29 july 2019
Unable to speak, the Palestinian father Akram al-Ostath lies on a bed in the third floor of Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital in the Gaza Strip where he receives assistance with daily tasks of living.
Earlier this month, al-Ostath, 29, suffered serious injuries by an Israeli explosive bullet while taking part in the Great March of Return east of al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza Strip.
The Israeli occupation forces stationed on the eastern border of the Gaza Strip in the past weeks have intensified their use of explosive bullets against the Palestinians in the Great March of Return, which has led to severe damages in the bodies of the wounded protesters.
Excruciating pain
In the hospital room, Akram's relatives and family visit him in groups throughout the day after pain has become his closest friend.
"I was standing far away from the border fence, peacefully participating in the Great March of Return, when all of a sudden a bullet penetrated my abdomen. I fell to the ground and lost a lot of blood. When I woke up again I was in the hospital," Akram told the PIC reporter.
A few days ago Akram underwent a surgery in which doctors tried to remove the bullet fragments from his intestines. With chronic pain, only painkillers can help him get through the day.
Fatigue is clearly visible on Akram's face due to internal bleeding, while doctors are still waiting for his intestines to heal after the operation.
"I always think of my wife and my children and how my injury has cost me a normal life with them," Akram said.
Serious health condition
Akram's brother, Mahmoud, said that the Israeli explosive bullet has torn his brother's intestines and that his unbearable pain barely allows him to sleep. "He still can't eat or drink anything," Mahmoud added.
Akram's children miss their father and everyday ask when he will come back to play with them. Akram's grief for being forced to stay away from his children doubles his pain.
Doctors at Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital have voiced concern over the type of injuries they have dealt with lately.
They affirmed that the Israeli forces use explosive bullets to target peaceful protesters, causing serious abdominal damages, which in addition to putting the life of wounded protesters in danger, make it very difficult for them to do the simplest daily tasks.
Earlier this month, al-Ostath, 29, suffered serious injuries by an Israeli explosive bullet while taking part in the Great March of Return east of al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza Strip.
The Israeli occupation forces stationed on the eastern border of the Gaza Strip in the past weeks have intensified their use of explosive bullets against the Palestinians in the Great March of Return, which has led to severe damages in the bodies of the wounded protesters.
Excruciating pain
In the hospital room, Akram's relatives and family visit him in groups throughout the day after pain has become his closest friend.
"I was standing far away from the border fence, peacefully participating in the Great March of Return, when all of a sudden a bullet penetrated my abdomen. I fell to the ground and lost a lot of blood. When I woke up again I was in the hospital," Akram told the PIC reporter.
A few days ago Akram underwent a surgery in which doctors tried to remove the bullet fragments from his intestines. With chronic pain, only painkillers can help him get through the day.
Fatigue is clearly visible on Akram's face due to internal bleeding, while doctors are still waiting for his intestines to heal after the operation.
"I always think of my wife and my children and how my injury has cost me a normal life with them," Akram said.
Serious health condition
Akram's brother, Mahmoud, said that the Israeli explosive bullet has torn his brother's intestines and that his unbearable pain barely allows him to sleep. "He still can't eat or drink anything," Mahmoud added.
Akram's children miss their father and everyday ask when he will come back to play with them. Akram's grief for being forced to stay away from his children doubles his pain.
Doctors at Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital have voiced concern over the type of injuries they have dealt with lately.
They affirmed that the Israeli forces use explosive bullets to target peaceful protesters, causing serious abdominal damages, which in addition to putting the life of wounded protesters in danger, make it very difficult for them to do the simplest daily tasks.
Israel’s unlawful open-fire policy during the demonstrations along the Gaza perimeter fence – which were upheld by the Supreme Court – have so far resulted in hundreds of Palestinian deaths and thousands of injuries.
Official sources now admit that they were well aware that people were being killed when even the State did not claim that this is justified.
Despite this, no-one has taken action to amend the open-fire regulations. Instead, the military continued with its trial-and-error approach, ignoring the fact that human lives were at stake: people whose lives have been taken, and families who have been permanently devastated.
Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency reports that on 22 July, 2019, it emerged that the officials were fully aware, at every stage, of the gulf between their declarations and reality.
Carmela Menashe, a reporter for Kan News, reported that the military has now decided to change the open-fire regulations for snipers “after it emerged that firing at the lower limbs above the knee led, in most cases, to death, despite the fact that this was not the objective.
Going forward, soldiers have been briefed to shoot below the knee and then at the ankle.” A senior officer at the military’s Counter-Terrorism School stated that the snipers’ objective “is not to kill but to injure, and accordingly one of the lessons learned related to the direction toward which they fire…
At first, we told them to shoot at the leg. We saw that this can result in fatalities, so we told them to shoot below the knee, then we fine-tuned the regulations to shooting at the ankle.”
The decision to change the regulations only now, after more than a year during which they led to the deaths of at least 206 Palestinians, including 37 minors, and the injury of thousands, in no way suggests that the military attaches great value to human life.
On the contrary, it shows that the military consciously chose not to regard those standing on the other side of the fence as humans. In its naivety, the High Court of Justice approved this practice. Both the military and the courts bear the responsibility for this criminal policy.
Background
In March of 2018, thousands of residents of the Gaza Strip began demonstrating along the fence that separates Gaza from Israel, demanding an end to the siege of the Gaza Strip and the implementation of the right of return. From the outset, following the announcement of the first demonstration, Israel portrayed the protests as an existential threat to the state and regarded the participants as dangerous terrorists.
As a result of this approach, the military implemented lethal open-fire regulations from the first day of the protests: regulations that are patently unlawful and immoral.
As part of this policy, the military permitted the use of live fire against demonstrators on the other side of the fence and posed no danger to anyone, certainly not the armed and well-protected security forces stationed at a considerable distance from them.
B’Tselem urged soldiers to refuse to obey these regulations and to refrain from shooting at unarmed protestors.
The regulation were legally challenged at the High Court of Justice. In its response to the petition, the State defended the regulations, declaring that “there can be no doubt regarding their legality.”
The State emphasized that the regulations were approved by the Military Advocate General and the Attorney General, and that they permit live fire “solely in order to address violent disturbances that present a clear and present danger to IDF forces or to Israeli civilians.”
The State added that “the rules permit precise fire at the legs of a main rioter or main instigator in order to eliminate the danger from the violence disturbance of the peace.”
The State further added that “there is an orderly process in place for operational debriefing and implementation of lessons learned; ” that “forces have been provided with clarifications and highlights designed to further limit, insofar as possible, the scope of injuries;” and that incidents involving fatalities have been referred for “review by the General Staff Mechanism for Fact-Finding Assessments which investigates exceptional incidents.”
The Court accepted this position verbatim and made no attempt to challenge it. Supreme Court Vice President, Justice Hanan Melcer, held that the regulations permit live fire solely when “there is an immediate, clear and present danger to IDF forces or Israeli civilians,” and allow only “precise fire at the legs of a main rioter or main instigator in order to eliminate the danger from the violence disturbance of the peace, with the goal of eliminating the anticipated imminent danger.”
Supreme Court President Esther Hayut concurred with Justice Melcer, similarly accepting each and every one of the State’s claims regarding the great caution the military exercises in the use of life fire, “in order to minimize as far as possible the potential harm to uninvolved civilians who participate in [the demonstrations].”
In the months since the beginning of the demonstrations, a gap between the State’s claims and the horrifying outcomes of the actual implementation of the unlawful open-fire regulations approved by the High Court grew wider. To date, the military has killed at least 206 Palestinian demonstrators using live fire, 37 of whom were minors under the age of 18.
According to figures published by OCHA, more than 7,800 Palestinians have been injured by live fire. According to the World Health Organization, physicians have had to perform amputations in 139 cases – 30 of which involved minors and 121 involved the lower limbs. Moreover, 24 people have been left paralyzed as the result of spinal injuries.
Human rights organizations, including B’Tselem, as well as various media outlets, reported these outcomes in real time.
Despite this, officials refused to change the open-fire regulations, persistently repeating that the regulations are legal and proportionate, and that they permit live fire only as a last resort, in the absence of any other alternative.
Official sources now admit that they were well aware that people were being killed when even the State did not claim that this is justified.
Despite this, no-one has taken action to amend the open-fire regulations. Instead, the military continued with its trial-and-error approach, ignoring the fact that human lives were at stake: people whose lives have been taken, and families who have been permanently devastated.
Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency reports that on 22 July, 2019, it emerged that the officials were fully aware, at every stage, of the gulf between their declarations and reality.
Carmela Menashe, a reporter for Kan News, reported that the military has now decided to change the open-fire regulations for snipers “after it emerged that firing at the lower limbs above the knee led, in most cases, to death, despite the fact that this was not the objective.
Going forward, soldiers have been briefed to shoot below the knee and then at the ankle.” A senior officer at the military’s Counter-Terrorism School stated that the snipers’ objective “is not to kill but to injure, and accordingly one of the lessons learned related to the direction toward which they fire…
At first, we told them to shoot at the leg. We saw that this can result in fatalities, so we told them to shoot below the knee, then we fine-tuned the regulations to shooting at the ankle.”
The decision to change the regulations only now, after more than a year during which they led to the deaths of at least 206 Palestinians, including 37 minors, and the injury of thousands, in no way suggests that the military attaches great value to human life.
On the contrary, it shows that the military consciously chose not to regard those standing on the other side of the fence as humans. In its naivety, the High Court of Justice approved this practice. Both the military and the courts bear the responsibility for this criminal policy.
Background
In March of 2018, thousands of residents of the Gaza Strip began demonstrating along the fence that separates Gaza from Israel, demanding an end to the siege of the Gaza Strip and the implementation of the right of return. From the outset, following the announcement of the first demonstration, Israel portrayed the protests as an existential threat to the state and regarded the participants as dangerous terrorists.
As a result of this approach, the military implemented lethal open-fire regulations from the first day of the protests: regulations that are patently unlawful and immoral.
As part of this policy, the military permitted the use of live fire against demonstrators on the other side of the fence and posed no danger to anyone, certainly not the armed and well-protected security forces stationed at a considerable distance from them.
B’Tselem urged soldiers to refuse to obey these regulations and to refrain from shooting at unarmed protestors.
The regulation were legally challenged at the High Court of Justice. In its response to the petition, the State defended the regulations, declaring that “there can be no doubt regarding their legality.”
The State emphasized that the regulations were approved by the Military Advocate General and the Attorney General, and that they permit live fire “solely in order to address violent disturbances that present a clear and present danger to IDF forces or to Israeli civilians.”
The State added that “the rules permit precise fire at the legs of a main rioter or main instigator in order to eliminate the danger from the violence disturbance of the peace.”
The State further added that “there is an orderly process in place for operational debriefing and implementation of lessons learned; ” that “forces have been provided with clarifications and highlights designed to further limit, insofar as possible, the scope of injuries;” and that incidents involving fatalities have been referred for “review by the General Staff Mechanism for Fact-Finding Assessments which investigates exceptional incidents.”
The Court accepted this position verbatim and made no attempt to challenge it. Supreme Court Vice President, Justice Hanan Melcer, held that the regulations permit live fire solely when “there is an immediate, clear and present danger to IDF forces or Israeli civilians,” and allow only “precise fire at the legs of a main rioter or main instigator in order to eliminate the danger from the violence disturbance of the peace, with the goal of eliminating the anticipated imminent danger.”
Supreme Court President Esther Hayut concurred with Justice Melcer, similarly accepting each and every one of the State’s claims regarding the great caution the military exercises in the use of life fire, “in order to minimize as far as possible the potential harm to uninvolved civilians who participate in [the demonstrations].”
In the months since the beginning of the demonstrations, a gap between the State’s claims and the horrifying outcomes of the actual implementation of the unlawful open-fire regulations approved by the High Court grew wider. To date, the military has killed at least 206 Palestinian demonstrators using live fire, 37 of whom were minors under the age of 18.
According to figures published by OCHA, more than 7,800 Palestinians have been injured by live fire. According to the World Health Organization, physicians have had to perform amputations in 139 cases – 30 of which involved minors and 121 involved the lower limbs. Moreover, 24 people have been left paralyzed as the result of spinal injuries.
Human rights organizations, including B’Tselem, as well as various media outlets, reported these outcomes in real time.
Despite this, officials refused to change the open-fire regulations, persistently repeating that the regulations are legal and proportionate, and that they permit live fire only as a last resort, in the absence of any other alternative.
27 july 2019
Ahmad Mohammad al-Qarra, 22
The Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip has confirmed that a young man died, on Friday at night, from serious wounds he suffered in the evening after Israeli soldiers shot him during the Great Return March processions.
The Health Ministry said the young man, identified as Ahmad Mohammad al-Qarra, 22, was shot with a live round in his abdomen, suffering serious wounds, and died at a hospital in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza Strip.
It added that the Palestinian was shot east of Khan Younis and was treated by the medics who rushed him to the hospital but succumbed to his serious wounds.
It is worth mentioning that the soldiers injured during Friday’s processions 71 Palestinians, including 30 children, one medic and three women, after the army attacked the Great Return March processions in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) said.
The PCHR referred to a report published last Tuesday by the Israeli newspaper, Yedioth Aharonot, in which is said that the army has, in recent months, been training the soldiers on a new type of a sniper rifle, which indicates that the military is using the Palestinians as target practice for its weapons, in direct violation of all international laws and regulations, including human rights treaties and International Humanitarian Law.
According to extensive and ongoing PCHR documentation, the Israeli army has killed 207 Palestinians, including 44 children, two women, 9 persons with special needs, four medics and two journalists, in addition to wounding 13323 Palestinians, including 2742 children, 409 women, 221 medics and 207 journalists, since the Great Return March processions started on March 30 2018.
196 of the wounded Palestinians. Including 28 children and 5 women, suffered permanent disabilities. 149 of them suffered amputations as a result of Israeli gunfire, 21 suffered paralysis, 26 lost their hearing or vision, and 9 suffered permanent damage to reproductive organs.
The Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip has confirmed that a young man died, on Friday at night, from serious wounds he suffered in the evening after Israeli soldiers shot him during the Great Return March processions.
The Health Ministry said the young man, identified as Ahmad Mohammad al-Qarra, 22, was shot with a live round in his abdomen, suffering serious wounds, and died at a hospital in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza Strip.
It added that the Palestinian was shot east of Khan Younis and was treated by the medics who rushed him to the hospital but succumbed to his serious wounds.
It is worth mentioning that the soldiers injured during Friday’s processions 71 Palestinians, including 30 children, one medic and three women, after the army attacked the Great Return March processions in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) said.
The PCHR referred to a report published last Tuesday by the Israeli newspaper, Yedioth Aharonot, in which is said that the army has, in recent months, been training the soldiers on a new type of a sniper rifle, which indicates that the military is using the Palestinians as target practice for its weapons, in direct violation of all international laws and regulations, including human rights treaties and International Humanitarian Law.
According to extensive and ongoing PCHR documentation, the Israeli army has killed 207 Palestinians, including 44 children, two women, 9 persons with special needs, four medics and two journalists, in addition to wounding 13323 Palestinians, including 2742 children, 409 women, 221 medics and 207 journalists, since the Great Return March processions started on March 30 2018.
196 of the wounded Palestinians. Including 28 children and 5 women, suffered permanent disabilities. 149 of them suffered amputations as a result of Israeli gunfire, 21 suffered paralysis, 26 lost their hearing or vision, and 9 suffered permanent damage to reproductive organs.
Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) has reported that Israeli soldiers injured, Friday, 71 Palestinians, including 30 children, one medic and three women, after the army attacked the Great Return March processions in the Gaza Strip.
The PCHR said the soldiers resorted to the excessive use of force against the protesters, especially by using live fire against unarmed civilians, protesting along the perimeter fence in the eastern parts of the Gaza Strip.
It stated that 39 of the wounded Palestinians were shot with live fire, including one who suffered life-threatening injuries, and four who sustained moderate-to-serious injuries.
This Friday’s processions came in solidarity with the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and lasted three hours, from 4:30 in the afternoon until 7:30 in the evening.
The PCHR added that the protesters mostly gathered in and around the five protest encampments and were hundreds, and in some cases, dozens of meters away from the perimeter fence, yet, were faced with the excessive use of force by the soldiers who were not in any form of danger.
It also said that, despite Israeli media reports about the open fire regulations when dealing with the Great Return March procession, such as using sniper fire to wound protesters in the lower extremities, the PCHR documented many cases where the Israeli sharpshooters wounded protesters in the chest and upper extremities, causing several injuries, including four that were described as moderate-to-severe.
The PCHR also said that these cases prove that the army has not changed its policies of the excessive use of force against the unarmed protesters.
In addition, the PCHR referred to a report published last Tuesday by the Israeli newspaper, Yedioth Aharonot, in which is said that the army has, in recent months, been training the soldiers on a new type of a sniper rifle, which indicates that the military is using the Palestinians as target practice for its weapons, in direct violation of all international laws and regulations, including human rights treaties and International Humanitarian Law.
According to extensive and ongoing PCHR documentation, the Israeli army has killed 207 Palestinians, including 44 children, two women, 9 persons with special needs, four medics and two journalists, in addition to wounding 13323 Palestinians, including 2742 children, 409 women, 221 medics and 207 journalists, since the Great Return March processions started on March 30 2018.
196 of the wounded Palestinians. Including 28 children and 5 women, suffered permanent disabilities. 149 of them suffered amputations as a result of Israeli gunfire, 21 suffered paralysis, 26 lost their hearing or vision, and 9 suffered permanent damage to reproductive organs.
The PCHR said the soldiers resorted to the excessive use of force against the protesters, especially by using live fire against unarmed civilians, protesting along the perimeter fence in the eastern parts of the Gaza Strip.
It stated that 39 of the wounded Palestinians were shot with live fire, including one who suffered life-threatening injuries, and four who sustained moderate-to-serious injuries.
This Friday’s processions came in solidarity with the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and lasted three hours, from 4:30 in the afternoon until 7:30 in the evening.
The PCHR added that the protesters mostly gathered in and around the five protest encampments and were hundreds, and in some cases, dozens of meters away from the perimeter fence, yet, were faced with the excessive use of force by the soldiers who were not in any form of danger.
It also said that, despite Israeli media reports about the open fire regulations when dealing with the Great Return March procession, such as using sniper fire to wound protesters in the lower extremities, the PCHR documented many cases where the Israeli sharpshooters wounded protesters in the chest and upper extremities, causing several injuries, including four that were described as moderate-to-severe.
The PCHR also said that these cases prove that the army has not changed its policies of the excessive use of force against the unarmed protesters.
In addition, the PCHR referred to a report published last Tuesday by the Israeli newspaper, Yedioth Aharonot, in which is said that the army has, in recent months, been training the soldiers on a new type of a sniper rifle, which indicates that the military is using the Palestinians as target practice for its weapons, in direct violation of all international laws and regulations, including human rights treaties and International Humanitarian Law.
According to extensive and ongoing PCHR documentation, the Israeli army has killed 207 Palestinians, including 44 children, two women, 9 persons with special needs, four medics and two journalists, in addition to wounding 13323 Palestinians, including 2742 children, 409 women, 221 medics and 207 journalists, since the Great Return March processions started on March 30 2018.
196 of the wounded Palestinians. Including 28 children and 5 women, suffered permanent disabilities. 149 of them suffered amputations as a result of Israeli gunfire, 21 suffered paralysis, 26 lost their hearing or vision, and 9 suffered permanent damage to reproductive organs.
19 july 2019
Palestinian protesters flee from an Israeli military vehicle carrying tanks of skunk water across the barbed-wire fence during clashes along a fence near Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on July 19, 2019
Israeli forces have attacked Palestinians taking part in the weekly “Great March of Return” rallies, injuring 98 Gazan protesters, according to the Gazan Health Ministry.
The Gazan Health Ministry also said that 49 of the injured protesters had sustained bullet wounds from Israeli live fire.
Four paramedics were also among the wounded.
The rallies have been held every week since March 30 last year. The Palestinians demand the right to return of those driven out of their homeland by Israeli aggression.
Israeli troops have killed at least 305 Palestinians since the beginning of the rallies and wounded nearly 18,000 others, according to the Gazan Health Ministry.
In March, a United Nations (UN) fact-finding mission found that Israeli forces committed rights violations during their crackdown against the Palestinian protesters in Gaza that may amount to war crimes.
Gaza has been under Israeli siege since June 2007, which has caused a decline in living standards.
Israel has also launched three major wars against the enclave since 2008, killing thousands of Gazans each time and shattering the impoverished territory’s already poor infrastructure.
Israeli forces have attacked Palestinians taking part in the weekly “Great March of Return” rallies, injuring 98 Gazan protesters, according to the Gazan Health Ministry.
The Gazan Health Ministry also said that 49 of the injured protesters had sustained bullet wounds from Israeli live fire.
Four paramedics were also among the wounded.
The rallies have been held every week since March 30 last year. The Palestinians demand the right to return of those driven out of their homeland by Israeli aggression.
Israeli troops have killed at least 305 Palestinians since the beginning of the rallies and wounded nearly 18,000 others, according to the Gazan Health Ministry.
In March, a United Nations (UN) fact-finding mission found that Israeli forces committed rights violations during their crackdown against the Palestinian protesters in Gaza that may amount to war crimes.
Gaza has been under Israeli siege since June 2007, which has caused a decline in living standards.
Israel has also launched three major wars against the enclave since 2008, killing thousands of Gazans each time and shattering the impoverished territory’s already poor infrastructure.
18 july 2019
Razan Najjar (21) paramedic killed by Israeli fire during Gaza demonstrations
The House of Commons released an Early Day Motion (EDM) entitled “Health Workers in Gaza” on the 15th July condemning the killing of Palestinian medics by Israeli occupation forces in the occupied Gaza Strip.
The EDM reads as follows:
This House condemns the killing of healthcare workers in Gaza and in particular the recent killing of Gaza paramedic Mohammed al-Jedaili, the fifth Palestinian health worker to be killed by Israeli forces in just over a year; notes that according to the World Health Organisation more than 750 health workers in Gaza were also injured between 30 March 2018 and 31 May 2019; and calls on the Government to take diplomatic steps to ensure that medical workers in Gaza can perform their humanitarian functions without risk of attack and to request an investigation which complies with international standards of independence, impartiality, promptness, thoroughness, and transparency into those deaths.
The EDM has been signed by 11 members of parliament so far, including 7 Labour Party members, two members of Plaid Cymru, one member of the Liberal Democrats and one Conservative Party member.
The House of Commons released an Early Day Motion (EDM) entitled “Health Workers in Gaza” on the 15th July condemning the killing of Palestinian medics by Israeli occupation forces in the occupied Gaza Strip.
The EDM reads as follows:
This House condemns the killing of healthcare workers in Gaza and in particular the recent killing of Gaza paramedic Mohammed al-Jedaili, the fifth Palestinian health worker to be killed by Israeli forces in just over a year; notes that according to the World Health Organisation more than 750 health workers in Gaza were also injured between 30 March 2018 and 31 May 2019; and calls on the Government to take diplomatic steps to ensure that medical workers in Gaza can perform their humanitarian functions without risk of attack and to request an investigation which complies with international standards of independence, impartiality, promptness, thoroughness, and transparency into those deaths.
The EDM has been signed by 11 members of parliament so far, including 7 Labour Party members, two members of Plaid Cymru, one member of the Liberal Democrats and one Conservative Party member.
Page: 22 - 21 - 20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16 - 15 - 14 - 13 - 12 - 11 - 10 - 9 - 8 - 7 - 6 - 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1
