Suffering Continues for Residents of Al-Sayafa Sea;ed Enclave

Siege, raids, searches and land leveling for “security needs”

Date: 6 September 2005

Time: 10:00 GMT

The evacuation of Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip has not put an end to the Israeli Occupation Forces’ (IOF) human rights violations against Palestinian civilians. Eyewitness accounts indicated an increase in the suffering of Palestinians living in areas close to Israeli settlements.

Al-Sayafa is one of the affected areas. It is located between the settlements of Eli Sinai and Dugiet northwest of Beit Lahya in the Northern Gaza Strip. Its story began at the onset of Al-Aqsa Intifada, when the IOF began its cruel siege against area residents. For the past 5 years, Palestinians in Al-Sayafa been unable to lead normal lives as a result of the harsh closure measures.

IOF divided the area into two parts separated by an iron gate. The soldiers manning the gate and others in a nearby military outpost prevented residents from their right to move to and from the two isolated areas and between them. Palestinians passing through the gate and those living close to it were systematically subjected to humiliating harassment and abuse.

For those hearing or reading about it, Al-Sayafa became a prime example of the viciousness of the occupation. But for its residents, it is the home. And they were determined to stay rooted, and not give it up for the nearby settlements regardless of the violations aiming to uproot them.

IOF actions against Al-Sayafa residents were not limited to a suffocating siege, deemed a necessity to preserve the “security” of the two adjacent settlements. The violations took different forms and included further restrictions of movement, house raids at night and frightening children, bulldozing land and farms, home demolition, land confiscation, and occupying homes and using them as military outposts. Furthermore, the search methods at the iron gate worsened from simple searches by hand to lengthy, complex, multiple searches including electronic machines. Soldiers used dogs to search people and food stuffs in what could be described as pure humiliation. And IOF issued special permits for area residents to enter and leave the isolated area.

Pupils of all ages were subjected to the same suffering as other area residents, and were prevented from reaching schools and enjoying their right to education. The pupils suffered especially from the iron gate separating their schools from their homes. The gate was closed during the day, and opened in certain hours only. The IOF rarely follow the scheduled opening hours.

The movement restrictions, and IOF violations against Al-Sayafa, forced many residents to relocate to the areas of Al-Sayafa least affected by the gate.  However the reduction in suffering for these residents was minimal.

The representative of Al-Sayafa residents, Mousa Al-Ghoul, talked to PCHR about the civilian suffering as a result of the IOF violations, and said, “IOF have been imposing a strict closure on the area since the beginning of the Intifada. They closed the area and don’t allow residents to pass except by having a magnetic card, issued by the IOF especially to control movement. In addition to the closure, IOF have been perpetrating a policy of abuse and humiliation that didn’t exclude the young or the old. Everyone is subject to daily humiliation at the iron gate.”

IOF have evacuated settlers from the Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip, including Eli Sinai and Dugiet that surround Al-Sayafa. In addition, they have removed the iron gate which never took into account the special needs of pupils, farmers and patients.

Now, however, IOF have replaced the gate with a tank stationed in the same spot. The soldiers manning the tank play the same role played by those who manned the gate. They keep the area under closure and restrict the movement of civilians. They allow passage during certain times only, similar to the times of passage of the gate. And from time to time, IOF carry out house raids, search operations, and land leveling around houses for “security needs.”

On 15 August 2005, IOF informed area residents of their intention to impose a complete closure on the area for three weeks during the implementation of the disengagement plan. Although residents stocked up on food stuffs and essentials such as baby milk, some of these goods started to run out or expire as there was no electricity in the area. After 12 days, IOF allowed 3 area residents to leave and bring back baby milk.  Despite the need for some foodstuffs, IOF prevented refurbishing food stocks and allowed the passage of liquid milk only once. On 5 Sep 2005, 3 residents were allowed to leave and bring back foodstuffs, which points to a continuation of the closure.

The new school year started on 3 Sep 2005, which coincided with the continuation of the IOF closure of the area and the imposed movement restriction. Pupils faced difficulties reaching their schools because the same system of the iron gate was in place despite the dismantling of the gate. After coordination with the IOF, the pupils were allowed to go to school and return in the same time frames of the gate. The times were incompatible with the school hours. The exit hours were 7:00 and the return was set at 13:00. Small pupils who finished school at 10:00 were forced to wait 3 hours away from home and family until soldiers allowed them to pass. Pupils of the afternoon shift were forced to abandon three classes so as not to miss the time set for their return home.

On the suffering of pupils, Mousa Al-Ghoul said, “We presented the Israeli side with a list of Al-Sayafa pupils to get permission for them to go to school. The number was 17 male and female pupils. They gave permission for all pupils. But in practice they allowed pupils to go to school, and prevented secondary school pupils from returning home.”

Despite the prior permission, IOF didn’t allow pupils over 16 years of age to go back home to Al-Sayafa at the end of the first school day. Four male and 2 female students were forced to stay temporarily with relatives or friends as a result. One family went as far as building at temporary bamboo shelter in a plot of land on the other side of the “gate” to house its two sons prevented from coming back home.

Al-Sayafa lacks healthcare facilities. And patients require at least 40 minutes to obtain permission from the IOF to leave the area and head to clinics or hospitals. Patients and pregnant women suffer additional agony in leaving the area, resulting from the long wait and humiliating search procedures.

PCHR condems the ongoing military occupation in the Gaza Strip which, even after disengagement, will continue to exert effective control over the OPT.  For further information on the daily suffering of Palestinians during disengagement please see PCHR’s daily Live from the Field Reports at www.pchrgaza.org .

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Palestinian Centre for Human Rights

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