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Press Release

A new assassination committed by the Israeli occupation forces;

Palestinian areas are shelled and invaded;

A Palestinian boy is killed in clashes near Al-Mentar Outlet

Ref: 23/2001

Date: May 12, 2001

 This morning, in a new escalation, the Israeli occupation forces targeted three Palestinian political activists of the Fatah Movement in a new crime of assassination.  One of the activists and a by-stander, a Palestinian traffic policeman, were killed.  The other two activists were wounded. 

 At approximately 11:35 local time, Israeli combat helicopters fired three rockets at a Palestinian civilian car that was traveling on a road adjacent to offices of the Palestinian Ministry of Interior in Jenin.  The helicopter fired a fourth rocket at a passing Palestinian police car.  Mo’tassem Mohammed El-Sabbagh, a 26-year old Fateh activist from Jenin refugee camp who was in the civilian car, was killed.  Segent ‘Allam Nasri ‘Abdel-Razeq El-Jaloudi, 26, from Faqou’a village near Jenin, who was in the police car, were killed.  Furthermore, ‘Abdel-Karim Rateb ‘Oweis, 27, and Yousef Abu ‘Ali El-Rashed El-Qeisi, 26, both members of the Palestinian Military Intelligence Service from Jenin refugee camp, were wounded. 

 PCHR learned that El-Sabbagh, ‘Oweis and El-Qeisi were traveling by a civilian car.  They tried to escape from the car when they noticed combat helicopters flying over the area, fearing that they might be assassinated.  Then, three rockets hit their car and destroyed it, wounding the three.  Mo’tassem El-Sabbagh, was critically wounded with shrapnel in the head, the chest, the abdomen, the pelvis and the extremities.  He was evacuated to Rafidya hospital in Nablus, where he was later pronounced dead.

 A Palestinian police car was also hit with a rocket, completely destroying the vehicle and killing Segent ‘Allam Nasser ‘Abdel-Razeq El-Jaaloudi, 26, from Faqou’a village near Jenin, with shrapnel in the head.

 Furthermore, two passing Palestinian civilians were wounded as follows:

       1)         Munther Mohammed Suleiman Abu El-Rub, 43, from Qabatya village near Jenin, wounded with shrapnel in the head; and

       2)         Mohammed Yousef El-Samoudi, 22, from Al-Yamoun village near Jenin, wounded with shrapnel in the head.

 In the past 48 hours, there has been a very serious escalation of Israeli shelling and invasions of Palestinian areas.  Israeli occupation forces demolished and destroyed a number of Palestinian houses and razed areas of Palestinian agricultural land.

 On Thursday, at approximately 12:30 local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned at the border east of Al-Qarara village in Khan Yunis, shelled a Palestinian National Security Forces site near the border.  The site was completely destroyed after it was hit with four artillery shells.  Four members of the site were wounded as follows:

1)                       Nasim Taha El-Farra, 53, from Khan Yunis, wounded with shrapnel in the left leg;

2)                       Samir Hussein Khashan, 40, from Al-Qarrara village, wounded with shrapnel in the right leg;

3)                       ‘Abdel-Karim Ibrahim Abu Reida, from Al-Qarara village, wounded with shrapnel in the left leg; and

4)                       Hani Suleiman Abu Rekab, 28, from Khan Yunis, wounded with shrapnel in the legs.

 Later, the Israeli occupation forces broke into the northeastern area of Al-Qarara village.  The forces removed the wreckage of the destroyed site and razed a strip of Palestinian agricultural land 1,000m long and 200m wide.  More than 200 donums of agricultural land planted with olives, almonds, wheat and parsley were razed (see the section of land leveling and house demolition).  During this operation, Israeli tanks fired upon Palestinian farmers and prevented their access to their farms.  No injuries were reported.

 On the same day, at approximately 15:00 local time, four Israeli tanks and an Israeli  bulldozer attempted to break into Block “L” area in Yebna refugee camp in Rafah, adjacent to the border with Egypt.  This escalation came approximately 14 hours after a similar operation early in the morning, which was accompanied with intensive firing of artillery shells and heavy and medium caliber bullets.  A number of Palestinian civilians were wounded and a number of houses were demolished in the area.[1] Confrontations erupted between armed Palestinians and members of the Palestinian National Security Forces on one side and the Israeli occupation forces on the other side.  The Israeli forces fired artillery shells and heavy and medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses.  Eleven Palestinians, 10 civilians and a member of the Palestinian National Security Forces, were wounded, as follows:

1)                     Tal’at ‘Abdel-Hai El-Sha’er, 24, seriously wounded with a live bullet in the chest and was evacuated to Al-Joneina hospital in Rafah.  There, he underwent surgery and then was transferred to Shifa’ hospital in Gaza City due to his serious condition;

2)                     Ahmed ‘Awadh El-Mughrabi, 18, wounded with shrapnel in the face;

3)                     Mufid Yousef Abu ‘Obeid, 23, wounded with shrapnel in the abdomen;

4)                     Ibrahim Hussein Abu El-Naja, 37, a member of the Palestinian National Security Forces, wounded with shrapnel in the face;

5)                     Mahmoud Yousef Abu Taha, 15, wounded with shrapnel in the right arm;

6)                     Fadi ‘Ali Joudeh, 17, wounded with shrapnel in the right arm;

7)                     Fathi Shafiq Saqer, 45, wounded with shrapnel in the right arm;

8)                     Rami Ahmed El-Hams, 22, wounded with shrapnel in the left eye;

9)                     Shadi Sami El-‘Aaloul, 18, wounded with shrapnel in the right leg;

10)                   Saqer Abu Hilal, 23, wounded with shrapnel in the right arm; and

11)                   Ahmed ‘Abdel-Rahim Abu Hashem, 15, wounded with shrapnel in the mouth.

Also on the same day, at approximately 16:20 local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned at the eastern border of the Gaza Strip, launched five surface-to-surface missiles on Gaza City.  At the same time, an Israeli helicopter flew over the area, apparently to guide these missiles by remote control.  Three of those missiles hit Al-Saraya Compound which houses Palestinian security services.  It had been the first time that the compound was shelled since the outbreak of Al-Aqsa Intifada.  The shelling severely damaged a number of buildings.  In addition, the walls of a nearby mosque were cracked and its windows broken by the blast.

 The other two missiles hit the third and fourth floors his a civilian building that houses the Gaza headquarters of the Fatah Movement.  The northern apartment was hit with a missile that destroyed its outside wall.  The other missile hit the southern apartment of the fourth floor and destroyed its outside wall.  Other walls of the building were cracked and its windows broken.  Furniture was also severely damaged.

 Furthermore, 8 Palestinians were evacuated to Shifa’ hospital in Gaza City after having been slightly wounded with shrapnel.   Among the wounded, there were two children:

1)                     Salem Na’el El-Shurafa, 12, wounded with shrapnel in the face; and

2)                     ‘Azziz Mohammed El-Sousi, 3, wounded with shrapnel in the head;

At approximately 1:00 on Friday, May 11, 2001, Israeli occupation forces shelled a Palestinian President’s Guards (Force 17) site, which serves as a training centre.  The site is located approximately 200 east of the coast in Deir El-Balah.  PCHR’s field officer in the middle area of the Gaza Strip reported that an Israeli gunboat fired 15 shells at the site, which has been shelled frequently over the past months.  Three rooms of the site were destroyed.

 Also on Friday, at approximately 6:30 local time, after 30 minutes of intensive firing of heavy and medium caliber bullets, four Israeli tanks and an Israeli bulldozer invaded the south of Deir El-Balah (Abu Houli area).  They entered approximately 500m inside the area.  They destroyed five Palestinian houses and a Palestinian National Security Forces site.  They also razed a number of greenhouses and damaged Salah El-Din Street (the main road between the north and south of the Gaza Strip).  PCHR’s field officer in the middle area of the Gaza Strip reported that the Israeli forces withdrew from the area after 4 hours, leaving the following damage:

They also destroyed the following greenhouses:

       1)         three greenhouses planted with vegetables that stood on a 3-donum area of agricultural land, owned by Sa’id ‘Abdel-Mon’em Abu Houli; and

       2)         a greenhouse planted with vegetables that stood on a 1-donum area of agricultural land and its irrigation network, owned by ‘Abdel-Qader Muttair Abu Houli.

 Also on Friday, at approximately 15:00 local time, Israeli occupation forces opened fire on a number of Palestinian children who were demonstrating near Al-Mentar (Karni) Outlet.  Hussam Fawaz Sha’ban Tafesh, 16, from Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City, was killed with a live bullet that entered his right side and settled in the chest.

 Also on Friday, at approximately 22:20 local time, Israeli occupation forces launched three surface-to-surface missiles at the northern area of the Gaza Strip.  Two missiles fell to the east of Palestinian Police Headquarters in the northern area of the Gaza Strip and on the land designed for the project of Sheikh Zayed city in the north of Jabalya refugee camp.  Three boys from the nearby Bedouin village “Abu El-Nasser” were wounded.  In his testimony to PCHR, one of the wounded said that they were sitting in the area and fled when they heard the sound of the first missile’s explosion.  Then, the second missile exploded and injured them.  The wounded were:

1)                       Akram Mohammed Duhail, 16, wounded with shrapnel in the shoulder, the chest and the back;

2)                       ‘Omar Abu Duhail, 17, wounded with shrapnel in the shoulder; and

3)                       Nasser Suleiman Abu Thuraya, 17, wounded with shrapnel in the right leg.

The third missile fell onto a house in Jabalya refugee camp, owned by Mustafa Hassan Shaqqura, in which 11 people live.  It did not explode.  Palestinian explosives experts came to the area and took the missile in order to disarm it, preventing a disaster since the entire family was in the house.

 PCHR condemns Israel’s new crime of assassination that was committed this morning.  PCHR draws the attention of the international community to the danger of continued Israeli escalation in war crimes and violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949.  PCHR calls on the international community and the High Contracting Parties of the Fourth Geneva Convention to immediately intervene in order to stop Israeli crimes against Palestinian civilians and their property and to force Israel to comply with its obligation under the Convention.