This
report covers Israeli violations of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian
Territories (OPT) from June 14 – 20, 2001. During this period, the Israeli occupation forces continued to fire at
Palestinian civilians, while Jewish settlers attacked Palestinian civilians and
property. The Israeli occupation forces,
which were present when all the attacks against Palestinians took place, chose
not to intervene in the attacks by the settlers.
During
the week, the Israeli occupation forces used excessive force against
Palestinian civilians who organized peaceful marches. In some cases, Israeli soldiers fired at
Palestinian civilians without any clashes having been reported. In all circumstances, Israeli soldiers opened
fire when no threat was posed to their lives. According to PCHR’s investigations, the Israeli occupation forces used
live ammunition, and in many cases snipers, armed with guns equipped with
silencers, fired at Palestinian civilians. The Israeli forces also used rubber-coated metal bullets, which are not
any less dangerous than live bullets, as well as tear gas.
This
week, two Palestinian children, one aged 11, were killed, and 58 civilians were
wounded by live ammunition and rubber-coated metal bullets fired by the Israeli
occupation forces. According to PCHR’s
investigation, 40 of the wounded were children under 18. A number of journalists and medics were also
wounded.
On
Wednesday, June 20, 2001, the Israeli occupation forces fired at Jamal Mohammed
‘Oudeh Nafe’, 30, from Na’alin village, west of Ramallah, killing him with two
live bullets in the back and the left thigh. Nafe’ was on his way home from his work in an Israeli workshop, together
with four other laborers, when he was shot.
On
Sunday, June 17, 2001, Israeli occupation soldiers, armed with guns equipped
with silencers, fired at Palestinian demonstrators in Khan Yunis. An 11-year-old child, ‘Ali Murad Abu Shawish,
was killed by a live bullet to the back. According to eyewitnesses, the child was shot from a distance of
approximately 50m. Four civilians were
also wounded, including ‘Aadel Hussein El-Muqannan, 16, who succumbed to his
wound on the following day. Al-Muqannan
had been seriously wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen.
On
Wednesday, June 20, 2001, the Israeli occupation forces attempted to
assassinate an activist of Fatah Movement in Nablus, Ahmed ‘abdullah El-M’ani,
45, owner of a mobile phone maintenance workshop. He was repairing a mobile phone brought to
him by a customer when it exploded, injuring him throughout the body.
Settlers
escalated their attacks against Palestinian civilians and property. Two Palestinian civilians were killed, and a
third was injured when settlers ran them over in their cars. These incidents are being investigated by
Israeli police. Police sources claim that these incidents were accidental, but
they appear to have been intentional, especially in light of the escalation of
attacks by settlers against Palestinian civilians. However, it is not certain whether such
incidents are related to the use of Palestinian roads by Jewish settlers and
the speeding of Jewish settlers on those roads near Palestinian areas. Fatema ‘Oleian Abu Farwa, 71, and Ahmed
Mahmoud Ahmed ‘Ali, 65, both from Qalqilya, were victims of attacks by settlers
this week. On Sunday, June 10, 2001, Jamil Qassem Mohammed El-Turk, 47, from
Kufor EL-Dik village near Salfit, was killed after he was severely beaten by
Jewish extremists while he was working on a farm in Tamra, inside the Green
Line.
During the same period, the Israeli occupation
forces continued to impose a total siege on the Occupied Palestinian
Territories, having a disastrous impact on the economic and social situation of
Palestinians.[1] They also continued to reinforce and fortify
their military sites throughout the OPT. They leveled areas of Palestinian land that were previously razed along
the border of the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli occupation forces continued to arrest
Palestinian citizens while they were traveling through border crossings or
crossing military roadblocks throughout the OPT. Some Palestinians were arrested in their
homes.
1. Shooting at Palestinian
Civilians
Thursday,
June 14, 2001
At
approximately 18:00 local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in the
vicinity of” Gani Tal,” northeast of Khan Yunis, fired live ammunition and tear
gas canisters at a number of Palestinian youth who were throwing stones at
Israeli soldiers in the west of Al-Amal neighborhood. Eight demonstrators were wounded as follows:
1) Ibrahim ‘Abdel-Karim El-Salmi,
12, wounded by a live bullet in the left foot;
2) Akram Samara Safi, 13, wounded by
a live bullet in the left leg;
3) Mohammed Ibrahim Ba’ara, 16,
wounded by a live bullet in the left shoulder;
4) Hassan Hamad El-Sissi, 17,
wounded by two live bullets in both feet;
5) Mousa ‘Aadel Abu Mustafa, 17,
wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the head;
6) Samir Haidar Kellab, 18, wounded
by three live bullets in the right foot;
7) Ne’mat Mohammed Fayadh, seriously
wounded by a live bullet in the chest under the heart; and
8) Ra’ed Sha’ban El-Tabesh, 38,
wounded by shrapnel in the right hand.
PCHR’s field officer in Khan Yunis reported that
El-Tabesh did not participate in these clashes and that he was wounded when he
was inside his home. He added that many
people fainted due to tear gas inhalation.
In
the afternoon, clashes erupted between the Israeli occupation forces and dozens
of Palestinian young men and children who gathered in the southwest of Al-Amal
neighborhood in Khan Yunis to throw stones at Israeli patrols in the vicinity
of “Gani Tal” settlement, northwest of Khan Yunis. Israeli soldiers fired a hail of live bullets
and tear gas canisters at Palestinian demonstrators. Eight demonstrators were wounded as follows:
1) Hassan Frhan Shalloula,
22, wounded by a live bullet in the left leg;
2) Ibrahim Ahmed El-Shanna,
16, wounded by a live bullet in the left leg;
3) Fahed Riadh El-Sa’douni,
12, wounded by a live bullet in the right thigh;
4) Maher Mohammed Abu
Ramadan, 21, wounded by a live bullet in the left leg;
5) Mahdi Nabil El-Qedra, 16,
wounded by a live bullet in the left leg;
6) Salameh ‘Adnan ‘Awwad, 24,
wounded by a live bullet in the right leg;
7) Zaki ‘Abdel-Rahman
El-Da’our, 13, wounded by a live bullet in the left leg; and
8) Ahmed Nayef Wadi, 15,
wounded by a live bullet in the left leg.
PCHR’s field officer in
Khan Yunis reported that many Palestinian civilians suffered from tear gas
inhalation.
At approximately 13:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in the vicinity of City Inn
Hotel and on nearby buildings, fired at Palestinian civilians who were
demonstrating at the northern entrance to Al-Bireh, approximately 150m away
from the Israeli forces. Three
Palestinian civilians and a foreign journalist were wounded as follows:
1) Bassam El-Salhi, 40, from
Al-Bireh, member of the political bureau of the Palestinian People Party,
wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the right hand;
2) Faraj ‘Abdel-Rahman
Rummana, 28, from Al-’Am’ari refugee camp, wounded by a rubber-coated metal
bullet in the head;
3) Maher ‘Oudeh Ahmed ‘Arar,
17, from Qarawat Bani Zaid village, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in
the left leg; and
4) Shizizu Kathamatu, 43,
wounded by shrapnel from a live bullet in the right hand while covering the
clashes.
A number of Palestinian
civilians also suffered from tear gas inhalation.
At approximately 13:15
local time, a peaceful march moved from the center of Halhoul town, north of
Hebron, towards the northern entrance to the town. Palestinian civilians removed a sandy
roadblock established by the Israeli occupation forces to close the main road
leading to their town. Israeli soldiers
fired at those civilians, wounding seven of them, including two medics, as follows:
1) Ra’fat Ismail Abu Rayan,
20, from Halhoul, a medic of the Palestinian Union of Medical Relief
Committees, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the left foot;
2) Ussama Rashad Shweiki, 32,
from Hebron, a medic of the Palestine Red Crescent Society, wounded by a
rubber-coated metal bullet in the left leg;
3) Mahmoud Mesbah Ibrahim Abu
Zalata, 10, from Halhoul, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the right
hand;
4) ‘Ali Mohammed ‘Abdullah
‘Ayaydeh, 24, from Al-Shyoukh village, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet
in the head;
5) ‘Aatef Mohammed Yousef
Jaradat, 32, from Sa’ir village, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the
right hand;
6) Mahmoud ‘Abdel-Latif Abu
Yousef, 13, from Halhoul, wounded by a live bullet in the left thigh; and
7) Mohammed ‘Abdel-Rahman
Edris, 17, from Hebron, wounded by a rubber-coated bullet in the right thigh.
At approximately 14:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned at demarcation lines in
Hebron, fired at a number of Palestinian civilians who were demonstrating in
Al-Shallala Street. Two civilians were
wounded as follows:
1) Ahmed Yusri El-‘Oweiwi,
15, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the left leg; and
2) Mohammed As’ad Shahin, 17,
wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the right thigh.
At approximately 15:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers, positioned at Sarda roadblock on
Ramallah-Bir Zeit, fired at a number of Palestinian civilians who were
demonstrating near the mentioned roadblock. Rima Hussein ‘Ali Joudeh, 20, was wounded by a rubber-coated metal
bullet in the right foot.
At approximately 18:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at a number of Palestinian
civilians in ‘Aaboud village northwest of Ramallah, while they were on their
lands that were razed by the Israeli occupation forces. Two civilians were wounded as follows:
1) Yousef ‘Abdel-Majid
El-‘Omar, 45, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the left leg; and
2) Sa’d Elias Ebshareya, 70,
wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the head.
At approximately 15:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers positioned at the entrance to a
settlement road to the south of Al-Mentar (Karni) Outlet, east of Gaza City,
fired at a number of Palestinian demonstrators, wounding Ibrahim Sa’di Fa’our
‘Ayyad, 25, from Al-Shojaeya neighbourhood in Gaza City, with a live bullet to
the left shoulder. In his testimony to
PCHR, ‘Ayyad said that he had not participated in any protests against the
Israeli forces. PCHR’s field officer in
Gaza City reported that Israeli soldiers used guns equipped with silencers to
fire at Palestinian demonstrators from a distance of approximately 150m.
At approximately 17:00
local time, dozens of Palestinian young men and children gathered in the
southwest of Khan Yunis and threw stones at Israeli occupation soldiers positioned
in the vicinity of “Gani Tal” settlement. Those soldiers fired live bullets and tear gas canisters at
demonstrators from a distance of approximately 150m. PCHR’s field officer in Khan Yunis reported
that Israeli soldiers used guns equipped with silencers to fire at Palestinian
demonstrators. Eight demonstrators were
wounded as follows:
1) Mohammed Amin Shakshak,
17, wounded by a live bullet in the right foot;
2) Mohammed Riadh Abu ‘Oudeh,
14, wounded by a live bullet in the right foot;
3) Shadi Bashir Qeitah, 18,
wounded by a live bullet in the left leg;
4) Ahmed Mohammed Shehdeh,
17, wounded by a live bullet in the buttocks;
5) Hazem Smir Abu Dalal, 14,
wounded by a live bullet in the left foot;
6) Jihad Sa’id El-Ghandour,
12, wounded by a live bullet in the left leg;
7) Ismail Mahmoud El-‘Aaour,
15, wounded by a live bullet in the right thigh; and
8) Salah Mohammed Muheisen,
18, wounded by two live bullets in the thighs.
At approximately 18:30
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers, positioned in the vicinity of “Gani
Tal” settlement to the west of Khan Yunis, opened fire on a number of
Palestinian civilians, killing an 11-year-old child, ‘Ali Murad Abu Shawish,
and wounding four, two of whom were in serious condition. According to PCHR’s investigations and
eyewitnesses’ testimonies, around 100 Palestinian civilians, aged 11 to 18, had
gathered to the west of the fence of “Gani Tal” settlement since 15:00 local
time, throwing stones at two Israeli military jeeps in the vicinity of the
mentioned settlement. Israeli soldiers
fired tear gas canisters against demonstrators who were taking cover behind
sacks of sand approximately 50m away from the route of Israeli patrols. Demonstrators fled when they inhaled tear
gas, and jeeps moved back towards a military site 300m away. This scene continued until 18:30 local time
when an Israeli military jeep stopped and a soldier opened fire on
demonstrators, killing the child Abu Shawish and injuring four other demonstrators. According to eyewitnesses, the Israeli
soldier fired at demonstrators from a gun equipped with a silencer. Abu Shawish died on the way to Nasser
hospital in Khan Yunis. According to
medical sources at Nasser Hospital, he received a live bullet that entered the
back and settled in the chest. The
wounded were:
1) ‘Aadel Hussein
El-Muqannan, 16, seriously wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen;
2) Jasser Akram El-Sa’ei, 18,
seriously wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen;
3) Ramzi Mahmoud Qannan, 16,
wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen; and
4) Jihad Majdi Abu Jamous,
15, wounded by a live bullet in the left leg.
In the evening, ‘Aadel
Hussein El-Muqannan, 16, from Khan Yunis, was pronounced dead at Nasser
Hospital in Khan Yunis. He was wounded
by a live bullet to the abdomen during clashes that erupted on the previous day
to the west of Al-Amal neighborhood in Khan Yunis. According to medical sources, the victim had
received a live bullet in the abdomen that severed the aorta. He was the brother of Martyr Ibrahim Hussein
El-Muqannan, 15, who was killed on November 22, 2000 with a live bullet to the
head, fired by the Israeli occupation forces near Al-Tuffah roadblock to the
west of Khan Yunis.
At approximately 17:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at a Palestinian civilian car
that was traveling near Al-Shuhada’ junction, south of Gaza City, without any
clashes having been reported in the area. Ibrahim Ya’qoub Sa’id, 37, from Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza City,
the driver of the targeted car, was wounded by a live bullet in the left upper
arm. He was evacuated to Shifa’ Hospital
in Gaza City for treatment.
At approximately 15:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers, positioned in the vicinity of “Gani
Tal” settlement northeast of Khan Yunis, fired at a number of Palestinian
civilians who were demonstrating approximately 150m away. Eight civilian were wounded as follows:
1) ‘Abdel-Rahman Riadh
El-Salmi, 15, wounded by shrapnel of a live bullet in the chest;
2) Fares Samir Abu Ammouna,
14, wounded by a live bullet in the thigh;
3) Hussein ‘Abdel-Katim
El-Majaydeh, 20, wounded by a live bullet in the left thigh;
4) ‘Abdel-Rahman Ismail Abu
Nemer, 13, wounded by a live bullet in the left buttock;
5) Mohammed Fuad Barbakh, 18,
wounded by a live bullet in the left thigh;
6) Wa’el Salem Abu Nemer, 25,
wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen;
7) Mohammed Nabil Wadi, 16,
wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen; and
8) Islam Mohammed Abu ‘Aker,
14, wounded by a live bullet in the right leg.
At approximately 15:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at a number of Palestinian
civilians who were demonstrating west of Al-Amal neighborhood in Khan
Yunis. Four civilians were wounded as
follows:
1) Ahmed Khamis El-Masri, 17,
wounded by a live bullet in the left foot;
2) ‘Abdullah Ismail Abu
Mustafa, 15, wounded by a live bullet in the left foot;
3) Hussein ‘Abdel-Karim
El-Aqqad, 20, wounded by a live bullet that entered the right thigh and exited
the left one; and
4) Zaki Ahmed Hamdan, 25,
wounded by shrapnel from live bullets to the feet and the left hand.
At approximately 16:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at Jamal Mohammed ‘Oudeh Nafe’,
30, from Na’alin village, west of Ramallah, killing him with two live bullets
in the back and the left thigh. Nafe’
was with his colleagues, coming back from a constuction workshop in Mode’in
area at the Green Line between the West Bank and Israel. When they were 200m away from a military
roadblock at the entrance to Na’alin village, the five laborers crossed the
road to avoid passing by the mentioned roadblock, apparently because they did
not have work permits. Then, a military
truck of the Israeli occupation forces arrived, and Israeli soldiers chased and
fired at them. Nafe’ was killed by two
live bullets in the back and the left thigh.
2. An Assassination attempt in Nablus and a bomb
explodes at the border in Rafah
On the same day, at approximately 13:00 local time,
the Israeli occupation forces attempted to assassinate a Palestinian, Ahmed
‘Abdullah El-M’ani , 45, from Nablus. El-M’ani, an activist of Fatah Movement, owns a workshop for mobile
phone maintenance. He was repairing a
mobile phone brought to him by a customer. Then, the mobile phone exploded in his hands, injuring him with shrapnel
throughout the body. He was evacuated to
Rafidya Hospital in Nablus, where medical sources stated that he was in a
stable condition.
3. Land Leveling and House
Demolition
In the morning, the
Israeli occupation forces started to further fortify their military site in
Rafah. They added more cement blocks
around Tal Zo’rob military site at the border with Egypt, south of Rafah, and
they placed a lever equipped with observation sets. They also added more cement blocks around Tal
Al-Sultan roadblock, which separates Rafah from its Al-Mawasi area.
At approximately 21:30
local time, the Israeli occupation forces started to complete the erection of a
barbwire fence extending from the northeast of “Dogit” settlement and “Elli
Sinai” settlement. This work had already
started on Monday, June 11, 2001, and it was concluded on Sunday, June 17,
2001. PCHR’s field officer in the
northern Gaza Strip reported that the fence, approximately 1,200m long and
stapled with iron bars, was established near tracts of land in the north of
Beit Lahia, which were razed during past months, owned by the families of
Khudier and El-Mughrabi, apparently to isolate Palestinian houses and
agricultural land between the two settlements from their surroundings. He added that the Israeli forces left a small
gap in the fence to enable 12 Palestinian families living in the area,
approximately 1,700 donums, to reach their houses and farms. There are fears that such action might be a
preliminary step towards annexing the area to the two settlements.
The Israeli occupation
forces continued to raze and level land along the border to the east of Beit
Hanounin in the northern Gaza Strip. PCHR’s field officer in the area reported that such action took place
approximately 50m away from the border inside the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli occupation
forces continued to dig along the border to the east of Beit Hanounin in the
northern Gaza Strip. PCHR’s field officer
in the area reported that such action took place approximately 40m away from
the border inside the Gaza Strip. He
added that the Israeli forces were digging tunnels and trenches, 10m wide and
approximately 2m deep.
At approximately 22:00
local time, the Israeli occupation forces established a barbwire fence 1,000m
long, along the northern side of a road branch of Al-Shuhada’ (Netzarim)
junction, leading to Netzarim settlement to the south of Gaza City. PCHR’s field officer in Gaza City reported
that the fence was approximately 70m away from the road and crossed a tract of
land owned by Taleb Harazallah, which was previously razed. He added that the erection of the fence was
apparently aimed at preventing access by Palestinians to the road.
4. Other Attacks and Arrests by the Israeli Occupation
Forces
At approximately 10:00 local time, the Israeli
occupation forces arrested Mohammed Hamza ‘Abed Younis Hamarsheh, 33, from
Y’abad village near Jenin. Hamarsheh was
on his way back home from his job at the Palestinian customs department in
Jenin when the Israeli occupation forces arrested him at a military roadblock
at the eastern entrance to the village.
Saturday, June 16, 2001
At approximately 10:00 local time, Israeli
occupation soldiers positioned at Sarda roadblock to the north of Ramallah,
severely beat Samer Ahmed Salim, 28, from Jalazoun refugee camp near
Ramallah. He was injured throughout the
body.
At approximately 13:00 local time, Mohammed Fawzi
Ahmed Muttair, 20, from Qalandya refugee camp north of Jerusalem, was injured
in the head after Israeli occupation soldiers positioned at a military
roadblock near Qalandya Airport severely beat him.
At approximately 13:30 local time, Faisal ‘Abdullah
Abu Sabha, 29, from Yatta village near Hebron, was injured in the face and the
left hand after Israeli occupation soldiers, positioned at a military roadblock
at the junction of Beit ‘Ainoun village, severely beat him.
Sunday, June 17, 2001
At approximately 18:30 local time, the Israeli
occupation forces arrested three Palestinian children near the border east of
Beit Hanoun in the north of the Gaza Strip. The children are:
1) Kamel
Jebril Mohammed El-Masri, 15;
2) Suhail Akram Mohammed El-Masri,
15; and
3) ‘Abdel-Karim
‘Arafat ‘Abdullah El-Masri, 16.
The three children are still in custody in a
detention center in the Erez area under the control of the Israeli occupation
forces.
Monday, June 18, 2001
At approximately 02:15 local time, the Israeli
occupation forces broke into Beit Dajan village near Nablus in two Palestinian
trucks. They arrested Shadi Sabti Hamad,
22, after they raided his house.
Tuesday, June 19, 2001
At approximately 14:00 local time, the Israeli
occupation forces arrested Meziad Samir Hamdi Saqf El-Heit, 27, from Nablus, at
a military roadblock near “Ma’ale’ Ephraim” settlement, southwest of the
city. Saqf El-Heit was traveling in his
car from Nablus to Ramallah on a bypass road east of the two cities.
5. Attacks by Settlers
against Palestinian Civilians
This week, two Palestinian civilians were killed
when settlers ran them over in their cars. Israeli police are conducting investigations into the two
incidents. These incidents are likely to
be intentional, contrary to claims by police sources, especially in light of
the escalation of attacks by settlers against Palestinian civilians. It is not certain whether these incidents
were related to the speeding by settlers on Palestinian roads near Palestinian
towns and villages. Other attacks by
settlers against Palestinian civilians took place under the full watch of the
Israeli occupation forces.
Dozens of settlers armed with guns and iron bars
attacked a number of Palestinian civilian cars at Bethlehem-Hebron road and at
other junctions leading to the Palestinian villages of Taqqou’, Za’tara,
Al-Menia, Sa’ir and Beit ‘Aynoun. Five
Palestinian civilian cars were severely damaged while four Palestinian
civilians were injured as follows:
1) Samer Yousef Taha, 27, from Hebron, whose right hand
was broken. He also suffered injuries
throughout the body;
2) Tahani ‘omran Mahanna, 20, from Hebron, pregnant in
the fifth month, injured in the left hand and bruised in the face and the back;
3) Mahmoud ‘Abdel-Hamid Ekhlil, 32, from Beit Ummar
village near Hebron, injured in the right hand and the forehead; and
4) Nader ‘Abdel-Mo’ez El-Manasra, 26, from Bani Na’im
village near Hebron, injured in the face and the extremities.
At approximately 23:00 local time, a number of
settlers from “Halmish” settlement to the northwest of Ramalllah raided
Palestinian agricultural land in Wadi Raya area in Deir Nizham village near
Ramallah. They uprooted dozens of trees
and set fire to 15 dunums of land. The
Israeli occupation forces, which were present in the area then, prevented
Palestinians from putting out the fire.
The mentioned attack coincided with an attack by
settlers from the same settlement against lands of ‘Aaboud village northeast of
Ramallah. According to eyewitnesses,
Israeli occupation forces, which were deployed in the area, did not intervene
to stop the attack. Settlers razed areas
of Palestinian agricultural land, uprooted olive trees and threw stones and
empty bottles at Palestinian houses.
Friday,
June 15, 2001
At approximately 10:00 local time, settlers attacked
‘Aaboud village again, while bulldozers of the Israeli occupation forces were
razing areas of Palestinian agricultural land.
Sunday,
June 17, 2001
At approximately 21:00 local time, settlers from
“Ramat Yeshai” settlement inside Hebron, attacked a tract of land planted with
grapes, owned by Zakaria Joudeh Salim El-Bakri. They uprooted 300 grape trees and destroyed the fence of the land. On the following day, they set fire to the
land and the uprooted trees. According
to eyewitnesses, Israeli occupation forces were present in the area when the
attack took place. They did not
intervene to stop it.
At approximately 03:30 local time, a number of
settlers from “Allon Moreh” settlement to the east of Nablus fired at an
ambulance of the Palestine Red Crescent Society, which was transporting a
Palestinian patient from Beit Dajan village to a hospital in Nablus. They forced the ambulance to drive back to
the village. Israeli occupation forces,
which were present at entrances to the village, did not intervene to stop the
attack by settlers. The ambulance was
able to leave the village only at 04:30 local time.
At approximately 10:00 local time, a settler who
was speeding at Habla junction near Qalqilya ran over Ahmed Mahmoud Ahmed ‘Ali,
65, from Qalqilya. He died on the way to
the Israeli Benilson Hospital.
At approximately 15:00, settlers razed
approximately 10 donums of Palestinian agricultural land planted with olives to
the north of “Morag” settlement northeast of Rafah. The affected land is owned by the heirs of
‘Abed-Rabbu ‘Ali Dhuheir. In his
testimony to PCHR, one of the heirs, who was in the area then, said that two
settlers traveling in a civilian car, Toyota, accompanied a bulldozer of
settlers that started to raze areas of their tract of land whose total area is
171 donums. Settlers uprooted olive
trees and destroyed an irrigation network. According to an eyewitness, Israeli occupation soldiers were observing
the action by settlers from inside the aforementioned settlement and did not
intervene to stop settlers.
Tuesday, June 19, 2001
At approximately 08:00 local time, a settler, who
was traveling in his car on a bypass road that connects settlements east of
Qalqilya with the Green Line, fired at a garbage tuck of Qalqilya Municipality.
The windshield of the truck was hit by live bullets, but the driver, Mohammed
Hussein Mohammed Shbeita survived.
At approximately 10:30 local time, a number of
settlers set fire to Palestinian land to southwest of the road leading to
“Ennab” settlement established on land of the Palestinian villages of Ramin,
Beit Lied and ‘Anabta near Tulkarm. Fire
affected lands of the three villages. Approximately 2,500 donums of Palestinian agricultural land planted with
olives, almonds and figs were burnt. According to eyewitnesses, the Israeli occupation forces were present in
the affected areas, but did not intervene to stop such attack. They even prevented Palestinian civilians
from putting out fire and fired at them.
At approximately 15:30 local time, settlers from
“Qidumim” settlement to the west of Nablus, set fire to Palestinian
agricultural land in Kufor Qaddoum village. More than 400 olive trees and 200 almond trees were burnt. According to eyewitnesses, the Israeli occupation
forces were present in the affected areas, but they did not intervene to stop
the attack. They even prevented
Palestinian civilians from putting out fire.
In the evening, Fatema ‘Oleian Abu Farwa, 71, from
the Bedouin area southeast of Qalqilya, was pronounced dead. She was seriously injured after a car driven
very fast by a settler ran her over, while she was crossing the road leading to
“Alfi Menasheh” settlement south of Qalqilya to her nearby house.
Also in the evening, a settler who was speeding ran
over a 14-year-old child, Nassim ‘Adnan Mustafa El-Zein, from Nazlet ‘Eissa
village near Tulkarm, injuring him.
Wednesday, June 20, 2001
At approximately 19:00 local time, settlers set
fire to Palestinian agricultural land in Silwad village northeast of
Ramallah. The affected land is near an
Israeli military roadblock whose soldiers did not allow Palestinian fire
engines to enter the area to put out the fire until 3 hours later.
At approximately 21:00 local time, a number of
settlers from “Magdolim” settlement to the southeast of Nablus broke into Qasra
village. They fired at a number of
Palestinian houses and broke windows of two houses owned by Jom’a and Subhi
‘Abdel-Majid Deiria.
****
PCHR calls upon the international community:
1) To provide immediate international protection for the
Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territories;
2) To ensure that the ICRC enhances its presence,
expands its activities and intensifies its field observations throughout the
Occupied Palestinian Territories.
3) To ensure that the High Contracting Parties to the
Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 reconvene in order to take effective measures
to protect Palestinian civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
4) To prosecute those believed to have committed war
criminals before international courts.
5) To ensure that the European Union activates Article 2
of the Euro-Israeli Association Agreement, which provides that Israel must
respect human rights.
6) To ensure that the UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights visit the Occupied Palestinian Territories and that the Resolution
adopted by the UN High Commission on Human Rights in April 2001 is implemented.
7) To provide humanitarian and medical assistance for the Palestinian
people whose living conditions are increasingly deteriorating as a result of
the continued siege imposed by the Israeli occupation forces on the entire
occupied Palestinian territories.
For
more information on the Al-Aqsa Intifada see:
[1] For
more information about the siege and its impacts on the Occupied Palestinian
Territories, see PCHR’s Closure Update .