The Palestine Chronology

Overnight, Islamic Jihad mbrs. in Gaza fire more than a dozen rockets into Israel in retaliation for the IDF’s 12/15 assassination of Nawahda, causing no damage or injuries. The IDF makes 2 air strikes on Islamic Jihad mbrs. preparing to launch rockets nr. Bayt Hanun, injuring 3 Islamic Jihad mbrs., 1 bystander. OCHA reports that in recent days, Israel allowed 78 tons of chlorine and purification chemicals to be transferred to Gaza’s water authority, enough to treat Gaza’s water supply for 1 mo.; Gaza also received its 2d shipment (14 truckloads) of pharmaceutical supplies fr. the PA central pharmacy in Ramallah. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces bulldoze a tent and level land, displacing a Palestinian family whose home on the site they had bulldozed in 11/08. Inside Israel, some 200 Israeli police make an overnight raid on the Bedouin encampment of Abdallah al-Atrash in the Negev, which has existed for over 20 yrs., expelling 20 families and demolishing all structures. A Gaza court sentences Palestinian Muhammad Saidam, arrested in 2/08, to death for “treason, espionage, and collaborating” with Israel to assassinate mbrs. of the Palestinian resistance; PA pres. Abbas must approve the sentence before it can be carried out. (MM, OCHA 12/17; NYT, PCHR 12/18)

Hamas mbrs. fire 8 mortars fr. Gaza toward Israel, 6 of which land inside Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In response, the IDF makes an air strike on 1 mortar-launching site, killing 2 Palestinian teenagers nearby, wounding 2 children. OCHA reports that in addition to mortar fire, Palestinians have fired 6 rockets fr. Gaza toward Israel between 11/27 and 12/2, causing no injuries. Israeli border police arrest Israeli reporter Amira Hass as she leaves Gaza through the Erez crossing, charging her with violating the government ban on Israelis entering Gaza. Hass, who entered Gaza on 10/29 on a boat carrying solidarity activists (see Chronology in JPS 150), was then expelled by Hamas officials who disapproved of her coverage of events in the Strip; she is released pending a hearing. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Jenin. For a 6th straight day, 100s of Jewish settlers riot in Hebron to protest the orders to evacuate Beit Shalom, attacking Palestinians on the street, vandalizing Palestinian homes, damaging cars, and harassing IDF troops; the IDF fires tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinians who attempt to stop the settlers, injuring 3. In 2 other West Bank locations, Jewish settlers protesting the planned eviction set fire to Palestinian stocks of animal feed, slash tires. (HA 12/2; NYT, WP, WT 12/3; WT, PCHR 12/4)

Israel reseals Gaza’s borders a day after reopening them, citing 1 Palestinian rocket fired into Israel today, causing no damage or injuries. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates that Palestinians have fired 20 rockets, mortars toward Israel since 11/19, with 5 exploding at the launch site, most landing in Sederot, none causing injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Hebron and Qalandia r.c., nr. Bethlehem. (WP 11/26; OCHA 11/26; PCHR 11/27)

Israel reseals crossings into Gaza, citing continued Palestinian mortar and rocket fire. Palestinian rocket fire immediately falls to near zero. The IDF sends tanks into s. Gaza to disable roadside bombs planted along the border, trading fire with Palestinian gunmen, causing no reported injuries. The Israeli navy intercepts and confiscates 3 Palestinian fishing boats carrying fishermen and international peace activists, detaining passengers and crew (all are released on 11/19). Egyptian security forces demolish 20 smuggling tunnels on the Rafah border. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home in Issawiyya nr. East Jerusalem; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Ramallah, and nr. Bethlehem and Salfit. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar bar Palestinian access to a nearby road, stone Palestinian vehicles. (WP, WT 11/19; OCHA 11/19; PCHR 11/20)

As the quarter opens, Israel maintains its strict siege of Gaza, imposed following Hamas’s 6/07 takeover of Gaza and tightened dramatically in 1/08 to allow no exports and only the bare minimum of humanitarian imports. A 6-mo. Gaza cease-fire, in place since 6/19, technically remains in effect, although significant cross-border exchanges resumed on 11/4. Israel has sealed Gaza borders completely since 11/5, allowing in an average of 5 containers/day of humanitarian aid, whereas the UN estimates that 500/day are needed to sustain the basic human needs of the 1.5 m. population. Today, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) makes an air strike on Gaza City targeting a group of Popular Resistance Comm. (PRC) mbrs. preparing to fire a rocket into Israel, killing 4 PRC mbrs. (The IDF reports that in the past 48 hrs., Palestinians have fired 20 rockets and mortars, including 2 Grad-type rockets, into Israel, causing no damage or injuries.) In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Nablus, and nr. Bethlehem, Jenin. Israel’s High Court orders Jewish settlers to evacuate the illegal outpost of Beit Shalom, in the al-Rajabi building in the Wadi al-Nassara area of Hebron, or face eviction, also declaring the State of Israel the temporary custodian of the building until ownership disputes are resolved; settlers ignored a 10/29 High Court order demanding they vacate the building within 24 hrs. (NYT 11/17; OCHA 11/19; PCHR 11/20; OCHA 11/27)

AsIsrael continues to seal Gaza’s borders completely, aid agencies (including Oxfam and UNRWA) warn of an impending humanitarian crisis. UNRWA Gaza dir. John Ging states that “it is unprecedented that the UN is unable to get its supplies in to a population under such obvious distress.” Unnamed Hamas officials say that Israel apparently is not interested in maintaining the truce and therefore would face consequences. Today, Hamas admits to firing 11 Grad-type rockets fr. Gaza toward Israel (4 of which landed inside Israel, causing no damage or injuries) in addition to 3 regular rockets and several mortars, 1 of which (unclear whether rocket or mortar) hits an Israeli home in Sederot, causing damage and lightly injuring 1 Israeli. The IDF makes air strikes on suspected launch sites in n. Gaza, wounding 2 armed Palestinians. In the West Bank, the IDF fires tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinians holding a nonviolent protest against settlements at the evacuated settlement site of Homesh nr. Jenin (wounding 1); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in a nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil’in (injuring 2); fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in a similar nonviolent demonstration in Ni‘lin (injuring 1). (NYT, WP 11/15; WT 11/16; OCHA 11/19; PCHR 11/20)

In Gaza, UNRWA suspends food deliveries to 750,000 Gazans for lack of stocks and Gaza municipal officials are forced to shut down Gaza’s power plant once again for lack of fuel (see 11/11) after Israel suspends food and humanitarian aid shipments to Gaza in response to Palestinians firing 8 rockets and some mortars into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. The UN’s World Food Program, which feeds an additional 130,000 nonrefugee Palestinians, says it is delving into its emergency stock of food, which will last only 4 more weeks. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Jenin. Israeli police raid an event being held at the Jerusalemite Association for Community Development in Wadi al-Juz in East Jerusalem (attended by, among others, the Egyptian amb. to Israel and a Spanish embassy official), halting the event on the grounds that it constituted illegal Palestinian political activity in Jerusalem. (WP, WT 11/14; OCHA 11/19; PCHR 11/20)

Israel agrees to a request by Quartet special envoy Tony Blair to resume fuel shipments to Gaza but allows industrial fuel for Gaza power plant to flow for only 4 hrs. before cutting off the supply once again. Meanwhile, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) warns that it will be forced to halt food distribution to 750,000 refugees on 11/14 for lack of stocks unless Israel unseals Gaza’s borders. IDF troops on the s. Gaza border fire on Palestinian farmers working their fields nr. the border fence, forcing them to flee. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into al-Araqa nr. Jenin overnight, setting up checkpoints and conducting ID checks; fires on Palestinians in Hebron holding a rally to commemorate the 4th anniversary of PLO head Yasir Arafat’s death, wounding 4 Palestinians; sends undercover units into Jenin r.c. in a car with Palestinian license plates to arrest a wanted Palestinian; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c., in Nablus, nr. Bethlehem. (JAZ, JP, WP 11/11; WT 11/12; OCHA 11/12; PCHR 11/13)

The Israeli cabinet discusses a proposal by Justice M Daniel Friedmann and Vice PM Haim Ramon to use heavy artillery to retaliate against Palestinian rocket fire fr. Gaza, recommending that the IDF notify civilians to evacuate villages that have become “launching pads for . . . terror groups” and then “raze the villages with artillery”; no decision is taken. (JP 11/11)

In Sharm al-Shaykh, Egypt, Rice attends a high-level Quartet mtg. to discuss ways of keeping the process alive during the Israeli and U.S. government transitions. Abbas, Livni brief the Quartet on their talks since the 11/07 Annapolis summit, pledge to continue negotiations despite the political uncertainty in Israel, and reaffirm that “nothing would be considered agreed until everything is agreed.” The Quartet reiterates its support for continued negotations, praises the PA’s security reforms, and urges the international community to fulfill aid pledges to the PA to ease the economic crisis in the territories. (HA 11/8; IFM, NYT, WP, WT 11/9; WP 11/10)

In the West Bank, the IDF makes an evening incursion into Anabta nr. Tulkarm, firing on residential areas and then on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1 teenager; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, in Jenin town and r.c., and nr. Bethlehem. Israeli police evict a Palestinian family (14 mbrs., including 7 children) fr. their home in Shaykh Jarrah, East Jerusalem, turning the property over to Jewish settlers who claim to have purchased the land fr. relatives of the Ottoman-era owners even though an Israeli court ruled in 2006 that their claim was based on forged documents. (AFP, XIN 11/9; OCHA 11/12; PCHR 11/13; NYT 12/7)

IDF troops, bulldozers cross into s. Gaza to level land along the border e. of Khan Yunis, exchanging fire with Hamas mbrs., causing no reported injures. In a similar incident nr. the Erez crossing, IDF soldiers exchange fire with DFLP gunmen, causing no reported injuries. The IDF also makes an air strike on an alleged rocket-launching site in n. Gaza, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Nur al-Shams r.c. nr. Tulkarm, nr. Bethlehem. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba beat a 6-yr.-old Palestinian boy on his way to school until his grandfather halts the attack; the IDF observes but does not intervene. Hamas accuses PA security forces in the West Bank of arresting 26 Hamas mbrs. and supporters, mostly in Hebron, but also in Bethlehem, Jericho, and Salfit. (HA, JP, MNA, REU, YA 11/8; HA, JAZ, MNA 11/9; OCHA 11/12; PCHR 11/13)

After a last-minute talks in Cairo between Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Sulayman and senior Hamas official Mahmud Zahhar fr. Gaza, Hamas’s dep. leader Musa Abu Marzuq announces from Damascus that Hamas will not attend national unity talks in Cairo on 11/9. Hamas officials cite Egyptian and PA unwillingness to compromise on the wording of an Egyptian draft national unity statement or to discuss issues of importance to Hamas, and the PA’s failure to fulfill a pledge to release 100s of Hamas and Islamic Jihad prisoners held in the West Bank as a confidence-building gesture in advance of the summit. (AFP 11/8; NYT, WT 11/9; see also MNR 11/7)

Rice stops in Jenin to meet with Abbas and to inaugurate a new hospital wing funded by USAID, announcing another $14 m. in USAID funds for Jenin. (HA 11/8; IFM, NYT, WP, WT 11/9)

Overnight, the IDF demolishes the Palestinian home nr. Dayr al-Balah that it says was hiding a tunnel, arresting 4 female residents, bulldozing an additional 2.5 d. of land. Retaliating for IDF attacks on 11/4–5, Hamas and Islamic Jihad mbrs. fire about 35 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries; the IDF strikes 1 rocketlaunching site in Jabaliya r.c. in n. Gaza, killing 1 Islamic Jihad mbr. and wounding 2 others (including senior cmdr. Issam Ba‘lusha) and 2 bystanders. Hamas officials state that they are in contact with Egypt to restore calm and would observe the ceasefire if Israel halted attacks; Israel says it intends to uphold the truce, but cuts off fuel shipments to Gaza and seals all crossings into the Strip indefinitely as punishment for the rocket fire. In the West Bank, the IDF makes a daytime arrest raid, searches a shop in al-Khadir nr. Bethlehem; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Hebron and nr. Bethlehem, Ramallah. The IDF also demolishes 2 Palestinian homes in Silwan in East Jerusalem (displacing 9 Palestinians)— the 1st of 88 Palestinian homes slated for demolition to make way for a “national archeological park”—sparking clashes with local residents that leave 8 injured, 20 under arrest; also demolishes 1 Palestinian home in Shu’fat (displacing 11 Palestinians), a wedding hall in Bayt Hanina. (AFP, HA, XIN 11/5; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 11/6; HA 11/8; OCHA 11/12; PCHR 11/13; NYT 12/7)

