FRFI 167 June / July 2002
Since 29 March, as part of ‘Operation Defensive Shield’, the Zionist army has reoccupied Jenin (twice), Ramallah, Qalqiliya, Bethlehem, Nablus, Hebron, Tulkarm, Dehariyaha, Bir Zeit, plus dozens of towns and villages. The following is a list of war crimes it has committed in the course of its offensive:
• Ambulances: Since 29 March, ambulances have been denied access to the wounded on more than 350 occasions. 185 ambulances have been hit by gunfire. Peter Hansen, director of UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said: ‘I would strongly suggest that when 185 ambulances have been hit, including 75% of UNRWA’s ambulances…this is not the result of stray bullets by mistake hitting an ambulance, this can only be by targeting ambulances.’ 14 on-duty medical workers have been killed since the start of the Intifada; over 200 medical workers injured and 10 ambulances destroyed.
• Human shields: ‘In virtually every case in which Israeli Defence Force (IDF) soldiers entered civilian homes, they were accompanied by Palestinian civilians who were participating under duress. The forced use of civilians during military operations is a serious violation of the laws of war, as it exposes civilians to direct risk of death or serious injury.’ (New York-based Human Rights Watch).
• Summary executions: There is extensive evidence of summary executions, but most witnesses are imprisoned. Human rights organisations have confirmed eight summary executions in the past month, with reports of dozens more.
• Targeting civilians: ‘The orders were to shoot at each house. The words on the radio were to “Put a bullet in each window”.’ – Sergeant of Yoav Regiment of IDF Fifth Brigade, reserve unit that invaded Jenin (Washington Post, 26 April). Dozens of homes were bulldozed in Jenin with their occupants still inside. Of the 52 confirmed deaths in Jenin, at least 22 were of civilians (Human Rights Watch).
• Arrests: More than 5,000 Palestinians have been arbitrarily detained since 29 March 2002. They have no access to lawyers. Indefinite detention was made legal by military order No 1500, subject to approval by a military tribunal, using secret evidence and there are numerous allegations of torture. 1,500 are still being held illegally.
• Economic damage: The total loss to the Palestinian economy is estimated at $3.2 billion (including income only, not destruction of public and private property). 34,606 olive and fruit trees have been uprooted, 14,339 dunums* of land bulldozed or burned
• Civilian infrastructure destroyed: Before 1 March 2002: extensive damage to 4,000 buildings, including seven hospitals, 30 mosques, 12 churches; 134 water wells destroyed. Since 1 March, in all re-occupied cities and towns, the vast majority of government ministry buildings, universities, libraries, media outlets, sewerage and water systems and electricity infrastructure have been attacked or substantially destroyed. According to Bir Zeit University, the goal has been ‘the complete destruction of the Palestinian infrastructure’. Damage in this period is estimated at over $350m.
Since the conclusion of ‘Defensive Shield’, the Israelis have divided the West Bank into eight areas that are completely cut off from each other. The areas are around Hebron, Bethlehem, Ramallah, Jericho, Nablus, Jenin, Tulkarm and Qalqilya. Palestinians who want to travel outside of the area in which they live need to get a special permit from the Israeli intelligence unit Shin Beit. This will paralyse all aspects of life. Bantustans are too grandiose a title: detention centres is more fitting, or concentration camps.
Meanwhile, the murders of civilians which are never reported continue:
• On 15 May, Israeli tank shells killed a 16-year-old boy in his home in South Gaza;
• Two days later, the Israeli army re-entered Jenin; a 16-year-old boy was killed by a bomb they planted before they left;
• The same day, an armoured personnel carrier fired at and killed seven-year-old Amid Abu Sir as he walked to the mosque with his father for prayers. A few hours later, soldiers shot and killed an Israeli Palestinian woman as she approached a Tulkarm checkpoint;
• On 18 May, at another checkpoint, soldiers shot and killed a medical doctor, Mousso Zahayka;
• On 22 May, 21-year-old Aaisha Ali Hasan died when Israeli troops prevented her going for dialysis at Ramallah. Even though she was in a wheelchair, soldiers shot live ammunition over her head and her father’s. A total of 44 civilians have died because they have been prevented from getting life-saving treatment.
Dalton Hilliard
* a dunum is approximately one quarter of an acre.
