Tag: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights

Under Israeli fire, Gaza fishermen plan protest tent to “free the Holy Land sea”

12th December 2013 | Free the Holy Land Sea | Gaza, Occupied Palestine

The Israeli navy regularly attacks and captures fishermen in Palestinian waters off the Gaza Strip. (Photo by Rosa Schiano)
The Israeli navy regularly attacks and captures fishermen in Palestinian waters off the Gaza Strip. (Photo by Rosa Schiano)

For Immediate Release

Contacts:

Zakaria Baker (Arabic)
zakarea-1010@hotmail.com

Khalil Shaheen (Arabic, English)
khalilshaheen@yahoo.com

On Tuesday, 17 December, Palestinian fishermen will pitch a protest tent in the Gaza seaport. The structure, which will stand for three days and be decorated with pictures of fishermen attacked or captured by the Israeli navy, is a demonstration against Israel’s naval blockade of the Gaza Strip and its military attacks on Palestinian fishermen.

Fishermen who have previously been attacked or captured, as well as representatives of fishing and human rights organizations, will be available for interviews. Palestinian and international supporters speaking Arabic, Catalan, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish will also participate.

“As fishermen, we want people to stand in solidarity with us, to free Gaza waters and guarantee our full enjoyment of the fundamental right to sail freely, and to stop Israel’s massive violations against us,” said fisherman and activist Zakaria Baker. “It’s time to stop all kinds of war crimes against fishermen. It’s time to end the illegal siege, a form of collective punishment forbidden under international humanitarian law.”

“Gaza fishermen are seeking to enjoy their livelihoods based on dignity and freedom,” said Khalil Shaheen, director of the economic and social rights unit at the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR). “Let people live their normal lives. End all collective punishment. Respect human rights in all circumstances.”

The “Free the Holy Land Sea” campaign is supported by PCHR, Activists for Palestinian Prisoners, the al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, the General Union of Fishermen, the International Solidarity Movement, the Palestinian Press Network, Supporters for Fishermen’s Rights, and the Unadikum Association.

The tent will stand from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm, on Tuesday, 17 December through Thursday, 19 December.

Resources:

Fishing under fire off the Gaza coast
The Guardian
8 December 2013

Israeli Attacks on Fishermen in the Gaza Sea
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
8 November 2013

Restricted Livelihood: Gaza’s Fishermen
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
11 July 2013

In an excessive use of force, Israeli forces kill Palestinian child in al-Jalazoun refugee camp, north of Ramallah

8th December 2013 | Palestinian Centre for Human Rights| Occupied Palestine

According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR), at approximately 16:30 on Saturday, 07 December 2013, dozens of Palestinian children gathered at the southern entrance of al-Jalazoun refugee camp, north of Ramallah, near the UNRWA school, nearly 300 meters from the fence of “Beit Eil” settlement.  They set fire to rubber tires and threw stones at Israeli soldiers.  Israeli soldiers who got out of the settlement and those stationed on an observation tower at the fence opened fire at the children.

As a result, Wajeeh Wajdi Mustafa al-Ramahi, 15, was seriously wounded by a live bullet to the left side of his back.  The child was evacuated in a private car to Palestine Medical Compound in Ramallah, where he underwent a surgery, but he succumbed to his wound. Medical sources declared his death at approximately 17:10.

PCHR is deeply concerned over this crime, which further proves the use of excessive force by Israeli forces against Palestinian civilians in disregard for the civilians’ lives. Therefore, PCHR calls upon the international community to take immediate and effective actions to put an end to such crimes and reiterates its call for the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 to fulfill their obligations under Article 1; i.e., to respect and to ensure respect for the Convention in all circumstances, and their obligation under Article 146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention.  These grave breaches constitute war crimes under Article 147 of the same Convention and Protocol (I) Additional to the Geneva Conventions.

PNGO and human rights organizations calls for immediately ending suffering of civilians due to electricity outages

29th November 2013 | Palestinian Centre for Human Rights| Occupied Palestine

The Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations Network (PNGO) and human rights organizations in the Gaza Strip express their deep concern for the deteriorating humanitarian conditions of the population of the Gaza Strip due to the continued tightened closure imposed by Israel on 1.8 million people and its impact on all aspects of their lives, while the international community remains silent towards human rights violations perpetrated by Israeli occupation forces.  PNGO and human rights organizations are deeply concerned for the aggravation of the crisis of electricity outages resulting from these policies which leads to an imminent humanitarian disaster seriously impacting all vital interests of the population, including water and sanitation services, educational services and all daily necessary vital services.

PNGO and human rights organizations are concerned that the deterioration in all aspects of the population’s life may further aggravate as a result of the continuous consequences of the Palestinian political split and the failure of its two parties to solve the power and fuel crisis which has been persistent since late June 2006 when Israeli forces bombarded the Gaza Power Plant.

PNGO and human rights organizations observe with deep concern the deterioration of humanitarian conditions of the Gaza Strip’s population since 01 November 2013, when the Gaza Power Plant was forced off due to the lack of fuel.  Both governments in Ramallah and Gaza have failed to take any effective steps to overcome this crisis and its consequences, and accordingly all daily basic services needed by the population have disastrously deteriorated.  As a result of the crisis, electricity supplies to all vital facilities, including houses and health, environmental and educational facilities, have been sharply decreased; electricity is off for 12 hours and then on for 6 hours only.

PNGO and human rights organizations believe that the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip is essentially a result of Israeli systematic policies against the civilian population, including bombarding the sole power plant in the Gaza Strip in late June 2006, and decreasing fuel supplies to the power plant in the context of the illegal closure imposed on the Gaza Strip.  PNGO and human rights organizations are aware of the continuous deterioration of the human rights and humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip due to the crisis of electricity outages, while the international community remains silent towards human rights violations perpetrated by Israeli forces, which have created and perpetuated the crisis, including targeting the infrastructure of the electricity sectors, such as supply and transmission lines and towers, during repeated incursions into the Gaza Strip, or using fuel and other consumptive goods as a means to punish the population, and the Israeli authorities’ failure to meet their obligations as an occupying power to maintain the operation of medical facilities and water and sanitation services.

It is worth noting that the electricity crisis has become a serious challenge to normal life of the Palestinian civilian population in the Gaza Strip, which poses imminent risks to all aspects of daily life due to its direct impacts.  Currently, the crisis has led to suspension of many health care programs and services, waste water treatment, water supplies, especially to high buildings, and educational services.  Vital economic sectors, especially workshops and commercial stores, have sustained large economic losses, due to Israeli attacks and the closure imposed on the Gaza Strip.  Life for Palestinians living in high buildings has become extremely difficult due to the lack of electricity that is necessary to operate elevators and provide water supplies.  The crisis has also impacted the educational process and the economic and living conditions of the population due to their inability to provide alternatives to electricity supplies, especially with the high prices of fuel which the population cannot afford.  Additionally, the electricity crisis and the population’s efforts to find alternatives have caused horrible human tragedies.  According to information of human rights organizations, 16 Palestinians, including 14 children and one woman, have died by fire, and 9 others, including 5 children, have sustained burns since the beginning of 2012.

PNGO and human rights organizations strongly condemn the failure of relevant parties to fulfill their obligations and take practical steps to ensure ending the suffering of the civilian population, while all justifications claimed by them are not acceptable.  There are concerns that the Gaza Strip may turn into an area of a disaster due to the deterioration of humanitarian conditions.  PNGO and human rights organizations believe that all concerned parties, including the international community, the occupying power pursuant to its international legal obligations and both governments in Ramallah and Gaza, should ensure protection of and respect for the inherent human dignity as a value whose waste can never be justified, or be subject to material or political bargains.  Causing this human suffering that may lead to loss of lives can never be justified.

PNGO and human rights organizations in the Gaza Strip call upon all parties to immediately act to stop the suffering of the civilian population and find sustainable and strategic solutions that take into the consideration the civilian population’s needs and ensure protection of their lives and respect for their basic rights, including supplying all consignments of medicines and foods and basic services that are necessary for the population.  PNGO and human rights organizations emphasize the following:

1. Israeli occupation authorities are legally responsible for the deteriorating humanitarian conditions of the Gaza Strip’s population and the illegal closure imposed on the Gaza Strip as a form of collective punishment, as Israel is an occupying power according to the international humanitarian law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949.

2. The international community is responsible for the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip due to its failure to fulfill its legal and moral obligation and compel Israel to lift the illegal closure imposed on the Gaza Strip.

3. Both governments in Gaza and Ramallah must immediately and seriously act to end the electricity crisis, overcome the differences whose price is paid by the Gaza Strip’s population, abstain from pushing basic services and sectors into the political conflict, put an end to the suffering of the civilian population and find sustainable and strategic solutions that protect basic rights of people and the requirements for their adequate living conditions.

After Gaza Power Plant Forced off, Humanitarian Conditions of Approximately 1.7 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip Deteriorate

8th November 2013 | Palestinian Centre for Human Rights| Occupied Palestine

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) expresses deep concern over the deterioration of humanitarian conditions of the civilian population due to the aggravation of the electricity crisis in the Gaza Strip.

