16 mar 2013
Euro-mid welcomes putting key Palestinian issues on HRC's agenda
The Euro-mid observer for human rights welcomed the UN human rights council's intention to table key issues related to the Palestinian affairs during its 22nd round of meetings currently taking place in Geneva.
In a press release on Saturday, the Euro-mid observer said that the UN human rights council would table five draft resolutions pertaining to the human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel's violations against the Palestinians, especially with regard to the prisoners, the settlement activities and Goldstone report.
Amani Sinwar, the regional director of the observer, stated that the human rights groups and the Palestinian people look forward to the day of the vote on these resolutions and to see real international will ending Israel's injustice and suppression against the Palestinians.
In a press release on Saturday, the Euro-mid observer said that the UN human rights council would table five draft resolutions pertaining to the human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel's violations against the Palestinians, especially with regard to the prisoners, the settlement activities and Goldstone report.
Amani Sinwar, the regional director of the observer, stated that the human rights groups and the Palestinian people look forward to the day of the vote on these resolutions and to see real international will ending Israel's injustice and suppression against the Palestinians.
OCHA: Israel killed 2 Palestinians and wounded 130 others within a week
A UN report showed that two Palestinians were killed after being shot by the Israeli occupation soldiers, while 132 others were reported injured, during the past week. The report issued by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Saturday revealed that the total number of Palestinians killed by the Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank had risen to six victims since the beginning of 2013.
According to OCHA's report, "the largest demonstrations this week took place in Al Aqsa Mosque compound and in other areas in the old city of Jerusalem following the Friday prayers, at Qalandiya (Jerusalem) and Beituniya (Ramallah) checkpoints, in the old city of Hebron, and in ‘Anata and Shu’fat refugee camp in East Jerusalem".
Fourteen Palestinians were injured in two settler violence-related incidents. The majority were injured by Israeli forces which were intervening in clashes between Palestinians and settlers. In addition, settlers vandalized dozens of Palestinian-owned trees over the course of the week.
In the Gaza Strip, a group of Palestinian civilians reportedly approached the restricted area near the fence and threw stones at Israeli forces on 8 March, the UN report added.
"The soldiers responded by firing rubber-coated metal bullets, injuring one Palestinian. In addition, Israeli forces detained a 16-year-old Palestinian boy while he was reportedly attempting to cross the fence into Israel without a permit."
OCHA also stated that on 11 March, two workers were injured when a fuel tank exploded in a tunnel under the Gaza-Egypt border, and that since the beginning of 2013, eight workers have died and eight others have been injured in tunnel-related incidents.
According to OCHA's report, "the largest demonstrations this week took place in Al Aqsa Mosque compound and in other areas in the old city of Jerusalem following the Friday prayers, at Qalandiya (Jerusalem) and Beituniya (Ramallah) checkpoints, in the old city of Hebron, and in ‘Anata and Shu’fat refugee camp in East Jerusalem".
Fourteen Palestinians were injured in two settler violence-related incidents. The majority were injured by Israeli forces which were intervening in clashes between Palestinians and settlers. In addition, settlers vandalized dozens of Palestinian-owned trees over the course of the week.
In the Gaza Strip, a group of Palestinian civilians reportedly approached the restricted area near the fence and threw stones at Israeli forces on 8 March, the UN report added.
"The soldiers responded by firing rubber-coated metal bullets, injuring one Palestinian. In addition, Israeli forces detained a 16-year-old Palestinian boy while he was reportedly attempting to cross the fence into Israel without a permit."
OCHA also stated that on 11 March, two workers were injured when a fuel tank exploded in a tunnel under the Gaza-Egypt border, and that since the beginning of 2013, eight workers have died and eight others have been injured in tunnel-related incidents.
15 mar 2013
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PCHR Weekly Report: 2 killed, 5 wounded by Israeli forces this week
Jerusalem – an Israeli soldier attacks a young man during clashes in al-Aqsa Mosque
Israeli Forces Continue Systematic Attacks against Palestinian Civilians and Property in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) In an excessive use of lethal force, the Israeli forces killed a Palestinian civilian and wounded 5 others, including 3 children, in Hebron. A Palestinian civilian died from previous wounds in the West Bank. The Israeli forces continued to use excessive force against peaceful protests in the West Bank. 3 Palestinian civilians, including a photojournalist, were wounded in protests against the annexation wall and settlement activities. Dozens of Palestinian, including a 5-year-old child, suffered from tear gas inhalation and sustained bruises in solidarity demonstrations supporting the Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli jails. |
The Israeli forces continued to open fire at the Palestinian civilians in the border area of the Gaza Strip
A Palestinian civilian was wounded in the northern Gaza Strip.
The Israeli forces conducted 54 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank and 4 limited ones in the Gaza Strip.
31 Palestinian civilians, including 2 children, were arrested in the West Bank, and a child was arrested in the central Gaza Strip when he attempted to cross the border into Israel.
Israel has continued to impose a total closure on the oPt and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world.
The Israeli forces established dozens of checkpoints in the West Bank.
At least 2 Palestinian civilians were arrested at checkpoints.
The Israeli forces have continued settlement activities in the West Bank, and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property.
Israeli settlers attacked 2 Palestinian shepherds and killed 8 sheep northeast of Ramallah..
Notices were issued to evacuate and stop construction works in several facilities and water wells belonging to some Palestinians in Hebron.
295 olive trees were damaged in Ramallah and Nablus.
A Palestinian civilian was wounded in the northern Gaza Strip.
The Israeli forces conducted 54 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank and 4 limited ones in the Gaza Strip.
31 Palestinian civilians, including 2 children, were arrested in the West Bank, and a child was arrested in the central Gaza Strip when he attempted to cross the border into Israel.
Israel has continued to impose a total closure on the oPt and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world.
The Israeli forces established dozens of checkpoints in the West Bank.
At least 2 Palestinian civilians were arrested at checkpoints.
The Israeli forces have continued settlement activities in the West Bank, and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property.
Israeli settlers attacked 2 Palestinian shepherds and killed 8 sheep northeast of Ramallah..
Notices were issued to evacuate and stop construction works in several facilities and water wells belonging to some Palestinians in Hebron.
295 olive trees were damaged in Ramallah and Nablus.
11 mar 2013
Experts probe reach of toxins from West Bank landfill
"They drank from the dark water, and then they died," a Bedouin shepherd boy says of the putrid black liquid oozing from the ground.
Half a mile to the east, insects are devouring the carcasses of two animals - one sheep and a goat - rotting in a dry riverbed.
From the level of decomposition, it's clear they died recently. What isn't so clear is how, but a new environmental survey is turning up clues about toxins in the air and water here.
