The IDF sends undercover units into Tulkarm in a car with Palestinian license plates to arrest a wanted Palestinian; patrols in, fires on residential areas of Jenin town and r.c., as well as in Kafr Dan and Kafr Ra’i nr. Jenin; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron. (PCHR 9/7)

In Gaza, the IDF conducts predawn arrest raids in Bayt Hanun, exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen, fatally shooting 2 Palestinian bystanders, wounding 6 others, demolishing 6 Palestinian homes, heavily damaging 3 others, arresting 2 wanted men; fatally shoots a 3d Palestinian who strays too close to the s. Gaza border fence nr. al-Qarara; makes an air strike destroying a Palestinian home in Jabaliya r.c. after warning residents to leave, also destroying 2 nearby homes, wounding 1 Palestinian bystander; shells areas of Bayt Lahiya, wounding 3 Palestinians; bulldozes 50 d. of citrus groves in Jabaliya r.c. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, al-Fawar r.c. nr Hebron, Jenin town and r.c., Tulkarm. Settler or IDF arsonists set fire to 467 Palestinian citrus trees on land nr. Qalqilya isolated behind the separation wall. (NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 9/3; PCHR 9/7; WP 9/13)

The Fatah-aligned PA Government Employees Union (comprising some 80,000 mbrs., around half of public workers, including 25,000 health workers, 37,000 teachers) begins an open- ended strike to protest the PA’s failure to pay salaries.

The IDF fires across the Israeli border into central Gaza, wounding 1 Palestinian inside his home; makes a helicopter rocket strike destroying a Palestinian home in Jabaliya r.c. after warning residents to leave; sends special forces into Khuza‘a village nr. Khan Yunis, searching greenhouses, interrogating a 60-yr.-old farmer for several hrs. before withdrawing; bulldozes agricultural land of unknown size southeast of Bayt Hanun. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron (raiding and searching a PA Preventive Security Forces [PSF] office in Tarqumiyya) and Nablus, nr. Jenin (exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen, wounding 1), in Qabatya (firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 3 with live ammunition); issues military orders confiscating 152 d. of land nr. Bethlehem for construction of the separation wall, a settler-only bypass road. (WT 9/4; OCHA 9/6; PCHR 9/7)

In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Jenin town and r.c., nr. Bethlehem (targeting the AMB; firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 2); raids an Islamic charity in Tubas nr. Jenin, confiscating computers, files. The Israeli Housing Min. issues tenders for construction (approved under the Sharon admin.) for construction of 690 new settlement housing units in Beitar Ilit (342 units), Ma’ale Adumim (348 units) in the E-1 area outside Jerusalem. (HA 9/4; NYT 9/5; REU 9/6; PCHR 9/7)

In Nablus, Fatah gunmen enforcing the open-ended Government Employees Union strike (see 9/2) by keeping children, teachers away fr. schools, shoot, wound a 12-yr.-old Palestinian boy.

The IDF makes 2 air strikes on cars in Rafah r.c., assassinating 4 Hamas mbrs., wounding 27 bystanders, including 5 children); sends troops, 15 armored vehicles, accompanied by drones, into Khuza‘a, occupying Palestinian homes as operational posts, firing on residential areas, killing 1 Palestinian and wounding 3 on the roof of their home; shoots, wounds a Palestinian shepherd who strays nr. the central Gaza border fence. In the West Bank, the IDF arrests Force 17 head Mahmud Damra on charges of orchestrating a 2000 attack that killed 3 Israelis and numerous attacks since then; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus. (NYT, WP, WT 9/6; PCHR 9/7)

In Gaza City, 1,000s of Fatah-affiliated PA security officers rampage through Gaza City, firing in the air, vandalizing the PC offices, demanding the payment of their overdue salaries. Meanwhile in the West Bank, Fatah gunmen enforcing the Government Employees Union strike intimidate other PA businesses fr. opening as well, prompting the whole West Bank to observe a general strike for safety.

