The IOF killed a Palestinian civilian and his son in cold blood in the town of Beit Hanoun in the predawn hours of Saturday, 2 September 2006. In addition, two of the slain man’s daughters were seriously injured. The raid by IOF undercover units also resulted in the injury of six civilians, including two parents and their three children, and the destruction of nine homes. The casualties and damages were inflicted in an operation aiming to detain two “wanted” activists. PCHR’s preliminary investigation indicates that at approximately 02:30 on Saturday, 2 September 2006, an IOF undercover unit moved 2 kilometers inside the Gaza Strip into the town of Beit Hanoun. Read more about Father and son killed and nine homes destroyed in Beit Hanoun
During the first half of the year 2006, 47 structures were demolished in East Jerusalem by the Municipality of Jerusalem and/or the Ministry of Interior. There were 16 pirate gas stations included in that statistic, therefore a net total of 31 residential structures was demolished. Relative to preceding years, this represents a decline in the number of home demolitions in Jerusalem. Were this decline to continue proportionately for the remainder of the year, the annual number would be approx. 70 structures, i.e. 20 less than in 2005. Read more about Half-yearly report on house demolitions in Jerusalem
On 21 and 28 August 2006, Adalah submitted two objections on behalf of 19 Arab farmers from the north of Israel to Local Master Plans G13449 and HBG/1237 to the Haifa and Northern Planning and Building Committees. The plans demarcate an area of land cultivated by Arab farmers in and around the area of Wadi al-Malak to be confiscated, with the stated goal of creating a man-made forest in the area, called the “Kiryat Ata Forest” in the plans. Adalah demanded that the committees conduct a thorough examination of the facts on the ground in the area, and to withdraw the plans. Read more about Objections to plans to confiscate Arab-cultivated land in northern Israel
On 30 August 2006, B’Tselem wrote to the Defense Minister, Amir Peretz, and informed him there was reason to believe that the security establishment has been using the Rafah crossing to put pressure on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The organization demanded that the minister order the IDF to cease its illegal policy. B’Tselem’s action followed publication of the minutes of a meeting held in the Ministry of Defense relating to the Gaza crossings, as reported in Ha’aretz. According to the report, the IDF’s Planning Division argued that the crossing “should be opened on occasion only after the kidnapped soldier is released and the shooting from the Gaza Strip stops. (To use the crossing as a means of applying pressure).” Read more about Stop using Rafah Crossing to pressure Gaza civilians
During the reported period, IOF killed 28 Palestinians, including 3 children, a mentally disabled young man and an old man. In addition, a man and a woman died from previous wounded. In the Gaza Strip, IOF killed 23 Palestinians, including 11 civilians. These civilians included 3 children and a mentally disabled young man. Twenty of the victims, including the three children, were killed by IOF during a 4-day offensive on al-Shojaeya neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. Two of the victims are from the Abu al-Qumboz family, and were killed while they were inside their houses. Read more about Weekly Report: On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, expresses its deep concern about recent reports of delays at Israeli checkpoints of women in labour, which have resulted in forced roadside births, and even death of some women and infants. It urges that civilians with urgent needs should have access to health facilities and that humanitarian organizations be allowed to work freely to alleviate the suffering of the people, especially women and children. More than 68 pregnant Palestinian women had to give birth at Israeli checkpoints during the last six years, leading to 34 miscarriages and the death of four women, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Read more about Pregnant women must get urgent access to health care in Occupied Palestinian Territory
As a specialized human rights organization located in the Gaza Strip, we write to express our deep concern over the situation of Rafah Terminal on the Gaza Strip-Egypt border. On 15 November 2005, an agreement was reached comprising two documents which reflected commitments on behalf of the Government of Israel and the Palestinian National Authority, with regards to issues of movement and access, as well as principles for the working of Rafah Terminal. The aim of this agreement was to facilitate the movement of people and goods within the Palestinian territories and “to promote peaceful economic development and improve the humanitarian situation on the ground”. Read more about Urgent letter to the EU regarding Rafah Crossing
According to Al Mezan field sources, on 28 August at approximately 5:50am an Israeli fighter jet fired a rocket at a group of members of the executive forces of the Palestinian Ministry of Interior, while gathering at the end of Al Mansoura Street in Al Shaja’ia. The shelling resulted in the killing of four members of these forces: Mahmoud Hamdi Jondia, 20, Mohammed Mostafa, 20, Khaled Kamal Al Ijla, 22, Ibrahim Sadeq Hellis, 20. Further, seven Palestinians, including five children were injured as a result of the constant arbitrary firing by the IOF in the area. Read more about Six Palestinians killed in escalating IOF offensive on Gaza Strip
According to B’Tselem’s research, since the beginning of Operation Summer Rains in the Gaza Strip, on 28 June 2006, there has been a substantial increase in cases in which Israeli soldiers and Border Police in the West Bank beat, abuse, and humiliate Palestinians. The increase in incidents has been particularly evident since the outbreak of the war in Lebanon, on 12 July. Most of the violence and abuse documented by B’Tselem during this eight-week period did not cause severe bodily harm: a few slaps or kicks, curses and threats, and prolonged delays as punishment, for example. However, B’Tselem investigation also includes six particularly serious cases. Read more about Beatings and Abuse in the Shadow of War
PCHR strongly condemns the abduction of the Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Dr. Naser El-Deen El-Sha’er, by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) from his house in Ramallah. The abduction is a continuation of the campaign against Palestinian Government Ministers and members of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) from the pro-Hamas “Change and Reform List.” The Centre views the abduction as a continuation of the efforts to undermine the results of the free and democratic elections of 25 January 2006 in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). Read more about PCHR Condemns the Kidnapping of the Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister
