July 25, 2002
Weekly Report on Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (25 July 2002)
Weekly Report on Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (25 July 2002)

Continued Israeli Violations in the OPT

 

· Another assassination by Israeli occupying forces in
Gaza: 14 Palestinian civilians are killed, including 8 children and 3
women, and more than 70 wounded

 

· Continued Israeli incursions into the West Bank towns
and continued curfews military curfews

 

· In an apparent willful killing, Israeli occupying
forces shoot dead a Palestinian farmer in Qalqilya

 

· Israeli forces shell and encroach into Palestinian
areas in the Gaza Strip and raze areas of Palestinian agricultural land

 

· Continued strict siege on the OPT

 

· Israeli forces raid houses and arrest many
Palestinians

 

 

 

 

Introduction

 

 

Israeli
occupying forces have continued their full-scale offensive in the Occupied
Palestinian Territories (OPT), killing more Palestinians, destroying public and
private property and violating fundamental rights of Palestinian civilians,
including the rights to life, free movement, access to adequate medical
treatment, food, education and work. They
have maintained effective control over most of the West Bank. This week, Israeli occupying forces conducted
an assassination using a warplane. This week, 15 Palestinian civilians, were
killed by Israeli occupying forces, including 14 who were killed in the
assassination conducted by Israeli forces in Gaza.

 

In a continuation of the assassination policy
officially adopted by the Israeli government against Palestinian activists and
political leaders, an Israeli F-16 fighter jet fired a missile at an apartment
building in a highly populated area in Gaza City, killing 14 Palestinian
civilians, including 8 children, and wounding more than 70, mostly children and
women. Two women and their five
children, and Sheikh Salah Shehada, his
wife, daughter and bodyguard, were among the victims. According to statements by Israeli occupying
forces, the purpose of the attack was the assassination of Hamas leader, Sheikh
Salah Mustafa Shehada, 49, from Beit Hanoun. In the attack 3 houses were
destroyed and 2 were severely damaged. This was the second time in one week
that Israeli occupying forces used F-16 fighter jets to attack houses in highly
populated areas in the Gaza Strip, in assassination attempts. It is a grave precedent and a qualitative
escalation of means used by Israeli occupying forces in its assassination
policy. On 14 July 2002, an Israeli F-16
fighter jet attacked a 3-story house in Khan Yunis, in an attempt to
assassinate one of its residents wanted by Israeli occupying forces. He survived the assassination attempt but the
house was destroyed. 

 

As part of the policy of collective punishment
adopted by the Israeli occupying forces, and as an implementation of their
threats to punish families of suicide bombers and wanted Palestinians, Israeli
occupying forces destroyed two houses of families of the wanted and arrested 16
members of these families in ‘Askar refugee camp and Til village in Nablus.

 

In a
continuation of Israeli settlement activities in the OPT, on Tuesday, 23 July,
Israeli occupying forces surrounded with barbwires a road and adjoining tract
of agricultural land, east of “Gani Tal” settlement in the northwest of Khan
Yunis, as a preliminary step to annex the area to the aforementioned
settlement. This measure obstructs
movement of Palestinians in the area. 

 

The Israeli occupying forces
have maintained the total siege imposed on the OPT, collectively punishing the
Palestinian people
Israeli
forces have separated Palestinian areas, transforming them into cantons,
violating economic, social and cultural rights of Palestinian civilians
Thousands of Palestinians continue to
be subjected to a tight military
curfew imposed by Israeli
occupying forces. In the Gaza Strip, on Monday, 22 July
,
Israeli
occupying forces closed al-Tuffah checkpoint separating Khan Yunis from its
al-Mawasi area. Dozens of Palestinian
civilians were not able to
return home. On the following day,
Israeli occupying forces imposed a curfew on the area. On Sunday, 21 July, Israeli occupying forces
closed Abu Houli and al-Matahen military checkpoints, north of Khan Yunis, on
Salah al-Din Street. This action trapped
many Palestinians between the two checkpoints for several hours.

 

This
report covers Israeli violations against Palestinian civilians in the OPT
during the period 18-24 July 2002
.

 
14
Palestinian Civilians Killed in Assassination

 

In a continuation of the assassination policy
officially adopted by the Israeli government against Palestinian activists and
political leaders, an Israeli F-16 fighter jet attacked an apartment building
in a highly populated area in Gaza City, killing 14 Palestinian civilians,
including 8 children, and wounding more than 70, mostly children and
women. Two women and their five
children, and Sheikh Salah Shehada, his wife, daughter and bodyguard, were
among the victims. According to
statements by Israeli occupying forces, the purpose of the attack was the
assassination of Hamas leader, Sheikh Salah Mustafa Shehada, 49, from Beit
Hanoun.

 

At approximately 23:55 on Monday, 22 July 2002, an
Israeli F-16 fighter jet launched a missile at a 150-square-meter, two-story
apartment building in al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza. Sheikh Salah Shehada, who is wanted by
Israel, and his family were living on the upper floor of the building. The missile directly hit the building which
located in a highly populated area. The
house and two others were totally destroyed and several adjacent houses were
seriously damaged. Fourteen Palestinian
civilians, including 8 children, the youngest of whom was only 2-month-old,
were killed. Two women and their five
children, and Sheikh Salah Shehada, his wife, daughter, daughter and bodyguard,
were among the victims. More than 70
civilians were also wounded, two of whom are in critical condition. 

 

Those killed were:

1. Iman Ibrahim
Hassan Matar, 25, killed together with her 3 children while sleeping
(bodies of the three
children were discovered on Wednesday, 24 July, under ruins approximately 10m
away from their house
) :

2. Ayman Ra’ed Matar, 1½ ;

3. Mohammed Ra’ed Matar, 3;

4. Diana Ra’ed Matar, 5;

5. Muna Fahmi al-Hweiti, 30, killed together with her 2
children
:

6. Subhi Mahmoud al-Hweiti, 4½ ;

7. Mohammed Mahmoud al-Hweiti, 6;

8. Dina Rami Matar, 2 months;

9. Alaa’ Mohammed Matar,10;

10. Yousef Sobhi al-Shawa, 42, killed when he was in a
visit to his neighbor, who was also wounded in the head; and

11. Sheikh Salah Mustafa Shehada, 49;

12. Leila Safira, 45, his wife;

13. Iman Salah Shehada, 15, his daughter; and 

14. Zaher Nassar, 37, his bodyguard. 

 

Properties destroyed or damaged included:

1. A
160-square-meter, three-story house, in which 3 families comprising 25 persons
used to live, owned by Mohammed Inrahim Matar and brothers: the house was totally destroyed, six of its
residents were killed and most of the others were wounded.

2. A
150-square-meter, iron-roofed house, in which 7 persons used to live, owned by
Mahmoud al-Hweiti: the house was totally destroyed, three members of the family
were killed and the others were wounded.

3. A
150-square-meter, iron-roofed house, in which 9 persons used to live, owned by
Mohammed Subhi al-Hweiti: the
house
was totally destroyed and five members of the family were wounded
.

4. A
150-square-meter, three-story house, in which 11 persons used to live, owned by
Hassan Mahmoud Hijazi: the house was partially destroyed, most of its residents
were wounded, and a car near the house was destroyed
.

5. A
140-square-meter, two-story house, in which 7 persons used to live, owned by
Rafiq Mahmoud Hijazi: the house was partially destroyed and some of its
residents were wounded
.

 

Please note that these details have been revised from
earlier press releases following developments in the last 24 hours
.

 

This was the second time in one week that Israeli
occupying forces used F-16 fighter jets to attack houses in highly populated
areas of the Gaza Strip, in attempts to assassinate activists of the
Intifada. It is a grave precedent and a
qualitative escalation of means used by Israeli occupying forces to conduct
assassinations. On 14 July 2002, an
Israeli F-16 fighter jet fired three missiles at a 3-story house in Khan Yunis,
in an attempt to assassinate one of its residents wanted by Israel. He survived the assassination attempt but the
house was destroyed. 

 

Shelling of, and Encroachment into Palestinian Areas

 

 

Thursday, 18 July 2002

 

Early in the morning, Israeli occupying forces, which
had already seized control over Hebron, raided the house of Mohammed
Oleyan al-‘Eweiwi in al-Mahawer
neighborhood in the center of the town. They seized the upper floor of the house and established a military
post. 

 

Also that morning, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, entered Burqin village in Jenin. They arrested three Palestinians
:

1. Firas Ahmed Mustafa, 21;

2. Nader Lutfi Masad, 25; and

3. Mahmoud Khaled Subeh, 24. 

 

In the Gaza Strip, at approximately 01:00, Israeli
occupying forces, reinforced with heavy military vehicles and dogs, raided
Palestinian houses and farms in the northern al-Mawasi area, under Israeli
security control, west of Khan Yunis. They searched the area and arrested Sami Tarraf Fayez al-Astal, 35, a
farmer from Khan Yunis farming a tract of agricultural land owned by Salah
al-Agha, resident of the area. According
the residents of the area, al-Astal suffers from psychological disturbances. 

 

At the same time, Israeli occupying forces, reinforced
with heavy military vehicles, moved approximately 200m into al-Birka area to
the southwest of Deir al-Balah. They
demolished a 180-square-meter summer
house
owned by Jamal Salem al-Buheisi. They
also bulldozed a 150-square-meter, iron-roofed bird farm owned by Kamal
al-Buheisi
. 

 

At approximately 02:00, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, moved approximately 700m into Baten
al-Samin area in the southwest of Khan Yunis. Israeli forces in military locations in the vicinity of
“Neve Dekalim” and
“Gadid” settlements also shelled the area. Israeli forces raided a number of houses of the families of al-Sha’er
and Zo’rob. They arrested 8 Palestinians
and took them to “Gadid” settlement, where they interrogated them before releasing
them at approximately 18:00 on the same day. According to the owner of one of the houses that were raided by Israeli
occupying forces, members of the forces stole an amount of money from the
house. 

 

At the same time, a unit of Israeli occupying forces
moved from
“Morag” settlement, south of Khan Yunis, and stole approximately
100m into Gizan al-Najjar area. They
raided and searched a number of houses of the family of al-Najjar and arrested
two Palestinians:

1. Isma’il Wahbi Mohammed al-Najjar, 38; and

2. Salim Wahbi Mohammed al-Najjar, 26. 

 

A PCHR field officer reported that the two came from
the UAE, where they work, only one month ago. They were released a few hours later
. 

 

At approximately 12:30, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, broke into the campus of Hebron
University in the northwest of Hebron. They searched the campus, checking the
identity of staff and students. They detained 12 of the university’s staff
and students in one room for more than 2½ hours, and beat some of them,
including the chairperson of the university Dr. Khulqi Khanfar. They also detained the guards. The Israeli forces broke doors, destroyed
contents of, and confiscated files, from the rooms of the student union. They also damaged doors of a number of
classrooms. 

 

At approximately 13:00, Israeli occupying forces
positioned at the Egyptian border, south of Rafah, opened fire at Palestinian
houses in al-Salam neighborhood adjacent to the border. Salem Mahmoud Khudeir, 70, was wounded by a
live bullet in the left foot, while he was standing near a mosque in al-Joneina
neighborhood, approximately 1500m away from the border.

 

At approximately 15:00, Israeli occupying forces
raided and searched a school in al-Salam Street in Hebron. They also broke some doors
. 

