News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (August 25-31, 2021)

Riots continue along the Gaza Strip border

• This past week organized protests and riots continued in the Gaza Strip along the border with Israel. Their objective is to confront IDF soldiers and exert pressure on Israel to provide the Gaza Strip with more aid and to expedite the delivery of the financial support from Qatar. On August 25, 2021, a mass rally was held in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. Since August 28, 2021, the night harassment units have operated along the Gaza Strip border every night, and incendiary balloons were again launched into Israeli communities in the western Negev.

Protest rally in Khan Yunis

• On August 25, 2021, a mass protest rally was held in Khan Yunis. In preparation the Gazan media issued a call for public participation, and warned Israel not to harm the demonstrators. On the eve of the rally “unidentified Egyptian sources” reported Egypt had demanded that Hamas cancel the event. Hamas refused but promised that “insofar as it was capable” it would keep the demonstrators away from the fence and prevent clashes between Palestinians and IDF forces of the sort that occurred during the previous rally.^[1] According to the Egyptians, Hamas also agreed to Egypt’s demand to stop launching incendiary balloon until Israel and the mediators could reach an agreement regarding Israel’s commitment to implement understandings and ease condition in the Gaza Strip (al-Araby al-Jadeed, August 26, 2021). To satisfy Egypt, especially after Egypt had closed closing the Rafah Crossing to show its displeasure at Hamas for not controlling the rioters the previous week, representatives of the various terrorist organizations in t

• The protest rally began in Khan Yunis in the afternoon, when about 1,000 Palestinians gathered at the designated site. Hamas restraint force operatives maintained a considerable visible presence, standing between the demonstrators and border security fence. However, according to reports, Hamas authorized the operatives of the various military-terrorist wings of the Palestinian organizations to respond with weapons to any Israeli attack, on the condition that the response would be limited to the Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip (al-Ayam, August 25, 2021).
• Despite the deployment of the restraint force, several dozen demonstrators tried to reach the border fence. They threw rocks and various objects at the IDF forces, burned tires and tried to sabotage the fence. The Israeli forces employed riot control measures, including tear gas canisters dropped from UAVs. The ministry of health in Gaza reported that 14 Palestinians had been injured, five of them by live Israeli fire (Filastin al-Yawm, August 25, 2021).

• Senior PIJ figure Muhammad al-Hindi, who gave a speech at the representing all the Palestinian terrorist organizations, said Israel had to stop dragging its feet and delaying the lifting of the “siege” of the Gaza Strip. Israel, he said, could not expect quiet from the Gaza Strip as long as it prevented the Gaza Strip from “receiving food and medicine.” He claimed the “national consensus” in the Gaza Strip was to continue the “popular activities” against Israel (Shehab, August 25, 2021).

Events of Saturday, August 28, 2021

•  On August 28, 2021, several hundred Palestinians went to the Karni Crossing in the northern Gaza Strip. They burned tires and threw detonators, improvised IEDs and rocks. Several dozen Palestinians approached the border security fence and tried to sabotage it. IDF forces implemented riot control measures. In the meantime incendiary balloons were launched into Israeli territory, and an Israeli Fire and Rescue Service fire marshal determined that two fires in the western Negev had been caused by the balloons.

• In response, on the night of August 28, 2021, the Israeli Air Force attacked a number of Hamas terrorist targets, including a military training site, a facility for the manufacture of weapons and the shaft of a terrorist tunnel near Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip (IDF spokesman, August 29, 2021). The Palestinian media reported an attack on the Hamas Salah al-Din post in the central Gaza Strip and a post in eastern Beit Hanoun in the north. They also reported they had attacked IDF planes with anti-aircraft missiles (Shehab, August 29, 2021).

    
Right: Sites attacked by the IDF (IDF spokesman, August 29, 2021). Left: Site attacked by the IDF (Safa Facebook page, August 29, 2021).

