Israeli Occupation Forces
(IOF) Continue Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied
Palestinian Territory (OPT)
· 6 Palestinians were killed by IOF in the Gaza Strip
and the West Bank.
· 5 of the victims were killed during an extra-judicial
execution operation conducted by IOF.
· 18 Palestinian civilians were wounded by IOF.
· IOF continued to shell Palestinian areas in the Gaza
Strip.
· IOF conducted 29 incursions into Palestinian
communities in the West Bank.
· Houses were raided and 38 Palestinian civilians were
arrested by IOF.
· One house was transformed by IOF into a military site.
· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT,
especially in the West Bank; IOF have continued to separate the Jordan Valley
from the remainder of the West Bank; IOF have continued to isolate occupied East
Jerusalem and Palestinians aged under 45 have been denied access to the al-Aqsa
Mosque; Palestinian civilians have been prohibited from travelling from the
Gaza Strip to the West Bank; and IOF arrested 8 Palestinian civilians at
checkpoints in the West Bank.
· IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall
in the West Bank; IOF razed areas of Palestinian land in Hebron and Tulkarm; IOF
demolished a house in Jerusalem; dozens of families living in 16 communities
near Hebron were isolated by the Wall; and IOF used force against Palestinian
civilians demonstrating against the construction of the Wall.
· Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian
civilians and property in the OPT; a Palestinian child was injured; and IOF demolished
a house in Beit Eksa village.
Summary
Israeli
violations of international law continued in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
(OPT) during the reporting period (2–8 March 2006):
Killing:
During the reported
period, IOF killed 6 Palestinians, including 5 in the Gaza Strip. On Friday morning, 3 March 2006, IOF wilfully
killed a Palestinian child in ‘Ein Beit al-Maa’ refugee camp, west of
Nablus. On Monday evening, 6 March 2006,
IOF carried out another extra-judicial execution in Gaza City, leaving 5
Palestinians (2 members of the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic
Jihad, and 3 children) dead. In addition, 12 civilian bystanders,
including 6 children, were injured.
During
the reported period, IOF shelled Palestinian communities in the Gaza
Strip. They also fired at Palestinian
civilians during incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During the reported period, 18 Palestinian
civilians, including 8 children, were wounded by the IOF gunfire.
Incursions:
IOF conducted 29 military
incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. The largest of these incursions was carried
out in Nablus and the neighbouring Balata refugee camp. During these incursions, IOF raided houses
and arrested 38 Palestinian civilians. IOF
also transformed one house into a military site. IOF used undercover units and trained dogs during
these incursions.
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. Rafah International Crossing Point on the
Egyptian border, the sole outlet for the Gaza Strip to the outside world, has
been partially reopened. The crossing
point is operated for 8 hours a day only. IOF have continued to close al-Mentar (Karni) commercial
crossing, east of Gaza City, since 21 February 2006. Many goods are now no longer available in the
local markets in the Gaza Strip. IOF have
allowed hundreds of Palestinian workers to travel to their work places inside
Israel through Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing but only under strict
conditions. Other Palestinian civilians,
including elected members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, have not been
allowed to travel through the crossing. IOF
have also continued to close Sofa crossing, northeast of Rafah, since 14
February 2006.
IOF have continued to impose a tightened
siege on Palestinian communities in the West Bank, imposing additional
restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians within the West
Bank. IOF positioned at various checkpoints around Nablus have continued
to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. According to a report recently published by
the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the
OPT, there has been an increase of 25% in the number of checkpoints, with the
total number of checkpoints at a current figure of 471 in comparison to 376 in
2005. During the reported period, IOF positioned
at various checkpoints in the West Bank arrested 8 Palestinian civilians,
including 2 children.
Annexation Wall: IOF have continued to construct the
Annexation Wall inside the West Bank. During the reported period, IOF
initiated preparations for the construction of a new section of the Wall to the
south of Hebron. This section of the
Wall will be 32 kilometres long. IOF
also razed areas of Palestinian land in Kufor al-Labad and Beit Leed villages,
east of Tulkarm, to establish a fence around “Ennab” settlement. Moreover, IOF demolished a house in Kherbat
Um al-Fahem village, northwest of Jersualem, which was located near the
Wall. In addition, IOF used force to
disperse peaceful demonstrations organized by Palestinian civilians in protest
to the construction of the Wall in Bal’ein, Beit Siera and ‘Aaboud villages
near Ramallah. A number of demonstrators
suffered from tear gas inhalation. They
also imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians
living in communities located near the Wall. According to the report published recently by the United Nations Office
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the OPT, IOF completed the
construction of 299 kilometres of the Wall (45%), including 53 kilometres since
October 2005. IOF are currently
constructing 124 kilometres of the Wall (19%).
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 demonstrated in the centre of Hebron, throwing
stones and empty bottles at Palestinian civilian property and attempting to
attack a number of journalists. Four
Israeli settlers also attacked a Palestinian child in the centre of Hebron. The child sustained bruises throughout the
body.
Israeli Violations Documented during the Reporting Period (2–8 March 2006)
Download the full report here.
