Protection of Civilians Weekly Report | 19 - 25 April 2016

Latest Developments (outside of the reporting period)

• On 27 April, a 23-year-old mother of two and her 16-year-old brother were shot dead by Israeli forces at Qalandiya checkpoint in Jerusalem, in unclear circumstances. The Israeli authorities are still holding the bodies.

Weekly Highlights

• No Palestinian or Israeli fatalities were recorded during the week. Overall, 70 Palestinians, including 11 children, were injured across the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) during clashes with Israeli forces. Most of these clashes erupted during protests, including the weekly demonstration in Kafr Qaddum (Qalqiliya); a protest in Abu Dis (Jerusalem) against the recent killing of Palestinians and protests against the Barrier in Ni’lin (Ramallah); and demonstrations near the fence separating Gaza and Israel. This week’s figures include seven Palestinians injured in clashes with Israeli forces during a punitive demolition.
• On at least 26 occasions, Israeli forces opened fire in the Access Restricted Areas (ARA) at land and sea in Gaza, injuring one fisherman, arresting seven others, and confiscating one boat and destroying another. Two of the arrested were forced to strip and swim towards the Israeli  naval boats, where they were taken into custody.
• Israeli authorities are still withholding the bodies of 16 Palestinians who were killed in incidents that took place during the previous six months. According to Israeli media, in March 2015, the Israeli Prime Minister, instructed the relevant authorities to stop returning the bodies of Palestinians suspected of perpetrating attacks against Israelis until further notice.
• Israeli forces conducted 74 search and arrest operations and arrested 132 Palestinians in the West Bank, with the Jerusalem governorate accounting for the highest portion of arrests (66, including 19 children), mainly in the Old City of Jerusalem (23) and Al ‘Isawiya neighbourhood (23, including 15 children). The Hebron governorate accounted for the highest number of search and arrest operations (20).
• During the week, Israeli forces closed Al Jalama Checkpoint (Jenin), preventing Palestinian workers from crossing on foot, although it remained open for vehicle movement; and closed the road between Azzun (Qalqiliya) and Jit (Nablus) for several hours during an Israeli settler march that took place between the settlements of Karnei Shomron and Kedumim. In East Jerusalem, the Israeli authorities issued police and court orders banning 24 Palestinians from entering Haram al Sharif/ Temple Mount for 15 days and five others from entering Jerusalem, for up to 10 days, on the grounds of being involved in protests against the entry of Israeli settlers and other Israeli groups into the compound. According to Israeli media, two Israelis were banned from entry and at least 13 Israelis were removed from the compound, following alleged violations of the Israeli-enforced terms of entry.
• In Qalandiya Refugee Camp (Jerusalem), the Israeli authorities carried out a punitive demolition against the family home of a Palestinian suspected of killing an Israeli settler woman on 25 January 2016. As a result, a family of eight, including five children, were displaced. In November 2014, the Humanitarian Coordinator for the oPt called for an end to punitive demolitions, noting that “punitive demolitions are a form of collective penalty”, which are prohibited under international law. ” Israeli authorities also forced a family to self-demolish an extension to their house in the Sur Bahir area of East Jerusalem, due to the lack of an Israeli-issued building permit.
• Two settler attacks resulting in property damage were recorded this week, including around 70 dunums of Palestinian agricultural land in Husan (Bethlehem), damaged as a result of sewage being pumped onto it from the settlement of Betar Illit, and the theft of tools from farming land in Far’ata (Qalqiliya). Separately (not included in the count), two Palestinians, including a child, were injured, one critically, after being run over by Israeli-plated vehicles. In one of the incidents, the child was provided with first aid by Israeli forces.
• A segment of the light rail train running through the   Shu’fat neighbourhood in East Jerusalem sustained damage as a result of stone/bottle throwing by suspected Palestinians. 
   
• The Egyptian-controlled Rafah Crossing continues to be closed in both directions, for 70 successive days. The crossing has been closed, including for humanitarian assistance, since 24 October 2014, except for 42 days of partial openings. Authorities in Gaza indicated that 30,861 people, including, around 9,500 medical cases, and 2,700 students are registered and waiting to cross.