Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF)
Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian Civilians and Property in the
Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and Continue to Impose a Total Siege on
the Gaza Strip
· A Palestinian was killed by IOF in Hebron and another by an
Israeli in Jerusalem.
· Four Palestinian civilians, including two children and a
journalist, were injured by IOF gunfire in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
· IOF conducted 24 incursions into Palestinian communities in
the West Bank.
· IOF arrested 19 Palestinian civilians.
· IOF turned two homes into military sites.
· IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the Gaza Strip,
isolating it from the outside world.
· IOF troops positioned at military checkpoints in the West
Bank arrested three Palestinians.
· IOF have continued settlement activities in the West Bank
and Israeli settlers have continued attacks on Palestinian civilians and
property.
· Six Palestinian workers were injured by Israeli settlers in
the northern West Bank.
· Israeli settlers burnt dozens of dunums[1]
of agricultural land.
· Israeli settlers established a new settlement outpost near
Bethlehem.
Summary
Israeli violations of
international law and humanitarian law escalated in the OPT during the reporting
period (28 May – 03 June 2009):
Shooting: During the reporting period, one
Palestinian was killed by IOF in Hebron, and another was killed by an Israeli
in east Jerusalem. Additionally, IOF injured four Palestinian civilians,
including two children, in the Gaza Strip, and one journalist in the West Bank.
On 28 May 2009, IOF killed a member
of the ‘Izziddin al-Qassam Brigades (the armed wing of Hamas) in a wide scale
military operation to the southwest of Hebron. The man had been wanted by the IOF
for 14 years.
On 02 June 2009, a Palestinian
civilian was shot dead by an Israeli in east Jerusalem. Israeli police authorities
said the perpetrator “suffers from a psychological disorder” and that
he was arrested, although he has a licensed pistol.
Additionally, a journalist was injured
when IOF used force against a peaceful demonstration organized in protest against
the construction of the Annexation Wall in Bil’in village, west of Ramallah.
In the Gaza Strip, on 03 June 2009,
two Palestinian children were injured when IOF fired flechette shells at a Bedouin
village in the northern Gaza Strip. On the same day, two
Palestinian farmers were injured when IOF opened fire at a number of
Palestinian farmers in Beit Hanoun town in the northern Gaza Strip.
Incursions: During the reporting period, IOF
conducted at least 24 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the
West Bank. Israeli military forces arrested 19 Palestinian civilians and turned
two houses in Hebron into military sites.
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 steadily
tightened since June 2007, has had a disastrous impact on the humanitarian and
economic situation in the Gaza Strip.
· 1.5 million people are being denied their basic rights,
including freedom of movement, and their rights to appropriate living
conditions, work, health and education.
· The main concern of
1.5 million people living in the Gaza Strip is to obtain their basic needs of
food, medicines, water and electricity supplies.
· IOF have continued to
prevent the entry of raw construction materials into the Gaza Strip for more
than two years.
· IOF have not allowed
fuel supplies into the Gaza Strip, excluding limited amounts of cooking gas, since
10 December 2008.
· The Rafah
International Crossing Point was opened for a few days for a number of patients
who received medical treatment abroad and needed to return home to the Gaza
Strip.
· IOF have continued to
close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing to Palestinian civilians wishing to travel to
the West Bank and Israel for medical treatment, trade or social visits.
· Poverty has risen to approximately
80% and unemployment levels are around 60% in the Gaza Strip.
· IOF have continued to
prevent the entry of spare parts for water networks and sewage systems. Losses
incurred by this sector are estimated at US$6million.
· IOF have imposed
additional restrictions on access of international diplomats, journalists and
humanitarian workers to the Gaza Strip. They have prevented representatives of
several international humanitarian organizations from entering the Gaza Strip.
· Living conditions of
the Palestinian civilian population have seriously deteriorated; levels of
poverty and unemployment have risen sharply.
· At least 900
Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails have been deprived family visits for
more than 17 months.
· IOF have continued to
attack Palestinian fishermen along the Gaza Strip coast.
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 at the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
· There are approximately permanent 630 roadblocks, manned and
unmanned checkpoints across the West Bank. In addition, there are some 60-80
‘flying’ or temporary checkpoints erected across the West Bank by IOF every
week.
· 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 has already been constructed. Most of the wall has
been constructed within the Green Line and inside the West Bank itself, further
confiscating 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 (47 out of
72 roads).
· There are around 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 a permit
issued by the IOF. These permits are extremely difficult to obtain.
· IOF continue to harass, and assault demonstrators who hold non-violent
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.
· During the reporting period, IOF troops positioned at
military checkpoints in the West Bank arrested three Palestinians.
Settlement Activities: Construction within illegal Israeli
settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory continues, despite
international condemnation, and Israeli settlers living in the OPT in violation
of international humanitarian law have continued to attack Palestinian
civilians and property. On 01 June 2009, dozens of Israeli settlers from Qedumim
settlement gathered at the intersection of the settlement on the Nablus-Qalqilya
road, southwest of Nablus. They threw stones at Palestinian civilian vehicles
travelling on the road. As a result, six Palestinian workers from Jeet village,
southwest of Nablus, who were travelling in a Ford vehicle, were injured. Also
on 01 June 2009, Israeli settlers set fire to Palestinian agricultural land in Till
village, southwest of Nablus, and in Burin, Madama and Southern ‘Assira
villages, south of the city. On 03 June
2009, a number of Israeli settlers established a new settlement outpost in the
southwest of Nahalin village, west of Bethlehem.
Israeli Violations Documented during the Reporting Period (28 May – 03
June 2009)
The full report is available PDF format.
