Israel Continued Acts of
State Terrorism, and Its Occupying Forces Escalated War Crimes in the OPT
· 18 Palestinians, mostly civilians, including 5 children, were killed by Israeli forces
· 11
of the victims were killed in the past 24 hours
· 9
of the victims, including 2 children were killed in 3 assassinations
· Campaigns
of arrests in Tulkarm refugee camp and hundreds of civilians were transferred
to the nearby Nour Shams refugee camp
· 6
Palestinian houses were demolished in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah
· Israeli
forces conducted a series of incursions into Palestinian areas, accompanied by
indiscriminate shelling
· Israeli
forces continued to use Palestinian civilians as human shields in military
operations
· The
Israeli retaliatory campaign continues against families of wanted Palestinians
and those who allegedly have carried out armed attacks against Israeli
targets
· A
volunteer of the International Solidarity Movement was wounded by Israeli
forces in Jenin
Introduction
As the world and international, Arab and local media are busy following
the developments of the US-British led war on Iraq, Israeli occupying forces
have perpetrated more illegal actions and human rights violations against
Palestinian civilians, including willful killings, shelling of and incursions
into Palestinian areas and agricultural land leveling. This week 3-9 April 2003, 18
Palestinians, mostly civilians, including 5 children, were killed by Israeli
occupying forces.
In a continuation of the policy of extra-judicial
assassination officially adopted by the Israeli government against political
and field activists of the Intifada, and in disregard for the lives of
Palestinian civilians, this week, Israeli occupying forces committed three new
extra-judicial assassinations, which left dead 9 Palestinians, including 3
targeted individuals. On 8 April 2003, Israeli occupying forces committed an
assassination in Gaza City, which left 7 Palestinians dead, only two of whom
were targeted. Five the victims,
including two children, were killed by a missile launched by an Israeli combat
helicopter when they gathered in the place of the attack. On 7 April 2003,
Israeli occupying forces assassinated a Palestinian in the northern West Bank
town of Salfit. On 3 April 2003, Israeli
occupying forces assassinated a Palestinian in Nablus.
Israeli occupying forces conducted a series of
incursions into Palestinian areas in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, during which
they attacked Palestinian civilians and property. On 9 April 2003, Israeli occupying forces
moved into the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun. This incursion
continued until the following morning, during which Israeli forces killed 5
Palestinians, including a child, and injured 9 others. This week, Israeli occupying forces conducted
a series of incursions into Rafah, during which they demolished 6 Palestinian
houses.
For the second consecutive week, Israeli occupying
forces have maintained control over the northern West Bank town of
Tulkarm. They have imposed a curfew on
the town, raided houses and arrested some Palestinians.
In cases of apparent willful killing, Israeli
occupying forces shot dead 4 Palestinian civilians, including two children, and
wounded more than 10 others in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
In another crime committed by Zionist gangs against
Palestinian civilians, 19 Palestinian school children were injured as a result
of a bomb explosion, for which a terrorist Jewish organization claimed
responsibility.
A Jewish organization called “Children’s
Wrath” claimed responsibility for the attack through sending a statement
to the Israeli media. The statement
mentioned the attack “came in retaliation for the killing of children by
Arabs.”
In violation of international humanitarian law, which
prohibits collective punishment, Israeli forces took retaliatory measures
against families of Palestinians who have carried out attacks against Israeli
targets in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and those wanted by Israeli
forces. In this context, they destroyed two Palestinian houses in the
West Bank and Gaza Strip.
In a continuation of the policy of house demolition
in Jerusalem and its suburbs to force the Palestinian population to leave the
city in persistent attempts to Judaize the city, Israeli occupying forces
demolished 17 Palestinian houses and a barracks in occupied Jerusalem under the
pretext of the lack of building licenses.
Israeli occupying forces have maintained a total siege on the OPT. They have isolated Palestinian communities from one
another. They have partitioned the Gaza Strip into three separate zones and
have restricted the movement of people and goods. They have also
maintained curfews on some areas in the West Bank. Since Saturday, 15
March 2003, Israeli occupying authorities prevented Palestinians aged 16-35
from traveling abroad. Israeli occupying forces have also maintained a
strict siege on al-Mawasi area in the southern Gaza Strip for several months,
which has caused a deterioration of the living conditions of Palestinians civilians
in the area.
