Introduction

 

This report covers Israeli violations of human rights in the Occupied
Palestinian Territories (OPT) from August 16-22, 2001. According to PCHR’s investigations, during this
week, Israeli occupation forces and settlers escalated their attacks against
Palestinian civilians and property. These attacks included:

1) Continued shooting at Palestinian civilians
protesting throughout the OPT;

2) Shooting at Palestinian civilians and civilian cars
without any clashes nearby;

3) Continued shelling of Palestinian civilian and
security facilities by tanks, warplanes and surface-to-surface missiles;

4) Continued assassinations and extra-judicial killings against
Palestinians;

5) More incursions into areas under the jurisdiction of
the Palestinian National Authority;

6) Killing of a Palestinian civilian by Jewish settlers;

7) More demolitions of houses and civilian facilities;

8) More arrests of Palestinians;

9) Continued siege on the OPT and closure of Rafah
Border Crossing.[1]

 

Israeli occupation forces did not hesitate to use
excessive force against Palestinian civilians who did not threaten the lives of
their soldiers. On Sunday, August 19,
2001, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at Palestinian
civilians, who were crossing a sand road on feet, to avoid passing by a
military roadblock between Nablus and Bourin village. Mo’ein Subhi Abu Lawi, 32, from Kufr Al-Dik
near Salfit, was killed by a live bullet below the left ear that penetrated the
main artery of the neck.

 

Approximately half an hour later, Israeli
occupation soldiers, positioned at the border with Egypt, south of Rafah,
willfully and unjustifiably shot dead a 14-year-old child, Mohammed Subhi Abu
‘Arar, from Al-Salam neighborhood in Rafah, with a medium caliber bullet in the
abdomen.

 

On Wednesday, August 22,
2001, the Israeli occupation forces killed three Palestinian civilians from
Beit Eiba village near Nablus:

1) Zaher Fawzi Ismail, 30,
received two live bullets in the chest and the left thigh;

2) Fadi Ibrahim Mohammed
Sma’na, 25, received two live bullets in the neck and the chest; and

3) Hakam Jamal Tayeh Qabala,
22, received a live bullet in the chest.

A number of young
Palestinian men were searching for wounded people after they had heard
intensive shooting near the village. Later, it became clear that on Tuesday
evening, Israeli occupation forces opened fire, killing an armed Palestinian,
‘Aahed Fares Hindeya, 23, from Balata refugee camp. According to medical sources at Rafidya
Hospital in Nablus, Hindeya received six heavy and medium caliber bullets in
the face, the chest and the legs.

 

On the same day, at approximately 18:30 local time, Mahmoud
‘Omar ‘Ali Jasser, 23, from Khan Yunis, an officer of the engineering corps of
Palestinian police, was killed by Israeli occupation forces in an ambush in
house near the border with Egypt in Rafah. He received more than 10 live bullets in the head, the chest, the
abdomen and the legs. He was in a
mission to check a house, approximately 150m to the north of the border, after
police had been informed that there were explosive materials inside the house
placed there by the Israeli occupation forces. Jasser fell in an ambush planned by Israeli occupation soldiers who
killed him.

 

This week, Israeli occupation forces continued to
shell Palestinian houses and civilian and security facilities, using tanks,
warplanes, surface-to-surface missiles and heavy and medium machine guns. On Sunday, August 19, 2001, Israeli
occupation forces, positioned on Jarzim Mount, south of Nablus, fired artillery
shells and heavy and medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses in Balata
refugee camp. Saleh Sa’id Zeidan, 33,
from Balata refugee camp, was killed by a medium caliber bullet in the heart. Furthermore, a number of Palestinian
civilians were injured when Israeli occupation forces shelled Palestinian
residential areas. Among the injured was
a 3-month-old child, Fares Yousef Abu Mukheimer, who was injured on Saturday,
August 18, 2001, by shrapnel in the head while he was in bed.

 

Despite increasing
international criticism, Israeli occupation forces continued to carry out a
policy of liquidating those whom the Israeli government considers “activists of
the Intifada.” This week witnessed two
new extra-judicial killings that resulted in the death of two Palestinian
civilians.

 

On Wednesday, August 22,
2001, Israeli combat helicopters fired a number of rockets at two Palestinian
civilian cars south of Gaza City, killing Bilal Yahia El-Ghoul, 19, from
Al-Mughraqa area, south of Gaza City. Apparently, three Hamas activists, including the victim’s father, Yahia
El-Ghoul, who were traveling in the two cars, were the targets of this
operation. They survived. 

 

Early in the morning of
Saturday, August 18, 2001, Ahmed Fathi Bisharat, 27, from Tammoun village near
Jenin, survived an assassination attempt, when he was fired at in front of his
house. He was wounded in the left
shoulder and thigh by an Israeli undercover unit.

 

On Sunday, August 19,
2001, at approximately 22:30 local time, a heavy blast occurred in the
courtyard of a house owned by Samir Suleiman El-‘Abed Abu Zeid, 37, from Rafah,
killing him together with his son Suleiman, 5, and his daughter Einas, 7. According to eyewitnesses, an Israeli
helicopter flew over the area before and after the explosion occurred, which
indicates that the Israeli occupation forces were involved in the explosion to
kill Abu Zeid.

 

Israeli occupation forces continued to penetrate
into areas under full control of the Palestinian National Authority. On Friday, August 17, 2001, they broke into
Khan Yunis and killed ‘Abdel-Rahman Mohammed Abu Bakra, 24, with a live bullet
in the head.

 

Jewish settlers continued their attacks against
Palestinian civilians. On Thursday, August 16, 2001, a Jewish settler threw a
stone at a Palestinian taxi, driven by Kamal Sa’id Humeid Musallam, 55, from
Talfit village near Nablus. The stone
broke the front window of the car and hit the driver directly in the head. The driver lost control over the car. The car overturned and the driver was killed.

 

 

 

 

1. Shooting at Palestinian
Civilians

 

Friday,
August 17, 2001

 

In the afternoon, dozens of young Palestinian men and
children demonstrated near Al-Mentar (Karni) Outlet, east of Gaza City,
approximately 200m away from a settlement road leading to the Green Line, where
Israeli occupation forces were positioned. Israeli occupation soldiers fired at demonstrators who were throwing
stones. Seven demonstrators were wounded
as follows:

1) Wissam Walid El-‘Ackawi, 16, from Al-Shojaeya
neighborhood in Gaza City, wounded by a live bullet in the right leg;

2) Hamdallah Sedqi El-Khatib, 17, from Jabalya, wounded
by a live bullet in the left leg;

3) Yahia Hamdi Khalaf, 17, from Al-Ghefari neighborhood
in Gaza City, wounded by a live bullet in the right side;

4) Tamer Khalil Hamada, 17, from Al-Zaytoun neighborhood
in Gaza City, wounded by a live bullet in the right thigh;

5) Shadi Salameh El-‘Amarin, 15, from Al-Zaytoun
neighborhood in Gaza City, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the head;

6) Rami Ahmed Hashem Khalil, 20, from Jabalya, wounded
by a live bullet in the left leg; and

7) Rezeq Dhib Khalil, 23, from Al-Tuffah neighborhood in
Gaza City, wounded by a live bullet in the left foot.

 

PCHR’s field officer in Gaza City reported that at
approximately 13:00 local time, Israeli occupation soldiers mounted a house owned
by ‘Abdel-Karim Qaddoura Malaka and fired from there at Palestinian
demonstrators. The 250-square-meter
house, in which 12 people live, is approximately 400m to the west of the
aforementioned settlement road. It was
not the first time that the house being used by Israeli occupation
soldiers. According to the house’s
owner, Israeli occupation soldiers had detained the family on the first
floor. The family was terrified as Israeli
occupation soldiers were firing from the top of the house at Palestinian
demonstrators who were approximately 250m away. At approximately 20:00 local time, after demonstrators were dispersed,
Israeli occupation soldiers left the house.

 

At approximately 15:30 local time, Israeli occupation
soldiers chased a number of Palestinian young men and children who demonstrated
in the southern area of Qalandya refugee camp. They fired at ‘Awadallah Shehadeh ‘Awadallah ‘Oudeh, 16, from Qasra
village near Nablus, wounding him with a live bullet in the left leg. He was evacuated to Sheikh Zayed Hospital in
Ramallah. 

 

Saturday, August 18, 2001

 

At approximately 06:15
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in a military site west of
Al-Amal neighborhood in Khan Yunis, fired at Palestinian civilians in the
neighborhood market. ‘Eissa Yahia ‘Abed
El-Lahham, 48, was wounded by two live bullets in the left thigh and hand. In his testimony to PCHR, El-Lahham said that
at approximately 06:15 (local time), he traveled from Al-Qarara, where he
lives, to the market of Al-Amal neighborhood, where he works as a sweeper under
a job creation program implemented by Khan Yunis Municipality. As soon as he arrived at the store of
cleaning equipment, he heard sounds of intensive shooting from a military site
of the Israeli occupation forces, west of Al-Amal neighborhood, approximately
200m away from the market. He tried to
take shelter behind a wall, but shooting was intensive and he was injured. He lay down and crawled away from the market
until fire ceased. Then, other civilians
evacuated him in a civilian car to Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis.

 

At approximately 14:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in the vicinity of “Neve
Dekalim” settlement, west of Khan Yunis, fired at a number of Palestinian boys
who gathered near the western cemetery of the city after the funeral procession
of ‘Abdel-Rahman Abu Bakra to throw stones at Israeli occupation soldiers. Three demonstrators were wounded:

1) Tha’er Hassan Abu Samra,
17, wounded by a live bullet in the left forearm;

2) ‘Ali Mansour Saqer, 15,
wounded by a live bullet in the left hand; and

3) Mubarak ‘Ali El-Hindi, 15,
wounded by a live bullet in the right leg.

 

At approximately 17:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at a number of Palestinian
civilians who had resorted to taking a sand road to avoid passing by an Israeli
military roadblock at Surra junction on the Qalqilya-Nablus road. A 6-moth-old infant, Nour El-Din Khaled Ahmed
‘Oudeh, from Baqat Al-Hatab village near Nablus, was wounded by a live bullet
in the abdomen. The infant was with his
mother, Ne’ma ‘Abdel-Karim ‘Oudeh, 29, in a taxi on their way to their village,
coming from Nablus. The infant was
evacuated in a civilian car to Rafidya Hospital in Nablus. According to medical sources, the bullet
entered his abdomen and settled in bladder. Surgery was performed for the child to stop bleeding. He is supposed to undergo another operation
in 3 months.

 

Sunday, August 19, 2001

 

At approximately 01:00
local time, ‘Abdel-Jawad Mohammed Hamed Khalil, 47, from Al-Sawia village near
Nablus, was injured in the left leg by a sound bomb fired by Israeli occupation
soldiers. Khalil was in the balcony of
his house, when Israeli occupation forces, reinforced by tanks, moved into the
village, firing live bullets and sound bombs at houses without
provocation. He was evacuated to Rafidya
Hospital in Nablus.

 

At approximately 11:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at Palestinian civilians, who
were crossing a sand road on foot, to avoid passing by a military roadblock
between Nablus and Bourin village. Mo’ein Subhi Abu Lawi, 32, from Kufr Al-Dik near Salfit, was seriously
wounded by a live bullet below the left ear that penetrated the main artery of
the neck. He succumbed to his injury a
few minutes after he had been evacuated to hospital in Nablus. According to eyewitnesses, Abu Lawi, father
of three children, was carrying school bags, apparently he had bought for his
children in preparation for the new school year. He was, along with other civilians, coming back
from Nablus to his village when they were fired at by Israeli occupation
soldiers. Furthermore, Sami
‘Abdel-Fattah Mahmoud ‘Awwad, 41, from ‘Awarta village, southeast of Nablus,
was injured by shrapnel from live bullets in the legs.

 

At approximately 11:30
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers, positioned at the border with Egypt,
south of Rafah, shot dead a 14-year-old child, Mohammed Subhi Abu ‘Arar, from
Al-Salam neighborhood in Rafah, with a medium caliber bullet in the abdomen. According to PCHR’s investigations, Israeli
occupation soldiers killed the child willfully and without their lives having
been threatened. In his testimony to
PCHR, a Rafah resident said:

 

“On
Sunday, August 19, 2001, at approximately 11:30 (local time), I was in front of
my house at Al-Iman Street in Al-Salam neighborhood in Rafah. Approximately ten children were standing on
the remainders of two houses that had been demolished by the Israeli occupation
forces at the end of 2000, approximately 70 to the north of the border. Then, two tanks of the Israeli occupation
forces passed inside the border. I heard
sounds of sporadic shooting at the children. The children escaped from the area, except for two who remained
there. A heard one of them, who was
approximately 20m away from me, crying. I moved towards him to take him away from the area, but three live
bullets were fired at me from inside one of the tanks. I sought shelter behind the remainders of the
demolished houses. I pulled the child’s
arm. I identified him as my
neighbor. I carried him and ran to find
a car to evacuate him to hospital. He
was bleeding from the abdomen. Five
minutes later, a Palestine Red Crescent Society ambulance came and evacuated
the child to Al-Joneina Hospital in Rafah.”

 

At approximately 13:00
local time, the child was pronounced dead at Al-Joneina Hospital. According to medical sources at the hospital,
the child was wounded by a medium caliber bullet that entered the right side of
the abdomen and exited the heart, cutting the pancreas and a main artery.

 

Monday, August 20, 2001

 

At approximately 18:30
local time, an 11-year-old child, ‘Antar Sa’id Zo’rob, from Khan Yunis, was
wounded in the buttocks by a live bullet fired by Israeli occupation soldiers,
positioned in a military site in the vicinity of “Neve Dekalim” settlement,
west of Khan Yunis. PCHR’s field officer
in Khan Yunis reported that the child was, together with some children,
throwing stones at the aforementioned site from a distance of more than
100m. Israeli occupation soldiers fired
at him, wounding him with a live bullet in the buttocks. He was evacuated to Nasser Hospital in Khan
Yunis.

 

At approximately 19:00
local time, an undercover unit of the Israeli occupation forces fired at Riadh
‘Abdullah Mahmoud Bani Hassan, 39, from ‘Arbouna village near Jenin, wounding
him with a live bullet in the left thigh. In his testimony to the Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human
Rights and the Environment (LAW), Bani Hassan said that he was farming his
land, adjacent to the Green Line, between ‘Arabouna and Faqou’a villages,
northeast of Jenin. Then, a civilian
jeep, a black Suzuki, arrived the area. As soon as it stopped, one of its occupants called over to Bani
Hassan. When he was 5m away from the
jeep, he saw four armed men in civilian uniform, whom he believed were members
of an undercover unit of the Israeli occupation forces, so he fled. Immediately, they fired at him, wounding him
with a live bullet in the left thigh. He
fell onto the ground. They moved close
to him and started beating him severely, while he was bleeding. Approximately 15 minutes later, they left the
area. Then, Bani Hassan crawled until
the border of Faqou’a village, where a resident of the village offered him help
and called for a civilian car which evacuated him to Jenin Hospital.

 

Tuesday, August 21, 2001

 

In the morning, Israeli
occupation soldiers fired at Palestinian civilians in Hebron who were under
curfew, and were forced to leave their houses to get their basic needs. Three civilians were wounded:

1) ‘Abdel-Fattah Jadallah
El-Ja’bari, 38, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the right shoulder;

2) Nidhal Ismail El-Rujbi,
21, wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the left leg; and

3) Mohammed Kamel El-Turk, 6,
wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the abdomen.

 

At approximately 15:00
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers, positioned inside Qalandya Airport,
fired at a number of young Palestinian men who were demonstrating near Qalandya
refugee camp, north of occupied Jerusalem. Mohammed Ahmed ‘Ali was wounded by a rubber-coated metal bullet in the
left foot.

 

Wednesday, August 22, 2001

 

Early in the morning,
three Palestinian civilians were killed and three were wounded when Israeli
occupation soldiers opened fire on them. According to investigations carried out by the Palestinian Society for
the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment (LAW), on Tuesday, at
approximately 23:00 local time, residents of Beit Eiba village near Nablus
heard sounds of intensive shooting by Israeli occupation forces, positioned at
a bypass road that crosses lands of the village and links a military site on
‘Eibal Mount, north of Nablus, to “Shavi Shomron” settlement, northwest of the
city. Residents of the village called
for a Palestine Red Crescent Society ambulance, which immediately came to the
area, but Israeli occupation forces denied its access to the affected area.

 

Later, a number of young
Palestinian men from Beit Eiba village and nearby villages went to the affected
area to check if there were casualties. At approximately 02:00 local time, residents of Beit Eiba village heard
sounds of intensive shooting in the same area. When they were certain that the shooting stopped, they went to the area
to check the on their sons. At approximately
06:00 local time, they found three bodies of young men from the village:

4) Zaher Fawzi Ismail, 30,
received two live bullets in the chest and the left thigh;

5) Fadi Ibrahim Mohammed
Sma’na, 25, received two live bullets in the neck and the chest; and

6) Hakam Jamal Tayeh Qabala,
22, received a live bullet in the chest.

 

Three other civilians were
wounded as follows:

1) As’ad Sma’na, 22, from
Beit Eiba village, wounded by two live bullets in the thighs;

2) Khaled Ahmed Ismail
El-Asmar, 21, from Balata refugee camp, wounded by a live bullet in the right
leg; and

3) Mohammed Ghazi Mohammed
Yadak, 20, from Qussin village, received bruises in the right foot after he
fell while he was trying to escape fire.

 

Later, it became clear
that on Tuesday evening, Israeli occupation forces opened fire, killing an
armed Palestinian, ‘Aahed Fares Hindeya, 23, from Balata refugee camp. They detained his body and only handed it to
the Palestinian side on Wednesday morning. According to medical sources at Rafidya Hospital in Nablus, Hindeya
received six heavy and medium caliber bullets in the face, the chest and the
legs.

 

At approximately 07:30
local time, Israeli occupation soldiers fired at Ayman Darwish Abu Louz, 22,
from Hebron, wounding him with a live bullet in the left leg. Abu Louz had left his house in the part of
Hebron under control of the Israeli occupation forces to his work, and Israeli
soldiers fired at him from a distance of approximately 50m, claiming that he
broke the curfew imposed on the area.

 

At approximately 18:30
local time, Mahmoud ‘Omar ‘Ali Jasser, 23, from Khan Yunis, an officer of the
engineering corps of Palestinian police, was killed by Israeli occupation
forces in an ambush in house near the border with Egypt in Rafah. According to eyewitnesses and PCHR’s
investigations, at approximately 18:00 local time, Daoud Abu Muheisen, from Tal
Al-Sultan neighborhood in Rafah, went to a police station in the city and
informed authorities about the existence of explosive materials in a house he
was building in Al-Salam neighborhood, placed by Israeli occupation
forces. The house is approximately 150m
away from the border. Abu Daoud was
informed by neighbors that Israeli occupation soldiers raided his house at
approximately 17:00 local time, and put explosive materials inside it. Immediately, a unit of the engineering corps
of Palestinian police, comprised of five policemen, came from Khan Yunis to the
house to deactivate any explosive materials they would find. The house’s owner accompanied them. Staff Sergent Mahmoud ‘Omar ‘Ali Jasser moved
closer to the house, while his colleagues and the house’s owner observed from
afar. Soon, intensive shooting was heard
in the area, but no one was able to get closer. An ambulance of the Palestine Red Crescent Society was called. The medical personnel of the ambulance found
the body of Jasser and transferred it to Al-Joneina Hospital in Rafah. A medic said that he saw Israeli soldiers on
the second floor of the house pointing their guns at him and his colleagues
while they were evacuating the body of the victim. According to medical sources at Al-Joneina
Hospital, Jasser received more than 10 live bullets in the head, the chest, the
abdomen and the legs.

 

2. Shelling of Residential
Areas

 

Friday, August 17, 2001

 

At approximately 12:00 local time, Israeli occupation
forces, positioned at the border with Egypt, shelled Al-Brazil neighborhood in
Rafah. Eight Palestinian civilians were
injured as follows:

1) ‘Awadh ‘Aatef Abu Hussein, 13, seriously injured by
an artillery shell in the right forearm;

2) Mohammed Walid Lafi, 9, injured by shrapnel in the
left leg;

3) Wissam ‘Abdel-‘Azziz Abu Mour, 15, injured by
shrapnel in the back;

4) Medhat ‘Abdel-‘Azziz Abu Mour, 14, injured by
shrapnel in the back;

5) Hassan ‘Ali Abu Halawa, 14, injured by shrapnel in
the neck;

6) ‘Ammar ‘Aamer Abu Ne’ma, 14, injured by shrapnel in
the left forearm;

7) Mohammed Mahmoud El-Nujili, 17, injured by shrapnel
in the back and the right thigh; and

8) Sa’d ‘Abed-Rabbu Daoud, 21, injured by shrapnel in
the back.

 

PCHR’s field officer in Rafah reported that an
Israeli bulldozer was digging at the border when these forces fired artillery
shells and heavy and medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses. Eight Palestinian civilians were injured
while they were trying to escape from the area. They were evacuated to Al-Joneina Hospital in Rafah, and one of them was
then transferred to Shifa’ Hospital in Gaza City since he was in serious
condition.

 

PCHR’s field officer in Rafah added that a number of
houses and civilian facilities were damaged. An artillery shell fell onto the roof of a 150-square-meter,
asbestos-roofed house, in which 9 people live, approximately 50m away from the
border, owned by Ziad Hassan Ahmed ‘Arafat, burning the roof. In addition, a civilian car owned by Fahmi
Yousef Hamed Bahloul, which was stopped near his house, approximately 200m away
from the border, was hit by live bullets.

 

At approximately midnight, Israeli occupation forces,
positioned in the vicinity of Al-Tuffah roadblock and “Neve Dekalim”
settlement, west of Khan Yunis, fired heavy and medium caliber bullets at
Palestinian houses in the city. Further
damage was caused to a number of houses and buildings, especially those
belonging to Al-Farra Company in Al-Nemsawi neighborhood. PCHR’s field officer in Khan Yunis reported
that the shelling lasted up to 03:30 local time on the following day.

 

Saturday, August 4, 2001

 

At approximately 10:15
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned atop a Palestinian building
they had seized at the beginning of this year, fired heavy and medium caliber
bullets at a site of the Palestinian Presidential Guard (Force 17) at the
southern entrance to Bitounia, as well as nearby houses. A Force 17 officer and two civilians were
injured as follows:

1) ‘Essam ‘Atteya Abu Mousa,
23, from Gaza, a member of Force 17, injured by a heavy caliber bullet in the
right hand;

2) Mufid Ibrahim El-Haj ‘Ali,
54, from Bitounia, who holds US citizenship, injured by an explosive live
bullet in the right hand; and

3) Jihad Mohammed Humeidan,
19, from Ramallah, injured by shrapnel from a heavy caliber bullet in the
forehead.

 

At approximately 20:30
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in two military sites in the
vicinity of “Neve Dekalim” settlement, west of Khan Yunis, fired heavy and
medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses in Al-Nemsawi neighborhood and the
western part of Khan Yunis refugee camp. A 3-month-old infant, Fares Yousef Mohammed Abu Mukheimer, was injured
by shrapnel in the head, while he was sleeping on his bed in the courtyard of
his family’s house. The house, in which
11 people live, is located in Al-Nemsawi neighborhood, approximately 100m away
from one military site and approximately 150m away from another military
site. In his testimony to PCHR, Yousef
Mohammed Zayed Abu Mukheimer, 41, the infant’s father, said that he heard a
sound of an explosion and then several explosions occurred. Less than one minute later, he heard sounds
of intensive shooting. His children
sought shelter behind walls of the house, while he was lying on the ground of
the courtyard, hearing sounds of bullets hitting the walls and the roof of the
house. His infant Fares was sleeping in
his tiny bed, approximately 5m away from him. He was crying. His mother carried
him to calm him down, and when she saw his head bleeding she cried. The father took the child in a neighbor’s car
under intensive fire to Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis.

 

At approximately 22:20
local time, Israeli occupation forces fired a surface-to-surface missile at a
site of the Palestinian National Security Forces near Al-Qarara, north of Khan
Yunis. According to eyewitnesses, the
missile was launched from a military site of the Israeli occupation forces near
Sofa Crossing, east of Rafah, approximately 17km away from the targeted
Palestinian site. The site was severely
damaged and a Palestinian security man and two passing civilians were injured
as follows:

1) Mohammed Mousa
El-Tallouli, 23, a security man, injured by shrapnel in the abdomen and the
face;

2) Mohammed Ahmed Shurrab,
31, injured by shrapnel in the head; and

3) Ihsan Mohammed Sheneinu,
30, injured by shrapnel in the left knee and the mouth.

 

Sunday, August 19, 2001

 

At approximately 02:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in “Tsheva” military site in
the northern Jordan Valley fired surface-to-surface missiles and heavy and
medium caliber bullets at Taysser school in the north of Tubas. The school was severely damaged. According to neighborhhood residents, the
shelling took place without any reason.

 

At approximately 13:45
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in the vicinity of “Gani Tal”
settlement, northwest of Khan Yunis, shelled a site of the Palestinian National
Security Forces, approximately 200m away. The site and two nearby apartments were damaged. Additionally, three Palestinian security men
were injured as follows:

1) Hussein Mohammed Abu
El-Kheir, 32, injured by shrapnel in the right leg;

2) Hisham Saleh El-Zaqzouq,
35, injured by shrapnel in the right leg; and

3) ‘Ali Mustafa Abu Rezeq,
32, injured by shrapnel in the left foot.

 

At approximately 16:50
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in “Ramat Yishai” settlement
in the middle of Hebron, in “Hagai” settlement, southwest of the city and in
military vehicles at the southern entrance to the city, fired artillery shells
and heavy and medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses in the city. Three Palestinian civilians were injured as
follows:

1) Ashraf Kamal Bali, 29,
seriously injured by two live bullets in the right hand and the buttocks and
evacuated to Al-Maqassed Hospital in Jerusalem;

2) ‘Omar ‘Abdel-Shakour
El-Natsheh, 21, injured by shrapnel from an artillery shell in the head; and

3) ‘Awwad Salem ‘Awwad
El-Ja’bari, 28, injured by shrapnel from glass of his car that was directly
hit, which was destroyed after he had fled from it.

 

Furthermore, a number of
houses and shops were severely damaged.

 

At approximately 17:20
local time, four Israeli combat helicopters flew over Khan Yunis. One of them fired a rocket at a site of the
Palestinian Presidential Guard (Force 17), south of the city. The site was severely damaged, but no
casualties were reported.

 

At approximately 18:30
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in the vicinity of “Qatif”
settlement, west of Khan Yunis, fired artillery shells and heavy and medium
caliber bullets at Palestinian houses in Al-Satar Al-Gharbi area, northwest of
the city. Walls of these houses were
severely damaged, but no casualties were reported.

 

At approximately 22:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned on Jarzim Mount, south of
Nablus, fired artillery shells and heavy and medium caliber bullets at
Palestinian houses in Balata refugee camp. Saleh Sa’id Zeidan, 33, from Balata refugee camp, was killed. PCHR was informed that the Israeli occupation
forces unjustifiably opened fire on Palestinian houses in Balata refugee
camp. Approximately one hour later,
Zeidan got out of his house to check the situation, but he received a medium
caliber bullet in the heart that instantly killed him.

 

At approximately 22:00
local time, the Israeli occupation forces shelled a site of the Palestinian
National Security Forces in the southwest of Hebron, after they had intruded
approximately 200m into the area. The site
was severely damaged, but no casualties were reported.

 

Monday, August 20, 2001

 

At approximately 19:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned atop a building seized
earlier this year in Bitounia, and in “Ofar” military site fired artillery shells
and heavy and medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses in Al-Hawuz
neighborhood in Bitounia, west of Ramallah, and a site of the Palestinian
National Security Forces at the southern entrance to the town. Iman Sharif Jamil Qarat, 30, was injured by a
live bullet in the right side, when she went to the garden of her house to
close a tap. She was evacuated to Sheikh
Zayed Hospital in Ramallah. In addition,
a number of houses were severely damaged.

 

At approximately 23:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned near Salah El-Din Gate on the
border with Egypt, south of Rafah, fired two rockets at Palestinian houses in
Block “O” area near the border, in response to attacks by hand grenades. Eight Palestinian civilians were injured as
follows:

1) Yousef Ibrahim El-Masri,
12, injured by shrapnel in the back;

2) Fathi Nabil Ziada, 14,
injured by shrapnel in the abdomen;

3) Anas Sami Abu To’eima, 17,
injured by shrapnel in the abdomen;

4) ‘Emad Ibrahim El-Masri,
18, injured by shrapnel in the left shoulder;

5) Rasem Yousef Abu Jazar,
18, injured by shrapnel in the chest;

6) ‘Abdullah ‘Ali El-Ghouti,
19, injured by shrapnel in the right shoulder;

7) Mohammed Tawfiq Jendia,
20, injured by shrapnel in the left arm; and

8) Mohammed
Mutei’El-Mu’ashar, 23, injured by shrapnel in the face, the jaw and the thighs.

 

 Tuesday, August 21, 2001

 

At approximately 00:30
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in “Ramat Yishai” settlement
in Tal Rumeida, and in military sites in the middle of Hebron, fired artillery
shells and heavy and medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses in Bab
Al-Zawia and Al-Sheikh neighborhoods and Faisal Street. The shelling lasted up 02:50 local time,
during which three Palestinians were injured:

1) Bassem Hamad Yasser Abu
Sneineh, 22, injured by shrapnel in the thighs and the left hand;

2) Hamad Kamel ‘Emad
El-Ja’bari, 48, injured by shrapnel in the back, the right shoulder and the
limbs; and

3) Ismail Harb Toubasi, 40, a
member of the Palestinian Presidential Guard (Force 17), injured by shrapnel
throughout the body.

 

Moreover, five stores were
severely damaged and windows of two houses broke.

 

At approximately 18:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces opened fire on Palestinian houses near
Bitounia cemetery, west of Ramallah, after a fire exchange between members of
the Palestinian President’s Guard (Force 17) at the southern entrance to
Bitounia and Israeli occupation soldiers, positioned atop a building
approximately 200m away. Seven
Palestinian civilians were injured as follows:

1) Safouh Jom’a Mohammed
Ismail, 24, from Ramallah, dumb, seriously injured by a live bullet in the
abdomen;

2) Mahmoud Rajab Nadi
El-Najjar, 23, from Bitounia, seriously injured by a live bullet in the
abdomen;

3) Ahmed ‘Abdel-Karim
‘Abdullah, 3, from Ramallah, injured by a live bullet in the left foot;

4) Salem Yasser ‘Ayad, 11,
from Bitounia, injured by shrapnel from live bullets in the face and the chest;

5) Hafizha Yasser ‘Ayad, 12,
from Bitounia, injured by shrapnel from a live bullet in the back and the left
leg;

6) Yasser Jamal Harish, 29,
from Bitounia, injured by shrapnel from a live bullet in the left eye; and

7) Rula Hazem ‘Abdullah
Doula, 30, from Bitounia, injured by shrapnel from a live bullet in the right
eye.

 

At approximately 22:40
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned in military sites in the
middle of Hebron and at the southern entrance to the city, fired artillery
shells and heavy and medium caliber bullets at Palestinian houses that had been
already shelled in the morning. Two
Palestinian policemen and a child were injured as follows:

1) Hussam ‘Ali Abu Rayan, 22,
injured by shrapnel in the limbs;

2) Fawzi Mohammed Hussein
Hureibat, 29, injured by shrapnel in the limbs; and

3) Hussein Talal Manasra, 15,
injured by shrapnel in the limbs.

 

At approximately 23:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, positioned at the border with Egypt,
south of Rafah, shelled Palestinian houses in Block “O” area in Rafah refugee
camp and stores at the western side of ‘Omar Ben El-Khattab Street in the city. PCHR’s field officer in Rafah reported that
the Israeli occupation forces fired 15 artillery shells, which hit a house that
was under construction owned by Mahmoud El-Sha’er, and a number of stores.

 

Wednesday, August 22, 2001

 

At approximately 14:00
local time, the Israeli occupation forces shelled a Palestinian police station
in Al-Qarara, north of Khan Yunis, with three surface-to-surface missiles
launched from their military sites inside the Green Line east of Rafah. The police station was severely damaged and
seven policemen, all of them from Khan Yunis, were injured as follows:

1) Isamil ‘Ali Dahlan, 23,
injured by shrapnel in the shoulder;

2) Nayef Mousa Abu Mousa, 42,
injured by shrapnel in the left thigh and the buttocks;

3) Islam Suheil El-Sheikh
‘Ali, 26, injured by shrapnel in the thighs and the hands;

4) Yousef Hussein Sweidan,
30, injured by shrapnel in the left hand;

5) Sa’d Ahmed Harazallah, 47,
injured by shrapnel in the head;

6) Nahedh Mohammed El-Najjar,
28, injured by shrapnel in the face; and

7) Rami Ziad El-Batta, 28,
injured by shrapnel in the leg.

 

 3. Continued Assassinations
and Extra-Judicial Killings

 

Despite increasing
international criticism, Israeli occupation forces continued to carry out a
policy of liquidating those whom the Israeli government of Ariel Sharon
considers “activists of the Intifada.”

 

On Wednesday evening,
Israeli combat helicopters fired a number of rockets at two Palestinian
civilian cars south of Gaza City, killing Bilal Yahia El-Ghoul, 19, from
Al-Mughraqa area, south of Gaza City. Apparently, three Hamas activists, including the victim’s father, who
were traveling in the two cars, were the targets of this operation. They survived. 

 

According PCHR’s
investigations, on Wednesday, August 22, 2001, at approximately 18:00 local
time, two Palestinian civilian cars were coming from an olive farm, south of
Gaza City, towards the middle area of the Gaza Strip. As soon as the first car, a Subaru in which
the victim and an unidentified person were traveling, arrived at Salah El-Din
Street (the main road between the north and south of the Gaza Strip), an
Israeli combat helicopter fired a rocket that directly hit the victim, killing
him instantly, while the other person was able to escape. The other car, which carried the victim’s
father, Yahia El-Ghoul, 41, and others, immediately moved back and its
occupants got out of and sought shelter behind trees, before the car was
destroyed by three rockets.

 

Early in the morning of
Saturday, August 18, 2001, Ahmed Fathi Bisharat, 27, from Tammoun village near
Jenin, survived an assassination attempt, when he was fired at in front of his
house. According to the Palestinian
Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment (Law), an
undercover unit of the Israeli occupation forces fired at Bisharat in an
assassination attempt. Bisharat was in
his house in Al-Wedian area, east of Tammoun village, under the jurisdiction of
the Palestinian National Authority, when he received a phone call at
approximately 01:00 local time by a person who claimed to be his friend Fahmi,
asking to meet him soon. As soon as
Bisharat left his house, an undercover unit of the Israeli occupation forces
fired at him, wounding him with two live bullets in the left shoulder and
thigh. He was evacuated to Jenin
Hospital and from there he was transferred to Rafidya Hospital in Nablus.

 

On Sunday, August 19,
2001, at approximately 22:30 local time, a heavy blast occurred in the
courtyard of a house owned by Samir Suleiman El-‘Abed Abu Zeid, 37, from Rafah,
killing him together with his son Suleiman, 5, and his daughter Einas, 7. According to eyewitnesses, an Israeli
helicopter flew over the area before and after the explosion occurred, which
indicates that the Israeli occupation forces were involved in the explosion to
kill Abu Zeid, known as an activist of the Popular Resistance Committees in
Rafah, which was formed upon the start of Al-Aqsa Intifada.

 

According to eyewitnesses
from Al-Shouka area, east of Rafah, a heavy blast was heard, and people hurried
to the house of Samir Abu Zeid. They
collected the remains of his body and found the bodies of his children between
tin boards. Palestinian security forces,
civil defense and ambulances of the Palestine Red Crescent Society came to the
area and took the bodies to Al-Joneina Hospital in Rafah. 

 

 4. Continued
Encroachments into Areas under the
Jurisdiction of the Palestinian National Authority

 

Friday, August 17, 2001

 

At approximately 22:00
local time, two Israeli tanks and a bulldozer the Israeli occupation forces
moved from a military site in the vicinity of “Gani Tal” settlement into
Al-Satar Al-Gharbi area, northwest of Khan Yunis. They intruded approximately 50m into areas
under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian National Authority. The bulldozer leveled areas of land opposite
to the military site, apparently to improve visibility for Israeli occupation
forces. A number of Palestinian
militants gathered in the area to confront the encroachment. At approximately 23:30 local time, Israeli
occupation soldiers who were deployed between green houses and sand barriers,
approximately 100m away from the aforementioned settlement, opened fired on the
Palestinian militants, killing ‘Abdel-Rahman Mohammed Jom’a Abu Bakra, 24, from
Khan Yunis, with a live bullet in the head, and wounding five others:

1) ‘Ali Tawfiq El-Sheikh
Salameh, 30, wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen;

2) Mu’nes ‘Awadh ‘Awadh, 26,
wounded by a live bullet in the abdomen;

3) Ahmed Subhi ‘Aamer, 25,
wounded by a live bullet in the right thigh;

4) Mahdi Mohammed Abu Dayeh,
23, 23, wounded by shrapnel in the right hand; and

5) Ussama ‘Othman El-Qassab,
25, wounded by shrapnel in the right hand.

 

Monday, August 20, 2001

 

At approximately 22:30
local time, three tanks of the Israeli occupation forces moved from “Netser
Hazani” settlement, west of Al-Qarara near Khan Yunis, approximately 100m into
areas under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian National Authority. They fired heavy and medium caliber bullets
at Palestinian houses in the area, but no casualties were reported.

 

At the same time, Israeli
occupation forces, reinforced with tanks, intruded approximately 500m into the
east of Jabalya, under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian National Authority,
while intensively firing. PCHR’s field
officer in the northern Gaza Strip reported that the Israeli occupation forces
withdrew at approximately 01:30 local time on the following day.

 

At approximately 23:00
local time, Israeli occupation forces, reinforced with tanks and a bulldozer
leveled areas of wooded land between “Neve Dekalim” settlement and Al-Nemsawi
neighborhood, west of Khan Yunis. PCHR’s
field officer in Khan Yunis reported that the Israeli occupation forces thrust
approximately 100m into areas under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian National
Authority. Then an exchange of fire took
place between these forces and a number of Palestinian militants. On the following day, Tuesday, August 21,
2001, at approximately 02:00, Yasser ‘Abdullah Abu Setta, 25, was seriously
wounded by a live bullet in the neck. According to eyewitnesses, Israeli occupation soldiers planned an ambush
for Palestinian militants inside the cemetery of Khan Yunis in an area under
the jurisdiction of the Palestinian National Authority. Abu Setta was evacuated to Nasser Hospital in
Khan Yunis.

 

 5. A Palestinian Civilian
Killed by Jewish Settlers

 

On Thursday, August 16,
2001, a Jewish settler who was driving his car very fast threw a stone at a
Palestinian taxi, driven by Kamal Sa’id Humeid Musallam, 55, from Talfit
village near Nablus. The stone broke the
front window of the car and hit the driver directly in the head. The driver lost control over the car. The car flipped over and the driver was
killed. The taxi was traveling from
Talfit village to Nablus when a Jewish settler who was traveling in a car on the
other track of the road threw a stone that hit it near Al-Sawia village, south
of Nablus. According to eyewitnesses,
the Israeli car escaped to “Elli” settlement, established on Palestinian land.

 

 6. Demolition of Houses and
Civilian Facilities

 

On Saturday, August 18,
2001, at approximately 21:30 local time, the Israeli occupation forces started
demolishing one of the biggest brick factories in Hebron. The factory, its equipment and
200-square-meters of bricks were destroyed. The land of the factory, 6 donums owned by Rashed Abu Hamdeya, was also
leveled.

 

On Monday, August 20,
2001, at approximately 08:00 local time, Israeli occupation forces, reinforced
with military vehicles and bulldozers, moved into Al-Ashqareya neighborhood in
Beit Hanina in Occupied Jerusalem. They
declared the neighborhood a closed military area. Then, bulldozers started demolishing two
partially built houses, claiming that they were built without licenses. They demolished a 400-square-meter, one-story
building that was intended to be a kindergarten, owned by Fahmi ‘Oleyan Ahmed
Hamdan, and a 350-square-meter building, comprised of 10 flats, owned by
Ibrahim Hassan ‘Abdel-Razeq El-Joulani. This recent act is part of continued efforts by the Israeli occupation
forces to Judaicize Occupied Jerusalem.

 

On the same day, at
approximately 11:00 local time, Israeli occupation forces, reinforced with
tanks and bulldozers, started demolishing three houses, approximately 70m to
the north of a military site of these forces at Al-Shuhada’ junction, south of
Gaza City. Residents of these houses
were expelled without having been able to evacuate their furniture and
property. The houses were as follows:

1) A 200-square-meter,
asbestos-roofed house, in which 8 people live, owned by Zuhair Zeid Barjas
El-Weheidi;

2) A 220-square-meter,
one-story house, in which 8 people live, owned by ‘Essam Zeid Barjas
El-Weheidi; and

3) A 250-square-meter,
asbestos-roofed house, in which 7 people live, owned by Jazza’ Zeid Barjas
El-Weheidi;

 

Those people said that the
Israeli occupation forces took them out of their houses to Salah El-Din Street
(the main road between the north and south of the Gaza Strip). They forced them to raise hands above their
heads and fired at the houses. Israeli
occupation soldiers threatened that they would shoot anyone who would try to
move closer to these houses. Residents
of the houses left them and they are living now with their relatives in Gaza
City. It is worth mentioning that they
did not receive any prior warning by the Israeli occupation forces that their
houses would be demolished.

 

 7. Arrests by the Israeli
Occupation Forces

 

This week, Israeli
occupation forces arrested 16 Palestinians. These arrests took place in the following ways:

1) Arrests at international
border crossings, which are under the control of Israeli occupation forces.

2) Arrests at military
roadblocks on main and branch roads and at the entrances to Palestinian cities
and villages.

3) Arrests in Palestinian
towns and villages, often during house raids.

 

The following table lists
significant arrests that took place this week:

 

 

****

 

PCHR calls upon the international community:

 

1) To provide immediate and independent 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, in
accordance with their obligations under article 1 to ensure the respect of the
Convention;

4) To investigate and prosecute those believed to have
committed war crimes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories 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 visits the Occupied Palestinian Territories and that the Resolution
adopted by the UN High Commission on Human Rights in April 2001 be 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.