PCHR weekly report 18/8 - 24/8/2011: 1 elder Palestinian farmer killed, 6 civilians injured, including 4 children & 1 woman, in areas close to the bufferzone

extracts from PCHR weekly report 18/8 - 24/8/2011:

Israeli Offensive on the Gaza Strip

[Note: only attacks against civilians at the areas close to the so called "buffer zone" mentioned]

Friday, 19 August 2011


At approximately 01:30, Israeli warplanes bombarded a space area in al-Najjar quarter in Khuza'a village, east of the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Yunis. The bombardment me a large crater in the area and damaged two tin-made rooms belonging to the al-Najjar family. Additionally, glass of a mosque and a number of houses was broken, and a number of water tanks were damaged.

 [...]

At approximately 17:30, an Israeli drone fired a missile at a number of activists of the Palestinian resistance near al-Wafa Hospital in the east of Gaza City. As a result, two children living in the area were seriously wounded by shrapnel throughout their bodies: Ibrahim 'Adnan al-Zaza, 14; and Mohammed 'Aatef al- Zaza. 

[...]

Also at approximately 17:30, an Israeli warplane fired a missile at a space area near Hassanain brick factory in al-Sourani Mount area in al-Tuffah neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. No casualties were reported.

[...]

At approximately 19:10, IOF positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east of Gaza City fired an artillery shell at a number of Palestinians in al-Mansoura Street in al-Shoja'iya neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. No casualties were reported.

[...]

At approximately 21:55, Israeli tanks positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, east of Khan Yunis, fired 4 shells at 'Abassan village. The shells landed on agricultural areas, but no casualties were reported.

[...]

At approximately 23:00, Israeli warplanes bombarded a 150-square-meter barrack belonging to Najia Mohammed Abu Zarifa at 'Abassan road in the east of Khan Yunis. The barrack was destroyed and a nearby carwash shop belonging to 'Ammar 'Ali Abu Daqqa and a house were damaged.      

Saturday, 20 August 2011

At approximately 00:00, Hussein Mahmoud al-Najjar received a phone call from the Israeli intelligence, in which he was ordered to vacate his 130-square-meter, two-storey house in the east of Khuza'a village, east of Khan Yunis. Al-Najjar and his family immediately vacated the house. Five minutes later, Israeli warplanes fired a missile at the house. The missile hit the western part of the basement, but did not explode. Ten minutes later, Israeli warplanes fired another missile, which hit a nearby sheep farm belonging to Suleiman Mohammed Shnainu and damaged a nearby house. It is worth noting that al-Najjar's house was attacked by an Israeli drone on 24 March 2011.

At approximately 00:20, an Israeli warplane fired a missile at a space area in al-Shouka village, east of Rafah. As a result, Anwas Younis al-Sheikh 'Eid, 26, was wounded by shrapnel throughout the body. 


At approximately 13:30, an Israeli drone fired a missile at a number of Palestinians who were on a space area in al-Tawahin Street in the east of al-Shuja’iya neighborhood in the east of Gaza City. As a result, a woman, a child and an activist of al-Quds Brigades (the armed wing of Islamic Jiahd) were wounded. The activist was in a serious condition and was admitted into the intensive care unit at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. The woman and the child were identified as:

1- Fatima Salem Abu al-Ata, 50, wounded by shrapnel throughout the body;

2- Mo’ayad Rami Jundiya, 7, wounded by shrapnel throughout the body. 

Sunday, 21 August 2011

 
 At approximately 04:50, Israeli soldiers positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip opened fire at Palestinian fishermen [sic] who were on their lands in Zummu Street in the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun.  No casualties were reported. 

At approximately 05:00, IOF positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel fired 7 artillery shells at the vicinity of Gaza International Airport, southeast of Rafah. No casualties were reported.

At approximately 10:50, an Israeli drone attacked a number of Palestinian resistance activists, who launched a home-made rocket into Israeli towns, near al-Shaimaa’ School in the north of Beit Lahia town in the northern Gaza Strip. As a result, Haitham Ahmed Ma’rouf, 13, who was on his father’s land, was seriously wounded by shrapnel throughout the body. 

Monday, 22 August 2011


  
At approximately 04:20, IOF positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel fired two artillery shells at a space area in the southeast of Juhor al-Dik village, southeast of Gaza City. No casualties were reported.

Wednesday, 24 August 2011  


[...]