On Friday morning, 01 November 2013, the operation of the Gaza power plant was totally stopped due to the lack of fuel required for its operation.  PCHR is deeply concerned that the current crisis may impact the access of 1.7 million Palestinians to vital services, including the supply of drinking water, and that this crisis may result in the suspension of work in some vital sectors, such as health, sanitation and education.

According to PCHR’s follow-up of the chronic power crisis in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Energy Authority in Gaza announced that the operation of the Gaza Power plant was totally stopped on Friday morning, 01 November 2012. The Energy Authority claimed that its counterpart in Ramallah stopped the fuel supplies required to operate the power plant and its requested taxes on the price of fuel.  However, the Energy Authority in Gaza announced its inability to pay taxes on the price of the industrial fuel.  On the other hand, the Energy Authority in Ramallah refused to provide any new fuel supplies required for operating the power plant resulting in the total lack of fuel and the shutdown of the plant.

The shutdown of the Gaza plant power has left serious consequences on the humanitarian conditions of the Gaza Strip’s population due to the deficit in daily needs of power in Gaza.  The Electricity Distribution Company (GEDCO) in Gaza was forced to increase the hours of power outages on houses and vital facilities from 8 to 12 hours daily.  Thus, the schedule, which is applied, based on which power will be distributed for six hours and then cut off for 12 hours resulting in further deterioration in humanitarian conditions of the Gaza Strip’s population.  It should be mentioned that the power plant was providing around 65 megawatts during the years of its reparation and rehabilitation after being targeted and destroyed by Israeli forces in June 2006.  The power plant had worked since June 2012 to produce around 100 megawatts.  The Gaza Energy Authority stated that the electricity is provided to the Gaza Strip as follows: 120 megawatts from Israel and 27 megawatts supplied by Egypt.

The Gaza power plant has been suffering from a significant decrease in fuel supplies required for its operation coming from Egypt through tunnels under the Egypt-Gaza border, as the supplies have almost completely stopped for around 2 months.  As a result, the Energy Authority in Gaza purchased fuel from Israel through its counterpart in Ramallah.  At that time, the Palestinian Authority (PA) in Ramallah exempted fuel purchases from taxes.  However, the Energy Authority in Ramallah demanded its counterpart in Gaza to pay the taxes on the fuel supplies due to the PA’s current financial crisis.  The Energy Authority in Gaza refused to pay those taxes claiming that it cannot afford paying them.

PCHR has been following the power crisis consequences in the Gaza strip since the power plant stopped operating after Israeli forces targeted and destroyed it in June 2006 resulting in catastrophic impacts on the power supplies in the Gaza Strip.  PCHR has been also following the impacts of the ongoing Palestinian political split, whose two parties failed to find solutions that take into account the best interests of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and stop the deterioration of humanitarian conditions and provide of their electrical power needs and fuel required to operate the Gaza plant power.  PCHR is deeply concerned over further deterioration of civilians’ humanitarian conditions as the power crisis has affected all civilians’ daily life needs and violated their right to access to basic and necessary services, including access to health facilities and to treatment, access to educational institutions, including schools and universities, and access to water services, including drinking water in homes and all other vital services.

Through continuous follow-up of the effects of the aggravation of the power crisis, PCHR has observed serious deterioration of the humanitarian situation from which the residents of Gaza are suffering:

·         About 1, 7 million inhabitants of the Gaza Strip are facing deficiencies in all walks of their daily life, which have affected their basic needs, including health services, access to water, environmental health services and ability to meet the educational needs of school and university students.

·         The deterioration of health conditions in the health facilities of the Gaza Strip due to inability to compensate the shortage of electricity for long hours on one hand, and their inability to provide fuel needed to run the alternative generators in these facilities on the other hand, in addition to breakdown of many machines and medical equipment at hospitals and health facilities of the Gaza Strip.

·         Hundreds of patients in the hospitals of the Gaza Strip face serious health risks as the medical equipment are not run regularly, especially in the intensive care units and other medical units like heart and kidney units.

·         Local bodies, including municipalities and village councils, are unable to provide alternative fuel to ensure the workflow of their vital facilities serving the population of the Gaza Strip, including water and sanitation facilities. Citizens’ complaints started to resound because of their inability to get water in their houses, especially in high buildings.

·         Different bakeries in the Gaza Strip said that they partially stopped working due to the long hours of power outage and the shortage of the fuel needed to run the machines. One can notice overcrowding for long hours in front of bakeries in order to get the basic needs.

·         Educational facilities in universities and educational institutions are suffering serious disorder, which led to the inactivity of many educational laboratories and the postponement of some educational assignments due to electricity shortage and lack of alternative power sources. The aggravation of electricity crisis has coincided with the mid-term exams that started about a week ago in the schools and universities of the Gaza Strip. The majority of governmental schools is still without electricity and cannot provide the students with alternatives.