The area, Wadi Abu Hindi, is downstream from the busiest commercial waste site in the occupied West Bank, in a valley overshadowed on both sides by Israeli settlements.
The "dark water" is leachate, liquid produced by compression. Here, it refers to runoff from hundreds of thousands of tons of garbage crammed into a hilltop east of Jerusalem. Rainfall washes it down the less stable eastern slope, where it meets freshwater streams.
"This is very dangerous," says Nader al-Khateeb, a sanitation expert and former chief engineer for the Bethlehem water authority, after reviewing photographs of the site for Ma'an. "It is highly, highly toxic. It could easily percolate into the groundwater," al-Khateeb says.
He and other experts believe the liquid's presence in the valley reflects one of several engineering failures at the Abu Dis landfill, an Israeli dump site that processes trash from both sides of the Green Line.
So great is the threat that in 2011, Israeli authorities declared the facility unsalvageable and ordered it shuttered by 2013. Yet it remains a hive of activity today, blasting untreated methane into the air and runoff into the water of the valley below.
Amer Marei, a hydrogeologist at Al-Quds University, is leading the first comprehensive study on the environmental effects of these toxins on nearby residential areas.
Initial findings show carcinogen levels in both the water and the air that exceed World Health Organization standards and reach populations never previously thought to be at risk.
"If I am categorizing the problem, the biggest is air pollution," Marei said Sunday during a visit to the site.
"Toxic gases emitted in the atmosphere, known as TVOCs, reach a maximum of 440 micrograms per cubic meter (of air)" in samples from Abu Dis, al-Ezariya and al-Sawahira al-Sharqiya. "At a rate of 1 microgram ... six per million would be expected to contract leukemia. So, multiply that by 440."
The findings are new, and they have not been replicated outside Marei's lab. But he says the team's soil, air and water samples are being preserved for independent analysis, which he welcomes.
And experts uninvolved in the research say the findings fit with the facility's history of mismanagement by a company based in Maale Adumim settlement. The site was not prepared to host a landfill when construction began decades ago, and it lacks basic safeguards like concrete and asphalt.
Officials at Israel's environmental protection ministry told Ma'an this week that they intend to eventually shut down the facility, citing similar safety and health concerns.
"The dump in Abu Dis causes serious environmental harm," according to a September 2012 assessment by the ministry made available Thursday in an email.
The statement acknowledged that the facility's infrastructure "is not designed to prevent land pollution, and there are concerns that the groundwater might be polluted."
But it offered no firm timetable for closing it down, and a spokesman was unable to produce one. He referred inquiries to Israel's Jerusalem municipality, which was told to stop using the site by this month. A spokeswoman declined to confirm if the municipality was cooperating.
Marei is hesitant to discuss the conflict with Israel, but he finds the lack of urgency troubling from an environmental perspective.
"My question for them is would they allow such a site to be built inside Israel? And would they let the situation that we see happening here happen there? I don't think they would."
Nader al-Khateeb is the director and co-founder of a Palestinian environmental group that promotes coexistence with Israel, but he too has little patience for the internal political wrangling that permits the facility to continue operating when all involved are aware of the risks.
"Things get lost between who's responsible and who's not responsible. In the end, who pays the price? It is the Palestinian residents who are the victims," he says.
"The occupier should not use the occupied's land as a dumping site for their garbage."
Even though the site is in Area C, the 60 percent of the West Bank under full control of the Israeli military, both experts faulted the PA for its lack of attention to the crisis.
"The Palestinian environmental protection agency needs to take its responsibility in bringing the issue of this problem to the public and to the international community," says Marei.
Al-Khateeb agrees: "We are not doing enough within our rights under international law and taking such cases to international courts to stop such practices."
A spokesman for the Palestinian environmental protection agency did not return calls but a day after Ma'an TV raised the issue, health ministry vehicles were seen driving into Wadi Abu Hindi.
Like all visitors, they were greeted first by an uncovered reservoir the size of a swimming pool and filled with liquid collected from the landfill's eastern side.
During rainstorms, this tank sometimes overflows into a riverbed and toward the Bedouin encampment. With enough rain, it can reach streams leading to the Jordan River.
Some residents of the Bedouin area find employment with the landfill, and they aren't eager to talk on the record about the site's environmental footprint.
Away from the cameras, though, one father expressed fears about the polluted stream's effects on the community, particularly on the health of his young children.
"When it rains, it becomes like a blood river," he said, pointing toward the valley.
George Hale. Mirna al-Atrash and May Issa contributed reporting.
Half a mile to the east, insects are devouring the carcasses of two animals - one sheep and a goat - rotting in a dry riverbed.
From the level of decomposition, it's clear they died recently. What isn't so clear is how, but a new environmental survey is turning up clues about toxins in the air and water here.
The area, Wadi Abu Hindi, is downstream from the busiest commercial waste site in the occupied West Bank, in a valley overshadowed on both sides by Israeli settlements.
The "dark water" is leachate, liquid produced by compression. Here, it refers to runoff from hundreds of thousands of tons of garbage crammed into a hilltop east of Jerusalem. Rainfall washes it down the less stable eastern slope, where it meets freshwater streams.
"This is very dangerous," says Nader al-Khateeb, a sanitation expert and former chief engineer for the Bethlehem water authority, after reviewing photographs of the site for Ma'an. "It is highly, highly toxic. It could easily percolate into the groundwater," al-Khateeb says.
He and other experts believe the liquid's presence in the valley reflects one of several engineering failures at the Abu Dis landfill, an Israeli dump site that processes trash from both sides of the Green Line.
So great is the threat that in 2011, Israeli authorities declared the facility unsalvageable and ordered it shuttered by 2013. Yet it remains a hive of activity today, blasting untreated methane into the air and runoff into the water of the valley below.
Amer Marei, a hydrogeologist at Al-Quds University, is leading the first comprehensive study on the environmental effects of these toxins on nearby residential areas.
Initial findings show carcinogen levels in both the water and the air that exceed World Health Organization standards and reach populations never previously thought to be at risk.
"If I am categorizing the problem, the biggest is air pollution," Marei said Sunday during a visit to the site.
"Toxic gases emitted in the atmosphere, known as TVOCs, reach a maximum of 440 micrograms per cubic meter (of air)" in samples from Abu Dis, al-Ezariya and al-Sawahira al-Sharqiya. "At a rate of 1 microgram ... six per million would be expected to contract leukemia. So, multiply that by 440."
The findings are new, and they have not been replicated outside Marei's lab. But he says the team's soil, air and water samples are being preserved for independent analysis, which he welcomes.
