Thursday, February 25, 2010

IOF Continues Firing on Palestinian Workers in northwest Beit Lahyia

25-2-2010


At app. 2pm on Thursday 25 February 2010,   IOF forces positioned on the northern border with Gaza opened heavy fire on Palestinian workers who were removing the rubble of destroyed buildings. These workers collect rubble to sell it to brick factories which recycle it into bricks. This is the only source of bricks for construction that is available in the Gaza Strip, which suffers from an acute shortage in construction materials due the Israeli siege. No casualties or injuries were reported in this incident.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

PCHR weekly report 18/2-23/2/10: 3 houses demolished, 2 damaged, 17 dunams of cultivated land destroyed, attacks on farmers, workers and paramedics

extracts from PCHR weekly report 18/2-23/2/10

Thursday, 18 February 2010 

At approximately 08:00, IOF moved nearly 700 meters into al-Musaddar village in the central Gaza Strip. During this incursion, which continued until 16:30, IOF demolished 3 houses and razed 17 donums of agricultural land:

1. They demolished a 175-square-meter house belonging to Mo'in 'Ali Abu Sa'id, which used to house 5 people;
2. They demolished a 120-square-meter, two-storey house belonging to 'Abdul Hai Salem Ben Sa'id, which used to house 8 people;
3. They demolished an 80-square-meter, tin-made house belonging to Jaber Salem Subaih, which used to house two women;
4. They razed a 10-donum area of agricultural land planted with olive, guava and palm trees, and destroyed a well, an agricultural pool and a storage shed belonging to Jaber Salem Subaih;
5. They razed a two-donum area of agricultural land planted with olive and citrus trees, belonging to Suleiman 'Awad Abu Sa'id; and
     6. They razed a 5-donum area of agricultural land planted with olive trees, belonging to Salem Suleiman Ben Sa'id. 

Saturday, 20 February 2010  

At approximately 17:00, Israeli troops stationed in observation towers along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the east of Jabalya city, opened fire at a number of Palestinian farmers who were working on their lands, nearly 400 meters from the border. The farmers fled and no casualties were reported. 

At approximately 20:30, Israeli troops stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the northeast of Beit Hanoun, opened fire at Palestinian houses in the town. The gunfire continued for nearly 40 minutes, but no casualties were reported. 

Sunday, 21 February 2010

At approximately 09:00, Israeli troops stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the north of Beit Lahia, opened fire at a number of Palestinian workers who were approximately 400 meters from the border. The workers were gathering stones, iron bars and aggregate from the debris of destroyed buildings in the area, in order to sell them. The workers fled and no casualties were reported. 

At approximately 10:30, an artillery shell fired by Israeli troops stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel landed on a 300-square-meter house belonging to Ahmed 'Ali Obaid, in which 13 people live, and a 150-square-meter house belonging to Daoud 'Ali al-Shanti, in which 18 people live. Windows were broken, but no casualties were reported. 

At approximately 10:50, Israeli troops stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the north of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, fired an artillery shell at the Bourat Abu Samra area in the north of the town, approximately 400 meters from the border. Palestinian ambulances rushed to the area to evacuate any possible casualties. As medical crews were searching for casualties, Israeli troops fired at them. No casualties were reported. 

Monday, 22 February 2010

At approximately 10:15, IOF moved nearly 400 meters into the Bourat Abu Samra area, in the north of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip. Until approximately 18:25, they leveled areas of land, which they had previously razed. 


 

IOF Penetrate Al Fokhari Village east of Khan Younis

 24-2-2010


At app. 8am on Wednesday  24 February 2010, Israeli tanks and bulldozers moved about 700 meters inside Al Fokhari village east of Khan Younis city. The bulldozers levelled about 90 donums of agricultural lands. These lands belong to Al Amor, Abu Ta'aima and Abu Attaia families. The Israeli tanks and bulldozers stayed in the area until 3pm on the same day. No injuries or causalities were reported in this incident.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

IOF Open Fire on Palestinian Workers in the north of Beit Lahyia

21-2-2010


At app. 9am on Sunday 21 February 2010, Israeli occupation forces (IOF) positioned at the northern separation fence opened fire sporadically on Palestinian workers who were 350 meters away from the separation fence removing rubble of destroyed buildings. These workers collect rubble to sell it to brick factories which recycle it into bricks. This is the only source of bricks for construction that is available in the Gaza Strip, which suffers from an acute shortage of construction materials due the Israeli siege. No casualties or injuries were reported.

IOF Open Fire at the north of Beit Lahyia area

21-2-2010


Al Mezan


At app. 10:50pm on Sunday 21 February 2010, Israeli tanks positioned at the northern separation fence opened fire on open agricultural land in the Abu Samra area, north of Beit Lahyia in the North Gaza District. No casualties or injuries were reported but people, particularly women and children, were terrified.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

IOF Open Fire at Palestinian Farmers east of Jabalia

20-2-2010


At app. 5:5pm on Saturday 20 February 2010, Israeli occupation forces (IOF) positioned at the northern separation fence opened fire on Palestinian farmers who were planting their lands in the agricultural area in the east of Jabalia, 400 meters away from the separation fence.  No casualties or injuries were reported, but farmers were terrified and left the area. The IOF continue enforcing the 'security buffer zone' and attacks are increasing on Palestinians near the Gaza Strip's eastern and northern borders with Israel

IOF Open Fire at Palestinian Houses northwest of Biet Hanoun

20-2-2010

At app. 8:30pm on Friday 20 February 2010, Israeli occupation forces positioned at the eastern separation fence opened fire on Palestinian houses in the Al Boura area, northwest of Beit Hanoun in the North Gaza District. The sporadic fire continued for more than one hour. No casualties or injuries were reported.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

PCHR weekly report 11/2-17/2/2010: 4 children injured by IOF gunfire, 6 civilians abducted, 2 incursions

extracts from PCHR weekly report 11/2-17/2/2010

Thursday, 11 February 2010

At approximately 06:30, IOF stationed along the Gaza Strip border to the east of Juhor al-Dik village, east of Gaza City, opened fire indiscriminately at Palestinian houses in the village. They then fired several artillery shells at the village. One of the shells landed on the house of Isma’il Suleiman al-Tarabin, 42, and three of his daughters were lightly wounded as a result. The house of the al-Tarabin family is located approximately one kilometer to the east of the border. The wounded girls are: 
1. ‘Afaf Isma’il al-Tarabin, 12, wounded by shrapnel to the face and the head;  
2. Ahlam Isma’il al-Tarabin, 11, wounded by shrapnel to the head; and  
3. Muna Isma’il al-Tarabin, 5, wounded by shrapnel to the head and the neck. 
After the firing, an IOF ground force moved approximately 400 meters to the west of the border strip.  The force stationed in the vicinity of the waste garbage dumping site in the area. Lorries that transfer garbage to the site were not able to access the site for several hours as a result.


Also at approximately 06:00, a special unit of IOF moved nearly 250 meters into the al-Ghoul family’s land, north west of the evacuated "Dogit" settlement to the northwest of Beit Lahia, northern the Gaza Strip. The unit arrested 6 Palestinian civilians who were collecting and breaking rubble from destroyed houses to sell it to brick factories. It should be noted that Israel has imposed a ban on the delivery of construction materials into the Gaza Strip since its imposition of total closure on the Strip in June 2007. Brick factories in Gaza use the rubble of destroyed houses to make bricks.  Rubble collection has created job opportunities for many Palestinian workers, and is one of the most dangerous jobs as the rubble is collected from areas near the border of the Gaza Strip.  Ghassan Rajab Mohammed Ma’rouf, 34, is one of the workers who were arrested and released later.  He stated to PCHR that an IOF force fired at them and surrounded them.  The force arrested 6 workers, including 2 of Ghassan’s brothers who are Khamis, 29, and Jebril, 18; his nephew Rajab Mohammed Rajab Ma’arouf, 20; Hemmat ‘Aziz ‘Ayesh Tawfiq al-Sous, 34, and Na’el Mansour Tanbourah, 34. The force led the arrested workers to Israel where they were questioned about the reason of their presence in the area. They were released at approximately 16:00 on the same day through Beit Hanoun “Erez” crossing.  

Saturday, 13 February 2010

At approximately 16:45, Israeli troops stationed on observation towers along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east of Jabalya town in the northern the Gaza Strip opened fire at a number of Palestinian farmers who were working in their farms located to the east of al-Karama street (the eastern street).  The farmers were forced to flee in fear for their lives and no casualties or damages were reported. 

 Sunday, 14 February 2010

At approximately 15:00, Israeli soldiers stepped down from a military jeep that was traveling behind the border strip opposite to Gaza Valley village in the central Gaza Strip, and fired at Yousef Mohammed Ahmed al-Atrash, 17, wounding him with a bullet to the left thigh. Al-Atrash who is a student in the secondary school told the PCHR fieldworker that he was going on a picnic and as he became 300 meters to the west of the border, the soldiers opened fire at him. 

Wednesday, 17 February 2010  

At approximately 06:15, IOF stationed on observation towers along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the north of al-Seyafa area, northwest of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, opened fire at a group of Palestinian workers who were collecting bricks and aggregate from destroyed buildings and roads. The workers were forced to flee the area and no casualties were reported. 

   

Gaza family: Israeli bulldozers demolished our homes

Gaza – Ma'an – Israeli military vehicles breached the Gaza border on Thursday morning, reaching 200 meters inside the central region near the Deir Al-Balah neighborhood.

By early afternoon, families near the Al-Musaddar area northeast of Deir Al-Balah said the bulldozers had demolished two homes and large swaths of olive groves.

They remained in the area until late in the afternoon.

The Chinese press agency Xinhua cited Gaza security sources as claiming that militants set off explosives near an Israeli army vehicle as four Israeli tanks and a bulldozer entered the Strip. The agency reported clashes. Residents told Ma'an they heard an explosion, reportedly an anti-tank shell, shortly before the bulldozers were seen.

Members of the Ibin Said family told Ma’an by phone that Israeli forces demolished two houses on the outskirts of Al-Masaddar. They said the homes belonged to Mu’een Ali Ibn Said and Salem Suleiman Ibin Said. According to Xinhua, the homes were at least 900 meters inside the Gaza Strip.

The family reported the destruction of chicken coups, as well.

An Israeli military spokesman said he had no knowledge of military activity in the area.

Israeli tanks and bulldozers levels two homes and bulldoze farm lands in central Gaza

Thursday February 18, 2010 17:22 by Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMC News & Agencies
Israeli tanks and a number of bulldozers leveled on Thursday two Palestinian homes and demolished farm lands at central Gaza Strip.
An Israeli tank in Gaza - file 2009
An Israeli tank in Gaza - file 2009
Bin-Sa'ed family, which owns the lands and the demolished two homes, told local media said that the army bulldozers uprooted olive trees near the family homes and then leveled the two homes while tanks opened fire. No injures were reported.

