Ref: 07/2009

Date: 08 January  2009

Time: 12:30 GMT

  

Thirteenth Day of Continuous IOF Attacks Across the Gaza Strip

38 Palestinians killed during the reporting period, including 11 children and six women.

The total number of victims now stands at 712, including 169 children, 46 women, six medical personnel and one Palestinian journalist.

As the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) continue their indiscriminate attacks in the Gaza Strip for the thirteenth consecutive day, the number of Palestinian civilian deaths continues to rise amidst massive destruction of buildings and property.

Investigations conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) indicate that more than 90% of the Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip in the last three days have been unarmed civilians, including a large number of children. Israel continues to show no mercy in its military campaign, intent on destroying entire areas populated by civilians. Witnesses on the ground have confirmed that IOF are targeting civilians, including medical personnel. The entire Gaza Strip is now under IOF bombardment, and IOF are targeting schools run by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), as well as mosques and hospitals. During the last twenty four hours, three sisters were killed in Abed Rabbo in east Jabalia, and a father, his 3 sons and their cousin were all killed whilst driving in a car in Beit Lahia. 

PCHR are investigating, and documenting, Israeli war crimes being committed against the population of the Gaza Strip throughout this military operation. This is a summary of the crimes committed by IOF in the Gaza Strip during the last 24 hours.

 

Northern Gaza Strip

·  At 1.30 pm on January 7, an IOF fired an artillery shell at a house in Al Amal neighborhood in Beit Lahia, killing Wajoud Rajab Abu Waadi (31). Her corpse was left unattended until the following morning.

·  At 2 pm on January 7, IOF opened fire at houses in Abed Rabbo, east Jabalia, killing three sisters: Suad Abed Rabbo (10) and her sisters Amal (3) and Samar (2).

·  Thirty minutes later, IOF indiscriminately bombarded nearby the town centre of east Jabalia, killing two elderly people: Mohammed Abu Rukbah (87) and Musbah Ayub (60).

·  At 6pm, an IOF  plane bombed a civilian vehicle in Beit Lahia, killing five members of one family who were inside the car at the time.

1.  Khaled Al Kahlout (45).

2.  His son Mohammad Al Kahlout (15)

3. His younger son Habib (12).

4. His youngest son Tawfiq (10)

5. and their cousin Hasan Al Kahlout (20).     

·     Later the same evening, Hassan Ahmad Hijazi (31) was pronounced dead on arrival at Al Shifa hospital, after being seriously injured during intense IOF shelling of the northern Gaza Strip.

·     On the morning of January 8, an IOF aircraft attacked a home belonging to Tariq Nimer Abu Amsha (20) in Beit Hanoun, killing him.

·     On the morning of January 8, medical sources confirmed the deaths of a woman, Wafa Nabil Abu Jarad (23) and a child, Islam Jaber Abid Al’Daim (16). The child had been injured by IOF bombardment whilst attending a condolence ceremony for other victims in Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip.  

·     At 9.40 am on January 8, an IOF aircraft fired a missile at three members of the resistance who were nearby Al Qassam mosque in Beit Lahia, killing all three:

      

1-     Mohammed Nafiz Al Hindi (25)

2-     Anwar Jaber Abu Salim (24)

3-     Abed Al Nassar Abed Il-Guffar Oda (23)

 

 

Khan Yunis:

·  At 11:30 am on January 7, IOF entered Al Qarara and fired artillery shells, killing three people: one elderly man, Atuwa Ouwad Abu Mudief (60) and two women. The bodies were all transferred to Al Nassar hospital in Khan Yunis. The two women remained unidentified.

·  At 12:30 pm on January 7, IOF warplanes bombed an open area in Al Fukhari. No causalities were reported.

·  At 2:20 pm, IOF bombed another open area in east Khuza'aa. No casualties were reported.

·  At 6:25 pm, IOF aircrafts bombed the house of the Inshasi family in Al Madraseh St, in Al Amal district. The 3 storey house was slightly damaged, and the residents were evacuated.

·  At 11:05pm, IOF warplanes fired missiles, killing two resistance fighters: Salim Abu Mousa (24) and Hassan Ratib Sama'an (23) in the street connecting Al Amal and the refugee camp.

·  At 11:50 pm, IOF aircrafts bombed the police station in Ma'an, east Khan Yunis. The building was heavily damaged.

·  On January 8, UNRWA opened two schools in Al Qarara and Abssan as shelters for local families evacuated from the eastern Gaza Strip because of the IOF shelling and ground incursions.

·  At 12:30 am on January 8, IOF military vessels shelled areas west of Khan Yunis. No casualties were reported.

·  At 1:15 am on January 8, IOF warplanes bombed an open area in west Khan Yunis. No casualties were reported.

·  At 2:00 am, IOF aircrafts bombed the police station of Bani Saheela east of Khan Yunis, destroying the building and damaging nearby houses including Hamza mosque. No casualties were reported.

·  At 4 am, IOF aircrafts fired missiles into the 2 storey house of Al Qassam Brigades leader Mohammad Al Sinwar, located in block G in Khan Yunis refugee camp. The house was destroyed, but no casualties were reported.

·     At the same time, IOF launched an incursion into the area of east Al Qarara, and then halted near the former IOF settlement of Kisovim, approximately 600 metres from the border with Israel.

 

Central Gaza Strip

·     On Wednesday January 7, at 5:30 pm, F16 warplanes fired missiles into uninhabited land near Al Nadi Al Ahlee in Al Nuseirat, damaging surrounding houses.

·     Half an hour later, IOF warplanes bombed a metal-workshop belonging to Ibrahim Al-Taweel in Al-Burej refugee camp, destroying the workshop and a number of neighbouring houses.

·     At 7pm on January 7, an IOF aircraft fired a missile at the police station at Abu Meddin. This was the second time the police station had been bombed.

·     At 8.10 pm, an IOF aircraft bombed the house of Walid Fadel in al-Burej refugee camp, killing two civilians: Ahmed Hussein (21) and Mohammed Mohammed Eissa (28). The explosion also destroyed the house, and four other nearby houses, and damaged a nearby mosque.

·     At the same time, an IOF aircraft bombed the house of Samir Al-Naddih (41) in Al-Nuseirat refugee camp, destroying the house and damaging nearby homes.

·     At 10 pm, another IOF aircraft fired three missiles into a police station in Al-Maghazi, injuring three civilians, including one woman and destroying two nearby houses as well as the nearby town hall. The local mosque was also damaged.

·     At 2.30 am on January 8, IOF aircraft fired five missiles into an area in western Sowarha, destroying two houses and injuring fifteen civilians, including five children and two women. Another 20 local houses were damaged.

·     At 4am the same morning, an IOF aircraft bombed a police station in Deir Al-Balah for the second time, damaging the eastern portion of the station, as well as neighbouring houses.

 

Gaza City

·  At 1.30 pm on January 7, medical personnel were finally able to unearth the bodies of two brothers from underneath rubble. The brothers, Redwan Ashour (12) and Abdul Rahman (11) had been killed earlier the same morning.

·  At 4.10 pm, during an armed clash with IOF in east Zaytoun, three resistance fighters were killed: Ahmed Mousa (20), Azmi Zaid (20) and Ahmed Libud (22).

·  At 7.30 pm, during another armed clash with IOF, another resistance fighter, Majid Mushtaha (21) was killed.

·  During the evening of January 7, IOF opened fire indiscriminately in al-Zaytoun district, killing Hattem Ghazal (42) inside his house in Jaffa Street.

·  Also during the same evening, Medical sources in Al-Shifa hospital reported the deaths of four civilians, including two children, and one woman.

-   Ehab  Al-Harrizin (22) from Al-Shejaya

-   Ahmed Howeej (7) who had been injured on December 27.

-   Mohammed Hijjou (16)

-   Ola Arafat (20

·  At 9pm, IOF aircraft bombed Al-Taqwa mosque in Sheikh Redwan district. Four hours later IOF bombed the mosque for a second time, damaging it, as well as nearby houses.

·  At the same time, IOF aircrafts bombed Al- Jawazat police station several times.

·  At 11.50 pm, IOF aircrafts bombed Al-Nour Al- Mohammedi mosque in Sheikh Redwan, completely destroying the mosque and damaging nearby houses.

·  At 12.30 am on January 8, IOF warplanes bombed the Security and Defence Station in Al- Muntadha in west Gaza city several times.

·  At 2 am on January 8, IOF warplanes bombed the house of Mahmoud Al- Houwari (53) in Gaza city, killing a civilian, Omar Rejab (22) and destroying the house.

·   Also on the morning of January 8, medical sources at Al Quds hospital reported the death of civilian Rawia Awad (30) as the result of an injury she had sustained during IOF bombardment.

 

Rafah

·  At 4:30 pm on January 7, IOF aircrafts dropped a container of leaflets across Shaboura district in Rafah, informing civilians they should leave the area before 8am on January 8. The container injured eight local people. Thousands of local people immediately left the area.

·  At 5.30 pm, the IOF bombed the border area between the Gaza Strip and Egypt for three hours, injuring three people.

·  At 9.30 pm, an F16 fired four rockets at a house belonging to Ahmed Mohsin Foujou in Janena neighbourhood in northern Rafah. The 3 storey house was destroyed, and two women were injured. A nearby house was also destroyed, and several other houses damaged.

·  At 4.20 am on January 8, an IOF plane bombed a house belonging to Ahmed Khalil Al-Mudalil, a leader of Islamic Jihad in Il-Ansar neighbourhood in southern Rafah. The house was destroyed.

·  At 6:20 am on January 8, an IOF plane bombed an amphitheatre in a playing field in Rafah municipality, destroying the amphitheatre and also offices belonging to the Youth and Sports Ministry.  

 

In light of the crimes committed by IOF against the Palestinian civilian population and civilian objects in the Gaza Strip, PCHR:

1)     Condemns these crimes, which are part of a series of continuous crimes committed by IOF in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) with total disregard for the lives of Palestinian civilians, considering them a form of collective punishment against the Palestinian civilian population in violation of article 33 of the Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.

2)     Holds Israel responsible for the lives of Palestinian civilians in all circumstances. Under the international law, the existence of armed resistance does not in any case justify the use of such excessive force disproportionately and indiscriminately.

3)     Warns that the lives of Palestinian civilians are endangered in light of threats vowed by Israeli political and military officials to expand military operations against the population of the Gaza Strip.

4)     Calls upon the international community to immediately intervene to stop such crimes, and calls upon the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Convention, Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, to fulfill their obligation under article 1 of the Convention to ensure respect for the Convention in all circumstances, as well as their obligation under article 146 to search for and prosecute those who are responsible for perpetrating grave breaches of the Convention, as such breaches constitute war crimes according to article 147 of the Convention and the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and Relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I).