The IDF sends troops into c. Gaza, where they clash with local gunmen, killing 2 Hamas mbrs.; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Bayt Hanun. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids in Jenin town and r.c. (firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1) and Ramallah, in and around Nablus and Tulkarm, and nr. Bethlehem. Lawyers secure a 7-day freeze on IDF closure orders issued on 2/26 against ICA properties in Hebron. (NYT, OCHA 4/2; PCHR 4/3)

Palestinians fire mortars fr. Gaza into Israel, wounding 2 Israelis. In Dayr al-Balah, a Palestinian is injured when explosives he is handling detonate prematurely.

In Gaza, the IDF bulldozes 24 d. of olive groves and a small Gaza police outpost nr. al-Maghazi r.c. Egyptian border police discover, demolish a smuggling tunnel on the Rafah border. In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home in Anata nr. Jerusalem; occupies a Palestinian home nr. Jenin as a military outpost; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Tulkarm and in al-Bireh (raiding and searching the municipal building, rounding up 2 municipal employees fr. their homes and bringing them to the offices to log onto password-protected computers), Ramallah (raiding the chamber of commerce offices), Jericho. The Israeli Housing Min. presents Olmert with a proposal for construction of 1,900 new Jewish settler housing units across the West Bank in 2008: 682 units in Beitar Ilit nr. Bethlehem, 510 units in Givat Ze’ev n. of Jerusalem, 302 units in Ma’ale Adumim e. of Jerusalem, 160 units in Binyamin settlement n. of Jerusalem, 158 units in Efrat nr. Bethlehem, and 48 units each in Ariel nr. Salfit and Kiryat Arba in Hebron. Palestinians throw stones at Jewish settler vehicles nr. Nablus; the settlers respond by shooting, killing 3 Palestinian sheep nearby. Jewish settlers fr. Keddumim nr. Qalqilya stone Palestinian vehicles driving nearby, causing no reported injuries. PA security forces impose a night curfew on Kafr Thuluth nr. Qalqilya to prevent clashes btwn. feuding families (the curfew is still in place as of 4/8). (PCHR 4/3; OCHA, PCHR 4/9)

Israel says it has completed removal of 50 West Bank roadblocks, as pledged to Secy. Rice on 3/30 during her visit; the PA says it has seen no changes and asks the State Dept. to verify. Meanwhile, in Gaza, the IDF sends troops into al-Qarara, where they clash with Islamic Jihad gunmen, wounding 4 Islamic Jihad mbrs., 2 civilians, reportedly using several Palestinians as human shields, bulldozing 58 d. of crop land and olive trees. In the West Bank, the IDF fires on residential areas, demolishes a monument to Yasir Arafat in Kafr Qaddum nr. Qalqilya; patrols in Hebron (shooting, wounding 1 Palestinian who allegedly tries to seize a gun fr. a solider); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin. A Jewish settler driving nr. Nablus injures a Palestinian in a deliberate hit and run. Jewish settlers nr. Nablus break into a Palestinian nursery, steal irrigation pipes, vandalize a car. (WT 4/4; OCHA, PCHR 4/9)

The IDF sends troops into al-Bureij r.c., where they clash with local gunmen (wounding a Palestinian girl inside her home), shell a Palestinian home (causing extensive damage but no injuries), arrest 1 Palestinian, temporarily detain 2 children (ages 12, 17); bulldozes 40 d. of citrus trees inside the Gaza border e. of Bayt Hanun. In al-Qarara, 2 Palestinians are injured when explosives they are handling detonate prematurely. In the West Bank, the IDF fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in the weekly nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil`in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation), beat Palestinian demonstrators at a similar demonstration in al-Masara nr. Bethlehem (injuring 2 children, ages 6 and 7). (HA 4/4; NYT, WP, WT 4/5; OCHA, PCHR 4/9)

Palestinian gunmen in n. Gaza shoot across the border at an Israeli government delegation leading a Canadian group on a tour of Sederot, seriously wounding an aide to Israel’s Public Security M Avi Dichter; the IDF returns fire, causing no reported injuries; several Palestinian groups claim responsibility including the AMB, Hamas, and 2 little-known Islamist groups: the Army of the Nation and Protectors of the Homeland (which claims to be inspired by al-Qa`ida).

In Nablus, 12 AMB mbrs. who had agreed to remain in PA custody overnight as part of a 7/07 amnesty deal with Israel flee Jnaid prison, claiming they were severely beaten by PA security forces; they refuse to return to the jail but pledge to respect the cease-fire.

In Gaza, the IDF fires on a mortar-launching site e. of Jabaliya, causing no injuries; later directs tank and machine-gun fire on farmers who arrive to work fields in the same area, killing 1 Palestinian farmer, wounding a 2d. Nr. al-Qarara, 2 Palestinian children (ages 14, 17) are seriously injured when they accidentally trigger IDF UXO. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem. (OCHA, PCHR 4/9)

In Gaza, the IDF sends troops into al-Bureij r.c., fires 6 tank shells at a Palestinian home, destroying the 2d floor but causing no reported injuries (cf. 4/4). In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Qalqilya, nr. Bethlehem. (OCHA, PCHR 4/9)

Under U.S. pressure, Abbas meets with Olmert for the 1st time since he suspended final status talks on 3/2 to protest Operation Hot Winter; pledges to continue negotiations “without interruption.” The last Abbas-Olmert mtg. was on 2/19. (NYT 4/8).

In Gaza, the IDF bulldozes 17 d. of Palestinian agricultural land inside the Gaza border e. of Bayt Hanun. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Jenin town and r.c., and nr. Hebron. A Jewish settler fr. Elon Moreh driving a bus nr. Nablus deliberately runs down a 15-yr.-old Palestinian shepherd, killing the boy, his donkey, 8 sheep. (HA, WT 4/8; OCHA, PCHR 4/9)

Citing Abbas’s failure to achieve any gains to date for the Palestinians, AMB Jenin cmdr. Zakariya Zubaydi and several other AMB mbrs. say they will no longer agree to stay in PA custody overnight as they agreed in 7/07 to receive amnesty from Israel; Zubaydi does not threaten to resume resistance operations.

Overnight, the IDF sends troops into Gaza City, arresting 3 Palestinians; expands the incursion in the morning, firing artillery shells at a car carrying resistance mbrs. (killing 1 armed Palestinian, wounding 1), and bulldozing a mosque, 3 stores, a transmission tower, 10 d. of olive groves, a bird farm (killing 1,500 birds), several smaller animal pens, 85 beehives before withdrawing in the evening. The IDF also fires on, arrests a Palestinian farmer working his land nr. the border fence e. of Khan Yunis; makes a late-night incursion into Khan Yunis, where troops clash with local gunmen, leaving 1 IDF soldier, 1 Hamas mbr. dead and arresting 5 Palestinians (including a child). In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Jenin town and r.c. and Qalqilya (also raiding, sealing an Islamic charity, library, supermarket, and press; searching al-Quds Open University), and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Tulkarm. (IFM 4/8; OCHA, PCHR 4/9; NYT, WP 4/10)

Palestinians fire 3 rockets, 32 mortars fr. Gaza into Israel, causing no damage or injuries.

In the West Bank, the IDF demolishes a Palestinian home in Bayt Hanina in East Jerusalem, displacing 7 Palestinians (including 5 children); patrols in Bayt Rima nr. Ramallah, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Nablus, in Qalqilya and Tubas, and nr. Ramallah and Tulkarm, nr. Salfit. Jewish settlers stone a Palestinian family nr. Ramallah, injuring 2 women. Jewish settlers fr. Brakha nr. Nablus uproot Palestinian olive trees, vandalize a Palestinian home nearby. (AP, BBC, HA, IFM, Ma’ariv [Tel Aviv], REU, YA 4/9; NYT, WP, WT 4/10; WP 4/11; OCHA 3/16; PCHR 4/17)

Four Palestinian gunmen representing Islamic Jihad, the PRCs, and the Mujahiddin Brigades (an AMB offshoot) raid the Nahal Oz fuel depot on the Gaza-Israel border under cover of mortar fire, killing 2 Israeli civilian workers; IDF soldiers on site return fire, killing 2 gunmen; 2 escape back into Gaza. The IDF retaliates with air strikes and artillery fire, killing a 3d Palestinian gunman, 4 Palestinian civilians, wounding 2 armed Palestinians, 6 civilians (including 2 children), demolishing a Palestinian home. Israel also closes Nahal Oz until it reviews security procedures (Gaza’s electricity plant has enough fuel to last until 4/13).

