Illegal Israeli actions in OPT – Letter from Palestine

Identical letters dated 4 April 2002 from the Permanent Observer of

Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General

and the President of the Security Council

The crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, worsens each day as Israel, the occupying Power, presses on with its military campaign, including war crimes and State terrorism, against the besieged Palestinian people and Palestinian Authority. This brutal and bloody military campaign is being carried out, and indeed intensified, despite pleas from all over the international community for the government of Israel to immediately cease its assaults and to adhere to international humanitarian law and the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.

Such calls upon Israel were reiterated in the strongest of terms during the public debate of the Security Council, which convened yesterday to consider the continuing deterioration of the situation. The Council was addressed by 58 speakers, the majority of whom implored the Council to take action for the immediate enforcement of resolution 1402 (2002) and specifically for the withdrawal of Israel from reoccupied Palestinian cities. We urge the Security Council to respond positively to the unanimous position conveyed by the membership in this regard by taking action on the draft resolution before it, submitted by the Syrian Arab Republic and Tunisia and contained in document S/2002/347, which demands the immediate implementation of resolution 1402 (2002). Urgent action by the Security Council is required to stem the grave and continuing decline of the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, in the face of the ongoing Israeli onslaught against the Palestinian people and their leadership.

In fact, the scope of the Israeli military campaign has widened in recent days, causing even greater death and destruction, in complete defiance of the international community’s calls in resolution 1402 (2002). The Israeli occupying forces have entered and seized even more Palestinian towns and cities, including Jenin and Salfit and, today, the city of Nablus, in addition to the continuing military siege on the cities of Ramallah, Bethlehem, Qalqilya and Tulkarem. The siege and escalating assaults on these cities by the occupying forces has also included the surrounding refugee camps, where the situation is even more critical. Moreover, all of the cities reoccupied by Israel have been declared closed military zones, and the foreign media have been prevented from documenting the situation as the occupying forces seek to commit even more human rights violations and atrocities against the Palestinian people out of the view of the international community.

In Ramallah, President Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Authority remain under siege. In Bethlehem, Israeli tanks remain positioned just metres away from the Church of the Nativity, gravely endangering this holy site. In Nablus, more than 100 Israeli tanks stormed the city, reoccupying positions and causing vast destruction, in addition to killing several Palestinians. The Israeli occupying forces also continued to shell the nearby city of Jenin, where among those killed by the occupying forces was a Red Crescent medical worker who was trying to retrieve the bodies of two other Palestinians who had been killed.

As mentioned in previous letters, the targeting of emergency medical vehicles and personnel continues to be a policy practised by the Israeli occupying forces in complete violation of international humanitarian law. The inhumane practice of preventing retrieval of those wounded or killed by Israeli fire continues as well. United Nations staff, particularly that of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), working in the area have even been threatened and repeatedly targeted by the Israeli forces, seriously endangering the safety of United Nations personnel and obstructing their work.

Round-ups of Palestinian males and house-to-house searches also continue to be carried out by the Israeli occupying forces, who have abducted and detained more than 1,000 Palestinians since this most recent onslaught began. Further, the occupying forces continue to carry out widespread destruction of homes, government buildings and institutions, cars, trees and vital infrastructure, including running water, electricity and sewage lines. Moreover, the vicious siege and the curfews imposed by the occupying forces have prevented civilians from procuring essential foodstuffs and other daily necessities and have caused a serious shortage in basic food items, including for infants, and medicines. The suffering of the Palestinian people intensifies with each day that this Israeli siege and military campaign continues to terrorize them and cause rampant death and destruction among them.

The extent of Mr. Sharon’s madness is becoming more clearly evident each day as he continues to lead Israel in pursuit of this bloody military campaign, rife with human rights violations, war crimes and State terrorism against the Palestinian people under occupation. Mr. Sharon’s decisions to continue this campaign reflect his unimaginable defiance of the international community’s repeated calls for an immediate end to the incessant Israeli attacks against the Palestinian people and reveal also the extreme arrogance and intransigence of Mr. Sharon and the Israeli government as a whole. Indeed, this madness was starkly reflected in recent comments made by the Israeli army chief, General Shaul Mofaz, who today publicly called for the “ expulsion” of President Yasser Arafat. This call adds to Mr. Mofaz’s bleak record, which should make him among the first Israeli officials to be tried for the war crimes being committed by the Israeli occupying forces against the Palestinian people.

In follow-up to my previous 112 letters to you regarding this crisis situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, dated from 29 September 2000 to 2 April 2002 (A/55/432-S/2000/921; A/55/437-S/2000/930; A/55/450-S/2000/957; A/55/466-S/2000/971; A/55/474-S/2000/984; A/55/490-S/2000/993; A/ES-10/39-S/2000/1015; A/ES-10/40-S/2000/1025; A/ES-10/42-S/2000/1068; A/ES-10/43-S/2000/1078; A/ES-10/44-S/2000/1093; A/ES-10/45-S/2000/1104; A/ES-10/46-S/2000/1107; A/ES-10/47-S/2000/1116; A/ES-10/48-S/2000/1129; A/ES-10/49-S/2000/1154; A/ES-10/50-S/2000/1173; A/ES-10/51-S/2000/1185; A/ES-10/52-S/2000/1215; A/ES-10/53-S/2000/1247; A/ES-10/54-S/2001/7; A/ES-10/55-S/2001/33; A/ES/10/56-S/2001/50, A/ES-10/57-S/2001/101; A/ES-10/58-S/2001/131 A/ES-10/59-S/2001/156;  A/ES-10/60-S/2001/175; A/ES-10/61-S/2001/189; A/ES-10/64-S/2001/209;  A/ES-10/65-S/2001/226; A/ES-10/66-S/2001/239; A/ES-10/67-S/2001/255; A/ES-10/68-S/2001/284; A/ES-10/69-S/2001/295; A/ES-10/70-S/2001/304; A/ES-10/71-S/2001/314; A/ES-10/72-S/2001/332; A/ES-10/75-S/2001/352; A/ES-10/76-S/2001/372; A/ES-10/79-S/2001/418; A/ES-10/80-S/2001/432; A/ES-10/81-S/2001/447; A/ES-10/82-S/2001/463; A/ES-10/83-S/2001/471; A/ES-10/84-S/2001/479; A/ES-10/85-S/2001/486; A/ES-10/86-S/2001/496; A/ES-10/87-S/2001/504; A/ES-10/88-S/2001/508; A/ES-10/89-S/2001/544; A/ES-10/90-S/2001/586; A/ES-10/91-S/2001/605; A/ES-10/92-S/2001/629; A/ES-10/93-S/2001/657; A/ES-10/94-S/2001/669; A/ES-10/95-S/2001/686; A/ES-10/96-S/2001/697; A/ES-10/97-S/2001/708; A/ES-10/98-S/2001/717; A/ES-10/99-S/2001/742; A/ES-10/100-S/2001/754; A/ES-10/101-S/2001/783; A/ES-10/102-S/2001/785; A/ES-10/103-S/2001/798; A/ES-10/104-S/2001/812; A/ES-10/105-S/2001/814; A/ES-10/107-S/2001/821; A/ES-10/108-S/2001/826; A/ES-10/110-S/2001/855; A/ES-10/111-S/2001/880; A/ES-10/112-S/2001/918; A/ES-10/114-S/2001/928; A/ES-10/115-S/2001/932; A/ES-10/116-S/2001/941; A/ES-10/117-S/2001/971; A/ES-10/118-S/2001/989; A/ES-10/119-S/2001/991; A/ES-10/121-S/2001/1007; A/ES-10/122-S/2001/1024; A/ES-10/123-S/2001/1036; A/ES-10/124-S/2001/1084; A/ES-10/125-S/2001/1092; A/ES-10/126-S/2001/1118; A/ES-10/128-S/2001/1149; A/ES-10/129-S/2001/1166; A/ES-10/133-S/2001/1239, A/ES-10/134-S/2001/1261, A/ES-10/136-S/2002/18, A/ES-10/137-S/2002/39, A/ES-10/138-S/2002/48, A/ES-10/139-S/2002/58, A/ES-10/140-S/2002/89, A/ES-10/141-S/2002/95, A/ES-10/142-S/2002/102, A/ES-10/143-S/2002/121, A/ES-10/144-S/2002/142, A/ES-10/145-S/2002/146, A/ES-10/146-S/2002/165; A/ES-10/147-S/2002/175; A/ES-10/148-S/2002/182, A/ES-10/149-S/2002/190, A/ES-10/150-S/2002/214 A/ES-10/151-S/2002/223; A/ES-10/152-S/2002/232; A/ES-10/154-S/2002/242, A/ES-10/155-S/2002/248, A/ES-10/156-S/2002/249, A/ES-10/157-S/2002/253; A/ES-10/158-S/2002/258; A/ES-10/159-S/2002/281; A/ES-10/160-S/2002/307; A/ES-10/161-S/2002/319; A/ES-10/162-S/2002/330 and A/ES-10/163-S/2002/340), I deeply regret to inform you that, since my last letter, at least 31 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli occupying forces, raising the total number of Palestinian martyrs to 1,228 people. This figure does not include today’s fatalities. Once again, due to the extremely difficult circumstances in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, we have been unable to compile a complete and accurate list of all of the Palestinian martyrs that have been killed by the Israeli occupying forces. However, the annex to the present letter contains the names of the martyrs that have thus far been identified. The names of the other Palestinians that have been killed by the occupying forces will be conveyed once they are identified.

    would be grateful if you would arrange to have the text of the present letter and its annex distributed as an official document of the tenth emergency special session of the General Assembly, under agenda item 5, and of the Security Council.

(Signed) Nasser Al-Kidwa 
Ambassador
Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations

Annex to the identical letters dated 4 April 2002 from the Permanent Observer

of Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General

and the President of the Security Council

Names of martyrs killed by Israeli occupying forces in the

Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem *
(Tuesday, 2 April 2002, to Wednesday, 3 April 2002)

Tuesday, 2 April 2002 (In addition to the martyrs listed in our letter of 2 April 2002)

1.  Santa Maria Arshmendrit 

2.   Shadi Fayez Al-Battat

3.  Ayoub Mohammed Abu Musallam

4.  Mohammed Hussein Muharam

5.  Abboud Al-Amry

6.   Ghaleb Abdellatif Khalil

7.  Issa Mohammed Salim 

8.   Ala’a Abdelhay

9.  Yousef Obeid

10.   Fayez Khaled Saleh (13 years old)

11.  Hamzeh Mahmoud Abu Rumooz

12.  Yehya Da’amseh

13.  Mahmoud Abdelfatah Falah

14.  Annan Tayseer Jawareesh

15.   Issa Youssef Daboub (15 years old)

16.  Bahaa Khaled Al-Sharqawe

    Wednesday, 3 April 2002

1.  Dr. Fadwa Fathi Abdallah Jamal

2.  Hani Attiyah Abu Rumailah

3.  Ziyad Ibrahim Al-Zubaidy 

4.   Imad Khaled Musharqa

5.  Mahmoud Musa Saleh

6.   Mohammed Omar Hawasheen (13 years old)

7.  Omar Shehadeh Al-Sulihat

8.   Awad Musa Al-Maleehy

9.  Ahmed Yousef Al-Qalaq 

10.   Ahmed Al-Maghrabi

11.  Ezzat Yousef Shaheen 

12.   Abdelkhaleq Abu Amrah

13.  Jaber Al Abed Al-Nabaheen

14.  Akram Khalifa

15.  Widad Hamad Nimr Sufran 

________________

 *   The total number of Palestinian martyrs killed by Israeli occupying forces since 28 September 2000 is 1,228.