In one of many reports and accounts of economic life in the Gaza Strip that I have recently read, I was struck by a description of an old man standing on the beach in Gaza throwing his oranges into the sea. The description leapt out at me because it was this very same scene I myself witnessed some 21 years ago during my very first visit to the territory. It was the summer of 1985 and I was taken on a tour of Gaza by a friend named Alya. As we drove along Gaza's coastal road I saw an elderly Palestinian man standing at the shoreline with some boxes of oranges next to him. I was puzzled by this and asked Alya to stop the car. One by one, the elderly Palestinian took an orange and threw it into the water. His was not an action of playfulness but of pain and regret. His movements were slow and labored as if the weight of each orange was more than he could bear. I asked my friend why he was doing this and she explained that he was prevented from exporting his oranges to Israel and rather than watch them rot in his orchards, the old man chose to cast them into the sea. I have never forgotten this scene and the impact it had on me.
This is a weekly summary of israeli War Crimes committed in Palestine (tags)
Illegal Settler Activities: Israeli settlers in breach of international humanitarian law continue to reside in the OPT and have launched a series of attacks against Palestinian civilians and property. On Sunday evening, 6 August 2006, a number of Israeli settlers traveling in a civilian car opened fire at a Palestinian truck that was traveling before them near Douma village, southeast of Nablus. As a result, Hussein Fahmi 'Ali Mardawi, 48, from Habla village southeast of Qalqilya, was killed by two live bullets to the heart, and his son, 17-year-old 'Ameed, was wounded by shrapnel to the left hand and shoulder.
This is a weekly summary of israeli war crimes (tags)
Annexation Wall: IOF have continued to construct the Annexation Wall inside the West Bank. During the reported period, IOF started to construct a new section of the Wall on Palestinian land in the west and northwest of Beit Jala town and al-Khader village in Bethlehem district. This section will isolate the villages located to west of Bethlehem. IOF prevented Palestinian civilians from organizing a peaceful march in protest to the construction a section of the Wall in the north and west of al-Khader village, southwest of Bethlehem. IOF fired rubber-coated metal bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters at these civilians. As a result, 5 civilians, including a child, suffered from tear gas inhalation. Moreover, IOF soldiers positioned neat the Wall, east of Jerusalem, chased some Palestinian civilians, including a number of women, children, workers and employees, from Hebron and Bethlehem, who were on their way to Ramallah. They also fired rubber-coated metal bullets and tear gas canisters at these civilians. As result, 4 Palestinian civilians were wounded, and two others were arrested.
3551 Palestinians killed by Israeli security forces in the Occupied Territories (tags)
Here's a partial List