POLITICS: Study Criticises Israel for Using Heavy Weapons

By Thalif Deen Reprint | | Print |

Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS, Jul 5 2002 (IPS) - As the situation in occupied territories continues to deteriorate, Israeli forces battling Palestinians are deploying heavier and more sophisticated weapons, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said Friday.

The arms include tanks, combat helicopters, air-to-surface missiles and fighter jets, says a new 11-page report, which will be studied during the current four-week session of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

The UNRWA, established to aid Palestinian refugees, also accuses the Israelis of extra-judicial killings and collective punishment of the civilian population.

“There have been 58 extrajudicial killings, or targeted assassinations, of Palestinians by Israel since Sep. 2000. In some cases, other Palestinians have been killed by helicopter fire, tank fire and gunfire in the course of the assassinations,” the report says.

“Currently, most Palestinian deaths result from Israeli missile attacks directed at selected individuals suspected of terrorism, but which, inevitably, have also killed innocent bystanders,” it notes.

Palestinians have also been killed by shootings carried out by Israeli soldiers and settlers, sometimes after an exchange of gunfire.

The attacks have wide repercussions, says the UNRWA.

“The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) have resorted to excessive use of force, house demolitions, increasingly severe mobility restrictions and closure policies, negatively affecting the Palestinian economy and living conditions,” says the report.

Since the Palestinian uprising began in Sep. 2000, Israel’s policy of barring free access to occupied territories has also “seriously impeded the ability of aid agencies to deliver humanitarian assistance”, according to the U.N. agency.

Today, more than 130 Israeli checkpoints operate in villages and towns in the occupied territories – all manned by soldiers who are accused of “humiliating” and “abusing” Palestinians, including aid workers, adds the report.

On Thursday, a coalition of 32 international humanitarian organisations – including Oxfam, Care International, Save the Children and Doctors Without Borders – criticised Israel’s continued siege of Palestinian towns.

The relief agencies complain of severe restrictions on the movement of their local staff, mostly Palestinians, and continued harassment by Israeli troops.

“In all my years of experience, I have never come across anything like this,” Ian Willis of Care International, was quoted as saying.

Peter Hansen, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, told a U.N. news conference Tuesday that humanitarian conditions in the West Bank and Gaza had fallen “to levels unprecedented in 35 years” of U.N. presence in the region.

Israeli incursions into Palestinian refugee camps, he said, had resulted in widespread destruction and injuries.

“Military activities were continuing, and UNRWA was facing the challenge of responding to the increased health, shelter and education needs under conditions of closure and curfews,” he added.

Hansen also said that conditions in the West Bank and Gaza had deteriorated dramatically, with about half the 1.5 million people living in absolute poverty.

UNRWA’s assistance extends to over 3.9 million refugees, including those living in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

The agency has a staff of about 14,000, mostly local recruits. But Hansen said that only about 25 to 30 percent had been able to gain access to the West Bank and Gaza.

Last week, UNRWA made an emergency appeal for some 56 million dollars in aid to cover the cost of immediate humanitarian assistance and longer-term needs of the Palestinians. This was in addition to 117 million dollars requested in January.

Hansen said the United States has been “a good donor” to UNRWA, contributing up to 20 percent of the total requested in previous appeals.

It pledged 80 million dollars to UNRWA in 2002, of a total budget of 300 million dollars.

U.S. President George W. Bush warned last month that he will cut off all aid to Palestinians if they do not change their leadership.

“I can assure you, we won’t be putting money into a society which is not transparent and is corrupt,” said Bush, who specifically called for the ouster of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

The U.S. president said he wants the Palestinians to establish a transparent democratic system based on separation of powers, a constitution, and an effective judiciary.

“It will inspire millions of men and women around the globe who are equally weary of poverty and oppression, equally entitled to the benefits of democratic government,” he added.

But Palestinian leaders have warned that any cuts in aid would only escalate violence in the occupied territories.