This Week In Occupied Palestine (10/02/2023)
At least 46 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire so far this year, with this week bringing another 10 dead and sparking retaliation that is leading to a boiling point.
This week began with a number of violent raids inside the West Bank, culminating in the murder of 5 Palestinians in Aqbat Jabr refugee camp, which led to strike action throughout the occupied territory. Despite US attempts to call for measures that were aimed at calming the rising tensions, Palestine was again marred by a week of Israeli violent raids and home demolition decisions, to which Palestinians responded to with force.
Israeli occupation police take down Palestinian flags and attack peaceful protesters in Wadi Qaddum, occupied East Jerusalem (Source: Quds News)
This week in occupied Palestine…
On Saturday, Israeli occupation forces raided Aqbat Jabr refugee camp, in Ariha (Jericho). The occupation military was confronted by the youth of the refugee camp who came out to throw stones and burn tires in order to combat the raiding force, members of a newly announced armed group owing its loyalty to the armed wing of Hamas, the al-Qassam brigades, also opened fire on Israeli troops. A home was also besieged, where fighters were thought to be hiding and was struck by the occupation forces with anti-tank missiles; it turned out that no wanted Palestinian fighters were in the building. An ambulance was also damaged, as a journalist was detained and three others arrested, along with at least 5 gunshot injuries inflicted upon Palestinian youths.
The Hebrew media began waging an incitement campaign against the preacher of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, which blamed him for stirring up hatred against Israelis and encouraging attacks, this sparked fear that the elderly preacher may be assassinated or arrested and sent to Israeli military prison.
The Israeli prison administration in the Negev jail continued to isolate 68 political prisoners abusing them and stripping them of their basic needs, including blankets, at a time extremely cold weather. Israeli extremist settlers also stormed the old city in al-Khalil under heavy protection of the occupation army, whilst Palestinians were subjected to routine abuse and blocked from using different areas to enter and exit.
At the Qalandia checkpoint, a Palestinian filmed from their car showing Israeli forces harassing a group of Palestinians and using pepper spray on an unarmed woman.
Tens of thousands of Israelis protested against the Netanyahu government again, demanding that the planned judicial reforms of the new regime not be followed through on. This internal division between Israelis has continued to cause tensions.
Conflicting reports then emerged after an explosion was reported by Israelis in Sderot, to which the Israeli military media responded by stating that the Iron Dome air defence system had intercepted a drone that came from the Gaza Strip. This then turned into an investigation as to whether a flock of birds had triggered the air defence fire from Israel, which also raised questions about whether they had shot down their own drone. The next day Israel claimed that nothing had been intercepted and that there was no drone involved.
On Sunday, Israeli occupation forces raided Arraba in Jenin and arrested Sheikh Khader Adnan, a West Bank leader of the PIJ movement. Illegal Israeli settlers again stormed the al-Aqsa Mosque provocatively, in what has become a normal occurrence that routinely violates the status quo at the Holy Site.
A trial to imprison two Palestinians, Mohammad Majeed and Asi Hourani, from Akka, for their participation in the dignity strike of May 2021 took place, both are Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Omar Muheisen, from the Teachers Movement inside the West Bank, announced that 80% of schools were participating in a strike for their basic demands to be met by the Palestinian Authority.
In response to the Sudanese regimes normalisation deal push, the Sudanese Communist Party stated the following: "We call on the Sudanese people and their revolutionary forces to mass protest the steps of normalisation and the signing of the peace agreement that is being conducted by the Transitional Sovereignty Council."
Israeli siren systems around the settlements that surround the Gaza Strip were triggered, resulting in panic among Israelis. It was later stated that machine gun fire, from an unknown source, triggered the siren systems. Israeli sirens were also reportedly triggered by mistake in the north, near Kiryat Shmona. The constant appearance of malfunctioning by Israeli systems caused speculation as to whether they had been hacked.
Palestinian resistance fighters opened fire on the Beit Furik checkpoint, located east of Nablus. Israeli settlers also threw stones at Palestinian buses, injuring a bus driver near the evacuated “Homesh” settler outpost, that was formerly built on Palestinian lands between Nablus and Jenin. A settler bus was then reportedly pelted with stones in retaliation, causing injury to the Israeli driver. A shooting then targeted settlers from a distance, which did not cause any casualties.
Israeliannounces that it is preparing to demolish a multistory building, inhabited by about 100 Palestinians, in the Wadi Qaddum neighborhood of occupied Jerusalem, in days. Occupation forces then stormed Ariha, Tuqu in Bethlehem and Shuafat refugee camp, carrying out a number of arrests.
On Monday, after besieging the city of Ariha for 10 days, the Israeli occupation forces again raided Aqbat Jabr refugee camp, in Ariha. The raid resulted in the killing of 5 Palestinians who were part of the al-Qassam brigades armed group, at least 10 others were injured, three of which were resistance fighters, three others were arrested and journalists were blocked, and detained, in order to stop them from properly covering the events inside the camp. An ambulance transporting some of the injured was reportedly fired upon by Israeli forces.
