Dear Friends,  Over the past few days everyone has been concerned with the violent incidents in the West Bank. As always, we at B’Tselem are documenting the cases and pursuing accountability where required. At the same time, we have been devoting extensive resources and efforts to stop the forced displacement of a group of villagers in the South Hebron Hills.…How would we feel if tomorrow someone were to barge into our home, declare it a military firing zone and evict us? That is now happening to about a thousand Palestinians living in an area the Israeli military has declared “Firing Zone 918.” In the late 1970s, the Israeli military pronounced some 30 sq. miles of land in the South Hebron Hills, home to 12 communities, a closed military training area and called it Firing Zone 918. In 1999, the military expelled the villagers from their homes, arguing that they were living illegally in the firing zone, despite the fact that these communities were there before Israel’s 1967 occupation of the West Bank. Some of you may recall the 1999 expulsion, the ruined caves that were their homes and homeless families. | | | A thousand people in the southern Hebron Hills face forced expulsion and homelessness. Their case is now before the court. This week B'Tselem launched an interactive site on “Firing Zone 918” and the residents facing expulsion. | | VIEW CAMPAIGN WEBSITE >> | | |  Following the announcement that an investigation was opened into the circumstances surrounding the death of Arafat Jaradat, a Palestinian resident of Sa'ir, who was detained at Megido Prison, B'Tselem stated that the investigation must relate to the full circumstances of the event, and not only to the conduct of those directly responsible for his well-being at the time. | | READ MORE >> | | |  On 15 January 2013, Samir ‘Awad, 16, was killed by live ammunition fired by Israeli soldiers near the Separation Barrier at Budrus. A B’Tselem inquiry reveals that the soldiers were not in danger at any time. Nevertheless, and in total contravention of open-fire regulations, they shot ‘Awad three times. The Military Advocate General (MAG) Corps announced that same day that it ordered an investigation to be opened. B’Tselem conveyed to the Military Police Investigations Unit all the information it collected on the incident, and is awaiting the conclusion of the investigation. | | READ MORE >> | | |  In Nov. 2012, students from Tuqu’ demonstrated against Operation Pillar of Defense and threw stones at vehicles on the nearby road. An Israeli military force then arrived on the scene, and without any justification, one of the soldiers fired live ammunition at the students, hitting one in the abdomen. B’Tselem has learned from testimonies it gathered that, three weeks later, soldiers came to the school. They assaulted the principal and two teachers, warning them that if the boys threw stones again, they would be held accountable. B’Tselem wrote to OC Judea and Samaria Division demanding that he investigate the allegations and ensure that such incidents do not recur. | | READ MORE >> | | |  On 13 February 2013, an Israeli mounted policeman was convicted of causing grievous bodily harm to Fadi Darab’i, resident of Dura, Hebron District. The policeman was indicted in 2008 following a complaint filed by B’Tselem on Darab’i’s behalf. The complaint stated that policemen had assaulted Darab’i in April 2008, seriously injuring one of his testicles. | | READ MORE >> | | | Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem welcomes the recommendations of the Turkel Commission concerning investigations of violations of the laws of armed conflict and calls for full and prompt implementation. Implementation of the commission’s recommendations will lead to a substantive change in the Israeli military’s investigatory apparatus. In its recommendations, the commission adopted several fundamental principles presented to it by representatives of B’Tselem, other human rights organizations and senior jurists. | | READ MORE >> | |
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