In Gaza, the IDF makes 2 air strikes on Khuza, killing 2 armed Palestinians. An Islamic Jihad mbr. is injured when explosives he is handling detonate prematurely. In the West Bank, the IDF seals a sewing factory in Hebron associated with the ICA (see 2/26); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Jenin town and r.c., and nr. Hebron (firing on stone-throwing youths in Taffuh, wounding 4 ages 13–16), Ramallah, Tulkarm. (OCHA 3/16; PCHR 4/17)

Overnight, the IDF sends troops and tanks into Gaza’s al-Bureij r.c. for a daylong operation, firing on residential areas, searching homes (reportedly using Palestinians as human shields), and clashing with local resistance mbrs. (making at least 1 air strike), killing 7 Palestinians (6 of them civilians, including boys ages 12, 15), wounding 27 (including at least 18 civilians, 2 gunmen), detaining 20, and bulldozing 3 Palestinian homes, 30 d. of agricultural land. The IDF also conducts air strikes on Khan Yunis, killing 3 Hamas mbrs. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Qabatya and nr. Hebron, Jenin; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in the weekly nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil`in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation) and beat Palestinian demonstrators at a similar demonstration in al-Masara nr. Bethlehem (injuring 3). (NYT, WT 3/12; OCHA 3/16; PCHR 4/17)

In refugee camps across Gaza, 1,000s of Palestinians take part in peaceful rallies organized by Hamas, calling on Israel to end the siege.

IDF troops on the c. Gaza border fire a shell into Gaza City, injuring a Palestinian teenager; bulldoze land e. of Gaza City, firing on surrounding residential areas, causing no reported injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c. and Nablus, in Bethlehem and Jalazun r.c. nr. Ramallah, and nr. Hebron. (OCHA 3/16; PCHR 4/17)

Hebron University suspends classes following unarmed clashes btwn. Fatah, Hamas student groups that leave 12 students injured; PA security forces surround the campus.

In Gaza, the IDF makes an air strike on the Gaza City home of AMB cmdr. Muhammad Hijazi in what may be a failed assassination attempt, missing the building and hitting a neighboring home, injuring a Palestinian woman; bulldozes land along the border fence e. of Dayr al-Balah, Jabaliya r.c. Also in Jabaliya r.c., 2 Hamas mbrs. are seriously injured, 1 Palestinian teenager is killed when explosives they are handling detonate prematurely. In the West Bank, the IDF imposes a curfew on, patrols in Hawara nr. Nablus, withdrawing in the evening but not lifting the curfew. During the curfew local Jewish settlers enter the village and vandalize Palestinian homes. The IDF also raids, searches the Hebron home of PC mbr. Nayif al-Rajub (among those Hamas-affiliated PC mbrs. detained by Israel as well as the religious affairs minister in Haniyeh’s original cabinet); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c., and in Tulkarm. Jewish settlers fr. Gilad nr. Qalqilya stone Palestinian cars driving past the settlement, causing damage to several but no injuries. (OCHA 3/16; PCHR 4/17)

The IDF makes an air strike assassinating DFLP military cmdr. Ibrahim Abu Olba as he walks in Bayt Lahiya, wounding 2 bystanders, including a child; bulldozes land on the Palestinian side of the Nahal Oz crossing. In the West Bank, the IDF bars 4 buses transporting Palestinian children home from a school outing deep in the West Bank to Azun Atma village (located between the separation wall and the Green Line), firing on angry parents gathered on the village side of the wall awaiting their children’s return, wounding 4, arresting 2, and imposing a curfew on the village until the morning of 4/15, when the buses are allowed to pass. The IDF also demolishes a Palestinian home in Anata in East Jerusalem, displacing 10 Palestinians (including 4 children); conducts arrest raids, house searches during the day nr. Salfit and late at night in Hebron, nr. Jenin. Jewish settlers gather nr. the Hawara checkpoint s. of Nablus, stone Palestinian vehicles, causing no injuries; the IDF does not intervene. Jewish settlers fr. Gilad uproot 30 Palestinian almond trees in nearby al-Til. (OCHA 3/16; PCHR 4/17)