And experts uninvolved in the research say the findings fit with the facility's history of mismanagement by a company based in Maale Adumim settlement. The site was not prepared to host a landfill when construction began decades ago, and it lacks basic safeguards like concrete and asphalt.
Officials at Israel's environmental protection ministry told Ma'an this week that they intend to eventually shut down the facility, citing similar safety and health concerns.
"The dump in Abu Dis causes serious environmental harm," according to a September 2012 assessment by the ministry made available Thursday in an email.
The statement acknowledged that the facility's infrastructure "is not designed to prevent land pollution, and there are concerns that the groundwater might be polluted."
But it offered no firm timetable for closing it down, and a spokesman was unable to produce one. He referred inquiries to Israel's Jerusalem municipality, which was told to stop using the site by this month. A spokeswoman declined to confirm if the municipality was cooperating.
Marei is hesitant to discuss the conflict with Israel, but he finds the lack of urgency troubling from an environmental perspective.
"My question for them is would they allow such a site to be built inside Israel? And would they let the situation that we see happening here happen there? I don't think they would."
Nader al-Khateeb is the director and co-founder of a Palestinian environmental group that promotes coexistence with Israel, but he too has little patience for the internal political wrangling that permits the facility to continue operating when all involved are aware of the risks.
"Things get lost between who's responsible and who's not responsible. In the end, who pays the price? It is the Palestinian residents who are the victims," he says.
"The occupier should not use the occupied's land as a dumping site for their garbage."
Even though the site is in Area C, the 60 percent of the West Bank under full control of the Israeli military, both experts faulted the PA for its lack of attention to the crisis.
"The Palestinian environmental protection agency needs to take its responsibility in bringing the issue of this problem to the public and to the international community," says Marei.
Al-Khateeb agrees: "We are not doing enough within our rights under international law and taking such cases to international courts to stop such practices."
A spokesman for the Palestinian environmental protection agency did not return calls but a day after Ma'an TV raised the issue, health ministry vehicles were seen driving into Wadi Abu Hindi.
Like all visitors, they were greeted first by an uncovered reservoir the size of a swimming pool and filled with liquid collected from the landfill's eastern side.
During rainstorms, this tank sometimes overflows into a riverbed and toward the Bedouin encampment. With enough rain, it can reach streams leading to the Jordan River.
Some residents of the Bedouin area find employment with the landfill, and they aren't eager to talk on the record about the site's environmental footprint.
Away from the cameras, though, one father expressed fears about the polluted stream's effects on the community, particularly on the health of his young children.
"When it rains, it becomes like a blood river," he said, pointing toward the valley.
George Hale. Mirna al-Atrash and May Issa contributed reporting.
10 mar 2013
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OCHA: 200 Palestinians injured in clashes with IOF within a week
A UN report shows that more than 200 Palestinians were injured during the clashes that erupted last week with the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) in different parts of the occupied West Bank.
UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OCHA) states in a report issued on Sunday that the clashes broke out after the occupation forces suppressed the protests organized by Palestinians in solidarity with the prisoners on hunger strike in the Israeli jails, and which have continued across the West Bank during the week. The report reveals that at least 214 Palestinians, including 49 children, have sustained different injuries and suffered suffocation. It states: "Approximately 87 Palestinians injured were treated for tear gas inhalation, 85 for injuries sustained from rubber-coated metal bullets, four from live ammunition, and the remaining from other means." The UN report added that six Israeli soldiers were also injured during the suppression of the popular activities. OCHA states that most of last week's confrontations took place at the military checkpoints. |
"As in prior weeks the largest demonstrations and clashes took place near Beituniya checkpoint in Ramallah, at Huwwara (Nablus), Qalandiya (Jerusalem) and Al Jalamah (Jenin) checkpoints, Bethlehem city and Al ‘Arroub Refugee Camp", the report says.
Media Forum: 14 Palestinian journalists in Israeli jails
Palestinian Media Forum denounced the arrest of the journalist Walid Khaled after the IOF raided his home in the West Bank, bringing the number of detained journalists to14 journalists.
"The arrest of journalist Khaled demonstrates that we are facing open war waged by the occupation to keep journalists behind bars, in light of the international news organizations' silence," the Forum said in a statement on Sunday.
The IOF arrested the journalist Khaled, 41, at dawn today after storming his home in the town of "Skak" in Salfit District in the West Bank, 6 months after his release from Israeli prisons where he spent 18 years, almost half of his life, behind bars, the Forum said.
The Media Forum pointed out to the rise in the detained journalists' number since the beginning of this year to 6 following the arrest of the journalist Khaled, bringing their total number to 14 journalists.
The media forum stated that this Israeli campaign against Palestinian journalists aims to keep journalists behind bars in a failed attempt to cover up the Israeli crimes.
The Forum called for prosecuting the Israeli government in international courts against its open war against the Palestinian press and freedom of opinion in general.
The detainee Walid Khaled worked as a journalist in "Palestine" newspaper in the West Bank, before being closed after the Palestinian division mid-2007, where he was arrested more than once in PA prisons.
"The arrest of journalist Khaled demonstrates that we are facing open war waged by the occupation to keep journalists behind bars, in light of the international news organizations' silence," the Forum said in a statement on Sunday.
The IOF arrested the journalist Khaled, 41, at dawn today after storming his home in the town of "Skak" in Salfit District in the West Bank, 6 months after his release from Israeli prisons where he spent 18 years, almost half of his life, behind bars, the Forum said.
The Media Forum pointed out to the rise in the detained journalists' number since the beginning of this year to 6 following the arrest of the journalist Khaled, bringing their total number to 14 journalists.
The media forum stated that this Israeli campaign against Palestinian journalists aims to keep journalists behind bars in a failed attempt to cover up the Israeli crimes.
The Forum called for prosecuting the Israeli government in international courts against its open war against the Palestinian press and freedom of opinion in general.
The detainee Walid Khaled worked as a journalist in "Palestine" newspaper in the West Bank, before being closed after the Palestinian division mid-2007, where he was arrested more than once in PA prisons.
Palestinians paid $3.6 million to Israeli courts in one year
A report, issued in occupied Palestine, has revealed that Palestinians paid NIS 13 million ($ 3.6 million) in fines to military courts in the West Bank during 2011. Haaretz Hebrew newspaper has published a report on its website entitled "How Palestinians fund the occupation", revealing the Palestinian failure to develop new ways to refuse Israeli fines despite the boycott campaigns as a Palestinian popular resistance method against the occupation.
The report pointed out that the Israeli fines are issued by Ofer and Salem military courts in occupied West Bank, adding that the fines included everything related to traffic offences, criminal offences, staying without a permit in the territories occupied in 1948, and resisting the occupation.
