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

· 22 Palestinians, including 4 women and three children, were killed
by IOF in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

· 5 of the victims were from the same family.

· 117 Palestinians, including 48 children and 5 women, were injured
by IOF gunfire.

· IOF conducted 33 incursions into Palestinian communities in
the West Bank, and 4 into the Gaza Strip.

· IOF arrested 93 Palestinian civilians, including 14 children.
 

· IOF razed 259 donums[1]
of agricultural land and demolished 2 houses in the Gaza Strip.

· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT.

· IOF have isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world and
a humanitarian crisis has emerged.

· A Palestinian woman gave birth at an IOF checkpoint in
Hebron.

· IOF troops positioned at checkpoints in the West Bank
arrested 8 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children.

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

· The Israeli Ministry of Housing decided to build 1,000 new
housing units in the Abu Ghunaim district of occupied East Jerusalem.

· IOF razed 20 donums of agricultural land in the central
Jordan Valley.  

Summary

Israeli violations of
international law and humanitarian law escalated in the OPT during the reporting
period (3 – 9 January 2008):

Shootings: During the
reporting period, IOF killed 22 Palestinians, including four women and three children,
and wounded 117 others, including 48 children and 5 women.

In the Gaza Strip,
IOF killed 20 Palestinians, including 5 members of one family, and wounded 71
others, including 26 children and 4 women.

On 3 January, IOF moved
into the areas of al-Zanna and al-Qarara village, east of Khan Yunis. During
this incursion, IOF killed 7 Palestinians, including a woman, her two adult sons,
her daughter and her nephew. They also wounded 22 Palestinians. On the same
day, IOF killed a Palestinian and wounded 4 others, including 2 children,
during an incursion into al-Shojaeya neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. In
addition, they also killed another Palestinian, and wounded 4 others, including
2 children, in Rafah. On 4 January, IOF killed 2 members of the Palestinian
resistance in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun. On 5 January, IOF
killed a member of the Palestinian resistance in Beit Hanoun town. On 6 January,
IOF moved into al-Boreij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. During this
incursion, IOF killed 4 Palestinians, including a child, and a woman, and
wounded 40 others, including 15 children and 3 women. On the same day, IOF
killed a member of the Palestinian resistance and wounded 2 others in
al-Shojaeya neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. On 9 January 2008, IOF
killed a woman and a child and wounded 4 other civilians in Beit Hanoun town.
On the same day, a Palestinian farmer was wounded by IOF gunfire in the
northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahia. 

In the West Bank,
IOF killed a Palestinian boy and wounded 46 civilians, including 23 children
and a woman. Another Palestinian civilian was killed by the explosion of a
landmine of the remainders of IOF.

On 6 January, a
Palestinian shepherd was killed when he stepped on a landmine in Wadi al-Maleh
area in the northern Jordan Valley. The area is used by IOF for military
training. On 7 January, IOF killed a Palestinian boy in al-Yamoun village, west
of Jenin. They claimed he was shooting at them. During the reporting period, 46
Palestinian civilians, including a woman and 23 children were wounded by IOF,
thirty eight of whom were wounded by IOF during a 3-day incursion into Nablus.

Incursions: During the reporting period, IOF
conducted at least 33 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the
West Bank. The largest incursion was into Nablus, and lasted for 3 days. During
these incursions, IOF arrested 93 Palestinian civilians, including woman and 13
children.

In the Gaza Strip, IOF conducted 4
incursions into Palestinian communities. During those incursions, IOF
demolished 2 houses and razed 259 donums of agricultural land. They also
damaged 10 houses.

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

To date, IOF
have closed all border crossings to the Gaza Strip for almost 18 months
continuously. The total siege imposed by IOF on the Gaza Strip has had a
disastrous impact on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, and has violated the
economic and social rights of the Palestinian civilian population, particularly
their rights to appropriate living conditions, health and education. The siege has
also paralyzed most economic sectors. Furthermore, severe restrictions have
been imposed on the movement of the Palestinian civilian population. The siege
imposed on the Gaza Strip has also severely affected the flow of food, medical
supplies and other necessities, such as fuel, construction materials and raw
materials for various economic sectors. IOF have further tightened the siege
imposed on the Gaza Strip since Hamas’ takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007,
and the living and economic conditions of Palestinian civilians in Gaza have
continued to deteriorate. The Israeli government has declared the Gaza Strip “A
hostile entity,” and measures of collective punishment against the civilian
population have subsequently escalated. Since September 2007, IOF have limited
the goods exported to the Gaza Strip to just nine basic materials. As a direct consequence,
local markets have run out of many goods, causing sharp increases in prices,
which in some cases have amounted to 500%. The IOF have also banned the import
of some medicines, furniture, electrical appliances and cigarettes, as well as decreasing
the amounts of some other goods being imported into the Gaza Strip, such as
fruits, milk and some other dairy products.

West Bank

IOF have continued to
impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. Thousands
of Palestinian civilians from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip have systematically
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 assault and beat 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 have erected numerous checkpoints on
the main roads and intersections in the West Bank. During the reporting period,
IOF troops positioned at checkpoints and border crossings in the West Bank
arrested at least 8 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children.

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, IOF razed 20 donums of agricultural land in the central Jordan Valley
for the purpose of settlement expansion. The Israeli Ministry of Housing also
decided to build 1,000 housing unit in Abu Ghunaim area in the south of occupied
East Jerusalem.

Israeli Violations Documented during the Reporting Period (3 – 9 January
2008)

The full report is available PDF format.