Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Continue
Systematic Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied
Palestinian Territory (OPT)

 

· 19
Palestinians, including 5 children, 3 women and an old man, were killed by IOF.

 

· 4
of the victims, including a civilian bystander, were extra-judicially executed
by IOF.

 

· Two
of the victims died from previous wounds.

 

· 92
Palestinians, including 41 children and one woman, were wounded by IOF.

 

· IOF
have continued to launch air strikes on houses and civilian facilities in the
Gaza Strip; 12 houses, a mosque, a pharmacy shop, a kindergarten and 3 shops
were destroyed, and 19 houses were severely damaged.

 

· IOF
conducted 30 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, and 6
into the Gaza Strip.

 

· IOF
arrested 59 Palestinian civilians, including 7 children, in the West Bank, and
two others in the Gaza Strip.

 

· IOF
destroyed 7 houses in al-Shouka village, east of Rafah, and razed 3 donums[1]
of agricultural land in Khan Yunis.

 

· IOF
demolished a house completely in Qaqlilya, and demolished another one partially
in Tulkarm.

 

· IOF
closed the Orphan Society in Bethlehem and raided a mosque in Deir Estia
village near Nablus.

 

· IOF
have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT; IOF arrested 5 Palestinian
civilians, including two children, at checkpoints in the West Bank

 

· Israeli
settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property in the OPT;
5 Palestinian civilians were injured in Hebron as a result of attacks launched
by Israeli settlers.

Summary

 

Israeli violations of international law continued in
the OPT during the reported period (16 – 22 November 2006):

 

Killing: During
the reported period, IOF killed 17 Palestinians, including 5 children, two
women and an old man. Two other Palestinians died from previous wounds in the
Gaza Strip. In addition, IOF wounded 92 Palestinians, including 41 children.

 

In the Gaza Strip, IOF killed 13 Palestinians, including
7 civilians. The victims include 3 children, two women and an old man. Two
Palestinians also died from previous wounds.

 

On 18 November 2006, IOF moved into the northern Gaza
Strip. IOF military vehicles and helicopter gunships opened fire, killing 3
Palestinian civilians, including two children, and wounding 5 Palestinians, including
two children and two members of the Palestinian resistance. On 21 and 22
November 2006, IOF moved into various areas in the northern Gaza Strip. During
this incursion, IOF killed 5 Palestinians, including a woman and a child, and
wounded 34 others, including 15 children. On 21 November 2006, IOF killed a
member of the Palestinian resistance and a woman during an incursion into
al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City. Also during the reported period, IOF
committed two extra-judicial executions in Gaza City. The targeted persons
survived the first attack, but a civilian bystander was killed and 9 others
were wounded. In the second attack, two targeted persons were killed and 5
civilian bystanders from one same family, including two children, were wounded.
In addition, a woman and a member of the Palestinian resistance died on 18
November 2006 from previous wound. In addition to the aforementioned wounds, a
child was wounded in Rafah on 17 November 2006, when IOF bombarded a house, and
a fisherman was wounded when IOF gunboats opened fire at a number of
Palestinian fishermen also in Rafah.

.   

IOF also launched 9 air
strike on a number of houses, a workshop, a site of the Executive Force of the
Palestinian Ministry of Interior and a mosque in the Gaza Strip. As a result, 12
houses were completely destroyed and 19 others were severely damaged. In
addition, the third floor of the mosque, workshop, the site of the Executive
Force, 3 shops and a kindergarten were destroyed. IOF often warn residents of
houses of their intention to attack them a very short time prior to the
attack.    

 

In the West
Bank, IOF killed 4 Palestinians, including two children, and wounded 36 others.

 

On 16
November 2006, IOF shot dead a Palestinian civilian in ‘Ein Beit al-Maa’
refugee camp, west of Nablus. On 17 November 2006, IOF shot dead a Palestinian
child and wounded 29 civilians, including 16 children, in Qalqilya, when
Palestinian civilian organized a demonstration against IOF that destroyed a
house in the town. On 20 November 2006, IOF soldiers shot dead a Palestinian
child near a checkpoint in Jericho. On 22 November 2006, an IOF undercover unit
extra-judicially executed a member of the al-Quds Brigades (the armed wing of
the Islamic Jihad) and wounded a member of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades (an
armed wing of Fatah movement) in Jenin refugee camp.

 

Incursions:
During the reported period, IOF
conducted at least 30 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the
West Bank, during which they raided houses and arrested 59 Palestinian civilians,
including 7 children. IOF also raided a mosque in Deir Estia village near
Nablus, closed the office of the Orphan Society in Bethlehem, demolished a
house completely in Qalqilya, and demolished another one partially in Tulkarm.

