PRESS RELEASE

Released @ 12:00 GMT 14^th May 1998

In Commemorating the 50^th Anniversary of al-Nakba,

the Gaza Strip witnesses a bloody day

Israeli soldiers have shot dead today, Thursday 14^th May 1998, five Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and injured 52 others, some severely. The Israeli forces used excessive force against peaceful Palestinian demonstrators in different areas of the Gaza Strip.

Since early morning, the occupied Palestinian territories have witnessed a rapidly deteriorating situation while the Palestinian people commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of al-Nakba – the uprooting of the Palestinian people from its homeland in 1948. Thousands of Palestinians participated today in peaceful demonstrations and marches throughout the occupied territories. Israeli soldiers reacted with arbitrary shooting of live ammunition, rubber bullets, and gaz canisters in clashes that erupted in many areas of the Gaza Strip, especially near the Israeli settlements of Gush Katif, Muraj, and Erez. Five Palestinian civilians were shot dead, including a 45 year-old nurse working with a medical team near Erez. Following are the names of the murdered:

1. Ashraf Sabri Abu Arram, 22, from Rafah.
2. Zamil al-Woheidi, 45, member of a medical team.
3. Samir Issa Fayyad, 35, from Qarara.
4. Kamil al-Hassanat, 20, from Deir el-Balah.
5. Name unknown, the body is awaiting identification at al-Awda Hospital near Jabaliya.

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights condemns the Israeli reaction to the peaceful demonstrations and considers that Israeli forces bear complete responsibility for this situation and for the arbitrary use of excessive and deadly force against Palestinian civilians – force which led to the death of five citizens, including one person from a medical team. The PCHR will continue to monitor the situation, providing updates and more details.