The Palestine Chronology

IDF troops on the n. Gaza border shoot, wound a Palestinian farmer working his land nr. the border fence e. of Bayt Lahiya. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, nr. Bethlehem, and in Aida r.c., Jenin (detaining a senior Islamic Jihad cmdr.), Nablus; begins work on a new segment of the separation wall s. of Bethlehem nr. Um Salamuna; fences off areas along a settler bypass road through Jinata village nr. Bethlehem, declaring the areas closed military zones. (In response to the Jenin arrest, Islamic Jihad fires 7 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, seriously wounding 2 13-yr.-old Israeli boys in Sederot.) Israel announces approval for a new Jewish settlement, Maskiyot, in the n. Jordan Valley, where construction work to house 23 settler families evacuated fr. Shirat Hayam in the Gaza disengagement began several mos. ago, though 100 families are expected to move there in the near future; the approval violates pledges to the U.S. to halt settlement expansion and marking the government’s 1st official announcement of a new settlement since 1992 (though more than 100 unauthorized settlements have been built since 3/01); Israel claims the settlement is not new but the revival of a settlement approved in 1981; the site has been in use as an IDF base. (NYT, OCHA, WP, WT 12/27; PCHR 12/28)

The Israeli navy fires a shell at Palestinian fishing boats off the Bayt Lahiya coast, causing no damage or injuries. Islamic Jihad fires several rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries; the IDF warns that if the rocket fire of recent days continues, it will lead to an Israeli response. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus, nr. Hebron. (NYT 12/25; OCHA 12/27; PCHR 12/28)

Palestinians fire at least 5 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries; 1 rocket lands inside Gaza, injuring a 2-yr.-old Palestinian boy; Hamas says that it has not fired any of the nearly 50 rockets fired since the 11/26 Gaza truce was declared; Islamic Jihad has taken responsibility for many. Jewish settlers fr. Tal Rumayda stone a Palestinian girl, vandalize her family’s home in Hebron. Abbas blocks a number of government appointments made by Hamas-led PA offices. In Gaza City, a Fatah-linked clan kidnaps a Hamas mbr., sparking heaving exchanges of fire btwn. Fatah-Hamas supporters that leaves 1 Hamas mbr. dead. In Nablus, PA security forces loyal to Abbas fire on a group of 1,000 Hamas supporters celebrating the anniversary of the movement’s founding, wounding 9; Fatah-Hamas tensions have been high in Nablus, where Fatah protests the Hamas-led PA’s efforts to form an ESF branch under Siyam’s control. (MM 12/22; NYT, WP, WT 12/23; OCHA 12/27; PCHR 12/28; AIC 1/17)

The IDF sends additional tanks, troops into n. Gaza, bringing the total number of troops in n. Gaza to around 1,000, placing snipers on the rooftops of Palestinian homes, occupying the home of Reform and Change PC mbr. Jamila Shanti, fatally shooting 2 Hamas mbrs., a Palestinian woman, a 17-yr.-old Palestinian boy and wounding at least 1 gunman, 14 bystanders in Bayt Hanun, Bayt Lahiya, Jabaliya r.c. An IDF soldier is wounded by an antitank missile in Bayt Hanun. The IDF also fires on Palestinian fishermen off the Rafah coast, wounding 1. In Gaza City, the IDF makes an air strike destroying a money exchange, damaging several nearby homes. Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the PRCs claim responsibility for firing 8 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel today, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF assassinates al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade (AMB) mbr. Fadi Armur in Jenin r.c., wounding a 2d target, Islamic Jihad mbr. Ashraf al-Sa‘di; bulldozes 2 Palestinian homes, 2 animal pens nr. Qalqilya; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Qabatya and in and around Hebron, Nablus. A Jewish settler injures a 14-yr.-old Palestinian boy in a deliberate hitand-run nr. Bethlehem. (MM 11/22; MM, NYT, PCHR, WP 11/23; NYT 11/24; OCHA 11/29; PCHR 11/30)

Overnight and during the day, the IDF sends additional troops into Gaza’s coastal area nr. al-Khuza, sparking clashes with AMB and Hamas gunmen, fatally shooting 3 Hamas mbrs., wounding 2 armed Palestinians, 2 civilians (including a 12-yr.-old boy), bulldozing areas of agricultural land, destroying electricity, water, phone networks in the area. Also in Gaza, the IDF fires on residential areas of al-Shuka, wounding 1 Palestinian; makes an air strike destroying a workshop in Gaza City. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in a car with Palestinian plates into Jenin r.c. to arrest a wanted Islamic Jihad mbr.; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin and Nablus, in Hebron. (WP 11/1; OCHA 11/1; PCHR 11/2)

Hizballah leader Hasan Nasrallah says that he will rally large public demonstrations if Lebanese PM Fuad Siniora’s government does not agree to form a new unity government giving Hizballah control of 30% of the 24 cabinet seats, giving Hizballah veto power over any major government decision. (Hizballah made the demands after 2 national polls suggested that a unity government would have the support of about 70% of the population.) Nasrallah also says that “serious negotiations” are under way for the release of 2 captured IDF soldiers. (WP, WT 11/2)

In Gaza, the IDF fatally shoots a Palestinian hunting birds when he strays near an IDF observation post nr. Jabaliya; fires on Palestinians working on a farm nr. al-Maghazi r.c., wounding 1; makes an air strike destroying the home of a Hamas mbr., a neighboring home in Jabaliya r.c. after warning residents to leave. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in cars with Palestinian license plates into al-Fara‘a r.c. nr. Jenin in search of wanted Islamic Jihad mbrs., fires on residential areas, exchanges fire with Palestinian gunmen, killing 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs., wounding and arresting 1; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c. (fatally shooting 1 Palestinian who goes to his roof to see what is going on), in Hebron and Qalqilya, nr. Bethlehem; patrols in, fires on residential areas of Kafr Dan nr. Jenin. (OCHA 11/1; PCHR 11/2)

In Gaza, the IDF sends tanks, troops into Jabaliya r.c., clashing with Palestinian gunmen, killing 1 Hamas mbr., 1 Palestinian civilian; expands operations on the Rafah border, taking up positions nr. Rafah crossing, exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen (killing 2 Palestinian militants), ordering male residents in some neighborhoods to surrender for interrogation (handcuffing and blindfolding them), reportedly finding a smugglers tunnel (the 13th it says it has found in the past 3 mos.); simultaneously sends troops into al-Shuka, conducting arrest raids, house searches. Overnight, the IDF sends troops into Qabatya, conducts arrest raids and house searches, exchanges fire with Palestinian gunmen (killing 1 Palestinian gunman, wounding 3), fires on stone-throwing youths who confront them (killing 1 Palestinian, wounding 7). Also in the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in vehicles with Palestinian license plates into ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’ r.c. nr. Nablus, opening fire on a taxi, assassinating wanted AMB mbr. ‘Adil Abu al-Rish, killing his cousin, who was not wanted; raids offices of Change and Reform PC mbrs. in Ramallah, arresting the office director; raids al-Quds University campus of religious studies in Abu Dis, arresting 2 Palestinians; makes arrest raids in Qalqilya (exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen, killing an Islamic Jihad mbr., wounding 13 Palestinians), nr. Nablus, Tulkarm; later makes a 2d raid into Qalqilya, firing on stone-throwing Palestinians, fatally shooting a Palestinian civilian. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar nr. Nablus detain 2 Palestinian workers in the nearby Hawara cemetery, releasing them after the IDF intervenes. In Khan Yunis, unidentified gunmen fire on the home of a Fatah mbr., wounding him. A Fatah mbr. dies of injuries received in clashes with Hamas on 10/1. (NYT, WP, WT 10/8; OCHA 10/18; PCHR 10/19; OCHA 11/1)

In Gaza, the IDF partially reopens Rafah crossing as a gesture marking U.S. Secy. of State Condoleezza Rice’s visit today; makes an air strike on a car driving nr. Khan Yunis, assassinating Islamic Jihad mbr. Yasir al-Banna, Abu Rish Brigades mbr. Omar al-Zaqzuq. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Tulkarm and in and around Hebron, Jenin town and r.c. In Qalqilya, 4 unidentified gunmen assassinate local Hamas official Muhammad Odeh; no group takes responsibility. Unidentified gunmen fire on a car carrying PC mbrs. in Gaza City, wounding 1 Palestinian. In Israel, an Israeli border policeman fatally shoots a Palestinian laborer fr. Hebron being detained in IDF custody in Jaffa for working without a permit, claims his gun went off accidentally; the worker was also reportedly severely beaten by 9 policemen; the guard who shot him is placed under house arrest pending an investigation. (NYT, PCHR, REU, WP 10/5; OCHA 10/11; PCHR 10/12)

In Gaza, the IDF makes 3 air strikes destroying a Palestinian home in al-Shuka, after warning residents and neighbors to leave; later sends troops into al-Shuka, firing on residential areas, rounding up all males over age 13 for ID checks, searching homes, holding 50 Palestinians for several hrs. of interrogation, eventually arresting 3 before withdrawing. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into Burkin nr. Jenin in a car with Palestinian license plates, arresting a wanted Islamic Jihad mbr.; patrols, searches businesses, conducts random ID checks in various areas of Hebron and nearby Halhul; patrols in, fires percussion grenades, tear gas, and rifles on residential areas of al-Zababda; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Dahaysha r.c. nr. Bethlehem, nr. Jenin. Palestinian gunmen raid WAFA press agency offices in Gaza City, beating a reporter, vandalizing equipment, accusing WAFA of biased news coverage in favor of Abbas, Fatah; no group takes responsibility. Armed, masked Jewish settlers fr. Suissa severely beat a 79-yr.-old Palestinian outside Hebron. (NYT, OCHA 9/20; PCHR 9/21)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz acknowledges that Hizballah has fully abided by the cease-fire and that Israel had detected no significant resupplying of weapons and missiles fr. Iran, Syria. By this date, 4,950 new UNIFIL soldiers fr. France, Italy, Spain and 10,000 Lebanese troops have been deployed in s. Lebanon. Meanwhile, UN relief coordinator in Lebanon David Shearer says that Israel left behind at least 350,000 unexploded cluster bomblets in s. Lebanon, stating that “the outrageous fact is that nearly all of these munitions were fired in the last three to four days of the war.” (NYT, WP, WT 9/20)

In Gaza, an IDF drone fires missiles at a car driving in Rafah in an attempt to assassinate an Islamic Jihad mbr., missing the car and damaging 2 houses but causing no injuries. In an air strike, the IDF demolishes the home of a Hamas mbr. in Gaza City, severely damages several surrounding homes, wounding 4 Palestinians; sends special forces in to al-Shuka, raiding a PA security office, detaining 3 PA security officers for several hrs.; sends troops into Dayr al-Balah reportedly in search of a smugglers tunnel, conducting arrest raids and house searches, demolishing 1 Palestinian home, bulldozing 50 d. of agricultural land and 2 wells but apparently not finding a tunnel. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah; demolishes a poultry farm nr. Jenin to make way for the separation wall. A Palestinian teenager is killed in a mysterious explosion nr. Ramallah. Rafah begins receiving electricity fr. Egypt from a 5 MW electricity cable. (OCHA 9/13; PCHR 9/14)

In Gaza, the IDF begins allowing limited humanitarian and food supplies through the Kerem Shalom, Sufa crossings (closed since 6/25); sends an undercover unit into Abasan in s. Gaza to capture senior Hamas mbr. Yunis Abu Daka, firing on his home, killing his brother Yusuf Abu Daka, then conducts air strikes on the house causing severe damage (Yunis Abu Daka is not captured). In the West Bank, the IDF sends an undercover unit into Jenin, driving a car with Palestinian license plates, that shoots, seriously wounds Islamic Jihad’s West Bank military cmdr. Hussam Jaradat in an assassination attempt; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Qalqilya, in Bethlehem and Nablus, nr. Jenin. A previously unknown group called the Holy Jihad Brigade releases a video tape of 2 Fox News journalists kidnapped in Gaza City on 8/14, demanding that the U.S. release all Muslims fr. its jails within 72 hrs., marking the 1st time that a Palestinian militant group has made demands of a foreign country other than Israel, which is not mentioned in the statement; all major Palestinian groups denounce the kidnapping and deny involvement. PA civil servants launch a series of strikes to press PA PM Ismail Haniyeh’s government to take action to pay back salaries. (Miftah 8/23; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 8/24; OCHA 8/25; PCHR 8/31; NYT 9/1)

Without explanation, the IDF shells Shaba‘ village, inside Lebanon, fr. the disputed Shaba‘ Farms region, causing no damage or injuries. In s. Lebanon, 3 Lebanese troops are killed when they accidentally detonate an unexploded IDF missile that they are trying to disarm; an IDF soldier is killed, 3 are wounded when they accidentally trigger one of the 1,000s of Israeli landmines left over fr. Israel’s previous occupation. (NYT, WP 8/24)

The IDF sends troops into Gaza City to arrest a wanted Palestinian, bulldozing 13 d. of agricultural land belonging to his family, exchanging fire with armed Palestinians, wounding 2; conducts an air strike destroying the home of an Islamic Jihad mbr. in Gaza City, allegedly used as a weapons depot, damaging 2 nearby homes, causing no casualties. (The IDF sends the owners a cell phone text message in advance to warn them to evacuate.) The IDF conducts an air strike destroying the home of a senior Hamas mbr. in Rafah, damaging 5 nearby homes and an Islamist charity (the IDF phones the residents to warn them to evacuate); fires shells at, kills 3 Islamic Jihad mbrs. attempting to cross the Gaza border fence nr. al-Qarara. In Khan Yunis, 4 Palestinians, including 2 children, are injured when they accidentally trigger unexploded IDF ordnance. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into Azun to arrest several wanted al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade (AMB) mbrs.; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Jericho, and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin. A Jewish settler fr. Haggai injures 2 Palestinian children in a deliberate hit-and-run nr. Hebron. Also in Gaza, 3 Palestinians are wounded in clashes btwn. rival groups of PA security force officers. (WP 8/22; OCHA 8/23; PCHR 8/24; PMG 9/1)

Israel declares that all reservists have been pulled out of Lebanon, leaving 8,000– 10,000 regular troops in place, waiting for the deployment of an expanded UN force. During the day, the IDF shoots, wounds 3 Hizballah mbrs. who approach them in a “threatening manner” (within their rights under the UN-brokered cease-fire; there is no return fire); continues overflights of Lebanon. (AP 8/21; NYT, WP, WT 8/22; NYT 8/23)

In Gaza, the IDF allows EU monitors to open the Rafah crossing in both directions for a day for the 1st time since 8/11. Some 30 Palestinian journalists protest in Gaza City against the 8/14 kidnapping of 2 Fox News journalists, demanding their immediate release; Islamic Jihad also denounces the unknown kidnappers for having “silenced the voice of freedom and justice.” In the West Bank, the IDF makes a predawn raid on the Ramallah home of Palestinian Authority (PA) Dep. PM and Education M Nasir al-Sha‘ir (Hamas affiliated), arresting him without charge; patrols in al-Til nr. Nablus, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 4; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jericho and nr. Bethlehem, Qalqilya, Ramallah; raids an Islamist charity nr. Hebron, confiscating a computer and some files, vandalizing the offices. At a checkpoint outside Nablus, an armed Palestinian fatally shoots an IDF soldier, is shot dead; the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) claims responsibility. In Gaza, 100s of PA security officers storm banks, burn tires, demanding that banks return fees deducted fr. cash advances received on their unpaid wages. (NYT, WP, WT 8/20; WP 8/21; OCHA 8/23; PCHR 8/24)

In an action the UN deems the 1st violation of the 8/14 truce, the IDF stages an overnight helicopter raid on Budai nr. Baalbek, sending 2 helicopters to drop 2 Humvees and more than 100 IDF Sayaret Matkal commandos dressed in Lebanese army uniforms to raid the village, under the cover of sonic booms fr. Israeli warplanes, in an apparent attempt to assassinate or capture senior Hizballah leader Shaykh Muhammad Yazbek, a Budai resident, or to free 2 captured IDF soldiers; the unit attempts to run a Hizballah checkpoint outside the village but Hizballah mbrs. engage them, forcing a retreat, killing 1 IDF soldier, wounding 2. (Lebanese security reports 3 Hizballah mbrs. are killed; Hizballah does not confirm.) Israel claims that the attack was a defensive action to prevent arms smuggling fr. Syria to Hizballah, that it will continue to conduct such raids until “proper monitoring bodies are established on the Lebanese borders.” Lebanon calls the action a “flagrant violation” of the truce, threatens to halt deployment of the army to the south. (AP, al-Manar TV, Voice of Lebanon 8/19; NYT, WP, WT 8/20; NYT 8/21; WT 8/23)

Overnight, the IDF sends troops into ‘Askar r.c. in search of a wanted Palestinian, demolishing his family home and 3 nearby homes of relatives, wounding his sister, arresting 4 relatives, firing on stone-throwing Palestinians who confront the troops, wounding 9; a Palestinian woman dies of a heart attack during the raid; the wanted man is not found. Also in the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Zababda nr. Jenin, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, and nr. Bethlehem, Jenin. In Gaza, IDF closes the Qarni crossing; exchanges fire with Islamic Jihad mbrs. nr. Khan Yunis, then moves troops into Abasan to search for the gunmen, patrolling and firing on residential areas, withdrawing late in the evening, leaving 1 Islamic Jihad mbr. dead. Late in the evening, the IDF makes an air strike destroying the Khan Yunis home of an AMB mbr. (residents are warned in advance to leave but are given too little time; an elderly Palestinian and his son are killed, 3 Palestinians are injured, 5 nearby houses are damaged). PA security forces search for 2 Fox News journalists kidnapped in Gaza on 8/14; Haniyeh also appeals for their release. A Palestinian dies of injuries received during an 7/6 IDF attempted assassination in Jenin r.c. (NYT, WP, WT 8/16; PCHR 8/17; OCHA 8/25)

The Israel-Lebanon front remains relatively quiet, with UNIFIL confirming no breaches of the cease-fire, though the IDF fatally shoots 3 Hizballah mbrs. in s. Lebanon in incidents deemed defensive. UNIFIL reports no significant Israeli withdrawals fr. Lebanon, though the IDF does pull several 100 reservists and tanks into Israel. Tens of thousands of Lebanese civilians continue to return to their homes in s. Lebanon, though the IDF drops leaflets warning them to stay away. Hizballah begins disbursing financial aid to displaced families to aid them in their return (reportedly allocating $150 m. to the task); begins recording and assessing damage to personal property and infrastructure, with the aim of executing a long-term reconstruction effort. Now free to move, relief workers in s. Lebanon begin uncovering 10s of bodies buried in the rubble of destroyed buildings. (NYT, WT 8/15; NYT, WP, WT 8/16)

In Gaza, the IDF closes the Nahal Oz pipeline, Qarni crossing for the day; makes an air strike on a group of PRC mbrs. n. of Gaza City, killing 2 PRC mbrs., a 3- yr.-old girl in a house nearby, wounding 2 PRC mbrs.; makes air strikes destroying the home of an Islamic Jihad mbr. in Bayt Hanun, a 2d home elsewhere in Gaza (warning residents to leave beforehand). A Palestinian is killed in Jabaliya r.c. when he accidentally detonates unexploded IDF ordnance. In the West Bank, the IDF also makes air strikes on a house in Jenin r.c., assassinating Islamic Jihad mbrs. Amjad al-‘Ajami, Muhammad Atik, wounding 12 bystanders (including 7 children); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Jenin, in Nablus, nr. Tulkarm (targeting PA security force mbrs.). (BBC, REU 8/9; PCHR 8/10; OCHA 8/16; PCHR 8/17)

The Israeli security cabinet approves plans to expand ground operations in s. Lebanon, speed IDF deployment to the Litani River. The IDF immediately begins reinforcing troops on the n. Israel border (anticipating a build-up of as many as 5,000 troops) and moves an additional 1,000 troops into s. Lebanon. The IDF continues air, naval, and artillery strikes across Lebanon, shelling ‘Ayn al-Hilwa r.c. (allegedly targeting the home of a Hizballah mbr., killing at least 2 persons, wounding 5), making an air strike on an apartment in Mashghara in the Biqa‘ Valley just n. of the Litani (killing a Hizballah official, 8 family mbrs.), hitting targets in s. Beirut. Ground operations also continue in s. Lebanon, with heavy clashes reported in Aita al-Sha‘b (4 IDF soldiers killed), Bint Jubayl, Dibil (9 IDF soldiers killed), Labuna, Jibbayn, al-Khiyam, Marja’uyun (1 IDF solider killed), Qantara, Taybeh, resulting in Israel’s highest daily toll to date, with 15 IDF soldiers dead and 38 wounded; the IDF claims to have killed 40 Hizballah mbrs. Hizballah fires some 170 rockets into n. Israel, hitting targets in Acre, Kiryat Shimona, Ma’alot, Safad. (BBC, HA, IFM, NYT, WP 8/9; NYT, WP, WT 8/10)

Overnight, the IDF pulls troops out of Rafah and al-Shuka and back into the Dahaniyya airport, ending a 3-day offensive; troops go back into al-Shuka briefly during the day to surround, evacuate, blow up a Palestinian home, also bulldozing 20 d. of surrounding agricultural land. Late in the evening, the IDF makes an air strike destroying a Palestinian home nr. Bayt Lahiya, damaging 2 others after warning residents by phone to evacuate. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Silat al-Harithiyya nr. Jenin, occupies a house as a sniper post, shoots and assassinates wanted Islamic Jihad mbr. Sami al-‘Imari; arrests, searches the Ramallah home of Change and Reform PC mbr. Fadl Hamdan; conducts arrest raids, house searches and fires on residential areas of Shayukh nr. Hebron in a raid targeting the AMB; searches vehicles, an Internet caf´e in Hebron; issues military orders confiscating 10s of d. of agricultural land southwest of Hebron for construction of the separation wall. Jewish settlers driving nr. Nablus open fire at a Palestinian truck driving ahead of them, killing a 48-yr.-old Palestinian, wounding his son. Unidentified gunmen ambush the car of the PA military intelligence head for n. Gaza as it drives through Jabaliya, wounding him, 2 passengers. (OCHA 8/9; PCHR 8/10)

The IDF intensifies air strikes across Lebanon, hitting targets in s. Beirut, Ansar, al-Jibbayn, Nabatiyya, Naqura, Qana, Tyre (striking within 40 yards of a UN humanitarian aid convoy traveling with prior coordination with the IDF, hitting a car traveling in the opposite direction), killing 10s of Lebanese civilians, several Lebanese soldiers, 1 PFLP-GC mbr. Ground operations continue across s. Lebanon, with Hizballah claiming to disable 4 tanks (in Adassiyya, Ras al-Biyada, Wadi Hunin), acknowledging the death of 3 Hizballah mbrs. The IDF says that it has taken prisoner 22-yr.-old Hizballah mbr. Hasan Ali Sulayman, who has allegedly admitted under interrogation to involvement in the 7/12 capture of 2 IDF soldiers. Hizballah fires around 160 rockets into n. Israel, killing 3 Israeli civilians (1 an Israeli Palestinian) in Haifa, and killing 12 IDF reservists, wounding 5 in Kfar Giladi on the border with Lebanon. (REU 8/6; NYT, WP, WT 8/7; IFM 8/8; PCHR 8/10)

The IDF expands Operation Summer Rains overnight, sending 50 tanks, troops back into n. Gaza in and around Gaza City, engaging in intense clashes with and conducting air strikes on Palestinian gunmen, leaving at least 7 Hamas mbrs., 5 Islamic Jihad mbrs., 9 civilians dead, at least 57 Palestinians wounded, bulldozing wide tracts of land. In at least 3 incidents in Jabaliya r.c., the IDF phones Hamas mbrs. warning them to evacuate their houses, then conducts air strikes destroying the homes. The IDF also closes the Qarni crossing. Palestinians fire 13 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, lightly injuring 1 Israeli in Sederot. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in a car with Palestinian license plates into Kafr Qadim nr. Qalqilya, surrounds a home, evacuates and checks residents, demolishes the home, arrests 1 Palestinian, injures 1; bars a Palestinian heart attack victim fr. crossing a checkpoint to reach a Qalqilya hospital, allowing him to die; patrols, searches cars in Yatta nr. Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, and in al-Fara‘a r.c. nr. Jenin, Nablus. In Rafah, a Palestinian is killed in an exchange of fire btwn. PA security forces, armed Palestinians. Israeli security sources reveal that Israeli-Canadian citizen Falah, arrested on 7/8 and held without access to a lawyer, was detained for photographing a military antenna nr. Ras al-Naqura, alleging that he was sent “to photograph and report where rockets have landed in Israel,” noting that he visited Beirut, Tehran within the last 2 yrs.; Falah, who was arrested before Hizballah’s 7/12 cross-border raid and the firing of rockets into Israel, said the photos were for academic purposes, he did not know the antenna was military, and his trips to Lebanon, Iran were public knowledge. (REU, NYT, WP 7/26; NYT, WP, WT 7/26; PCHR 7/27; OCHA 8/2; PCHR 8/3)

The IDF faces intense fighting in s. Lebanon, where some 100 Hizballah mbrs. ambush an elite IDF Golani Brigade unit in Bint Jubayl, pinning them down for 1 hr. under a heavy barrage of mortars, antitank rounds, RPGs, and small-arms fire before they could return fire, killing 8 IDF soldiers, wounding at least 22; the IDF estimates that it killed around 20 Hizballah mbrs. A 9th IDF soldier is killed, 5 are wounded by antitank fire in clashes nr. Maroun al-Ras. Meanwhile, the IDF continues air strikes nr. Beirut and in s. Lebanon, including hitting an Amal command center and the Hizballah headquarters in Tyre. In Anjar nr. the Syrian border, a truck carrying emergency food, medical supplies donated by the UAE (see 7/18) is hit, killing the Syrian driver. Hizballah fires around 150 rockets into Israel, striking Carmiel, Haifa, Jish, Safad, Tiberias. Israel allows 2 Jordanian military transports carrying humanitarian aid to land at Beirut airport, though it still will not provide safety guarantees for trucks transporting the supplies southward on the coastal highway or across the border fr. Syria, where relief goods for 20,000 people have been stockpiled. The UN moves 5 convoys of supplies (containing wheat, soap, diapers, water purification tablets, medical kits) to the south on 5 routes approved for one-time use by the IDF. (NYT, WP, WT 7/27)

Overnight and during the day, the IDF continues to expand its presence in n. Gaza, entering populated areas for the 1st time since disengagement, meeting strong resistance fr. Palestinians, who use RPGs, rifles, roadside bombs and fire 8 rockets toward Israel (only 4 land inside Israel, causing no damage or injuries). The IDF uses air strikes, artillery, tanks, and gunfire as well as bulldozes fields, roads, and open areas to widen the n. Gaza buffer zone; the clashes, mostly concentrated in Bayt Lahiya but also in s. Gaza, leave at least 24 Palestinians (many reportedly Hamas mbrs., but also including at least 2 children), 1 IDF soldier (hit by friendly fire) dead and wound some 80 Palestinians (nearly a third of them children), 1 IDF soldier. The IDF also bulldozes areas around Khan Yunis, demolishing 3 Palestinian homes; opens Erez and Qarni crossings for several hrs. for the movement of international aid workers, humanitarian goods. Palestinian gunmen also fire on an al-Jazeera TV car in Bayt Hanun, believing it to be an IDF undercover unit, wounding the driver, 1 journalist. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into a memorial service in Jenin r.c. for an AMB mbr. killed on 7/5, attempts to assassinate the AMB’s n. West Bank cmdr. Zakariya Zubaydi and local Islamic Jihad leader Mahmud al-Sadi, fatally shooting 2 Palestinian teenagers, wounding 18; Sadi, Zubaydi escape. The IDF also raids an Islamic charity nr. Hebron; demolishes a Palestinian home nr. Jerusalem; patrols in ‘Anabta nr. Tulkarm; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus, nr. Hebron and Qalqilya; issues military orders confiscating 45 d. of land along settler bypass road 60 nr. Hebron for construction of a military base nr. the separation wall. Jewish settlers fr. Suissa set fire to a Palestinian home; the IDF prevents firefighters fr. reaching the area. Israeli police arrest 5 senior Hamas mbrs. in East Jerusalem for illegally helping Change and Reform PC mbrs. conduct Hamas affairs in the city. (IMEMC, OCHA, NYT, WT, YA 7/6; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT, YA 7/7; HA, NYT, WP 7/8; PCHR 7/13)

Before dawn, the IDF responds to Hamas’s 7/3 rocket fire on Ashqelon by carrying out air strikes on the PA Interior Min. in Gaza City (destroying it and wounding at least 7 Palestinians in homes nearby, including 4 children), a Hamas-run school in Gaza City, a Hamas training camp in s. Gaza. Later, Hamas fires a 2d 2-engine Qassam rocket that lands outside Ashqelon, causing no damage or injuries, the Israeli security cabinet authorizes the IDF to step up operations in Gaza and the West Bank aimed at halting rocket fire and “striking at institutions and infrastructures that serve terrorism,” particularly targeting Hamas. During the day, the IDF moves more tanks, troops into n. Gaza and begins to push south toward Bayt Hanun and Jabaliya r.c., reoccupying fmr. settlement sites, occupying a 7th Palestinian home as an operational base, exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen and shelling (fr. land and sea) areas where militants are allegedly burying explosives, killing 1 Hamas mbr., 1 PA naval officer, wounding at least 17 Palestinians (10 PA naval officers at a barracks nr. where the Hamas mbr. was killed, 7 children). In Gaza City, 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. are killed when explosives they are handling detonate prematurely. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into ‘Ayn al-Sultan r.c. nr. Jericho, surrounds a building, orders wanted AMB cmdr. Mahmud Haymur to surrender, ordering him to undress when he emerges and then executing him by shooting him in the head at point blank range; surrounds, fires on a PA police station in Halhul nr. Hebron, demanding custody of an Israeli Palestinian believed to be held there (police allow soldiers to search the station to confirm he is not there); raids 3 Islamic charities nr. Hebron, Jenin, and Nablus, confiscating computers, vandalizing offices; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin and Nablus, nr. Tulkarm and Qalqilya, and in Bethlehem. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba, under IDF escort, begin work on a new settler bypass road linking the settlement to the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs. In Gaza City, unidentified gunmen assassinate senior Hamas mbr. Husayn Abu Ajwa, who is considered a leading promoter of religious and political reform within the movement. (IFM, NYT, PCHR, REU, WP, WT 7/5; HA, NYT, OCHA, PCHR, WP, WT 7/6; HA 7/8; PCHR 7/13; OCHA 7/18)

The IDF makes its 1st arrest raid into Gaza since the 9/05 disengagement, temporarily closing the Rafah crossing and sending troops 1,000 m into Rafah to detain 2 wanted Palestinians, allegedly mbrs. of Hamas; Hamas denies the men belong to the group. The IDF also conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Tulkarm r.c. (firing on residential areas), and nr. Hebron, Jenin, Qalqilya. Islamic Jihad fires 3 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Suissa s. of Hebron beat a Palestinian grazing animals nearby. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar set fire to 3 Palestinian cars, a tractor outside Nablus. Jewish settlers fr. Tal Rumayda in Hebron attack 4 international peace activists escorting Palestinian children to school; IDF soldiers observe but do not intervene. Mbrs. of the Hamas-dominated ESF fire on the home of a PSF mbr. in Khan Yunis, wounding 1 bystander. (MM 6/23; HA 6/24; WP, WT 6/25; OCHA, World Council of Churches press release 6/28; PCHR 6/29)