Local sources announced that the invasions started after Palestinian resistance groups fired a home made shell at a military jeep while driving at the Israeli boarders with the Gaza Strip.
18-2-2010


At app. 12:30pm on Sunday 18 February 2010, four Israeli tanks and two bulldozers moved about 550 meters inside the As-Salqa Valley Village. The Israeli bulldozers leveled the agricultural lands there. At app. 4pm on the same day, the IOF withdrew from that area.
According to the field investigation conducted by Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, the IOF leveled agricultural lands in the south of the dump area. The IOF leveled:
·         a three-donum area of agricultural land planted with olives trees, owned by Jehan Abdel Aziz Abu Maghasieb,31; and
·         a three-donum area of  agricultural land planted with almond trees, owned by Abdel Hadi Hasan Salim Abu Maghasieb. 43

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The Israeli military injures three and detains them at northern Gaza Strip

Tuesday February 16, 2010 15:49 by Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMC News & Agencies

Three Palestinians were reported injured and detained by Israeli troops on Tuesday at the northern Gaza Strip town of Biet Lahyia.
Israeli tanks at Gaza borders -file 2008
Israeli tanks at Gaza borders -file 2008
A number of Israeli tanks stormed the evacuated settlement of Doghet and opened fire at Palestinian workers injuring three of them, witnesses reported.

Troops then detained the three men and took them to an unknown location.

Workers said that one of the three injured men may have been killed by the army fire; the Israeli military issued no report about the incident.

Doghet settlement was evacuated during the Israeli disengagement plan from the Gaza Strip in 2005. Palestinian workers use this area to salvage scrap metal and other materials for sale.

Last week Israeli troops detained 10 workers from the same area. Some of the workers were injured, local sources reported

IOF Open Fire at Palestinian Workers in Beit Lahyia

17-2-2010
At app. 11am on Tuesday 16 February 2010, Israeli occupation forces (IOF) positioned at the northern separation fence opened fire on Palestinian workers who were 350 meters away from the separation fence removing rubble from destroyed buildings. These workers collect rubble to sell it to brick factories which recycle it into bricks. This is the only source of bricks for construction that is available in the Gaza Strip, which suffers from an acute shortage of construction materials due the Israeli siege.
At app. 9:30am on Wednesday 17 February 2010, the IOF repeated its attacks on the Palestinian workers who were collecting gravel that is used to pave the roads. There were no casualties or injures in these incidents.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

17-Year-Old Child injured by IOF east of the Gaza Valley Village

14-2-2010


At app. 3pm on Sunday 14 February 2010, a troop of Israeli occupation forces positioned at the eastern separation fence got out of their jeep near the separation fence and opened fire at Yousif Mohammed Ahmed Al Atrash,17. The child was admitted to Al Buriej Clinic then he was referred to Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Dier Al Balah. According to medical sources, his injures are moderate.

Child Wounded By Israeli Fire In Central Gaza

Monday February 15, 2010 02:56 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Palestinian medical sources in the Gaza Strip reported on Sunday evening that a Palestinian child suffered moderate wounds after the Israeli army bombarded a number of homes in Juhr Al Deek area, in central Gaza.
Medical sources identified the child, Yousef Al Atrash, 14. He was at home when the army opened fire at the area.

Border areas in the Gaza Strip are the scene of repeated Israeli shelling and fire as the army is preventing the residents from even approaching any area that is close to the border fence.

IOF Open Fire at Palestinian Workers; Injure a 17-Year-Old Child and Arrest others in Beit Lahyia

14-2-2010

At app. 8am on Wednesday 10 February 2010, Israeli occupation forces (IOF) positioned at the northern separation fence opened fire on Palestinian workers who were 350 meters away from the separation fence removing rubble of destroyed buildings. As a result, Mohammed Mofid Suboh,17, was injured in the chest and the right hand.  These workers collect rubble to sell it to brick factories which recycle it into bricks. This is the only source of bricks for construction that is available in the Gaza Strip, which suffers from an acute shortage in construction materials due the Israeli siege. An Israeli infantry troop penetrated that area and arrested the injured child with  others and took them inside Israel. Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights identified their names as follows: Maher Fazyiz Ghanim and the child Saleh Jabir Abu Lila (21 and 16 respectively).
At app.1:55pm on Sunday 14 February 2010, the IOF handed the injured child, after treating him, to the Palestinian Ministry of Health via Erez crossing. The child was then admitted to Kamal Odwan Hospital to continue his medical treatment. According to medical sources at Kamal Odwan Hospital, his injures are moderate. The IOF did not inform the Palestinian Health Liaison Office about the injured child and Palestinians were surprised by this act.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

IOF Open Fire at Palestinian Farmers east of Jabalia

13-2-2010


At app. 4:45pm on Saturday 13 February 2010, Israeli occupation forces (IOF) positioned at the eastern separation fence opened fire at Palestinian farmers who were in their agricultural lands east of the 'Islamic Martyrs Cemetery' east of Jabalia, 400 meter away from the separation fence. No casualties  or injuries were reported.  The fire continued for five minutes and farmers left their lands afraid of fire. It's worth mentioning that the IOF has increased its attacks on Palestinians near the Gaza Strip's eastern and northern borders with Israel; an area inside Gaza that IOF has declared as a security 'buffer zone'. 

Friday, February 12, 2010

Israel injured three children in the middle of Gaza strip

Israel 
injured three children in the middle of Gaza strip 11-02-2010,13:30
Al Qassam Website - Zionist occupation forces shelled this morning Thursday, 11/2/1020, the palestinian houses east of Al Bureij camp, Central of Gaza strip.
One of those missiles landed inside a house in the camp and injured three sisters [students], and they are Ahlam, Mona Attaf At-Tarabin.