 

At approximately 22:00, Israeli occupying forces
raided the house of Mohammed Najib Abu Shamsia in al-Rama neighborhood in
Hebron. They searched the house and
arrested the owner’s son ‘Alaa’, 24. 

 

Friday, 19 July 2002

 

As part of the policy of collective punishment
adopted by Israeli occupying forces, and as an implementation of their threats
to punish families of suicide bombers and wanted Palestinians, in the context
of the discussion on deporting them from the West Bank to the Gaza Strip,
Israeli occupying forces destroyed the homes of a number of these houses and
arrested members of these families. At
approximately 01:30, Israeli occupying forces, reinforced with heavy military
vehicles, moved into ‘Askar refugee camp in the northeast of Nablus. They surrounded the three-story house of
Mohammed Ahmed ‘Ajjouri, 62, whose son Ali is wanted by Israel. They searched the house and then destroyed
it. Israeli forces also arrested ‘Ajouri
and his sons Ahmed, 35, and Kifah, 32. Israeli occupying forces raided the same house on 6 June 2002, searching
for the wanted son. When they did not
find him, they arrested his sister Intissar, 34, and placed her under
administrative detention, to be the first Palestinian woman placed under administrative
detention during this Intifada. 

 

At the same time, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with dozens of heavy military vehicles, moved into Til village,
southwest of Nablus. They raided and
searched the house of Mustafa Ahmed
Assida, 62, whose son Nasriddin is wanted by these
forces. Then they destroyed the house
and arrested ‘Assida and his sons: ‘Abdul Nasser, 34, Nasrallah, 31; Kazhem,
23; and ‘Aasem, 21. 

 

Also at the same time, Israeli occupying forces
raided the house of Samih Mohammed Jabri, 54, whose son Jabri is wanted by
those forces, and arrested him and his other son Hazem, 23. Israeli forces also raided the house of
Mohammed Samir Zeidan, 60, and arrested him and his sons: Ya’qoub, 35; Jihad,
34; Ussama, 24; ‘Abdul Mo’ti, 19; and Zeidan, 16.

 

At approximately 10:00, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, moved into Bani Na’im village, east of
Hebron. They raided an elementary
school, destroying its laboratory and furniture. They also confiscated a number of
computers. 

 

At approximately 12:00, Israeli occupying forces
surrounded
Ein Qashla neighborhood in Hebron. They raided the house of Jamil Mustafa al-Qawasmi, 38, a member of the
Palestinian General Intelligence, and arrested him
. 

 

Also at approximately 12:00, Israeli occupying forces
moved into Bani Na’im Village, east of Hebron. While people were in mosques for the Friday prayers, Israeli forces
fired dozens of sound bombs and tear canisters at these mosques. As a result, 18 Palestinian civilians
suffered from tear gas inhalation. Israeli occupying forces also fired at a number of cars, damaging
two. In addition, an Israeli tank
crushed a car owned by Isma’il ‘Aatallah ‘Abdullah. 

 

At approximately 12:10, Israeli occupying forces
raided and searched offices of the Islamic Charitable Society in Bani Na’im
village. They beat its director and
confiscated computers and diskettes. 

 

At approximately 14:30, Israeli occupying forces in a
military location known as
“Aloni” at the seashore southwest of Deir al-Balah opened fire
for no apparent reason at al-Birka area, wounding 7-year-old Ahmed Isma’il
‘Aashour with a live bullet in the right shoulder. A PCHR field officer reported that the child
was wounded while he was playing on the beach. 

  

Saturday, 20 July 2002

 

At approximately 01:00, Israeli occupying forces
moved approximately 100m into al-Salam neighborhood, adjacent to the Egyptian
border south of Rafah. They bulldozed a
1000-square-meter, asbestos-roofed car maintenance workshop owned by Hamadan
Marzouq al-Sha’er. According to the
owner, the workshop contained 40 oxygen cylinders and car maintenance
machines. He also added that he had
worked in the workshop for a long time, due to Israeli repeated shelling of the
area. Israeli forces also destroyed a
car owned by Mohammed Hassan al-Lahwani, which was in the workshop. 

