Press Release  

The Israeli occupation forces shell Rafah and Khan Yunis:

The child Al-Qawasmi, shot by a settler after being caught and thrown to the ground, dies

   Ref: 198/2000 Date: December 11, 2000 Time: 13:00 GMT            15:00 Palestine Time  This morning, the child Ahmed Ali Darwish Al-Qawasmi, 14 years old, from Hebron, was pronounced dead from a wound with a live bullet in the head that was shot by an armed settler on December 8, 2000.  According to eyewitnesses, an armed settler pushed the child, threw him down, and placed his foot on the child’s neck. Then, the settler shot directly at the head of the child, wounding him critically.  The attack took place 100 meters inside Area H-1, which is under Palestinian control.  The child was evacuated to Al-Ahli hospital in Hebron where he was pronounced dead this morning.  This is a new crime to be added to numerous other crimes and willful killings committed by the Israeli occupation forces and armed settlers, who act under the protection of these forces, against Palestinian civilians.  Yesterday afternoon, the Israeli occupation forces shot at Palestinian civilians who were demonstrating in the village of Beit Fourik in Nablus.  As a result, Hekmat Abdel-Hadi Hanani, 22 years old, was killed with a live bullet in the chest.  Today, at about 12:30 local time, Israeli occupation troops attacked field officers of the Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment (LAW).  PCHR learned that these field officers were near a military roadblock of the Israeli occupation forces on Nablus-Ramallah road, photographing a Palestinian civilian car that was hit with stones thrown by settlers of Ofra settlement near Ramallah.  Israeli occupation forces attacked field officers A’amer El-A’arori and Thurayya Oleyan, confiscating their videotapes and wounding El-A’arori in the hand.  Yesterday afternoon, at about 15:00 local time, the Israeli occupation forces positioned at the borderline near Salah El-Din Gate in Rafah, shot at Ahmed Suleiman Abu Jazar, 17 years old, wounding him with a live bullet in the chest.  These forces also shot at an ambulance of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society when it came to provide assistance for the wounded boy.  In his testimony to PCHR, the driver said that he moved towards the wounded boy when the Israeli occupation forces shot at the vehicle, which was 200 meters to the north of the military post of the Israeli occupation forces.  He stated that two live bullets hit the right side of the ambulance.  Nevertheless, the medical staff managed to evacuate the boy to Al-Joneina hospital in Rafah.  He was in moderate condition.   Shelling of Rafah and Khan Yunis

 This morning, at approximately 5:00 local time, the Israeli occupation forces positioned in a military post near Salah El-Din Gate on the borderline in Rafah fired 11 artillery shells at houses in Qeshta neighborhood, 30-120 meters away from the mentioned military post.  The shells hit houses whose owners had left them in recent weeks due to frequent shelling by the Israeli occupation forces.  Damage to these houses and a commercial store are detailed in the following:

                              1)            The house of Yusri Hamad Hamdan Qeshta, a two-story house in which five people live, 100 meters away from the military post of the Israeli occupation forces near Salah El-Din Gate: The southern façade of the second floor was hit with three artillery shells that penetrated walls, exploded in the bedroom and burned furniture.

                              2)            The house of Kamal Mahmoud Hassan Qeshta, a one-story house in which five people live, 90 meters away from the military post of the Israeli occupation forces near Salah El-Din Gate: The house was hit with three artillery shells that penetrated the walls of the kitchen and the living room, making large holes in the walls.

                              3)            The house of Jalal Hamdan A’wwad Abu Zuhri, a one-story house in which seven people live, 50 meters away from the military post of the Israeli occupation forces near Salah El-Din Gate: A shell hit the veranda of the house, causing severe damage to walls.

                              4)            The house of Jamal Hamdan A’wwad Abu Zuhri, a two-story house in which eight people live, 50 meters away from the military post of the Israeli occupation forces near Salah El-Din Gate: The western façade of the house was hit with an artillery shell, making large holes.

                              5)            The house of Hamdan Hamad Hassan Qeshta, a two-story house in which five people live, 120 meters away from the military post of the Israeli occupation forces near Salah El-Din Gate: The western façade of the house was hit with two artillery shells, one of which  penetrated a glass window and exploded in a room, while the other penetrated the wall of an external veranda.

                              6)            The house of Yousef Mahmoud Hassan Qeshta, a two-story house in which five people live, 120 meters away from the military post of the Israeli occupation forces near Salah El-Din Gate: A wall of the second floor was hit with an artillery shell which did not explode.

                              7)            A sewing store, owned by Abdel-Karim Abdullah Khalifa El-Fere’, 300 meters away from the military post of the Israeli occupation forces near Salah El-Din Gate: A shell penetrated the door and exploded inside, causing severe damage to cloth and a steam iron.

 Last night, at approximately 00:30 local time, a tank of the Israeli occupation forces positioned at Al-Tuffah roadblock moved 40 meters forward inside the refugee camp of Khan Yunis, and fired 20 artillery shells and a hail of bullets at houses in the refugee camp.  Artillery shells hit the electricity network, cutting electricity to the area.  In addition, a number of houses were severely damaged as follows:

                              1)            The house of Nayef Mosalam Abu Obeida, a 250-square-meter house in which 20 people live: Shells made holes 20-30 centimeters in diameter in walls and the asbestos roof and a water storage tank were destroyed.

                              2)            The house of Suleiman Mousa Abu Mousa, a 170-square-meter house in which seven people live: The asbestos roof was destroyed and holes made in walls.

                              3)            The house of Hussein Ahmed Abu Khoreis, a 140-square-meter house in which 20 people live: Shells made holes 20-30 centimeters in diameter in walls and the asbestos roof and a water storage tank were destroyed.

                              4)            The house of Khalil Atteya Abu Namous, a 120-square-meter house in which 12 people live: The asbestos roof and a water reservoir were destroyed.

                              5)            The house of Kamel Mohammed Abu A’kar, a 400-square-meter house in which 12 people live: Shells made holes 20-30 centimeters in diameter in walls and the asbestos roof and a water storage tank were destroyed.

                              6)            The house of A’adel Abu Obeida, a 130-square-meter house in which 11 people live: For the second consecutive day, the house was shelled.  Shells made holes 20-30 centimeters in diameter in the roof and walls. This was referred to in yesterday’s press release.

 More sweeping of agricultural land  This morning, the Israeli occupation forces swept more areas of agricultural land along the road between Al-Shuhada’ (Netzarim) junction, to the south of Gaza City, and Al-Mentar (Karni) Outlet, to the east of Gaza City.  PCHR’s field officer in the area reported that the sweeping included:                               1)            A five-donum area of agricultural land planted with citrus, owned by Hammad Ahel.  In addition, a well was destroyed.                               2)            Continued sweeping of a three-donum area of agricultural land planted with olives, owned by Ali A’yyad.                               3)             Continued sweeping of a three-donum area of agricultural land planted with olives, owned by Yousef El-Serhi.   ***  PCHR reiterates its call for the international community to immediately intervene to stop the killings and criminal acts perpetrated by the Israeli occupation forces against Palestinian civilians. PCHR calls in particular for:  1.         Establishing without delay an independent commission of inquiry, in accordance with UN Security Council resolution 1322 (2000), to carry out a thorough and comprehensive investigation into the abuses and killings perpetrated by the Israeli occupation forces against Palestinian civilians. 2.         Convening a conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 to ensure Israel’s compliance with its obligations under the Convention. 3.         Immediately providing international protection for Palestinian civilians in the occupied Palestinian territories in the face of the killings and criminal acts perpetrated by the Israeli occupation forces and groups of Jewish settlers who move under the protection of these forces. 4.         Use by the EU of effective political and economic measures with reference to Article 2 of the Euro-Israel Association Agreement, which calls for the respect of human rights. 5.         Providing humanitarian and medical assistance for the Palestinian people whose living conditions are increasingly deteriorating because of the continued total siege imposed by the Israeli occupation forces on the entire occupied Palestinian territories. 6.         Use by the international community and relevant bodies, including ICRC, of necessary measures to ensure the access of medical supplies and equipment and other humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians. The Israeli occupation forces have continued to deny entry of this material through Rafah Border Crossing (into the Gaza Strip).    

“End”