Decision to continue terrorist activities

• In light of the events near the Karni Crossing, the joint operations room of the balloon-launching and night harassment units announced that as of the evening of Saturday, August 28, 2021, they would gradually escalate their activities, first with the night harassment units and then by launching IED and incendiary balloons. The joint operations room said in an announcement that the ongoing “siege” of the Gaza Strip was “pushing” them to turn the lives of the Israelis living in the communities near the border into a “living hell.” They also threatened to make the entire region uninhabitable; their decision, they claimed, was irreversible. They also warned Israel it would pay a high price for injuring “rebelling” Palestinians (al-Risalah, August 28, 2021).
• According to the Lebanese daily newspaper al-Akhbar, the Palestinian organizations decided on a gradual but daily escalation of the attacks along the border, which would only end when the Gazans felt conditions had improved and the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip had begun. The objectives of the escalation, they claimed, were to break the “equation” Israel had imposed, that is, that launching incendiary balloons would be answered with an attack, and to prevent Israel from linking the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip to the issue of the captive Israelis and missing IDF soldiers (al-Akhbar, August 30, 2021). “A source in the Gaza Strip” reported that the organizations would allow terrorist activities to continue every day from a different location in the Gaza Strip. The organizations also called on the operatives to increase the use of IED and incendiary balloons and other “means of exerting pressure” (al-Ayam, August 30, 2021).
• The Hamas-affiliated Sons of al-Zawari balloon-launching unit issued a picture of an IED and threatened that in the near future it would launch balloons with “destructive IEDs” which they were preparing for the day they received the order to use them (Facebook page of the Sons of al-Zawari Rafah unit, August 29, 2021).

The night harassment units

• On August 28, 2021, the night harassment units began operating every night in a different sector along the border:

• On August 28, 2021, their activities focused on the area to the east of Gaza City. Palestinians arrived at the fence, burned tires and threw rocks and IEDs at the IDF forces. The Palestinian media reported incendiary balloons were launched into the Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip border, but no evidence of launches was found. According to the ministry of health in Gaza, 11 Palestinians were inured, three seriously by live fire (Sawa, August 29, 2021).

   
Night harassment units use tires to the east of Gaza City (Twitter account of journalist Hassan Aslih, August 28, 2021).

•   On the evening August 29, 2021, night harassment unit activities were renewed. They focused on the region of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, about 300 meters (a little less than 2/10 of a mile) from the border security fence (Dunia al-Watan, August 29, 2021). The ministry of health in Gaza reported 18 Palestinians had been injured, claiming one had been seriously injured by live fire (Sawa, August 29, 2021).

   
Right: Palestinians take tires to the riot site east of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip (Safa Facebook page, August 29, 2021). Left: Night harassment unit activities east of Jabalia (Palinfo Twitter account, August 29, 2021)

• On August 30, 2021, the night harassment units operated at two locations, one east of Gaza City and the other east of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. The Palestinians threw IEDs and launched incendiary balloons. According to Gazan reports the IDF fired tear gas canisters and flares (Palinfo, Dunia al-Watan, August 30, 2021). The ministry of health in Gaza reported six Palestinians had been wounded, three by live fire. Reportedly, a photographer documenting the events was wounded by tear gas inhalation (Shehab, August 30, 2021).
• The social networks posted a notice calling on the Gazan public to participate in the next “event,” which would be held near the border security fence to the east of Khan Yunis at 17:00 on September 3, 2021. Its theme will be “We will pray in Jerusalem.”

    
Right: Night harassment unit activities in eastern Khan Yunis. Left: A Palestinian holds two hand grenades in one hand and a flag and a pipe bomb in the other (Twitter account of journalist Hassan Aslih, August 30, 2021).

• Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum claimed Israel was responsible for all the consequences of the “siege” of the Gaza Strip and the deterioration of the humanitarian situation. He sent his congratulations to the young Palestinians rising up in the Gaza Strip, Nablus, Jenin, Jerusalem and Hebron (Hamas website, August 29, 2021). On another occasion he said Hamas and the other [terrorist] organizations would continue contacts with the Egyptian mediators until “Israel’s aggression” against the Gaza Strip ended. He added that the popular activities would continue using all tools for “struggle.” He also said they hoped the pressure the organizations and mediators exerted on Israel to break the new “equation” would bear fruit (Ma’an, August 26, 2021).
• Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) spokesman Tareq Silmi called what was happening near the border “popular resistance.” He claimed the objective of the events was to send the message of the “injustice experienced by the Palestinian people” to regional and international public opinion, and to Israel as well. He claimed that in light of the continuing “siege” and Israel’s “preventing the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip” all possibilities were open before the “resistance” [i.e., the Palestinian terrorist organizations] (Dunia al-Watan, August 29, 2021).
• PIJ leader Khader Habib said the activities near the border were being held to exert pressure on Israel, and stopping them was out of the question at this time. Whether or not the activities ended depended on Israel’s meeting the conditions set by the Palestinian organizations in the Gaza Strip, lifting the “siege,” rebuilding the Gaza Strip and ending the “violations in Jerusalem.” He said the recent measures announced by Israel to ease the daily lives of the Gazans did not meet their minimal demands. He claimed the organizations had agreed to continue their activities according to the schedule they had determined and would implement it according to developments as they unfolded (al-Ayam, August 27, 2021).
• A Gazan political commentator said Hamas did not want a new military confrontation with Israel but was not willing to accept the present situation, and therefore had chosen the “interim option” of launching incendiary balloons and activating the night harassment units and the “popular resistance” to exert pressure on Israel. That was because in Hamas’ opinion, the pressure exerted on Israel by the mediators was inadequate (Radio al-Aqsa, August 28, 2021).

Rocket and mortar shell fire into Israel

• This past week no rocket hits were identified in Israeli territory.

Monthly Distribution of Rocket and Mortar Shell Fire since January 2020

Annual Distribution of Rocket Hits

Israeli security force counterterrorism activities

•  An Israeli police activity in Jiftlik, a Palestinian village north of Jericho in the Jordan Valley, uncovered an improvised Carlo machine gun and ammunition. Several Palestinians who lived in the village were detained for interrogation (Israel Police Force spokesman’s unit, August 30, 2021).

• The Israeli security forces raided a house in a Palestinian village near Hebron and confiscated a large quantity of weapons which included six M-16 assault rifles, parts of dismantled weapons, 130 magazines, handguns, ammunition and sights for telescopic rifles (Israel Police Force spokesman’s unit, August 27, 2021).
• In Abu Dis in east Jerusalem the Israeli security forces detained two Palestinians suspected of terrorist activities. During the detentions local Palestinians rioted, throwing IEDs, Molotov cocktails and rocks at the Israeli forces. A Border Police officer was wounded by rocks thrown at the forces as they left the area (Israel Police Force spokesman’s unit, August 26, 2021).

Rocks, Molotov cocktails and other events

• In Judea and Samaria Palestinians continued throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli vehicles driving on the roads. The more prominent events were the following:^[2]
  • August 29, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle on route 55 between the village of Azun and the Israeli community of Karnei Shomron, east of Qalqilya. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 29, 2021: A Molotov cocktail was thrown from a passing vehicle at an IDF force between the Palestinian village of Bayt Fajr and the Israeli community of Migdal Oz, southwest of Bethlehem. No casualties were reported. The vehicle sped away.
  • August 29, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle near the Israeli community of West Tekoa, south of Bethlehem. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 29, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle south of Jerusalem. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 28 2021: Rocks and Molotov cocktails were thrown at an Israeli vehicle on the Jerusalem-Gush Etzion road, southwest of Bethlehem. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 28, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle on the Husan bypass road southwest of Nablus. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 27, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle on the Jerusalem-Gush Etzion road, southwest of Bethlehem. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 26, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle on the Jerusalem-Gush Etzion road between the Palestinian village of al-Khader and the Israeli community of Efrat, south of Jerusalem. No casualties were reported. The front windshield of the vehicle was damaged.
  • August 25, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle in the region of the Palestinian village of Abud, northeast of Ramallah. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 25, 2021: IDF forces identified two Palestinians throwing Molotov cocktails at an Israeli vehicle near the Palestinian refugee camp of al-Aroub, southwest of Bethlehem. The forces opened fire and detained one of the Palestinians.
  • August 25, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli vehicle in the region of Luban al-Sharqia, north of Ramallah. No casualties were reported. The front windshield of the vehicle was damaged.
  • August 25, 2021: A Molotov cocktail was thrown at the fence of the Israeli community of Karmei Tsur southwest of Bethlehem. No casualties or damage were reported.
  • August 24, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli bus in the region of the Palestinian village of Turmus Aya, northeast of Ramallah. No casualties were reported. The front windshield of the bus was damaged.
  • August 24, 2021: Rocks were thrown at an Israeli bus near the Palestinian village of Hizma, northeast of Jerusalem. No casualties were reported. The front windshield of the bus was damaged.

Significant Terrorist Attacks in Judea and Samaria since January 2020^[3]

Israel implements additional measures to ease conditions for Gazan civilians

• Despite the riots along the Israel-Gaza Strip border this past week, the Israeli Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announced additional measures to ease daily life for Gazan civilians, including the delivery of more types of merchandise through the Kerem Shalom Crossing. On August 30, 2021, the Shehab News Agency reported the delivery of various types of construction materials, among them plasterboard, ceramic tiles, marble, granite and cement. According to Shehab, the materials were delivered to the Gaza Strip for the first time since Operation Guardian of the Walls (Shehab, August 20, 2021). Hamas spokesman Abd al-Latif al-Qanua said the Israel was not doing the Gaza Strip any favors because the Gaza Strip was entitled to receive the materials that were delivered (Sawa, August 26, 2021).
• Alaa al-Araj, chairman of the Gaza Strip contractors association, said the amounts of raw materials Israel delivered to the Gaza Strip were very limited and did not meet the demands of the building trades. He said that because of the closure the lack of building materials on the market was strongly felt. He said the programs for rebuilding had yet to be put into action, but when they did begin the demand for building materials would increase significantly (Ma’an, August 31, 2021).

The Rafah Crossing reopens

•  Iyad al-Buzum, spokesman for the ministry of the interior in Gaza, said the Egyptian authorities had decided to immediately open the Rafah Crossing for Palestinians returning from Egypt to the Gaza Strip, and that as of Sunday the Rafah Crossing would return to its regular operations. On August 29, 2021, according to reports Egypt reopened the Rafah Crossing to passage in both directions, after it had been closed for six days. In the meantime, Egypt is reportedly holding contacts with Israel and the Palestinians to ease the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip (Sawa, August 29, 2021)

The funds from Qatar

• Palestinian sources reported that Qatar had sent Hamas a message to reassure it regarding the funds Qatar gives the Gaza Strip every month. Qatar told Hamas that the money would be transferred at the beginning of September 2021 by means of the new mechanism formulated by Qatar and the UN. Meanwhile, Egypt told Hamas that Israel was planning to implement additional measures to ease conditions in the Gaza Strip, including the delivery of construction materials (al-Akhbar, August 27, 2021). Mohammed al-Emadi, chairman of Qatar’s National Committee for the Reconstruction of Gaza, will arrive in Gaza on September 2, 2021 and meet with the leadership (Sawa, August 20, 2021)
• Hussein al-Sheikh, chairman of the PA authority of civilian affairs, said that in accordance with instructions from Mahmoud Abbas, PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh and Qatar had reached an agreement regarding the delivery of the funds from Qatar to the Gaza Strip (Hussein al-Sheikh’s Twitter account, August 30, 2021). Muhammad Shtayyeh also said all obstacles had been removed and the needy families in the Gaza Strip would receive their grants (Wafa, August 26, 2021).

Hamas terrorist operative dies during riot

• The Palestinian media reported the death of Usama Khaled Dayij, 32, from Jabalia, an operative in Hamas’ military-terrorist wing. He was wounded by IDF fire during the riots on the Gaza Strip border on August 21, 2021, and died a few days later. The Palestinian media published pictures of him wearing a uniform and a picture documenting him near the border during the riot.
• Hamas mourned his death and issued a notice which also stressed the importance of the “resistance” against Israel in every form and using every means in Judea, Samaria, Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. The Izz al-Din Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, also issued a mourning notice for him, stating he belonged to the “border defenders unit” (Dunia al-Watan, August 25, 2021). His funeral was held in Jabalia and attended by operatives of Hamas’ military-terrorist wing. His body was wrapped for burial in the Hamas flag (Shehab, August 25, 2021). The Palestinian media reported he had been wounded more than seven times during the return marches, a fact noted by senior Hamas figure Suheil al-Hindi, who eulogized him (alresala.net, August 25, 2021).

