Illegal Israeli actions in OPT – Letter from Palestine

Identical letters dated 12 May 2004 from the Chargé d’affaires a.i. of the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council

  In grave breach of international law, including international humanitarian law, Israel, the occupying Power, continues to use excessive and indiscriminate force and to launch military attacks against the Palestinian population in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Over the past two days, Israeli occupying forces have intensified their deadly military attacks and carried out yet another raid in the densely populated Gaza city neighbourhood of Zeitoun. The raid was carried out by Israeli ground forces, backed by dozens of Israeli armoured carriers, tanks helicopter gunships and navy ships. At the time of writing the present letter, the occupying forces have killed 15 Palestinians, including 7 children. Israeli occupying forces have also wounded more than 140 people, including children, some of whom remain in critical condition.

  In addition to the casualties and the serious injuries caused by the latest Israeli incursion into Gaza, the occupying forces raided numerous homes, terrorizing many families throughout the town. Israeli occupying forces blasted their way into Palestinian homes and buildings, causing serious damage and destruction. The destruction of civilian property that has occurred over the past two days follows one of the most intense periods of destruction since the start of the intifada, which began on 28 September 2000. According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, in the past 10 days Israeli occupying forces have demolished or damaged beyond repair 131 residential buildings. These demolitions have made 1,100 Palestinians homeless, bringing the total number of people who have lost their homes in the Gaza Strip to the shocking number of 17,594.

  Tragically, the toll of death and destruction throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, continues to rise almost daily, as reflected in the annexed list of martyrs, and the situation on the ground continues to deteriorate as Israel continues to pursue all of its illegal policies and practices against the Palestinian people. In this regard, the international community should act to bring an end to all Israeli actions against the Palestinian people and ensure Israel’s compliance with international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, and with its obligations as an occupying Power.

  The present letter is in follow-up to our previous 188 letters to you regarding the ongoing crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, since 28 September 2000. These letters, dated from 29 September 2000 (A/55/432-S/2000/921) to 22 April 2004 (A/ES-10/265-S/2004/319) constitute a basic record of the crimes committed by the Israeli occupying forces against the Palestinian people since September 2000. For all of the war crimes, State terrorism and systematic human rights violations committed against the Palestinian people, Israel, the occupying Power, must be held accountable and the perpetrators must be brought to justice.

  Accordingly, in follow-up to the above-mentioned letters, it is my profound regret to inform you that, since our last letter to you, at least 49 Palestinians, including 16 children, have been killed by the Israeli occupying forces, raising the total number of Palestinian martyrs killed since September 2000 to 2,963. (The names of the martyrs that have been identified 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) Somaia Barghouti 

Chargé d’affaires a.i.

Annex to the identical letters dated 12 May 2004 from the Chargé d’affaires a.i. of 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 the Israeli occupying forces in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem *

(Friday, 23 April 2004, to Wednesday, 12 May 2004)

    Friday, 23 April 2004

1.   Mona Hamdy Shihadeh Abu Tabaq (9 years old)

2.   Asma’a Ali Salma Abu Qleeq (4 years old)

3.   Yasser Ahmed Mohamed Abu Laymoon

4.  Mohamed Abdel Hafeez Odeh Nazal

5.  Mohamed Kamel Amad Allah Nazal

6.  Abdel Rahman Wasef Nazal 

    Saturday, 24 April 2004

1.  Kamal Abdallah Al-Tawbeesy

2.  Mohamed Mazaen Selim Azouqeh

3.  Said Ahmed Mohamed Hardan

4.  Hosni Mustafa Yussef Durghameh

   Monday, 26 April 2004

  Moussa Ibrahim Al-Akeed (14 years old)

   Tuesday, 27 April 2004

1.   Ashraf Zaher Hasan Nafea’

2.  Amjad Ribhi Imareh

3.   Islam Hachem Rizq Zahran (14 years old, died from wounds sustained on 18 April 2004)

 Saturday, 1 May 2004

1.   Hussein Ismaeel Abu Aker (7 years old)

2.  Jamal Shihadeh Radwan Hamdan

   Sunday, 2 May 2004

1.   Khaled Bahgat Abu Elbeh (15 years old, died from wounds sustained on 30 April 2004)

2.  Nader Mahmoud Abu Leil

3.   Hachem Dawood Ashtewi Abu Hamdan

4.  Na’el Ziad Hasanein 

5.   Mohamed Hussein Abu Hamdan

   Monday, 3 May 2004 

  Ahmed Jihad Al-Khowaldi (15 years old, died from wounds sustained on 21 April 2004)

    Tuesday, 4 May 2004

1.  Bilal Mohamed Hamdan 

2.   Baha’a Falah Abu Zaytoun (13 years old)

   Wednesday, 5 May 2004

1.   Abdallah Ali Al-Jammal

2.  Ra’fat Bakr Ramadan Obeid

3.  Imad Mohamed Hafez Janajreh

   Thursday, 6 May 2004

  Yassin Adel Abdallah Al-Joulani

   Friday, 7 May 2004 

1.   Basseem Bassam Mohamed Kilboneh (18 years old)

2.   Muntaser Mohamed Ahmed Ziab

3.  Sa’ed Ibrahim Hasan Musi’ei

4.  Zaker Khairy Khidr

   Sunday, 9 May 2004 

1.   Fadi Shalaan Bahr

2.  Nahed Mohamed Abu Hadaf 

    Tuesday, 11 May 2004

1.  Ammar Awad Al-Jirjawi 

2.   Fadi Ibrahim Alyan Nasser (18 years old)

3.   Mohamed Faraj Ades (18 years old)

4.   Ahmed Salem Al-Sobki (16 years old)

5.   Ramy Mohamed Ja’afaar (11 years old)

6.   Hamdy Hamoodeh Muhsen (14 years old)

7.   Yussef Kamal Hijazi (13 years old)

8.  Rafiq Ashoor Daghmesh 

9.   Jihad Malka

10.  Ahmed Obein (12 years old)

    Wednesday, 12 May 2004

1.  Mohamed Abdel Aziz Mushtahi

2.  Fawzi Musbah Al-Madhoon

3.  Mohamed Hasan Yassin 

4.   Midhat Rafiq Al-Bana

5.  Ramy Abu Own

*   The total number of Palestinian martyrs killed by Israeli occupying forces since 28 September 2000 is 2,963.

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