 

In the Gaza
Strip, IOF moved into several areas in the northern Gaza Strip. They killed a
number of Palestinians and destroyed a number of civilian facilities. IOF also
moved into ‘Abasan and al-Fukhari villages near Khan Yunis. They razed 3 donums
of Palestinian agricultural land. During the reported period, IOF redeployed
from al-Shouka village, east of Rafah, after having destroyed 7 houses and
having arrested two Palestinian civilians. IOF also moved into al-Zaytoun
neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. They killed two Palestinians, including
woman, arrested a third one, and razed 20 donums of agricultural land.

 

Restrictions
on Movement: IOF have continued to
impose a tightened siege on the OPT and imposed severe restrictions on the
movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank,
including Occupied East Jerusalem. 

 

Gaza Strip

 

IOF have
imposed a strict siege on the Gaza Strip. They have closed its border crossings
as a form of collective punishment against Palestinian civilians.

 

IOF have
closed Rafah International Crossing Point since 25 June 2006, even though they
do not directly control it. Since 15 June 2006, the crossing point has been
opened for 20 separate days. On 15 November 2006, the Palestinian – Israeli
agreement on border crossing, which was concluded under US and European
supervision, expired. Under this agreement, IOF have maintained indirect
control over of the crossing point. The European observation team working at
the crossing point extended their mission for additional 6 months. IOF have imposed
severe restrictions at commercial crossings of the Gaza Strip, especially
al-Mentar (Karni) crossing. As a consequence, the economic situation inside the
Gaza Strip has further deteriorated and many goods have been lacked in markets.
During the reported period, IOF continued to close Sofa and Kerem Shalom crossings
near Rafah. IOF have also continued to close Erez crossing in the northern Gaza
Strip. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip had been
prevented from traveling through this crossing.  IOF have allowed
international workers to pass through the crossing.  With this closure, only
few Palestinian patients have been able to travel to hospitals in Israel and
the West Bank.  In addition, IOF have continued to prevent Palestinian
fishermen from fishing for 5 months.

 

West Bank

 

IOF have tightened the siege imposed on Palestinian
communities in the West Bank. They have isolated Jerusalem from the rest
of the West Bank. IOF positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank have
continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians.  IOF have continued to separate between the north and south of
the West Bank. During the reported period, IOF positioned at various
checkpoints in the West Bank arrested 5 Palestinian civilians.

 

Illegal Settler Activities: Israeli settlers in breach of international
humanitarian law continue to reside in the OPT and have launched a series of
attacks against Palestinian civilians and property. During the reported period,
Israeli settlers living in settlement posts in the center of Hebron attacked
Palestinian civilians and their houses. As a result, 5 civilians were injured
and a number of houses were damaged. IOF witnessed these attacks, but did not
intervene to stop them.  

 

The
outcome of crimes committed by IOF since 25 June 2006:

 

o 453
Palestinians, 287 of whom are civilians, including 87 children and 28 women,
have been killed by IOF.

o At
least 1548 Palestinians, mostly civilians, including 311 children, 10 women, 4
paramedics and 7 journalist, have been wounded by the IOF gunfire.

o At
least 326 air-to-surface missiles and hundreds of artillery shells have been
fired at Palestinian civilian and military targets in the Gaza Strip.

o Buildings
of the Palestinian Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
the Ministry of National economy, the office of the Palestinian Prime Minister
and a number of educational institutions have been destroyed. 

o The
electricity generation plant, providing 45% of the electricity of the Gaza
Strip, was destroyed, and electricity networks and transmitters have been
repeatedly attacked.

o 6
bridges linking Gaza City with the central Gaza Strip and a number of roads
have been destroyed. 

o Hundreds
of donums of agricultural land and dozens of houses have been destroyed. 

o Hundreds
of Palestinian civilians, including 10 ministers and 31 members of the Palestinian
Legislative Council (PLC), including the Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Secretary,
have been arrested. Minster of Prisoners’ Affairs, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister
of Labor and Second Deputy Speaker of the PLC were released.

o The
Palestinian governmental compound in Nablus has been destroyed.

o Many
families in Rafah, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia have been forced to leave their
houses.

o IOF
intelligence has warned some Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip by phone
to evacuate their houses, which would be attacked.

o 73
houses belonging to activists of Palestinian factions have been destroyed by
IOF warplanes.

o IOF
have imposed a strict siege on the OPT, and have isolated the Gaza Strip from
the outside world.

 

Israeli Violations
Documented during the Reporting Period (16 – 22 November 2006)

 

 

Download the full
report here.