Hamas openly threatened retaliation, for the raid and murder of 5 of its members, whilst the Palestinian Authority (PA) called the raid a crime, a comprehensive strike was then announced in order to protest the Israeli raid.
The Israeli military also stormed the Balata refugee camp, near Nablus city, resulting in an armed confrontation with the ‘Balata Battalion’ armed group. Beit Rima in Ramallah was also raided briefly.
Palestinians all over the West Bank and in Gaza City, went to the streets to protest the murder of the 5 resistance fighters in Aqbat Jabr refugee camp, the Birzeit University student movement also called for a comprehensive strike across the occupied territory.
Palestinians gathered in al-Aqsa Mosque to pray and make Dua for the victims of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Turkiye and Syria. Calls were also made across Palestine to donate to those in need. The Palestinian Red Crescent also sent teams into Syria to help deal with the results of the natural disaster.
Reports then emerged, from Damon detention centre, that Israeli prison authorities had assaulted minors who were held there and that the political prisoners were hit with harsh penalties and deprived of their basic rights.
Due to Israel preventing restoration work at the al-Aqsa Mosque, tiles began to fall from the Dome of the Rocks masjid inside the site, water leakages were also reported, causing anger. A shooting then targeted an occupation army unit near the "Shafi Shomron '' settlement, northwest of Nablus, following this the Jenin brigades opened fire on the Jalameh checkpoint. Another targeted the "Karmi Zur '' settlement, north of Al-Khalil.
Palestinian citizen of Israel, Ali Saleh Nahar, was reportedly killed by gunfire in Tuba Al-Zangariya, in the 1948 occupied territories, yet another murder due to criminal activities that Palestinians accuse the Israeli occupation police of allowing to happen and even being involved in.
On Tuesday, an Israeli special forces team raided the town of Burqin, west of Jenin, resulting in a fire fight between resistance forces and the occupation army. Resistance fighters then opened fire at the occupation forces during the storming of Al-Masaken Al-Shabi'a neighborhood, east of Nablus. Qalandia refugee camp was also raided. The morning raids resulted in the murder of a Palestinian teenager, Hamza al-Ashqar, from Askar refugee camp in Nablus, in addition to the mass arrests of at least 22 Palestinians during three hours of raids.
Israel stormed the lands of the Abu Latif family and demolished part of the Bedouin town of Rahat, located in al-Naqab (the Negev), targeting agricultural lands and destroying crops.
Reports emerged that the US’s CIA director, Bill Burns, expressed his concerns about the emergence of a Third Intifada and claimed that much of what he saw 20 years ago during the Second Intifada is happening again today inside the West Bank.
Hebrew media began releasing details about the attempts that are being made by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu to build 9,000 additional settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem, a plan that was put on hold under the Obama administration due to pressure then placed upon Israel to halt settlement expansion.
The number of administrative detainees held in Israeli military prisons officially rose to 900. This means that there are now close to a thousand Palestinians in Israeli military prisons - the majority of which have or are being subjected to some form of torture - who are being held without any charge.
An illegal Israeli settler was reportedly injured after he was attacked by a young Palestinian near the “Halamesh” settlement, West of Ramallah. Occupation forces then stormed the area and broke into stores and homes to seize CCTV camera footage in order to find out who attacked the settler.
Israeli occupation forces then stormed the Joseph’s tomb area in Nablus, in order for illegal settlers to provocatively dance in the area. The Palestinian Authority (PA)’s Security Forces were reportedly ordered to stop security coordination with the Israeli military, according to the PA’s own statements that have been contested by Palestinians on the ground that accuse them of maintaining the coordination secretly. During the raid, PA forces withdrew in tandem with Israel’s entrance into the area and allowed them to transport settlers into the are uncontested, this proves without a shadow of a doubt that at least in this instance, security coordination continues so that the PA’s forces can protect Israeli interests and that the declaration by PA President Mahmoud Abbas was not fully honest, even if there are other areas were communication may have been cut. The only force defending against the Israeli raid were the Balata battalion.
On Wednesday, Israeli occupation forces continued their raid near the Joseph’s tomb area, located in Nablus, seriously injuring two young Palestinians. They also carried out a raid against the village of Musliah, in Jenin, arresting a number of young people, the town of Silwad was raided shortly after and residents' homes were trashed. Israel’s military announced that three additional battalions will be sent into the West Bank in the following two weeks, to serve as reinforcements.
Illegal settlers again stormed the al-Aqsa mosque compound under occupation police force protection. A number of Israeli raids, in addition to shooting attacks by the resistance forces also took place.
Palestinians in Gaza donated blood to be sent to victims of the earthquake in Turkiye and Syria. Palestinian political factions also sent their support and condolences to both countries.
In Spain, the Barcelona Municipality announced that it would be ending all institutional relations with Tel Aviv, in response to its criminal Apartheid policies and illegal occupation. Ada Colau, the left-wing mayor of the Catalan capital announced the following: “I have decided to temporarily suspend relations with the state of Israel and with the official institutions of that state -including the twinning agreements with the Tel Aviv City Council – until the Israeli authorities put an end to the system of violations of the Palestinian people and fully comply with the obligations imposed on them by international law and the various United Nations resolutions. We cannot be silent,” she stated, prompting the usual and expected allegations of “anti-semitism” from Israeli politicians.
On Thursday, Israeli occupation forces again began the day by committing more raids, the first on the village of Dyouk, located north of Ariha city, forcing their way into several civilian homes and harassing residents. An unarmed man named Saed al-Awadat was arrested, during which he was severely beaten by occupation soldiers. Illegal settler extremists also stormed the al-Aqsa mosque compound.
Palestinian civil defence and ambulance crews were mobilised and sent to Syria and Turkiye in order to help earthquake victims.
According to a report featured in Haaretz news, investors in the occupying regime are steadily withdrawing funds in reaction to the new far-right government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu, as the regime's behaviour seems to be causing concerns.
Occupation forces opened fire on a 22-year-old Palestinian man, named Sherif Hassan Rabaa, near the entrance to the al-Fawar refugee camp, south of al-Khalil. Israeli forces reportedly stopped the young man's vehicle, before opening fire upon him and then shoving his bleeding body into a military vehicle, where he eventually died. The initial reports in Israeli media claimed that he had attempted to attack soldiers and his body is being held away from his family so that they cannot bury him, however, there is no evidence for these allegations that he tried to attack soldiers.
In a separate incident, near the al-Jalameh checkpoint in Jenin, a young man was deliberately run over with a military vehicle, causing the man serious injuries. Later, occupation forces stopped another young Palestinian, 18-year-old Ahmed Walweel, in his car near the city of Qalqilya, before arresting him. The Jenin Brigade's armed group later decided to open fire on the Dotan checkpoint, near the town of Ya’bad.
Hamas sent a delegation to Cairo to meet with the Egyptian leadership, this came following the end of a US visit to the region which was aimed at cooling tensions. The Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, also ordered the creation of a department to isolate female political prisoners in another escalation which threatens to cross red-lines with the Palestinian factions.
On Friday, the day began with another raid against the eastern side of Jenin city and a number of Palestinians were detained or arrested. Physical altercations broke out at one of the entrances to the al-Aqsa mosque compound between Palestinians and Israeli occupation police who pointed their guns at unarmed worshippers.
The Palestinian prisoners movement announced that the political detainee from Yatta, Ahmed Abu Ali, had died inside Israeli military prison as a result of medical neglect. Calls were launched for an independent fact finding mission to be launched in order to investigate and hold accountable those responsible for the political prisoners death.
An Israeli illegal settler committed a car ramming attack against a young Palestinian man in the Qalqis area, south of al-Khalil, causing the man serious injuries. No Israeli effort has been launched to hold the terrorist settler accountable.
A non-violent protest in the Silwan area of occupied East Jerusalem, to oppose the planned demolition of Palestinian homes in the area, was attacked by Israeli occupation riot police.
Hussein Qaraqe, a 30-year-old Palestinian man from the neighbourhood of al-Issawiya, located in occupied East Jerusalem, carried out a car ramming operation against Israeli settlers at a bus stop in the settlement of Ramot. The car ramming attack killed at least three, injuring 5 others, the Palestinian man was shot dead through the window of his car.
Protests across the occupied West Bank broke out, all of which were attacked by Israeli occupation forces. The Lions Den armed group, based out of Nablus, also claimed responsibility for six different shooting operations towards the Israeli occupation forces.
As a note on this series of articles, each piece focuses on the key events of each day during the past week and is heavily focused, as a result, on the Gaza Strip and West Bank. There are various other developments that are taking place on a daily basis, throughout occupied Palestine, that are too numerous to include. However, these are the highlights from each day and hopefully work to give you a more in depth picture of what shapes the lives of Palestinians under occupation.
The takeaway from reading these weekly logs is that the Palestinians are not sitting around waiting for someone else to save them. The daily acts of resistance (armed and civil) are something I would not have believed to be happening with such frequency. That said two positive developments from outside the Occupied Territories: (1) Barcelona announced that it would be "ending all institutional relations with Tel Aviv, in response to its criminal Apartheid policies and illegal occupation." and (2) the Sudanese Communist Party said "We call on the Sudanese people and their revolutionary forces to mass protest the steps of normalisation and the signing of the peace agreement that is being conducted by the Transitional Sovereignty Council."