The Palestine Chronology

In the West Bank, a Palestinian man succumbs to injuries sustained in an Israeli drone strike on Jenin on 2/22. Israeli settlers raid Taybeh, kidnapping 3 elderly Palestinian farmers who are later released from a military base in Tarqumiyah. Israeli forces seize a bulldozer during a raid in Nabi Salih. In East Jerusalem, Israeli settlers tour the Haram al-Sharif compound. In Gaza, Israeli forces bomb Dayr al-Balah, Rafah, Khan Yunis, Gaza City, and al-Bureij refugee camp, killing at least 90 people. In Lebanon, Israeli forces bomb near Baalbek, killing 2 people and injuring 6 others. Israeli forces also bomb al-Sarira, Ayta ash Shab, Majadel, and Wadi al-Dalafa, killing at least 2 people in Majadil. Islamic Jihad says 2 of its fighters are killed in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah shoots down an Israeli drone using a surface-to-air missile and fires 60 Katyusha rockets at an Israeli military site. In Yemen, U.S. forces attack 6 sites. (AJ, AJ, AJ, AP, HA, NYT, NYT, REU, REU, REU, UNOCHA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 2/26; AP 2/27; UNOCHA 2/28)

More than 29,782 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 12,000 children and 7,200 women, and around 70,043 have been injured since 10/7/2023. At least 8,000 people are missing in rubble, including 1,700 children. 400 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 10/7/2023, including 102 children. More than 4,575 people have been injured. Israel reports that 1,139 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed and 5,400 have been injured in Israel since 10/7/2023, including Israeli soldiers. In addition, 238 Israeli soldiers have been killed and 1,396 injured in Gaza since the ground invasion began on 10/27/2023. Over 1.93 million Palestinians, nearly 85% of the population of Gaza, have been displaced since 10/7/2023. There has been a complete electricity blackout in Gaza since 10/12/2023 due to the Israeli blockade. At least 70,000 housing units have been destroyed and 290,000 have been damaged in Israeli airstrikes since 10/7/2023, constituting over 60% of all housing units. 138 trucks carrying aid enter Gaza. Israel allows 10 trucks carrying aid to enter northern Gaza. Jordan and France airdrop aid to Gaza from 4 C-130 planes at 11 sites. The Red Crescent says it has suspended medical missions for the next 48 hours as it is unable to ensure the safety of its staff. (AJ, HA, UNOCHA, UNOCHA, WAFA, WAFA 2/26; AP, UNOCHA 2/27)

PA prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh resigns on behalf of himself and the rest of the cabinet during the weekly cabinet meeting in Ramallah, saying “the next stage and its challenges require new governmental and political arrangements that take into account the new reality in Gaza and the need for a Palestinian-Palestinian consensus based on Palestinian unity.” Shtayyeh says he submitted his resignation to President Mahmoud Abbas on 2/20 but formally submitted his resignation in writing today. Abbas accepts the resignation of Shtayyeh and the rest of the cabinet, asking him and the rest of the ministers to stay on as caretakers until a new government is formed. Shtayyeh, who has been prime minister since March 2019, also cites the genocide in Gaza and the “unprecedent escalation in the West Bank and Jerusalem” as reasons for resigning. Before Shtayyeh’s resignation, over the weekend it was rumored that the Palestinian government would resign in order to facilitate the formation of a technocratic government to be led by the PA as requested by the U.S. (HA 2/25; AJ, AJ, AP, AX, HA, HA, NYT, REU, REU, WAFA, WAFA 2/26; AP, HA 2/27)

The New York Times reports that Israel has agreed to release 15 high-profile Palestinian prisoners in exchange for 5 female Israeli soldiers as part of the potential ceasefire deal. U.S. president Joe Biden says he hopes a ceasefire agreement can be reached by 3/4. Axios reports that Israeli military chief of staff Herzi Halevi and Shin Bet director Ronen Bar traveled to Egypt last week to assure the Egyptian government that Israel will take measures to prevent Palestinians from fleeing to Egypt during its planned invasion of Rafah. A delegation of Israeli officials arrive in Qatar for ceasefire talks. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says Palestinians will not be allowed to return to northern Gaza until all Israeli captives are released. Jordanian foreign minister Ayman Safadi and U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken discuss the ceasefire negotiations. (AJ, AP, AX, AX, HA, NYT, REU, REU 2/26; AJ, AP, AP, AX, HA, HA, NYT, REU 2/27)

Israeli industry minister Nir Barkat meets with Saudi minister of commerce Majid bin Abdullah Alkassabi on the sidelines of a World Trade Organization meeting in the UAE, saying the 2 countries can “make history together.” (AJ 2/26)

During the sixth and final day of the ICJ hearings on the legality of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories, the Arab League calls the occupation an “affront to international justice” and says Israel perpetrates “racial domination and apartheid” against Palestinians. Turkey, Zambia, Spain, Fiji, the Maldives, the African Union, and the OIC also present arguments. During the 6 days of hearings, only the U.S., Fiji, Hungary, and the UK spoke in favor of Israel’s argument that the court should not make a decision on the occupation while 50 other countries and organizations argued, to varying degrees, that the occupation is illegal and has to end. (AJ, AJ, AP, HA, NYT, NYT, REU, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 2/26; WAFA 2/27)

UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres says the UN Security Council’s “lack of unity on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and on Israel’s military operations in Gaza following the horrific terror attacks by Hamas on 7 October, has severely—perhaps fatally—undermined its authority,” calling for reform of the council. Arab diplomats meet with Guterres, warning him about Israeli plans to severely limit the number of worshippers allowed at the Haram al-Sharif compound during Ramadan. (AJ, AP, HA, REU, WAFA 2/26)

USAID administrator Samantha Power visits a World Food Programme warehouse in Jordan, saying only around 85 trucks carrying aid enter Gaza a day while around 500 are needed. (AJ, HA 2/26)

President Biden reiterates in an interview his previous claim that without Israel, Jews living throughout the world would not be safe. (AJ 2/27)

Israel submits a report on progress it has made since the ICJ issued provisional measures to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza as part of the South African genocide case against Israel. Human Rights Watch says Israel has ignored the ICJ provisional measures and “in some ways even intensified its repression, including further blocking lifesaving aid.” Amnesty International also says Israel has failed to comply with the measures. (Airwars, AJ, HA, HA, WAFA 2/26; NYT 2/27)

EU high commissioner for foreign affairs Josep Borrell criticizes European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen in an interview with El Pais, saying her trip to Israel in October 2023 “with such a completely pro-Israeli position, without representing anyone but herself in a matter of international politics, has carried a high geopolitical cost for Europe.” Borrell also says Israeli prime minister Benjamin “Netanyahu’s plans for Gaza are unacceptable. The seeds of hatred are being sown for generations. It is an open secret that the Israelis funded Hamas and played at dividing the Palestinians.” (AJ, EP 2/26)

19,012 artists sign an open letter calling on Israel to be banned from the Venice Biennale, saying there should not be a “genocide pavilion at the Venice Biennale.” Italian minister of culture Gennaro Sanguiliano rejects the call, saying the letter is “shameful.” The Biennale later issues a statement saying it would “not take into consideration any petition or call to exclude” countries. (AJ, ANGA, HA 2/26; AJ, AJ, REU 2/27; AP, NYT 2/28)

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers vandalized 70 olive trees in Kafr ad-Dik. Israeli settlers also threw stones at Palestinian vehicles traveling near Turmus ‘Ayya, causing damage. Israeli forces shot and killed 1 Palestinian during a raid in Burqa. Israeli forces also shot and injured 1 Palestinian during a raid in Arrabah. 21 Palestinians were arrested during late-night raids in and around Bil’in, Hebron, Halhul, Yatta, Burqa, and Tulkarm. In Gaza, it was unclear how many Palestinians were killed and injured by Israeli airstrikes due to a collapse in services and communications at hospitals in the north. Israeli airstrikes killed at least 18 people in Jabalia refugee camp and 13 in Khan Yunis. Israel also attacked a UN compound sheltering refugees, continued attacks on al-Shifa Hospital, and heavily bombarded southern Gaza. 2 Israeli soldiers were killed by Palestinian militants. Near the Blue Line, an anti-tank missile was fired at vehicles in Israel, injuring 7 soldiers and 10 others, and 30 rockets were launched from Lebanon. Israel attacked several places in South Lebanon. Israel said it attacked sites in Syria (AJ, AJ, AJ, AP, HA, HA, REU, UNOCHA, UNOCHA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 11/12; AJ, AJ, AP, AP, HA 11/13)

The Gaza Ministry of Health was not able to update the casualty figures due to a collapse in services and communications at hospitals in northern Gaza. As of 11/10 at least 11,078 Palestinians have been killed, including 4,506 children and 3,027 women, and 27,490 have been injured in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since 10/7. At least 2,450 people were buried in rubble, including 1,350 children. 177 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 10/7, including 47 children. More than 2,552 people have been injured. Israel reported that 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals had been killed and 5,431 have injured since. 47 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ground invasion began on 10/27. Over 1.61 million Palestinians, around 70% of the population of Gaza, have been displaced since 10/7. There has been a complete electricity blackout in Gaza since 10/12 due to the Israel blockade. As of 11/6, at least 40,000 housing units have been destroyed and 220,000 have been damaged in Israeli airstrikes since 10/7, constituting 45% of all housing units. Tens of thousands of Palestinians fled northern Gaza to the south. 76 trucks carrying aid entered Gaza via the Rafah crossing. About 500 foreign nationals were evacuated to Egypt. WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said al-Shifa Hospital was no longer functioning as a hospital due to a lack of essential supplies, including fuel, that the number of fatalities among patients had increased significantly, and that Israeli military action around the hospital exacerbated the circumstances. The Red Crescent said al-Quds Hospital has shut down. UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres said 101 UN personnel have been killed in Gaza since 10/7 and that Hamas’ operation was not a justification for Israel’s collective punishment of the Palestinian people. (REU 11/11; AJ, AJ, AJ, AP, HA, HA, REU, REU, UNOCHA, UNOCHA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 11/12; AJ, AP, AP, NYT, WAFA 11/13)

Israel claimed that it placed 80 gallons of diesel fuel near al-Shifa Hospital a day after the hospital ran out of fuel, saying Hamas had prevented the fuel from entering the hospital. Hospital staff rejected that it had been offered fuel and Hamas denied having any association with the hospital. It was reported that U.S. officials had been pressuring Israel to avoid opening fire on al-Shifa Hospital. Palestinian officials said Hamas suspended negotiations on a prisoner exchange with Israel after Israel attacked and besieged the hospital. (AJ, HA, HA, HA, NYT, REU 11/12; AP 11/13)

PA prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh met with Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen in Ramallah, urging him to help end the Israeli attacks on Gaza. Løkke Rasmussen also met with Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen. (WAFA 11/12)

Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said Israel needs to occupy Gaza and that he is “not afraid of Israelis resettling in Gaza.” (AJ, HA 11/12)

U.S. president Joe Biden spoke with Qatari emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, discussing the need to protect civilians in Gaza and increase humanitarian aid. (AJ, HA, REU 11/12)

The U.S. military said 5 U.S. soldiers were killed in a refueling training accident in the eastern Mediterranean. Is also said it attacked targets in eastern Syria that were used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. (AJ, AJ, AP, HA, NYT, NYT, REU 11/12)

South African foreign minister Naledi Pandor said she expects that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli cabinet members will be issued with arrest warrants by the ICC. (AJ 11/12)

The EU issued a statement condemning Hamas for allegedly using hospitals and human shields in Gaza. The statement also called on Israel to show “maximum restraint.” (REU 11/12; AP 11/13)

Israel signed a deal worth $339 million to sell the David’s Sling anti-missile system to Finland. (HA 11/12)

IDF troops on the Gaza border e. of Jabaliya open fire on agricultural areas nr. the border fence, causing no damage or injuries. Off the coast nr. Rafah, Israeli naval forces open fire on Palestinian fishing boats, causing no damage. In the West Bank, Israeli authorities order the demolition of an electricity grid nr. Nablus. Israeli forces deliver demolition orders to a Palestinian agricultural structure and 3 homes nr. Bethlehem; block off all entrances to a nearby village. IDF troops confront a group of 4 Palestinians nr. Nablus, assaulting them and arresting 1. The IDF conducts late-night raids and house searches in Tulkarm, Hebron, 1 village each nr. Nablus and Tubas, and 2 nr. Bethlehem, arresting 10 Palestinians and issuing an arrest summons to 1; patrols in 2 villages nr. Jenin and 1 each nr. Qalqilya and Ramallah. Meanwhile, thousands of Palestinians march through the streets of Ramallah commemorating the 67th anniversary of the Nakba. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces conduct house searches and raids in al-Ram, arresting 1 Palestinian. (MNA, WAFA 5/13; PCHR 5/14; PCHR 5/21)

ICC prosecutor Bensouda says that she has not been provided any official information from either the Palestinians or Israel relating to Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip in 7–8/2014, and that, unless that changes, her decision to launch a full investigation will be based on publicly available materials. (AP, JP 5/13)

Israeli PM Netanyahu’s new govt. presents a document to the Knesset outlining the basic principles binding its ruling coalition. In language similar to that used for the 2009 and 2013 govts., it says that the govt. will work toward a peace agreement with the Palestinians, but it does not specify a 2-state solution. It also notes that “if an agreement of this kind is reached [with the Palestinians], it will be brought for the approval of the cabinet and Knesset, and if necessary, a national referendum as well.” (AFP, HA 5/13)

In an interview published today, U.S. Pres. Obama says that the U.S. is “taking a hard look” at its positions regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and that the Palestinians “deserve an end to the occupation and the daily indignities that come with it.” Obama is hosting several leaders of the GCC countries at a summit in Washington today to discuss regional issues. (AWS, HA, REU 5/13)

The head of the Palestinian Power and Natural Resources Authority Omar Kittanah announces that the PA cabinet has approved an initiative to connect the electricity grid in the West Bank to Jordan. The PA will begin looking for funding for the project, which is estimated to cost $100 m. It is part of a regional, 3-year initiative to connect the grids of Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Egypt, Jordan, and the oPt. (MNA 5/13)

The Vatican announces that it has concluded a treaty that will recognize the state of Palestine. (AP, NYT 5/13)

Palestinian Authority (PA) pres. Mahmud Abbas implements a longawaited cabinet reshuffle that retains Salam Fayyad as PM. The new 24-member cabinet has 11 new members, including replacements for 2 ministers in the outgoing government who were charged with corruption. The notable addition to the cabinet is former university president and political independent Nabil Kassis as finance minister. (AFP 5/16; NYT 5/21)

The Israel Defense Force (IDF) conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Hebron and nr. Tubas; conducts late-night patrols in 1 village nr. Ramallah. (PCHR 5/23; OCHA 5/25)

Abbas swears in a 12-mbr. emergency cabinet; issues a presidential decree suspending article 79 of the Basic Law allowing the PC to vote out the government by a no-confidence vote and requiring PC approval for all ministerial appointments. The cabinet comprises mostly independent technocrats, except for veteran Fatah mbr. ‘Abd al-Raziq Yahiya, named interior minister to control the PA security branches. Hamas rejects Abbas’s actions as illegal. Both Hamas and Abbas stress, however, that Gaza and the West Bank must continue to be considered a single administrative and political unit as laid out in the 1993 Oslo Accord, rejecting Israel’s appeal to the U.S. that they officially be “delinked.” In Gaza, some 1,000 Fatah loyalists encamp at the Erez crossing, requesting transit to the West Bank, afraid to leave the corridor for fear of reprisals. In Khan Yunis, residents report Hamas mbrs. going door to door collecting unauthorized weapons. The Army of Islam releases a video rejecting Hamas demands to release BBC reporter Johnston, threatening to kill him if Hamas goes after the group. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron, Nablus, Ramallah. (AYM, MNA, QA 6/17 in WNC 6/18; NYT, WP, WT 6/18; OCS 6/18 in WNC 6/19; NYT, PCHR 6/21)

Social/Economic/Political

Occupied Palestine/Israel: Commercial strike continues in E. Jerusalem. Stores open in Gaza City [WP 1/27]. Shopowners heed call of Unified National Command for the Uprising in the Occupied Territories, strike in many W. Bank cities and towns [LAT 1/27]. Trials of Gazans arrested during uprising slow to "standstill" as scores of defendants demand full hearings [FBIS 1/27]. Moshe 'Amirav leaves Herut Movement after being removed from its central com. [FBIS 1/27]. Israeli authorities order al-Fajr's Gaza office closed for 1 year [FJ 1/3 1]. Hebron U. reopens after 1-month military-ordered closure [FJ 1/31].

Arab World: In Beirut, Islamic Jihad for the Liberation of Palestine says fate of 4 Beirut University College professors it is holding hostage is linked to Israeli arrests of Palestinians inoccupied territories [WP 1/27].

Other Countries: U.S. State Dept. announces Sec. of State Shultz will meet with al-Fajr editor Hanna Siniora and Gaza attorney Fayiz Abu Rahmah. Egypt's Pres. Husni Mubarak arrives in Washington for 3-day official visit. Elyakim Rubinstein, Israeli cabinet sec., holds talks with Charles Hill, aide to Sec. of State Shultz [NYT 1/27].

Military Action Occupied Palestine/Israel: Israeli troops open fire on demonstrators in Gaza Strip's Jenin refugee camp, wounding 1. Curfew on Jabalya is lifted but reimposed after crowds throw Molotov cocktails at Israeli patrol [WP 1/27; FJ 1/31]. In the West Bank, military imposes curfews on village of Qabatiyyah and Jenin camp following violent demonstrations. Curfews imposed on Tulkarm and Bayt 'Ur al-Tahta are lifted; military lifts curfew on Balata, declares camp closed military zone. Sa'ir village remains under siege and nearby village of al-Shuyukh is also blockaded. Israeli troops use rubber bullets to disperse stone-throwing crowd in Jalazun refugee camp, injuring 1; another Jalazun resident is severely beaten. Curfew is imposed on camp. Demonstrations are also reported in al-Birah and Ramallah [FJ 1/31].

Arab World: Israeli warplanes stage mock raids over Sidon, drawing anti-aircraft fire [FBIS 1/27].