3)
Israeli Penetration
and Reoccupation in
the Palestinian
Territories
With
the escalation of the
circle of violence
between the two sides
during the second year
of the Uprising, the
Israeli government
resorted to the policy
of military
penetration into the
Palestinian self-ruled
areas as a first step,
then to fully
reoccupying those
areas at a later
stage, and thus,
putting an end to the
era of negotiations
and peace treaties
between the two sides.
On
6/2/2001 Ariel Sharon,
the Israeli Prime
Minister, promised the
Israeli people
“peace and
security.” He
believes he can do
that through the
military option.
Therefore, with the
increased number of
Palestinian suicide
bombings, Sharon found
an excuse to launch a
massive military
operation that began
in late March 2002 and
ended up with the
Israeli Army
reoccupying most of
the West Bank,
including the major
cities and towns.
3/1:
Ramallah and al-Bireh
On
4/12/2001 the Israeli
Army penetrated into
Ramallah and al-Bireh,
especially in
al-Balou’ and
al-Irsal
neighborhoods, and in
Betunia to the west,
and in the villages of
Sinjel and
Ein-‘Areek, where an
Israeli tank fell over
a Palestinian house
injuring Walid Husni
al-Sharif (38), his
wife and their three
children. On
5/12/2001, the Israeli
Army broke into the
Central Bureau of
Statistics in
Ramallah.
On
18/12/2001, the
Israeli Army imposed a
curfew on the village
of Deir Abu-Mash’al,
and on 20/12/2001, the
Israeli Army
penetrated into
Qarawet Bani Zeid
where a campaign of
arrests was carried
out, while the Israeli
soldiers continued to
block the road between
Ramallah and Bir-Zeit.
On Friday, 18/2/2002,
about 20 Israeli tanks
accompanied by
military helicopters
entered Ramallah and
took positions near
the Muqata’a
compound
(the offices of
Yasser Arafat). The
following day,
19/1/2002, the Israeli
Forces burnt by
explosives the
premises of Palestine
TV and Radio Station
in Um-al-Sharayet
neighborhood.
On
12/3/2002 the Israeli
Army occupied Ramallah
and al-Bireh for three
days, killing 13
Palestinians and
injuring over 100. The
Israeli forces damaged
numerous buildings in
the city, imposed a
siege on the Ramallah
Hospital, prevented
medical assistance
from reaching the
wounded and harassed
both Palestinian and
foreign journalists.
Among the Palestinians
killed were:
|
Fuad
‘Adilee (47)
|
Firas
al-Beituni (24)
|
|
Maher
al-Sharif (31)
|
Ahmad
Gharaybeh (20)
|
|
Mohammed
al-Muneir (25)
|
Ala
al-Maloukh (25)
|
|
Mohammed
Abu Latifeh (26)
|
Ahmad
al-Omary
|
|
Fares
Kheir-Eddin
|
Rami
Basheer
|
|
Ziad
al-Barghouthi
|
Ahmad
Adham
|
The
Israeli Forces also
killed Raffaele
Cirielo, an Italian
journalist who was
shot six times by an
Israeli tank near the
al-‘Amari Refugee
Camp.
On
Friday 29/3/2002, at
dawn, the Israeli Army
made a full incursion
into Ramallah and
al-Bireh, for the
second time in less
than a month. The
Israeli forces
bombarded the offices
of President Yasser
Arafat in Ramallah,
after Israeli Prime
Minister, Ariel
Sharon, declared that
Arafat was “the
enemy.”(International
Herald Tribune, 30-31
March 2002)
Over
the course of the
military incursion
into Ramallah and the
surrounding villages,
the Israeli Army
killed dozens of
Palestinians,
including five men
from the Palestinian
National Security
Forces who appear to
have been shot in cold
blood inside al-Taboun
building in the center
of Ramallah. The five
were: Khaled Awadallah
(30, from Jericho),
Ismail Ibrahim Deeb
(56, from Beit-Inan),
Saeed Moh’d Mahdi
(60 from Gaza),
Abdel-Raham Tawfiq
Abdallah (58, from
Nablus) and Omar
Moh’d Mousa (54 from
Jericho).
Perhaps
most alarming was the
complete media
blackout imposed by
the Israeli Army.
The Israeli Forces
declared the whole
district a “closed
military zone” and
prevented journalists
from entering.
Several journalists
found inside Ramallah
were expelled.
All foreigners,
including diplomats,
were also forbidden
entry into the city.
On 2/4/2002 the
Israeli soldiers at
the Qalandia
checkpoint prevented a
convoy of seven
European diplomats
from entering
Ramallah. On 13/4/2002
the Belgian Minister
of Health was denied
entry into the
occupied city.
Offices
of the Palestinian
Authority were raided
by Israeli troops, and
thousands of documents
were confiscated or
destroyed, an action
that will severely
diminish the
Palestinian
Authority’s capacity
to administer social
services.
Ambulances and medical
staff were prevented
from moving freely.
Israeli soldiers set
the Ramallah Chamber
of Commerce on fire
and took hundreds of
Palestinians as
prisoners.
The
morgue at the Ramallah
Hospital was inundated
beyond its capacity
and on 2/4/02,
Palestinians were
forced to bury 15
bodies in a mass grave
outside of the
hospital in an attempt
to prevent the spread
of disease from the
decomposing bodies.
The 15 dead included:
|
Hussein
Hosni al-Ashqar
(37)
|
Ahmad
Anwar Kullab
(23)
|
|
Sarida
Abu-Gharbieh
(30)
|
Fare’
Ali Daraghmeh
(32)
|
|
Omar
A-Hamid Hamayel
(43)
|
Jamal
.M . Abdel-Salam
(35)
|
|
Nader
Abdel-Latif
As’ad (33)
|
Murad
Wafiq ‘Awaysa
(33)
|
|
Ayoub
M. Abu-Musallem
(40)
|
Mohammed
Hosni Mraouh
(33)
|
|
Shaher
Abu-Sharar (33)
|
|
On
Tuesday 2/4/2002 at
dawn, the Israeli
forces supported by
helicopters and tanks,
bombarded the premises
of the Preventive
Security Service in
Betunia, south of
Ramallah.
Dozens of
Palestinians,
including some
“wanted” activists
were detained and
taken by Israeli buses
to unknown
destinations.
The
Israeli military
occupation of Ramallah
and al-Bireh resulted
in the death of dozens
of Palestinians,
severe damage to
numerous homes and
stores, and damage to
infrastructure
throughout the city,
representing a
dangerous breach of
international
humanitarian law and
the principles of
human rights.
- All human beings
are born free and
equal in dignity and
rights. They are
endowed with reason
and conscience and
should act towards
one another in a
spirit of
brotherhood.
- Everyone has the
right to life,
liberty and security
of person.
Articles 1
& 3, The
Universal
Declaration of Human
Rights, 1948
- Persons taking no
active part in the
hostilities,
including members of
armed forces who
have laid down their
arms and those
placed hors de
combat by sickness,
wound, detention …
shall in all
circumstances be
treated humanely,
without any adverse
distinction.
Geneva Convention
Relative to the
Protection of
Civilian Persons in
the Time of War, of
August 12, 1949,
Article 3
The United Nations Security Council approved two resolutions: UN
Resolution #1402,
issued on 30/3/2002,
calls for the
withdrawal of the
Israeli troops from
Ramallah and other
Palestinian cities,
and #1403, issued on
4/4/2002, demands the
implementation of
resolution #1402. The
Israeli government,
lead by the notorious
Ariel Sharon, has
ignored these
resolutions, and the
American government
has failed to exert
any real pressure on
him to fully implement
them.
On
22/4/02, the Israeli
Army redeployed and
closures were lifted
in most areas of
Ramallah, but the
siege on Arafat’s
headquarters
continues, and the
Army has not yet
withdrawn from the
city.
On
19/9/2002 the Israeli
troops supported by
tanks and soldiers
carriers invaded the
offices of Yasser
Arafat in Ramallah, as
a retaliation for the
bombing attack that
occurred in Tel-Aviv
earlier that day and
killed five Israelis.
The Israeli tanks and
bulldozers destroyed
almost all the
buildings in the
presidential compound.
Israel claimed there
were some “wanted”
Palestinians inside
the compound with
Arafat, who denied
that and refused all
the Israeli
allegations.
3/2:
Bethlehem
Fierce
confrontations broke
out in Bethlehem on
18/10/2001, after the
Israeli Forces
assassinated the local
Fateh leader ‘Atef
Ebayat (24) and two of
his companions, Jamal
Ebayat (32) and Issa
Ebayat (28) in a car
explosion. On
20/10/2001, the
Israeli Army entered
Bethlehem and
Beit-Jala and killed
four Palestinians,
while the village of
al-Khader, and the
refugee camps of
Dheishe and Aida
witnessed armed
confrontations between
Palestinian Resistance
men and the Israeli
Army.
Israeli
Army Invades
Bethlehem, the City of
Peace
All
human beings are
born free and equal
in dignity and
rights.
They
are endowed with
reason and
conscience and
should act towards
one
another in a spirit
of brotherhood.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948, Article
1
Early
on the morning of
Tuesday, 2/4/2002, the
Israeli Army invaded
Bethlehem and
Beit-Sahour in the
West Bank with more
than 200 military
vehicles. Between the
onset of the invasion
and 21/4/2002, twenty
Palestinians were
killed by the Israeli
Forces in the
Bethlehem District,
and numerous homes,
businesses and places
of worship were
damaged. A great deal
of public
infrastructure has
been demolished by the
Israeli tanks and
bulldozers.
Everyone
has the right to
life, liberty and
security of person.
Universal
Declaration of Human
Rights, 1948,
Article 3
On
1/4/2002, one day
prior to the invasion
of Bethlehem, the
Israeli Army entered
the Dehaishe Refugee
Camp, searched homes
and detained between
350 and 400
Palestinian men, some
of whom were released
several days later
from the “Etzion”
military site south of
Bethlehem.
Precisely how
many remain in
detention is unknown.
No
one shall be
subjected to
arbitrary arrest,
detention or exile.
Universal
Declaration of Human
Rights, 1948,
Article 9
The
Church of Nativity in
Bethlehem was under
heavy siege from
2/4/2002.
There were
approximately 200
Palestinians,
including armed
fighters, priests,
monks and nuns, and
approximately 50 youth
inside the church.
Those taking
refuge in the church
endured a severe
shortage of food,
water, and medical
supplies.
Two corpses of
Palestinians killed by
Israeli snipers remain
in the church.
From 2/4/2002,
frequent gunfire was
directed toward the
church compound.
No Palestinians
civilians or even
journalists were
permitted to approach
the church. Parts of
the Mosque of
Omar, close to the
Church of Nativity,
were also burnt as a
result of the heavy
Israeli gunfire.
After
numerous attempts, the
Israeli Forces finally
permitted a
humanitarian convoy to
deliver a small amount
of humanitarian aid to
the Palestinians under
siege in the Church of
the Nativity.
On Sunday
21/4/2002, dozens of
religious leaders,
legal activists and
Arab members of the
Knesset tried to reach
the city, but were
prevented by the
Israeli forces.
Article 3, Paragraph 1: Persons taking no
active part in the
hostilities,
including members of
armed forces who
have laid down their
arms and those
placed hors de
combat by
sickness, wound,
detention … shall
in all circumstances
be treated humanely,
without any adverse
distinction.
Article 16: The wounded
and sick, as well as
the infirm, and the
expectant mothers,
shall be the object
of particular
protection and
respect.
Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in the
Time of War, of
August 12, 1949.
Negotiations
between the Israelis
and Palestinians
regarding the siege on
the church were
scheduled to begin on
23/4/02.
The status of
those taking refuge in
the church was to be
discussed.
Israeli Prime
Minister, Ariel
Sharon, indicated that
the Israeli government
intended to try those
in the church in
Israeli court or
deport them.
However, On
Friday 3/5/2002 the
two sides agreed on a
plan to deport 13
Palestinians, from
those who were armed
inside the Church, to
Europe, and 26 others
were deported to Gaza
Strip.
The
20 Palestinians killed
by the Israeli Army
between 1/4/2002 and
22/4/2002 are:
