The Palestine Chronology

For unclear reasons, IDF soldiers at the Erez crossing fire on 700 Palestinians returning from the Hajj in coordination with Israel and the PA, killing 1 Palestinian woman, wounding at least 1. Meanwhile, Palestinian pilgrims who left Gaza under a deal brokered by Hamas (see 12/5) begin to return via Egypt, where Egypt, under pressure fr. Israel, bars their passage through the Rafah crossing, saying they must go via the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing; the pilgrims refuse, believing they would be arrested for their Hamas connections. Meanwhile, the IDF fires on Hamas mbrs. laying a roadside bomb nr. the s. Gaza border fence, killing 1 Hamas mbr., wounding a bystander. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the Rafah coast, forcing them to return to shore. Hamas mbrs. fire 3 mortars fr. Rafah toward the IDF post at Kerem Shalom; the IDF responds with heavy gunfire; no injuries are reported. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Tulkarm; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron (including arresting a 10-yr.-old boy, heavily damaging 1 home), nr. Jenin. Jewish settlers throw stones, bottles at Palestinian cars traveling a main road linking Hebron and Bethlehem, damaging 1 car; the IDF observes but does not intervene. Hamas-affiliated police raid an area of Bayt Hanun to arrest a wanted Fatah mbr., fire in the air to disperse angry residents who confront them, wounding 2 (see 12/28). A similar confrontation takes place in Khan Yunis, with heavy fire but no injuries reported. Suspected Fatah mbrs. fire on a police patrol in Rafah, causing no injuries. (NYT 12/31; OCHA 1/2; PCHR 1/3)

IDF troops on the Gaza border shell Hamas mbrs. preparing to fire a mortar into Israel, killing 2, wounding at least 2. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into Bethlehem, where they are confronted by PA security officers who do not realize their identity, sparking an exchange of fire that kills 1 PA security officer. Egypt allows 2,000 Gazans to enter Egypt through the Rafah crossing for the Hajj in a deal arranged by Hamas and coordinated with Saudi Arabia, angering the PA, Israel, and the U.S. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin and in Abu Dis outside Jerusalem, Qalqilya. (NYT, PCHR 12/6; NYT 12/11; OCHA 12/12; PCHR 12/13)

The PA deploys a new 500-mbr. policing unit in Tulkarm, similar to the recently deployed Nablus unit (see Quarterly Update in JPS 146), as part of Abbas’s efforts to expand security control in the West Bank in keeping with the road map. The new unit immediately erects checkpoints around Tulkarm to search for unlicensed guns, stolen vehicles. The Israeli Housing Min. issues bids for construction of 307 new housing units in the Jewish settlement of Har Homa in East Jerusalem that would complete a ring of settlements around Jerusalem, making the division of Jerusalem all but impossible. PA senior negotiator Saeb Erakat sends an urgent message to Rice asking her to intervene to halt the settlement expansion, arguing that it is illegal and undermines efforts made at Annapolis. The UN reports that most public gas stations in Gaza are now closed because of Israeli fuel restrictions. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin r.c. and nr. Hebron, Ramallah. (AP, REU 12/4; OCHA, WP 12/5; PAP, PCHR 12/6; HA 12/20, 1/6; PCHR 1/10)

Israel agrees to allow Gazans to export flowers and strawberries, now at peak harvest, via the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing. The IDF sends troops into Abasan nr. Khan Yunis, where they exchange fire with Palestinian gunmen, wounding 3. A Palestinian bystander wounded during an 11/19 IDF raid on Khan Yunis dies. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Ramallah, and in Jenin town and r.c., Nablus. Jewish settlers fire on a Palestinian bus nr. Beit Lid Junction btwn. Nablus and Tulkarm, forcing the bus off the road but causing no injuries. In Jabaliya r.c., unidentified assailants blow up a patrol car belonging to the Hamas-affiliated Gaza police (by this date, the Hamas government in Gaza has dissolved the Executive Support Force, reorganizing members into 4 units that previously existed under the PA Interior Min.: police, internal security, national security, and naval police), causing no injuries. At Ramallah’s Birzeit University, a large fight breaks out btwn. student groups affiliated with Fatah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), leaving 1 student injured; the university suspends classes until 11/26 to contain the violence. (PCHR 11/22; OCHA 11/28; PCHR 11/29)

The West Bank and Gaza remain effectively severed from each other following Hamas’s takeover of Gaza in 6/07, with Hamas controlling Gaza and Fatah the West Bank (see Quarterly Update in JPS 145). Tight Israeli restrictions on Gaza’s borders dating from 8/07 remain in place, including reduced fuel imports, a near-total ban on exports, and limited imports of basic goods. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) roadblocks in the West Bank divide the territory into 3 cantons, and Palestinian access to the Jordan Valley is limited. In Gaza, 30,000 Palestinians attend a Hamas-organized rally in Gaza City to protest ongoing Israeli archaeological excavations nr. al-Aqsa Mosque. Some 1,500 Palestinians attend a similar Hamas rally in al-Maghazi refugee camp (r.c.), also denouncing the upcoming U.S.-sponsored Annapolis peace summit, tentatively set for 11/26–27. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin, and in ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’ r.c. nr. Nablus, Salfit; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in the weekly nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil‘in nr. Ramallah (injuring 5). Jewish settlers fr. Elon Moreh nr. Nablus set fire to 50 nearby Palestinian olive trees. Hamas releases almost all of the approximately 450 Fatah mbrs. detained during demonstrations in Gaza City on 11/12. (NYT 11/16; OCHA 11/21; PCHR 11/22)

In Gaza, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches, ID checks in Um al-Nasser nr. Bayt Lahiya, detaining 67 Palestinians for questioning, firing on residential areas (particularly to hold back a group of journalists attempting to reach the area) and making an air strike on a previously destroyed Palestinian home. Overnight, the IDF raids Balata r.c., blows up the home of a senior AMB mbr., causing no reported injuries. Late in the evening, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus and nr. Hebron, Jenin, Salfit, Tulkarm. The U.S. complains that Israel is not allowing Abbas’s security forces to expand their control of the West Bank before the Annapolis conference, citing the 11/3 confiscation of body armor intended for the PA presidential guard and the continuing raids on Nablus since the new PA security force has been deployed there, undermining its credibility. (PCHR, PAP, WT 11/8; PCHR 11/15)

To increase pressure on Hamas, Israel announces that it will begin curtailing fuel shipments to Gaza by up to 11% and that it has permanently closed the Sufa crossing (closed on 10/26 and 10/27 for the weekend), leaving Kerem Shalom (fully controlled by Israel) the sole crossing point for goods and humanitarian aid. (Officially the government calls the move “self-defense.”) Israel says that it will allow into Gaza “the minimum amount of food and medicines necessary to avoid a humanitarian crisis.” In Gaza, the IDF shoots, wounds a Palestinian fisherman laying nets on the Bayt Lahiya coast; sends troops into al-Shuka, where they exchange tank and heavy machine gun fire with armed Palestinians firing RPGs, leaving 1 Hamas mbr., 1 IDF soldier dead, 2 IDF soldiers wounded; conducts land-leveling operations inside the Gaza border nr. Dayr al-Balah, firing on residential areas, causing no reported injuries. Palestinians fire an RPG at an IDF jeep patrolling the Gaza border e. of al-Maghazi r.c., missing the target, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Ramallah. Jewish settlers fr. Itamar nr. Nablus harass Palestinians harvesting olives nearby; the IDF intervenes, forcing the settlers to leave. In Gaza City, some 300 PA workers stage a peaceful sit-in to protest nonpayment of their salaries. (NYT, WP, WT 10/29; OCHA 10/31; PCHR 11/1)

After PRC members fire more than 20 rockets into Israel (causing no damage or injuries) to protest the 10/23 assassination of PRC head Hasanat, Israeli DM Barak authorizes the IDF to cut electricity for several hrs. to parts of Gaza fr. which rockets were fired.; Dep. DM Matan Vilnai says that targeted power cuts will increasingly be used to punish the Palestinians as long as rocket fire continues and that he expects electricity to be cut by two-thirds in the coming weeks. In the evening, IDF fires a surface-to-surface missile at a suspected rocket-launching site e. of Gaza City, killing 2 Palestinian boys (ages 14, 17), wounding 2 other Palestinians; sends troops into Abasan, where they clash with armed Palestinians, wounding 2. A Hamas mbr. is killed when a smuggling tunnel on the Rafah border collapses. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem and Hebron, and in Jenin r.c. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar nr. Nablus prevent local Palestinians fr. harvesting their olive groves. Armed Palestinians fire on a bus stop outside Ariel settlement, wounding 3 Jewish settlers. ESF officers storm and occupy a Fatah office in central Gaza; no injuries or arrests are reported. Some 5,000 Hamas supporters stage marches in n. Gaza camps in support of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. (PCHR, WT 10/25; OCHA 10/31; PCHR 11/1)

In Gaza, the IDF makes an air strike on an ESF vehicle in al-Bureij r.c., wounding 1 ESF mbr. Palestinians fire 7 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel; the IDF responds by shelling suspected launching site; no injuries or damage are reported. In the West Bank, the IDF makes a major raid on Jenin targeting Islamic Jihad, demolishing 1 building, fatally shooting 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. in an exchange of fire that also leaves 1 IDF soldier wounded; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus. Around half of the 2,200 Palestinian prisoners in Israel’s Ketziot prison riot against searches by guards, leaving 14 prisoners, 15 guards injured. An 8-yr.-old Palestinian girl wounded by the IDF during 10/18 arrest raids in Tulkarm dies. In Gaza City, 100 Palestinians protest outside the UNSCO building against the PA’s halt to issuing passports and travel documents for Gazans. (WT 10/23; NYT, OCHA, WP 10/24; PCHR 10/25)

Lebanese PM Siniora delays elections for a 2d time until 11/12 to give the governing coalition and opposition more time to agree on a compromise candidate. (NYT, WP 10/23) (see 9/22)

In Gaza, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in al-Shuka, exchanging fire with local gunmen, wounding 1 armed Palestinian, 1 bystander. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Sarra nr. Nablus, firing percussion grenades in residential areas, then firing rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinians who confront them, causing no reported casualties; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Dahaysha r.c. nr. Bethlehem (confiscating 1 car, destroying 2) and Tulkarm (firing on residential areas, seriously wounding an 8-yr.-old girl), and nr. Hebron, Jenin. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba barricade a road used by Palestinians nr. the settlement. An ESF officer, 3 mbrs. of the Fatah-affiliated Hillis clan are killed, 30 Palestinians are wounded in an armed clash in Gaza City that erupts when ESF officers came to a house looking for clan members believed to have opened fire on a traffic police checkpoint on 10/16, wounding 3 bystanders. (NYT 10/19; OCHA 10/24; PCHR 10/25)

Olmert convenes his security cabinet, which declares Gaza “hostile territory” controlled by a “terrorist organization” (Hamas); imposes additional sanctions on Gaza with the stated aim of reducing Palestinian rocket fire, including cutting back fuel and electricity services to the Strip, further reducing imports to and travel from Gaza. Early in the morning, the IDF sends troops into al-Shuka to raid and search homes. The IDF also makes an air strike on a PRCtraining camp e. of Bayt Lahiya, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF continues operations in ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a for a 2d day, raiding and searching homes, fatally shooting a mentally handicapped Palestinian who steps onto his balcony, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront the troops, wounding 8; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Tulkarm and in Jenin, Qalqilya, Ramallah. Jewish settlers fr. Karmiel settlement nr. Hebron vandalize a nearby, fenced-in crop area planted by local bedouin to feed their herds.Suspected Fatah mbrs. fire on an ESF patrol nr. Shati’ r.c. in Gaza, injuring 2 ESF officers. Nr. Gaza City, the ESF intervenes to prevent a group of Islamic Jihad mbrs. fr. firing rockets into Israel, sparking an exchange of gunfire that leaves no reported injuries. In Rafah, unidentified gunmen shoot, wound a Hamas mbr. (IFM 9/19; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 9/20; NYT 9/22; IFM 9/24; OCHA 9/26; PCHR 9/27)

In Beirut, unidentified assailants detonate a car bomb assassinating Christian Phalange party MP Antoine Ghanem (the 8th anti-Syrian figure killed in the past 3 yrs.), reducing the governing coalition’s parliamentary majority to 67 of 128 seats only 6 days before parliament is to convene to elect a new pres. by simple majority. Ghanem’s bodyguard and 5 bystanders are also killed; 56 are wounded (19 seriously). (REU 9/19; NYT, WP, WT 9/20; NYT, WT 9/21)

In Gaza, the IDF withdraws troops fr. al-Fakhari, ending an arrest campaign that began on 9/15, temporarily detaining 4 Palestinians, arresting 3 others. An IDF tank operating inside Gaza nr. the Sufa crossing triggers a roadside bomb, causing damage but no injuries. Palestinians fire 2 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries; the IDF dispatches helicopters to fire on the Bayt Hanun launch site, causing no reported injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Jabal Juhan nr. Hebron to break up an armed clash between 2 Palestinian clans and impose a curfew, later firing on mbrs. of 1 clan who violate the curfew, killing 1 Palestinian, wounding 4; sends troops into Ramallah, firing on stonethrowing youths who confront them, mortally wounding a 16-yr.-old Palestinian, denying access to an ambulance (he subsequently bleeds to death); denies an ailing Palestinian with a valid permit for medical treatment permission to cross a checkpoint to reach a Jerusalem hospital, allowing him to die; conducts arrest raids, house searches in al-Arub r.c. nr. Hebron, Bethlehem, Jenin town and r.c. In Rafah, unidentified assailants detonate a bomb outside the home of a prominent local Fatah mbr., causing damage but no injuries. (OCHA 9/19; PCHR 9/20)

Islamic Jihad and the PRCs in n. Gaza take joint responsibility for a predawn rocket strike on the IDF’s Zikim base nr. the Gaza border that hits a tent full of sleeping soldiers, critically wounding 1, seriously wounding 2, moderately wounding 7, marking the highest casualty toll in a rocket strike to date; another 60 soldiers are lightly injured or treated for shock. The IDF responds with air strikes, shelling on suspected rocketlaunching sites in n. Gaza, hitting a home in Bayt Hanun, wounding 4 Palestinian children and an adult. Palestinians retaliate by firing 7 mortars fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. The Israeli DMin. begins drafting an assessment for DM Ehud Barak of the impact of cutting water, electricity, fuel services to Gaza. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes 21 agricultural structures in Anata nr. Jerusalem for being too close to the separation wall and a settler bypass road; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Nablus, nr. Jenin and Tulkarm; issues military orders shutting the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs to Muslims for 5 days during Ramadan so that Jewish settlers may celebrate concurrent Jewish holidays. Jewish settlers fr. Avraham Avino, escorted by IDF troops, occupy the roof of al-Aqtab Mosque (seized by the IDF in 1994 after the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs shooting), begin construction on it to expand their outpost. In Jabaliya r.c., Hamas mbrs. occupy the home of the Fatah-affiliated PA prisoners’ affairs minister, who fled to Ramallah. (IFM, NYT, WP, WT 9/11; NYT, OCHA, WP, WT 9/12; PCHR 9/13; OCHA 10/19)

Israelis in Sederot close schools, demand government action after Palestinians fire 3 more rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. Egyptian border police demolish a smuggling tunnel on the Rafah border. In the West Bank, the IDF raids, searches several Hamas-run charities in Nablus, confiscating documents, computers and sealing the offices; patrols in, fires on residential areas of ‘Azun nr. Qalqilya (also firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 2 children, ages 13 and 14), Sa‘ir nr. Hebron (seriously wounding 1 Palestinian); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Qabatya nr. Jenin and Tulkarm r.c., and nr. Hebron. The Israeli High Court rules that the separation wall around Bil‘in, site of weekly nonviolent protests, must be moved westward to prevent the de facto annexation of more han half of the village’s agricultural land, rejecting the government’s claim that a wide buffer zone was needed to protect nearby Mod’in Ilit settlement and determining that the original route took into consideration plans to expand the settlement “as much as possible”; the decision gives the government a “reasonable period of time” to take down and move portions of the wall, which is expected to return 250 acres of land to Bil‘in residents. In Gaza City, the previously unheard-of Security Members Martyrs Brigade took responsibility for detonating a bomb under the car of a prominent Hamas mbr. in Gaza City, causing no injuries; the group is thought to be made up of Fatah security officers still in Gaza who have been underground since Hamas took over in mid6/07. Suspected Fatah mbrs. also fire on an ESF patrol, causing no injuries. In Rafah, ESF officers fire on Fatah mbrs. writing proFatah graffiti, wounding 3. (BBC 9/4; IFM, NYT, OCHA, WP, WT 9/5; PCHR, WT 9/6)

Islamic Jihad fires 7 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries although 1 lands nr. a daycare center and school, causing panic; public and government officials call for immediate school closures until the Israeli government takes steps to halt rocket fire; Israeli officials urge cutting water, fuel, and electricity to Gaza or carrying out a massive military strike. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes 4 Palestinian homes in and nr. East Jerusalem; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Nablus (targeting Hamas; firing on stone-throwing Palestinians who confront them, wounding 9) and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin. (NYT, WP, WT 9/4; OCHA 9/5; PCHR 9/6)

The Lebanese army continues to search Nahr al-Barid r.c. for fugitive FI mbrs., occasionally exchanging gunfire with hold-outs; no casualties are reported. Journalists entering the camp for the 1st time state that “shell blasts honeycombed nearly every building.” (WT 9/4)

Fuel imports to Gaza resume for the 1st time since 8/15 after the EU receives assurances that Hamas will not benefit fr. electricity sales. The IDF bulldozes Palestinian land along the Gaza border e. of Jabaliya r.c. to improve lines of sight. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the Rafah coast, damaging 10 boats, arresting 8 fishermen, forcing others to return to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home nr. Salfit; patrols in Jenin town and r.c.; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, in ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a r.c. (3 IDF soldiers are wounded in an exchange of fire with armed Palestinians). (PCHR 8/23; OCHA 8/29; PCHR 8/30)

The IDF shells a car driving nr. al-Bureij r.c., assassinating 2 ESF officers (Muhammad Abu ‘Arab, Ali Baroud) and 4 Hamas mbrs. (Ismail Abu Abda, ‘Abid Abu Hilu, Ahmad al-Qrainawi, Muhammad al-Qrainawi), wounding 1 bystander; sends troops into Abasan nr. Khan Yunis, bulldozing land, firing on residential areas, wounding 1 Palestinian. An Islamic Jihad mbr. is injured when explosives he is handling detonate prematurely. Gaza’s sole power plant, which produces 25% of Gaza’s electricity, shuts down after depleting its fuel reserves (see 8/19; 70% of Gaza’s electricity is provided by Israel, 5% by Egypt). In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Ramallah, Tulkarm; fires on stone-throwing Palestinian youths outside ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a r.c., wounding 2; later patrols in ‘Ayn Bayt al-Ma’a, exchanging fire with local gunmen, killing 1 armed Palestinian. (HA, NYT 8/21; OCHA, WP 8/22; PCHR 8/23)

In Gaza, Palestinians begin experiencing longer blackouts resulting fr. fuel shortages since Israel closed the Nahal Oz pipeline on 8/15. Hamas volunteers undertake a clean-up campaign in Khan Yunis, where municipal sanitation workers have been on strike over salary issues. The IDF makes an air strike on an Islamic Jihad rocketlaunching site nr. Bayt Lahiya in n. Gaza, causing no injuries. A 10-yr.-old Palestinian boy is injured when a Palestinian rocket fired fr. Gaza toward Israel hits a Palestinian home nr. Bayt Hanun, nr. the n. Gaza border. In the West Bank, the IDF kills 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. in an exchange of fire nr. Jenin; sends troops into Kafr Dan nr. Jenin to patrol, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, killing a 14-yr.-old Palestinian boy, prompting an exchange of gunfire with Palestinian resistance mbrs. that leaves 1 armed Palestinian dead, 7 Palestinians wounded; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus (firing on residential areas, wounding a Palestinian woman in her home), in Qalqilya, nr. Hebron; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in the weekly nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil‘in, injuring 5. (BBC 8/17; NYT 8/19; OCHA 8/22; PCHR 8/23)

In Gaza, the IDF fires on Palestinian teenagers who stray nr. the border fence nr. the Qarni industrial zone, wounding 1; exchanges fire with Palestinian gunmen across the Gaza border e. of Gaza City, causing no injuries; withdraws troops fr. the Rafah airport in the evening (see 8/9). In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in the weekly nonviolent protests against the separation wall in Bil‘in (injuring 8) and Um Salamuna (injuring 4). In Jerusalem’s Old City, an Israeli Palestinian fr. the Galilee grabs a gun from an Israeli security officer, shoots and wounds him before being shot dead by another guard; 9 bystanders are wounded. In Bayt Hanun, the ESF arrests at least 15 Fatah mbrs. for firing guns at a wedding; Fatah says there was no gunfire, that the ESF targeted revelers singing pro-Fatah songs; when some 150 women and children rally outside the local ESF offices to protest the arrests, ESF officers fire in the air to disperse the crowd, causing no injuries. In Gaza City, some 20,000 Hamas supporters march fr. local mosques to the PC headquarters to protest recent PA attacks on Hamas activists in the West Bank. In Halhul nr. Hebron, suspected Hamas mbrs. retaliating for the NSF’s arrest of 10 Hamas mbrs. earlier in the day, shoot and wound Halhul police chief Driss Jabari. (NYT, WP, WT 8/11; NYT 8/12; OCHA 8/15; PCHR 8/16)

In Gaza, the IDF makes an air strike on a Palestinian taxi in al-Maghazi r.c. in an assassination attempt against 1 AMB mbr. and 1 Islamic Jihad mbr., wounding them, the driver, 4 bystanders. Unidentified Palestinians fire a mortar at the IDF post at Erez crossing, causing no damage; an ESF unit fires on the mortar crew, sparking a heavy exchange of gunfire that leaves no reported injuries. Palestinians also fire an RPG across the Gaza border at an IDF patrol inside Israel e. of al-Bureij r.c., missing the troops, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron (bulldozing parts of a cemetery, searching a kindergarten), nr. Jenin. In n. Gaza, 3 Fatah al-Yasir mbrs. abduct, kill a PA intelligence officer in a family dispute with factional overtones; the ESF arrests the 3 Fatah al-Yasir mbrs. (HA 7/30; NYT 7/31; OCHA 8/1; PCHR 8/2)

In a bid to help Abbas, Israel removes 178 AMB mbrs. fr. its wanted list (75% of AMB mbrs. wanted, including AMB Jenin leader Zakariya Zubaydi) after they sign pledges to cease all actions against Israel and hand over their weapons to the PA. In Gaza, Palestinians fire 2 RPGs at an IDF unit patrolling the border fence nr. al-Bureij, missing the target, causing no damage or injuries; fire 4 mortars at IDF troops e. of Bayt Hanun, causing no damage or injuries. Around 50 Palestinian merchants hold a sit-in at the Erez crossing to protest Israel’s continued closure. In the West Bank, Israeli intelligence summons, arrests 2 Palestinians in Hebron. Jewish settlers fr. Otniel continue work to set up a new outpost on land seized on 7/14. PA employees recently cut from the PA salary rolls by Abbas begin an open-ended sitin strike in Gaza City’s Unknown Soldier’s Park. On the intra-Palestinian front, the ESF raids the Gaza City homes of at least a dozen Army of Islam mbrs., arresting 12, all connected to the powerful Daghmash clan. A Palestinian man dies in a Gaza City hospital after being interrogated by the IQB. (HA, NYT, WT 7/16; OCHA 7/18; PCHR 7/19; NYT 7/22; OCHA 7/25)

Under intense pressure from human and legal rights groups, Abbas temporarily suspends a 7/6 presidential decree expanding the mandate of the PA security forces at the expense of the judiciary. Overnight, the IDF sends tanks and bulldozers supported by helicopters, drones, warplanes into central Gaza nr. al-Bureij r.c., searching residential areas for weapons and wanted Palestinians, detaining 10s of Palestinians, bulldozing 118 d. of land, clashing with Hamas mbrs. who detonate a roadside bomb nr. an IDF vehicle, killing 1 IDF soldier (the 1st killed by Palestinians since 11/1/06), lightly wounding 2. The IDF also makes an air strike on a rocket launching site nr. al-Bureij r.c., injuring 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. In the West Bank, the IDF fatally shoots an Islamic Jihad gunman who opened fire on an IDF checkpoint nr. Tulkarm without causing injuries; demolishes 3 Palestinian homes, an agricultural warehouse nr. Qalqilya; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c., Nablus. In Khan Yunis, 5,000 Fatah mbrs. stage a march in support of Abbas; when they stone an ESF post, ESF mbrs. fire in the air to disperse the crowd, wounding 1 Fatah mbr. In Gaza City, Hamas supporters hold a sit-in to protest Abbas’s recent decision to halt salary payments to employees hired after 12/05. In al-Bureij r.c., Islamic Jihad mbrs. kidnap, kill an alleged Palestinian collaborator. (AYM 7/12; NYT, WP, WT 7/13; OCHA 7/18; PCHR 7/19)

The Lebanese army shells FI targets in Nahr al-Barid r.c. fr. land and sea, sparking the heaviest clashes in wks. Additional troops sent into the camp reportedly encounter sniper fire and booby-trapped buildings as they advance deeper into areas controlled by FI. At least 4 soldiers and 1 civilian are killed, 20 soldiers injured during the day. (NYT, WP, WT 7/13)

The IDF launches a major day-long incursion (including infantry, tanks, bulldozers, air support) into areas of Gaza e. of al-Bureij r.c. and al-Maghazi r.c. to “root out terrorist infrastructures,” sparking heavy clashes with local Palestinians and calling in air strikes in support; 11 Palestinian gunmen are killed (including at least 7 Hamas mbrs., 1 Islamic Jihad mbr.), 2 IDF soldiers and 25 Palestinians are wounded, 1 home is demolished, 80 d. of olive trees and agricultural land are bulldozed, 1 Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance is confiscated by the IDF, and at least 9 of about 70 Palestinians interrogated by troops are sent to Israel for further questioning. (Among the Palestinians wounded is an al-Aqsa TV cameraman, who is repeatedly shot at close range as he lies prone after initially being wounded, leaving him a double amputee; an IDF official speaking anonymously states that al-Aqsa TV employees should not be considered bona fide journalists but “Hamas operatives in every respect,” alleging that they gather intelligence and document attacks on Israeli forces for Hamas.) Islamic Jihad fires 2 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel during the clashes, causing no damage or injuries. The PRC also fires 2 rockets fr. Rafah toward Kerem Shalom crossing; 1 explodes on the launcher, injuring 1 PRC mbr., while the other lands inside Gaza, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Tulkarm town and r.c., nr. Qalqilya, and in Jenin town and r.c., Nablus, Tubas. In keeping with a decree issued by PA PM Fayyad earlier in the wk. changing the official weekend from Thursday/Friday to Friday/Saturday, Fatah-affiliated PA employees in Gaza attempt to go their workplaces today (Thursday) but are blocked by ESF officers who force the ministries to stay closed; Fatah civil servants pledge not to work on Saturday, in keeping with the decree and as a protest against Haniyeh’s provisional government. In Gaza City, 2,000 Palestinians hold a peaceful demonstration calling on Fatah, Hamas to work together. A PSF officer dies of injuries received in interfactional clashes in Jabaliya on 6/11. (NYT, WP, WT 7/6; NYT 7/7; WP 7/8; OCHA 7/11; PCHR 7/12)

Overnight, Hamas secures the release of BBC reporter Johnston fr. the Army of Islam, which kidnapped him on 3/12; Haniyeh holds a press conference with Johnston at his Gaza City home, facilitates his transfer to the British Consulate in Jerusalem; British FM David Miliband “fully acknowledge[s] the crucial role” played by Hamas and Haniyeh in securing his release. Meanwhile, the IDF bulldozes Palestinian land in n. Gaza, reinforces troops inside the border nr. Bayt Hanun (conducting arrest raids, house searches, occupying a Palestinian home, bulldozing land), expanding the IDF’s n. Gaza buffer zone. Islamic Jihad fires an RPG at an IDF jeep on the Israeli side of the border fence nr. Dayr al-Balah; the missile lands inside Gaza, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem and nr. Hebron, Jenin, Tulkarm. A Palestinian teenager dies of wounds received during a 2004 IDF raid on Hebron. (BBC, HA, NYT, WP 7/4; PCHR, WP 7/5; Jewish Telegraphic Agency 7/6; WP 7/8; OCHA 7/11; PCHR 7/12)

PA security forces continue targeting Hamas mbrs. in the West Bank for arrest, detaining and quickly releasing Change and Reform PC mbr. Ahmad al-Hajj Ali. In Gaza, the ESF arrests Army of Islam spokesman Abu Khattab al-Makdisi, 2 other Army of Islam mbrs. in effort to find kidnapped BBC correspondent Johnston; the Army of Islam captures several Hamasaffiliated students in retaliation. Meanwhile, in the West Bank, the IDF unleashes attack dogs on, then fatally shoots a 15-yr.-old Palestinian boy during an arrest raid in Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Nablus, in Qabatya, and nr. Jenin, Qalqilya. A Jewish settler woman in Hebron beats a 14-yr.- old Palestinian boy who refuses to give her his puppy; the IDF arrests the boy. In Gaza, the IDF bulldozes Palestinian land in 2 areas along the n. Gaza border; shoots, wounds a Palestinian who strays nr. the border fence e. of Bayt Hanun. Israel announces that Israeli police and Shin Bet have arrested 11 senior Hamas mbrs. in Jerusalem for allegedly “recruit[ing] support for Hamas and giv[ing] the organization a foothold on the Temple Mount, in coordination with Shaykh Raed Salah’s Islamic Movement,” and have seized more than $95,000 in funds allegedly transferred fr. Hamas’s Damascus-based leadership; the 11 are all East Jerusalem residents, and 10 have Israeli ID cards. (IFM 7/2; HA, NYT, WP, WT 7/3; NYT, OCHA, WP 7/4; PCHR 7/5)

In retaliation for the deaths in Jenin late on 6/19, the AMB, Islamic Jihad fire at least 6 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel during the day, lightly injuring 1 Israeli; the IDF responds with helicopter air strikes on 2 launching sites nr. Bayt Hanun, 1 nr. Erez crossing, causing no reported injuries. Islamic Jihad mbrs. also fire 4 RPGs at IDF soldiers nr. Dayr al-Balah and detonate a roadside bomb, causing no injuries. The IDF makes a major raid on al-Qarara nr. Khan Yunis, killing 5 Palestinians (at least 4 of them armed, including at least 2 Hamas mbrs.); 1 IDF soldier is injured. After the UN and Israeli human rights groups warn of a humanitarian crisis in Gaza within a mo. if borders are not opened to trade, Israel allows shipments of wheat flour into Gaza through Kerem Shalom; also temporarily opens the Erez crossing to allow some 200 foreign nationals, a handful of special medical cases to leave Gaza. Meanwhile, Egypt withdraws its security delegation fr. Gaza, orders its amb. to move residence fr. Gaza to Ramallah in what is seen as a political move backing Abbas and breaking ties with Hamas. ESF mbrs. kidnap, fatally shoot a Fatah mbr. in Gaza City. Unidentified gunmen fire on an ESF patrol nr. Nussayrat r.c., causing no injuries. AMB mbrs. stage a march in Hebron in support of Abbas. (NYT 6/20; Interfax, MNA, OCS, XIN 6/20 in WNC 6/21; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 6/21; OCHA 6/27; PCHR 6/28)

Firmly in control of Gaza, Hamas declares amnesty for Fatah leaders, except National Security Advisor (NSA) Dahlan, with the aim of quelling violence, releasing several of the 10 senior Fatah political security officials captured earlier in the day; orders all mbrs. of the PA security forces in Gaza to continue to report for duty to provide law and order, albeit under Hamas cmdrs. Hamas also calls for the immediate release of kidnapped BBC correspondent Johnston. With fighting suspended, Palestinian crowds loot abandoned Fatah buildings, targeting in particular Dahlan’s home and Abbas’s presidential compound; Hamas mbrs. surround and prevent looting at Abbas’s Gaza residence. Some violence persists, with a Fatah mbr. thrown to his death from a high building by the family of a man he killed earlier; a Fatah security official commits suicide after learning that he was on a Hamas wanted list. Meanwhile, Egypt reinforces its forces on the border with Gaza with riot police, APCs, and water cannons, fearing that Palestinians will attempt to flee Gaza for Egypt en masse at the first opportunity. Israel temporarily opens the Erez crossing to allow Fatah officials to escape Gaza for Ramallah. In the West Bank, Abbas names Finance M Salam al-Fayyad as his new PM, charging him with forming a government; issues a presidential decree suspending articles of the Basic Law (the interim Palestinian constitution) requiring the new government to receive a vote of confidence from the PC (currently controlled by the Hamas-affiliated Change and Reform party). Fatah-Hamas tensions remain high in the West Bank, where heavily armed Fatah mbrs. patrol in Ramallah in a show of force; Fatah mbrs. ransack Change and Reform offices, Hamas-run charity organizations in several cities; kidnap at least 9 Hamas mbrs. AMB mbrs. fatally shoot a Hamas mbr. in Nablus. Inside Israel, the Israel Prisons Service separates Fatah, Hamas detainees to prevent rioting. Meanwhile, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches, patrols in villages around Jenin, firing on residential areas, causing no injuries. In Gaza, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Dayr al-Balah; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists attending weekly nonviolent demonstrations against the separation wall in Bil‘in, injuring 2. (AP, HA, WP, QA 6/15; NYT, WP, WT 6/16; Interfax 6/16 in WNC 6/17; PCHR 6/21; NYT 7/9)

The IDF fires on Palestinians who stray nr. the central Gaza border fence while collecting scrap metal, wounding 2. Palestinians fire 7 rockets fr. Gaza toward Israel; 3 land inside Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, IDF undercover units raid a Nablus shop, wounding and capturing a wanted man, fatally shooting 1 Palestinian bystander (the shop owner’s son), wounding a 2d. The IDF also clashes with armed Palestinians in Jenin town and r.c., leaving 1 Palestinian gunman dead; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Tulkarm; patrols in al-Naqura nr. Nablus (spot checking IDs of schoolchildren), Qarawat Bani Zaid nr. Salfit. In Dayr al-Balah, 2 PA General Intelligence officers are wounded in an exchange of fire with mbrs. of their own force; no motive is given. Unidentified gunmen fire on a PA police officer driving in Bayt Lahiya, missing him. (NYT 6/4; OCHA 6/6; PCHR 6/7)

The Lebanese army escalates its assault on Nahr al-Barid r.c., making helicopter air strikes on FItargets in addition to continuing tank shelling, reportedly to block an escape route fr. the camp to the sea and to destroy the upper floors of buildings used as sniper posts. Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) officials in the r.c. report that residents still in the camp have been locking houses and barricading neighborhoods to try to isolate and force out FI mbrs. The Lebanese army confirms that the camp has been segmented into 3 parts: the first controlled by army fire from outside, the second controlled by refugees denying the militants sanctuary, and the third controlled by FI. The army reports 4 soldiers killed, 10 wounded during the day; casualties inside the camp are unknown. Lebanese PM Fuad Siniora pledges that Palestinians who have fled Nahr al-Barid will be allowed to return to the camp and that the camp will be rebuilt. (WT 6/3)

After Hamas fires several rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, killing 1 Israeli and wounding 1 in separate strikes, Olmert convenes his security cabinet to discuss expanding attacks on Hamas. During the day, the IDF reinforces troops in its n. Gaza buffer zone; makes air strikes on 3 ESF positions in Bayt Lahiya, Jabaliya, Khan Yunis, causing no injuries; bulldozes a Palestinian home in n. Gaza; raids and temporarily occupies 4 Palestinian homes in Bayt Hanun; fires on Palestinian farmers who stray nr. the border fence e. of Khan Yunis. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishermen off the Rafah coast for a 2d day, causing no injuries. Abbas, Egyptian mediators hold talks with the Palestinian factions aimed at securing a 1-mo. unilateral halt on attacks on Israel fr. Gaza, with hopes that an Israeli cease-fire would follow that could then be extended to the West Bank; the factions demand that the cease-fire include the West Bank fr. the outset. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home outside Jerusalem; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem and Nablus, in Jenin town and r.c. and Jericho (raiding a hospital to arrested a wounded wanted AMB mbr., firing on stone-throwing Palestinian youths), nr. Hebron and Salfit. (IFM 5/27; NYT, WP 5/28; OCHA 5/30; PCHR 5/31)

A bomb goes off in Beirut’s Berbir neighborhood, wounding 4 Lebanese; no group claims responsibility. (NYT 5/28)

The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of Rafah, forcing them to return to shore. The IDF makes a helicopter rocket strike on a suspected rocket-launching site nr. Bayt Hanun, causing no injuries. Olmert’s security cabinet discusses military options for dealing with continued rocket fire fr. Gaza; no decisions are reached; talks are expected to continue over the next several days. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, nr. Jenin, and in Balata r.c., Nablus. Israel’s Jerusalem authorities issue an eviction order to the Palestinian al-Ansari Library in Jerusalem (one of the largest collections in Jerusalem with 45,000 books), slating the building for demolition to make way for a train station. A Jewish settler guard at Burkan settlement nr. Salfit shoots, wounds a Palestinian driver who routinely transports Palestinian workers to and fr. the settlement; no reason is given. Heavy Fatah-Hamas fighting in Gaza escalates, leaving 5 Palestinians dead (including AMB cmdr. Bahaa Abu Jarad and his bodyguard), around 20 wounded. Egyptian mediators broker a truce late in the day, but fighting continues. (Ma’an News Agency 5/13; NYT 5/14; OCHA 5/16; PCHR 5/17)