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PCHR
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
http://www.pchrgaza.org
Unprecedented Level of Aggression in the
OPTs
The International Community Fails to
Stop Such Violence and the Civilian Population of the Gaza Strip Pay
the Price
The Outcome of 10 Days of the Israeli
Offensive
on the Northern Gaza Strip
74 Palestinians have been killed,
including 37 civilians, 23 of whom are children, and least 300 others
have been injured.
2 brothers, a man and his son, an
elderly man and a deaf young man are among the victims.
10 of the victims are children who
were hit by artillery shells and their bodies were cut into pieces.
70% of the victims were killed in or
near to Jabalya refugee camp.
At least 50 houses were destroyed and
dozens of other houses were damaged, and at least 300 donums[1]
of agricultural land were razed.
A number of schools, a mosque, a
kindergarten, a historical site, a number of civilian facilities and
the civilian infrastructure were destroyed.
A tightened siege on the area and
access to humanitarian services has been denied.
Many civilians were not able to
participate in the funeral processions of their children who were
killed by Israeli troops.
The Outcomes of the Last Week in the
Whole of the OPTs
76 Palestinians, mostly civilians,
including 24 children, were killed by Israeli troops.
64 of the victims were killed during
the Israeli offensive on the northern Gaza Strip.
4 of the victims were extra-judicially
executed by Israeli troops in Gaza.
Israeli troops conducted a series of
incursions into Palestinian areas in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
16 houses were destroyed and 72 donums
of agricultural land were razed in the Gaza Strip
Houses were raided and dozens of
Palestinian civilians were arrested
Continued shelling of residential
areas and civilian facilities; 2 Palestinian civilians were killed and
a number of others were injured
Israeli helicopter gunships destroyed
2 civilian facilities in Gaza
Construction of the Annexation wall
in the West Bank has continued
Israeli troops have continued to
impose a total siege on the OPTs; the Gaza Strip has been divided into
3 separate zones; a shortage of basic foodstuffs and fuels in the
southern Gaza Strip; Israeli troops at military checkpoints fired at
Palestinian civilians and arrested a number of civilians while
crossing military checkpoints
Introduction
Israeli occupying troops have escalated
their attacks on Palestinian civilians in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory (OPTs), especially in the Gaza Strip. This week, 76
Palestinians, including 64 from the northern Gaza Strip, were killed
by Israeli troops. These attacks recall the Israeli comprehensive
offensive on the West Bank in the 2002 spring, in which hundreds of
Palestinians were killed or injured. Human rights violations
perpetrated by Israeli troops included willful and extra-judicial
executions, incursions into Palestinian areas, indiscriminate
shelling, land leveling and total closure imposed on Palestinian
communities.
For the 2nd consecutive week,
Israeli troops have launched a wide scale offensive on the northern
Gaza Strip. During the period covered by this report, 64 Palestinians
were killed by Israeli troops. Thus, the number of Palestinians killed
since the beginning of this latest offensive until Thursday morning, 7
October 2004 has mounted to 74, including 37 civilians, 23 of whom
were children. Two of the victims were brothers and a third victim was
deaf. In addition, at least 300 others, mostly civilians, including at
least 100 children, have been injured, and a number of them have been
rendered permanently disabled. Israeli troops have also continued to
destroy houses, agricultural land, civilian facilities and historical
sites. At least 50 houses have been destroyed and 140 others have been
damaged. In addition 4 UNRWA schools, a kindergarten, a mosque, a
historical site and a number of civilian facilities were destroyed.
Large areas in the northern Gaza Strip have been isolated, while
Israeli troops have seized a number of buildings, transforming their
roofs into military sites. In the meantime, electricity and water
supplies have been cut from these areas. These areas also suffer from
a shortage of foodstuffs, especially milk. Israeli troops have
prevented humanitarian agencies into Jabalya refugee camp and
neighboring areas, excluding the ICRC, whose role has been very
limited.
Many Palestinian civilians, especially
in Jablaya refugee camp, were seen carrying their belongings and
leaving their houses, due to the Israeli shelling and the presence of
members of the Palestinian resistance who are always targeted by heavy
Israeli weapons. These scenes are reminiscent of the forcible
migration of 1949. Israeli troops have also used Palestinian civilians
as human shields in military operations, endangering their lives.
This latest offensive by Israeli
occupying troops has been characterized by excessive use of force
against Palestinian civilians, as they have attacked civilian
communities with missiles and shells. Since the beginning of this
latest offensive, 34 Palestinian civilians, including 21 children,
have been killed. Eight of the children were killed together in
Jabalya refugee camp on the third day of the offensive, when Israeli
troops fired artillery shells at them. These facts refute the claims
of Moshe Ya'lon, the Israeli military chief of staff, that all of
those who have been killed are militants.
Israeli occupying troops have been
positioned a few meters away from Jabalya refugee camp, which is one
of the most densely populated areas in the world, where approximately
120,000 people live in an area of less than 2 square kilometers.
Consequently, most of the deaths (52 Palestinians) have been in the
camp, and many houses have been destroyed. The Israeli offensive on
Jabalya refugee camp is reminiscent off the Israeli offensive on Jenin
refugee camp in the West Bank in the spring of 2002, when Israeli
troops killed 49 Palestinians in a few days, injured dozens of others
and destroyed many houses as they used excessive force inside the
camp.
Israeli troops have also used
disproportionate and indiscriminate force against members of the
Palestinian resistance as many of these were killed when they were not
engaged in fighting.
Statements by Israeli political and
military officials that this military campaign could continue for
weeks not a few days raise serious concerns for the lives and
properties of Palestinian civilians. Such statements also provide
further evidence of the policy of collective punishment, which has
been systematically practiced against the Palestinian people. The
Israeli declared war on UNRWA is an intentional policy that aims at
preventing the organization for providing humanitarian assistance to
the affected areas. In addition, the US support for the Israeli
government and its occupying forces, transforms perpetrator into a
victim, encourages this government to escalate its aggression against
Palestinian civilians. The failure of the international community to
stop the Israeli attacks only serves to encourage Israel and its
occupying forces to further violate international human rights
instruments, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949.
This week, 8 Palestinian civilians were
killed by Israeli troops in other areas in the Gaza Strip. Four of the
victims were extra-judicially killed by Israeli on 2 and 5 October
2004. On 2 October 2004, an elderly Palestinian civilian was killed by
the Israeli shelling on residential areas in Rafah, and a child from
Khan Yunis died from a wound he had sustained in July. On 4 October
2004, a 4-year-old Palestinian child was killed when Israeli troops
shelled residential areas in Khuza'a village near Khan Yunis. On 5
October 2004, Israeli troops shot dead a 13-year-old child in Rafah,
when she got close to an Israeli military post for unknown reasons.
This week, Israeli troops conducted 8
incursions into Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip. In an incursion
into al-Satar al-Gharbi area in Khan Yunis on 5 October 2004, Israeli
troops destroyed 9th houses and razed 52 donums of
agricultural land. In the other incursions, Israeli troops destroyed 6
houses and razed 23 donums of agricultural land. Israeli troops have
also continued to shell Palestinian residential areas. Israeli
helicopter gunships also destroyed 2 civilian facilities in Gaza City.
In the West Bank, Israeli troops killed
4 Palestinians, including a child, and a woman died from a previous
injury. On 4 October 2004, an undercover unit of Israeli occupying
troops shot dead 2 Palestinians in Ramallah. On 5 October 2004,
Israeli troops killed a Palestinian in Hebron. On 6 October 2004,
Israeli troops shot dead a 16-year-old child in Saida village near
Tulkarm. On 4 October 2004, an elderly woman from Hares village in
Nablus died from an injury she had sustained 2 months ago. In
addition, Israeli troops launched a series of attacks against
Palestinian civilians and their properties. They moved into various
areas throughout the West Bank, injured a number of Palestinian
civilians, mostly children, and arrested dozens of others.
Israeli troops have continued to
construct the annexation wall inside the West Bank territory. This
week, this construction took place mainly in East Jerusalem and
Hebron. Israeli troops have continued to construct a section of the
wall in the middle of Ramallah Jerusalem Street. This section of the
wall will isolate al-Ram village. It will also annex Atarot industrial
zone to the Israeli territories.
Israeli troops have continued to impose
a tightened siege on the OPTs and have imposed severe restrictions on
the movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West
Bank, including Jerusalem. They have divided the Gaza Strip into 3
separate zones by closing the coastal road between Gaza City and the
central Gaza Strip, and isolated several parts of the northern Gaza
Strip. They have also continued to close most border crossings of the
Gaza Strip. The closure of internal roads in the Gaza Strip has
obstructed activities of international humanitarian agencies,
especially UNRWA. In the West Bank, Israeli troops have continued to
impose a strict siege on Palestinian communities. They have continued
to impose a tightened siege on Hebron for the 5th
consecutive week. They have also imposed severe restrictions on the
movement of Palestinian civilians and arrested some of them while
crossing military checkpoints. Israeli troops also imposed curfews on
a number of Palestinian communities.
The full report is available online
at:
http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/W_report/English/2004/07-10-2004.htm
Dear friends and colleagues,
This week has been one in which the
human rights situation continued to deteriorate drastically. PCHR
wishes to reiterate our thanks for the e-mails, phone calls and
messages of support we have received.
During the week we circulated a request
regarding a petition to oppose the planned visit of Ehud Olmert to
South Africa. The email address listed in the press release from our
friends in South Africa was wrong. The email address to send the
signed petition to should in fact be
[email protected] . I would appreciate it if you would sign the
petition again.
Once again thank you for your continuing
support of PCHR. Now, more then ever, Palestinian people require
international support and solidarity and the implementation of the
rule of law. Your contribution has genuinely aided this process.
Warm regards,
Raji Sourani
Director
PCHR
Public Document
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For more information please call PCHR
office in Gaza, Gaza Strip, on +972 8 2824776 - 2825893
PCHR, 29 Omer El Mukhtar St., El Remal,
PO Box 1328 Gaza, Gaza Strip. E-mail:[email protected],
Webpage
http://www.pchrgaza.org
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