The Palestine Chronology

In the Gaza Strip, the IDF opens fire on Palestinians nr. Dayr al-Balah, seriously wounding 2. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in 1 village nr. Ramallah and 3 villages nr. Qalqilya in the morning, in 2 villages nr. Ramallah and 1 village nr. Qalqilya in the afternoon, and in 3 villages nr. Qalqilya, 1 village nr. Ramallah, and 1 village nr. Jenin at night; conducts house searches and arrest raids in 1 village nr. Qalqilya in the afternoon, and 1 village each nr. Hebron and Jenin at night. (AP 12/23; PCHR 12/27)

Israeli PM Netanyahu and DM Barak receive a briefing from the IDF’s Central Command regarding what the army describes as a recent ‘‘escalation of Palestinian violence’’ in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. (JP 12/23)

Turkey lifts its veto of military cooperation between Israel and NATO, which began in the aftermath of Israel’s attack on the Gaza flotilla in 2010. (JP, ToI 12/23)

The EU and Russia issue a statement condemning Israeli plans for settlement expansion, citing in particular the proposed E1 development in East Jerusalem. Israeli PM Netanyahu says on Israeli television that he will ignore international condemnation. Meanwhile, adviser to PA pres. Abbas, Nimr Hammad, says that Palestine may complain to the ICC if the UNSC fails to take substantive action over Israeli settlement construction. (JP, MNA, REU 12/21)

In the Gaza Strip, the IDF opens fire on civilians and farmers protesting the buffer zone in 2 separate incidents: by the border fence nr. Jabalya, injuring 2 (1 seriously), and nr. Bayt Lahiya, wounding 2. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in 2 villages nr. Ramallah and 1 village nr. Jericho in the morning, in 1 village each nr. Jericho and Ramallah in the afternoon, and in Jericho, 3 villages nr. Ramallah, and 1 village nr. Tulkarm at night. Israeli soldiers attack weekly nonviolent demonstrations held by Palestinians, Israelis, and internationals in 3 villages nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Ni‘lin, al-Nabi Salih) and 1 village nr. Bethlehem (al-Ma‘sara). There are no serious injuries, except in Bil‘in, where 2 Palestinians are wounded with live ammunition. (PCHR 12/27)

Palestinian refugees begin to return to Yarmuk r.c. nr. Damascus after a deal was brokered by UN-Arab League peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi’s representative Mokhtar Lamani to keep the fighting out of the area. UNRWA estimates that around 100,000 of the camp’s 150,000 inhabitants fled during recent clashes, many taking refuge in the parks and squares of the capital. (AFP, AP 12/21)

A Gaza cease-fire comes into effect at 9 P.M. local time, officially bringing an end to Israel’s Operation Pillar of Defense after 8 days of attacks, which saw the IDF hit around 1,500 targets and Palestinian armed groups fire around 1,500 projectiles (420 intercepted by Iron Dome). One hundred and fifty-eight Palestinians are dead, an estimated 60% of whom were civilians, while 6 Israelis were killed—4 civilians and 2 soldiers. The cease-fire deal is jointly announced by Egyptian FM Mohamed Kamel Amr and U.S. secy. of state Clinton at a press conference in Cairo. U.S. pres. Barack Obama speaks with Israeli PM Netanyahu to commend him on accepting the deal, stating that the U.S. will use the cease-fire to help Israel tackle issues such as weapons smuggling into Gaza. Obama also personally thanks Egyptian pres. Morsi for his efforts to secure a truce, comments Clinton echoes at the Cairo press conference, saying Morsi showed responsible leadership. Netanyahu tells the Israeli public that he hopes for an extended cease-fire but that tougher action might be necessary in the future. The cease-fire is not a signed agreement between Israel and Hamas, but includes pledges transmitted via Egypt to end Palestinian rocket and mortar fire and other cross-border attacks into Israel, and Israeli incursions into Gaza and assassinations. The sides also agree to further negotiations mediated by Egypt toward easing the Gaza blockade. Hamas chief Khalid Mishal says that Hamas will respect the truce but respond to any Israeli violations, and thanks Egypt for its role in securing the cease-fire. Mishal and Hamas leaders in the Gaza Strip mark the cease-fire as a victory for the resistance. The UNSC issues a statement urging both Israel and Hamas to respect the cease-fire, and deploring the loss of civilian lives during the 8-day exchange. (AFP, Guardian, HA, MNA, REU 11/21)

During the day, before the cease-fire is implemented, the IDF attacks numerous targets in the Gaza Strip, killing around 20 Palestinians. A Palestinian-fired rocket wounds 4 Israeli soldiers. Unidentified Palestinians plant a bomb on a Tel Aviv bus, which injures two dozen Israelis, mostly lightly or moderately. Numerous groups claim responsibility for the attack, which is praised by Hamas as a natural response to Israeli aggression. In the hours after the ceasefire comes into force, Palestinians fire around a dozen rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israel, causing no injuries. (HA, MNA, REU 11/21)

In the West Bank, the IDF opens fire on Palestinian protesters in numerous locations, as demonstrations in solidarity with Gaza continue. In clashes by Ofer prison nr. Ramallah, the IDF shoots 2 Palestinians in the legs with live ammunition. Serious clashes are reported in Hebron, Nablus, and Ramallah. The IDF also conducts house searches and arrest raids in Nablus and 2 nearby villages, Balata r.c. in Nablus, Hebron and 3 nearby villages, 2 villages nr. Jenin, and 3 villages nr. Ramallah at night. (REU 11/21; PCHR 11/29)

Palestinians in the West Bank vote in local elections, the 1st elections in 6 yrs. Out of the 353 municipalities, the poll was held in only 92; 181 municipalities form councils without elections due to a lack of candidates. Hamas boycotts the elections. The Central Elections Commission reports that around 515,000 Palestinians were registered to vote, of which 55% turned out to vote (by comparison, three-quarters cast ballots in the 2006 parliamentary elections and twothirds in the 2004 and 2005 municipal elections). Fatah has mixed results, partly due to the fact that its own mbrs. ran against each other, some as independents (27 Fatah mbrs. were subsequently expelled from the party for running in non-Fatah lists). (AP, BBC, NYT 10/20; AP, MNA 10/21; see also MNA 10/18; AP 10/19)

Israeli FM Avigdor Lieberman criticizes European countries for their 10/19 opposition to plans for 100s of new homes in Gilo settlement, and PM Netanyahu vows to continue construction in East Jerusalem. Meanwhile, the Israeli NGO Peace Now reveals government plans to build a military academy on the Mount of Olives in occupied East Jerusalem. (AFP, ToI 10/20; JP 10/21)

The Israeli navy intercepts a boat (Estelle) of pro-Palestinian activists en route to the Gaza Strip. The IDF boards the vessel 30 naut. mi. off the Gaza coast and tows it to Ashdod. Separately, Israeli naval vessels open fire on Palestinian fishermen, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in 2 villages nr. Ramallah and 1 village nr. Tulkarm in the morning, and in 1 village nr. Jenin and 1 village nr. Ramallah at night. (BBC 10/21;  PCHR 10/24)

Israeli newspaper Yedi’ot Ahronot reports that in 2010 Israeli PM Netanyahu engaged in mos. of secret, U.S.-brokered discussions with Syria about a negotiated peace treaty including Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Golan Heights. The U.S. State Dept. confirms that Netanyahu relayed a message to Syrian pres. Bashar al-Asad, but Netanyahu denies the accuracy of the story. (HA, NYT, REU, YA 10/12)

