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Israeli Terrorism (8)

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Школа кожевенного мастерства: сумки, ремни своими руками

                  Israeli Terrorism:
                  MEDICAL TERRORISM


                - 3 -


    1. KILLINGS OF CHILDREN


                   AI-index: MDE 15/145/2002     30/09/2002

                                                                                           
               AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE

                    Israel / Occupied Territories / Palestinian Authority: Killing of
                                          children under scrutiny at UN

                    More than 250 Palestinian and 72 Israeli children have been killed in Israel and the Occupied Territories in the past 23 months. When the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child meets to consider Israel's periodic report on Wednesday October 2, Amnesty International calls for a new mindset among Israelis and Palestinians to prevent the killing of more children.

                    Killing the Future: Children in the Line of Fire, a new report issued today by Amnesty International details the way in which Palestinian and Israeli children have been targeted in an unprecedented manner since the beginning of the current intifada.

                    "Children are increasingly bearing the brunt of this conflict. Both the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) and Palestinian armed groups show an utter disregard for the lives of children and other civilians, Amnesty International said today.

                    "Respect for human life must be restored. Only a new mindset among Israelis and Palestinians can prevent the killing of more children."

                    The impunity enjoyed by members of the IDF and of Palestinian groups responsible for killing children has no doubt helped create a situation where the right to life of children and civilians on the other side has little or no value.

                    "Enough of unacceptable reasons and excuses. Both the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority must act swiftly and firmly to investigate the killing of each and every child and ensure that all those responsible for such crimes are brought to justice," the organization stated.

                    The international community should heed the call by Amnesty International and scores of other NGOs for international monitors to be sent to the region. The Israeli government should stop refusing the presence of international monitors. Amnesty International believes that had observers been present in the region since October 2000, their presence may have saved the lives of Israeli and Palestinian children as well as other civilians.

                    Killings of Palestinian children

                    The majority of Palestinian children have been killed in the Occupied Territories when members of the IDF responded to demonstrations and stone throwing incidents with unlawful and excessive use of lethal force. Eighty Palestinian children were killed by the IDF in the first three months of the intifada alone.

                    Sami Fathi Abu Jazzar died on the eve of his 12th birthday after being shot in the head by a live bullet fired by Israeli soldiers into a crowd of mostly primary school children. The shooting took place in the aftermath of a stone throwing demonstration. Six other children were injured by live fire in the same incident. Amnesty International delegates were present in the crowd at the time and concluded that the lives of the soldiers were not in danger.

                    In the past year Palestinian children have been killed when the IDF randomly opened fire, shelled or bombarded residential neighbourhoods at times when there was no exchange of fire and in circumstances in which the lives of the IDF soldiers were not at risk. Others were killed during Israeli state assassinations, when the IDF destroyed Palestinian houses without warning, and by flechette shells and booby traps used by the IDF in densely populated areas.

                    The large numbers of children killed and injured and the circumstances in which they were killed indicates that little or no care was taken by the IDF to avoid causing harm to children.

                    Dina Matar, two-months-old and Ayman Matar, 18-months-old, were among nine children killed on 22 July 2002 when the IDF dropped a one ton bomb from an F-16 fighter jet on a densely populated area of Gaza city. The bomb killed 17 people. The aim of the attack was to assassinate a leading Hamas activist, who was among those killed. The following day Israel's Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon called the attack "one of the most successful operations".

                    A number of Palestinian children have also died after being held up at IDF checkpoints, and delayed or even prevented from passing through to reach hospital. At least three children have been killed by Israeli settlers. In most cases the IDF does not intervene to protect Palestinians from Israeli settlers, who literally get away with murder.


=========================================



(an extract from Amnesty International's report)


AI Index: MDE 15/147/2002
INTERNATIONAL SECRETARIAT,
1 EASTON STREET, LONDON WC1X 0DW, UNITED KINGDOM
http://www.amnesty.org

amnesty international – universal children's day
Israel and the Occupied Territories and
the Palestinian Authority
Killing the Future:
Children in the Line of Fire

(...........)

Palestinian children have been killed by Israeli soldiers using excessive and disproportionate lethal force in response to protests, or as a result of shelling and bombardments of residential areas. Others were killed during Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) assassinations of Palestinian activists, or when their homes were demolished. Some died because they were denied access to medical care by the IDF. At least three were killed by armed Israeli settlers.
Israeli children have been killed by Palestinian armed groups, many in suicide bombings. Some have been shot dead by members of Palestinian armed groups or by individual Palestinians inside Israel, and in settlements and on roads in the Occupied Territories. No judicial investigation is known to have been carried out into any of the killings of children by Israeli soldiers, even in cases where Israeli government officials have stated publicly that
investigations would be carried out. The Palestinian Authority, for its part, has failed to take the necessary measures to prevent attacks on Israeli civilians by Palestinian armed groups and to bring to justice those responsible for unlawful killings. All the parties involved in the conflict are disregarding the right to life of the most vulnerable members of the Israeli and Palestinian civilian population.

Riham al-Ward, a 10- year-old schoolgirl, was killed on 18 October 2001 when her school, the al-Ibrahimiya school in Jenin (a city in the West Bank) was shelled during an Israeli attack and incursion into the city. The tanks started shelling just as children were arriving at the school; the director gathered the children in the yard into a ground-floor classroom. One girl was hit in the doorway of the room and Riham, who turned to help her, was hit in the heart and died before reaching hospital. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) were initially reported as claiming that there were armed Palestinians operating from the area and were later reported as admitting that they had made a mistake in shelling the school.

Khalil Ibrahim al-Mughrabi was playing soccer and flying kites with his friends in a large open space near the border fence at Rafah, on 7 July 2001, when he was killed by a high-velocity bullet in the head. He was just 11 years old. His two friends, Ibrahim Kamel Abu Sussain, age 10, and 13-year-old Suleiman Turki Abu Rijal, were also shot and both sustained serious injuries.The shots came from an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) post about 800 metres away and according to witnesses there were no disturbances or clashes in the area at that time. The IDF claimed that there had been rioting and throwing of fragmentation grenades in the area, but confidential IDF records showed that this was untrue.

Muhammad Ibrahim Hajaj, Ahmed Suleiman Abu Tayah and Ibrahim Reziq Omar, all 14 years of age, were shot dead and several other children were wounded on 1 November 2000 by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in the Gaza Strip, in a place which over the past two years has been a regular demonstration site for children who gather to throw stones at IDF tanks and/or at the IDF tower. Muhammad Ibrahim Hajaj was shot in the neck and Ahmed Suleiman Abu Tayah and Ibrahim Reziq Omar were shot in the head and chest. All three died immediately. Several other children were wounded, including two 10-year-olds who were shot in the abdomen and in the right shoulder. According to eyewitnesses and to medical records, the children were fired on with live ammunition from a distance of about 150 metres.

Just before midnight on 22 July 2002, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) dropped a one-ton bomb on a densely populated neighborhood of Gaza city. Nine children, most of them under the age of 10, were amongst the 17 killed. Dina Matar was just two months old and Ayman Matar 18 months. Muhammad Ra=ed Matar was three, Diana Ra=ed Matar five, Subhi Mahmud al- Hweiti four, Muhammad Mahmud al-Hweiti six, >Ala= Muhammad Matar 10, Iman Salah Shehada 15 years old. Maryam Matar, 17 years old, was seriously injured in the attack and died on 15 August. More than 70 other people were wounded. Leading Hamas activist Salah Shehada, who was among those killed, was accused by the Israeli authorities of organizing attacks against Israelis. Given the location of the target, in a densely populated residential area, and the method of attack chosen, the authorities must have known that civilians, including children, would be killed. The following day Israel's Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, called the attack "one of the most successful operations".

=============================

         AI-index: MDE 15/143/2002     04/11/2002
         Israel and the Occupied Territories
         Shielded from scrutiny: IDF violations in Jenin and Nablus
                     (extracts)

In the four months between 27 February and the end of June 2002 – the period of the two major IDF offensives and the reoccupation of the West Bank - the IDF killed nearly 500 Palestinians. Although many Palestinians died during armed confrontations many of these IDF killings appeared to be unlawful and at least 16% of the victims, more than 70, were children. More than 8,000 Palestinians detained in mass round-ups over the same period were routinely subjected to ill-treatment(2) and more than 3,000 Palestinian homes were demolished.

The number of Israelis killed by Palestinian armed groups and individuals also increased: the number doubled during the month of March during the first Israeli incursions; in the four months up to the end of June 2002 more than 250 Israelis had been killed, including 164 civilians; 32 of those killed were children.(3)"

Throughout the period 4-15 April, the IDF denied access to Jenin refugee camp to all, including medical doctors and nurses, ambulances, humanitarian relief services, human rights organizations, and journalists. (......)  By 12 April residents said that the continuous curfew had led to an acute food and water shortage. In some cases children were drinking waste water and became sick as a result. One resident from the edge of the camp said that: "the camp smells of death due to the scattered bodies, some bodies are buried under the rubble, others crushed by tanks, and the rest are left lying in the streets."


In the refugee camp, the IDF moved from house to house, searching for weapons or members of armed groups. The IDF told Amnesty International that soldiers treated each of the 1,800 houses in the camp individually, warning people to leave; if no one came out of a house IDF soldiers would use a loudspeaker instructing those inside to leave.Numerous testimonies show that IDF units frequently forced Palestinians to take part in operations by making a Palestinian camp resident enter a house first and then search it; they also used Palestinians as "human shields" to shelter behind. IDF patrols blew open the doors of houses often without waiting to see whether those inside were going to open them. Houses were destroyed, sometimes without ensuring that the residents had left.

After the IDF closure and curfew were raised on 17 April 2002, they were repeatedly reimposed. In June, Dr Kathleen Cavanaugh, an international law expert and Amnesty International delegate, trying to carry out research in the few hours when the curfew was lifted, moved from house to house taking shelter and interviewing residents as she tried to investigate recent killings of children in Jenin during the curfew. As she was interviewing eyewitnesses the IDF killed another child breaking the curfew.

