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Chronicling the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Novermber 24, 2006 Jerrold Cohen, Ph.D., Editor E-mail jerrmar2@verizon.net Receiving This Newsletter Purpose of this Newsletter [Maps and graphics not included in this web re-publication of the newsletter] Novermber 24, 2006 Reports Incursions, invasions, arrests, demolitions, etc. Gaza Strip: Gaza Strip killings: Israeli forces killed nine Palestinians this morning in the Gaza Strip, using tanks, bullets, shells. Five students and an elderly man were among the injured. (1) In the northern Gaza Strip, "Palestinian medical sources reported that Ayman Mohamed Judah, 24, was killed after Israeli troops fired live rounds at him. (6) Judah, a Hamas member, worked in the media office of the Qassam Brigades. He was hit in the head and chest by live ammunition. (9) Alaa Salman, 9 was critically wounded in the northern part of the Gaza Strip on Friday before noon, after being shot by the invading Israeli army in the area, according to Palestinian medical sources from Kamal Adwan Hospital. With Judah, the death toll in Gaza since Thursday stands at 9 residents, mostly civilians. The sources added that the number of injured since Thursday have reached 30 residents including several critical injuries." (6) The Jerusalem Post says that a 10-year-old Palestinian boy was killed in Jabaliya. (14) This from Ha'aretz, verbatim: "Two Palestinians were killed -one of them a ten-year-old boy- while trying to fire Qassams at Israel." (My comment: Have you ever seen a picture of one of those Qassams? How could a ten-year-old boy so much as lift the pipe to fire it, much less try to aim it? Sorry, but this is Israeli army justification for killing a ten-year-old boy, stretching it quite a bit.) (28) "Israeli tanks and bulldozers invaded the village of Khuza'a, east of Khan Younis, south of the Gaza strip on Friday morning. Bulldozers started to destroy farm lands and green houses that belong to local farmers while tanks opened fire randomly at residents' homes. Damage to homes was reported, but no injures." (South of the Gaza Strip in this paragraph means in the southern half of the Gaza Strip.) (6) Thursday Gaza Strip killings: On Thursday, nine Palestinians were killed and, according to this article, Palestinian resistance wounded at least 16 soldiers. This article states that the grandmother who blew herself up wounded seven soldiers according to Israeli sources, but all sources that I have seen indicate that she wounded three soldiers lightly. (3) The human shield tactic seems to be working, at least for now: "Hundreds of Palestinians in Gaza City, including a government minister and a Hamas spokesman, gathered Friday at dawn at the home of a Palestinian who received a call from the IOF warning him that the house will be the target of an air strike....Majed Kuhail told PIC correspondent that his elder brother received a phone call at 4:00 am ordering him to evacuate his house as it will be targeted from the air. He added that his brother phoned his relatives and friends and Hamas announced it on the mosques' loudspeakers urging local residents to go to the house to protect it against the air strike, hundreds of Palestinians answered the call....Amongst those responding to the call was Jamal al-Khudary, the Minister of Communications and IT, and Dr. Ismail Radwan, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza." (5) Quick Gaza Strip statistics: "The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported on Thursday afternoon that fifteen residents were killed and forty-seven were injured in the period between Wednesday until Friday afternoon, after Israeli decided to escalate its offensive in the northern Gaza Strip....Dr. Muawiya Hassanen, head of the Emergency Unit at the Palestinian Ministry of Health, reported that the army increased it ground and aerial strikes against the northern part of the Gaza Strip using different kinds of shells including internationally barred ammunition....Dr. Hassanen added that most of the injured residents suffered permanent disabilities after losing parts of their bodies, while several other residents were badly burnt." The 15 residents killed since Wednesday ranged in age from nine to 57. Omitting the suicide bomber, the age range was nine to 45. (8) Palestinian dies of wounds incurred three weeks ago: One Palestinian died in an Israeli hospital of wounds suffered three weeks ago when Israeli forces attacked Beit Lahiya. (12) West Bank: Tulkarm incursion and arrests: Israeli troops set up a roadblock east of Tulkarm at a temporary checkpoint. There, they searched cars as they were going through. The troops stopped a taxi and ordered the two Palestinian passengers and the driver to get out of the car and thoroughly searched them. They also searched the taxi thoroughly and then blindfolded three men and put them into a Jeep which took them away. The roadblock was removed after the men were arrested. At the same time, Israeli troops entered the city of Tulkarm and the nearby a Tulkarm refugee camp at that and Nour Shams, and clashed with Palestinian youth. (2) Jenin Refugee Camp invasion: "In Jenin refugee camp, troops and army vehicles stormed the area with soldiers attacking resident's houses, searching and ransacking the properties whilst forcing the families into the street for interrogation. Eyewitnesses reported that these interrogations included children....Israeli soldiers also took photos of some houses and streets in the refugee camp before leaving and taking with them seven residents as prisoners. Known names from this group include: Ali Al Nada, Mustafa Al Natur, Ala' Sahreef, Mohamed Irssan and two his sons." Invasions have been going on daily for months. Bethlehem district invasion: Israeli troops in jeeps invaded the village of Taqqou' east of Bethlehem, and searched several houses before taking Ahmad Saliem, 25, prisoner. (7) Overnight arrests: 0700 hours: Israeli troops arrested four Palestinian fugitives overnight in the West Bank. They were alleged to be: two Tanzim operatives, one Fatah man, and a Hamas operative. (18) Lebanon aftermath Bomb experts get legs full of cluster-bomblets: "A cluster bomb from the Hezbollah-Israel war in southern Lebanon exploded Friday wounding two members of an international team of land mine clearing experts, Lebanese security officials said....The two experts' legs were wounded, and they were rushed to the government hospital in the southern Lebanese town of Marjayoun where their conditions were described as serious....The wounded land mine clearing experts were identified by the security officials as David Aldies, from Great Britain, and Damir Brasic, from Bosnia." (29) Palestinian government Haniyeh offers truce proposal: 1447 hours: "Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas said Friday that Palestinian factions had agreed to halt their rocket fire on Israel and called on Israel to reciprocate by agreeing to halt its offensives in the West Bank and Gaza Strip....The Palestinian proposal, which states that the Palestinian terror groups will halt their violence should Israel stop its military operations, was rejected by the Israelis, who called it 'ludicrous.'" (23) Palestinian resistance Qassam missiles force Israeli defense minister into a bomb shelter: Amir Peretz, Israeli Defense Minister, a resident of the Sderot Jewish settlement, truly acted in his role when he was forced to hide inside a bomb shelter during a Palestinian missile attack on Sderot, where he lives. (4) Bil'in anti-Wall march and protest: There were about 250 Palestinians and 50 Israeli and international peace activists at the Bil'in peaceful protest this Friday. "Eight residents, one Israeli reporter and one international peace activist were injured after the soldiers attacked the protesters and one resident was taken prisoner." The child was 12. Protesters demanded free access to their orchards which were isolated behind the Wall. They brought a tractor, seeds and plows, and carried posters saying the land was for those who plant it and not for those who annex it. Army countermeasures included the placement of barbed wire and ambushes between the trees. Soldiers fired rubber-coated metal bullets and gas canisters at the protesters. (10) WAFA says that ten children and a journalist were shot with rubber(-coated metal) bullets at the demonstration. One activist from Bil'in was badly beaten. Soldiers said he threw stones, but others said he was peaceful the whole time. He was put in detention in the Ofer facility, where he will be held four days, according to ISM. (13) Anti-tank missile fired: "Palestinians fired an anti-tank missile towards IDF armored vehicles in northern Gaza. No one was wounded and no damage was caused. IDF troops returned fire. Bomb injures soldiers in armored vehicle: "On Friday morning, three IDF soldiers were lightly wounded when their armored vehicle rode over an explosive device south of Beit Hanun, in the northern Gaza Strip....The two were evacuated to a hospital by an IDF helicopter....Moments earlier, IDF troops killed a Hamas operative who was filming the group's operations in northern Gaza, Palestinian medical officials said." This occurred in Jabaliya. (14) Sderot area rocket firing: 0106 hours: "Two Kassam rockets landed in central Sderot on Thursday night....As a result, several people went into shock and were treated on the scene....The attack also damaged several buildings. (17) 0442 hours: "A number of stores were damaged in a late night Kassam rocket attack in Sderot. A number of people were treated for hysteria. A second rocket landed near Kibbutz Miflasim without injuries." (26 ) 0832 hours: "A Kassam rocket, fired from the Gaza Strip, landed in open territory in the western Negev on Friday morning. No one was wounded and no damage was reported." (21) 1524 hours: "Two Kassam rockets, fired from Gaza, landed in the western Negev on Friday morning....No one was wounded but a building sustained damage." 