A disabled child and an old
man wait to be allowed to travel through Rafah International Crossing Point on
the Egyptian border, which has been closed since June 2007

 

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

 

· A
Palestinian child was killed by an Israeli settler in the West Bank and an
elderly man was killed by IOF in the Gaza Strip.

 

· 3
Palestinian civilians, including a child, were wounded by IOF gunfire in the
West Bank.

 

· IOF
continued to use force against peaceful protests.

 

 

· IOF
continued to fire at Palestinian farmers and workers in border areas of the
Gaza Strip.

 

· IOF
conducted 8 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank.

 

· IOF
arrested 27 civilians, including a child, a journalist and 10 international human
rights defenders, in the West Bank.

 

· 12
of the detainees were arrested during the dispersion of peaceful protests.

 

· IOF
closed the office of municipal inspectors in Hebron.

 

· IOF
have continued arbitrary measures against members of popular committees against
the annexation wall and settlement activities. 

 

· Israel
has continued to impose a total siege on the OPT and has isolated the Gaza
Strip from the outside world.

 

· IOF
have continued to take measures aimed at creating a Jewish demographic majority
in Jerusalem.

 

· IOF
dismantled a tent set up by a Palestinian family who was evicted from their
home in Jerusalem.

 

 

 

 

Summary

 

Israeli violations of international law and
humanitarian law continued in the OPT during the reporting period (13 – 19 May
2010):

 

Shooting: During
the reporting period, a Palestinian child was killed by an Israeli settler in
the West Bank and an elderly man was killed by IOF in the Gaza Strip. Additionally, 3 civilians were wounded by IOF
in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. 

 

In the West Bank, on Thursday evening, 13 May 2010, a
Palestinian child was killed by an Israeli settler near Ramallah. The boy and 3 of his friends had thrown
stones at an Israeli settler’s car traveling on the Ramallah-Nablus road. The settler stepped out of the car and fired
at the children, killing one of them. 

 

During the reporting period, IOF used force against
peaceful demonstrations organized by Palestinian civilians and international
and Israeli human rights defenders in protest against the construction of the
Annexation Wall and settlement activities. Two Palestinian civilians were wounded, and others sustained bruises or
suffered from tear gas inhalation.

 

In the Gaza Strip, on 14 May 2010, Israeli troops
stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the east of
Jabalya town, shot dead an elderly Palestinian man when he approached the
border.  After the man had left his house
in morning and did not return, his family began looking for him. On the following day, his family was informed
that his body had been found near the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel
to the east of Jabalya town. According
to the victim’s son, his father did not suffer from any mental or psychological
disorder. He assumed that his father had
gone to the eastern cemetery, 500 meters from the border, to visit his
grandfather’s grave. He not know why
exactly his father got so close to the border. 

 

On 15 May 2010, Israeli troops stationed at the
border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the east of the Bedouin Village,
opened fire at a number of Palestinian workers who were gathering bricks and
construction aggregate from the site of the former Israeli settlements of
“Elli Sinai” and “Nissanit.” As a result, one worker was wounded.

 

On 18 May 2010, Israeli troops stationed at the
border between the Gaza Strip and Israel fired at a peaceful protest organized
by Palestinian civilians and international solidarity activists against the
establishment of a restricted buffer zone along the northern and eastern border
of the Gaza Strip. No casualties were reported.

 

Incursions: During
the reporting period, IOF conducted at least 8 military incursions into
Palestinian communities in the West Bank.  IOF arrested 15 Palestinian civilians,
including a child. They also arrested 12
civilians, including 10 human rights defenders and a journalist, during
peaceful demonstrations against the construction of the annexation wall and
settlement activities. 

 

During the reporting period, Israeli troops stationed
in the center and south of Hebron stormed and searched the office of municipal
inspectors in al-Gazzazin area in the old city of Hebron. They confiscated the keys to the office and
forced its staff out. Municipal
inspectors are unarmed police officers in charge of maintaining public
order. 

 

 

Restrictions
on Movement: Israel has 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

 

Israel has continuously closed all border crossings
to the Gaza Strip for over two and a half years. The illegal Israeli-imposed
siege of Gaza, which has steadily tightened since June 2007, has had a
disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic situation in the Gaza Strip.  

 

· On
Friday, 01 January 2010, IOF decided to close Nahal Ouz crossing permanently,
and to allow the entry of fuels through Karm Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing,
southeast of Rafah, claiming security reasons. 

 

· 1.5
million people are being denied their basic rights, including freedom of movement,
and their rights to appropriate living conditions, work, health and education.

 

· The
main concern of the population of the Gaza Strip is to obtain their basic needs
of food, medicines, water and electricity supplies.

 

· Israel
has continued to prevent the entry of raw construction materials into the Gaza
Strip for more than two and a half years.

 

· Israel
has not allowed fuel supplies into the Gaza Strip, excluding limited amounts of
cooking gas and energy fuel for Gaza Power Plant, since 10 December 2008.

 

· The
Rafah International Crossing Point has been opened for a few days for a number
of patients who received medical treatment abroad and needed to return home to
the Gaza Strip.

 

· Israel
had continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing to Palestinian civilians
wishing to travel to the West Bank and Israeli for medical treatment, trade or
social visits.

 

· Israel
has imposed additional restrictions on access of international diplomats,
journalists and humanitarian workers to the Gaza Strip. They have prevented
representatives of several international humanitarian organizations from
entering the Gaza Strip.

 

· Living
conditions of the Palestinian civilian population have seriously deteriorated;
levels of poverty and unemployment have mounted sharply.

 

· At
least 800 Gazan prisoners in Israeli jails have been deprived of family
visitation for more than two and a half years. 

 

· IOF
have continued to attack Palestinian fishermen along the coast of the Gaza
Strip.

 

West Bank

 

IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on
the movement of Palestinian civilians throughout the West Bank, including
occupied East Jerusalem. Thousands of Palestinian civilians from the West Bank
and the Gaza Strip continue to be denied access to Jerusalem.

 

· IOF
have established checkpoints in and around Jerusalem, severely restricting
Palestinian access to the city. Civilians are frequently prevented from praying
at al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

 

· There
are approximately 630 permanent roadblocks, manned and unmanned checkpoints across
the West Bank. In addition, there are some 60 – 80 ‘flying’ or temporary
checkpoints erected across the West Bank by IOF every week.

 

· When
complete, the illegal Annexation Wall will stretch for 724 kilometers around
the West Bank, further isolating the entire population. 350 kilometers of the
Wall have already been constructed. Approximately 99% of the Wall has been
constructed inside the West Bank itself, further confiscating Palestinian land.

 

· At
least 65% of the main roads that lead to 18 Palestinian communities in the West
Bank are closed or fully controlled by IOF (47 out of 72 roads).

 

· There
are around 500 kilometers of restricted roads across the West Bank. In
addition, approximately one third of the West Bank, including occupied East
Jerusalem, is inaccessible to Palestinians without a permit issued by the IOF.
These permits are extremely difficult to obtain.

 

· IOF
continue to harass, and assault demonstrators who hold peaceful protests
against the construction of the Annexation Wall.

 

· Palestinian
civilians continue to be harassed by IOF in Jerusalem, and across the West
Bank, including being regularly stopped and searched in the streets by IOF.

 

Measures Aimed at Creating a Jewish Demographic
Majority in Jerusalem: Israel has
continued to take measures at creating a Jewish majority in Jerusalem. On 13 May 2010, IOF stormed a tent set up by
the Salah family in Beit Safafa village. IOF had forced the 50-member family to evacuate their homes in the area,
purportedly in implementation of an Israeli court ruling in favor of Israeli
settlers. They dismantled the tent,
claiming that it was set up without permission from the Israeli Municipality of
Jerusalem. 

 

 

 

Israeli Violations
Documented during the Reporting Period (13 – 19 May 2010)

 

1. Incursions into Palestinian Areas and Attacks on Palestinian Civilians
and Property in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip

 

Thursday,
06 May 2010

 

· At
approximately 03:30, IOF moved into al-Far’a refugee camp, south of Tubas. They raided and searched a number of houses
and arrested two Palestinian civilians:

 

1. Ahmed Mohammed Maiha, 30; and

2. Yousef Jaber Abu Siam, 25.

 

Friday, 14 May 2010

 

· At
approximately 01:00, IOF moved into Senjel village, north of Ramallah. They raided and searched a number of houses
and arrested 3 Palestinian civilians:

 

1. Rezeq Mohammed Masalma, 19;

2. ‘Aazem Munther Masalma, 20; and

3. ‘Odai Mousa ‘Asfour, 19.

 

· At
approximately 01:20, IOF moved into Jenin town and refugee camp. They raided and searched a number of houses
and arrested two Palestinian civilians:

 

1. Samer ‘Essam Abu Mahjoub, 22; and

2. Wissam
Jamal Yahei al-Din, 20. 

 

· In
the morning, Israeli troops stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and
Israel to the east of Jabalya town shot dead an elderly Palestinian man when he
approached the border. 

 

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at
approximately 10:00, Fu’ad Ahmed Yousef Abu Matar, 76, from Beit Lahia town,
left his house. By 19:00, he had not returned
back home, so his family began looking for him. On Saturday morning, 15 May 2010, his family was informed that his body
had been found near the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east of
Jabalya town. At approximately 12:25,
his body was transported to Kamal ‘Edwan Hospital in Beit Lahia. According to medical sources, the victim was
hit by several heavy gunshots to the back, the shoulders and the limbs. The time of his death was estimated to have
been at least 12 hours before the arrival of his body at the hospital. According to the victim’s son, his father did
not suffer from any mental or psychological disorder. He assumed that his father had gone to the
eastern cemetery, 500 meters from the border, to visit his grandfather’s
grave. He could did not know why exactly
his father got close so close to the border. 

 

Saturday, 15 May 2010

 

· At
approximately 08:00, Israeli troops stationed at the border between the Gaza
Strip and Israel, to the east of the Bedouin Village, opened fire at a number
of Palestinian workers who were gathering bricks and construction aggregate
from the site, on which the Israeli settlements “Elli Sinai” and
“Nissanit” stood before their evacuation in 2005. As a result, Mohammed Mahmoud Abu Warda, 23,
from al-Twam area in the northern Gaza Strip, was wounded by a gunshot to the
right foot and shrapnel to the left foot.

 

Sunday, 16 May 2010

 

· At
approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Ne’lin village, west of Ramallah. They raided and searched a house belonging to
‘Ouda Mohammed Nafe’s, 48, and arrested him and two of his sons: Mahmoud, 17;
and Mohammed, 19.

 

· At
approximately 10:00, Israeli troops stationed in the center and south of Hebron
stormed and searched the office of municipal inspectors in al-Gazzazin area in
the old city of Hebron. They confiscated
the keys to the office and forced its staff out. Municipal inspectors are unarmed police
officers in charge of maintaining public order. 

 

Monday, 17 May 2010

 

· At
approximately 09:00, IOF moved approximately 300 meters into the east of
al-Qarara village, east of Khan Yunis. They leveled areas of Palestinian land and withdrew from the area at
approximately 16:00.

 

· At
approximately 22:30, IOF moved into Turmos’iya village, north of Ramallah. They patrolled in the streets and arrested
‘Imad Kayed Shalabi, 22.

 

Tuesday, 18 May 2010

 

· At
approximately 01:30, IOF moved into ‘Aqraba village, southeast of Nablus. They raided and searched a number of houses
and arrested two Palestinian civilians:

 

1. Lu’ai Suleiman Bani Fadel, 21; and

2. Manna’ Mohammed Bani Fadel, 30.

 

· At
approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Tallouza village, north of Nablus. They raided and searched a number of houses
and arrested two Palestinian civilians:

 

1. Yahia Kamel ‘Awaisa, 25; and

2. Ma’moun Mohammed Salahat, 23.

 

· At
approximately 10:30, IOF moved approximately 300 meters into the east of
al-Qarara village, east of Khan Yunis. They leveled areas of Palestinian land and withdrew from the area at
approximately 17:30.

 

· At
approximately 11:15, at least 170 Palestinian civilians and international
solidarity activists, including a number of journalists, gathered near
al-Shaimaa’ School in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahia. They traveled in 3 buses towards a site where
“Elli Sinai” settlement was located before the evacuation of Israeli
settlements from the Gaza Strip. The
site is approximately 700 meters from Gaza’s border with Israel. The group then moved forward until they
arrived in an area approximately 30 meters from the border, protesting against
the establishment of a buffer zone along the border. They attempted to raise the Palestinian flag
at the border. Immediately, Israeli
troops fired at them. No casualties were
reported. 

 

2. Use of Excessive Force against
Peaceful Demonstrations Protesting Settlement Activities and the Construction
of the Annexation Wall

 

During the reporting period, IOF used force against peaceful
demonstrations organized by Palestinian civilians and international and Israeli
human rights defenders in protest of the construction of the Annexation Wall
and settlement activities

 

· Following
the Friday Prayer on 14 May 2010, dozens of Palestinian civilians and
international and Israeli human rights defenders organized a peaceful
demonstration in protest of the construction of the Annexation Wall in Bil’ein
village, west of Ramallah. The
demonstrators moved toward the Wall and attempted to access annexed lands
behind it. Immediately, Israeli troops fired rubber-coated metal bullets, sound
bombs and tear gas canisters at the demonstrators. As a result, dozens of demonstrators suffered
from tear gas inhalation, and some of them sustained bruises. Israeli troops further arrested ‘Alaa’ Abu
al-So’ud, 25, a cameraman of al-Arabiya Satellite Channel, but released him in
the evening. 

 

· Also
following the Friday Prayer on 14 May 2010, dozens of Palestinian civilians and
international and human rights defenders organized a peaceful demonstration in
Ne’lin village, west of Ramallah, in protest of the construction of the
Annexation Wall. They clashed with IOF
troops positioned near the Wall. IOF
troops fired rubber-coated metal bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters at
demonstrators. Dozens of demonstrators
suffered from tear gas inhalation, and other sustained bruises. 

 

· At
approximately 13:30 on Saturday, 15 May 2010, dozens of Palestinian civilians
and international human rights defenders organized a peaceful demonstration in
the center of ‘Iraq Bourin village, south of Nablus. They moved towards the eastern and southern
parts of the village, where IOF plan to confiscate land near “Brakha”
settlement. Immediately, Israeli troops
fired rubber-coated metal bullets and tear gas canisters at the
demonstrators. As a result, a number of
demonstrators suffered from tear gas inhalation.

 

· At
approximately 15:00 on Saturday, 15 May 2010, the Youth Consortium against
Settlements in Hebron organized a peaceful demonstration in protest of the
continued closure of al-Shuhada Street in the center of the town, and in
commemoration of 62^nd anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba
(the uprooting of the Palestinian people from their land in 1948). The demonstration, which a number of
international solidarity activists participated in, stopped near the “Beit
Rumanu” settlement outpost. Israeli
troops attacked the demonstrators and arrested Fadi Mohammed Saleh, 28. They released him at 22:30 on a bail of 1,500
NIS.

 

· On
Sunday morning, 16 May 2010, dozens of Palestinian civilians and international
and Israeli solidarity activists organized a peaceful demonstration in Beit
Jala. They moved toward areas of
Palestinian land in the north and northwest of the town, protesting against
land leveling being carried out by IOF there for the purpose of the
construction of a section of the annexation wall. Israeli troops attacked the demonstrators and
dispersed them. Two international
solidarity activists suffered from tear gas inhalation and Israeli troops
arrested 8 others. 

 

3. Continued Siege on the OPT

 

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

 

Israel has continuously closed all border crossings
to the Gaza Strip for over two and a half years. The illegal Israeli-imposed
siege of Gaza, which has steadily tightened since June 2007, has had a
disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic situation in the Gaza Strip.  

 

· On
Friday, 01 January 2010, IOF decided to close Nahal Ouz crossing permanently,
and to allow the entry of fuels through Karm Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing,
southeast of Rafah, claiming security reasons. 

 

· 1.5
million people are being denied their basic rights, including freedom of
movement, and their rights to appropriate living conditions, work, health and education.

 

· The
main concern of the population of the Gaza Strip is to obtain their basic needs
of food, medicines, water and electricity supplies.

 

· Israel
has continued to prevent the entry of raw construction materials into the Gaza
Strip for more than two and a half years.

 

· Israel
has not allowed fuel supplies into the Gaza Strip, excluding limited amounts of
cooking gas and energy fuel for Gaza Power Plant, since 10 December 2008.

 

· The
Rafah International Crossing Point has been opened for a few days for a number
of patients who received medical treatment abroad and needed to return home to
the Gaza Strip.

 

· Israel
had continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing to Palestinian civilians
wishing to travel to the West Bank and Israeli for medical treatment, trade or
social visits.

 

· Israel
has imposed additional restrictions on access of international diplomats,
journalists and humanitarian workers to the Gaza Strip. They have prevented
representatives of several international humanitarian organizations from
entering the Gaza Strip.

 

· Living
conditions of the Palestinian civilian population have seriously deteriorated;
levels of poverty and unemployment have mounted sharply.

 

· At
least 800 Gazan prisoners in Israeli jails have been deprived of family visitation
for more than two and a half years. 

 

· IOF
have continued to attack Palestinian fishermen along the coast of the Gaza
Strip.

 

 

Movement at Border Crossings during the Reporting
Period:

 

Movement at Rafah International
Crossing Point

12 – 18 May 2010

 

 

Movement at Karm Abu Salem (Kerem
Shalom) Crossing

12 – 18 May 2010

 

 

Al-Mentar
(Karni) Crossing: IOF partially
opened the crossing on Thursday, 13 May 2010, and allowed the entry of 429 tons
of wheat and 936 tons of fodders. They
opened it again on Monday, 17 May 2010, and permitted the entry of 1,950 tons
of wheat and 2,184 tons of fodders. 

 

Beit
Hanoun (Erez) Crossing: Israel has
continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing for the movement of Palestinian
civilians. IOF have allowed only diplomats, a number of international
journalists, employees of international agencies and a limited number of
patients who suffer from serious diseases to pass through the crossing. They
have continued to prevent Palestinian civilians from visiting their relatives
who are detained in Israeli jails. The small number of patients permitted to
pass through the crossing is only able to do so under severe restrictions that
include prolonged checking.

 

Movement at Beit Hanoun (Erez)
Crossing

12 – 18 May 2010

 

 

Note:
IOF completely closed the crossing at approximately 12:30 on Tuesday, 18 May
2010, and the closure remained effective on Wednesday, for the Jewish holiday
of Shavuot.

 

The
West Bank

 

Israel
has imposed a tightened siege on the West Bank. During the reporting period,
IOF imposed additional restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians.

 

· Jerusalem: IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on
the movement of Palestinian civilians to and from the city. Thousands of
Palestinian civilians from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip have been denied
access to the city. IOF have established many checkpoints around and inside the
city. Restrictions of the movement of Palestinian civilians often escalate on
Fridays, preventing Muslim Palestinians from praying at al-Aqsa Mosque. On
Monday morning, 17 May 2010, Israeli troops stationed at Qalandiya crossing at
the northern entrance of Jerusalem conducted prolonged checks on Palestinian
civilians.  

 

· Ramallah: IOF have
continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of the Palestinian
civilians in Ramallah. IOF troops
positioned at the Jaba’ and Qalandya checkpoints southeast of Ramallah have
imposed additional restrictions on movement and conducted prolonged checks on
Palestinian civilians. During the
reporting period, IOF erected a number of temporary checkpoints, and stopped
and searched Palestinian civilian vehicles. At approximately 16:30 on Friday, 14 May 2010, IOF established a
checkpoint at the southern entrance of Beit Leqia village, west of
Ramallah. They stopped and searched
Palestinian civilian vehicles. On Monday
morning, 17 May 2010, Israeli troops stationed at Jaba’ checkpoint, southeast
of Ramallah, imposed additional restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians. At approximately 10:00 on
Tuesday, 18 May 2010, IOF established a checkpoint near ‘Attara village, north
of Ramallah. They stopped and searched
Palestinian civilian vehicles. At
approximately 20:00 of the same day, IOF established a checkpoint near Shaqba
village, west of Ramallah. They stopped
and searched Palestinian civilian vehicles. 

 

· Nablus: IOF have
continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians. On Sunday morning, 16 May
2010, Israeli troops stationed at Za’tara checkpoint, south of Nablus, imposed
additional restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. On Tuesday morning, 18 May 2010, Israeli
troops stationed at Hawara checkpoint, south of Nablus, imposed additional
restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians.   

 

· Hebron: IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on
the movement of Palestinian civilians. On Saturday 15 May, and Monday, 17 May 2010, IOF established several
checkpoints inside and around Hebron. They stopped and searched Palestinian civilians, especially young
men. 

 

4. Measures Aimed at Creating a Jewish Demographic Majority in Jerusalem

 

Israel has recently
escalated arbitrary measures against Palestinian civilians in occupied East
Jerusalem in order to force them to leave the city. PCHR has devoted this section in the Weekly
Report to highlighting violations of human rights perpetrated by IOF against
Palestinian civilians in East Jerusalem.

 

· On
Thursday evening, 13 May 2010, IOF stormed a tent set up by the Salah family in
Beit Safafa village. IOF had forced the
50-member family to evacuate their homes in the area, purportedly in
implementation of an Israeli court ruling in favor of Israeli settlers. They dismantled the tent, claiming that it
had been set up without permission from the Israeli Municipality of
Jerusalem. 

 

· In
the same context, on Tuesday evening, 18 May 2010, Israeli settlers living in a
house belonging to the Salah family attacked Shiha Hassan Salah, 90, when she
was on her way to the tent set up by the family. The elderly woman sustained bruises. The settlers also beat her grandchild,
4-year-old Nasrallah. He sustained an
injury to the head.

 

5. Settlement Activities and Attacks by Settlers against Palestinian
Civilians and Property

 

Israel has continued its
settlement activities in the OPT in violation of international humanitarian
law, and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and
property.

 

· On
Thursday evening, 13 May 2010, a Palestinian child was shot dead by an Israeli
settler near Ramallah. 

 

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 17:30 on
Thursday, 13 May 2010, 4 Palestinian children, including 16-year-old Aysar
Yasser Fawaz al-Zeben from al-Mazr’a al-Sharqiya village, went to al-Bayada
area, approximately 50 meters from the Ramallah – Nablus road. At approximately 19:30, the four children
threw stones at an Israeli car. The car
immediately stopped. An Israeli settler
exited the car and fired 14 to17 bullets at the children. The children fled into different
directions. At approximately 21:00, 3 of
the children met in the village. They
called al-Zaben on his mobile phone, but he did not answer their call. They immediately began to look for him. At approximately 21:30, a number of residents
of the village went to search for him, and at approximately 22:00, they found
his body. They transferred the body to
Ramallah Hospital. According to medical
sources, the child was hit by a bullet to the back.

 

…………………………………………………………

 

 

 

Recommendations
to the International Community

 

 

1. PCHR
calls upon the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to
fulfill their legal and moral obligations under Article 1 of the Convention to
ensure Israel’s respect for the Convention in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory. PCHR believes that the
conspiracy of silence practiced by the international community has encouraged
Israel to act as if it is above the law and encourages Israel continue to
violate international human rights and humanitarian law.

 

2. PCHR
calls upon the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to
convene a conference to take effective steps to ensure Israel’s respect of the
Convention in the OPT and to provide immediate protection for Palestinian
civilians.

 

3. PCHR
calls upon the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to
comply with their legal obligations detailed in Article 146 of the Convention
to search for and prosecute those responsible for grave breaches, namely war
crimes.

 

4. PCHR
calls for the immediate implementation of the Advisory Opinion issued by the
International Court of Justice, which considers the construction of the
Annexation Wall inside the West Bank illegal.

 

5. PCHR
recommends that international civil society organizations, including human
rights organizations, bar associations and NGOs, participate in the process of
exposing those accused of grave breaches of international law and urge their governments to bring the
perpetrators to justice.

 

6. PCHR
calls upon the European Union to activate Article 2 of the Euro-Israel
Association Agreement, which provides that Israel must respect human rights as
a precondition for economic cooperation between the EU states and Israel. PCHR further calls upon the EU states to
prohibit import of goods produced in illegal Israeli settlements in the OPT.

 

7. PCHR
calls on the international community to recognize the Gaza disengagement plan,
which was implemented in September 2005, for what it is – not an end to
occupation but a compounding of the occupation and the humanitarian crisis in
the Gaza Strip. 

 

8. In
recognition of ICRC as the guardian of the Fourth Geneva Convention, PCHR calls
upon the ICRC to increase its staff and activities in the OPT, including the
facilitation of family visitations to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

 

9. PCHR
appreciates the efforts of international civil society, including human rights
organizations, bar associations, unions and NGOs, and urges them to continue
their role in pressuring their governments to secure Israel’s respect for human
rights in the OPT and to demand Israel end its attacks on Palestinian
civilians.

 

10. PCHR calls upon the international
community to pressure Israel to lift the severe restrictions imposed by the
Israeli government and its occupation forces on access for international
organizations to the OPT.

 

11. PCHR reiterates that any political
settlement not based on international human rights law and humanitarian law
cannot lead to a peaceful and just solution of the Palestinian question. Rather, such an arrangement can only lead to
further suffering and instability in the region. Any peace process or agreement must be based
on respect for international law, including international human rights and
humanitarian law.

 

…………………………………………………………

 

Public Document

For further information please visit our website (www.pchrgaza.org) or contact PCHR’s office
in Gaza City, Gaza Strip by email ([email protected])
or telephone (+972 (0)8 282 4776 – 282 5893).