The report revealed that during 2011 the number of traffic violations has doubled over the last five years, where 2069 traffic offences were reported in 2007 in comparison with 4904 traffic offences in 2011.
The report also pointed out that more than 9 million shekels were collected in 2007 compared to more than 13 million in 2011.
The report pointed out that the Israeli fines are issued by Ofer and Salem military courts in occupied West Bank, adding that the fines included everything related to traffic offences, criminal offences, staying without a permit in the territories occupied in 1948, and resisting the occupation.
The report revealed that during 2011 the number of traffic violations has doubled over the last five years, where 2069 traffic offences were reported in 2007 in comparison with 4904 traffic offences in 2011.
The report also pointed out that more than 9 million shekels were collected in 2007 compared to more than 13 million in 2011.
8 mar 2013
WHO Report: Israeli Health Access Barriers
Accessing vital medical care for millions of Palestinians in occupied Palestine is often contingent upon getting Israeli permission to travel to hospitals or through checkpoints. Each year, tens of thousands of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza need to apply for Israeli-issued permits to attend hospitals for diagnosis and treatment. In emergencies, Palestinian ambulances invariably have to stop at a checkpoint, then shuttle the patient to an Israeli ambulance on the other side of the checkpoint, in what is termed a 'back-to-back' transfer. Patient dignity aside, such delays and external control have meant the difference between life and death for Palestinian patients, and breach basic human rights and international humanitarian and human rights law, according to a new report by the World Health Organization (WHO).
'Right to health: Barriers to health access in the occupied Palestinian territory, 2011 and 2012' details the figures and extent of movement restrictions imposed by Israel upon Palestinian patients who require access to specialised health referral facilities within occupied Palestine, Jordan, Egypt and Israel. In 2012, the Palestinian Ministry of Health referred 33,469 patients from the West Bank (24,385) and Gaza (9,084) to specialist hospitals that required Israeli-issued travel permits. Over 75% of these were to access the six Palestinian hospitals in East Jerusalem that offer specialised health services (with another 5% to other Palestinian hospitals in the West Bank), 15% for Israeli hospitals, and 5% for hospitals in Jordan and Egypt.
In the West Bank, 222,188 applications for health access permits were made by residents in 2012 - these included patients (first and subsequent appointments), patient-companions (to accompany children, the elderly and infirm) and family members looking to visit patients. A fifth of this total were either denied (17.6%) or were approved after the appointment (2.7%), meaning the appointment was missed. Out of the 8,628 patients from Gaza in 2012, 92.5% had their permits approved - 0.9% were denied and 6.6% were approved too late.
The report notes that access for vulnerable groups - children, patients with physical disabilities, the infirm, patients requiring donors, Gaza patients aged 18-40 and patients with a 'security file' - is particularly difficult. Access for children, for instance, depends on a 'first degree' companion, usually a parent or sibling, being approved for a permit; if the companion is not issued a permit, the child misses the appointment.
The WHO report states that "obtaining a permit is complicated and difficult, and the uncertainty and last-minute nature of the Israeli response makes the process more stressful for patients and their families'. It can be very burdensome, the report adds, noting that the process can be expensive, with many patients and family members having to travel to apply for permits and to attend 'security' interviews. The permit process lacks transparency and is inconsistent, the report says, with no clear criteria for approval or denial of permits.
For those denied a permit, there is no right of appeal. Applicants with a 'security file' are never told by the Israeli authorities what the security issue concerns, and the report adds that it is likely that many patients requiring specialised medical attention who are possible high 'security' candidates - namely, men aged between 18-40 from Gaza - do not bother applying for Israeli access permits and either fail to get the medical care they need or access it in Egypt via the Rafah crossing. The report adds that patients who are denied permits or who do not receive a response 'may suffer deterioration of their health and wellbeing as a result of the delay in needed specialised treatment'. It notes that six Gaza patients died while waiting for health access permits in 2011 and presents a number of case studies throughout the report.
The report also highlights other issues that adversely affect healthcare for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation, including restrictions on continuing training for medical professionals, restrictions on work permits for healthcare workers from the West Bank who work at Palestinian hospitals in East Jerusalem, and drug and disposable shortages due to the Palestinian Authority's financial crisis.
Tony Laurance, Head of the WHO oPt office in Jerusalem and incoming MAP CEO, said: 'As Occupying Power, Israel is the main duty bearer under international humanitarian law and human rights law to provide humanitarian access at all times for persons needing heath care,' adding that the WHO hopes that the report will be used to improve health access for Palestinians.
An abstract of the study based on preliminary findings was published by The Lancet last October as part of the MAP-supported The Lancet-Palestinian Health Alliance conference. MAP is also supporting the next The Lancet-Palestinian Health Alliance conference, which is convening in Cairo later this month.
'Right to health: Barriers to health access in the occupied Palestinian territory, 2011 and 2012' details the figures and extent of movement restrictions imposed by Israel upon Palestinian patients who require access to specialised health referral facilities within occupied Palestine, Jordan, Egypt and Israel. In 2012, the Palestinian Ministry of Health referred 33,469 patients from the West Bank (24,385) and Gaza (9,084) to specialist hospitals that required Israeli-issued travel permits. Over 75% of these were to access the six Palestinian hospitals in East Jerusalem that offer specialised health services (with another 5% to other Palestinian hospitals in the West Bank), 15% for Israeli hospitals, and 5% for hospitals in Jordan and Egypt.
In the West Bank, 222,188 applications for health access permits were made by residents in 2012 - these included patients (first and subsequent appointments), patient-companions (to accompany children, the elderly and infirm) and family members looking to visit patients. A fifth of this total were either denied (17.6%) or were approved after the appointment (2.7%), meaning the appointment was missed. Out of the 8,628 patients from Gaza in 2012, 92.5% had their permits approved - 0.9% were denied and 6.6% were approved too late.
The report notes that access for vulnerable groups - children, patients with physical disabilities, the infirm, patients requiring donors, Gaza patients aged 18-40 and patients with a 'security file' - is particularly difficult. Access for children, for instance, depends on a 'first degree' companion, usually a parent or sibling, being approved for a permit; if the companion is not issued a permit, the child misses the appointment.
The WHO report states that "obtaining a permit is complicated and difficult, and the uncertainty and last-minute nature of the Israeli response makes the process more stressful for patients and their families'. It can be very burdensome, the report adds, noting that the process can be expensive, with many patients and family members having to travel to apply for permits and to attend 'security' interviews. The permit process lacks transparency and is inconsistent, the report says, with no clear criteria for approval or denial of permits.
For those denied a permit, there is no right of appeal. Applicants with a 'security file' are never told by the Israeli authorities what the security issue concerns, and the report adds that it is likely that many patients requiring specialised medical attention who are possible high 'security' candidates - namely, men aged between 18-40 from Gaza - do not bother applying for Israeli access permits and either fail to get the medical care they need or access it in Egypt via the Rafah crossing. The report adds that patients who are denied permits or who do not receive a response 'may suffer deterioration of their health and wellbeing as a result of the delay in needed specialised treatment'. It notes that six Gaza patients died while waiting for health access permits in 2011 and presents a number of case studies throughout the report.
The report also highlights other issues that adversely affect healthcare for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation, including restrictions on continuing training for medical professionals, restrictions on work permits for healthcare workers from the West Bank who work at Palestinian hospitals in East Jerusalem, and drug and disposable shortages due to the Palestinian Authority's financial crisis.
Tony Laurance, Head of the WHO oPt office in Jerusalem and incoming MAP CEO, said: 'As Occupying Power, Israel is the main duty bearer under international humanitarian law and human rights law to provide humanitarian access at all times for persons needing heath care,' adding that the WHO hopes that the report will be used to improve health access for Palestinians.
An abstract of the study based on preliminary findings was published by The Lancet last October as part of the MAP-supported The Lancet-Palestinian Health Alliance conference. MAP is also supporting the next The Lancet-Palestinian Health Alliance conference, which is convening in Cairo later this month.
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PCHR Weekly Report: 34 Palestinians wounded, including 10 children, by Israeli troops this week
Israeli soldiers attack two young men before arresting them in Kufor Qaddoum village near Qalqilya
The Israeli forces continued to use excessive force against peaceful protests in the West Bank. 11 Palestinian civilians, including 4 children and a paramedic, were wounded in protests against the annexation wall and settlement activities. 18 Palestinian civilians, including 6 children and a photojournalist, were wounded in solidarity demonstrations supporting the Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli jails. A Palestinian civilian was wounded in Hebron. The Israeli forces continued to open fire at the Palestinian civilians in the border area of the Gaza Strip 4 Palestinian civilians, including a mentally disordered person, were wounded in the northern Gaza Strip. |
The Israeli forces conducted 69 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank and a limited one in the Gaza Strip.
At least 60 Palestinian civilians, including 12 children, a photojournalist and a researcher in prisoners’ affairs, were arrested in the West Bank.
46 of whom were arrested during incursions and 13 in peaceful protests.
Israel has continued to impose a total closure on the oPt and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world.
The Israeli forces established dozens of checkpoints in the West Bank.
At least 3 Palestinian civilians, including 2 children, were arrested at checkpoints.
Israel continued to take measures to create Jewish majority in occupied East Jerusalem
The Israeli forces forced a Palestinian civilian to demolish his house with his own hands.
The Israeli forces have continued settlement activities in the West Bank, and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property.
The Israeli forces issued more house demolition orders.
The settlers uprooted 100 fruitful trees and demolished an agricultural room in Bethlehem.
At least 60 Palestinian civilians, including 12 children, a photojournalist and a researcher in prisoners’ affairs, were arrested in the West Bank.
46 of whom were arrested during incursions and 13 in peaceful protests.
Israel has continued to impose a total closure on the oPt and has isolated the Gaza Strip from the outside world.
The Israeli forces established dozens of checkpoints in the West Bank.
At least 3 Palestinian civilians, including 2 children, were arrested at checkpoints.
Israel continued to take measures to create Jewish majority in occupied East Jerusalem
The Israeli forces forced a Palestinian civilian to demolish his house with his own hands.
The Israeli forces have continued settlement activities in the West Bank, and Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property.
The Israeli forces issued more house demolition orders.
The settlers uprooted 100 fruitful trees and demolished an agricultural room in Bethlehem.
7 mar 2013
The Use of Radioactive Uranium in Israeli Military Operations- An International Humanitarian Law Perspective
In a recent exclusive interview with Al-Jazeera Satellite Channel, Professor Christopher Busby from the European Committee on Radiation Risk, announced the results of his research and analysis having examined air and soil samples in the Gaza Strip months after the 22 days of Israeli military operations there had ceased.
Prof. Busby is one of the most prominent and widely respected radiation experts in the world, and an accredited witness on international fora such as the UN. In the past, he has testified on the impact of weapons used in wars in Iraq, Kosovo and Lebanon. The Israeli authorities prevented Professor Busby from entering the occupied Gaza Strip to undertake the necessary analyses, but with the help of other physicians he was able to obtain the samples he needed.
The professor said that he had obtained two items to analyze, one of which was a filter from an ambulance covered with dust, and the second was some soil from a hole created by an Israeli bomb. He stated that the analysis showed the filter to contain a degree of uranium, and that the soil sample contained a high degree of enriched uranium. Analysis also showed a high degree of zinc, chrome, and niobium in the air. This is not the first analysis carried out by Professor Busby; he also discovered a high rate of uranium in Lebanon after examining samples from the area in the wake of the Israeli aggression of July 2006.
Professor Busby said, "the real concern is that people can inhale uranium, and this can lead to diseases and health problems, including congenital deformities in children…” If there is too much uranium in the air, there is a danger of pregnant women giving birth to deformed children, the possibility of children with various types of cancer and an increasing number of cancer cases among adults. This was apparent in Iraq and among people who worked in Kosovo in areas where enriched uranium was used.
Professor Busby noted that he had faced great difficulty in finding a laboratory to do the necessary analysis of the Gazan samples, indicating that there had been a strong Israeli influence on the laboratories, to such an extent that some of those who did agree to do the analysis, refused to present the results, according to Professor Busby.
The consequences of the radiation risks posed by uranium may continue for generations. Exposure to radiation can cause genetic defects, which can put future generations at risk of cancer even if they have not been in contact with the original polluted area.
The recent Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip, violated the basic rules and customs of war. Every supposedly protected group in Gaza was a target of Israeli occupation rockets and shells.
The St. Petersburg Declaration of 1868, which prohibited the use of certain kinds of explosive projectiles set out direct rules and norms to restrict the manufacturing and use of these weapons. These rules and norms became international customs, based on which the use of some weapons was prevented. Examples are the prevention of the use of poisonous gas in 1925, the use of biological weapons in 1972, and of chemical weapons in 1993. Restrictions on the use of land mines were also included in the Ottawa Convention in 1997, and at the end of 2008, states signed the Oslo Convention preventing cluster ammunitions.
In his report, Professor Busby clearly indicates that the weapons Israel used in Gaza exceeded the objective of war, which is to destroy the military might of the other party. The number of civilian victims and the destruction of non-military private and public properties all indicate that the internationally prohibited excessive use of force was used, as well as weapons which do not distinguish between military and civilian targets, causing unnecessary suffering and having long term negative impact on the health of civilians and the environment.
Paragraph "C" in rule 12 of the study prepared by the International Committee of the Red Cross on the customary International Humanitarian Law, prohibits indiscriminate attacks which have undefined impact and which Article 85 of the Additional Protocol of 1977 consider to be grave breaches. Rule 70 of the study prohibits the use of any means of war that may cause unwarranted injuries or pains. Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, considers the intentional causing of severe suffering, or the inflicting of serious harm on physical safety and health as a grave breach. Rule 45 of the study, prohibits the use of any means of war which aims to, or is expected to cause extreme, prevalent and long term harm to the natural environment. Article 55 of the Additional Protocol also prevents parties to the conflict from using weapons and methods which are expected to inflict harm on the natural environment and the health of the population or their survival.
So how can Israel justify the use of weapons containing uranium and radiation harmful to humankind…how can Israel justify the use of weapons that expose a population to radiation and maximize the potential for cancer and deformed fetuses? How can they explain that to future generations of children in Gaza whose lives will continue to be endangered?
The international community took a step forward at the end of last year, by signing the Oslo Agreement which prevents all state parties from using, producing, transferring and stockpiling cluster ammunitions and which urges the destruction of stockpiles. The Agreement also established a framework for international cooperation and assistance in achieving this objective and in the provision of sufficient care and rehabilitation for the victims of cluster bombs, the cleaning of polluted areas and to promote public education to restrict their dangers.
We hope a similar initiative will be taken to establish an international convention to prohibit the manufacture and use of radioactive weapons containing uranium or any other radiant material that cause danger to the health and safety of civilians during military operations.
Prof. Busby is one of the most prominent and widely respected radiation experts in the world, and an accredited witness on international fora such as the UN. In the past, he has testified on the impact of weapons used in wars in Iraq, Kosovo and Lebanon. The Israeli authorities prevented Professor Busby from entering the occupied Gaza Strip to undertake the necessary analyses, but with the help of other physicians he was able to obtain the samples he needed.
The professor said that he had obtained two items to analyze, one of which was a filter from an ambulance covered with dust, and the second was some soil from a hole created by an Israeli bomb. He stated that the analysis showed the filter to contain a degree of uranium, and that the soil sample contained a high degree of enriched uranium. Analysis also showed a high degree of zinc, chrome, and niobium in the air. This is not the first analysis carried out by Professor Busby; he also discovered a high rate of uranium in Lebanon after examining samples from the area in the wake of the Israeli aggression of July 2006.
Professor Busby said, "the real concern is that people can inhale uranium, and this can lead to diseases and health problems, including congenital deformities in children…” If there is too much uranium in the air, there is a danger of pregnant women giving birth to deformed children, the possibility of children with various types of cancer and an increasing number of cancer cases among adults. This was apparent in Iraq and among people who worked in Kosovo in areas where enriched uranium was used.
Professor Busby noted that he had faced great difficulty in finding a laboratory to do the necessary analysis of the Gazan samples, indicating that there had been a strong Israeli influence on the laboratories, to such an extent that some of those who did agree to do the analysis, refused to present the results, according to Professor Busby.
The consequences of the radiation risks posed by uranium may continue for generations. Exposure to radiation can cause genetic defects, which can put future generations at risk of cancer even if they have not been in contact with the original polluted area.
The recent Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip, violated the basic rules and customs of war. Every supposedly protected group in Gaza was a target of Israeli occupation rockets and shells.
The St. Petersburg Declaration of 1868, which prohibited the use of certain kinds of explosive projectiles set out direct rules and norms to restrict the manufacturing and use of these weapons. These rules and norms became international customs, based on which the use of some weapons was prevented. Examples are the prevention of the use of poisonous gas in 1925, the use of biological weapons in 1972, and of chemical weapons in 1993. Restrictions on the use of land mines were also included in the Ottawa Convention in 1997, and at the end of 2008, states signed the Oslo Convention preventing cluster ammunitions.
In his report, Professor Busby clearly indicates that the weapons Israel used in Gaza exceeded the objective of war, which is to destroy the military might of the other party. The number of civilian victims and the destruction of non-military private and public properties all indicate that the internationally prohibited excessive use of force was used, as well as weapons which do not distinguish between military and civilian targets, causing unnecessary suffering and having long term negative impact on the health of civilians and the environment.
Paragraph "C" in rule 12 of the study prepared by the International Committee of the Red Cross on the customary International Humanitarian Law, prohibits indiscriminate attacks which have undefined impact and which Article 85 of the Additional Protocol of 1977 consider to be grave breaches. Rule 70 of the study prohibits the use of any means of war that may cause unwarranted injuries or pains. Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, considers the intentional causing of severe suffering, or the inflicting of serious harm on physical safety and health as a grave breach. Rule 45 of the study, prohibits the use of any means of war which aims to, or is expected to cause extreme, prevalent and long term harm to the natural environment. Article 55 of the Additional Protocol also prevents parties to the conflict from using weapons and methods which are expected to inflict harm on the natural environment and the health of the population or their survival.
So how can Israel justify the use of weapons containing uranium and radiation harmful to humankind…how can Israel justify the use of weapons that expose a population to radiation and maximize the potential for cancer and deformed fetuses? How can they explain that to future generations of children in Gaza whose lives will continue to be endangered?
The international community took a step forward at the end of last year, by signing the Oslo Agreement which prevents all state parties from using, producing, transferring and stockpiling cluster ammunitions and which urges the destruction of stockpiles. The Agreement also established a framework for international cooperation and assistance in achieving this objective and in the provision of sufficient care and rehabilitation for the victims of cluster bombs, the cleaning of polluted areas and to promote public education to restrict their dangers.
We hope a similar initiative will be taken to establish an international convention to prohibit the manufacture and use of radioactive weapons containing uranium or any other radiant material that cause danger to the health and safety of civilians during military operations.
6 mar 2013
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Israel accused of abusing detained children
UN report says Palestinian minors, most arrested for rock-throwing, face systemic ill-treatment by Israeli authorities. Palestinian children detained by Israeli authorities face systematic abuse that violates international law, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has said in a report. UNICEF estimated that 700 Palestinian children aged between 12 and 17 were arrested by Israeli security forces every year in the occupied West Bank. The world organisation said it had identified some examples of practices that "amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention against Torture". According to the report, which was released on Wednesday, most of the youths are taken into custody for throwing stones at Israeli security forces. Tel Aviv says it takes such incidents seriously, noting that rock-throwing has caused Israeli deaths. |
Ill-treatment of Palestinian minors typically begins with the arrest itself, often carried out in the middle of the night by heavily armed soldiers, and continues all the way through prosecution and sentencing, according to the report.
