The Palestine Chronology

In the West Bank, Israeli forces punitively demolished the homes of 2 Palestinians in Rumana accused of killing 3 Israelis in Elad on 5/5, displacing 14 Palestinians. Israeli forces also demolished 5 residential structures and 4 agricultural structures in Arab al-Ka‘abneh. Elsewhere, Israeli forces razed 12 dunams (3 acres) of farmland planted with olive trees in Tarqumiyah. Israeli forces also issued notices that it will seize land near Sa‘ir to expand a settler road. 15 Palestinians were arrested during late-night raid in Ramallah, Silwad, Marda, Beit Furik, Jamma‘in, Ya‘bad, Bethlehem, Halhul, and Beit Kahel. In Lebanon, unknown perpetrators killed 1 Palestinian security official in Ein El-Hilweh refugee camp. (ALM, MEMO, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 8/8; MEMO 8/9; PCHR 8/11; UNOCHA 8/19)

Israel partially reopened crossings into Gaza for humanitarian aid after closing all crossings on 8/2 in anticipation of its assault on Gaza. New shipments of fuel also allowed the Gaza power plant to resume operations. (HA 8/7; AP, HA, MEMO, REU, TOI, TOI, WAFA 8/8)

Israel’s civil administration told an Israeli court that it demolished the home of a Palestinian family in the West Bank by mistake. The family of 5’s home was demolished in July by Israeli forces despite the family’s pleas that there was a court order protecting their home. The Civil Administration said that the family’s home was thought to be the home of a different Palestinian family, whose home had already been demolished and blamed the mistake on “human error.” (HA 8/10)

U.S. president Joe Biden thanked Egypt for mediating the ceasefire that went into effect on 8/7 between Israel and Islamic Jihad. (HA 8/7)

The Honduran foreign ministry said that the country is considering moving its embassy to Israel back from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv. The new Honduran government that took office in January this year said in a statement that president Xiomara Castro wants to maintain a balanced relationship with Israel and Arab countries. PA foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki discussed the Honduran consideration with Honduran foreign minister Enrique Reina in Columbia on 8/7. (HA, MEMO 8/8)

The UN envoy for the Middle East peace process warned the UN security council that the ceasefire between Islamic Jihad and Israel was fragile and that the only way to secure longtime peace is through a 2-state solution based on the 1967 lines. PA UN envoy Riyad Mansour called on members of the Security Council to protect Palestinian lives and pressure Israel to end its blockade of Gaza. The Security Council emergency session was called by France, China, Norway, Ireland, and the UAE in response to Israel’s attacks on Gaza over the weekend, dubbed Operation Breaking Dawn. (AJ, AP, HA, TOI 8/9)

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers vandalized 450 olive, plum, grape, and almond trees near Turmus ‘Ayya. 7 Palestinians were arrested, including 5 returning to the West Bank from Jerusalem at the Qalandia checkpoint, 1 crossing from the West Bank to Jordan via the Allenby Bridge, and 1 while working his land in Idhna. (WAFA, WAFA 7/12; PCHR 7/21; UNOCHA 7/22)

Haaretz reported that the World Zionist Organization’s settlement division was finalizing plans to invest $8.5 million to connect settlement outposts in the West Bank to the Israeli electrical grid and preparing plans to have the outposts retroactively authorized by the Israeli government. (HA 7/12)

Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz approved 5,500 Palestinians to be registered with the Palestinian population registry and increased Gaza merchant permits for commerce in Israel from 1,500 to 15,000. Defense Minister Gantz also gave final approval for construction in Hizma and Harmaleh and 1st level approval for construction in Haris, Kisan, and Battir. Additionally, Israel said it would open a new crossing from Israel to the northern part of the West Bank to ease access to Jenin and delayed a meeting to expand Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem. The moves were described by Israel as a result of a meeting between Gantz and PA president Mahmoud Abbas last week and comes 1 day before U.S. president Joe Biden will arrive in Israel for a 4-day tour of Israel, Palestine, and Saudi Arabia. (AP, HA, WAFA 7/12)

4 members of the U.S. senate Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and Dick Durban (D-IL), wrote a letter to U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken saying that the U.S. review of the evidence into the killing of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh “hardly constitutes an independent investigation into the overall circumstances of her killing.” In a separate letter, U.S. senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) called on the Biden administration to provide a senior-level classified briefing on the investigation details and the administration’s plan for accountability. (ALM, HA 7/12; MEE, WAFA 7/13)

Citing insufficient evidence, the foreign ministries of Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Holland, Spain, and Sweden issued a joint statement saying that the countries have decided to dismiss Israeli claims that 6 Palestinian rights organizations are linked to terrorism and will continue funding them. The rights organizations were designated terrorist organizations by Defense Minister Gantz in October 2021. (AP, HA, MEE, REU, WAFA, WAFA 7/12; MDW 7/15)

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers threw stones at 1 Palestinian vehicle driving near the Homesh settlement outpost, injuring 1 and damaging the car. Thousands of Palestinians partook in a funeral ceremony in Ramallah for Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was killed by Israeli forces on 5/11 in Jenin refugee camp. PA president Mahmoud Abbas spoke at the ceremony and awarded her the Al-Quds star of honor. Abu Akleh will be buried in East Jerusalem on 5/13. Israeli forces prevented Palestinians in the funeral procession from accompanying her casket through the Qalandia checkpoint from Ramallah to East Jerusalem. Israeli forces also demolished a water collection pond used for irrigation in Marj Na‘aj. 7 Palestinians were arrested, including 5 during a late-night raid in Hebron, Rumana, Qabatiya, and Burqin, and 2 at flying checkpoints in Hebron and Tulkarm. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces raided a house in Bayt Hanina, where friends and family of Abu Akleh were holding a memorial ceremony for her; Israeli forces confiscated Palestinian flags. Israeli police also raided Abu Akleh’s house on 5/11, confiscating Palestinian flags. 5 Palestinians were arrested during raids. (AJ, AJ, AP, CNN, GDN, HA, MEE, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 5/12; WAFA 5/13; PCHR 5/19; UNOCHA 6/4)

Israel’s higher planning council approved 4,427 new settlement housing units in the West Bank. 2,791 received final approval, while 1,636 were deposited for public comment before final approval. Among the new housing units are the retroactive legalization of the Mitzpeh Dani and Givat Oz VeGaon settlement outposts and expansion of the settlements of Negohot, Shvut Rachel, Dolev, Betar Ilit, and Kiryat Arba. According to Haaretz, the government’s meeting to approve the settlements was a condition by Yamina MK Nir Orbach to remain in the fragile government coalition. UN Middle East envoy Tor Wennesland condemned the settlement expansions. On 5/13, 15 European countries urged Israel to reverse its decision, including France, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Poland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. (PCN 5/9; ABC, AJ, AP, GDN, HA, JP, MEE, MEMO, REU, TOI, WAFA 5/12; AJ, ALM, F24, REU, WAFA, WAFA 5/13)

Ecuadorian president Guillermo Lasso met with Israeli president Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem, saying he will open a representative office in Jerusalem and support Israel in votes at the UN. President Lasso also met with prime minister Naftali Bennett and foreign minister Yair Lapid. (HA 5/12)

The New York Times reported that the FBI stated in a 2018 letter to the Israeli government that it wanted to use NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware “for the collection of data from mobile devices for the prevention and investigation of crimes and terrorism” before purchasing the spyware later the same year. (NYT 5/12)