Silence as Iraeli forces escalate attacks on Palestinians

Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) continue to raze agricultural land in Halhoul & Beit Omar to build sections of Annexation Wall

Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) Escalate Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT)

A report by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights on Israeli human rights violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory 24 - 30 August 2006

• 30 Palestinians, including 3 children, a mentally disabled young man and a woman, were killed by IOF.
• 20 of the victims were killed by IOF in al-Shojaeya neighborhood in Gaza City.
  3 of the victims were extra-judicially executed by IOF in the West Bank.
• 52 Palestinian civilians, including 18 children and a woman, were wounded by the IOF gunfire.
• IOF launched a series of air strikes on a number of houses in the Gaza Strip.
  3 houses were destroyed in Gaza City and Jabalya.
• IOF conducted 40 incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, and invaded al-Shojaeya neighborhood in Gaza City.
• IOF arrested 50 Palestinian civilians in the West Bank, including 6 children.
• IOF arrested a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council in Ramallah.
• IOF arrested 7 Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip.
• IOF demolished 4 houses in Nablus.
• IOF destroyed civilian property in al-Shojaeya neighborhood in Gaza City.
• IOF have continued to impose a total siege on the OPT; IOF have imposed a tightened siege on the Gaza Strip and there have been shortages of foodstuffs and fuels; and IOF positioned at a various checkpoints in the West Bank arrested 5 Palestinian civilians.
• IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall in the West Bank; they razed more areas of land in Hebron for this purpose.
• Israeli settlers have continued attacks against Palestinian civilians and property in the OPT; settlers attacked Palestinian civilians and property in Hebron; and a Palestinian child was wounded in Beit Fourik village near Nablus

The number of Palestinians killed by IOF in the Gaza Strip since 25 June 2006 has increased to 217, including 46 children and 12 women. In addition, 755 others, mostly civilians, including 203 children, 28 women, 4 paramedics and 6 journalists, have been wounded.

Summary
As the international community has remained silent, IOF have continued to wage a full scale offensive on the Palestinian people, especially in the Gaza Strip. During the reported period, IOF have continued their attacks on Palestinian civilians and property.

PCHR, monitoring with utmost concern the developments of this offensive, calls upon the international community, particularly the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and United Nations, to immediately intervene to force IOF to stop this offensive and lift the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip.