The Palestine Chronology

For the first time in a week, a Palestinian youth allegedly stabs and injures an IDF soldier in Tel Aviv. He is arrested after the incident. Elsewhere, IDF troops arrest 8 Palestinians during raids and house searches nr. Hebron, Bethlehem, Tulkarm, and in East Jerusalem; they also patrol nr. Hebron and Salfit throughout the day. Along Gaza’s border, Israeli forces conduct limited incursions to level land nr. Khan Yunis and establish a watchtower nr. Gaza City. (HA, MNA, TOI 5/30; PCHR 6/2)

The Israeli cabinet unanimously approves Yisrael Beytenu chair Lieberman as DM; the Knesset approves his appointment in a 55–43 vote, and he is then sworn in. In a press conference following the vote, PM Netanyahu welcomes Egyptian pres. al-Sisi’s 5/17 speech calling for a return to Palestinian-Israeli peace talks predicated on the Arab Peace Initiative, stating that the initiative has some “positive elements.” His embrace of the Arab Peace Initiative is widely viewed as a ploy to deflect allegations that he has formed the most rightwing govt. in Israeli history and has no intention of making peace with the Palestinians. (HA, JP, KNE, MNA, TOI, YA 5/30; REU 5/31)

In the West Bank, IDF troops arrest 6 Palestinians and issue 1 arrest summons during raids nr. Ramallah, Hebron, Bethlehem, and Qalqilya; and patrol nr. Hebron and Nablus. Israeli settlers set fire to and destroy 15 olive trees nr. Nablus, and throw stones at Palestinian vehicles nr. Salfit, damaging 1. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrest 2 Palestinians and issue arrest summons to 5 during raids in Kafr ‘Aqab, the Old City, and Silwan. Meanwhile, a Palestinian man demolishes his own home in Silwan to avoid paying Israeli demolition fees. (PLONAD 5/28; PCHR 6/2; OCHA 6/9)

PA pres. Abbas meets with Egyptian pres. al-Sisi in Cairo to discuss the Egyptian effort to restart direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks alongside the French effort to host a multilateral peace conference in Paris, scheduled for 6/3. Meanwhile, the Arab League meets in Cairo and endorses the French peace initiative. (AP, JP, MNA, TOI 5/28; JP, TOI 5/29)

IDF troops violently disperse Palestinians, Israelis, and international activists at Friday protests against Israel’s occupation, settlements, and separation wall in 4 areas nr. Ramallah (Ni‘lin, Nabi Salih, Jalazun r.c., and Silwad) and 1 nr. Qalqilya, as well as along Gaza’s border nr. al-Bureij r.c.; 3 Palestinians are injured. For the first time in 11 years, the IDF refrains from using violent crowd control methods to disperse the Friday protest in Bil‘in nr. Ramallah. Elsewhere in the West Bank, Israeli forces return the bodies of 2 Palestinians killed in confrontations with Israeli forces since the surge of violence began in 10/2015 (1 on 5/23 nr. Jerusalem and 1 in Hebron on 3/24). They also level Palestinian land nr. Salfit to clear the area surrounding a nearby settlement. IDF troops arrest 3 Palestinians and issue 1 arrest summons during late-night raids nr. Bethlehem, Tulkarm, and in Hebron; and also patrol nr. Hebron during the day. Israeli settlers throw stones at Palestinian vehicles nr. Salfit, damaging 1. In Gaza, a small armed group fires a rocket toward Israel, but it falls short of the border fence, causing no damage or injuries. (MNA, TOI 5/27; TOI 5/28; PCHR 6/2)

IDF troops arrest 18 Palestinians and issue an arrest summons to a 19th during late-night raids in and around Nablus, Salfit, Hebron, and Bethlehem. Meanwhile, Israeli forces confiscate a number of water pipes from Khirbat alHadidiya village in the Jordan Valley. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrest 4 Palestinians during late-night raids in Issawiyya and Abu Dis. (WAFA 5/24; PCHR 5/27)

In a meeting with French PM Valls in Ramallah, PA PM Rami Hamdallah rejects Israeli PM Netanyahu’s 5/23 call for direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Elsewhere, a U.S. official says that the Obama admin. is skeptical of Netanyahu’s push for bilateral talks, saying “we of course support meaningful negotiations, [but] we do not believe in negotiations just for the sake of negotiations.” (AFP, HA, JP, JTA, MNA, TOI 5/24)

IDF troops violently disperse Palestinians, Israelis, and international activists at Friday demonstrations against Israel’s occupation, separation wall, and settlements in 5 areas nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Ni‘lin, Silwad, Jalazun r.c., and Nabi Salih), 1 each nr. Qalqilya and Salfit, and along Gaza’s border nr. al-Bureij r.c.; 3 Palestinians are injured. Meanwhile, the Israeli authorities return the bodies of 2 Palestinians killed in a confrontation with Israeli forces in Israel on 3/8. IDF troops conduct late-night raids in 1 village each nr. Qalqilya, Nablus, and Hebron. They assault and injure 1 Palestinian, issue an arrest summons to another, and destroy and confiscate some personal property. During the day, the IDF patrols nr. Hebron and Ramallah. (MNA 5/20; JP, TOI 5/21; PCHR 5/27)

Israeli DM Moshe Ya’alon announces his resignation from the Defense Ministry and the Knesset, following PM Netanyahu’s public offer (5/18) for Yisrael Beytenu chair Lieberman to replace him as DM. Likud’s Yehuda Glick, the leader of the messianic Temple Mount movement, will replace Ya’alon in the Knesset. Later, Netanyahu says he “regret[s]” Ya’alon’s decision and says he wishes Ya’alon had “continued to be a full partner in the leadership of the state, in the role of FM.”(HA, MNA, TOI, YA 5/20; ALM 5/24)

A Gazan farmer is injured when he accidentally detonates a piece of unexploded Israeli ordnance nr. Dayr al-Balah. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrest a Palestinian youth allegedly planning to carry out a stabbing attack in Shu‘fat. They also arrest 6 Palestinians during raids in Silwan, Jabal Mukabir, al-Tur, and Issawiyya. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols nr. Ramallah, Hebron, Tulkarm, and Salfit. (MNA, WAFA 5/19; PCHR 5/27)

A day after offering him the defense portfolio, Israeli PM Netanyahu agrees to Yisrael Beytenu chair Lieberman’s main demand for bringing his party into the ruling coalition: support for new legislation lowering the bar for death penalty sentences for Palestinians found guilty of serious crimes in military courts, meaning it would only affect Palestinians living in the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt). (HA, JP, TOI 5/19)

U.S. secy. of state Kerry confirms that he plans to attend the upcoming Paris peace summit, which the French have now rescheduled for 6/3 to accommodate his schedule. Russian FM Sergey Lavrov is also set to attend. (HA, JP 5/19)

In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces return the bodies of 2 Palestinians killed in confrontations with Israeli forces on 3/8 and 10/17/2015. They also arrest 6 other Palestinians during raids in Issawiyya and Kafr ‘Aqab; detain a Palestinian youth nr. the Old City after he allegedly stabs and lightly injures an Orthodox Jew. Outside the city, Israeli forces disassemble 12 EUdonated mobile homes nr. al-‘Izzariya, displacing approximately 90 bedouin Palestinians. In the West Bank, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops conduct latenight house searches and raids in 1 village each nr. Hebron and Ramallah, arresting 3 Palestinians (including 1 mbr. of the Palestinian Legislative Council); and patrol during the day nr. Hebron, Jenin, Salfit, and Qalqilya. They also violently disperse Palestinian youths throwing stones nr. Ramallah, injuring 1. Along Gaza’s border, IDF troops open fire on Palestinian farmers working nr. Gaza City, causing no injuries. (HA, MNA, WAFA, YA 5/16; HA, MNA 5/17; PCHR 5/19)

IDF troops violently disperse Palestinians, Israelis, and international activists at Friday demonstrations against Israel’s occupation, settlements, and separation wall in 4 villages nr. Ramallah (Bil‘in, Ni‘lin, Silwad, and Nabi Salih), 1 nr. Qalqilya, and along Gaza’s border nr. al-Bureij r.c.; 6 Palestinians are injured. They also patrol in 3 villages nr. Hebron, 2 nr. Ramallah, and 1 nr. Salfit. Meanwhile, Israeli settlers assault a Palestinian and her child in c. Hebron, causing no serious injuries. (MNA 5/13, 5/14; PCHR 5/19)

The Egyptian authorities open the Rafah border crossing for the 1st of 2 planned days, allowing Palestinians to enter and exit Egypt for the 1st time since 2/2016. Elsewhere in the oPt, the IDF implements a “general closure” of the West Bank and Gaza ahead of Israel’s so-called Independence Day. Only humanitarian and medical cases are permitted to use border crossings. In the West Bank, IDF troops raid a village n. of Jerusalem overnight, sparking clashes with stone-throwing Palestinian youths; 2 Palestinians are injured (1 seriously). They also confiscate surveillance tapes during a raid of a supermarket nr. Bethlehem; conduct further raids and house searches nr. Ramallah and Salfit, arresting 2 Palestinians; patrol nr. Hebron. (JP, MNA, WAFA 5/11; MNA 5/13; PCHR 5/19)

Late at night in East Jerusalem, Israeli forces return the body of a Palestinian killed in a confrontation with Israeli border police in 11/2015. Meanwhile, Israeli forces arrest 4 Palestinians during late-night raids in Jabal Mukabir, Qalandia r.c., and Issawiyya; and assault and arrest a Palestinian in the Old City. Along Gaza’s border, Israeli forces open fire on Palestinian farmers working nr. Khan Yunis, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, Israeli forces raze 50 dunams (around 12.3 acres) of Palestinian land nr. Qalqilya, uprooting 50 olive trees; and issue a stopwork order to a water pipeline under construction in the Jordan Valley. IDF troops conduct late-night house searches and raids nr. Ramallah, Hebron, Bethlehem, and Nablus, arresting 10 Palestinians and confiscating some property; patrol nr. Hebron, Ramallah, Salfit, and Tulkarm. (MNA, WAFA 5/8; MNA 5/9; PCHR 5/12)

In the West Bank, IDF troops shoot and kill a Palestinian driver after he allegedly rams a group of Israeli soldiers nr. Ramallah, injuring 3 (1 seriously). Palestinian witnesses say the crash was an accident. In the evening, the IDF returns the body of the Palestinian driver. Overnight, Israeli forces carry out the punitive demolition of the doors and windows of an apartment in Nablus, where a Palestinian deemed complicit in the 10/1/2015 killing of 2 Israeli settlers lived. IDF troops violently disperse Palestinian journalists conducting a sit-in nr. Ramallah marking World Press Freedom Day; there are no serious injuries. They also conduct late-night raids and house searches nr. Jenin, Ramallah, and Bethlehem, arresting 8 Palestinians; patrol nr. Hebron and Nablus. More than 2,000 Israeli settlers, along with an IDF escort, perform religious rites in a Palestinian village nr. Salfit late at night. In East Jerusalem, Israeli forces arrest 1 Palestinian on a patrol in the Old City and a 2d during a raid in al-Tur. Along Gaza’s border, armed Palestinians open fire on IDF vehicles patrolling nr. Jabaliya r.c., causing damage. The cross-border shooting comes shortly after Israeli PM Netanyahu toured the area this morning. (HA, JP, MNA, TOI, WAFA, YA 5/3; MNA 5/4; PCHR 5/5; OCHA 5/6; PCHR 5/12)