The Palestine Chronology

In the West Bank, armed Palestinians kidnapped 1 Druze citizen of Israel from a hospital in Jenin where he was admitted after suffering life threating injuries in a car accident. Israeli forces shot and killed 1 Palestinian man during a raid in Nablus. Israeli forces also delivered stop-work orders against 8 houses in Qarawat Bani Hassan. 18 Palestinians were arrested during late-night raids in ‘Anata, Deir Abu Mash‘al, Balata refugee camp, Silwad, Burqa, Jenin, Bethlehem, Tulkarm, and Hebron. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces raided the home of PA governor of Jerusalem Adnan Ghaith. Governor Ghaith was placed under house arrest on 8/4. 6 Palestinians were arrested during late-night raids in Silwan. (WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 11/22; HA, HA, TOI, WAFA, 11/23; AJ, HA, PCHR 11/24; MDW 11/25; UNOCHA 12/16)

The Biden administration appointed deputy assistant secretary of state for Israeli-Palestinian affairs Hady Amr to the newly created position of U.S. representative for Palestinian affairs. (AX 11/22; MEE 11/23; MEMO 11/24)

The UN Conference on Trade and Development released a report estimating that the Palestinian economy was deprived of $50 billion between 2000 and 2020 due to Israeli restrictions on Area C. (MEMO, WAFA, WAFA 11/23)

Before dawn, the IDF reoccupies Amari r.c., al-Bireh, Qadura r.c., and Ramallah, surrounding Arafat's offices (placing Arafat under de facto house arrest), arresting 13 PSF officers, meeting no resistance; imposes 24-hr. curfews on Aqaba, Dura, Iktaba, Tamun, Taysir, Tubas, Yatta; fires shells at residential areas of Khan Yunis; continues operations in Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus (fatally shooting 1 Palestinian), Qalqilya, Tulkarm areas; lifts curfews in Jenin, Nablus, Qalqilya for 3 hrs. The IDF assassinates 2 Izzeddine al-Qassam Brigades leaders, Yasir Raziq and `Amr Kufa, in Rafah, firing missiles at their taxis, also killing 2 passengers, 2 drivers, injuring 13 bystanders. Jewish settlers stone an ambulance nr. Tulkarm. In Gaza, Hamas supporters clash with PSF officers enforcing Shaykh Yasin's house arrest, leaving 1 Hamas supporter dead. (BBC, MM, NYT, PRCS press release, WP, WT 6/24; XIN 6/24 in WNC 6/25; MM, NYT, WP, WT 6/25; LAW 6/26; PCHR, WJW 6/27; MEI 6/28)

After a wk.'s delay, Bush gives a major speech outlining the new U.S. policy toward the peace process. Without mentioning Israel's military escalations, Bush says in effect that the Palestinians must remove Arafat and create a Western-style democracy before the peace process can move forward. The U.S. halts direct dealings with Arafat. Bush's decision to call for Arafat's ouster was reportedly influenced heavily by an Israeli intelligence report he received last wk. (uncorroborated by the CIA) claiming that Arafat authorized a $20,000 payment to the AMB, which carried out the 6/19 suicide bombing. (AP, MM, NYT, WP 6/24; MA 6/24 in WNC 6/25; GS, MM, NYT, WP, WT, YA 6/25; AFP, ATL, Interfax, ITAR-TASS, MENA 6/25 in WNC 6/26; MM, NYT, WP, WT 6/26; AFP, JT, Le Monde 6/26 in WNC 6/27; NYT, WJW, WP 6/27; JT, al-Nahar 6/27 in WNC 6/28; MEI, MM 6/28; NYT, USIS Washington File 6/30; WP, WT 7/1; AN 7/1 in WNC 7/2; JPI 7/5)

Arafat sends the U.S., Arab states a 6-page memorandum outlining an ambitious 100-day reform plan, including plans for presidential and legislative elections in 1/03 and municipal elections in 3/03. (MM 6/24; NYT 6/25; MM 6/26; El Pais 6/26 in WNC 6/27;NYT, WP, WT 6/27; XIN 6/27 in WNC 6/28; AYM 7/1 in WNC 7/3; AYM 7/10, 7/17, 7/21 in WNC 7/23)

Israeli atty. gen. Elyakim Rubinstein says he will not take legal action against those calling for the "voluntary transfer" of Arabs fr. Israel, saying "voluntary transfer" is "immoral" not illegal. (The 13 Palestinians deported to Cyprus in 5/02 were "voluntarily exiled" as part of a deal brokered by Israel and the PA; see 5/22) (HA 6/24; MM 6/27)

In response to Israeli appeals to local satellite channels to drop coverage of BBC World and CNN International because of their "pro-Palestinian bias" (1 channel replaced CNN with Fox News coverage on 6/20), CNN chief news exec. Eason Jordan arrives in Israel to apologize publicly on behalf of the network, to unveil a special 5-part series on Israeli victims of violence (aired 6/24-28) and a Web "memorial" to Israeli victims of Palestinian violence. (WT 6/24; NYT 6/25; WJW 6/27; MEI 6/2; see also JTA 6/20, MSNBC 6/21)

Early this morning, the Israeli inner cabinet orders the IDF to seal Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus, Qalqilya, Tulkarm. The IDF also fatally shoots wanted AMB mbr. Khamis Abdallah in an apparent assassination in Nablus; fires a tank shell at 3 teenagers trying to sneak across the Gaza border into Israel to work, killing 1 Palestinian, wounding 2. This evening, an AMB gunman opens fire with an M-16 on a bat mitzvah celebration in Hadera, Israel, killing 6 Israelis, wounding at least 25 before being beaten unconscious by the celebrants and then fatally shot by an Israeli policeman. In retaliation, the IDF sends 20 tanks, APCs, paratroopers into Ramallah to tighten the encirclement of Arafat's headquarters to within 100 yds., placing Arafat under de facto house arrest; sends F-16s to shell PA Interior Min., administrative, and security offices in Tulkarm, killing 2 PSF officers, injuring 61 officers and civilians, damaging 20 homes and 50 stores; reinforces troops nr. Jinin, fatally shooting 1 Palestinian. (AP 1/17; LAW, MM, NYT, WP, WT 1/18; AFP, Interfax 1/18 in WNC 1/22; CNN, WP, WT 1/19; MM 1/21; PCHR 1/23; WJW 1/24; JP, MEI 1/25; JP 2/1)