The Palestine Chronology

The IDF raids Jenin, fatally shooting a Palestinian woman hanging laundry on her roof, wounding an Agence France-Press (AFP) photographer; places a closure on Qalqilya; fires on residential areas in Khan Yunis, nr. Qalqilya and Ramallah; conducts arrest raids nr. Jenin and in Balata r.c., Bayt Furik, al-Bireh, Dahaysha r.c., Nablus, Tulkarm r.c.; reimposes a curfew on Husan (see 3/6). Rafah PRC head Kulab’s pregnant wife, injured during his 3/4 assassination, dies. (JTA, MM 3/9; PR 3/10; LAW, PCHR 3/11; HA 3/18)

Palestine Liberation Front (PLF) leader Muhammad Abbas (alias Abu Abbas), responsible for the 1985 Achille Lauro hijacking in which 1 American died, dies in U.S. custody in Iraq, where he was captured by U.S. forces in 4/03. (BBC, NYT, PR 3/10; WJW 3/11; NYT 3/12; PR 3/17; al-Majallah 3/21 in WNC 3/30)

The IDF attempts a predawn raid on Bureij r.c., Nussayrat r.c. in Gaza, but meets fierce resistance (rifle fire, rocket-propelled grenades, homemade antitank weapons, Molotov cocktails) fr. Palestinian militants, who prevent them fr. entering the camps and almost cut off their exit; the IDF is forced to call in helicopter gunships, reinforcements to evacuate; at least 14 Palestinians (9 Hamas mbrs., 1 PRC mbr., 4 bystanders) are killed, 83 injured during the 8-hr. battle; no IDF soldiers are killed or wounded. The IDF also beats, injures 12 Palestinian protesters in Bayt Duqqu n. of Jerusalem; blows up a Palestinian home nr. Jenin; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, seriously wounding a woman inside her home; conducts arrest raids in Bethlehem, Jenin, al-Qarara. (NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 3/7; DUS, VOP 3/7 in WNC 3/12; BBC, CSM, HA, MM 3/8; PR 3/10; LAW, PCHR 3/11; MEI 3/19)

The IDF sends troops into Ramallah to surround Arafat’s headquarters, check identities of anyone going in or out; tightens roadblocks around al-Ram and the n. Jordan Valley; reinforces troops in, fires on residential areas of Rafah; fires on residential areas of Jaba’ nr. Jenin, seriously wounding a 10-yr.-old Palestinian playing outside his home; conducts arrest raids in Balata r.c., Bethlehem, Nablus, Qalqilya. A 10-yr.-old Palestinian dies of injuries received in the IDF assassination of 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. on 2/28. Jewish settlers in Hebron uproot 150 Palestinian trees along the road fr. Kiryat Arba to the al-Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs. (VOP 3/5 in WNC 3/12; WT 3/6; MM 3/8; LAW, PCHR 3/11; MEI 3/19)

In an apparent assassination, the IDF raids Balata r.c., fatally shoots wanted AMB mbr. Muhammad Oweiss, allows him to bleed to death. At Oweiss’s funeral later in the day, the IDF fires on mourners outside the mosque, killing wanted AMB mbr. Rihad Abu Shallah, wounding 3 bystanders. The IDF also fires on residential areas of Rafah; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus. Israel’s High Court orders a 1-wk. halt to construction of the separation wall, while it considers a petition fr. the Israeli-Palestinian group, Popular Comm. Against the Wall. In Gaza City, 1,000s of Palestinians take part in the funeral of Islamic Jihad military leader Judah, assassinated on 2/28. In Yatta nr. Hebron, Jewish settlers seize Palestinian land, begin constructing concrete platforms for mobile homes. (NYT, WP 3/1; PCHR 3/4; Gush Shalom press release 3/6)

The IDF opens fire on Palestinians attempting to block bulldozers fr. clearing land nr. Bayt Surik for construction of the separation wall, wounding at least 1; demolishes a Palestinian home in Sawahara al-Sharqiyya nr. Jerusalem for construction of the wall; begins construction of a new 42 km wall segment btwn. Elkana settlement nr. Qalqilya and Ofer detention center s. of Ramallah; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Artas nr. Bethlehem, in Rafah, in camps and villages around Hebron and Jenin; raids, seals a Tulkarm charitable organization allegedly linked to Hamas, confiscating equipment, furniture. PA security officials confirm that Hizballah helped fund the 1/29 and 2/22 suicide bombings. (AFP, MM 2/24; VOP 2/24 in WNC 2/26; AP, NYT 2/25; HA, LAW, PCHR 2/26)

The IDF fires live ammunition at Palestinian youths who throw stones at troops at the end of an otherwise peaceful demonstration in Hebron against the separation wall, wounding 8 Palestinians, including 1 medic; fires live ammunition, tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets to break up peaceful demonstrations against the wall in Bethlehem, Jenin, Qalqilya, Ramallah, Tulkarm; conducts arrest raids, blows up the home of the 2/22 Palestinian suicide bomber in Husan; demolishes a 2d Palestinian home in Salfit; conducts arrest raids in Balata r.c., Bayt Jala, Bethlehem, Dahaysha r.c., Tarqumiyya nr. Hebron, Wadi al-Silqa nr. Dayr al-Balah; fires on Palestinian fisherman off Dayr al-Balah, halts 1 boat, arrests 6 fishermen. Jewish settlers fr. Ofra attack Palestinians in Silwad nr. Ramallah. (PM 2/23; LAW, PCHR 2/26; Guardian 2/27)

An AMB suicide bomber fr. Husan detonates a device on a bus in Jerusalem, killing 8 Israelis, wounding 50. Israel says that the attack is proof that Israel needs to build the separation wall. The IDF immediately sends troops into Husan, seals nearby Bethlehem. The IDF also bars an ambulance fr. crossing a checkpoint to reach a Hebron hospital, allowing an ailing Palestinian woman to die; fires in residential areas of Rafah; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Aida r.c., Balata r.c., Bethlehem; issues orders expropriating 27 dunams of Palestinian land until 12/05 for construction of a security fence around Gaza’s Netzarim settlement. A Hamas mbr. dies in Khan Yunis when a missile he is trying to fire prematurely explodes. Palestinians report that the IDF has recently begun barring Palestinians under age 35 fr. crossing checkpoints around Nablus. On the eve of the International Court of Justice hearings on the wall, Israel begins dismantling a 5-mi. stretch of the barrier running east of the n. West Bank village of Baqa‘ al-Sharqiyya; the wall running west of the village will remain; Israel also reportedly plans not to build a 12.5 mi. stretch of wall cutting Jenin off fr. the Jordan Valley, not to dig deep trenches around Ben-Gurion Airport, to remove 2,953 feet of wall in the Qalqilya area. Palestinians across the territories begin holding demonstrations against the wall to coincide with the hearings. Jewish settlers throw rocks, bottles at Palestinian cars in East Jerusalem. (AFP, NYT, WP, WT 2/22; VOP, XIN 2/22 in WNC 2/24; HA, MM, NYT, WP, WT 2/23; AFP, MENA 2/23 in WNC 2/25; al-Quds 2/23 in WNC 2/26; AP 2/25; PCHR 2/26; MM 3/12)

In an incident in Dayr al-Balah, IDF soldiers grant permission to an international delegation, including 3 UN staff members, to visit and question a local Palestinian family, provided they stay only 30 mins. and not enter the family’s home; the delegation complies, but as it is leaving, an IDF soldier deliberately shoots the 15 yr. old son of the family fr. a distance of 20 m., hitting him in the back, partially paralyzing him; the international team transports the boy to a Gaza City hospital. IDF also fires on residential areas of Brazil r.c., wounding an 11-yr.-old Palestinian boy; bulldozes 15 dunams of land, demolishes a Palestinian home nr. Jenin, 1 in Salfit nr. Nablus, a poultry farm in Dayr al-Balah; conducts arrest raids in Bayt Hanina, Gaza City, nr. Jenin. Armed Jewish settlers attack a Palestinian neighborhood in Hebron, seriously beating a 13-yr.-old Palestinian girl. In Jenin, unidentified assailants open fire on Palestinian Authority (PA) health minister Jawad al-Tibi, Palestinian Economic Council for Development and Reconstruction head Muhammad Ishtiyya during a visit to inaugurate a new hospital; neither is injured. (VOP 2/18 in WNC 2/20; PCHR 2/19; VOP 2/19 in WNC 2/21; LAW, PCHR 2/26; HA, DUS 2/28)

U.S. National Security Council Middle East Adviser Elliott Abrams, Dep. National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley, Asst. Secy. of State William Burns arrive in Israel for3days of talks with senior Israeli, Palestinian officials on Israeli PM Ariel Sharon plan for unilateral disengagement fr. Gaza. (MM 2/18; VOP 2/18 in WNC 2/20; BBC, HA, MM, WT 2/19; VOP 2/19 in WNC 2/21; MM, NYT, WP, WT 2/20; HA 2/22; WP 2/26; Forward 2/28)

The IDF fires on Palestinian farmers working their fields nr. Khan Yunis, seriously wounding 1; fires on a Khan Yunis cemetery, wounding 1 Palestinian; detains 4 Palestinian fishermen off the coast of Dayr al-Balah; bulldozes 45 dunams (4 dunams = 1 acre) of Palestinian agricultural land, irrigation works nr. Rafah; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, in Dahaysha refugee camp (r.c.), nr. Jenin, in Qalqilya; orders confiscation of 141 dunams of land in al-Mughayar village e. of Jenin for construction of the separation wall. A Palestinian dies of injuries received earlier. (VOP 2/17 in WNC 2/19; PCHR 2/19)

The IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin; issues confiscation orders for a 15-dunam plot of land adjacent to Negohot settlement nr. Hebron. Some 200 Palestinian journalists temporarily occupy the PC building in Gaza to protest several recent mysterious attacks on reporters (e.g., 1/8, 2/2, 2/13). (VOP 2/15 in WNC 2/18; WP 2/16; PR 2/18; PCHR, WJW 2/19)

The IDF blows up a Palestinian home nr. Jenin; bulldozes a 150 m stretch of land inside a Khan Yunis cemetery, destroying the property boundary wall, several gravesites; conducts arrest raids nr. Jenin; tightens roadblocks around Ramallah, Nablus. In Bethlehem, a Palestinian child grazing animals is injured when he accidentally triggers unexploded IDF ordnance. (PCHR 2/19)

IDF undercover units driving a car with Palestinian license plates raid Balata r.c., open fire on wanted PFLP mbr. Samir Khudaysh without warning, seriously wounding, then arresting him. The IDF also fires on a group of armed Palestinians nr. Jenin, killing 1 Palestinian, wounding 2; surrounds, fires tear gas into a secondary school nr. Hebron; occupies a Palestinian apartment building nr. Jenin as a military post, expelling the 32 residents; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, Nablus, Tulkarm r.c. and nr. Hebron, Ramallah; raids, searches dorms at al-Najah University in Nablus, arresting 3 students; arrests 6 Palestinian fishermen off the coast of Gaza for fishing in a prohibited area. The IDF, accompanied by Hebron Jewish settlers, raid Khirbat Janba, outside Hebron; search the caves and mud houses of 36 Palestinian families (around 350 people), order them to leave the area (see 1/29). (PCHR 2/12)

IDF undercover units traveling in cars with Palestinian license plates raid Askar r.c., arrest 4 Palestinians. The IDF also begins (without forewarning) requiring special licenses for trucks crossing through al-Hamra checkpoint in the n. Jordan Valley, Tayasir checkpoint outside Jenin; fires on residential areas in Rafah, nr. Tulkarm; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Hebron; orders the confiscation of 220 dunams of Dayr al-Balah land that the IDF has already bulldozed; begins construction of a new settler bypass road nr. Tulkarm. Palestinians fire 2 antitank rockets at an IDF convoy in Rafah, wounding 2 soldiers; fire 2 Qassam rockets, 1 causing heavy damage to a greenhouse in a Gaza settlement, 1 landing outside Sederot, causing no damage or injuries. (HA 2/8; PCHR 2/12)

The IDF assassinates Hamas mbr. Nasir Abu Shuka with an exploding cell phone in Bureij r.c.; fatally shoots a PFLP mbr. who throws a grenade at an IDF patrol in Rafah; fatally shoots a Palestinian youth nr. Netzarim settlement; demolishes a Palestinian home nr. Jenin, 1 nr. Ramallah; conducts arrest raids, house searches in ‘Aza r.c., Balata r.c., Bayt Sahur, Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Nablus; bulldozes 45 dunams of land in Wadi al-Silqa. In Gaza, an AMB mbr. is killed by friendly fire during an attempted AMB ambush of an IDF patrol. Palestinians also fire an antitank rocket at an IDF patrol nr. Gaza’s Neve Dekalim settlement, causing no damage or injuries. (HA 2/5; WP 2/6; VOP 2/6 in WNC 2/10; PCHR 2/8, 2/12)

A Palestinian suicide bomber detonates a device on a crowded bus nr. Sharon’s official residence in West Jerusalem, killing 10 Israelis, wounding 44. The bomber, whom the PA confirms was a Bethlehem PSF officer fr. Aida r.c., leaves 2 suicide notes claiming the attack in the name of the AMB, Hamas; the AMB initially claims responsibility, Hamas does so after the 2d letter is released; the groups do not claim joint responsibility, as they have done in the past, raising questions as to who really staged the attack. Israeli DM Shaul Mofaz says Israel will not routinely seal the territories in the wake of the bombing, so as not to aggravate Palestinians’ hardship; will specifically target militant groups. The IDF tightens checkpoints around Hebron; conducts house searches, arrest raids in Hebron, Jenin, Nablus. Hebron Jewish settlers attack Palestinians in nearby Yatta, forcing 9 Palestinian families out of their cave dwellings and mud houses; Hebron settlers reportedly seek to expropriate more than 37,000 dunams in the area for settlement expansion. In a plea agmt., an Israeli court sentences to 15 mos. in jail Havat Maon settlers Yitzhak Paz and Matityahu Shvu, arrested on 7/17/03 for transporting explosives, plotting a major bombing of a Palestinian school, carrying out 2 bombings at Palestinian schools that resulted in no deaths. (BBC, HA, MM 1/29; MM, NYT, WP, WT 1/30; MM 2/3; WJW 2/5; JPI 2/6; al-Majallah [London] 2/8 in WNC 2/18; PCHR 2/12; JPI 2/13)

Israel, Hizballah begin to implement the 1st stage of their 2-stage prisoner swap. (BBC, HA, MNR, NYT, WJW, WP, WT 1/29; HA, MM, NYT, WP, WT 1/30; MM 2/2; JPI, MEI 2/6; JPI 2/13) (see 1/24)

The IDF conducts arrest raids in Jenin, Nablus, Tulkarm; fires on residential areas in Rafah. (PCHR 1/29)

The IDF closes all entrances to Jenin town and r.c., erects more checkpoints around the town; erects new temporary checkpoints outside 5 villages outside Qalqilya; imposes a curfew on al-Til nr. Nablus, demolishes 1 Palestinian home; blows up 3 Palestinian homes in Rafah; fires on Palestinian vehicles, stone-throwing youths in and around Nablus, in Ramallah; conduct arrest raids, house searches in Hebron; notifies bedouin families w. of Salfit that they must leave the area to make room for the separation wall. (LAW, PCHR 1/22)

The IDF imposes a curfew on Araba w. of Jenin, Far‘un s. of Tulkarm; fires on residential areas of Araba; completely demolishes 7 Palestinian homes, partially demolishes 1 nr. Kefar Darom settlement outside Dayr al-Balah; bulldozes homes in Rafah previously severely damaged by IDF fire, severing a water main serving the western half of the city; conducts arrest raids and house searches in Hebron, Nablus, Ramallah. Israeli Environmental Authority planes spray 1,000 dunams of Palestinian agricultural land in Yatta s. of Hebron with incendiary chemicals, destroying the crops. (VOI 1/16 in WNC 1/21; PCHR 1/22)

The IDF raids Tulkarm r.c., rounding up all inhabitants of 1 section of the camp for questioning, detaining 230 Palestinian men, allowing women and children to go after 10 hrs.; sends APCs into Rafah, shelling residential areas, wounding 3, demolishing 1 Palestinian home and 2 stores, severely damaging 5 homes; demolishes another Palestinian home nr. Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Anabta nr. Tulkarm, Asira nr. Nablus, Jaba’ nr. Jenin, Kubar nr. Ramallah, Nablus, Qalqilya, Tarqumiyya and Yatta nr. Hebron. Israel completes a section of separation wall cutting off Abu Dis fr. Jerusalem. Palestinians report that the IDF has bulldozed 24 dunams of agricultural land outside Hebron since 1/9, for construction of the wall. (ISM press release 1/12; WT 1/13; PCHR 1/15; WP 2/10)

Sharon makes a statement to the Knesset reiterating his intention to disengage unilaterally fr. the occupied territories if the Palestinians do not make concessions soon. The Knesset endorses Sharon’s statement byavote of 51-39. (AFP 1/12; MM 1/13; PR 1/14)

The IDF fires on residential areas and the main market of Balata r.c. (wounding 4) and on residential areas of Bayt Rima nr. Ramallah, Khan Yunis; conducts house searches, arrest raids in Kafr ‘Ayn nr. Ramallah, Yamun nr. Jenin. (PCHR 1/15)

The IDF sends troops into Jenin r.c. and town just days after redeploying fr. both, conducting arrest raids (targeting the AMB, Islamic Jihad), clashing with Palestinians; troops pull out by the end of the day. The IDF also fires on residential areas of Rafah, wounding a 14-yr.-old Palestinian in her home; conducts house searches, arrest raids in Wadi al-Silqa, Nablus, Qabatya. Israel reportedly approves changes to the route of the separation wall, so that it will run w. of Azun, Baqa‘ al-Sharqiyya, Khirbat Jabar, and several homes in Tulkarm, all of which were previously slated to be cut off fr. the east; begins work on stretches of the wall outside Hebron and in the Jordan Valley nr. Tubas. (AP, HA 1/9; VOI, VOP 1/9 in WNC 1/13; PCHR 1/15)

IDF undercover troops fatally shoot AMB mbr. As‘ad Falah Khaliliyya in an apparent assassination in Jenin. The IDF also stages arrest raids in Qalqilya, in and around Ramallah; demolishes 2 Palestinian homes in Rafah. In Gaza, 5 armed, masked Fatah mbrs. detain, beat an al-Arabiyya TV correspondent. (REU, PCHR 1/8; HA 1/9; HA, PR 1/14; PCHR 1/15)

The IDF withdraws troops to the outskirts of Nablus, ending Operation Still Water, during which a total of 10 Palestinian homes were destroyed; demolishes 2 Palestinian homes in Dayr al-Balah, 1 in Rafah; bulldozes 53 dunams of land nr. Dayr al-Balah; fences off 120 dunams of land, 2 Palestinian homes along a settler bypass road nr. Wadi al-Silqa; conducts arrest raids in Jenin. (PR 1/7; JP, VOP 1/7 in WNC 1/9; PCHR 1/9)

The IDF sends armored personnel carriers (APCs) back into Nablus, fatally shooting a 15-yr.-old Palestinian on the roof of his home, fatally shooting 2 stone-throwing youths who challenge the APCs, later directing sniper fire on the funeral procession of the 1st youth, killing a 4th Palestinian (1 of the pallbearers). The IDF also sends a small contingent of troops back into Jenin, reimposes several roadblocks around the city that were lifted on 1/2; bulldozes 5 Palestinian homes and 23 dunams of olive trees in al-Qarara, 16 dunams of olive trees nr. alBureij r.c.; conducts arrest raids in al-Qarara, Qalqilya; fires on Israeli, Palestinian, foreign peace activists staging a nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in the northern West Bank, injuring 1 Israeli, arresting 28 foreigners. (REU 1/3; VOP 1/3 in WNC 1/6; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 1/4; PR 1/7; LAW 1/8; MEI, PCHR 1/9)

After completing a stretch of the separation wall cutting off Jenin fr. Israel, the IDF removes the closure on Jenin, withdraws troops inside the city for the 1st time since 8/03, redeploys troops that have been encircling the city for most of the past 3 yrs. The IDF also fatally shoots a Palestinian allegedly attempting to lay a roadside bomb outside a Gaza settlement; fires on stone-throwing Palestinians in Nablus; bulldozes a Palestinian home in Hebron; places a curfew on, conducts arrest raids in Dayr al-Balah, Hebron, Jenin, Tulkarm; imposes a curfew on, digs trenches across the entrances to Bayt Umar village nr. Hebron. (WP 1/3; WP, WT 1/4; LAW 1/8; PCHR 1/9)