Illegal Israeli actions in OPT – Letter from Palestine

Identical letters dated 5 April 2001 from the Permanent Observer of

Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General

and the President of the Security Council

Today, 5 April 2001, Israel, the occupying Power, committed yet another extrajudicial killing of a Palestinian civilian, assassinating a man while he stood in a public telephone booth in the town of Jenin. Apparently, the telephone booth was booby-trapped, a method that has been used before by the Israeli occupying forces in committing such crimes against Palestinians.

In another condemnable and extremely dangerous development, soldiers of the Israeli occupying forces shot at Palestinian high security officials, who were returning from a Palestinian-Israeli meeting, immediately after the convoy in which those officials were travelling passed the Israeli checkpoint into Gaza. Two of the cars were heavily hit by gunfire and three bodyguards were injured. This attack raises very serious questions regarding the conduct of some officers of the Israeli occupying forces and the relationship between the military and political levels in Israel.

On another front, the Israeli government took additional steps concerning illegal settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem. These steps relate to both the building of a new settlement and the expansion of existing settlements, including the one at Jabal Abu Ghneim.

Further, today, Israeli occupying forces killed a 15-year-old boy by shooting him in the chest near the “Netzarim” settlement in the middle of the Gaza Strip. This killing raises the total number of Palestinians killed by the Israeli occupying forces, since 28 September 2000, to 401 martyrs. In reference to my previous letters to you on this grave matter (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 and A/ES-10/71-S/2001/314), I am enclosing in the annex to this letter the names of the additional two martyrs since my last letter to you on 2 April 2001.

In this regard, I also regret to inform you that the number of injuries sustained by Palestinian civilians as a result of the excessive use of lethal force by the Israeli occupying army also continues to rise. On 3 April 2001, the Israeli occupying forces once again used Israeli helicopter gunships to assault Palestinian areas, firing missiles at four different locations throughout the Gaza Strip. At least 50 people were injured as a result of this shelling, in addition to the severe damage caused to infrastructure and the widespread fear and panic caused among the civilian populations in those areas.

We call upon the international community and the United Nations Security Council in specific to undertake measures to bring an end to Israel’s bloody military campaign against the Palestinian people. In this regard, we once again stress the urgency of providing protection to the Palestinian civilians living under the oppressive and brutal Israeli occupation.

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

(Signed) Nasser Al-Kidwa

Ambassador

Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations

Annex to the identical letters dated 5 April 2001 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

(Thursday, 5 April 2001)

Thursday, 5 April 2001

1. Ahmed Mohammed Al-Attar (15 years old)

2. Eyad Mohammed Hardan