The Palestine Chronology

In the West Bank, Israeli settlers bring their cattle to graze on Palestinian farmland in Khirbet al-Farisiyya, destroying crops. Armed Israeli settlers force 4 Palestinian families to leave their homes in Kisan. Israeli forces shoot 5 Palestinians with live ammunition, killing 1 child and wounding 5, and shoot 8 others with baton rounds during a raid in Beit Umar. Israeli forces also seize building equipment and arrest 4 Palestinians during a raid in Deir Balut. Meanwhile, Israeli forces arrest 18 Palestinians during raids in Jericho, Hebron, Qalqilya, Nablus, and Ramallah. In East Jerusalem, Israeli settlers tour the Haram al-Sharif compound. Israeli forces demolish the home belonging to the prominent Palestinian activist Fakhri Abu Diab in Silwan, displacing 10 people. The U.S. and EU condemn the demolition. In Gaza, Israeli forces bomb Nuseirat refugee camp, Dayr al-Balah, Khan Yunis, and Gaza City, killing at least 103 people, including Al Jazeera guest analyst Ayman Rafati and his family in an airstrike on Gaza City. Rockets are fired at Zikim and Ashkelon; no damage is reported. In Lebanon, Israeli forces attack Nabatieh and as-Sawana, killing 11 civilians, including 6 children. Israeli forces also kill a Hezbollah member in Adashit. A Hezbollah strike on a military base in Safed kills 1 Israeli soldier and injures 8 others. (AJ, AJ, HA, HA, UNOCHA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 2/14; AJ, AJ, AP, HA, HA, NYT, UNOCHA, WAFA 2/15)

More than 28,576 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 11,500 children and 7,200 women, and around 68,291 have been injured since 10/7/2023. At least 8,000 people are missing in rubble, including 1,700 children. 389 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 10/7/2023, including 100 children. More than 4,475 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, 230 Israeli soldiers have been killed and 1,352 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. 130 trucks carrying aid enter Gaza. The WHO says Israel has prevented the organization from entering the Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis since 1/29. (AJ, UNOCHA, UNOCHA 2/14; UNOCHA 2/15)

Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir says Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti has been moved to solitary confinement, claiming he was encouraging the outbreak of a third intifada. Hamas has demanded that Barghouti be released as part of a ceasefire deal. (AJ 2/14; AJ 2/15)

Peace Now reports that the Israeli housing ministry has issued tenders for 523 housing units in 10 different settlements in the West Bank since the beginning of 2024. (PCN 2/14)

PA president Mahmoud Abbas issues a statement calling on Hamas to quickly finalize a ceasefire deal to avoid an Israeli invasion of Rafah. The PA requests an extraordinary meeting at the Arab League. (AJ, HA, HA, WAFA, WAFA 2/14; HA 2/15)

CIA director Bill Burns meets with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mossad director David Barnea, discussing ceasefire negotiations. Netanyahu orders the Israeli negotiation team not to return to Cairo for further talks. Netanyahu says Israel will “fight until complete victory and this includes a powerful action also in Rafah after we allow the civilian population to leave the battle zones.” Netanyahu speaks with French president Emmanuel Macron, who warns him against invading Rafah. Foreign Minister Israel Katz tells his German counterpart Anna Baerbock that UNRWA cannot be part of humanitarian assistance efforts in Gaza. Finance Minister Bezalel Smtorich and Aliyah and Integration Minister Ofir Sofer announce a plan to provide cash payments of $550 a month for 2 years to new immigrants who settle in the West Bank and in border regions in the north and south. Communications Minister Shlomo Karni approves the UAE field hospital in Gaza’s use of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service. (AJ, AX, AX, HA, NYT, REU 2/14; AJ, AX, HA, HA 2/15; AJ, HA 2/16)

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi meet in Cairo, calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. (AJ, AP, HA 2/14; HA 2/15)

U.S. president Joe Biden signs an executive order preventing Palestinians from being deported from the U.S. for a period of 18 months. The order also compels the Department of Homeland Security to issue work permits to Palestinians in the U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan confirms that Israel is blocking flour from entering Gaza. The State Department condemns the demolition of Fakhri Abu Diab’s home in East Jerusalem. (AJ, AP, AX, HA, NYT, REU 2/14)

The U.S. House of Representatives passes a resolution 418-0 condemning Hamas over accusations that Hamas used sexual violence during 10/7/2023. (HA 2/14)

Spain and Ireland call on the European Commission to investigate whether Israel is complying with international law. (AJ, AJ, HA, REU, WAFA 2/14)

The Wall Street Journal reports that the U.S. State Department is investigating Israeli usage of white phosphorus in Gaza and Lebanon. (AJ, WAFA 2/15)

The Washington Post reports that the U.S. and several Arab countries will present a long-term plan for establishing a Palestinian state, including Israeli withdrawal from many West Bank settlements, a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem, the rebuilding of Gaza, and international oversight over the Palestinian governance. (NYT, WP 2/14; HA, HA 2/15; HA 2/16)

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology bans the pro-Palestinian student group Coalition Against Apartheid. (AP, HA 2/14)

In the West Bank, Israeli forces closed off large parts of Hebron to Palestinians, including forcing Palestinians to close their shops in the Bab al-Zawyeh area to allow Israeli settlers to tour it. Israeli forces also seized an excavator in Burin. 7 Palestinians were arrested, including 5 during late-night raids in and around Bethlehem, Burqin, and Deir Ghasana, 1 was arrested at a checkpoint near al-Khader, and 1 was arrested at the entrance to Zabbuba. In East Jerusalem, nearly 1,700 Israeli settlers toured the Haram al-Sharif compound on the Jewish holiday Tisha B’Av, drawing criticism from the Israeli governing party the United Arab List, the PA, Hamas, the EU, and Jordan. Israeli forces violently dispersed Palestinian protesters on and around the Haram al-Sharif compound who were expressing anger over the settler incursion, causing injuries and 5 arrests. (AJ, AP, HA, HA, MEMO, MEMO, REU, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 7/18; MEMO, MEMO 7/19; PCHR 7/29)

The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt was open for 1 day. (MEMO, WAFA 7/19)

In a statement after the Israeli settlers had toured the Haram al-Sharif compound, Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett said the Israeli security forces had preserved “freedom of worship for Jews on the Mound [the Haram al-Sharif compound],” a significant departure from the status quo of the Holy Sites and a 1st from an Israeli prime minister. Under the status quo agreement, only Muslims have the right to worship on the Haram al-Sharif compound. 1 day later, Prime Minister Bennett clarified that the wording was a mistake and that he meant “visit” rather than “worship.” (HA, MEMO 7/18; AP, HA, JP, WAFA 7/19)

The Israeli high court of justice rejected a petition from Peace Now to stop the transfer of Israeli public funds to the Amana movement, which funds and builds unauthorized constructions in Israeli settlements and settlement outposts. (HA 7/19)

Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid said that the Israeli government would examine the diplomatic ramifications of the demolition and eviction of the bedouin community Khan al-Ahmar. (HA 7/18; MEMO 7/19)

The PFLP-GC said it had elected a new leader, Talal Naji, to replace Ahmed Jibril who died on 7/7 after months of sickness. (AP, HA 7/18)

17 news outlets published a Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International investigation based on a leak of more than 50,000 records of phone numbers, which had been targeted for surveillance with Pegasus spyware from the Israeli spyware company NSO Group’s clients. The investigation found that at least 180 journalists from 21 countries had been targeted by 12 NSO Group clients, including the governments of Bahrain, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, India, the UAE, Mexico, Hungary, Azerbaijan, Togo, and Rwanda. The investigation also found that heads of governments, including Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan, France’s president Emmanuel Macron, and Morocco’s king Mohammed VI, were among possible victims. Furthermore, the investigation showed that Pegasus spyware was installed on Saudi dissent journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s fiancée’s phone and that his son had been listed for targeting before Khashoggi was murdered by special forces in Saudi’s embassy in Istanbul on 10/2/2018. Charges against NSO Group that its spyware was used against Khashoggi have been denied by the company. The Israeli government approves all sales of spyware from NSO Group to potential clients. Amazon subsequently said it had shut down its servers used by NSO Group. The investigation comes as a different investigation into another Israeli spyware company Candiru was released on 7/15. Later, after the Forbidden Stories investigation was published and with international criticism mounting, the Knesset’s foreign affairs and defense committee chairman Ram Ben Barak on 7/22 said that his committee would review the process of granting licenses to export spyware to other countries. France and Luxembourg said they would start investigations into the Israeli-made spyware. (NYT 7/17; AI, AJ, F24, GDN, HA, HA, HA, HA, MEE, NYT 7/18; AJ, ALM, AP, GDN, MEE, MEE, MEMO, MEMO, NPR, REU, REU 7/19; AJ, ALM, AP, AP, HA, HA, HA, MEE, REU 7/20; AJ, AP, HA, HA, MEE, MEE, MEE, MEMO, MEMO, MEMO, REU, REU, REU 7/21; AJ, ALM, BBC, HA, HA, HA, HA, MEE, MEE 7/22; HA, MEE, MEE 7/23; CNN, HILL 7/25)