PCHR Weekly: “Army Carries Out 81 Invasions In W. Bank, 1 in Gaza”

Israeli forces destroy agricultural facilities in Hebron

by Saed Bannoura

The Palestinian Center for Human Rights issued its weekly report on the Israeli violations in the occupied Palestinian territories, revealing that Israeli soldiers conducted 81 invasions into the West Bank, and one into the Gaza Strip. Several injuries and arrests were reported in the Israeli attacks.

Soldiers carried out 81 invasions into Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank, and kidnapped 15 Palestinian civilians, including four children and one woman.

Soldiers continued the use of excessive force against nonviolent protests against Israel’s illegal Annexation Wall and Settlements, in the West Bank leading to one injury while dozens of civilians suffered from the effects of teargas inhalation.

The army also detained six nonviolent protestors, including two photojournalists, and two Israeli peace activists.

Israel also continued its illegal settlement activities in the West Bank, including in occupied East Jerusalem, in direct violation of International law. Settlers also continued their attacks against the Palestinians and their property.

The PCHR stated that on April, 23, 2012, soldiers invaded Wad Qabboun area, in Halhoul town, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and destroyed two water storage tanks that are used for agricultural purposes.

The army claimed that the storage tanks were installed in Area “C” that falls under full Israeli control under the Oslo peace agreements.

Also on April 23, soldiers invaded Qalandia town, north of occupied East Jerusalem, and uprooted a Dunam of agricultural land. The lands are part of 400 Dunams of Palestinian lands that Israeli illegally snatched from the Palestinians in order to build the Annexation Wall in that area.

On the same day, Israeli settlers of the Yitzhar illegal settlement, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, attacked the ‘Orif Secondary School, in Orif village; local youths hurled stones at the invading settlers and the army fired gas bombs at them leading to several injuries. No injuries were reported among the soldiers and the settlers.

On April, 24, the army invaded Um Rukba area in Al-Khader town, south of Bethlehem, and uprooted 150 square meters of barnyard under the pretext that it was established without a construction permit.

On the same day, dozens of Israeli settlers, and several Israeli soldiers, broke into the eastern part of Nablus, and headed to the Joseph Tomb in Balata village.

Furthermore, soldiers kidnapped three Palestinians at various roadblocks in the occupied West Bank.

In the Gaza Strip, Israeli soldiers fired rounds of live ammunition at Palestinian workers collecting scrap metal forcing them out of the area; no injuries were reported.

On April 24, Israeli Navy troops assaulted several Palestinian fishermen in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, and kidnapped two, including a child. The soldiers went on to confiscate their boat.

Soldiers carried out a limited invasion into northern Gaza, while military bulldozers leveled Palestinian lands that were razed in a previous invasion.

The illegal Israeli-imposed closure of the Gaza Strip, which has steadily tightened since June 2007, "has had a disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic situation in the Gaza Strip”, PCHR reported. “The illegal closure has caused not only a humanitarian crisis but a crisis of human rights and human dignity for the population of the Gaza Strip”.

Full PCHR Report In English

Related Link(s): http://www.pchrgaza.org/portal/en/index.php?option=com_...d=183

Israeli Soldiers Violently Evict Palestinians from Hebron House

Video shows Israeli occupation forces violently evicting Palestinians from a house inHebron. The press release below from Youth Against Settlements, distributed by thePopular Struggle Coordination Committee, explains what happened.

Press release: “Youth Against Settlements”: “While we were violently evicted, the army treats settlers with kid gloves.”


While Israeli [Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu] and his ministers scramble to prevent the eviction of [Israeli settlers from] a Palestinian-owned house in Hebron that was taken over by Jewish settlers last week, a video documenting the violent eviction of Palestinian activists from a nearby house owned by the Hebron municipality two days ago, shows extensive use of force.

The eviction, which took place on Sundayy in the Old City of Hebron, was carried out by a large force of Israeli Border Police officers. During the eviction, the force heavily employed the use of tear-gas and a foul smelling liquid called “The Skunk”. Additionally dozens were physically assaulted, with at least five of the activists ending up at the hospital. The activists, members of the local group “Youth Against Settlements”, intended to renovate and take residence in the house in order to prevent it from being taken over by Israeli settlers.

The video documents Israeli Border Police officers storming the house, dealing blows to the completely peaceful activist using batons and their rifles. While a Dutch who was arrested was already unconditionally released yesterday, the detained Palestinian activist who is a coordinator of the Youth Against Settlements movement, Issa Amro, was only released today after depositing a 1,000 Shekels bond as bail.

The Activists were evicted despite having acquired a written permission to use the premises from the Hebron Women’s Charitable Society, which rents the house from its owners – The Hebron Municipality.

Only days earlier, when settlers took over a nearby Palestinian house, Israeli Authorities refrained from employing force, allowing the settlers to remain in the house. Badia Dwaik, an activist with “Youth Against Settlement,” who was inside the house during the eviction said, “The recent takeover of a nearby house by settlers brought about further restrictions on the already heavily constrained Palestinian movement in the area, including for those families living there.
While we were violently evicted from a house we had legal rights to, the army treats settlers who took over a Palestinian house with kid gloves”

Background

Over the years, Israel established a number of settlement points in and around the Old City of Hebron, which had traditionally served as the commercial center for the entire southern West Bank. To perpetuate the settlements in the city, Israeli authorities impose a regime intentionally and openly based on the “separation principle”, as a result of which Israel created legal and physical segregation between the Israeli settlers and the Palestinian majority.This policy led to the economic collapse of the center of Hebron and drove many Palestinians out of the area.

The findings of a survey conducted B’Tselem and ACRI in 2007, show that at least 1,014 Palestinian housing units in the center of Hebron have been vacated by their occupants. This number represents 41.9 percent of the housing units in the relevant area. Sixty-five percent (659) of the empty apartments became vacant during the course of the second intifada. Regarding Palestinian commercial establishments, 1,829 are no longer open for business. This number represents 76.6 percent of all the commercial establishments in the surveyed area.

Of the closed businesses, 62.4 percent (1,141) were closed during the second intifada. At least 440 of them closed pursuant to military orders.The main elements of Israel’s separation policy are the severe and extensive restrictions on Palestinian movement and the authorities’ compliance with settlers violence directed at Palestinians.

The city’s residents also suffer as a direct result of the actions of Israel authorities.Restriction on Palestinian movement and the closing of businessesDuring the first three years of the second intifada, Palestinians in the city center of Hebron were put under curfew for more than 377 days total, including a consecutive period of 182 days, with short breaks to obtain provisions.

In addition, the army created a contiguous strip of land in the City Center along which the movement of Palestinian vehicles is forbidden. The middle of the strip contains many sections of road that the army forbids even Palestinian pedestrians to use. The strip blocks the main north-south traffic artery in the city, and therefore affects the entire city.

The extensive prohibitions have led to the closing of hundreds of shops, in addition to those that were closed under military order.Settler violenceSettlers in Hebron have routinely abused the city’s Palestinian residents, sometimes using extreme violence.

Throughout the second intifada, settlers have committed physical assaults, including beatings, at times with clubs, stone throwing, and hurling of refuse, sand, water, chlorine, and empty bottles. Settlers have destroyed shops and doors, committed thefts, and chopped down fruit trees.

Settlers have also been involved in gunfire, attempts to run people over, poisoning of a water well, breaking into homes, spilling of hot liquid on the face of a Palestinian, and the killing of a young Palestinian girl.Soldiers are generally positioned on every street corner in and near the settlement points, but in most cases they do nothing to protect Palestinians from settlers’ attacks. Institutionalized aggression.

The increased presence of Israeli soldiers and police in the Hebron city center regularly brings with it violence and harassment towards Palestinians. Violence, arbitrary house searches, seizure of houses, harassment, detaining passersby, and humiliating treatment have become part of daily reality for Palestinians and have led many of them to move to safer places.


Source

Israeli Brutality: Violent arrests of Palestinians in Hebron and disappearance of Dutch volunteer

Illegal Jewish Terrorist Squatters Steal Palestinian Homes

by Paige and Satu

A Dutch woman and several Palestinians were violently arrested today during an attempt to reclaim a Palestinian house at the entrance of the old city in occupied Al Khalil  (Hebron).

About 30 Palestinians and international ISM activists from Canada, Finland, United States and the Netherlands entered a Palestinian house that was taken over by Israeli army around eight years ago. The re-occupation of the house was an attempt to return the house its rightful owner and was a response to the takeover of a Palestinian house on Shuhada street by settlers under the protection of the Israeli army and border police.

The windows of the house had been broken and the house was filled with trashed furniture, reminders of the families who had lived there. Stars of David and other graffiti covered the walls, and the floor was littered with the casings of rubber coated steel bullets and a tear gas canister. From the  front window the watchtower of the settlement Beit Romano is visible.

 As activists started cleaning  the house and preparing to spend the night there, the Israeli army prepared  to invade the house with sound bombs, skunk water and soldiers in full riot gear. Over 50 soldiers and 5 border police blocked the road and cleared the surrounding area before entering the house that was being reoccupied, claiming that the house was now Jewish property.

The soldiers then entered the house and began to forcefully remove the non-violent protesters by punching, hitting with batons, kicking, pulling people from their hair and grabbing them from their throat before pulling them out of the house.

“I was dragged out down a flight of stairs by my ankle by a soldier” said an ISM activist from Canada. “The soldier had his boot on my face,” said an ISMer  from Finland.

One Palestinian was beaten until he became unconscious. He was taken to hospital with an ambulance with another injured person.   When internationals and Palestinians attempted to help the unconscious man, the Israeli army threw sound bombs by his head and then dragged him away by his feet.

The Israeli army threw sound bombs and sprayed skunk water at the crowd that had gathered to support the Palestinians and internationals.

The Dutch activist and Youth Against Settlements leader Issa Amro are still being held by police. The whereabouts of the Dutch activist are unknown currently, and an emergency hotline for the Dutch Embassy only suggested that an email be sent to detail the event.

The embassy employee commented that, “We can see to it that she is fed, bathed, and if she needs medicine.” When asked if he can attempt to locate her, he mumbled a comment about her attending a demonstration, and stated “Israel is a friend of the Netherlands, and we respect the law of the land.” He then suggested to call the Dutch Consulate during its working hours and to send information about the woman to its email address.

ISM is working vigorously to determine the whereabouts of its volunteer, yet is fearful that while the Israelis deny that she is held in one of their imprisonment facilities despite dozens seeing her physically taken away by Israelis, that they may be attempting to deport her without fair trial or an accusation as they did with a British volunteer in July 2011. 

Source

Three detained upon attempt to retrieve a Palestinian house in Hebron

File Photo

Three people from Hebron have been detained on Monday after a group of 20 Palestinian and international activists attempted to retrieve a Palestinian house that was forcibly occupied by Israeli military and settlers in the old city of Hebron.

Palestinian media sources reported that, the house is owned by the Rajab family who had moved out after being harassed by Israeli settlers few years ago. The house was then used as a military post by the Israeli military and more recently has been frequented by six settler families, who claimed legal ownership of the house.

Upon entering the house, the activists of the Youth Against Settlement group attempted to clean the house and furnish it, whilst blocking off the front entrance. A large military force showed up and broke into the house. They threw the furniture out, smashing it into the ground and violently detained three people including Issa Amro, one of the founders of the group.

Youth Against Settlements frequently organize nonviolent activities to protest the measures taken by the Israeli military in favor of the settlers in Hebron. The group had made several attempts to reopen the Shuhada street in Hebron which has been closed by the Israeli military for the past few years. The 400 settler who live in Hebron are allowed to use this street, yet 100 thousand Palestinian residents of Hebron are denied access to this street.


