Israeli
Occupation Forces (IOF) Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian
Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT)
· 13 Palestinians, including 2 civilians, were killed by IOF
in the Gaza Strip.
· A Palestinian civilian was killed by the guards of “Ofra”
settlement in Ramallah.
· 2 Palestinian children died from previous injuries in Khan
Yunis town in the southern Gaza Strip.
· 27 Palestinians and Israeli human rights defender were
wounded by IOF.
· Of the 27 injured, 20 were civilians, including 4 children,
an elderly woman and 2 journalists.
· IOF conducted 20 incursions into Palestinian communities in
the West Bank, and 4 into the Gaza Strip.
· IOF razed 388 donums[1]
of agricultural land and destroyed 61 greenhouses in Khuza’a village in the
southern Gaza Strip.
· IOF arrested 30 Palestinian civilians, including 7 children
and a journalist, in the West Bank, and arrested 4 civilians in the Gaza Strip.
· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT.
· The fuel crisis in the Gaza Strip has escalated.
· 2 Palestinian civilian were arrested by IOF at military
checkpoints in the West Bank.
· IOF have continued settlement activities in the West Bank
and Israeli settlers have continued to attacks Palestinian civilians and property.
· IOF razed an area of Palestinian land in Hebron in order to establish
a military post.
Summary
Israeli violations of
international law and humanitarian law continued in the OPT, especially in the
Gaza Strip, during the reporting period (8 – 14 May 2008):
Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF
killed 13 Palestinians, including 2 civilians, in the Gaza Strip. Two
Palestinian children died of previous injuries in the Gaza Strip, and a
Palestinian civilian was shot dead by the guards of a settlement in the West
Bank. In addition, IOF wounded 27 Palestinians, including 4 children, an elderly
woman, 2 journalists, and an Israeli human rights defender.
In the Gaza Strip, IOF killed 13 Palestinians and
wounded 16 others. Two children also died from previous injuries.
On 8 May, IOF killed an
activist of the Palestinian resistance and wounded another seriously in Jabalya
refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip. An IOF aircraft fired a missile at the
two activists. On the same day, a Palestinian child died of previous injuries sustained
during an IOF incursion into ‘Abassan village, east of Khan Yunis, on 7 May. On
9 May, IOF killed 5 members of security services of the dismissed Palestinian
government in two air strikes against security sites in Rafah and Khan Yunis.
On 11 May, a Palestinian child died of injuries previously sustained during an
IOF incursion into ‘Abassan village, east of Khan Yunis, on 7 May. On 13 May, IOF
killed an activist of the Palestinian resistance and wounded another one in
al-Qarara village, northeast of Khan Yunis. An IOF drone fired 2 missiles at
the two activists. On 14 May, IOF killed an activist of the Palestinian
resistance and wounded 3 others during an incursion into ‘Abassan village, east
of Khan Yunis. On the same day, IOF killed an activist of the Palestinian
resistance and 2 civilian bystanders and wounded 3 civilians, including an elderly
woman and her granddaughter, during an incursion into Jabalya town in the
northern Gaza Strip. Also on the same day, IOF killed 2 activists of the
Palestinian resistance and wounded 3 others in an air strike in al-Shoja’eya
neighborhood in the east of Gaza City.
In the West Bank, on 9 May, a Palestinian civilian
was shot dead and another was arrested by the guards of “Ofra” settlement,
northeast of Ramallah. IOF claimed that the victim attempted to get close to
the settlement in order to fire at it from a hunting rifle. On 10 May, 10
Palestinians civilians, including 2 children and 2 journalists, and an Israeli
human rights defender, were wounded by IOF in Jaba’ village, south of Jenin,
and Shoufa village, south of Tulkarm. On 11 May, a Palestinian child was
wounded when IOF troops moved into Taffouh village, west of Hebron, and fired
at children who demonstrated against the IOF incursion. On 14 May, a
Palestinian civilian was wounded when IOF troops positioned near bypass road
#60 fired at him.
Incursions: During
the reporting period, IOF conducted at least 20 military incursions into
Palestinian communities in the West Bank. IOF arrested 30 Palestinian civilians,
including 7 children and a journalist. To date, the number of Palestinian
civilians arrested by IOF in the West Bank since the beginning of 2008 stands
at 1,155. IOF also raided a sewing workshop belonging to the Islamic Charity in
Hebron and ordered its closure for 3 years.
In the Gaza Strip, IOF conducted 4 incursions into Palestinian
communities. During these incursions, IOF razed at least 388 donums of
agricultural land and destroyed 61 greenhouses, 150 beehives, 9 agricultural
pools, 4 bird farms and 4 houses. They also arrested 4 Palestinians.
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 one year and a half. The IOF
imposed siege 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 a 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 form reaching
it.
The following are the most
significant current impacts of the IOF siege of the Gaza Strip, including the
current impacts of fuel deprivation.
· Streets across the Gaza Strip are empty, and daily life has
almost been paralyzed.
· Two weeks ago UNRWA was forced to suspend food aid to at
least 650,000 Palestinian refugees living in the Gaza Strip because of fuel
shortages.
· Livings conditions of the civilian populations have
continued to deteriorate.
· Hundreds of patients have been denied access to medical
treatment outside the Gaza Strip.
· Many university and school students have not been able to
reach their educational institutions due to overwhelming demand for public
transport.
· Only 15% of public transport is operating, due to lack of
fuel.
· The operation of 15 wells have been stopped and at least
100,000 people across the Gaza Strip now face severe difficulties in accessing
safe drinking water.
· Access to 125 reservoirs has decreased due to lack of
fuel.
· Twelve sewage treatment plants lack the necessary fuel
supplies to operate at full capacity, and subsequently at least 40,000 liters
of untreated sewage have been pumped into the sea daily.
· Piles of garbage are seen in the streets, which may cause
environmental and widespread sanitary problems.
· At least 85% of vehicles of the Coastal Municipalities Water
Utility have not been able to operate in order to supply safe drinking water,
treat sewage and maintain the current sewage networks.
· Poverty and employment have sharply increased.
The continuing closure of border all 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 to have eased 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, including
occupied East Jerusalem. IOF have established numerous checkpoints around and
inside East Jerusalem. Restrictions of the movement of Palestinian civilians
often escalate on Fridays in order to prevent them from praying at the al-Aqsa
Mosque. IOF often harass and assault Palestinian civilians who attempt to
bypass checkpoints and enter the city. IOF positioned at checkpoints across the
West Bank have also continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of
Palestinian civilians. On 8 May, IOF closed Nablus-Ramallah, Nablus-Jenin,
Nablus-Qalqilya and Nablus-Tulkarm roads. In addition, they closed Beit Eiba
checkpoint, west of Nablus, and Ennab checkpoint, east of Tulkarm, and
re-established their presence at Yits’har checkpoints. These measures were
taken to secure Independence Day the celebration of at least 500 Israeli
settlers in “Shavi Shomron” settlement, northwest of Nablus. The closure of
these roads continued until the evening. During the reporting period, IOF have imposed
a comprehensive closure on the OPT from Tuesday, 6 May 2008, until Monday
morning, 19 May 2008. During the reporting period, IOF troops positioned at
various checkpoints in the West Bank arrested 2 Palestinian civilians.
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 13 May, IOF razed an area of land in the south of Hebron to
establish a military post. On
8 May, hundreds of Israeli settlers arrived at the
area where the evacuated “Homesh” settlement used to stand, northwest of
Nablus. They erected tents. In the meantime, IOF extensively deployed and
closed some roads allegedly to ensure security for settlers. They did not allow
Palestinian farmers to reach their lands in the area.
Israeli Violations Documented during
the Reporting Period (8 – 14 May 2008)
The full report is available PDF format.
