24 aug 2019
A new report has criticized foreigners' enlistment in the Israeli military, raising alarm at the spike in the number of lone soldiers committing suicide.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Saturday that close to 3,500 lone soldiers without immediate family in the occupied territories are serving in the Israeli army.
About 1,200 of them come from North America, a similar number from the former Soviet Union and the remainder from other countries.
Foreigners make up a minor percent of Israeli army personnel, but the suicide rate is high among them, according to the report.
"Although soldiers whose parents do not live in Israel comprise only 2 percent of all recruits to the IDF (the Israeli army), they accounted for a disproportionately high share of military suicides in the past year," it said.
In 2018, the number of overall suicides in the Israeli army dropped by nearly half to nine, compared with the previous year. However among those nine suicides, two were lone soldiers.
In the first six months of 2019, there were another two self-murders by lone soldiers, with a third death under investigation as a possible suicide.
Last week, Major General Moti Almoz, head of the Israeli army's manpower directorate, sent out a letter to all senior commanders with the following subject headline, “Preventing suicide in the IDF,” including a part referring specifically to lone soldiers.
A Haaretz investigation revealed failings in the lone soldier program, adding that the program continues to be nurtured and encouraged because so many fundraising organizations and regime-funded initiatives have a vested interest in keeping it going.
"By the time many of them join the army, it is often too late to address their problems. It shows that Israel does not undertake adequate background checks before putting these young men and women in harm’s way; that many of the young recruits do not sufficiently comprehend what military life in Israel entails; that large numbers lack the proficiency in Hebrew and familiarity with Israeli culture required for successful adaptation; and that many see the army as a form of escape from difficulties and challenges they face back home," it said.
A former high-ranking officer, who had close interaction with many of lone soldiers, said there are problems is the vetting system, noting, “The holes in the filter are way too big."
Arthur Lenk, ex-Israeli ambassador to South Africa and a former lone soldier himself, stressed that in addition to serious holes in the vetting system, foreign volunteers lack information about the army.
“The IDF is not the French Foreign Legion. We are not a volunteer army, nor need we be in 2019,” he said. “We draft lots of our own kids, and there’s no reason we should be taking in mercenaries.”
A., a former lone soldier from Canada, admitted that he had lied about his history of opioid abuse when he joined the Israeli army.
"They just asked if I took drugs in the past and I said that I hadn’t,” he said. “The army didn’t even ask if my parents knew I was enlisting, or try to contact them."
Shifra Shahar, CEO of A Warm Home for Every Soldier NGO, described Machal, a shorter volunteer service, as "totally irrelevant and unnecessary in this day and age."
“Most of them (lone soldiers) come here to escape problems back home. They can’t find work, they have no inclination to study, they’re the black sheep of their families.
Many come from broken homes. Some even have criminal records. And someone out there has somehow succeeded in convincing them or their parents that the Israeli army will straighten them out. Unfortunately, in most cases the army only aggravates whatever problems they already have," she said.
Yagil Levy, a political sociology and public policy professor at the Open University of Israel, said he did not anticipate any major rethinking of the lone soldier project despite its problems.
“There is definitely a big interest on the part of Diaspora Jewry — especially in the United States – in keeping it going as part of the greater Zionist project,” he said.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Saturday that close to 3,500 lone soldiers without immediate family in the occupied territories are serving in the Israeli army.
About 1,200 of them come from North America, a similar number from the former Soviet Union and the remainder from other countries.
Foreigners make up a minor percent of Israeli army personnel, but the suicide rate is high among them, according to the report.
"Although soldiers whose parents do not live in Israel comprise only 2 percent of all recruits to the IDF (the Israeli army), they accounted for a disproportionately high share of military suicides in the past year," it said.
In 2018, the number of overall suicides in the Israeli army dropped by nearly half to nine, compared with the previous year. However among those nine suicides, two were lone soldiers.
In the first six months of 2019, there were another two self-murders by lone soldiers, with a third death under investigation as a possible suicide.
Last week, Major General Moti Almoz, head of the Israeli army's manpower directorate, sent out a letter to all senior commanders with the following subject headline, “Preventing suicide in the IDF,” including a part referring specifically to lone soldiers.
A Haaretz investigation revealed failings in the lone soldier program, adding that the program continues to be nurtured and encouraged because so many fundraising organizations and regime-funded initiatives have a vested interest in keeping it going.
"By the time many of them join the army, it is often too late to address their problems. It shows that Israel does not undertake adequate background checks before putting these young men and women in harm’s way; that many of the young recruits do not sufficiently comprehend what military life in Israel entails; that large numbers lack the proficiency in Hebrew and familiarity with Israeli culture required for successful adaptation; and that many see the army as a form of escape from difficulties and challenges they face back home," it said.
A former high-ranking officer, who had close interaction with many of lone soldiers, said there are problems is the vetting system, noting, “The holes in the filter are way too big."
Arthur Lenk, ex-Israeli ambassador to South Africa and a former lone soldier himself, stressed that in addition to serious holes in the vetting system, foreign volunteers lack information about the army.
“The IDF is not the French Foreign Legion. We are not a volunteer army, nor need we be in 2019,” he said. “We draft lots of our own kids, and there’s no reason we should be taking in mercenaries.”
A., a former lone soldier from Canada, admitted that he had lied about his history of opioid abuse when he joined the Israeli army.
"They just asked if I took drugs in the past and I said that I hadn’t,” he said. “The army didn’t even ask if my parents knew I was enlisting, or try to contact them."
Shifra Shahar, CEO of A Warm Home for Every Soldier NGO, described Machal, a shorter volunteer service, as "totally irrelevant and unnecessary in this day and age."
“Most of them (lone soldiers) come here to escape problems back home. They can’t find work, they have no inclination to study, they’re the black sheep of their families.
Many come from broken homes. Some even have criminal records. And someone out there has somehow succeeded in convincing them or their parents that the Israeli army will straighten them out. Unfortunately, in most cases the army only aggravates whatever problems they already have," she said.
Yagil Levy, a political sociology and public policy professor at the Open University of Israel, said he did not anticipate any major rethinking of the lone soldier project despite its problems.
“There is definitely a big interest on the part of Diaspora Jewry — especially in the United States – in keeping it going as part of the greater Zionist project,” he said.
On 71st Great March of Return, 149 civilians injured as a result of the Israeli military’s continued use of excessive force against peaceful protests along the Gaza Strip’s eastern border; 66 children, 7 paramedics, including a female paramedic, were among those injured this Friday, 23 August 2019.
This week’s protest marked a spike in the number of civilian injuries especially ones caused by live bullets and shrapnel; as well as, targeting medical crews in an indication to the Israeli military’s escalated use of excessive force against protesters.
Seventy-seven civilians were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, and 6 civilians were deemed in a critical medical condition.
This escalation came despite that the Supreme National Authority of Great March of Return and Breaking issued instructions for civilians to maintain the peaceful nature of the protests and stay away from any areas open to soldiers and snipers and avoid friction in today’s protest, titled “Protests for al-Aqsa Mosque.”
This week also witnessed an increase in number of participants compared to last weeks, knowing that the organizers widely mobilized for the protests.
The protests lasted from 15:00 to 19:00, and involved activities such as speeches by political leaders and theatrical performances. Dozens of civilians protested at varied distances from the border fence across the Gaza Strip.
The protestors threw stones, fireworks and balloons at Israeli forces while the latter used excessive force in response.
To this date, PCHR documented 208 killings by Israel since the outbreak of the protests on 30 March 2018, including 44 children, 2 women, 9 persons with disabilities, 4 paramedics and 2 journalists. Additionally, 13,629 were wounded, including 2,801 children, 419 women, 230 paramedics and 210 journalists, noting that many had sustained multiple wounds on multiple occasions.
The following is a summary of Friday’s events along the Gaza Strip border:
Northern Gaza Strip: 3000 protesters participated in Abu Safiyah area protests, northeast of Jabalia. Speeches, theatrical performances and other segments were performed at the protest central encampment. Hundreds of protestors approached the border fence and threw stones at Israeli soldiers, who responded with live and rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at them.
As a result, 37 civilians injured, including 17 children and a paramedic; two of them had serious injuries: 27, including 12 children, were shot with live bullets and their shrapnel; 4 were hit with tear gas canisters, including 3 children; and 6, including 2 children, were hit with rubber bullets. The wounded paramedic, Na’im Bashir Mohammed Khader (32) was hit with a rubber bullet to the right arm.
The civilians, deemed critically wounded, are: Khaled Abed Rabboh (35), hit with a live bullet to the chest causing fracture in the chest and internal bleeding; and Ibrahim Farid Ibrahim Dawas (27) hit with a rubber bullet that penetrated the right shoulder and settled in the chest.
Gaza City: Around 8 -10 thousand of protestors took part in eastern Malakah area. Speeches, theatrical performances and other segments were performed at the protest central encampment. Dozens of protestors approached the fence at a 100 meters distance and raised the Palestinian flags, fired balloons, set tires on fire and threw stones with slingshots at Israeli soldiers. The soldiers fired live and rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at the protestors.
As a result, 17 were injured, including 3 children and a paramedic: 8 with live bullets, 8 with rubber bullets and 1 with a tear gas canister. The wounded paramedic, Mohammed Ismail Sa’ed Abu Qadous (32) was hit with a rubber bullet to his right foot.
Central Gaza: Hundreds of civilians, including women, children and families, took part in the eastern Bureij refugee camp protests; hundreds, including women and children, gathered adjacent to the border fence at a range varying between 2 – 70 meters. At approximately 17:10, some protestors fired balloons containing letters written in Hebrew in addition to Palestinian flags, others threw stones and sound bombs at Israeli soldiers with slingshots.
The Israeli soldiers, reinforced with 9 military SUVs, responded with live and rubber bullets in addition to teargas canisters at the protesters, wounding 28 civilians, including 11 children, 2 of whom were seriously injured.
Among those injured, 14 were shot with live bullets, 7 were hit with shot with rubber bullets and 7 were directly hit with tear gas canisters.
The wounded paramedic, Mohammed Abdul Qader Abu ‘Abdah (23), sustained minor wounds after being hit with a rubber bullet to the hand.
Those, who sustained serious injuries were identified as: Mohsen Sa’ed Mo’awaqd al-Jarbah (23) was hit with a live bullet to the jaw, and Mohammed Fathi Mohammed Abu Jari (15) was hit with a rubber bullet to the head.
Khan Younis: thousands participated in Khuza’ah protests. Tens approached the border fence and attempted to throw stones, and fireworks and raised Palestinian flags in addition to chanting national songs; few numbers of them approached the border fence and raised the Palestinian flags there.
Israeli forces fired live and rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at protesters, wounding 45 civilians, including 20 children and 2 paramedics:10 with live bullet and their shrapnel; 25 with rubber bullets; and 10 with tear gas canisters.
The wounded paramedics were identified as: Mustafa ‘Emad Yusuf al-Senwar (22), hit with a rubber bullet to the neck; and Sami Mousa Abu Mustafa (27) hit with a rubber bullet to the lower extremities.
Rafah: 2500 participated in the eastern Shokah protests, where folklore shows, and speeches were held. Dozens approached the border fence and threw stones. The Israeli soldiers used live and rubber bullets and teargas canisters against the protestors.
As a result, 24 civilians were injured, including 5 children and 2 paramedics including a female; 2 of the wounded civilians sustained serious wounds. It was documented that18 were hit with live bullets and their shrapnel, 2 were hit with rubber bullets and 2 were directly hit with tear gas canisters.
The wounded paramedics were identified as: Ibrahim Mazen Suleiman Abu Khatlah (19), was shot with a live bullet to the left leg, and Islam Sobhi Yusuf Abu Shawish (29) was hit with a rubber bullet to the head.
This week’s protest marked a spike in the number of civilian injuries especially ones caused by live bullets and shrapnel; as well as, targeting medical crews in an indication to the Israeli military’s escalated use of excessive force against protesters.
Seventy-seven civilians were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, and 6 civilians were deemed in a critical medical condition.
This escalation came despite that the Supreme National Authority of Great March of Return and Breaking issued instructions for civilians to maintain the peaceful nature of the protests and stay away from any areas open to soldiers and snipers and avoid friction in today’s protest, titled “Protests for al-Aqsa Mosque.”
This week also witnessed an increase in number of participants compared to last weeks, knowing that the organizers widely mobilized for the protests.
The protests lasted from 15:00 to 19:00, and involved activities such as speeches by political leaders and theatrical performances. Dozens of civilians protested at varied distances from the border fence across the Gaza Strip.
The protestors threw stones, fireworks and balloons at Israeli forces while the latter used excessive force in response.
To this date, PCHR documented 208 killings by Israel since the outbreak of the protests on 30 March 2018, including 44 children, 2 women, 9 persons with disabilities, 4 paramedics and 2 journalists. Additionally, 13,629 were wounded, including 2,801 children, 419 women, 230 paramedics and 210 journalists, noting that many had sustained multiple wounds on multiple occasions.
The following is a summary of Friday’s events along the Gaza Strip border:
Northern Gaza Strip: 3000 protesters participated in Abu Safiyah area protests, northeast of Jabalia. Speeches, theatrical performances and other segments were performed at the protest central encampment. Hundreds of protestors approached the border fence and threw stones at Israeli soldiers, who responded with live and rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at them.
