Al Mezan monthly report: Continuous Israeli violations against Palestinians in March; Four people killed in buffer zone and 30 injured
In March 2010, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) killed 4 people and injured 30 including 4 children, according to Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights’ monthly report on Israeli violations of human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL) against the population of the Gaza Strip..
During the reporting period, the IOF also arrested 29 persons; three of them were fishermen and the others were civilians collecting the rubble of destroyed structures in Gaza. The report showed that the Israeli bulldozers leveled 30 donums of lands. The same land had been razed frequently before. In addition, the IOF destroyed a house, a plastic factory and a metal workshop.
The IOF increased its attacks on Palestinians particularly near the Gaza Strip’s eastern and northern borders with Israel; an area inside Gaza that the IOF has declared as a security ‘buffer zone’. Al Mezan’s investigations indicate that the IOF always fires at any Palestinians near the eastern and northern borders. The IOF claims that its soldiers fire on Palestinians only when they are 300 meters from border fence. However, while some attacks have occurred close to the border fence, many other attacks occurred when civilians were more than a kilometer from the borderline.
In its report, Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights reiterates its strong condemnation of the continued and systematic attacks by the IOF against the Palestinian civilians. These attacks come as the IOF tightens the siege on the Gaza Strip. The IOF prevents Palestinian fishermen from working, even when they are within the Israeli-imposed fishing zone within 3 nautical miles, which the IOF announced in March 2009.
As these violations continue and the Israeli siege of Gaza continues, Al Mezan expresses its outrage at the lack of any meaningful international protection of Gaza’s population. This has encouraged the IOF to continue such serious violations of IHL and international human rights law in Gaza, and the occupied Palestinian territory for too long. Al Mezan therefore calls on the international community to uphold their moral and legal obligations and take action to bring to a swift end to the violations of international law; including the siege, which represents illegal collective punishment of Gaza population. This cannot be attainable without ensuring that their perpetrators are held accountable in accord with the rules of international law.
(Al Mezan Center for Human Rights)
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