    
Right: Usama Dayij, armed and wearing a uniform (alresala.net, August 25, 2021). Left: Usama Dayij minutes before being wounded (QudsN Twitter account, August 25, 2021).

•  On August 28, 2021, the death of Omar Abu al-Nil, 12, from the Tufah neighborhood of Gaza City was announced. He had been wounded in the riots on August 21, 2021. Hamas mourned his death with an announcement issued on August 28, 2021.

Hamas delegation visits Jordan

• A delegation of the Hamas leadership led by Isma’il Haniyeh, head of Hamas’ political bureau and including Khaled Mashaal, Hamas leader abroad, arrived in Jordan on August 27, 2021. They went to Jordan to attend the funeral of senior Hamas figure Ibrahim Ghosheh, who died in Jordan at the age of 85. During the funeral participants shouted their support for Hamas, its military-terrorist wing and Muhammad Deif, who heads the wing (Sawa, August 27, 2021). Isma’il Haniyeh thanked Jordan for the humanitarian assistance it gives the Gaza Strip, and said the Jordanian people share the hope and pain of the Palestinians (Amun, August 27, 2021). Since 2006 Jordan has not officially allowed senior Hamas figures into Jordan except for humanitarian purposes. Mahmoud Abbas spoke with Khaled Mashaal and offered his condolences on the death of Ibrahim Ghosheh (Shehab, August 27, 2021).

    
Right: Isma’il Haniyeh and Khaled Mashaal carry the body of Ibrahim Ghosheh at the funeral held for him in Jordan (Safa Facebook page, August 27, 2021). Left: Isma’il Haniyeh and Khaled Mashaal visit Palestinians in a Jordanian hospital (Safa Facebook page, August 28, 2021).

• The Muslim Brotherhood movement in Jordan welcomed King Abdallah’s decision to allow the Hamas leadership to enter Amman. Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Moaz al-Khawaldeh called it a step in the right direction, claiming it strengthened the national interest and the active role played by Jordan to support the Palestinian people and for the sake of Jerusalem. He also said he hoped it would mark the beginning of a connection that would grow and serve the interests of both Jordan and the Palestinian people (Facebook page of the Muslim Brotherhood movement in Jordan, August 28, 2021).

Member of the Hamas leadership visits Russia

• Musa Abu Marzouq, deputy Hamas leader, met with Mikhail Bogdanov, the deputy Russian foreign minister, at his office in Moscow. They reportedly discussed recent developments in the Palestinian cause and Israel’s “continuing attacks” in Judea, Samaria, Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. Bogdanov said the Russian position supported the Palestinian cause and discussed Russia’s efforts for the Palestinians (Hamas website, August 28, 2021).

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz meets with Mahmoud Abbas

• On August 29, 2021, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz met with Mahmoud Abbas in Abbas’ office in Ramallah, where they discussed political, security, civilian and economic issues. Gantz told Mahmoud Abbas that Israel was prepared to promote steps that would strengthen the PA’s economy. They also discussed a design for the security, civilian and economic conditions in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, and agreed to remain in contact to discuss the issues further at a later date (Israeli defense minister’s media, August 30, 2021). It was the first meeting of its kind after years of a lack of communication between the Israeli government and Mahmoud Abbas’ office.
• The meeting was widely covered by the Palestinian media, which also elaborated issues such as the loan of half a billion dollars to the PA, increasing employment permits for Palestinians and permission for Palestinian construction in Area C.
•   Fatah praised the meeting. Muneir al-Jaghob, head of Fatah’s information bureau, said they regarded in a positive light every meeting with Israel that meant achievements for the Palestinian people, and that such a meeting had to be viewed comprehensively and from a national perspective. In response to critics he said the PA had to take all the organizations’ opinions into consideration and it respected their positions which had national motivation. However, he said, the meeting had been based on Palestinian principles and no concessions had been made to Israel. The main issues discussed, he reported, were family unification and the return of the tax revenues deducted by Israel. He also said the meeting had been held as part of a process of building trust between the PA and the American administration, and every issue discussed had been in the Palestinians’ interest (al-Araby al-Jadeed, August 30, 2021).

   
Palestinian cartoons mock Mahmoud Abbas for meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz. Right: The Arabic reads, “Tell me if you need anything.” Left: “The meeting was vey positive and productive” (Facebook page of Palestinian cartoons, August 30, 2021).

• Hamas and the PIJ strongly criticized Mahmoud Abbas for meeting with Gantz and accused him of treason. Some critics interpreted the meeting as an attempt to weaken the Hamas leadership of the Gaza Strip. Hamas’ official publication al-Risalah said the meeting had been held only a few days after Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said no Palestinian state would be established as long as Naftali Bennett was prime minister of Israel (al-Risalah, August 30, 2021).
• Hamas spokesman Abd al-Latif al-Qanua called the meeting “humiliating, and the Palestinian people had to oppose it.” He called it “a stab in the back of the Palestinian people and a betrayal of the blood of the shaheeds,” adding that Mahmoud Abbas continued abandoning national principals and worked to improve Israel’s image (Hamas website, August 30, 2018).
• Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said such meetings continued the illusion promoted by the PA leadership that something could be achieved for the Palestinian people through the failed course of an arrangement with Israel. He said the meeting would encourage regional actors that wanted normalization with Israel and would weaken the Palestinian position that opposed normalization (Safa, August 31, 2021).
• Senior PIJ figure Khader Habib said the meeting was a “knockout” for the Palestinians and opposed the will of the people. He said instead of meeting with Benny Gantz, Mahmoud Abbas should have worked to have him tried in the International Criminal Court in The Hague for [alleged] “war crimes and responsibility for the deaths of Palestinians” (al-Quds al-Yawm, August 31, 2021).
• PIJ spokesman Tareq Silmi called the meeting a stab in the back of the Palestinian people, adding that the “blood of the children” who had been killed by the Israeli army under Gantz’ command had not yet dried (PIJ website, August 30, 2021).

Contacts to advance negotiations

• At the weekly government meeting PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh said that an Egyptian-Jordanian summit meeting would be held in Cairo on August 2, 2021. Its objective, he said, would be to urge the American administration to keep its promises regarding the preservation of the two-state solution by implementing practical measures and by paving a way to begin a political process that would lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state, including the [so-called] “right of return” of the Palestinian refugees (Wafa, August 30, 2021).
• Muhammad Shtayyeh, meeting in the PA with representatives of European countries, called on the EU to lead a new initiative for the renewal of the peace process. He also called for pressure to be exerted on Israel to stop its [alleged] “violations in the PA territories” and to honor the agreements it signed with the Palestinians in a way that would help begin a dialogue about economic and political issues and the issue of a permanent agreement (al-Ayam, August 30, 2021).

International aid for the PA

• Muhammad Shtayyeh attended the signing of an aid agreement with Germany that would provide €25 million for the PA education system. The aid is provided by Germany in collaboration with Ireland, Finland and Norway. Shtayyeh said the funds would be used for building and renovating schools and purchasing equipment (Wafa, August 26, 2021).

Palestinian ministry of health meets with mothers of Palestinian terrorists

• PA minister of health Mai al-Kayla met with Um Nasser Abu Hamid.^[4] They discussed her son Nasser Abu Hamid’s medical condition, and Mai al-Kayla accused Israel of the medical negligence of the Palestinian prisoners, causing them to “die slow deaths” (ministry of health in Ramallah Facebook page, August 29, 2021).

Family of Nizar Banat to file a lawsuit against the PA

• The family of political activist Nizar Banat, who was killed while the Palestinian security forces were detaining him, said in a statement they were planning to bring a lawsuit against the PA in European courts for what they called the “execution” of their son. Nizar Banat’s brother Ghassan told the German media that the family had taken practical measures and would soon take more to turn the issue of his killing into an international incident. He said the members of the family were planning to appeal to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague and to bring a lawsuit against the PA. He said they had already appealed to the UN to begin an independent investigation of Nizar’s death (al-Risalah, August 26, 2021).
• Meanwhile, political activists, who had been detained by the PA while participating in events protesting the killing of Nizar Banat, were vocal in their criticism of the conditions in the police facilities in which they were held. For example, Kawtha Sachweil, a university lecturer, said the detainees had been held for a long time in a detention facility under inhuman conditions, in dirty rooms without even a chair to sit on. Hamza Zubidat, also a Palestinian activist, said the conditions in the Palestinian police detention facility were extremely bad and inhuman. He said 23 detainees had been crowded into a small, dirty room. He said he had met Palestinian detainees who had not had access to proper medical care. Abi Aboudi, a Palestinian political analyst, also said detention conditions were extremely bad and inhuman (QudsN Twitter account, August 24, 2021).