At approximately 05:00, an Israeli drone fired a missile at an agricultural plot belonging to Eyad al-Khaldi in the northeast of al-Boreij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, nearly 1,500 meters away from the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel. As a result, Isma’il Nemer Ammoum, 62, a farmer working on the plot, was instantly killed. Palestinian medical crews were able to find his body at approximately 15:00 on the same day.


 

Israel kills 65-year-old Palestinian man in Gaza

 

25-08-2011,01:55
 

Al Qassam website- Gaza- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) killed an elderly Palestinian man identified as Ismail Ammom, 65- year-old from al Bureij refugee camp  at Central Gaza Strip on Wednesday, August25th, 2011.

Adham Abu Silmia, spokesman of medical services in Gaza said that medics have found the body of the martyr as parts, adding that he was killed by Israeli shelling targeted him in Al Bureij refugee camp on Wednesday morning.

Israeli artillery fire hits eastern Gaza

[ 20/08/2011 - 11:15 AM ]

GAZA, (PIC)-- Israeli artillery shells slammed eastern areas of Gaza city on Saturday with no casualties reported, local sources said. The sources said that a number of shells also hit southern and northern areas of Gaza city. They said that ambulance cars rushed to the scene but found no casualties. A series of Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip killed 15 Palestinians and wounded around 40 others since Thursday.

PCHR weekly report 11/8 - 17/8/2011: 1 mentally disabled child killed, 1 fisherman and another civilian injured by gunfire

extracts from PCHR weekly report 11/8 - 17/8/2011:



Monday, 15 August 2011


At approximately 10:30, Israeli soldiers stationed on observation towers at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northwest of the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahia opened fire at a number of Palestinian fishermen who were fishing at the beach. As a result, a fisherman, Yassin ‘Ali Zayed, 41, from al-Salatin area in Beit Lahia, was wounded by a bullet to the right leg. Zayed was nearly 300 meters away from the border. 

At approximately 18:00, Israeli soldiers stationed at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel fired at two Palestinian civilians who were on an agricultural plot in the east of Khuza’a village, east of Khan Yunis., nearly 300 meters away from the border. One of these civilians, Hammouda Sami al-Najjar, 25, was wounded by a bullet to the left thigh.  

Tuesday, 16 August 2011

In the evening, IOF killed a Palestinian child from al-Nussairat refugee camp, who was 400 meters from the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, east of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. The victim's family told a PCHR field worker that their child had a mental disability. The victim was in an area that had not been explicitly declared as prohibited.

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 18:00, Israeli soldiers stationed at the border northeast of Deir al-Balah opened fire at a Palestinian, who was nearly 400 meters from the border. As a result, he was wounded by 10 bullets in his head and chest. He was left wounded without being offered any first aid. After coordination was made with IOF, at approximately 19:20, medical crews were able to retrieve the body, which was then transferred to al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. After four hours later, the child was identified as Sa'd Abdul Rahim Mahmoud al-Majdalwai, 17, from al-Nussairat refugee camp. He was hit by 10 live bullets mostly to the head. In his testimony to PCHR, the victim's father said that his son had been suffering from a mental disability and speech impairment. 

In a New Crime, IOF Kills Disabled Child in Central Gaza

 PCHR

Wednesday, 17 August 2011 10:30

Ref: 83/2011

On Tuesday evening, 16 August 2011, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) killed a Palestinian child from al-Nussairat refugee camp, who was 400 meters from the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, east of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. The victim's family told a PCHR field worker that their child had a mental disability. The victim was in an area that had not been explicitly declared as prohibited.

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 18:00 on Tuesday, 16 August 2011, Israeli soldiers stationed at the border northeast of Deir al-Balah opened fire at a Palestinian, who was nearly 400 meters from the border. As a result, he was wounded by 10 bullets in his head and chest. He was left wounded without being offered any first aid. After coordination was made with IOF, at approximately 19:20, medical crews were able to retrieve the body, which was then transferred to al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. After four hours later, the child was identified as Sa'd Abdul Rahim Mahmoud al-Majdalwai, 17, from al-Nussairat refugee camp. He was hit by 10 live bullets mostly to the head. In his testimony to PCHR, the victim's father said that his son had been suffering from a mental disability and a speech impairment.

The Israeli radio reported that IOF observed a person approaching the security fence, and shot him. This version of events confirms that IOF could have arrested or used less than lethal force against him, especially as he was wearing civilian clothes and there was nothing to indicate that he was a non-civilian.

It should be noted that on Tuesday morning, the Gaza Strip witnessed several shooting and shelling attacks on civilian areas and military training sites. As a result of this shelling and shooting, a Palestinian resistance man was killed and two others were seriously wounded in Gaza City. A child and another person were wounded in Khan Yunis and Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip.

PCHR condemns and expresses concerned over this crime, and:

1. Asserts that these crimes are part of a series of war crimes committed by IOF in the oPt, which reflect total disregard for the lives of Palestinian civilians.

2. Calls upon the international community to take immediate action in order to put an end to such crimes. PCHR further renews its demand for the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their obligation under Article 1, which stipulates "the High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present Convention in all circumstances," as well as their obligations under Article 146 which requires that the Contracting Parties prosecute persons alleged to commit grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention. These grave breaches constitute war crimes under Article 147 of the same Convention and under Protocol I Additional to Geneva Conventions.

Medics: Gaza teenager shot dead

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian teenager near the central Gaza Strip city of Deir Al-Balah late Tuesday, medical officials reported.

Medics said the Palestinian, who was not identified, suffered "more than 10" gunshots to the head and upper body after soldiers east of the Al-Masdar area opened fire.

Gaza health ministry official Adham Abu Salmiya told Ma’an that an ambulance crew transferred the teenager's body to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza.

An Israeli military spokeswoman told Ma'an that "IDF forces opened fire at a suspect approaching the security fence. The forces identified a hit," the official said.

The teenager had approached the border east of the refugee camp of Maghazi in central Gaza, Agence France-Presse quoted Palestinian witnesses as saying.

Earlier, Abu Salmiya said Israeli airstrikes killed one man and injured seven others in the central and southern Gaza Strip, in what the army called retaliation for a rocket attack hours before.

75 year old woman shot in Johr al-Dik

16 August 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza Strip

Selma Al Sawarka, or Um Ahmad, is an active woman, a mother of seven, and a grandmother of 35, who has never quit working.  August 10, 2011 dawned like most days do for her; she went out to graze her family’s goats.  She took her neighbor with her, 15 year old Keefa Al Bahabsa.
They went to the same land they usually go to. At 9:30 that morning they saw an Israeli tank and an Israeli jeep near the border.  Not an uncommon sight.  The tank and jeep left.  About 30 minutes later, the jeep returned, three soldiers got out, and opened fire on Um Ahmed and Keefa.  Um Ahmed was shot in the leg, Keefa fled to get help.  The soldiers also shot ten of the families goats.
Um Ahmed is used to being shot at by the Israelis as her land is only 600 meters from the border. Usually, she says, the soldiers shoot around her, or into the air, trying to drive her from her land; she doesn’t know why today was different, why they shot directly at her, why they shot her in the leg.  Her scarf also has bullet holes in it; only through the grace of God is she still here.
It took half an hour for Keefa to return with help, they loaded Um Ahmed onto a donkey cart, and went to the main road to meet a taxi to take her to the hospital. When I met Um Ahmed she was laying on a mat on the floor, recovering from being shot.  A pale blue scarf covered her head.  Bracelets adorned her wrists.  Her daughter sat next to her.  The room was simple, some mats on the floor, two chairs for the guests, a dresser, and small stand with a TV.
On the wall was a picture of her son Mustapha.  He was killed by the Israeli’s on Dec, 15, 2004.  Sometimes, the soldiers, or even the settlers themselves, would close the road near Netzarim settlement, the only way to go anywhere was to leave the road, and walk on the beach by the sea.  Mustapha was shot and killed as he walked on the beach. The house we are in used to be Mustapha’s house. Beside the TV is another picture, another of her sons, this one has been in prison for the last ten years.  He has eleven years left on his sentence.  Um Ahmed, like all Gazan mothers, is not allowed to visit her son in prison, for four years this has been a blanket Israeli policy.  Instead, she looks at this picture, she thinks about him in prison, while her leg heals.

Updated on August 17, 2011

As protesters hold Iftar in the “buffer zone,” Israeli bulldozers sever Gaza’s links with the world

16 August 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza



On Tuesday, August 9, members of the International Solidarity Movement – Gaza Strip joined the Beit Hanoun Local Initiative for its weekly protest by the Erez Crossing against the Israeli-imposed “buffer zone.” During Ramadan, these protests take the form of Iftars with local farmers threatened by Israeli incursions. Protesters observed Israeli military bulldozers operating by the crossing, and later learned that they had severed electronic cables running under it, shutting down the Gaza Strip’s telecommunications and Internet networks for between 12 and 18 hours.
Updated on August 16, 2011

PCHR weekly report 4/8 - 10/8/2011: 1 Palestinian woman injured, 8 sheeps 500 chickens killed, 3 farms bombed by aistrike

extracts from PCHR weekly report 4/8 - 10/8/2011:

IOF wounded a Palestinian woman and killed some of her sheep in the central Gaza Strip. 

Israeli warplanes bombarded a number of civilian facilities in the Gaza Strip.

Two bird farms were completely destroyed and a third one was damaged, 500 chickens were killed and a room was destroyed. 


Friday, 05 August 2011


At approximately 01:20, Israeli warplanes fired 4 missiles at 3 bird farms, two of which were empty, in Wadi al-Salqa village in the central Gaza Strip. The two empty farms, which belong to Salem Selmi Abu al-‘Ajin, were completely destroyed, while the third one, which is rented by ‘Alaa’ Hussein al-Louh, was heavily damaged and 500 chickens were killed. 


Tuesday, 09 August 2011


At approximately 10:30, Israeli soldiers positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east of Juhor al-Dik village in the central Gaza Strip fired at Salma Suleiman al-Swarka, 74, while she was grazing animals nearly 500 meters away from the border. She was wounded by a bullet to the right thigh, and 8 sheep were killed. 

PCHR weekly report 28/7 - 3/8/2011: 1 Palestinian civilian injured by israeli gunfire

extracts from PCHR weekly report 28/7 - 3/8/2011:

A Palestinian civilian was wounded by IOF in the Gaza Strip.

Saturday, 30 July 2011

 
Also at approximately 10:30, Israeli soldiers positioned on observation towers at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel to the north of Beit Lahia opened fire at a number of Palestinian civilians who were collecting straws nearly 400 meters away from the border. As a result, Mousa Ibrahim Abu Dhail, 25, from the Bedouin Village, was lightly wounded by a bullet to the head.

Ramadan in the Buffer Zone

2 August 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza

The buffer zone is a place of death.  300 meters of destroyed land, land that used to be alive, that used to be filled with orchards, houses, and fields, now, all dead.  To enter the buffer zone is to risk your life, even to come close to it, the Israeli’s shoot farmers, shepherds, scrap collectors, anyone who comes close to the buffer zone is in danger.  Every Tuesday, the people of Beit Hanoun attempt to bring the buffer zone back to life.  They gather at the Agricultural College and march to the buffer zone.
Ramadan began on Monday, in honor of Ramadan, this week’s demonstration would involve going to the buffer zone to pray.  We gathered, about thirty of us, under the hot sun.  Thankfully, a breeze was blowing.  It is summer in Gaza, and Ramadan is particularly hard this year, it isn’t easy to march under the hot sun while you are fasting.  We walked to the buffer zone, newly bulldozed by the Israeli’s; our flag planted merely a week before, gone.  The men laid down a white cloth, held it down with clumps of dirt, spread prayer rugs, and Abu Issa recited the call the to prayer.  It echoed over the buffer zone, joining the symphony of calls from Beit Hanoun.  As the men prayed we looked around nervously, today was quieter than usual; maybe because of Ramadan there was none of the usual background noise of construction to repair previous Israeli destruction.  After finishing prayers, we marched back to Beit Hanoun, at least for a little while, the buffer zone had been returned to life.  For a short while, something lived in it, people prayed in it, may justice come soon.

Updated on August 4, 2011

Activists pray in Gaza's buffer zone

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Popular resistance activists held noon prayers on Tuesday in the "buffer zone" in northern Gaza.

International solidarity activists joined dozens of Palestinians to pray on lands recently bulldozed by Israel near Beit Hanoun.

Israeli forces impose a "buffer zone" 300 meters from the border inside Gaza. Israel's army says it considers the area a combat zone and frequently fires at Palestinians who enter the area, killing many civilians.

In practice, the no-go area extends over a kilometer inside the Gaza Strip in some areas. It encompasses around 20 percent of the coastal enclave, including fertile Palestinian farmland.

Activists said they organized prayers in the buffer zone as an act of resistance to Israeli forces who were watching from behind the concrete wall.