As a result, 37 civilians injured, including 17 children and a paramedic; two of them had serious injuries: 27, including 12 children, were shot with live bullets and their shrapnel; 4 were hit with tear gas canisters, including 3 children; and 6, including 2 children, were hit with rubber bullets. The wounded paramedic, Na’im Bashir Mohammed Khader (32) was hit with a rubber bullet to the right arm.
The civilians, deemed critically wounded, are: Khaled Abed Rabboh (35), hit with a live bullet to the chest causing fracture in the chest and internal bleeding; and Ibrahim Farid Ibrahim Dawas (27) hit with a rubber bullet that penetrated the right shoulder and settled in the chest.
Gaza City: Around 8 -10 thousand of protestors took part in eastern Malakah area. Speeches, theatrical performances and other segments were performed at the protest central encampment. Dozens of protestors approached the fence at a 100 meters distance and raised the Palestinian flags, fired balloons, set tires on fire and threw stones with slingshots at Israeli soldiers. The soldiers fired live and rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at the protestors.
As a result, 17 were injured, including 3 children and a paramedic: 8 with live bullets, 8 with rubber bullets and 1 with a tear gas canister. The wounded paramedic, Mohammed Ismail Sa’ed Abu Qadous (32) was hit with a rubber bullet to his right foot.
Central Gaza: Hundreds of civilians, including women, children and families, took part in the eastern Bureij refugee camp protests; hundreds, including women and children, gathered adjacent to the border fence at a range varying between 2 – 70 meters. At approximately 17:10, some protestors fired balloons containing letters written in Hebrew in addition to Palestinian flags, others threw stones and sound bombs at Israeli soldiers with slingshots.
The Israeli soldiers, reinforced with 9 military SUVs, responded with live and rubber bullets in addition to teargas canisters at the protesters, wounding 28 civilians, including 11 children, 2 of whom were seriously injured.
Among those injured, 14 were shot with live bullets, 7 were hit with shot with rubber bullets and 7 were directly hit with tear gas canisters.
The wounded paramedic, Mohammed Abdul Qader Abu ‘Abdah (23), sustained minor wounds after being hit with a rubber bullet to the hand.
Those, who sustained serious injuries were identified as: Mohsen Sa’ed Mo’awaqd al-Jarbah (23) was hit with a live bullet to the jaw, and Mohammed Fathi Mohammed Abu Jari (15) was hit with a rubber bullet to the head.
Khan Younis: thousands participated in Khuza’ah protests. Tens approached the border fence and attempted to throw stones, and fireworks and raised Palestinian flags in addition to chanting national songs; few numbers of them approached the border fence and raised the Palestinian flags there.
Israeli forces fired live and rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at protesters, wounding 45 civilians, including 20 children and 2 paramedics:10 with live bullet and their shrapnel; 25 with rubber bullets; and 10 with tear gas canisters.
The wounded paramedics were identified as: Mustafa ‘Emad Yusuf al-Senwar (22), hit with a rubber bullet to the neck; and Sami Mousa Abu Mustafa (27) hit with a rubber bullet to the lower extremities.
Rafah: 2500 participated in the eastern Shokah protests, where folklore shows, and speeches were held. Dozens approached the border fence and threw stones. The Israeli soldiers used live and rubber bullets and teargas canisters against the protestors.
As a result, 24 civilians were injured, including 5 children and 2 paramedics including a female; 2 of the wounded civilians sustained serious wounds. It was documented that18 were hit with live bullets and their shrapnel, 2 were hit with rubber bullets and 2 were directly hit with tear gas canisters.
The wounded paramedics were identified as: Ibrahim Mazen Suleiman Abu Khatlah (19), was shot with a live bullet to the left leg, and Islam Sobhi Yusuf Abu Shawish (29) was hit with a rubber bullet to the head.
16 aug 2019
On the 70th Great March of Return, 66 Palestinian civilians were injured due to the Israeli military’s continued use of excessive force against peaceful protests along the Gaza Strip’s eastern border.
At least 20 children, 3 women and a volunteer paramedic were among those injured this Friday, 16 August 2019. Twenty-nine civilians were shot with live bullets; 2 of them were deemed in a critical medical condition.
It should be noted there were no protests last Friday in observance of the Muslim holiday “Eid al-Adha”. Today’s protest, which lasted from 16:00 to 19:00, was titled “Palestinian Youth’s Friday” and involved activities such as speeches by political leaders and theatrical performances. Dozens of civilians protested at varied distances from the border fence across the Gaza Strip and threw stones at Israeli force who used excessive force against them.
To this date, PCHR documented 208 killings by Israel since the outbreak of the protests on 30 March 2018, including 44 children, 2 women, 9 persons with disabilities, 4 paramedics, and 2 journalists. Additionally, 13,463 were wounded, including 2,797 children, 415 women, 222 paramedics and 210 journalists, noting that many had sustained multiple wounds on multiple occasions.