In Gaza, the IDF makes 2 air strikes on Islamic Jihad mbrs. driving in Khan Yunis, missing the car, hitting the street and a house, killing 2 Palestinian bystanders, including a pregnant woman, and wounding 15 bystanders; prevents EU monitors fr. reaching the Rafah crossing, forcing it to close for the day; closes the Sufa and Kerem Shalom crossings for the day, citing security threats; detains 2 unarmed Palestinians attempting to sneak across the Gaza border into Israel to find work; fires on 2 Palestinians swimming off the Gaza coast nr. the Egyptian border, suspected of smuggling, wounding 1. Palestinians fire 2 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Dura (firing on residential areas, then firing live ammunition at stone-throwing youths who confront them, causing no injuries), Nablus (firing rubber bullets at stone-throwing youths, wounding 12); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Hebron, and in Bethlehem and Jalazun r.c. nr. Ramallah. In Gaza City, a bomb goes off in a car driven by a mbr. of the Fatah-dominated PSF, injuring the 3 people in the car; no group claims responsibility. Unidentified gunmen shoot, wound 2 Fatah mbrs. in Khan Yunis. (OCHA 6/21; ITV, MENA, VOI, YA 6/21 in WNC 6/22; HA, MM, PCHR, WP, WT 6/22; VOI, YA 6/22 in WNC 6 /23; HA 6/24; OCHA 6/28; PCHR 6/29)

Israel’s DM Peretz, fmr. Israeli DM and current Dep. PM and Transportation M Shaul Mofaz approve Israeli defense contacts with PA municipal officials and “PA functionaries not associated with Hamas on issues deemed essential by both sides,” but not with PA Ms or dir. gens. of the ministries. Israeli DMin. officials acknowledge that Hamas has been observing the cease-fire it announced on 6/15. The IDF makes an air strike on a car with 3 AMB mbrs. driving in central Gaza City, but the men escape before the rocket hits; 3 Palestinian children (ages 5, 6, 16) are killed, 2 AMB mbrs. and 13 bystanders including many children are injured. The IDF also demolishes a Palestinian home in East Jerusalem; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin, Nablus (clashing with Palestinian gunmen, leaving 1 Palestinian gunman dead, 2 bystanders wounded) and nr. Hebron (searching an Islamic charitable society, confiscating files, computers, cell phones). Islamic Jihad fires 3 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Israel also deports Tulkarm resident Rasmi Subayh, held in administrative detention since 9/05, to Gaza for 2 yrs. Jewish settlers in Hebron stone to death a 30-yr.-old Palestinian. (HA, MM, PNN 6/20; OSC, PSCT 6/20 in WNC 6/21; MM, NYT, OCHA, WP, WT 6/21; HA, PCHR 6/22)

After suspending its unilateral cease-fire on 6/9, Hamas says it will halt all fire for 7 days; if Israel stops targeting Palestinian civilians during that period, it will extend the cease-fire and lobby other factions to do the same. The IDF kills 3 Palestinian militants allegedly planting explosives nr. the border fence in central Gaza; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus. Islamic Jihad fires at least 5 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, wounding 3 Israelis, damaging a factory building in Sederot. (MM 6/15; NYT, WP, WT 6/16; OCHA 6/21; PCHR 6/22)

Overnight, 10,000s of Hamas supporters rally outside the PC building in Ramallah in solidarity with the Hamas-led government. During the day, the IDF launches an air strike at a minibus traveling in downtown Gaza City, assassinating 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. (Shawqi al-Saiqali, Hamad Wadiya); 7 minutes later, as medics and crowds gather at the scene, the IDF makes a 2d air strike on the site, killing 4 Palestinian medics, 5 Palestinian bystanders, wounding 32; IDF chief of staff Dan Halutz says, “We are saddened by the deaths of these innocent Palestinians but hold absolutely no responsibility for them.” The IDF also occupies a Palestinian home in Jenin as a sniper post, then assassinates AMB mbr. Muhammad al-Wahish with a bullet to the chest (the target of an assassination attempt earlier in 2006); fires across the border on a funeral procession in Jabaliya r.c., wounding 3 Palestinian teenagers; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Nablus. In addition, the IDF claims that its investigation of the 6/9 explosion on the Bayt Lahiya beach that killed 8 Palestinians was not caused by Israeli fire but by a Palestinian land mine; Palestinians and a Human Rights Watch senior military analyst dispute this based on the crater pattern, shrapnel at the scene, injuries of the wounded. Jewish settlers fr. Avraham Avino settlement vandalize several Palestinian homes in Hebron. Jewish settlers fr. Ma’on settlement beat several Palestinian farmers working their fields in Yatta, outside Hebron, pouring toxic substances onto their agricultural land, setting fire to 1,500 sq. m. of crops. In Nablus, Hamas mbrs. rally against Fatah rampages in Ramallah on 6/12. (MM, NYT, PCHR 6/13; IFM, NYT, WP, WT 6/14; PCHR 6/15; MM 6/16; Guardian, HA, Independent 6/17; OCHA, REU 6/21)

A Lebanese, Mahmud Rafih, confesses to running a network for Mossad, killing asenior Islamic Jihad mbr. on 5/26. (WP 6/14; MM 6/16; XIN 6/17; MM 6/20; SFR 6/21)

Hamas, Islamic Jihad fire some 30 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, some of which hit a college campus nr. Sederot (wounding 4 Israelis) and a house (causing damage but no injuries). The IDF, which has halted artillery fire until an investigation of the 6/9 strike that killed 8 Palestinians is completed (the IDF now argues that an errant Palestinian rocket was to blame), responds with air strikes on n. Gaza, hitting a group of Hamas mbrs. preparing to fire a rocket nr. Bayt Lahiya (killing 2 Hamas mbrs.) and targeting a car driven by Hamas mbrs. (wounding 3 bystanders). An Islamic Jihad mbr. is reportedly killed when a rocket he is preparing to fire explodes. The IDF also conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin town and r.c., nr. Bethlehem; begins uprooting Palestinian trees, leveling agricultural land s. of Qalqilya for a new settler bypass road between Oranit and Sha’are Tikva settlements. A Hamas mbr. dies of injuries received in clashes with PA security officers on 6/1. (IFM, REU 6/11; NYT, WP 6/12; PCHR 6/15; OCHA 6/21)

After Palestinians fire 5 rockets into Israel (causing no damage or injuries), the IDF shells n. Gaza from land, sea, and air, hitting the Bayt Lahiya beach where families are picnicking, killing at least 8 Palestinians, wounding 32; the IDF suspends shelling, orders an investigation; Hamas’s Izzeddin alQassam Brigades say they would end their 16-mo. cease-fire to avenge the deaths. The IDF also makes air strikes on a car driven in n. Gaza by PRC mbrs. who allegedly had just fired a rocket into Israel, killing 3 PRC men; on a car driven by Islamic Jihad mbrs. in Jabaliya r.c. who allegedly were on their way to launch a rocket, wounding 2; on 2 cars driven by Izzeddin al-Qassam Brigades mbrs. in Gaza City, wounding 3. In addition, the IDF patrols in Tulkarm; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, Tulkarm. In Gaza City, 10,000s of Palestinians attend the funeral of PRC leader Samhadana, assassinated on 6/8. (NYT, WP 6/10; IFM 6/11; MM, NYT 6/12; MM 6/14; PCHR 6/15; MM 6/16; OCHA 6/21; MA 6/25 in WNC 6/26)

The IDF reopens Gaza’s Sufa crossing; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Hebron and nr. Bethlehem, Tulkarm. (OCHA, PCHR 6/1)

Unidentified militants in s. Lebanon (thought to be Hizballah mbrs. retaliating on behalf of Islamic Jihad for the suspected Israeli assassination of a senior Islamic Jihad mbr. on 5/26) fire Katyusha rockets across the border at an IDF post, seriously injuring 1 IDF soldier. The IDF makes air strikes on 2 Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine–General Command (PFLPGC) posts, on a weapons depot nr. the Syrian border in the Biqa‘Valley and in s. Beirut, killing 1 PFLP-GC mbr., wounding at least 5. Later, Hizballah fires mortars, rockets toward at least 10 IDF outposts on the n. Israel border, wounding 1 IDF solider; the IDF fires artillery, conducts air strikes on Hizballah targets in s. Lebanon, killing at least 1 Hizballah mbr., wounding 2 civilians; Hizballah fires several rockets into n. Israel, causing no damage or injuries. The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) brokers a cease-fire. (IFM, NYT, WP, WT 5/29; MM 5/30; NYT 6/1; MM 6/2)

The IDF shuts Gaza’s Sufa commercial crossing for 2 days; shells n. Gaza, killing a Palestinian farmer, wounding a 2d Palestinian in Bayt Lahiya; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Qalqilya, and in Hebron, Qabatya, and Yamun nr. Jenin. In n. Gaza, 3 Palestinian teenagers are killed, 3 Palestinians are wounded when they accidentally detonate unexploded IDF ordnance. A Palestinian dies of injuries he received when the IDF fired on his car nr. Nablus on 4/15. (WP, WT 5/27; OCHA, PCHR 6/1)

In Sidon, Lebanon, senior Islamic Jihad official Mahmud Majzub, his brother are killed when a bomb in their car explodes. Israel denies responsibility. (MM 5/26; NYT 5/27; MM 5/30; SFR 6/21)

The IDF sends undercover units into Ramallah’s central shopping district, where they arrest Islamic Jihad’s Qalqilya military leader Muhammad Shubaki; when the unit is confronted by armed militants and stone-throwing protesters, the IDF sends in uniformed reinforcements that clash with the Palestinians, leaving 1 PA General Intelligence officer, 3 bystanders dead, at least 35 Palestinians and 1 IDF soldier wounded. The IDF also sends bulldozers, tanks, jeeps 200 m inside the Gaza border nr. Bureij r.c. to level land for ongoing construction of a cement wall along the n. Gaza border; raids the municipal offices in Maithalun nr. Jenin, removes the Palestinian flag fr. the building, fires tear gas; patrols in Farkha nr. Nablus (firing on residential areas), Kafr Dan; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Bethlehem, and nr. Hebron, Jenin. In central Gaza, PSF chief for central Gaza Nabil Hudud dies when a bomb rigged to his car explodes; no group claims responsibility; Fatah and Hamas gunmen, however, exchange fire outside Gaza’s Shifa Hospital after Hudud’s body is brought in. In Khan Yunis, unidentified gunmen kidnap, shoot 3 Hamas mbrs., killing 1; no group claims responsibility; Hamas accuses the PA security forces. (AFP, Guardian, HA, NYT, PCHR, Palestine Monitor [Internet], WP 5/25; OCHA, PCHR 6/1)

The IDF closes Gaza’s Kerem Shalom crossing for 2 days; makes air strikes on 2 cars driving in central Gaza, missing 1 car carrying 5 Islamic Jihad mbrs. but hitting the 2d, assassinating Islamic Jihad mbrs. Ahmad Abu Nijim and Wa’il al-Qaran, wounding a 3d mbr. and 3 bystanders; arrests Change and Reform PC mbr. Ahmad Mubarak in his home in Jalazun r.c., giving no reason; sends troops back into Nablus and Askar r.c., conducting arrest raids, house searches and firing on stonethrowing Palestinians who confront them; also conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin. (AFP, IMEMC, MM 4/27; NYT, WP 4/28; OCHA 5/3; PCHR 5/4)