Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Escalate
Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory (OPT)
· 11
Palestinians, including a child, killed by IOF.
· 28
Palestinian civilians, including 10 children, were wounded by IOF gunfire.
· IOF
continued to shell Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip, especially the northern
area.
· IOF
conducted 42 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, particularly
Nablus, and one incursion into the Gaza Strip.
· IOF
killed 4 Palestinians inside the northern Gaza Strip in the first military
operation of its kind, since the IOF’s redeployment around the Gaza Strip.
· 60
Palestinian civilians, including 4 children and 2 women, were arrested by IOF.
· 3
houses were transformed by IOF into military sites.
· IOF
have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT; IOF have continued to close
border crossings of the Gaza Strip; the north of the West Bank has been
separated from the south; and IOF arrested 8 Palestinian civilians, including
two children, at checkpoints in the West Bank.
· IOF
have continued to construct the Annexation Wall in the West Bank; IOF confiscated
more razed areas of agricultural land in Hebron; the Israeli High Court gave a
green light to IOF to continue to construct a section of the Wall near “Shavi
Shomron” settlement in the north of the West Bank; IOF razed two bird farms
near Bethlehem.
· Israeli
settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property in the OPT;
3 houses were demolished by IOF allegedly because they were built without
licenses, and 5,400 square meters of land in Northern ‘Assira village were
confiscated.
Summary
Israeli violations of international law continued in
the OPT during the reported period (25–31 May 2006):
Killing: During the reported period, IOF killed 11
Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
In the Gaza
Strip, IOF killed 8 Palestinians. On
Friday, 26 May 2006, a
Palestinian farmer was killed by IOF artillery shelling that targeted the
northern Gaza Strip. Later on the same
day, 3 Palestinian civilians, including a child, were killed and two children
and a woman were wounded in Beit Lahia, when one of the victims attempted to
check a shell fired by IOF at the northern Gaza Strip. Late on Monday, 29 May 2006, 3 members of the
al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad, were killed when they
clashed with an IOF undercover unit that moved into the northern Gaza
Strip. A few hours later, a Palestinian
security man was killed in the same area when an IOF aircraft fired a missile
at him.
In the West
Bank, IOF killed two Palestinian militants in two separate incidents in Balata
refugee camp, east of Nablus, and Qabatya village, southeast of Jenin, on
Tuesday morning, 30 May 2006. Earlier,
on Friday, 26 May 2006, a
third Palestinian civilian from Balata refugee camp died from a wound he had
sustained by IOF on 15 April 2006.
During the
reported period, IOF continued to shell Palestinian areas in the Gaza
Strip. As a result, 4 Palestinian civilians,
including 3 children, were wounded. Six
other civilians (4 medical personnel and 2 journalists) were wounded during the
IOF incursion into the northern Gaza Strip. In the West Bank, 18 civilians, including two international solidarity
activists and an Israeli, were wounded by IOF gunfire.
Incursions:
During the reported period, IOF carried
out repeated incursions into Nablus. IOF
also conducted at least 40 military incursions into Palestinian communities in
the West Bank. During these incursions,
IOF raided houses and arrested 60 Palestinian civilians, including 4 children
and 2 women. The women were arrested in
order to exert pressure on their husbands to surrender to IOF. Thus, the number of Palestinians arrested by
IOF since the beginning of 2006 has increased to 1,630. In addition, IOF transformed 3 houses into
military sites. IOF used undercover
units and trained dogs during these incursions. During the reported period, IOF moved twice
into Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip, and leveled areas of land near the
border between the Gaza Strip and Israel. During the reported period, IOF conducted a
military operation, which was the first of its kind since the IOF’s
redeployment around the Gaza Strip in September 2005. An IOF undercover unit, supported by
helicopter gunships, moved into Beit Lahia town. Before this latest incursion, IOF had
repeatedly moved several meters into some areas in the Gaza Strip.
Restrictions on Movement: IOF have continued to impose a comprehensive siege
on the OPT, in violation of civil, political, economic, social and cultural
rights of Palestinian civilians.
IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on the
Gaza Strip, transforming it into a large prison. IOF have continued to
monitor the movement of Palestinian civilians through Rafah International
Crossing Point on the Egyptian border. Although IOF have allowed the
transportation of food aid from Egypt into the Gaza Strip through Kerem Shalom
commercial crossing, southeast of Rafah, the crossing has not yet been
officially opened. IOF have also continued to prevent Palestinian workers
from the Gaza Strip from reaching their work places in Israel through Beit
Hanoun (Erez) crossing. They have continued to prevent hundreds of
thousands of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip from traveling to the West
Bank. IOF have partially operated al-Mentar (Karni)
commercial crossing, east of Gaza City. As a result of the repeated
closures of the crossing, the economic conditions in the Gaza Strip have deteriorated.
IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on
Palestinian communities in 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 the
north and south of the West Bank. For
this purpose, they have closed Za’tara checkpoint, south of Nablus, and
re-established their presence at ‘Attara checkpoint, north of Ramallah. They
have also erected two new checkpoints near Ramallah. During the reported
period, IOF positioned at various checkpoints around Nablus imposed severe
restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. IOF positioned at
various checkpoints in the West Bank abused a number of Palestinian civilians.
During the reported period, IOF at checkpoints in the West Bank arrested 8
Palestinian civilians, including two children.
Annexation Wall: IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall
inside the West Bank. On 29 May 2006, IOF issued a military order
confiscating nearly 30 dunums[1] of
Palestinian agricultural land in al-Ja’ba village, northwest of Hebron. Also on the same day, IOF handed notices to 4
Palestinian civilians in Sameeramis area, south of Ramallah, informing them
that their houses would be demolished as they were allegedly built without
licenses. According to local sources, the houses are located near a section of
the Wall being constructed by IOF in the area. On 30 May 2006, IOF destroyed two bird farms in al-Walaja area, northwest
of Bethlehem. The two farms stood on
areas which were confiscated by IOF for construction of the Wall. Also on 30 May 2006, the Israeli High Court
approved the construction of a section of the Wall around “Shavi Shomron”
settlement, northwest of Nablus, near the Nablus–Jenin road. The court rejected petitions by local
councils of Palestinian villages on whose lands the settlement stands. This court ruling came 3 weeks after
statements made by the Israeli Minister of Justice Haim Ramon before Israeli
security officials on 9 May 2006,
in which he vowed to make efforts with the judiciary to
accelerate legal procedures to construct the remaining sections of the
Wall. The Israeli High Court issued two
new decisions in this regard. On 19 May
2006, IOF used forced to disperse a peaceful demonstration organized in protest
to the construction of the Wall in Bal’ein village, west of Ramallah
Wall. IOF fired rubber-coated metal bullets, tear gas canisters and sound
bombs at the demonstrators. As a result, 4 Palestinians civilians, 2
international solidarity activists and an Israeli were wounded.
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, IOF demolished
two houses in Brouqin village, southwest of Nablus, and a third one in Um
al-Safa village, south of Hebron, claiming that these houses were built without
licenses. IOF also confiscated 5,400
square meters of land in Northern ‘Assira village, north of Nablus.
Israeli Violations Documented during the Reporting Period (25–31 May 2006)
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