The Palestine Chronology

The IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Balata r.c., causing a 65-yr.-old Palestinian woman to suffer a fatal heart attack; fires on a taxi nr. Erez crossing carrying 2 international aid workers, seriously injuring the driver; shoots, wounds a Palestinian working in a field nr. Jabaliya. The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), Islamic Jihad claim joint responsibility for firing a rocket-propelled grenade at an IDF jeep nr. Netzarim, causing no damage or injuries. Hamas fires 3 mortars at Jewish settlements in Gaza, causing no damage or injuries. (PCHR 1/13)

After the Knesset approves (58–56, with 6 abstentions) the formation of a Likud– Labor–United Torah Judaism coalition, the new Israeli government is sworn in. 13 Likud mbrs. vote against the coalition or abstain. (HA 1/10; NYT, WP 1/11; PR 1/12; MEI 1/21)

The IDF makes a predawn raid on Rafah, shelling residential areas, demolishing 10 Palestinian homes and a carpentry workshop; during the operation, 1 IDF soldier is wounded by a Palestinian sniper. Later in the day in Rafah, the IDF deliberately fires on a PRCS ambulance, 5 uniformed doctors, 2 uniformed nurses, a clearly identified driver distributing first aid kits (donated by Germany) to Palestinians made homeless by IDF demolitions in an attempt to scare them away, causing no injuries. In Nablus, the IDF detains 3 BBC journalists, a Palestinian doctor who attempt to enter an apartment for a prescheduled interview with a resident, not realizing that the building had been occupied as an IDF observation post; the IDF releases them with an apology after 3 hrs. of questioning. The IDF also bulldozes 100 dunams of land in Mughraqa nr. Netzarim settlement, destroying 5 wells and related irrigation works; conducts arrest raids in Balata r.c., Tulkarm; raids the Islamic Charitable Association of Hebron, confiscating computers and office equipment, sealing the offices; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis; conducts house searches, arrest raids in Tulkarm and villages nr. Bethlehem, Hebron. Late in the evening, the IDF raids Gaza City’s Zaytun neighborhood, searching homes, shelling and firing on residential areas. (AFP, HA, PM, XIN 7/12; HA 8/13; PR 8/18; PCHR 8/19)

The IDF partially reopens the Erez crossing into Israel for the 1st time since 3/15, issuing permits for 513 Palestinian workers over age 35 (though only around two-thirds are able to enter Israel because of prolonged searches). The IDF also sends tanks, troops into Palestinian residential areas nr. Gaza’s Netzarim settlement, creating sand berms around 4 Palestinian homes, causing some damage to the buildings, destroying a well and a bird farm; conducts arrest raids in Tubas; fires on stone-throwing Palestinians in Balata r.c. and Nablus, wounding 5; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus; shells residential areas of Khan Yunis; raids a home in Hebron, severely beating 25 residents; razes a grove of 400 olive trees in s. Nablus for construction of a new separation wall segment. (VOP 6/17 in WNC 6/19; PCHR 6/24)

The IDF catches a 16-yr.-old Palestinian boy wearing a suicide bomb at a checkpoint s. of Nablus, defuses the bomb, detains the boy; the Balata r.c. AMB takes responsibility, angering many Palestinians. The IDF also sends 25 tanks, bulldozers into Khan Yunis to raze 5 farms, 7 Palestinian homes that allegedly “provided cover” for Palestinian gunmen, also demolishing a main road and effectively dividing the town in half; fires on stone-throwing Palestinians in Hebron (wounding 8), residential areas nr. Qalqilya; conducts arrest raids in Aida r.c., ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a r.c., Balata r.c., Dahaysha r.c., Jayyus, Nablus, Tubas nr. Jenin; temporarily occupies a Palestinian home nr. Nablus as an observation post. Palestinian gunmen fire on an IDF patrol outside Gaza’s Gadid settlement, lightly injuring 1 soldier; also fire on IDF soldiers nr. Ramallah, nr. Netzarim settlement, causing no damage or injuries. A Palestinian dies of injuries received on 2/11. (BBC, HA, REU, WT 3/24; VOP 3/24 in WNC 3/26; MM, NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 3/25; AYM 3/26 in WNC 3/30; PR 3/31; PCHR 4/1; MEI 4/2; PR 4/7)

In Washington, Weisglass, Eiland present U.S. officials (including Rice) Sharon’s “preferred plan” for unilateral disengagement fr. Gaza plus 6 settlements in the West Bank (Ganim, Hermesh, Homesh, Mevo Dotan, Qadim, Sa-Nur). (MM 3/24; MM 3/26; HA 3/28)

The IDF assassinates Hamas spiritual leader and founder Shaykh Ahmad Yasin, firing 3 internationally banned flechette missiles at him as he leaves a Gaza City mosque after morning prayers, also killing 3 bodyguards, 4 bystanders, wounding at least 17 Palestinians, including Yasin’s 2 sons. Immediately, 100,000s of Palestinians take to the streets throughout the territories to protest the assassination. The IDF seals Gaza; clashes with Palestinian demonstrators in Balata r.c. (killing an al-Najah Radio correspondent in Balata r.c., apparently thinking his mobile phone was a weapon), Bethlehem, Dayr al-Balah, Hebron (fatally shooting 1 Palestinian watching fr. his balcony), Jenin, Khan Yunis (killing 3 Palestinians), Nablus; fires on residential areas of Rafah, Qalqilya, Tal Zu’rub; imposes a curfew on areas around Jenin, fires on residential areas; temporarily occupies a Palestinian home as an IDF post nr. Dayr al-Balah. 100s of Palestinian youths in East Jerusalem gather at checkpoints to throw stones at IDF soldiers; Palestinian prisoners in 2 Israeli jails riot. Palestinians fire Qassam rockets, mortars, antitank rockets at Gush Katif and Netzarim settlements, nearby IDF posts, the western Negev, damaging 2 apartments in Netzarim but causing no injuries. An ax-wielding Palestinian fr. the West Bank village of Bidiyya wounds 3 Israelis outside an army base in Tel Aviv before being arrested. An unidentified assailant said to be Arab stabs, lightly wounds 3 Israelis on a Jaffa bus. 4 Palestinians are arrested for beating up a Jewish settler in East Jerusalem. Jewish settlers detain, beat a Palestinian man in the Jordan Valley. An estimated 200,000 Palestinians, including reps. of all Palestinian factions, take part in Yasin’s funeral services later in the day, with 21 PSF officers forming an honor guard for Yasin’s coffin, Gaza churches ringing their bells, mosques broadcasting Qur’anic verses. Meanwhile, Israeli defense chiefs meet, agree to target the entire remaining Hamas leadership immediately, without waiting for another Hamas attack. Israel also announces that it will close the only mental health clinic serving East Jerusalem Palestinians (1,200 patients) because of “security concerns.” (AP, BBC, CSM, HA, MA, MM, NYT, REU, WP, WT 3/22; AP, ATL, ITARTASS, MNR, MENA, IDF Radio, IRNA, ITARTASS, JP, VIRI, VOI, VOP, XIN 3/22 in WNC 3/24; al-Arabiyya TV [Dubai], Syrian Arab News Agency 3/22 in WNC 4/27; AFP, BBC, CSM, HA, JT, MM, NYT, WP, WT 3/23; AFP, AYM, DUS, HA, al-Hayat al-Jadida, JT, MA, MENA, al-Ra’i, THWR, TSHR, VIRI, YA 3/23 in WNC 3/25; MM, NYT, PR, WP 3/24; ATL, ITAR-TASS, Izvestiya, JT, al-Ra’i, SA, VOP, XIN 3/24 in WNC 3/26; AYM 3/24 in WNC 4/3; JT, MM, PCHR, WJW 3/25; ITAR-TASS, MENA, NHR, VIRI 3/25 in WNC 3/27; MM 3/26; MNR 3/27 in WNC 3/30; AYM 3/30, VOP 3/31 in WNC 4/2; MEI 4/2; PCHR 4/15)

In Washington, Shalom holds further talks on Sharon’s disengagement plan with VP Dick Cheney, Powell, Rice. (WP 3/23)

The IDF imposes a curfew on Ramallah, along with Shin Bet raids 4 banks to seize $6.7 m.–$9 m. from 400 accounts allegedly “linked to terrorist activities”; troops clash with local Palestinians, leaving 57 wounded. The IDF also imposes a curfew on Husan; begins bulldozing land nr. Netzarim settlement confiscated on 2/23; demolishes a Palestinian home in Bayt Hanina; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Aida r.c., Balata r.c., Bayt Fajr, Bayt Jala, Bethlehem. In the n. Israel village of Be’einei, Israeli authorities demolish 3 Israeli Arab homes that were “illegally built,” bulldoze 10.5 dunams of olive groves, clash with residents (wounding 3, arresting 6). (AP, HA, IDF press release, PRCS 2/25; AFP, VOP 2/25 in WNC 2/27; HA, LAW, NYT, PCHR, REU, WP, WT 2/26; VOP 2/26 in WNC 2/28; CSM, Guardian, MM 2/27; AYM, JT 2/27 in WNC 3/2; JT 3/2 in WNC 3/4; MM, PR 3/3; MM 3/4; PCHR 3/11)

An AMB suicide bomber fr. Husan detonates a device on a bus in Jerusalem, killing 8 Israelis, wounding 50. Israel says that the attack is proof that Israel needs to build the separation wall. The IDF immediately sends troops into Husan, seals nearby Bethlehem. The IDF also bars an ambulance fr. crossing a checkpoint to reach a Hebron hospital, allowing an ailing Palestinian woman to die; fires in residential areas of Rafah; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Aida r.c., Balata r.c., Bethlehem; issues orders expropriating 27 dunams of Palestinian land until 12/05 for construction of a security fence around Gaza’s Netzarim settlement. A Hamas mbr. dies in Khan Yunis when a missile he is trying to fire prematurely explodes. Palestinians report that the IDF has recently begun barring Palestinians under age 35 fr. crossing checkpoints around Nablus. On the eve of the International Court of Justice hearings on the wall, Israel begins dismantling a 5-mi. stretch of the barrier running east of the n. West Bank village of Baqa‘ al-Sharqiyya; the wall running west of the village will remain; Israel also reportedly plans not to build a 12.5 mi. stretch of wall cutting Jenin off fr. the Jordan Valley, not to dig deep trenches around Ben-Gurion Airport, to remove 2,953 feet of wall in the Qalqilya area. Palestinians across the territories begin holding demonstrations against the wall to coincide with the hearings. Jewish settlers throw rocks, bottles at Palestinian cars in East Jerusalem. (AFP, NYT, WP, WT 2/22; VOP, XIN 2/22 in WNC 2/24; HA, MM, NYT, WP, WT 2/23; AFP, MENA 2/23 in WNC 2/25; al-Quds 2/23 in WNC 2/26; AP 2/25; PCHR 2/26; MM 3/12)

The IDF assassinates Hamas mbr. Nasir Abu Shuka with an exploding cell phone in Bureij r.c.; fatally shoots a PFLP mbr. who throws a grenade at an IDF patrol in Rafah; fatally shoots a Palestinian youth nr. Netzarim settlement; demolishes a Palestinian home nr. Jenin, 1 nr. Ramallah; conducts arrest raids, house searches in ‘Aza r.c., Balata r.c., Bayt Sahur, Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Nablus; bulldozes 45 dunams of land in Wadi al-Silqa. In Gaza, an AMB mbr. is killed by friendly fire during an attempted AMB ambush of an IDF patrol. Palestinians also fire an antitank rocket at an IDF patrol nr. Gaza’s Neve Dekalim settlement, causing no damage or injuries. (HA 2/5; WP 2/6; VOP 2/6 in WNC 2/10; PCHR 2/8, 2/12)

The IDF fires tank shells at 3 Palestinians firing mortars at Gaza’s Netzarim settlement in Gaza, killing them; the mortars cause no damage or injuries. The IDF also conducts arrest raids nr. Hebron, Qalqilya; demolishes a Palestinian home in Balata r.c., several structures at an UNRWA school in Dayr al-Balah. IDF chief of staff Lt. Gen. Moshe Ya’alon visits the hospitalized Israeli peace activist wounded by IDF fire on 12/26, says soldiers apparently did not know Israelis were among the demonstrators, promises a full investigation. Some 1,000 Palestinians in villages around Ramallah hold nonviolent demonstrations against the separation wall. Nr. Hebron, 5 Jewish settlers severely beat a Palestinian. (NYT, PM, WP 12/29; VOI, YA 12/29 in WNC 12/31; PCHR 1/1; MM 1/5; MEI 1/9)

The IDF withdraws forces to the outskirts of Jenin, Nablus but maintains closures on the cities; fires on residential areas of Khan Yunis, wounding an 11-yr.old Palestinian girl; conducts arrest raids in Balata r.c.; bulldozes 2 dunams of land in n. Gaza. Palestinians fire 3 Qassam rockets into Israel, fire on a Jewish settler convoy nr. Netzarim, causing no damage or injuries in either incident. (AP, PM 8/25; HA, MA, VOI, YA 8/25 in WNC 8/27; PCHR 8/28)

The IDF dismantles 5 unauthorized settlement outposts (all of them uninhabited), announces plans to remove another 9 (only 4 of them inhabited); more than 100 Jewish settlers try to bar soldiers fr. removing a water tower at 1 unpopulated site. Meanwhile, the IDF demolishes 13 Palestinian homes in Bayt Hanun, 1 in the Old City of Hebron; fatally shoots 2 Palestinians allegedly attempting to infiltrate Netzarim settlement; fires on residential areas of Bayt Hanun; raids, imposes a curfew on Tulkarm; conducts arrest raids in Balata r.c., Dayr al-Balah. Jewish settlers harass Palestinians in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Shaykh Jarrah. Israeli police round up 1,370 Palestinians laborers working inside Israel without permits. (HP 6/9; XIN 6/9 in WNC 6/12; NYT, WP, WT 6/10; PR 6/11; JP 6/11 in WNC 6/13; LAW, PCHR 6/12)

Overnight, the IDF fatally shoots a Palestinian who strays too close to Netzarim settlement. The IDF also raids Balata r.c., arresting 5 Islamic Jihad mbrs., blowing up their apartment; conducts arrest raids in al-Qarara, Salim, Tulkarm r.c. (targeting Fatah); demolishes 4 Palestinian homes containing 11 housing units in Issawiyya, 3 in Salim, 1 nr. Nablus. An Israeli court sentences an East Jerusalem Palestinian to 25 yrs. for firing on Jewish settler vehicles, causing no injuries. Israel’s Finance Min. awards the Israeli town of Sederot, which has experienced light damage and light injuries fr. Palestinian mortar and rocket attacks, “front line status,” which gives residents property and income tax breaks of up to 30% and $13.5 m. in aid. Peace Now reports that Jewish settlers have recently established anew or reoccupied at least 6 unauthorized settlement outposts. (HA 4/7; MA 4/7 in WNC 4/9; HA, PM 4/8; PR 4/9; LAW, PCHR 4/10)

Israel ends the siege on Arafat's compound in Ramallah, allowing Arafat, all those inside with him to leave; troops remain in Ramallah however. A Palestinian heart attack victim dies at an IDF checkpoint nr. Khan Yunis when troops deny his passage to a hospital for several hrs. Palestinians in Nablus defy the curfew by reopening schools. The IDF surrounds 3 Nablus schools, forces them to close; fires on curfew breakers in nearby Balata r.c., injuring 3 children. The IDF also fires tear gas into an education center for children and the mentally disabled in Shu`fat r.c., injuring 150 children; demolishes 4 Palestinian houses nr. Netzarim settlement; fires on stone-throwing Palestinian children nr. Bayt Hanun and Khan Yunis, injuring 4. (AFP, JT 9/29, Interfax, MENA, QA 9/30 in WNC 10/1; MM, NYT, WP, WT 9/30; CSM 10/1; LAW, PCHR 10/2; MEI 10/11; WP 11/8)

The Jerusalem Report, citing Britain’s respected Jane’s Foreign Report, claims that IDF special forces are currently operating inside western Iraq, with the knowledge of the U.S., to locate missile launchers that could be used against Israel. (JP 9/29)