·         Hundreds of institutions and associations in the Gaza Strip had to postpone their activities and programs due to the electricity shortage all day and their inability to provide alternative power sources to run their machines and equipment.

·         The suffering of the population of the Gaza Strip has seriously aggravated, especially those living in high buildings and who depend on elevators in the ascending and descending from their apartments. Dozens of residents, including elderly people and patients with chronic diseases have been greatly affected.

PCHR is following the power crisis in the Gaza Strip with grave concern and:

1.       Calls on all concerned parties, including the Palestinian government in Ramallah, the Palestinian government in Gaza and the Electricity Distribution Company in Gaza to make efforts to provide the fuel needed to run the power plant and ensure its workflow with no cessation;

2.       Warns of the serious consequences of the stoppage of the power plant on all vital sectors, including the basic services for about 1, 7 million Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip, like drinking water supplies, disruption of health facilities, including hospitals and medical centers, in addition to the sewage plants and educational sectors.

3.       Calls on the international community to pressurize Israel, the occupying power according to international humanitarian law, to lift the illegal closure imposed on the Gaza Strip since June 2007, to fulfill their legal commitments towards the civilian population of the Gaza Strip and to ensure access to all the medicines, food, and basic services, including fuel supplies needed to run the Gaza Power Plant.

 

 

 

 

Israeli forces use excessive force killing 2 Palestinian civilians at military checkpoint in the West Bank

8th November 2013 | Palestinian Centre for Human Rights| Occupied Palestine

Israeli forces killed 2 Palestinian civilians at Za’tara checkpoint,  south of Nablus, and the Container checkpoint, northeast of Bethlehem,  in the West Bank.

According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Center for  Human Rights (PCHR), at approximately 6pm on Thursday, 07 November  2013, Basheer Sami Salem Habnain, 29, from Marka village south of Jenin,  was traveling in a taxi from Ramallah to Nablus.  When he was about 20  meters away from Za’tara intersection, south of Nablus, he stepped down  from the taxi and crossed the main road towards the other side.  He was  carrying a box of fireworks, from which flares were unleashed.  Soon, an  Israeli soldier descended from a military observation tower and fired  directly at Habnain, killing him with 7 bullets to the legs and thighs  and an 8th one which entered the back and exited the chest.

Israeli  forces kept the victim’s body until 3am on Friday, 08 November 2013,  when they handed the body to the Palestinian liaison department.  The  victim was a lecturer at the fashion department in Palestine Technical  University (Kadoorie) in Tulkarm.  Israeli forces claimed that “Habnain was carrying a flare gun, from  which he fired at soldiers, so the soldiers responded by firing at him,  and he was instantly killed.”

A video clip published on Youtube shows  an Israeli soldiers descending from an Israeli military observation  tower to the southeast of Za’tara checkpoint, and then firing at the  area to the southwest of the checkpoint.  Another 2 soldiers are seen in  the video clip coming from the checkpoint.  Even according to the  Israeli narrative, Israeli forces could have used less lethal means  against the victim, such as arresting him.

In a similar crime, at approximately 9:30 pm, Isma’il Fu’ad Refa’ei  al-Atrash, 25, and his brother Anas, 23, arrived at the Container  checkpoint, northeast of Bethlehem, traveling from Jericho to their home  in Hebron.  They were traveling in a civilian car driven by Isma’il.   When they arrived the checkpoint, Isma’il slowed down to cross road  bumps.  Anas opened the door, and once he stepped down, Israeli soldiers  shot him dead with 2 bullets to the chest.

Israeli soldiers took Anas’  body and put it in a plastic sac near the checkpoint.  Residents of the  area and a number of members of the victim’s family arrived at the  checkpoint and skirmishes erupted between them and Israeli soldiers.   Later, the family received Anas’ body. Israeli forces claimed that “the  young man attempted to stab a soldier, so the latter fired at him  directly, killing him.”

PCHR’s field worker in Hebron reported that he  was not able to obtain a statement from the victim’s brother who was  accompanying him during the attack, because the brother is suffering  from a shock.  PCHR will continue to investigate this crime.  PCHR is deeply concerned over these crimes, which further prove the use  of excessive force by Israeli forces against the Palestinian civilians  in disregard for the civilians lives.

Therefore, PCHR calls upon the  international community to take immediate and effective actions to put  an end to such crimes and reiterates its call for the High Contracting  Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 to fulfill their  obligations under Article 1; i.e., to respect and to ensure respect for  the Convention in all circumstances, and their obligation under Article  146 to prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth  Geneva Convention.  These grave breaches constitute war crimes under  Article 147 of the same Convention and Protocol (I) Additional to the  Geneva Conventions.