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Since
the eruption of the Palestinian Intifada Israeli forces have shelled many
civilian Palestinian areas on a nightly basis killing and injuring
numerous Palestinians and destroying their property. Indiscriminately
fired Israeli shells make no distinction between civilian homes and
facilities and legitimate military targets. Over the last five months al-Haq
has been carefully following and documenting these developments. After
intensive bombing campaigns during the first few months of the Intifada,
Israeli forces, under intense international pressure, began to limit their
use of tanks and helicopters in strikes against Palestinian targets during
January. Unfortunately this reprieve proved to be only temporary. During
the last several weeks, Israeli missiles have once again begun to rain
down on Palestinian civilian areas. What follows is a case study of one of
these attacks based on information gathered by al-Haq’s fieldworkers.
The National School for Blind Girls in al-Bireh came under fire from
Israeli tanks and heavy weaponry on 20 February 2001. The school was
shelled for more than three hours causing extensive damage to the
building. However, of greater significance is the psychological impact
that the shelling had on the disabled children in the school. "The
crime is doubled when it is committed against disabled children who can
hear the sound of the explosions, but can not see what is happening around
them. We do not know what to do now in order to protect the children
" said the school’s headmaster Mr. Hayyan al-Idrisi.
The National School for Blind Girls was established in 1978 under the
initiative of the Friends of the Blind Association in Palestine with the
objective of providing an education for children whose parents cannot
afford the expense of educating their disabled child. The school works
hard to integrate the students into the wider Palestinian society in an
attempt to provide them with every opportunity given to student without
disabilities. It currently serves 75 blind female students ages 4-18 and
is primarily dependent upon charitable donations given by local community
members. The school provides educational, artistic, and counseling
services for its students. It doubles as a home for many of the students
who board there. Teachers treat students with motherly affection and the
students feel safe while they are at the school. Both students and their
teachers believed that the school was a safe location in which the
students could receive a good education. Unfortunately, the Israeli
shelling changed this belief causing many students and staff to feel
worried and on edge.
Ten-year-old Isra’ Ziedan told of the shelling as follows, "I was
awakened by the sounds of shelling. I began crying and woke up the rest of
the children to escape. None of the children could move out of fear. Our
teacher came and asked us to move to the staircase, as it is the safest
place in the building. All of the students rushed to the staircase and, as
they cannot see, many fell down out of panic and fear. After I left my
room I started looking for my brother who attends the school with me, but
I could not find him. Our teacher then asked us to pray for the shelling
to stop and to ask God to protect us. Ulfat, who is only 4, would not stop
crying until our teacher Suhier came and hugged her" Ulfat said that
at first she tried to calm down other children, but being only a child
herself she was also scared of the shelling and needed someone to comfort
her. After a short time she said that she could not contain her fear and
began to cry. Her teacher said that she cried throughout the rest of the
Shelling, which lasted for three hours.
The Israeli authorities often talk about "purity of arms", but
then defile this “purity” when they use force indiscriminately against
civilian targets, including innocent disabled children. In so doing the
Israeli forces have violated international treaties and norms related to
the rights of children, and all commonly held ethical standards.
For years al-Haq has repeatedly warned the international community about
the consequences of Israel’s continuous violations of International
Humanitarian Law and Palestinian civilians’ human rights. We would now
like to express deep concern regarding these most recent developments and
Israel’s continued grave violations in the Occupied Territories. Local
and international human rights organizations have repeatedly called upon
the United Nations Security Council to provide a protection force for the
Palestinian people. Unfortunately their requests have fallen upon deaf
ears and no action has been taken. In order to stop the Israeli
authorities from continuing their illegal campaign, which has instilled
terror in the local Palestinian population, al-Haq now calls upon the
international community to place pressure upon the members of the Security
Council to take immediate action. To wait can only serve to further
Israel’s goal of terrorizing the Palestinian people and will lead to an
increased number of human rights violations. The Palestinian people both
deserve and require the assistance and protection of the international
community.
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