PA public opinion poll findings

• Arab World for Research and Development (AWRAD)^[5] published the results of a Palestinian public opinion poll conducted in two stages with 1,215 Palestinians over the age of 18 in Judea, Samaria and east Jerusalem. The most prominent trends revealed by the poll were the following (AWRAD website, poll results in English, August 25, 2021):
  • The negative evaluation of the performance of the Palestinian government increased to 55% after the killing of Nizar Banat, and 70% support the formation of a new government. If elections were held, the vote would be Marwan Barghouti 38%, Hamas 31% and Mahmoud Abbas 19%.
  • The PA’s handling of the killing of Banat and its aftermath are viewed negatively by 69% of the respondents; 60% believe the investigation committee formed by the Palestinian government is partial; 44% believe that [Palestinian and Israeli] security forces in the West Bank and Gaza Strip equally violate human rights
  • The annulment of the Oslo Accords is supported by 67% of the respondents, and 61% of them oppose the continuation of security coordination between the PA and Israel; 54% oppose the resumption of negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis at the present time; 53% oppose economic and trade relations with Israel. Loss of hope in the peace process after 30 years now stands at 72%.

Judea and Samaria

• Coronavirus infections continue spreading in Judea and Samaria. As of the afternoon of August 31, 2021 there were 8,442 active cases, up from 4,401 a week ago. Fifty patients are in ICUs, eight of them are on ventilators. The number of deaths from coronavirus-related conditions also rose significantly, and so far 2,540 Palestinians have died. Nablus is the epicenter of the disease, with 2,828 recorded active cases (ministry of health in Ramallah Facebook page, August 31, 2021). According to reports, Jibril Rajoub, secretary of Fatah’s Central Committee and chairman of the PA’s soccer association, tested positive for coronavirus (Jibril Rajoub’s Facebook page, August 29, 2021).
• So far routine daily life in the PA continues. Every rumor of the possibility of a partial or full lockdown has been met with condemnation and denial. The number of serious and critical patients in hospitals continues to rise but so far the ministry of health has been able to contain the number of hospitalized patients and localized crowding has been reported from only a limited number of hospitals.
•  So far 688,802 Palestinians have been vaccinated, 40.8% of the target population. The ministry of health in Ramallah launched a broad vaccination campaign, opening dozens of vaccination stations. In the meantime, a large number of vaccines arrived in the PA, donated by the United States. The ministry of education in Ramallah announced it would launch a campaign to vaccinate students 16 years old and older, and in the second phase, between the ages of 12 and 16.

The Gaza Strip

• There was also a significant rise in the number of active coronavirus cases in the Gaza Strip. According to reports from the ministry of health in Gaza, as of August 31, 2021, there were 11,882 active coronavirus cases in the Gaza Strip, up from 6,190 a week ago. Of 5,139 tests administered during the 24 hours between August 30 and 31, 2021, 1,364 new cases were detected, a positive rate of about 26.5%. So far 1,140 Gazans have died of coronavirus-related causes, and 233 coronavirus patients are hospitalized, 155 of them in serious or critical condition. The number of vaccinated Gazans is 246,954, 19.5% of the target population (ministry of health in Gaza Facebook page, August 31, 2021). Iyad al-Buzum, spokesman for the ministry of the interior in Gaza, said that as the number of vaccinated Gazans rises the need for a lockdown will decrease (ministry of health in Gaza Facebook page, August 30, 2021).

    
Right: Residents of Khan Yunis vaccinated in the Great Mosque (Twitter account of journalist Hassan Aslih, August 27, 2021). Left: The ministry of health in Gaza gives $200 to local residents who won the vaccination lottery (ministry of health in Gaza Facebook page, August 27,2021).