The Palestine Chronology

OCHA urgently appeals to Israel to expand “the list of imports into Gaza . . . to include vital spare parts for maintenance and operation of the power plant, water and sanitation utilities, and other critical infrastructure and basic services for the civilian population” so as to prevent further deterioration of humanitarian conditions in Gaza. Gaza banks close, fearing runs on cash. (Israel has again barred entry of cash to the Strip; see 11/24.) The Israeli government informs the High Court that it will lift a month-old ban on allowing journalists into Gaza, but takes no steps to do so. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night house searches nr. Nablus. Some 600 Israeli police and soldiers use rubber batons, percussion grenades, tear gas to evict 200 Jewish settlers fr. Beit Shalom, leaving 30 settlers and 3 soldiers injured, sparking settler violence against Palestinians across the West Bank. In Hebron, settlers rampage through Palestinian areas, burn 5 homes, set fires to olive groves, write racist graffitti, seriously damage other homes, cars, and cemeteries; at least 16 Palestinians are injured, including 2 who are shot and seriously wounded by a settler. During the rampage, the IDF declares the area a closed military zone, bars access to firemen and ambulances (settlers attack one fire engine), and takes no steps to halt settler rioting. Jewish settlers fr. Eli and Shilo settlements nr. Ramallah block the main Ramallah– Nablus road to Palestinian traffic, stone Palestinian cars; the IDF observes but does not intervene. Other Jewish settlers break car windows, write anti-Muslim graffiti on Palestinian homes in several villages e. of Qalqilya. (OCHA 12/4; NYT, WP, WT 12/5; WP 12/8; PCHR 12/18)

IDF troops along the s. Gaza border e. of Khan Yunis fire on a group of armed Palestinians inside Gaza, causing no injuries; troops then cross into Gaza, exchange fire with armed Palestinians, wounding 4. PRC mbrs. then fire 11 mortars fr. Gaza toward the IDF military post at Nahal Oz crossing; 3 mortars hit the base, wounding 6 IDF soldiers, 1 critically. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts an evening raid on an Internet cafe nr. Jenin, checking IDs and searching ´ the premises but making no arrests; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron, Jerusalem, Qalqilya, Tulkarm; conducts synchronized, late-night house searches in Tubas and neighboring al-Fara‘ r.c., and in 8 villages s. of Jenin, making no arrests; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in nonviolent demonstrations against the separation wall in Bil‘in (injuring 1 Japanese activist), Jayyus nr. Qalqilya (injuring 2 Palestinians), and Ni‘lin (injuring 2 Danish activists, 1 Palestinian teenager). Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba and Beit Shalom attack Palestinians, vandalize property in nearby Palestinian areas, seriously injuring 4 Palestinians, including a 6-yr.-old boy. Later, IDF troops close the area, take up positions on surrounding rooftops, escort 5 busloads of settlers from other parts of the West Bank into the area to “defend” the illegal Beit Shalom outpost. In the evening, the settlers rampage through Palestinian areas, burning cars, slashing tires, breaking windows of cars and homes, destroying water tanks; the IDF does not intervene. (NYT 11/29; OCHA 12/3; PCHR 12/4)

In the West Bank, the IDF fires rubbercoated steel bullets, tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinians holding a nonviolent protest against settlements at the evacuated settlement site of Homesh nr. Jenin (wounding 5); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in nonviolent demonstrations against the separation wall in Bil‘in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation), Jayyus nr. Qalqilya (10s suffer tear gas inhalation; a Palestinian Council mbr. and PLO Exec. Comm. mbr. are detained for questioning), and Ni‘lin (injuring 1). In East Jerusalem, Israeli police raid and halt a cultural event at a theater in the city organized by the Jerusalemite Youth Parliament and several local NGOs and schools, stating that it was a political event connected to the Palestinian Authority (PA), which the organizers deny. (PCHR 11/27)

In Gaza, UNRWA suspends its program of cash distributions to the 100,000 poorest refugees (intended to enable them to supplement their basic food ration with fresh vegetables and other vital household supplies) because there are no Israeli shekels circulating in Gaza due to Israel’s 8/08 ban on exporting currency to Gaza’s banks and hoarding by Gazans. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night house searches in and around Balata r.c. and Nablus, nr. Qalqilya; occupies 4 Palestinian homes in the Wadi al-Nassara area of Hebron, restricts Palestinian movement in the neighborhood while Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba hold a celebration. (OCHA, PCHR 11/20; PCHR 11/27)

U.S. Secy. of State Rice begins her final 4-day Middle East tour of Egypt, Jordan, Israel, and the West Bank to discuss efforts to achieve “lasting peace in the region consistent with the goal of a two-state solution.” The U.S. had announced the trip on 10/30, when optimism surrounding the Gaza ceasefire was high, hoping that the visit would end with the signing of an Israeli-Palestinian joint statement on future negotiations at a high-level Quartet meeting on 11/9. In the wake of the 11/4–5 violence, however, the White House declares today, as Rice begins her meetings, that it intends to leave IsraeliArab peacemaking to the Obama admin. and no longer thinks any Israeli-Palestinian peace deal will occur before Bush leaves office in 1/09. Rice meets with Livni today. (BBC 11/6; NYT, WP, WSJ 11/7) (WT 10/31; HA 11/8; IFM, NYT, WP, WT 11/9; WP 11/10)

IDF troops on the s. Gaza border fire on Palestinian farmers working their fields nearby, forcing them to leave. The IDF also makes an air strike on a group of Palestinians nr. Jabaliya r.c. allegedly preparing to fire a rocket, injuring 1. Palestinians fire 4 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, in the morning, the IDF sends undercover units into Qalqilya driving a car with Palestinian plates to raid a store, arrest the owner; conducts a similar undercover raid into Nablus later in the day, raiding another store and arresting the owner; sends troops into al-Khadir village at midday, forcing stores to close, patrolling streets, withdrawing early in the evening; makes an evening incursion into Azun nr. Qalqilya, imposing a curfew, beating Palestinians who do not quickly leave the streets, withdrawing before midnight. Abbas accuses Hamas forces in Gaza of detaining nearly 50 Fatah members and supporters in a political move to undermine upcoming Cairo unity talks; at least 9 of those arrested, including a Fatah PC mbr., are released by the end of the day. A Palestinian woman dies of injures receive in the 11/4 IDF attacks on Gaza. (HA 11/6; MM 11/7; OCHA 11/12; PCHR 11/13)

Israeli pres. Shimon Peres sets 2/10 as the date for parliamentary elections. (REU 10/28; MM 10/29)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and Salfit, nr. Bethlehem and Qalqilya. (OCHA 10/29; PCHR 10/30)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts random ID checks of Palestinians harvesting olives nr. Nablus, arresting 1; raids, imposes a curfew on Azun nr. Qalqilya, fires on residential areas, blocks a main road with sand and rocks, then withdraws; fires rubbercoated steel bullets, tear gas, percussion grenades at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in a nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil‘in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation); fires rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international peace activists taking part in a similar nonviolent demonstration in Ni‘lin (seriously injuring an 11-yr.-old girl); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Fara‘a r.c. (firing live ammunition at stone-throwing Palestinian youths who confront them, wounding 3, 1 of them seriously) and nr. Bethlehem (occupying 1 Palestinian home as an observation post, evicting the family), Nablus. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar attack Palestinians harvesting olives nearby, burn 15 olive trees, march through Bidan village in a show of force. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba demand that a Palestinian mechanic near the settlement fix their car, beat him when he refuses. Jewish settlers temporarily reoccupy the evacuated Homesh settlement site, stone passing Palestinian vehicles. The WHO arranges an emergency shipment of 4 truckloads of medical items into Gaza, noting that the PA’s Ramallah-based central pharmacy has sent no medial supplies to Gaza since it took over that function from the WHO on 9/1; as a result, 94 essential drugs have been entirely depleted in Gaza. (OCHA 10/29; PCHR 10/30; AIC 11/9)

By this date, Palestinian factions have agreed to an Egyptian proposal to resume their national unity dialogue in Cairo on 11/9. Hamas and Fatah are considering a draft memorandum of understanding on national reconciliation proposed by Egypt that would be issued at the close of the Cairo summit (see Quarterly Update). (Electronic Intifada [online] 10/28; MNA 11/2; MNR 11/7; AFP 11/8; NYT, WT 11/9)

In the West Bank, the IDF patrols, searches houses in al-Khadir, beats 3 Palestinians (ages 28, 37, and 63), claiming that Palestinians in the area had thrown stones at Israeli vehicles on a nearby settlersonly bypass road; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Hebron. More than 100 Jewish settlers block roads and throw stones at Palestinian cars nr. Qalqilya to prevent Palestinians, accompanied by international and Israeli peace activists, fr. reaching their groves to harvest olives. Inside Israel, Israeli police arrest 6 Israeli Jews fr. Tel Aviv for taking part in recent arson attacks against Israeli Palestinian property in Acre. (BBC 10/20; OCHA, WT 10/22; PCHR, WJW 10/23)

The IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Jenin town and r.c. Jewish settlers fr. Ramat Yishai settlement in Hebron attack Palestinians and international peace activists harvesting olive groves outside of Hebron, injuring 1 Palestinian and 1 solidarity activist; the IDF closes the area, orders everyone to leave. Jewish settlers fr. Elon Moreh attack a Palestinian family harvesting their olive grove nr. the settlement, destroying the collected olives. Jewish settlers attack Palestinians harvesting olives nr. Qalqilya; the IDF closes the area, orders everyone to leave. Jewish settlers fr. Mevo Dotan nr. Jenin violently beat a Palestinian man harvesting his olives nearby. (OCHA 10/22; PCHR 10/23; AIC 11/9)

In the West Bank, the IDF makes a predawn raid on Kafr Malik nr. Hebron, firing on 2 Palestinians allegedly carrying Molotov cocktails, killing 1 Palestinian; makes a predawn raid on Qabatya nr. Jenin (which is under daytime PA security control), arresting 4 Islamic Jihad mbrs., confiscating 88 lbs. of explosives; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Fara‘a r.c., Jenin town and r.c. Jewish settlers fr. Keddumim nr. Qalqilya burn a Palestinian olive grove. Jewish settlers fr. Elon Moreh nr. Nablus slash the tires, break the windows of the car of a Palestinian family harvesting their olive grove nearby; IDF soldiers observe but refuse requests of the Palestinian family to intervene. Jewish settlers fr. Efrat and Kefar Etzion nr. Bethlehem, escorted by the IDF, set up several mobile homes at an abandoned IDF post in Bayt Sahur, hold prayers in local park. (NYT 10/17; OCHA 10/22; PCHR 10/23; AIC 11/9)

In the West Bank, the IDF raids a Palestinian home in Hebron based on complaints fr. local settlers, arrests 3 Palestinian youths; conducts large-scale, late-night arrest raids and house searches nr. Bethlehem. The IDF evacuates Jewish settlers fr. the unauthorized outpost of Shvut Ami nr. Qalqilya; in retaliation, the settlers attack nearby Palestinian farmers, set fire to 10 d. of agricultural land (burning 100 olive trees), block a road to Palestinian traffic, stone passing Palestinian vehicles; IDF troops bar Palestinians fr. extinguishing the crop fire. Jewish settlers fr. Ginot Shomron nr. Qalqilya attempt to storm the nearby Palestinian village of Azun, but the IDF blocks them to prevent clashes. Jewish settlers fr. Ramat Yishai settlement nr. Hebron attack Palestinians harvesting olives nearby, steal their olives; the IDF arrests 2 Palestinian teenagers who try to fend off the settlers. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba damage Palestinian water pipelines nearby, demolish several branch roads that had previously been blocked off by the IDF and settlers. (OCHA 10/8; PCHR 10/9)

The UN reports that 1 Palestinian rocket was fired toward Israel between 9/21 and 9/27 but landed inside Gaza, causing no damage or injuries; the last Palestinian rocket fired was on 9/14. In the West Bank, Palestinians throw stones at Jewish settler vehicles nr. Qalqilya, damaging 7 cars and lightly injuring 2 settlers. In response, the IDF imposes a curfew on and patrols in nearby Azun village, firing on residential areas and then on stone-throwing Palestinian youths who confront them, causing no reported injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Ginot Shomron (part of Karnei Shomron) nr. Qalqilya vandalize Palestinian homes in Azun village, burn 12 d. of Palestinian olive groves. (OCHA 10/1, 10/8; PCHR 10/9; AIC 11/9)

In the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Kafr Qaddum village nr. Qalqilya, where they fire on residential areas and halt Palestinians for random ID checks, beating several, causing no serious injuries; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Nablus, nr. Jenin. (OCHA 10/1; PCHR 10/9)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c., in Hebron, and nr. Bethlehem, Nablus, Qalqilya, Ramallah, and Tulkarm. (PCHR 9/4; OCHA 9/10; PCHR 9/11)

In a rare Israeli prosecution of Israeli security forces for their actions in the West Bank, 2 Israeli border policemen are convicted of manslaughter for kidnapping a 17-yr.-old Palestinian and throwing him from a moving vehicle in Hebron in 2002; they face up to 20 yrs. in jail. (WP 9/4)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts predawn patrols in Tulkarm town and r.c.; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Ramallah, nr. Bethlehem and Jenin; conducts late-night patrols in al-Fara‘a r.c. and Tammun village nr. Tubas. Jewish settlers fr. Brakha settlement nr. Nablus burn 7 dunams (d.; 4 d. = 1 acre) of Palestinian agricultural land. Jewish settlers fr. Keddumim nr. Qalqilya stone Palestinian vehicles passing by the settlement, causing no injuries; the IDF removes them. In Hebron, a group of Jewish settlers beats 2 Palestinians. As the Palestinian school yr. begins, the Ramallah-based, Fatah-run Palestinian Teachers’ Union calls on Gaza’s 10,000 teachers and school administrators to strike to protest Hamas’s de facto rule, acknowledging that the strike is, in part, intended to disrupt life in Gaza and weaken the Hamas government; the PA pledges to continue to pay the teachers’ salaries as long as they observe the strike, which lasts through the end of the quarter; Hamas authorities quickly begin contracting 1,000s of substitute teachers to keep schools running. (OCHA 8/27; PCHR 8/28; WT 10/15)

In response to Palestinian rocket fire on 8/11, Israel suspends fuel shipments and humanitarian imports to Gaza for 1 day (see 7/8); Hamas official Mahmud Zahhar calls those who fired the rocket on 8/11 in violation of the cease-fire traitors and collaborators, reiterating that “there is a consensus by all Palestinian factions to respect the truce.” In the West Bank, theIDF conducts daytime arrest raids, house searches in Hebron and Tulkarm, and nr. Qalqilya. Jewish settlers who occupied (7/17) a plot of Palestinian land in Wadi alNassara in Hebron attack a Palestinian home with rocks and bottles, injuring a 13-yr.-old boy. Armed Jewish settlers attempt for a 3d time (see 8/6, 8/7) to enter Shu‘fat r.c. to establish an unauthorized outpost; the IDF bars their entry, arrests 13 settlers. PA security forces raid, seal for 1 yr. a school in Hebron, detain the director for alleged affiliation with Hamas (see 8/8). Meanwhile, OCHA reports that Hamas’s crackdown on Fatah in Gaza continues, with 465 Fatah supporters arrested and 204 Fatah-affiliated community organizations shut since the 7/25 Gaza City bombings; 279 of the detainees have been released; 34 of the organizations have been allowed to reopen. (OCHA 8/13; PCHR, WT 8/14)

Early in the morning, the IDF steps up shelling of a Hebron home surrounded on 7/26, then bulldozes it; the body of wanted Hamas mbr. Shihab al-Natsha is found inside and confiscated by the IDF. Also in the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron and in Jenin town and r.c., Tulkarm; fires tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in a nonviolent protest against the separation wall in Ni‘lin, wounding 7. Jewish settlers fr. Brakha set fire to 10 d. of Palestinian crops and a house in Burin. Jewish settlers burn 50 d. of Palestinian olive groves nr. Qalqilya. (NYT 7/29; OCHA, PCHR 7/30)

IDF troops on the n. Gaza border shoot, wound a Palestinian collecting scrap metal who strays nr. the border fence. In the West Bank, the IDF detain without charge the father of a young girl who filmed IDF troops in Ni‘lin shooting and wounding a bound Palestinian prisoner on 7/7; fire on residential areas of Bayt Umar nr. Hebron, then fire on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1; also patrols in, fires on residential areas of Baytin and al-Bireh nr. Ramallah, causing no injuries; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Qalqilya. (PCHR 7/24; OCHA, PCHR 7/30)

In the West Bank, the IDF raids, searches shops in Tulkarm; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Qabatya, and nr. Hebron, Jenin. Armed Jewish settlers fr. Gilad settlement nr. Qalqilya attack 2 Palestinian farmers, severely beat them, and spray a chemical substance on their faces and bodies, then burn 2 d. of nearby Palestinian olive groves; when local Palestinians arrive to put out the fire, they are fired upon by the settlers (who use live ammunition) and the IDF (using rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, percussion grenades). Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack Palestinian homes, attempt to break into at least 1 home in the same area where settlers seized a plot of land on 7/17. (OCHA 7/23; PCHR 7/24)

The IDF demolishes 3 Palestinian homes in the East Jerusalem environs (1 in Issawiyya, 2 in Bayt Hanina), displacing 30 Palestinians, including 14 children; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus (including raiding the offices of the International Solidarity Association for Human Rights, confiscating computers and files), in al-Far‘a r.c. (firing on stone-throwing youths, wounding 3) and Qalqilya, and nr. Jenin, Ramallah, Tulkarm. (OCHA 7/16; PCHR 7/17)

IDF troops on the n. Gaza border fire on Palestinian farmers, preventing them fr. reaching their fields nr. the border fence but causing no injuries. In the West Bank, Ni‘lin villagers defy an IDF curfew to stage peaceful protest marches against the IDF blockade imposed on 7/5; the IDF fires tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets at the protesters, lightly injuring around 50. The IDF also bulldozes newly paved roads in Ni‘lin while the curfew is in place, damaging part of the municipal sewage system; conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Tulkarm, and nr. Bethlehem, Jenin, Qalqilya, Ramallah. Jewish settlers fr. Asfar settlement nr. Bethlehem beat 2 Palestinian shepherds grazing their flocks nearby. In Hebron, local Jewish settlers harass a French diplomatic delegation touring the city with Palestinian guides, arguing that settlers should lead the tour because the delegation was on “Israeli land.” A carload of Jewish settlers fires on a Palestinian taxi nr. Jenin, seriously wounding 1 Palestinian. (WT 7/7; OCHA 7/9; PCHR 7/10)

Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the c. Gaza coast, forcing them to return to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF fires tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets at a funeral procession in Bayt Umar for a teenager killed on 6/26, wounding 2 Palestinians; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Tubas (firing on stonethrowing teenagers who confront them, killing a 16-yr.-old Palestinian boy), nr. Ramallah. Jewish settlers ambush and attack a Palestinian taxi driver nr. Keddumim settlement nr. Qalqilya; the IDF rescues him. In the 2d such incident (see 6/22), unidentified assailants burn 2,000 d. of Palestinian olive groves and crop land w. of the separation wall nr. Tulkarm. Hamas-affiliated police find and demolish 2 smuggling tunnels in Rafah. In Gaza City, a bomb explodes in a market area located behind a Gaza municipal police station, causing damage but no injuries. (OCHA 7/2; PCHR 7/3)

On the 1st day of the cease-fire in Gaza, no Israeli-Palestinian violence is reported inside the Strip. Israeli naval vessels, however, fire on Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of Rafah, forcing them to return to shore. Hamas removes armed mbrs. fr. posts along the border with Israel. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home in Qalqilya; raids several Palestinian homes in Hebron, detains and photographs 30 residents for no apparent reason; conducts latenight arrest raids, house searches nr. Nablus and in Jenin town and r.c., Qabatya. Jewish settlers fr. Yitzhar nr. Nablus block a road, stone Palestinian cars driving in the area, burn 800 d. of Palestinian olive groves, stone local Palestinians who attempt to reach the area to put out the fires; the IDF observes but only intervenes to detain Palestinians who arrive to extinguish the fire. Jewish settlers fr. Tapuach settlement nr. Salfit burn 48 d. of nearby Palestinian crops. A Jewish settler seriously injures a 70-yr.-old Palestinian man in a deliberate hit-and-run along the Qalqilya-Nablus road outside Qalqilya; the IDF evacuates him to an Israeli hospital. In Gaza City, unidentified gunmen fire on the offices of a Hamas-affiliated newspaper, causing damage but no injuries. In al-Bureij r.c., Hamas-affiliated police raid, fire in the air to disperse a wedding party, claiming attendees were playing pro-Fatah songs; no injuries are reported. (MM 6/19; AHR, NYT, WP 6/20; OCHA 6/25; PCHR 6/26)

Just before a Gaza cease-fire goes into effect, the IDF makes a series of air strikes on Gaza (killing 1 armed Palestinian, wounding 1), and Palestinians (mostly Islamic Jihad mbrs. seeking revenge for IDF killings of its mbrs. in previous days) fire 33 rockets and 10 mortars into Israel (causing light damage but no injuries); 5 rockets land inside Gaza, wounding 1 armed Palestinian, 2 civilians. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Bethlehem; also makes a major arrest raid in Qalqilya, searching, firing on, and heavily damaging a 3-story apartment building and 2 homes, demolishing 2 uninhabited Palestinian homes.(PCHR, WT 6/19; NYT 6/20; OCHA 6/25; PCHR 6/26)

Israel publicly calls for opening “direct, bilateral” peace talks with Lebanon, which says it is not interested (NYT, WP 6/19)

Just before U.S. secy. of state Condoleezza Rice arrives in Israel for 6/15–16 mtgs. to encourage Israeli-Palestinian negotiations (see Quarterly Update), the Israeli Housing Min. announces approval for construction of 1,300 new settlement housing units in Ramat Shlomo in East Jerusalem. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Qalqilya and nr. 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 (injuring 2); fires tear gas, percussion grenades at a similar protest al-Ma‘sara (injuring 5). Jewish settlers enter Nablus to pray at Joseph’s Tomb without prior coordination with the IDF; the IDF evacuates and arrests them. The IDF also sends tanks into Gaza e. of al-Maghazi r.c. to level land along the border fence. In Gaza’s al-Bureij r.c., Hamas-affiliated police attempt to arrest 2 wanted Fatah mbrs., but are attacked, forced to retreat by neighbors and Fatah supporters; no serious injuries are reported. (WT 6/15; MM 6/16; OCHA 6/18; PCHR 6/19)

In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in, fires on residential areas of Sarra village nr. Nablus, then fires on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1; patrols in, temporarily seals Dayr Abu Mash‘al village nr. Ramallah. Jewish settlers fr. Havat Gilad outpost nr. Qalqilya attack Palestinian farmers working their land nearby; the IDF intervenes, firing rubber-coated steel bullets to disperse the groups, injuring 2 Palestinians, 2 settlers. In Dayr al-Balah, gunfire erupts btwn. rival Islamic Jihad factions, wounding 2; Hamas-affiliated police bring the situation under control. (OCHA 6/4; PCHR 6/5)

Overnight in Gaza, the IDF sends troops into al-Fukhari nr. Khan Yunis and nearby Shuka to raid and search homes, firing on armed Palestinians who confront them, wounding 2 civilians, 1 armed Palestinian. Troops withdraw to Israel early in the morning. The Israeli navy detains 6 Palestinian fishing off the Rafah coast, questions and releases 16 fishermen. Palestinians fire a rocket toward Israel, but it lands inside Gaza, hitting a home e. of Gaza City, injuring a mother, 2 children. Egyptian border police find a cache of more than 1,000 lbs of explosives, including mortars and rockets, on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border. Overnight in the West Bank, the IDF sends troops into Qabatya to raid and search homes, 2 schools, a mosque, confiscating money and computers, arresting 10 Palestinians; before withdrawing in late morning, troops fire tear gas at children heading to school, injuring 10. The IDF also conducts daytime arrest raids nr. Qalqilya; fires tear gas at Palestinians demonstrating against the separation wall in Ni‘lin (pop. 5,000) nr. Ramallah, causing no injuries; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Qalqilya, and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron. (NYT, OCHA 5/28; PCHR 5/29)

The IDF sends tanks, bulldozers into Gaza nr. al-Qarara to level land for a 2d day.Israeli naval vessels fire on Palestinian fishermen off the Rafah coast, forcing them to return to shore. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Zayta for a 2d day, firing on residential areas, conducting random ID checks, and arresting 3 Palestinian teenagers; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Nablus, nr. Jenin. Jewish settlers throw stones at Palestinian vehicles driving nr. Qalqilya, causing no injuries. Palestinians throw stones at a Jewish settler vehicle nr. Ramallah, causing no injuries. (OCHA 5/28; PCHR 5/29)

Overnight, the IDF makes an incursion into Abasan, raiding and searching homes, occupying several as operational bases, making air strikes on local gunmen who confront them (killing 1 Hamas mbr., seriously wounding 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs. and 1 Hamas mbr.), demolishing 1 Palestinian home, bulldozing 110 d. of agricultural land and 4 poultry farms, arresting 4 Palestinians before withdrawing late in the evening. The IDF also makes an early-morning incursion into Jabaliya town, fatally shooting a Palestinian civilian riding a bicycle for no apparent reason, exchanging fire with local gunmen (killing 1 armed Palestinian, 1 bystander), hitting 3 Palestinian homes with tank fire (injuring 3 Palestinian civilians). Later, Palestinians fire a Grad-type rocket fr. Gaza into Israel, striking a shopping mall in Ashqelon, wounding 16 Israelis, 3 of them seriously; several groups, excluding Hamas, claim responsibility. Late in the evening, the IDF makes an air strike on Gaza City, killing 2 Palestinian resistance mbrs. Meanwhile, in the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem and Nablus, and in Qalqilya. (NYT, PCHR, WP 5/15; PCHR 5/22)

Gaza’s power plant shuts down completely for lack of fuel. A Palestinian teenager (brother of the teenager who died on 5/8) succumbs to injuries sustained during the IDF’s 5/7 raid on Abasan. In the West Bank, the IDF imposes a 1-day curfew on Azun nr. Qalqilya; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c., nr. Hebron. (WP 5/12; PCHR 5/15)

In Beirut, calm prevails but many roads remain closed and some Hizballah mbrs. continue to patrol streets. Hizballah and Jumblatt supporters exchange fire in the villages of Aley, Kayfun, and Shuwayfat s. of Beirut. Hizballah sends fighters convoys toward Druze leader Walid Jumblatt’s stronghold in the Chouf mountains, but they are ambushed en route by Druze militias fighters (some of whom had supported the opposition and stood with Hizballah until it moved deep into the Chouf, then switched sides to defend the Druze heartland), withdrawing with heavy casualties. (NYT, WP, WT 5/12; NYT 5/16; NYT, WP 5/18)