Among those wounded, PCHR documented cases where 196 persons have become with disabilities, including 28 children and 5 women: 149 amputees; 21 paralyzed, 26 blind or deaf and 9 sexually disabled.
The following is a summary of today’s incidents along the Gaza Strip border:
Northern Gaza Strip: Israeli forces’ attacks against protesters participated in Abu Safiyah area protests, northeast of Jabalia, resulted in the injury of 24 civilians, including 10 children and a woman. Among those wounded, 15 were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, 5 with rubber bullets and 4 were directly hit with tear gas canisters, noting that they were present 100-250 meters away from the border fence.
Gaza City: Protests set off Malakah area, east of al-Zaytoun neighborhood in eastern Gaza City. Speeches, theatrical performances and other segments were performed at the protest central encampment. Dozens of protestors approached the fence at a 100 meters distance and threw stones with slingshots at Israeli soldiers, who responded with live ammunition and tear gas canisters. As a result, 6 protestors, including a child and a woman, were wounded: 5 were shot with rubber bullets and one was directly hit with a tear gas canister.
Central Gaza Strip: at approximately 15:30, hundreds of civilians, including women, children and families, took part in the eastern Bureij refugee camp protests; hundreds, including women and children, gathered adjacent to the border fence at a range varying between 3 – 300 meters while tens approached the fence at a range varying between 2 – 70 meters. Some protestors attempted to throw stones at Israeli soldiers with slingshots.
The Israeli soldiers, reinforced with 9 military SUVs, responded with live and rubber bullets in addition to teargas canisters at the protesters, wounding 10 civilians, including a child. Among those injured, 5 were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, 4 with rubber bullets and one was directly hit with teargas canisters. ‘Arabi Maher ‘Abed al-Hameed Abu Hasnah (29) sustained serious wounds after being shot with a live bullet in his testicles.
Khan Younis: Israeli forces’ attacks against protestors participating in Khuza’a protests resulted in the injury of 9 civilians, including 2 children and a woman. Among those injured: 3 were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, 2 with rubber bullets and 4 were directly hit with tear gas canisters. Sabreen Isma’il Ibrahim al-Najjar (42) was hit with a rubber bullet in her head and sustained minor wounds.
Rafah: Hundreds participated in the eastern Shokah protests, where no activities were reported due to the power outage. Dozens approached the border fence and threw stones. The Israeli soldiers used live and rubber bullets and teargas canisters against the protestors. video
As a result, 17 civilians were injured, including 6 children and a volunteer paramedic: 6 were shot with live bullets, 4 shot with rubber bullets and 7 were directly hit with tear gas canisters. The volunteer paramedic Nour ‘Atah Mohamed Saleem (16) was hit with a rubber bullet in her abdomen and sustained minor wounds. Additionally, Basem Raied Barakat (24) was hit with a live bullet in his right thigh; his condition was deemed critical.
Public Document
**************************************
Follow PCHR on Facebook and Twitter
For more information, please call PCHR office in Gaza, Gaza Strip, on +972 8 2824776 – 2825893
Gaza- Jamal ‘Abdel Nasser “al-Thalathini” Street – Al-Roya Building- Floor 12 , El Remal, PO Box 1328 Gaza, Gaza Strip. E-mail: pchr@pchrgaza.org, Webpage http://www.pchrgaza.org
At least 20 children, 3 women and a volunteer paramedic were among those injured this Friday, 16 August 2019. Twenty-nine civilians were shot with live bullets; 2 of them were deemed in a critical medical condition.
It should be noted there were no protests last Friday in observance of the Muslim holiday “Eid al-Adha”. Today’s protest, which lasted from 16:00 to 19:00, was titled “Palestinian Youth’s Friday” and involved activities such as speeches by political leaders and theatrical performances. Dozens of civilians protested at varied distances from the border fence across the Gaza Strip and threw stones at Israeli force who used excessive force against them.
To this date, PCHR documented 208 killings by Israel since the outbreak of the protests on 30 March 2018, including 44 children, 2 women, 9 persons with disabilities, 4 paramedics, and 2 journalists. Additionally, 13,463 were wounded, including 2,797 children, 415 women, 222 paramedics and 210 journalists, noting that many had sustained multiple wounds on multiple occasions.
Among those wounded, PCHR documented cases where 196 persons have become with disabilities, including 28 children and 5 women: 149 amputees; 21 paralyzed, 26 blind or deaf and 9 sexually disabled.
The following is a summary of today’s incidents along the Gaza Strip border:
Northern Gaza Strip: Israeli forces’ attacks against protesters participated in Abu Safiyah area protests, northeast of Jabalia, resulted in the injury of 24 civilians, including 10 children and a woman. Among those wounded, 15 were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, 5 with rubber bullets and 4 were directly hit with tear gas canisters, noting that they were present 100-250 meters away from the border fence.
Gaza City: Protests set off Malakah area, east of al-Zaytoun neighborhood in eastern Gaza City. Speeches, theatrical performances and other segments were performed at the protest central encampment. Dozens of protestors approached the fence at a 100 meters distance and threw stones with slingshots at Israeli soldiers, who responded with live ammunition and tear gas canisters. As a result, 6 protestors, including a child and a woman, were wounded: 5 were shot with rubber bullets and one was directly hit with a tear gas canister.
Central Gaza Strip: at approximately 15:30, hundreds of civilians, including women, children and families, took part in the eastern Bureij refugee camp protests; hundreds, including women and children, gathered adjacent to the border fence at a range varying between 3 – 300 meters while tens approached the fence at a range varying between 2 – 70 meters. Some protestors attempted to throw stones at Israeli soldiers with slingshots.
The Israeli soldiers, reinforced with 9 military SUVs, responded with live and rubber bullets in addition to teargas canisters at the protesters, wounding 10 civilians, including a child. Among those injured, 5 were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, 4 with rubber bullets and one was directly hit with teargas canisters. ‘Arabi Maher ‘Abed al-Hameed Abu Hasnah (29) sustained serious wounds after being shot with a live bullet in his testicles.
Khan Younis: Israeli forces’ attacks against protestors participating in Khuza’a protests resulted in the injury of 9 civilians, including 2 children and a woman. Among those injured: 3 were shot with live bullets and shrapnel, 2 with rubber bullets and 4 were directly hit with tear gas canisters. Sabreen Isma’il Ibrahim al-Najjar (42) was hit with a rubber bullet in her head and sustained minor wounds.
Rafah: Hundreds participated in the eastern Shokah protests, where no activities were reported due to the power outage. Dozens approached the border fence and threw stones. The Israeli soldiers used live and rubber bullets and teargas canisters against the protestors. video
As a result, 17 civilians were injured, including 6 children and a volunteer paramedic: 6 were shot with live bullets, 4 shot with rubber bullets and 7 were directly hit with tear gas canisters. The volunteer paramedic Nour ‘Atah Mohamed Saleem (16) was hit with a rubber bullet in her abdomen and sustained minor wounds. Additionally, Basem Raied Barakat (24) was hit with a live bullet in his right thigh; his condition was deemed critical.
Public Document
**************************************
Follow PCHR on Facebook and Twitter
For more information, please call PCHR office in Gaza, Gaza Strip, on +972 8 2824776 – 2825893
Gaza- Jamal ‘Abdel Nasser “al-Thalathini” Street – Al-Roya Building- Floor 12 , El Remal, PO Box 1328 Gaza, Gaza Strip. E-mail: pchr@pchrgaza.org, Webpage http://www.pchrgaza.org
10 aug 2019
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor and HUMENA for Human Rights and Civil Participation said in a statement today that the systematic destruction of Palestinian homes and property in occupied East Jerusalem amount to ethnic cleansing and is approved by the US administration, which legalized these crimes by declaring Jerusalem the capital of Israel amid international silence that amounts to complicity.
In a report that monitored human rights violations in Jerusalem during July 2019, Euro-Med and HUMENA said that Israeli authorities have stepped up their arbitrary violations against Palestinians living in occupied East Jerusalem.
Last month witnessed the largest mass destruction in a single day since 1967 as Israeli authorities demolished 11 residential buildings (72 apartments) in a crime amounting to ethnic cleansing.
The report, entitled "Wadi al-Hummus in Jerusalem; facing Israeli ethnic cleansing," said that the destruction of Palestinian buildings resulted in the displacement of 22 people, including 14 children, and deprived more than 70 families from their apartments, most of which were still under construction.
The report added that since the beginning of 2019, Israeli authorities destroyed more than 59 houses in East Jerusalem until mid-2019, while 2018 witnessed 215 demolitions.
In addition to Wadi al- Hummus neighborhood, Israeli occupation forces destroyed a car park, a garage, a warehouse, a car wash and five shops in the last month.
Euro-Med and HUMENA monitored five complex violations as part of crimes of settlement expansion and Judaization of the occupied city, most notably the seizure of a Palestinian house and a building evacuation by force in order to hand both over to Israeli settlers. Moreover, at the same time of the demolition of Palestinian homes, Israeli occupation authorities approved the establishment of 216 new housing units in the Gilo settlement.
Several parties, including the Israeli government, municipal authorities of Jerusalem or judicial authorities, collude to carry out systematic demolitions aimed to forcefully displace Palestinians, which falls within the occupation's efforts to change the demographic reality in the occupied city.
This systematic policy pursued by Israel takes place without any regards to the principles of international law, which reflects Israel’s pursuit of demographic change in East Jerusalem by employing all its government, political and security arms, said the two rights organization.
On the other hand, the two organizations documented two incidents that signify the Israeli occupation's disregard for Palestinian childhood; such as the summoning of 4-year-old Mohammed Rabi Illian, and the 6-year-old Qais Firas Obeid, under the pretext of throwing stones at their forces.
The report also documented 43 Israeli raids on different towns and neighborhoods in occupied East Jerusalem; which entailed the arrest of 102 civilians, including 19 children, a woman, a girl and a female journalist.
For instance, in five raids that included shooting and direct assault in the neighborhoods of occupied East Jerusalem, Israeli forces injured seven civilians, including a child, a journalist and an elderly.
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor and HUMENA called on the international community to break their silence and undertake serious actions to re-tribute the crimes of the occupation and its serious violations of the international law and the international humanitarian law.
The report warned that the silence of the international community after said home demolitions in Wadi al-Hummus – which amounts to a war crime of ethnic cleansing – would essentially encourage the Israeli occupation to continue and escalate the policy of house demolitions and forceful displacement of Palestinians in East Jerusalem.
The Israeli policy of handing notifications of imminent demolition to Palestinians in the city continues, especially amidst rumors of Israeli plans to destroy more than 25 Palestinian houses under the pretext of lacking permits, which Israel rarely grants to any Palestinian properties in the city.
The report also called on the international community to assume its responsibilities towards protecting East Jerusalem and its Palestinian population as inhabitants of an occupied territory, in accordance with the resolutions of the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly, particularly resolution 181.
The two organizations stressed the need for ending the policy of racial discrimination between Palestinians and Israelis through advancing necessary investigations, prosecution and trial procedures to put an end to such violations. They finally called on international organizations concerned with childhood to urgently intervene to protect Palestinian children in East Jerusalem from Israeli arbitrary arrests, summons and house arrests.
Full Report [pdf]
In a report that monitored human rights violations in Jerusalem during July 2019, Euro-Med and HUMENA said that Israeli authorities have stepped up their arbitrary violations against Palestinians living in occupied East Jerusalem.
Last month witnessed the largest mass destruction in a single day since 1967 as Israeli authorities demolished 11 residential buildings (72 apartments) in a crime amounting to ethnic cleansing.
The report, entitled "Wadi al-Hummus in Jerusalem; facing Israeli ethnic cleansing," said that the destruction of Palestinian buildings resulted in the displacement of 22 people, including 14 children, and deprived more than 70 families from their apartments, most of which were still under construction.
The report added that since the beginning of 2019, Israeli authorities destroyed more than 59 houses in East Jerusalem until mid-2019, while 2018 witnessed 215 demolitions.
In addition to Wadi al- Hummus neighborhood, Israeli occupation forces destroyed a car park, a garage, a warehouse, a car wash and five shops in the last month.
Euro-Med and HUMENA monitored five complex violations as part of crimes of settlement expansion and Judaization of the occupied city, most notably the seizure of a Palestinian house and a building evacuation by force in order to hand both over to Israeli settlers. Moreover, at the same time of the demolition of Palestinian homes, Israeli occupation authorities approved the establishment of 216 new housing units in the Gilo settlement.
Several parties, including the Israeli government, municipal authorities of Jerusalem or judicial authorities, collude to carry out systematic demolitions aimed to forcefully displace Palestinians, which falls within the occupation's efforts to change the demographic reality in the occupied city.
This systematic policy pursued by Israel takes place without any regards to the principles of international law, which reflects Israel’s pursuit of demographic change in East Jerusalem by employing all its government, political and security arms, said the two rights organization.
On the other hand, the two organizations documented two incidents that signify the Israeli occupation's disregard for Palestinian childhood; such as the summoning of 4-year-old Mohammed Rabi Illian, and the 6-year-old Qais Firas Obeid, under the pretext of throwing stones at their forces.
The report also documented 43 Israeli raids on different towns and neighborhoods in occupied East Jerusalem; which entailed the arrest of 102 civilians, including 19 children, a woman, a girl and a female journalist.
For instance, in five raids that included shooting and direct assault in the neighborhoods of occupied East Jerusalem, Israeli forces injured seven civilians, including a child, a journalist and an elderly.
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor and HUMENA called on the international community to break their silence and undertake serious actions to re-tribute the crimes of the occupation and its serious violations of the international law and the international humanitarian law.
The report warned that the silence of the international community after said home demolitions in Wadi al-Hummus – which amounts to a war crime of ethnic cleansing – would essentially encourage the Israeli occupation to continue and escalate the policy of house demolitions and forceful displacement of Palestinians in East Jerusalem.
The Israeli policy of handing notifications of imminent demolition to Palestinians in the city continues, especially amidst rumors of Israeli plans to destroy more than 25 Palestinian houses under the pretext of lacking permits, which Israel rarely grants to any Palestinian properties in the city.
The report also called on the international community to assume its responsibilities towards protecting East Jerusalem and its Palestinian population as inhabitants of an occupied territory, in accordance with the resolutions of the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly, particularly resolution 181.
The two organizations stressed the need for ending the policy of racial discrimination between Palestinians and Israelis through advancing necessary investigations, prosecution and trial procedures to put an end to such violations. They finally called on international organizations concerned with childhood to urgently intervene to protect Palestinian children in East Jerusalem from Israeli arbitrary arrests, summons and house arrests.
Full Report [pdf]
UN human rights experts have called on the international community to honor their obligation to protect the Palestinian people’s rights and to take decisive action to prevent Israel’s planned construction of a record number of settler homes in its settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The experts refer in their comments to Israel’s recent approval of around 2,400 housing units and public infrastructure in 21 settlements and outposts in the West Bank.
“These settlement housing units are clearly meant to solidify the Israeli claim of sovereignty over the West Bank,” Leilani Farha, the special rapporteur for the right to housing, and Michael Lynk, the special rapporteur for human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, said in a statement.
“Building civilian settlements in occupied territory is illegal, as is the annexation of territory. The international community has spoken out against the Israeli settlements, but it has not imposed effective consequences for the country’s defiance of international law.”
“Israel’s actions indicate it plans to remain permanently and advance a claim of sovereignty,” the human rights experts warned further. “The Israeli prime minister made this clear when he said recently that: ‘No settlement and no settlers will ever be uprooted.’ Should we not take him at his word that Israel has no intention of complying with international law?”
“Criticism without consequences is hollow. The international community has a wide menu of commonly-used countermeasures to push recalcitrant states into compliance with their international duties. If the international community is serious about its support for Palestinian self-determination and its opposition to Israeli settlements then, surely, the time has come for meaningful action.”
Occupying powers are forbidden under the Fourth Geneva Convention from building civilian settlements in occupied territory. The Rome Statute has defined the transfer, directly or indirectly, by the Occupying Power of parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies, or the deportation or transfer of all or parts of the population of the occupied territory within or outside this territory, as a war crime. The United Nations Security Council, in Resolution 2334 (23 December 2016), stated that the Israeli settlements constitute “a flagrant violation under international law”.
The experts refer in their comments to Israel’s recent approval of around 2,400 housing units and public infrastructure in 21 settlements and outposts in the West Bank.
“These settlement housing units are clearly meant to solidify the Israeli claim of sovereignty over the West Bank,” Leilani Farha, the special rapporteur for the right to housing, and Michael Lynk, the special rapporteur for human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, said in a statement.
“Building civilian settlements in occupied territory is illegal, as is the annexation of territory. The international community has spoken out against the Israeli settlements, but it has not imposed effective consequences for the country’s defiance of international law.”
“Israel’s actions indicate it plans to remain permanently and advance a claim of sovereignty,” the human rights experts warned further. “The Israeli prime minister made this clear when he said recently that: ‘No settlement and no settlers will ever be uprooted.’ Should we not take him at his word that Israel has no intention of complying with international law?”
“Criticism without consequences is hollow. The international community has a wide menu of commonly-used countermeasures to push recalcitrant states into compliance with their international duties. If the international community is serious about its support for Palestinian self-determination and its opposition to Israeli settlements then, surely, the time has come for meaningful action.”
Occupying powers are forbidden under the Fourth Geneva Convention from building civilian settlements in occupied territory. The Rome Statute has defined the transfer, directly or indirectly, by the Occupying Power of parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies, or the deportation or transfer of all or parts of the population of the occupied territory within or outside this territory, as a war crime. The United Nations Security Council, in Resolution 2334 (23 December 2016), stated that the Israeli settlements constitute “a flagrant violation under international law”.
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