Ref: 19/2009
Date: 22 January 2009
Time: 08:15 GMT
IOF Offensive on the Gaza Strip Makes it Like Earthquake Zone and
Claims Civilian and Property
Entire Families Pass Away
Children and Women Constitute More Than 43% of the
Total Number of Victims
Entire Features of Many Areas Disappear
Infrastructures Services completely Collapse
Hundreds of Families Become Homeless While
Dozens of Others Are Still Displaced
The offensive launched by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF)
on the Gaza Strip, between 27 December and 18 January 2009, has caused
total destruction in many parts of the Gaza Strip, making these parts
look like earthquake zones. In its offensive on Gaza, IOF employed its
full-fledged arsenal and used its air, ground and sea forces. Some areas
were almost completely razed, while many houses and civilian
establishments became hills of dust. IOF offensive claimed the lives of
hundreds of innocent unarmed civilians, including a large number of
children and women. The casualties included entire families (for more
information, please see press releases that had
been published by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) during
IOF offensive on the Gaza Strip).
Following the IOF withdrawal from Gaza in the early
morning of 18 January 2009, PCHR field workers could observe closely the
humanitarian crisis that has been caused by IOF offensive. It was
obvious that IOF intended to erase any civilization features in the Gaza
Strip. They deliberately and systematically destroyed the entire vital
facilities to make Gaza go decades back. Through the data and statistics
that PCHR has been able to collect so far, PCHR will show to all the war
crimes that IOF committed against Palestinian civilians and their
property. PCHR recruits a qualified team of field workers and lawyers to
observe and document the real damages that had been caused by IOF during
their offensive on the Gaza Strip.
The most wide-scale destruction by IOF during the
reported offensive took place in Gaza City and in northern the Gaza
Strip. In Gaza City, the most affected areas were Tal al-Hawa
neighborhood in the south of Gaza City, al-Zaytoun, al-Tufah and al-Shoja'eya
neighborhoods in the east of city. While the most affected areas in the
northern Gaza Strip were: al-‘Atatra area, Jabal al-Rayes area, Jabal
al-Kashef area and al-Twam area. The largest number of victims were in
these two governorates of the Gaza Strip.
The table below provides data on the dead and the
wounded
|
|
|
|
Gaza Governorates |
|
|
Total |
% of the total of the dead and the
wounded |
Northern Gaza Strip |
Gaza City |
Central Gaza Strip |
Khan Yunis |
Rafah |
|
Total number of
deaths |
1285 |
-- |
461 |
534 |
157 |
83 |
50 |
|
Deaths amongst
civilians and civilian police force members who were not
engaged in fighting |
1062 |
82.6% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Civilian deaths
|
895 |
69.6% |
400 |
313 |
81 |
61 |
39 |
|
Deaths among
children |
281 |
21.8% |
125 |
105 |
21 |
16 |
13 |
|
Deaths among women
|
111 |
8.6% |
54 |
41 |
10 |
5 |
1 |
|
Total of the
wounded |
4336 |
-- |
1914 |
1000 |
530 |
395 |
497 |
|
Wounded children
|
1133 |
26% |
591 |
200 |
140 |
100 |
102 |
|
Wounded women
|
735 |
17% |
385 |
100 |
90 |
76 |
84 |
Destruction to Civilian
Property and facilities
During their offensive on
the Gaza Strip, IOF have destroyed the following civilian property and
facilities:
·
IOF have destroyed at least
2,400 houses, including 490 ones by air strikes.
·
IOF have destroyed 28
public civilian facilities, including buildings of a number of
ministries, municipalities, governorates, fishing harbors and the
building of the Palestinian legislative Council.
·
IOF have destroyed 21
private projects, including cafeterias, wedding halls, tourist resorts
and hotels.
·
IOF have destroyed 30
mosques completely and 15 others partially.
·
IOF have destroyed offices
of 10 charitable societies.
·
IOF have destroyed 121
industrial and commercial workshops and damaged at least 200 others.
·
IOF have destroyed 5
factories of concrete and one of juice.
·
IOF have destroyed 60
police stations.
·
IOF have destroyed
buildings of 5 media institutions and 2 health ones.