"The pattern of ill-treatment includes ... the practice of blindfolding children and tying their hands with plastic ties, physical and verbal abuse during transfer to an interrogation site, including the use of painful restraints," the report said.
It said minors suffered physical violence and threats during their interrogation, were coerced into confession and not given immediate access to a lawyer or family during questioning.
"Treatment inconsistent with child rights continues during court appearances, including shackling of children, denial of bail and imposition of custodial sentences and transfer of children outside occupied Palestinian territory to serve their sentences inside Israel," the report said.
'Institutionalised'
Such practice "appears to be widespread, systematic and institutionalised", it added.
UNICEF based its findings on more than 400 cases documented since 2009 as well as legal papers, reports by governmental and non-governmental groups and interviews with Palestinian minors and with Israeli and Palestinian officials and lawyers.
Qadoura Fares, chairman of the Palestinian Prisoners Club which looks after inmates and their families, praised the report and called for Israel to be held accountable.
A spokeswoman for Israel's Prison Service said there were currently 307 Palestinian minors in Israeli custody, 108 of whom are serving a prison sentence. Most of them are between the ages of 16 to 18 and the rest are under 16.
UNICEF said Israel had made some "positive changes" in recent years in its treatment of Palestinian minors, including new hand-tying procedures meant to prevent pain and injury.
It also noted a 2010 military order that requires Israeli police to notify parents about the arrest of their children and to inform minors they have the right to consult a lawyer.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said officials from the ministry and the Israeli military had cooperated with UNICEF in its work on the report, with the goal of improving the treatment of Palestinian minors in custody.
"Israel will study the conclusions and will work to implement them through ongoing cooperation with UNICEF, whose work we value and respect," he said.
"The pattern of ill-treatment includes ... the practice of blindfolding children and tying their hands with plastic ties, physical and verbal abuse during transfer to an interrogation site, including the use of painful restraints," the report said.
It said minors suffered physical violence and threats during their interrogation, were coerced into confession and not given immediate access to a lawyer or family during questioning.
"Treatment inconsistent with child rights continues during court appearances, including shackling of children, denial of bail and imposition of custodial sentences and transfer of children outside occupied Palestinian territory to serve their sentences inside Israel," the report said.
'Institutionalised'
Such practice "appears to be widespread, systematic and institutionalised", it added.
UNICEF based its findings on more than 400 cases documented since 2009 as well as legal papers, reports by governmental and non-governmental groups and interviews with Palestinian minors and with Israeli and Palestinian officials and lawyers.
Qadoura Fares, chairman of the Palestinian Prisoners Club which looks after inmates and their families, praised the report and called for Israel to be held accountable.
A spokeswoman for Israel's Prison Service said there were currently 307 Palestinian minors in Israeli custody, 108 of whom are serving a prison sentence. Most of them are between the ages of 16 to 18 and the rest are under 16.
UNICEF said Israel had made some "positive changes" in recent years in its treatment of Palestinian minors, including new hand-tying procedures meant to prevent pain and injury.
It also noted a 2010 military order that requires Israeli police to notify parents about the arrest of their children and to inform minors they have the right to consult a lawyer.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said officials from the ministry and the Israeli military had cooperated with UNICEF in its work on the report, with the goal of improving the treatment of Palestinian minors in custody.
"Israel will study the conclusions and will work to implement them through ongoing cooperation with UNICEF, whose work we value and respect," he said.
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Palestinian children need better protection in Israeli military detention – UNICEF
Palestinian children detained by the Israeli military are subject to ill-treatment that violates international laws, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said today, as it issued recommendations to improve the protection of minors. “Ill-treatment of Palestinian children in the Israeli military detention system appears to be widespread, systematic and institutionalized,” according to a briefing paper prepared by the agency.
According to figures cited in Children in Israeli military detention: observations and recommendations, approximately 700 Palestinian children each year between the ages of 12 and 17 are arrested, interrogated and detained by Israeli army, police and security agents. In the past 10 years, some 7,000 children – the majority of them boys – were held, an average of two children each day. Based on interviews with some of these minors, as well as with Israeli and Palestinian lawyers, and reviews of cases, UNICEF concluded that there appears to be a pattern of ill-treatment during the arrest, transfer and interrogation of child detainees. |
The 22-page report cites examples of arrests of children at their homes between midnight and 5:00 am by heavily armed soldiers, as well as physical and verbal abuse during transfer to an interrogation site, and interrogation using physical violence and threats.
The paper also cites “treatment inconsistent with child rights,” including shackling minors during court appearances and incarcerating them in Israel, which isolates them from their families and interrupts their studies.
Earlier this month, an independent UN expert urged Israel to end its “appalling and unlawful treatment of Palestinian detainees” after three men went on hunger strike to protest their conditions.
In today’s report, UNICEF recommends a series of policy changes that prevent breaches of international laws, as well as safeguarding authorities from false allegations of wrongdoing.
Among its recommendations, UNICEF said that “the arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.”
The report also noted some improvements already made, such as raising the age of adulthood for Palestinian children from 16 to 18.
The paper also cites “treatment inconsistent with child rights,” including shackling minors during court appearances and incarcerating them in Israel, which isolates them from their families and interrupts their studies.
Earlier this month, an independent UN expert urged Israel to end its “appalling and unlawful treatment of Palestinian detainees” after three men went on hunger strike to protest their conditions.
In today’s report, UNICEF recommends a series of policy changes that prevent breaches of international laws, as well as safeguarding authorities from false allegations of wrongdoing.
Among its recommendations, UNICEF said that “the arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.”
The report also noted some improvements already made, such as raising the age of adulthood for Palestinian children from 16 to 18.
5 mar 2013
Report: Palestinian kids in Israeli jails exposed to torture and abuse
Human rights lawyer Hiba Masalha revealed new testimonies made by Palestinian children and minors in prison proving their exposure to torture and abuse during their detention. The testimonies came in a report released by the lawyer following her visit to Palestinian kids jailed in Megiddo and Sharon prisons.
Masalha affirmed that the Israelis, jailers, interrogators or soldiers, used physical violence and threats to subdue and bully some Palestinian children during and after their detention.
According to her report, prisoner Amjad Hashash, a 15-year old boy from Balata refugee camp, told the lawyer that when Israeli soldiers detained him on January 26, 2013, he was severely beaten with their hands, feet and batons all over his body.
