lity of conducting a large-scale military operation in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the IOF has escalated recently its operations and incursions, in which it routinely demolishes homes and land, and shelled areas along the eastern border. An even wider expansion of IOF's military operations would inevitably include carrying out incursions in large areas of the Strip, which would incur a serious threat to civilians. With such an impending escalation, there is a strong possibility of war crimes to be committed and for it to be widespread.

According to the Center's field investigations, on 11 June 2008, at approximately 2:30am, IOF warplanes began firing and shelling on Al Sreij area of Al Qarara village, northeast of Khan Younis. Simultaneously, IOF military vehicles entered amid intensive fire approximately one kilometer into the area. The IOF also began bulldozing in the same area.

At approximately 5:20am, the IOF launched a number of artillery shells that resulted in the killing of 22-year-old Ibrahim Mahmoud Al-Masri. Thirty minutes later, an IOF tank shelled the house of Abdul- Kareem As-Smiri, located about 1,500 meters from the border and 800 meters northwest of the incursion area. The artillery landed in the vicinity of the house and caused the death of his 8-year-old daughter, Hadeel Abdul-Kareem As-Smiri. Eyewitnesses reported that her body was torn into pieces. While family members attempted to rescue the child, IOF tanks fired more artillery in their direction. As a result, 27-year-old Amal Sulaiman As-Smiri was injured by shrapnel in her right arm. She was taken to Nasser Hospital for treatment.

Data collected and compiled by Al Mezan Center shows a significant escalation in IOF military operations that have caused a large number of casualties and heavy loss of private property since the start of 2008. This year alone, the increasing aggression by the IOF on the Gaza Strip resulted in the deaths of 347 Palestinians, including 70 children. This number produces a stark realization: the number of victims from IOF operations in since the start of 2008 has exceeded the number killed in total during 2007. Moreover, the number of children killed during this period is double the number of those killed in 2007 in its entirety.

The ongoing siege imposed on the Gaza Strip by the IOF has paralyzed most public utilities and private businesses, including the health, labor, agriculture, trade and transportation sectors. Hundreds of civilians have been denied their right to access hospitals and critically-needed medicines. The blockade contributed to fuel shortages that have driven the population to use cooking oil as an alternative fuel, thereby raising the rates of pollution and the risk of respiratory diseases.

Reports by Al Mezan show that the fuel crisis continues to worsen, and affects all aspects of life dramatically. This crisis will continue to have profound effects on the lives and welfare of the civilian population, especially since the crisis comes during a severe shortage of other necessary goods and services. The depletion of all stocks related to basic human goods has caused a complete failure to meet even the 'minimum' needs of the population. Furthermore, fuel shortages and frequent electricity cuts contribute to the deterioration of the environment, including air, sea, and groundwater. Moreover, the prohibition by IOF of import of insecticides has paralyzed the ability of local health authorities to combat harmful insects.

Al Mezan denounces the ongoing Israeli violations, which constitute grave breaches of the rules of international law that are tantamount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Center calls upon the international community to act immediately and urgently to prevent Israel from carrying out its threat of a large-scale military operation in the Gaza Strip. If carried out, the attacks have the potential to result in widespread crimes, particularly as the IOF has shown reckless disregards of its legal obligations under international law.

The Center demands that the international community end its silence and uphold its legal and moral duties established under international law. The international community must end the continuous crimes committed against the civilian population, particularly children, in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). Al Mezan calls for urgent international protection for the civilian population and for the siege imposed on the Strip to be lifted immediately.

END

 

Mahmoud Abu Rahma

Training, Communication and Int'l Coordinator

Al Mezan Center for Human Rights

Tel/Fax: +970 8 2820 442/7

Email: mahmoud@mezan.org

URL: www.mezan.org

(Emphasis added - B.M.)

Posted by Justice Lover at 11:41 AM

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