·
IOF have destroyed 29
educational institutions completely or partially.
·
IOF have razed thousands of
donums
of agricultural land.
·
IOF have heavily damaged
thousands of houses.
The destruction of property
is each governorate has been as follows:
Northern Gaza Strip
·
IOF have destroyed 650
houses, including 250 ones by air strikes. According to initial
estimations, at least another 500 houses have been rendered
uninhabitable, and hundreds of others have been heavily damaged. .
·
IOF have destroyed 4 public
facilities.
·
IOF have destroyed 2
private facilities.
·
IOF have destroyed 85
industrial and commercial workshops.
·
IOF have destroyed offices
of 2 charitable societies.
·
IOF have destroyed 6
security buildings.
·
IOF have destroyed 7
educational institutions completely or partially.
·
IOF have destroyed 10
mosques and damaged 6 others.
·
IOF have razed at least
1,000 donums of agricultural.
·
IOF have destroyed 150 cars
and 200 agricultural tools.
Gaza City
·
IOF have destroyed 1,100
houses, including 80 ones by air strikes. According to initial
estimations, hundreds of others houses have been partially destroyed and
hundreds of others were heavily damaged.
·
IOF have destroyed 5 public
facilities, including buildings of ministries and the Palestinian
Legislative Council.
·
IOF have destroyed 8 hotels
completely or partially.
·
IOF have destroyed 8
private enterprises, including cafeterias and wedding halls.
·
IOF have destroyed 5 media
institutions, 7 educational ones, 2 health ones and 3 charitable ones.
·
IOF have destroyed 18
industrial and commercial workshops.
·
IOF have destroyed 10
security buildings.
·
IOF have 10 mosques
completely or partially.
·
IOF have razed hundreds of
donums of agricultural land (under documentation).
Central Gaza Strip
·
IOF have destroyed 220
houses, including 52 ones by air strikes.
·
IOF have destroyed 2 public
facilities (building of municipalities.
·
IOF have 6 mosques
completely or partially.
·
IOF have destroyed 2
workshops.
·
IOF have destroyed 19
security buildings.
·
IOF have razed at least 200
donums of agricultural land.
·
IOF have damaged dozens of
houses.
Khan Yunis
·
IOF have destroyed at least
230 houses, including 28 by air strikes.
·
IOF have destroyed 4 public
facilities.
·
IOF have destroyed offices
of 4 charitable societies
·
IOF have destroyed 10
industrial and commercial workshops.
·
IOF have destroyed 15
security buildings.
·
IOF have destroyed 2
mosques and damaged 5 others
·
IOF have razed at least 150
donums of agricultural land.
·
IOF have damaged 8
educational institutions.
Rafah
·
IOF have destroyed 160
houses, including 80 ones by air strikes. At least 300 houses have been
also damaged.
·
IOF have destroyed 12
public facilities.
·
IOF have destroyed 2
private enterprises.
·
IOF have destroyed 2
mosques and heavily damaged another 4 ones.
·
IOF have destroyed 6
industrial and commercial workshops and damaged 15 stores.
·
IOF have heavily damaged 7
educational institutions.
·
IOF have destroyed offices
of a charitable society.
·
IOF have destroyed 10
security buildings.
·
IOF have razed at least 300
donums of agricultural land.
While strongly condemns
war crimes committed by IOF during their offensive on the Gaza Strip,
PCHR:
-
Calls for establishing inquiry
commissions to investigate crimes committed by IOF against
Palestinian civilians, including IOF's use of internationally
prohibited weapons.
-
Calls for prosecuting all political and
military officials who are found responsible for committing war
crimes against Palestinian civilians.
-
Calls for stopping all collective
punishment measures imposed on the Palestinian civilian population
in the Gaza Strip, especially lifting the total siege and ensuring
free and safe movement of persons and goods.
-
Reiterates that crimes committed by IOF
are clear evidence not only for the excessive and disproportionate
use of force, but also for acts of retaliation against Palestinian
civilians.
-
Holds Israel responsible for the lives
of Palestinian civilians in all circumstances in accordance with
international law and humanitarian law.
-
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).
See the press release in German