 

At approximately 04:00, Israeli occupying forces,
reinforced with heavy military vehicles, moved approximately 400m into Abu
Hajjaj area in al-Qarara village, north of Khan Yunis. They surrounded four houses of the family of
Abu Hajja and then raided them. They
forced male residents of the houses to gather in a yard, and blocked women and
children in one room of each house. Then, Israeli forces searched the houses and checked the identities of
the males. They arrested seven:

1. Sa’ad Khalf Hamdan Abu Hajjaj, 22;

2. Sa’id Khalaf Hamdan Abu Hajjaj, 20;

3. As’ad Khalaf Hamdan Abu Hajjaj, 18;

4. Salman Salem Hamad Abu Hajjaj, 43;

5. Salem Salman Salem Abu Hajjaj, 19;

6. Yahia Salman Salem Abu Hajjaj, 18; and

7. Abdul Hadi Hamdan Salman
Abu Hajjaj
. 

 

At approximately 14:00, Israeli occupying forces in
military locations in the vicinity
“Neve Dekalim” settlement, west of Khan Yunis, opened fire at
al-Nimsawi neighborhood east of the settlement. No casualties were reported, but houses sustained damage. 

 

Sunday, 21 July 2002

 

At approximately 03:00, Israeli occupying forces
raided
Aanin village near Jenin and arrested two Palestinians:

1. Bilal Husni Hassan Yassin, 19; and

2. Rasem WardAli Yassin, 20.

 

At approximately 23:15, Israeli occupying forces in
military locations in the vicinity
“Neve Dekalim” settlement, west of Khan Yunis, opened fire at
al-Nimsawi neighborhood east of the settlement. Two Palestinian civilians were wounded:

1. Salem Salim
Salem Abu Yousef, 17, wounded by a heavy caliber bullet in the abdomen while he
was approximately 2500m away from the settlement; and

2. MuradAbdul Rahman Abu Shawish,
39, wounded by a live bullet in the right side, while he was approximately
1600m away from the settlement. 

 

Monday, 22 July 2002

 

At approximately 04:00, Israeli occupying forces
raided Deir al-Ghosoun village in Tulkarm and arrested four Palestinians,
including three brothers
:

1. Mahmoud Nemer Hamdan, 30;

2. Mohammed Nemer Hamdan, 28;

3. Bassam Nemer Hamdan, 25; and

4. AhmedAabdullah Hamdan, 26. 

 

At approximately 11:00, Israeli occupying forces
moved into Kufor al-Labad village in Tulkarm. They opened fire at Palestinian houses and farms, wounding Mohammed
Ahmed Ershid, 35, with three live bullets in the left foot, while he was
driving his car near his house. 

 

Tuesday, 23 July 2002

 

At approximately 01:00, Israeli occupying forces in
military locations in the vicinity
“Neve Dekalim” settlement, west of Khan Yunis, opened fire at
Palestinian residential areas to the west and southwest of the settlement. The Israeli gunfire continued sporadically
until 05:30, during which three Palestinian civilians were wounded:

1. Arafat Ahmed Abu al-Rish,
28, wounded by shrapnel in the head and the limbs
;

2. Ramzi Mohammed al-Ja’abir, 27, wounded by shrapnel in
the face and the limbs; and

3. Khadra Jubeil Zo’rob, 55, wounded by shrapnel in the
right thigh. 

 

At the same time, Israeli occupying forces positioned
at the Egyptian border south of Rafah shelled Palestinian houses in Block
O in Rafah refugee camp. Seven Palestinian civilians were wounded
:

1. Aabdullah Ibrahim
al-Hamaida, 25, wounded by shrapnel in the head
;

2. MohammedAbdulAziz Abu Jazar, 19, wounded
by shrapnel in the back
;

3. HatemAli al-Ghoul, 28, wounded
by shrapnel in the face and the right thigh
;

4. Samira Shehada Abu Lebda, 45, wounded by shrapnel in
the left leg
;

5. Mohammed Riad Mansour, 20, wounded by shrapnel in the
head
;

6. Shaker Jamal Jouda, 20, wounded by shrapnel in the
right forearm; and

7. Yahia Mahmoud al-Mallahi, 20, wounded by shrapnel in
the right shoulder
. 

 

In addition two houses were damaged:

1. Three artillery shells hit a 150-square-meter,
asbestos-roofed house, owned by Fattum Hassan Kassuha, destroying the roof and
a number of windows and doors
.

2. Three
artillery shells hit a 120-square-meter house, in which 4 persons live, owned
by
Ali Rashid Abu Lebda, destroying some of its walls. 

 

At approximately 17:00, Israeli occupying forces
re-imposed a curfew on Jenin and its refugee camp, three hours before the time
they had specified. They opened fire at
Palestinian civilians who were trying to return home. Three civilians were wounded:

1. Ahmed Subhi al-Wahesh, 17, wounded by a live bullet
in the chest
;

2. Alaa’ Hassan al-Wishahi,
17, wounded by a live bullet in the back; and

3. Sari Fadi Mousa, 18, wounded by a live bullet in the
back
. 

 

At approximately 21:30, Israeli occupying forces
shelled Tal al-Sultan neighborhood in Rafah. Two Palestinian brothers were wounded
:

1. Mohammed Ahmed Rusrus, 52, wounded by shrapnel
throughout the body; and

2. Yassin Ahmed Rusrus, 48, wounded by shrapnel in the
right knee
. 

 

In addition, two houses were damaged:

1. Eight artillery shells hit a 300-square-meter,
two-story house, in which 5 families comprising 36 persons live, owned by
Mohammed Ahmed Rusrus, making large holes in walls and wounding the
aforementioned brothers. 

2. Seven
artillery shells hit a 220-square-meter, two-story house, in which 3 families
comprising 20 persons live, owned by
Omar Yousef al-Mallahi,
making large holes in walls
. 

 

Wednesday, 24 July 2002

 

At approximately 12:00, Israeli occupying forces on
tanks and armored personnel carriers opened fire at a number of Palestinian
civilians who broke the curfew imposed on Jenin refugee camp. Three civilians were wounded
:

1. MohammedAbdullah al-Sa’di, 18,
wounded by a live bullet in the left hand that cut three fingers;

2. Alaa’ Samir Ghanem, 20, wounded by a live bullet that
entered the chest and settled in the pelvis; and

3. Alaa’ Mohammed al-Naji, 18, wounded by a live bullet in the
right hand that cut the thumb. 

 

 

Shooting
at Palestinian Civilians

 

 

Friday, 19 July 2002

 

At approximately 18:00, while HusseinAabdul Rahman Hassan
Sweidan, 55, a Palestinian farmer from
Azzun village east of Qalqilya, was farming
his agricultural land adjacent to Nablus-Qalqilya road, an Israeli military
jeep came arrived at the area, and Israeli nsoldiers fired at him from a close
distance. He was critically wounded by a
live bullet in the forehead. He
was evacuated to hospital
where he was pronounced dead on Tuesday, 23 July
.

 

Sunday, 21 July 2002

 

In the morning, Israeli occupying soldiers in a
military location inside
“Beit Eil” settlement, north of Ramallah, fired at a car of the
Palestinian Ministry of Interior that deliver the Ministry’s mail. The driver, Rebhi ‘Abdullah Mohammed Shehada,
55, from Ramallah, was wounded by a live bullet in the left hand and by
fragments of glass in the face and the chest. 

 

*****

 

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 those believed to have committed war
crimes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories before international courts.

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