Illegal Israeli actions in OPT – Letter from Palestine

Identical letters dated 28 March 2001 from the Permanent Observer

of Palestinian to the United Nations addressed to the

Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council

The bloody Israeli military campaign against the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, continues unabated. Today, at around 8 p.m. (Palestine time), Israeli occupying forces launched fire from helicopter gunships, tanks and other heavy artillery, shelling targets in the city of Ramallah and the city of Gaza as well as other locations in the Gaza Strip for approximately an hour. At least one person was killed and more than 60 people were injured in these attacks. Further, in addition to the destruction of property, the heavy shelling caused intense fear and anxiety among the Palestinian civilian population living in those areas.

Also today, a Palestinian woman was shot and killed by machine gun fire from an Israeli helicopter while she was walking in a village south west of Ramallah. In addition the situation in Al-Khalil (Hebron) remains very dangerous and tense with increased shooting and shelling by the occupied forces and violence by the illegal settlers in the city and has even included the unprecedented evacuation of a whole neighbourhood by the occupying forces. These additional criminal acts committed by the Israeli occupying forces and approved by Mr. Ariel Sharon and his government represent yet another escalation of force by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people.

As you are aware, yesterday, the Security Council was prevented from fulfilling its primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security due to the negative vote of a permanent member on a draft resolution (S/2001/270) addressing the situation on the ground, including the issue of the provision of protection for the Palestinian people. We believe that this unfortunate failure by the Council was understood by Israel, the occupying Power, as encouragement to continue pursuing its bloody campaign, committing grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and violations of relevant Security Council resolutions against the Palestinian people.

In follow-up to my recent letters to you, dated from 29 September 2000 to 21 March 2001  (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 and A/ES-10/67-S/2001/255), I regret to inform you that, since my last letter, five Palestinian martyrs, excluding today’s martyrs, have been killed by the Israeli occupying forces. This brings the total number of Palestinians killed since 28 September to 382. (The names of the five martyrs are contained in the annex to the present letter.) In the past few days, many more Palestinians have also been injured by excessive force used by the Israeli occupying forces. Meanwhile, the Israeli siege and closure of the Occupied Palestinian Territory continues, with its devastating impact on the socio-economic conditions of the Palestinian people.

At this time, we cannot but reiterate our calls for the international community to take the necessary measures to help bring an end to the bloody Israeli military campaign that continues to be waged against our people.

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 and of the Security Council.

(Signed) Nasser Al-Kidwa

Ambassador

Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations

Annex to the identical letters dated 28 March 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 security forces in the

Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem

(Wednesday, 21 March through Tuesday, 27 March 2001)

Wednesday, 21 March 2001

Kamel Saleh Al-Jamal

Friday, 23 March 2001

Osama Hassan Salim

Sunday, 25 March 2001

Hassan Mansour (15 years old)

Monday, 26 March 2001

Sabri Ahmed Al-Khathala

Tuesday, 27 March 2001

Mahmoud Ismail Al-Darawiesh (14 years old)