Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Continue
Systematic Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied
Palestinian Territory (OPT)
· IOF extra-judicially executed a Palestinian activist in
Jenin after having arrested him.
· IOF destroyed a Palestinian house in Qalqilya in the
context of collective punishment.
· 6 Palestinian civilians (2 women, 3 children and a mentally
disabled man) were wounded by IOF gunfire.
· IOF conducted 33 incursions into Palestinian communities in
the West Bank.
· IOF arrested 70 Palestinian civilians, including 14
children and a girl.
· IOF raided offices of a number of charities in Hebron and
Tulkarm.
· IOF transformed 3 houses into military sites.
· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT.
· IOF positioned at various checkpoints and border crossings in
the West Bank arrested 6 Palestinian civilians.
· IOF have continued settlement activities in the West Bank.
· IOF demolished a brick factory to the west of Ramallah.
· Israeli settlers took over a hill to the south of Hebron
and set up tents on it.
· Israeli settlers have continued to occupy a house in Hebron
for the 4th consecutive week.
Summary
Israeli violations of
international law and humanitarian law continued in the OPT during the reporting
period (12 – 18 April 2007):
Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF
killed a Palestinian activist in the northern West Bank town of Jenin, and
wounded 6 Palestinian civilians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
On Tuesday afternoon,
17 April 2007, Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) extra-judicially executed a
member of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades (an armed wing of Fatah movement) near
Jenin town in the northern West Bank. IOF shot him dead after having arrested
him.
During the reporting
period, 5 Palestinian civilians (2 women and 3 children) were wounded by the
IOF gunfire in the West Bank. IOF also destroyed a house in Qalqilya on 14
April 2007, in
the context of the policy of collective punishment against families of
Palestinian resistance activist. The owner of the house was arrested by IOF
nearly two weeks ago for being a member of a Palestinian resistance group.
In the Gaza Strip, on
16 April 2007, IOF positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip fired at
mentally disabled Palestinian civilian in Beit Lahia town for no apparent
reason. He was wounded by a gunshot to the right knee.
Incursions: During the reporting period, IOF
conducted at least 33 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the
West Bank. During those incursions, IOF arrested 70 Palestinian civilians,
including 14 children and a girl. Thus, the number of Palestinians arrested by
IOF in the West Bank since the beginning of this year has mounted to 963. During
the reporting period, raided and searched offices of a number of charities and
civil society organizations in the West Bank. They confiscated a number of
documents and computer sets. IOF also transformed 3 Palestinian houses near
Jenin into military sites.
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. During the reporting period, the crossing point was
reopened on 12, 16 and 17 April 2007, and hundreds of Palestinians were able to
travel through it. IOF have partially reopened commercial
crossings, especially al-Mentar (Karni) crossing, but many goods and medical
supplies have been lacked in markets in the Gaza Strip. The crossing was
completely closed on 13 April 007. IOF have also continued to close Erez
crossing in the northern Gaza Strip. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip
have 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 more than 10 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. Contrary to Israeli claims, IOF
positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank have continued to impose
severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. IOF also erected
more checkpoints on the main roads and intersections in the West Bank. During
the reporting period, IOF soldiers positioned at various checkpoints and border
crossings in the West Bank arrested at least 6 Palestinian civilians. IOF also
prevented a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council from traveling to
Jordan to receive medical treatment.
Settlement
Activities: Israeli
settlers living in the OPT in violation of international humanitarian law have
continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property. On 14 April 2007, Israeli
settlers from “Ma’oun” settlement to the east of Yatta village, south of
Hebron, took over a 16-donum- area of land to the south of the aforementioned
settlement. They set up tents on the land chased and terrified dozens of
Palestinian farmers and shepherds. On 16 April 2007, IOF soldiers positioned to
the southwest of Beit Ummar village, north of Hebron, opened fire at a number
of Palestinian children during clashes between the children and Israeli
settlers from “Kermi Tsour” settlement, supported by IOF. As a result of the
clashes, two children were sustained fractures. On 17 April 2007, an Israeli
settler fired at a number of Palestinian children who were cultivating almonds
in Taqqou’ village, south of Bethlehem. One of the children was seriously
wounded by a gunshot to the head. During the reporting period, Israeli settlers
who had continued to occupy a house belonging to the al-Rujbi family in Wad
al-Husain neighborhood near “Kiryat Arba” settlement, southeast of Hebron, for
the fourth consecutive week, attacked Palestinian civilians using empty bottles
and stones. IOF were present in the area, but did not intervene to stop those
attacks. On 18 April 2007, IOF demolished a brick factory in Shaqba village,
west of Ramallah, claiming that it was built without a license.
Israeli Violations
Documented during the Reporting Period (12 – 18 April 2007)
The
full report is available PDF format.
