The long simmering conflict between the indigenous Palestinians and the occupying power Israel have flared again in recent days as Palestinians demonstrated to commemorate the burning of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third holiest site, by a Christian-Australian tourist 52 years ago. Palestinians gathered near the border fence along Gaza’s border with Israel on Saturday both commemorating the burning of Al-Aqsa and protesting the stifling blockade that Israel and Egypt have maintained over the coastal enclave. The resulting violence harkened back to the 2018-2019 Gaza Protests with thousands of Palestinians protesting the siege of Gaza; Israeli forces violently suppressed those protests killing more than 250 protestors since they began in the spring of 2018.
During those protests, Israeli security forces repeatedly targeted medics, journalists, the disabled, children, and anyone suspected of “leading” a protest, according to Amnesty International. The force with which Israel targeted civilians was tantamount to war crimes according to a UN report,: Israeli forces used live fire to target civilians, and “The Commission found reasonable grounds to believe that Israeli snipers shot at journalists, health workers, children and persons with disabilities, knowing they were clearly recognizable as such.” Israel defended their lethal suppression of the largely peaceful protests by pointing to its military’s rules of engagement and shooting policy rules, which permit soldiers to fire live rounds on whoever they would consider to be a “main inciter.” Kevin Jon Heller, an associate professor of Public International Law at the University of Amsterdam has said that Israeli security forces simply made up the term, as no such term exists under International Humanitarian Law.
“You can’t simply shoot someone in the leg because you think they are leading a demonstration. And lethal force requires a target to pose imminent threat to life,” Heller says.
The past use of live rounds on peaceful protestors, targeting of medics, journalists, and women and children bring us to the more recent border clashes between Israeli Occupation Forces and Palestinian protestors. To date at least 41 Palestinian protestors have been injured by Israeli security forces, most by live rounds, tear gas, and rubber coated-steel bullets: victims include a 13-year-old boy who was shot in the head by an Israeli sniper. Additionally, a member of the paramilitary Israeli Border Police was shot after exchanging fire with a Palestinian protestor. Video shows several protestors trying to grab the Israeli soldier’s weapon, which could be seen through a hole in the border wall, before one protestor pulled a gun and fired into the hole.
Protestors say the clashes that erupted on Saturday stemmed from the commemoration of the past burning of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and possibly the Gaza blockade. The resurgence of protests regarding the blockade follows a nearly two years hiatus─largely due to Covid─of the once weekly protests targeting Israeli abuses and the blockade. Following the 11-day War Israel waged against Hamas and Gaza in May, many protestors claim the blockade is suppressing the rebuilding effort. This all follows the the intense, largely indiscriminate bombing campaign by the Israeli military that killed over 200, including over 60 children and 40 women and decimated civilian infrastructure. Actions that amount to war crimes, specifically via the targeting of residential buildings, government buildings, international humanitarian organizations, as well as media offices.
In response to the recent clashes resulting in one injury to an Israeli soldier, Israel again launched airstrikes on the besieged enclave, claiming to target Hamas military infrastructure, missile launch sites, and Hamas fighters. Eleven Palestinians were reported injured as a result. It is unclear whether the targets were truly military installations in nature. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the 13-year-old boy, Omar Hassan Abu al-Nile, was shot by Israeli security forces during the initial protest on August 21st and succumbed to his injuries a week later. The Ministry additionally reported that a 32-year-old man present at the protest died Wednesday the 25th of injuries sustained while protesting.
Following the protests and subsequent crackdown on the 21st, Palestinian factions issued a joint statement calling for the continuing of demonstrations targeting the blockade of Gaza, the brutality of Israeli security forces, and the right for Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland conquered by Israeli forces—an internationally recognized right. The joint statement was issued following a Hamas press conference, joining onto the statement with the governing Hamas were Islamic Jihad, the left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, as well as smaller factions.
“the Israeli occupation must bear the responsibility for its obstruction of the reconstruction of Gaza, and for the blockade…We call on our people to continue their popular uprisings in Gaza and to expand the points of engagement with the occupation…we will not accept the continuation of the siege”
The calling for the continuation of pressure on the Israeli government was actualized when protesters returned to the separation wall that runs the length of the enclave on Wednesday the 25th, injuries were again reported by Palestinians, although not amounting to the crackdown of the 21st. While the tensions were less of a fever pitch due to Hamas making it a point to keep crowds away from the border fence itself, there were 14 injuries reported by Palestinians, including 5 who were shot according to medics on the ground.
Although additional injuries were incurred on Palestinian civilians it appears the efforts have been somewhat fruitful, following the close of demonstrations on Wednesday, Gaza’s governing body Hamas issued a statement that the enclave’s key border crossing would be partially reopening on Thursday.
In addition to the partial reopening of a key border crossing with Egypt, Israel announced late Wednesday evening that it would ease some restrictions of the blockade in addition to quell tensions. The body in charge of Israeli crossings with Gaza said the easing of restrictions would increase imports of new vehicles and other goods and equipment for civilian projects in the Strip, while also issuing more permits for Palestinian businesspeople from Gaza to enter Israel beginning on Thursday the 26th.
While the meager concessions issued by Israel active this past Thursday should be counted as a win for the Palestinian people, it goes a very short way to ending the internationally condemned, illegal blockade of Gaza. It does little to atone for war crimes committed during Israel’s May blitzkrieg of the Strip, doesn’t bring back the 60+ children killed, or give classrooms to the thousands of displaced students following the damaging of their schools. The time is overdue for the international community to hold Israel accountable for it’s actions as the status quo will remain in Gaza and the Occupied Territories until a united international community confronts Israel. That status quo is one in which homes are destroyed, civilians killed, rocket volleys firing, and jet bombing runs, a hell that the worst of criminals shouldn’t face is the daily life for millions; all the while Israel enjoys a seemingly unending and unconditional friendship and alliance with the US.
As United States citizens we must ask ourselves and our representatives if we are content with the near daily violence faced by Palestinians. As taxpayers, Americans are quite literally in some cases paying for the weapons used against Palestinian civilians, complicit in the war crimes of our ally. The time to stand up for oppressed Palestinians is long overdue, and as time moves on without our confronting Israel, only continued suffering is a guarantee in Gaza and the Occupied Territories.