The Palestine Chronology

In the West Bank, unidentified gunmen opened fire at an Israeli settler vehicle near Qalqilya. Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians with batons, pepper spray, and stone at a spring near Tubas. Israeli forces shot and injured 1 Palestinian during a raid in Jericho. Israeli forces also leveled land and uprooted olive trees in Kafl Haris and razed an agricultural road in Zanuta. Elsewhere, Israeli forces violently dispersed Palestinian protesters during a raid in Dheisheh refugee camp, causing tear-gas related injuries. Israeli forces also demolished a water cistern serving 6 Palestinian families in al-Baqa’a. 16 Palestinians were arrested during late-night raids in Qalqilya, Bethlehem, Jericho, Tulkarm, Hebron, Ramallah, and Nablus. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces raided the home of Islamic Waqf Department deputy director Najeh Bkeirat in Sur Bahir, detaining him. Israeli forces also demolished a retaining wall in al-Tur and a pergola in Wadi al-Juz. Elsewhere, Israeli forces raided Silwan, damaging a house and causing tear-gas related injuries. (QDS, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 7/12; MEE, PCHR, WAFA 7/13; BTselem 7/19; UNOCHA 7/29)

PA president Mahmoud Abbas visited Jenin for the first time in 12 years, giving a speech in Jenin refugee camp. Abbas praised the steadfastness of the Jenin residents in light of Israel’s attacks. The visit followed Israel’s large-scale attack on Jenin refugee camp on 7/3 and 7/4. Around 1,000 PA troops secured the area for Abbas. Abbas also canceled a meeting with representatives of different Palestinian factions without giving a reason. (AJ, ALM, AN, AP, BBC, HA, MEE, NYT, QDS, REU, TOI, WAFA, WAFA 7/12; MEE 7/13; MDW 7/14)

2 Israeli settlers, including an off-duty soldier, were charged with terrorism, 1 for vandalizing a mosque in ‘Urif and the other for placing a chair in front of the door of a Palestinian home in Umm Safa and setting the chair on fire. Both incidents occurred in June. (AJ, HA, REU, TOI 7/12)

In Lebanon, Israeli forces opened fire at people approaching the border fence to Israel near Metula; 3 members of Hezbollah were said to be injured. (AJ, ALM, AP, HA, HA, MEE, REU 7/12; HA 7/13)

Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant visited Azerbaijan, discussing strategic, diplomatic, and security ties with President Ilham Aliyev, Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov, and other officials. (ALM 7/12; HA 7/13; ALM 7/14)

Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN) said she would not attend Israeli president Isaac Herzog’s address to Congress, citing Israel’s ban on Omar and representative Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) from entering Israel and Palestine in 2019, Israel’s increase in its killing of Palestinians in the West Bank, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statement that he wants to crush Palestinians’ hope of statehood. Later on 7/13 and 7/14, Omar was joined in her boycott by Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Cori Bush (D-MO). Omar and Bowman also boycotted a speech by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi in June. (AX, HA, HA, MEE 7/13; HA, MEE 7/14; HA 7/15; WAFA 7/16)

A U.S. national security council spokesperson said that “[t]here is no talk of some kind of formal reassessment. The United States and Israel share a special bond, and our enduring commitment to Israel’s security is ironclad.” The statement followed a New York Times column by Thomas Friedman, who said a U.S. reassessment of its ties to Israel was inevitable. (NYT 7/11; HA, HA 7/12)

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers raided Silat al-Dahir, vandalizing Palestinian-owned houses and vehicles. Israeli settlers also razed Palestinian-owned land and planted their own crops in ‘Urif. Israeli forces delivered 1 demolition order for 1 agricultural shed in al-Walaja and 1 commercial barrack in Qalqilya, and delivered 1 stop-work order for 1 house under construction in Bayt Awa. Israeli forces also clashed with Palestinians in Bayt Umar, leading to tear-gas related injuries. 3 Palestinians were arrested, including 1 during a late-night raid in Yatta and 2 at checkpoints near Nablus and Bethlehem. In East Jerusalem, 2 Palestinians were arrested during raids in the Old City and Bayt Hanina. (WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 11/19; PCHR 11/26)

PA civil affairs minister Hussein al-Sheikh said, after a meeting with Israeli officials, that Israel has agreed to pay the PA the money it owes in tax revenue, about $890 million. (NYT, WAFA 11/19; HA 11/20)

The U.S. state department issued new guidelines of how to refer to products produced in Gaza and the West Bank as secretary of state Mike Pompeo was visiting Israel and Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Under the new guidelines, products imported to the U.S. from Area C of the West Bank would have to be labeled “Made in Israel.” Products can no longer be labeled “Made in West Bank/Gaza,” so products made in Gaza should be labeled “product of Gaza” and products made in Area A and B of the West Bank should be labeled “product of West Bank.” In a statement by Secretary Pompeo, he said that the U.S. is adhering to a “reality-based” approach, which would indicate that the new guidelines are a way for the U.S. administration to recognize Israel’s annexation of Area C. The statement also stipulated that “Gaza and the West Bank are politically and administratively separate and should be treated accordingly.” Secretary Pompeo also made another policy announcement during a press conference with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. At the press conference, Pompeo announced that the State Department regards the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement as anti-Semitic and that the U.S. would start identifying organizations that support BDS to penalize them. The BDS movement released a statement reiterating that it rejects “all forms of racism, including anti-Jewish racism” and said it would resist “these McCarthyite attempts to intimidate and bully Palestinian, Israeli and international human rights defenders into accepting Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism as fate.” The American Civil Liberties Union responded to Pompeo’s announcement that “[c]riticism of Israel, or any government, is fully protected by the First Amendment. Threatening to block government funds to groups that criticize Israel is blatantly unconstitutional.” Secretary Pompeo also visited the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and was the 1st secretary of state to do so. Pompeo’s visit to Israeli settlements in the West Bank was also a 1st for a U.S. secretary of state. Pompeo also tweeted, “Anti-Zionism is Anti-Semitism” (AJ, AJ, Amnesty, AX, BBC, BBC, DT, DW, HA, IN, IN, MDN, MEE, NYT, REU, REU, SKY, TOI, TOI, Twitter, Twitter, Twitter, U.S. State Department, WAFA, WAFA, WP 11/19; AJ, BBC, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WP 11/20)

The EU told Serbia and Kosovo that if the countries still desire to become member states of the EU, they will have to follow EU policy, including not moving their Israeli embassies to Jerusalem as this would undermine EU policy and international law. A statement released conveying the message referenced the White House meetings held on 9/5-9/7 in which U.S. president Donald Trump announced the embassy moves. (EU Commission 11/19)

At the UN general assembly, 163 countries voted for a resolution recognizing “the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to their independent State of Palestine.” 5 countries—Israel, the U.S., Micronesia, Nauru, and the Marshall Islands—voted against. (HA 11/20)

In the West Bank, Israeli forces delivered stop-work orders for 1 house in Taqqua. Israeli forces also demolished 1 house in al-Khadir and seized construction material. Elsewhere, Israeli forces punitively sealed off the room of an alleged attacker in his family house. 10 Palestinians were arrested during raids in and around Qalandia refugee camp, Bethlehem, Hebron, Kafr Qaddum, and Qalqilya. In East Jerusalem, 4 Palestinians were arrested during raids in Issawiyya. In Gaza, Israeli forces opened fire at agricultural lands east of Khuza‘a and east of al-Qarara; no injuries were reported. (WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 10/21; PCHR 10/22)

The Israeli public radio channel Kan reported that an Israeli delegation was in Sudan to talk about a normalization deal between the 2 countries. (REU 10/21; AJ 10/22)

U.S. secretary of state Mike Pompeo said, when asked if he had any comment about the Palestinian prisoner on administrative detention who has been hunger striking for 87 days, that he would not comment on 1 particular case, and that “Israel has the right to defend itself.” (IMEU – Twitter 10/21)

According to reporting by Politico, the Trump administration is mulling over declaring human rights organizations and other NGOs such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Oxfam anti-Semitic. According to the reporting, Secretary of State Pompeo is seeking to get through the declaration to gain favor among evangelical voters for a future run for president. The reporting cites allegations of support for the BDS movement as the justification for labeling the organizations anti-Semitic. (MRJ, POL 10/21; GDN, HA, JTA, TOI 10/22)

In the West Bank, Israeli forces arrested 6 Palestinians during raids in and around Tulkarm, Bethlehem, and Qalqilya. Israeli settlers vandalized 7 Palestinian-owned vehicles in ‘Urif. In northern Gaza, Israel assassinated Baha Abu al-Ata, the commander of Islamic Jihad in Palestine. Several rockets were then fired from Gaza toward Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Subsequently, Israel heavily bombed Gaza, killing at least 10 Palestinians and injuring more than 40. CNN and Al Jazeera reported that their reporters were prevented by Israeli forces from covering the events from near the Gaza fence. Schools in Gaza and much of southern Israel were closed. (AJ, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, JP, NPR, PCHR, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 11/12; AJ 11/13; PCHR 11/14)

After assassinating al-Ata, Israel tried to assassinate another member of Islamic Jihad in Palestine, Akram al-Ajouri in Damascus, killing his son instead during an airstrike. Syrian media reported that 2 people were killed and 6 were injured during Israel’s attack. (HA, WAFA 11/12)

The EU high court of justice ruled that the EU states have to identify products from Israeli settlements. The U.S. State Department criticized the ruling, calling it anti-Israel biased and serving the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. (AJ, Guardian, HA, WAFA 11/12; State Department 11/13)

In the West Bank, Israeli forces demolished a home in Kobar village of a Palestinian convicted of wounding 7 Israeli settlers, leading to the death of an unborn baby. Israeli forces also seized several thousands of dollars allegedly meant for terror activities in Hebron. In late-night raids, Israeli forces arrested 21 Palestinians in and around Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah, and Qalqilya. The raid in Qalqilya led to clashes between Israeli soldiers and local residents seeking to block their passage. In Hebron, Israeli soldiers assaulted a Palestinian construction worker. In the West Bank village of Hizma, Israeli forces shot and injured a 13-year-old Palestinian using live ammunition during clashes when Israeli forces sealed off the entrance to the village. Israeli forces also demolished 3 agricultural structures and delivered dozens of demolition notices during their raid. Israeli forces also demolished a residential tent in Susiya near Hebron, displacing 10 Palestinians. Israeli authorities confiscated dozens of acres of Palestinian-owned agricultural land for a nature reserve south of Nablus. In East Jerusalem, the Israeli supreme court rejected Palestinian families’ appeal to protect 60 buildings in East Jerusalem from demolition. Some 500 families live in the 60 residential structures. (HA, WAFA, WAFA 4/16; HA, MNA, MNA, MNA, MNA, WAFA 4/17)

The Jerusalem District Court denied a petition by Human Rights Watch director for Israel and Palestine Omar Shakir to reverse his pending deportation. Shakir is accused by Israel of supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. Shakir’s lawyer said that they would appeal the decision. (HA, MDW 4/16; MNA 4/17)

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers attempt to set a Palestinian vehicle on fire and throw rocks at Palestinian homes in Urif village near Nablus, causing minor damage. After some Palestinian residents confront the settlers, IDF troops enter the village, sparking clashes with stone-throwing residents; 8 Palestinians are injured. Separately, IDF troops arrest a Palestinian at Qalandia checkpoint when she is found with a knife on her person; arrest 6 Palestinians during further raids near Bethlehem, Hebron, and Qalqilya; and patrol near Hebron, Tulkarm, and Salfit. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces demolish a Palestinian mobile home in Qalandia refugee camp near Jerusalem. The Palestinian owner was living in the mobile home since Israeli forces demolished his previous home on 6/20. Israeli forces raze a plot of Palestinian land and confiscate a vehicle, demolish 2 car washes, a food shop, several storage buildings and offices in Silwan and Jabal Mukabir; and arrest 5 Palestinians during late-night raids in Issawiyya. Meanwhile, hundreds of Palestinians gather along Gaza’s northern coast to continue the Great March of Return and to cheer on a number of Palestinian boats sailing in a symbolic challenge to the Israeli blockade. IDF troops and Israeli naval forces violently disperse the protests; 10 Palestinians are injured. Earlier in the day, Israeli forces conduct a limited incursion to level land near the site of the planned protest. (MNA, MNA, MNA, MNA, MNA, TOI, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 11/19; MNA 11/20; PCHR 11/22)

Education Minister Naftali Bennett and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, both of the Jewish Home Party, announce that they intend to remain in Prime Minister Netanyahu’s ruling coalition and that they are dropping their demand for Bennett to take over the Defense Ministry. “There’s no apocalypse on the way. There are enemies, but not an enemy that worries me,” Bennett says. (HA, JP, YA 11/19)

Haaretz reports that Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority last week increased by 1,500 the number of permits awarded to West Bank Palestinians hoping to work as dishwashers and cleaners in Israeli restaurants, bars, and cafes. The increase is reportedly designed to ease the strain on restaurant owners who are struggling to find enough low-cost labor. Before this increase, approximately 30,000 West Bank Palestinians were permitted to come into Israel to work such jobs. (HA 11/19)

UNRWA commissioner general Pierre Krähenbühl tells reporters that the agency’s budget shortfall, which was created by U.S. president Trump’s decision to slash U.S. aid to UNRWA earlier this year, has been cut to $21 million, following another round of pledges from the EU and several Gulf countries. The deficit was reportedly $64 million as recently as last week. “This is a very encouraging result at the end of a lot of work,” Krähenbühl says. (AFP, TOI 11/19)

Airbnb, a U.S.-based home-share company with listings all over the world, announces that it is removing all 200-some of its listings in Israel’s West Bank settlements. “We concluded that we should remove listings in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank that are at the core of the dispute between Israelis and Palestinians,” a statement from the company reads. In response, Israel’s Tourism Minister Yariv Levin instructs his deputies to restrict the company’s operations across Israel. Strategic Affairs Minister Gilad Erdan calls on the settler-hosts who used Airbnb to sue the company using Israel’s anti-boycott law. “National conflicts exist throughout the world,” he argues. “Airbnb will need to explain why they chose a racist political stance against some Israeli citizens.” (EI, HA, JP, YA, YA 11/19; AJ, BBC, CNN 11/20)

Marking the second major BDS victory of the day, the Canadian Federation of Students, Canada’s largest and oldest students’ association, endorses the BDS movement and condemns the “ongoing occupation of Palestine.” Marking the third, the Quakers in Britain Church, a group 17,000 strong, announces that it is divesting from companies that profit from the Israeli occupation. “This includes companies—whichever country they are based in—involved for example in the illegal exploitation of natural resources in occupied Palestine, and the construction and servicing of the separation barrier and Israeli settlements,” a senior church official explains. (TOI, TOI 11/19; JP, JP, JTA, TOI 11/20; EI 11/21)

Thousands of Palestinians gather along Gaza’s border fence to continue the Great March of Return. A small group of protesters detonate an explosive along the border fence, ripping a hole in the barrier that allows approximately 20 of them to cross into Israel; 3 are killed when Israeli soldiers open fire on the group. Throughout the day, IDF troops violently disperse the demonstrations near Rafah, Khan Yunis, Gaza City, al-Bureij refugee camp, and Jabaliya refugee camp; 4 more Palestinians are killed at approximately 150 are injured. The killings bring the death toll stemming from the Great March of Return to 177. In the West Bank, Israeli settlers throw stones at a Palestinian vehicle south of Nablus, killing 1 occupant and injuring the other. IDF troops arrest 4 Palestinians during raids near Bethlehem and Tulkarm; and patrol near Hebron, Nablus, and Qalqilya. They also violently disperse Palestinians gathering in Ras Karkar near Ramallah and Kafr Qaddum near Qalqilya to protest the Israeli occupation; 7 Palestinian are injured. Israeli forces seal off all entrances to Hadida, the northern Jordan Valley village where they demolished several structures yesterday. Israeli border security guards arrest a Palestinian attempting to cross into Israel near Qalqilya armed with a knife. In central Israel, an incendiary balloon is found on the side of the street in Rishon Lezion, causing no damage or injuries. (HA, NYT, TOI, TOI, WAFA 10/12; EI, HA, MNA, MNA, MNA, TOI, WAFA 10/13; PCHR 10/18)

A Palestinian prisoner dies in Israel’s Ayalon Prison. It’s unclear exactly what circumstances led to his death. He was arrested in 2015 and sentenced to 7 years in prison. He is reportedly the 4th Palestinian prisoner to die in Israeli custody since the beginning of the year. (MNA, WAFA 10/12)

After another Friday of mass protests and violence along Gaza’s border fence, Israeli defense minister Avigdor Lieberman orders a halt of all Qatari-funded fuel transfers into Gaza. Lieberman previously barred fuel transfers for a few weeks in 8/2018 after a similar surge of resistance activities in Gaza. (HA, TOI 10/12; MNA, TOI, TOI, YA 10/14)

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh says that Hamas is still working to reach “understandings” with Israel on a possible long-term cease-fire agreement. “We are working with a number of parties, including Egypt, Qatar and the UN, to reach understandings in order to break the blockade,” he says. “It is possible to reach the kind of understandings that would lead to quiet in exchange for the lifting of the blockade,” he adds, before alluding to the Egyptian goal of incorporating a new intra-Palestinian reconciliation agreement into the process. “The quiet does not have to come at a political price or at the expense of the intra-Palestinian reconciliation.” (YA 10/12)

The Tel Aviv District Court rejects an appeal from Lara Alqasem, the U.S. student who was denied entry to Israel on 10/2, determining that her ongoing support for BDS is grounds for denial. Her lawyers may still petition Israel’s High Court of Justice. (HA, TOI 10/12)

Hamas announces that a member of its military wing died this morning in an “accidental explosion” in northern Gaza. Along Gaza’s border, the IAF sprays herbicides on Palestinian farmlands near Gaza City. In the West Bank, IDF troops conduct raids in al-Mazra‘a near Ramallah and Salim village near Nablus, sparking clashes with Palestinian youths in each; 1 Palestinian is injured and another is arrested. IDF troops also arrest 11 Palestinians during late-night raids in and around Qalqilya and Bethlehem, and patrol near Qalqilya and Salfit. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrest 8 Palestinians during latenight raids in al-Tur, Qatanna, and the Old City. (TOI 1/7; PCHR 1/11)

Israel’s Strategic Ministry publishes a “blacklist” of 20 organizations supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, whose members are being denied entry into Israel. “We have shifted from defense to offense,” Strategic Affairs Minister Gilad Erdan says. “The boycott organizations need to know that the State of Israel will act against them and not allow [them] to enter its territory to harm its citizens.” Several individuals from listed organizations have reportedly already been denied entry because of their support for BDS. (AJ, HA, JP, WP 1/7; HA 1/8)

Israel’s Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz instructs the Israel Electric Corp. to restore Israel’s supply of electricity to Gaza to 120 megawatts per day, due to the “PA’s willingness to renew payments.” (JP, MEMO, REU, YA 1/7)

Israeli forces shoot and kill a Jordanian citizen outside the Old City of Jerusalem after he allegedly stabs and injures an Israeli police officer. A Jordanian govt. spokesperson later demands that Israel provide all details surrounding the incident, calling the killing a “heinous crime.” In the West Bank, IDF troops arrest a Palestinian in c. Hebron when she is found to be carrying a knife. The IDF conducts a late-night raid in Jenin r.c., arresting 2 Palestinians and sparking clashes with stone-throwing residents; 1 Palestinian is injured. They arrest 4 Palestinians on further raids in and around Qalqilya, Bethlehem, and Ramallah. (JT, MNA, WAFA 5/13; HA, MNA 5/14; PCHR 5/18)

Palestinians across the West Bank head to the polls to elect new local representatives. Independent candidates win 65% of the contested seats, Fatah-affiliated lists win 27.6%, and DFLP lists win 2.77%. Hamas, the PIJ, and the PFLP all boycott the elections. Voter turnout is recorded at 53.4%, roughly matching the 2012 municipal elections, according to the CEC. (AJ, MNA 5/13; MNA 5/ 14; WAFA 5/15)

In the West Bank, IDF troops discover and dismantle a small explosive device in Bethlehem. They also shoot and injure a Palestinian while he and a companion are walking along a road nr. Silwad village. It’s unclear why the soldiers opened fire and what exactly the 2 Palestinians were doing at the time, but 1 is injured and both are arrested. The IDF arrests 7 Palestinians during late-night raids nr. Qalqilya and Hebron; and patrols nr. Salfit and Hebron during the day. Off Gaza’s coast, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats nr. Khan Yunis; there are no injuries reported. Along Gaza’s border, IDF troops open fire on Palestinian farmers working nr. Khan Yunis, causing no injuries. (MNA, WAFA 8/7; PCHR 8/11)

Israel’s Public Security Minister Erdan and Interior Minister Aryeh Deri meet and agree to form an anti-Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) task force that will “expel” from and “ban the entry of” BDS activists in Israel. Rather than pushing for new legislation, they will instead focus on gathering intelligence to buttress calls for deportation. It’s unclear if the task force will focus only on foreign visitors, or on Palestinians and Israelis as well. (HA, JP, MNA, TOI 8/7; IMEMC 8/8)

In the Gaza Strip, IDF troops open fire on Palestinian farmers working close to the border fence nr. Khan Yunis r.c., causing no injuries. Separately, IDF troops open fire on stone-throwing Palestinians nr. Jabaliya r.c., wounding 1. In the West Bank, a Palestinian man dies from wounds inflicted when Israeli soldiers shot him in the head on 3/1 with a rubber-coated metal bullet during clashes at the entrance to Qalandia r.c. nr. Ramallah. Following his funeral, there are clashes at Qalandia checkpoint between stone-throwing Palestinian youth and Israeli soldiers who fire live ammunition and tear gas, with 1 Palestinian injured from a bullet to the leg. Separately, in al-‘Izzariya and Abu Dis neighborhoods of East Jerusalem, IDF troops shoot and injure 2 Palestinians with live ammunition during protests against the death of a Palestinian delayed at a checkpoint en route to hospital the previous day. The IDF patrols in 1 village nr. Ramallah in the morning, in Dura and surrounding area nr. Hebron in the afternoon, and in Hebron and al-‘Arub and 5 nearby villages, and in 2 villages nr. Ramallah at night. IDF troops violently disperse Palestinian, Israeli, and international protesters at weekly demonstrations against Israel’s separation wall, settlements, and occupation in 2 villages nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Nabi Salih), 1 village nr. Qalqilya (Kafr Qaddum) and 1 village nr. Bethlehem (al-Ma‘sara). There are no serious injuries except in Bil‘in, with 2 injured by rubber-coated metal bullets, and in Kafr Qaddum with 2 injured by gas canisters. (MNA 11/29; PCHR 12/5)

A senior but unnamed official within Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs tells the media that Israel has been invited to join the UNHRC’s Western European and Others Group. The development was made possible by Israel ending its boycott of the UNHRC in 10/2013, as well as agreeing to participation in its Universal Periodic Human Rights Review process. On 11/6, ambassadors of the U.K., Australia, Canada, Germany, France, and the U.S. sent a letter to the UN institutions in Geneva to urge the inclusion of Israel in the regional group. (HA, ToI 11/29)

In a White House statement, the Obama administration confirms it is keeping oilrelated sanctions targeting Iran in place despite the recently-signed deal. Meanwhile, Tehran’s envoy to the IAEA tells the agency’s board in Geneva that the implementation of the deal will start by early 1/2014. Separately, Iranian pres. Ruhani says that his country will not decommission its nuclear plants. (AP, FT, REU 11/29)

The executive council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague rejects a request from Syria to convert facilities used to produce chemical weapons to other activities. (NYT 11/29)

Egyptian security forces violently disperse demonstrations in various parts of Cairo with tear gas and water cannons, as supporters of ousted pres. Morsi express their opposition to a new law restricting protests. There are also similar clashes in Giza, Alexandria, and Suez. According to Interior Ministry figures, 10 are wounded and 183 arrested. (AP 11/29)