PCHR Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (16 – 22 May 2019)

Israeli forces continued with systematic crimes, in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), for the week of 16-22 May, 2019.

Eight Palestinian civilians, including 3 children, were wounded in the northern West Bank. Israeli forces conducted 55 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank and 6 other incursions into Jerusalem. 47 Palestinian civilians, including 12 children, were arrested in the West Bank. Five Shooting incidents were reported against the fishing boats in the Gaza Strip Sea.

Shooting:

During the reporting period, Israeli forces continued to use lethal force against the participants in the peaceful protests organized along the Gaza Strip borders. In the West Bank, Israeli forces wounded 8 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children. Five of them, including 2 children, were wounded in the northern West Bank, while 3 others, including a child, were wounded in the southern West Bank. In the Gaza Strip, the Israeli forces continued to escalate their attacks against the Palestinian fishermen and target their livelihoods.
In the West Bank, in excessive use of lethal force against the participants in the peaceful protests, Israeli forces wounded 5 protestors, including 2 children, while participating in Qaddoum weekly protest, northeast of Qalqiliyia. The abovementioned protest was organized on Friday, 17 May 2019, and on Saturday, 18 May 2019.

On 21 May 2019, Israeli forces opened fire at Mahmoud Husain Salah (15), from al-Khader village, south of Bethlehem, when he was near the annexation wall, which surrounds the village. As a result, Mahmoud was hit with 2 live bullets to the lower limbs. The soldiers then arrested him and took him to Shaare Zedek Medical Center in West Jerusalem to receive medical treatment.

On 22 May 2019, Israeli forces wounded 2 protestors while moving into al-Duhisha refugee camp, south of Bethlehem, to carry out an arrest campaign. They then opened fire at dozens of Palestinian young men who were protesting against them.

As part of targeting the Palestinian fishermen in the sea, the Israeli forces continued to escalate their attacks against the Palestinian fishermen, indicating the on-going Israeli policy to target their livelihoods. During the reporting period, PCHR documented 5 incidents were as follows: 3 incidents in the northern Gaza Strip Shore and 2 incidents in the southern Gaza Strip Shore.

Incursions:

During the reporting period, Israeli forces conducted at least 55 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank and 6 other incursions into Jerusalem and its suburbs. During those incursions, Israeli forces arrested at least 29 Palestinians, including 2 children, from the West Bank, while 18 other civilians, including 10 childre, were arrested from Jerusalem and its suburbs.

Israeli Forces continued their settlement activities, and the settlers continued their attacks against Palestinian civilians and their property

As part of the Israeli house demolitions and notices, on 16 May 2019, Israeli forces moved into Sosiya village, south of Yatta, south of Hebron. They dismantled a 30-sqaure-meter residential tent built with sheds, rubber tires and steel pillars. The tent belongs to Hussain Radi Nawaj’ah (55). The Israeli authorities claimed that the tent was confiscated and demolished under the pretext of non-licensing. It should be noted that it was the fourth time that the tent was confiscated and the latest was on 16 April 2019.

Israeli authorities continued to create a Jewish majority in occupied East Jerusalem.

Despite their claims to provide facilities for Palestinian civilians in Ramadan and allow them to perform prayers in al-Aqsa Mosque yards in occupied Jerusalem’s Old City, Israeli forces continued to impose restrictions on them, including the city residents. During this week, a large force of Israeli soldiers raided al-Aqsa Mosque after al-‘Isha and al-Taraweeh prayers and forcibly ordered al-Mo’takefeen, who are staying in the al-Aqsa Mosque for a certain number of days to perform prayers, to leave the mosque.

In the same context, the Israeli authorities confiscated dozens of food parcels prepared by Jerusalem Endowment Fund. Those parcels were supposed to be distributed to poor families. The Jerusalem Endowment fund said that the Israeli authorities claimed that the food parcels are funded by the Palestinian Authority (PA) that is banned by the Israeli authorities and considered in violation of its law.

Use of Force against Demonstrations in Protest against the U.S. President’s Decision to Recognize Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel:

Israeli forces continued its excessive use of lethal force against peaceful demonstration organized by Palestinian civilians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and it was named as “The Great March of Return and Breaking Siege.” The demonstration was in protest against the U.S. President Donald Trump’s declaration to move the U.S. Embassy to it. According to PCHR fieldworkers’ observations, the border area witnessed large participation by Palestinian civilians as the Israeli forces continued to use upon highest military and political echelons excessive force against the peaceful demonstrators, though the demonstration were fully peaceful. The demonstration was as follows during the reporting period:

West Bank:

At approximately 13:30 on Friday afternoon, 17 May 2019, a group of Palestinians organized a peaceful demonstration from the center of Kufor Qaddoum village, northeast of Qalqiliyah, into the eastern entrance to the village, which has been closed for 15 years in favor of “Kedumim” The protestors threw stones at Israeli soldiers stationed behind sand barriers. The soldiers immediately fired rubber bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters at them. As a result, 4 civilians, including a child, were hit with rubber bullets.

(PCHR keeps the names of the injured civilians)

At approximately 16:30, on Saturday, 18 May 2018, a group of Palestinians organized a peaceful demonstration from the center of Kufor Qaddoum village, northeast of Qalqiliyah, into the eastern entrance to the village, which has been closed for 15 years in favor of “Kedumim” The protestors threw stones at Israeli soldiers stationed behind sand barriers. The soldiers immediately fired rubber bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters at them. As a result, a child was hit with a rubber bullet to the head.

(PCHR keeps the name of the injured child)

Israeli forces’ attacks:

At approximately 10:00 on Thursday, 16 May 2019, Israeli forces backed by 2 military vehicles and accompanied with a bulldozer and a vehicle of the Israeli Civil Administration moved into Sosiya village, south of Yatta, south of Hebron. The Israeli Civil Administration officers dismantled a 30-sqaure-meter residential tent built with sheds, rubber tires and steel pillars. The tent belongs to Hussain Radi Nawaj’ah (55). The Israeli authorities claimed that the tent was confiscated and demolished under the pretext of non-licensing. It should be noted that it was the fourth time that the tent was confiscated and the latest was on 16 April 2019.

Recommendations to the International Community

PCHR warns of the escalating settlement construction in the West Bank, the attempts to legitimize settlement outposts established on Palestinian lands in the West Bank and the continued summary executions of Palestinian civilians under the pretext that they pose a security threat to the Israeli forces. PCHR reminds the international community that thousands of Palestinian civilians have been rendered homeless and lived in caravans under tragic circumstances due to the latest Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip that has been under a tight closure for almost 11 years. PCHR welcomes the UN Security Council’s Resolution No. 2334, which states that settlements are a blatant violation of the Geneva Conventions and calls upon Israel to stop them and not to recognize any demographic change in the oPt since 1967. PCHR hopes this resolution will pave the way for eliminating the settlement crime and bring to justice those responsible for it. PCHR further reiterates that the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are still under Israeli occupation in spite of Israel’s unilateral disengagement plan of 2005. PCHR emphasizes that there is international recognition of Israel’s obligation to respect international human rights instruments and international humanitarian law. Israel is bound to apply international human rights law and the law of war, sometimes reciprocally and other times in parallel, in a way that achieves the best protection for civilians and remedy for the victims.

PCHR calls upon the international community to respect the Security Council’s Resolution No. 2334 and to ensure that Israel respects it as well, in particular point 5 which obliges Israel not to deal with settlements as if they were part of Israel.
PCHR calls upon the ICC this year to open an investigation into Israeli crimes committed in the oPt, particularly the settlement crimes and the 2014 offensive on the Gaza Strip.
PCHR Calls upon the European Union (EU) and all international bodies to boycott settlements and ban working and investing in them in application of their obligations according to international human rights law and international humanitarian law considering settlements as a war crime.
PCHR calls upon the international community to use all available means to allow the Palestinian people to enjoy their right to self-determination through the establishment of the Palestinian State, which was recognized by the UN General Assembly with a vast majority, using all international legal mechanisms, including sanctions to end the occupation of the State of Palestine.
PCHR calls upon the international community and United Nations to take all necessary measures to stop Israeli policies aimed at creating a Jewish demographic majority in Jerusalem and at voiding Palestine from its original inhabitants through deportations and house demolitions as a collective punishment, which violates international humanitarian law, amounting to a crime against humanity.
PCHR calls upon the international community to condemn summary executions carried out by Israeli forces against Palestinians and to pressurize Israel to stop them.
PCHR calls upon the States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC to work hard to hold Israeli war criminals accountable.
PCHR calls upon the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions to fulfill their obligations under article (1) of the Convention to ensure respect for the Conventions under all circumstances, and under articles (146) and (147) to search for and prosecute those responsible for committing grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions to ensure justice and remedy for Palestinian victims, especially in light of the almost complete denial of justice for them before the Israeli judiciary.
PCHR calls upon the international community to speed up the reconstruction process necessary because of the destruction inflicted by the Israeli offensive on Gaza.
PCHR calls for a prompt intervention to compel the Israeli authorities to lift the closure that obstructs the freedom of movement of goods and 1.8 million civilians that experience unprecedented economic, social, political and cultural hardships due to collective punishment policies and retaliatory action against civilians.
PCHR calls upon the European Union to apply human rights standards embedded in the EU-Israel Association Agreement and to respect its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights when dealing with Israel.
PCHR calls upon the international community, especially states that import Israeli weapons and military services, to meet their moral and legal responsibility not to allow Israel to use the offensive in Gaza to test new weapons and not accept training services based on the field experience in Gaza in order to avoid turning Palestinian civilians in Gaza into testing objects for Israeli weapons and military tactics.
PCHR calls upon the parties to international human rights instruments, especially the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), to pressurize Israel to comply with its provisions in the oPt and to compel it to incorporate the human rights situation in the oPt in its reports submitted to the relevant committees.
PCHR calls upon the EU and international human rights bodies to pressurize the Israeli forces to stop their attacks against Palestinian fishermen and farmers, mainly in the border area.