Shelling of, and Encroachment into Palestinian Areas
Thursday, 3 April 2003
At approximately 01:00, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles and covered by intense gunfire, moved
into Qalqilya from the south. A
Palestinian child, Jihad ‘Aziz ‘Abdul Ra’ouf Nazzal, 14, was seriously wounded
by two lived bullets in the chest and the left thigh. He was evacuated to hospital, where he
succumbed to his wounds a few minutes later. According to an eyewitness, Nazzal was shot while he was sitting with
his family near their house in Nazzal neighborhood in the center of the
town. When Israeli forces were close to
the house, the family tried to enter the house, but Israeli soldiers opened
fire. The town was completely quiet when
Israeli occupying forces invaded it and opened fire at the family.
In an apparent willful killing, in the afternoon,
Israeli occupying forces opened fire at two young Palestinian men who were
collecting wood from agricultural areas in the east of Jabalya in the northern
Gaza Strip. The two were seriously
wounded, and one of them bled to death.
In his testimony to PCHR, ‘Emad Sa’di Shaqqura, 21,
from Jabalya refugee camp, who was wounded in this incident, said:
“At approximately 15:00 on Thursday, 3 April 2003, my
neighbor, Eyad Mohammed ‘Olayan, 28, and I went to agricultural areas located
approximately 1500m west of the border with Israel, east of Jabalya, to collect
wood. These areas were razed by Israeli
occupying forces nearly two months ago. We rode an animal cart towards the area. When we were close to the area, we left the cart and walked until we
reached a cow farm owned by the family of Abu Safiya, approximately 1200m west
of the border. Owners of these
agricultural areas were there. As we
were about to start collecting wood, we were surprised by 7 Israeli soldiers
coming out of the farm and pointing their guns towards us. They ordered us to stop, but we were
terrified, so we escaped. They fired at
us. I was wounded in the right
thigh. I fell onto the ground. My neighbor who was also wounded fell behind
me. Two soldiers moved towards me and
ordered me to take off clothes from the upper part of my body and I did. When they were certain that I had nothing
with me, one of them took off my trousers and covered my injury with a
bandage. Then they pulled me and my
neighbor. I saw my neighbor bleeding and
having difficulty breathing. I asked
soldiers to offer him help, but they did not. Two hours later, Israeli soldiers allowed a Palestinian ambulance to
evacuate us to hospital, but my neighbor was dead.”
According to the ambulance driver, Israeli soldiers
deliberately obstructed the access of the ambulance to the area. They also ordered him and his colleague to
walk on foot towards the wounded. He
asserted that ‘Olayan was dead when he was taken to hospital. ‘Olyan was the driver’s nephew.
Friday, 4 April 2003
At approximately 03:00, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, including two bulldozers, and
helicopters, moved from “Netzarim” settlement, south of Gaza city,
approximately 2km into al-Hasaina area in the west of Nusseirat neighborhood in
the central Gaza Strip. They opened
intense fire. They surrounded the house
of ‘Abdul Rahim ‘Abdul Qader al-Jahjouh, 32, who is allegedly wanted by these
forces. They raided the house after they
had blown off its door. Al-Jahjouh was
able to escape. Israeli soldiers fired
at him, injuring him with shrapnel in the chest, but continued to run. Israeli soldiers searched the house using
dogs. Then, they raided the house of
al-Jahjouh’s four brothers. They forced
the families, including women and children, out of the houses, and handcuffed
and blindfolded the four brothers. Then,
they took one of the brothers, ‘Abdullah, 47, and interrogated him. During the interrogation, a dog bit him in
the right thigh. Other Israeli soldiers
raided neighboring houses. They made
holes in the walls to move from one house to another. They also opened fire at those houses and
their doors. At approximately 06:30, a
number of Palestinian civilians gathered in the area and threw stones towards
Israeli soldiers. Immediately, Israeli
soldiers used ‘Omar ‘Abdullah al-Jahjouh, 14, as a human shield, and fired at
the stone throwers, wounding 3:
1. Bahaa’ ‘Adnan Jaber, 16, wounded by a
live bullet in the left leg;
2. Khaled Eslim Nabhan, 22, seriously
wounded by a live bullet in the thighs, and by shrapnel in the eye; and
3. ‘Abdul Hakim Khaled al-Habbash, 45,
wounded by a live bullet in the right thigh.
At approximately 08:30, Israeli occupying forces
withdrew from the area after they had released those who were detained.
Saturday, 5 April 2003
At approximately 18:00, as Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, had already moved into Jenin, a number
of members of the International Solidarity Movement with the Palestinian
people, who were wearing a special uniform that has become well-known to
Israeli occupying forces, moved towards Israeli heavy military vehicles. Immediately, Israeli soldiers on an armored
personnel carrier fired at them. An
American volunteer, Brian Ivari, 24, was seriously wounded by a live bullet in
the face, which settled in the nose.
At approximately 21:00, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, moved approximately 300m into al-Salam
neighborhood in Rafah, adjacent to the Egyptian border. Immediately, two Israeli military bulldozers
demolished a Palestinian house totally and three others partially:
1. They
totally demolished a 100-square-meter house, in which 5 people live, owned by
Faten Subhi Suleiman al-Liddawi.
2. They
partially demolished a 200-square-meter house, in which 8 people live, owned by
Fathi Mohammed ‘Abdul ‘Aal.
3. They
partially demolished a 130-square-meter, asbestos-roofed house, in which 9
people live, owned by Sufian Hussein Ahmed ‘Aabdin.
4. They
partially demolished a 150-square-meter, asbestos-roofed house, in which 6
people live, owned by Khalil Mohammed ‘Abdul Rahman al-‘Aker.
At approximately 21:30, two Israeli armored personnel
carriers, covered by intense gunfire, moved into Qabatya village, south of
Jenin. Two Palestinian children were
wounded:
1. Mahmoud Ahmed Qassem Hanisha, 16,
wounded by shrapnel in the back and the legs; and
2. Bilal ‘Abdul Rahman ‘Omar Kumail, 12,
wounded by shrapnel in the left hand and leg.
Sunday, 6 April 2003
Early in the morning, Israeli occupying forces
invaded al-Musaddar village in the central Gaza Strip, claiming to search for
alleged wanted Palestinians. Two
Palestinians, including a child, were killed and 14 others were wounded by
Israeli forces. The Israeli invasion
continued until noon. A number of houses
and civilian facilities were severely damaged, and more than 30 Palestinians
were arrested.
According to PCHR’s investigation, at approximately
03:30, Israeli occupying forces, reinforced with heavy military vehicles and
covered by intense gunfire, moved from “Kfar Darom” settlement, southeast of
Deir al-Balah, approximately 2km into al-Musaddar village in the central Gaza
Strip. They imposed a curfew on the
village. They moved onto the roofs of 4
Palestinian houses after they had searched them and stole some belongings. Then, they called through loudspeakers on
male residents of the village, aged 20-50, to gather in Ibn Zaytoun school in
the east of the village. Israeli
soldiers searched these Palestinians and arrested 34 of them. In the afternoon, 12 of those detainees were
released, while the others were released on the following evening.
At the beginning of this invasion, as a result of
indiscriminate Israeli gunfire, a Palestinian civilian, Salem Suleiman
al-Mausaddar, 57, was wounded by a live bullet in the lower jaw.
At approximately 06:00, a number of young men and
boys from al-Maghazi refugee camp and al-Zawaida village gathered on the main
road (Salah al-Din Street) and threw stones towards Israeli military vehicles
positioned at the entrance of al-Musaddar village. Israeli soldiers fired at the stone throwers,
wounding 11:
1. Tayseer
Fadhel Abu ‘Aassi, 22, wounded by a live bullet in the left shoulder;
2. ‘Emad
Mufid Thabet, 16, wounded by shrapnel in the left ear;
3. Nader
Jalal Abu Jayab, 16, wounded by shrapnel in the right shoulder;
4. Tamer
‘Aadel al-Ta’ban, 15, wounded by a live bullet in the right hand;
5. Mohammed
Fadhel al-Lai, 15, wounded by two live bullets in the feet;
6. Anas
‘Aamer al-Buhaisi, 18, wounded by a live bullet in the left foot;
7. Ahmed
Younis Abu Zayed, 14, wounded by a live bullet in the left hand;
8. Mohammed
Mohammed al-‘Abid, 17, wounded by a live bullet in the left hand;
9. Mohammed Hassan Abu Qainas, 17, wounded
by a live bullet in the right hand;
10. Shadi Mousa Abu Rikab, 21, seriously
wounded by several live bullets throughout the body; and
11.Mohammed Musleh Abu Shawish, 15, wounded by a live
bullet in the right hand.
At approximately 10:30, a
number of Palestinian resistance men clashed with Israeli heavy military
vehicles on the northern edge of al-Musaddar village. Israeli soldiers fired at those men, wounding
one of them, Marwan ‘Abdul Elah Abu Jayab, 22, with a live bullet in the
legs. Then, an Israeli military vehicle
moved towards him and ran over him, killing him instantly.
During this invasion, Israeli occupying forces
damaged the electricity and telephone supplies, and destroyed a wall and the
doors of four houses.
At approximately 13:00, while they were withdrawing
from the village, Israeli occupying forces fired an artillery shell at some
Palestinian civilians who were on agricultural areas between al-Maghazi refugee
camp and al-Musaddar village. A
Palestinian child, Yousef Riad Abu Nadi, 16, was killed by shrapnel throughout
the body, and Walid Hussein Kalloub, 24, was wounded by shrapnel in the right
shoulder.
At approximately 12:00, Israeli occupying forces in a
military location in Tal Zo’rob area in the southwest of Rafah opened fire at
Palestinian houses near Zo’rob square. A
Palestinian woman, Nasra Yousef Fouju, 34, was wounded by a live bullet in the
left thigh, while she was at home, approximately 500m away from the source of
fire.
At approximately 16:00, 6 Israeli heavy military
vehicles, including a bulldozer, covered by intense gunfire, moved
approximately 150m into Imam ‘Ali Street near the Egyptian border, south of Rafah. They demolished two Palestinian houses:
1. They totally demolished a
300-square-meter, two-storey house, in which 6 families (26 people) live, owned
by Mustafa Shihda Saleh Zo’rob.
2. They partially demolished a
200-square-meter house, in which 3 families (14 people) live, owned by ‘Abdul
Mon’em Shihda Saleh Zo’rob.
A number of members of International Solidarity
Movement tried to stop the demolition, but Israeli soldiers fired live bullets
and sound bombs to drive them away from the area.
At approximately 00:30, Israeli occupying forces in a
military location in Tal Zo’rob area in the southwest of Rafah opened fire at
Palestinian houses near Zo’rob square. A
Palestinian civilian, Rashed Khalil al-Qadhi, 75, was wounded by shrapnel in
the head, while he was at home, approximately 450m away from the source of
fire.
At the same time, Israeli occupying forces at the
Egyptian border, south of Rafah, opened fire at Palestinian houses in Block J
in Rafah refugee camp. A Palestinian
civilian, Eyad ‘Abdul Rahman al-Nijdi, 30, was wounded by shrapnel in the head
and the back while he was at home, approximately 300m away from the source of
fire.
Monday, 7 April 2003
At approximately 12:00, 25 Israeli soldiers,
reinforced with two military vehicles and a bulldozer, moved approximately 1km
into Sheikh Hammouda area in al-Qarara village, north of Khan Yunis. They raided and searched four Palestinian
houses owned by Nidal Jihad Abu ‘Eid, Suleiman ‘Atwa al-‘Emawi, Jaber Zayed
al-‘Emawi and ‘Ali ‘Abdul Karim al-Zar. They used the latter as a human shield to raid a site of the Palestinian
National Security Force, approximately 30m away from his house. Al-Zar told PCHR’s field worker in Khan Yunis
that Israeli soldiers threatened to kill him if members of the Palestinian
National Security Force resisted them. Israeli soldiers searched the site, which was empty, and then released
al-Zar. They withdrew from the area at
approximately 14:00.
Wednesday, 9 April 2003
At approximately 06:00, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, including a bulldozer, and covered by
intense shelling, moved approximately 3km into the northern Gaza Strip town of
Beit Hanoun. They took position near
Hammouda fuel station at the main crossroads north of the town. Israeli tanks were deployed on Salah al-Din
Street, west of the town. A number of
Israeli soldiers were deployed on the roof of a two-storey building near
Hammouda fuel station. They opened fired
at Palestinian civilians in al-Sikka Street, approximately 200m west of
Palestinian boys who threw stones towards Israeli forces. Two Palestinian civilians, including a child,
were killed:
1. Ahmed Rashad ‘Abdullah Abu al-Qumsan,
16, from Beit Lahia, shot by a live bullet in the chest; and
2. ‘Emad ‘Adnan al-Hindi, 21, from
Jabalya, shot by a live bullet in the pelvis.
At approximately 11:00, Israeli occupying forces shot
dead ‘Ali Hussein al-Mushairfi, 36, a member of the Palestinian military
liaison from al-Nada housing project, with a live bullet in the head as he was
crossing Salah al-Din Street.
During this incursion, which continued until Thursday
morning, 10 April 2003, a number of Palestinian resistance men clashed with
Israeli occupying forces. Two
Palestinian resistance men were killed in these clashes:
1. Ramez Nafez al-Talmas, 27, from Jabalya
refugee camp, hit by shrapnel throughout the body; and
2. ‘Abdul Mon’em Mohammed Nejem, 20, from
Jabalya, shot by a live bullet in the head.
In a continuation of the policy of extra-judicial
assassination officially adopted by the Israeli government against political
and field activists of the Intifada, and in disregard for the lives of
Palestinian civilians, this week, Israeli occupying forces committed three new
extra-judicial assassinations, which left dead 9 Palestinians, including 3
targeted ones.
On Thursday morning, 3 April 2003, Israeli occupying
forces shot dead an activist of the Hamas movement in Nablus, as he resisted
these forces when they came to arrest him. According to the victim’s wife, at approximately 03:00, while she was
with her husband, Khaled ‘Ali Mohammed Baker, 33, and their 8-month-old infant,
in the flat of Hassan Sanakra, who hosted them, located on the fourth floor of
an apartment building in al-Nimsawi neighborhood in the north of Nablus, they
heard an explosion outside. They also
heard a noise at the door. Immediately,
her husband (who was holding a pistol) went to the door. He saw Israeli soldiers standing there. When was 2m away from them, he tried to fire
at them, but they immediately opened fire at him. He was killed by several live bullets
throughout the body. The wife said that
Israeli soldiers fired at her husband’s head after he had been killed. Baker was an activist of the Hamas movement
in Nablus.
On Monday evening, 7 April 2003, Israeli occupying
forces assassinated a Palestinian in the northern West Bank town of
Salfit. According to information
available to PCHR, at approximately 20:15, while Bader ‘Abdul Ra’ouf Yassin, 23,
from Salfit, was sitting in front of a grocery shop near a café in the center
of the town, a civilian car (white Mitsubishi) that had a Palestinian
registration number stopped near the café. Six gunmen in civilian clothes got out of the car fired at Yassin from a
distance of 10m. Yassin was wounded by a
live bullet in the chest. Yassin put his
hand on the place of the wound and ran towards a nearby alley. The gunmen chased and fired at him until he
fell. One of the gunmen moved towards
Yassin and moved his body. Unconvinced
that Yassin was dead, the gunman fired at him point blank until he was
certain. His body was evacuated to
hospital. According to medical sources,
Yassin was shot by 24 live bullets throughout the body. Yassin was a member of Palestinian Military
Intelligence and an activist of the Fatah movement.
The Israeli daily Yediot Aharanot quoted
Israeli security sources on its Arabic web page as saying that “an Israeli
military unit killed a Palestinian activist in Salfit as he tried to escape
when the unit wanted to arrest him.” An Israeli military source of the
Israeli central command claimed that the military unit attempted to arrest the
activist, but he escaped, so soldiers fired warning bullets in the air, and
when he did not stop, they shot him dead. Eyewitnesses refuted this claim.
On Tuesday, 8 April 2003, Israeli occupying forces
committed another assassination in Gaza City, which resulted in the deaths of 7
Palestinians, including two children. This war crime comes in the context of
the policy of extra-judicial assassinations adopted by the Israeli occupying
forces in violation of international law. Such actions are defined as war
crimes, under the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949.
Two Israeli combat helicopters, accompanied by an
F-16 fighter jet, launched two missiles at a civilian car in a densely
populated area of Gaza City. Two Palestinians, allegedly wanted by Israeli
occupying forces, were traveling in the car. A number of Palestinian civilians
gathered around the targeted car to rescue the victims, when the aircraft
launched a third missile, killing 5 Palestinian civilians, including two
children, and injuring dozens.
According to PCHR’s investigation and eyewitness
reports, at approximately 20:35 on Tuesday, April 8 2003, two Israeli combat
helicopters, accompanied by an F-16 fighter jet, flew over Gaza City. One of
the helicopters launched a missile at a civilian car (a white Subaru), that was
traveling approximately 30m away from Imam Shaf’ei mosque in the ‘Asqoula area,
a densely populated area in the east of Gaza City. The missile hit the left
side of the car. Soon after, the helicopter launched another missile that hit
the car. The car exploded and those inside were killed. Later, the victims were
identified as:
1. Sa’ad Musa’ed al-‘Arabid, 35,
from the Sheikh Rdwan neighborhood in Gaza City, a member of ‘Ezziddin
al-Qassam Brigade, the military wing of the Hamas movement; and
2. Ashraf ‘Abdul Rahim al-Halabi,
28, from al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza.
Soon after, a number of Palestinian civilians
gathered around the car to see what had happened and to attempt to rescue the
victims. Immediately, in an action apparently aimed at causing the maximum
number of Palestinian civilian casualties, a missile was launched at the crowd
by one of the helicopters. Five Palestinian civilians, including two children,
were killed:
1. Ahmed Khamis al-Ashram, 13;
2. Sami Hassan Qassem, 16;
3. ‘Omar Kamel Nassar, 21;
4. Mohammed Saber Basal, 20; and
5. Mahmoud Sa’id Farawana, 30.
In addition, 53 other civilians were injured, 8 of
whom are in a serious condition. A number of houses and civilian facilities in
the area were also severely damaged.
Friday, 4 April 2003
At approximately 13:00, Israeli soldiers at
al-Matahen military checkpoint on Salah al-Din Street, which links between the
north and south of the Gaza Strip, fired at a civilian car that was traveling
from Khan Yunis to Deir al-Balah. The
driver, Ahmed ‘Abed Ahmed Tafesh, 22, from Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza
City, was wounded by a live bullet in the left thigh. Two women who were traveling in the car were
not hurt. Then, an Israeli military jeep
pushed the car outside the checkpoint and civilians evacuated the driver to
hospital.
In the evening, Israeli occupying forces fired at
some Palestinian civilians who challenged the curfew imposed on the southern
residential areas of Hebron. Three
civilians were wounded:
1. Tha’er Daoud Abu Subaih, 10, wounded by
a rubber-coated metal bullet in the chest;
2. Amin ‘Abdul Halim Abu Daoud, 31,
wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the chin; and
3. Fadi Saber Barqan, 13, wounded by a
robber-coated metal bullet in the forehead.
Saturday, 5 April 2003
After they declared that they had shot dead a
Palestinian gunman, ‘Alaa’ Joudi Rebhi al-Natsha, 20, from Hebron, when he
attempted to enter “Kiryat Arba” settlement, Israeli occupying forces launched
a series of retaliatory attacks against Palestinian civilians in the town. According to information available to PCHR,
at approximately 20:30, Israeli soldiers opened fire at Palestinian houses in
Jabal Jouhar neighborhood in the south of the town, which is under Israeli
security control. Two Palestinian
children were wounded:
1. Yazid ‘Emad No’man Da’na, 12, seriously
wounded by an explosive live bullet in the right knee; and
2. Jibril Mohammed Subeh al-Rujbi, 12,
wounded by shrapnel in the right forearm and the left ankle.
Collective Punishment Measures against Families of Wanted Palestinians
and Those Who have Carried out Armed Attacks against Israeli Targets
In violation of international humanitarian law, which prohibits
collective punishment, Israeli forces took retaliatory measures against
families of Palestinians who have carried out attacks against Israeli targets
in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and those wanted by Israeli forces.
At approximately 03:00 on Thursday, 3 April 2003,
Israeli occupying forces surrounded the house of the family of the deceased
Mahmoud Marmash in the east of Tulkram, which is located on the first floor of
a 3-storey apartment building owned by heirs of Mahmoud al-Tuhal. They forced the mother, Halima Mohammed
Hassan Marmash, 52, her daughter and 12 grandchildren out. They also forced out residents of the other
two floors of the building. Then,
Israeli soldiers planted explosives in the Marmash’s house and destroyed it,
without allowing the family to evacuate furniture. The other two floors of the building were
damaged.
At approximately 02:00 on Tuesday, 8 April 2003, 9
Israeli military jeeps moved into Beit Emrin village, northwest of Nablus, and
surrounded the house of Sadiq Mar’ei Hussein Hassoun, 70. They called through loudspeakers to the 12
residents of the 320-square-meter, two-storey house to get out. They also forced residents of the 25
neighboring houses out of their houses. At approximately 06:20, Israeli forces destroyed the house, damaging a
neighboring house. Hassoun is the father
of ‘Abdul Salam Hassoun who carried out a bombing inside Israel in January
2002.
Israeli Occupying Forces Demolish 17 Palestinian
Houses and a Barracks in Jerusalem
In a continuation of the policy of house demolition
in Jerusalem and its suburbs to force the Palestinian population to leave the city
in persistent attempts to Judaize the area, Israeli occupying forces demolished
17 Palestinian houses and a barracks in occupied Jerusalem under the pretext of
the lack of building licenses.
According to information available to PCHR, at
approximately 09:30 on Thursday, 3 April 2003, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with 3 bulldozers, raided the areas of Deir al-‘Aamoud and Wadi
al-‘Ain in Sour Baher village, south of occupied Jerusalem. Until 18:00, they demolished 6 Palestinian
houses and a barracks of construction materials. They also demolished a Palestinian house in
al-Za’im neighborhood in al-Tour village, east of occupied Jerusalem.
At approximately 07:00 on Monday, 7 April 2003, a
unit of the so-called Israeli “border guard” and police, accompanied by some
officials of the municipality of West Jerusalem and bulldozers, raided
‘Eissawia village, northeast of occupied Jerusalem. They demolished 10 Palestinian flats under
the pretext of the lack of necessary building licenses. Thus, the number of Palestinian houses
demolished by Israeli occupying authorities in Jerusalem and its suburbs since
the beginning of this year has increased to 34, in comparison to a total of 41
houses throughout the whole of 2001, which marks a sharp escalation of the
policy of house demolition. This number
does not include other buildings used for purposed other than housing.
19 Palestinian School Children Injured As a Result of
an Explosion of a Bomb in a School in Jenin
In another crime committed by Zionist gangs against
Palestinian civilians, 19 Palestinian school children were injured as a result
of the explosion of a bomb, for which a terrorist Jewish organization claimed
responsibility.
According to information available to PCHR, at
approximately 12:00 on Wednesday, 9 April 2003, an explosion occurred inside a
classroom in the west part of the second floor of Martyr Farid Ghannam School
in Jaba’ village, south of Jenin. The
bomb was planted in a corner of the classroom. Nineteen school children were injured, two of whom were in serious
condition.
At approximately 14:30, the Israeli daily Ydiot
Aharanot reported on its Arabic web page that that an organization called
“Children’s Wrath” claimed responsibility for the attack via a
statement to the Israeli media. The
statement mentioned that the attack “came in retaliation for the killing
of children by Arabs.” The
newspaper added that the Israeli police initiated an investigation into the
attack. It also indicated that the same
organizations had already claimed responsibilities for two other attacks on
Palestinians.
* * * * *
PCHR calls:
1. Upon the international community to
provide immediate and independent international protection for
the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
2. Upon
the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 to
reconvene to take effective measures to protect Palestinian civilians in the
Occupied Palestinian Territories, in accordance with their obligations under
article 1 and article 146, to ensure the respect of the Convention.
3. Upon
the international community to investigate and prosecute before international
courts those believed to have committed war crimes in the Occupied Palestinian
Territoris.
4. Upon
the ICRC to enhance its presence, expand its activities, and intensify its
field operations throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
5. Upon
the European Union to activate Article 2 of the Euro-Israeli Association
Agreement, which provides that Israel must respect human rights.
6. Upon
the international community to provide humanitarian and medical assistance for
the Palestinian people, whose living conditions are continuing to deteriorate
as a result of the continued siege imposed by Israeli occupation forces on the
entire Occupied Palestinian Territories.
“END”
Trial Version
