Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
14 – 20 January 2021
- Palestinian dies in Israeli prison
- IOF excessive use of force in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem: 18 Palestinians wounded, including a child and a woman
- Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip: 1 civilian wounded; a house and agricultural lands damaged
- Two IOF shootings reported at Palestinians and agricultural lands, and once at fishing boats eastern and western Gaza Strip
- In 58 IOF incursions into the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem: 72 civilians arrested, including 6 children and 3 women
- 11 street carts damaged in Jenin, demolition notices served to a mosque and a school in Hebron
- Occupied East Jerusalem: one house self-demolished
- Settler-attacks in the West Bank: a child wounded, two vehicles set on fire and 100 olive tree seedlings uprooted
- IOF established 77 temporary military checkpoints in the West Bank and arrested 4 Palestinian civilians on said checkpoints
Summary
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. This week, Maher Theeb Ibrahim Sa’sa’ (44), imprisoned by Israel and sentenced to life, died in Rimonim Prison. Sa’sa’, a father of 6 from Qalqilya, was ill and had lung disease, he was imprisoned in 2006 and sentenced to 25 years. He spent 15 years in prison. Sa’sa’s death sheds a light on the general deterioration in the living conditions of thousands of Palestinians in Israeli prisons, and the extent of punitive measures practiced against these prisoners, particularly in delaying medical care, medical neglect, and disregard of their medical needs especially for prisoners with dangerous and chronic diseases. This is a flagrant violation of the occupation’s responsibility to provide humane imprisonment conditions and medical care for prisoners as per Articles 85 and 125 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Additionally, this week witnessed a continued escalation in settler attacks, mainly stone throwing at civilian houses and vehicles in the West Bank. Additionally, IOF demolitions of Palestinian homes and properties continued in the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.
This week, PCHR documented 157 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 wounded 18 Palestinians, including a child and a woman, in excessive use of force against civilians in the West Bank: 11, including a child, were wounded in IOF attacks on two peaceful protests in Kafr Qaddum – Qalqilya; 2 were wounded in IOF attack on a protest in Al-Mughayyir, Ramallah; a woman was wounded in an attack on a protest in Hebron; and 3 Palestinians sustained wounds near the Annexation Wall in Qalqilya; another Palestinian was wounded in IOF incursion into Teqoa, Bethlehem.
In the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian sustained wounds and a house was damaged in IOF airstrikes on eastern Maghazi refugee camp in Central Gaza; also, agricultural lands were damaged in similar airstrikes on eastern Rafah and Khan Younis.
Also in Gaza, two IOF shootings were reported on agricultural lands eastern Khan Younis, and once on fishing boats off Gaza’s northern shore.
IOF incursions and arrests of Palestinian civilians: IOF carried out 58 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 week’s incursions, 72 Palestinians were arrested, including 6 children and 3 women.
In the Gaza Strip, IOF conducted a limited incursion into eastern Khan Younis.
Demolitions:
PCHR documented 5 incidents:
- Occupied East Jerusalem: house self-demolished Beit Hanina
- Jenin: 11 street carts assaulted near the Annexation Wall in ‘Anin
- Hebron: demolition notice served to a school and a mosque in Kherbet Um Qassa
- Nablus: 9 demolition and cease-construction notices served in Duma
Settler-attacks: PCHR fieldworkers reported and documented 5 settler-violence incidents:
- Ramallah: two vehicles set on fire in Turmus Ayya
- Hebron: settler attacks on shepherds, 100 olive tree seedlings uprooted in eastern Yatta; stones thrown on vehicles travelling on Bypass Road (60).
- Nablus: a child wounded in an attack on houses in Madama.
Israeli closure policy and restrictions on freedom of movement:
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.
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.
The full report is available online at:
