Ref: 19/2015
Date: 16 April 2015
Time: 10:14 GMT
In the context of collective punishment policies applied in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), Israeli forces carried out a wide-scale arrest campaign in Nablus and its suburbs on Wednesday morning, 15 April 2015. The arrest campaign targeted 27 Palestinian civilians, the majority of whom are members of Hamas in Nablus. The detainees included former prisoners, a journalist, engineers, university lecturers and the wife of a former prisoner. Moreover, Israeli forces seized cars, money, jewelry and PC sets from houses and stores belonging to a number of the detainees.
According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) and eyewitnesses, at approximately 02:00 on Wednesday, 16 April 2015, Israeli forces moved into Nablus; Balatah refugee camp, east of the city; ‘Ein Beit al-Maa’ refugee camp; and Zawata village, northwest of the city. They raided and searched dozens of houses in various neighbourhoods. In the morning, they arrested 27 civilians; most of them are affiliated with Hamas in Nablus. The campaign included former prisoners, a journalist, engineers and lecturers in addition to the wife of a former prisoner. They were all taken to an unknown destination. The detainees included:
During the arrest campaign, Israeli forces took Elaiwi from his house to his jewelry store in the center of the city and obliged him to open it. They seized from the store about 20 kilograms of jewelry, NIS 1,330 that was in his pocket, a Mitsubishi vehicle, a laptop and a cellphone. Moreover, they confiscated a Volkswagen vehicle belonging to Nidal Abu Ermeila, JD 3,500 from the house of engineer Wajih Abu Eida and NIS 40,000 from the house of Abdullah al-Akar.
In the same context, Israeli forces moved into Northern Asira village, north of Nablus, and arrested Ahmed Tawfiq Sawalha (42). They took him to the office of Obour al-Mostaqbal Maintenance and Programing Computers’ Company in the center of Nablus. They opened the office with sharp tools and entered it. Israeli soldiers confiscated five PC sets, the cashier box, the company’s accounting PC, and the recorder of the surveillance cameras. They fired tear gas canisters at Palestine Bakery workers in Palestine Street and withdrew later.
PCHR emphasizes that Israeli practices in the oPt are part of the collective punishment and retaliation policies against Palestinian civilians in violation of article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention 1949 that explicitly prohibits punishment against protected person for an offence he or she has not personally committed and collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism. PCHR holds the Israeli government responsible for escalation in the oPt. Furthermore, PCHR calls upon the international community to take immediate and effective actions to stop the Israeli crimes and reiterates its call for the High Contracting Parties to the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their obligations under Article 1; i.e., to respect and to ensure respect for the Convention in all circumstances, and their obligation under Article 146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention. These grave breaches constitute war crimes under Article 147 of the same Convention and Protocol (I) Additional to the Geneva Conventions.
