Occupied Palestinian Territories - Humanitarian Update, August 2008

Summary of monthly Humanitarian Monitor report produced by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

AUGUST OVERVIEW

This month, the fragile space for human rights and dignity left to Palestinians in the oPt was further affected by the increasing tension between the two Palestinian authorities in Ramallah and in Gaza, as well as by the military activities and restrictive practices by the Israeli authorities. The combination of these factors resulted in numerous cases of Palestinian civilians being killed or injured, denied access, arbitrarily arrested, displaced and denied basic services such as water and sanitation, health and education.

Deaths and injuries: During August, 114 unarmed civilians in the West Bank, including 68 children, were injured by Israeli security forces during military activities, more than half of them in anti-Barrier demonstrations in Ni'lin and Bil'in villages (western Ramallah). In addition, 37 people were injured as a result of attacks carried out by Israeli settlers, the largest number recorded since January 2005. The inter-factional fighting in Gaza resulted in 14 fatalities (13 of whom were armed) and 103 injuries, including 17 children and six women. This constituted the highest monthly toll due to factional fighting since Hamas take-over in mid-June 2007.

Palestinian basic services: The population of Gaza was the most severely affected by the denial of services, occurring amidst political tension between Gaza and Ramallah. The first days of the new academic year in Gaza, which started on 24 August for PA schools were disrupted by a teachers' strike called by the Teachers' Union in Ramallah, in response to the decision taken by the Hamas authorities to transfer many school principals and teachers to other schools. In addition, approximately half of the health personnel in the Ministry of Health centres in Gaza joined a strike declared by the Health Workers' Union in Ramallah, starting 30 August, in response to the dismissal of a number of employees. As a result, hospitals postponed elective surgery and many health centres were forced either to close or suspend services. Finally, due to a dispute between two institutions responsible for running the water sector in Gaza, one reporting to Gaza and the other to Ramallah, fuel needed to run water facilities was not supplied, affecting the water supply to some 250,000 people.

Charities and Community-based Organisations (CBOs) in the West Bank and Gaza Strip continue to be affected by harsh measures implemented by both authorities. In Hebron governorate, the Palestinian Authority (PA) raided and closed down six charity organisations allegedly affiliated with Hamas, affecting hundreds of children and patients. In the Gaza Strip, many CBOs raided by the Hamas authorities in the days following 25 July 2008, are still closed, thus depriving thousands of people of services and activities.

The freedom of movement of the Palestinian population in the oPt remained severely constrained. In the West Bank, however, the Israeli authorities implemented three measures easing access on certain West Bank routes, including the dismantlement of one staffed checkpoint and the partial opening of another two. Despite these steps, people movement remained highly restricted by a variety of measures, including approximately 600 closure obstacles, the West Bank Barrier, roads prohibited for Palestinian use and areas closed by military orders. In Gaza, most of the population was still unable to move in and out of the Strip. The main exception to this was about 3,000 people who were allowed to cross Rafah out of Gaza and about 1,000 allowed into Gaza during the last two days of August, and some 560 patients who were granted permits to leave Gaza through Erez crossing.

Gaza Strip imports and exports: Despite the re-opening of the Kerem Shalom commercial crossing, the amount of imports allowed to enter Gaza continued to decrease over the month, August imports constituted around 70% of July imports and 23% of the imports in May 2007, before the Hamas take-over. The lack of raw materials, combined with the continuous prohibition on exports prevented economic reactivation.

ISSUES IN FOCUS

Update on family unification requests for Palestinians in the oPt with spouses or family members holding foreign passports

The issuance of a Palestinian ID to a foreign national wishing to live in the oPt requires the approval of a "family unification" application by the Israeli authorities. However, following the beginning of the second Intifada in 2000, Israel stopped processing such applications. More than 120,000 applications were pending and additional thousands have been submitted since then. This policy affected spouses, children and siblings of Palestinians living in the oPt, with some of them relying on temporary permits to enter the oPt, while others were forced either to relocate abroad or live separated. Many of those who obtained temporary permits and did not receive renewals, overstayed their allotted time to remain with their families. They now live under constant threat of deportation and face severe limitations to their freedom of movement and their ability to access healthcare, education and work.

This policy has been modified in October 2007. Since then and until August 2008, the Israeli authorities approved nearly 32,000 outstanding family unification requests, as a good-will gesture to the Palestinian Authority President. According to the new criteria, only those already residing in the oPt, who overstayed their visas, are eligible. The new policy implemented by Israel has had a positive impact on those families whose application was approved. However, over 90,000 other applicants are still waiting and continue to be severely affected.

Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

© Union Aid Abroad - APHEDA 2003.

Last Modified: Wednesday, 07-Jan-2009 13:37:22 EST
This page: http://apheda.org.au/projects/mideast/news/1231295657_29276.html