United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Protection of Civilian Report for March 30 – April 12, 2021
On 6 April, Israeli forces shot at a car, killing the 45-year-old Palestinian driver and injuring his wife at a checkpoint in Bir Nabala (Jerusalem). According to the Israeli authorities, after halting, the car accelerated suddenly in an apparent attempt to run over soldiers. According to the injured woman, her husband was following a soldier’s instructions to proceed. The checkpoint where the incident took place had been set up as part of a search-and-arrest operation.
Another 52 Palestinians were injured by Israeli forces across the West Bank. Twenty-three were wounded during four search-and-arrest operations in Silwan (occupied East Jerusalem), in the refugee camps of Al ‘Aroub (Hebron) and Aqbat Jaber (Jericho) and in Nablus city. Twenty-two were injured in two weekly protests against settlement activity in the villages of Kufur Qaddoum (Qalqilia), and Beit Dajan (Nablus). Two boys (aged 13) were injured in two separate incidents in Hebron city; one of them lost an eye from a rubber bullet during clashes, in which he was not involved. Two Palestinians were injured in clashes in Sebastia (Nablus) during a visit of Israelis to the archaeological sites there, and another during a visit of Israelis to Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus. An elderly man was injured during clashes, which erupted while Israeli forces were confiscating a tent in Bani Na’im village (Hebron). Another Palestinian was injured while attempting to cross a breach in the Barrier in the Jerusalem area. Of the injuries, 29 were treated for tear gas inhalation, 12 were hit by rubber bullets, five were shot with live ammunition, and six were physically assaulted or pepper-sprayed.
Israeli police forces physically assaulted nine activists, including an Israeli parliament member, demonstrating against the eviction of Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of East Jerusalem. The Jerusalem District Police Chief has ordered a debrief of the officers involved and the injured parliamentarian has reportedly filed a complaint with the Ministry of Justice.
Israeli forces carried out 154 search-and-arrest operations and arrested 167 Palestinians across the West Bank. The Ramallah governorate recorded the highest number of operations (43), followed by Jerusalem (27) and Hebron (23).
In Gaza, on at least 14 occasions, Israeli forces opened warning fire near Israel’s perimeter fence or off the coast, reportedly to enforce access restrictions, with no injuries reported.
Citing the lack of building permits, 20 Palestinian-owned structures were demolished or seized in Area C and East Jerusalem, displacing 13 people and affecting the livelihoods of about 90 others. Ten structures were demolished in eight communities in Area C, with one incident displacing seven people in the Dhahrat an Nada area of Bethlehem. In Susiya (Hebron), the Israeli authorities seized a tent provided as humanitarian assistance. In East Jerusalem, a family of six were forced to demolish their home in the Jabal al Mukkabir neighbourhood, and six livelihood structures were demolished in Al ‘Isawiya. The Israeli authorities also issued six stop-work orders against at least 32 Palestinian residential and agriculture structures and a road in Khirbet ar Ras al Ahmar (Tubas).
Perpetrators known or believed to be Israeli settlers injured seven Palestinians, including two boys, and damaged Palestinian-owned trees. The boys were physically assaulted in two separate incidents in the H2 area of Hebron. The other five were stoned or physically assaulted while working their land, including four in An Nabi Salih (Ramallah) and one in Jalud (Nablus). Palestinians reported that about 100 olive saplings were uprooted in Qusra (Nablus). A house was damaged by a Molotov cocktail in the H2 area of Hebron and water meters were damaged in Kifl Haris (Salfit). Settlers bulldozed privately-owned Palestinian land in Qaryut (Nablus) and Al Bqai’a (Hebron). In Deir Jarir (Ramallah), settlers physically assaulted and injured an Israeli activist who was providing protective presence to Palestinian herders.
Perpetrators known or believed to be Palestinians physically assaulted and injured two Israelis, and caused damage to eight Israeli-plated vehicles by throwing stones and other objects at them, while they were travelling on West Bank roads. The incidents were recorded by Israeli sources.
