URGENT UPDATE
House to house searches, Detainment and Executions
The Palestine Monitor, 31 Mar 2002
The Palestine Monitor, A PNGO Information Clearinghouse
URGENT UPDATE
House to house searches, Detainment and Executions
A Worsening Crisis
31st March 2002
The Israeli army continues to occupy cities in the West Bank; soldiers
are currently engaged in house-to-house searches, indiscriminately detaining
people and destroying property. The prisoners are being held in concentration
camp like places in the nearby Israeli military base of Beit El, without
water, food or shelter.
Even more worrying is what may happen to the arrested
individuals. Israeli soldiers executed five Palestinian policemen the day
before yesterday. The policemen, four of who were aged in their 50s and
over, were found lying close to one another, with gunshots to their heads;
before they were killed there was no gunfire coming from the building,
they did not appear to be resisting the Israel soldiers who had surrounded
and entered the building they were in. Four more corpses have just been
found in another building in Ramallah; they were also executed in the same
manner.
Two men were killed in a similar manner in Sayda,
near Tulkaram.
The house-to-house searches and indiscriminate detaining
of civilians present an imminent threat to the lives of many Palestinians.
It is also becoming obvious that Israel intends
to re-occupy the whole of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Furthermore it
appears Sharon is preparing to execute Mr. Arafat – a move which will cause
an explosion in the whole region.
Throughout the past 19 months Sharon has been allowed
to conduct his plan to kill the peace process, destroy the peace agreements,
annihilate the Palestinian Authority and to reoccupy the West Bank and
Gaza Strip. He has been able to do so because the international community
has permitted him; he cannot be allowed to hurl us into a more dangerous
situation.
The Grassroots International Protection for Palestinians
(GIPP) has issued a call for people from all over the world to come to
Palestine and participate in the defense of Palestinians whose lives are
threatened by the Israeli military.
For more information contact the Palestine Monitor at +972 (0)59 208258