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

· 3 Palestinians killed by IOF in the West Bank and the Gaza
Strip.

· 2 of the victims were extra-judicially executed by IOF in
Nablus.

· 18 Palestinians, including 5 children and 2 old men, were
wounded by the IOF gunfire; 12 of them were wounded in Ne’lin village near
Ramallah.

· IOF conducted 36 incursions into Palestinian communities in
the West Bank.

· IOF demolished 2 uninhabited houses and partially demolished
3 inhabited houses, in Qalqilya.

· IOF arrested 48 Palestinian civilians, including 14
children, in the West Bank.

· 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.

· An elderly Palestinian man was run down by an Israeli
settler.

· Israeli settlers burned large areas of agricultural land in
Bourin village, south of Nablus.

· Five Palestinian shepherds were injured by Israeli settlers
in 2 separate attacks in Yatta village, south of Hebron.

Summary

Israeli violations of
international law and humanitarian law continued in the OPT during the reporting
period (19 – 25 June 2008):

Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF
killed 3 Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and wounded 18
others, including 5 children and 2 old men.

In the West Bank,
IOF killed 2 Palestinians and wounded 13 others, including 5 children.

On 24 June 2008, IOF
extra-judicially executed 2 Palestinians in Nablus; a prominent activist of the
al-Quds Brigades (the armed wing of Islamic Jihad) and a university student. This
attack came after the Egypt-brokered truce between Palestinian resistance
groups in the Gaza Strip and Israel entered into force on 19 June 2008, which
indicates that IOF may escalate attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank. 

On the same day, 12
Palestinian civilians, including 4 children, were wounded when IOF used force
to disperse a peaceful demonstration organized in protest to the construction
of the Annexation Wall in Ne’lin village, west of Ramallah. A Palestinian child
was also wounded in similar circumstance in Far’oun village, south of Tulkarm.

In the Gaza Strip,
on 19 June, IOF killed an activist of the Palestinian resistance and wounded 3
others in Gaza Valley village, nearly 500 meters away from the border between
the Gaza Strip and Israel. An IOF aircraft fired a missile at those activists just
one hour before the truce entered into force.  

On 23 June, IOF troops
positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northwest of
Beit Lahia town in the northern Gaza Strip fired at a number of Palestinian
children who attempted to get close to the border. A number of Palestinian
farmers were working on their lands nearly 400 meters away from the border.

On 24 June, an elderly Palestinian
civilian was wounded by the IOF gunfire in similar circumstance in Khuza’a
village, east of Khan Yunis.

Incursions: During the reporting period, IOF
conducted at least 36 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the
West Bank, the widest of which was into Qalqilya. During these incursions, IOF
arrested 48 Palestinian civilians, including 14 children. To date, 1,382
Palestinian civilians have been arrested by IOF in the West Bank since the
beginning of 2008.  IOF also demolished 2
uninhabited houses and partially demolished 3 houses, in Qalqilya.   

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. They have prevented
European observers working at the crossing point from reaching it.

Even though the Egypt-brokered truce
between Palestinian resistance groups and Israel entered into force, no major
change has been noticed with regard to the movement of persons and goods
through the Gaza Strip border crossings, excluding an approximate 20% increase
in the amounts of foods and humanitarian aids allowed into the Gaza Strip
during the reporting period.

The closure of border crossings deprives the
Palestinian civilian population in the Gaza Strip of their right to freedom of
movement, education and health. IOF have continued to impose severe
restrictions on fishing in the Gaza Strip. Fishermen have been subjected to intensive
monitoring and harassment by IOF, which use helicopter gunships and gunboats severely
restrict their access to coastal waters.

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 sometimes 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 and have continued
to erect 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. On 19 June, Israeli settlers burnt large areas of Palestinian
agricultural land in Bourin village, south of Nablus. On the same day, an
Israeli settler ran down an elderly Palestinian civilian near Qalqilya. He was
seriously injured. On 20 June, Israeli settlers attacked a number of
Palestinian farmers and shepherds in Yatta village, south of Hebron. Two shepherds
were injured. On 24 June, Israeli settlers attacked 3 Palestinian shepherds in
Yatta village south of Hebron and injured them.

Israeli Violations Documented during
the Reporting Period (19 – 25 June 2008)

The full report is available PDF format.