OPT: Protection of civilians – OCHA Weekly report (11-17 June 2008)

OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS

P.O. Box 38712, East Jerusalem, Phone: (+972) 2-582 9962 / 582 5853, Fax: (+972) 2-582 5841 ochaopt@un.org, www.ochaopt.org

Protection of Civilians Weekly Report

11 – 17 June 2008

Of note this week

Gaza Strip:

· The IDF killed 19 Palestinians, including a 65-year-old man and an eight-year-old girl, and injured ten others in the Gaza Strip. In one incident in Khan Younis, an UNRWA minibus transporting UN staff members was within three metres of a vehicle targeted by an IAF missile strike that led to the death of five Palestinian militants.

· On one occasion, IDF patrol boats opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats, forcing them to return to shore. No damage or injuries were reported (Rafah).

· A 13-year-old Palestinian boy was stabbed and killed by another boy in Gaza City. Both were students at an UNRWA school.

· Six Palestinians adults and two children, including a four-month-old baby, were killed in an internal explosion at a house in Beit Lahiya. Forty others, including ten children, were injured in the explosion, which was due to the reckless handling of weaponry by Palestinian militants (North Gaza).

· Local NGOs organised a demonstration at the Unknown Soldier Park in support of Palestinian unity. Approximately 200 people participated in the demonstration.

· A total of 42 rudimentary rockets and 61 mortars were fired by Palestinian militants at Israel, resulting in injury to two Israeli civilians. In addition, three mortars were fired at the IDF in the Gaza Strip but no injuries were reported.

West Bank:

· The IDF injured 31 Palestinians in the West Bank, including 19 injured in demonstrations in Ni’lin village against Barrier construction and the resulting isolation of around 2,500 dunums of Palestinian private agricultural land. An Israeli demonstrator was also injured by the IDF in an anti-Barrier demonstration in Bil’in (Ramallah).

· A group of Israeli settlers from Yitzhar settlement physically attacked three Palestinian shepherds in Burin as well as stabbed and killed three donkeys. The incident is under investigation by the Israeli Police (Nablus).

· On four occasions, Palestinians threw stones at Israeli vehicles travelling in the Jerusalem and Ramallah governorates. No injuries were reported but four vehicles

sustained damage.

· The Jerusalem Municipality, accompanied by the IDF, demolished three houses in Jerusalem. As a result, 18 Palestinians were displaced, including 12 children.

· The IDF announced the removal of ten closures on Roads 325 and 317 in the southern parts of Hebron Governorate.

· 85 flying checkpoints, 99 IDF search operations, and 58 arrests/detentions of Palestinians were reported this week.

Full report: