19 April, 1997

Surif village, the village of 15,000 that has been the target of Israeli army brutality and collective punishment since the bombing in Tel Aviv, continues to suffer from extreme acts of Israeli army violence. On 21 March the Israeli army first imposed a curfew, which was lifted on 2 April. The curfew was then re-imposed on 10 April, and lifted only on the 18th. The village, however, is still a closed military area. During these two periods the village experienced severe shortages of basic foodstuffs, a particularly difficult burden as Moslems celebrated their largest religious holiday of the year on 17 April.

During the period of curfew and siege, the residents of the village were subjected to deprivation and continuous acts of army violence. In one more serious incident, Khalid Mustafa Arar, 56 years old, suffered a heart attack on 13 April and died while his family tried to get him to hospital during the curfew. He had come from Jordan to visit his family in Surif for the Moslem feast. When his family attempted to bury him on the same day, the Israeli army opened fire on the mourners with rubber bullets and tear gas.

Over the past three days, since the lifting of the curfew and the imposition of the closed military area, soldiers apparently have roamed the streets, firing rubber bullets and tear gas at those who have ventured out of their homes to collect badly needed food supplies. Over 120 have been injured thus far, and over 50 cars and 200 water tanks have been damaged by the gunfire.

Soldiers have also assaulted village residents in the streets of the village.

LAW views this kind of collective punishment and state-sponsored violence against this village a humanitarian crime, and calls on the international community to condemn strongly this daily terrorism of the residents of Surif.

LAW - The Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment is a non-governmental organization, dedicated to preserving human rights through legal advocacy. LAW is also an affiliate member of the Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights.