In two incidents in December 2011, the Israeli air force bombed ammunition storages in the middle of a civilian area in Gaza. Secondary explosions caused nearby homes to collapse. In the first bombing, two civilians were killed, one of them a 10-year-old, and an 8-year-old was severely injured. In the second, an 11-year-old was severely injured. Hamas breached international law by storing the weapons in a civilian area. Israel failed to take all feasible means to minimize harm to civilians, and did not warn civilians to evacuate the area.
In December, B'Tselem documented ten cases of settler violence against Palestinians or Palestinian property in the West Bank. The recent wave of violence results from a longstanding policy of lax law enforcement in cases of settler violence against Palestinians. The Israeli authorities must take action to apprehend and prosecute lawbreakers, while safeguarding the suspects' rights to due process.
Jessica Montell reviews B'Tselem's accomplishments and the broader human rights context over the past year, and invites you to join our efforts on behalf of human rights
Following the public outrage regarding settler violence against soldiers, B'Tselem’s field researchers describe the daily settler violence Palestinians have suffered for years, which the law-enforcement authorities have met with tacit consent.
On 26 November 2011, a volunteer in B'Tselem’s camera project filmed a border policeman aim a loaded weapon at the photographer’s 13-year-old son. The family related that Border policemen also harassed the boys, who were playing across from their house and beat one of them. B'Tselem demanded that the authorities conduct an immediate investigation.
In response to media reports that the government is considering declaring extreme rightwing Israeli activists as a terrorist organization, B'Tselem states that this is an illegitimate way to deal with the phenomenon of violence by Israeli citizens in the Occupied Territories. Such violence must be dealt with through the criminal justice system. The recent violence toward the military results from of Israel's lax law-enforcement toward settlers who harm Palestinians and their property.
On 30 Nov. '11, the military court in Ofer ruled that a confession given by Ayman Hamidah during an ISA (Shabak) interrogation was inadmissible, since it had not been given willingly. In an unusual step, the court acquitted Hamidah of the charges that were based solely on the confession. In fact, the interrogation methods that Hamidah described have been used against hundreds of Palestinians, and are classified in international law as torture or maltreatment, which are absolutely prohibited.
The Civil Administration has announced a plan to "relocate" the 27,000 Bedouins living in Area C in the West Bank. In Jan. 2012, some 2,300 Bedouins will be forcibly transferred to a site near the Abu Dis refuse dump, east of Jerusalem, in blatant contravention of international law, which prohibits the forced transfer of protected persons. The expulsion will advance the splitting up of the West Bank by enabling expansion of the Ma'ale Adummim settlement, exacerbating the injustice.
On Friday, 9 Dec. '11, at the end of the weekly demonstration in the West Bank village of a-Nabi Saleh, a soldier killed demonstrator Mustafa Tamimi by firing a tear-gas canister directly at his face. For several years, B'Tselem has been alerting officials to security forces' repeated illegal firing of tear-gas canisters directly at persons. Despite the army’s declarations that such firing is forbidden, the practice continues.
B'Tselem is seeking interns for our communication department. Candidates should be fluent in English. A working knowledge of Hebrew is a benefit. Internships include field work and study tours to of human rights issues in the West Bank. For further information please contact Zvi Shulman at: zvi@btselem.org.
B'Tselem has championed human rights in the West Bank and Gaza Strip for over two decades, promoting a future where all Israelis and Palestinians will live in freedom and dignity.