The Palestine Chronology

Off the coast of the Gaza Strip nr. Rafah, Egyptian naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishermen, injuring 1. In the West Bank, IDF troops raid the offices of Palestinian newspaper al-Ayyam in Ramallah, and order its staff to stop using their presses to print pro-Hamas publications Filastin, al-Risala and al-Istiqlal. The PA permitted the 3 publications to be distributed in the West Bank starting in late 4/2014, in accordance with the Hamas-Fatah reconciliation deal of 4/23. The IDF conducts house searches and arrest raids in Hebron and 2 nearby villages, 1 village and Aida r.c. nr. Bethlehem, and 1 village and al-Jalazun r.c. nr. Ramallah; patrols in 1 village nr. Jenin in the morning, 1 village nr. Jenin in the afternoon, and in 2 villages each nr. Hebron and Jericho at night. In East Jerusalem, groups of right-wing Jewish activists march through the Old City to celebrate “Jerusalem Day,” leading to clashes with Palestinians at Haram al-Sharif. In the clashes, Israeli security forces injure 4 Palestinians with rubber-coated metal bullets, and Palestinians injure 1 security officer with a thrown stone. Israeli police later arrest 2 Palestinian youth in connection with a clash involving several Jewish Israelis elsewhere in the Old City. (AFP, HA, MNA, YA 5/28; PCHR 5/29)

In response to low voter turnout in the Egyptian presidential election, polls are kept open for a 3d day. Following their close, provisional results indicate that al-Sisi won between 89% and 93.4% of the vote, with al-Sisi’s campaign and judicial sources estimating leftist candidate Hamdeen Sabahi won 2.9% and 5%. Judicial sources estimate turnout to be 44.4% of Egypt’s 54 m. eligible voters. Meanwhile, gunmen shoot and kill an Egyptian border guard in Rafah. (AP, MNA, REU 5/28)

The IDF conducts arrest raids, searches in Hebron during the day and nr. Hebron, Jenin, and Nablus late at night. The Knesset fails to pass (by a vote of 28-57) 2 bills calling for parliamentary inquiries into leftwing NGOs: one bill calls for an investigation of the damage done to the IDF by left-wing NGOs that focus on IDF repression of Palestinians; the other calls for investigating the origins of foreign contributions received by left-wing NGOs. (AFP, HA, JTA 7/20; PCHR 7/21, 7/28; JPI, OCHA 7/29)

In the West Bank, the IDF tears down Palestinian’s tents in Khirbat Tana, where the IDF demolished homes and other structures on 2/9/11 (see Quarterly Update and Settlement Monitor in JPS 159); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches, and patrols in 6 villages nr. Qalqilya, as well as nr. Bethlehem and Jenin. More than 80 Palestinian nonprofit organizations from the West Bank, Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip issued a statement calling on Fatah and Hamas to take practical steps toward ending their rift. (MNA 5/23; PCHR 2/24; OCHA 2/25)

The Knesset passes the Foreign Govt. NGO Funding Transparency Law tightening requirements on groups that accept foreign funding, widely seen as an effort to undermine left-wing Israeli organizations. (MNA 2/23; WJW 2/24)

After a week of violent clashes, the Libyan govt. has lost control of most of the eastern part of the country to armed antigovernment protesters. Qaddafi responds with overwhelming force, dispatching warplanes, helicopters, special forces, and heavily armed mercenaries (paid and flown in to Tripoli by the planeload in recent days to shore up the regime) to hunt down demonstrators. Fighting has also reached Tripoli, where there are reports of strafing fr. the air, combat in the streets, burning buildings, and looters ransacking police stations. Dozens of senior Libyan officials and diplomats resign in outrage, and widespread defections by the military nationwide are reported. (WP, WT 2/21; NYT, WP, WT 2/22)

Military Action:

Bazooka attack on IDF patrol near Tyre; small arms fire at IDF patrol west of Ansar camp.

Casualties:

1 IDF soldier wounded in Tyre attack; Lebanese court rules in favor of owner of land on which Mieh Mieh refugee camp was established, says government must either evacuate refugees within 6 months or pay $90,000 plus annual rent; International Red Cross says 57 non-Arab PLO guerrillas, mostly Turks, are under its supervision in South Lebanon.

Political Responses:

Israel/ Occupied Territories: 15 Israeli Arabs, some described as Communist activists, arrested in anticipation of tomorrow's Land Day activities; tires burned outside village of Taiba, large numbers of police and border guards respond; left-wing Labor Party members call on soldiers not to wear IDF Lebanon war ribbon; curfews in jenin and Nablus.

Palestinians/ Lebanese: Arafat travels to Bahrain and Kuwait for talks; Lebanese officials reject latest Israeli security demands, give Habib letter outlining their position to take back to Washington.