July Archives - Israel-Palestine Timeline

Ahmad Mohammad al-Qarra

July 26, 2019July 27, 2019 contact@ifamericansknew.org

July 26, 2019: Ahmad Mohammad al-Qarra, 22, died from serious wounds he suffered in earlier that day when 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.

Ahmad was from Khan Younis, in the southern part of the West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Nassar Majed Taqatqa

July 16, 2019April 22, 2020 contact@ifamericansknew.org

July 16, 2019: Nassar Majed Taqatqa, 31, died after having been tortured in an Israeli prison and then placed in solitary confinement in Nitzan Israeli Prison.

The Palestinian Prisoner Society reported that the autopsy revealed that Nassar died due to extreme torture and abuse by Israeli interrogators and soldiers.

In its report, the PPS stated that the detainee was constantly tortured during interrogation in Majeddo Israeli prison.

The PPS said the detainee, Nassar Majed Taqatqa, 31, was t abducted on June 19^th, 2019, after the soldiers invaded his home in Beit Fajjar town, and was transferred to the al-Maskobiyya interrogation facility in occupied Jerusalem. This was his first time in Israeli custody.

The detainee was later transferred to the al-Jalama interrogation facility, where he was interrogated and tortured again, and started suffering from serious complications due to physical and psychological abuse.

In addition, sworn testimonies provided by Palestinian detainees who saw Taqatqa, said that he was forced into solitary confinement in Majeddo prison, where he was once again tortured and restrained in a bed.

On July 11^th, the administration in Majeddo refused to remove him from solitary confinement, and place him with other detainees, under the pretext of him being punished.

On July 14^th, he was moved to an Israeli hospital in al-Ramla due to serious deterioration in his health, and on July 16^th, Israel announced his death in a solitary confinement cell in Nitzan (al-Ramla) prison.

Qaddoura Fares, the head of the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said the detainee is not the first to be tortured, especially to death, and added that most imprisoned Palestinians are tortured and subjected to very difficult conditions, in addition to being deprived the right to proper medical attention, in direct violation of International Law, and all related agreements and treaties.

It also denied allegations by the Israel Prison Authority about his death and confirmed that the Palestinian did not have any preexisting health conditions.

The PPS held Israel fully responsible for his death, especially while under interrogation, as Palestinian detainees are frequently physically and psychologically tortured, in addition to the very bad living conditions they face, and the lack of medical treatment.

The PPS stated that the death of Taqatqa brings the number of detainees, who were killed or died in Israeli prisons since 1967, to 220.

The International Red Cross sent its condolences to the family and stated that although it does not take part in investigation committees or autopsy, it will be following the case closely with the Israeli authorities and the family.

It added that it is following the detainee’s death with great concern and advised refraining from publishing sensitive information for the privacy of the family.

In a statement, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) called for an immediate and impartial investigation into Taqatqa’s death while in solitary confinement in Nitzan (al-Ramla) Prison.

It quoted his family stating that the detainee did not have any health issues and was a completely healthy young man when he was taken prisoner.

The PCHR said:

According to human rights organizations’ reports followed up by PCHR’s field workers, Israeli forces arrested Taqatqa on 19 June 2019 after raiding his house in Beit Fajjar and taking him to al-Jalamah Center for investigation.

On 09 July 2019, the Israeli forces again raided and searched his family house while he was in prison. Two weeks after his arrest, the Israeli authorities sent Taqatqa to solitary confinement in “Nitzan” Prison (al-Ramla) in Israel to continue investigating with him.

Lawyer Raji Sourani, PCHR’s Director, commented on that by saying, “Israel has a record of prior incidents which prove Israeli security services’ involvement in torture, inhuman treatment, and deliberate medical negligence against dozens of prisoners as part of an Israeli systematic policy and under legal cover. Taqatqa, as said, did not have any health issues prior to his arrest, so his death during investigation raises suspicions, which urge opening an investigation into possible occurrence of torture and medical negligence.”

Taqatqa’s family said that this was his first arrest, and they knew about his death via media. Thus, they contacted the lawyer of the Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Committee to confirm this news.

PCHR emphasizes that living conditions of around 5800 Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli jails continue to deteriorate; 700 of them who suffer chronic diseases and do not receive the adequate healthcare. PCHR also holds the Israeli government fully responsible for the death of Taqatqa and calls for a prompt and impartial investigation into the death circumstances.

Nassar was from Beit Fajjar town, south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Source: IMEMC

Tariq Zebania

July 15, 2019July 16, 2019 contact@ifamericansknew.org

July 15, 2019: Tariq Zebania, 7, was struck and killed by an Israeli settler vehicle while he was riding his bicycle near his village in the southern part of the West Bank, near Hebron.

Tariq was riding his bicycle by the settlement road near his town. He was struck by a car driven by an Israeli settler who headed into the ‘Adhoura’ settlement after hitting the boy.

Eyewitnesses called the Israeli security forces, who sent a military ambulance to transport the child to an Israeli hospital, where he was pronounced dead from his injuries.

Local sources report that no efforts were made by the Israeli authorities to apprehend the driver who killed the boy.

Tariq was from Tarqumia, west of Hebron. Source: IMEMC

Mahmoud Ahmad al-Adham

July 11, 2019July 11, 2019 contact@ifamericansknew.org

July 11, 2019: Mahmoud Ahmad al-Adham, 28, was killed by Israeli soldiers east of Beit Hanoun, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Mahmoud was a member of Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, and was shot while trying to prevent protesters from approaching the perimeter fence.

The Palestinian Health Ministry has confirmed that the soldiers shot and seriously injured Mahmoud Ahmad al-Adham, 28, on Thursday morning, east of Beit Hanoun, and added that the young man succumbed to his injuries on Thursday evening.

He was one of many “Field Control” officers, stationed near the perimeter fence to prevent Palestinian protesters from approaching the perimeter fence with Israel as part of an agreement meant to avoid escalation.

It is worth mentioning that the soldiers also fired several live rounds at the field control post east of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip.

The Al-Qassam Brigades issued a statement accusing Israel of deliberately killing the Palestinian, and said that “it is evaluating the situation, and its response to the grave Israeli violation.”

His death comes after a period of relative calm along the perimeter fence, especially after the indirect “ceasefire understandings” between Hamas and Israel, to avoid tension along the fence.

He was one of the dozens of officers, and fighters, tasked with preventing any Palestinian from reaching the perimeter fence or attempting to cross it.

In a statement, the Israeli army admitted it shot and killed the fighter, after claiming that the incident was a “mistake stemming from a misunderstanding,” and added that “it will investigate it.”

As part of these understandings, Israel increased the fishing zone in the coastal region to fifteen nautical miles, a move that was described by Israeli officials as aiming at “preventing humanitarian deterioration,” in the already besieged and impoverished Gaza Strip.

Mahmoud was from Beit Hanoun, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Source: IMEMC