The Palestine Chronology

Off the coast of Gaza nr. Dayr al-Balah, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, Israeli forces arrest a Palestinian woman attempting to cross into Israel with a rifle nr. Qalqilya. IDF troops patrol in a village nr. Hebron, sparking clashes with stone-throwing Palestinian youths; 2 of the Palestinians are arrested. The IDF conducts late-night house searches and raids in Hebron, 1 village and al-Jalazun r.c. nr. Ramallah, and 1 village each nr. Jericho, Qalqilya, Jenin, and Nablus, arresting 7 Palestinians and confiscating property; patrols during the day in 2 more villages nr. Hebron. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces raid the Jabal Mukabir homes belonging to the family mbrs. of the 2 Palestinian men who attacked a West Jerusalem synagogue on 11/18/2014. They take pictures and make notes of the contents of the homes (they will seal 1 home with cement on 7/1). (JP, MNA 6/28; PCHR 7/2)

Chair of the consultative comm. for reforming the consensus govt., al-Ahmad, canceled his 6/29 trip to Gaza reportedly due to Hamas’s negative response. (MNA 6/28; JP 6/29)

Israeli MK Ghattas (Joint List) sends a statement to PM Netanyahu and DM Ya’alon calling for them to keep Israeli forces away from the Freedom Flotilla III. As the flotilla makes its way from Greece to Gaza, Netanyahu’s office releases a letter in which he told the activists, “Perhaps you meant to set sail for a place not far from here—Syria. There the Asad regime is slaughtering its own people every day with the support of the murderous regime in Iran.” (JP, MNA, YA 6/28; MEMO 6/29)

Israel’s FM dir.-gen. Dore Gold meets with Egyptian officials in Cairo to discuss ways to relaunch peace negotiations with the Palestinians. It is the 1st visit to Cairo of a high-ranking Israeli official since 2011. (JP, YA 6/28)

In the Gaza Strip, the Gaza power plant resumes operation of 1 of its 4 turbines, having received new shipments of fuel after shutting down completely on 12/28. However, scheduled power outages stay at up to 18 hours per day. Off the coast nr. Gaza City, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats, causing no damage or injuries. Also, the IDF begins pulling troops stationed nr. Gaza, as announced 12/28. In the West Bank, 1 Palestinian is injured during a clash in Hebron between stone-throwing Palestinians and private Israeli settlement security guards. IDF troops rebuild mounds of earth outside a village nr. Salfit, closing the main entrance. The village’s residents cleared the mounds on 12/31 during demonstrations marking Fatah’s 50th anniversary. In East Jerusalem, an Israeli court bars 5 Palestinian women (arrested on 1/1) from entering Haram al-Sharif for 21 days. Israeli forces detain another Palestinian woman as she exits the sanctuary. (HA, MNA, TOI, WAFA 1/4; OCHA 1/15)

A senior Israeli FM official says that Israel is not planning any new settlement construction in response to the Palestinians’ accession to the ICC. Meanwhile, PM Netanyahu and DM Ya’alon agree to use NIS 70 m. (around $17.8 m.) from the Defense Ministry’s budget to strengthen infrastructure in the Beit El settlement and relocate an IDF base to make room for 300 new residences. Then-Fin. Min. Lapid blocked their prior attempt on 11/25. Separately, the Israeli High Court of Justice freezes construction on the separation wall in the Battir Valley of the West Bank, responding to complaints from the Palestinian residents and UNESCO’s 6/20 decision to place Battir’s terraces on its list of World Heritage sites. (JP, HA, MNA, TOI 1/4)

Egyptian authorities prepare for the demolitions and evictions required to expand the buffer zone along the Gaza border to 1 km. The 2,044 families that live in the 1,200 homes set to be demolished will receive 1,500 Egyptian pounds (approximately $209) to pay for 3 mos. of housing, and 700–1,200 Egyptian pounds per sq. m of their house that is demolished. (JP, MNA 1/4)

Jordan suspends talks with Israel regarding the 9/2014 memorandum of understanding set to govern their $15 b. joint gas deal with U.S. company Noble Energy. Israel’s Antitrust Authority revoked its approval of the Delek Group-Noble Energy alignment on 12/23. (JP, JTA, TOI 1/4)

In the Gaza Strip, Palestinians fire 18 rockets into s. Israel, causing no damage or injuries except where 2 houses are hit by shrapnel. Two of the rockets are intercepted by Iron Dome missile defense batteries. According to Israeli officials, Hamas activists were involved in this barrage, making it the 1st time the organization has participated in rocket fire since the 11/2012 cease-fire. IDF troops conduct air strikes on 34 targets across the Gaza Strip, hitting training sites of al-Qassam Brigades, Islamic Jihad, and the PRC, and agricultural areas, killing 1, injuring 4, and causing damage. Off the coast nr. Bayt Lahiya, Israeli naval forces shell an open area on the coast, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts house searches and arrest raids in Hebron and 1 nearby village at night; patrols in 2 villages nr. Ramallah and 1 village nr. Hebron at night. Israeli settlers attack a Palestinian in Hebron, wounding him. Separately, settlers vandalize 12 olive trees nr. Hebron. In East Jerusalem, Israeli security forces shoot and wound 2 Palestinians with rubber-coated metal bullets during clashes nr. Haram al-Sharif. The confrontations begin after restrictions are placed on worshippers’ access to the area while right-wing Jewish activists are allowed to enter. (AP, HA, IMEMC, JP, MNA 6/30; PCHR 7/3)

Israeli security forces locate the bodies of the 3 Israeli settler teenagers nr. Hebron, not far from where they were kidnapped (on 6/12) and killed. PM Netanyahu and DM Ya’alon propose that the response to the killing of the teens should include a wave of settlement construction. Netanyahu also addresses the increased tensions in Gaza and s. Israel, saying “either Hamas will stop the rocket fire or we will.” Hamas spokesperson Abu Zuhri says that if Israel attacks Hamas in Gaza, “they will open the gates of hell on themselves,” adding that Hamas does not “want any military confrontation with Israel, but if it will be forced on us it will look like in previous rounds.” Meanwhile, U.S. Pres. Barack Obama issues a statement expressing his condolences to the families of the murdered Israeli youth, calls on Israel and the PA to cooperate to bring the guilty parties to justice, and urges all sides to exercise restraint to prevent further destabilization. (AFP, HA, JP, MNA, REU 6/30)