1812 hours: "A Kassam rocket landed in an open field in the western Negev Friday evening....There were no casualties or damage to property." (25) Sderot missile attacks take toll in psychological health of residents: The article title: "As number of shock victims climbs at frightening rate, Sderot therapy center struggles to aid the victims". Second paragraph: "Although the number of shock victims rises daily at a frightening rate, the State has budgeted only one help center to care for the psychologically distressed. More than 600 adults and children were treated over the past few months, by the handful of therapists that courageously arrive at the rocket-barraged town every morning." (30) Resistance in Nablus: 0725 hours: "Two bombs were thrown at IDF troops operating in Nablus overnight Thursday....No IDF casualties were reported." (19) 0756 hours: "IDF soldiers shot a Palestinian gunman during clashes in Nablus early Friday....The gunman's condition was unclear." (20) 1731 hours: "Palestinian gunmen opened fire on IDF troops operating south of Nablus Friday evening....There were no reports of casualties or damage to IDF property." (24) Tulkarm resistance: 0737 hours: "Terrorists during the night detonated a bomb against IDF soldiers near PA (Palestinian Authority) controlled Tulkarem. No injuries were reported." (27) (The word "terrorists" here is an Israeli oxymoron. If you fight against soldiers it is not terrorism. Some Israelis call any violence against anyone terrorism, civilian or armed forces.) Palestinian Centre for Human Rights weekly report summary: This is PCHR's summary of Israeli violations of Palestinian rights for the week of November 4-10, 2006: 19 Palestinians, including 5 children, 3 women and an old man, were killed by IOF....4 of the victims, including a civilian bystander, were extra-judicially executed by IOF....Two of the victims died from previous wounds....92 Palestinians, including 41 children and one woman, were wounded by IOF. IOF have continued to launch air strikes on houses and civilian facilities in the Gaza Strip; 12 houses, a mosque, a pharmacy shop, a kindergarten and 3 shops were destroyed, and 19 houses were severely damaged. IOF conducted 30 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, and 6 into the Gaza Strip....IOF arrested 59 Palestinian civilians, including 7 children, in the West Bank, and two others in the Gaza Strip....IOF destroyed 7 houses in al-Shouka village, east of Rafah, and razed 3 donums[1] (roughly quarter acres) of agricultural land in Khan Yunis....(In the West Bank) IOF demolished a house completely in Qaqlilya, and demolished another one partially in Tulkarm. IOF closed the Orphan Society in Bethlehem and raided a mosque in Deir Estia village near Nablus. IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT; IOF arrested 5 Palestinian civilians, including two children, at checkpoints in the West Bank Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property in the OPT; 5 Palestinian civilians were injured in Hebron as a result of attacks launched by Israeli settlers. The full report has infinitely more detail. (15) Settler activities Israeli settlers paid off to get out of illegal settlements: Ha'aretz has reported that the Israeli government Disengagement Administration (Sela) has paid millions of shekels to dozens of settler familes evacuated from the illegal settlements in the Gaza Strip. (An Israeli shekel is worth about $.23.) "Israeli law only entitles settlers of 'legal settlements' to receive compensation for their evacuation. But Sela compensated settlers who were living in five illegal settlement outposts in the Gaza Strip. The outposts are Tel Katifa, Shalev, Kfar Yam, Shirat Hayam and Kerem Atzmona, Ha'aretz added....Some Sela officials are concerned that these payments could be set as precedents that would oblige Israel to pay the same amounts when evacuating illegal outposts in the occupied West Bank, especially since settlers have already began asking for those amounts in order to evacuate....But the officials also argued that there is a difference between settlers who were evacuated under an official government plan, and those who will be evacuated because there are living in illegal outposts." (11) Miscellany UN High Commissioner for Human Rights makes a point: In an interview with the Jerusalem Post, among other compaints about Israel, Louise Arbour made this point: According to criminal law, "there is very little distinction between recklessness and intent," she said. "It is a small distinction as to whether you desire the result, or you foresee it as virtually certain and you do not care. In terms of culpability there is not a lot of difference between recklessness and intent." Arbour indicated that this could mean that Israel was guilty of human rights violations for its actions in Lebanon. "When you kill civilians virtually each time [in a military attack], at some point you have to ask yourself, 'Wasn't that foreseeable that so many would be killed?" she said. "That is where I think you start having to engage in the possibility that it is somewhat culpable." She also criticized the Palestinians for launching Qassam attacks against Israel as being a breach of international humanitarian law. ----------------------------- Samples of this newsletter may be found at http://aberdeenpublishing.com/ocreport.eml . That "eml" extension means that people with Internet Explorer and Outlook Express can see it. Others may not unless their programs recognize the "eml" extension. Links for buying my book, Awakened, may be found at http://aberdeenpublishing.com. -- Jerrold Cohen, Ph.D ----------------------------- Sources: Palestine News Network, Palestinian Information Center, International Middle East Media Center, WAFA Palestine News Agency, Jerusalem Post, Israel National News, Ha’aretz, Yedioth Ahronoth, Palestinian Centre for Human Rights http://english.pnn.ps/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1070&Itemid=1
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