission of inquiry according to the UN Human Rights Council’s Resolution to investigate the crimes committed by the Israeli forces against unarmed civilians in the Return March activities.

PCHR also reiterates its call upon the High Contracting Parties to the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their obligations under Article 1; i.e., to respect and ensure respect for the Convention in all circumstances and their obligations under Article 146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

PCHR calls upon Switzerland, in its capacity as the Depository State for the Convention, to demand the High Contracting Parties to convene a meeting and ensure Israel’s respect for this Convention, noting that these grave breaches constitute war crimes under Article 147 of the same Convention and Protocol (I) Additional to the Geneva Conventions regarding the guarantee of Palestinian civilians’ right to protection in the occupied territories.