Al Mezan Condemns IOF Attacks on Gaza; Calls for International Intervention to Ensure Protection of Civilians

11-2-2010

Al Mezan

The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) has escalated its attacks against the Gaza Strip. The IOF have shelled the Gaza International Airport, Palestinian fishermen, and Palestinian workers who were removing rubble from the industrial area in North Gaza District during the last few days. Today, Thursday 11 February 2010, the IOF  escalated its aggression and killed four Palestinians and injured four, including a child. The IOF also arrested ten Palestinian workers; Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights was able to identify seven of their names.



According to Al Mezan's field investigations, at approximately 10:15am on Thursday 11 February 2010, an Israeli reconnaissance drone launched a missile at a group of Palestinian people who were near 'Ubied Gas Station in Ash-Shija'ia neighborhood eastern Gaza City. As a result, Faris Akram Ahmed Jabir,27, who lives in Al Jalaa Street in the north of Gaza city, was killed and another person from As-Saftawi neighborhood was injured. According to medical sources at Shifa Hospital, he sustained severe injuries.



In a separate incident, at app. 7:20am on Thursday 11 February 2010, the IOFs, positioned at the separation fence,  fired artillery shells at the northwest area of the Gaza Valley east of Deir Al Balah District. One of the Israeli missiles hit the house of Ismail Salamn Silmi At-Trabien,45. As a result, three of his children were injured as they were preparing themselves to school. Al Mezan Identified their names as follows:

·         Mona Ismail At-Trabien,5, (she sustained shrapnel in the head and the neck);

·         Ahlam Ismail At-Trabien, 11, (sustained burns in the head); and

·         Afaf Ismail At-Trabien, 12, (sustained shrapnel in the head and the face.

They were admitted to Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir Al Balah. The IOF also penetrated about 300m to the west in the vicinity of the skip in the northeast of the Gaza Valley. The IOF are still  the area, by the time of publishing  this press release. People in the area can still hear the sounds of shelling..



At approximately 7am on Thursday 11 February 2010, Israeli infantry troops penetrated about 200m inside the As-Saiafa area northwest Beith Lahyia in the North Gaza District.  The IOF chased a group of Palestinian workers who were removing rubble from the area and arrested 10 of them, and took them to Israel. Al Mezan Identified some of their names as follows:

Jebril Ma'arouf ,17;

Joma'a Ma'arouf,18;

Khamis Ma'arouf, 27;

Saqir Ma'arouf, 20;

Ghassan Ma'arouf, 33; Khalid Refa'at As-Sous, 25; and

Aziz As-Sous,33.





According to Al Mezan's field investigations, the IOF has escalated its attacks against the Palestinian workers who were removing the rubble of destroyed buildings. These workers collect rubble to sell it to brick factories which recycle it into bricks. This is the only source of bricks for construction that is available in the Gaza Strip, which suffers from an acute shortage of construction materials due the Israeli siege.



Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights strongly condemns the IOF's violations of the rules of international law in Gaza.



Al Mezan also expresses its outrage for the continued lack of any meaningful international protection of Gaza's population. This has, as a point of fact, encouraged the IOF to continue its serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law in Gaza, and the occupied Palestinian territory for too long. Al Mezan therefore calls on the international community, especially the High Contracting Parties of the Fourth Geneva Convention, to uphold their moral and legal obligations and take action to bring to a swift end the violations of international law and the illegal collective punishment.

Israeli fire kills 1 in central Gaza, injures 3 kids

Gaza – Ma'an – An Israeli airstrike at midday killed one and injured a second, hours after Israeli artillery fire injured three children on Thursday in Johur Ad-Dik, central Gaza.

An Israeli military spokesman confirmed the strike, saying it was in retaliation against militants who had fired on Israeli patrol jeeps earlier that morning. He said the Israeli patrol had been operating on the east side of the Gaza border, and that soldiers returned fire in the direction of the attack.

The same spokesman later identified the slain man as 26-year-old Faris Ahmad Jaber of Gaza City, allegedly affiliated with the "Global Jihad," a previously unknown group in Gaza.

The spokesman said Jaber and one other man were preparing to launch an attack on Israel when they were targeted. The second man was not identified, but the spokesman said he was known to have been involved in planning a separate attack on Israel.

Dr Muawiya Hassanein, head of ambulance and emergency services in Gaza, said shrapnel from Israeli artillery fire in the early morning caused injury to three children identified as Afaf Ismail At-Tarabin, 13, and her sisters Ahlam, 11, and Muna, five. They were all transferred to the Ash-Shuhada Al-Aqsa Hospital in Gaza, he said.

Sources in Gaza confirmed reports of projectile fire at a group of Israeli military vehicles near the Karni crossing, just north of Johur Ad-Dik. No brigade has claimed the attack.

Earlier in the morning, the Izz Ad-Din Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said member Muhammad Said Hassuneh from the Ash-Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in northern Gaza City was killed during a "jihad" mission. The body of the man was received at the same hospital as the children.

The Israeli military spokesman said the country "holds Hamas responsible" for maintaining the calm in Gaza, and would act against any party plotting against Israel.

The airstrike is the second in two days, following hits on the Rafah area in southern Gaza, which targeted an empty building near the demolished Yasser Arafat International Airport.

Palestinians detained near Gaza-Israel border

Gaza – Ma'an – Israeli forces detained at least six Palestinians in northern Gaza on Thursday, witnesses said and the army confirmed.

