PCHR Weekly Report

PCHR Palestinian Centre for Human Rights http://www.pchrgaza.org
Weekly Report: On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory	No. 20/2006 18 - 24 May 2006

Israeli Occupation Forces storming a Palestinian house in al-Zababda village near Jenin.

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

Israeli violations of international law continued in the OPT during the reported period (18–24 May 2006):

Killing: During the reported period, IOF killed 9 Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

On Saturday, 20 May 2006, IOF extra-judicially executed a member of the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, in Gaza City. This attack also killed three Palestinian civilians and wounded four others, all from the same family. PCHR’s accountant was passing by the area at the time of the attack but escaped injury. IOF admitted responsibility for this attack. On Sunday morning, 21 May 2006, IOF shot dead a Palestinian woman, while she was looking through her window in Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus. The area was completely quiet, when IOF shot at her. On Wednesday afternoon, 24 May 2006, IOF shot dead 4 Palestinians, including 3 civilians, and wounded 35 others, including 8 children, in a two hour period during an incursion into Ramallah to arrest an allegedly wanted Palestinian.

Incursions: During the reported period, IOF carried out repeated incursions into Nablus. IOF conducted at least 50 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank. During these incursions, IOF raided houses and arrested 78 Palestinian civilians, including two children and two women. In addition, IOF transformed two houses into military sites. IOF used undercover units and trained dogs during these incursions. During the reported period, IOF moved twice into Palestinian areas in the Gaza Strip, and leveled areas of land near the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel.

Restrictions on Movement: IOF have continued to impose a comprehensive siege on the OPT, in violation of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of Palestinian civilians.

IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on the Gaza Strip, transforming it into a large prison. IOF have continued to monitor the movement of Palestinian civilians through Rafah International Crossing Point on the Egyptian border. Although IOF have allowed the transportation of food aid from Egypt into the Gaza Strip through Kerem Shalom commercial crossing, southeast of Rafah, the crossing has not yet been officially opened. IOF have also continued to prevent Palestinian workers from the Gaza Strip from reaching their work places in Israel through Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing. They have continued to prevent hundreds of thousands of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip from traveling to the West Bank. IOF have partially operated al-Mentar (Karni) commercial crossing, east of Gaza City. As a result of the repeated closures of the crossing, the economic conditions in the Gaza Strip have deteriorated.

IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on Palestinian communities in the West Bank. IOF positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. IOF have continued to separate the north and south of the West Bank. For this purpose, they have closed Za’tara checkpoint, south of Nablus, and re-established their presence at ‘Attara checkpoint, north of Ramallah. They have also erected two new checkpoints near Ramallah. During the reported period, IOF positioned at various checkpoints around Nablus imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. IOF positioned at various checkpoints in the West Bank abused a number of Palestinian civilians. During the reported period, IOF at checkpoints in the West Bank arrested two Palestinian civilians.

Annexation Wall: IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall inside the West Bank. On Sunday morning, 21 May 2006, IOF bulldozers started to dig a tunnel between al-Khader village and the western countryside, south of Bethlehem, in preparation for the construction of a section of the Wall in the area. According to a report published by the Agriculture Department in Hebron, IOF have confiscated 6,191 dunums[1] of land in Hebron – excluding Dura villages and subordinate villages – for the purpose of the construction of the Wall. In addition, thousands of dunums have been isolated behind the Wall. In addition, IOF have seized 16 wells. According to the same report, IOF have uprooted or sized 23,354 trees. The Israeli High Court issued two new decisions on Monday and Tuesday, 22 and 23 May 2006, allowing IOF to resume the construction of sections of the Wall in ‘Aaboud village, northwest of Ramallah, and between Jerusalem and “Ma’ale Adumim” settlement. These decisions came two weeks following statements made by the Israeli Minster of Justice Haim Ramon before Israeli security officials on 9 May 2006, in which he vowed to make efforts with the judiciary to accelerate legal procedures to construct the remaining sections of the Wall. On Friday, 19 May 2006, IOF used forced to disperse a peaceful demonstration organized in protest to the construction of the Wall in Bal’ein village, west of Ramallah. IOF fired rubber-coated metal bullets, tear gas canisters and sound bombs at the demonstrators. As a result, 12 Palestinians civilians, two international solidarity activists and 3 journalists were wounded. IOF also arrested 15 demonstrators, including 7 international and Israeli solidarity activists.

Israeli Violations Documented during the Reporting Period (18–24 May 2006)

1. Incursions into Palestinian Areas and Attacks on Palestinian Civilians and Property

· At approximately 00:30, IOF moved into Beit Ula village, west of Hebron. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Jamal Hussein al-Sarrahin, 26, and arrested him.

· Also at approximately 00:30, IOF moved into al-‘Arroub refugee camp, north of Hebron. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Ahmed Isma’il Jawabra, 30, and arrested him.

· At approximately 01:00, IOF moved into Jenin town and refugee camp. They raided and searched a number of houses and arrested 3 Palestinian civilians:

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into al-Duhaisha refugee camp, south of Bethlehem. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Nidal Mohammed Khalawi, 24, and arrested him.

· At approximately 02:30, IOF moved into ‘Aaboud village, northwest of Ramallah. They raided and searched a number of houses and arrested 10 Palestinian civilians:

· At approximately 13:00, IOF moved into Qabatya village, southeast of Jenin. They besieged a house belonging to the family of Yasser Rateb Khuzamiya, 26. They called on Khuzamiya through megaphones to surrender and opened fire at the house. Khuzamiya got out of the house and surrendered to IOF. Soon after, IOF soldiers, accompanied by dogs, broke into the house and searched it. At the same time, IOF raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Mohammed Hatem Khuzamiya, 25, and arrested him. Later, a number of Palestinian civilians gathered and threw stones at IOF vehicles. Immediately, IOF fired at these civilians, wounding two of them:

1. Shadi Waleed Khuzamiya, 20, wounded by shrapnel to the body and was arrested by IOF; and

· At approximately 19:00, IOF moved into ‘Aaida refugee camp, north of Bethlehem. They opened fire indiscriminately, but no casualties were reported.

· Also at approximately 19:00, IOF moved into Tulkarm refugee camp, opening fire indiscriminately. No casualties were reported, but a number of houses were damaged.

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Nablus and the neighboring ‘Askar refugee camp. They raided and searched a number of houses and arrested 7 Palestinians civilians including a woman:

1. Nadia ‘Akkouba, 31, arrested to exert pressure on her son Rami, 17, to surrender to IOF;

· Also at approximately 02:00, IOF moved into al-Khader village, southwest of Bethlehem. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Ma’moun Saber Salah, 28, and arrested him.

· At approximately 04:00, IOF moved into Deir al-Ghosoun village, north of Tulkarm. They raided a number of houses and summoned 3 Palestinian civilians to the IOF intelligence:

· At approximately 18:00, IOF moved into Qarawat Bani Zaid village, northwest of Ramallah. They raided and searched a house belonging to As’ad ‘Arar, but no arrests were reported.

· Also at approximately 18:00, IOF moved into Kufor ‘Ein village, northwest of Ramallah. They raided and searched a number of houses, but no arrests were reported.

· At approximately 19:00, IOF moved into ‘Anza village, southeast of Jenin. They raided and searched a house belonging to Ghaleb ‘Abdul Rahman ‘Obaid, and arrested 6 Palestinians, including 4 security men:

During this incursion, a number of Palestinian civilian gathered and threw stones at IOF vehicles. IOF fired at these civilians, wounding 30-year-old ‘Emad Nayef Sadaqa with a live bullet to the right shoulder.

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Nablus and neighboring refugee camps, opening fire indiscriminately. An old Palestinian civilian, 70-year-old Hassan Ahmed ‘Abdullah, was wounded by shrapnel to the right leg. IOF also raided and searched a number of houses and arrested 4 Palestinian civilians, including a child:

· At approximately 05:00, IOF moved into Tulkarm refugee camp. They raided and searched a house belonging to Yousef Abu Ghazala. They held the residents in one room and transformed the house into military site. Nearly an hour later, a number of Palestinian children gathered and threw stones at IOF vehicles. Immediately, IOF opened fire indiscriminately, damaging a number of houses.

· At approximately 17:00, an IOF undercover unit moved into ‘Anabta village, east of Tulkarm. The unit besieged a house belonging to Fayez ‘Abdullah Isma’il. Soon, 9 IOF jeeps moved into the village to support the undercover unit. IOF ordered residents of Isma’il’s house to get out with their hands up, and they did. Immediately, IOF arrested the owner’s son, 21-year-old ‘Abdullah.

· At approximately 18:00, IOF moved into areas in the northeast of Hebron. They patrolled the streets and erected a checkpoint at al-Quds–al-Rama intersection in the north of the town, and another at Namera–Khellat Hadour intersection in the east of the town. They stopped and checked Palestinian civilian vehicles and interrogated a number of Palestinian civilians. No arrests were reported.

· In the early morning, IOF willfully killed a Palestinian woman inside her house in Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus.

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 01:00, IOF moved into Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus. They took position at the entrance to the al-Jammasin quarter in the center of the camp. At approximately 04:15, Subhi Abu Musallam, 50, left his house to go to work in the vegetable market. When he saw IOF positioned in the area, he decided to return home. His wife heard footsteps approaching the house, so she went to the second floor and looked through the window to check that it was her husband coming back home. As soon as she looked through the window, an IOF soldier willfully shot her dead with a live bullet to the head. According to Palestinian medical sources, the bullet that hit the victim was of an explosive nature.

· At approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Beit Ummar village, north of Hebron, and imposed a curfew on ‘Assida quarter in the east of the village. They then raided and searched a house belonging to Jameel ‘Eissa ‘Arar, and arrested his four sons: Mohammed, 27; Anwar, 25; Ibrahim, 23; and Ahmed, 18. The latter was released at noon.

· Also at approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Barta’a village, southwest of Jenin. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Mohammed Nabeel Qabaha, 23, and arrested him.

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Kufor Dan village, west of Jenin. They patrolled the streets, but no arrests were reported.

· At approximately 02:15, IOF moved into Shwaika suburb, north of Tulkarm. They raided and searched a number of shops and damaged them. They also stopped and searched Palestinian civilian vehicles traveling in the area.

· At approximately 13:15, IOF positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, east of Jabalya, fired a number of artillery shells at Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun towns. A Palestinian child, 12-year-old Hadi Isma’il Nasser, was seriously wounded by shrapnel to the right eye.

· At approximately 13:20, IOF moved into Wadi al-Hariya neighborhood in the southwest of Hebron. They patrolled the streets. They then stormed the campus of the Polytechnic University firing sound bombs and tear gas canisters. As a result, 3 students suffered from tear gas inhalation. IOF also held and interrogated 7 students, and then, summoned them to the IOF intelligence.

· At approximately 15:30, an IOF undercover unit moved into Tammoun village, southeast of Jenin, traveling in a civilian vehicle with a Palestinian registration plate. The vehicle stopped at the western entrance of the village, and 10 gunmen got out of it. They intercepted a Palestinian taxi coming from the south. They forced the driver and two passengers out and arrested them:

At night, IOF released the driver at al-Hamra checkpoint in the central Jordan Valley.

· At approximately 16:30, IOF moved into Tubas village, southeast of Jenin. They took position at the western entrance of the village. A number of Palestinian children gathered and threw stones at IOF. Immediately, IOF fired at the children, wounding 14-year-old Mohammed ‘Abdul Rahim Daragham seriously with a live bullet to the neck.

· At approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Nablus, opening fire indiscriminately. They patrolled the streets, but no arrests were reported.

· Also at approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Shwaika suburb, north of Tulkarm. They besieged a house belonging to ‘Aamer Kulaibi. They threw stones at the house. When residents of the house got out, they found many IOF soldiers besieging the house. IOF soldiers broke into the house and searched it. When they were certain that the house was not their target, they left it and besieged a neighboring house belonging to Helmi Yousef Abu Salah. The knocked on the door. When the owner opened the door, they pointed their guns at him and ordered him to bring all the residents outside. IOF soldiers were accompanied by two masked persons. When those persons saw the owner’s on, 25-year-old Yousef, they pointed at him and IOF soldiers arrested him.

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Dura village, southwest of Hebron. They raided and searched a number of houses in Hanina area and arrested two Palestinian civilians:

· At approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Sirris village, southeast of Jenin. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Wa’el Sameeh Qutait, 26, and arrested him.

· At approximately 03:00, IOF moved into Beit Emrin village, northwest of Nablus. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Muntasser Faheem Hassoun, 25, and arrested him.

· At approximately 05:00, IOF moved into al-Mazra’a village, north of Ramallah. They raided and searched a house belonging to Sheikh Hassan ‘Abdul Rahman Ladadwa. They arrested his wife, 38-year-old An’am Ladadwa, to exert pressure on him to surrender. It is worth noting that IOF had arrested his two sons also 5 weeks earlier: Anas, 22; and Hamza, 19.

· At approximately 10:00, IOF moved into al-Zababda village, southeast of Jenin. They raided and searched a number of houses. A number of Palestinian children gathered and threw stones at IOF vehicles. Immediately, IOF fired at the children, wounding 8-year-old Mohammed Lutfi Turkman with a rubber-coated metal bullet to the right leg. According to eyewitnesses, the child was on his way back home from school when he was wounded. Before their withdrawal from the village, IOF arrested 5 Palestinians from a house belonging to Dr. Mo’ayad Du’aibes:

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into al-Duhaisha refugee camp, south of Bethlehem. They raided and searched a number of houses and arrested 4 Palestinian civilians:

· At approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Yatta village, south of Hebron. They raided and searched a number of houses, but no arrests were reported.

· At approximately 02:45, IOF moved into al-Makhfiya neighborhood in the southwest of Nablus. They raided and searched a number of houses, and arrested 6 students of an-Najah National University from al-Shashtari apartment building:

· Also at approximately 02:45, IOF moved into al-Duha village, south of Bethlehem. They raided and searched a house belonging to Mohammed ‘Abdullah al-Afifi, 45, and arrested him.

· Also at approximately 02:45, IOF moved into al-‘Obaidiya village, east of Bethlehem. They raided and searched a house belonging to Radi Safi ‘Allan, 44, and arrested him. It is worth noting that he is an ex-prisoner and suffers from health problems resulting from serious wounds he had previously sustained, when IOF attempted to arrested him on 22 June 2006. He needs special medical care as a result.

· At approximately 03:00, IOF moved into Tarama village, southwest of Hebron. They raided and searched a house belonging to Maher ‘Abed Ghannam, and transformed it into a military site.

· At approximately 05:00, IOF moved into al-Bireh. They besieged a 3-storey apartment building in the al-Balou’ area in the north of the town. They then ordered residents of the building through megaphones to get out, and they did. IOF held the residents outside the building and fired a number of shells at it. At approximately 07:00, an IOF bulldozer moved towards the building. Soon, two Palestinians got out of the building and surrender to IOF:

1. Ibrahim Hamed, 45, allegedly wanted by IOF for 7 years for being the leader of the ‘Izziddin al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, in the West Bank; and

· At approximately 11:00, IOF moved from the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel nearly 300 meters into Gaza Valley village in the central Gaza Strip. They leveled areas of Palestinian land near the border. IOF remained in the area until 19:00.

· At approximately 12:00, IOF moved into al-Fara’a village, northeast of Nablus. They fired tear gas canisters at Palestinian school children, who were on their way back home.

· At approximately 17:20, IOF moved into the western neighborhood of Tulkarm. They searched a car that was parked in the area and confiscated computer hardware from it. During this incursion, IOF opened fire into the air in order to scare Palestinian civilians.

· At approximately 00:30, IOF moved into Qabatya village, southeast of Jenin. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of ‘Alaa’ Mahmoud Zakarna, 25, and arrested him.

· At approximately 01:00, IOF moved into al-Yamoun village, west of Jenin. They raided a bakery and held and interrogated 3 workers. They then ordered Palestinian civilians living in the eastern part of the village to get out of their houses. They checked the identity cards of these civilians and interrogated them. No arrests were reported.

· At approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Jericho. They raided and searched a number of houses and arrested Tariq Zayoud, 31. Zayoud was arrested on 14 March 2006, when IOF stormed the Jericho Prison, but he was then released.

· At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Kufor Dan village, west of Jenin. They patrolled the streets. No arrests were reported.

· At approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Qarawat Bani Zaid village, northwest of Ramallah. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Muhannad Nidal Saif, 17, and arrested him.

· Also at approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Ras ‘Atiya village, south of Qalqilya. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Khaled ‘Othman ‘Ouda, 30, and arrested him.

· Also at approximately 03:00, IOF moved into Hebron. They raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Mohammed Sami al-Dwaik, 19, and arrested him.

· At approximately 08:30, IOF moved into Maithaloun village, southeast of Jenin. They besieged the building of the municipality. They ordered staff members to get out and remove the Palestinian flag from the building. According to eyewitnesses, IOF fired tear gas canisters at Palestinian school children.

· At approximately 11:00, IOF moved from the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel moved nearly 200 meters into al-Boreij refugee camp. They leveled areas of Palestinian land near the border.

· At approximately 14:15, an IOF undercover unit moved into the center of Ramallah, traveling in two civilian cars with Israeli registration plates. The two cars stopped in Rukab Street. IOF soldiers got out of the car and raided an internet café in Tannous Building, and arrested Mohammed Hamed al-Shoubaki, 32, from Qalqilya, and 4 other unknown persons. A number of Palestinian civilians discovered the presence of the undercover unit, so they besieged the unit and threw stones at soldiers. Immediately, 15 IOF jeeps moved into the center of the town and opened fire indiscriminately in the area, which was crowded with people at the time. Dozens of Palestinian children and young men gathered and threw stones at IOF jeeps. Immediately, IOF fired at the stone throwers and passing civilians. As a result, 4 Palestinians, including 3 civilians, were killed:

1. Milad ‘Abdullah Abu al-‘Arayes, 19, from al-Am’ari refugee camp, hit by a live bullet to the head;

2. Khaled Ja’far Yassin, 20, from Khrabtha al-Mesbah village, hit by a live bullet to the chest;

3. Ghaleb Rabah ‘Othman, 22, from Beit ‘Aur village, hit by a live bullet to the chest; and

4. Aysar Kamal Qassem Abu ‘Erra, 21, a member of the Palestinian intelligence, from ‘Aqqaba village near Jenin, hit by a live bullet to the abdomen.

According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 18:35 on Saturday, 20 May 2006, a Palestinian civilian vehicle (a Mitsubishi) was traveling north near a house belonging to Dr. Mahmoud al-Zahhar, the Palestinian Foreign Minister, in Sinaa’ Street, Gaza City. In the meantime, another civilian car (a white Mitsubishi), in which a Palestinian family was traveling, was coming from the opposite direction. When the two cars approached each other, an IOF aircraft launched a missile at the first car, killing its driver. Shrapnel from the missile also hit the second car, killing three civilians (a woman, her daughter and her grandson), and wounding four others. Later, the victim in the first car was identified as Mohammed Sha’ban al-Dahdouh, 28, a prominent member of the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad. The three victims in the second car were identified as:

PCHR’s accountant, Rami Abu Sha’ban, was passing by the area in his private car, when the attack took place. His car was only a few meters only away from the targeted car at the time of the attack, but he escaped injury, although his car was damaged.

IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on the OPT and imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including Occupied East Jerusalem.

Although IOF have been redeployed around the Gaza Strip, they have maintained the occupation of the Gaza Strip through controlling all outlets and crossings.

· Rafah International Crossing Point: Rafah International Crossing Point on the Egyptian border is the sole outlet for the Gaza Strip to the outside world. Daily working hours at the crossing point have been increased to 10 hours. It is noted that, Kerem Shalom commercial crossing to the southeast of Rafah, which is designated for imports under joint Israeli-Palestinian control has not officially been opened. The crossing was opened a few weeks ago to allow the transportation of food aid from Egypt into the Gaza Strip due to the economic crisis in the Gaza Strip caused by repeated closures of al-Mentar (Karni) commercial crossing. On Friday, 5 May 2006, IOF closed the crossing in violation of the Israeli-Palestinian agreement on border crossings.

· Al-Mentar (Karni) Commercial Crossing: The crossing is the only commercial one serving the Gaza Strip. IOF frequently close the crossing as a means of collective punishment against Palestinian civilians. During the reported period, IOF partially operated the crossing and allowed the importation of limited amounts of goods, but prohibited the exportation of goods from the Gaza Strip.

· Beit Hanoun (Erez) Crossing: IOF have prevented Palestinian workers from reaching their work places inside Israel through Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing since 12 March 2006. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip have been prevented from traveling through this crossing. During the reported period, IOF decreased the number of patients permitted to travel to Israeli hospitals from 50 to 20. IOF have allowed international workers and Palestinian National Authority officials who have VIP cards to pass through the crossing, but without their private cars. Concerning patients with serious medical conditions, who need medical care in Israel, IOF prevented them from traveling to Israel. IOF have prevented patients under 35 from entering Israel, and imposed a condition that patients must be transferred to hospital rather than to clinics and private medical centers. Patients are subjected to prolonged and complicated checks that extends up to 6 hours. IOF have also prevented Palestinian ambulances from entering Israel, and thus, families of patients have been forced to hire Israeli ambulances at high prices. Contrary to Israeli claims concerning the ease of restrictions imposed at the crossing, IOF have allowed only 10 traders who have VIP cards to pass through the crossing, and have continued to prevent workers from traveling to their work places in Israel.

· Sofa crossing: IOF also control Sofa crossing, northeast of Rafah, which is designated for the transportation of construction raw materials. IOF repeatedly close the crossing for no apparent reasons.

The closure of border crossings deprives the Palestinian civilian population in the Gaza Strip of their right to freedom of movement, education and health.

IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on fishing in the Gaza Strip. Approximately 35,000 people in and around Gaza’s coastal communities rely on the fishing industry, including 2,500 fishermen, 2,500 support staff and their families. Fishermen have been subjected to intensive monitoring by IOF, which use helicopter gunships and gunboats to monitor the fishermen. On a number of occasions the Israeli military has opened fire against the civilian fishermen in order to enforce the 9 nautical mile limit imposed on them. The Oslo Accords make provision for Gaza’s sea to be fished to 20 nautical miles.

IOF have continued to impose a strict siege on Palestinian communities in the West Bank. They have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians and imposed curfews on a number of Palestinian communities.

· Ramallah: IOF have imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. They re-established their presence at ‘Attara checkpoint, north of Ramallah. IOF also erected a checkpoint near “Oufra” settlement. According to eyewitnesses, IOF positioned at the two checkpoints prevented Palestinians coming from the northern West Bank from entering the town. Palestinian civilians were forced to take alternative longer roads. On Thursday evening, 18 May 2006, IOF closed Qalandya checkpoint, and prohibited the movement of Palestinian civilians to and from Ramallah. At the same time, IOF closed the western entrance of Ramallah near ‘Ein ‘Arik village, and prevented hundreds of Palestinian civilians from traveling back to Ramallah.

