September 4, 2014
Israeli forces continue systematic attacks against Palestinian civilians and property in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt)
4 civilians, including a child and a woman, died of
wounds they sustained during the latest Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip.
·A baby died in Jerusalem because of tear gas
inhalation.
·8 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children and an
elderly woman, were wounded in different shooting incidents.
·Israeli forces continued to use force against peaceful
protests in the West Bank.
- A reporter of Palestine TV was wounded during Bil’in
weekly protest.
- A protester was wounded during a peaceful protest at
the entrance of Selwad village, northeast of Ramallah.
·Israeli forces conducted 77 incursions into
Palestinian communities in the West Bank.
- 60 Palestinian civilians, including 5 children, were arrested.
- 14 of these civilians were arrested in occupied
Jerusalem.
·Israel has continued to impose a total closure on the
oPt and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world.
- Israeli forces established dozens of checkpoints in
the West Bank.
- At least 9 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children
and a woman, were arrested at military checkpoints in the West Bank.
·Israeli naval forces continued to target Palestinian
fishermen in the Gaza waters.
- Israeli forces opened fire thrice at Palestinian
fishing boats and arrested 2 fishermen and confiscated their fishing boat.
·Israel has continued its efforts to create a Jewish demographic
majority in occupied East Jerusalem.
- 7 houses were demolished in Beit Hanina and al-Za’im,
north and east of the city.
·Israeli forces have continued to support settlement
activities in the West Bank and Israeli settlers have continued to attack
Palestinian civilians and property.
- Israeli forces demolished al-Rahma Dairy and a cattle
barn belonging to the Islamic Charitable Society in Hebron.
- 7 houses and 4 civilian facilities in north and south
of the West Bank were demolished.
- 3,799 dunums
from Sourif village and other villages, south of Bethlehem, were confiscated.
- Israeli settlers attempted to kidnap a woman in
Sho’fat neighbourhood in the north of occupied Jerusalem.
Summary
Israeli violations of international law and international
humanitarian law in the oPt continued during the reporting period (28
August – 03 September 2014).
Shooting:
In the Gaza Strip, although 9 days have passed
following the Egyptian-brokered truce agreement between the Palestinian
resistance groups and Israel, the catastrophic consequences of the 51-day
Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip have been present. During the reporting
period, a number of wounded persons died of wounds they sustained during the
offensive.
During the reporting period, a Palestinian baby died
because of tear gas inhalation in occupied Jerusalem, as Israeli forces fired
tear gas canisters to disperse the Palestinian protesters in al-Tour Mountain,
east of the city. Moreover, 2 civilians, including a woman and a child, died of
wounds they sustained during the latest Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip,
while hundreds of wounded Palestinians have been receiving medical treatment in
hospitals in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and other hospitals abroad for the
seriousness of their wounds. In the meanwhile, Israeli forces violated the
truce several times by opening fire at Palestinian fishing boats sailing within
the allowed fishing area and arresting a number of fishermen.
A Palestinian baby died in Jerusalem because of tear
gas inhalation when Israeli forces were dispersing Palestinian protesters in
al-Tour Mountain, east of the city, while 4 other civilians, including a woman
and a child, died of wounds they sustained during the latest Israeli offensive
on the Gaza Strip. During the reporting period, 10 Palestinian civilians were
wounded in the West Bank, including 3 children, and old woman and a journalist.
Wounds of some of them were described as serious.
In the West Bank, a baby, Hanadi Abu Sbeitan, from
al-Tour neighbourhood in occupied east Jerusalem died on Thursday, 28 August
2014, because of tear gas inhalation, when Israeli forces fired tear gas
canisters at her family's house on 26 August 2014.
On 29 August 2014, a 17-year-old male sustained 2
bullet wounds to the left leg when Israeli forces opened fire at a number of
boys in Daher al-Baragheesh area, east of Beit Ommar, north of Hebron. The boys
threw stones at Israeli soldiers, who opened fire in response.
On 01 September 2014, a 40-year-old man sustained a
bullet wound to the belly, and a 78-year-old elderly woman suffered tear gas
inhalation, when Israeli forces moved into al-Far’ah refugee camp. The woman
was taken to Tubas Turkish Hospital for the seriousness of her health
condition.
On 31 August 2014, Israeli forces fired rubber-coated
metal bullets at Mohammed Abdul Majid Sonoqrot (16), east of the Old City in
East Jerusalem. Sonoqrot sustained a bullet wound to the head and his wound was
serious. His father said that an Israeli soldier targeted his son and fired at
him from a close range during the Israeli incursion into the said area.
On 02 September 2014, Israeli forces stationed at
"Eyal" checkpoint, north of Qalqilya, opened fire at a jeep with an Israeli
registration plate driving through the checkpoint. As a result, 2 civilians,
who had no permits to enter Israel, were wounded. The wound of one of them was
serious. The 2 persons were arrested and taken to Israeli hospitals for medical
treatment.
On 03 September 2014, a Palestinian adult and a child
were wounded when Israeli forces moved into Nablus, as a group of youngsters
gathered and threw stones at Israeli soldiers. The Israeli forces surrounded a
3-storey house and shelled a wall in the building, while opened fire at the
second floor. Israeli forces claimed there was a wanted person hiding in the
building, but it was proved untrue.
Israeli forces used excessive force against peaceful
protests organised by Palestinian civilians, international and Israeli human
rights defenders in protest at the construction of the annexation wall and
settlement activities in the West Bank. As a result, a reporter of Palestine TV
was hit by a tear gas canister to the right side while covering Bil’in weekly
protest, west of Ramallah. Many other civilians suffered tear gas inhalation
and 2 international solidarity activists were arrested in the same protest.
In the Gaza Strip, medical sources in Palestine
Hospital in Egypt declared that Wedad Abu Zaid died on 29 August 2014 because
of wounds she sustained during the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip on 29
July 2014.
On 01 September 2014, medical sources pronounced Basem
'Ajour (60) dead of wounds he sustained during the Israeli offensive on 25
August 2014.
On the same day, medical sources pronounced Zeyad
al-Rifi (13) dead of wounds he sustained on 21 August 2014 in an attack in
al-Nafaq area.
On 03 September 2013, medical sources in Egypt
pronounced Nasser Abu Marahil (40) dead of wounds he sustained on 25 July 2014
in al-Nusairat area.
In the context of chasing Palestinian fishermen in the
sea, on 02 September 2014, Israeli gunboats stationed off Rafah shore in the
southern Gaza Strip opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats, while gunboats
stationed off al-Sudaniya shore, northwest of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza
Strip opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats for the second time. Neither arrests
nor material damage were reported.
On 01 September 2014, Israeli gunboats stationed off
al-Waha resort opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats. They arrested 2
fishermen and confiscated their fishing boat and net. There has been no
information so far about the destination to which they were taken so far.
Incursions:
During the reporting period, Israeli forces conducted
at least 77 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During
these incursions, Israeli forces arrested at least 60 Palestinians, including 5
children. Fourteen of these civilians were
arrested in Jerusalem.
On 03 September 2014, Israeli forces moved into
Nablus. They surrounded a 3-storey building that is rented by a charitable
society and a sport club. They shelled a wall in the building and opened fire
at the second floor under the pretext there was a wanted person hiding inside,
but there was no body in. A few hours later, Israeli forces moved into the city
and raided al-Zahra’ building in al-Ma’ajeen neighbourhood. They raided an
apartment belonging to Ahmed Ali Ahmed Ali Ahmed (75), Member of the
Palestinian Legislative Council for the Change and Reform Bloc. They bombed the
apartment’s door and those of other apartments under the pretext of looking for
Ahmed.
Restrictions on movement:
Israel continued to impose a tight closure on the oPt,
imposing severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the
Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.
The illegal 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 Israeli authorities impose measures to undermine the freedom of
trade, including the basic needs for the Gaza Strip population and the
agricultural and industrial products to be exported. For 7 consecutive years,
Israel has tightened the land and naval closure to isolate the Gaza Strip from
the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, and other countries around the
world. This resulted in grave violations of the economic, social and cultural
rights and a deterioration of living conditions for 1.7 million people. The Israeli authorities have established Karm
Abu Salem (Kerem Shaloum) as the sole crossing for imports and exports in order
to exercise its control over the Gaza Strip’s economy. They also aim at imposing a complete ban on
the Gaza Strip’s exports.
Israeli forces 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.
As part of using military checkpoints and border
crossings as traps to arrest Palestinian civilians under the pretext they are
wanted, Israeli forces arrested 9 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children
and a woman, at military checkpoints in the West Bank.
Efforts to create Jewish majority
On 28 August 2014, Israeli forces bulldozed 5
residential barracks and 3 animal barracks belonging to Saidi and al-Jahalin
families. They also destroyed a cow shed belonging to Muahmmed Abu al-Hawa in
Zaim village, east of Jerusalem after Civil Administration staffs and Israeli
forces raided the aforementioned village. The affected families confirmed that
the lands in question belong to them and that they have lived in them since the
1950s.
On 03 September 2014, Israeli forces
accompanied by bulldozers and the Israeli municipality's staff moved into Beit
Hanina neighborhood, north of Jerusalem. They surrounded residential buildings
belonging to Izz Abu Nijma, and started bulldozing under the pretext of not
having a construction license.
The Israeli construction and planning
committee approved the construction of a religious school in al-Sheikh Jarah
neighborhood in Jerusalem. The committee had approved the plan last February.
According to the construction plan (68858), a building of 12 floors will be built
on an area of 1.9 dunums out of 4 dunums. The building will include a religious
school, residential rooms, and gymnasiums. 1The project is located behind Nasif
gas station and al-Hayat medical center. The land was confiscated in the 1980s allegedly
because it was absentees’ property.
Settlement activities
Israel has continued its settlement activities in the
oPt, in a direct violation of international humanitarian law, and Israeli
settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property.
Attacks
carried out by Israeli forces
On 31 August 2014, Israeli
forces backed by several military vehicles and a vehicle for the construction
and organization department in the Israeli Civil Administration, raided the
western area of Surif village, west of Hebron. The Civil Administration officers
distributed notices claiming the confiscation of 3,799 dunums of Surif village
and the villages of Bethlehem (al-Jaba’a, Nahlin, and Wadi Fokin) after
dividing them to 10 squares, according to the notices which were signed by the
official of the government and the absentees’ properties in Judea and Samaria.
On the same day, Israeli forces
backed by 3 military vehicles moved into al-Rahwa area, west of al-Zahrya
village, west of Hebron. Israeli forces deployed in the area while the
bulldozer destroyed a number of houses under the pretext of having no
construction permit to build in the areas classified as "C" according to the
1993 Oslo Accord.
On 02 September 2014, Israeli
forces, backed by several military vehicles, a vehicle of the construction and
organization department in the Israeli Civil Administration, 2 bulldozers, a
GCB bulldozer and a digger, moved into Haram al-Rama in the eastern area in
Hebron. They surrounded al-Rahma factory for dairies, which is part of
al-Rayyan cow farm which is one of the branches of the Islamic Philanthropist Society
in Hebron. Israeli soldiers deployed in the area while the bulldozers started
destroying the 350m2 factory and the 7-dunum farm under the pretext
of having no construction permit to build in the areas classified as "C"
according to the 1993 Oslo Accord.
On the same day, Israeli forces
bulldozed a 70-square-meter, tin-made barrack which was used as a carwash.
Later, they bulldozed another 40-square-meter tin barrack which was used as a
pottery factory.
On 03 September 2014, Israeli
forces demolished 2 residential tents in al-Rakheem valley, south of Yatta,
south of Hebron.
Attacks
carried out by settlers
On 28 August 2014, Israeli
settlers from "Beit Ain" settlement which is established on confiscated lands
west of Beit Ummar village, north of Hebron, smashed the branches of 30 olive
and almond trees belonging to Abdel Hamid Bright (78) in Abu Rish area.
On 28 August 2014, 2 Israeli extremists
attacked Ziad Musa al-Qawasmi (48), a Palestinian taxi driver when he was
driving in one of the streets in Jerusalem.
On 31 August 2014, 3 settlers tried to kidnap
Ahlam Awad Muhei Awadallah (26) when she was returning to her house in Shufat.
Her husband, Muahmmed Awadallah told PCHR that 3 extremist settlers were
driving a Mitsubishi car. The stopped the car near her when she was walking
towards her house in al-Sahel neighborhood in Shufat. They verbally attacked
her and tried to grab her and pull her into the car. They failed to do as
residents of the area intervened.
Israeli Violations Documented during the Reporting Period
(28 August – 03 September 2014)
1. Incursions into Palestinian Areas, and Attacks on Palestinian Civilians
and Property in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
Thursday, 28 August 2014
· At approximately 01:00, Israeli forces moved into
Hebron. They stationed at Abu Ktailah
area and raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Hosam Ali
al-Zgheer. They arrested the aforementioned person. At approximately 02:00,
Israeli forces moved southwards in the city and raided a house belonging to the
family of Adham Abu Hadeed (30). They arrested the aforementioned person as
well and took the 2 detainees to an unknown destination.
· At approximately 01:30, Israeli forces moved into Yatta
village, south of Hebron. They raided
and searched a house belonging to the family of Ali Khaled Mohammed Murr (28).
They arrested the aforementioned person and took him to an unknown destination.
· Also at approximately 02:00, Israeli forces moved into
Deir Abu Mesh’el village, northwest of Ramallah. They raided and searched 2
houses from which they arrested Hamza Ahmed Dawood Atta (16). They took him to
Ofer detention facility, southwest of the city, while handed the family of
Jamal Abdul Fattah Zahran (16) a summons to refer to the Israeli intelligence
service in the same detention facility.
· Also at approximately 03:00, Israeli forces moved into
Beitello village, northwest of Ramallah. They raided and searched 2 houses from
which they arrested Othman As’ad Hassan As’ad (20) and Mahmoud Ahmed Abdul
Fattah al-Bazzar (22). The detainees were taken to Ofer detention facility,
southwest of the city.
· Around the same time, Israeli forces moved into Bourin
village, south of Nablus. They raided and searched a number of houses. They
arrested Ghassan Zaidan Saleh Najjar (24) and took him to an unknown
destination. Israeli forces also raided a house belonging to Ibrahim Deeb Bayer
Omran, the headmaster of Bourin secondary mixed school. This was the 6th
time that Israeli forces raid this house within 2 years. An Israeli officer
threatened Omran that they would arrest him and close the school if students
kept throwing stones at Israeli soldiers.
· At approximately 03:30, Israeli forces moved into Tulkarm.
They raided and searched a number of houses from which they arrested 5
civilians:
1. Akram Essam Hussein Qa’dan (29);
2. Samer Kamal Kamel Fakhouri (27);
3. Qassam Riyadh Mohammed Bedeir (26);
4. Abdul Baset Essam Abdul Jabbar Shreiteh (22); and
5. Amjad Rebhi Mahmoud Abu Safaqah (31).
Note: During the abovementioned day, Israeli forces carried out 5 incursions
into the following areas, but no arrests were reported: al-'Ouja village, north
of Jericho; Beit Ommar and Mosafer Yatta villages in Hebron; and Maradah and
Deir Estia villages in Salfit.
Friday, 29 August 2014
· At approximately 02:00, Israeli forces moved into Deir
Nezam village, northwest of Ramallah. They raided and searched a house
belonging to the family of Mostafa Abdul Hafiz Mezher (24). They arrested the
aforementioned person and took him to an unknown destination.
· Around the same time, Israeli forces moved into Hebron. They raided and searched a house belonging to
the family of Hassan Nayef al-Ra’i. They arrested the aforementioned person and
took him to an unknown destination.
· At approximately 09:10, Israeli forces moved into
Kufor Qaddoum village, northeast of Qalqilia. They raided and searched a house
belonging to the family of Ra’ed Abdul Hamid Ishteiwi. They handed him a
summons to refer to the Israeli intelligence forces.
· At approximately 12:00, medical sources at Palestine
hospital in Egypt pronounced Wedad Ahmed Salamah Abu Zaid (64) dead due to
wounds she sustained in an attack on her house on 29 July 2014. The attack
resulted in killing 7 members of her family then.
· At approximately 16:30, Israeli forces moved into
Daher al-Baragheesh area, east of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron. They stationed
along the security fence surrounding "Karmi Tsour" settlement. A number of boys
gathered and threw stones and empty bottles at Israeli soldiers, who in
response fired bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters. As a result, a
17-year-old boy sustained 2 bullet wounds to the left leg. He was taken by a
PRCS’s ambulance to Hebron hospital. His health condition was stable. Israeli
forces withdrew later and no arrests were reported.
Note: During the day, Israeli forces carried out 8 incursions into the
following areas, but no arrests were reported: Beitounia, Deir 'Ammar,
Kherbatha al-Mesbah, Beit 'Our al-Tahta in Ramallah; Tulkarm; Ya’bad and
Maithaloun in Jenin; and al-Samou’ village, south of Hebron.
Saturday, 30 August 2014
· At approximately 01:05, Israeli forces moved into Kufor
Laqef village, east of Qalqilia. They raided and searched a number of houses
and handed summonses to 2 brothers, Kefah and Ehab Na’im Shawahnah, to refer to
the Israeli intelligence service. Israeli forces withdrew later.
· At approximately 01:55, Israeli forces moved into
'Azzoun village, east of Qalqilia. They raided a house belonging to the family
of Tareq Mohammed Hassan and handed him a summons to refer to the Israeli intelligence.
Israeli forces withdrew later.
Note: During the day, Israeli forces carried out 9 incursions into the
following areas, but no arrests were reported: Rantis and Kherbet Abu Falah
villages in Ramallah; Jericho; Marj Na’jeh and al-Nowai’amah village, north of
Jericho; Jayous village, northeast of Qalqilia; and al-Aqaba, Beit Awwa and
al-Daheriyah villages in Hebron.
Sunday, 31 August 2014