Reports by an American human rights group and the BBC presented information that raises questions about Israel's use of live ammunition near Palestinian civilians. Khaled Amayreh reports from Jerusalem Click to view caption Israel's construction of additional road blocks in and around Palestinian population centres raises questions about its commitment to relaxing the curfew on the West Bank, as Israeli officials claimed they were doing this week. Beyond increasing the number of checkpoints that make it virtually impossible for Palestinians to move from one town to the next and even to go from one part of a neighbourhood to another, the Israeli army continued to deal with Palestinians in much the same way as it has since the outset of the current Intifada. On 5 July, Israeli soldiers manning an armoured personnel carrier shot dead a woman and her two-year-old daughter who were riding in a taxi in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. An eyewitness, Jamal Ismail, 29, who was travelling with the woman, identified as 44-year-old Randa Hindi, described the killing as "an act of murder". "When I looked back, I saw a horrible scene that I will never forget. The woman and her baby were in a pool of blood," said Ismail. Hindi's other two children, who were travelling with her, were not hurt. The Israeli army at first denied that it had fired any shots in the area, but later admitted that the woman and her daughter were killed by mistake. Earlier that same day, a 44-year-old Palestinian man, identified as Subhi Sharab, was killed by Israeli gunfire while walking from the southern city of Khan Younis to his home on the town's outskirts. Again, the Israeli army spokesman said he was unaware of any shooting in the area. On 7 July, another six-year-old Palestinian child was killed by Israeli bullets, this time in Qalqilya, apparently for "violating the curfew". This most recent shooting brought to eight the number of Palestinian children gunned down by Israeli troops patrolling the streets of the West Bank during the past three weeks. Late last month, an Israeli tank fired several shells at a group of children in Jenin who were running in the direction of the vehicle. Two children were killed and a third was injured, all of them members of the same family. The BBC this week broadcast footage of the gruesome incident, showing the tank firing two shells at the terrified children who were at close range. In a filmed interview, the murdered boys' father, Youssef Abu Aziz, told the BBC that his kids had gone outside to buy chocolate, thinking the Israeli curfew had been lifted. The Israeli army never really explained why a tank would fire artillery shells at children. Nor did it explain why tanks were used in a crowded civilian area or why warning shots weren't fired to clear the streets of minors. An American human rights group, Physicians for Human Rights-US, recently raised questions about Israeli soldiers' use of firearms against Palestinian civilians. "The pattern of injuries seen in many victims did not reflect the Israeli army's use of firearms in life-threatening situations, but rather indicated targeting solely for the purpose of wounding or killing." Meanwhile, the Israeli army resumed the policy of assassinations of Palestinian political and resistance activists. On 9 July, Israeli undercover soldiers ambushed and killed Muammar Daraghma, an Islamic Jihad political activist in Jenin. Earlier, on 4 July, Israeli agents killed Jihad A'marin and his nephew, Wael Al-Namra in Gaza when a bomb, which had been planted by Israeli agents, exploded. A'marin was the local leader of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, the military wing of Fatah, and as many as 30,000 people took part in his funeral, chanting "Death to Israel" and vowing to avenge Daraghma. It is believed that since September 2000, when the second Intifada began, as many as 135 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli assassination attacks. Of this number, at least 48 persons were not the intended targets, and 28 of these people were merely bystanders. Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres this week met two key PA officials, Finance Minister Salim Faydee and Interior Minister Abdel-Razzaq Al-Yahya. Israeli sources said the two sides discussed ways to ease Israel's repressive measures on Palestinian civilians, particularly the crippling curfews on Palestinian population centres. Faydee reportedly pressed Peres to reimburse hundreds of millions of dollars levied by Israel on commodities imported by the Palestinians. However, it is clear that the Palestinians put little hope in the outcomes of such meetings, particularly with people like Peres, the weakest link in Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's government. Indeed, the Hebrew press implied that Sharon only allowed Peres to meet with the two PA officials for the purpose of improving the Israeli government's image. This week, the Sharon government underscored its extremist nature by backing a bill in the Knesset tabled by the National Religious Party (NRP). The bill called for the barring of non- Jews from living in Jewish communities. Opposition leader Yossi Sarid described the proposed law as "racist" and "reminiscent of the apartheid regime in South Africa". Consequently, it seems unrealistic to expect Peres to have much influence over such a government, beyond, of course, falsely lending its image a measure of moderation.
