The Palestine Chronology

An Israeli settler driver runs over a Palestinian motorcyclist nr. Bethlehem, causing fatal injuries. The Israeli police describe the incident as a “road accident,” though it is not clear whether the collision was intentional. Israeli settlers throw stones at Palestinians driving nr. Jenin, breaking the windshield of 1 vehicle. Meanwhile, IDF troops violently disperse Palestinians, Israelis, and international activists at Friday protests against the Israeli occupation, separation wall, and settlements in 3 villages nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Ni‘lin, and Nabi Salih), Kafr Qaddum nr. Qalqilya, and along Gaza’s border nr. Jabaliya r.c. and Gaza City; 8 Palestinians and 1 Korean activist are injured. The IDF arrests 3 Palestinians and issues 1 arrest summons during late-night raids nr. Tulkarm and Bethlehem, and patrols nr. Hebron. (MNA, WAFA 7/7; MNA 7/8; PCHR 7/13)

A Palestinian infant succumbs to injuries sustained amid clashes in Abud village nr. Ramallah on 5/19/2017, when IDF troops fired tear gas canisters at Palestinian homes during the clashes. The infant inhaled an ultimately fatal amount of gas. (MNA, WAFA 7/8)

A suicide bomber detonates a car at an Egyptian checkpoint in Rafah in n. Sinai, killing at least 10 Egyptian soldiers and injuring 26 others. In clashes sparked by their search for accomplices, Egyptian security forces kill 40 armed fighters affiliated with the Sinai Province of the Islamic State and other Islamist groups in the area, and destroy 6 vehicles. (MNA 7/7)

Despite Israeli and U.S. opposition, UNESCO’s World Heritage Comm. approves a res. inscribing Hebron’s Old City, including al-Ibrahimi Mosque, on its List of World Heritage in Danger. Twelve countries vote in favor of the measure, 3 oppose it, and 6 abstain. (BBC, GDN, HA, MNA, TOI, WAFA 7/7; MNA 7/9)

In a State of the Union address devoted to domestic affairs, Pres. Obama pointedly calls on Syrian pres. Asad to realize “that the forces of change cannot be reversed and that human dignity cannot be denied” and urges the international community to “isolate” his regime. He also stresses that the U.S. will not take any options (i.e., a military strike) off the table in dealing with Iran and emphasizes “our ironclad commitment—and I mean ironclad—to Israel’s security.” (NYT, WP, WT 1/25; WJW 2/2)

Unidentified Palestinians fire 2 Qassam rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. IDF troops on the n. Gaza border nr. the Erez crossing fire warning shots and tear gas at a group of Palestinians and international activists staging a nonviolent march to the crossing to protest Israel’s imposition of a no-go zone; no serious injuries are reported. With a sharp increase in the number of Gazans seeking to exit to Egypt through the Rafah border, the Gaza Interior Min. reimposes requirements (lifted on 12/18/11) that Gazans register with the ministry before traveling. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes 8 Palestinian homes in Anata village nr. East Jerusalem, displacing 52 Palestinians, including 29 children; escorts 100s of Jewish settlers to pray at Joseph’s tomb in Balata village nr. Nablus; patrols in 1 village nr. Salfit in the morning, briefly detaining several Palestinian for questioning; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron and Nablus. (JP 1/24; PCHR 1/26; OCHA 1/27)

After a long delay, Hamas authorities in Gaza allow the Central Elections Commission to open a voter registration office in Gaza to prepare for eventual elections in implementation of the 5/2010 national unity deal. (WP 1/25)

Jordan says King Abdallah will receive Hamas leader Mishal on 1/29, when he makes his 1st official visit to Jordan in 13 yrs. Officials say that the kingdom will continue to bar Hamas for undertaking political activities on its soil. Analysts view this as: (1) Jordan trying to take a more active diplomatic role and say reopening diplomatic ties with Hamas could be a step toward trying to broker reconciliation btwn. Hamas and Fatah (WP 1/25); and (2) the king engaging with Islamists, who have gained strength regionally during the Arab Spring, to quiet Jordan’s own Islamist opposition. (WP, WT 1/25)

Police in Azerbaijan arrest several people allegedly linked to an Iranian-backed Hizballah cell for plotting an attack against Israeli amb. to Azerbaijan Michael Lotem and on a Jewish school in Baku. (JPI 2/3; NHR 2/21)

A Lebanese court sentences fmr. brig. gen. Fayiz Karam to 2 yrs. in jail (including time served) for giving classified information to Israel. Karam, jailed in mid-2009, will be released in 6 mos. (NYT 1/25)

U.S. Dep. Secy. of State Burns meets with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss ways of reviving peace talks with the Palestinians. U.S. officials say that they are trying to find ways around Palestinian demands for a settlement freeze in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, but give no details. (NYT 11/22; JPI 12/2)

The IDF makes a late-night incursion into s. Gaza, patrolling in and firing on residential areas of Rafah, causing no injuries and making no arrests. Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the n. Gaza coast, forcing them back to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF raids and searches the home of a PA police officer nr. Jenin, arresting him; patrols in 7 villages nr. Ramallah, in 1 instance firing rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, and stun grenades at stone-throwing Palestinian youths who confront them. (PCHR 11/24; OCHA 11/25)

PA Tourism and Antiquities M Hamdan Taha says that now that Palestine has full membership in UNESCO (see QU in JPS 162), it is planning to seek world heritage status for the old cities of Hebron and Jericho. An application for Bethlehem is already in the works and is expected to have a better chance now that Palestine has membership. The PA also plans to seek recovery of artifacts looted by Israel, increase funds for preservation and excavations, and use its status to force Israel to stop calling West Bank sites “Israeli antiquities.” (WP 11/22)

King Abdallah of Jordan makes an official visit to Ramallah (his 1st in 10 yrs.) to hold talks with PA pres. Abbas on their independent efforts to reconcile with Hamas and personally to inform Abbas that Jordan has invited Damascus-based Hamas leader Khalid Mishal (barred fr. visiting Jordan since 1999) for an official visit to Amman. The king stresses that any improvement in ties with Hamas is not intended as a move against the PA or as a gesture to Jordan’s Islamist opposition. The U.S. reportedly has expressed displeasure to Jordan over the Mishal visit and hinted that U.S. aid could be cut if Jordan reconciles with Hamas. (NYT, WP 11/22; JPI 12/2)

The IDF beats and fires tear gas and stun grenades at Palestinians and international activists staging a nonviolent march fr. Bayt Umar to nearby Palestinian lands confiscated for the expansion of Karme Tzur settlement, injuring 2 Palestinians and arresting 1. The IDF also patrols in 3 villages w. of Ramallah; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem and Nablus. (PCHR 8/18; OCHA 8/19)

Egypt sends 250 tanks and armored vehicles, 1,000 special forces, and 1,000s of police into the n. Sinai (including the Rafah area) to secure the region after a series of attacks on the natural gas pipeline (see 7/30) and increased attacks on Egyptian police by suspected al-Qa‘ida-inspired Islamists groups. It is unclear if Israel approved the increased military presence, which is limited under the 1979 peace treaty. (WP 8/14; NYT 8/29)