The Palestine Chronology

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers vandalized 1 solar panel and 15 olive seedlings near ‘Urif. Israeli forces violently dispersed Palestinian protesters in Dura and Bayt Umar, leading to tear-gas related injuries. Israeli forces also violently dispersed Palestinian protesters in Hebron, injuring 13, including 5 with live ammunition and 8 with rubber-coated bullets; others suffered tear-gas related injuries. Elsewhere, Israeli forces seized a caravan in Sabastiyya. 5 Palestinians were arrested during late-night raids in Tarqumiyya and Jenin refugee camp; Israeli forces also seized a vehicle during a house raid in Aqraba. In East Jerusalem, 1 Israeli settler rammed Palestinians with his vehicle near the Old City, causing injuries; Palestinians were throwing stones at the vehicle but it was unclear what transpired before the ramming, which appeared in a video. Israeli settlers also attacked Palestinians in Shaykh Jarrah during a tour of the neighborhood by 2 Israeli lawmakers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. Israeli forces attacked Palestinian worshipers with tear gas, sound bombs, and rubber-coated bullets at the Haram al-Sharif compound, injuring more than 305 people, including inside of al-Aqsa Mosque where a sound bomb caught a carpet on fire. Israeli forces prevented the Palestinian Red Crescent from entering the compound. Israel also reversed its decision from 5/9 to allow Jewish worshipers to enter the Haram al-Sharif compound for the Israeli celebration of Jerusalem Day. The Jerusalem Day march was later canceled by its organizers as Israeli police decided to prevent the settler march to go through the Damascus Gate plaza. Israeli forces also confiscated the keys to the al-Aqsa Mosque from the Islamic Waqf. Also at the Haram al-Sharif compound, Israeli police were filmed beating up an Israeli-accredited Palestinian journalist covering the events for Anadolu Agency. The Palestinian Red Crescent said that 612 Palestinians were injured throughout Jerusalem, including 333 who were hospitalized. In Gaza, Israeli started a military operation later dubbed “Guardian of the Wall” after Hamas fired rockets at Israel, giving Israel hours to leave the Haram al-Sharif compound. Hamas had earlier in the day warned Israel that it would fire rockets at 6 p.m. if Israel did not remove its forces from the holy places. 20 Palestinians were killed, including 9 children, and dozens were injured. The casualties included: 2, including 1 child, in 1 drone strike at Jabaliya; 10, including 6 children in 2 drone strikes at Bayt Hanun, with 32 others wounded, including 12 children; and 1, with 2 injured, in an Israeli air strike in Khan Yunis. 7 were also killed, including 1 child, and 34 were injured in Jabaliya in an explosion that was not conclusively attributed to an Israeli air strike. Additionally, damage was sustained in al-Bureij refugee camp, al-Qarara, and Rafah. In Israel, 1 Palestinian citizen of Israel was shot dead and 1 other injured by 1 Jewish-Israeli in Lydda; 3 Jewish-Israelis were arrested. Israeli forces later violently dispersed Palestinian-Israeli protesters at the Lydda city hall. In Ramla, Jewish-Israelis threw stones at Palestinian-Israelis and their property and set fire to trash cans. Israeli police dispersed Palestinian-Israeli protesters in Nazareth, Kafr Kana, Kafr Manda, Shefa-Amr, Majdal Krum, Dayr Khana, Umm al-Fahm, Baka al-Garbiyeh, Taiba, Jaffa, Haifa, and Jaljulya; 46 were arrested. The Knesset was evacuated after a rocket from Gaza landed in the vicinity of Jerusalem. (HA 5/9; AJ, AJ, AJ, AJ, AJ, AP, AX, FOX, GDN, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, MEE, MEE, MEE, MEE, MEMO, NYT, PCHR, REU, REU, REU, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 5/10; ALM, HA, HA, MEE, PCHR, PCHR 5/11; ALM, HA, WAFA 5/12; WAFA 5/19; MEE 5/21; NYT 5/26)

Israel closed all crossings to Gaza and the sea for fishing as collective punishment for rockets fired at Israel. (PCHR 5/10)

The PA prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh and the PA presidency condemned Israel’s attack on the Haram al-Sharif compound and called on the international community to take action. The PA civil affairs minister Hussein al-Sheikh said the Palestinian leadership is “examining all options to respond to this heinous aggression against the holy sites and the citizens.” PA president Mahmoud Abbas also discussed the situation with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. (WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 5/10)

Leader of the Ra’am (United Arab List) Mansour Abbas said that he had broken off contacts with Israeli opposition leaders Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett just before he was to have a joint meeting with them, citing the violence in Jerusalem and Gaza. Mansour Abbas met with Naftali Bennett on 5/9. (ALM, HA 5/10; ALM, HA, MEMO, NBC 5/11)

Israel attacked Syria in the Quneitra region with a helicopter, injuring 1. (HA 5/10)

Iran confirmed that it is in direct talks with Saudi Arabia to resolve the issues between the 2 countries. A Saudi official confirmed the talks on 5/7. (AJ, HA, REU 5/10)

The U.S. said 1 of its Coast Guard ships had fired 30 warning shots at 13 Iranian vessels that came too close to the ship and 6 other U.S. navy vessels. Iran said that it was the U.S. that had acted recklessly in the encounter. (AJ, HA, REU 5/10; AP, MEMO 5/11)

UN security council members met at an emergency session to discuss the situation in Palestine-Israel. No statement was issued after the meeting. U.S. state department spokesperson Ned Price said that the U.S. administration wanted to make sure that a statement would “not escalate tensions.” Spokesperson Price also refused to say if the U.S. condemned the Israeli air strike that killed 9 Palestinian children, and suggested that Palestinians, contrary to Israelis, do not have the right to defend themselves, saying that only states recognized by the U.S. have that right. (HA, MEE 5/11)

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian family in Hebron, causing light injuries. Israeli forces and Palestinians clashed at the entrance to al-Bireh, where Palestinians threw stones and burned tires; Israeli forces injured 3 Palestinians with rubber-coated bullets while others suffered tear-gas related injuries. 2 Palestinians were arrested at different flying checkpoints near Qalqilya and Ramallah. In East Jerusalem, 2 Palestinians were arrested during raids in Silwan and Issawiyya. In Gaza, Israel hit several targets in Gaza on 2 separate occasions causing damage; no injuries were reported. A rocket was also fired from Gaza toward Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Israel also announced collective punishment measures against Palestinians in Gaza, including banning imports of cement and suspending 500 merchant entry permits. Israeli forces also opened fire on Palestinian farmers west of Jabalia; 1 Palestinian was injured by live ammunition. (HA, WAFA 2/1; HA, WAFA 2/2; PCHR 2/6)

PA president Mahmoud Abbas said during an emergency meeting at the Arab League in Cairo that he had informed Israel that the PA had cut all ties, including security coordination, with Israel and the U.S., in response to the U.S. administration’s peace plan. At the meeting, the members of the Arab League issued a statement rejecting the U.S. peace plan as “it does not meet the minimum rights and aspirations of Palestinian people.” (AJ, HA, REU 2/1)

In the West Bank, Israeli forces seal the entrances to Beita near Nablus with dirt mounds as collective punishment after reports of stonethrowing in the village. They also fire on a Palestinian driving near the village, damaging his car. IDF troops arrest 2 Palestinians during latenight raids in and around Nablus, sparking minor clashes; 4 Palestinian youths are injured. They also patrol near Tulkarm and Hebron during the day. Israeli settlers vandalize several Palestinian cars near Nablus overnight, leaving price-tag graffiti on nearby walls. Off Gaza’s coast, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats near Jabaliya refugee camp and Bayt Lahiya, causing no damage and injuries. (MNA, WAFA 2/15; PCHR 2/22)

In Paris, Israel’s economy minister Eli Cohen meets with the PA’s national economy minister Abeer Odeh. “Promoting joint economic projects is in the interest of both sides and has security and political importance beyond the economic dimension,” Cohen says. (JP 2/18)

For a 7th day in a row, Palestinians across the oPt gather to protest U.S. pres. Trump’s 12/6 recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital (attendance continues to steadily decline). Israeli forces violently disperse protestors in Hebron and 3 nearby villages (Dura, Bayt Umar, and Halhul), outside the Beit El settlement near Ramallah, Bethlehem, Tulkarm, Qalqilya, and along Gaza’s border near al-Bureij refugee camp, Bayt Hanun, Khan Yunis, and Rafah; at least 26 Palestinians are injured, including 1 journalist, and 5 are arrested. Meanwhile, IDF troops violently detain 2 Palestinian youths inside an ambulance in Halhul; arrest 3 Palestinians during late-night raids in Hebron and near Ramallah; and patrol in and around Hebron, Tulkarm, and Qalqilya. Israeli settlers throw stones at Palestinian students outside a school in Burin village near Nablus, sparking minor clashes; there are no serious injuries. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrest 2 Palestinians during late-night raids in Issawiyya and Abu Dis. Off Gaza’s coast, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats near Jabaliya refugee camp, causing no damage or injuries. (HA, MNA, WAFA, YA 12/13; MNA, PCHR 12/14)

Unidentified parties fire 3 rockets from Gaza toward Israel in the evening; 2 are intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system and 1 falls in an open area, causing no damage or injuries. The IAF conducts air strikes on at least 5 Hamas sites across Gaza, causing damage but no injuries. The Israeli authorities announce that both the Erez and Kerem Shalom border crossings will be closed indefinitely as collective punishment for the week of rocket attacks emanating from Gaza. (HA, TOI 12/13; HA, PCHR, WAFA, YA 12/14; PCHR 12/21)

At an emergency meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul, reps. of the 57 OIC members jointly declare East Jerusalem to be the capital of the State of Palestine and urge all countries to recognize Palestine. Addressing the attendees, PA pres. Abbas says that Israel’s violations and of international law free the Palestinians from prior commitments made in context of the peace process, threatens to abandon the PA’s security coordination with the IDF, and announces the Palestinians’ intention to go to the UNSC for full UN membership. (AFP, HA, NYT, REU, TOI, WAFA, YA 12/13)

Israeli human rights groups petition the Israeli High Court to halt the government’s 10/24 plan to cut electricity to Gaza to pressure Hamas, arguing collective punishment, forcing the IDF to suspend implementation.Israelsays that it will continue to cut 1% of Gaza’s electricity for 15 mins. at a time as a “symbolic” response to Palestinian rocket fire until Israel’s atty. gen. rules otherwise. Overnight and into the afternoon, IDF troops conduct arrest raids, house searches in Khan Yunis, also bulldozing 30 d. of agricultural land. During the day, the IDF sends infantry units into the Bayt Lahiya area (to engage several armed Palestinians laying a roadside bomb, killing 1 Palestinian, arresting another), the border area e. of Jabaliya r.c. (where they clash with armed Palestinians, killing 1 Palestinian), and areas nr. Abasan (where they engage with armed Palestinians, killing 1 Palestinian, wounding 4). Palestinians fire an RPG at an IDF jeep patrolling the Gaza border nr. al-Bureij r.c., missing the target, causing no damage or injuries. A Palestinian is injured in Dayr al-Balah when explosives he is handling detonate prematurely. In the West Bank, the IDF fires rubber-coated steel bullets on Palestinian children holding 2 peaceful demonstrations in Hebron and nearby al-Arub r.c. in support of Palestinian prisoners, injuring 3 (ages 13, 16, 17) and arresting 1 (age 14); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, and in Tulkarm (also firing on residential areas, causing damage but no injuries). In Ramallah, Palestinians demonstrate for the release of Hamas mbrs. held by the PA; PA security forces disperse the protesters. An ESF officer dies of injuries received in the 10/18 clash with the Fatah-affiliated Hillis clan in Gaza City. (NYT, WT 10/29; OCHA 10/31; PCHR 11/1)