IOF Kill 3 Palestinians in Rafah, Khan Younis
Palestine Media Center
12 May, 2003A day after US Secretary of State Colin Powell’s visit to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, the Israeli government re-imposed a tight closure on the Gaza Strip at a time when three Palestinians were killed by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) in the past twenty-four hours.
This renewed bloodshed and siege of Palestinian cities and towns comes a day after Israel claimed it was easing stringent restrictions it has been imposing on Palestinians since the Intifada for independence erupted some 31 months ago.
After Sunday’s separate talks with the new Palestinian Prime Minister, Mahmoud Abbas, and the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, Powell urged the two sides to implement the US-proposed “roadmap” for peace and resolve their differences.
Powell also said he “underscored to [Israeli] Prime Minister Sharon and his government the need for Israel to do its part in improving the daily lives of Palestinians.”
Later, Israel announced a lift to the closure imposed on the West Bank and Gaza Strip. However, the Israeli “humanitarian” gesture lasted only for few hours.
After Powell left, Israel sealed off the Gaza Strip completely and imposed a curfew on the areas controlled by its IOF army.
The Israeli occupation army justified the move as a precautionary step after receiving information that Palestinians are planning new attacks on Israel from inside Gaza.
Curfews, Killings a Day After Powell’s Visit
Powell’s long waited visit did not seem to have affected the ongoing bloodshed in the occupied territory as three Palestinians were killed, two during an IOF invasion of the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah.
According to Palestinian medical sources, Mohammed Abu Armanah, 19, and Saleem al-Arja, 20, were killed by IOF troops, in a raid on al-Salam and al-Brazil neighborhoods in Rafah.
Medical sources said al-Arja bled to death since ambulances were prevented by intensive IOF fire from reaching him.
IOF also demolished five Palestinians’ houses in al-Salam and al-Brazil neighborhoods, witnesses said.
IOF Kill Farmer in His Field
Meanwhile, a Palestinian farmer was killed by Israeli occupation soldiers in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis.
The victim, Hasan al-Astal, 18, was shot dead by IOF soldiers while working in his family’s field, witnesses said.
His cousin Ahmad was also shot and wounded while trying to rescue him, witnesses added.
IOF also invaded the northern West Bank town of Qaqlilia and imposed a curfew on its neighborhoods.
IOF soldiers broke into a number of citizens’ houses, specifically those located in the town’s center, witnesses said.
Also in the West Bank, IOF detained two brothers after raiding their family’s house in the southern town of Beit Jala, Palestinian sources said.
The detainees were identified as Mahmoud and Taher Alan, both in their mid twenties.
In Ramallah, IOF imposed curfew on the town of Beitonia after four Palestinian detainees escaped the nearby Israeli detention camp of ‘Ofra’.
Several Israeli military jeeps and armored vehicles patrolled Ramallah city while IOF soldiers set up roadblocks in a number of the city’s neighborhoods, witnesses said.