Onlookers said 10 Palestinian men scavenging for iron girders northeast of Beit Lahiya were seized and dragged into Israel by soldiers patrolling the border. They were rummaging through the rubble of buildings, and were loaded into military vehicles and taken to an undisclosed location, the witnesses said.

Approached by Ma'an, an Israeli military spokesman said six Palestinians were detained when they came close an area considered off-limits to Palestinians. He said they were released shortly thereafter.

Residents of the area said Israeli soldiers opened fire on workers Wednesday, with no injuries reported.

As Israel and Egypt continue to ban all but 36 types of goods for import into Gaza, most of which are foodstuffs, the only construction material currently permitted into the area are limited numbers of glass panes, to replace those blown out during Israel's Operation Cast Lead last year. Freezing temperatures overnight and makeshift window patch jobs have created dire conditions for many Gazans.

Others whose homes were destroyed have reconstructed some parts with mud brick, an initiative pioneered by the de facto government in the rebuilding of its government and police headquarters in Gaza City. The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), charged with care of Palestinian refugees until a just solution to the refugee issue is reached, began building mud-brick homes in the summer.

A few dozen Palestinian and international protesters approached the same area on Sunday, drawing fire from Israeli forces operating an "exclusion zone" inside the coastal enclave's borders.

Israeli armed forces fired four gunshots when the group approached an area near the Erez crossing, said Saber Az-Za'anin, coordinator of Local Initiative, a Beit Hanoun-based organization seeking to reclaim some 300 meters of privately owned farmland.

An Israeli military spokesman told Ma'an that "IDF soldiers identified a suspicious gathering in a restricted area in the northern Gaza. Soldiers responded according to procedures by firing warning shots in the air."

A few weeks ago, Israeli aircraft dropped warning flyers over the Gaza Strip reiterating that Palestinians were banned from approaching the zones, which are inside Gaza but along the periphery.

The area of Beit Hanoun, located in northeastern Gaza, suffered significant destruction during the Israeli military assault that began in late December 2008. Many houses were completely destroyed and no buildings were left standing anywhere near the border.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

PCHR weekly report 4 - 10/2/10: new incursion and attacks

extracts from PCHR weekly report 04 – 10 February 2010


Thursday, 04 February 2010  

At approximately 10:00, IOF moved nearly 250 meters into 'Abassan village, east of Khan Yunis.  They leveled areas of Palestinian land that they had previously razed.  They withdrew from the area 4 hours later. 

Monday, 08 February 2010 

At approximately 11:30, Israeli troops stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, to the north of Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip, opened fire at a number of Palestinian demonstrators and international solidarity activists who gathered to the north of the Agricultural School.  No casualties were reported.  According to Saber al-Za'anin, Coordinator of the Local Initiative, weekly peaceful protests are organized in the area against the creation of "a buffer zone" along the border.  IOF fired at the protestors sporadically for 15 minutes.

Tuesday, 09 February 2010 

At approximately 23:20, Israeli troops stationed in observation towers along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northwest of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip opened fire at the beach area.  No casualties were reported.

At approximately 23:40, an Israeli drone fired a missile at Gaza International Airport, southeast of Rafah.  A few minutes later, Israeli warplanes dropped 4 bombs on the airport.  Buildings in the airport were completely destroyed.  No casualties were reported.

Wednesday, 10 February 2010 

At approximately 08:30, Israeli troops stationed in observation towers along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northwest of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip opened fire at a number of Palestinian civilians who were collecting debris from an evacuated Israeli settlement.  The civilians fled and no casualties were reported.  

IOF Penetrate Northwest Beit Lahyia and Arrest Palestinian Workers

11-2-2010

At approximately 7am on Thursday 11 February 2010, Israeli infantry troops penetrated about 200m inside the As-Saiafa area northwest Beith Lahyia in the North Gaza District.  The IOF chased a group of Palestinian workers who were removing rubble from the area and arrested 6 of them, and took them to Israel. Al Mezan Identified their names as follows:  
·         Ghassan Rajab Mohammed Ma'arouf,34; and his two brothers;
·         Khamis Mohammed Rajab Ma'arouf, 29;
·         Jebril Mohammed Rajab Ma'arouf,18;
·         Rajab Mohammed Rajab Ma'arouf,18;
·         Nael Mansour Faraj Tamboura,34;
·         Aziz Ayish Tawfeeq As-Sous,34. 
At app. 4pm on the same day, the IOF released them after interrogated them. According to Al Mezan's field investigations, the IOF has escalated its attacks against the Palestinian workers who were removing the rubble of destroyed buildings. These workers collect rubble to sell it to brick factories which recycle it into bricks. This is the only source of bricks for construction that is available in the Gaza Strip, which suffers from an acute shortage of construction materials due the Israeli siege

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Israeli army fire on Gazan farmers and international observers

ISM Gaza
Gazan farmers whose land lies in Israeli defined buffer zone accompanied by international observers have been held down in their field by live gunfire. The Israeli army shot live ammunition for a quarter of an hour after finding the unarmed group fertilizing wheat crops. The international observers loudly informed the soldiers they were unarmed civilians, but the bullets only landed closer. Khuza’a is located 7 kilometers southeast of Khan Yunis. It is about a kilometer from the fence that serves as a border between Israel and Gaza.
According to the UN 30% of the arable land in Gaza is in the buffer zone. The farmers and ISM volunteers who came under fire today were on land that was recently lush with a variety of crops. Over the past few years, the number of crops grown has dwindled to due to the fatal threat posed by the Israeli army. Now, all the farmers can grow is wheat, because it requires less tending. This is affecting the physical health and economic well being of Gazans.
Farmers accompanied by International Solidarity Movement (ISM) volunteers, from Malta, England and Canada, ventured out to the fields surrounding Khuza’a early this morning. The field was peaceful when they arrived, but after fertilizing their wheat crops for twenty minutes, three Israeli army jeeps appeared and began shooting live rounds at the group.
Immediately after coming under fire, the group began shouting that they were unarmed civilians tending to their fields. The bullets were landing 100 meters away but moved progressively closer over the next few minutes until they were five meters away from the group – landing in the dirt and passing above their heads.
After around a quarter of an hour the group retreated ten meters and the shooting stopped. Then a plume of smoke exploded from one of the jeeps, probably from a tear gas canister that back-fired. After the smoke cleared the jeeps drove away, with the international observers clearly hearing Israeli soldiers shout, “We’ll shoot you!”
“These threats were in English. It was a clear warning to the internationals present that they were targeting us. It seems to be a warning for any internationals who dare to come and witness the daily tragedies of life in Palestine. They did not even pretend to be threatened by us, they loafed about in between their successions of rifle fire instead of taking cover,” one ISM volunteer said.
Updated on February 10, 2010

--------------
IOF Open Fire on Peaceful Demonstration in North Beit Hanoun

9-2-2010

Al Mezan

At app. 11:30am on Monday 8 February 2010, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) positioned at the north separation fence opened fire on protestors taking part in the the weekly demonstration against  the 'security buffer zone' near the fence. No casualties or  injuries were reported in this incident.  To express their solidarity with Palestinian farmers who live near the borders, volunteers from the ‘Local Initiative’ in Beit Hanoun decided to organize a weekly demonstration, with the support of internationals. Saber Az-Za'anin, the director of the 'Local Initiative'  said to Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights at app. 11am on Monday 8 February 2010, that a group of  forty Palestinians and four internationals moved towards the northern borders and stopped few meters away from the cement wall. As the demonstrators began to wave the Palestinian flags, the IOF stationed in one of the cement monitoring towers shouted and fired at the demonstrators. Demonstrators left the area immediately. The 'local initiative'  has organized similar demonstrations every Monday for over a month and they protest  at different areas in Beit Hanoun.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Photos from the weekly demonstration against the "buffer zone" in Beit Hanoun

From the Beit Hanoun Local Initiative

International activists to accompany Gazan farmers

9 February 2010
For Immediate Release:
On Tuesday the 9th February 2010, ISM Gaza volunteers will be accompanying farmers from the village of Khuza’a near Khan Younis to their land near the border with Israel where soldiers fired at the farmers recently on several occasions.
Several farmers have been shot by Israeli forces while farming their lands.
Updated on February 9, 2010

Shots fired as activists test Gaza 'exclusion zone'

Gaza – Ma'an – A few dozen Palestinian and international protesters approached Gaza's northern-most area on Sunday, drawing fire from Israeli forces operating an "exclusion zone" inside the coastal enclave's borders.

Israeli armed forces fired four gunshots when the group approached an area near the Erez crossing, said Saber Az-Za'anin, coordinator of Local Initiative, a Beit Hanoun-based organization seeking to reclaim some 300 meters of privately owned farmland.

Az-Za'anin said soldiers also shouted at the protesters, demanding they leave the area, and opened fire when they initially refused. "We decided to leave for the sake of our lives and to avoid any danger ... we want to break the siege in a peaceful way," he said.

An Israeli military spokesman told Ma'an that "IDF soldiers identified a suspicious gathering in a restricted area in the northern Gaza. Soldiers responded according to procedures by firing warning shots in the air."

A few weeks ago, Israeli aircraft dropped warning flyers over the Gaza Strip reiterating that Palestinians were banned from approaching the zones, which are inside Gaza but along the periphery.

Similar demonstrations have taken place four times in recent weeks, the latest protest marking the closest they have come to the Gaza-Israel borderline. To mark the occasion, two Palestinian flags were placed at the furtherest spots the demonstrators reached, which they said was about 50 meters from the barrier.

Local Initiative activists "are determined to reclaim the right to move freely on every inch of the Palestinian land and to support farmers to continue farming near the border where they often face firing and threats," the International Solidarity Movement said in a statement.

The area of Beit Hanoun, located in northeastern Gaza, suffered significant destruction during the Israeli military assault that began in late December 2008. Many houses were completely destroyed and no buildings were left standing anywhere near the border.

This combined with the imposition of the "buffer zone" and a general lack of safety has made farming extremely risky in the otherwise fertile area, where wheat, vegetables and fruit, including Gaza's famous strawberries, have been grown for centuries.

Friday, February 5, 2010

IOF troops bulldoze tracts of land east of Khan Younis

[ 05/02/2010 - 12:04 PM ]


KHAN YOUNIS, (PIC)-- IOF troops, on Thursday, entered the Farahin area to the east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip and bulldozed tracts of land according to local sources.
The sources informed the PIC correspondent that five IOF tanks accompanied four bulldozers penetrated 300 meters into the Gaza Strip reaching the Faraheen area and bulldozed tracts of land parallel to the Israeli security fence.
The operation was accompanied by indiscriminate shelling, but no casualties were reported.

PCHR weekly report 28/1 - 3/2/10: new incursions and attacks


Thursday, 28 January 2010  

At approximately 14:00, IOF moved approximately 250 meters into the east of Khza’a village, east of Khan Younis. They positioned themselves in the east of the neighborhood inhabited by the Abu Rida clan, leveled farms and fired indiscriminately. No casualties were reported.

Sunday, 31 January 2010

At approximately 09:10, IOF stationed along the Gaza Strip border to the east of Juhr Addiq village, east of Gaza, fired several shells at the waste treatment office of Gaza Municipality and the employees were forced to flee. No casualties were reported. The firing of shells resulted in the suspension of the transfer of waste from Gaza City and from northern the Gaza Strip to the waste treatment site. Garbage was left in the streets. IOF have repeatedly targeted the waste treatment site and disrupted the transfer and treatment of waste. 

Monday, 1 February 2010

At approximately 13:50, IOF positioned in observation towers in Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing, in the northern Gaza Strip, fired at a group of Palestinian civilians who were collecting iron bars from the rubble of buildings destroyed in the nearby industrial zone. The civilians were forced to flee, but no casualties were reported. 

At approximately 16:00, IOF stationed along the Gaza Strip border to the east of the Shejaeya neighborhood, east of Gaza City, fired indiscriminately at Palestinian houses. No casualties or damages were reported. 

Wednesday, 3 February 2010

At approximately 07:00, IOF moved approximately 350 meters to the east of Martyrs' Cemetery, in the east of Jabalya in the northern the Gaza Strip. They leveled lands and fired sporadically. They withdrew at approximately 07:40 and no casualties were reported.       



International activists accompany Gazan farmers

ISM Gaza

31 January 2010
Farmers form the villages of Faraheen and Khuza’a , near Gaza’s second biggest city of Khan Younis, reported to the ISM that routine ’sweeps’ which Israelis carry out along the the border , disrupted the sowing of the wheat in the last few days available after the recent rainfall.
Twice a month Israeli’s enter the Gazan side of the electrified border fence to ensure that they are no explosive devices left by the Palestinian resistance in the 50 meter belt.
This is the time of increased tensions when farmers experience more incidents of intimidation and firing by the Israeli border patrols. For example, in separate incidents, Israeli border patrols fired at the farmers form villages of Faraheen and Khuza’a in the morning of the Saturday, 30th January. The farmers withdrew to the safe distance and returned to continue with the wheat sowing after the soldiers left the area.
Following the Saturday firing, the farmers from Khuza’a requested the ISM accompaniment on the next day, Sunday 31. Three ISM volunteers went with a group of six man and women to the fields 150 meters away form the border fence. Soon after, two army jeeps arrived, parked and observed the farmers for about half an hour. They where than joined by a ‘Hummer’ vehicle which farmers told us are used by the higher army ranks specialized in ‘listening’ and information gathering from a distance. All three vehicles left after a while and farmers continued with their work until it was completed.
Farmers told us that apart from fearing death or injury by shooting, they also worry about being kidnapped by the soldiers crossing to the Gazan side and that paid farm workers helping with the tractor ploughing, for example, are sometimes unwilling to take the risks.
‘We must farm our and or we will give it up bit by bit and the next generation will not have skills to work the land and will abandon it. We owe it to our children to work on our land, regardless of dangers’, said the farmer we accompanied on Sunday.
He also told us that 12 years ago he had many fruit trees and that he used to get 20 boxes of fruit form each plum tree. He also grew vegetables in the greenhouses which Israelis have since destroyed. ‘I used to sleep in the tent with my family in this very field’ he said with the nostalgia and sadness.
Updated on February 2, 2010

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Limited IOF Invasion Southwest of Jabalia

3-2-2010


At app. 6am on Wednesday 3 February 2010, seven Israeli tanks and armored bulldozers moved under the cover of fire nearly 350 meters inside the ‘Islamic Martyrs Cemetery’, which is located in the east of Ezbet Abed-Rabbo neighborhood in the North Gaza’s town of Jabalia. Bulldozers leveled lands in the area. At 8am on the same day, IOF tanks moved into an area south to the eastern of Al Shobaki farms in the northeast of Gaza City and leveled land in the area. No causalities or injuries were reported in these incursions.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Israeli troops wound two Palestinians including child in West Bank and Gaza

[ 02/02/2010 - 05:53 PM ]


GAZA, (PIC)-- Clashes between the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) and Palestinians on Monday led to the injury of two citizens including a 10-year-old child in the West Bank village of Ni’lin and east of the Gaza Strip.
According to B’Tselem organization, an Israeli soldier fired deliberately at very close range a rubber-coated bullet at the head of a Palestinian student in fourth grade called Mu’ataz Al-Khawaja during an anti-wall protest in Ni’lin village.
Testimonies given to B'Tselem indicated that during the protest, young people and children from the village clashed with Israeli soldiers and border police officers, when one of them approached the child and fired the rubber bullet at him.
The boy was wounded in the head and taken to a medical clinic in the village. He was later taken to a hospital in Ramallah.
Another Palestinian citizen was also wounded on the same day by Israeli gunfire east of Gaza city during armed clashes between IOF troops and resistance fighters north of Nahal Oz military post in Al-Shujaiya area.
A medical source told the reporter of the Palestinian information center (PIC) that the citizen was moderately wounded and transferred to Al-Shifa hospital in the city.
In a separate incident, the IOF troops kidnapped on Monday morning a Palestinian citizen after he was shot by them near Kissufim military post, southeast of Gaza. They reportedly transferred him to an Israeli hospital for treatment.
The IOF troops claimed that the citizen tried to approach the security fence in central Gaza.
At dawn Tuesday, the IOF troops reportedly kidnapped eight Palestinian citizens in occupied Jerusalem and Jenin.
Eyewitness from Al-Ayzariya town in Jerusalem reported that six Israeli military patrols chased four Palestinian young men aboard a car before kidnapping them, adding that the Israeli soldiers, before detaining them, brutally beat them in front of other citizens.
In Jenin city, four other citizens were also kidnapped after their homes were stormed and ransacked by the IOF troops in the villages of Kafr Ra’ee and Seila.
In another incident, the Israeli court in Salem military post sentenced Palestinian female prisoner Aisha Al-Ebayat, 22, to three years in prison and imposed on her a fine of about $500 on various charges, according to the lawyer of the Palestinian prisoner society.
Ebayat had spent six years in Israeli jails and was released in August 2008, but she was detained again last September 2009 at the pretext that she tried to kidnap an Israeli soldier.

