The Palestine Chronology

For unclear reasons, IDF soldiers at the Erez crossing fire on 700 Palestinians returning from the Hajj in coordination with Israel and the PA, killing 1 Palestinian woman, wounding at least 1. Meanwhile, Palestinian pilgrims who left Gaza under a deal brokered by Hamas (see 12/5) begin to return via Egypt, where Egypt, under pressure fr. Israel, bars their passage through the Rafah crossing, saying they must go via the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing; the pilgrims refuse, believing they would be arrested for their Hamas connections. Meanwhile, the IDF fires on Hamas mbrs. laying a roadside bomb nr. the s. Gaza border fence, killing 1 Hamas mbr., wounding a bystander. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the Rafah coast, forcing them to return to shore. Hamas mbrs. fire 3 mortars fr. Rafah toward the IDF post at Kerem Shalom; the IDF responds with heavy gunfire; no injuries are reported. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Tulkarm; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron (including arresting a 10-yr.-old boy, heavily damaging 1 home), nr. Jenin. Jewish settlers throw stones, bottles at Palestinian cars traveling a main road linking Hebron and Bethlehem, damaging 1 car; the IDF observes but does not intervene. Hamas-affiliated police raid an area of Bayt Hanun to arrest a wanted Fatah mbr., fire in the air to disperse angry residents who confront them, wounding 2 (see 12/28). A similar confrontation takes place in Khan Yunis, with heavy fire but no injuries reported. Suspected Fatah mbrs. fire on a police patrol in Rafah, causing no injuries. (NYT 12/31; OCHA 1/2; PCHR 1/3)

As a gesture to Abbas, Israel allows 450 Gazans to travel to Bethlehem via the Erez crossing to attend Christmas celebrations. The IDF sends 8 armored vehicles into Gaza n. of Jabaliya r.c. under heavy covering fire; no injuries are reported; troops withdraw by evening. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in, fires on residential areas of Azun, firing rubber-coated steel bullets at stonethrowing Palestinian youths who confront them, wounding 2 children (ages 6, 16); conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Salfit. Jewish settlers fr. Revava nr. Salfit prevent a Palestinian farmer fr. reaching his land nr. the settlement. (NYT 12/25; OCHA 12/26; PCHR 12/27)

Israel allows 487 Gazans to leave Gaza via the Erez crossing for the Hajj; makes an “exceptional” opening of Sufa crossing (closed since 10/28/07) to allow entry of livestock for the upcoming Id al-Adha holiday. Palestinians fire a rocket fr. Gaza into Israel, lightly injuring an Israeli child inside a home. In Khan Yunis, a Palestinian teenager is injured when he accidently triggers a homemade bomb. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in alFara‘a r.c., nr. Bethlehem. A bomb explodes underneath the empty car of a Hamas mbr. in Gaza City, causing no injuries. A dispute erupts btwn. a Fatah-affiliated family and Hamas mbrs. flying party flags in the family’s neighborhood; police intervene to resolve the situation peacefully. (NYT 12/17; OCHA 12/19; PCHR 12/27)

IDF troops on the Gaza border shell Hamas mbrs. preparing to fire a mortar into Israel, killing 2, wounding at least 2. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into Bethlehem, where they are confronted by PA security officers who do not realize their identity, sparking an exchange of fire that kills 1 PA security officer. Egypt allows 2,000 Gazans to enter Egypt through the Rafah crossing for the Hajj in a deal arranged by Hamas and coordinated with Saudi Arabia, angering the PA, Israel, and the U.S. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin and in Abu Dis outside Jerusalem, Qalqilya. (NYT, PCHR 12/6; NYT 12/11; OCHA 12/12; PCHR 12/13)

As gestures to Abbas before the Annapolis summit, Israel allows 250 Palestinians students (out of more than 600) with valid foreign student visas to leave Gaza for Egypt via the Erez crossing to resume their studies abroad; makes an “exception” to the closure of the Sufa crossing to allow entry of gravel for an emergency sewage rehabilitation project in n. Gaza. Hamas mbrs. engage an IDF unit that moves into n. Gaza nr. Bayt Lahiya, causing no injuries; the IDF returns fire, killing 3 Hamas mbrs. Palestinians fire mortars fr. Gaza at an IDF base inside Israel, lightly wounding 4 soldiers; the IDF responds with tank fire, killing 1 armed Palestinian, wounding 3 armed Palestinians, 3 bystanders. Late in the evening, the IDF makes an air strike on a Hamas training camp nr. Dayr al-Balah, killing 3 Hamas mbrs. In the West Bank, the IDF fires on a Palestinian family picnicking nr. Ramallah, killing 1 Palestinian; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Hebron, nr. Bethlehem. (WT 12/3; OCHA 12/5; PAP, PCHR 12/6)

IDF troops on the n. Gaza border fire a surface-to-surface missile at a group of Palestinians preparing to fire a rocket into Israel, killing 2 Palestinian resistance mbrs., wounding 4; exchange fire with Palestinian gunmen across the border nr. Erez crossing, causing no reported injuries; make air strikes on as many as 5 suspected rocket-launching sites in the Bayt Hanun area, causing no reported injuries; shell an open area nr. Bayt Hanun, causing no reported injuries. Hamas organizes large rallies in Gaza City (7,000), Rafah (3,000), al-Bureij r.c. (2,000), and Nussayrat r.c. (2,000) to protest ongoing Israeli excavations nr. the al-Aqsa Mosque. A Palestinian is killed when a smuggling tunnel under the Rafah border collapses. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem; patrols in, fires on residential areas of Balata r.c., Nablus; erects checkpoints, checks IDs in al-Bireh. Jewish settlers fr. Aley Zahav and P’duel w. of Salfit vandalize a nearby Palestinian home, light a fire near the house, damage a car and an animal pen; IDF troops observe but do not intervene. In Gaza City, unidentified assailants detonate an explosive device outside an ESF post, causing damage but no injuries. Later, unidentified assailants detonate a bomb outside Fatah al-Yasir offices nearby, causing significant damage but no injuries.ESF officers find, dismantle another explosive device in Gaza City; the target of that attack is unclear. (OCHA 11/21; PCHR 11/22)

To increase pressure on Hamas, Israel announces that it will begin curtailing fuel shipments to Gaza by up to 11% and that it has permanently closed the Sufa crossing (closed on 10/26 and 10/27 for the weekend), leaving Kerem Shalom (fully controlled by Israel) the sole crossing point for goods and humanitarian aid. (Officially the government calls the move “self-defense.”) Israel says that it will allow into Gaza “the minimum amount of food and medicines necessary to avoid a humanitarian crisis.” In Gaza, the IDF shoots, wounds a Palestinian fisherman laying nets on the Bayt Lahiya coast; sends troops into al-Shuka, where they exchange tank and heavy machine gun fire with armed Palestinians firing RPGs, leaving 1 Hamas mbr., 1 IDF soldier dead, 2 IDF soldiers wounded; conducts land-leveling operations inside the Gaza border nr. Dayr al-Balah, firing on residential areas, causing no reported injuries. Palestinians fire an RPG at an IDF jeep patrolling the Gaza border e. of al-Maghazi r.c., missing the target, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Ramallah. Jewish settlers fr. Itamar nr. Nablus harass Palestinians harvesting olives nearby; the IDF intervenes, forcing the settlers to leave. In Gaza City, some 300 PA workers stage a peaceful sit-in to protest nonpayment of their salaries. (NYT, WP, WT 10/29; OCHA 10/31; PCHR 11/1)

