The Palestine Chronology

The IDF conducts house searches in Hebron’s al-Takrusi neighborhood. In Sa’ir nr. Hebron, 2 Palestinians are killed, 1 is wounded by unexploded IDF ordnance. Jewish settlers fr. Ramat Yishai in Hebron beat 3 Palestinian children ages 7–17. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize Palestinian homes in Hebron. In Bureij r.c., ESF, Fatah mbrs. exchange fire, leaving 1 bystander wounded. PA security forces in Jenin protest the Hamas-led government’s failure to pay back salaries. Some 1,000 PA security forces protest on the same issue in Gaza, where demonstrators storm the PC building, fire in the air, exchange fire with PC security guards and the ESF. (OCHA 12/13; PCHR 12/14; AIC 1/17)

Israel says it will not expand the Gaza cease-fire to the West Bank, noting that Palestinians have fired 15 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel since the unilateral truce went into effect on 11/26. IDF troops on the Gaza border e. of Gaza City fire on Palestinian farmers who stray too close to the border fence, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF fires on stone-throwing youths in ‘Askar r.c. nr. Nablus, killing a 15-yr.-old Palestinian; patrols in Hebron’s al-Rajabi neighborhood, firing percussion grenades, severely beating a 16-yr.-old Palestinian boy who throws stones at troops; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Ramallah and in Hebron, Nur al-Shams r.c. nr. Tulkarm, al-Sammu‘. A Jewish settler injures 3 Palestinians in a deliberate hit-and-run at Hawara checkpoint outside Nablus. Jewish settlers fr. Haggai nr. Hebron fire on a Palestinian home in nearby Khirbat Qalqas, seriously wounding a 6-yr.-old Palestinian boy. Under IDF protection, Jewish settler women fr. Kiryat Arba hold a gathering on a plot of Palestinian land, which they have planned to confiscate for some time, adjacent to the settlement. (MM, NYT, WP 12/4; OCHA 12/6; PCHR 12/7; AIC 1/17)

The IDF patrols in al-Sammu‘ nr. Hebron, occupying a house as an observation post, search a car, firing tear gas at school children; searches homes nr. Kiryat Arba settlement in Hebron, occupying 2 as IDF posts to protect the movement of local settlers; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Karma nr. Hebron; raids, seals the al-Buraq Center for Islamic Studies in Ramallah, confiscating documents, computers. A 10-yr.-old Palestinian boy dies of injuries received fr. IDF fire on Jabaliya r.c. on 11/25. (OCHA 12/6; PCHR 12/7)

In response to Palestinian rocket fire on 10/13, Israeli DM Amir Peretz approves an escalation in IDF border operations in Gaza. Overnight, the IDF pulls out of Abasan but sends tanks, troops into n. Gaza nr. Jabaliya r.c., exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen, conducting air strikes on a house, engaging in armed clashes nearby, killing at least 4 Hamas mbrs., 2 bystanders, wounding 15 before withdrawing; launches air strike on Rafah, which destroys a Palestinian house (warning the residents in advance to evacuate, damaging several nearby houses); bulldozes a Palestinian home in Bayt Hanun. The IDF also sets up a new Palestinian detention center inside Israel nr. the Gaza border. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Tubas nr. Jenin, firing on downtown areas, wounding 3 Palestinian children; conducts arrest raids, house searches, random ID checks in and around Hebron. IDF soldiers, Jewish settlers wall off 50 d. of Palestinian land around an IDF base outside Kiryat Arba. (NYT 10/14; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 10/15; PCHR 10/19)

Overnight, the IDF raids Abasan nr. Khan Yunis to search for tunnels, exchanging fire with armed Palestinians and firing on residential areas (wounding around 12), making an air strike on Hamas mbrs. (killing 3 Hamas mbrs. and 2 bystanders, including a 13-yr.-old boy; wounding 5 bystanders, 2 Hamas mbrs.), searching and occupying Palestinian homes as operational bases; makes air strikes destroying 2 Palestinian homes in Jabaliya and Gaza City, a metal workshop in Gaza City, warning occupants prior to the attacks; expands operations during the day, firing on residential areas (killing 1 Palestinian civilian), rounding up male residents ages 15–40 for interrogation. The IDF also fires on Palestinian fishing boats off s. Gaza, damaging several but causing no injuries; makes an air strike late in the evening destroying a house in Gaza City in an attempt to assassinate Hamas cmdr Ashraf Farwana, instead killing his brother, 2 bystanders (including a 2-yr.-old girl), wounding 10 bystanders; makes air strikes destroying 2 auto shops in Gaza City. For the 1st time in over 1 mo., Hamas fires 6 rockets into Israel in response, damaging a power line to Sederot. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Tulkarm, firing on residential areas. Also in Gaza, suspected Hamas gunmen fatally shoot a PA General Intelligence Services officer. Late in the evening, suspected Fatah gunmen fatally shoot a local Hamas leader in Bayt Lahiya. In Bayt ‘Umar nr. Hebron, unidentified gunmen shoot, wound a Hamas mbr. Jewish settlers in Hebron prevent local Palestinians fr. harvesting olives. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba stone Palestinian homes in Hebron. (NYT, REU, WP, WT 10/13; OCHA 10/18; PCHR 10/19)

The IDF makes an arrest raid into Rafah, fatally shooting a Palestinian bystander outside his home; makes an air strike destroying a Palestinian house in Rafah that allegedly hid the opening of a smugglers tunnel (warning the residents in advance to evacuate), severely damaging 8 nearby homes; bulldozes 3 d. of agricultural land nr. Sufa crossing. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, nr. Hebron. Some 20 armed Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack a Palestinian house in Hebron, beat 2 Palestinians. (PCHR 9/21)

In Gaza, the IDF withdraws fr. Khuza‘a, ending a 3-day operation. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in cars with Palestinian license plates into Qabatya, shoots, wounds 2 Palestinians (at least 1 of whom is a wanted AMB mbr., Rashid Zakarna), also shoots, wounds 2 unarmed Palestinians who come to their aid; the units detain all 4 men, shooting execution style Zarkana and 1 of the men who came to his aid, Kamil al-Lubani; the units then raid a wedding party nearby, firing indiscriminately, wounding 12 Palestinian civilians (1 is declared clinically dead). The IDF patrols in Hebron; raids the Prisoners’ Supporters Association (PSA) offices in Jenin, Nablus, Qalqilya, and Salfit, confiscating computers and files, sealing the offices for 2 yrs.; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin (also raiding the offices of attorney Fadl Bushnaq, confiscating computers and files, sealing the office for 2 yrs.; bulldozes 50 d. of Palestinian land nr. Kiryat Arba in Hebron for construction of a new settler-only bypass road. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba, escorted by the IDF, bulldoze a large area of Palestinian land w. of the settlement. In Khan Yunis, unidentified Palestinian gunmen fire on a Force 17 officer, wounding a bystander. Elsewhere in Gaza, unidentified Palestinian gunmen fire on a PA military intelligence officer, killing a Palestinian bystander. (OCHA 9/13; PCHR 9/14)

Israel lifts the air blockade on Lebanon but continues to patrol off the Lebanese coast after its self-declared 6:00 P.M. deadline, stating that too few international vessels have taken up patrols to enforce an arms embargo. Israel also continues surveillance overflights of Lebanon, saying it has no plans to end them. (NYT, WP, WT 9/8)

IDF troops inside Israel fire across the border into Gaza at Palestinian farmers working their fields nr. Bureij r.c., wounding a Palestinian woman and 12-yr.-old child. The IDF also shells residential areas of al-Shuka, destroying 1 Palestinian home. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into the industrial zone nr. Hebron, searches 20 industrial facilities, holding workers for several hrs.; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Balata r.c., Nablus and nr. Hebron, Jenin. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack Palestinian homes in Hebron for a 2d day. Nr. Jenin r.c., Palestinian gunmen fatally shoot a Palestinian whom they accuse of being a collaborator; no group takes responsibility. (PCHR 8/17)

The Israeli cabinet accepts (24–0, with 1 abstention) UN Res. 1701, but separately Israeli DM Peretz warns that “there is no situation in which Hizballah fires at [Israeli] forces that we will not retaliate,” and Israeli officials warn that the IDF will continue to destroy Hizballah assets in areas it controls until those areas are handed over to the Lebanese army or UNIFIL. In anticipation of the 8/14 truce, both Israel and Hizballah intensify attacks. The IDF escalates air and artillery strikes, particularly on s. Beirut (leveling an area of several 100 sq. yds., including 8 apartment buildings); also hits 50 villages and towns across s. Lebanon, focusing on areas around Tyre (targeting gas stations), Ali al-Nahri in the Biqa‘ Valley, Tiri in s. Lebanon; expands ground offensives in an attempt to take control of as much land as possible by the truce deadline, engaging in major clashes outside Tyre, in Aita alSha‘b, Bint Jubayl, and Rashaf in central s. Lebanon, and in Dayr Sirin, al-Ghanduriyya, Khiyam, Qantara further northwest; shoots down 2 Hizballah drones heading for Israel. At least 20 Lebanese civilians, 2 Lebanese soldiers, 5 IDF soldiers are killed, and 25 IDF soldiers are wounded. Hizballah fires 220–250 rockets into n. Israel, the most in 1 day to date, mostly targeting Haifa (killing 1 Israeli civilian) but also hitting Kiryat Shimona, Yaara. (IFM 8/13; NYT, WP, WT 8/14; NYT 8/15)

In Gaza, IDF troops occupy the Dahaniyya airport, seal the Rafah crossing (reopened on 8/10), raze large areas of agricultural land, destroy several greenhouses and sites used by the PA security forces, blow up what it says is a smuggler’s tunnel. In the West Bank, the IDF raids 2 hospitals in Hebron, conducts random ID checks on the streets in search of wanted Palestinians, but makes no arrests; patrols in, fires on residential areas of Azun, Jenin; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Balata r.c., nr. Bethlehem. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack Palestinian homes in Hebron. Unidentified gunmen shoot, wound a PA General Intelligence officer in Gaza City. (OCHA 8/16; PCHR 8/17)

Hizballah, the Lebanese government endorse UN Res. 1701, Hizballah says it will maintain its “natural right to resist” in keeping with international law as long as IDF troops “are practicing an occupation and acts of aggression” inside Lebanon. Meanwhile, the IDF continues heavy air and artillery strikes across Lebanon, mostly targeting infrastructure and roads, including destroying electricity plants nr. Sidon, a Lebanese army base in the Biqa‘ Valley, 2 homes nr. Bint Jubayl (killing at least 15 Lebanese civilians); air strikes are concentrated around Sidon and Tyre (cutting electricity to Tyre), in the north btwn. Akkar and Arida, and in central s. Lebanon nr. Bint Jubayl. The IDF also rapidly expands ground offensives in the south, sending in additional troops and artillery, with heavy clashes reported in the Bint Jubayl area, in Ghanduriyya and Dayr Sirin s. and w. of Marja’uyun, and s. of Tyre. Hizballah continues to fire rockets into n. Israel (hitting targets in Kiryat Shimona, Ma’alot, Safad and nearby Amirim) and downs an IDF helicopter, killing 5 IDF soldiers (including Israel’s 1st female combat fatality). The casualty toll during the day includes 24 IDF soldiers dead (2 when an IDF tank rolls over them) and 70 wounded, and at least 26 Lebanese civilians, 1 Lebanese soldier killed; the IDF claims to have killed 50 Hizballah mbrs. in the previous 24 hrs. (al-Manar TV 8/12; NYT, WP, WT 8/13)

Before dawn, the IDF responds to Hamas’s 7/3 rocket fire on Ashqelon by carrying out air strikes on the PA Interior Min. in Gaza City (destroying it and wounding at least 7 Palestinians in homes nearby, including 4 children), a Hamas-run school in Gaza City, a Hamas training camp in s. Gaza. Later, Hamas fires a 2d 2-engine Qassam rocket that lands outside Ashqelon, causing no damage or injuries, the Israeli security cabinet authorizes the IDF to step up operations in Gaza and the West Bank aimed at halting rocket fire and “striking at institutions and infrastructures that serve terrorism,” particularly targeting Hamas. During the day, the IDF moves more tanks, troops into n. Gaza and begins to push south toward Bayt Hanun and Jabaliya r.c., reoccupying fmr. settlement sites, occupying a 7th Palestinian home as an operational base, exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen and shelling (fr. land and sea) areas where militants are allegedly burying explosives, killing 1 Hamas mbr., 1 PA naval officer, wounding at least 17 Palestinians (10 PA naval officers at a barracks nr. where the Hamas mbr. was killed, 7 children). In Gaza City, 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. are killed when explosives they are handling detonate prematurely. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into ‘Ayn al-Sultan r.c. nr. Jericho, surrounds a building, orders wanted AMB cmdr. Mahmud Haymur to surrender, ordering him to undress when he emerges and then executing him by shooting him in the head at point blank range; surrounds, fires on a PA police station in Halhul nr. Hebron, demanding custody of an Israeli Palestinian believed to be held there (police allow soldiers to search the station to confirm he is not there); raids 3 Islamic charities nr. Hebron, Jenin, and Nablus, confiscating computers, vandalizing offices; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin and Nablus, nr. Tulkarm and Qalqilya, and in Bethlehem. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba, under IDF escort, begin work on a new settler bypass road linking the settlement to the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs. In Gaza City, unidentified gunmen assassinate senior Hamas mbr. Husayn Abu Ajwa, who is considered a leading promoter of religious and political reform within the movement. (IFM, NYT, PCHR, REU, WP, WT 7/5; HA, NYT, OCHA, PCHR, WP, WT 7/6; HA 7/8; PCHR 7/13; OCHA 7/18)

The IDF sends an undercover unit into Ramallah in a car with Palestinian license plates, assassinates wanted AMB mbr. Ayman Jabarin, shooting him 10 times; partially lifts the security alert on Rafah crossing, allowing EU monitors to open the crossing for several hrs.; conducts random ID checks in Hebron, seriously beating 1 Palestinian. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize several homes in the Palestinian section of Hebron. Jewish settlers fr. Ramat Yishai in Hebron beat 2 Palestinians. (IMEMC 6/22; HA 6/24; PCHR 6/29)

The IDF fires shells at 3 Palestinians attempting to sneak into Israel fr. Gaza, killing 2 Palestinians and wounding 1, also killing a PA security officer at a post nearby and wounding 5 bystanders (including a 2d security officer); patrols in Fahma and Kafr Ra’i nr. Jenin; conducts late night arrest raids, house searches in Hebron (firing percussion grenades) and in and around Nablus, Tulkarm. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize several Palestinian homes in Hebron, beat a Palestinian. (MM, PCHR, WP 6/8; PCHR 6/15)

The IDF reopens Sufa and Qarni crossings; patrols in Qarawat Bani Hassan nr. Nablus and Bidiyya nr. Nablus, conducting random ID checks; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin town and r.c. and nr. Bidiyya, Hebron, Ramallah; issues military orders confiscating 895 d. of land nr. Qalqilya for “security purposes.” Late in the evening, Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba, accompanied by 10 IDF soldiers, raid 2 Palestinian homes in Hebron, beating the residents, setting fire to at least 30 olive trees, preventing firemen fr. reaching the area. In Gaza City and Khan Yunis, Fatah, Hamas gunmen trade fire, leaving 3 gunmen and 1 bystander dead. (MM, WP 6/5; NYT 6/6; OCHA 6/7; PCHR 6/8)

The IDF fatally shoots a Palestinian taxi driver who stops to wait for a passenger nr. a sand barrier set up by the IDF nr. a checkpoint outside Nablus; sends undercover units in cars with Palestinian license plates into Azun and Hebron to arrest wanted Palestinians; also conducts arrest raids in Balata r.c. (exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen, leaving 3 wounded), Bayt Jala, Nablus, Yatta. Palestinians fire 6 rockets fr. s. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. A Jewish settler fr. Kiryat Arba injures a 3- yr.old Palestinian in a deliberate hit and run in Hebron. Jewish settlers fr. Ramat Yishai throw bottles, stones at Palestinian children (ages 7–12) playing nearby. (WP 5/6; PCHR 5/11)

The Knesset approves, swears in PM Ehud Olmert’s new cabinet, including Vice PM and FM Tzipi Livni (Kadima), DM Amir Peretz (Labor). The new coalition controls 67 of 120 parliamentary seats, with Kadima holding 29 seats, Labor 19, the ultra-Orthodox Shas 12, the Pensioners Party 7. (MM 5/4; MM, WP, WT 5/5)

The IDF reopens the Qarni crossing (closed on 4/26); conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Nablus. Palestinians fire a rocket fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries; the IDF responds by shelling n. Gaza, causing no injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize Palestinian homes in Hebron for a 2d day. (HA, IMEMC 4/30; B’Tselem press release 5/1; OCHA 5/3; PCHR 5/4)

Overnight and throughout the day, the IDF shells n. Gaza, hitting a house and a populated street in Bayt Hanun (injuring 7 Palestinians), hitting a house in Bayt Hanun (wounding 3 Palestinians), wounding 3 farmers in fields nr. Bayt Hanun and Bayt Lahiya. Meanwhile, the IDF notes a sharp decline in Palestinian rocket fire over the previous wk. The IDF also unintentionally kills a 3-yr.-old Palestinian girl nr. Ramallah by shutting a crossing gate on her head; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, nr. Qalqilya. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize Palestinian homes in Hebron. Jewish settlers ambush, attack several Palestinian cars in the Jordan Valley. (IMEMC 4/29; HA 4/30; PCHR 5/4)

The IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Qabatya and nr. Bethlehem, Qalqilya. Palestinians fire 4 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba seize and fence off 7 d. of nearby Palestinian agricultural land to expand the settlement. (HA 4/30; PCHR 5/4)

In response to Palestinians firing 3 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel overnight (causing no damage or injuries), the IDF shells the n. Gaza no-go zone fr. land and sea, severely damaging the Bayt Lahiya electricity grid, a number of houses, 3 cars. The IDF also closes the Nablus–Tulkarm road into Tulkarm, sealing the city (other access roads were closed on 3/30); conducts arrest raids, house searches in Hebron, nr. Nablus. Armed Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba uproot and take back to the settlement 60 olive tree saplings fr. nearby Palestinian land. Other Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize a Palestinian home; the IDF observes but does not intervene. Also in Hebron, Jewish settlers fr. Beit Hadasah throw bottles and stones at Palestinian school children, escorted by international peace activists, injuring 1 activist; the IDF observes but does not intervene. Separately, Jewish settlers in Hebron throw bottles and stones at Palestinians to prevent them fr. using Shuhada Street. Jewish settlers fr. Mehola attack a Palestinian shepherd grazing his sheep nr. Bayt Furik outside Nablus, violently beating him, stabbing his sheep, killing 15 and wounding 5. PM Haniyeh orders all Palestinian gunmen off Gaza City streets to reduce tensions after clashes on 3/31; the PRCs say they will observe the call, but in a show of defiance, 300 armed Fatah mbrs. march through the streets, firing in the air, demanding that the PA arrest PRC mbrs. involved in the 3/31 violence. (HA, JAZ 4/1; WT 4/2; PCHR 4/6)

Israel lifts the seal on the West Bank; partially reopens Qarni crossing for import and export of goods; continues to shell the n. Gaza no-go zone fr. land and sea, damaging several buildings but causing no injuries; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, nr. Tulkarm, and in Jalazun r.c. nr. Ramallah, Jenin town and r.c., Nablus, Tulkarm r.c. In Silwan and al-Tur (Mount of Olives), East Jerusalem, 3 Palestinian families are evicted fr. their homes (30 Palestinians in 3 apartment buildings in Silwan; 2 apartment buildings in al-Tur), which they have lived in for at least 40 yrs., after an Israeli court rules that the buildings were legally acquired by the Jewish National Fund in 1923. Jewish settlers fr. Kefar Etzion uproot Palestinian olive trees nr. Bethlehem. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba, escorted by the IDF, vandalize an empty car belonging to the PA Education Min. (OCHA 3/29; DS, PCHR 3/30; IMEMC 3/31; HA 4/3; PCHR 4/6; HA 4/23)

Abbas swears in the new Palestinian cabinet. PM Haniyeh says his government will allow Abbas to pursue peace negotiations with Israel, will continue reform efforts. The U.S. orders its diplomats, contractors not to have any further contacts with PA ministries, though contacts with Abbas, his office would be allowed; presses the international community to do the same. (AP, Canada TV, REU 3/29; AFP, HA, MM, NYT, REU, WP 3/30; VOP 3/30 in WNC 3/31; HA 3/31)

Israel closes all Gaza crossing into Israel, reimposing the full seal on the territories (set on 3/11) for parliamentary elections; sends troops into al-Fawwar r.c. to conduct arrest raids and house searches, fires on stone-throwing youths who confront the troops, wounding 6; also conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and in Bethlehem, Nablus, Tubas. Israeli security contractors guarding the separation wall nr. Jerusalem shoot, wound a Palestinian who strays too close to the wall. Islamic Jihad fires a Grad missile (an Eastern European rocket with a range greater than a Qassam but less than a Katyusha) fr. Gaza towards Ashkelon, which lands unexploded causing no damage or injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack Palestinians, vandalize property in Hebron. Separately, Jewish settlers fr. Hebron attack Palestinian children on their way to school by a Palestinian road that passes near a settleronly bypass road. Inside Israel, 2 bedouin are killed in the Negev when they accidentally detonate an unexploded Palestinian rocket. (IMEMC, YA 3/28; VOP 3/28 in WNC 3/29; HA, MM, NYT, OCHA 3/29; PCHR 3/30; MM 4/7, 4/13, 4/21)

Israel holds parliamentary elections, with voter turnout at a relatively low 63%. The Kadima party, founded by Ariel Sharon and led by Ehud Olmert, wins 29 of the 120 Knesset seats (less than expected) compared to Labor with 19 seats, Likud (the biggest loser compared with its 38 seats last election) with 12, Shas with 12, Yisrael Beiteinu with 11, National Union–National Religious Party with 9, Pensioners’ Party with 7, United Torah Judaism with 6, Meretz with 5, and 3 Arab parties with a total of 10. (MM 3/28; HA, JP, MM, NYT, WP, WT 3/29; NYT, WT 3/30; WP 3/31; XIN, YA 4/3)

The PC approves (71–36, with 2 abstentions) the Hamas-led cabinet. (NYT 3/29; XIN 3/28 in WNC 3/29)

The IDF fatally shoots an unarmed Palestinian attempting to sneak across the central Gaza border into Israel to find work; fires a missile fr. an F-16 at a road nr. Nussayrat r.c. in central Gaza; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, Qalqilya. In Tubas, 2 Palestinians are injured when they accidentally trigger unexploded IDF ordnance. Around 10 masked Jewish settlers fr. Suissa attack 3 Palestinians tending their olive trees nearby. In a separate incident in Hebron, some 20 Jewish settlers attack, seriously beat an American peace activist assisting Palestinians; he escapes his attackers and runs to a nearby IDF post, which refuses to assist him. Also in Hebron, Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack a Palestinian home, injuring 2 children. (IMEMC 3/25; VOP 3/26 in WNC 3/26; AFP 3/26; HA 3/27; MM 3/28; PCHR 3/30)

Early in the morning, the British and U.S. monitors guarding 6 political prisoners in the PA’s Jericho jail pull out of the city, citing security concerns. Within 20 minutes, the IDF encircles and imposes a curfew on Jericho, sends 80 tanks and armored vehicles, backed by helicopters, into the city, launching Operation Bring the Goods Home to take custody of the 6 prisoners (including PFLP head Ahmad Saadat). IDF troops surround the jail, order the 280 prisoners and PA guards to surrender, begin demolishing the jail and attached PA barracks, clashing with some prisoners, guards, and local Palestinians. (Although the U.S., Britain deny coordinating with Israel, Israeli DM Shaul Mofaz says Israel knew of the monitors pending departure and had been plotting the attack for 1 wk.). After 12 hrs., the remaining prisoners, including the 6 targeted men, surrender. At least 1 PA prison guard and 1 Palestinian prisoner are killed, more than 50 guards and prisoners are wounded, 10s of local Palestinians are injured. In response to the raid, Palestinian gunmen across Gaza and the West Bank (reportedly PFLP and AMB mbrs.) raid hotels, news outlets, and foreign offices, kidnapping at least 9 foreigners, vandalizing foreign-owned offices. Most foreigners kidnapped are quickly released. PA police fire on PFLP mbrs. breaking into the French Cultural Center in Gaza, killing 1 PFLP mbr., wounding 9. Some 15,000 Palestinians demonstrate in Gaza City. As a result of the violence, the UN suspends operations in Gaza; the EU withdraws observers from the Rafah crossing, forcing it to close. Meanwhile, the IDF also closes the Qarni crossing; bars a pregnant Palestinian woman fr. crossing a checkpoint to reach a Ramallah hospital, forcing her to give birth at the checkpoint; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem, nr. Hebron and Qalqilya, and in ‘Aida r.c., Jenin town and r.c., Qabatya; begins work on a new segment of the separation wall nr. Dahiyat al-Barid n. of Jerusalem. Israel releases jailed Change and Reform PC mbr. Omar ‘Abd al-Raziq on bail; he was detained 3 mos. ago on charges of belonging to and handling money for Hamas. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba hold Purim parades through Palestinian areas of Hebron under IDF escort, vandalizing Palestinian property and beating 2 Palestinian children (ages 11, 13). (AP, BBC, HA, IMEMC, JAZ, MM, PCHR, REU, XIN 3/14; HA, IMEMC, JAZ, MM, NYT, WP, WT, YA 3/15; DS, MM, NYT, PCHR 3/16; MA, Middle East News Agency, MM, VOP 3/18 in WNC 3/19; AP 3/20; MM 3/21, 3/23; HA 4/26; NYT 4/27)

The IDF conducts late night arrest raids, house searches in Hebron. In retaliation for the killing of a Palestinian girl on 1/26, the AMB, PRCs fire 4 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize Palestinian homes in Hebron. Across Gaza, 1,000s of Hamas supporters hold peaceful rallies after midday prayers to celebrate Hamas’s election victory. Meanwhile, some 15,000 Fatah mbrs. carry out angry marches across Gaza, burning cars, firing in the air, demanding that the party’s leadership resign over the party’s failure in the 1/25 elections; more than 1,000 armed Fatah mbrs. protest outside Abbas’s Gaza residence alone (he is in Ramallah); in Khan Yunis, Hamas mbrs. trade fire with Fatah mbrs. tearing down Hamas campaign protesters and PA security forces in 2 incidents, leaving 6 Palestinians (including 1 Hamas mbr., 2 PA security officers) wounded. (IMEMC, NYT, REU, YA 1/27; NYT, WP, WT 1/28; PCHR 2/2)

The IDF conducts air and artillery strikes on the n. Gaza no-go zone, also hitting a PA security post nr. Bayt Lahiya; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem and in Aida r.c., Hebron, Jenin r.c. (firing on stone-throwing Palestinians who confront the troops, wounding 6), Tulkarm. Palestinians fire 1 rocket fr. n. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. At least 1 Jewish settler wounds 2 Palestinians in a drive-by shooting nr. Nablus. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack Palestinians, damage property in Hebron. The PA releases AMB’s Hams (see 1/4). (HA, IMEMC 1/5; BBC, WP 1/6; YA 1/9; PCHR 1/19)

Sharon suffers a massive stroke. Sharon, who was expected to win a 3d term in the 3/06 elections at the head of his new Kadima party, is not expected to return to politics, throwing the elections into question. Political powers are transferred to Vice PM Ehud Olmert, Sharon’s close ally. (BBC, JTA 1/4; CSM, NYT, WP, WT 1/5; DS 1/6; CSM 1/9)

The IDF seals the West Bank, Gaza for the 4-day Muslim holiday of Id al-Adha; conducts predawn mock air raids over Gaza, breaking the sound barrier; raids a house in East Jerusalem, breaks up a mtg. being held by Change and Reform candidate Ahmad Attoun; bulldozes a Palestinian home nr. Bethlehem; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin town and r.c. (firing on stone-throwing Palestinians who confront the troops, wounding 9), in and around Bethlehem, Ramallah, Tulkarm. In continued retaliation for the 1/2 killings (see 1/3), Islamic Jihad, the AMB fire 8 rockets fr. Gaza towards Ashkelon, Sederot, and the IDF base at the Erez crossing, causing no damage or injuries. IDF soldiers, Israeli police scuffle with Jewish settlers when serving them with notices that they must evacuate by 1/15 Palestinian-owned buildings they have occupied in the Hebron central market; 4 policemen are injured. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize Palestinian homes in Hebron, bar Palestinians fr. using a road linking the settlement to the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs; the IDF observes but does not intervene. About 40 armed AMB mbrs. occupy 4 PA government buildings in Gaza, fire on a police station to protest the 1/3 arrest of AMB leader Hams; other AMB mbrs. set burning barricades on the road to the Rafah crossing (barring all but medical cases fr. reaching the border), detonate an explosive device under the Rafah border wall (causing only minor damage). AMB mbrs. later steal 2 bulldozers, tear down a 15-ft stretch of the concrete Gaza border wall; as many as 1,000 Palestinians, some armed, overrun the Egyptian border guards, who fire in the air, call in reinforcements, declare the area a closed military zone, arrest around 100 Palestinians and injure 3; during the skirmish, some Palestinians set fire to an Egyptian armored vehicle, throw hand grenades and fire at the Egyptian contingent, leaving 2 Egyptian border guards dead and around 30 injured; Egypt closes the Rafah border until further notice. The PA says it will release Hams on 1/5 in response to the protests. PA police in Gaza City, fatally shoot a Hamas mbr. hanging campaign posters. Meanwhile, 5 armed Palestinians raid a Gaza house, attempt to kidnap the parents of Rachel Corrie, an American college student who was killed by the IDF in Gaza in 2003; the gunmen back off when the owners of the home explain who the Corries are. (IMEMC, JAZ, YA 1/4; AP, HA, IMEMC, NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 1/5; HA, NYT 1/9; al-Ahram Weekly 1/10; PCHR 1/19; PLO Negotiation Affairs Dept. press release 1/23)