6 july 2011
UN: Israel used unnecessary force against protesters on Nakba Day
Israel furious over critical UN report that IDF used live fire against unarmed Lebanese protesters, cuts contact with Lebanon coordinator.
A new report of United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is highly critical of Israel for its handling of incidents on the border with Lebanon on May 15 - Nakba Day. It concludes that the Israeli soldiers used disproportionate force against Lebanese demonstrators, which resulted in seven deaths.
In Israel there is great anger at the UN special coordinator for Lebanon, Michael Williams, who authored the report, and the Foreign Affairs Ministry is cutting contact with him until further notice.
The secretary general's report, which deals with the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 (ending the Second Lebanon War ), was disseminated several days ago to members of the Security Council, and Haaretz received a copy.
The report mainly deals with the Nakba Day incidents.
In its conclusions the secretary general expresses concern about Nakba Day and notes that IDF soldiers "used direct live fire against unarmed demonstrators" who tried to breach the border fence. He called on the Lebanese Army and the IDF to avoid such incidents from recurring.
"I call on the Israel Defense Forces to refrain from responding with live fire in such situations, except where clearly required in immediate self-defense. Notwithstanding every country's inherent right of self defense, there is a need for the Israel Defense Forces always to apply appropriate operational measures, including crowd control measures, which are commensurate to the imminent threat toward their troops and civilians," the report states.
The report notes that some 8,000-10,000 demonstrators participated in the Nakba Day demonstrations in Lebanon, most of them Palestinian refugees. "Organizers included Palestinian and Lebanese organizations, among them Hebollah," the report said.
About 1,000 protesters broke off from the main demonstration, which took place without disorder, and moved toward the border fence with Israel, throwing stones and firebombs, and removing 23 anti-tank mines, the report notes.
"Following a verbal warning and firing into the air, the Israel Defense Forces then directed live fire at the protesters at the fence," according to the report, "killing seven civilians and injuring 111."
The report is based on the investigation findings of UNIFIL, which note that it was the Palestinian demonstrators who initiated the trouble, were first to use violence, and violated UN Security Council Resolution 1701. However, the majority of the report's criticism is directed at the IDF.
"Other than firing initial warning shots, the Israel Defense Forces did not use conventional crowd control methods or any other method than lethal weapons against the demonstrators," the report states.
Moreover, the UN report notes that "the firing of live ammunition by the Israel Defense Forces across the Blue Line [the border fence] against the demonstrators, which resulted in the loss of civilian life and a significant number of casualties, constituted a violation of resolution 1701 (2006 ) and was not commensurate to the threat to Israeli soldiers."
At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and at the IDF Planning Directorate which is responsible for dealing with Lebanon, they had expected a particularly critical report, especially because of the tension between Israel and the UN coordinator Michael Williams, who prepared the report on behalf of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Hours after the Nakba Day incidents, Williams assailed Israel and blamed it for the incidents, without condemning the attempt to breach the border fence from the Lebanese side. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman was furious with the comments Williams made and instructed the Israeli delegation to the United Nations to contact the secretary general's office and complain about the coordinator for Lebanon. Similar demarches were made to the ambassadors of France, Italy and Spain at the UN, as they are the three countries contributing most of the troops to UNIFIL.
To send an even stronger message to Williams, the Foreign Ministry decided to cancel his periodic visit to Israel, which was due in a number of weeks. Williams asked to hear Israel's position on the events of Nakba Day, but he was told that there was no time to meet with him, and that Israel would relay its views directly to the secretary general's office.
Foreign Ministry sources said that it remains unclear whether Israel will resume contact with Williams.
UN: Israel used unnecessary force against protesters on Nakba Day
Israel furious over critical UN report that IDF used live fire against unarmed Lebanese protesters, cuts contact with Lebanon coordinator.
A new report of United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is highly critical of Israel for its handling of incidents on the border with Lebanon on May 15 - Nakba Day. It concludes that the Israeli soldiers used disproportionate force against Lebanese demonstrators, which resulted in seven deaths.
In Israel there is great anger at the UN special coordinator for Lebanon, Michael Williams, who authored the report, and the Foreign Affairs Ministry is cutting contact with him until further notice.
The secretary general's report, which deals with the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 (ending the Second Lebanon War ), was disseminated several days ago to members of the Security Council, and Haaretz received a copy.
The report mainly deals with the Nakba Day incidents.
In its conclusions the secretary general expresses concern about Nakba Day and notes that IDF soldiers "used direct live fire against unarmed demonstrators" who tried to breach the border fence. He called on the Lebanese Army and the IDF to avoid such incidents from recurring.
"I call on the Israel Defense Forces to refrain from responding with live fire in such situations, except where clearly required in immediate self-defense. Notwithstanding every country's inherent right of self defense, there is a need for the Israel Defense Forces always to apply appropriate operational measures, including crowd control measures, which are commensurate to the imminent threat toward their troops and civilians," the report states.
The report notes that some 8,000-10,000 demonstrators participated in the Nakba Day demonstrations in Lebanon, most of them Palestinian refugees. "Organizers included Palestinian and Lebanese organizations, among them Hebollah," the report said.
About 1,000 protesters broke off from the main demonstration, which took place without disorder, and moved toward the border fence with Israel, throwing stones and firebombs, and removing 23 anti-tank mines, the report notes.
"Following a verbal warning and firing into the air, the Israel Defense Forces then directed live fire at the protesters at the fence," according to the report, "killing seven civilians and injuring 111."
The report is based on the investigation findings of UNIFIL, which note that it was the Palestinian demonstrators who initiated the trouble, were first to use violence, and violated UN Security Council Resolution 1701. However, the majority of the report's criticism is directed at the IDF.
"Other than firing initial warning shots, the Israel Defense Forces did not use conventional crowd control methods or any other method than lethal weapons against the demonstrators," the report states.
Moreover, the UN report notes that "the firing of live ammunition by the Israel Defense Forces across the Blue Line [the border fence] against the demonstrators, which resulted in the loss of civilian life and a significant number of casualties, constituted a violation of resolution 1701 (2006 ) and was not commensurate to the threat to Israeli soldiers."
At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and at the IDF Planning Directorate which is responsible for dealing with Lebanon, they had expected a particularly critical report, especially because of the tension between Israel and the UN coordinator Michael Williams, who prepared the report on behalf of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Hours after the Nakba Day incidents, Williams assailed Israel and blamed it for the incidents, without condemning the attempt to breach the border fence from the Lebanese side. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman was furious with the comments Williams made and instructed the Israeli delegation to the United Nations to contact the secretary general's office and complain about the coordinator for Lebanon. Similar demarches were made to the ambassadors of France, Italy and Spain at the UN, as they are the three countries contributing most of the troops to UNIFIL.
To send an even stronger message to Williams, the Foreign Ministry decided to cancel his periodic visit to Israel, which was due in a number of weeks. Williams asked to hear Israel's position on the events of Nakba Day, but he was told that there was no time to meet with him, and that Israel would relay its views directly to the secretary general's office.
Foreign Ministry sources said that it remains unclear whether Israel will resume contact with Williams.
5 july 2011
Two Killed, One Injured in Israeli bombardment of central Gaza Strip
Two Killed, One Injured in Israeli bombardment of central Gaza Strip
Mohammad Abu-Jazar
Two civilians were killed, one injured on Tuesday afternoon during Israeli shelling targeting central Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources reported. According to witnesses, Israeli shelling targeted a group of residents in the eastern part of al-Massadar village, which left Mohammad Abu-Jazar and Hamdan Abu-Moier dead and another person, currently unnamed, injured.
Medics confirmed that the three men were in their twenties and all were transported to a hospital in the nearby town Dier al-Balah.
The Israeli army announced that air force jet fighters fired a missile at a group of fighters, killing two of them. According to the Israeli military the men were approaching the border fence near central Gaza Strip, allegations which were denied by eyewitnesses.
The attack comes less than two weeks after attacks by the Israeli Air Force on the Egyptian-Gazan borders. Since Israel placed the Gaza Strip under siege in 2007, the tunnels at the Egyptian borders became a source of much needed supplies for the 1.5 million inhabitants of Gaza.
Israelis kill 2 Palestinians, injure one
Two civilians were killed, one injured on Tuesday afternoon during Israeli shelling targeting central Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources reported. According to witnesses, Israeli shelling targeted a group of residents in the eastern part of al-Massadar village, which left Mohammad Abu-Jazar and Hamdan Abu-Moier dead and another person, currently unnamed, injured.
Medics confirmed that the three men were in their twenties and all were transported to a hospital in the nearby town Dier al-Balah.
The Israeli army announced that air force jet fighters fired a missile at a group of fighters, killing two of them. According to the Israeli military the men were approaching the border fence near central Gaza Strip, allegations which were denied by eyewitnesses.
The attack comes less than two weeks after attacks by the Israeli Air Force on the Egyptian-Gazan borders. Since Israel placed the Gaza Strip under siege in 2007, the tunnels at the Egyptian borders became a source of much needed supplies for the 1.5 million inhabitants of Gaza.
Israelis kill 2 Palestinians, injure one
Hamdan Abu-Moier
Israeli artillery shelling has killed two Palestinians and injured another in the central besieged Gaza Strip, medics say.
Palestinian emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Salmiya said two people were killed and one was injured in an “artillery shelling east of the al-Maghazi refugee camp” in Gaza on Tuesday, AFP reported.
The Israeli military claims the army has targeted the Palestinians who were trying to “fire rockets” into Israel.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/187688.html
Israeli artillery shelling has killed two Palestinians and injured another in the central besieged Gaza Strip, medics say.
Palestinian emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Salmiya said two people were killed and one was injured in an “artillery shelling east of the al-Maghazi refugee camp” in Gaza on Tuesday, AFP reported.
The Israeli military claims the army has targeted the Palestinians who were trying to “fire rockets” into Israel.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/187688.html
3 july 2011
Report: Israeli forces killed 26 Palestinians in June
A report by the International Solidarity Foundation for Human Rights revealed that Israeli forces killed 26 Palestinians at home and abroad in June 2011 .
The report shows that Israeli occupation forces escalated attacks on Palestinians after Naksa Day events in early June, marking the anniversary of the occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank.
It details that two men were killed in the Gaza Strip and one in the West Bank that month by injuries sustained some years back.
Celebrating the 44th Naksa Day, 23 Palestinian and Syrian protesters were killed and many more were injured while protesting the Israeli occupation on the border of the occupied Golan Heights, the report says.
“We in ISFHR watch with grave concern at the continued violation of human rights in the Palestinian territories and the repeated attacks in the Palestinian territories, and we confirm the right of the Palestinians to live in dignity on their land like the rest of the people of the free world,” said ISFHR legal expert Ahmed Toubasi in the report
Report: Israeli forces killed 26 Palestinians in June
A report by the International Solidarity Foundation for Human Rights revealed that Israeli forces killed 26 Palestinians at home and abroad in June 2011 .
The report shows that Israeli occupation forces escalated attacks on Palestinians after Naksa Day events in early June, marking the anniversary of the occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank.
It details that two men were killed in the Gaza Strip and one in the West Bank that month by injuries sustained some years back.
Celebrating the 44th Naksa Day, 23 Palestinian and Syrian protesters were killed and many more were injured while protesting the Israeli occupation on the border of the occupied Golan Heights, the report says.
“We in ISFHR watch with grave concern at the continued violation of human rights in the Palestinian territories and the repeated attacks in the Palestinian territories, and we confirm the right of the Palestinians to live in dignity on their land like the rest of the people of the free world,” said ISFHR legal expert Ahmed Toubasi in the report
1 july 2011
Palestinian Man Dies of Wounds he Sustained Three Months Ago
Jalal Al-Masri 30
A Palestinian was reported dead on Friday evening due to wounds he sustained three months ago when Israeli police opened fire at him as he was driving back home near the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Jallal al-Massri, 30 years old, was going back home from Jerusalem to his village of Ithna near Hebron. An Israeli police officer opened fire at him as he drove by and critically injured him. The man was taken to Hadasa Israeli hospital in Jerusalem where he died today, Palestinian sources reported.
The circumstances of the attack by the police remains unknown; Palestinian security sources reported that the Palestinian Authority had demanded an investigation of the incident but the Israel government refused claiming that the man was holding an Israeli citizenship.
According to Palestinian sources al-Massri was kept in Hadasa hospital under arrest by the police.
Twilight Zone / Drive-by shooting
by Gideon Levy
Jalal Al-Masri was fatally shot by soldiers while driving to collect his family for a weekend vacation in Eilat. Six months after the incident, his bereaved family are still looking for answers.
What happened in January this year? During that month, Israel Defense Forces soldiers, using live ammunition, killed three Palestinians in incidents at checkpoints and another, aged 66, as he slept in his bed. In the six months since, not one Palestinian has been killed in the West Bank. Last week, however, the fifth casualty from January died. The circumstances of his death are especially puzzling and infuriating.
Jalal Al-Masri was a 28-year-old truck driver from Jerusalem’s mixed Arab-Jewish Abu Tor neighborhood, married and the father of two children. He carried cargo between Ashdod and Sde Uziyahu, a village near the port. He had a blue ?(Israeli?) ID card and yellow ?(Israeli?) license plates on his private Peugeot 205. Before becoming a truck driver, he worked as a domestic in the Eldan Hotel in Jerusalem. His brother, Jamil, a taxi driver in Jerusalem, says Jalal loved his work; he once suggested that he switch to the public transport sphere, like him, but Jalal declined.
He had no security or criminal background, was never arrested or interrogated, never “belonged,” and was never “active.” He liked to vacation in Eilat, with his wife, Safaa, who is from the southern West Bank town of Idna, and their two small children, Khalil, four, and Razal, two and a half. They had been married for five years. Last January they planned to spend a weekend in Eilat at their favorite hotel. It was cold in Jerusalem, and the family wanted to bask in southern sunshine for a couple of days.
Late in the evening of Thursday, January 20, Jalal left his home for Idna, to pick up his wife and children ?(who were there for a short family visit?), ahead of the trip to Eilat early the next morning. Jalal was in good spirits, say his two brothers, Jamil and Hakham. He had supper with his parents and left Abu Tor for Idna around 10 P.M. in his Peugeot. The details of what happened on the way are few and very unclear. What’s known is that around noon the next day, the police called Hakham and told him Jalal had been injured in a road accident and was in Hadassah University Hospital, Ein Karem.
Jalal had driven south on Highway 60. He was shot with live ammunition by soldiers who were standing on the roadside outside the town of Halhul, near Hebron.
Three bullets tore through the rear window of the Peugeot; no bullet struck the wheels or other parts of the vehicle. One bullet hit Jalal in the back of the head and exited through the front, doing lethal damage to his brain. The only eyewitness we could locate this week is a Palestinian ambulance driver, Iyad Madiya, who was taking a patient from Halhul to a hospital in Hebron in his ambulance at the time of the incident. Soldiers standing on the left side of the road, next to an army jeep and a civilian Peugeot, signaled the ambulance to stop.
The soldiers told Madiya that there had been an accident and that there was an injured man in the Peugeot. The paramedic says he saw no sign of a roadblock, only a jeep and soldiers standing on the road in the dark of the night, as Jalal lay bleeding in his car. Madiya pulled him out and gave him oxygen – there was nothing more he could do. Another Palestinian ambulance passed by, but it too did not have the equipment needed to treat Jalal. Finally, an Israeli ambulance arrived and rushed the badly wounded, unconscious Jalal to Hadassah. It was around 11 P.M. at this point. The next day, Madiya learned that Jalal had been shot in the head by the soldiers.
When the Kiryat Arba police called the stunned family the next day around noon to say that Jalal had been injured in a road accident, no one thought his condition was critical, still less that he had been shot. His parents and brothers hurried to the hospital from Jerusalem, his wife from Idna. Until then, they had not been worried about him. Safaa thought he hadn’t come to Idna because he had decided to sleep at home in Abu Tor; his parents and brothers thought he had spent the night in Idna. The possibility that he had been shot by soldiers never occurred to them. It was only when they saw the medical report in the hospital that they discovered he had been shot in the head.
Jamil says now: “We know Jalal. We didn’t think he had been badly injured in an accident, because we know what kind of a driver he was, and we didn’t imagine he had been shot by soldiers, because we knew Jalal. Why should they shoot him? What did they shoot him for? They told us later that he ran a roadblock and a soldier shot him. But we know who Jalal was. He would stop for every roadblock. Why wouldn’t he stop? He was on the way to his wife and children. He always obeyed the law, maybe even too much. We always knew there was no reason to worry about him, because he always obeyed the law. There are many questions for which we don’t have answers.
We are shocked.” The family reached the hospital around 1 P.M.; Jalal had already undergone surgery for the head wound and was unconscious and breathing artificially. He would remain comatose for the next six months. During all those months, his family never left his bedside. After two and a half months in Hadassah, they were told that his condition was stable but desperate, and there was nothing more to be done for him. He was transferred to Hod Adumim, a nursing home in the West Bank city of Ma’aleh Adumim, where he spent the last months of his life.
They talked to him all along, reassuring him that everything was all right. “We always had hope,” says Jamil. “The professor in Hadassah said we needed a miracle, that there was not even one percent of a chance that he would come back. We talked to him all the time, but he didn’t hear us or couldn’t respond. We told him not to worry, that everything was fine, he could get up already. We thought that maybe he was afraid, maybe he was in shock from the bullet, so we told him: ‘Everything is fine, the children are fine, just wake up.’”
In June Jalal developed infections as a result of bedsores and was rushed to Hadassah University Hospital, Mt. Scopus three times due to a high fever – and each time was taken back to the nursing home.
On June 30, his temperature rose again, he was taken to Hadassah and then sent back to the home. The next day, July 1, Jalal Al-Masri died in Hod Adumim.
His father was by his side. During all this time, no one in the IDF had bothered to explain to the family what happened. They have now hired a lawyer and are demanding an investigation.
“If it had been a settler, would they have opened fire?” asks Jamil, at the entrance to the taxi rank he works at in Beit Safafa. “If it had been a Jew, would they have put a bullet in his head? And if they had opened fire, would it have gone by quietly like that? 10:30 P.M. at night – what kind of sniper aims and shoots a driver on the road in the head? What do you say?”
The Israeli media has barely reported on the shooting. This week, Jalal’s name had yet to appear on the B’Tselem-compiled list of residents of the territories who are killed. In reply to a query by Haaretz, the IDF Spokesman stated this week: “An inquiry into the subject has been opened by the Military Police investigations unit, and upon its conclusion the findings will be transmitted to the Military Advocate General’s Office.”
Jalal’s Peugeot was returned to the family by the police after some time; it is still standing in front of their house, like a useless object, unrepaired, perhaps as their private memorial.
The traditional commemoration poster was printed this week, carrying Jalal’s portrait. “We want to know what happened,” Jamil reiterates, adding, “What did Jalal do? He went to pick up his family for a vacation, and look how it ended. Why, why did he have to be shot? Why did the soldier shoot him? My brother wasn’t suspected of anything, there is nothing against him. Who has an answer? To shoot for no good reason? Jalal had a home, a job, a wife, children – there is no reason, not even a small one, to shoot him, not even half a percent.
Maybe Jalal will be the last; we only hope this will be the end. A widow and two orphans. He was such a sweet guy.”
Palestinian Man Dies of Wounds he Sustained Three Months Ago
Jalal Al-Masri 30
A Palestinian was reported dead on Friday evening due to wounds he sustained three months ago when Israeli police opened fire at him as he was driving back home near the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Jallal al-Massri, 30 years old, was going back home from Jerusalem to his village of Ithna near Hebron. An Israeli police officer opened fire at him as he drove by and critically injured him. The man was taken to Hadasa Israeli hospital in Jerusalem where he died today, Palestinian sources reported.
The circumstances of the attack by the police remains unknown; Palestinian security sources reported that the Palestinian Authority had demanded an investigation of the incident but the Israel government refused claiming that the man was holding an Israeli citizenship.
According to Palestinian sources al-Massri was kept in Hadasa hospital under arrest by the police.
Twilight Zone / Drive-by shooting
by Gideon Levy
Jalal Al-Masri was fatally shot by soldiers while driving to collect his family for a weekend vacation in Eilat. Six months after the incident, his bereaved family are still looking for answers.
What happened in January this year? During that month, Israel Defense Forces soldiers, using live ammunition, killed three Palestinians in incidents at checkpoints and another, aged 66, as he slept in his bed. In the six months since, not one Palestinian has been killed in the West Bank. Last week, however, the fifth casualty from January died. The circumstances of his death are especially puzzling and infuriating.
Jalal Al-Masri was a 28-year-old truck driver from Jerusalem’s mixed Arab-Jewish Abu Tor neighborhood, married and the father of two children. He carried cargo between Ashdod and Sde Uziyahu, a village near the port. He had a blue ?(Israeli?) ID card and yellow ?(Israeli?) license plates on his private Peugeot 205. Before becoming a truck driver, he worked as a domestic in the Eldan Hotel in Jerusalem. His brother, Jamil, a taxi driver in Jerusalem, says Jalal loved his work; he once suggested that he switch to the public transport sphere, like him, but Jalal declined.
He had no security or criminal background, was never arrested or interrogated, never “belonged,” and was never “active.” He liked to vacation in Eilat, with his wife, Safaa, who is from the southern West Bank town of Idna, and their two small children, Khalil, four, and Razal, two and a half. They had been married for five years. Last January they planned to spend a weekend in Eilat at their favorite hotel. It was cold in Jerusalem, and the family wanted to bask in southern sunshine for a couple of days.
Late in the evening of Thursday, January 20, Jalal left his home for Idna, to pick up his wife and children ?(who were there for a short family visit?), ahead of the trip to Eilat early the next morning. Jalal was in good spirits, say his two brothers, Jamil and Hakham. He had supper with his parents and left Abu Tor for Idna around 10 P.M. in his Peugeot. The details of what happened on the way are few and very unclear. What’s known is that around noon the next day, the police called Hakham and told him Jalal had been injured in a road accident and was in Hadassah University Hospital, Ein Karem.
Jalal had driven south on Highway 60. He was shot with live ammunition by soldiers who were standing on the roadside outside the town of Halhul, near Hebron.
Three bullets tore through the rear window of the Peugeot; no bullet struck the wheels or other parts of the vehicle. One bullet hit Jalal in the back of the head and exited through the front, doing lethal damage to his brain. The only eyewitness we could locate this week is a Palestinian ambulance driver, Iyad Madiya, who was taking a patient from Halhul to a hospital in Hebron in his ambulance at the time of the incident. Soldiers standing on the left side of the road, next to an army jeep and a civilian Peugeot, signaled the ambulance to stop.
The soldiers told Madiya that there had been an accident and that there was an injured man in the Peugeot. The paramedic says he saw no sign of a roadblock, only a jeep and soldiers standing on the road in the dark of the night, as Jalal lay bleeding in his car. Madiya pulled him out and gave him oxygen – there was nothing more he could do. Another Palestinian ambulance passed by, but it too did not have the equipment needed to treat Jalal. Finally, an Israeli ambulance arrived and rushed the badly wounded, unconscious Jalal to Hadassah. It was around 11 P.M. at this point. The next day, Madiya learned that Jalal had been shot in the head by the soldiers.
When the Kiryat Arba police called the stunned family the next day around noon to say that Jalal had been injured in a road accident, no one thought his condition was critical, still less that he had been shot. His parents and brothers hurried to the hospital from Jerusalem, his wife from Idna. Until then, they had not been worried about him. Safaa thought he hadn’t come to Idna because he had decided to sleep at home in Abu Tor; his parents and brothers thought he had spent the night in Idna. The possibility that he had been shot by soldiers never occurred to them. It was only when they saw the medical report in the hospital that they discovered he had been shot in the head.
Jamil says now: “We know Jalal. We didn’t think he had been badly injured in an accident, because we know what kind of a driver he was, and we didn’t imagine he had been shot by soldiers, because we knew Jalal. Why should they shoot him? What did they shoot him for? They told us later that he ran a roadblock and a soldier shot him. But we know who Jalal was. He would stop for every roadblock. Why wouldn’t he stop? He was on the way to his wife and children. He always obeyed the law, maybe even too much. We always knew there was no reason to worry about him, because he always obeyed the law. There are many questions for which we don’t have answers.
We are shocked.” The family reached the hospital around 1 P.M.; Jalal had already undergone surgery for the head wound and was unconscious and breathing artificially. He would remain comatose for the next six months. During all those months, his family never left his bedside. After two and a half months in Hadassah, they were told that his condition was stable but desperate, and there was nothing more to be done for him. He was transferred to Hod Adumim, a nursing home in the West Bank city of Ma’aleh Adumim, where he spent the last months of his life.
They talked to him all along, reassuring him that everything was all right. “We always had hope,” says Jamil. “The professor in Hadassah said we needed a miracle, that there was not even one percent of a chance that he would come back. We talked to him all the time, but he didn’t hear us or couldn’t respond. We told him not to worry, that everything was fine, he could get up already. We thought that maybe he was afraid, maybe he was in shock from the bullet, so we told him: ‘Everything is fine, the children are fine, just wake up.’”
In June Jalal developed infections as a result of bedsores and was rushed to Hadassah University Hospital, Mt. Scopus three times due to a high fever – and each time was taken back to the nursing home.
On June 30, his temperature rose again, he was taken to Hadassah and then sent back to the home. The next day, July 1, Jalal Al-Masri died in Hod Adumim.
His father was by his side. During all this time, no one in the IDF had bothered to explain to the family what happened. They have now hired a lawyer and are demanding an investigation.
“If it had been a settler, would they have opened fire?” asks Jamil, at the entrance to the taxi rank he works at in Beit Safafa. “If it had been a Jew, would they have put a bullet in his head? And if they had opened fire, would it have gone by quietly like that? 10:30 P.M. at night – what kind of sniper aims and shoots a driver on the road in the head? What do you say?”
The Israeli media has barely reported on the shooting. This week, Jalal’s name had yet to appear on the B’Tselem-compiled list of residents of the territories who are killed. In reply to a query by Haaretz, the IDF Spokesman stated this week: “An inquiry into the subject has been opened by the Military Police investigations unit, and upon its conclusion the findings will be transmitted to the Military Advocate General’s Office.”
Jalal’s Peugeot was returned to the family by the police after some time; it is still standing in front of their house, like a useless object, unrepaired, perhaps as their private memorial.
The traditional commemoration poster was printed this week, carrying Jalal’s portrait. “We want to know what happened,” Jamil reiterates, adding, “What did Jalal do? He went to pick up his family for a vacation, and look how it ended. Why, why did he have to be shot? Why did the soldier shoot him? My brother wasn’t suspected of anything, there is nothing against him. Who has an answer? To shoot for no good reason? Jalal had a home, a job, a wife, children – there is no reason, not even a small one, to shoot him, not even half a percent.
Maybe Jalal will be the last; we only hope this will be the end. A widow and two orphans. He was such a sweet guy.”
Undercover Israeli intelligence officers appeared on national television Saturday to talk about assassinating Palestinians in a program broadcast on Israel's Channel 10.
Oren Beaton presented a photo album of Palestinians he killed during his time as a commander of an undercover Israeli unit operating in the northern West Bank city of Nablus.
Beaton explained that he kept photos of his victims.
"This is a photo of a Palestinian young man called Basim Subeih who I killed. This is another young man. I shredded his body, and the photo shows the remnants of his body," he said.
The TV program also featured an undercover agent referred to as "D", who openly admitted killing "wanted Palestinians."
He complained of suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and said that the state had rejected his demands for compensation.
The Channel 10 presenter appealed to the Israeli government to meet the agent's demands.
"Those are the Shin Bet agents we only hear about and never see, and thanks to them we live safely," she said.
The report was filmed in the Palestinian territories, and showed agents wandering around the streets of Ar-Ram in occupied East Jerusalem with handguns under their shirts, illustrating that the agents were still operating in Palestinian cities.
The agents, who speak fluent Arabic, are shown surrounded by masked Palestinian collaborators secretly deployed to the area to protect them.
The program provided previously unconfirmed details about the operational methods of undercover agents.
The report explained that officers conducted surveillance before an assassination, investigating the target's friends and classmates.
Agents would even ask about the target's favorite meals and habits at home, the report said.
In this way, agents would put together an image of the target's behavior and routine.
Agent "D" said officers would then "seize the target and wait until the commander arrives to confirm his identity. Then we shoot him."
This confirms previous accounts from Palestinians who have said they witnessed Israeli agents shooting Palestinians at point-blank range.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=397902
Oren Beaton presented a photo album of Palestinians he killed during his time as a commander of an undercover Israeli unit operating in the northern West Bank city of Nablus.
Beaton explained that he kept photos of his victims.
"This is a photo of a Palestinian young man called Basim Subeih who I killed. This is another young man. I shredded his body, and the photo shows the remnants of his body," he said.
The TV program also featured an undercover agent referred to as "D", who openly admitted killing "wanted Palestinians."
He complained of suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and said that the state had rejected his demands for compensation.
The Channel 10 presenter appealed to the Israeli government to meet the agent's demands.
"Those are the Shin Bet agents we only hear about and never see, and thanks to them we live safely," she said.
The report was filmed in the Palestinian territories, and showed agents wandering around the streets of Ar-Ram in occupied East Jerusalem with handguns under their shirts, illustrating that the agents were still operating in Palestinian cities.
The agents, who speak fluent Arabic, are shown surrounded by masked Palestinian collaborators secretly deployed to the area to protect them.
The program provided previously unconfirmed details about the operational methods of undercover agents.
The report explained that officers conducted surveillance before an assassination, investigating the target's friends and classmates.
Agents would even ask about the target's favorite meals and habits at home, the report said.
In this way, agents would put together an image of the target's behavior and routine.
Agent "D" said officers would then "seize the target and wait until the commander arrives to confirm his identity. Then we shoot him."
This confirms previous accounts from Palestinians who have said they witnessed Israeli agents shooting Palestinians at point-blank range.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=397902
12 june 2011
Israel kills Palestinian at Golan border
Israeli military forces have opened fire on a group of Palestinian refugees in Syria's Golan Heights, killing at least one and injuring five others, a Syrian state TV report says.
According to the report, a number of Palestinian youth were targeted by Israeli forces after they approached the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights border line.
The refugees came under attack as they were trying to reach their homelands in the Palestinian occupied land.
Last Sunday, Israeli troops killed at least 20 pro-Palestinian protesters in the Golan Heights and injured nearly 325 others who were marking the anniversary of the occupation of Palestinian territories by Tel Aviv.
The protesters flocked to Golan border on Naksa Day to mark the 44th anniversary of the beginning of Israel's 1967 Six-Day War against Arabs. Israel declared northern Golan a closed military zone.
Meanwhile, a young Palestinian was injured on Tuesday after Israeli troops opened fire on peaceful protesters in Beit Hanoun near Erez crossing in northern Gaza Strip.
The shooting came after a group of locals and international activists marched on the so-called Israeli buffer zone to protest the occupation of their land.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/184302.html
Israel kills Palestinian at Golan border
Israeli military forces have opened fire on a group of Palestinian refugees in Syria's Golan Heights, killing at least one and injuring five others, a Syrian state TV report says.
According to the report, a number of Palestinian youth were targeted by Israeli forces after they approached the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights border line.
The refugees came under attack as they were trying to reach their homelands in the Palestinian occupied land.
Last Sunday, Israeli troops killed at least 20 pro-Palestinian protesters in the Golan Heights and injured nearly 325 others who were marking the anniversary of the occupation of Palestinian territories by Tel Aviv.
The protesters flocked to Golan border on Naksa Day to mark the 44th anniversary of the beginning of Israel's 1967 Six-Day War against Arabs. Israel declared northern Golan a closed military zone.
Meanwhile, a young Palestinian was injured on Tuesday after Israeli troops opened fire on peaceful protesters in Beit Hanoun near Erez crossing in northern Gaza Strip.
The shooting came after a group of locals and international activists marched on the so-called Israeli buffer zone to protest the occupation of their land.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/184302.html
11 june 2011
Palestinian died of wounds he had sustained on 15 January 2009
Mohammed Sha’ban Mohammed Esleem, 50
from Gaza City, died of wounds he had sustained on 15 January 2009 during the wide scale Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip. Esleem had been wounded by shrapnel to the head, the abdomen and the hand.
On 24 February 2009, he was transferred to an Egyptian hospital.
On 29 May 2011, he was transferred to an Israeli hospital, where he had received medical treatment until his death. It is worth noting that Esleem was wounded inside his house when IOF targeted the late Minister of Interior in the Gaza government, Sa’id Syam.
As a result of this attack, 12 Palestinians, including 6 members of the Esleem family, were killed.
from Gaza City, died of wounds he had sustained on 15 January 2009 during the wide scale Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip. Esleem had been wounded by shrapnel to the head, the abdomen and the hand.
On 24 February 2009, he was transferred to an Egyptian hospital.
On 29 May 2011, he was transferred to an Israeli hospital, where he had received medical treatment until his death. It is worth noting that Esleem was wounded inside his house when IOF targeted the late Minister of Interior in the Gaza government, Sa’id Syam.
As a result of this attack, 12 Palestinians, including 6 members of the Esleem family, were killed.
Families of Naksa Day martyrs deny ties with deadly Yarmouk clashes
The families of those killed on Israeli borders during Naksa Day protests on June 5 have denied ties with the strife in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus that left some 14 dead.
Palestinians angrily mourning the reported 23 who died while trying to make the Palestinian refugees' right of return a reality were said to have rushed the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command headquarters at the camp, blaming the leading faction for egging on the Naksa Day protests. The PFLP-GC security guards were forced to respond with fire as the protesters torched the headquarters building.
Syria said that Israeli soldiers shot dead 23 people, including a woman and child, and injured some 350 with bullets, as they marked the 44th Naksa Day, when Israel occupied Golan Heights, the West Bank, and Jerusalem.
The families of the Naksa Day victims said in a statement that followed the Yarmouk incident: ”We, the families of the Palestinian martyrs who were killed by the criminal Zionist enemy on the outskirts of Palestine commemorating the occupation of Jerusalem and the West Bank on June 5, confirm our right to return to our homes, and we confirm that our martyred sons and all Palestinian martyrs are the pride of the nation, and the bright stars in the sky of resistance and a blessed offering in the path of return and liberation, and that the innocent blood that spilled is the flare of Jihad, and we do not accept that it is used as a means by any party against another from the Palestinians or Palestinian national forces.”
Hamas politburo member Ezzat al-Resheq told Quds Press that the statement released by the families of the Naksa Day martyrs had ”the final say” in the strife that took place in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria.
“This is a response to those who call for strife and have tried to foment sedition and incite against the resistance [movement] and [Palestinian] factions and shelf the progress of return,” Resheq said on Friday.
He also suggested that the events were staged and only served Israeli interests.
The senior Hamas official confirmed Hamas's condemnation of setting fire to the Yarmouk headquarters of the PFLP-GC there.
The families of those killed on Israeli borders during Naksa Day protests on June 5 have denied ties with the strife in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus that left some 14 dead.
Palestinians angrily mourning the reported 23 who died while trying to make the Palestinian refugees' right of return a reality were said to have rushed the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command headquarters at the camp, blaming the leading faction for egging on the Naksa Day protests. The PFLP-GC security guards were forced to respond with fire as the protesters torched the headquarters building.
Syria said that Israeli soldiers shot dead 23 people, including a woman and child, and injured some 350 with bullets, as they marked the 44th Naksa Day, when Israel occupied Golan Heights, the West Bank, and Jerusalem.
The families of the Naksa Day victims said in a statement that followed the Yarmouk incident: ”We, the families of the Palestinian martyrs who were killed by the criminal Zionist enemy on the outskirts of Palestine commemorating the occupation of Jerusalem and the West Bank on June 5, confirm our right to return to our homes, and we confirm that our martyred sons and all Palestinian martyrs are the pride of the nation, and the bright stars in the sky of resistance and a blessed offering in the path of return and liberation, and that the innocent blood that spilled is the flare of Jihad, and we do not accept that it is used as a means by any party against another from the Palestinians or Palestinian national forces.”
Hamas politburo member Ezzat al-Resheq told Quds Press that the statement released by the families of the Naksa Day martyrs had ”the final say” in the strife that took place in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria.
“This is a response to those who call for strife and have tried to foment sedition and incite against the resistance [movement] and [Palestinian] factions and shelf the progress of return,” Resheq said on Friday.
He also suggested that the events were staged and only served Israeli interests.
The senior Hamas official confirmed Hamas's condemnation of setting fire to the Yarmouk headquarters of the PFLP-GC there.
8 june 2011
Update: Palestinians condemn Syria refugee camp deaths
West Bank leaders on Tuesday slammed the shooting of Palestinian refugees in a Syrian camp and pledged to investigate the incident, the Palestinian Authority official news agency WAFA reported.
Mourners in unofficial refugee camp Al-Yarmouk were on Monday commemorating the deaths of a reported 23 protesters on the Golan ceasefire line a day before, when militants fired on the crowd killing 14 and injuring 43, reports said.
The Palestinian leadership in the West Bank said there could be no excuse for what it called a "cowardly criminal act that violates Palestinian national traditions," WAFA reported.
The report said the officials vowed to defend Palestinian refugees' right of return against those who abuse it for political purposes.
An investigation will be launched and the responsible held to account, the report added.
Also Tuesday, Gaza-based Ad-Dameer Association for Human Rights called on Palestinian factions in Damascus to investigate the killings and put suspects on trial.
Ad-Dameer Director Khalil Abu Shamalah said if groups in Syria did not investigate, there would be significant question marks over its position towards the crime and its perpetrators.
Abu Shamalah said the shooters had damaged the reputation of Palestinians.
Reports said an estimated 100,000 mourners, angered over the failure of camp leaders to organize demonstrations marking the Naksa, the anniversary of Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and Golan Heights, attacked the headquarters of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command on Monday.
Tensions had already been high in the camp, according to Palestinian sources in the area, because of a divide in the support of leaders for the Syrian regime, and many camp residents who support pro-opposition groups.
Militants with the PRFL-GC reportedly opened fire on the crowd, who were taken to a local camp hospital for treatment.
On Sunday, thousands gathered on the Syrian-Israel ceasefire line in the Golan Heights and attempted to breach the frontier in a march of Palestinian refugees and their supporters demanding an end to Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza and the Golan Heights, taken over 44 years ago that day in the 1967 War.
Syrian television said Israeli soldiers fired on the unarmed group, killing 23, while Israel says 10 were killed by Syrian landmines along the ceasefire line.
The event was a repeat of 15 May protests marking the Nakba, when some 800,000 Palestinians were displaced from their homes and villages during fighting that accompanied the declaration of the state of Israel. Four from Syria and ten from Lebanon were killed by Israeli fire in protests on that day.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394788
Update: Palestinians condemn Syria refugee camp deaths
West Bank leaders on Tuesday slammed the shooting of Palestinian refugees in a Syrian camp and pledged to investigate the incident, the Palestinian Authority official news agency WAFA reported.
Mourners in unofficial refugee camp Al-Yarmouk were on Monday commemorating the deaths of a reported 23 protesters on the Golan ceasefire line a day before, when militants fired on the crowd killing 14 and injuring 43, reports said.
The Palestinian leadership in the West Bank said there could be no excuse for what it called a "cowardly criminal act that violates Palestinian national traditions," WAFA reported.
The report said the officials vowed to defend Palestinian refugees' right of return against those who abuse it for political purposes.
An investigation will be launched and the responsible held to account, the report added.
Also Tuesday, Gaza-based Ad-Dameer Association for Human Rights called on Palestinian factions in Damascus to investigate the killings and put suspects on trial.
Ad-Dameer Director Khalil Abu Shamalah said if groups in Syria did not investigate, there would be significant question marks over its position towards the crime and its perpetrators.
Abu Shamalah said the shooters had damaged the reputation of Palestinians.
Reports said an estimated 100,000 mourners, angered over the failure of camp leaders to organize demonstrations marking the Naksa, the anniversary of Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and Golan Heights, attacked the headquarters of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command on Monday.
Tensions had already been high in the camp, according to Palestinian sources in the area, because of a divide in the support of leaders for the Syrian regime, and many camp residents who support pro-opposition groups.
Militants with the PRFL-GC reportedly opened fire on the crowd, who were taken to a local camp hospital for treatment.
On Sunday, thousands gathered on the Syrian-Israel ceasefire line in the Golan Heights and attempted to breach the frontier in a march of Palestinian refugees and their supporters demanding an end to Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza and the Golan Heights, taken over 44 years ago that day in the 1967 War.
Syrian television said Israeli soldiers fired on the unarmed group, killing 23, while Israel says 10 were killed by Syrian landmines along the ceasefire line.
The event was a repeat of 15 May protests marking the Nakba, when some 800,000 Palestinians were displaced from their homes and villages during fighting that accompanied the declaration of the state of Israel. Four from Syria and ten from Lebanon were killed by Israeli fire in protests on that day.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394788
7 june 2011
Israel files complaint to UN over border clashes
Deputy Ambassador to United Nations Haim Waxman hands UN secretary-general stern letter reading, 'This incident reflects a blatant attempt by Syria to distract international attention from violent repression of its own people'.
WASHINGTON- Two days after the "Naksa Day" events at the Israel-Syria border, during which Syrian reports claim 23 people were killed and 350 injured, Israel on Tuesday filed an official complaint against Syria to the United Nations secretary-general.
In the stern letter, handed to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the rotating president of the Security Council, Israel's Deputy Ambassador to the UN Haim Waxman wrote, "This incident — which could not have taken place without the knowledge of the Syrian authorities — reflects a blatant attempt by Syria to distract international attention from the violent repression of its own people.
"The responsibility for any harm caused to the individuals involved in these violent provocations lies clearly with the Government of Syria, which is responsible for preventing the breach of the agreed disengagement line in accordance with its international obligations and Security Council resolutions," the letter read.
"Israel calls on the international community to convey a clear message to Syria that such provocations carry serious potential for escalation and must cease completely. We expect the Government of Syria to take all measures to prevent such dangerous incidents from reoccurring in the future," it said.
Earlier on Tuesday, UN human rights chief Navi Pillay said she was "deeply troubled" by clashes between IDF forces and Syrian protesters in the Golan Heights, where she said up to 40 people have reportedly been killed over three weeks.
"The government of Israel has a duty to ensure that its security personnel avoid the use of excessive force," said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
"However difficult the circumstances, the use of live ammunition against allegedly unarmed protesters, resulting in large numbers of deaths and injuries, inevitably raises the question of unnecessary and excessive use of force," she added.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4079557,00.html
IAEA blasts Israel for Syria attack
The United Nations nuclear agency has slammed Israel for its arbitrary 2007 attack on what Tel Aviv had called 'a Syrian nuclear facility.'
On Monday, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s Director General Yukiya Amano regretted that the bombing had been carried out "without the agency having been given an opportunity to perform its verification role," Reuters reported.
In September 2007, at least four Israeli fighter planes crossed into Syrian airspace and launched an attack on the city of Deir ez-Zor in the northeast of the country.
The assault caused a significant rise in tension between the two sides, which are technically at war due to Tel Aviv's 1967-present occupation of the Golan Heights in southwestern Syria.
"Rather than force being used, the case should have been reported to the IAEA," Amano said.
Damascus denies harboring a nuclear weapons program. It opened up the attacked site to IAEA inspectors in 2008 and has pledged to fully cooperate with the agency regarding the issue.
Tel Aviv has neither confirmed nor denied bombing the site. Former US President George W. Bush has, however, written in his memoire, which was published last year, said that the attack took place after he resisted former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's request for Washington to undertake the strike.
Amano's comments came amid Tel Aviv's continued refusal to declare its nuclear arsenal and insistence on not joining the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Since 1958, when Israel began building its Dimona plutonium- and uranium-processing facility in the Negev desert, it has secretly manufactured scores of nuclear warheads, earning reputation as the sole owner of such weapons in the Middle East.
Former US President Jimmy Carter has attested to the existence of the arsenal, which he has said includes between 200 to 300 warheads.
Israel, however, has similarly neither confirmed nor denied possessing nuclear arms under a policy of 'nuclear ambiguity.'
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/183543.html
EU calls for restraint in Golan
The EU's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton called "on all parties to exercise restraint," referring to the death of 10-23 pro-Palestinian marchers killed during a Sunday protest calling for an end to Israel's occupation of Palestinian and Syrian lands.
Syrian television says 23 were killed by Israeli fire while Israel's military says 10 died throwing Molotov cocktails toward landmines in the ceasefire zone, as thousands marched from the Syrian Golan to the Israeli-occupied region of the plateau calling for an end to the 44-year-old occupation.
"It is important that demonstrations be peaceful and the response measured and proportionate," Ashton said, expressing concern that the deaths "could undermine the long-held cease-fire on the Golan," and advising that "provocative actions like this should be avoided."
Ashton said the tension on the border regions around Israel which began on 15 May, "emphasize the urgency to resume peace negotiations for a comprehensive and sustainable resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict. The EU stands ready to do everything possible to help all parties choose the path of peace and engage in successful negotiations."
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394436
UN Commissioner: Golan deaths raises questions
The UN Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said Tuesday she was "deeply concerned" over the use of live ammunition against protesters in the Israeli-occupied Golan on Sunday, which saw between 10 and 23 killed as pro-Palestinians marking An-Naksa Day rushed to the ceasefire line, just weeks after 12 died in the same area.
"Between 30 and 40 protesters have reportedly been killed by Israeli security forces in the past three weeks," Pillay said in a statement. "The Government of Israel has a duty to ensure that its security personnel avoid the use of excessive force.
"However difficult the circumstances, the use of live ammunition against allegedly unarmed protesters, resulting in large numbers of deaths and injuries, inevitably raises the question of unnecessary and excessive use of force," the statement continued.
The UN official urged Israel to comply with its obligations under international human rights and international humanitarian law to ensure the protection of civilians.
Pillay also expressed concern over allegations that civilians were encouraged by the Syrian authorities to protest in areas where landmines are located.
“Syrian authorities have an obligation to ensure that civilians are prevented from entering areas where landmines are planted,” she said.
She called on both sides to carry out investigations into the June 5 deaths, as well as calling on Israel to investigate the May 15 events in the Golan and Lebanese border, which saw at least 14 killed.
"Where there is evidence that crimes were committed, prosecution and appropriate punishment must follow," Pillay added.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394726
Deputy Ambassador to United Nations Haim Waxman hands UN secretary-general stern letter reading, 'This incident reflects a blatant attempt by Syria to distract international attention from violent repression of its own people'.
WASHINGTON- Two days after the "Naksa Day" events at the Israel-Syria border, during which Syrian reports claim 23 people were killed and 350 injured, Israel on Tuesday filed an official complaint against Syria to the United Nations secretary-general.
In the stern letter, handed to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the rotating president of the Security Council, Israel's Deputy Ambassador to the UN Haim Waxman wrote, "This incident — which could not have taken place without the knowledge of the Syrian authorities — reflects a blatant attempt by Syria to distract international attention from the violent repression of its own people.
"The responsibility for any harm caused to the individuals involved in these violent provocations lies clearly with the Government of Syria, which is responsible for preventing the breach of the agreed disengagement line in accordance with its international obligations and Security Council resolutions," the letter read.
"Israel calls on the international community to convey a clear message to Syria that such provocations carry serious potential for escalation and must cease completely. We expect the Government of Syria to take all measures to prevent such dangerous incidents from reoccurring in the future," it said.
Earlier on Tuesday, UN human rights chief Navi Pillay said she was "deeply troubled" by clashes between IDF forces and Syrian protesters in the Golan Heights, where she said up to 40 people have reportedly been killed over three weeks.
"The government of Israel has a duty to ensure that its security personnel avoid the use of excessive force," said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
"However difficult the circumstances, the use of live ammunition against allegedly unarmed protesters, resulting in large numbers of deaths and injuries, inevitably raises the question of unnecessary and excessive use of force," she added.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4079557,00.html
IAEA blasts Israel for Syria attack
The United Nations nuclear agency has slammed Israel for its arbitrary 2007 attack on what Tel Aviv had called 'a Syrian nuclear facility.'
On Monday, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s Director General Yukiya Amano regretted that the bombing had been carried out "without the agency having been given an opportunity to perform its verification role," Reuters reported.
In September 2007, at least four Israeli fighter planes crossed into Syrian airspace and launched an attack on the city of Deir ez-Zor in the northeast of the country.
The assault caused a significant rise in tension between the two sides, which are technically at war due to Tel Aviv's 1967-present occupation of the Golan Heights in southwestern Syria.
"Rather than force being used, the case should have been reported to the IAEA," Amano said.
Damascus denies harboring a nuclear weapons program. It opened up the attacked site to IAEA inspectors in 2008 and has pledged to fully cooperate with the agency regarding the issue.
Tel Aviv has neither confirmed nor denied bombing the site. Former US President George W. Bush has, however, written in his memoire, which was published last year, said that the attack took place after he resisted former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's request for Washington to undertake the strike.
Amano's comments came amid Tel Aviv's continued refusal to declare its nuclear arsenal and insistence on not joining the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Since 1958, when Israel began building its Dimona plutonium- and uranium-processing facility in the Negev desert, it has secretly manufactured scores of nuclear warheads, earning reputation as the sole owner of such weapons in the Middle East.
Former US President Jimmy Carter has attested to the existence of the arsenal, which he has said includes between 200 to 300 warheads.
Israel, however, has similarly neither confirmed nor denied possessing nuclear arms under a policy of 'nuclear ambiguity.'
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/183543.html
EU calls for restraint in Golan
The EU's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton called "on all parties to exercise restraint," referring to the death of 10-23 pro-Palestinian marchers killed during a Sunday protest calling for an end to Israel's occupation of Palestinian and Syrian lands.
Syrian television says 23 were killed by Israeli fire while Israel's military says 10 died throwing Molotov cocktails toward landmines in the ceasefire zone, as thousands marched from the Syrian Golan to the Israeli-occupied region of the plateau calling for an end to the 44-year-old occupation.
"It is important that demonstrations be peaceful and the response measured and proportionate," Ashton said, expressing concern that the deaths "could undermine the long-held cease-fire on the Golan," and advising that "provocative actions like this should be avoided."
Ashton said the tension on the border regions around Israel which began on 15 May, "emphasize the urgency to resume peace negotiations for a comprehensive and sustainable resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict. The EU stands ready to do everything possible to help all parties choose the path of peace and engage in successful negotiations."
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394436
UN Commissioner: Golan deaths raises questions
The UN Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said Tuesday she was "deeply concerned" over the use of live ammunition against protesters in the Israeli-occupied Golan on Sunday, which saw between 10 and 23 killed as pro-Palestinians marking An-Naksa Day rushed to the ceasefire line, just weeks after 12 died in the same area.
"Between 30 and 40 protesters have reportedly been killed by Israeli security forces in the past three weeks," Pillay said in a statement. "The Government of Israel has a duty to ensure that its security personnel avoid the use of excessive force.
"However difficult the circumstances, the use of live ammunition against allegedly unarmed protesters, resulting in large numbers of deaths and injuries, inevitably raises the question of unnecessary and excessive use of force," the statement continued.
The UN official urged Israel to comply with its obligations under international human rights and international humanitarian law to ensure the protection of civilians.
Pillay also expressed concern over allegations that civilians were encouraged by the Syrian authorities to protest in areas where landmines are located.
“Syrian authorities have an obligation to ensure that civilians are prevented from entering areas where landmines are planted,” she said.
She called on both sides to carry out investigations into the June 5 deaths, as well as calling on Israel to investigate the May 15 events in the Golan and Lebanese border, which saw at least 14 killed.
"Where there is evidence that crimes were committed, prosecution and appropriate punishment must follow," Pillay added.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394726
Israel committed genocide: Sleiman
Lebanon has denounced as genocide Israel's murder of over 20 people who were holding a protest march to mark the anniversary of Tel Aviv's occupation of Arab lands.
On Monday, the office of Lebanese President Michel Sleiman issued a statement condemning “the genocide conducted by the Israel occupation forces in the Golan (Heights) that led to the killing of 23 unarmed martyrs," Xinhua reported.
The fatalities, which included a woman and a child, occurred on Sunday when Israeli forces opened fire on protesters inside Syria as they were approaching the Syrian highlands.
The demonstrators were marching on the anniversary of the June 5, 1967 Naksa Day or Day of the Setback, when Tel Aviv occupied Syria's Golan Heights region as well as the Palestinian territories of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East al-Quds (Jerusalem).
The Israeli aggression also wounded 350 people.
Sleiman's office also asserted that Israeli aggression will never coerce the Palestinian people and Arab states to stop calling for the observation of the full rights of the Palestinians, including the right to return to territories in their homeland that were occupied during the Six-Day War of 1967.
2008 estimates put the number of Palestinian refugees at over 4.6 million.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/183532.html
Amnesty: Israel must investigate Golan deaths
Amnesty International on Wednesday called on the Israeli authorities to investigate their army's killing of protesters along the ceasefire line with Syria on Sunday.
The global rights group said they had spoken to a human rights activist in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights who "contradicts IDF [Israeli army] claims that all possible non-lethal means were used to disperse the protesters before lethal force was used."
The march, marking Naksa day which commemorates the 1967 war, saw thousands of demonstrators calling for an end to Israel's occupation of Palestinian and Syrian lands rush the ceasefire line. Syria's state media say 23 were killed by Israeli army fire, while the Israeli military say 10 died throwing Molotov cocktails toward landmines.
A human rights activist who was 10 meters from the army told Amnesty he saw Israeli soldiers sheltering behind multiple barbed wire fences and periodically firing live ammunition at protesters some 60 meters away between 11am to 9pm.
The activist said soldiers had initially warned protesters in Arabic before opening fire, as Israeli army statements had said, but that troops did not fire tear gas or sound bombs to disperse the protesters until around dusk, in contradiction to army assurances that all non-lethal means were used, Amnesty said in a statement.
The rights organization also noted that while military spokespeople said Israeli troops aimed at the lower half of protesters’ bodies, Syrian health authorities reported that the majority of injuries were to the upper body.
Amnesty said it was "seriously concerned that Israeli troops used excessive force by firing live ammunition against protesters who were not endangering the lives of Israeli military personnel or others."
It called for independent investigations into Sunday's events, and deaths at a protest in the same area on May 15, in which 12 died, "in order to help prevent further loss of life and ensure accountability for killings that were unlawful."
On Tuesday, the UN Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay also backed calls for an investigation, releasing a statement saying she was "deeply concerned"
"Between 30 and 40 protesters have reportedly been killed by Israeli security forces in the past three weeks," she said. "The Government of Israel has a duty to ensure that its security personnel avoid the use of excessive force."
"However difficult the circumstances, the use of live ammunition against allegedly unarmed protestors, resulting in large numbers of deaths and injuries, inevitably raises the question of unnecessary and excessive use of force," the statement continued.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394497
Lebanon has denounced as genocide Israel's murder of over 20 people who were holding a protest march to mark the anniversary of Tel Aviv's occupation of Arab lands.
On Monday, the office of Lebanese President Michel Sleiman issued a statement condemning “the genocide conducted by the Israel occupation forces in the Golan (Heights) that led to the killing of 23 unarmed martyrs," Xinhua reported.
The fatalities, which included a woman and a child, occurred on Sunday when Israeli forces opened fire on protesters inside Syria as they were approaching the Syrian highlands.
The demonstrators were marching on the anniversary of the June 5, 1967 Naksa Day or Day of the Setback, when Tel Aviv occupied Syria's Golan Heights region as well as the Palestinian territories of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East al-Quds (Jerusalem).
The Israeli aggression also wounded 350 people.
Sleiman's office also asserted that Israeli aggression will never coerce the Palestinian people and Arab states to stop calling for the observation of the full rights of the Palestinians, including the right to return to territories in their homeland that were occupied during the Six-Day War of 1967.
2008 estimates put the number of Palestinian refugees at over 4.6 million.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/183532.html
Amnesty: Israel must investigate Golan deaths
Amnesty International on Wednesday called on the Israeli authorities to investigate their army's killing of protesters along the ceasefire line with Syria on Sunday.
The global rights group said they had spoken to a human rights activist in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights who "contradicts IDF [Israeli army] claims that all possible non-lethal means were used to disperse the protesters before lethal force was used."
The march, marking Naksa day which commemorates the 1967 war, saw thousands of demonstrators calling for an end to Israel's occupation of Palestinian and Syrian lands rush the ceasefire line. Syria's state media say 23 were killed by Israeli army fire, while the Israeli military say 10 died throwing Molotov cocktails toward landmines.
A human rights activist who was 10 meters from the army told Amnesty he saw Israeli soldiers sheltering behind multiple barbed wire fences and periodically firing live ammunition at protesters some 60 meters away between 11am to 9pm.
The activist said soldiers had initially warned protesters in Arabic before opening fire, as Israeli army statements had said, but that troops did not fire tear gas or sound bombs to disperse the protesters until around dusk, in contradiction to army assurances that all non-lethal means were used, Amnesty said in a statement.
The rights organization also noted that while military spokespeople said Israeli troops aimed at the lower half of protesters’ bodies, Syrian health authorities reported that the majority of injuries were to the upper body.
Amnesty said it was "seriously concerned that Israeli troops used excessive force by firing live ammunition against protesters who were not endangering the lives of Israeli military personnel or others."
It called for independent investigations into Sunday's events, and deaths at a protest in the same area on May 15, in which 12 died, "in order to help prevent further loss of life and ensure accountability for killings that were unlawful."
On Tuesday, the UN Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay also backed calls for an investigation, releasing a statement saying she was "deeply concerned"
"Between 30 and 40 protesters have reportedly been killed by Israeli security forces in the past three weeks," she said. "The Government of Israel has a duty to ensure that its security personnel avoid the use of excessive force."
"However difficult the circumstances, the use of live ammunition against allegedly unarmed protestors, resulting in large numbers of deaths and injuries, inevitably raises the question of unnecessary and excessive use of force," the statement continued.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=394497
Solemn Funeral Processions for Martyrs of Liberation and Return
Thousands of Syrian and Palestinian citizens paid the last honors to the 23 martyrs killed on Sunday by the Israeli fires at the borders of the occupied Syrian Golan in Ein al-Tina and the liberated city of Quneitra.
The martyrs were escorted in solemn processions from Martyr Mamdouh Abaza Hospital in Quneitra.
The mourners stressed commitment to their legitimate rights recognized in the international laws, regarding the liberation of the land, right to self-determination and the right to establishing the Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, in addition to the right to return.
Mother of martyr Shadi Hussein said that they were preparing for the marriage of her son at al-Yarmouk Camp in Damascus, expressing pride over her son’s martyrdom in the occupied Golan.
Ali Zeidan, the brother of martyr Majdi Zeidan, said that Majdi and the other martyrs opened the gate for next generations who want to return and liberate the occupied Arab territories.
For his part, Director of Martyr Mamdouh Abaza Hospital in Quneitra Dr. Ali Kanaan indicated that the large number of martyrs was due to the explosive bullets used by the Israeli occupation forces targeting sensitive areas as the injuries were mainly in the chest and the front side of the body.
He added that 53 surgeries were performed under general anesthesia while 42 procedures were conducted in the emergency room, in addition to 77 suffocation cases, indicating that 9 persons are in critical condition.
Palestinians in Syria and families of Khan al-Sheih in Damascus Countryside, escorted bodies of martyrs Jihad Ahmad Awad, Mohammad Mahmoud Said, Ala Hussein al-Wahish, Fadi Majid Nahar, Fayez Abbas and Mahmoud Sawan to their final resting place.
The bodies of martyrs Enas Abdullah Shreitih, Fayez Ahmad Abbas, Wisam Khaled Sa’adea, Ali Mohammad Ashmawi, Ahmad Yaser Rashdan, Ayman Ahmad Hassan, Mahmoud Moahhamd al-Arja, Ahmad Assa’ad Al-Fout and Wasim Salim Dwah arrived in al-Yarmouk Camp in Damascus to be escorted to their final resting place.
Meanwhile, thousands of al-Hussainia town in Damascus Countryside also escorted the body of the martyr Ramzi Mohammad Said al-Sawalmeh, a university student, who was martyred yesterday by the bullets of the Israeli occupation forces on the hills of the occupied Syrian Golan.
In al-Wafiden Camp, Damascus Countryside, thousands of citizens escorted the body of the martyr Abdul-Rahman Hassan al-Jreidi who was killed by the gunfire of the Israeli occupation forces on the hills of the occupied Syrian Golan.
Thousands of Syrian and Palestinian citizens paid the last honors to the 23 martyrs killed on Sunday by the Israeli fires at the borders of the occupied Syrian Golan in Ein al-Tina and the liberated city of Quneitra.
The martyrs were escorted in solemn processions from Martyr Mamdouh Abaza Hospital in Quneitra.
The mourners stressed commitment to their legitimate rights recognized in the international laws, regarding the liberation of the land, right to self-determination and the right to establishing the Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, in addition to the right to return.
Mother of martyr Shadi Hussein said that they were preparing for the marriage of her son at al-Yarmouk Camp in Damascus, expressing pride over her son’s martyrdom in the occupied Golan.
Ali Zeidan, the brother of martyr Majdi Zeidan, said that Majdi and the other martyrs opened the gate for next generations who want to return and liberate the occupied Arab territories.
For his part, Director of Martyr Mamdouh Abaza Hospital in Quneitra Dr. Ali Kanaan indicated that the large number of martyrs was due to the explosive bullets used by the Israeli occupation forces targeting sensitive areas as the injuries were mainly in the chest and the front side of the body.
He added that 53 surgeries were performed under general anesthesia while 42 procedures were conducted in the emergency room, in addition to 77 suffocation cases, indicating that 9 persons are in critical condition.
Palestinians in Syria and families of Khan al-Sheih in Damascus Countryside, escorted bodies of martyrs Jihad Ahmad Awad, Mohammad Mahmoud Said, Ala Hussein al-Wahish, Fadi Majid Nahar, Fayez Abbas and Mahmoud Sawan to their final resting place.
The bodies of martyrs Enas Abdullah Shreitih, Fayez Ahmad Abbas, Wisam Khaled Sa’adea, Ali Mohammad Ashmawi, Ahmad Yaser Rashdan, Ayman Ahmad Hassan, Mahmoud Moahhamd al-Arja, Ahmad Assa’ad Al-Fout and Wasim Salim Dwah arrived in al-Yarmouk Camp in Damascus to be escorted to their final resting place.
Meanwhile, thousands of al-Hussainia town in Damascus Countryside also escorted the body of the martyr Ramzi Mohammad Said al-Sawalmeh, a university student, who was martyred yesterday by the bullets of the Israeli occupation forces on the hills of the occupied Syrian Golan.
In al-Wafiden Camp, Damascus Countryside, thousands of citizens escorted the body of the martyr Abdul-Rahman Hassan al-Jreidi who was killed by the gunfire of the Israeli occupation forces on the hills of the occupied Syrian Golan.