 Source

Youth Injured By Settler Gun Fire In Hebron

File; Palestinians fending off Armed Zionist Terrorist with rocks

by Saed Bannoura

Palestinian medical sources reported Tuesday that a Palestinian youth was shot in his leg by a fundamentalist Israeli settler in the Old City of Hebron, in the southern part of the West Bank.

The sources added that Mohammad Hisham Abu Iker, 18 years old, was admitted to surgery after being shot by a live round in his right foot.

His condition was described as moderate due to significant blood loss resulting from the injury. He was attacked by a group of armed fundamentalist settlers.

This assault is amongst a series highlighting a serious escalation in the severity of attacks carried out by the extremist settlers against the Palestinians, their land and property in the occupied West Bank, including in occupied East Jerusalem.

Earlier on Tuesday, three brothers were wounded during an Israeli military invasion into Rammoun village, near the central West bank city of Ramallah. One soldier was wounded during the invasion after being stabbed in his back, Israeli sources reported.

The army claimed that the soldiers opened fire at the three brothers after the soldier was stabbed. The three men were identified as Rashad, Akram and Anwar Theeb, one of whom is in a serious condition.

In related news, soldiers abducted three Palestinians in the Hebron district, and two in Husan near Bethlehem.

 Source

Settlers Expand Hebron Settlement

by Saed Bannoura

A group of extremist Israeli settlers expanded, Tuesday, the illegal Negahot settlement outpost on the expense of privately owned Palestinian lands in Doura city, near the southern West Bank city of Hebron.

Local sources reported that, a few days ago, the settles brought several trucks loaded with cement and construction materials.

The settlers then started the construction of several units in the western side of the illegal settlement while the army was heavily deployed in the area.

Some settlers even illegally took-over privately-owned Palestinian lands in the area, fenced them, and hooked the area with running water
.
It is worth mentioning that there are around 10 settler families living in the illegal outpost, protecting by dozens of Israeli soldiers.

The army also installed roadblocks around the outpost and prevented Palestinian traffic with driving nearby.

In related news, Israeli soldiers invaded Beit Ummar town, north of Hebron, and confiscated several Palestinian vehicles, army also confiscated driving licenses from a several residents.

Source

Two Palestinian Children Killed By An Israeli Bomb In Hebron

by Ghassan Bannoura

Two Palestinian children were killed five others injured on Tuesday afternoon, when an unexploded ordinance, dropped by the Israeli forces, detonated near them.

Medical sources reported that Hamza Jaradat, 13, and Ziyad Jaradat, 12, died after sustaining severe wounds to various parts of their bodies.

The sources added that the five injured children were admitted to hospital for treatment.

Local sources stated that the explosion took place at a farmland east of Hebron.

Palestinian sappers stated that explosive was a left over by the Israeli military.

Two year ago, an explosive, dropped by the army during training in a nearby area, led to the death of two children.

 http://www.imemc.org/article/63118

Soldiers Kidnap 16 Palestinians In the West Bank

by Saed Bannoura

Israeli soldiers kidnapped, on Tuesday, sixteen Palestinians, including four teenagers, in several districts in the occupied West Bank, installed roadblocks, searched dozens of vehicles, and took over a vehicle that belongs to a resident of Jerusalem.

The Palestinian News & Info Agency, WAFA, reported that the army invaded the southern West Bank district of Hebron, and kidnapped six residents in the nearby Beit Ummar town, after breaking into and searching their homes; the kidnapped residents were moved to an Israeli interrogation center.

The six kidnapped residents were identified as Monjid Fawwaz Borqan, Mohammad Hammad Ar-Rajabi, Rafiq Suleiman Az-Zaro, Waheed Abu Qweidir, his brother Farid, and Monjid Jihad Ar-Rajabi.

Soldiers also invaded the nearby town of Beit Ummar, and kidnapped three residents identified as Mo’taz Khaled Awad, 19, his brother Aayish, 17, and Bassam Abu Maria, 16, and took them to an unknown destination.

Mohammad Abu Awad, spokesperson of the Popular Committee Against Settlements in Beit Ummar, stated that soldiers, based at the entrance of Beit Ummar, stopped and searched dozens of vehicles, causing a traffic jam, and caused deliberate damage to a number of vehicles before kidnapping a resident of Jerusalem and taking over his vehicle.

The army also kidnapped a child, identified as Basel Khaled Abu Hashem, 15, and took him to an unknown destination.

Soldiers also installed roadblocks in Joret Bahlas area, at the northern entrance of Hebron, and at the Nabi Younis entrance in Halhoul nearby town, in addition to a roadblock at the entrance of Al-Fawwar refugee camp, south of Hebron.

The army then went on to stop dozens of vehicles, and checked the ID cards of the residents while searching the vehicles.

The army also invaded Yitma village, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, and kidnapped four residents identified as Mohammad Aref Snober, 18, Ahmad Mohammad Snober, 21, Mohammad Taleb Snober, and Khaled Saqer An-Najjar.

In Bethlehem district, soldiers invaded Al-Obeidiyya town, and handed a resident a military order instructing him to head to the Etzion military base for interrogation.

Local sources reported that soldiers broke the house of Jamal Shanaita, 55, and handed the military order to his son, Mahmoud, 25.

The latest arrests raise the number of Palestinians kidnapped by the Israeli military in the West Bank in less than 48 hours to 29.

On Monday, Amjad An-Najjar, head of the Hebron branch of the Palestinian Prisoner Society (PPS), reported that Israeli soldiers kidnapped more than 200 residents in the Hebron district, in the southern part of the West Bank, in January and February of this year.

Updated From
Soldiers Kidnap 9 Palestinians In Hebron
Saed Bannoura - IMEMC News - Tue, 06 Mar 2012 09:39:02

Israeli soldiers kidnapped, on Monday at night, 6 Palestinians from the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and three from the nearby town of Beit Ummar, local sources reported.

The army invaded Hebron, broke into and searched several homes, and kidnapped six residents identified as Monjid Fawwaz Borqan, Mohammad Hammad Ar-Rajabi, Rafiq Suleiman Az-Zaro, Waheed Abu Qweidir, his brother Farid, and Monjid Jihad Ar-Rajabi.

Soldiers also invaded Beit Ummar town, and kidnapped three residents identified as Mo’taz Khaled Awad, 18, his brother Ayyash, 17, and Basel Khaled Abu Salem, 16.

The army also fired gas bombs, rounds of live ammunition, and rubber-coated metal bullets at local youths who hurled stones and empty bottles at them; no injuries were reported.

Furthermore, the army closed the northern entrance of the town and prevented the residents from entering or leaving it.

 http://www.imemc.org/article/63115

Army Kidnapped 200 Residents In Hebron Since The Beginning Of 2012

by Saed Bannoura

Amjad An-Najjar, head of the Hebron branch of the Palestinian Prisoner Society (PPS), reported that Israeli soldiers kidnapped more than 200 residents in the Hebron district, in the southern part of the West Bank, in January and February of this year.

An-Najjar stated that, in February, soldiers kidnapped, more than a hundred Palestinians, including three men, while 98 Palestinians were kidnapped in January.

He further stated that the army carried out dozens of invasions, and broke into dozens of homes causing extensive damage to their property, and also repeatedly forced the residents out of their homes under the rain and the cold.

The soldiers further attacked and beat dozens of residents, and also kidnapped nine patients who needed medical attention.

As for arrests targeting children, An-Najjar said that, in Hebron alone, the army kidnapped more than seven children in February, and violently attacked them.

According to statistics of the PPS, the army transferred, in February, more than 30 Palestinians to interrogation centers where they were forced to stand for extended periods, and were subjected to physical and psychological torture. Eight of them were moved to Administrative Detention without charges or trial.

On Monday at night, soldiers kidnapped six Palestinians from the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and three from the nearby town of Beit Ummar.

 http://www.imemc.org/article/63116