The Palestine Chronology

Stabbing and other small-scale violent incidents continue amid the ongoing wave of violence. IDF troops open fire on 2 Palestinians, killing 1 and injuring the other, after they allegedly attempt to stab an Israeli border policeman at a checkpoint nr. Nablus. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces shoot and seriously injure a Palestinian after he stabs and moderately injures an Israeli at a light rail station nr. Shaykh Jarrah (the Palestinian succumbs to his injuries later in the day). An Israeli bystander is accidentally shot and injured during the incident. The Israeli crackdown across the oPt continues as well, with IDF troops clashing with and violently dispersing Palestinian protesters nr. Hebron, Bethlehem, Ramallah, and in 4 locations along Gaza’s border; an 8-mo.-old Palestinian baby dies from tear gas inhalation nr. Bethlehem, 1 Palestinian is rammed with an IDF vehicle, and 63 are injured overall. Israeli forces also violently disperse Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists at Friday demonstrations against Israel’s occupation and recent violence in 4 villages nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Ni‘lin, Silwad, and Nabi Salih) and Kafr Qaddum nr. Qalqilya; there are no serious injuries. The IDF conducts a late-night raid nr. Ramallah, arresting 1 Palestinian; patrols in the Ramallah, Hebron, and Qalqilya areas, sparking clashes with stone-throwers in each (5 Palestinians are injured and 2 are arrested). Further patrols in 4 villages nr. Hebron and 2 nr. Qalqilya do not lead to clashes. Israeli forces return the bodies of 7 Palestinians killed by IDF troops in and around Hebron since 10/1. They also place concrete blocks and fences on a number of roads in c. Hebron and bar Palestinians who do not live in Hebron from entering the city, following the recent violence in the area. (EI, HA, JP, MNA, NYT, TOI, YA 10/30; HA, JP, MNA, WAFA 10/31; JP 11/1; PCHR 11/5)

PA pres. Abbas submits files to the International Criminal Court (ICC) documenting recent Israeli violations of international law in the oPt, including the recent “extrajudicial killings” and home demolitions. Abbas also asks ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda to lead a delegation to the oPt to further document alleged Israeli violations of international law. (JP, TOI 10/30; AP, MNA, TOI 10/31)

Small-scale violent incidents continue as IDF troops shoot and kill a Palestinian e. of Jerusalem after he stabs and critically injures an Israeli soldier. The IDF arrests a 2d Palestinian at the scene of the incident and closes a nearby checkpoint, sparking clashes with Palestinian youths in the area; there are no serious injuries. IDF troopsshoot and injure a Palestinian youth nr. Nablus overnight, later alleging that he was trying to sneak into a settlement with a knife. After the incident, Israeli forces set up mobile checkpoints at the entrances to 2 nearby villages. A Palestinian driver rams an Israeli border security officer at a checkpoint nr. Ramallah, causing light injuries. Later, IDF troops shoot and injure another Palestinian driver outside the Gush Etzion settlement bloc nr. Hebron after he rams a group of Israeli soldiers, injuring 5. Israeli forces shoot and kill a Jewish Israeli nr. the Old City of East Jerusalem late at night after he attempts to take a soldier’s weapon and they mistake him for a “Palestinian attacker,” according to the police. Separately, unknown persons fire a rocket from Gaza into s. Israel. It lands in open area, causing no damage or injuries. (HA, JP, MNA, TOI, WAFA, YA 10/21; PCHR 10/29)

The Israeli crackdown continues as well. Israeli forces obstruct the entrance to Ni‘lin village nr. Ramallah with cement blocks for the 2d day in a row; assault and detain a Palestinian youth at a checkpoint nr. Bethlehem. Throughout the day, IDF troops clash with and violently disperse Palestinian protesters along the border with Gaza, in c. Hebron, nr. Ramallah, and 1 neighborhood in East Jerusalem; 1 Palestinian dies of tear gas inhalation and 4 are injured. The IDF conducts late-night raids and house searches across East Jerusalem and the West Bank, arresting 58 Palestinians. Israeli settlers throw stones at Palestinian vehicles at the entrance of a village nr. Nablus. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces set up a new checkpoint between al-Tur and Wadi al-Juz and they remove checkpoints in Wadi al-Juz and Shaykh Jarrah; demolish a livestock farm in Jabal Mukabir. (HA, JP, MNA, TOI, WAFA, YA 10/21; EI, NYT, PCHR, TOI 10/22; PCHR 10/29)

IDF troops on the Gaza border e. of Khan Yunis fire warning shots at Palestinians approaching the border fence, injuring 3. Off the coast nr. Jabaliya, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, IDF troops violently disperse Palestinian, Israeli, and international protesters at weekly demonstrations against Israel’s separation wall, settlements, and occupation in 6 areas nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Ni‘lin, Nabi Salih, Silwad, outside Ofer Prison, and Jalazun r.c.), and Kafr Qaddum nr. Qalqilya; 4 Palestinians and 1 international are moderately injured and dozens suffer from tear gas inhalation. The IDF patrols in 1 village each nr. Ramallah and Jericho, and in al-‘Arub r.c. nr. Hebron. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrest 4 Palestinians in the Old City. After Israeli forces bar a group of rightwing Jewish activists from entering a school in Haram al-Sharif, a leader of the activists writes a letter to the Israeli authorities calling for the school to be officially recognized as a synagogue under the Protection of Holy Places Law and for Jews to be allowed to worship there. (MNA 4/3, 4/4; WAFA 4/7; PCHR 4/9)

Israeli PM Netanyahu convenes his security cabinet to discuss the 4/2 agreement between the P5+1 and Iran, and the cabinet unanimously opposes the deal. Netanyahu says, “This is a bad deal not just for Israel, this is a bad deal for the region and for the world,” and calls for any final deal to require Iran to recognize Israel’s right to exist. (AFP, HA, JP, TOI 4/3; REU, TOI 4/4)

IDF troops on the Gaza border e. of Khan Yunis fire on a group of Palestinians approaching the border fence, causing 3 to suffer from tear gas inhalation. Separately, IDF troops stationed e. of Rafah open fire on agricultural lands nr. the border fence, causing damage. In 2 incidents off the coast nr. Jabaliya, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, IDF troops violently disperse Palestinian, Israeli, and international protesters at demonstrations to commemorate Land Day, upcoming on 3/30, and protest Israel’s occupation in 6 areas nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Ni‘lin, Nabi Salih, Silwad, outside Ofer Prison, and Jalazun r.c.), and Kafr Qaddum nr. Qalqilya; 10 Palestinians are moderately injured. The Israeli soldiers also cut off a main waterline into Kafr Qaddum, denying the village water for several hours. IDF troops also violently disperse Palestinian and international activists gathering in Abu Dis at the site of the “Gate of Jerusalem” protest tent camp. The IDF conducts house searches and raids in and around Hebron, arresting 1 Palestinian; conducts patrols in 2 villages nr. Hebron and 1 each nr. Jenin and Jericho. (MNA 3/27; PCHR 4/2)

The Israeli PM’s office announces that it is unfreezing tax revenue transfers to the PA that it has held as a punitive response to the Palestinian accession to the ICC since 1/2015. A statement announcing the move says that the total will be reduced by an undisclosed amount to pay portions of the PA’s debts to Israeli utility providers, such as the IEC. The PA FM criticizes the announced deductions, saying in a statement that they are “an unjustified and illegal procedure that could cause complications.” (AP, HA, JP, NYT, TOI 3/27; AFP, WAFA 3/28; JP 3/29)

French FM Fabius announces that, now that the 3/17 Israeli election has passed, he plans to explore the prospect of introducing another United Nations Security Council (UNSC) res. laying out parameters for a new round of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. Meanwhile, an EU spokesperson announces that Hamas will remain a designated terrorist organization pending a decision on an appeal of the General Court’s 12/17/2014 removal of Hamas from the list. Similarly, the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, which the U.S. claims funneled money to Hamas, has been removed from the list since it was last published in 7/2014. (AFP, AP, HA, REU, TOI 3/27; AFP 3/28)

The PA unity govt. delegation led by PM Hamdallah meets with Fatah and Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip, concluding its 3-day trip. (MNA 3/26) The Egyptian attorney, Samir Sabri, who filed the original motion to designate Hamas a terrorist organization in Egypt withdraws his case, saying he hopes to remove “obstacles which Egypt’s political leadership might face in serving its role in the Palestinian reconciliation.” The Court of Urgent Matters, which designated Hamas a terrorist organization 2/28, is expected to reconsider its initial ruling, though it was only in part based on Sabri’s motion. (AHR, MNA 3/27)

The 28th regular session of the UNHRC concludes today after a mo. of meetings, with the council having agreed on 3 res. on the Palestinians. They reaffirm the Palestinians’ right to self-determination, confirm Palestinian rights to sovereignty over their natural resources, and condemn ongoing settlement growth in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. (TOI 3/27; MNA 3/28)

PA Pres. Abbas arrives in Sharm al-Shaykh, Egypt, to participate in an Arab League summit on 3/28 and 3/29. Ahead of the summit, the Arab League agrees to send a delegation to Washington to lobby the U.S. Congress and promote the Arab Peace Initiative. (WAFA 2/25; MNA 3/27; HA 3/28)

In the Gaza Strip, IDF troops e. of Jabaliya open fire on a group of Palestinian youth nr. the border fence, injuring 1. Off the s. coast, Egyptian naval forces open fire on a Palestinian fishing boat, injuring 1 fisherman and arresting the other. In the West Bank, IDF troops violently disperse Palestinian, Israeli, and international protesters at weekly demonstrations against Israel’s separation wall, settlements, and occupation in 3 villages nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Nabi Salih, and Ni‘lin), and 1 village nr. Qalqilya (Kafr Qaddum), injuring 4 Palestinians with rubber-coated metal bullets and gas canisters in Bil‘in. Israeli soldiers also violently disperse protests outside Ofer detention center and Silwad nr. Ramallah, injuring 4 Palestinians, as well as in Susiya village nr. Hebron, where they assault Mustafa Barghouti, secy.-gen. of the Palestinian National Initiative. The IDF conducts house searches and arrest raids in Ni‘lin; patrols nr. Hebron, Ramallah, Tulkarm, Jenin, and Jericho. An Israeli settler attempts to hit a Palestinian child with his car nr. Tulkarm. Separately, unknown assailants throw stones at Israeli settlers’ cars nr. the Ofra settlement, lightly injuring 2 women. In East Jerusalem, IDF troops clash with Palestinians in Wadi al-Juz, al-Tur, al-‘Izzariya, and Abu Tor, firing tear gas and stun grenades and detaining 5 Palestinian youths. The Israeli police arrest 3 Palestinian women as they exit Haram al-Sharif and ban 4 others from entering the area for 3 days, following their release from detention late on 1/22. (MNA, TOI 1/23; MNA, WAFA 1/24; PCHR 1/29)