HEBRON, April 9, 2014 (WAFA) –
Children from the Palestinian villages of Tuba and Maghayir Al Abeed were
Wednesday attacked by settlers coming from the Israeli illegal outpost of Havat
Ma’on, according to a statement by the Operation Dove – Nonviolent Peace Crops.
The children were walking on
their way to school, accompanied by the Israeli military escort that has the
duty to protect them everyday on their way to and from school, as established
in 2004 by the Children Rights Committee of the Knesset. During 2013-2014
school year the misconduct of the military escort exposed the children to
dangerous risks in many occasions.
In order to reach the school of
At Tuwani, the Palestinian children coming from the villages of Tuba and
Maghayir Al Abeed, aged between 6 and 17 years, usually walk through the
shortest route, about 20 minutes walking, that passes between the Israeli
settlement of Ma’on and the illegal outpost of Havat Ma’on (Hill 833). This
route is the main road linking their villages and At Tuwani.
On the morning of April 9 at 7:40
am, two Israeli children coming from the illegal outpost of Havat Ma’on
attacked the Palestinian children, throwing them stones with slingshots. Two
Palestinian girls, aged 12 and 14, were hit on their legs by the stones and
remained injured. At the moment of the attack the Israeli soldiers were not
walking with the children as they are supposed to, but were all inside the
military vehicle following the group of children.
Everyday international volunteers
monitor the regular implementation of the IDF escort for an average number of
16 children, aged between 6 and 17 years old, coming from the villages of Tuba
and Maghayir al Abeed. August 25 marked the beginning of the school year
2013-2014, 132 days of school were recorded so far.
The escort was not present in 5
mornings and 6 afternoons, forcing the children to walk a longer and still
dangerous path that takes them about one hour to reach the school. During the
current school year international volunteers registered that in 30% of the
cases the military escort was late (27% during the previous school year
2012-2013), causing children the loss of about 8 hours of lessons (17 in
2012-2013).
In addition, in 50% of the cases
(52% in 2012-2013) the military escort arrived late after school, forcing the
children to wait in a dangerous place (the gathering one), close to both the
settlement and the outpost, for a total time of about 12 hours (19 in
2012-2013).
In contravention to the
escort’s protective mandate, in 96% of the cases (i.e. 227 out of 132 recorded
cases in which the escort was present) the Israeli military failed to fully
complete the escort and the soldiers did not accompany the children to the end
of the established path (78% in 2012-2013).
Furthermore in 2013-2014 school
year so far, in 82% (37% in 2012-2013) of the cases the escort didn’t walk with
the children, as established in the agreement between the Israel Civil
Administration’s District Coordination Office (DCO) and the mayor of At Tuwani.
M.N./T.R.