In Gaza, the IDF continues operations in Khuza‘a, wounding 8 Palestinians (including at least 4 civilians), bulldozing areas of agricultural land. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in a car with Palestinian license plates into Jenin to assassinate Islamic Jihad cmdr. Mujahid al- Sabi‘, also firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1; raids Kafr Dan, firing on residential areas, wounding 1 Palestinian; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Askar r.c. and nr. Bethlehem, Jenin, Tulkarm. (PCHR, WP 9/7; PCHR 9/14)

Israel announces that, in a deal brokered by the UN, it will remove its air and naval blockade on Lebanon as of 6:00 P.M. local time on 9/7 as British, French, German, Greek, Italian forces take over naval patrols and assist the Lebanese army in border patrol, but says it will reserve the right to attack any smugglers it detects crossing the Syrian border. (IFM 9/6; NYT, WP, WT 9/7)

In Gaza, the IDF withdraws fr. Khuza‘a, ending a 3-day operation. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in cars with Palestinian license plates into Qabatya, shoots, wounds 2 Palestinians (at least 1 of whom is a wanted AMB mbr., Rashid Zakarna), also shoots, wounds 2 unarmed Palestinians who come to their aid; the units detain all 4 men, shooting execution style Zarkana and 1 of the men who came to his aid, Kamil al-Lubani; the units then raid a wedding party nearby, firing indiscriminately, wounding 12 Palestinian civilians (1 is declared clinically dead). The IDF patrols in Hebron; raids the Prisoners’ Supporters Association (PSA) offices in Jenin, Nablus, Qalqilya, and Salfit, confiscating computers and files, sealing the offices for 2 yrs.; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin (also raiding the offices of attorney Fadl Bushnaq, confiscating computers and files, sealing the office for 2 yrs.; bulldozes 50 d. of Palestinian land nr. Kiryat Arba in Hebron for construction of a new settler-only bypass road. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba, escorted by the IDF, bulldoze a large area of Palestinian land w. of the settlement. (OCHA 9/13; PCHR 9/14)

Israel lifts the air blockade on Lebanon but continues to patrol off the Lebanese coast after its self-declared 6:00 P.M. deadline, stating that too few international vessels have taken up patrols to enforce an arms embargo. Israel also continues surveillance overflights of Lebanon, saying it has no plans to end them. (NYT, WP, WT 9/8)

In Khan Yunis, unidentified Palestinian gunmen fire on a Force 17 officer, wounding a bystander. Elsewhere in Gaza, unidentified Palestinian gunmen fire on a PA military intelligence officer, killing a Palestinian bystander.

The IDF raids areas of Hebron, performing random ID checks, searching businesses; patrols in Jenin and Nablus, firing on residential areas; raids the offices of the PSA in Hebron, confiscating files, sealing the office for 2 yrs.; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem. (PCHR 9/14)

After receiving assurances and pressure fr. the UN, Israel lifts its naval blockade on Lebanon; says that it aims to complete a withdrawal of troops fr. Lebanon in about 2 wks., as the expanded UNIFIL reaches 5,000 troops. Israel, which has been slowly withdrawing troops, says it controls about 25% of the area of s. Lebanon it controlled on 8/14. (NYT, WP, WT 9/9)

The IDF sends troops back into Khuza‘a (see 9/7), raiding and occupying several homes; demolishing 1 Palestinian home, damaging several others; bulldozing 150– 200 d. of land, including 23 greenhouses, 3 poultry houses, water and electricity networks, and a family cemetery; exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen, wounding 1; withdrawing by evening. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Anabta nr. Tulkarm (firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1), Jenin (firing on residential areas), Nablus (firing percussion grenades). Late at night, Jewish settlers fr. Gush Etzion and Karme Tzur settlements break into the al-Nabi Yunis Mosque in Hebron, conduct prayers. A Palestinian dies of injuries received in an IDF air strike in Khuza‘a ca. 9/6. (OCHA 9/13; PCHR 9/14)

In Gaza, IDF troops in Dahaniyya airport fire tank shells at al-Shuka village, killing a 14-yr.-old Palestinian boy, wounding another Palestinian who strays near the border fence; sends troops, drones into Abasan nr. Khan Yunis, conducting arrest raids, demolishing 2 Palestinian homes, damaging a 3d house, bulldozing 79 d. of agricultural land and a water network, wounding 1 Palestinian. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Tamun; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Tulkarm town and r.c., nr. Hebron and Jenin. A 9-yr.-old Palestinian boy is injured in Balata r.c. when he accidentally detonates unexploded IDF ordnance. A Jewish settler driving nr. Qalqilya deliberately hits and injures a 10-yr.-old Palestinian girl walking home fr. school; the IDF arrests the driver. The High Court of Israel rejects 7 Palestinian petitions regarding the route of the separation wall northwest of East Jerusalem, accepting the existing plan, stating that “the purpose of the construction of the wall is to protect the lives of Israeli citizens from terrorist attacks, so its expected benefit is great” and that Palestinian needs had been adequately addressed. (WP 9/11; OCHA 9/13; PCHR 9/14; Independent 9/19)

In Gaza, an IDF drone fires missiles at a car driving in Rafah in an attempt to assassinate an Islamic Jihad mbr., missing the car and damaging 2 houses but causing no injuries. In an air strike, the IDF demolishes the home of a Hamas mbr. in Gaza City, severely damages several surrounding homes, wounding 4 Palestinians; sends special forces in to al-Shuka, raiding a PA security office, detaining 3 PA security officers for several hrs.; sends troops into Dayr al-Balah reportedly in search of a smugglers tunnel, conducting arrest raids and house searches, demolishing 1 Palestinian home, bulldozing 50 d. of agricultural land and 2 wells but apparently not finding a tunnel. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah; demolishes a poultry farm nr. Jenin to make way for the separation wall. A Palestinian teenager is killed in a mysterious explosion nr. Ramallah. Rafah begins receiving electricity fr. Egypt from a 5 MW electricity cable. (OCHA 9/13; PCHR 9/14)

In the West Bank, the IDF raids Bethlehem, surrounds and partially demolishes a Palestinian home, fires on stone-throwing youths who confront them (wounding 4), arrests 1 Palestinian; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin, in Qalqilya, nr. Hebron; demolishes 2 sheds nr. Bethlehem that were built without permits; issues military orders confiscating 100 d. of land w. of Bethlehem to complete construction of a section of the separation wall nr. Route 60, linking Jerusalem with the s. West Bank and separating Bethlehem fr. its western environs. On the Rafah border, Egyptian border police interrupt a smuggling operation into Gaza, seizing 32 automatic rifles, 28 pistols, a large amount of ammunition; the smugglers flee. An Israeli military court orders the release of 15 PC mbrs. and 3 PA cabinet mbrs. affiliated with Hamas arrested in the IDF crackdown on the Hamas-led PA on 6/28–29; the prosecution appeals the decision, meaning the 18 will remain jailed until the appeal is heard. (WT 9/13; PCHR 9/14; NYT 9/15)

In Gaza, the IDF reopens the Qarni crossing for limited imports; bulldozes 50 d. of agricultural land nr. Dayr al-Balah, additional areas nr. Khan Yunis; fires across the Israeli border into residential areas nr. Khan Yunis, wounding 1 Palestinian. In the West Bank, the IDF raids houses, conducts ID checks nr. the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Nablus and in Bethlehem, Jenin town and r.c. (OCHA 9/6; NYT, PCHR 9/14; OCHA 9/20; PCHR 9/21)

Nr. Nablus, a Palestinian is killed when a roadside bomb he is planting detonates prematurely. Unidentified Palestinian gunmen shoot, wound 2 Palestinian lawyers in Gaza City; no group claims responsibility or gives a motive.

The IDF makes an arrest raid into Rafah, fatally shooting a Palestinian bystander outside his home; makes an air strike destroying a Palestinian house in Rafah that allegedly hid the opening of a smugglers tunnel (warning the residents in advance to evacuate), severely damaging 8 nearby homes; bulldozes 3 d. of agricultural land nr. Sufa crossing. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, nr. Hebron. Some 20 armed Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba attack a Palestinian house in Hebron, beat 2 Palestinians. (PCHR 9/21)

The IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron and in Balata r.c. nr. Nablus, Jenin. Jewish settlers fr. Ramat Yishai in Hebron damage, remove parts of a fence surrounding a Palestinian home; IDF troops observe but do not intervene. Jewish settlers fr. Keddumim nr. Qalqilya drive into Kafr Qaddum village, threaten Palestinians with a gun, enter and search a Palestinian home. (NYT, WT 9/16; PCHR 9/21)

In Gaza City, unidentified gunmen fatally shoot senior PA intelligence official Brig. Gen. Jad Tayih (the intelligence services’ international coordination chief), his 4 bodyguards yards fr. PM Haniyeh’s home, taking their weapons and a briefcase believed to contain money; no group claims responsibility.

The IDF sends troops into the Erez industrial zone, bulldozes 30 Palestinian and Israeli factories and workshops that have stopped operating since the IDF closed the crossings following disengagement; shells areas around Bayt Lahiya, wounding 1 Palestinian inside her home. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in villages around Jenin (firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem and in Hebron, Nablus. (WT 9/17; WP 9/18; OCHA 9/20; PCHR 9/21; WP 9/26)

Palestinians fire several rockets fr. Gaza toward Israel, 1 of which lands in Bayt Hanun, injuring 2 Palestinian girls. Palestinians attack 5 West Bank churches (including 3 in Nablus, 1 in Tubas, 1 in Tulkarm) with fire bombs, gunfire in protest of Pope Benedict’s 9/12 supportive reference to a 14th century Byzantine text stating that Muhammad had brought things “only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached” and the Vatican’s statement today that the pope “regrets that certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive.”

The IDF prevents EU monitors fr. reaching the Rafah crossing, forcing it to close. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units in cars with Palestinian license plates into Tanfar nr. Hebron (arresting a PA General Intelligence Service officer, a PA police officer), Tulkarm r.c. (firing on residential areas, wounding 2 stone- throwing youths, but failing to arrest the target of the raid); raids several greenhouses in Qalqilya, briefly detaining 2 Palestinians; patrols, searches cars in al-Zababda nr. Jenin; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Hebron (also raiding, searching a PA police station, detaining 2 PA police officers); begins bulldozing Palestinian land outside Hebron nr. Tenei settlement for construction of a settler-only bypass road. (AFP 9/17; AP, NYT 9/18; PCHR 9/21)

Palestinians set fire to 2 more churches (1 in Nablus, 1 in Gaza City) to protest Pope Benedict’s 9/12 statements; Haniyeh denounces the attacks “against our Christian brothers as totally unacceptable”; PC mbrs., 100s of Palestinian Muslims rally in Nablus in solidarity with the churches, denounce the attacks.

In Gaza, the IDF sends troops, bulldozers into Abasan nr. Khan Yunis, firing on residential areas, leveling land, withdrawing in the evening; makes an air strike destroying a house in al-Shuka after warning the residents to leave. In the West Bank, the IDF raids Sanur nr. Jenin, surrounds and evacuates a Palestinian home, fatally shoots wanted AMB mbr. Nabil Hanani in an apparent assassination; patrols in al-Fara‘a r.c. nr. Jenin, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 4; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, nr. Bethlehem; issues military orders for the construction of a new 4,500-m section of the separation wall s. of Qalqilya that will isolate 2,000 d. of Palestinian agricultural land btwn. the wall and the Green Line. An Israeli military court extends the remand of 21 Hamas-affiliated PA legislators detained on 6/28–29. (AP, REU, WP 9/18; NYT 9/19; HA, PCHR 9/21)

In Gaza City, striking PA civil servants mob the PC building, prevent Haniyeh fr. attending a cabinet mtg. there, prompting his bodyguards to fire in the air to ensure his safety; Haniyeh cancels the PC session, set to talk about economic problems, after Fatah PC mbrs. leave the building to join the strikers. Later in the day, Hamas supporters hold a large counterdemonstration in Gaza City in support of Haniyeh’s government.

In Gaza, the IDF makes 3 air strikes destroying a Palestinian home in al-Shuka, after warning residents and neighbors to leave; later sends troops into al-Shuka, firing on residential areas, rounding up all males over age 13 for ID checks, searching homes, holding 50 Palestinians for several hrs. of interrogation, eventually arresting 3 before withdrawing. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into Burkin nr. Jenin in a car with Palestinian license plates, arresting a wanted Islamic Jihad mbr.; patrols, searches businesses, conducts random ID checks in various areas of Hebron and nearby Halhul; patrols in, fires percussion grenades, tear gas, and rifles on residential areas of al-Zababda; conducts arrest raids, house searches in Dahaysha r.c. nr. Bethlehem, nr. Jenin. Armed, masked Jewish settlers fr. Suissa severely beat a 79-yr.-old Palestinian outside Hebron. (NYT, OCHA 9/20; PCHR 9/21)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz acknowledges that Hizballah has fully abided by the cease-fire and that Israel had detected no significant resupplying of weapons and missiles fr. Iran, Syria. By this date, 4,950 new UNIFIL soldiers fr. France, Italy, Spain and 10,000 Lebanese troops have been deployed in s. Lebanon. Meanwhile, UN relief coordinator in Lebanon David Shearer says that Israel left behind at least 350,000 unexploded cluster bomblets in s. Lebanon, stating that “the outrageous fact is that nearly all of these munitions were fired in the last three to four days of the war.” (NYT, WP, WT 9/20)

Palestinian gunmen raid WAFA press agency offices in Gaza City, beating a reporter, vandalizing equipment, accusing WAFA of biased news coverage in favor of Abbas, Fatah; no group takes responsibility.

Overnight, the IDF raids a branch of the National Jordanian Bank, 11 money exchanges in Jenin, Nablus, Ramallah, Tulkarm, confiscating $1.34 m. in cash, plus jewelry and checks, alleging that the businesses had funneled cash used to carry out “terrorist” attacks, detaining 7 of the exchange owners (the IDF conducted similar raids against 2 banks in al-Bireh on 2/25/04, confiscating around $9 m.). Also in the West Bank, the IDF patrols in al-Fara‘a r.c. (firing rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at stone-throwing youths who confront them, causing no injuries), Tubas (firing live ammunition at stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 2); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem, in Nablus, nr. Jenin. In Gaza, an IDF drone fires a missile, killing an unarmed Palestinian in an area of Jabaliya r.c. often used for launching rockets. A 16-yr.-old Palestinian girl dies of injuries received during a 9/2 IDF raid on Bayt Hanun. (PCHR 9/20, 9/21, 9/28)

In Gaza, the IDF makes an overnight arrest raid into Um al-Nasir nr. Rafah, surrounding a home, exchanging gunfire with wanted Palestinians, firing tank shells at the house, killing 1 wanted Palestinian, 1 female bystander (allowing her to bleed to death over 4 hrs., barring an ambulance fr. reaching her) in what may be an assassination, wounding another 8 Palestinians, demolishing 13 Palestinian homes before withdrawing; shells shepherds tending a flock nr. Jabaliya r.c., killing 3 Palestinian teenagers. A 13-yr.-old Palestinian boy is injured when he accidentally detonates unexploded IDF ordnance in al-Maghazi r.c. Palestinians fire 4 rockets into Israel, causing damage but no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF sends undercover units into Dayr Abu Sa’if nr. Jenin in a car with Palestinian license plates, arresting 3 farmers working in a field, quickly releasing 2; patrols in, fires tear gas at residents of Tubas; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c. and in Nablus, Tulkarm (firing on residential areas, cutting phone service, damaging an electricity transformer) and nearby Bala’ a (firing live and rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at stone-throwing youths, wounding 10s of Palestinians). The Israeli Housing Min. approves construction of 164 new settlement housing units in 3 West Bank settlements (Ariel 88; Alfe Menashe 56; Karnei Shomron 20). (PCHR 9/21; NYT, WP 9/22; OCHA 9/27; PCHR 9/28)

The IDF allows EU monitors to open the Rafah crossing; makes an air strike destroying a storage shed nr. the Rafah border after warning residents to evacuate the area. In the West Bank, the IDF bars all Palestinians fr. entering East Jerusalem until 9/24 for the Rosh Hashanah holidays; patrols in al-Fara‘a r.c., Tamun, Tubas, Yamun nr. Jenin (firing percussion grenades, live ammunition on residential areas); conducts arrest raids, house searches in Balata r.c., Jenin town and r.c. (NYT 9/23; OCHA 9/27; PCHR 9/28)

Fatah supporters rally in Gaza’s Jabaliya r.c. to protest Hamas’s refusal to recognize Israel. ESF, Fatah mbrs. exchange fire in Bayt Lahiya, wounding 4 Palestinian bystanders. Unidentified Palestinian gunmen shoot, wound a Force 17 officer nr. Rafah Crossing.

Overnight, the IDF sends troops into Bayt Lahiya to search several Palestinian homes, confiscating phones and money, briefly detaining 4 Palestinians, withdrawing late in the evening. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Hebron, in and around Jenin town and r.c., Nablus. (OCHA, Women for Palestine press release 9/27; PCHR 9/28)

Four unidentified Palestinian gunmen stop, confiscate a UN vehicle in Gaza City. A delegation of more than 30 Palestinian Christian dignitaries, including Christian mbrs. of the PC, meet with the newly appointed mufti of Jerusalem Shaykh Muhammad Husayn to express thanks for the mufti’s strong denunciation of the 9/16–17 church attacks, to hold talks on Muslim-Christian coordination.

In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in al-Fara‘a r.c. (firing on residential areas, damaging a UNRWA clinic), al-Khadir (firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1); conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron (arresting a Force 17 officer), Jenin, Nablus. (PCHR 9/28)

Overnight in Gaza, the IDF sends troops into Bayt Lahiya, reoccupies the fmr. Dugit settlement site, raids and searches homes, interrogates Palestinians regarding rocket fire fr. the area, withdraws late in the evening without making arrests. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Nablus, clashing with Palestinian gunmen, leaving 1 Palestinian gunman wounded; conducts arrest raids, house searches nr. Hebron, Jenin. An Israeli military court reverses a 9/12 ruling to free 21 Hamas legislators arrested on 6/28–29, saying they must remain in jail pending trial. (NYT 9/26; WP 9/27; PCHR 9/28)

In Gaza, the IDF launches an air strike, damaging a Palestinian house nr. the Rafah border. Palestinians fire several rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, injuring 1 IDF soldier in Sederot. PA security forces find, seal 2 smugglers tunnels on the Rafah border. (NYT 9/27; OCHA 9/27; PCHR 9/28)

Overnight, the IDF sends troops into al-Fukhari nr. Khan Yunis, searching and occupying several houses, rounding up men for interrogation, arresting 2 (1 a PA security officer allegedly connected to the AMB), demolishing a Palestinian home, damaging another, bulldozing 5 d. of agricultural land before withdrawing in the evening. The IDF also makes a 2nd air strike destroying a Palestinian house in Rafah targeted on 9/26 (warning the occupants in advance to evacuate), killing a 14-yr.-old Palestinian girl in a home nearby, wounding 10 bystanders. In the West Bank, the IDF raids an Islamic charitable society nr. Nablus, confiscating a computer, financial documents and vandalizing furniture; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Bethlehem, Nablus and nr. Jenin. Israel releases PA Dep. PM Sha‘ir (arrested on 8/17) but bans him fr. going to his Ramallah office for 2 wks. 30 PC mbrs., 4 PA cabinet mbrs. remain in Israeli custody. (NYT 9/27; NYT, PCHR, WP, WT 9/28; PCHR 10/5)

In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in al-Fara‘a r.c., firing on stone-throwing Palestinians who confront them, wounding 2 (ages 11, 14); conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron, Nablus and in ‘Aqabat Jabir r.c. nr. Jericho, Qabatya (exchanging fire with Palestinian gunmen, wounding 1), Tubas. (NYT 9/29; WT 10/1; NYT 10/2; OCHA 10/4; PCHR 10/5)

As the PA begins paying civil servants another $350 portion of their overdue wages (with aid received fr. Qatar, Saudi Arabia), 100s of Fatah-affiliated PA police demonstrate in Gaza City against the Hamas-led government’s failure to pay their salaries, burning tires, overturning trash bins, blocking roads; the Hamas-led government accuses Abbas of holding back international aid run through his office that could be used to pay more back salaries owed in order to undermine Haniyeh (civil servants have received payments equivalent to 2 mos. salary over the past 7 mos.). A Palestinian dies of injuries received during clashes btwn. Fatah, the ESF on 9/22.

In Gaza, the IDF fires a missile at 2 Palestinian boys (ages 13, 16) who approached an abandoned rocket launcher nr. Bayt Hanun, killing both; fires missiles fr. helicopter gunships partially destroying an apartment building in Khan Yunis owned by a Hamas mbr. (warning residents in advance to vacate). In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in, fires on residential areas of Baqat al-Hatab and Hijja villages nr. Qalqilya, Tubas; conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus (firing on residential areas), nr. Bethlehem, and in Dura nr. Hebron, Jenin town and r.c., Tamun. (WP 9/30; OCHA 10/4, PCHR 10/5)

In n. Gaza, 1,000s of Hamas supporters march in solidarity with Haniyeh’s government. In al-Maghazi r.c., a PSF officer exchanges gunfire with a PRC mbr., wounding 1 bystander.

In Gaza, the IDF fires missiles fr. a drone, assassinating AMB mbrs. Bassam Bin Hamad, Hussam Ghayad in Rafah, wounding 2 bystanders; sends bulldozers into Bayt Hanun to level land. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus (firing on residential areas). (WT 10/1, 10/2; PCHR 10/5)

In Gaza City, 1,000s of Fatah affiliated civil servants, security officers burn tires, block roads, fire in the air to protest the Hamas-led government’s failure to pay all back salaries and against banks for taking much of the partial payments received in commissions and payments toward existing loans. In Dayr al-Balah, an ESF mbr. throws a grenade at Fatah-affiliated PA security forces, wounding 3 Palestinians. Elsewhere in Gaza, unidentified Palestinian gunmen fatally shoot a PSF officer.