Unidentified Palestinians fire a Grad rocket from the Gaza Strip into Israel, causing no injuries. IDF troops on the Gaza border fire a missile at an olive grove nr. al-Bureij r.c. at night, injuring 1 Palestinian child inside a nearby home, and fire 1 missile at an open area nr. Nussayrat r.c. at night, causing no injuries. Israeli naval vessels fire at Palestinian fishermen in the morning, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in 2 villages nr. Ramallah in the morning, and in 1 village nr. Ramallah and 2 villages nr. Jenin at night. The IDF also uses tear gas against Palestinians, Israelis, and internationals taking part in a nonviolent protest in Bil‘in village nr. Ramallah against the separation wall and settlements. (JP 10/12; IMEMC 10/13; PCHR 10/18)

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office announces that new elections will be held on 1/22/13, a day after the U.S. presidential inauguration. A poll carried out for Ha’Aretz shows that PM Netanyahu has no serious challenger in the election. (HA, ToI 10/11)

Israeli DM Ehud Barak allows Jewish settlers to reoccupy a house in Hebron evacuated in 2008, in light of a 9/13/12 court ruling that the acquisition is legal. Palestinians who claim ownership are expected to appeal the decision. (ToI 10/12)

The IDF launches an air strike against a location in the n. Gaza Strip after unidentified Palestinians fire 2 rockets into Israel; no injuries are reported in either instance. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in 1 village nr. Jericho, 1 village nr. Jenin, 1 village nr. Ramallah in the morning; in 1 village nr. Jericho in the afternoon; and in 1 village nr. Jenin at night (where they fire tear gas at stonethrowing Palestinians). (AFP 10/11; PCHR 10/18)

Jewish settlers destroy 30 olive trees in a Palestinian grove in the south Hebron hills. Suspected Jewish extremists firebomb a Palestinian taxi traveling nr. Kefar Etzion settlement s. of Bethlehem, injuring the 6 passengers. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu subsequently writes to Palestinian Authority (PA) pres. Mahmud Abbas to pledge that the perpetrators will be brought to justice. (ToI 8/16; MNA, ToI 8/17)

Israeli pres. Shimon Peres warns against a unilateral Israeli military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities. (NYT 8/16; Guardian 8/17)

The IDF patrols in 2 villages nr. Tulkarm (synchronized) and 1 nr. Ramallah during the day; patrols in Jenin, Jericho and 2 villages nr. Jericho and Ramallah late at night; and conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron. Hamas authorities in Gaza hang 3 Palestinian prisoners (all convicted of murder in 2004, 2009, and 2010). (PCHR 7/19; OCHA 7/20)

The Knesset education comm. votes to grant full university status to an academic center in Ariel settlement, deep in the West Bank, making it the first accredited Israeli university in occupied Palestinian territory. The decision comes as Palestinian medical students from al-Quds University in Abu Dis, just outside East Jerusalem, await a verdict on their appeal of a 2/2012 Israeli ruling that denied their request to be allowed to sit for Israeli exams that would certify them to practice in East Jerusalem or Israel. The Israeli government had denied the students permission to sit for the exams on the grounds that al-Quds was not an accredited Israeli university and could not gain accreditation because it was a Palestinian entity located in the West Bank. When they then sought permission to take the tests as foreigners, the Israeli court denied permission on the grounds that al-Quds could not be considered a foreign university, since it also has a campus in East Jerusalem. There has long been a shortage of doctors to treat Palestinians in East Jerusalem, where most Palestinian doctors are forced to work without licenses. (HA 2/13/12)

After 2 weeks of unsuccessful efforts to draft plans that would integrate ultraOrthodox Jews and Palestinian citizens of Israel into the Israeli military, Kadima head Shaul Mofaz quits PM Netanyahu’s governing coalition; Netanyahu does not try to dissuade him. Analysts believed the decision (e.g., NYT 7/19) hurts both Kadima and Likud, and might hasten early elections. (NYT 7/18, 7/19)

Fmr. Israeli government attorney David Scharia is named the UNSC’s chief counterterrorism lawyer, marking the first time that an Israeli has been appointed to a security post within the UN Secretariat. (WP 7/18)

U.S. secy. of state Clinton meets with Israeli leaders (including PM Netanyahu, Pres. Peres, DM Barak, FM Avigdor Lieberman) and Quartet special envoy Tony Blair in Jerusalem and with PA PM Salam Fayyad in Ramallah. Though the main purpose of her visit is to discuss Iran, Syria, and other regional changes brought by the Arab Spring, she tells the Israeli and Palestinian sides that they must resume peace talks soon and avoid all unilateral actions. She emphasizes that while the international community is ready to offer ample support for a return to negotiations, the hard work must be done by the parties themselves. (WP 7/17)

Israel allows 40 Palestinian prisoners held in its Ramon prison to receive visits from family members from Gaza, marking the 1st time Israel has allowed family visits for Gazan prisoners since Hamas seized control of the Strip in 6/2007. Unidentified Palestinians fire 1 Qassam rocket fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts evening arrest raids, house searches nr. Qalqilya; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin; and conducts late-night patrols in al-Nabi Salih. (TOI 7/16; WP 7/17; PCHR 7/19; OCHA 7/20)

Christians United for Israel (CUFI) opens its 7th annual conference in Washington. At least 5,600 participants attend. Organizers note that CUFI now has 1.1 m. members, 754,000 Facebook fans, and 96 college chapters. The conference theme is ‘‘Defend America; Vote Israel.’’ CUFI founder James Hagee focuses on the importance of Christian Zionism and supporting Israel as part of ‘‘living out God’s mandate.’’ Other speakers include Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), fmr. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations head Malcolm Hoenlein, and Zionist Organization of America pres. Morton Klein. The speakers focus on Iran, U.S.-Israel security cooperation, and halting Palestinian incitement. (WJW 7/19)

Israeli troops on the n. Gaza border fire warning shots at Palestinians scavenging for construction materials in the demolished Erez industrial zone, forcing them to flee. A Palestinian is killed and another is injured when they are crushed by construction materials being moved through a smuggling tunnel on the Rafah border. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night patrols in Jericho. (PCHR 6/14, 6/21; OCHA 6/22)

Israel’s state comptroller Micah Lindenstrauss issues a long-awaited report faulting PM Netanyahu for ‘‘poor decision-making’’ in the lead-up to the 2010 Gaza aid flotilla incident that left 9 Turkish activists dead aboard the Mavi Marmara, concluding that Netanyahu did not listen to IDF warnings that the boarding of the flotilla could lead to violence and had not consulted adequately. (WP 6/14)

U.S. pres. Obama presents Israeli pres. Shimon Peres with the Congressional Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S. During their one-on-one meeting at the White House, Peres gives Obama a petition signed by 75,000 Israelis seeking the release of Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard. (NYT, WP, WT 6/14; WP 6/17; JPI 6/22)

Casino magnate and major proIsrael political donor Sheldon Adelson gives $10 m. to a pro-Romney political action committee (PAC). This election marks the first time that unlimited corporate donations have been allowed under super PACs, which were deemed legal by a 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. (WP 6/14)

Hours before the Knesset is set to vote on whether to hold early elections, Israeli PM Netanyahu and opposition leader, Kadima party head Shaul Mofaz, make the surprise announcement that Kadima has agreed to join the governing coalition and that they will form a new unity government rather than send the country to early elections (see 5/6/12). The deal is contingent on meet 3 Kadima demands: (1) that Mofaz becomes a vice PM and “special minister in charge of the process with the Palestinians” (already agreed by Netanyahu); (2) that the Knesset passes legislation requiring all Israeli citizens including the ultra-Orthodox to perform military service if they are to receive government benefits; and (3) that unspecified elections reforms are enacted. With Kadima’s 28 Knesset seats, the coalition deal gives Netanyahu control of 94 of 120 seats in parliament and leaves no single faction in a position to topple the government. The deal is also a benefit to Netanyahu from the standpoint that he can keep Barak, a strong ally on the Iran issue, as DM. Kadima is seen (e.g., NYT 5/9) as being “given a life-line.” (NYT, WP 5/8; NYT, WP 5/9; WJW 5/10; JPI 5/18)

Israel’s High Court rejects appeals for the release of Islamic Jihad administrative detainees Diab and Halahleh, who have been on hunger strike for 69 days. The High Court also issues a ruling affirming the legal purchase by Jewish settlers of a Palestinian home in Jerusalem’s Old City, ordering the Palestinian family to vacate; and ruling ordering a Palestinian to vacate his shop in the Old City, ruling it is a historic Jewish property. A lower court in Jerusalem rules that Jewish settlers legally purchased a house in Shaykh Jarrah, East Jerusalem, ordering the Palestinian residents to vacate. (NYT 5/8)

The IDF raids the offices of the Palestinian People’s Party and the Public Comm. against the Annexation Wall in al-Bireh, confiscating computers, cameras, files, and photos. The IDF also conducts daytime patrols in Kafr Qaddum and 1 nearby village; conducts late-night patrols, arrest raids, and house searches in and around Tulkarm (rearresting 1 Palestinian released during the recent prisoner swap that freed captured IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit). (PCHR 5/10; OCHA 5/11)

Israeli naval vessels halt a Palestinian fishing boat 2 naut. mi. off the Gaza coast, detaining 6 fishermen and confiscating the boat; 5 of the fishermen (all Palestinians) are questioned and released by nightfall; the 6th fisherman (an Egyptian) is arrested. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts morning patrols in Qalqilya, 3 villages nr. Ramallah, 2 each nr. Jericho and Tulkarm, and 1 nr. Jenin; patrols in 3 villages nr. Tulkarm (2 synchronized) and 1 nr. Qalqilya in the afternoon; conducts latenight arrest raids and house searches in and around Hebron, in Jenin, and nr. Tubas; and conducts late-night patrols in 2 villages nr. Qalqilya, 2 nr. Ramallah, and 1 nr. Jenin. (PCHR 5/3; OCHA 5/4)

Netanyahu says he plans to meet with his coalition partners soon to debate calling early elections for fall 2012, a year ahead of schedule. (WP 4/30)

Addressing a hostile American audience at a conference in New York organized by the Jerusalem Post, fmr. Israeli PM Ehud Olmert strongly criticizes PM Netanyahu for his policies towards the Palestinians, the peace process, and Iran and his dismissive stands towards the U.S. and the international community, characterizing them dangerous and counterproductive. The crowd boos him, shouting “naïve!” and “Neville Chamberlain!” to which he responds: “I love very much the courage of those who live 10,000 miles away from the State of Israel and . . . [encourage] every possible mistake that will cost lives of Israelis.” (NYT 4/30; JPI 5/11

In an op-ed in the New York Times, former lead Israeli peace negotiator Gilead Sher, former Israeli Security Agency head Ami Ayalon, and Israeli entrepreneur Orni Petruschka (organizers of a new group called Blue White Future) argue that since serious Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are unlikely to resume soon, Israel should adopt a “radically new unilateral approach” (which they term “constructive unilateralism”): openly “strive . . . to establish facts on the ground” that would impose a 2-state solution based on 1967 borders with Israel’s desired land swaps “regardless of whether Palestinians leaders have agreed.” The proposed borders would be based on Israel’s separation wall. At the same time, Israel would cease settlement expansion in areas that it does not intend to keep and prepare a plan to relocate settlers (they estimate 100,000) from settlements that would fall under permanent Palestinian control. Relocation would not take place, and the IDF would remain deployed in the West Bank, until the Palestinians signed a formal final-status agreement recognizing Israel’s fait accomplis. They argue that the plan meshes well with the Palestinians’ own constructive unilateralism of late (i.e., Abbas’s mission to gain UN recognition of Palestinian statehood), since it would be easier for Israel to negotiate with the Palestinians state to state. (NYT 4/24)

Netanyahu’s special ministerial panel examining the future of 3 unauthorized West Bank settlement outposts legalizes the outposts of Bruchin (pop. 350) and Rachelim (pop. 240) in the north, and Sansanna (pop. 240) in the south, stating that “these communities were founded in the 1990s based on the decisions of a past government.” The panel also calls on the Israeli High Court to put off the 5/1/12 deadline to evacuate 30 homes in Ulpana outpost (constructed on private Palestinian land), which the government describes as a “neighborhood of Beit El” settlement. UN. Secy.-Gen. Ban Ki-Moon calls the decision “illegal under international.” U.S. State Dept. spokeswoman Victoria Nuland says: “We don’t think this is helpful to the [peace] process, and we don’t accept the legitimacy of continued settlement activity.” (Forward, HA, JTA 4/24; NYT, WP 4/25; WP 4/28)

Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the n. Gaza coast, forcing them to return to shore. They surround and confiscate 1 boat, detaining 2 fishermen. In the West Bank, the IDF bulldozes a Palestinian barnyard nr. Bethlehem; conducts morning patrols in 4 villages nr. Ramallah (2 synchronized) and 1 nr. Jericho; afternoon patrols in 3 villages nr. Jenin, Jericho, and Qalqilya; and late-night patrols in al-Bireh, 2 villages each nr. Qalqilya and Ramallah, and 1 nr. Jenin. Jewish settlers, escorted by IDF troops, enter Balata village nr. Nablus in the morning to pray at Joseph’s Tomb. (PCHR 4/26)

Quartet officials meet in Washington on 4/11 to discuss the status of the peace process, afterward calling on the Israeli and Palestinian sides to resume talks as soon as possible. Netanyahu quickly responds (4/11) with a public appeal to Abbas to resume their direct talks immediately, without preconditions. (JP 4/11; WT 4/13)

The IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Tubas. (PCHR 4/12, 4/19; OCHA 4/20)

U.S. Secy. of State Hillary Clinton invokes rarely used powers to override a congressional hold on $152 m. in assistance to the Palestinians that was placed by Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), the chairwoman of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, to punish PA Pres. Abbas for seeking Palestinian statehood recognition at the UN (see QU in JPS 163). The State Dept. argues that the funds “provide critical support to the Palestinian people and those leaders seeking to combat extremism within their society and build a more stable future.” (JTA 4/11)

Israeli and Palestinian officials confirm that discussions are underway for a high-level meeting between Israeli PM Netanyahu and PA PM Salam al-Fayyad after Passover ends on 4/13. Fayyad plans to hand Netanyahu a letter from Abbas, which in its current draft includes Palestinian conditions for a return to negotiations (including Israel halting settlement expansion and accepting 1967 lines the basis for talks) and an enumeration of Israeli actions that the Palestinians find counterproductive to peace. (NYT 4/5)

Israeli security forces evict Jewish settler families fr. a house in Hebron that they occupied ca. 4/2/12. Meanwhile, Netanyahu calls on Israel’s atty. gen. to “find a solution” for the unauthorized outpost of Ulpana (which he terms a neighborhood of Beit El settlement) in Hebron that an Israeli court ordered demolished by 5/1/12. He also says that he plans to convene a meeting with DM Barak to seek the permits retroactively to legalize 3 other unauthorized settlement outposts (Bruchin, Rachelim, and Sansanna). Separately, Israel’s Housing Min. issues bids for construction of 800 new settlement housing units in Har Homa settlement in East Jerusalem. (NYT, PCHR, WT 4/5; OCHA 4/13)

Israel allows a small shipment of diesel fuel for Gaza’s power plant allowing 1 turbine to restart for the 1st time since 3/25/12, but rolling blackouts remain up to 16 hrs./day across the Strip. IDF troops on the n. Gaza border fire into the abandoned Erez industrial zone late at night, causing no reported injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in 1 village nr. Ramallah in the morning and another late at night; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Kafr Qaddum (arresting 20) and nr. Tulkarm. (PCHR 4/5; PCHR 4/12)

Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the Gaza coast, forcing them to return to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF makes a major raid into Jenin r.c., surrounding the homes of local Islamic Jihad leader Mahmoud Sa’adi, 4 other Islamic Jihad mbrs., and 1 Fatah member, detaining all 6; the 5 Islamic Jihad members are released later in the day. The IDF also conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches, and patrols in 2 villages nr. Qalqilya. A Jewish settler fires at Palestinians grazing their sheep nr. Hebron and attempts to steal several sheep. (PCHR 3/1; OCHA 3/2)

Israeli PM Netanyahu receives a delegation of senior executives of the Jewish Federation of North American, an umbrella group representing a network of Jewish donors across Canada and the U.S., who say they would provide financial and political support to Israel if tension with Iran escalate. (JPI 3/9)

Fatah PA pres. Abbas and Hamas leader Mishal end 2 days of talks in Qatar on forming by Fatah-Hamas consensus a transitional government of independent technocrats with a limited mandate to take the Palestinians to new presidential and parliamentary elections and to lead reconstruction of Gaza, as agreed under the 5/2011 national unity deal. To overcome international concerns about Hamas’s participation and differences between Fatah and Hamas regarding who should serve as PM (Hamas strongly opposed current PA PM Salam al-Fayyad), the sides agree that Abbas would lead the transitional government, serving as both pres. and PM. They stress that the new government “will be a technical one more than a political one” and that diplomacy will rest with the PLO. A meeting of all Palestinian factions is set for 2/18 to endorse the plan. Israeli PM Netanyahu immediately denounces Abbas for “joining forces with the enemies of peace.” The EU and U.S. say they look forward to continuing their support of the PA, provided the new government is committed to the Quartet principles of nonviolence, recognition of Israel, and adherence to existing peace agreements. (NYT, WP 2/6; AP, NYT, WP 2/7; see also MNA 2/5)

Unidentified Palestinians fire a Qassam rocket fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In response, Israeli warplanes make late-night air strikes on open areas nr. the Gaza border n. of Bayt Hanun, causing no reported injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in 2 villages nr. Ramallah and 1 nr. Salfit; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Tulkarm and nr. Jenin and Nablus. Just outside East Jerusalem nr. al-Tur, Israeli border police and an undercover unit bulldoze 20 d. of Palestinian land, demolishing 2 walls, 3 natural caves, and a water network supplying several Palestinian homes. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba settlement in Hebron escorted by IDF troops begin planting trees on 150 d. of nearby Palestinian agricultural land that the IDF previously declared a closed military zone. (PCHR 2/9; OCHA 2/10)

In Jerusalem UN Secy.-Gen. Ban urges Israeli PM Netanyahu to draft a package of goodwill gestures (including a settlement frees) to offer in exchange for the Palestinians’ agreeing to resume direct talks. He then meets with PA Pres. Abbas and PA officials in Ramallah. (NYT, WP 2/2; NYT 2/3; JPI 2/10)

In the evening, unidentified Palestinians fire 8 Qassam rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Late at night, the IDF directs artillery (2 shells) and helicopter gunfire at open areas northeast of Bayt Hanun, causing no reported injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar settlement nr. Nablus stone a Palestinian vehicle driving nearby, breaking a window and hitting a passenger in the head, leaving injuries requiring hospitalization. (HA, JP, YA 2/1; PCHR 2/2; OCHA 2/10)

The New York Times reports that for the past 2 weeks, Palestinians (including the private sector, unions, elements of Fatah, and youth groups) have been holding demonstrations against PA PM Salam al-Fayyad in Ramallah and other cities to protest soaring prices and proposed PA austerity measures, including tax increases, cutbacks on services, and a plan to force retirement on 20,000 civil servants. (Electricity costs, for example, have nearly tripled in the past year.) Protesters demand salary increases and subsidies to compensate for inflation, but the PA faced a $350 m. budget shortfall for 2011. Even with Israeli transfers of VAT taxes restored, the foreign aid received by the PA is not enough to cover recurrent expenses. The demonstrations have been so heated that Fayyad has suspended imposition of the tax hike until mid2/2012 and dropped the early retirement proposal, pending talks to ease tensions. (NYT 2/1)