After PRC members fire more than 20 rockets into Israel (causing no damage or injuries) to protest the 10/23 assassination of PRC head Hasanat, Israeli DM Barak authorizes the IDF to cut electricity for several hrs. to parts of Gaza fr. which rockets were fired.; Dep. DM Matan Vilnai says that targeted power cuts will increasingly be used to punish the Palestinians as long as rocket fire continues and that he expects electricity to be cut by two-thirds in the coming weeks. In the evening, IDF fires a surface-to-surface missile at a suspected rocket-launching site e. of Gaza City, killing 2 Palestinian boys (ages 14, 17), wounding 2 other Palestinians; sends troops into Abasan, where they clash with armed Palestinians, wounding 2. A Hamas mbr. is killed when a smuggling tunnel on the Rafah border collapses. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem and Hebron, and in Jenin r.c. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar nr. Nablus prevent local Palestinians fr. harvesting their olive groves. Armed Palestinians fire on a bus stop outside Ariel settlement, wounding 3 Jewish settlers. ESF officers storm and occupy a Fatah office in central Gaza; no injuries or arrests are reported. Some 5,000 Hamas supporters stage marches in n. Gaza camps in support of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. (PCHR, WT 10/25; OCHA 10/31; PCHR 11/1)

IDF troops on the n. Gaza border nr. Bayt Hanun fire a surface-to-surface missile at 4 Hamas mbrs. nearly 1.5 mi. inside the border, wounding 1. Gaza hospitals announce that they have suspended surgeries because Israel is blocking the import of anesthesia drugs. In the West Bank, the IDF deliberately fires on, disables an electricity network in Sa‘ir nr. Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus. A Jewish settler fr. Ariel kills a 40-yr.-old Palestinian man in a deliberate hit-and-run nr. Kafr Qasim. Jewish settlers fr. Beitar nr. Bethlehem attack a Palestinian passing nr. the settlement. In Rafah, an Islamic Jihad mbr.shoots, wounds a Hamas mbr. outside his home. Later in Rafah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad mbrs. exchange heavy fire (including RPGs), leaving 1 Islamic Jihad mbr. dead and 12 Palestinians injured; the leaderships of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the PRCs intervene to end the fighting. In Gaza City, 100 Palestinians stage a sit-in outside the Palestinian Council headquarters to protest the PA’s halt to issuing passports and travel documents for Gazans. (Deutsche Presse Agentur 10/21; OCHA 10/24; PCHR 10/25)

Israel gives residency status to 3,500 Palestinians living “illegally” in the West Bank, marking the 1st application approvals in 10 yrs., but refuses to act on similar cases of 1,500 Palestinians in Gaza. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the Rafah coast, forcing them to return to shore. Palestinians fire at least 1 rocket fr. Gaza toward Israel that lands inside the Strip, injuring a Palestinian teenager inside his home. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units dressed as PA security officers into the Old City of Nablus, where they fatally shoot 2 Palestinians in what may be an assassination (names and affiliations of the dead men are not reported); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in alArub r.c., nr. Bethlehem, Hebron. Armed Jewish settlers close a road linking the villages of Dura and Khirbat Salama nr. Hebron; the IDF intervenes to reopen the road. In Hebron, 4 unidentified gunmen fatally shoot a suspected Palestinian collaborator with Israel. (NYT, PCHR 10/11; OCHA 10/17; PCHR 10/18; REU 10/20)

Israel confirms that it is building a 10-mi. Palestinian-only road around Ma’ale Adumim settlement, linking Jericho and Bethlehem and bypassing Jerusalem, to create “transportational contiguity” btwn. Palestinian communities that would otherwise be cut off by the separation wall; critics note that 56 acres of privately owned Palestinian land and 352 acres of “state land” have been appropriated for the construction, which will also allow for the expansion and linkage of Ma’ale Adumim, Mishor Adumim, and Kedar settlements. In Gaza, the IDF raids and searches homes in al-Shuka, occupying several houses as observation posts (troops are still in the village at the end of the day); sends troops into al-Fakhari nr. Khan Yunis, raiding several homes, leveling lands, firing on residential areas, causing no reported injuries; sends troops into Bayt Hanun, bulldozing at least 100 d. of citrus trees and fences around a college and cemetery, withdrawing in the evening. The ESF creates 2 new openings in the Rafah border fence nr. Rafah’s Bloc J and al-Barahma, but no passage through the openings is reported. Egypt allows 30 Islamic Jihad mbrs. and Palestinian civilians stranded in Egypt since Israel sealed the Gaza borders on 6/12 to return to Gaza through the Rafah crossing (see 9/30). In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem (arresting a mbr. of the Bethlehem municipal council), nr. Hebron, and in al-Bireh, Ramallah, Qalqilya (occupying homes as observation posts, firing on Palestinian children as they leave school, wounding 2, ages 11 and 13). (NYT, OCHA, WP, WT 10/10; PCHR 10/11; OCHA 10/17)

IDF troops on the Israeli side of the Qarni crossing shoot, wound 2 Palestinian children (ages 11, 14) who stray nr. the border fence. Islamic Jihad fires a Grad rocket (more accurate, longer range [7.5–12.5 mi.] than homemade Qassam rockets [5–7.5 mi.]), 8 mortars fr. Gaza into Israel, striking 7 mi. fr. the border in Netivot, causing light damage and marking the 4th time a Grad has been fired; the IDF suspects that Islamic Jihad has about a dozen Grads, but the Israeli FMin. says Hamas is ultimately responsible. Palestinians also fire a rocket fr. Gaza toward Israel, but it lands nr. Bayt Hanun, injuring a Palestinian teenager. The ESF demolishes a smuggling tunnel on the Rafah border. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus (an IDF soldier is wounded in an exchange of gunfire in Balata r.c.), in alBireh and Ramallah, nr. Bethlehem and Jenin (targeting Islamic Jihad). A prominent Gaza Christian, Protestant Holy Bible Society dir. Rami Ayyad, is abducted and murdered, raising concerns among Gaza’s Christians; no group takes responsibility. Ayyad had previously received anonymous death threats accusing him of proselytizing; Hamas vows to bring the murderers to justice.Islamic Jihad mbr. ‘Ali Abu Rmila, wounded in an IDF assassination attempt on 8/25 that killed 2 other Islamic Jihad mbrs., dies of his injuries. (IFM, NYT, WP 10//8; OCHA 10/10; PCHR 10/11)

The IDF imposes a general closure on the West Bank and Gaza until 10/2 for the Sukkoth holidays. During the day in Gaza, the IDF makes an air strike on a car nr. Gaza City, assassinating 5 Army of Islam mbrs. (Hussein Ahil, Fawzi al-Ashram, Ayman Dalul, Osama al-Rifi, Sami al-Za‘im), wounding at least 1; makes 2 air strikes on suspected rocket-launching sites in n. Gaza and 3 on similar sites nr. Jabaliya r.c., causing no injuries; launches a major incursion into Bayt Hanun, with 50 tanks and bulldozers, cutting electricity to n. Gaza and firing a tank shell at a PRC gunman who fires on the troops (killing the gunman and hitting a home, killing 3 Palestinians inside), wounding 30 Palestinians in armed exchanges. Late in the evening, the IDF makes an air strike on a rocket-launching site nr. Bayt Hanun, killing 2 Hamas mbrs., wounding 3 Palestinians. Islamic Jihad fires some 10 rockets, 20 mortars fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the PA security forces, demonstrating their security cooperation with Israel, report turning over to the IDF 2 Qassam rockets they discovered in Bethlehem, giving no information on from whom they were seized; the IDF acknowledges receiving 2 pipelike “objects” that possibly could be used as rocket launchers. The IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in al-Bireh. Meanwhile, PA security forces raid 3 Islamic charities in Tubas, confiscating computers, files. In Gaza’s Dayr al-Balah, unidentified gunmen fire on an ESF post; ESF officers return fire; no injuries are reported. (NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 9/27; OCHA 10/3; PCHR 10/4)

Israel’s Bank Hapoalim and Discount Bank announce plans to terminate all dealings with banks in Gaza, fearing prosecution in light of Israel’s 9/19 declaration of Gaza as “hostile territory”; at Israel’s request, the suspensions are delayed until Israel’s Postal Bank can expand operations to assume sole control of clearing international financial transactions with Gaza. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in al-Bireh (raiding the home of Palestinian Council [PC] mbr. Maryam Saleh [Change and Reform], confiscating a computer and documents, arresting her son), Nablus and nr. Bethlehem, Ramallah. Jewish settlers and right-wing activists announce plans to set up 5 new unauthorized outposts in the West Bank; 1,000s of activists are expected to take part in the effort during the upcoming week-long Sukkoth holiday 9/27–10/2. (NYT 9/26; OCHA 9/26; PCHR 9/27)

In Gaza, the IDF sends troops into areas southeast of Khan Yunis, bulldozing 4 Palestinian homes, 15 greenhouses, 57 d. of agricultural land. Palestinians fire an antitank missile at an IDF patrol inside Israel nr. the Qarni industrial zone, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Tulkarm. Nr. Gaza City, Fatah and Hamas mbrs. exchange gunfire, wounding 1 Palestinian. (OCHA 9/26; PCHR 9/27)

Overnight, the IDF makes a major incursion into ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a r.c. to arrest Hamas and PFLP mbrs., imposing a roundthe-clock curfew, firing on residential areas, occupying several homes as military outposts, moving from building to building by breaking through walls (50 homes and 2 shops are damaged by the time the operation ends on 9/21), clashing with local gunmen, leaving 1 armed Palestinian, 1 IDF soldier dead. At dawn, Palestinians fr. neighboring Nablus obey calls from local mosques to march to the camp to force a lifting of the siege; when some throw stones at troops, the IDF responds with live fire, mortally wounding a 17-yr.-old Palestinian, barring ambulances from reaching the scene, allowing him to bleed to death; 4 other Palestinians are wounded. The IDF also conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem, nr. Hebron; issues a military order confiscating 523 d. of Palestinian land in al-Khadir and Artas nr. Bethlehem for expansion of Efrat settlement. Haniyeh meets with Islamic Jihad leaders in Gaza to ask them to halt rocket fire into Israel during Ramadan, which ends ca. 10/13, but no agmt. is reached; Damascus-based Hamas leader Khalid Mishal intends to hold similar talks with Islamic Jihad leaders in Syria in the next few days. In Gaza City, Hamas and Islamic Jihad mbrs. armed with sticks and axes clash when Hamas mbrs. reportedly attempt to take over the Islamic Jihad–run Asqalan Mosque; 3 Palestinians are injured. (NYT, OCHA 9/19; NYT, PCHR 9/20)

US. Secy. of State Condoleeza Rice begins the 1st of 3 visits to the region this quarter for talks with Olmert, Abbas in preparation for Bush’s proposed fall peace conference, now tentatively set for 11/15 in Washington. She returns to Washington on 9/20. (WP 9/18; WT 9/19; see also IFM, WT 10/17)

In Gaza, the IDF withdraws troops fr. al-Fakhari, ending an arrest campaign that began on 9/15, temporarily detaining 4 Palestinians, arresting 3 others. An IDF tank operating inside Gaza nr. the Sufa crossing triggers a roadside bomb, causing damage but no injuries. Palestinians fire 2 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries; the IDF dispatches helicopters to fire on the Bayt Hanun launch site, causing no reported injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Jabal Juhan nr. Hebron to break up an armed clash between 2 Palestinian clans and impose a curfew, later firing on mbrs. of 1 clan who violate the curfew, killing 1 Palestinian, wounding 4; sends troops into Ramallah, firing on stonethrowing youths who confront them, mortally wounding a 16-yr.-old Palestinian, denying access to an ambulance (he subsequently bleeds to death); denies an ailing Palestinian with a valid permit for medical treatment permission to cross a checkpoint to reach a Jerusalem hospital, allowing him to die; conducts arrest raids, house searches in al-Arub r.c. nr. Hebron, Bethlehem, Jenin town and r.c. In Rafah, unidentified assailants detonate a bomb outside the home of a prominent local Fatah mbr., causing damage but no injuries. (OCHA 9/19; PCHR 9/20)

Islamic Jihad fires 7 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries although 1 lands nr. a daycare center and school, causing panic; public and government officials call for immediate school closures until the Israeli government takes steps to halt rocket fire; Israeli officials urge cutting water, fuel, and electricity to Gaza or carrying out a massive military strike. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes 4 Palestinian homes in and nr. East Jerusalem; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus (targeting Hamas; firing on stone-throwing Palestinians who confront them, wounding 9) and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin. (NYT, WP, WT 9/4; OCHA 9/5; PCHR 9/6)

The Lebanese army continues to search Nahr al-Barid r.c. for fugitive FI mbrs., occasionally exchanging gunfire with hold-outs; no casualties are reported. Journalists entering the camp for the 1st time state that “shell blasts honeycombed nearly every building.” (WT 9/4)

The IDF launches air strikes on 5 rocketlaunching sites in nr. Bayt Hanun, killing 3 Palestinian children (ages 8–12); Israel says it hit viable targets, claiming that Hamas was using the children to “adjust” the launchers, states its “sorrow for the cynical use the terror organizations make of the active participation of teenagers in terror attacks”; relatives of the children say they were playing in the vicinity of an Islamic Jihad launcher. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of Rafah, forcing them to return to shore. Palestinians fire 1 rocket fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Nr. Gaza City, a Palestinian dies when a roadside bomb he is planting explodes prematurely. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes 6 Palestinian homes in Qalqilya; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Bethlehem. Meanwhile, AMB mbrs. in Ramallah fire on the car of a Hamas-affiliated municipal council mbr., causing damage but no injuries. A Hamas mbr. dies of injuries received in an 8/23 IDF missile attack on Gaza. (AP, IFM, YA 8/29; NYT, PCHR, WP 8/30; OCHA 9/5; PCHR 9/6; NYT 9/26)

IDF troops stationed on the Gaza border fatally shoot a Palestinian shepherd who strays nr. the border fence nr. Juhur al-Dik; troops conduct bulldozing operations in the area. The IDF makes an air strike on a suspected rocket-launching site nr. Bayt Hanun, causing no injuries. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing vessels off the Bayt Lahiya coast, forcing them to return to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF arrests Palestinian Awad Abu Suway, head of a Bethlehem group that organizes local nonviolent protests against the separation wall, and his 65-yr.-old father; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c. and in Hebron, Nablus, and neighboring Balata r.c. PA police rescue an IDF soldier who mistakenly drives into Jenin and is surrounded by an angry mob; police safely turn over the soldier to the IDF, but the crowd burns his vehicle; Israel praises the PA police, saying their actions are a sign of PA Pres. Mahmud Abbas’s growing authority. A Palestinian civilian injured in an 8/14 IDF air strike on Khan Yunis dies. (AP 8/27; WP 8/28; OCHA 8/29; PCHR 8/30)

The IDF shells a car driving nr. al-Bureij r.c., assassinating 2 ESF officers (Muhammad Abu ‘Arab, Ali Baroud) and 4 Hamas mbrs. (Ismail Abu Abda, ‘Abid Abu Hilu, Ahmad al-Qrainawi, Muhammad al-Qrainawi), wounding 1 bystander; sends troops into Abasan nr. Khan Yunis, bulldozing land, firing on residential areas, wounding 1 Palestinian. An Islamic Jihad mbr. is injured when explosives he is handling detonate prematurely. Gaza’s sole power plant, which produces 25% of Gaza’s electricity, shuts down after depleting its fuel reserves (see 8/19; 70% of Gaza’s electricity is provided by Israel, 5% by Egypt). In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Ramallah, Tulkarm; fires on stone-throwing Palestinian youths outside ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a r.c., wounding 2; later patrols in ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a, exchanging fire with local gunmen, killing 1 armed Palestinian. (HA, NYT 8/21; OCHA, WP 8/22; PCHR 8/23)

In Gaza, the IDF sends tanks, bulldozers into al-Bureij r.c. to level land, sparking an exchange of gunfire that leaves 1 Palestinian bystander wounded. Israel authorizes the Nahal Oz fuel pipeline to reopen, but the European Union (EU), which underwrites PA fuel imports, suspends payments for fuel supplies until it receives assurances that the Hamas government in Gaza will not receive tax revenues fr. the sale of electricity produced with the fuel imports. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin and in Bethlehem, Qalqilya, Tulkarm; patrols in al-Yamun nr. Jenin. In Gaza, unidentified gunmen raid Fatah’s Dayr al-Balah offices, confiscating computers, documents. (NYT 8/19; OCHA 8/22; PCHR 8/23)

IDF troops on the central Gaza border fire on 3 unarmed Palestinians attempting to sneak into Israel to find work, killing 1 Palestinian, arresting 2. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem; patrols in Nablus and neighboring ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a refugee camp (r.c.). A 13-yr.-old Palestinian boy is injured by unexploded IDF ordnance (UXO) nr. Tubas. (OCHA 8/22; PCHR 8/23)

Israel cuts off fuel imports into Gaza through the Nahal Oz crossing, citing “specific terror warnings.” Palestinians fire mortars fr. Gaza into Israel, lightly injuring 1 Israeli. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home nr. East Jerusalem; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus (1 IDF soldier is wounded when Palestinians detonate an explosive device nr. his patrol), nr. Bethlehem and Hebron. (PCHR 8/16; BBC 8/17; NYT 8/19; OCHA 8/22; PCHR 8/23)

The IDF fires into Gaza, wounding 2 AMB mbrs. planting roadside bombs and preparing to fire mortars into Israel, barring ambulances fr. reaching the scene for 6 hrs., allowing them to die; the AMB says the men intended to fire mortars to protest a 7/27 decision by Abbas to drop references to Palestinian resistance fr. the existing government platform. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Ramallah and in Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin town and r.c.; patrols in Kafr Ra‘i nr. Jenin. (NYT, WP, WT 7/29; OCHA 8/1; PCHR 8/2)

The Lebanese army storms a FI building in Nahr al-Barid r.c., killing 8 militiamen, stating that a final push against the group is “imminent.” Fighting continues, however, through the end of the quarter. (WP, WT 7/29)

In Gaza, Islamic Jihad mbrs. exchange fire with an IDF patrol nr. Khuza’a, causing no injuries. The IDF bulldozes Palestinian land along the border e. of al-Maghazi. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian house, 2 mobile homes, a water reservoir nr. Bethlehem; demolishes 1 home, part of a 2d nr. Nablus; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin, nr. Tulkarm. Jewish settlers fr. Beni Hefer nr. Hebron burn 75 d. of Palestinian olive groves (255 trees) nr. the settlement. In Gaza City, 100 Palestinian vendors stage a nonviolent march to Haniyeh’s office to protest the ESF’s removal of their stalls along a main Gaza City street to ease traffic congestion. Some 4,500 Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), Hamas, Islamic Jihad, PFLP supporters (nearly half of them children) stage a nonviolent demonstration at the Rafah crossing, calling on Israel to open the checkpoint to allow entry to Palestinians stranded on the Egyptian side. A new Hamas-affiliated mayor is appointed to the al-Bureij r.c. municipality (no details are reported). A Hamas mbr. dies of injuries received during the 6/27 IDF raid on Gaza City. (OCHA 7/25; PCHR 7/26)

Israel releases fmr. Education M Nasser al-Sha‘ir (arrested 5/24, dismissed by Abbas on 6/14) after he signs a pledge renouncing his ties to Hamas, vowing never to hold an official position representing the group. In Gaza, 2 Palestinian children are injured by a roadside bomb planted nr. an ESF post. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes 2 Palestinian homes nr. Jerusalem (in Anata, Bayt Hanina); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and Ramallah, nr. Bethlehem, in Hebron. Some 3,500 Jewish settlers bring construction materials to the Homesh settlement site with the intention of rebuilding the settlement vacated under Israel’s 9/05 disengagement plan; settlers set fire to 10s of nearby Palestinian olive trees, vandalize fuel tanks and cars at a nearby Palestinian gas station. The IDF closed several main checkpoints (nr. Hebron, Qalqilya, Ramallah) and stretches of Route 60 to block settlers fr. reaching the site, causing major obstacles to Palestinian movement. (OCHA, WT 7/18; PCHR 7/19)

The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishermen off the coast of Bayt Lahiya, forcing them to return to shore. Palestinians fire 10 mortars at the IDF post at Kerem Shalom crossing, causing no damage or injuries but prompting Israel to close the transit point, which had been allowing limited food aid into Gaza. Meanwhile, 3,000 Hamas mbrs. hold a nonviolent demonstration at the Rafah crossing, demanding that Israel allow entry to some 6,000 Palestinians stranded in Egypt. Egypt reinforces border guards on the Rafah border, fearing that Hamas mbrs. might try to force open the crossing. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids in and around Nablus (targeting the Fatah tanzim), in Jenin town and r.c., and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Qalqilya. Fatah officials complain that in the past 2 wks., IDF arrest campaigns in the West Bank have detained at least 300 Fatah mbrs., more than offsetting a planned release of 250 Fatah prisoners. (IFM, MNA 7/10; NYT, PCHR 7/12)

The UNRWA announces that because of Israel’s continued closure of the Gaza crossing to all but limited humanitarian aid, it must halt about $93 m. of construction projects in Gaza (including schools, water and sewage treatment facilities, health centers) that employ 121,000 Palestinians for lack of construction materials; also warns that UNRWA food stocks are running low. Hamas says it is willing to allow the PA presidential guard to monitor the crossings, but Israel says it will not deal with the presidential guard if they operate under Hamas command. Hamas demands that Egypt, Israel allow some 6,000 Palestinians stranded on the Rafah border without aid or shelter to enter Gaza; Egyptsays it will allow them through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing as a 1-time solution, but Hamas rejects this as an affront to Palestinian sovereignty; Hamas mbrs. fire mortars at Kerem Shalom in protest, causing light damage but no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into Jericho, raiding a billiard club, shooting, wounding, arresting 2 Palestinians; sends undercover units into Burkin nr. Jenin in a civilian vehicle with Palestinian plates to raid a caf´e, arresting 13 Palestinians; conducts other arrest raids, house searches in Nablus, nr. Bethlehem, Hebron. (NYT, WT 7/10; OCHA 7/11; PCHR 7/12)

In Gaza, the IDF bulldozes Palestinian land nr. the Qarni industrial zone along the border n. of Bayt Hanun. Palestinians fire 7 mortars at IDF troops operating n. of Bayt Hanun, causing no injuries; fire 4 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF fatally shoots 1 Palestinian in Nablus before ending a 3-day operation there; bars an ambulance fr. transporting a Palestinian seriously injured in a car accident through a checkpoint to reach the nearest hospital in East Jerusalem because he did not have a permit to enter the city, allowing him to die; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Qabatya and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron; fires rubbercoated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists attending the weekly nonviolent protest against the separation wall in Bil‘in, injuring 1. (OCHA 7/4; PCHR 7/5)

Nr. Tripoli, Lebanese soldiers fire on Palestinian refugees who attempt to cross an army checkpoint while staging a protest march toward Nahr al-Barid, seeking to return to their homes. Local Lebanese youths also beat marchers. At least 3 Palestinians are killed, up to 50 wounded. (NYT, WP, WT 6/30)