Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (17 – 23 February 2011)

Summary: Israeli violations of international law and humanitarian law in the OPT continued during the reporting period (17 – 23 February 2011)

Shootings: During the reporting period, IOF killed 3 Palestinian civilians and a resistance activist and wounded 10 others (two children, two workers and 6 resistance activists) in the Gaza Strip. They also wounded 8 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children in the West Bank. In the Gaza Strip, on 17 February 2011, IOF killed 3 Palestinian civilians who were attempting to infiltrate into Israel to search for jobs. IOF fired artillery shells and gunshots at the victims. On 23 February 2011, IOF killed a Palestinian resistance activist and wounded 6 others and two children in the east of Gaza City. IOF fired two artillery shells at a number of activists of The al-Quds Brigades (the armed wing of Islamic Jihad). During the reporting period, two Palestinian workers, including a child, were wounded when Israeli soldiers positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel fired at workers who were collecting scraps of construction materials. On 23 February 2011, Israeli gunboats opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats in the northern Gaza Strip. No casualties were reported. In the West Bank, during the reporting period, IOF used excessive force to disperse peaceful demonstrations organized in protest to Israeli settlement activities and the construction of the annexation wall in the West Bank. As a result, 8 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children, were wounded, and dozens of Palestinian civilians and international human rights defenders suffered from tear gas inhalation or sustained bruises. Additionally, IOF arrested 15 Palestinian civilians, including 9 children, and two international human rights defenders.

Incursions: During the reporting period, IOF conducted at least 47 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, during which they arrested 10 Palestinian civilians, including 3 children. In the Gaza Strip, IOF conducted 3 limited incursions into the southern and central Gaza Strip, during which they leveled areas of Palestinian land.

Restrictions on Movement: Israel had continued to impose a tightened siege on the OPT and imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.