Overnight, in Gaza, the IDF makes an incursion into Wadi al-Silqa, raiding and searching homes, bulldozing 4 Palestinian homes, exchanging fire with local gunmen, wounding 2 armed Palestinians. During the day, the IDF raids al-Qarara, ordering all males aged 16 and older to surrender for interrogation, arresting 5 Palestinians (including the primary target: Abu Rish Brigades cmdr. Ala’ Abu Madif, whom Israel claims received military training in Iran), firing on residential areas (wounding a Palestinian father and infant), bulldozing 113 d. of agricultural land, and damaging water, electricity, and phone networks before withdrawing late at night. Late at night, the IDF makes an air strike assassinating Islamic Jihad’s Nussayrat cmdr. Abdallah al-Ghussayn as he drives through Jabaliya r.c., wounding another Islamic Jihad mbr. with him; for no known reason makes a helicopter air strike targeting a 4th-floor apartment in a Bayt Lahiya apartment building, causing heavy damage and lightly injuring a 3-mo.-old girl. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem and in and around Jenin town and r.c., Nablus. (OCHA 3/16; PCHR 4/17; IFM 5/19)

A fmr. PA intelligence officer in c. Gaza is killed; a previously unknown group called Country’s Honor claims responsibility.

Israel resumes shipments (suspended 4/9) of industrial gasoline for Gaza’s power plant but continues to suspend gasoline and diesel for cars and generators. The UNOCHA calls the fuel supplies for the power plant “insufficient” and urges Israel to resume shipment of all forms of fuel, saying that schools and clinics are unable to function normally without regular transportation. Overnight, the IDF sends troops into areas e. of Gaza City, sparking clashes that leave 4 armed Palestinians dead and 1 IDF soldier, 4 armed Palestinians wounded. In the morning, Hamas and Islamic Jihad mbrs. stage a diversion nr. the Nahal Oz crossing to lure IDF soldiers into Gaza, ambushing the unit once it enters the Strip, killing 3 IDF soldiers; the IDF responds with tank fire and air strikes, killing 4 Hamas and Islamic Jihad mbrs. The IDF increases tank fire, air strikes on Palestinian targets throughout the day, killing 14 Palestinian civilians, including 11 in a helicopter air strike on a mosque in Juhur al-Dik in c. Gaza, and Reuters cameraman Fadel Shana’a (his clearly marked Reuters press vehicle is hit directly by a flechette tank shell), wounding 34 (including 17 children, 1 woman); 2 IDF soldiers are also wounded. The IDF also bulldozes 6 Palestinian homes, 200 d. of agricultural land in Juhur al-Dik. An IDF infantry unit crosses into Gaza nr. Bayt Lahiya to engage armed Palestinians in the area, fires on a car of Palestinian farmers trying to fleeing the area, killing 1 Palestinian farmer, wounding 2. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts arrest raids, house searches in Jenin r.c. (firing on residential areas; arresting an AMB mbr. granted amnesty by Israel in 7/07) during the day, and late at night in and around Jenin and Tulkarm, in Nablus, and nr. Hebron. In the evening (8:30 p.m. EST; 2:30 a.m. on 4/17 local time), IDF undercover units ambush a car in Qabatya, assassinating local Islamic Jihad cmdr. Bilal Zaalah (also reported as Bilal Kmayel) and a 2d Islamic Jihad mbr. (BBC, IFM, OCHA, REU 4/16; HA, NYT, PCHR, WP 4/17; OCHA 4/23; PCHR 4/24)

Palestinians fire 10 rockets, 2 mortars fr. Gaza into Israel during the day, causing no damage or injuries; 1 rocket fired toward Israel lands nr. Jabaliya r.c., injuring 2 Palestinians.

The IDF fires on PRC mbrs. nr. the Gaza border nr. Jabaliya r.c., killing 1 PRC mbr. Later, the IDF closes the Kerem Shalom crossing after fatally shooting an armed Palestinian who approached the area; closes the Nahal Oz crossing after Palestinian snipers fire on IDF troops there, causing no injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Jenin town and r.c., and nr. Bethlehem, Nablus. (OCHA 4/17; NYT, WP 4/18; OCHA 4/23; PCHR 4/24)

In Gaza City, 1,000s of Palestinians attend the funeral for Reuters cameraman Shana’a, killed on 4/16. In Rafah, 1 Islamic Jihad mbr. accidentally triggers explosives kept in his home, injuring himself, 2 bystanders. Two Hamas mbrs. die of injuries sustained on 4/13 when explosives they were handling detonated prematurely.

IDF troops make a late-night incursion into Gaza City, clashing with local armed Palestinians, killing 1, wounding 3. In the West Bank, the IDF raids Balata r.c., surrounds a home where AMB mbr. Hani al-Kabi is staying, fatally shoots him when he resists arrest; until recently, Kabi voluntarily stayed in a PA jail overnight as part of the 7/07 AMB amnesty deal with Israel. The IDF also conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Nablus; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in weekly nonviolent demonstrations against the separation wall in Bil`in (wounding a journalist covering the protest) and al-Masara (injuring 3, including a 9-yr.-old girl). (CSM 4/18; AP, NYT 4/19; NYT 4/20; OCHA 4/23; PCHR 4/24)

Palestinians fire 4 rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing damage but no injuries; 1 rocket fired toward Israel lands nr. a home outside Bayt Lahiya injuring 2 Palestinians, including a 5-yr.-old girl.

During the day, the IDF conducts air strikes on Jabaliya, killing 4 armed Palestinians and a Hamas-affiliated police officer, wounding 2 armed Palestinians; shells, destroys an empty armored vehicle in Abasan, previously belonging to the PA police but seized by Hamas in the 7/07 fighting, wounding 3 bystanders, including a child. In Rafah, an Islamic Jihad mbr. is injured when explosives he is handling explode prematurely. An Islamic Jihad mbr. injured in a similar incident on 4/17 dies. In the West Bank, the IDF raids a mall in Hebron, giving store owners notice that their properties will be confiscated in 2 days (a children’s library and clinic associated with the ICA are located in the mall). In Hebron, an 8-yr.-old Palestinian boy being chased by a group of Jewish settlers falls and breaks his arm. (NYT, WP 4/20; OCHA 4/23; PCHR 4/24)

Under cover of morning fog and mortar fire, 3 Hamas suicide bombers driving explosive laden vehicles (an old PA armored vehicle, 2 trucks painted to resemble IDF jeeps) break through the perimeter fence at the Kerem Shalom crossing, detonating the cars as IDF soldiers approach, wounding 13 soldiers (3 moderately, 10 lightly); the IDF makes a helicopter air strike on a civilian car it claims is connected to the attack, killing 1 Palestinian civilian, wounding 4. Half an hour later, IDF tanks reportedly fire on another vehicle that approaches another Gaza crossing, causing no injuries.

In Gaza, the IDF makes an air strike on a Palestinian civilian leaving a Bayt Hanun house, killing him instantly and wounding 3 bystanders; Izzeddin al-Qassam Brigades mbr. Sami al-Dibari, the dead man’s brother, apparently was the intended assassination target. The IDF also bulldozes 33 d. of agricultural land, a water network, 4 greenhouses in Khuza, also damaging a home; bulldozes additional land nr. al-Maghazi r.c.; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bayt Hanun. In Gaza City, 2 Hamas mbrs. are injured when explosives they are handling detonate prematurely. Also in Gaza, 2 Palestinian teenagers die of injuries received during IDF attacks on 4/16. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in Azun nr. Qalqilya, firing on stone-throwing youths who confront them, wounding 1; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Bireh, nr. Jenin. (WP 4/21; PCHR 4/24)

In Gaza, the IDF makes an air strike on a group of armed Palestinians approaching the border nr. Bayt Lahiya, killing 3 armed Palestinians. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Hebron and Nablus, nr. Tulkarm, and in al-Bireh, Jenin town and r.c., Qabatya. (OCHA 4/23; PCHR 4/24)

Palestinians fire at least 1 rocket toward Israel; it lands inside Gaza, injuring a Palestinian civilian.

In Gaza, the IDF makes an air strike on a car carrying 2 Izzeddin al-Qassam Brigades mbrs. nr. Khan Yunis, missing it, wounding 6 bystanders. In the West Bank, the IDF fires on stone-throwing Palestinian youths outside Dahaysha r.c. nr. Bethlehem, wounding 5 with live ammunition; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus, in Qabatya, and nr. Hebron, Jenin, Qalqilya, Tulkarm. Israel bars access to the Jordan River to 15,000 Christians making a pilgrimage to Jesus’s baptismal cite to mark Orthodox Christian Holy Week, keeping them behind a fence 30 ft. fr. the river. (OCHA, WT 4/23; PCHR 4/24)

Gazan PC mbrs. erect a tent in front of the PC headquarters in Gaza City, begin a hunger strike to protest Israel’s ongoing siege.

Birzeit University student council elections allot 25 seats to Fatah, 19 to Hamas, 5 each to the PFLP and a joint Islamic Jihad/People's Party list. Students clash over the results, prompting the university to close the campus until tensions cool.

In Gaza, the IDF makes a late-night air strike on a group of Hamas mbrs. in Khan Yunis, missing them, hitting an apartment building, causing no injuries; makes a late-night incursion into Bayt Hanun, under cover of aircraft that fire on several groups of Palestinians and buildings, killing a 55-yr.-old Palestinian in his home, seriously wounding another Palestinian, demolishing several greenhouses, damaging 5 homes. A Palestinian shepherd is injured when he accidentally triggers a landmine e. of Jabaliya r.c. In the West Bank, the IDF shoots, wounds an unarmed Palestinian who strays nr. the separation wall northwest of Jerusalem; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin, Nablus, Ramallah, in Anata e. of Jerusalem and Qabatya, and nr. Bethlehem, Hebron, Qalqilya. Jewish settlers fr. Karnei Shomron nr. Tulkarm stone Palestinian cars passing by the settlement, damaging 1. (PCHR 4/24; OCHA, PCHR 4/30)

UNRWA suspends operations in Gaza citing lack of fuel because of Israel’s blockade, stating that more than 700,000 Palestinians will not receive food aid as a result. Operation of UNRWA schools, clinics are also affected; because of fuel cuts 12 municipalities and solid waste management councils have stopped all operations, affecting at least 500,000 Gazans. Early in the morning, the IDF send troops under cover of aircraft into Abasan to level land, making an air strike on a group of armed Palestinians, wounding 2 gunmen, 2 bystanders. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night house searches nr. Tulkarm (no arrests are reported). Jewish settlers enter the Homesh settlement site (evacuated by the IDF in 2005), attack a Palestinian shepherd nearby, kill 2 of his sheep, steal 2. (WP, WT 4/25; OCHA, PCHR 4/30; see also UNRWA and OCHA press releases 4/23)

Unidentified assailants kidnap a fmr. PA security officer (Fatah affiliated) fr. his home in Nussayrat r.c., severely beat him.

Late at night, the IDF makes an incursion into Bayt Hanun, surrounding and then making an air strike on the home of a wanted Hamas mbr., causing a fire and then shooting at occupants as they flee, seriously wounding a mother and teenage daughter, barring ambulances fr. reaching the area for 4 hrs. (during which time the girl dies); the IDF trades fire with Palestinian resistance mbrs. during the incursion, wounding 2 gunmen, 3 bystanders; the wanted Palestinian is not captured. The IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in Bethlehem, al-Bireh; fires rubber-coated steel bullets, percussion grenades, tear gas at Palestinian, Israeli, international activists taking part in the weekly nonviolent demonstration against the separation wall in Bil`in (10s suffer tear gas inhalation) and beat demonstrators at a similar protest al-Masa’ra (lightly injuring 3). Jewish settlers fr. Taffuh settlement nr. Salfit enter the nearby village of Yasuf and fire on Palestinians, wounding 1. (WP 4/26; NYT 4/27; OCHA, PCHR 4/30)

At the Rafah and Erez crossings, 1,000s of Palestinians take part in nonviolent rallies calling on Israel to lift the siege.

In the West Bank, a Palestinian sniper fatally shoots 2 Israeli security guards at a factory in the Nitzani Shalom industrial zone nr. the separation wall, escapes; several groups including Hamas claim responsibility.

In Gaza, the IDF continues the incursion into Bayt Hanun begun on 4/25, demolishing the home of the Hamas mbr. targeted on 4/25, leveling surrounding land before withdrawing in the early morning. The IDF also sends troops into Bayt Lahiya, to seize and take to Israel local Hamas leader Hassan Marouf, trading heavy gunfire with local Palestinians and firing on Marouf’s home, killing his 14-yr.-old daughter. In the West Bank, the IDF raids an orphanage for girls, a 2d sewing factory in Hebron owned by the ICA (see 4/11), reiterating its 2/26 decision to evict residents and seal the sites for 3 yrs. if they are not vacated and turned over to the IDF within 24 hrs. (the ICA ignores the orders); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Bethlehem, Jenin, Qalqilya. In Jerusalem, Israeli police barricade gates into the Old City, forcibly bar Orthodox Palestinian worshipers fr. reaching the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and the St. Jacob Cathedral to perform Holy Saturday services to mark Orthodox Easter (cf. 4/22), beating and arresting several worshipers, while allowing Jewish worshipers to enter the Old City for Pesach celebrations. (Arab Orthodox Institute in East Jerusalem press release, al-Quds, WP 4/27; OCHA, PCHR 4/30)

Overnight, in Gaza, the IDF launches an incursion into Dayr al-Balah, occupying and searching homes, detaining 40 Palestinians (releasing them all on 4/28), and bulldozing 6 Palestinian homes, 200 d. of olive groves, 30 beehives, and an animal pen (killing 60 sheep), also heavily damaging 3 homes before withdrawing late at night. In the West Bank, the IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Ramallah, in Bethlehem, nr. Qalqilya. (OCHA, PCHR 4/30)

In Gaza, the IDF sends tanks, armored vehicles, bulldozers, and helicopters into Bayt Hanun, exchanging fire with local armed men and making air strikes on residential areas, leaving a total of 8 Palestinians dead, 17 Palestinians and 1 IDF soldier wounded; most casualties are the result of a missile that hits a home, killing a Palestinian woman, 4 of her children (ages 18 mos. to 5 yrs.), an unrelated teenager and wounding 10 bystanders (including 2 more of the woman’s children). In the West Bank, the IDF raids and searches a car repair shop in Hebron, confiscating 3 cars; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Nablus and Tulkarm, in Qalqilya, and nr. Hebron. As Israel begins preparations to move its Jerusalem police headquarters from the predominantly Arab neighborhood of Ras al-Amud to the controversial new E-1 site in occupied East Jerusalem, police officials sign an agmt. giving a right-wing Jewish settler group the right to occupy the vacant the Ras al-Amud building, which will serve as the nucleus of a new Jewish settlement; the settlers have already filed with the Jerusalem Planning Comm. to construct 110 housing units on at the site. In addition, the Israeli High Court rejects a petition by Palestinians in al-`Aqaba village nr. Tubas seeking repeal of an IDF order for the demolition of 60% of the village’s homes and confiscation of all but 100 d. of the villages 3,000 d. of land, supporting the IDF’s position that the land is “strategically important” to the military. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize Palestinian homes and cars in Hebron. (HA, IFM, PCHR 4/28; NYT, WP, WT 4/29; OCHA, PCHR 4/30)

Palestinians fire 7 rockets, 9 mortars fr. Gaza into Israel, causing light damage but no injuries.

UNRWA resumes food aid in Gaza after Israel allows a special delivery to UNRWA of a 5-day supply of fuel. Egyptian border guards discover, demolish 5 smuggling tunnels along the Rafah border. In the West Bank, the IDF raids and seals for 3 yrs. a sewing factory in Hebron owned by the ICA (see 4/26); conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in and around Jenin town and r.c. and Nablus, in Abu Dis and Azariyya nr. Jerusalem, and nr. Hebron. Jewish settlers fr. Kiryat Arba vandalize 11 Palestinian cars nr. the settlement. (IFM 4/29; AP, OCHA, PCHR 4/30; PCHR 5/8)

Palestinians fire several rockets fr. Gaza into Israel, causing damage but no injuries.

The IDF makes an air strike on a workshop in Rafah, assassinating Islamic Jihad’s al-Quds Brigade leader `Awad al-Qiq (whom the IDF attempted to assassinate on 10/5/07), injuring 2 Islamic Jihad mbrs., 2 children; sends tanks, bulldozers into Juhur al-Dik to level land. The Israeli navy fires on Palestinian fishing boats off the Rafah coast, forcing them to return to shore, causing no damage or injuries. In the West Bank, the IDF patrols in, fires on residential areas in Fahama and Yabad nr. Jenin; imposes a curfew on Kafr Haris nr. Salfit to allow Jewish settlers to conduct ceremonies at a religious site in the village; conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches in al-Aza r.c. nr. Bethlehem, Jenin town and r.c. In East Jerusalem, scores of Israeli Jewish teenagers gather at the Pisgat Ze’ev mall, summoned by an instant message to their cell phones, urging those “with Jewish blood” to meet up to form a mob to attack local Israeli Arabs who allegedly “hang in our area” and “whistle at the girls, curse, threaten little kids”; the mob beats and stabs 2 Palestinian teenagers, seriously injuring them; around 20 teenagers take part in the beating while 80–100 others watch; police arrest and charge 11. (AP 4/30; OCHA 5/7; PCHR 5/8; HA 5/29)