· Nablus: IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. During the reported period, IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. During the reported period, IOF continued to separate the north of the West Bank from the center and south. For this purpose, they erected more checkpoints on the main road linking the north with the south of the West Bank. On Thursday morning, 18 May 2006, IOF erected a checkpoint erected near “Yitshar” settlement on the Nablus–Ramallah road, south of Nablus, and prevented Palestinian civilians from traveling to Ramallah. On Saturday morning, 20 May 2006, IOF positioned at Za’tara checkpoint, south of Nablus, prevented residents from Tulkarm and Jenin from crossing the checkpoint and forced them to travel back to their towns. At approximately 02:00 on Sunday, 21 May 2006, IOF took position at the western entrance of Beeta village, south of Nablus, and prevented dozens of trucks loaded with vegetables and fruits from entering the village to unload in the central market in the village. According to the local council of the village, at least 100 trucks coming from Hebron, Tulkarm, Jenin and Jericho were prevented from reaching the market.

On Monday evening, 22 May 2006, IOF erected a checkpoint in al-Maslakh area, south of Nablus. They arrested ‘Abdul Rahman ‘Eissa ‘Afana, 32, from Til village.

· Tulkarm: IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians. On Thursday, 18 May 2006, IOF closed Wad al-Teen checkpoint, south of Tulkarm, and prohibited the movement of Palestinian civilians. This closure remained effective until 11:00. At the same time, IOF closed ‘Ennab checkpoint, south of Tulkarm, and prohibited the movement of Palestinian civilians to and from the town. They also chased dozens of young men to prevent them from taking alternative side roads. On Friday, 19 May 2006, IOF erected a number of checkpoints at the entrances of the villages of Qiffin, Far’oun and al-Jaroushiya, north of Tulkarm. They stopped and checked Palestinian civilians. On Saturday, 20 May 2006, IOF erected a checkpoint at Far’oun intersection, south of Tulkarm. They prevented dozens of Palestinian civilians from crossing the checkpoint, and allowed others to cross it on foot. At the same time, IOF erected a checkpoint at Bala’a intersection, east of Tulkarm, and prevented Palestinian civilians from crossing it. At noon, they allowed Palestinian civilian vehicles to cross the checkpoint, but only following prolonged searches. On Sunday, 21 May 2006, IOF positioned at ‘Ennab checkpoint, east of Tulkarm, continued to prohibit the movement of Palestinian civilians to and from the town. According to eyewitnesses, IOF opened fire into the air to force Palestinian civilians to leave the area. At the same time, IOF erected a checkpoint at the entrance of Qiffin village, north of Tulkarm, and prohibited the movement of Palestinian civilians from the village. At approximately 17:00, IOF moved into Tulkarm through its southern entrance. They erected a checkpoint at the entrance of al-Sawana suburb. They stopped and searched dozens of Palestinian civilian vehicles, and held dozens of young men. On Monday, 22 May 2006, IOF erected a checkpoint at Far’oun intersection, south of Tulkarm. They stopped and searched Palestinian civilian vehicles and prevented them from moving towards Jebara and Wad al-Teen checkpoints to the south, which were closed. At the same time, IOF closed all checkpoints around Tulkarm. At noon, they allowed Palestinians aged over 35 to get out of the town, but IOF soldiers positioned at Wad al-Teen checkpoint forced them to travel back to the town. At approximately 06:00 on Tuesday, 23 May 2006, IOF erected a checkpoint to the east of Nour Shams refugee camp, east of Tulkarm. They stopped and searched Palestinian civilian vehicles. At the same time, IOF closed the Tulkarm-Baqa al-Sharqiya road, and prohibited the movement of Palestinian civilians. They also chased civilians who trying to use alternative dirt roads.

· Jenin: IOF have continued to close the northern Jordan Valley. They have closed al-Hamara and Tayseer checkpoints. On Saturday morning, 20 May 2006, IOF erected a checkpoint between the villages of Tammoun and Tubas, southeast of Jenin. On Sunday morning, 21 May 2006, IOF erected a checkpoint at Tammoun intersection, anothe