ISRAELI ATTACKS ON PALESTINIANS NEAR GAZA BORDER INCREASES
Gaza City, 4 Jumadil Awal 1435/5 March 2014 (MINA) – Israeli attacks against Palestinians near the eastern border of the Gaza Strip have sharply increased in the last three months, human rights organisations said.
Israeli B’Tselem and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that since mid-December there has been a sharp increase in the number of incidents in which civilians were injured by live gunfire near the Gaza perimeter fence.
The latest attack by an Israeli drone targeted a group of Palestinian citizens in Beit-Hanoun, in the northern Gaza Strip. The attack resulted in the death of two citizens and wounded two others, including a young girl.
Referring to the case of a 57-year-old mentally ill woman killed on February 28 in the eastern area of the Khan Younis city in the north of the Gaza Strip, one organisation said: “This is the fifth incident in the last three months in which Gaza residents who were not taking part in hostilities were killed by Israeli security forces near the perimeter fence.”
B’Tselem explained: “The civilians were shot when they were near the perimeter fence, on its Palestinian side,” Middle East Monitor (MEMO) quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting, Wednesday.
About injuries, the organisation said: “In the ten weeks from 20 December 2013 to date, B’Tselem field researcher Muhammad Sabah has documented the injury of 55 individuals near the fence; 43 were injured by live fire, 10 by rubber-coated metal bullets and two were hit in the head by teargas canisters.”
B’Tselem said: “Israeli military officials said soldiers resorted to gunfire because Palestinians had entered a restricted area and attempted to sabotage the fence.
“Yet, this explanation cannot constitute justification for the use of live fire. If there is a directive that permits live gunfire in these situations, it is unlawful.” (T/E01/IR)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
