Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Continue
Systematic Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied
Palestinian Territory (OPT)
· A Palestinian civilian in the West Bank and a member of the
Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip were killed by IOF.
· 3 Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, including a child, died
from previous wounds.
· 15 Palestinians, including 7 children, were wounded by IOF
gunfire.
· 10 of these civilians were wounded in Bal’ein village, west
of Ramallah.
· IOF conducted 27 incursions into Palestinian communities in
the West Bank.
· IOF arrested 42 Palestinians, including 3 children and a
woman.
· IOF raided the Arab Evangelical Hospital and partially
demolished an apartment building in Nablus.
· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT.
· IOF positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank
arrested 12 Palestinian civilians, including a child, a judge and a paramedic.
· The Gaza Strip has suffered from shortages in fuels and
basic goods.
· Markets in the Gaza Strip are economically paralyzed.
· IOF have continued settlement activities in the West Bank.
· Israeli settlers burnt a car in Hebron.
· Israeli settlers have continued to occupy a house in Hebron
for the 3rd consecutive week.
Summary
Israeli violations of
international law and humanitarian law continued in the OPT during the reporting
period (5 – 11 April 2007):
Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF
killed a Palestinian civilian in the West Bank, and a member of the Palestinian
resistance in the Gaza Strip, and wounded 15 Palestinians, including 7 children.
Additionally, 3 Palestinians died from previous wounds in the Gaza Strip.
On Friday evening, 6
April 2007, an IOF drone fired 4 missiles at 4 members of the Palestinian
resistance in the northern Gaza Strip, killing one of them. During the
reporting period, 3 Palestinians, including a child, died from previous wounds
they had sustained by IOF in the Gaza Strip.
In the West Bank, on 5
April 2007, IOF shot dead a Palestinian civilian from Hebron when he was near
Jerusalem – Jericho road, east of Jerusalem. An IOF spokesman claimed that they
“fired at a Palestinian who did not obey orders to stop.”
Also during the reporting
period, 15 Palestinians, including 7 children, were wounded by the IOF gunfire
in the West Bank. Ten of these Palestinians, including 5 children, were wounded
when IOF used force against a peaceful demonstration organized in protest to
the construction of the Annexation Wall in Bal’ein village, west of Ramallah,
on 6 April 2007.
Incursions: During the reporting period, IOF
conducted at least 27 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the
West Bank. During those incursions, IOF arrested 43 Palestinian civilians,
including 3 children, a woman, the director of education in Hebron and a judge.
Thus, the number of Palestinians arrested by IOF in the West Bank since the
beginning of this year has mounted to 893. During the reporting period, IOF
repeatedly moved into Nablus. They broke into the yards of the Evangelical Arab
Hospital and held an ambulance that was evacuating two patients for several
hours. They also partially demolished an apartment building.
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. During the
reporting period, IOF imposed a total closure on the OPT for the Jewish Easter.
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 5 and 10 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. 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 9 months. During the
reporting period, 3 Palestinian fishermen were wounded when IOF gunboats fired
at their boat.
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 in the
West Bank arrested at least 12 Palestinian civilians, including a child, a
judge and a paramedic. IOF soldiers also obstructed the passage of an ambulance
and abused its driver. Such attacks on medical crews violate international
humanitarian law.
Settlement
Activities: Israeli
settlers living in the OPT in violation of international humanitarian law have
continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property. During the reporting
period, Israeli settlers burnt a car belonging to a Palestinian woman in
Hebron. Israeli settlers have also continued to occupy a Palestinian house in
Hebron for the third consecutive week. During the reporting period, those
settlers attacked Palestinian civilians near the house. IOF did not intervene
to stop such attacks.
Israeli Violations
Documented during the Reporting Period (5 – 11 April 2007)
The
full report is available PDF format.
