Summary for March 18 24, 2021
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) continued to commit crimes and multi-layered violations against Palestinian civilians and their properties, including raids into Palestinian cities that are characterized with excessive use of force, assault, abuse and attacks on civilians that are mostly conducted after midnight and in the early morning hours. Even more, IOF continued its demolition operations and delivery of cease-construction and demolition notices in the West Bank, which includes occupied East Jerusalem. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) documented 193 violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law (IHL) by IOF and settlers in the oPt.
IOF shooting and violation of right to bodily integrity:
IOF killed Atef Y. A. Hanaysheh (46) on 19 March 2021 with a bullet in the head while suppressing a peaceful protest in Beit Dajan, northeastern Nablus. No threat was present to the lives of Israeli soldiers. IOF also shot and wounded another Palestinian in another peaceful protest in Nablus.
In the Gaza Strip, 4 IOF shootings were reported on agricultural lands eastern Gaza; and 4 at fishing boats in the Gaza sea.
IOF incursions and arrests of Palestinian civilians:
IOF carried out 167 incursions into the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem. Those incursions included raids of civilian houses and shootings, enticing fear among civilians, and attacking many of them. During this weeks incursions, 98 Palestinians were arrested, including 6 children.
In the Gaza Strip, IOF conducted one limited incursion into eastern Rafah.
Demolitions:
PCHR documented 7 incidents:
East Jerusalem: 2-storey house demolished in Silwan; 3 houses were self-demolished in Isawiya and Shufat camp; land and cement pillars demolished (under-construction house) in Shufat.
Jenin: demolition notice served to car repair workshop in Arraba.
Salfit: military order to confiscate 17 dunums and 497 meters from Bruqin, Haris and Sarta.
Settler-attacks:
PCHR fieldworkers reported and documented 5 attacks:
Ramallah: 2400 almond seedlings uprooted, and fence cut
Bethlehem: lands razed in Kisan for construction of a settlement road
Nablus: 25 tree seedlings uprooted.
Israeli closure policy and restrictions on freedom of movement:
IOF imposed a complete 24-hour shutdown from Tuesday midnight, 23 March 2021, justifying it with the Israeli Knesset elections.
The Gaza Strip still suffers the worst closure in the history of the Israeli occupation of the oPt as it has entered the 14th consecutive year, without any improvement to the movement of persons and goods, humanitarian conditions and bearing catastrophic consequences on all aspects of life. The United Nations confirmed that the Gaza conditions are worsening, with deteriorating health, power, and water services. The UN emphasized that the Gaza Strip requires immense efforts in the housing and education sectors and to create job opportunities.
Meanwhile, IOF continued to divide the West Bank into separate cantons with key roads blocked by the Israeli occupation since the Second Intifada and with temporary and permanent checkpoints, where civilian movement is restricted, and they are subject to arrest.
a. Demolition and Confiscation of Civilian Property
Khaled al-Abbasi said that the 2-storey building was established in 2016; he lived with his wife, 5-year old child and 7-month baby in a 100-sqm apartment in the first floor while his brother Monir lived with his pregnant wife in his 90-sqm apartment in the second floor. Al-Abbasi added that the Israeli municipality promptly pursued them and issued an administrative decision to demolish their houses. Their lawyer managed to freeze the decision and applied for a house license, but in vain. Al-Abbasi pointed out that the Israeli Municipality imposed on him a fine of 70,000 shekels in 2019, and he is still paying it. He added that he and his brother were handed an order to vacate their houses within 21 days last September, so they headed to the Israeli court, which gave them until 11 March to self-demolish the house, but he did not do it. He said that the Israeli Police called him on Thursday morning to notify him to vacate his house to demolish it in the coming days. Al-Abbasi said that the construction of the house cost him 700,000 shekels while the lawyer fees were around USD 13,000.
Saadah al-Khatib, Mayor of Beit Iksa village, said that a group of settlers moved into the village at dawn and wrote racist slogans on some walls in the village. They also burnt 2 vehicles belonging to Hamdan Karshan, and the Palestinian Civil Defense crews arrived to extinguish the fire, which completely caught the 2 vehicles. He added that this is the fourth incident of its kind during the past period.
Ahmed Ghazal, Head of Kisan Village Council, said that a group of settlers from Maale Amos settlement established on the Kisan lands built a settlement road of 4 kilometers in Thaher al-Mazareb area, east of the village, preluding to confiscate hundreds of dunums from the area lands.
PCHR Arabic/
Posted by Palestinian Centre for Human Rights onThursday, March 25, 2021
Continued here:
