1 May 1996
HUMAN RIGHTS UPDATE: 13 APRIL - 25 APRIL
OCCUPATION AS USUAL
Land and Water Establishment
PO Box 20873
Jerusalem
Tel: (972) (2) 812364/824559
Fax: (972) (2) 811072
email: lawe@netvision.net.il
As the beginning of the final status negotiations approaches, the Israeli occupation policies of land confiscation, village raids, property destruction and arbitrary arrest continue as tools to predetermine their outcome. There has been no indication of a change in these standard procedures, which serve to solidify Israeli control over Area C of the West Bank and to remove the Palestinian population from areas around Jewish settlements and from near the green line.
The following are details of human rights abuses of the last two weeks (details of recent land confiscations have been included in our press release of 24 April).
Settler Aggression:
On 16 April, settlers from Eli near the Arab village of Qariut near Nablus began bulldozing land of the village to link it to their settlement.
On 18 April, settlers from Kefar Tapuah cut and destroyed trees on the property of Mustafa Saleh from Yassouf village near Nablus, and assaulted him and his family.
Also on 18 April, settlers from Ariel cut almonds and fig trees belonging to a farmer from Kufur Harris village near Nablus. He was also assaulted by the settlers.
Raids, Arrests, Restrictions on Movement:
On 13 April, a large group of Israeli soldiers raided Siq el Harthiyye village near Jenin, searched houses and damaged property. They evacuated all the residents of the village, including the elderly, women and children, to the main square of the village.
On 13 April, the Israeli army raided and searched houses in Yamoun village, near Jenin.
Also on 13 April, the Israeli army closed the entrance of Araba village near Jenin, stopping all traffic and checking identification.
On 14 April, the Israeli army surrounded and sealed Kufur Deeq village near Qalqilya and searched houses. The army did not permit residents to enter or leave the area.
On the same day the Israeli army and border police raided the mosque of Naqoura village, near Nablus. The army confiscated books, pictures and other material.
On 15 April, the Israeli military arrested suspected political activists from opposition parties from the villages of Awarta near Nablus, Hossan near Bethlehem and Samuah near Hebron.
On 18 April, Council Members from the Palestine National Council were prevented from entering Gaza by the Israeli authorities at the Erez checkpoint into Gaza.
On 19 April, Israeli army raided Bandala village in the Nablus district, searched two houses and arrested two brothers from the village, Yassir and Jaber Sliman Sawafta.
On 22 April, Council Members Shath al Natche and Dr. Ali Abu Rich were denied
permission to leave the West Bank in order to attend meetings in Gaza.
Property Destruction:
On 21 April Israeli bulldozers began to destroy land in Bet Jala village (near Bethlehem), near the Har Gilo settlement. The Israeli authorities stated that the bulldozing was to develop the electricity infrastructure for the settlement, but residents and the land-owner believes it is to link this land to the settlement.
On 25 April, Israeli authorities began bulldozing land on Ras Karkar near Ramallah to link the Na'ale settlement to Telmon B and C settlements. This secondary, Jewish-only road will be five kilometers long.
Recently Israeli authorities have announced the planned demolition of 60 homes in Hebron, between the settlements of Kiryat Arba and Givat Ha Harsina. The demolitions are postponed (although only temporarily), however, due to heavy international and internal pressure against the demolitions.
The demolition of homes near settlements, the confiscation of "belts" of land surrounding settlements, the construction of Jewish-only roads, the rounding-up of political opposition - these policies together serve to cleanse areas of the West Bank of a Palestinian presence (a straightforward Israeli version of ethnic cleansing) and to ensure that areas C, with the settlements of the West Bank, remain permanently under Israeli control. The continuing and crippling total closure of the West Bank and Gaza, additional restrictions on movement, arbitrary arrest, administrative detention and village raids add brutal and intolerable pressures on the local population and exacerbate an already volatile situation.
Land and Water Establishment is a Palestinian non-governmental organization, which seeks to defend human rights through legal advocacy. LAWE is also the affiliate member of the Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights.