The Palestine Chronology

After Islamic Jihad fires several rockets fr. Gaza into Israel (causing no reported injuries), the IDF makes an air strike on a car in Gaza City assassinating Islamic Jihad mbr. Hussam Harb, wounding a 2d Islamic Jihad mbr., 3 bystanders. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah; patrols in, fires on residential areas of Nablus for a night, causing no injuries. Inside Israel, Israeli security forces demolish several bedouin homes in Um al-Hiram in the Negev. A Palestinian dies of injuries received in interfactional violence in Gaza City on 6/13. (WP 6/25; OCHA 6/27; PCHR 6/28)

Outside Metula in s. Lebanon, unidentified assailants detonate a car bomb as a UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy passes, killing 6 UNIFIL soldiers (3 Columbians, 3 Spaniards), wounding 2 in the 1st targeted attack on the international mission since the 2006 Lebanon war. Amal, Hizballah denounce the attack, deny involvement. (NYT, WP, WT 6/25; NYT 7/7)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids in al-Til and neighboring ‘Allar; fires live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets at stone-throwing Palestinians demonstrating against Israeli excavations at the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount, wounding 2. In addition to the weekly nonviolent demonstration in Bil‘in, 100s of Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists take part in nonviolent demonstrations against the separation wall nr. Bethlehem, Marda, Salfit, Tulkarm; in each case, the IDF fires tear gas, percussion grenades to disperse the demonstrators, injuring several. In an evacuated settlement site nr. Khan Yunis, 1 Hamas mbr. is killed, 9 are wounded when explosives they are handling during a training exercise accidentally detonate. Nr. Rafah, 3 Palestinians are injured when they accidentally trigger an unexploded IDF shell. Jewish settlers fr. Beit Hadasah in Hebron chase, severely beat 3 Palestinians (ages 10, 40, 55); the IDF intervenes, arrests 1 Palestinian. The bedouin residents of the unrecognized village of al-Nasara in the Negev report that over the past 3 wks., Israel has issued eviction orders to around 250 residents, declaring plans to build an IDF installation on the site of the village. (NYT 3/31; OCHA 4/4; PCHR 4/5)

For a 3d day, IDF troops at the Erez crossing fire at Palestinians collecting scrap metal nr. the border fence, wounding 1 Palestinian. In the 1st such incident since the Gaza ceasefire went into effect on 11/26, an Islamic Jihad mbr. receives a phone call fr. the IDF warning him to evacuate his home pending an air strike; family and neighbors surround the home and no strike is carried out. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem, in Silat al-Harithiyya, nr. Nablus. Inside Israel, Israeli forces demolish 21 bedouin homes in Twayyil in the Negev. An ESF mbr. is injured in an exchange of fire btwn. ESF, Fatah mbrs. in Bayt Lahiya. ESF, Force 17 mbrs. clash nr. Abbas’s office in Gaza City, leaving a Force 17 mbr. wounded. After nearly 6 mos. of silence, the PRC faction holding captured IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit say that he is in “good health” and is being treated according to “Islamic standards.” (Negev Coexistence Forum press release 1/9; OCHA, WP, WT 1/10; PCHR 1/11)