Palestinian suffering continues as disregard for international law grows

Precarious situation in Gaza:

In Gaza, since the ceasefire agreement entered into effect on 19 January, Israeli military reportedly killed 58 Palestinians including ten children and three women, mostly in the vicinity of the Israeli imposed “no-go” zones including the Netzarim and Philadelphi corridors, as well as eastern Rafah, Khan Younis, and Beit Hanun. Many of those killed were reportedly attempting to check on their homes. Targeting Palestinians who are not actively participating in hostilities is a war crime regardless of the Israeli-imposed movement restrictions.

For the fifth consecutive day, Israel has blocked humanitarian aid as well as all other goods and supplies, including fuel, from entering Gaza, causing prices to soar and anxiety to spread over the possible return to bombardment and starvation. This is coinciding with the start of the Holy month of Ramadan, further heightening the stress of Palestinian families, most of whom remain displaced. Lack of adequate shelter, warm clothing and healthcare services led to the death of at least eight babies in the past two weeks from the cold, three of whom were reportedly newborns.

As the occupying power, Israel has a legal obligation to ensure the provision of the necessities of life for Palestinians living under its control. This includes food, clean water, shelter, and adequate healthcare. Any denial of the entry of the necessities of life for civilians may amount to collective punishment. The use of hunger and starvation as a weapon of war is a war crime.

Additionally, efforts to remove tons of rubble and waste are greatly hampered by the lack of the required heavy equipment and fuel. Palestinian families and civil defense workers continue to extract bodies from under the rubble — at least 808 bodies recovered since the ceasefire started.

Large-scale West Bank operation continues:

In the West Bank, an Israeli security operation continues to ravage northern communities, killed dozens, forcibly displaced about 40,000 Palestinians, emptying entire refugee camps. The Israeli Minister of Defense told media that Israeli security forces will remain in parts of the emptied territory for a year and will prevent residents from returning. The operation started on 21 January and preliminarily targeted Jenin, then extended to include Tubas and Tulkarem governorates. So far, Israeli security forces have killed 54 Palestinians in the course of this operation, including eight children, and two women. Outside these governorates, during the past two weeks, Israeli security forces killed five other Palestinians including a 12-year-old boy shot in the back in Hebron.

The killings increasingly demonstrate an alarming disregard for Palestinian lives with high prevalence of unlawful killings. As there are no hostilities in the West Bank, the international human rights law standards on the use of force in law enforcement operations apply. Instead, Israel now routinely resorts to using tactics and weapons developed for war fighting, including the deployment of airstrikes and tanks.

Alarming incidents reported over recent weeks include Israeli security forces opening fire at a house in Jenin, killing a two-day old baby girl inside; shooting and killing an eight-month pregnant woman trying to flee Nur Shams refugee camp in which an operation by the Israeli security forces was ongoing; the killing of a 13-year-old girl in the courtyard of her house also in Jenin; and the killing of a ten-year old boy while standing in front of a building in Tulkarem. 

Since January, three members of Israeli security forces were killed by Palestinian armed men in the West Bank or inside Israel. A 17-year-old Israeli girl succumbed to injuries sustained when a Palestinian man rammed a car into a crowd of Israelis in north Israel last week. The attacker was subsequently shot and killed.

Coinciding with the operation, restrictions of movement have also dramatically increased, strangling communities and preventing thousands of students and workers in northern areas from reaching their schools and workplaces.

According to Israeli media, Israeli security forces are planning to limit the number of worshippers from the West Bank allowed to access Al Aqsa Compound in East Jerusalem for Friday prayers during Ramadan to only 10,000. This is a significant drop from the tens of thousands who gathered for Friday prayers in Al Aqsa Mosque in previous years. Ahead of the first Ramadan Friday prayer tomorrow, Israeli media is reporting movement restrictions around East Jerusalem, including the deployment of thousands of security officers and the closing of key roads, which is likely to have a severe impact on freedom of movement.

Steps to consolidate annexation and forced transfer:

Of particular concern is the mass forced displacement in large swaths of the Occupied Palestinian Territory. In Gaza, Israeli forces’ continued presence, and the constant killing of Palestinians around the Israeli-designated no-go zones is effectively preventing Palestinian residents from returning to their homes in these areas.

In the newly emptied parts of the West Bank, houses are being reportedly destroyed. At least 120 buildings in Jenin and 41 in Tulkarem have been demolished so far, apparently to make space for the creation of wide streets that would allow easier passage to military forces. Israeli security forces also announced that they will imminently demolish 16 houses in Nur Shams refugee camp. Signs are being erected that give freshly bulldozed streets and junctions Hebrew names in Jenin and Tulkarem.

In parallel, increasing numbers of Palestinian herding and farming communities are being displaced from Area C and other fertile areas of the West Bank, forced to leave by state and settler violence, restricted access to land and pastures, and discriminatory policies.

These steps are being taken against a backdrop of a barrage of statements from Israeli officials and lawmakers promoting further consolidation, under Israeli law, of the annexation of large parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Statements also call for the forcible transfer and deportation of Palestinians in Gaza.

Earlier this week, the Ministerial Committee at the Israeli Knesset preliminarily approved a bill to extend Israeli law, jurisdiction and administration to settlements around Jerusalem, which would further cement annexation. This threatens to further fragment the Occupied West Bank, further isolate the Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem, and complicate any future efforts to fulfil Palestinians’ right to self-determination. Israeli media quoted lawmakers who explained the bill is a significant step towards extending Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank.

Measures to forcibly displace Palestinians and consolidate the annexation of their land fly in the face of Israel’s obligations under international law, including its duty to end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and to immediately evacuate all settlements as affirmed by the International Court of Justice. These measures must stop and be reversed, and Palestinians across the occupied territory must be allowed to return to their homes in safety and in dignity.

Accountability must be prioritised for violations committed by all duty bearers, including Israel, Palestinian armed groups, and the Palestinian Authority as an essential step towards a just and sustainable peace.