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| PCHR Palestinian Centre for Human Rights PRESS RELEASE |
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Ref: 59/2004
Date: 17April 2004
Time: 09:30 GMT
Israeli Occupying Forces Prohibit Travel through Rafah Terminal to a Large Segment of the Palestinian Civilian Population
PCHR is gravely concerned for the recent measures taken by Israeli occupying forces, where they have denied travel for Palestinians between the ages of 16 and 35, from the Gaza Strip through Rafah Terminal. PCHR calls upon the international community and humanitarian organizations to immediately intervene and pressure Israeli occupying forces to stop such measures within the Israeli policy of collective punishment that is systematically practiced against Palestinian civilians.
Israeli occupying forces, which have control over Rafah Terminal, informed the Palestinian liaison about a new decision, according to which Palestinians, whose ages range between 16 and 35, would be prohibited from traveling through Rafah Terminal on the Egyptian border as of 16 April 2004. Rafah Terminal has been the only outlet for the Gaza Strip to the outside world since 14 February 2001, when Israeli occupying forces destroyed Gaza International Airport.
As a result, the siege imposed on Palestinian Authority-controlled areas is tightened further. The decision affects both genders, and the segment affected by the decision constitutes about 13% of the population of the Gaza Strip according to numbers provided by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. Consequently, dozens of patients will be deprived from receiving medical treatment abroad, as local hospitals lack the necessary capacity to treat certain diseases, such as cancer. In addition, hundreds of university students who study abroad will be unable to attend their universities.
Israeli occupying forces had taken a similar decision in 2003. The decision had remained effective from 8 January to 3 March 2004. One week following the cancellation of the decision, Israeli occupying forces imposed new conditions, which included that the number of Palestinian travelers of this segment must not exceed 40 per day and must be summoned by the Israeli intelligence. The 2003 decision excluded female Palestinians from those measures.
PCHR believes that these recent measures constitute a form of collective punishment adopted by Israeli occupying forces against Palestinian civilians in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949. PCHR calls upon the international community and humanitarian organizations to pressure Israeli government to comply with its obligations under the Convention.
Public Document
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