Israeli forces force a Palestinian civilian
to demolish his house in Wad al-Jouz neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem

 

 

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

 

 

· A Palestinian child
was wounded in Iraq Bourin village, south of Nablus.

 

· IOF continued
to use force against peaceful protests in the West Bank.

– A Palestinian
demonstrator was wounded in Bil’ein, west of Ramallah. 

– IOF arrested 15
demonstrators, including a child.

– The arrested
persons include 7 Palestinians and 8 international human rights defenders.

 

· IOF conducted 47
incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank and one limited
incursion into the central Gaza Strip. 

– IOF arrested 29
Palestinian civilians, including 4 children and 2 women.

– IOF launched a wide
scale campaign against the Islamic Jihad in Jenin and closed 2 charitable associations.

 

· IOF continued
settlement activities and Israeli settlers continued their attacks in the West
Bank.

– IOF demolished
8 artisan wells in Jenin and bulldozed a shop of construction materials in
Qalqilya.

– Israeli settlers
attacked a Palestinian shepherd in Madma village, south of Nablus.

– Israeli
settlers set fire to 4 donums[1]
planted with grains in Madma village, south of Nablus.

 

· Israel has
continued to impose a total siege on the Gaza Strip and tightened the siege on
the West Bank.

– IOF arrested at
least 4 Palestinians at military checkpoints in the West Bank.

– IOF stopped and
held Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) and another 2 PLC
members and arrested a third one. 

 

 

 

Summary

 

Israeli
violations of international law and humanitarian law in the OPT continued
during the reporting period (26 May – 01 June 2011):

 

Shooting:

 

During
the reporting period, IOF wounded two Palestinian civilians, including a child,
in the West Bank. The child was wounded
when IOF moved into Iraq Bourin village, south of Nablus, while the other
Palestinian was wounded in a peaceful protest against settlement activities and
the construction of the annexation wall in the West Bank.  

 

On 30
June 2011, IOF moved into Iraq Bourin village, south of Nablus, amid intensive
firing of sound bombs and tear gas canisters. A number of boys gathered and stoned IOF who immediately replied by
firing rubber-coated metal bullets and tear gas canisters. A 16-year-old child was wounded as a
result. 

 

IOF
used excessive force to disperse peaceful demonstrations organized in protest
to Israeli settlement activities and the construction of the annexation wall in
the West Bank. As a result, Ibrahim
Abdul Fattah Burnat, 29, was hit by a tear gas canister in the right shoulder
and his eye was affected because of the gas. In addition, dozens of Palestinian civilians and international human
rights defenders participating in peaceful protests in the West Bank suffered
from tear gas inhalation and bruises as they were beaten by IOF.

 

Incursions:

 

During
the reporting period, IOF conducted at least 47 military incursions into
Palestinian communities in the West Bank, during which they arrested 29
Palestinian civilians, including 4 children and 2 women.

 

The widest
incursion was implemented by IOF on 31 May 2011 into Jenin, during which IOF
waged a wide scale campaign against the Islamic Jihad in Jenin. IOF moved into
villages in Jenin and arrested 12 members of the Islamic Jihad, including 2
women. They also confiscated the contents
of two associations affiliated with the Islamic Jihad, but they failed to
arrest Khader Mousa, a political leader of the Islamic Jihad, after raiding his
house.

 

IOF
have continued to attempt to crack down peaceful protests and to prevent
international human rights defenders from participating in peaceful assemblies
against settlement activities and the construction of the annexation wall. As part of these attempts, IOF arrested 15
protesters, including a child. The
arrested protesters included 7 Palestinian civilians and 8 international human
rights defenders.

 

IOF
has also continued to use checkpoints as traps to arrest Palestinians allegedly
wanted by IOF. During the reporting
period, IOF arrested at least 4 Palestinians at checkpoints in the West Bank
including, a PLC Member of the Change and Reform Bloc, Nezar Abdul Aziz
Ramadan, 47. Ramadan was with PLC Speaker
Dr. Aziz Dweik and PLC members Anwar Zboun, from Bethlehem, and Basem
al-Zaarir, from Hebron, when IOF held them for more than 4 hours at an Israeli
checkpoint.

 

In the
Gaza Strip, on 31 May 2011, IOF moved nearly 300 meters into the east of
al-Bureij refugee camp, in the central Gaza Strip. They conducted bulldozing and leveling works
until 13:00. They then redeployed beyond
the border fence. 

 

Israeli
Settlers’ Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property:

 

Israeli
settlers living in the OPT in violation of the international humanitarian law
have continued to commit systematic crimes against Palestinian civilians and
Palestinian property with protection provided by IOF who ignore conducting
investigations into complaints submitted by Palestinian civilians against
settlers.

 

On
29 May 2011, IOF moved into the northern plain of Kafr Dan village, northwest
of Jenin. IOF soldiers stepped down from
vehicles and deployed in Palestinian farms and told Palestinian farmers that
they had orders to demolish 12 artisan wells claiming that they were
established without licenses. Guarded by
soldiers, IOF bulldozers and digging machines started demolishing the
wells. Two hours after the start of the
demolition works, large numbers of Palestinians from Kafr Dan village and from
Jenin arrived at the scene and gathered in farms closed to IOF’s locations.  Some of the Palestinians stopped in front of
bulldozers trying to stop them. IOF
talked with the Palestinians who were protesting in the scene and agreed to
stop the demolition works asking Palestinians to withdraw from the scene. At this time, IOF had already completed the
demolition works.

 

On
30 May 2011, IOF moved into Jinsafout village, east of Qaqilya. They raided a shop of construction materials
owned by Mahmoud Yousef Mohammed Sukkar, 31. IOF then bulldozed the shop with the materials inside it under the
pretext of the lack of license.

 

On 26
May 2011, a group of settlers from “Yitzhar” settlement which is
established on parts of Palestinians’ lands in the south of Madma village,
south of Nablus, used clubs to beat Hamad Jaber Ahmed al-Qet, 66. Al-Qet sustained wounds, crumple in the head
and bruises throughout the body.

 

On
30 May 2011, nearly 10 settlers from “Yitzhar” settlement which is
established on parts of Palestinians’ lands in the south of Madma village,
south of Nablus, set fire to farms planted with barleys in Ein al-Eshreh and
al-Sawawin areas which are located nearly 2 kilometers from “Yitzhar”
settlement. The fire destroyed nearly 4
donums of land planted with barleys before the Palestinian villagers manage to
extinguish the fire. The damaged farms
belong to Hassan Mohammed Zyada, member of the Local Council of Madma village.

 

Restrictions
on Movement:

 

Israel
has continued to impose a tightened siege on the OPT and has imposed severe
restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the
West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.

 

Gaza
Strip

 

Israel has continuously closed all
border crossings to the Gaza Strip for over three years. The illegal
Israeli-imposed closure of the Gaza Strip, which has been steadily tightened
since June 2007, has had a disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic
situation in the Gaza Strip. 

 

· The cooking gas crisis which has erupted last
November has continued to affect the Gaza Strip. This crisis was created when the Israeli
occupation authorities totally closed, on 04 January 2010, Nahal Oz crossing,
which used to be dedicated for the delivery of fuel and cooking gas supplies to
Gaza, and shifted fuel and cooking gas supplies to Karm Abu Salem crossing
which is not technically equipped to receive Gaza’s needs of fuel.  Karm
Abu Salem crossing, with its maximum absorptive capacity, can receive only 200
tons of cooking gas per day.