Hashash explained that the soldiers, afterwards, took him handcuffed and blindfolded into a military vehicle and kept beating him until they arrived at Hawara detention center where they stripped him and later took him to the Salem interrogation center.
He added that the Israeli interrogators at the center forced him to sign papers in Hebrew without him knowing what was written in them, asserting that he was feeling unwell and found it difficult to breathe.
A 17-year old prisoner named Wael Mohsen, who was kidnapped on March 1, 2012 at night from his home in Jenin city, said that Israeli soldiers ransacked his parents' house and then took him outdoors where he was exposed to constant beatings with their hands and rifle butts.
The soldiers kept interrogating him in the house yard until five o'clock in the morning and then drove him to Jalama detention center, the boy said, adding that the soldiers also assaulted him on their way to the jail.
Wael was also strip searched and tortured by Israeli interrogators in Jalama jail.
He stated that the interrogators used an air conditioner in the room where he was questioned in order to make the atmosphere unbearable and suffocating and thus make him feel uncomfortable during the questioning process.
Keeping dim yellow lighting in the room all the time, the interrogators questioned him as his hands and legs were tied to a chair, the boy confirmed.
Another boy named Shaker Masha, 15, complained that as he was being rounded up on February 2013, Israeli soldiers beat him very brutally all over his body causing him to suffer fractures in his nose and arms, and bruises in his face and other parts of his body.
Afterwards, according to his testimony, he was taken to Hadassah hospital where he received treatment from the serious injuries he had sustained.
For his part, Alaa Hathnawi, a 17-year old boy who was kidnapped last month, said that Israeli soldiers stroke his head against one of their jeeps' doors and then took him to Jalama checkpoint where they strip searched him and left him in the cold for long hours at night.
Masalha affirmed that the Israelis, jailers, interrogators or soldiers, used physical violence and threats to subdue and bully some Palestinian children during and after their detention.
According to her report, prisoner Amjad Hashash, a 15-year old boy from Balata refugee camp, told the lawyer that when Israeli soldiers detained him on January 26, 2013, he was severely beaten with their hands, feet and batons all over his body.
Hashash explained that the soldiers, afterwards, took him handcuffed and blindfolded into a military vehicle and kept beating him until they arrived at Hawara detention center where they stripped him and later took him to the Salem interrogation center.
He added that the Israeli interrogators at the center forced him to sign papers in Hebrew without him knowing what was written in them, asserting that he was feeling unwell and found it difficult to breathe.
A 17-year old prisoner named Wael Mohsen, who was kidnapped on March 1, 2012 at night from his home in Jenin city, said that Israeli soldiers ransacked his parents' house and then took him outdoors where he was exposed to constant beatings with their hands and rifle butts.
The soldiers kept interrogating him in the house yard until five o'clock in the morning and then drove him to Jalama detention center, the boy said, adding that the soldiers also assaulted him on their way to the jail.
Wael was also strip searched and tortured by Israeli interrogators in Jalama jail.
He stated that the interrogators used an air conditioner in the room where he was questioned in order to make the atmosphere unbearable and suffocating and thus make him feel uncomfortable during the questioning process.
Keeping dim yellow lighting in the room all the time, the interrogators questioned him as his hands and legs were tied to a chair, the boy confirmed.
Another boy named Shaker Masha, 15, complained that as he was being rounded up on February 2013, Israeli soldiers beat him very brutally all over his body causing him to suffer fractures in his nose and arms, and bruises in his face and other parts of his body.
Afterwards, according to his testimony, he was taken to Hadassah hospital where he received treatment from the serious injuries he had sustained.
For his part, Alaa Hathnawi, a 17-year old boy who was kidnapped last month, said that Israeli soldiers stroke his head against one of their jeeps' doors and then took him to Jalama checkpoint where they strip searched him and left him in the cold for long hours at night.
4 mar 2013
Report: 95 Israeli violations against Palestinians and their property last month
A new report issued by the Palestinian authority (PA) said that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) and its settlers had committed 95 violations and offenses against the Palestinians and their property during last February. The report, which was released by the PA information center for settlement and wall affairs, stated that the IOA and its army razed 15 Palestinian homes and structures and issued other 82 demolition orders against property, including 50 in occupied Jerusalem.
The IOA also established a dumping ground for its settlements in the Palestinian lands of Qusin and Deir Sharaf villages in Nablus city, and such action threatens to contaminate the groundwater and endangers the health of the Palestinian villagers, according to the report.
The IOA also appropriated 370 dunums of Palestinian land in the towns and districts of Jerusalem, and notified Palestinian citizens of its intentions to seize a further 197 dunums of their lands in Bethlehem and Al-Khalil cities.
The construction of 869 settlement units in the occupied Palestinian lands was approved last month, the report stated.
The report also covered some of the violations committed by the Jewish settlers, saying that 17 Palestinians sustained different injuries during violent attacks by settlers in the West Bank.
The settlers also torched three Palestinian cars, uprooted 294 olive trees and wrote racist slurs on graves in Mamanullah cemetery in Jerusalem, according to the report.
The IOA also established a dumping ground for its settlements in the Palestinian lands of Qusin and Deir Sharaf villages in Nablus city, and such action threatens to contaminate the groundwater and endangers the health of the Palestinian villagers, according to the report.
The IOA also appropriated 370 dunums of Palestinian land in the towns and districts of Jerusalem, and notified Palestinian citizens of its intentions to seize a further 197 dunums of their lands in Bethlehem and Al-Khalil cities.
The construction of 869 settlement units in the occupied Palestinian lands was approved last month, the report stated.
The report also covered some of the violations committed by the Jewish settlers, saying that 17 Palestinians sustained different injuries during violent attacks by settlers in the West Bank.
The settlers also torched three Palestinian cars, uprooted 294 olive trees and wrote racist slurs on graves in Mamanullah cemetery in Jerusalem, according to the report.
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Remarks by UN Deputy Special Coordinator, James W. Rawley | March 2013
In his remarks to the workshop on “Developing National Disaster Inventory Management System – Disaster Losses Database”, the Humanitarian Coordinator Mr James W Rawley, commended the responses mounted by the Palestinian authorities, in particular the Palestinian Civil Defense. He also paid tribute to the important role played by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society supported by IFRC, the UN and national and international NGOs, all of which responded to the needs of 12,000 people in the West Bank and Gaza Strip affected by the winter storm in January this year. Mr Rawley also stated that while parts of the Disaster Risk Reduction framework are critical to the humanitarian agenda, they also require a longer-term development approach. |