According to hospital lists reviewed by Amnesty International there were 54 Palestinian deaths between 3 and 17 April 2002 in both Jenin refugee camp and Jenin city as a result of the incursion and subsequent fighting. This figure includes seven women, four children and six men over the age of 55. Six had been crushed by houses. The body of one person known to have died by being crushed in his house has not been recovered.(5)

"My son Wadah has six children four boys and two girls. The oldest child is
10 years old and the youngest is four months. It was 6 April at about 6.30pm.
The IDF had gone to the house of Yusuf 'Abd al-Karim Sa'adi. He lives not
far from my house, maybe 15 metres. Yusuf's son, 'Abd al-Karim was at my
house at the time. The IDF then moved from this house to my neighbour's
house. My son, Wadah, does not normally stay with us but because of the
situation, he had come to stay here with his family. Myself, my wife, my son
and his family and my daughter and her family were all here with me. The IDF ...
saw my children playing in my backyard and told them to go to the basement
of my house. We all went to the basement, there were 17 of us, and we were
there for about five minutes. We were then told to go next door but instead of
letting us pass through the main entry, they made us walk along the street and
then approach my neighbour's house through an alley. When we reached the
end of the alley, the soldiers separated the men from the women and children.
Both my son and 'Abd al-Karim were holding children. They handed the
children to the women and remained in the alley. The women and children
went to a back garden of 'Abd al-Karim's house, which was located through
a metal door off the alleyway. When the women and children were in the garden,
the soldier closed the door. Some of the soldiers went with the women and three
stayed with us; they were only two metres away in the narrow alley. Two were
called Gabi and David. .... They told us to lift our shirts.

"We did not have anything in our hands. When they told us to raise our shirts,
we did. I heard Gaby say in Hebrew 'Kill them, kill them', then the other soldier
took his gun and sprayed us with bullets. He shot from left to right, so 'Abd al-Karim
was hit first and then Wadah. I don't know how I wasn't shot except that when I
heard the shots, I fell to the ground. My son's body was resting on mine. I could
feel something wet underneath and I could see it was blood. I could see that my
son was shot. I kept very quiet and pretended to be dead".


Amnesty International visited the site of the shooting. There was under two metres distance between the position of the soldiers and that of the victims. At the time the shootings would have occurred, it would have been early evening, but would not yet have been dark. It has been suggested that 'Abd al-Karim Sa'adi was wearing a back-brace and the soldiers might have mistaken it for an explosive belt; however, the brother and father of 'Abd al-Karim Sa'adi insisted that he did not wear a back-brace. Professor Derrick Pounder carried out an autopsy on the body of Wadah Shalabi and concluded that he died from a shot into the left back and out of the right front. Wadah Shalabi was also shot in the foot.

'Ali Na'el Salim Muqasqas

Professor Derrick Pounder conducted an autopsy on the body of a 52-year-old man, later identified as 'Ali Na'el Salim Muqasqas, in Jenin City Hospital on 17 April 2002. The autopsy disclosed a single fatal gunshot wound to the right chest and heart which would have caused rapid death.

 Hassan, the son of 'Ali Muqasqas, said:

 "It was Saturday 6 April. We were all in a bedroom. There were nine persons
four children, one young woman and four men, including my father and myself.
There was shooting coming from the Israelis. I knew it was from the IDF, as it
sounds different than from the resistance. On the first day of the invasion, a
sniper had hit our water tank, so we stored some water under the stairs just
outside. At about 12.30pm on that day, my father went out to get some water
for the family. My father knew where he could walk, as we had seen the sniper
before and had been shot at before. We knew the sniper's range and so my
father knew to stay in certain areas or hurry through certain areas or he would
be shot. On that day, my father ran through the first zone, the first area of danger.
I then heard 2 shots. I heard my father's voice saying that he was injured. I went
outside to try and reach my father but there was shooting towards me. I could
not reach him. I tried to speak with him, but he did not reply. The stairs were
about 20 metres from the room we were staying in. I tried to call my neighbour
to see if he could get to my father by a different way, maybe to climb over the
wall. My neighbour, Abu Khaled, told me that he could not go over the wall, he
was too old. He then came and was pounding on the door. He was pounding so
hard, that I just ran to open the door. At that time there was a helicopter flying
overhead and sniper fire. Shooting began and Abu Khaled was shot in the chest.
It wasn't a deep wound; it was as if the bullet had scratched him. I now had two
problems.

"I brought my neighbour into the back room and we tried to give him first aid.
After Abu Khaled was shot, I realised that the sniper was not in the usual place.
I looked out of the back window from the room we were in and saw movement
in the house across the way. I knew then that the IDF were in that house, as
most of our neighbours had left the area. I am the eldest son and it was my
decision then and I decided to take my family out of the house, it was too
dangerous. At the time we left, we still had hope that my father was alive. We
kept calling to him, 'Father, father,' but there was no reply. We broke a window
in the backroom and climbed through. This led to an alleyway and to my uncle's
house, which is just close by. We stayed in this house until after the invasion.
From this window we would call out to our father. It was too dangerous to go
back, but we would try to speak with him and to see if there was any sign of life.
We were unable to reach him until the Red Cross and some doctors came and
retrieved his body on 15 April. He was dead."

The autopsy findings are consistent with the family's account of his killing.


Fares Hassan al-Sa'adi

On the evening of 21 June 2002, the IDF blew up an unoccupied house in the old city area of Jenin. The explosion also demolished an adjacent house, which contained eight family members, all of whom were trapped in the rubble. Two were seriously injured and one 12-year-old child, Fares, died. According to the family and neighbours no warning was given to the family before the explosion, despite protests from a neighbour who had been used during this military operation to check the adjacent house. Amnesty International interviewed neighbours, as well as family members. Their accounts of the incident are consistent. The IDF has claimed the targeted property was used to store munitions. Regardless of whether this was the case, the responsibility remains for those members of the IDF involved in the operations to secure the safety of the civilian population in the immediate area.

A neighbour of the al-Sa'adi family described how an IDF unit compelled him to check the rooms of an empty house for explosives:

"[...]The soldiers told me that they were going to demolish the house. I saw the
bomb. I explained to the soldiers that there were actually two houses, not just
this one, and that only a common wall separated them. I told them that if they
exploded this house the other one would also fall. I said that there were children
next door. I asked the soldiers to give me permission to knock on the door and
warn them, but they said 'No'."

Hassan Fares al-Sa'adi, Fares's father, told Amnesty International:

"All of a sudden, there was an explosion and the roof fell down. I was then
under the rubble. When I got out, I was calling to my children. I first heard
Mahmud (11), who was injured on his left ankle. I then heard my daughter
Asil (8),whose leg was broken and had a head injury. My wife had injuries
all over the left side of her body and she was cut and bleeding. Up until
now she cannot hear well in her left ear. I then found my daughter Hadil
who was unconscious. After that I found my niece Muna; she had a back
and leg injury. We then found Fares. At that moment, I didn't know if he
was alive or dead."

Fares al-Sa'adi died in the ambulance on the way to hospital.

International standards, including the UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions require prompt, thorough, and impartial inquiries into these killings. The primary responsibility for these investigations lies with the State. Amnesty International urges the government to initiate without further delay a thorough and transparent investigation into the above cases and to make these findings public. The international community has a responsibility to ensure that these investigations take place and are carried out according to the UN Principles and that those responsible for unlawful killings are brought to justice.





    2. TORTURES AND ARBITRARY DETENTION



AI-index: MDE 15/143/2002     04/11/2002
            Israel and the Occupied Territories
      Shielded from scrutiny: IDF violations in Jenin and Nablus

Amnesty International's Conclusions

Torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in arbitrary detention

In the towns and refugee camps occupied by the Israeli army the IDF ill-treated and
sometimes reportedly tortured Palestinians detained in mass roundups of males aged
15-55. Amnesty International interviewed many Palestinians from Jenin who had been
released from detention while they were still in Rumaneh, a village near Jenin, prevented
from returning to their homes. Amnesty International delegates also interviewed former
Palestinian detainees arrested during Operation Defensive Shield in Jenin and Nablus,
who described the cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment to which they
had routinely been subjected. Most were humiliated and many were insulted. Many
described treatment amounting to torture, mostly in the form of random beatings with
rifle butts.

Article 7 of the ICCPR prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment; this article is non-derogable. Israel has also ratified the Convention against
Torture which states that "No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state
of war or a threat of war, internal political in stability or any other public emergency,
may be invoked as a justification of torture" (Article 2(b)) and requires investigations
into every allegation of torture or ill-treatment (Article 12).

Under Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention "torture or inhuman treatment…
unlawful confinement of a protected person," and "wilfully depriving a protected
person of the rights of fair and regular trial prescribed in the present Convention" are
all grave breaches of the Convention and therefore war crimes.




        (Document "a")
Amnesty International On-line. http://www.amnesty.org

ai-index    MDE 15/089/2002     23/05/2002

 Israel/Occupied Territories: Amnesty International calls for a commission of inquiry into mass arbitrary detention of Palestinians

"We were all handcuffed and we sat on a pebbly ground. We weren't given any food, and when we asked for water they poured it over us. The handcuffs were tight and when the blindfolds were taken off on our arrival I saw some people with hands black and swollen."
Testimony of Majdi Shehadeh arrested on 8 March 2002.

"More than 8,500 Palestinians have been arrested between 27 February and 20 May, many of them arbitrarily detained. These arrests and detentions were accompanied by a consistent pattern of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and sometimes torture," Amnesty International said in a report released today. The report "Mass detention in cruel, inhuman and degrading conditions" documents how detainees were humiliated and detained for days without charge, access to a court, their lawyer or families.

"We call on the Israeli authorities to set up a commission of inquiry and to bring those responsible for ill-treatment of detainees to justice."

Most of the 2500 detainees arrested during February and March were released within a week, whereas many of the more than 6000 detainees arrested during Operation Defensive Shield after 29 March were held in prolonged incommunicado detention. A new military order issued on 5 April 2002 (Military Order 1500) allows an initial period of 18 days of detention without access to a lawyer, a judge or relatives. After the initial period of incommunicado detention the prohibition of access to the outside world can be extended further by a military judge for up to 90 days.

"This Military Order violates international standards and must be immediately repealed," the organization added.

Loudspeakers summoned males between 15 and 45 to report to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). On arrest most detainees were blindfolded and handcuffed with tight plastic handcuffs, often held squatting, sitting or kneeling, not allowed to go to the toilet, and deprived of food or blankets during at least the first 24 hours.

"The indiscriminate and arbitrary arrests caused anguish to families who remained under curfew after their relatives were led off and had no means of knowing whether they were alive or dead," Amnesty International emphasized.

     Majdi Shehadeh was one of more than 600 Palestinians arrested in Tulkarem refugee camp by the IDF in early March 2002. He was arrested on 8 March, told to take off his clothes from the waist up, left for an hour and then transferred to Israel, before being released the following day without charge. Amnesty International interviewed him on 20 March. The account he gave of his ill-treatment was similar to many others heard by the organization.

     Jamal Issa, who was arrested on 8 March and released six days later without charge or even interrogation, described the first 24 hours of his detention: "We stayed the night at the District Coordination Office, about 60 of us, handcuffed and blindfolded, treated as terrorists and humiliated. We asked to go to the toilet and they refused it."

      During "Operation Defensive Shield" in 29 March 2002 more than 6000 Palestinians were arrested. Scores of detainees were reportedly stripped to their underclothes on arrest and forced to remain in their underclothes for hours or even days. Released detainees from Jenin interviewed by Amnesty International delegates in Rumaneh village gave a consistent account of their treatment at the hands of IDF soldiers. They reported having been ordered to strip to their underwear, their hands were clasped behind their backs with plastic handcuffs, and they were blindfolded. They were kept like this for up to ten hours.

The use of administrative detention has also greatly increased: In May 2002 the IDF and the State Attorney gave figures ranging from 450 to 990 people in administrative detention compared with the November 2001 figure of 32. Most of those detained since the beginning of April have received administrative detention orders of up to six months. Administrative detention is a procedure under which detainees can be held without charge or trial. The order of detention can be renewed indefinitely.

     'Abd al-Salam 'Adwan, 39, a nurse and father of five children was arrested on 7 March 2002 at his workplace in Maqassed Hospital in Jerusalem and eventually transferred to Shikma Prison in Ashkelon. His lawyer was promised access to 'Abd al-Salam 'Adwan for the first time on 24 March. But when he reached the prison he was denied access to his client. On 26 March the lawyer was told that there was an order prohibiting 'Abd al-Salam 'Adwan from seeing his lawyer for ten days. After the order expired another order was imposed prohibiting access to a lawyer for a further five days. Only after intervention by Amnesty International and other human rights organizations was he allowed to see his lawyer for the first time after 34 days of incommunicado detention. On 13 May he was served with a six months administrative detention order.

Amnesty International calls on the Israeli Government to set up an independent commission of inquiry under the Law on Commissions of Inquiry of 1968. The commission should investigate the arbitrary arrests and the cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment immediately after detention of Palestinians arrested after 27 February 2002. Such a Commission of Inquiry should adhere to international standards for thorough, effective and independent investigations.

Read the report:
Israel/Occupied Territories: Mass detention in cruel, inhuman and degrading conditions



        (Document "b")

Amnesty International On-line. http://www.amnesty.org

ai-index    MDE 15/154/2002     04/11/2002

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PRESS RELEASE

Israel/Occupied Territories: Israeli Defence Force war crimes must be investigated

{.........................}

The report, Israel and the Occupied Territories: Shielded from Scrutiny - IDF violations in Jenin and Nablus, documents serious human rights violations by Israeli forces -- unlawful killings; torture and ill-treatment of prisoners; wanton destruction of hundreds of homes sometimes with the residents still inside; the blocking of ambulances and denial of humanitarian assistance; and the use of Palestinian civilians as "human shields". Following meetings with the IDF in May to discuss IDF actions and strategies, Amnesty International submitted most of the individual cases included in the report to the IDF for comment but, despite promises to answer on the cases, no response has yet been received.

[......] In Jenin and Nablus, the IDF blocked access for days to ambulances, humanitarian aid and the outside world while the dead and wounded lay in streets or houses. In Jenin a whole residential quarter of the refugee camp was demolished leaving 4,000 people homeless.

[.........]    

"There will be no peace or security in the region until human rights are respected. All attempts to end human rights violations and install a system of international protection in Israel and the Occupied Territories, in particular by introducing monitors with a clear human rights mandate, have been undermined by the refusal of the government of Israel. This refusal has been supported by the USA."

"It is imperative that the international community stop being an ineffective witness of the grave violations that take place in Israel and the Occupied Territories. Meaningful, urgent and appropriate action is long overdue," Amnesty International concluded.

Israel and the Occupied Territories Shielded from Scrutiny : IDF violations in Jenin and Nablus details the following violations:

Unlawful killings
"My family was at home on Friday 5 April. It was about 3 or 3.15 in the afternoon. We heard the knocking and calling for us to open the door. My sister 'Afaf said 'Just a moment'. She said this right away.... When she reached the door, she had just put her hand out to touch the handle of the door and it exploded. The door exploded in on her and the right side of her face was blown off.... I think she must have died instantly. We started shouting. The soldiers were just outside that door. The IDF began to shoot at the walls as if to try and scare us. We yelled at them to get an ambulance but they did not answer us."

"I looked and saw one of the large bulldozers coming from the west side bulldozing the al-Shu'bi family house and I saw the house tilt over. Without even thinking, I yelled to the soldier in the bulldozer, 'Let the residents leave the house.' At this point the soldier came out of the bulldozer, took his weapon and started to fire in my direction." Ten members of the Shu'bi family were buried under their house in Nablus for six days, only two survived.

These cases are just two of many documented by Amnesty International in Jenin and Nablus where people were killed or injured in circumstances suggesting that they were unlawfully killed. Palestinians not involved in fighting were killed as a result of disproportionate use of force and the failure of the IDF to take adequate measures to protect those not involved in the fighting.

In Jenin refugee camp and Jenin city, more than half of the 54 Palestinians who died as a result of the incursion between 3 and 17 April, appear not to have been involved in fighting. Among those killed were seven women, four children and six men aged over 55. Six had been crushed in houses. In Nablus, at least 80 Palestinians were killed by the IDF between 29 March and 22 April. Among the victims were seven women and
nine children.

None of these killings has been impartially and thoroughly investigated, even where there have been strong reasons to believe they were unlawful. This failure on the part of the Israeli authorities has helped created a climate where some members of the IDF, aware that no action will be taken against them, continue to carry out unlawful killings.

The use of Palestinians for military operations or as "human shields"

"We entered my neighbour's house. The soldiers began to drill a hole in the wall. I went with three soldiers and the dog through the wall. The soldier kept the gun positioned at my head. This happened about six or seven times. In each case, when we passed from
building to building the soldiers always kept me in front of them. At the last place I pulled the door back and just as I was walking out I heard shooting. The soldiers pulled me back from the alley and began to return fire. I was one metre behind them".

In both Jenin and Nablus, the IDF systematically compelled Palestinians to take part in military operations or to act as "human shields". Women as well as men were used in this way. Typically, the IDF would hold a Palestinian for several days and compel them to search property in the camp, thus putting them at serious risk of injury.

Torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in arbitrary detention

" They started to beat us on the body and chest with rifle butts.....We were all gathered there in our underwear. It was cold. When we
asked for blankets, we were beaten. We were not given any water."

In Jenin, men who had been rounded up and separated from women, children and men aged over 55 were stripped to their underwear,
blindfolded and handcuffed. Many said they were beaten. One detainee died as a result of beatings.

In Nablus a similar pattern of torture and ill-treatment of people detained in mass round-ups was recorded. Immediately after arrest, detainees
were taken to Shomron temporary detention centre. Those interviewed said that beatings took place during and after the arrests. The centre was
overcrowded and detainees were given insufficient water, little food and were sometimes denied access to toilet facilities.

  Document "c"


AI-index: MDE 15/143/2002     04/11/2002

                                      Israel and the Occupied Territories
                     Shielded from scrutiny: IDF violations in Jenin and Nablus

Torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of detainees

During their operations in Jenin refugee camp between March and June 2002, the IDF ill-treated and sometimes tortured hundreds of detained men mostly between the ages of 16 and 55.(7) The IDF announced that 685 Palestinians had been arrested in Jenin by 11 April. It appears that the only requirement for detention was gender, nationality, and age.(8) Men were separated from women, children and men over 55. They were stripped to their underwear, blindfolded and their hands were bound with plastic cuffs. Reports of ill-treatment were frequent and some said they were beaten;
one detainee died as a result of these beatings.

Those detained were removed from the refugee camp and taken first to Bir Sa'adeh where they were held for between two and five days. During this period they were ill-treated: former detainees interviewed said they were forced to squat, with their heads lowered, for protracted periods of time; their hands were still bound behind their back with plastic cuffs and they were blindfolded. For the first 24 hours no food was reportedly supplied and water distribution was not systematic (some report receiving some water, others none at all). Most said that no blankets were furnished despite the cool temperatures at night and there was limited or no access (or access permitted in difficult or degrading circumstances) to toilet facilities. From Bir Sa'adeh detainees were transferred to Salem detention centre; most were released after three to 11 days' detention.

At the end of their detention, detainees were interrogated for periods ranging from 15 to 60 minutes. Some indicated being asked basic questions; others indicated that they were asked questions about political or armed activity in the refugee camp or their own political views. Some detainees were then transferred to other detention centres, sometimes to secret detention centres; some were later released, others issued with administrative detention orders
or held pending trial before a military court. Each detainee who was released was photographed at the conclusion of the interview, usually twice. One photograph was given to the detainee marked with his ID number and the authorities kept the other photo. For some, the photograph now remains their only source of identification.(9)

Detainees were released several kilometres from one of three villages around Salem, usually Rumaneh village. They were made to walk to the town; they were frequently still without clothing and most without shoes. They were told to remain in the village. Amnesty International interviewed several detainees upon their release. They were being housed in temporary accommodation in public buildings (in Rumaneh village, a school was converted into a temporary shelter); families took others in. As the blockade was still continuing most had no idea of what had happened to their families, who had remained in the camp, or their property. They returned to Jenin only after 17 April 2002, following the temporary IDF withdrawal from the refugee camp.

 'Amer Muhammad 'Abd al-Karim

'Amer 'Abd al-Karim, aged 24, was arrested in Jenin refugee camp on 9 April 2002. He told Amnesty International how all those sheltering in a house with him came out when they saw that houses were being bulldozed around them:

"There were 60 people in the same building, there were three women,
a newborn baby, about seven children and five or so old men. ... the
shelling began again and the house next door was being bulldozed. The
people in the house decided to leave rather than face the bulldozer.
When they left, they gave the sign of surrender. The IDF told them to
sit on the ground and place their hands behind their back; their hands
were bound with plastic ties. Men were separated from women and
taken 10 by 10 and told to strip to their underwear. They were then
told to parade around in a circle. We were not blindfolded. We then
were marched for about 20 metres and then separated from one another.
When we were marching I saw an injured woman who had just one leg.
We asked the IDF to help her and get an ambulance. They refused and
said not to fear. At that time, I heard shooting coming from the left,
which lasted about 10 minutes. During this period, the Israeli soldiers
were using people as human shields. The soldiers would have us walk
in  front of them, sometimes with them resting their rifles on our shoulders.
At times they were exchanging gunfire and shooting from people's
shoulders. After about 10 minutes, we were blindfolded and then taken
to a big area. I tried to take off my blindfold to see if friends were with
me. I asked about the injured woman and was told that they left the
woman there. We were then bound together in groups of five by the
hands. We then walked about 30 minutes... we were then made to sit
on the ground for about five minutes. I heard a soldier say to put 20 into
four columns. There was a tank in front and one behind, I heard it. It
was now late at night. We were gathered in one area and sat in a row.
I tried to get off my blindfold with my leg. I was worried I was going
to be run over by a tank. ... They started to beat us on the body and
chest with rifle butts ... after the beating we were seated with our head
on our knees with our arms behind our back. We all gathered in a large
area near Bir Sa'adeh, near Jenin outpost. We were all gathered there
in our underwear. It was cold. When we asked for blankets, we were
beaten. We were not given any water. We were there from about
midnight to about 10am.

"We were then taken to Salem by a bus or something like a truck
with chairs. We were taken off the bus one by one and asked for
ID and names. They started gathering information then – names
and personal details. One soldier asked who knew Hebrew. I put
my hand up. They took off the blindfold. I was given a gallon or
so of water that was hot and told to give to the thirsty. There were
about 31 or so men there. Because I knew Hebrew, I was asked
to tell the soldiers that some people were injured. The soldiers told
me that they would deal with it later. The water ran out before
everyone had a drink. One soldier told me to tell the others that
'You fighters don't deserve to live – you should die'. I told him,
'We came to you for surrender, we are ordinary people'. It was
quite hot and some of them tried to lie on the ground but the soldiers
told us to put our heads between our legs. There was a man about
68 years old who would not do it so the soldiers beat him with their
rifle butts and their boots. We stayed in this squatting position from
about 10am until night-time. We did not have a break. Only when I
was pouring water was I allowed to be in a different position. We
were at Salem from Tuesday night until Wednesday night. There
was one man with us who had diabetes but there was no medical
help provided during this time. I was released at a gas station. I
was still blindfolded but with my hands handcuffed in front. When
I left the bus I was told not to go back to Jenin or the camp."

Muhammad and Husni Ahmad 'Amer

On Sunday 7 April, two brothers, Muhammad and Husni Ahmad 'Amer, were taken into custody by the IDF.Muhammad 'Amer described how Husni, who had been compelled to participate in an IDF operation, was subjected to severe beatings, and taken from Salem detention centre by ambulance later that day. At the time Amnesty International interviewed him, he was searching for information about his brother. Almost two months later, Muhammad 'Amer was informed that his brother Husni had died.

Muhammad 'Amer told Amnesty International:

"I was at my mother's house in the Jurrat al-Dahab area of the camp on the morning of 7
April. It was a Sunday and it was about 8am. I was with my son, another brother and my
mother. I heard a knock on the door. We opened the door and found that it was my
brother Husni, he was with the IDF. The IDF ordered us to leave the house and about
20-25 soldiers entered the house. We were on the balcony. They were in the house for
about 5 minutes. They arrested my son Amir and left my mother and my other brother
Maher (who is disabled). They took myself and my brother Husni and led us to Husni's
house, which is a very short distance away.

"When we reached Husni's house, we entered and went to the basement. When we
reached the basement, the soldiers saw many pictures on the basement walls and an
officer said to us, 'these are maps to show the fighters the roads'. We both answered
and told them that these were just children's drawings. When my brother told him that
these were the drawings of his children, his hands were handcuffed behind his back
with plastic and they had him sit. They did not touch me. I was just standing near my
brother at the time.

"They began to hit my brother on the shoulder and his bottom with a type of baton.
The beating continued for about half an hour. The soldier kept saying to him, 'You
must say these are maps of the militants'. For a while, my brother was screaming.
After a while, though, his face became almost white. He kept telling them that these
were just his children's drawings. He told the soldiers, 'I can get my children so that
they could tell you'.

"My brother then began to complain about a pain in his stomach and asked the
soldiers for some water. They did not give him any water. They beat him about
four to five times and in between each beating, they would ask him about the
drawings.

"When they finished beating my brother, they told me: 'Okay, now it is your
turn'. I told them in Hebrew that I am ill and that I have a problem with my
heart. They left me for about five minutes and when they came back they said,
'Okay you can go to the other room'. It was just next to the one I was in with
my brother. When I went to the other room, I was told to sit on the ground. The
door was left opened. I could see my brother. I spent about half an hour in this
room. After this, they took both my brother and me out of the house. My brother
was leaning on me. The IDF took us to the entrance of the camp. We walked
about 200-250 metres. Once inside the camp, they handcuffed us with plastic ties
and blindfolded us. We were told to sit. We were kept there for about one to two
hours, I am not sure.

"My brother kept complaining about his pain. At first they took us to Bir Sa'adeh.
My brother was screaming now from the pain. He kept saying he was hurt. When
we arrived at Bir Sa'adeh, my brother and I were separated. At one stage, I asked
to use the bathroom and a soldier took me. He let me take my blindfold off then.
When I returned, I sat in a different place, under a tree. I was allowed to keep my
blindfold off. I could hear my brother asking for water and complaining about the
pain in his stomach. After a short time, the soldier told me to put my blindfold
back on. During the time I had the blindfold off, I could see my brother at the
bottom of the hill. They didn't give him any water or any medical help. We were
kept there for about 6 hours.

"We were then put in an armed personnel carrier (APC) and taken to Salem
detention centre. We realized we were in Salem when we heard the call for
prayer. When we arrived at Salem, we were ordered to sit on the gravel. When
I was there, I was taken for interrogation and asked a few questions. They
asked me if I would like to work with them and told me that if I agreed, they
would get me permission to work inside Israel. I refused. They questioned me
for about 10-15 minutes. They then photographed me and kept the photo. I heard
them saying to each other in Hebrew 'You can release him'. They put the
handcuffs and blindfold back on me.

"After the interrogation, I returned to the gravel and I was placed near my brother.
The soldier gave me his ID card. He was moaning very loudly at this point and
seemed to have problems breathing. The other prisoners started to yell that he was
dying. I heard the soldiers trying to give him some medical help, and then I heard
one of them ask for an ambulance. I could still see a bit through the bottom of the
blindfold and saw them taking my brother away. It was about 7.30pm. I remained
there for one night. The following morning, I was released. I have not seen my
brother again."

The family, as well as local human rights organizations including HaMoked,
made repeated inquiries regarding Husni 'Amer. They were told by the IDF that
there was no record either of his detention or of his hospitalization. On 1 June,
nearly two months after his detention, the District Coordination Office (DCO,
the centre for coordination between Israel and the Palestinian Authority) informed
Husni 'Amer's family that his body was being held at the Abu Kabir Centre for
Forensic Medicine. On 6 June, the Israeli High Court, acting on a petition from the
family, prevented any further examinations on the body. On 13 June, Muhammad
'Amer was called to Abu Kabir to identify the body. The family has requested
independent forensic examination to determine the cause of death.





   3. COLLECTIVE PUNISHMENT

Amnesty International On-line. http://www.amnesty.org


ai-index    MDE 15/100/2002     26/06/2002

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PRESS RELEASE

AI Index: MDE 15/100/2002 (Public)
News Service No: 108

Embargo Date: 26 June 2002 10:00 GMT

    Israel / Occupied Territories: Palestinians suffer renewed collective punishment


As Israel reoccupies villages and towns in the West Bank the Palestinian population suffers the effects of widespread security measures such as prolonged curfews, house demolitions or administrative detention that amount to collective punishment, said Amnesty International today.

"No abuses, however atrocious, by armed groups can justify Israel's indiscriminate punishment," said Amnesty International. All major West Bank towns have by now been reoccupied and are placed under curfew for up to 24 hours a day, preventing a population of 500,000 from pursuing their daily life.

"The curfews are forcing Palestinians to spend long periods under virtual house arrest," Amnesty International stated.

The right to freedom of movement is further curtailed by closures -- army barriers blocking all movement between towns and villages -- and the introduction of a new rule that requires every Palestinian travelling to another town in the West Bank to obtain a permit from the Israeli Civil Administration.

"Economic, social and psychological consequences of closures are extreme. Palestinians cannot go to work, products cannot be transported and agricultural produce cannot be harvested and sold. Cultural and social life is severely limited while children lose weeks of schooling," the organization said.

In response to a spate of suicide bomb attacks by Palestinian armed groups killing dozens of Israeli civilians, Israeli authorities have begun to construct a heavily protected security fence in the Occupied Territories. Some Palestinian communities have been placed on the Israeli side of the barrier, virtually cutting them off from the rest of the West Bank.

By demolishing houses of families of suicide bombers or wanted Palestinians the Israeli authorities punish the families collectively. The demolition of houses is prohibited under the Fourth Geneva Convention except for cases of absolute military necessity.

In addition to violating the Fourth Geneva Convention the security measures taken by Israel also violate its obligations under international human rights standards. The reoccupation has been accompanied by the rounding up and arbitrary detention of hundreds of Palestinians, who are held often in degrading conditions without charge or trial.

Curfews and house demolitions have also led to violations of the right to life. On 21 June a Palestinian man aged 60 and two children, aged 11 and six, were killed in Jenin by a tank round. They came out to shop when the curfew was reportedly lifted. The Israeli Defense Forces have admitted that the shelling of the market place was a mistake. But it is not clear whether anyone will be held accountable for the killing. On the same day a 12-year-old child was crushed to death during an Israeli army demolition of a house in Jenin.

Israel appears to have resumed its policy of "targeted killings" of suspected members of Palestinian armed groups. On 24 June the car of an alleged Hamas activist in Rafah was attacked by a missile killing six people, including the driver of a passing car and the Hamas activist.

"Unlawful killings of Palestinians continue as a result of the virtually complete impunity offered to Israeli soldiers who kill Palestinians," said Amnesty International.

"Durable security cannot be addressed by more repression and more walls and barriers," commented Amnesty International. "It can only be achieved if the human rights of all are guaranteed."




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