JERUSALEM, January 14, 2011 (WAFA)- Israeli forces killed two Palestinians and injured 15 others in various incidents throughout the West Bank, including East Jerusalem , said the OCHA weekly report (January 5-11).
The number of Palestinian fatalities in the West Bank since the beginning of 2011 has now reached four, the report added.
On January 7, at around three in the morning, a special unit of the Israeli military shot and killed, allegedly by mistake, a 66‐year‐old Palestinian civilian during a search and arrest operation. The unit broke into the man's house, located in the Palestinian Authority (PA)‐controlled area of Hebron City (H1), in the course of an operation aimed at arresting five alleged members of Hamas' military wing, who had been released from a PA prison the day before; one of them resided in the same building as the victim. The five men were ultimately arrested and taken into Israeli custody. According to the Israeli media, the Israeli army has expressed regret over the killing of the civilian and opened an investigation.
The following day, Israeli soldiers staffing the Al Hamra checkpoint (also known as Beka'ot) shot and killed a 25‐year‐old Palestinian man from Al Yamun village (Jenin), who was approaching the checkpoint in the pedestrian lane, and refused to stop after being called to do so by the soldiers. The Israeli army's spokesperson issued a statement indicating that the man carried explosives and a knife; however, according to the Palestinian DCL, he was unarmed. Al Hamra checkpoint is used by the army to restrict Palestinian access into the Jordan Valley.
After the incident, a group of Israeli soldiers physically assaulted and injured a 19‐year‐old Palestinian man, who was on duty guarding a telecommunication tower located 1.5 km away from the checkpoint; the circumstances of the incident remain unclear. During the previous reporting period, another Palestinian civilian was killed while approaching the same checkpoint.
Also this week, ten Palestinians, including two children and four women, were injured during the weekly anti‐Barrier protest in the village of Bil'in (Ramallah) during clashes with Israeli forces. Some 1,000 people, including Palestinian politicians and international and Israeli peace activists, participated in the demonstration, which was held also in commemoration of a woman who died after inhaling tear gas during the previous week's protest. In a related development, this week the Israeli Military Court of Appeal decided to extend the prison sentence of the head of the 'Popular Committee against the Wall' in Bil'in, from 12 to 16 months, after the prosecution argued that his initial sentence was too lenient. The man, who has been convicted of ʺorganizing and participating in an illegal demonstration,' has been recognized by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience.