Democratic candidate Barack Obama is elected president of the United States, to be inaugurated on 1/20/09. (MM 11/4; MM, NYT, WP, WT 11/5; MM 11/5, 11/6, 11/7)

In a major escalation and violation of the Gaza cease-fire, the IDF sends a large infantry unit into central Gaza nr. Dayr al-Balah allegedly to destroy a tunnel nr. the border, occupying 2 Palestinian homes (1 covering the tunnel), wounding 1 Palestinian woman in the process; troops then clash with Hamas gunmen who arrive on the scene, killing a senior Hamas cmdr., wounding 2 Hamas mbrs., leaving 4 IDF soldiers wounded, and marking the 1st armed clash since the cease-fire went into effect on 6/19. Israel publicly accuses Hamas of plotting to dig under the border fence to capture soldiers and abduct them to Gaza; separately, Israeli defense officials acknowledge (see WT 11/20) that they simply wanted to send a message to Hamas not to operate near the border. In response, Hamas fires 10 mortars fr. Gaza toward Israel; several land inside Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Later, the IDF makes air strikes on Khan Yunis and al-Qarara, killing 5 Hamas mbrs., wounding several. Israel calls these attacks “pinpoint operations” against specific threats, saying it still intends to adhere to the cease-fire. The IDF also sends troops into n. Gaza nr. Bayt Hanun to level land. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Hebron, nr. Bethlehem and Tulkarm. OCHA reports that in the previous wk. at least 8 IDF soldiers have been injured in clashes with Jewish settlers seeking retaliation for the 10/26 evacuation of Federman Farm. (IFM, JAZ, NYT, OCHA, PCHR, WP 11/5; MM, PCHR 11/6; WT 11/20)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Tulkarm, nr. Bethlehem and Jenin. To demonstrate disapproval of unauthorized settlement in keeping with the Israeli cabinet’s 11/2 decision, the IDF tears down several shacks erected by Jewish settlers nr. the unauthorized outpost of Migron (n. of Jerusalem) who intended to expand the outpost; the IDF continues to guard Migron itself, which is connected to Israel’s electricity grid and has paved access roads. Jewish settlers fr. Kochav Ya’acov nr. Ramallah attack Palestinians harvesting olives nearby; the IDF disperses the settlers. (WT 11/4; OCHA 11/5; PCHR 11/6)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late night arrest raids in and around Jenin town and r.c., Nablus, and in al-Fara‘a r.c. nr. Tubas (firing live ammunition and rubber-coated steel bullets on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 6); fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in a nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Ni‘lin (injuring 2 Palestinians, 1 international). Israel imposes new restrictions requiring Palestinian medical personnel fr. the West Bank who work in Jerusalem to enter Jerusalem only through the Qalandia checkpoint, the most crowded checkpoint, causing them significant delays. Heavy rains cause the collapse of 10 smuggling tunnels on the Rafah border, trapping and injuring at least 7 Palestinians. Egypt allows the entry of a delegation of Islamic Jihad officials fr. Gaza who are heading to Damascus for a wk. of internal discussions on Egypt’s proposed national unity plan ahead of national unity talks in Cairo on 11/9. Inside Israel, Hebrew University student Ali Baher, an Israeli Palestinian, is detained by campus security, questioned for 3 hrs., charged with “inappropriate conduct” for refusing on political grounds to shake hands with Pres. Shimon Peres, who randomly approached Baher while he was touring the campus library meeting with students; the university evicts Baher from campus housing and orders a disciplinary hearing (date not set) to decide whether he should be suspended. (MNA 11/2; OCHA 11/5; PCHR, Physicians for Human Rights–Israel press release 11/6)

Concerned by the escalating settler violence directed at Israeli security forces, the Israeli cabinet at its weekly meeting votes to suspend all direct and indirect government funding to unauthorized settlement outposts (especially citing infrastructure such as roads, garbage collection, and school buses) in the 1st de facto admission that public funds are used to advance illegal settlement. Olmert also proposes increasing arrests and administrative detention of Jewish settlers who break the law. The Jerusalem District Juvenile Court remands and indicts 3 Jewish settler girls (ages 12, 15, 17) for reckless endangerment, aggravated assault of security forces, and obstruction of a police officer for attacks against Israeli border police in Givat Harsina on 10/30. IDF district cmdr. Noam Tivon cancels plans to give a speech at a yeshiva in Efrat settlement nr. Bethlehem after Jewish settlers fr. Hebron threaten to hold a massive demonstration to block his visit, calling him an “expulsion criminal” for previously ordering the removal settlers fr. the unauthorized Federman Farm outpost. (YA 11/2; NYT, WP 11/3; WT 11/4; MM 11/4, 11/7)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Bethlehem. Jewish settlers (including children) fr. Federman Farm outpost nr. Hebron stone a nearby Israeli border police unit, injuring 2 officers, claiming the unit intended to re-evacuate the outpost. As part of the ongoing Operation Dawn of the Nation, the PA security force unit newly deployed in Hebron makes a predawn raid on nearby al-Burj village, apparently coordinated with the IDF; masked officers arrive in 20 jeeps with dogs, search homes of Hamas members and supporters suspected of “carrying out anti-Israeli activities,” detaining about 25 before withdrawing in the evening. (HA, IMEMC 11/1; OCHA 11/5; PCHR 11/6)

Israel orders borders with Gaza sealed after an early warning system detects a rocket launch fr. Gaza into Israel, but later admits that the system malfunctioned and no rocket was fired; the seal is lifted. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Bethlehem, and nr. Hebron (raiding 2 Palestinian colleges, detaining 27 students for questioning); demolishes 36 structures (approx. 23 dwellings and 13 animal pens) belonging to bedouin families in Mughayyir al-Dir, outside Ramallah and adjacent to Mitzpe Dani settlement outpost, displacing 97 individuals (including 51 children), on the grounds that the structures were built in a closed military zone. Jewish settler girls (ages 12–17) stone Israeli border police demolishing an “illegal structure” in Givat Harsina outpost in Hebron, injuring 2 officers; the girls are arrested. Hamas releases 17 Fatah mbrs. fr. detention in Gaza, saying they are the only political prisoners being held and are being freed as a gesture to Fatah before national unity talks set to open in Cairo on 11/9 (see 10/20). (OCHA, REU, YA 10/30; YA 11/2; XIN 11/5; OCHA 11/5; PCHR 11/6)

Another FGM boat (see 8/23) carrying 27 international activists defies Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza, sails into a Gaza port delivering humanitarian supplies; Israeli naval vessels do not challenge the boat. In the West Bank, IDF troops operating in Yamun village nr. Jenin before dawn fatally shoot a 67-yr.-old Palestinian shepherd who fired a rifle at the patrol fearing they were rustlers; demolish 6 structures in the bedouin village of Umm al-Khayr nr. Carmiel settlement s. of Hebron, displacing 45 Palestinians, including a 1-wk.-old baby; conduct late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c., in Nablus, and nr. Bethlehem and Hebron. Israel’s High Court orders Jewish settlers to vacate the illegal outpost of Beit Shalom, in the al-Rajabi building in Hebron, within 24 hrs. or face eviction (at the end of the quarter, however, the settlers have not been forced to leave). Israel’s High Court also gives approval for the demolition of the historic Ma’man Allah Muslim cemetery (4,000 tombs) in West Jerusalem for construction of the Center for Human Dignity–Museum of Tolerance, designed by Frank Gehry. (NYT, PCHR, WP 10/30; OCHA 11/5; PCHR 11/6; OCHA 11/19s)

Israeli pres. Shimon Peres sets 2/10 as the date for parliamentary elections. (REU 10/28; MM 10/29)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and Salfit, nr. Bethlehem and Qalqilya. (OCHA 10/29; PCHR 10/30)

An IDF unit patrolling inside Israel along the s. Gaza border fires on agricultural and residential areas of Khuza, breaking a window at a girls’ school; 1 Palestinian girl is injured by flying shards of glass. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem and Dahaysha r.c., nr. Hebron and Tulkarm. (OCHA 10/29; PCHR 10/30)

A week ahead of her deadline to form a government, Kadima party head and acting Israeli FM Tzipi Livni, with powersharing deals with the Labor and Meretz parties already drafted, unexpectedly informs Israeli pres. Shimon Peres that she cannot form a coalition. She blames other Israeli parties for making unreasonable political and economic demands, stating that she was unwilling to compromise her priciples to form a government (see Quarterly Update). (NYT, WP 10/26; WP 10/27)

Overnight, the IDF, Israeli police, and border police evacuate Jewish settlers fr. the unauthorized settlement outpost of Federman Farm in Hebron, sparking violent clashes with the settlers in which 1 policeman is seriously injured, 2 settler girls attempt to burn police vehicles, and settlers rampage through Palestinian areas, slashing the tires of 22 cars and vandalizing a Muslim cemetery. In interviews with the press afterward, Jewish settlers call for retributive attacks on the Israeli security forces. During the day, Jewish settlers fr. Harsina settlement in Hebron attack, vandalize, attempt to occupy a Palestinian home and land adjacent to the settlement; Jewish settlers vandalize Palestinian cars in Hizma village nr. Jerusalem; and 10 masked settlers attack IDF soldiers guarding Palestinians harvesting olives nr. Otniel settlement nr. Hebron, injuring 1 soldier. At the weekly Israeli cabinet meeting, Olmert warns that the government “will show no tolerance toward such expressions and actions,” while Shin Bet security chief Yuval Diskin states that he is “very concerned” that right-wing settler groups might try to assassinate pro-peace politicians. Meanwhile, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and nr. Bethlehem. (IFM 10/26; NYT 10/27; OCHA 10/29; PCHR, WJW 10/30; WP 11/2)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts random ID checks of Palestinians harvesting olives nr. Nablus, arresting 1; raids, imposes a curfew on Azun nr. Qalqilya, fires on residential areas, blocks a main road with sand and rocks, then withdraws; fires rubbercoated steel bullets, tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in a nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil‘in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation); fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in a similar nonviolent demonstration in Ni‘lin (seriously injuring an 11-yr.-old girl); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Fara‘a r.c. (firing live ammunition at stone-throwing Palestinian youths who confront them, wounding 3, 1 of them seriously) and nr. Bethlehem (occupying 1 Palestinian home as an observation post, evicting the family), Nablus. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar attack Palestinians harvesting olives nearby, burn 15 olive trees, march through Bidan village in a show of force. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba demand that a Palestinian mechanic near the settlement fix their car, beat him when he refuses. Jewish settlers temporarily reoccupy the evacuated Homesh settlement site, stone passing Palestinian vehicles. The WHO arranges an emergency shipment of 4 truckloads of medical items into Gaza, noting that the PA’s Ramallah-based central pharmacy has sent no medial supplies to Gaza since it took over that function from the WHO on 9/1; as a result, 94 essential drugs have been entirely depleted in Gaza. (OCHA 10/29; PCHR 10/30; AIC 11/9)

A Palestinian fr. the West Bank village of Tuqu‘ nr. Bethlehem, apparently acting alone, enters the Jewish settlement of Gilo, stabs and wounds an Israeli police officer and fatally stabs an 86-yr.-old Jewish settler before being caught by another Gilo resident. Later, the IDF raids, searches several homes in Tuqu‘, arresting 2 Palestinians (including a young woman). The IDF also enters al-‘Arub r.c. in pursuit of Palestinian youths who allegedly threw stones at passing IDF vehicles, detaining 4 children for 3 hrs.; begins bulldozing Palestinian land in the al-‘Amra nature reserve, located w. of the separation wall s. of Jenin; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus. (NYT 10/24; OCHA 10/29; PCHR 10/30)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Hebron and Bethlehem. (PCHR 10/23; OCHA 10/29; PCHR 10/30)

In the West Bank, the IDF makes a predawn raid on Kafr Malik nr. Hebron, firing on 2 Palestinians allegedly carrying Molotov cocktails, killing 1 Palestinian; makes a predawn raid on Qabatya nr. Jenin (which is under daytime PA security control), arresting 4 Islamic Jihad mbrs., confiscating 88 lbs. of explosives; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Fara‘a r.c., Jenin town and r.c. Jewish settlers fr. Keddumim nr. Qalqilya burn a Palestinian olive grove. Jewish settlers fr. Elon Moreh nr. Nablus slash the tires, break the windows of the car of a Palestinian family harvesting their olive grove nearby; IDF soldiers observe but refuse requests of the Palestinian family to intervene. Jewish settlers fr. Efrat and Kefar Etzion nr. Bethlehem, escorted by the IDF, set up several mobile homes at an abandoned IDF post in Bayt Sahur, hold prayers in local park. (NYT 10/17; OCHA 10/22; PCHR 10/23; AIC 11/9)

Overnight, the IDF makes an incursion into Bethlehem, surrounding and firing on the home of a wanted Palestinian, raiding and several nearby homes, occupying 1 as an observation post; over the next 12 hrs., troops evacuate, partially bulldoze, then storm the surrounded, vacant home, incorrectly believing the wanted man to be inside, rendering the house uninhabitable. The IDF also enters al-Khadir village nr. Bethlehem and al-Masayaf neighborhood in Ramallah in the morning, randomly checking Palestinians’ IDs, arresting 2 in al-Khadir and summoning 2 in Ramallah for questioning; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron. In East Jerusalem, Israeli authorities formally open a synagogue built on confiscated and demolished Palestinian property; the ceremony is attended by several senior Israeli officials, rabbis, and right-wing Israeli MKs. (NYT 10/13; OCHA 10/15; PCHR 10/16)

Inside Israel, Israeli Jews and Palestinians in Acre engage in their 4th straight night of rioting and sectarian violence; 2 Palestinian apartment buildings set on fire; some 12 people are arrested. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches in Tubas and nr. Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus. Jewish settlers fr. Susia nr. Hebron raid nearby a Palestinian home, beat 3 Palestinians. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar and Brakha attack local Palestinians harvesting olives. (WP 10/12; NYT 10/13; OCHA 10/15; PCHR 10/16)

The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the Gaza coast, wounding 1 fisherman. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Jenin. (OCHA 10/8; PCHR 10/9)

Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of Rafah, seriously wounding 1 Palestinian fisherman, forcing boats to return to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Kafr al-Dik nr. Salfit late in the afternoon, where they fire on residential areas and then on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 5 with rubber-coated steel bullets; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem and in Ni‘lin. Jewish settlers fr. Beit HaShalom and Kiryat Arba vandalize nearly a dozen Palestinian homes and shops nearby; the IDF observes but does not intervene. (OCHA 10/8; PCHR 10/9; AIC 11/9)

In the West Bank, the IDF raids a Palestinian home in Hebron based on complaints fr. local settlers, arrests 3 Palestinian youths; conducts large-scale, late-night arrest raids and house searches nr. Bethlehem. The IDF evacuates Jewish settlers fr. the unauthorized outpost of Shvut Ami nr. Qalqilya; in retaliation, the settlers attack nearby Palestinian farmers, set fire to 10 d. of agricultural land (burning 100 olive trees), block a road to Palestinian traffic, stone passing Palestinian vehicles; IDF troops bar Palestinians fr. extinguishing the crop fire. Jewish settlers fr. Ginot Shomron nr. Qalqilya attempt to storm the nearby Palestinian village of Azun, but the IDF blocks them to prevent clashes. Jewish settlers fr. Ramat Yishai settlement nr. Hebron attack Palestinians harvesting olives nearby, steal their olives; the IDF arrests 2 Palestinian teenagers who try to fend off the settlers. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba damage Palestinian water pipelines nearby, demolish several branch roads that had previously been blocked off by the IDF and settlers. (OCHA 10/8; PCHR 10/9)

Egyptian border police blow up 2 smuggling tunnels under the Rafah border, killing 5 Palestinians, wounding 4. In the West Bank, the IDF fires tear gas, percussion grenades at a European Union delegation visiting the separation wall in Ni‘lin (seriously injuring their Palestinian guide), then firing rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists who gather at the scene to protest, injuring 4 Palestinians and a British journalist; steps up patrols around Hebron, randomly checking Palestinian IDs; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Dahaysha r.c. (firing live ammunition and percussion grenades inside a home, seriously injuring a Palestinian teenager and his father), nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Tulkarm. (NYT, OCHA 9/24; PCHR 9/25)