The Palestine Chronology

The IDF further expands Operation Days of Penitence into Bayt Lahiya, sending in another 45 tanks, 20 armored bulldozers to level 30 d.; shells Bayt Lahiya and Jabaliya from land and sea, killing 1 Hamas mbr. and wounding 2 in the Bayt Lahiya cemetery; directs heavy machine gunfire at residential areas of Jabaliya. The IDF also fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, seriously injuring a 10-yr.-old Palestinian girl in an UNRWA classroom. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes 1 Palestinian home in Jalbun nr. Jenin, 1 in Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus and surrounding camps, and in and around Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Ramallah. Unidentified assailants attempt to assassinate the PA’s Gaza public security head Musa Arafat, remote detonating a car bomb outside his Gaza City office; no one is injured. Unidentified gunmen break into the Fatah headquarters in al-Bureij r.c., fatally shoot senior Fatah figure Muhammad Issa; Fatah, Hamas mbrs. take to the streets to in protest. (HA 10/12; AFP, VOI, VOP 10/12 in WNC 10/14; MEZ, NYT, PR, WP, WT 10/13; al-Quds 10/13 in WNC 10/19; NYT, PCHR, WP 10/14; JPI, MEI 10/22; PR 10/27)

In n. Gaza, the IDF shells residential areas of Jabaliya; expands its incursion into Bayt Lahiya, killing 1 armed Palestinian in an air strike, directing heavy machine gun fire at residential areas, occupying several Palestinian homes. Elsewhere in Gaza, the IDF makes a 3d attempt (see 8/26) to assassinate Islamic Jihad military cmdr. Muhammad Khalil, firing a missile at his home in Rafah, wounding 4 bystanders; exchanges gunfire with armed Palestinians in Dayr al-Balah, killing 1 Palestinian; fires on residential areas in Khan Yunis. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home, conducts arrest raids, fires on stonethrowing youths in Nablus. Armed Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar attack Palestinians harvesting their olive groves in Asira, shooting and wounding 1 Palestinian, scuffling with others until the IDF separates the sides. (HA, MEZ, XIN 10/11; VOI, VOP 10/11 in WNC 10/13; NYT 10/12; PR 10/13; PCHR 10/14)

In n. Gaza, the IDF conducts an air strike on a warehouse in Jabaliya r.c., destroying it and 3 adjacent Palestinian homes, killing a Palestinian bystander; shells a group of Palestinians in Jabaliya, killing 2 Palestinians, wounding 1; fires missiles into Bayt Hanun (killing 1 Palestinian), Bayt Lahiya (injuring 3). A Palestinian dies of injuries he received in Jabaliya on 10/1. Elsewhere in Gaza, the IDF raids Dayr al-Balah, fatally shooting 1 armed Palestinian, wounding 7 bystanders, bulldozing 40 d.; shells, directs heavy machine gun fire residential areas of Khan Yunis, wounding a student in his classroom, causing significant damage to (but no serious injuries in) the al-Nasser Hospital maternity ward, a home, a mosque. In the West Bank, the IDF arrests 3 armed Jewish settlers fr. Tapuach for setting fire to a Palestinian olive grove, firing guns in the air, attacking Palestinians who arrive to put out the blaze, lightly injuring several Palestinians. A Jewish settler attacks an Orthodox Armenian religious procession in Jerusalem’s Old City, spitting in the face of Deputy Arch Bishop Nurhan, tearing off his cap and cross (breaking the 17th century relic), making religious insults. (VOI, VOP 10/10 in WNC 10/12; AFP 10/10, VOP 10/11 in WNC 10/13; HA, MEZ 10/11; HA 10/12; PR 10/13; PCHR, WT 10/14; NYT 10/19)

In ongoing clashes in n. Gaza, the IDF fatally shoots wanted Hamas senior cmdr. ‘Abd al-Rauf Nabhan in Jabaliya in what may be an assassination; shells the Bayt Lahiya home of 1 of the Palestinians who carried out the 3/14/04 Ashdod port bombings, killing 2 family mbrs., wounding 6; shells residential areas of Bayt Hanun, Jabaliya. In s. Gaza, the IDF fires on a PA roadblock outside Khan Yunis, killing 2 PA security officers (1 an AMB mbr., 1 an Abu Rish Brigades mbr.), sends heavy equipment, troops into Rafah, orders residents to leave their homes, demolishes 14 Palestinian homes completely; later fires on residential areas of Rafah, seriously wounding a man asleep in his home; fires on stone-throwing youths in Khan Yunis, damaging a nearby hospital building and ambulance. In the West Bank, the IDF fires on stone-throwing youths in Balata r.c. Masked Jewish settlers attack, beat, lightly injure an Italian peace activist escorting Palestinian children home fr. school in Hebron. (VOI, VOP 10/9 in WNC 10/12; WP 10/10; PCHR 10/14)

The IDF fires a missile at 2 Palestinian boys (ages 12 and 15) playing with pipes and sticks in a street Jabaliya r.c., killing them; says video footage fr. drones in the area appeared to show militants preparing to launch a rocket. Also in n. Gaza, the IDF fires on residential areas of Bayt Hanun, seriously wounding a 12-yr.-old child in her home; demolishes 1 Palestinian home north of Bayt Hanun. A 13-yr.-old Palestinian dies of injuries received in an IDF attack on Jabaliya on 9/30; a 16-yr.-old Palestinian dies of injuries received in Jabaliya on 10/1; a 22-yr.-old Palestinian dies of injuries received in Bayt Hanun on 10/3. The IDF also fires on 2 Palestinians who approach the Israeli border fence nr. the Sufa crossing into Israel in s. Gaza, killing 1 Palestinian while the other escapes; fires on residential areas, demolishes 1 Palestinian home in Rafah; shells residential areas, bulldozes 86 d. nr. Khan Yunis. Palestinians fire 2 Qassam rockets at Sederot, 2 antitank missiles at IDF troops in Rafah, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF moves troops into Balata r.c. and Tulkarm, fires on residential areas, then fires on stonethrowing youths who confront the troops; halts a Palestinian school bus at a Hebron checkpoint, detains 3 students; conducts arrest raids, house searches in ‘Arub r.c., Jenin r.c., and in villages around Nablus, Tulkarm; bulldozes 60 d. southwest of Hebron for construction of the separation wall. The UNRWA delivers food, water to half of the 600 Palestinian families (ca. 3,300 individuals) who have been trapped in their homes east of Jabaliya r.c., unable to leave and without electricity or water since Days of Penitence began on 9/29. (United Nations Information Service 10/7; PSCT, VOI, VOP 10/7 in WNC 10/11; MEZ, WP 10/8; PR 10/13; PCHR 10/14)

In Egypt, a huge truck bomb explodes at the Hilton hotel in Taba, 2 smaller bombs explode at hotels further south along the Red Sea in Nuwayba and Ras al-Shaytan in what appear to be al-Qa‘ida attacks targeting Israelis vacationing for the Sukkoth holidays; 34 people are killed (including at least 13 Israelis, 9 Egyptians, 2 Italians, 1 Russian), some 150 are wounded. (BBC, HA, NYT, WP, WT 10/8; ITAR-TASS, MA, MENA, MM, VOI, VOP 10/8, MENA, al-Quds 10/9, VOI 10/10 in WNC 10/12; NYT, WP, WT 10/9; NYT 10/10; al-Ra’i 10/10, AYM 10/11 in WNC 10/14; LBC 10/10, MM 10/11; VOP 10/11 in WNC 10/13; MM 10/12; MM, NYT, PR 10/13; JP, WJW 10/14; MM 10/15, 10/18, 10/19; WT 10/20; MEI 10/22; WP 10/26)

The IDF assassinates Islamic Jihad’s military leader Bashir al-Dabash, his bodyguard Ahmad al-Arayir, firing 2 missiles at their car as they drive in Gaza City, also wounding 3 bystanders. In n. Gaza, the IDF fires a missile at a group of AMB mbrs. allegedly preparing an attack on IDF forces in Jabaliya r.c., killing 2 AMB mbrs., wounding 3; shells residential areas of Bayt Lahiya, hitting 3 homes, killing 3 Palestinians (2 may be Islamic Jihad mbrs. targeted for assassination), wounding at least 11 (including 9 children ages 7 mos.–13 yrs.). A Palestinian militant dies of injuries received in Jabaliya on 10/4. In s. Gaza, an IDF platoon leader wounds, then executes a 13-yr.-old Palestinian girl identified by soldiers under his command as a “nonthreat." The IDF also shells residential areas, conducts arrest raids and house searches, bulldozes 9 Palestinian homes and 52 d. in Khan Yunis; fires on residential areas of al-Qarara. In the West Bank, the IDF kills an AMB mbr. in an overnight exchange of gunfire in Hebron; seals, imposes a curfew on, fires on residential areas of, conducts arrest raids and house searches in Qabatya; lifts the 10/3 ban on Palestinians entering the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron. The IDF announces that it has recently arrested 13 UN employees whom it plans to indict for “suspected links to terrorism”; says it has recently arrested a 24-yr.-old tanzim mbr. fr. Silwad for the Wadi al-Haramiyya shooting in 3/3/02 in which a gunman killed 7 IDF soldiers and 3 Jewish settlers using an antique rifle. (HA, PM 10/5; PSCT, VOI, VOP 10/5 in WNC 10/7; NYT, PR, WT 10/6; VOI 10/6 in WNC 10/8; PCHR 10/7; NYT 10/10; VOI 10/10 in WNC 10/12; NYT 10/12; MM 10/13; al-Quds 10/13 in WNC 10/19; MM, WP 10/14; WP 11/28)

In continuing operations in n. Gaza, the IDF kills 5 Palestinians (including at least 2 civilians, one of them a 15-yr.-old girl) in shelling and gunfire in Jabaliya. In retaliation, Palestinians fire an antitank missile at an IDF patrol in n. Gaza, wounding 2 troops; fire 2 Qassam rockets at Sederot, lightly injuring 1 Israeli. Elsewhere in Gaza, the IDF fires warning shots at a group of Palestinians in Khan Yunis, killing a 4-yr.- old Palestinian; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, Rafah. In the West Bank, 2 wanted Palestinians and 1 IDF soldier are killed, a 3d wanted Palestinian and 4 bystanders are injured in an exchange of fire during an IDF arrest raid on Ramallah; the IDF says the soldier was killed by friendly fire. The IDF bulldozes a grove of 120 olive trees nr. Tulkarm, large areas of agricultural land in Surif for construction of the separation wall; imposes a curfew on Palestinians in Hebron to allow Jewish settlers to hold Sukkoth parades, during which settlers throw bottles, stones at Palestinian homes; conducts arrest raids in and around Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah, Tulkarm. A 70-yr.-old Palestinian dies fr. injuries she received in Nablus on 7/22/04. (MM, NYT, WP 10/4; AFP, IDF Radio, VOI, YA 10/4 in WNC 10/6; HA, NYT, PRCS, WP 10/5; PCHR 10/7; JPI 10/15)

Days of Penitence continues in n. Gaza with the IDF killing 10 Palestinians (including 7 armed Palestinians, 2–6 of them Islamic Jihad mbrs.; 3 civilians, including 1 deaf mute, 1 child inside an UNRWA school); demolishing a kindergarten, 2 factories, at least 7 Palestinian homes in Jabaliya r.c.; firing toward reporters covering events in Jabaliya. Palestinians fire 4 Qassam rockets at Sederot, causing no damage or injuries. A 13-yr.-old Palestinian dies of injuries received in Jabaliya on 10/1. The IDF also assassinates senior Izzeddine al-Qassam Brigades mbrs. Mahdi Mushtaha (reportedly one of the developers of the Qassam missile), Khalid al-‘Amriti in a missile strike on their car as they drive in Gaza City, injuring 4 bystanders; attempts to assassinate 2 wanted Hamas mbrs. in an air strike on Gaza City, wounding them, 1 bystander; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, Rafah. In the West Bank, the IDF fires rubber bullets, tear gas at a group of Palestinians, Israelis, internationals protesting the separation wall nr. Bayt Awa nr. Hebron, wounding 1 Dane, at least 14 Palestinians; reimposes a ban on Palestinians entering the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron (see 9/26); conducts arrest raids in and around Hebron, and in Bayt Laqia, Dahaysha r.c., Tulkarm. A Jewish settler seriously injures a 42-yr.-old Palestinian woman in a hit-and-run nr. Hebron. A Palestinian wounded in Salfit 2 wks. ago dies of her injuries. (NYT, WP 10/3; JAZ, VOI, VOP 10/3 in WNC 10/5; NYT, WP 10/4; JP, VOI 10/4 in WNC 10/6; PR 10/6; PCHR 10/7)

The IDF expands Operation Days of Penitence, using some 200 tanks and APCs to seize control of a 3.5 mi2 of costal territory in n. Gaza. In Jabaliya r.c., IDF missile strikes kill 3 Islamic Jihad mbrs. and 2 Hamas mbrs., wound 4 bystanders; gunfire kills at least 3 Palestinians (possibly Islamic Jihad mbrs.); demolitions of Palestinian homes continue; the IDF uses loudspeakers to urge 10s of Palestinians to evacuate their homes. The IDF fatally shoots another 4 Palestinians trying to infiltrate Israel fr. n. Gaza. A Palestinian militant dies of injuries sustained in Jabaliya on 10/1. The IDF also opens fire on Palestinians in central Gaza protesting against Days of Penitence; shells residential areas of Rafah, killing a 62-yr.-old Palestinian; evacuates, demolishes 4 Palestinian homes in Rafah, shooting and seriously wounding a Palestinian woman (6-mos. pregnant) in the process; fires on several residential areas of Khan Yunis, bulldozing 14 d., damaging an elementary school and forcing students to evacuate; conducts arrest raids in al-Qarara. In the West Bank, the IDF imposes a 1-day curfew on Palestinian areas of Hebron, fires on stone-throwing youths; conducts arrest raids at Hebron University and in Abu Nujaym and Artas nr. Bethlehem, Bayt Umar nr. Hebron, Silwad, Tulkarm, Tura nr. Jenin. A 4-yr.-old Palestinian dies of injuries received on 7/30/04. (HA, NYT, XIN 10/2; AFP, JAZ, VOI, VOP 10/2, VOI 10/3 in WNC 10/5; NYT, WP, WT 10/3; PCHR 10/7)

The IDF continues operations in Bayt Hanun and Jabaliya r.c. launched on 9/28, expands into Bayt Lahiya; occupies buildings as sniper posts; shells, fires on residential areas, killing 1 stone-throwing Palestinian youth, 4 armed Palestinian (including 1 Hamas mbr., wanted PRC mbr. Mosad Baradi), and 1 Palestinian bystander, wounding around 60. Palestinians target military vehicles with roadside bombs, antitank rockets, causing no injuries. Despite the maneuvers, Hamas fires a Qassam rocket at Sederot, killing 2 Israeli children, wounding 5; Sharon says that operations in n. Gaza will be expanded as a result. Late in the evening, the IDF carries out 2 missile strikes at Jabaliya r.c., killing 3 Palestinians and destroying an Islamic charitable organization. The IDF also continues operations begun 9/28 in Shaykh Ajlin, bulldozing 8 Palestinian homes, 8 d.; fires on stone-throwing youths outside Gaza City, killing 1 Palestinian; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, seriously injuring a 4-yr.-old Palestinian inside her home. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Jenin town and r.c., fires on a taxi wrongly thought to be carrying wanted Palestinians, killing the Palestinian driver, a Palestinian man, wounding his wife. In Hebron, 5 Jewish settlers armed with heavy metal chains, rocks, sticks severely beat, rob 2 American women working with Christian Peacemaker Teams escorting Palestinian children to their school; 1 woman suffers a punctured lung, the other a broken arm and knee. Jewish settlers set fire to 400 d. of olive trees nr. Bayt Furik, damaging 100s of trees. (HA, MM 9/29; VOI, VOP, YA 9/29 in WNC 10/1; HA, MM, NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 9/30; AFP 9/30 in WNC 10/2; PCHR, PR 10/6, 10/13; JPI 10/15)

The IDF fires missiles at the car of PRC leader Muhammad Abu Nusayra as he drives in Khan Yunis in an attempt to assassinate him; he is seriously wounded, his bodyguard Ali al-Sha‘ir is killed, several bystanders are injured. A Palestinian teacher is killed by stray IDF machine gun fire outside a Khan Yunis school. The IDF also fatally shoots 2 Palestinians near the border fence in central Gaza; fatally shoots 2 Palestinians who “approach” an IDF convoy in Balata r.c.; fires on stonethrowing Palestinians in ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’ r.c., on residential areas of Rafah (wounding a 9-yr.-old Palestinian inside her home); conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin town and r.c., al-Khadir and in and around Hebron, Nablus; raids, searches an ambulance building. Armed Palestinians ambush a carload of CNN reporters in Gaza City, kidnap Jerusalem-based producer Riyad Ali, leaving others unharmed. A Jewish settler fatally shoots a Palestinian driving nr. Itamar, is arrested by Israeli police but is quickly sent home to serve 1 week’s house arrest. (PRCS 9/27; AFP, PSCT, VOI, VOP 9/27 in WNC 9/29; JAZ, MM, NYT, PM, WP, WT 9/28; VOI 9/28 in WNC 9/30; PR 9/29; PCHR, WJW 9/30; JPI 10/8)

The IDF fires missiles at a metal workshop (alleged weapons factory) in Khan Yunis, wounding an 11-yr.-old Palestinian; raids ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’ r.c., fires on stone-throwing youths who confront the troops; fires rubber bullets, tear gas at Palestinian, international peace activists staging a nonviolent protest against the separation wall; conducts arrest raids in Bethlehem, Jenin; lifts the 9/24 ban on Palestinians entering the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron. Senior AMB mbr. Nimr Hassan is killed in Salfit when his M-16 explodes; the AMB claims that he was assassinated, his new gun was booby trapped by a collaborator. Palestinians fire 3 Qassam rockets at Sederot and 3 mortars at Gush Katif, causing no damage or injuries. Late at night, the IDF makes a major incursion into Jenin, raiding and searching a hospital (arresting 2 employees; wounding 7, including 2 children, with gunfire; damaging equipment), occupying buildings as sniper posts, conducting house searches. Outside Hebron, some 140 Jewish settlers attempt to reestablish 2 unauthorized settlement outposts previously evacuated by the IDF, scuffle with police, throw stones at Palestinian homes. (HA 9/26; IDF Radio, VOI, VOP, YA 9/26 in WNC 9/28; PCHR 9/30)

In Damascus, Hamas spokesman Izzeddin Khalil is killed when his car explodes in an apparent assassination. Anonymous Israeli security officials acknowledge Israel’s involvement; Sharon criticizes the “unnecessary babble.” (HA 9/26; JAZ, MA, VOP, YA 9/26 in WNC 9/28; VOI, YA 9/26, MA, VOP 9/27 in WNC 9/29; LBC, PSCT, SANA 9/26, AYM, HA, JP, SANA, Syrian Arab Republic Radio 9/27, JP, MA, Tishrin 9/28 in WNC 9/30; SANA, Syrian Arab Television Network 9/26 in WNC 10/29; MM, NYT, WP, WT, United Press International 9/27; MM 9/28; PR 9/29; MNR 9/29 in WNC 10/5; JPI 10/8)

The IDF continues its assault on Khan Yunis, totally demolishing 49 Palestinian homes, partially demolishing 7 before withdrawing by dawn. During the day, the IDF fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis (wounding an elementary school student in her classroom), Rafah; raids the campus of al-Quds Open University in Hebron, detaining and interrogating 10s of students; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin, al-Mughraqa, Ramallah, Wadi al-Silqa; bulldozes a Palestinian home, 6 d. in al-Mughraqa. (HA, WP, WT 9/26; PCHR 9/30; UNRWA press release 10/1)

Hamas fires mortars at Neve Dekalim, killing a Jewish settler woman (a dual Israeli-U.S. citizen). Late in the evening, the IDF stages a major raid into Khan Yunis in retaliation, firing on and shelling residential areas, killing a 60-yr.-old Palestinian, seriously damaging the physiotherapy wing of a hospital. The IDF also tightens restrictions on entry to East Jerusalem, Bayt Sahur nr. Bethlehem; bars Palestinians fr. entering the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron; raids Balata r.c. and Nur al-Shams r.c., firing on stone-throwing youths who confront the troops; fires on residential areas of Rafah; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Qalqilya. (HA 9/24; AFP 9/24, XIN 9/25 in WNC 9/28; WT 9/25; PCHR 9/30; JPI 10/8)

In Gaza, 3 Palestinian gunmen fr. the Abu Rish Brigades (a Fatah offshoot), Islamic Jihad, the Palestinian Resistance Comms. (PRC) attack an IDF post outside Morag, fatally shooting 3 IDF soldiers before 2 are shot dead; 1 escapes, wounds an Israeli journalist, is then shot dead. The IDF sends troops into Nablus and surrounding camps, fires on residential areas, blows up 2 Palestinian homes; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, Rafah; fires rubber bullets at Palestinian, international peace activists staging a nonviolent protest against the separation wall outside Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Nablus, and in al-‘Aza, Bethlehem, Jenin town and r.c., al-Khadir, al-Mughraqa; demolishes 2 Palestinian homes in al-Mughraqa; bulldozes 6 Palestinian homes, 40 d. of agricultural land in Khan Yunis. Palestinians fire 2 Qassam rockets at Sederot, lightly injuring 1 Israeli. A Palestinian dies of injuries received in Nur al-Shams on 9/14; a 2d Palestinian dies of injuries received in Rafah on 9/19. (BBC, MM, XIN 9/23; VOP 9/23 in WNC 9/25; MM, NYT, WP 9/24; HA, PR 9/29; PCHR 9/30)

A female AMB suicide bomber fr. Askar r.c. detonates a device in East Jerusalem’s French Hill settlement when 2 Israeli border policemen ask to search her bag; the bomber, 2 Israeli police officers are killed, 16 Jewish settlers are lightly injured. The IDF demolishes the homes of the bomber’s family, the person who recruited her. The IDF also demolishes 10 Palestinian homes in Khan Yunis, shells residential areas, wounding 17, before ending the operation it began there on 9/21; demolishes 2 Palestinian homes, bulldozes 81 d. in al-Mughraqa; demolishes 3 Palestinian homes in Nablus. The 9-yr.-old Palestinian girl wounded inside an UNRWA school on 9/7 dies. (HA 9/22; VOI, VOP 9/22 in WNC 9/24; MEZ, MM, NYT, PCHR, PRCS, WP, WT 9/23; al-Quds 9/23 in WNC 9/25; MM, NYT, WP 9/24; PR 9/29; PCHR 9/30)

The IDF launches a major incursion into Jenin, imposes a curfew, conducts house-tohouse searches, fires on residential areas, arrests at least 15 Palestinians; bulldozes 70 d. in Khan Yunis; fires on Palestinians, internationals holding a nonviolent protest against the separation wall in Budrus, where the IDF has bulldozed 250 d. in the past wk.; fires on residential areas of Nablus; conducts arrest raids and house searches in Asira, ‘Azun nr. Qalqilya, Bethlehem, Jenin r.c., Kharas nr. Hebron, Nablus, Silat al-Harith nr. Jenin, Silwan, Tulkarm r.c., Yatta. Palestinians fire 3 Qassam rockets at Sederot and the Negev, causing no damage or injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Itamar nr. Nablus attack, severely beat a Palestinian farmer picking dates, leaving him with skull fractures, multiple injuries. (PM 9/21; VOI, VOP 9/21 in WNC 9/23; PR 9/22; PCHR 9/23)

The IDF clashes with Palestinians in Nablus, fatally shooting a 17-yr.-old Palestinian girl standing on the roof of her home; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, Rafah. British MP Ian Gibson suffers a mild stroke while on a tour of Gaza with a medical charity; the IDF bars a Palestinian ambulance fr. taking him across the al-Ram checkpoint into East Jerusalem, forcing him to wait 90 mins. for an Israeli ambulance, which at 1st refuses to take him to nearby Makassid Hospital, favoring an Israeli hospital farther away; Gibson is stabilized in satisfactory condition at Makassid, but Britain lodges a formal complaint. (HA 9/19; PR 9/22; Guardian, PCHR 9/23)

The IDF seals Jenin, Tulkarm; divides Tulkarm into 3 separate areas; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis; conducts arrest raids nr. Ramallah and in al-Khadir, Nablus, Salfit, Surif, Yatta. Palestinians fire 3 mortars at Jewish settlements in Gaza, causing no damage or injuries. Masked gunmen thought to be AMB mbrs. ambush senior PA security official Brig. Gen. Muhammad Batrawi, the Arafat-appointed financial comptroller of the security forces in Gaza, hold him in Nussayrat r.c. for 3 hrs., release him unharmed. In Khan Yunis, 20 armed AMB mbrs. occupy the local Labor Min. office for 2 hrs., demanding jobs for the unemployed. A Palestinian prisoner dies in Israeli custody. (VOP, XIN 9/16 in WNC 9/18; NYT, WP, WT 9/17; QA, VOI, YA 9/17 in WNC 9/21; PR 9/22; PCHR 9/23)

Overnight, the IDF raids al-Mughraqa under cover of heavy shelling, bulldozes 7 Palestinian homes, 20 d. before pulling out later in the day. In an attempt to assassinate Nablus AMB leader Majid Mari, IDF undercover units make a predawn raid on Nablus, fire on a group of Palestinian militants gathered in a garden, killing 4 AMB mbrs., 1 mbr. of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), an 11-yr.-old Palestinian girl nearby, but leaving Mari unharmed; troops then demolish an adjacent Palestinian home, claiming the wanted men hid there. After dawn, more troops, tanks enter Nablus, sparking clashes with 1,000s of Palestinians throwing stones, Molotov cocktails. IDF undercover units ambush a car driving nr. Jenin, assassinate wanted AMB mbr. Fadi Zakarna, his 3 passengers. The IDF also conducts arrest raids, house searches in Duha, al-Khadir, al-Fara’ r.c., Hebron, Jenin, Salfit; shells residential areas of Khan Yunis. (PR 9/15; MM, PCHR, WP, WT 9/16; PR 9/22; PCHR 9/23; MEI 9/24; PCHR 11/4)

The IDF demolishes a Palestinian home in Rafah; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Araba, Bayt Dajan, Bayt Furik, Dahaysha r.c., Nablus and nearby Talluza, Nur al-Shams r.c. (firing 5 missiles at a house when 2 wanted Islamic Jihad mbrs. inside refuse to come out, seriously wounding both). A Palestinian suicide bomber on a bicycle detonates a device at an IDF checkpoint nr. Qalqilya, killing himself, wounding 3 IDF soldiers, 2 Palestinians; the IDF demolishes his family home in Qalqilya. (BBC, HA, JTA, MM 9/14; PR 9/15; PCHR 9/16; Guardian 9/17; MEI 9/24)

The IDF expands its incursion into Bayt Hanun, Bayt Lahiya, and Jabaliya r.c., with tanks and helicopters firing randomly between houses and into open fields allegedly to deter Palestinians fr. firing Qassam rockets into Israel, killing 5 Palestinians (including a 10-yr.-old boy), wounding at least 53, bulldozing 90 d., and demolishing 12 Palestinian homes, 2 brick factories, 1 workshop, 1 agricultural storehouse, 3 wells. In s. Gaza, the IDF fatally shoots an unarmed Palestinian who strays too near Gush Katif; fires on residential area of Khan Yunis. In the West Bank, the IDF arrests a Palestinian who attempts to stab, lightly injures an IDF soldier outside Kiryat Arba settlement; detains some 40 Palestinians at checkpoints around Hebron, holds them at nearby Jewish settlements for hrs. of questioning, beating some before releasing them; send troops into Rafidiyya nr. Nablus, fires on houses, then fires on stone-throwing Palestinians who confront them; bulldozes 5 d. of olive groves nr. Hebron’s Bnei Hefer settlement; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Hebron and around Bethlehem, Jenin, Qalqilya, Ramallah. An IDF jeep fatally runs over a Palestinian in Amari r.c. (MM, PCHR, XIN 9/9; VOI, VOP 9/9 in WNC 9/11; NYT, WP, WT 9/10; PR 9/15; PCHR 9/16)

The IDF sends tanks into the Bayt Hanun, Bayt Lahiya, Jabaliya r.c. in what it says will be a “limited operation,” shelling residential areas, wounding at least 17 Palestinians (including 13 children). The IDF also conducts arrest raids, fires on residential areas in Khan Yunis. In Hebron, the IDF surrounds, evacuates the home of a wanted Palestinian; fires 3 shells at the house when he does not emerge, wounding him; arrests him, demolishes the house. The IDF demolishes a 2d Palestinian home in Salfit. IDF undercover units storm a Jericho caf´e, assassinate senior Amari r.c. AMB mbr. ‘Amr A‘idiyya, wounding 3 Palestinian bystanders, arresting 19. Palestinians retaliate by firing 5 Qassam rockets toward Sederot (damaging a car but causing no injuries), firing 5 mortars at Neve Dekalim (damaging a house). The IDF also conducts arrest raids, house searches, bulldozes 15 d. in al-Qarara; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Aida r.c., Bethlehem, Dahaysha r.c., Hebron and neighboring Bani Na‘im, Nablus, Thinnaba, Tubas; seals an iron gate in the separation wall southeast of Jerusalem, cutting off access to the West Bank fr. Abu Dis, Azariyya, Sawahara. Israeli police reportedly enter 7 Palestinian voter registration offices in East Jerusalem; order 3 registration workers to report for questioning, photograph voter roles to deter Palestinians from registering. (HA, MM, WP, WT 9/8; VOI, VOP 9/8 in WNC 9/10; PCHR 9/9; BBC 9/21)

The IDF makes a predawn missile strike on a group of Hamas mbrs. practicing maneuvers on an old soccer field in Gaza City, killing 14 Hamas mbrs., wounding around 25. Palestinians fire a Qassam rocket at Neve Dekalim, causing no damage or injuries; the IDF retaliates by firing on residential areas of Khan Yunis, hitting a 9-yr.-old Palestinian girl in the head as she sits inside an UNRWA school, seriously wounding her. The IDF also bars an ailing Palestinian fr. crossing a Bayt Furik checkpoint to reach a hospital in Nablus, allowing him to die; fires live ammunition, tear gas at Palestinians waiting to cross the Abu Huli checkpoint; bulldozes 15 d. and 150 olive trees nr. Ma’on settlement nr. Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Araba nr. Jenin, Hebron and neighboring Dura, al-Khadir nr. Bethlehem, Nablus, Salfit, Tulkarm r.c.; fires on residential areas of Rafah; searches homes, levels land, partially demolishes a Palestinian home in Khan Yunis. Palestinians fire 2 mortars at Gush Katif, a Qassam rocket at Sederot, causing no damage or injuries. Israel releases 137 Palestinian prisoners “to relieve overcrowding” in Israeli jails. A Palestinian dies of injuries received during the IDF raids on Rafah in 5/04. (AFP, BBC, JAZ, MM, UNRWA press release, WP, WT 9/7; IDF Radio, JAZ, MENA, VOI, VOP, YA 9/7 in WNC 9/9; MM, NYT, PR, WP, WT 9/8; JT, al-Quds, VOP 9/8 in WNC 9/10; NYT, PCHR 9/9; XIN 9/9 in WNC 9/14)

The IDF tightens roadblocks btwn. Jerusalem, Ramallah; imposes a curfew on Silwad nr. Ramallah; shoots, wounds a mentally handicapped Palestinian who strays into a closed military zone nr. Morag; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, and in Aida r.c., Balata r.c., Bayt Rima and Dayr Ghassana nr. Ramallah, Madama nr. Nablus, Salfit; begins work on new segments of the separation wall running s. of Hebron and btwn. East Jerusalem and the Qalandia checkpoint s. of Ramallah, bulldozing 500 d.; reportedly bulldozes large areas in Wadi al-Malih in the n. Jordan Valley. Palestinians in Nablus report that the IDF is digging a trench 3 m deep and 4 m wide to encircle Salim, Azmut, Dayr Hatab, Bayt Dajan, and Bayt Furik villages (combined population 30,000); 3 km have been completed. Armed Palestinians calling themselves the Fatah Fighters kidnap the PA’s security dir. for the Rafah checkpoint Saad al-Sayfan, accusing him of corruption. 15 armed Palestinians occupy the Khan Yunis governate building for 2 hrs., demand that the PA compensate local Palestinians who have lost their homes to IDF bulldozing. Palestinians fire 5 mortars at Gush Katif, causing no damage or injuries. A PA court in Gaza opens a trial against 7 alleged collaborators, including Muhammad and Rami Abu Qaynas, accused of providing Israel with information used to assassinate Hamas leader ‘Abd al-‘Aziz Rantisi on 4/17/04. ( JAZ 9/5; MENA 9/5 in WNC 9/7; VOI 9/6 in WNC 9/8; PR 9/8; PCHR 9/9; PR 9/15)

The IDF tightens checkpoints around Jenin; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis (damaging a hospital), Rafah; sends troops into Bayta and Salfit, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront the troops; bulldozes a Palestinian home, 1.5 d., a well in al-Mughraqa; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jayyus nr. Qalqilya, Nablus, Taysir nr. Jenin, Yatta. A Palestinian dies of injuries received on 8/30. (PCHR 9/9)

The IDF conducts a major 1-day incursion into Khan Yunis called Operation LongDistance Vision to “destroy the terrorist infrastructure” nr. Neve Dekalim, ordering 100s of Palestinians to flee their homes and evacuate the area, firing missiles fr. helicopters (wounding at least 6 Palestinians and damaging a hospital), blowing up 2 vacant 5-story apartment buildings and 1 Palestinian home (wounding at least 10 Palestinians, rendering homeless at least 141). Citing security reasons, the IDF bars UNRWA head Peter Hansen fr. leaving Gaza through the Erez crossing; UNRWA condemns the incident as “unprecedented.” The IDF also imposes a curfew on Hebron; searches houses nr. Bethlehem, Ramallah. (MENA 9/1 in WNC 9/3; PCHR, WP 9/2; VOI 9/2 in WNC 9/4; VOP 9/5 in WNC 9/7; PR 9/8)

The IDF shells residential areas of Khan Yunis, killing 1 Palestinian; attempts to assassinate senior AMB mbr. Mahmud Abu Khalifa by firing a missile at his car as he drives through Jenin, missing it and hitting a nearby building, injuring a 9-yr.-old Palestinian girl; imposes curfews on villages around Jenin; fires on an ambulance waiting to cross Mahatin checkpoint nr. Khan Yunis, seriously injuring a doctor and a paramedic; fires rubber bullets at Palestinians in Budrus w. of Ramallah to disperse their nonviolent protest against the construction of the separation wall. Late at night, Israel border police raid and search homes in the Dahiyat al-Salam neighborhood of Anata in East Jerusalem, take all men ages 16–80 to a nearby base for ID checks, warn those without blue Jerusalem IDs that they could be arrested, detained, possibly sent to the West Bank if they are caught staying in the village overnight again. The IDF also removes a group of Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba who attempt to set up an unauthorized outpost along the route to the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs. Palestinian gunmen fire on a crane doing construction work in Neve Dekalim, lightly injuring an Israeli construction worker. (VOI, VOP 8/30 in WNC 9/1; VOP 8/31 in WNC 9/2; PR 9/1; PCHR 9/2)

The IDF bars all access to al-Salim nr. Nablus; fires on residential areas of Rafah; detonates percussion grenades around Khan Yunis in the middle of the night. A Jewish settler fr. Elon Moreh, with IDF escort, attacks 5 Palestinian shepherds outside Nablus, beating 2, shooting dead 1 sheep and 2 dogs; the IDF does not stop the settler but bars the shepherds fr. leaving. Some 15 Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba throw stones breaking windows of 4 Palestinian homes in 2 neighboring villages. PA FM Nabil Shaath begins a hunger strike in solidarity with hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners. (HA, VOP 8/28, VOP 8/29 in WNC 8/31; PCHR 9/2)

In Rafat, the IDF opens fire on several Palestinians removing belongings fr. a home that the IDF earlier warned would be demolished, seriously wounding 1 Palestinian, firing on an ambulance that attempts to reach him, allowing him to bleed to death. The IDF fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis; demolishes a Palestinian home in alQarara; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Araqa and Qabatya villages nr. Jenin, Askar r.c. nr. Nablus, Balata r.c., Surif nr. Hebron, Tulkarm. Israel announces plans for another 533 new housing units in the Adam, Emmanuel, Har Adar, Har Gilo settlements in the West Bank. The PA announces that security forces have recently arrested 6 suspected collaborators in Gaza. ( JP, MM 8/23; DS, NYT, WP, WT 8/24; VOP 8/24 in WNC 8/26; PR 8/25; PCHR 8/26)