Palestinians in the occupied territories are gripped to see who will enjoy the majority of the seats in the council — the ruling party Fateh or the Islamist opposition movement Hamas. Fateh has lost a great deal of support after ten years of failed negotiations with Israel, a drastic deterioration of the severe humanitarian situation endured by West Bank and Gaza Palestinians, and widespread corruption in the Palestinian Authority (PA) and failure to uphold the rule of law that has spilled out into the streets with sharpened lawlessness and vigilantism. Read more about Palestinian legislative elections: A vote for law and order
Election observers noticed on the first day of voting by Palestinian security forces, Saturday, 21 January 2006, that some security vehicles were used by security services during campaigning activities for Fatah. Electoral posters and banners for Fatah were stuck on the bodies of security vehicles, while some security officials were also seen raising Fatah flags. These activities violate Election Law No. 9 of 2005, whose article 59-3 prescribes that “the Executive Authority and all the bodies affiliated thereto shall maintain an impartial position during all of the phases of the election process and shall not perform any electoral or campaign activity that might be construed as favoring one candidate or electoral list over another.” Read more about Palestinian Elections: PA vehicles used in election campaign
This week, Israeli forces killed four Palestinians, including a woman and her son. One of the victims was extra-judicially executed in Jenin. Israeli forces wounded 18 Palestinian civilians, including ten children. Israeli forces conducted 54 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. Houses were raided and 94 Palestinian civilians, including 11 children, were arrested. Israel turned six homes and a ship into military sites. An Israeli army dog bit an elderly woman in Kufor al-Dik near Nablus. Israel has continued to impose a total siege on the occupied territories. Israel imposed severe restrictions on movement and has disrupted the election campagns. Read more about Weekly report on human rights violations
International Solidarity Movement and Tel Rumeida Project13 January 2006
A mob of 30 female settler teenagers rampaged through Tel Rumeida on Thursday, 12 January. Ten of them wore black ski masks to hide their identities, and attacked everyone they encountered, including IDF soldiers and Israeli police officers, with spit, paint bombs and insults, and surrounded a human rights worker, violently stealing the battery of his camera. Six male settlers have begun attempts to illegally occupy an empty Palestinian home located on the path near a Palestinian girls’ school. Settlers entered the home on Tuesday, 10 January, cleaned out two rooms and broke a hole in a wall to access other rooms. Read more about Hebron disengagement and violence begin
The Israeli military is using dogs as a reconnaissance tool in its actions against Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including the Balata refugee camp in Nablus. The dogs’ actions are controlled remotely through sophisticated technology; commands are issued by way of a radio transmitter. This evokes much fear and deepens the alienation of Palestinians. The way Israel is using dogs is yet another dehumanising step, taking place under the “cover” of war. The dogs follow the orders of their military masters. In no way should the international community permit the Israeli government to escape its responsibility for these barbaric practices in enforcing its brutal occupation of the Palestinian territories. Read more about Dogs - Reconnaissance tool of the Israeli occupation
This week, Israeli forces killed five Palestinians. Two of the victims were assassinated. Israeli forces wounded 29 Palestinians, including 19 children. Israeli forces conducted 25 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. Palestinian homes were raided and 30 Palestinians, including 9 children and a girl were arrested by Israeli armed forces. Israeli forces turned seven Palestinian homes into military outposts. Israeli forces shelled a civilian facility in Khan Yunis. Israeli forces continued to impose a total siege on the occupied Palestinian territories. Israel continues to construct the Separation Barrier in the West Bank and razed Palestinian land near settlements and uprooted 400 olive trees. Read more about Weekly report on human rights violations
In a letter addressed to George Bush, the US president, the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) requested that the US administration deduct direct aid to Israel the amount equal to what Israel spends on its the settlements and on the construction and maintenance of the separation wall inside the West Bank. The HRW letter cites figures from the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics that in the first half of 2005, there was a 28% increase in settlement housing starts compared to the same period in 2004. According to the Israeli settlement watchdog group Peace Now, there are 121 official settlements in Israel and 101 unofficial outposts. The settlement areas occupy more than 40% of the West Bank. Read more about Rights group urges US to cut Israel aid
reported proposal by Israeli government officials to cut the Gaza Strip’s electricity supply in retaliation for Palestinian militant groups’ rocket attacks on Israel would constitute unlawful collective punishment of Gaza’s civilian population, Human Rights Watch said today. A report on Wednesday in the Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz said top Israeli government officials discussed plans to cut electricity to the Gaza Strip if Palestinian militant groups continue to fire Qassam rockets into Israel. Human Rights Watch condemns the use of Qassam rockets. But, in turn, any measures that Israel takes to protect its citizens from these attacks must be consistent with its obligations under international humanitarian law. Read more about Gaza Power Cut Would Violate Laws of War
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights is deeply concerned over the future of the electoral process in light of threats of resignation by members of the Central Elections Committee (CEC) as a result of continuous interference in their work by the Cabinet and Ministry of Interior. A number of CEC members asked President Mahmoud Abbas to relieve them of their duties. The move came in protest against the Palestinian Cabinet’s decision regarding voting procedures for members of Palestinian security forces. On Wednesday, 4 January 2006, the Palestinian Cabinet issued a decision allowing members of the Palestinian security forces to vote. Read more about PA accused of obstructing Palestinian elections
On Monday evening, 2 January 2006, Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) extra-judicially executed a member of the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad, and a taxi driver. Another member of the al-Quds Brigades was critically injured. Three civilian bystanders were also injured. In the meantime, IOF have continued to shell areas in the Gaza Strip, especially in the north. On Friday, 31 December 2005, two Palestinian civilians were killed by the IOF shelling that targeted Beit Lahia. At approximately 21:15 on Monday, 2 January 2006, an IOF aircraft launched a missile at a taxi that was traveling on the Sea road near the Municipality of Jabalya. On Friday, IOF killed two Palestinian civilians and injured a third one seriously when they were sitting on a field in Beit Lahia. Read more about Two Palestinians killed in Israeli air attack on Gaza
