|
PRESS RELEASES 2000
INHUMANE ACTIONS AGAINST HUMANITY
A PHRMG report on the al-Aqsa
Uprising
now available on the web
The Palestinian Human Rights
Monitoring Group (PHRMG) has just released its new report on
the human rights violations committed against Palestinians
during the al-Aqsa Uprising. The 50-pages report first gives
an account of the events that took place in different
locations throughout the West Bank and the Gaza Strip since
29 September 2000 until early December. The main section
then moves on to analyze the general pattern of the clashes,
with specific sections on the type of force used by the
Israelis (means and methods of combat), the civilian
casualties (children, medical personnel, journalists),
damage to infrastructure, the effects of closures and
curfews and the violence initiated by Jewish settlers in the
territories.
Due to the difficulty of gathering
first-hand information, we had to rely more widely than
usual on second-hand sources such as press releases from
other human rights organizations or newspaper articles.
Whenever possible however, the PHRMG has attempted to verify
the facts presented, and our report is supported by numerous
testimonies gathered by our fieldworkers.
Our conclusions have already been
published on 11 November in the Palestinian newspapers al-Quds
and al-Ayyam.
Summary
of the main findings:
-
Demonstrations have erupted on an
almost daily basis in places where areas under full
Palestinian sovereignty collide with patches of Israeli
sovereignty within Palestinian territories.
-
The Israeli soldiers have used
excessive force to quell the demonstrations, as evidenced
by the type of weapons and ammunition that has been used.
Lethal weapons have been used as a matter of routine even
if the lives of Israeli soldiers were hardly ever at risk,
and other – non-lethal – weapons could have achieved the
same objective.
-
Numerous Palestinian victims were
not taking part in the clashes but were just unfortunate
passers-by. Children, medical personnel and journalists
were also targeted and wounded, and in several cases it is
doubtful whether they were hit accidentally. An appalling
proportion of injuries were sustained in the upper part of
the body.
-
The Israeli forces also used heavy
weapons of war such as helicopters and tanks, whose mere
presence placed a heavy psychological strain on the
Palestinian civilian population, who has been living for
more than two months in a state of fear whose consequences
can hardly be measured.
-
Material damage was extensive on the
Palestinian side, whether on private homes, civilian and
government institutions or agricultural land. The PHRMG is
now preparing a comprehensive report dealing with the
shelling of civilian houses and infrastructure.
-
Freedom of movement has been
severely restricted since an external and internal closure
has been imposed upon the Palestinian territories. Several
villages are completely isolated from their surroundings,
and curfews have also been used repeatedly, as in the
Israeli-controlled part of Hebron. Provision of food and
medicine to rural areas has almost ceased as access routes
to and from urban centers have been cut off.
-
Israeli settlers in the Palestinian
territories have conducted numerous attacks on Palestinian
property and civilians, to which the Israeli security
forces have responded with extraordinary leniency.
The report has been sent to the
Israeli army for their comments, and their response can be
found on our website. Other annexes include our
correspondence with the Israeli authorities regarding
children fatalities, the case of Yousef Suleiman Abu Awwad,
and the use of DU-ammunition (depleted uranium) against
civilian residential areas.
The PHRMG hopes that this report will
raise awareness in the Israeli public of the Palestinian
viewpoint on the clashes, and will help to find a just way
to peace by stressing the close link between peace and
respect for human rights.
The complete report with its annexes
is already available in English and Arabic on the web,
www.phrmg.org. You will also find
a new updated section of our website dedicated to the
present uprising, with our press releases and press reports,
as well as a list of martyrs.
For those of you who have subscribed
to the Monitor, you will of course receive a printed copy of
the report within the next two weeks. Requests for further
copies should be addressed to
admin@phrmg.org, or simply fill in
the subscription form on our website.
Mireille Widmer
Public relations officer
PHRMG
|
