Editorial Note: The following news reports are summaries from original sources. They may also include corrections of Arabic names and political terminology. Comments are in parentheses. Share the link of this article with your facebook friends

 

Israeli Occupation Soldiers Fire at Palestinian Farmers and Fishermen, Abduct Scores of Civilians, Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza for Shortage of Drinking Water

 March 23, 2021 

Editor's Note:

While brutal force has been used to create Zionist Israel and sustain it thus far, Zionist claims to Palestine are false. Actually, from the five thousand years of known written history, there has been a continuous Palestinian-Canaanite presence in the Holy Land. Despite the Zionist false claims, the ancient Israelites ruled part of the land for only 85 years (during the reign of David, Solomon, and Solomon's son).

 After that, the Egyptians conquered Palestine-Canaan in 925 BC, followed by Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans, before the Arab Muslim rule, starting from 636 AD.

By the Time Jesus started his mission, the three population groups of Canaanites, Palestinians, and Israelites were melted together in religion and language. Most of them became Christians when Constantine converted in 313 AD. Then, most of them became Muslims in the 7th and 8th centuries AD.

So, Palestinian Muslims, Christians, and Jews are the ones who have the right to claim descent from ancient Israelites, Palestinians, and Canaanites, not Zionists from other continents.

The following news stories are just examples of the Israeli occupation government abuse, mistreatment, and violations of Palestinian human rights, on daily basis.

More detailed news stories can be found at the following sources:

http://english.wafa.ps/, https://english.palinfo.com/, https://imemc.org/, https://paltoday.ps/ar/

 

Palestinian children in Gaza carrying drinking water March 2021	Israeli Navy Opens Fire At Palestinian Boats In Northern Gaza, March 22, 2021

Israeli Occupation Soldiers Injure Many Palestinians Near Nablus

IMEMC, MAR 23, 2021

Israeli occupation soldiers injured, on Tuesday at dawn, many Palestinians with rubber-coated steel bullets, and caused several others to suffer the effects of teargas inhalation, in the al-‘Arma Mountain area, in Beita village, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus.

Local sources said the soldiers invaded the mountain and attacked the Palestinians who have been camping there to protect their lands amidst ongoing plans to illegally annex them for the benefit of the illegal Israeli colonies.

The Secretary of Fateh Movement in Beita, Minwer Bani Shamsa, said the soldiers stormed the mountain during early dawn hours, and started firing gas bombs and rubber-coated steel bullets at the Palestinians, causing many injuries.

Bani Shamsa added that the Palestinians started protesting and camping in the mountain after a group of colonialist settlers invaded it.

The mountain has an archeological site that has been subject to constant attempts by the colonists who want to occupy it and install an outpost.

Israeli Occupation Soldiers Abduct Eighteen Palestinians In West Bank

 IMEMC, MAR 22, 2021

Israeli occupation soldiers abducted, earlier Monday, eighteen Palestinians from their homes, in Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah, and Jerusalem, in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said.

The PPS office in Bethlehem, south of occupied Jerusalem, said the soldiers invaded and searched homes in ‘Aida refugee camp, north of the city, and abducted Ahmad Eid Abu Aker, 33, Hamdi Mustafa Abu Aker, 34, and Abdo Faisal Abu Hammad, 37.

In added that the soldiers also invaded the al-Jadawil area in Beit Jala city, west of Bethlehem, searched homes and abducted Nafeth Othman Shehada, 33.

Furthermore, the soldiers abducted Ahmad Wael at-Till, 28, from his home in the ath-Thaheriyya town, south of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, in addition to Ali Ezzeddin Abu Mariya, 18, from his home in Beit Ummar town, north of the city.

In Hebron city, the soldiers stormed and ransacked many homes, in addition to installing roadblocks on its northern and southern roads, and the entrances of Sa’ir and Halhoul towns, northeast, and north of Hebron, before stopping and searching dozens of cars, and interrogated the Palestinians while inspecting their ID cards.

In the occupied Palestinian capital, Jerusalem, the soldiers stormed and ransacked many Palestinian homes in the Old City, before abducting eleven Palestinians, identified as Amir al-Basity, Eyad al-Basity, Mahmoud Shaweesh, Mustafa Abu Ghazala, Majd Sharifa, Amin Dweik, Khaled Milhis, Mohammad Abu Farha, Abdullah al-Harbawi, Mohammad Bassem Hijazi, and Jihad Qous.

In Ramallah, in central West Bank, the soldiers invaded the al-Am’ari refugee camp, south of the city, and abducted a young man, identified as Bilal Kifaya.

Israeli Occupation  Navy Opens Fire At Palestinian Boats In Northern Gaza

 IMEMC, MAR 22, 2021

Israeli occupation navy ships fired, on Monday morning, dozens of live rounds, and used water cannons, targeting Palestinian fishing boats in the Sudaniyya Sea area, northwest of Beit Lahia, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.

Eyewitnesses said the navy attacked the boats while fishing less than three nautical miles from the shore.

They added that the attack did not lead to casualties, but caused damage and forced the fishermen back to the shore without being able to fish to provide for their families.

On Sunday morning, the navy, and the army, attacked Palestinian farmers and fishermen in the Gaza Strip.

Eyewitnesses said the soldiers opened fire from a military post across the perimeter fence, at many farmers while working their swaths of land in the east of Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.

Furthermore, Israeli gunboats fired many live rounds at Palestinian fishing boats off the shore of Deir al-Balah City in central Gaza.

The Oslo Accords signed by Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization in 1993, and 1995 stipulated that the Israeli occupation authorities must allow Palestinian fishermen to sail and fish up to 20 nautical miles off the coast.

However, Israel keeps unilaterally changing the allotted miles, and constantly attacks the fishermen near the shore, leading to dozens of casualties, including fatalities, in addition to arrests, excessive damage, and the confiscation of boats.

Illegal Israeli Settlers Prepare For New Road On Palestinian Lands

 IMEMC, MAR 22, 2021

Illegal Israeli settlers invaded, Sunday, Palestinian lands in Kisan village, east of Bethlehem, south of the occupied Palestinian capital Jerusalem, in the West Bank, and started preparing for a new road.

Ahmad Ghazal, the deputy head of Kisan Village Council, said the colonists came from the illegal Maale Amos outpost, which was installed on stolen Palestinian lands, and were accompanied by Israeli soldiers.

Ghazal added that the colonists dug and uprooted nearly four kilometers of Palestinian lands, in preparation for the new road which would also lead to the illegal annexation of hundreds of Dunams.

The official also said that the lands were previously dug and uprooted as part of the constant efforts by the colonists to prepare for a new road that would link between Maale Amos and Avi Hanahal colonies.

All of Israel’s colonies in the occupied West Bank are illegal under International Law, the Fourth Geneva Convention, in addition to various United Nations resolutions.

Israeli Occupation Army Abducts Eight Palestinians In West Bank

 IMEMC, MAR 21, 2021

Israeli occupation soldiers abducted, earlier Sunday, eight Palestinians, including two siblings, in several parts of the occupied West Bank, including the occupied capital, Jerusalem.

Media sources in Jerusalem said the soldiers invaded the at-Tour town, before storming and ransacking homes, and abducted two Palestinians, identified as Daoud al-Hnaity and Mohammad Ayman Abu al-Hawa.

In Jenin, in northern West Bank, undercover Israeli soldiers infiltrated into Ya’bad town, west of the city, before abducting Hamada ad-Damj and Wadea’ al-Ghoul.

Furthermore, the soldiers invaded Beit Fajjar town, south of Bethlehem, searched many homes, and abducted Fayez Mohammad Taqatqa, 27, his brother Salama, 27, in addition to Walid Issa Taqatqa, 23, and Atef Mohammad Thawabta, 22.

In related news, the soldiers invaded the archeological area in Sebastia Palestinian town, north of Nablus, in northern West Bank.

On Saturday evening, the soldiers abducted seven young Palestinian men, including siblings, from Sneiria village, south of the northern West Bank city of Qalqilia.

Israeli Occupation Army Shoots, Kills Palestinian at Protest near Nablus

 IMEMC, MAR 19, 2021

A Palestinian man was shot and killed, on Friday, when Israeli occupation forces opened fire at non-violent protestors near Beit Dajan village, east of Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank city.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, Israeli soldiers shot Atef Yousef Hanaysha, 45, the Imam of the local mosque, with a live round in the head while he was participating in a peaceful demonstration in defence of Palestinian-owned land which is under the threat of confiscation.

The army opened fire toward Palestinian civilians exercising their right to protest with live rounds, rubber-coated steel rounds and teargas to suppress the march, which was organized to reject the Israeli occupation’s continued expropriation of Palestinian-owned land.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) stated that they rushed the severely injured man to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus, where he was soon pronounced dead as a result of his wounds.

Illegal Israeli Settlers Burn Two Palestinian Cars In Jerusalem

 IMEMC, MAR 19, 2021

Illegal Israeli settlers, illegally squatting on Palestinian lands, invaded Beit Iksa village, northwest of occupied Jerusalem, on Friday at dawn, burnt two Palestinian cars, and wrote racist graffiti.

Media sources in Beit Iksa said the cars are both owned by a local man, identified as Hamdan Karshan.

They added that Palestinian firefighters rushed to the town, and extinguished the fire; however, the flames have already destroyed the two vehicles.

The colonists also wrote racists anti-Palestinian graffiti on walls on the same street where the two cars were torched.

Following the attack, Israeli soldiers invaded the town and interrogated many Palestinians while inspecting their ID cards instead of trying to locate the assailants.

It is worth mentioning that this is the fourth attack of its kind against Beit Iksa this year alone.

Israeli Occupation Soldiers Open Fire At Farmers, Shepherds, And Fishermen In Gaza

 IMEMC, MAR 19, 2021

Israeli occupation soldiers opened fire, on Thursday morning, at Palestinian farmers and shepherds, while the navy attacked fishermen, in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Media sources said the soldiers, stationed in military towers across the perimeter fence in central Gaza fired many live rounds at Palestinian farmers and shepherds.

The sources added that the military fire forced the farmers and shepherds to leave their lands in fear of further violations.

In addition, Israeli navy ships fired many live rounds, and used water cannons, targeting Palestinian fishing boats in the Sudaniyya and the al-Waha areas, northwest of Gaza city, causing damage.

The attacks are part of frequent Israeli violations against the Palestinians, especially the fishermen, farmers, shepherds, and workers in the besieged and impoverished Gaza Strip, and have led to dozens of casualties, including fatalities, in addition to serious property damage and the confiscation of many boats after abducting the fishermen.

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Statistics Bureau: “Only 4% of household members in Gaza Strip have access to safely managed water that is free of pollution”

 IMEMC, MAR 22, 2021

The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), and the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) Issue a joint Press Release on the Occasion of World Water Day; on March 22nd, 2021

The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), and the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) issue a joint press release on the occasion of World Water Day; on March 22nd, 2021. This year, World Water Day comes under the theme of “Water Source Security: Is desalination the way to go?”, according to the announcement of the United Nations.

The availability of clean and accessible water for all is an essential part of the goals of sustainable development goals. It is the first target of goal 6, which focuses on equitable access to an improved drinking water by 2030.

As for safely managed water resources [defined as improved sources, used in the dwelling, available when needed, and free from pollution (free of E-Coli bacteria)], the survey data indicates that 39.5% of household members in Palestine have access to safely managed water, and this percentage fluctuates among the West Bank, in which it reaches 66.2% of household members, compared to 4.3% of household members in Gaza Strip.

The daily allocation per capita from consumed water for domestic purposes is 81.9 liters/capita/day (l/c/d) in Palestine: 85.6 (l/c/d) in the West Bank, while it was 77 (l/c/d) in Gaza Strip in 2019.

It is worth noting that the average Palestinian water consumption per capita is still less than the minimum recommended level globally according to the standards of the World Health Organization (WHO), which is 100 liters per day. This is as a result of the Israeli control over more than 85% of the Palestinian water.

The amount of water extracted from the coastal aquifer for domestic use was 187.6 million cubic meters (MCM) in Gaza Strip in 2019. However, this quantity is obtained via unsafe pumping that jeopardizes the sustainability of the source, as the basin sustainable yield should not exceed 50-60 MCM a year.

More than 97% of the water pumped from the coastal aquifer in Gaza Strip does not meet the water quality standards of the WHO, leading to the depletion of groundwater reserves, where the groundwater level in the coastal aquifer reached 19 meters below sea level.

The above-mentioned numbers warned of a real disaster in Gaza Strip, which made the Palestinian Water Authority to intensify its efforts to save the water situation and work to mitigate its severe effect on the daily life of about 2 million persons in Gaza Strip. It is expected for these indicators to improve in the coming years, with operating strategic water and sewage projects in Gaza.

On the other hand, the quantity of water pumped from the Palestinian wells in the West Bank in 2019 was 101.3 MCM from Eastern Aquifer, Western Aquifer, and North-Eastern Aquifer.

With scarce water and Israeli restrictions on access to resources, Palestinian cities are forced to purchase water from the Israeli water company “Mekorot”.

Note: Data mentioned in this press release excludes those parts of Jerusalem which were annexed by Israeli Occupation in 1967.

Al-Mezan deplores water situation in Gaza and calls for Palestinians’ right to water and accountability for water-related violations

 IMEMC, MAR 22, 2021

Al-Mezan Center For Human Rights: Water is the essence of all forms of life, including that of humans. As such, water is a recognized human right by itself, as well as a prior condition to implement other basic rights, including the right to an adequate standard of living and the right to health. In 1993, the United Nations (UN) instituted an awareness day to focus the attention on water-related issues and to advocate for sustainable and rights-based water policies. Ever since March 22 is globally known as World Water Day.

To mark this year’s World Water Day, the UN called on communities around the world to debate and discuss the values of water and address the following question: what does water mean to you? As is to be expected, water means different things to different people in different settings. For the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), water is not only an essential element for leading a life in human dignity but also a tool of control, domination, and oppression by Israel, the Occupying Power.

Since the start of the occupation in 1967, Israel and its parastatal institutions have purposely prevented Palestinians from controlling their water sources throughout the whole oPt, thereby flagrantly violating their inalienable right to self-determination, including permanent sovereignty over natural resources. The extent of control exercised by Israeli authorities over the water sector has impeded Palestinian access to their water sources, such as the Jordan River, to maintain and develop existing water facilities or to build any new infrastructure without having been granted an Israeli-issued permit.

This system of racialized and institutionalized material discrimination implemented by Israel and its parastatals in the water sector has led many rights groups to describe it as “water apartheid”, possibly amounting to a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.[1]

The Gaza Strip, part of the oPt, has been affected for years by a severe and purely human-made water crisis that continues unabated. In parallel to the Israeli occupation and apartheid system, the crisis is further compounded by Israel’s 13-year illegal closure and systematic military attacks on civilian populations and infrastructure in Gaza. The closure—which is considered an unlawful collective punishment of two million Palestinians under international law—and full-scale military bombardments have pushed all basic services in the Gaza Strip to the brink of collapse, including water and sanitation facilities.

Several years ago, the UN Country Team in the oPt warned that by 2020 “with the supply of water too low to meet the demand, the living and health conditions of the people of Gaza can only further deteriorate, exposing the population to water-borne illnesses, and other threats.”[2] In the same report, it was said that the Gaza Strip in 2020 would no longer be “a livable place” unless action was taken. And yet, in 2021, 95 percent of Gaza’s two million population still do not have access to clean water, as 97 percent of water in Gaza is unfit for human consumption based on the standards of the World Health Organization.[3] In light of these figures, what does water mean for Gaza’s population?

For many Palestinians in Gaza, safe and clean water means expensive and unaffordable water. Indeed, as a result of the poor financial situation and high levels of poverty in Gaza, most of its population cannot afford to buy drinkable water and must rely solely on tap water (when available). For just as many, the lack of water means being unable to implement even basic safety and preventive measures for COVID-19, such as hand-hygiene. For the Palestinian agricultural community in the “buffer zone”, the no-go military area unilaterally enforced by Israel within the territory of the Gaza Strip, water means work, cultivation, growth, but also devastation.

For several years now, Al Mezan has been reporting episodes of flooding incidents carried out by Israeli authorities, undermining the activities of Palestinians farming in the buffer zone. Israel has in fact built several dams within its territory to control and redirect the natural flow of water away from the Gaza Strip. When these dams reach their full capacity, the Israeli authorities open their gates and deliberately flood Palestinian farmland in the buffer zone, devastating harvests and causing huge damages to houses and other properties.

On World Water Day, Al Mezan recalls the words of the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the oPt, who rightly noted that “[t]he collapse of natural sources of drinking water in Gaza […] has become a potent symbol of the systematic violation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”[4]

With the understanding that having access to safe, clean and drinking water is central to living a life in dignity and to ensuring respect for a wide set of human rights, Al Mezan seizes the occasion to call on third States and the international community to uphold their moral and legal obligations towards the occupied Palestinian people, also by guaranteeing the respect for the human right to water—which requires an equal, inclusive and non-discriminatory access to safe and clean water— and by ensuring accountability and justice for all violations of international law in the oPt, including those that are water-related.

[1] To read more, please see “Joint Urgent Appeal to the United Nations Special

Procedures on the escalating water and sanitation crisis in the Gaza Strip, occupied Palestinian territory” 9 November 2020. Available at:  http://mezan.org/en/uploads/files/1605008575924.pdf

[2] UN Country Team in the occupied Palestinian territory, Gaza in 2020: A liveable place?, August 2012, at: https://unsco.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/gaza_in_2020_a_liveable_place_english.pdf.

[3] UN OCHA, “Study warns water sanitation crisis in Gaza may cause disease outbreak and possible epidemic,” 16 November 2018, at: https://www.ochaopt.org/content/study-warns-water-sanitation-crisis-gaza-may-cause-disease-outbreak-and-possible-epidemic.

[4] UN, “Israel’s exploitation of Palestinian resources is human rights violation, says UN expert,” 18 March 2019, at: https://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=24349&LangID=E.

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