 

It should be noted that the Israeli occupation
authorities have worked over the past three years to make Karm Abu Salem
crossing, which is not appropriate for commercial purposes, as Gaza’s major and
sole crossing. 

 

In the beginning of 2010, the Israeli
occupation authorities closed Nahal Oz crossing which was dedicated for the
supplies of fuel and cooking gas to Gaza, and shifted fuel supplies to Karm Abu
Salem crossing. these authorities
totally closed Sofa crossing, southeast of Khan Younis, and shifted
humanitarian aid and food items which used to be delivered via Sofa crossing to
Karm Abu Salem crossing. Lately, they
exceptionally open Sofa crossing from time to time to allow the delivery of
construction aggregate for UNRWA.

 

· Approximately 80% of Gaza civilians have
continued to depend on alimentary aid provided by UNRWA and other relief
agencies, rates of families who are living below poverty line have continued to
be on the rise and approximately 40% of Gaza’s manpower has continued to suffer
from permanent unemployment as a result of shutting down the majority of Gaza’s
economic establishments.

· IOF have continued to impose a total ban on the
exportation of Gaza’s products, especially industrial products, leading to
undermining any real chances to rerun economic establishments. Facts on the ground refute IOF’s allegation
that they daily allow the export of 10 truckloads of agricultural products.

· Recently, IOF allowed the exportation of very
limited quantities of Gaza’s agricultural products, including flowers and
tomatoes, to European markers.

· For approximately four consecutive years, IOF
have continued to ban the delivery of construction materials to Gaza. During
the reporting period, IOF approved the delivery of limited quantities of
construction materials for a number of international organizations.

· Israel has
continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing for Palestinian civilians from
the Gaza Strip. IOF only allow the
movement of limited groups amidst severe restrictions, including long hours of
waiting in the majority of cases. IOF
have also continued to adopt a policy aimed at reducing the number of
Palestinian patients allowed to move via Beit Hanoun crossing to receive
medical treatment in hospitals in Israel or in the West Bank and
Jerusalem. IOF denied new categories of
Gazan patient permission to have access to hospitals via the crossing.

· Israel has
imposed additional access restrictions on international diplomats, journalists
and humanitarian workers seeking to enter the Gaza Strip.

·  For approximately 46 months, IOF have
continued to deny approximately 710 Palestinian prisoners from Gaza detained in
Israeli jails their visitation rights without providing any justification to
this measure, which violates the rules of the international humanitarian law.

 

West
Bank

 

IOF have continued to impose severe
restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians throughout the West Bank,
including occupied East Jerusalem. Thousands of Palestinian civilians from the
West Bank and the Gaza Strip continue to be denied access to Jerusalem.

 

· IOF have
established checkpoints in and around Jerusalem, severely restricting
Palestinian access to the city. Civilians are frequently prevented from praying
in the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

 

· There are
approximately 585 permanent roadblocks, and manned and unmanned checkpoints
across the West Bank.

 

· When complete,
the illegal annexation wall will stretch for 724 kilometers
around the West Bank, further isolating the entire population. 350 kilometers of
the wall have already been constructed. Approximately 99% of the wall has been
constructed inside the West Bank itself, confiscating more Palestinian land.

 

· At least 65% of
the main roads that lead to 18 Palestinian communities in the West Bank are
closed or fully controlled by IOF.

 

· There are
approximately 500
kilometers of restricted roads across the West Bank. In
addition, approximately one third of the West Bank, including occupied East
Jerusalem, is inaccessible to Palestinians without permits issued by IOF. Such
permits are extremely difficult to obtain.

 

· IOF continue to
harass and assault demonstrators who hold peaceful protests against the
construction of the annexation wall.

 

· Palestinian
civilians continue to be harassed by IOF in Jerusalem, and across the West
Bank, including being regularly stopped and searched in the streets by IOF.

 

Israeli
Violations Documented during the Reporting Period (26 May – 01 June 2011)

 

1. Incursions into
Palestinian Areas and Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the West
Bank and the Gaza Strip

 

Thursday, 26 May 2011

 

· At approximately 00:30, IOF moved into al-Arroub refugee camp,
north of Hebron. They raided and
searched the house of Abdul Aziz Salim Balasi. Before withdrawing, they arrested Balasi’s eighteen-year-old son, Umar,
and drove him to “Kfar Etzion” detention center, southwest of
Bethlehem. 

 

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into al-Shawawra village, east of
Bethlehem. They raided and searched the
house of Muhannad Ahmed Saadad al-Asa, 26. They checked the ID cards of the residents. Before withdrawing, they
arrested al-Asa and drove him to “Ras Fredes” detention center, south
of Bethlehem. Later, they transferred
al-Asa to “Kfar Etzion” detention center, southwest of
Bethlehem. 

 

· At approximately 10:00, IOF moved into Kafr Zibad village,
northeast of Qalqilya.  They patrolled in
the streets for some time. They withdrew
later and neither house raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· Following their withdrawal from Kafr Zibad village, IOF moved to
the east into the nearby village of Kafr Abboush. They patrolled in the streets for some
time. They withdrew later and neither
house raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 10:15, IOF moved into al-Funduq village, east of Qalqilya.
They patrolled in the streets for some time. They withdrew later and neither house raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· Also at approximately 21:30, IOF moved into Beit Leqia village, west
of Ramallah, and patrolled in the streets. A number of boys gathered and stoned IOF who immediately responded by
firing bullets, rubber-coated metal bullets, sound bombs and tear gas
canisters. Many civilians suffered from tear
gas inhalation as a result. IOF withdrew
later and no arrests were reported.  

 

· At approximately 22:00, IOF moved into Jafna village, north of
Ramallah. They patrolled in the streets for
some time. They withdrew later and no
arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 22:30, IOF moved into Jericho. They patrolled in the streets for some
time. They withdrew later and no arrests
were reported.

 

 

Friday,
27 May 2011

 

· At approximately 01:00, IOF moved into al-Majd village, west of Dora
in the southwest of Hebron. They raided
the house of Hamza Ibrahim Amr and arrested his eighteen-year-old son,
Abdullah, and drove him to a police station near “Kriat Arba”
settlement, southeast of Hebron. Abdullah was arrested for allegedly stoning IOF vehicles near the
annexation wall. He was later
transferred to “Kfar Etzion” detention center, southwest of Bethlehem. 

 

· At approximately 02:30, IOF moved into al-Shawawra village, east of
Bethlehem. They raided and searched the
house of Ahmed Issa Mohammed Hamdan, 24. Before withdrawing, they arrested Hamdan and drove him to “Ras
Fredes” detention center, south of Bethlehem. Later, they transferred Hamdan to “Kfar
Etzion” detention center, southwest of Bethlehem.

 

· At approximately 23:00, IOF moved into Bitonia town, west of Ramallah. They provocatively patrolled in the streets
for some time. They withdrew later and no
arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 23:20, IOF moved into Bir Zeit village, north of
Ramallah. They patrolled in the streets
for some time. They withdrew later and
no arrests were reported.

 

Saturday, 28 May 2011

 

· At approximately 01:00, IOF moved into Bedia village, northwest of
Salfit.  They patrolled in the streets
for some time. They withdrew at
approximately 04:00. Neither house raids
nor arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Qarawat Bani Hassan village,
northwest of Salfit. They patrolled in
the streets for some time. They withdrew
at approximately 04:10. Neither house
raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· Also at approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Kafr al-Diq village, west
of Salfit. They patrolled in the streets
for some time. Before withdrawing at
approximately 02:30, they delivered a notice to Samer Anwar Mustafa al-Diq, 35,
requiring him to appear before the Israeli intelligence service. No arrests
were reported.

 

Sunday, 29 May 2011

 

· At approximately 01:00, IOF moved into Bil’ein village, west of
Ramallah. They provocatively patrolled
in the streets and claxoned now and then to disturb the residents of the
village. They later intensively fired
tear gas cansiters, sound bombs and flash bombs. Children and civilians in the village were in
panic as a result. IOF withdrew later
and no arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Ukbet Jaber refugee camp, south
of Jericho. They raided many
houses. Before withdrawing, they
delivered notices to Khalil Abu al-Asal and Kamal Said al-Lada requiring them
to appear before the Israeli intelligence service.

 

· At approximately 03:30, IOF moved into Nour Shams refugee camp, east
of Tulkarm. They took position in
al-Jame area in the center of Nour Shams refugee camp. They sneaked into a 3-storey house belonging
to Umar Tarif Abdullah Ghannam, 57. They
destroyed the main gate of the house and went up to the second floor where
Shadi, 31, who is Ghannam’s son, lives. Shadi was not at home. They
destroyed the door of the second floor and questioned Shadi’s wife. They then went up to the third floor and
destroyed the door. They arrested Fadi,
22, who is Ghannam’s son. IOF used
sniffer dogs to search the house and withdrew later. Shortly later, they raided and searched the
house of Ali Khairi Mohammed Abu Salah, 27, and arrested him. They withdrew in the early morning.

 

Rasha Ahmed Jamal Ghannam, 26, Shadi’s wife, told the PCHR the
following:

“At approximately 03:30 on 29
May 2011, Israeli occupation soldiers raided our 3-storey house in al-Jame area
in the center of Nour Shams refugee camp. They destroyed the main door and went up to the bedroom on the second
floor where I was with my children. When
I heard them destroying the main door of the second floor, I started
screaming. After they destroyed the
door, they pointed their guns at me. I
ran to the room where my children were sleeping. I sat down on the floor. At first, I thought they were thieves. One of the soldiers followed me and pointed
his gun at me. He asked me in a low
voice ‘where is Fadi?’ It told him that it was Shadi’s house and he left. He talked to another person and then got back
to me. He asked me several questions
about my husband, Shadi. He was the only
soldier who talked in Arabic. The
soldiers then went up to the third floor and a soldier remained near the door
of the room where I was present. They
destroyed the door of the third floor ad arrested my brother-in-law, Fadi. They then brought sniffer dogs and searched
the house. My children and I were in
total panic. During their withdrawal
from the house, one of the soldiers hit my mother-in-law, Nazira Mohammed Issa
Ghannam, 51, who was on the first floor, using his gun butt. In the morning, we transferred her to the hospital.”

 

· At approximately 04:10, IOF moved into Qalqilya. They patrolled in the streets for some
time. Before withdrawing, they arrested
Mohammed Nasim al-Shanti, 24.

 

· At approximately 10:30, IOF moved into Shweaka suburb, north of Tulkarm. They patrolled in the streets for some
time. They withdrew later and neither
house raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 11:30, IOF moved into Deir al-Sudan village, north
of Ramallah. They patrolled in the
streets for some time. They withdrew
later and no arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 22:00, IOF moved into al-Ouja village, north of
Jericho. They patrolled in the streets
for some time. They withdrew later and
no arrests were reported.

 

Monday, 30 May 2011

 

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into al-Duhaisha refugee camp,
south of Bethlehem. They raided and
searched many houses in the west and north of the refugee camp. Before withdrawing at approximately 04:30,
IOF arrested 4 Palestinians, including 3 children, and drove them to “Kfar
Etzion” detention center, southwest of Hebron. They placed them later under interrogation
for allegedly “throwing stones and Molotov cocktails” at IOF
vehicles. The detainees are:

1. Mufti
   Maarouf Abdul Hamid Umar, 16;
2. Tamer
   Harbi Khader Abu Sdoud, 17;
3. Zakareya
   Mustafa Ibrahim Abu Aysha, 16; and
4. Qusai
   Mohammed Mahmoud al-Sharif, 18.

 

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, IOF deliberately beat
Mufti Maarouf Abdul Hamid Umar using their legs while they were driving him to
an IOF vehicle. They caused light
damages to the house of Qusai Mohammed Mahmoud al-Sharif while searching it and
they caused panic to his little siblings because of their actions and
screaming. They drove al-Sharif on foot
from his house in al-Dheisha refugee camp to “Solomon’s Pools” area
in the nearby village of al-Khader.

 

· At approximately 11:30, IOF moved into Seilet al-Daher town, south
of Jenin. They patrolled in the streets.
IOF soldiers stepped down from vehicles and toured in the alleys with a
photographer in civil clothes. The
photographer took photos of all the old houses and alleys leading to
them. IOF withdrew later and neither
house raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· Also at approximately 11:30, IOF moved into Shwaika suburb, north
of Tulkarm. They patrolled in the
streets for some time. They withdrew
later and neither house raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 13:30, IOF moved into Iraq Bourin village, south
of Nablus, amid intensive firing of sound bombs and tear gas canisters. A number of boys gathered and stoned IOF who
immediately responded by firing rubber-coated metal bullets and tear gas
canisters.  Amir Aref Mustafa Qadous, 16, was wounded by a
bullet to the face and Sakher Husam Aref al-Faqih, 20, suffered from tear gas
inhalation as a result. The wounded were
transferred to Rafidia Public Hospital in Nablus for treatment. 

 

· Also at approximately 13:30, an IOF undercover unit sneaked into Um
al-Sharayet neighborhood in al-Bireh. They used a white Mercedes truck and a grey Volkswagen Caravelle and
stopped near (Abboud Popular Restaurant) in (Abu Ahmed al-Malhi) building near
the offices of the Ministry of Economy. Five soldiers stepped down from the vehicles and raided (Abboud Popular
Restaurant). Shortly later, several
military vehicles arrived at the restaurant and many soldiers raided the
restaurant. They searched the restaurant
and maltreated the people working in it as well as clients. A few minutes later, they left the restaurant
with three Palestinians who were handcuffed and blindfolded. Eyewitnesses told a PCHR fieldworker that IOF
beat the three Palestinians who were arrested and interrogated them and then
drove them to “al-Maskoubeyeh” interrogation center in
Jerusalem. Two hours later, IOF came
back and raided the same restaurant. They were looking for surveillance cameras used in the restaurant, which
are installed at the entrance of (Abu Ahmed al-Malhi) building. They also raided and searched a house
belonging to Hamza Mohammed Abdul Halim Abdo, 33, who is the owner of the said
restaurant, in (Abu Ahmed al-Malhi) building. They confiscated 2 computers and 3 surveillance cameras from the house
and from a nearby shop. They drove Abdo
to an unknown destination. The arrested
Palestinians are:

 

1. Hamed
   Naim Hassoun, 18;
2. Louay
   Adnan, 22; and
3. Saleh
   Hamed, 23.

 

At approximately 19:00 on the same day, IOF released Hamed Naim
Hassoun. The following day, they
released Saleh Hamed.

 

· At approximately 14:10, IOF moved into Azzoun village, east of
Qalqilya. They patrolled in the streets
and searched an internet café. They held
Ramzi Naim Hussein, 16, but released him later.

 

· At approximately 22:00, IOF moved into al-Nabi Saleh village, west
of Ramallah. They provocatively
patrolled in the streets and claxoned now and then to bother Palestinians in
the village. A number of boys gathered
and stoned IOF who immediately responded by firing bullets, rubber-coated metal
bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters. Many civilians suffered from gas inhalation as a result. IOF withdrew later and no arrests were
reported.

 

· At approximately 21:30, IOF moved into Beit Leqia village, west of
Ramallah. They patrolled in the streets
for some time. A number of boys gathered
and stoned IOF who immediately responded by firing bullets, rubber-coated metal
bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters. Many civilians suffered from tear gas inhalation as a result. IOF withdrew later and no arrests were
reported. 

 

Tuesday, 31 May 2011

 

1. Campaign
against the Islamic Jihad movement in Jenin

 

· In the dawn of Tuesday, 31 May 2011, IOF launched a wide scale
campaign against the Islamic Jihad movement in Jenin. They raided villages and towns in Jenin and
arrested 12 members of the Islamic Jihad, including 2 women. They also confiscated the content of two
associations affiliated with the Islamic Jihad, but they failed to arrest
Khader Mousa, a political leader of the Islamic Jihad, after raiding his house
and maltreating his family.

 

· At approximately 00:45, IOF moved into Arraba village, southwest of
Jenin. They patrolled in the streets and
stationed in the center of the town. A
force composed of nearly 200 foot soldiers surrounded the house of Khader Adnan
Mohammed Mousa, 32, a leader of the Islamic Jihad, and precisely searched the
house using sniffer dogs after forcing the residents to leave it. They also maltreated Mousa’s family. Before withdrawing, they delivered a notice
to Mousa’s wife requiring Mousa to turn himself in to IOF in “Salem”
District Coordination Office which is built on Palestinian lands in the
northwest of Jenin, within 12 hours, otherwise he would be considered ‘wanted’.

 

· At approximately 01: 00, IOF moved into the eastern neighborhood of
Arraba village. They stationed near the
UNRWA school and raided a house belonging to Jasser Abdul Latif Mohammed
Shibani, 43. They forced the residents
to leave the house and handcuffed and blindfolded Shibani and his adult
sons. They then returned the members of
the family to the house and held them in one room and searched the house. Before withdrawing, they arrested Shibani’s
twenty-three-year-old daughter, Saja, who is an employee of the Islamic Relief
Society for Orphans. They confiscated a
sum of money from Saja and confiscated documents relating to her work and
identification documents belonging to her family.

 

· Also at approximately 01: 00, IOF raided and searched a house
belonging to Muna Hussein Awad Dar Hussein “Qaadan”, 40,
who is the director of al-Baraa Society for Muslim Girls. They arrested Dar Hussein and confiscated a
laptop, a mobile and a computer screen from her house.

 

· Later, IOF drove to the west of Arraba village. They stationed in al-Mardawi neighborhood and
raided a house belonging to Mohammed Azmi Suleiman Mardawi, 30. They destroyed the main door of the house and
forced the residents to leave the house and searched it. They then arrested Mardawi. IOF withdrew in the morning with the three
Palestinians arrested from Arraba village.

 

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Jenin. They stationed in Abu Bakr Street in the
center of the town. They deployed in the
vicinity of al-Basatin building and occupied roofs of nearby buildings. They surrounded al-Basatin building and
raided it. They raided an apartment on
the third floor. This apartment includes
the offices of the Islamic Relief Society for Orphans and al-Baraa Society for
Muslim Girls. Al-Baraa Society for
Muslim Girls has its main office in Kafr Qasem inside the Green Line. The main office of the Society has official
license from the Israeli authorities. The two societies HAVE a number of Quran schools and kindergartens. They in addition provide help to the poor and
to orphans. IOF confiscated the contents
of the societies and stuck notices on the doors mentioning that they were
closed by orders from the Israeli occupation and they are prohibited to be
opened. IOF also raided the offices of
the Palestinian People’s Party (PPP) on the second floor of al-Basatin building
after they destroyed the main door. A
PPP member told the PCHR fieldworker that IOF raided the PPP offices to remove
a sign belonging to al-Baraa Society for Muslim Girls, which was fixed on the
external wall of al-Basatin building.

 

· Also at approximately 02:00, IOF moved into al-Zababda village,
southeast of Jenin. They patrolled in
the streets and stationed in the southern neighborhood. They raided a house belonging to Taha Najeh
Lutfi Sharqawi, 24. They searched the
house thoroughly using sniffer dogs and confiscated a computer, 5 mobile
phones, documents and photos of the family. They arrested Sharqawi and withdrew from the village.

 

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved itno Jabaa village, south of
Jenin. They patrolled in the streets and stationed in al-Ein al-Sharqeya area,
east of the village. They raided a house
belonging to Murad Walid Malaysha, 22. They arrested Malaysha. They then
raided and searched a house belonging to Ibrahim Asaad Mohammed Baddad,
43. They arrested Baddad and withdrew
from the town.

 

· At approximately 02:20, IOF moved into Kafr Ra’ei, southwest of
Jenin. They patrolled in the streets and
raided a house belonging to Majdi Walid Ibrahim al-Sheikh Ibrahim, 30, who is a
contractor. They searched the house and
arrested Ibrahim. In addition, they
confiscated checks and documents relating to Ibrahim’s business. IOF then raided a house belonging to Belal
Nabil Said Diab, 27, and searched the house using sniffer dogs. Nearly half an hour later, they arrested
Diab. IOF withdrew with the two arrested
Palestinians.

 

· At approximately 03:30, IOF moved into Anin village, west of
Jenin. They patrolled in the streets and
stationed in the northern neighborhood. They raided and searched a house belonging to Jamal Abdul Fattah Asaad
Yousef, 33, and arrested him.

 

· At approximately 03:45, IOF moved into Seilet al-Hartheyeh village,
northwest of Jenin. They patrolled in
the streets and stationed in al-Zyoud neighborhood in the center of the village. They raided and searched a house belonging to
Usama Mohammed Salim Shalabi, 38, and arrested him. They then drove to the east and stationed in
al-Saadeya neighborhood. They raided and
searched a house belonging to Fadi Ahmed Abdul Karim Zayoud (al-Saadi), 26, and
arrested him. They drove to the south
and stationed near Jawwal building in al-Jaradat neighborhood. They raided and searched a house belonging to
Mohammed Wajih Mefleh Jaradat, 26, and arrested him. IOF withdrew later from the village with the
arrested Palestinians.

 

2. Other
incursions on Tuesday, 31 May 2011

 

· At approximately 00: 30, IOF moved into Azzoun village, east of
Qalqilya. They patrolled in the streets
and raided and searched many houses. Before withdrawing, they arrested Mohammed Qaher Abu Haneyeh, 17, and
Hadi Anwar Mashaal, 20.

 

Anwar Mashaal told the PCHR fieldworker that:

 

“At approximately 01:30 on Tuesday, 31 May
2011, the Israeli military arrived at the house. They raided all the floors starting from the
ground floor to the fourth floor. They
jumped from the wall and entered to the courtyard. They destroyed the external gate and entered
the house. They severely stroke the
doors. I opened the door and they wanted
to enter. I asked them to wait for 5 minutes so women can prepare themselves,
but they refused to wait. They entered
the house, searched it and damaged its contents. Before that, they forced all of us to leave
the house. They wanted the children to
leave the house, but I told them that they were children and that there were no
reasons to awoke them and force them to leave the house. The officer finally agreed. I told them ‘if you want any one of my sons,
just take him and do not destroy the house.” However, they damaged
everything in the house. They then
arrested my son, Hadi, who was sleeping with me. Hadi is sick. His leg has been fractured and
he has platinum transplanted in it. When
they allowed us to enter the house, we found that they damaged everything
including sofas, closets, computers and the kitchen. There is a big container which we use to
store oil. They overturned it and oil
was poured. They destroyed everything
they faced.”

 

· At approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Alar village, north of Tulkarm.
They patrolled in the streets for some time. Neither house raids nor arrests were reported.

 

· At approximately 08:30, IOF moved nearly 300 meters into the east
of al-Bureij refugee camp, in the central Gaza Strip.  They conducted bulldozing and leveling works
until 13:00. They then redeployed beyond
the border fence.

 

· At approximately 14:00, IOF moved into Khrebtha al-Mesbah village,
west of Ramallah. They patrolled in the
streets for some time. They withdrew
later and no arrests were reported.

 

· Also at approximately 14:00, IOF positioned in the south of Hebron
raided and searched a house belonging to Said Yaaqoub Abu Rmouz. The checked the ID cards of the
residents. Before withdrawing, they
arrested Rmouz’s twenty-one-year-old son, Attar, and drove him to an Israeli
police station near “Kriat Arba” settlement, southeast of Hebron, for
allegedly “beating an Israeli soldier.” Attar was transferred later to “Kfar
Etzion” detention center, southwest of Bethlehem.

 

It should be noted that Attar was released from the Israeli jails
just one day earlier, on Monday, 30 May 2011, after spending 3 months in jail
and paying an amount of 3,000 NIS as a fine for the same charge.

 

· At approximately 22:30, IOF moved into Jericho. They patrolled in the streets for some
time. They withdrew later and no arrests
were reported.

 

 

1. Use of
Excessive Force against Peaceful Demonstrations Protesting Settlement
Activities and the Construction of the Annexation Wall

 

During
the reporting period, IOF used force against peaceful demonstrations organized
by Palestinian civilians and international and Israeli human rights defenders
in protest to the construction of the Wall and settlement activities in the
West Bank. As a result, Palestinian
civilians and international human rights defenders suffered from tear gas
inhalation and sustained bruises. Ibrahim Abdul Fattah Birnat, 29, was hit by a tear gas canister to the
right shoulder, while 15 demonstrators, including a child, were arrested: 7
Palestinian civilians and 8 international human rights defenders.

   

· Following the
Friday Prayer on 27 May 2011, dozens of Palestinian civilians and international
and Israeli human rights defenders organized a peaceful demonstration in
Bil’ein village, west of Ramallah, in protest to the construction of the
annexation wall. The demonstrators then
walked to the annexation wall. IOF made
a barrier of barbed wire approximately 100 meters far from the wall. Before demonstrators’ arrival to the barrier,
IOF closed the barrier and fired bullets, rubber-coated metal bullets, sound
bombs and tear gas canisters at demonstrators. IOF also sprayed wastewater at the demonstrators and chased them in
olive field. As a result, Ibrahim Abdul
Fattah Birnat, 29, was hit by a tear gas canister in the right shoulder, while
Palestinian civilians and international human rights defenders suffered from
tear gas inhalation.  

 

· Also following the
Friday Prayer on 27 May 2011, dozens of Palestinian civilians and international
and Israeli human rights defenders organized a peaceful demonstration in Ne’lin
village, west of Ramallah, in protest against the construction of the annexation
wall. They then walked to the wall. IOF closed the gate erupted in the wall with
barbed wire. When the demonstrators
tried to cross the wall to the land located behind it, IOF prevented them. The demonstrators responded by stoning IOF
who responded by firing bullets, rubber-coated metal bullets, sound bombs and
tear gas canisters at demonstrators. IOF
also chased demonstrators in olive field. Many demonstrators suffered from tear gas inhalation as a result. 

 

· Also following
the Friday Prayer on the same day, dozens of Palestinian civilians and
international and Israeli human rights defenders organized a peaceful
demonstration in Nabi Saleh village, northwest of Ramallah, in protest against
the wall and settlement activities. The demonstrators walked in the streets of
the village and chanted national slogans, expressing their refusal to the
occupation and its arbitrary actions. They held Palestinian flags. Then
they walked to the lands that settlers from “Halmish” settlement try
to seize. IOF closed off the southern
entrance of the village to prevent Palestinian and international demonstrators
from having access to the mentioned lands. As the demonstrators attempted to access the land, IOF prevented
them. They also sprayed wastewater at
the demonstrators and chased them. As a
result, many demonstrators suffered from tear gas inhalation and sustained bruises. IOF fired bullets, rubber-coated metal
bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters. As a result, fire was set to the
contents of Abdul Rahman al-Tamimi’s house due to firing a tear gas canister
inside the house. Besides, olive fields
neighboring the village were burnt, due to which, Civil Defense was called to
extinguish the fire. Six demonstrators
were arrested, including 4 unknown international activists who were transported
to an unknown destination. The two
others are: Samer ‘Atwani, 22, and ‘Alaa ‘Atwani, 23.

 

· On Saturday, 28
May 2011, IOF deployed in the farms, north of Beit Ommar and Safa villages north
of Hebron, prevented the Palestinian civilians and international human rights
defenders from cultivating their lands in the areas located near “Bat
Ayin” settlement, northwest of Beit Ommar. IOF arrested dozens of Palestinians and released them later on the same
day.

 

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, the Israeli measures
included breaking into farms in “Ein al-Baida”, south of “Bat
Ayin” settlement, dismissing the farmers and international activists from
the lands, detaining approximately 20 persons, including women and children, in
the open air under the pretext that “they entered a closed military
zone” before arresting 15 Palestinians and international human rights
defenders. The detainees were
transported to the Israeli police station near “Gush Etzion”
settlement complex, north of Hebron. Later in the evening, IOF released 5 Palestinians, while an
international activist was kept in detention until the next morning, when he
was released on bail.

 

The detainees, who were released: Majd Isma’il ‘Adi, 17; Iyad
Bassam Khalil Za’aqiq, 35; Omar Hani Nemer ‘Adi, 18; Hatem Khalil Mahmoud Abu
Dayya, 38; and Yusef Abdul Hamid Abu Maria, 37. 

 

· At
approximately 15:30 on the same day, dozens of Palestinian civilians and
international and Israeli human rights defenders organized a peaceful
demonstration in Iraq Burin village and the neighboring villages, south of
Nablus. They walked to the lands that
settlers try to seize in the southern side of the village, west of
“Bracha” settlement. Before
the demonstrators reach the said lands, IOF fired sound bombs and tear gas
canisters at them. As a result, the
demonstrators suffered from tear gas inhalation. IOF chased the demonstrators and arrested 3
international human rights defenders after entering Nader Ibrahim Qa’dan’s
house in the west of the village. A PCHR
field worker has not identified the international human rights defenders.

 

· At
approximately 11:30 on Tuesday, 31 May 2011, IOF stationed at the border fence
in the vicinity of Erez crossing, north of the Gaza Strip, opened fire at a
peaceful demonstration of about 50 demonstrators after they reached 300 meters
far from the border fence. The
demonstrators included 15 international solidarity activists. The fire lasted for 15 minutes sporadically, but
no injuries were reported. Saber
al-Za’anin, the one supervising the demonstration, said to a PCHR field worker
that the demonstration was organized to condemn the Israeli policy of imposing
a buffer zone along the border fence with the Gaza Strip, which would seize
more lands and property of the Palestinian civilians. 

 

2. Continued
Closure of the OPT

 

Israel has continued to impose a tightened closure of 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

 

Israel has continuously closed all
border crossings to the Gaza Strip for over three years. The illegal
Israeli-imposed closure of the Gaza Strip, which has steadily tightened since
June 2007, has had a disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic
situation in the Gaza Strip.

 

· The illegal
closure has caused not only a humanitarian crisis but a crisis of human rights
and human dignity for the population of the Gaza Strip. Measures declared
recently to ease the blockade are vague, purely cosmetic and fail to deal with
the root causes of the crisis, which can only be addressed by an immediate and
complete lifting of the closure, including lifting the travel ban into and out
of the Gaza Strip and the ban on exports. PCHR is concerned that the new
Israeli policy is simply shifting Gaza to another form of illegal blockade, one
that may become internationally accepted and institutionalized. Palestinians in
Gaza may no longer suffer from the same shortage of goods, but they will remain
economically dependent and unable to care for themselves, and socially,
culturally and academically isolated from the rest of the world.

 

· Facts on the
ground refute Israeli claims with respect to the easing of the closure imposed
on the Gaza Strip and the reduction of restrictions imposed on the entry of
goods.

 

· Israeli
declaration of allowing new goods to be entered into the Gaza Strip constitutes
an attempt to delude the international community, as such goods do not meet the
minimal needs of the Gaza Strip. 

 

· IOF have
continued to ban the entry of raw construction materials into the Gaza Strip. 

 

· IOF have
imposed a ban on all exports from the Gaza Strip.

 

· Israel had
continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing to Palestinian civilians wishing
to travel to the West Bank and Israeli for medical treatment, trade or social
visits.

 

· Living conditions
of the Palestinian civilian population have seriously deteriorated; levels of
poverty and unemployment have mounted sharply.

 

Movement
at Border Crossings during the Reporting Period:

 

Rafah International Crossing Point: the
Egyptian authorities declared opening Rafah International Crossing Point under
new mechanisms from 28 May 2011. Egyptian authorities increased the hours of operation at Rafah
International Crossing Point from 09:00 to 17:00 daily, excluding Fridays and
official holidays. Under these
procedures the following categories are exempted from applying for entry visas:
all Palestinian women; male Palestinian aged below 18 and above 40; patients
who have medical transfers; children who accompany their parents, who are
already exempted from applying for visas; and students on condition that they
present what proves so. All travelers
have to hold their Palestinian IDs and passports. Border and Crossings Commission in Gaza,
which monitors the crossing, replaced the taxis used to drive travelers from
the hall to the crossing by buses. It
has been allowed for taxi drivers to enter the crossing and pick up the
travelers coming to Gaza. Taxi drivers
protested against the decision of replacing them. 

 

Movement
at Rafah International Crossing Point

25-31
May 2011

 

 

 

Movement
at Karm Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) Crossing

25-31
May 2011

 

 

Notes:

 

· On Wednesday, 25 May 2011, IOF allowed the entry of 150 tons of
cement, 230 tons of aggregate and 22 tons of iron for UNRWA, 400 tons of cement
for Water Authority and 1,330 tons of aggregate for ANERA. They also allowed the entry of 1,365 tons of
fodders and 117 tons of wheat into the Gaza Strip.

· On Thursday, 26 May 2011, IOF allowed the entry of 3,430 tons of
aggregate and 14 tons of iron for UNRWA. Besides, they allowed the entry of 1,209 tons of fodders and 40 tons of
wheat into the Gaza Strip.

· On Sunday, 29 May 2011, IOF allowed the entry of 320 tons of cement
and 2,520 tons of aggregate for UNRWA. They also allowed the entry of 585 tons of wheat into the Gaza Strip.

· On Monday, 30 May 2011, IOF allowed the entry of 200 tons of
cement, 7 tons of iron and 1,890 tons of aggregate for UNRWA. 120 tons of cement were allowed for
UNDP. In addition, 1,014 tons of wheat
and 40 tons of fodders were allowed into the Gaza Strip.

· On Tuesday, 31 May 2011, IOF allowed the entry of 418 tons of
cement, 30 tons of iron and 1,540 tons of aggregate for UNRWA. They also allowed the entry of 975 tons of
fodders and 78 tons of wheat into the Gaza Strip.

  

Exports  

· No exports this week.

 

Beit Hanoun (Erez) Crossing: Israel
has continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing for the movement of
Palestinian civilians. IOF have allowed only diplomats, a number of
international journalists, employees of international agencies and a limited
number of patients who suffer from serious diseases to pass through the
crossing. They have continued to prevent Palestinian civilians from visiting
their relatives who are detained in Israeli jails. The small number of patients
permitted to pass through the crossing is only able to do so under severe
restrictions that include prolonged checking. 

 

Movement
at Beit Hanoun (Erez) Crossing

25-31
May 2011

 

 

The West Bank

 

Israel has imposed a tightened closure on the West Bank. During the
reporting period, IOF imposed additional restrictions on the movement of
Palestinian civilians.

 

· Jerusalem: IOF
have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians to and from the city. Thousands of Palestinian civilians from the
West Bank and the Gaza Strip have been denied access to the city. IOF have
established many checkpoints around and inside the city.

 

· Ramallah: IOF
have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians. On Thursday, 26 May 2011, IOF
established 2 checkpoints around the town. At approximately 20:00, IOF established a checkpoint near the entrance
of Nabi Saleh village, northwest of Ramallah.  They stopped and searched Palestinian civilians
vehicles, however, no arrests were reported.

On
Friday, 27 May 2011, IOF established 2 checkpoints around the town.

At
approximately 09:30 on Saturday, 28 May 2011, IOF re-established their presence
at ‘Attarah checkpoint at the northern entrance of Birzeit village, north of
Ramalla.

At
approximately 11:30 on Sunday 29 May 2011, IOF established a checkpoint at
al-Janiya village, north of Ramallah. At
approximately 20:00, IOF established a checkpoint near the entrance of Beit
Reema village, northwest of Ramallah. At
approximately 20:10, IOF established a checkpoint near the entrance of ‘Aboud
village, northwest of Ramallah.

 

· Qalqilya: IOF
have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians. On Friday, 27 May 2011, IOF
established 6 checkpoints on Qalqilya – Nablus road. On Saturday, 27 May 2011, IOF established 6
checkpoints on Qalqilya – Nablus road as well. They stopped and searched Palestinian civilians vehicles. At approximately 17:45 on Sunday, 29 May 2011,
IOF established a checkpoint between ‘Azoun and ‘Asala villages, east of
Qalqilya. At approximately 19:55, IOF
established a similar checkpoint at the intersection of Kafr Laqef, east of
Qalqilya. They stopped and searched Palestinian civilian vehicles. 

 

· Tulkarm: IOF have continued to
impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. At approximately 21:00 on Thursday, 26 May
2011, IOF established a checkpoint on Tulkarm – Qalqilya road near the gate of
Jbarah checkpoint in Mothallath Jbarah area, south of Tulkarm.

On
Friday morning, 27 May 2011, IOF stationed at ‘Ennab checkpoint on Tulkarm –
Nablus road, east of Tulkarm, imposed severe restrictions on the movement of
Palestinian civilians and vehicles, as forces of the “Border Guard”
arrived to the checkpoint. At
approximately 08:30, IOF closed the checkpoint preventing the Palestinians from
moving outside Tulkarm. The checkpoint
was reopened later. No arrests nor other incidents were reported.

At
approximately 20:30, IOF established a checkpoint on Tulkarm – Kafr al-Labad
road, east of Tulkarm. 

At
approximately 09:00 on Saturday, 28 May 2011, IOF established a checkpoint at Tulkarm
– Qalqilya road, south of Tulkarm. At
approximately 11:00, IOF established a similar checkpoint at Tulkarm – Qalqilya
road, near Far’oun village, south of Tulkarm. Security sources said to
PCHR field worker that the Israeli soldiers stationed at the checkpoint had
detained a Palestinian police officer for a while. However, he was released after the
intervention of the military liaison.

At
approximately 09:30 on Sunday, 29 May 2011, IOF established a checkpoint at
Tulkarm – Qalqilya road in Mothallath Jbarah area, south of Tulkarm.

 

· Jenin:
IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians. At approximately 11:30 on
Saturday, 28 May 2011, IOF established a checkpoint at the intersection of
Maslia, south of Jenin.  They stopped and
searched Palestinian civilian vehicles.

 

· Salfit:
IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians. At approximately 22:30 on
Friday, 27 May 2011, IOF established a checkpoint between Bruqin and Kafr
al-Deek villages, west of Salfit. They
stopped and searched Palestinian civilians vehicles, however, no arrests were
reported. At approximately 20:00 on
Saturday, 28 May 2011, IOF established a checkpoint east of Deir Istia village,
northwest of Salfit. They checkpoint was
removed at 21:00, however, no arrests were reported.  

 

· Jericho: IOF
have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian
civilians. At approximately 10:30 on
Friday, 27 May 2011, IOF established a checkpoint near the entrance of
al-Jiftlik, north of Jericho. They
stopped and searched the civilian vehicles, however, no arrests were reported.

 

Arrests at Checkpoints

 

· At
approximately 10:00 on Thursday, 26 May 2011, an Israeli force of the “Border Guard”
arrested Ahmed Taher Dawood Nasser, 25, from Ezbet al-Jarad, east of Tulkarm,
at a checkpoint established on Tulkarm – Qalqilya road near the bridge of a
bypass road, which connect al-Taiba inside the Green Line with “Avni
Hefetz” settlement, south of Tulkarm. The Israeli force stopped a “Fiat Punto” car rented from
“Phoenix” company for car rental. The car was heading to Qalqilya and was driven by Nasser. Ahmed Maher Saleh Yusef, 27, who was in the
car with Nasser, said that IOF established a checkpoint at the said area. They allowed the cars to pass, except
ours. After checking the driver’s ID, they
arrested him and directly removed the checkpoint.

 

· At
approximately 17:00 on the same day, IOF patrolling the streets and
neighborhoods in the south of Hebron arrested Omar Taha Yassin Abu Snina,18, a
worker in a carpentry workshop. He was
stopped while he was going home, claiming that they found a knife with
him. He was transported to the Israeli
police station near ” Kiryat Arba” settlement, south of Hebron. He was accused of “the possession of a
sharp tool” before he was transported to “Kfar Etzion”
settlement, south of Bethlehem.

 

· At
approximately 06:00 on Sunday, 29 May 2011, IOF patrolling the vicinity of
“Azar” settlement, southwest of Bethlehem, arrested Mohammed Yusef
Ali Safi, 21, from al-‘Ebeidiya village, east of Bethlehem. He was arrested after stopping him near the
said settlement. Later, he was
transported to the Israeli police station in “Kfar Etzion” complex,
southwest of Bethlehem. He was accused
of attempting to enter the settlement although he had a work permit, which was
expired 2 days before his arrest.

 

· On Tuesday, 31
May 2011, IOF stationed at a checkpoint in the southern West Bank arrested
Nizar Abdul Aziz Ramadan, 47, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council
(PLC) for Change and Reform Bloc. Ramadan was arrested after he had been detained with Dr. Aziz Dweik, PLC
speaker, Anwar Zaboun, PLC member, from Bethlehem, and Basem al-Za’arir, PLC
member, from Hebron, for more than 4 hours.

According
to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 15:00 on the same day, while
Dweik and the three PLC members were riding a Mitsubishi Begaro jeep to attend
a memorial service of Faisal al-Husseini, they were stopped by the Israeli
soldiers at the checkpoint established at the intersection of eastern Sawahra –
al-Nar valley road, northeast of Bethlehem “the container
checkpoint”. After checking their
IDs, IOF detained them from 15:00 to 19:30 before Ramadan was arrested and
transported to an unknown destination. Dweik, Zaboun and al-Za’arir were released after they were given a
military notification to appear before the Israeli Intelligence Service
(IIS). Dweik stressed that the Israeli
soldiers detained him and the three PLC members for more than 4 hours in a
detention room near the checkpoint, which is equipped with barriers and
watchtowers. They were informed of
arresting the PLC member Ramadan, while the others were given military
notifications to refer to IIS before they were released. 

 

 

Harassments at Checkpoints

 

• On Saturday, 28 May 2011, IOF tortured
  Mahmoud Mohammed al-Battat, 20, from “Shweika” area, east of
  al-Dhahirya village south of Hebron. Battat was arrested in the southwest of the village while he was
  returning from his work in Beersheba.

According
to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 19:00 on that day,
al-Battat was returning from his work in Beersheba. The Israeli soldiers patrolling west of the
checkpoint in southern al-Dhahirya village, south of Hebron, stopped him. He was detained, beaten and tortured. As a result, he lost his consciousness from
19:40 to 23:00. After he woke up, he
called his family. After 2 hours of
searching for him, his family found him lying on the ground. He sustained bruises throughout the body.

PCHR’s
investigations confirmed that when the family found its son in a deplorable
condition, they transported him to “Doma” medical center, east of
al-Dhahirya village, where he received first medical aid. Later, he was transported by a Palestinian
Red Crescent Society’s ambulance to Hebron Public Hospital at 01:30 on Sunday,
29 May 2011.

Medical
sources in the said hospital declared that al-Battat was admitted into the
emergency department, as he was suffering from severe pains throughout the
body, hemorrhage in the left eye, bruises in the face and back and blue signs
throughout the body.

 

 

3. Settlement
Activities and Attacks by Settlers against Palestinian Civilians and Property

 

Israel
has continued its settlement activities in the OPT in violation of
international humanitarian law, and Israeli settlers have continued to attack
Palestinian civilians and property.

 

• At
  approximately 13:30 on Sunday, 29 May 2011, IOF supported by military
  vehicles, bulldozers and diggers broke into the northern plain of Kafr Dan
  village, northwest of Jenin. They
  got out of their vehicles and told the farmers that they had been ordered
  to demolish 12 artesian wells under the pretext that they had been digged
  without a license. Afterwards, the
  bulldozers started demolishing the wells. An hour after demolishing the wells, the area residents and formal
  and popular figures hurried up and gathered in the fields near the Israeli
  soldiers. Some of those people
  stood in front of the bulldozers to stop them. After talking with the demonstrators,
  the Israeli soldiers stopped demolishing the wells on condition that the
  residents withdrew from the area. However, IOF had demolished 8 wells and retreated. No arrests were reported. The demolished wells belong to: Mohammed
  Ahmed Shafi’ Jabarin, 40; Sobhi Nemer Yunis Mer’I, 50; Hosam Mahfouz Nemer
  Mer’I, 50; Baha’ Mohammed Ghalib Mer’I, 33; Mostafa Ahmed ‘Ashour ‘Abed,
  69; Sobgi Ahmed Mostafa ‘Abed, 70; Omar Saleh Monir ‘Abed, 38; and
  Mohammed Abdul Qader Sa’di, 40.

 

In his testimony to PCHR field worker, Mostafa
‘Ashour said:

 

“At approximately 13:30, on 29
May 2011, IOF supported by military vehicles, bulldozers and diggers broke into
the northern plain of Kafr Dan village. The Israeli soldiers told the farmers that they were about to demolish
the artesian wells in that area, claiming they had been dug without a
license. The Israeli soldiers demolished
8 wells, including a well belonging to me. I remember 2 years ago IOF broke into the area, confiscated a water pump
and cut off hoses and electricity cables, due to which, the well was disrupted. I dug this well in the early nineties to
irrigate my farm, as it irrigates an area estimated at 70 donums, on which 8
greenhouses are established. IOF did not
give me any notices regarding not irrigating my farm from the well or not using
it. It was a big loss, and the loss had
become greater as the timing of demolishing the wells was inappropriate, as the
crops need water in this period of blooming. I believe that IOF demolished the wells in such timing to increase
losses and damages caused to us”.

 

• At
  approximately 09:30 on Monday, 30 May 2011, IOF supported by 20 military
  vehicles and a bulldozer broke into Jinsafout village, east of
  Qalqilya. They broke into a shop
  selling construction materials, which belongs to Mahmoud Yusef Mohammed
  Soqqar, 31, from the village. The
  Israeli soldiers demolished the shop under the pretext that it was
  established without a license.

 

In his testimony to PCHR field worker, Soqqar
said:

 

“At approximately 09:30 on
Monday, 30 May 2011, a military jeep and a civil organization jeep arrived to
the shop, which sells construction materials and sanitary items. The Israeli soldiers said that we had to
evacuate the shop from its contents within 15 minutes. Later, approximately 20 military jeeps and
some workers arrived at the area. The
workers started to threw the shop’s contents outside. As a result, 20 sinks were broken, 20 buckets
of paint and other plumbing items were damaged and glass was smashed. The loss is estimated at 150,000 NIS. Later, the bulldozer demolished the shop,
whose value amounts to 30,000 NIS”.

 

• At
  approximately 16:30 on Thursday, 26 May 2011, some Israeli settlers from
  “Yitzhar” settlement, which is established on parts of Madma
  village, south of Nablus, beat Hamad Jaber Ahmed al-Qet, 66, by clubs. As a result, he sustained wounds and a
  fracture in the head, in addition to bruises throughout the body.

In his testimony to PCHR, al-Qet said that at
approximately 16:30, he was grazing his sheep in al-Sawawin area, south of
Madma village, approximately 300 meters far from the village’s southern
side. Suddenly, a group of settlers
started beating him by clubs on his head and throughout his body until he lost
consciousness. Some residents of the
area transported al-Qet to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus to receive the necessary
medical treatment. He woke at the said
hospital.

 

• At
  approximately 15:30 on Monday, 30 May 2011, about 10 Israeli settlers from
  “Yitzhar” settlement, set fire to barley farms in Ein al-Sha’ra
  and al-Sawawin area. The farms are
  approximately 2 kilometers far from the said settlement. About 4 dunums of barley farms were
  burnt before the residents were able to extinguish the fire. These farms belong to Hassan Mohammed
  Zyada, a member of the local village council.

It should be noted that this attack is the
second of its kind within 4 days, as Hamad Jaber Ahmed al-Qet, 66, was beaten
by clubs on 26 May 2011. The farmers
have become worried for their lives because of the repeated attacks by settlers
in that area.

 

 

Recommendations to the International
Community

 

 

1. PCHR calls upon
the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their
legal and moral obligations under Article 1 of the Convention to ensure
Israel’s respect for the Convention in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. PCHR believes that the conspiracy of silence
practiced by the international community has encouraged Israel to act as if it
is above the law and encourages Israel continue to violate international human
rights and humanitarian law.

 

2. PCHR calls upon
the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to convene a
conference to take effective steps to ensure Israel’s respect of the Convention
in the OPT and to provide immediate protection for Palestinian civilians.

 

3. PCHR calls upon
the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to comply with
their legal obligations detailed in Article 146 of the Convention to search for
and prosecute those responsible for grave breaches, namely war crimes.

 

4. PCHR calls for
the immediate implementation of the Advisory Opinion issued by the
International Court of Justice, which considers the construction of the
Annexation Wall inside the West Bank illegal.

 

5. PCHR recommends
that international civil society organizations, including human rights
organizations, bar associations and NGOs, participate in the process of
exposing those accused of grave breaches of international law and urge their governments to bring the
perpetrators to justice.

 

6. PCHR calls upon
the European Union to activate Article 2 of the Euro-Israel Association
Agreement, which provides that Israel must respect human rights as a
precondition for economic cooperation between the EU states and Israel. PCHR further calls upon the EU states to
prohibit import of goods produced in illegal Israeli settlements in the OPT.

 

7. PCHR calls on
the international community to recognize the Gaza disengagement plan, which was
implemented in September 2005, for what it is – not an end to occupation but a
compounding of the occupation and the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza
Strip. 

 

8. In recognition
of ICRC as the guardian of the Fourth Geneva Convention, PCHR calls upon the
ICRC to increase its staff and activities in the OPT, including the
facilitation of family visitations to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

 

9. PCHR
appreciates the efforts of international civil society, including human rights
organizations, bar associations, unions and NGOs, and urges them to continue
their role in pressuring their governments to secure Israel’s respect for human
rights in the OPT and to demand Israel end its attacks on Palestinian
civilians.

 

10. PCHR calls upon
the international community to pressure Israel to lift the severe restrictions
imposed by the Israeli government and its occupation forces on access for
international organizations to the OPT.

 

11. PCHR reiterates
that any political settlement not based on international human rights law and
humanitarian law cannot lead to a peaceful and just solution of the Palestinian
question. Rather, such an arrangement
can only lead to further suffering and instability in the region. Any peace process or agreement must be based
on respect for international law, including international human rights and
humanitarian law.

 

 

 

…………………………………………………………

 

Public Document

For further information please visit
our website (www.pchrgaza.org) or contact
PCHR’s office in Gaza City, Gaza Strip by email (pchr@pchrgaza.org) or telephone (+972 (0)8
282 4776 – 282 5893).