Ref: 121/2022
Date: 28 September 2022
Time: 11:14 GMT
This morning, Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) killed 4 members of Palestinians, including one civilian, and wounded 20 other Palestinians; mostly civilians including 4 children: 2 in critical condition, following IOF’s incursion into Jenin refugee camp, west of Jenin deep inside the Palestinian Authority (PA)-controlled areas in the West Bank. IOF cordoned off a residential house and targeted it with a barrage of bullets and missiles. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) condemns the ongoing escalation and incursions by IOF into PA-controlled areas in the West Bank whether to assassinate wanted persons or to conduct arrest campaigns. PCHR stresses that IOF use disproportionate firepower, including firing missiles in densely populated areas. Since the beginning of 2022, IOF have intensified their incursions, primarily into Jenin and its refugee camp, killing many Palestinians, including civilians, and wounding tens of others.
According to PCHR’s investigations, at around 08:45 on Wednesday, 28 September 2022, an Israeli Special Force (from Yamam Unit) sneaked into Jenin refugee camp, western Jenin, and surrounded a house belonging to Ra’ed Fathi Khazem, who was killed after carrying out a shooting in Tel Aviv months ago and since then his father and other members of his family has been pursued. Moments later, IOF backed by military vehicles and a drone, moved into the refugee camp, and cordoned it off, tightening the cordon in the vicinity of the 1-storey house. They then heavily opened fire at the house and fired several projectiles at it. Meanwhile, an exchange of fire erupted in the area between IOF and the young men cordoned off in the house as well as others outside the house and across the camp. The clashes continued until 12:30 when IOF withdrew from the camp. As a result, four Palestinians were killed, including a civilian namely Mohammed Abu Na’sah (25) who was hit with a bullet in the head when he was in one of the camp streets during IOF’s withdrawal. The rest were members of Palestinian armed groups and identified as ‘Abdel Rahman Fathi Khazem (34), Mohammed Mahmoud Alonah (30), who were evacuated from the cordoned house garden and were directly wounded in the upper part of the body, and Ahmed Nazmi ‘Alawnah (25), from Jab’a village, southeastern Jenin, a military officer at the Palestinian Intelligence Services who was injured with a bullet in the head during the clashes at the western entrance to the camp. Moreover, 20 other Palestinians, mostly civilians including 4 children, were injured. Two of those wounded sustained critical injuries: one in his head and the other in his bladder. All of the wounded were evacuated to the hospitals in Jenin. Also, the Israeli projectiles inflicted severe damage to the house.
This crime and other previous similar ones prove that IOF aim to kill the wanted persons and not to arrest them or even without any attempt to capture them, amounting to crimes of summary execution that are previously decided by IOF.
PCHR reiterates its call upon the international community to take immediate action to end Israeli occupation’s crimes and double standards when it comes to international law. PCHR also urges the ICC Prosecutor in particular to act seriously with regard to the situation in Palestine. PCHR also demands the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention fulfil their obligations as per Common Article 1 of the Convention, “undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present Convention in all circumstances.” PCHR also calls upon the High Contracting Parties to uphold their commitment in Article 146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention