The Palestine Chronology

The IDF demolishes an illegal outpost nr. Kiryat Arba comprising only a makeshift synagogue; the site has been demolished and rebuilt by Jewish settlers on 24 previous occasions. The IDF demolishes 2 Palestinian homes in Anata in Jerusalem, evacuates another 30 bedouin families fr. tents in the area, saying they are too close to the Anatot IDF base and that some land is needed for construction of the separation wall; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Balata r.c. and Nablus, exchanging gunfire with armed Palestinians, wounding 2. An IDF jeep on patrol in Bethlehem accidentally overturns, trapping 4 lightly injured soldiers inside; when 10s of Palestinians surround, throw stones at the jeep, the soldiers fire live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas at the crowd, injuring 4. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) fires 2 rockets at an IDF post in Gaza, causing no damage or injuries. Jewish settlers fr. Keddumim, guarded by IDF soldiers, bulldoze 30 d. of Palestinian agricultural land for expansion of the settlement. Unidentified gunmen fire on the Bir Nabala home, car of proreform PC mbr. Ahmad Batsh (Fatah-Jerusalem) causing damage but no injuries. (AP, HA, REU, XIN 4/13; VOI, VOP 4/13 in WNC 4/14; HA, PCHR 4/14; PR 4/20; PCHR 4/21)

An 11-yr.-old Palestinian girl is fatally shot in a Rafah school yard. Palestinians say the gunfire came fr. an IDF post outside a nearby Jewish settlement, but the IDF denies this, claming that the girl was hit by gunfire fr. local Palestinians who were celebrating their return fr. the Hajj; residents say no such celebrations were taking place. In retaliation, Hamas fires 6 mortars, 6 Qassam rockets at Jewish settlements in Gaza, causing damage but no injuries. Islamic Jihad fires 3 rockets at Netzarim, causing no damage or injuries. The IDF bulldozes at least 800 d. of agricultural land outside Yatta, apparently to turn the land over for Jewish settlers’ use; begins bulldozing Palestinian land in al-Ram northwest of Jerusalem on a settler bypass road. (VOI 1/31 in WNC 2/1; MM, NYT, WP, WT 2/1; PR 2/2; PCHR 2/3)

The IDF fatally shoots 2 Palestinians (at least 1 is unarmed—a mentally handicapped man who strays into a closed military zone) in separate incidents outside Jewish settlements in Gaza. An AMB gunman ambushes, fatally shoots 1 IDF soldier, wounds 3 nr. Nablus; the IDF conducts arrest raids in the area in response. Hamas fires 6 mortars, 1 Qassam rocket at Jewish settlements in Gaza, causing no damage or injuries; Islamic Jihad fires 3 rockets at Nisanit settlement in n. Gaza, causing no damage or injuries. (HA 1/7; VOI, VOP 1/7 in WNC 1/11; NYT, WP 1/8; NYT 1/9; OCHA 1/12; PCHR 1/13)