In an excessive use of force, on Thursday morning, 31 October 2013, Israeli forces killed a Palestinian civilian in Qabatya village, southeast of the northern West Bank town of Jenin.
According to investigation conducted by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR), at approximately 01:00 on Thursday, 31 October 2013, Israeli force moved into Qabatya village, southeast of Jenin. They stationed in the eastern part of the village. They raided a house belonging to the family of Emad Shawkat Kmail, 30, and arrested him. They then moved towards the western part of the village. There, they raided a number of houses and arrested 3 Palestinian civilians: Rassem Tawfiq Khzaimiya, 60; Mo’men Saba’na, 23; and Ayman Abdul Rahman Abu al-Rub, 28. At approximately 05:00, while Israeli forces were withdrawing from the village taking the detainees, a number of young men gathered at the western entrance of the village. They blocked it with iron barriers and set fire to tires. When Israeli forces passed by the area, the young men threw stones and empty bottles at them. Immediately, Israeli soldiers fired tear gas canisters and sound bombs at the young men. They then fired live ammunition directly at the young men. As a result, Ahmed Emad Youseg Tazaz’a, 22, was seriously wounded by a bullet to the heart. He was immediately evacuated to al-Razi Hospital in Jernn, but medical efforts to save his life failed. He was pronounced dead at approximately 06:00.
PCHR is deeply concerned over this crime, which further proves 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.
18th October 2013 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza Team | Gaza, Occupied Palestine
Ibrahim Baroud joined his mother, Ghalia Baroud, or Um Ibrahim, at Gaza’s weekly sit-in for Palestinian prisoners, which she co-founded, on Monday morning.
Ghalia, or Um Ibrahim (right), and Ibrahim Baroud. (Photo by Gal·la López)
Baroud, a former Palestinian detainee, was captured by Israeli forces on 9 April 1986, at the age of 23. He was held for 27 years, including seven in solitary confinement.
Um Ibrahim launched the vigil in the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) courtyard in 1995 with Handoumeh Wishah, or Um Jaber, the mother of four detainees, including Jaber Wishah, who was held for over 14 years.
Wishah, a physics lecturer and a political and military leader in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, was captured by Israeli forces on 5 June 1985. They released him on 9 September 1999, along with 198 other detainees, in partial implementation of the Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum signed with the Palestine Liberation Organization five days earlier.
“I had this idea to hold a vigil with photographs of the prisoners, to make sure they were not forgotten,” Um Jaber told the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) in 2008.
“It was just the two of us standing outside the ICRC the first time – but we knew the next week there would be three or four of us, and then, slowly, more mothers would come.”
Um Ibrahim celebrated her son’s freedom on 8 April 2013 after his completion of an Israeli military court’s sentence for membership in Palestinian Islamic Jihad and participation in its armed resistance.
The timing of his release, on a Monday morning, was convenient, as Baroud made his first stop in the Gaza Strip, before his home in the Jabalia refugee camp, at the ICRC.
The ADDAMEER Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association said that “the absolute prohibition on family visits is designed to demoralize and punish prisoners’ families, and by extension the general population in Gaza, for their political choices in 2006 and for the June 2006 capture of Gilad Shalit, making the policy a clear case of collective punishment, a war crime for which Israel should be held responsible.”
In 2007, prior to the ban, Um Ibrahim received approval for one visit, but turned back after Israeli forces demanded she submit to a strip search.
“I finally got permission to visit him in jail in Israel last year, and the ICRC escorted me to Erez Crossing,” she told the PCHR. “But the Israelis ordered me to strip down to my underwear, and I refused. So they sent me back to Gaza.”
“They [the Israelis] had seen everything, even my bones,” she added. “They claimed it was for security – but I am entitled to protect my dignity and my rights.”
“All Palestinians are dangerous for them [Israelis],” Um Ibrahim told Le Monde before her son’s release, which she called “a national wedding and a popular happiness.”
At the beginning of September, Israeli forces held 5,007 Palestinian political prisoners, according to ADDAMEER. 400 were from the Gaza Strip.
In an excessive use of lethal force, on Monday, 30 September 2013, Israeli forces killed a Palestinian civilian, and wounded another one before arresting him, near the border fence, east of Beit Hanoun in the north of the Gaza Strip.
According to investigations conducted by PCHR and the testimony given by Naim Khalil, an ambulance officer in the Palestine Red Crescent Society(PRCS), at approximately 19:15 on Monday, 30 September 2013, sounds of artillery shells and flash bombs that were followed by heavy gunfire were at the border fence, east ofal- Misreyin Street in the east of Beith Hanoun in the north of the Gaza Strip. At approximately 20:00, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) informed the PRCS in Jabalia that there was a body of a Palestinian civilian near the border fence. After coordinating with the Israeli side, an ambulance of the PRCS headed to the above-mentioned area, and the paramedics started searching for the body. After approximately 20 minutes of search, they found the body of the killed man who was lying on his stomach about 400 meters far from the border fence. The victim was hit by several bullets in the back and one bullet in the back of the head, and was wearing civilian clothes and possessing no equipment. The search process continued till 21:50, as the paramedics were informed that there was another person in the area, but they didn’t find anyone, before their director called them and asked them to evacuate the area for there was nobody else there. The paramedics took the body to Kamal Odwan Hospital in Biet Lahia, where the victim was identified later as Hweishel Ismail Hweishel Hanajra, 35, from al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. The victim’s family stated to a PCHR fieldworker that their son had headed to the area in order to infiltrate into Israel to find a job, as a result of his difficult living conditions.
The PCHR fieldworker was informed that Israeli forces advanced into the area immediately after the incident, and chased and arrested a wounded man. According to the ICRC, the detainee is Subhi Hussein Salem Abudib, 36, from al-Bureij camp. Moreover, the artillery shelling caused material damage to Musleh Al-Tarabin’s abandoned house that is covered with tin plates, located about 700 meters far from the border fence; cracking its walls, damaging 4 water barrels, punching tin plates, and killing birds and a donkey.
PCHR expresses deep concern for such crimes which reflect the continued use of excessive force by Israeli forces against Palestinian civilians in disregard for their lives, and points out that the infiltrations through the border fence along the Gaza Strip are repeated due to the crippling economic blockade in Gaza.
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 parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention 1949 to fulfill their obligations under Common 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 Article 85 of Protocol I Additional to the Geneva Conventions.
Islam al-Tubasi, killed in Jenin by Israeli soldiers. (Photo by MaanImages)
In an excessive use of lethal force, on Tuesday morning, 17 September 2013, Israeli occupation forces killed a Palestinian civilian and wounded 4 others, including 3 children, in Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank.
According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) and the testimonies of the victim’s two brothers – Kamal, 34, and Mustafa, 23, at approximately 02:30 on Tuesday, 17 September 2013, Israeli forces in about 22 military vehicles moved into Jenin refugee camp, west of Jenin town. A number of young men gathered and threw stones at Israeli military vehicles. In response, Israeli soldiers fired rubber-coated metal bullets and sound bombs. The clashes continued for a few hours, but no casualties were reported. At approximately 06:00, Israeli forces moved back to edges of the camp. Half an hour later, a special unit of Israeli forces backed with 4 military vehicles moved into the camp. They stationed in the center of the camp. Israeli soldiers who were in black military uniform raided 3-storey apartment building belonging to Hussam al-Tubasi. Israeli soldiers blew up the doors of the house and stepped up to a room on the roof where the owner’s sons, Islam, 20, and Mustafa, 23, live. Islam and Mustafa got out of their room to find out what was going on as they heard explosions. Immediately, Israeli soldiers kicked Mustafa, pushed him to the ground and handcuffed him. He saw Israeli soldiers pushing Islam into the room. Two Israeli soldiers then pulled Mustafa down to the second floor and held him in a bathroom. In the meantime, sounds of shooting were being heard on the roof. A few minutes, Israeli soldier stepped down taking Islam who was bleeding. They fired at his legs again in front of the building and took him.
Soon after, Israeli forces brought backups into the camp. A number of young men and children gathered and threw stones and home-made hand grenades at Israeli forces that were surrounding al-Tubassi’s house. Israeli soldiers opened fire indiscriminately. As a result, 4 civilians, including 3 children, were wounded:
Saladin Na’el Ghazzawi, 23, wounded by a bullet to the right thigh;
Mohammed Khaled Taleb, 12, wounded a by a bullet to the thigh;
Abdul Rahman Taha Abu Sirriya, 12, wounded by a bullet to the right knee; and
Mohammed Wa’el Ghazzawi, 16, wounded by a bullet to the right foot.
In the afternoon, an ambulance of Palestine Red Crescent Society moved to Salem military post, northwest of Jenin, and received Islam’s body as he had be pronounced dead in an Israeli hospital. The body was taken to Jenin Hospital, where medical sources stated that the victim was hit by 2 live bullets to the abdomen and 2 ones to the legs.
It should be noted that Tubassi is the third civilian killed in Jenin refugee camp in 4 weeks. On 20 August 2013, Israeli forces killed Majd Mohammed al-Shahla, 21, and wounded 3 others, including 17-year-old Kareem Subhi Abu Sbaih, who succumbed to his wound on 31 August 2013.
PCHR is deeply concerned over this crime, which further proves 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.
Israel continues to violate the terms of a 2012 ceasefire by attacking farmers in Gaza. (Eyad Al Baba / APA images)
Farming in the Gaza Strip’s “buffer zone” is hazardous under the best circumstances. Israeli troops routinely shoot live ammunition at Palestinian farmers in the free-fire area, which stretches hundreds of meters into the besieged territory from the barrier separating it and Israel, and invade their fields with tanks and bulldozers.
But Israel’s aggression against civilians in the area has escalated since the Egyptian army deposed elected president Muhammad Morsi and installed a new government on 3 July, according to Gaza’s farmers.
“After the coup in Egypt, the Israelis began shooting more heavily,” said Abu Jamal Abu Taima, a farmer in Khuzaa, a village in the Khan Younis area of southern Gaza.
Abu Jamal is the mukhtar, or elected leader, of the Abu Taima family, 3,500 refugees fromBir al-Saba — a town in present-day Israel called Beersheva — now scattered among the farmlands outside Khan Younis.
He and two dozen other farmers from the family spoke to The Electronic Intifada during and after a meeting they held in Khuzaa.
“Egypt was the guarantor of the last ceasefire agreement [in 2012],” he said. “Now the Israelis are free to do whatever they want.”
“Just a few months ago, there was no gunfire. Now there is. We aren’t even in season yet, but they have already started to shoot.”
Morsi’s government brokered a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian resistance groups on 21 November last year, ending eight days of Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip and retaliatory fire from groups in the territory.
As part of the agreement, Israel reduced the “buffer zone,” which it had imposed in 2005, from 300 meters to 100 meters, according to the the Israeli military’s civil administrative unit, COGAT.
Targeted
In May this year, following months of conflicting claims about the size of the area by COGAT and the Israeli military’s spokesperson, COGAT stated that the “buffer zone” remained at 300 meters (“IDF: ‘Forbidden zone’ in Gaza three times larger than previously stated,” +972 Magazine, 12 May 2013).
But farmers say Israeli gunfire has extended the zone even further.
“According to the ceasefire, farmers could reach nearly all their lands,” Abu Jamal Abu Taima said. “These days, the Israelis are shooting farmers at 500 meters [from the boundary].”
He is not the only farmer who attributes the shift to turmoil in Egypt.
“After the coup, the Israelis expanded the area farmers couldn’t reach to 500 meters,” Abed al-Rasoul Abu Taima said. “Anyone coming closer to the separation barrier will be shot.”
Other farmers say they have been targeted even further from the barrier.
“The Israelis shot at me at 800 meters,” Zakaria Abu Taima said. “I was preparing to plant when they opened fire. I hid in an iron pipe, but the bullets came right through it.”
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) documented one Israeli shelling attack, twelve shootings, and seven incursions — resulting in a death and seven injuries, including two children — in the “buffer zone” during July and August.
Since the beginning of September, Israeli forces have undertaken at least two further incursions to level farmland.
Many other attacks, especially shootings that do not result in deaths or injuries, are never reported, according to farmers.
“It’s curious now, when you are talking about these limited incursions,” said Khalil Shaheen, head of PCHR’s economic and social rights unit.
“Violations define the restricted area. Officially, according to COGAT, the de jure area is 300 meters. But de facto, it depends on the incursions.”
Israel’s attacks in the “buffer zone,” especially those beyond 300 meters, discourage farmers from growing trees or building structures, like electrical pumps or wells.
“They don’t allow farmers to plant trees or build infrastructure,” said Dr. Nabil Abu Shammala, director of policy and planning at the Palestinian ministry of agriculture and fisheries. “They claim this is for reasons of their security.
“Agricultural activities in this area face many kinds of risks. Farmers avoid it not only because of gunfire, but also the destruction of land and infrastructure,” he added.
“We are afraid”
Amid the current rise in Israeli attacks, the potential destruction of their land particularly worries Gaza’s farmers.
The threat of Israeli bulldozers leveling fields has convinced many to delay the start of their fall planting.
“We are afraid to reach our land because, after we plant, the Israelis may come and destroy everything,” explained Abdul Azia Mahmoud Abu Taima.
“It’s regular for the bulldozers to level our land every week,” said Abed el-Aziz Abu Taima. “No one can stop them.”
When asked about the bulldozers used to raze their fields, farmers described the distinctive triangular treads of Caterpillar’s weaponized D-9 bulldozers.
“Caterpillar is the main weapon of destruction for the Israelis in the ‘buffer zone,’” said PCHR’s Shaheen. “They haven’t changed their company policy, despite all the information they’ve been given on the use of their machines here.
“After the farmers heard that they could access their lands up to 100 meters, they planted them. Now they cannot reach them. They lost their harvest. Israeli bulldozers levelled it.
“It’s very important to show what Caterpillar is doing, and that they know what’s happening.”
Under current circumstances, farmers face a delayed season with heightened dangers and an uncertain outcome.
“We are waiting until November to begin planting,” Zakaria Abu Taima said. “Usually, we would have started by now.”
“Of course we will plant,” remarked Abu Jamal Abu Taima. “But before we harvest, the Israelis may come with their bulldozers.”
