29 September 2000 – 28 September 2001

Israeli violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories since the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa Intifada have not been limited to the killing of Palestinian civilians, bombardment of residential areas and the imposition of a total siege as a means of collective punishment. Israeli occupation forces have also razed large areas of Palestinian agricultural land and have demolished houses and civilian facilities in both the areas under their control and those under the control of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian land adjacent to settlements, bypass roads, borders and Israeli military locations have been especially targeted by Israeli occupation forces.

This is the 6^th specialized report by PCHR on leveling of land and demolition of houses and civilian facilities by Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip. It covers the period 29 September 2000 to 28 September 2001. During this period, Israeli occupation forces razed 13576 donums, about 11372 donums (84.3%) of which were agricultural lands, and about 2134 donums (15.7%) were wooded land.

These figures do not include the areas of houses and civilian and agricultural facilities established outside these areas, which were also swept and demolished. Israeli occupation forces destroyed hundreds of wells, water pumps, irrigation networks, agricultural stores and greenhouses. They also demolished dozens of bird farms and agricultural tools.

The following table shows the distribution of land leveling in the areas of the Gaza Strip:

Land leveling by Israeli occupation forces is often accompanied by house and civilian facility demolition located in the affected areas. In the period under study, Israeli bulldozers demolished 316 houses completely and 33 houses partially.

This report will detail land leveling and house and civilian facilities carried out by Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip in the period from 29 September 2000 to 28 September 2001. It will highlights the ways Israeli occupation forces carried out these actions, their justifications for these actions and an analysis of these actions in light of the international humanitarian law. In its end, this report includes three tables, which lists losses of land leveling and houses that were totally and partially demolished by Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip.

In most cases, Israeli occupation forces imposed an atmosphere of terror during land leveling and house and civilian facility demolition. Israeli forces, reinforced with tanks and bulldozers, often encroach into targeted areas at night. They fire flash bombs and live ammunition, apparently to terrify people and call on civilians to evacuate the area. Then, they raze land or demolish houses. Fearing for their safety, civilians are forced to leave the area abandoning their property. Land is razed and houses are demolished before the eyes of their helpless owners. Sometimes, Israeli occupation forces raze land and demolish houses during the daytime. These actions mainly target areas adjacent to borders.

Israeli occupation forces also encroach into Palestinian National Authority controlled areas. Sometimes, they thrust up to 1km into these areas and raze land and demolish houses and civilian facilities. They may also seize some houses and transform them into military locations, claiming that their aim is to protect Israeli settlements (which are illegal under international humanitarian law) and bypass roads. Owners of such houses are held in lower floors prevented from leaving their houses for any daily activity except upon agreement by Israeli soldiers who take position on roofs.

Actions of land leveling and house and civilian facility demolition carried out by Israeli occupation forces mainly take place in the following areas:

• Near bypass roads used by Israeli occupation forces and Israeli settlers, which divide the Gaza Strip, such as “Kissufim” road between Salah El-Din Street (the main road between the north and south of the Gaza Strip) in Al-Qarara area, Al-Mawasi road between Salah El-Din Street and the “Gush Qatif” settlement block and the bypass road between “Netzarim” settlement, south of Gaza City, and Israel.

• Near Jewish settlements and their roads, such as areas adjacent to “Kfar Darom” and “Netzarim” settlements.

• The border areas, such as the areas adjacent to the Egyptian border, south of Rafah, and those adjacent to the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel.

• Near Israeli military locations, which overlook Palestinian communities.

Land leveling and house and civilian facilities have created wide spaces along the border with Israel, on both sides of bypass roads and near Israeli settlements and military locations, dozens and even hundreds of meters wide. Israeli occupation forces established new military locations and bypass roads on seized tracts of land. For example, they established a new settlement road between Salah El-Din Street and “Morag” settlement, north of Rafah, on a confiscated tract of Palestinian land. They also initiated establishing a settlement road between Salah El-Din Street and the “Gush Qatif” settlement block on a confiscated tract of Palestinian land, south of Deir El-Balah.

Palestinians are often denied access to the razed areas of land. Israeli occupation forces fired at Palestinians who tried to reach or work on such areas, killing nine. It is unsafe for Palestinians to walk on the main roads adjacent to bypass roads as Israeli snipers often fire at them.

The uprooting of thousands of fruit trees and the destruction of greenhouses, wells, irrigation networks and bird and animal farms, which are the bases of the Palestinian agricultural sector, will cause financial losses for several years in the future, even if we assume that Palestinian civilians will be able to replant their land in the future. Approximately 7.25% of the total area of agricultural land in the Gaza Strip have been leveled, which considered a high percentage given the fact that the Palestinian economy is very weak.

On the other hand, the policy of house demolition has rendered hundreds of Palestinian families, comprising approximately 2200 persons, homeless. In addition, they have suffered the loss of their property and furniture.

The destruction of dozens of factories and workshops has damaged the Palestinian industrial sector and has left a high number of Palestinian workers unemployed.

Israel considers the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories as an armed conflict between it and the Palestinian National Authority. It sees that it is no longer obligated to the rules of law enforcement, rather it is in a situation of an armed conflict, in which it has the right to use military means, including the use of lethal weapons to oppress Palestinian demonstrations and destruction of houses and civilian property for reasons of “security.”

Israeli occupation forces argue that the large scale land leveling and house and civilian facility demolition are carried out because Palestinians wage “terrorist” attacks on Israeli soldiers and settlers. They uproot trees, raze land, and demolish houses in the areas that witness exchanges of fire. Although resistance actions have significantly decreased, land leveling and house demolition continued.

Such operations are carried out at night. Palestinian civilians are not informed in advance about land leveling and house demolition in order to be able to evacuate their property, while curfews are imposed on the targeted areas. If Israeli occupation forces have easy access to such areas, there is no need for the destruction of houses, wells, irrigation networks, trees, etc. as they do not pose any threat to the lives of Israeli soldiers and Jewish settlers. These aggressive actions can only be understood in the context of collective punishment against the Palestinian people.

Since 1967, the international community has considered the Israel as a belligerent occupying power and the Palestinian Territories as occupied, so the Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of 1949 is applicable to these territories. As Israel is a party of the Convention, it must implement it in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. In addition, the states that have signed the Convention (“High Contracting Parties”) are obligated to ensure Israel’s respect for the Convention.

Israel has said that it will implement the “humanitarian” sections of the Convention without specifying what those provisions are and ignoring the fact that the Convention is entirely humanitarian in nature. Moreover, Israel has not recognized itself as the occupying power. In regard to the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories since 29 September 2000, the Palestinian Intifada, Israel absolutely rejects dealing with the Palestinian territories as occupied, especially areas A (areas under control of the Palestinian National Authority). Israel claims that contrast with the first Intifada of 1987, in which Palestinians used stones, Palestinians use firearms. So, Israel argues that the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is an armed conflict with the Palestinian National Authority, to justify its continued aggression against the Palestinian people. It considers itself no longer obligated to obey the rules of law enforcement.

However, investigations by international human rights organizations have considered the Palestinian case as a people under Israeli belligerent occupation. The Palestinian people have the right to resist the occupation using legitimate means. These organizations reject the description of the situation by Israel as an armed conflict. “It is clear that there is no international armed conflict in the region, as acceptable standards of statehood in the case of Palestine are not complete, although it is widely recognized,” state one commission. The same commission considered that “the conflict is subject to the Fourth Geneva Convention.” It rejected Israeli claims that the Convention is not applicability simply because there is no sovereign authority in these territories.

Article 53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention provides that “any destruction of real or personal property belonging individually or collectively to private persons, or to the State, or other public authorities, or social or cooperative organizations, is prohibited, except where such destruction is rendered absolutely necessary by military operations.” Article 147 of the Connection considers “extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly” as grave breaches of the Convention.

Land leveling and property destruction carried out largely by the Israeli occupation forces are among the scope of collective penalties and measures of intimidation and terrorism against civilians, prohibited by Article 33 of the Convention, which states: “No protected person may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited.”

These unjustifiable actions also contradict the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Article 1 of the Covenant states that “in no case may a people be deprived of its own means of subsistence,” and Article 5 does not give any state, group or person any right “to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights or freedoms recognized herein…”

Israeli actions against Palestinian land and property since 29 September 2000 are part of a policy of successive Israeli governments aimed at creating new “facts on the ground” that are irreversible. The uprooting of thousands of fruit trees and the destruction of greenhouses, which are the bases of the Palestinian agricultural sector, will cause financial losses for several years in the future, even if we assume that Palestinian civilians will be able to replant their land immediately. But there is real danger that these lands may never be regained by Palestinian farmers. Illegal Israeli settlements may well annex parts of these leveled areas or they may be used for military sites, bypass roads or “security spaces” for Israeli occupation forces. These actions are blatant violations of individual and collective economic and social rights.

These actions are gross violations of international humanitarian law, especially the Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War (1949) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Between 29 September 2000 to 28 September 2001, Israeli occupation forces razed approximately 13576 donums and demolished 349 houses and 39 civilian facilities in the Gaza strip. They also uprooted thousands of trees and destroyed hundreds of greenhouses, irrigation networks and wells. Israeli occupation forces are not expected to stop these actions in the near future, as they continue to reinforce their presence and establish new military locations in the Gaza Strip, of which 42% is under their military control. This will lead to further deterioration of the economic and social rights of Palestinian civilians.

PCHR condemns these illegal actions carried out by Israeli occupation forces. PCHR reiterates its call on the international community, especially the High Contracting Parties (HCPs) to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, to take practical measures to enforce Israel’s respect for the Convention. PCHR also calls on these HCPs to activate Article 1 of the Convention, which obligates them to ensure Israel’s respect for the Convention, and to put an end to frequent attacks on civilian residents’ property. PCHR calls upon the international community to provide immediate international protection for Palestinian civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories as a first step towards putting an end to the Israeli aggression.