Updates

Harassment

Video testimony: IDF soldiers forced taxi pasangers to undress in public

IDF soldiers order taxi driver and passengers to undress in public and detain them for hours wrapped in nylon sheets.

7 November 2005

Settlements

Elevating the status of the Modi'in Illit settlement will intensify the land grab

B'Tselem today urged Interior Minister Ophir Pines-Paz not to change the status of the Modi'in Illit settlement from a local council to a municipality. B'Tselem explained that turning the settlement into a municipality would violate international law, and intensify the violation of the human rights of the Palestinian on whose land the settlement was built.

6 November 2005

Detainees & Prisoners

Speak out against the bill enabling prolonged incommunicado detention

If enacted, the law will enable Israeli authorities to detain Palestinians for fifty days without allowing them to meet with their attorneys. Write to the chair of the Knesset's Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, MK Micha'el Eitan, and urge him to remove the bill from the Knesset's agenda.

30 October 2005

Attacks on Israeli Civilians by Palestinians

Five Israeli civilians killed by Palestinians

Five Israeli civilians were killed on 26 Oct. 2005 in a Palestinian suicide bombing at the Hadera marketplace. Attacks aimed at civilians undermine all rules of morality and law. Whatever the circumstances, such acts are unjustifiable.

27 October 2005

Agriculture

Olive harvest begins in the shadow of the restrictions on movement

High Court justices sharply criticize Israel's policy of closing off agricultural land and preventing farmers from accessing their land during most of the year.

11 October 2005

Human Shields

Court forbids use of human shields

This morning, the Israeli High Court of Justice ruled that it is illegal to use Palestinian civilians in military operations. The decision was handed down in response to a petition filed in 2002 by a coalition of human rights organizations.

6 October 2005

Restrictions on Movement

High Court in precedent-making decision: Dismantle section of the Separation Barrier

On 15 September 2005, the High Court ordered the state to change the Barrier route by Alfe Menashe. The justices ruled that the current route disproportionately violates the rights of Palestinians living in an enclave of five villages.

16 September 2005

The Separation Barrier

New report: Barrier route planned to enable settlement expansion

The expansion of settlements in the West Bank was a primary consideration in setting the route of the Separation Barrier. This is the conclusion of a report by B'Tselem and Bimkom, which refutes Israel's contention that the Barrier's route is based solely on security considerations

15 September 2005

No Accountability

High Court Petition against law denying Palestinians compensation

On 1 Sept. 2005, nine human rights organizations petitioned the Israeli High Court against a new law that denies compensation to Palestinians harmed by Israeli forces.

1 September 2005

Communities Facing Expulsion

New video: Southern Hebron Hills - Life in the shadow of settler violence

Daily life of the cave residents in the Southern Hebron Hills in the shadow of settler violence and army abuse.

1 September 2005

Open-Fire Policy

IDF chief of staff orders inquiry into the killing of five Palestinians in Tulkarm

The revelation that the five Palestinians who were killed in an IDF operation in Tulkarm Refugee Camp were unarmed, based on B'Tselem's field research, strengthens the grave suspicion that execution of Palestinians has become a norm among the security for forces.

25 August 2005

Settler Violence = State Violence

Human Rights Organizations Warn of Possible Wave of Settler Attacks

Israeli human rights organizations have called on the Israeli government to take the necessary steps to protect Palestinians in case of an escalation in violence by Israeli civilians during and after disengagement.

7 August 2005

The Gaza Strip

B'Tselem report: Israel responsible for Gaza even after disengagement

One Big Prison, a report by B'Tselem and HaMoked: Center for the Defence of the Individual, argues that even after disengagement, the government cannot avoid its responsibility for Palestinians living in Gaza.

6 August 2005

East Jerusalem

Knesset Enacts Racist Law

On 27 July 2005, the Knesset amended the Nationality Law. The amendment restricts the family unification of Israeli citizens and residents (including residents of East Jerusalem) and Palestinians living in the Occupied Territories . The law does not apply to Israelis who apply for a legal status for their foreign spouse who does not live in the Occupied Territories

4 August 2005

Water Crisis

Testimony: Water shortage in the Southern Hebron Hills

In the town of Yatta, running water is supplied to residents for only one week during the whole summer. In the nearby villages, there is no running water available at all.

1 August 2005

East Jerusalem

Construction moves forward on Barrier around Ma'aleh Adumim

The Barrier around Ma'aleh Adumim and the adjacent settlements will encompass 74,000 dunums, and will further restrict the freedom of movement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians between the northern and southern portions of the West Bank.

1 August 2005

Attacks on Israeli Civilians by Palestinians

July 13 2005: Netanya blast kills Israeli civilians

B'Tselem strongly condemns the attack in the Netanya Mall, in which four Israeli women were killed and many were injured. The bombing comes after a long period during which no Israeli citizens were killed in attacks inside Israel.

13 July 2005

Communities Facing Expulsion

New Report: Means of Expulsion

For the past five years, Israel has been trying to expel some one thousand Palestinians who have maintained the way of life of their ancestors in the southern Hebron hills.

5 July 2005

The Gaza Strip

Hundreds stranded at the a-Tufah checkpoint

Hundreds of the Palestinian residents of Al-Mawasi have been waiting for days at the Tufah checkpoint, to return to their homes.

4 July 2005

East Jerusalem

HCJ freezes building of the barrier in Dahiyat al-Barid

The High Court of Justice issued an interim order suspending work on the barrier in Dahiyat al-Barid, north of Jerusalem, until further deliberation of the petitions against it .

6 June 2005

Minors

Testimony: Settlers attack child and injure person who tries to help him

"The man continued to walk alongside me to shield me from the settlers. Suddenly, the settlers rushed towards the man and violently attacked him. The settler in the orange shirt hit him hard on the chest and knocked him down."

6 June 2005

House demolition

Testimony: Demolition of a hut in violation of High Court order

"The soldiers removed the furniture... and then picked me up and removed me from the hut... They leveled it completely... Some of the flock and pigeons died under the ruins..."

1 June 2005

No Accountability

Israeli government proposes blocking compensation suits

The Israeli government has proposed an amendment to its Tort Law intended to exempt Israel from paying compensation to Palestinians injured by the security forces. On June 23, the Knesset Law Committee will hold its next discussion on the law.

1 June 2005

Detainees & Prisoners

Take No Prisoners

A new report by B'Tselem raises the strong suspicion that during the past year the military engaged in assassinations in the guise of arrest operations.

25 May 2005