Illegal Israeli actions in OPT – Letter from Palestine

Identical letters dated 2 October 2001 from the Permanent Observer

Mission of Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the

Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council

Last Friday, 28 September 2001, the Palestinian people marked the passage of one year since the infamous visit of Ariel Sharon to Al-Haram Al-Sharif and the beginning of the bloody Israeli military campaign against the Palestinian people, which ignited the second Palestinian intifada. The Palestinian people marked the occasion with three minutes of silence in addition to several demonstrations, which took place throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem. Israeli occupying forces responded with the same pattern of wilful killings and the commission of other crimes, killing a total of 15 Palestinians, including 5 children under the age of 18, over a span of three days, 28 to 30 September 2001. (The names of the martyrs are annexed to the present letter.) These latest killings bring the total number of Palestinians killed by Israeli occupying forces since 28 September 2000 to 661.

In one incident, in the Palestinian village of Attara, Israeli soldiers trapped Palestinian labourers in a taxi and opened fire, indiscriminately resulting in the brutal killing of two and the injuring of others. In another incident, Israeli soldiers shot dead a member of the Palestinian security services in the city of Al-Khalil (Hebron) as he was trying to prevent clashes between Palestinian civilians and Israeli soldiers. Most of the other cases of killings involved Israeli soldiers shooting at demonstrators, some of whom may have been throwing stones, but without any gunfire present in the area.

The above-mentioned killings occurred after the Palestinian decision to declare a ceasefire was announced on 18 September 2001 and as measures were being taken by the Palestinian Authority to ensure the implementation of the agreement reached between the Palestinian and Israeli sides in the meeting which took place between President Yasser Arafat and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres on 26 September 2001. Obviously they represent a clear attempt to destroy the agreement and prevent any potential positive move forward. The Israeli Government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is fully responsible for the grave consequences of such perilous positions and actions.

I am writing the present letter in follow-up to our previous 69 letters addressed to you regarding this grave and ongoing situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, dated from 29 September 2000 to 27 September 2001 (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 and 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.)  I regret to inform you that since my last letter to you, dated 17 September 2001, Israeli occupying forces have killed 13 more Palestinians, including the number of martyrs mentioned above. (The names of the martyrs are contained in the annex to the present letter.)

I would be grateful if you would arrange to have the text of the present letter and its annex distributed as a 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 2 October 2001 from the Permanent Observer

Mission 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 ^a 
(Friday, 28 September to Sunday, 30 September 2001)

    Friday, 28 September 2001

1.   Imam Mohammed Rif’at Al-Shareef

2.   Mahmoud Ali Sukkar (16 years old)

3.  Mohsen Fahd Arar (17 years old)

4.  Mohammed Fathi Ahmed Al-Tarayrah (10 years old)

5.   Yasser Ahmed Al-Adhamy

6.  Ahmed Atef Mahdi

7.   Mohammed Mohammed Zuhed

8.  Shady Jad Al-Karim Abu Lafi

    Saturday, 29 September 2001

1.   Khalil Eissa Fayyad (17 years old)

2.   Ahmed Mahmoud Awajah (from wounds sustained on 27 September 2001)

3.   Ribhi Mahmoud Al-Bayed

4.   Mahmoud Khamis Al-Sawaf (13 years old)

    Sunday, 30 September 2001

1.  Khalil Al-Sarfandi Abu Al-Abed

2.  Hosni Mustafa Abu Aleil

3.   Nidal Mohammed Rushdi Al-Fakhoury

______________

 ^a   Total number of Palestinian martyrs killed by Israeli occupying forces since 28 September 2000 = 661.