Joint Campaign: Killing of a 16 year old boy/ Arrest and detention of four youths including one child injured / Release of three youths after two days

31-1-2010

published in Al Mezan website  

Case ISR 181109_ISR 181109.CC
URGENT CAMPAIGN / CHILD CONCERN
Killing of a 16 year old boy/ Arrest and detention of four youths including one child injured / Release of three youths after two days
The International Secretariat of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, a member organisation of the OMCT SOS-Torture Network, about the killing by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) of a 16-year-old boy Mustafa Mohamed Wadi and the arrest and detention of four youths aged between 17 and 18 years old, among them a 17-year-old boy Ahmed Khader Sa'doun was injured, near the Gaza border with Israel. All the victims are civilians.
According to the information received, in the early morning on 13 November 2009, seven children and youths left their neighborhood in Block 9 in the Al-Bureij refugee camp on a horse-laden cart and headed to the Friday Market in Gaza City. On their way back, they passed by the solid-waste dumb in northeast of Wadi Gaza village. At approximately 9.30 am, five of them saw stray dogs and chased them near the border. The IOF reportedly discovered the group and opened machinegun and artillery fire at it. The children and youths were allegedly unarmed and did not pose any danger to the IOF. One child, 16-year-old boy, Mustafa Mohammed Wadi, was killed by the IOF shooting while 17-year-old Ahmed Khader Sa'doun was injured. IOF ground troops also proceeded to arrest the following four youths:
  • Mohammed Khader Sa'doun, 18;
  • Ahmed Khader Sa'doun, 17 (who was also injured);
  • Nidal Rajab Abu Hajar, 18; and
  • Bakir Sa'eed Al-Makadma, 18.
Another two brothers respectively aged 18 and 7 years old managed to escape.
According to the information received, the older boy who escaped called the emergency services. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported that two of the Society's ambulances reached the area after ICRC coordinated the intervention with the IOF. The rescue team found the body of Mustafa Mohamed Wadi laying on the ground approximately one kilometer from the border fence.
According to the same information, the three youth aged 18 years old Mohammed Khader Sa'doun, Nidal Rajab Abu Hajar and Bakir Sa'eed Al-Makadma were released on November 15, 2009, in the morning. Ahmed Khader Sa'doun is still in an Israeli hospital.
OMCT is gravely concerned about the continued killings by the IOF in the Gaza Strip, which include children. According to Al Mezan Center, most of these acts occur near the border fence in the north and east of the Gaza Strip, an area that is declared a 'buffer zone' by IOF. However, this entire area is located inside the Gaza Strip and is not precisely defined. IOF has allegedly informed farmers and residents in certain areas as close to the border as 300 meters that that area is part of the 'buffer zone'. Nevertheless, many attacks on farmers and children occur in areas over a kilometer from the border fence, including at times when there are no disturbances.
OMCT strongly condemns the preceding acts which would appear to constitute yet another exercise in the excessive use of force in violation of Israel’s obligations under international human rights and humanitarian law. OMCT would like to recall that, in the application of Israel’s international legal obligations as a State Party to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has made the following recommendations: “The Committee strongly urges the State party and all relevant non-State actors […] to investigate immediately and effectively all killings of children and bring the perpetrators to justice”; […] to refrain from using and/or targeting children in the armed conflict and comply fully with article 38 of the Convention, and as much as possible with the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict” (CRC/C/15/Add.195, §§ 32 and 59).
Actions requested
Please write to the authorities in Israel urging them to:
  1. Guarantee, in all circumstances, the physical and psychological integrity of Ahmed Khader Sa'doun, (17) who is still in an Israeli hospital;
  2. Carry out a prompt, effective, thorough, independent and impartial investigation into the events, in particular the killing of Mustafa Mohamed Wadi and the injury of Ahmed Khader Sa'doun, the result of which must be made public, in order to bring those responsible before a competent, independent and impartial tribunal and apply penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions as provided by the law;
  3. Guarantee that adequate compensation is awarded to the family of Mustafa Mohamed Wadi;
  4. At all times ensure strict respect for international human rights and humanitarian law in the exercise of its jurisdiction, including in connection with military operations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Addresses
  • Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, 3, Kaplan Street, PO Box 187, Kiryat Ben-Gurion, Jerusalem, Israel, Fax: +972- 2-651 2631, Email: pm_eng@pmo.gov.il
  • Mr. Menachem Mazuz, Attorney General, Fax: + 972 2 627 4481; + 972 2 628 5438; +972 2 530 3367
  • Brigadier General Avihai Mandelblit, Military Judge Advocate General, 6 David Elazar Street, Hakirya, Tel Aviv, Israel, Fax: +972 3 608 0366, +972 3 569 4526, Email: arbel@mail.idf.il, avimn@.idf.gov.il
  • Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations Office and Specialized Institutions in Geneva, Avenue de la Paix 1-3, 1202 Geneva, Fax: +41 22 716 05 55, Email: mission-israel@geneva.mfa.gov.il
Please also write to the embassies of Israel in your respective country.

Geneva, 18 November 2009
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.