On Tuesday evening, 23 January 2007, S’oud ‘Ouda al-Qadhi, 33, from Rafah, was killed by unknown gunmen. According to initial information available to PCHR, al-Qadhi was killed because of a financial conflict among members of his clan. Meanwhile, in the evening of Tuesday, 23 January 2007, an armed group affiliated with Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the armed wing of Fatah, released the French vice-consul and his two guards in Nablus. The trio was detained in Nablus for hours as they were suspected of being undercover Israeli army operatives. Read more about One killed, three kidnapped in Gaza and West Bank lawlessness
PCHR calls upon the PNA and the Attorney-General to investigate the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of Hisham Hammad, who was detained by the Executive Force in Rafah. The Centre calls for publicizing the research of the findings. PCHR’s preliminary investigation indicates that at approximately 05:30 on Wednesday, 24 January 2007, the body of Hisham Kamel Hammad, a 58-year-old resident of Rafah, arrived at Mohammad Yousef El-Najjar Hospital in Rafah. The body was brought to the hospital by an ambulance from the Executive Force compound in Airport Street, near the Palestinian Security Forces Complex. Read more about Prisoner Detained by the Executive Force Dies in Suspect Circumstances
In the past two days, the Gaza Strip has witnessed a serious escalation in the misuse of weapons, which is part of the sate of the state of lawlessness and misuse of weapons prevailing in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. A woman was killed; four other persons, including a woman, were wounded; and an explosive device was detonated inside a tourist resort. Furthermore, on Monday afternoon, a woman was killed in al-Boreij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. She was hit by live bullets fired by mistake during an interfamily quarrel. Read more about Misuse of weapons kills two women, injures four in Gaza Strip
HEBRON, Jan. 22 (IPS) - As the illegal Israeli occupation grinds on, the daily situation for Palestinians worsens by the day. Hebron presents a vivid picture of the cumulative face of this colonial project. Hebron, about 35km south of Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank, has historically existed as a mixed Muslim-Jewish city, but over the last few decades the Israeli authorities have been choking its 150,000 Palestinians while supporting the settler movement. Approximately 650 radical right-wing settlers have taken over parts of the old city, destroyed Palestinian neighbourhoods and the economic infrastructure, and are free to terrorise Palestinians at whim. Read more about Hebron Occupied, And Deserted
In contrast to the rhetoric used to describe the disengagement plan, Israel has not relinquished control over Gaza but rather removed some elements of control while tightening other significant controls. Far from improving the economy and welfare of Gaza residents, Israeli actions since September 2005 — including severe restrictions on the movement of people and goods in and out of Gaza and an economic stronghold on the funding of civil services — have contributed to an economic and humanitarian crisis in Gaza not seen in the 38 years of Israeli control that preceded the withdrawal of permanent ground troops. Read more about Disengaged Occupiers: The Legal Status of Gaza
PCHR’s preliminary investigation indicates that at approximately 19:00 on Saturday, 20 January 2007, Ashraf Matar (22) was injured by a bullet in the head during weapons training in a camp for Izzedeen El-Qassam Battalions to the southwest of Gaza City. He was taken to Shifa hospital for treatment, where his injury was listed as serious. At approximately 11:30 on Friday, 19 January 2007, Salim Sobhi Ibrahim Abu El-Kheir, a 51-year old resident of El-Amal Quarter in Khan Yunis, was killed by bullets to the head and chest. Unknown gunmen traveling in a car fired at the victim as he was heading to the mosque in his neighborhood. Read more about Two Killed and Five Injured in Gaza Weapons Mishandling
On 14 January 2007, IOF killed two members of the Palestinian resistance in the northern Gaza Strip. IOF fired at them when they were 20 meters away from the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel. In the West Bank, on 16 January 2007, a Palestinian detainee died in the Negev Prison inside Israel due to medical negligence. During the reporting period, IOF conducted at least 30 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During these incursions, IOF raided houses and arrested 54 Palestinian civilians, including 5 children and a woman and her daughter. Read more about Weekly Report of Human Rights Violations
The following is testimony given by ‘Adnan a-Shtiyeh, a taxi driver, on 13 December 2006 to the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem: I am a taxi driver. I run the route between our village and Nablus. Yesterday (Tuesday, 12 December), around 1:30 P.M., I got to the area known as al-Muhalal, about one kilometer from Nablus. There I encountered about eight army jeeps and an Israeli bulldozer. They were parked in the middle of the road, and nobody could pass. Before dawn, an explosive charge laid by activists had blown up when an army jeep passed. Read more about Patient died when soldiers blocked the direct route to hospital
Abir Aramin, ten years old, who was wounded by an Israeli border policeman Tuesday the 16th, was announced brain dead this morning at the Haddasa Ein Karem hospital and is being examined by a committee to determine whether or not to unplug her from life support machines. Bassam Aramin, the girl’s father, is a member of Combatants for Peace, the Israeli-Palestinian peace organisation. Israeli and international supporters have gathered at the girls school in Anata to express their solidarity and protect the traumatised students from the ongoing threat of the Israeli border police. Read more about Ten-year-old girl brain dead after border police shooting
Al Mezan has expressed concern to the Minister of Education regarding the type of questions directed to second-year secondary students in the 2006-2007 Arabic exam, in Gaza district, which included writing a letter to His Excellency the Prime Minister: students were expected to express their solidarity with the Palestinian cabinet and their resistance against the cruel siege imposed upon our people. In this respect, Al Mezan emphasizes that students were faced with severe restrictions in their freedom of expression. In other words, students might adapt different or neutral opinions, especially at this time of severe party [division] within Palestinian society. Read more about Ministry of Education must respect multiplicity, freedom and human rights
