The Palestine Chronology

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 fires missiles at 2 car repair shops (suspected weapons factories) in Gaza’s Shatti r.c., destroying them, causing no injuries; begins bulldozing work on al-Quds University campus in Abu Dis for construction of the separation wall around Jerusalem, breaking agreements not to build on university land; demolishes a Palestinian home in Rafah; conducts arrest raids in Dahaysha r.c., Jenin, al-Khadir; fires on Palestinian, Israeli, international demonstrators staging a nonviolent protest against the separation wall nr. Qalqilya, wounding 2 Palestinians (1 with live ammunition); fires on residential areas nr. Khan Yunis, Ramallah. Palestinians fire a Qassam rocket into Sederot, causing no damage or injuries. In response, the IDF shells a Gaza City building housing a Hamas office, causing a fire, wounding 2 Palestinians. Israel says that all 187 Israeli businesses will be withdrawn fr. the Erez Industrial Zone for their own protection, leaving some 5,000 Palestinians unemployed. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba, escorted by IDF soldiers, throw stones at Palestinians in Hebron. (Globes, Qol Yisra’el Radio 6/8; VOI, VOP 6/8 in WNC 6/10; HA, MM, NYT, WP 6/9; VOI, YA 6/9 in WNC 6/11; PCHR 6/10)

In Gaza, 2 Islamic Jihad gunmen open fire on Jewish settlers holding a memorial service at the roadside site nr. Khan Yunis where 5 Jewish settlers were killed on 5/2, causing no injuries; IDF troops return fire, killing both men, and then demolish 11 Palestinian homes, bulldoze 22 dunams of land that allegedly provided cover for the gunmen. The IDF also fatally shoots a Palestinian who strays too close to the separation wall nr. Abu Dis; conducts arrest raids in Bethlehem, Qabatya. Palestinians fire a Qassam rocket at the Negev, causing no damage or injuries. (VOI 5/9 in WNC 5/11; AP, MM, NYT 5/10; VOP 5/10 in WNC 5/12; PR 5/12; PCHR 5/13)

Sharon tells his cabinet that he plans to present a revised unilateral disengagement plan in about 3 wks. The announcement divides the cabinet, with some mbrs. threatening to quit if Sharon does not go through with his original plan, others vowing to quit if he does. (HA, VOI, YA 5/9 in WNC 5/11; NYT, WP 5/10; MM 5/11)

Palestinian gunmen (1 Islamic Jihad mbr., 1 PRC mbr.) ambush a Jewish settler vehicle nr. Gush Katif, killing a Jewish settler woman, her 4 children, wounding 2 IDF soldiers in a car escorting them; the soldiers return fire, killing the 2 gunmen. The IDF retaliates by assassinating the senior Nablus AMB military cmdrs. Nadir Abu Layl and Hashim Abu Hamdan, firing a missile at their car as they drive through Nablus, also killing 2 AMB mbrs. traveling with them, injuring 3 bystanders. The IDF then rockets a building in Gaza City that houses a Hamas radio station (possibly attempting to assassinate a senior Hamas mbr. who reportedly was being interviewed at the time), the offices of al-Ayyam and al-Quds newspapers, a Fatah radio station; no one is injured. The IDF also raids Wadi al-Silqa nr. the site of the ambush, orders all Palestinian residents to leave their homes, searches homes, arrests 1 Palestinian, bulldozes 15 Palestinian homes. The IDF also bulldozes 4 Palestinian homes and 6 dunams of land nr. Morag settlement, 2 Palestinian homes in Rafah; fires on a funeral procession in Khan Yunis, wounding 2 Palestinians; fires on residential areas of Tubas, sparking protests, then opening fire on stone-throwing youths; conducts arrest raids in and around Jenin. Late in the evening, 4 Jewish settler families, escorted by IDF soldiers and 100s of mbrs. of the radical Ateret Cohanim settler group, expel 2 Palestinians families fr. their homes in Abu Dis, occupy the buildings, surround them with a fence, claming they stand on part of an 80-dunam plot they purchased in 1927. (VOP 5/2 in WNC 5/4; BBC, HA, NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 5/3; YA 5/3 in WNC 5/5; MM 5/4; PR 5/5; PCHR 5/6; PR 5/12; MEI 5/14)

Likud mbrs. reject Sharon’s unilateral disengagement plan, with nearly 60% opposed. Sharon says he will draft a revised plan in consultation with his party, but meanwhile will move forward with planning a withdrawal. (XIN 5/2 in WNC 5/4; NYT, WP, WT 5/3; AYM 5/3 in WNC 5/5; MM, NYT, WP 5/4; al-Quds 5/4 in WNC 5/6; AYM, DUS 5/4 in WNC 5/7; JTA 5/5; JPI, MEI 5/14)