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

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

· IOF conducted 32
incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank.

· IOF arrested 80
Palestinian civilians, including a member of the Palestinian Legislative
Council; 74 of these civilians were arrested in Nablus.

· IOF arrested a
Palestinian civilian whose daughter filmed an Israeli soldier shooting a
Palestinian civilian in Ne’lin village, west of Ramallah.

· IOF raided a charity
and a kindergarten in Jericho.

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

· IOF have continued
settlement activities in the West Bank and Israeli settlers have continued to
attacks Palestinian civilians and property.

· Israeli settlers
launched 5 attacks against Palestinian civilians and property in Hebron and
Qalqilya.

Summary

Israeli violations of
international law and humanitarian law continued in the OPT during the reporting
period (17 – 23 July 2008):

Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF wounded
3 Palestinian civilians, including a child, in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

On 17 July 2008, IOF
wounded 2 Palestinian civilians, including a child, during an incursion into
Nablus and neighboring refugee camps. On 23 July, IOF wounded a Palestinian
civilian in Beit Hanoun town in the northern Gaza Strip, while he was
collecting metals almost 300 meters away from the border between the Gaza Strip
and Israel.  

During the reporting period, dozens of Palestinian
civilians suffered from tear gas inhalation when IOF used force to disperse
peaceful demonstrations organized in protest to the construction of the
Annexation Wall in Bal’ein and Ne’lin villages, west of Ramallah. In the same
context, a footage filmed by a young Palestinian girl in Ne’lin village, west
of Ramallah, on 7 July, which appeared on the screen of several television
channels, showed an Israeli soldier firing a rubber-coated metal bullet, at extremely
short range, at a Palestinian detainee who was cuffed and blindfolded.

Incursions: Since the Egypt-brokered truce
between Palestinian resistance groups and Israel entered into force in the Gaza
Strip on 19 June 2008, IOF have escalated attacks against Palestinian civilians
and property in the West Bank. This escalation led the Palestinian Prime
Minister, Dr. Salam Fayad, to  suspend
the security plan being implemented by the Palestinian National Authority in
the West Bank. Dr. Fayad stated in a press conference in Ramallah on Tuesday,
22 July 2008, that “The Palestinian National Authority may suspend the security
plan it is implementing in Palestinian town due to the escalation of Israeli
attacks.”  

During the reporting
period, IOF conducted at least 32 military incursions into Palestinian
communities in the West Bank. During these incursions, IOF arrested 80
Palestinian civilians, including a member of the Palestinian Legislative
Council. In Nablus alone, IOF arrested 74 Palestinian civilians. IOF also
arrested the father of a young girl who filmed an Israeli soldier firing at
Palestinian civilian in Ne;lin village, west of Ramallah, on 7 July. The number
of Palestinian civilians who have been arrested by IOF in the West Bank since
the beginning of this year now stands at 1,628. For the second consecutive
week, IOF have continued their campaign against Palestinian civil institutions.
During the reporting period, IOF raided and searched a charity and a
kindergarten in Jericho. They confiscated computers and documents.

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 continued to close all
border crossings to the Gaza Strip for more than two years. The IOF siege of
Gaza, which has tightened since June 2007, has had a disastrous impact on the
humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, and has violated the human, economic
and social rights of the approximately 1.5 million Palestinian civilian
population, particularly their rights to appropriate living conditions, health
and education. The siege has also paralyzed the Gazan economy. In addition, the
siege has severely impacted the flow of food, medical supplies and other
necessities such as fuel, construction materials and raw materials for various
economic sectors. IOF have continued to prevent the entry of raw materials into
the Gaza Strip, and many factories have been forced to close. Severe
restrictions have been imposed on the movement of the entire Palestinian
civilian population. Regarding civilian movements, IOF permit very few
Palestinian civilians to pass through Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing in order to
travel to the West Bank or Israel. Rafah International Crossing Point in the
southern Gaza Strip is the sole outlet for the Gaza Strip to the outside world
via a country other than Israel. IOF have closed Rafah International Crossing
Point, even though they do not directly control it, and have also obstructed
European observers working at the Crossing Point from reaching it. Although the
Egypt-brokered truce between Palestinian resistance groups and Israel entered
into force on June 19, no major changes have been observed regarding the
movement of persons and goods through the six Gaza Strip border crossings. The
closure of these border crossings deprives the Palestinian civilian population
in the Gaza Strip of their right to freedom of movement, education and health.

West Bank

Contrary to Israeli
claims of easing restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians, IOF
have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians throughout the West Bank. Thousands of Palestinian civilians from the
West Bank and the Gaza Strip have been denied access to Jerusalem. IOF have
established many checkpoints around and inside the city. Restrictions of the
movement of Palestinian civilians often escalate on Fridays to prevent them
from praying at the al-Aqsa Mosque. IOF often violently assault Palestinian
civilians who attempt to bypass checkpoints and enter the city. IOF have also tightened
the siege imposed 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 also erected
more checkpoints on the main roads and intersections in the West Bank.

Settlement
Activities: IOF
have continued settlement activities and Israeli settlers living in the
OPT have, in violation of international humanitarian law, continued to attack
Palestinian civilians and property. During the reporting period, Israeli
settlers launched five attacks against Palestinian civilians and their property
in Hebron and Qalqilya. IOF were present during those attacks and did not
intervene to stop them’ they were complicit in supporting the settlers.

Israeli Violations Documented during the Reporting
Period (17 – 23 July 2008)

The full report is available PDF format.