News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (Aug 1 – 7, 2018)

Events on the ground

• The Israeli security forces continue their counterterrorist activities in Judea and Samaria, detaining Palestinians suspected of terrorist activities and confiscating improvised weapons and funds intended to finance terrorism.

Significant terrorist attacks during the past year ^[1]

Shots fired at IDF force

• On August 7, 2018, shots were fired at an IDF force from a Hamas post near Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip. No casualties were reported. In response an IDF tank fired at the post from which the shots were fired (IDF spokesperson, August 7, 2018). Hamas’ military wing reported that two of its operatives from Jabalia had been killed (Hamas military wing website, August 7, 2018).
• Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum issued a press release stating that Hamas regarded as very serious the deliberate attack on its military post in the northern Gaza Strip that led to the death of two of its operatives, and called Israel responsible for the escalation (Hamas website, August 7, 2018). Note: Hamas’ military wing said in a statement that the two operatives who had been killed were participating in an exercise carried out inside a Hamas post. During the exercise, the two shot at several targets of figures inside the post.

The “return march,” Friday, August 3, 2018

• The theme of the Friday, August 3 “return march” was “loyalty to the shaheeds of Jerusalem – shaheed Muhammad Tareq Yusuf” (the terrorist operative who carried out a stabbing attack in the Jewish community of Adam on July 26, 2018, killing an Israeli civilian). Beginning at around noon more than 8,000 Gazans gathered at the five “traditional” sites along the border with Israel.
• The events were particularly violent. Rioters clashed with IDF forces near the fence, throwing an IED and Molotov cocktails. Events peaked when a group of rioters crossed the security fence and entered an IDF post. They then returned to the Gaza Strip. The “return march” was attended by Hamas’ “external” leadership, headed by Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of the Hamas political bureau, who arrived in the Gaza Strip from Egypt for a discussion of an agreement with Israel. Senior Hamas figures repeatedly stated that the “return marches” would continue until all their objectives had been attained.^[2]

Arson terrorism

• Arson terrorism continues to plague the Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip, although there has been a certain decline in the number of incendiary balloons launched into Israeli territory. Nevertheless, every day during the past week Israeli firefighters put out fires that had been caused by incendiary balloons launched from Gaza. On August 2, 2018, a falcon was found. A string with a suspicious object was attached to its legs. It was the second time a bird has been found, used by Gazans for arson terrorism.
• On August 6, 2018, a kite with what was apparently an accelerant was found near the community of Yitzhar, south of Nablus. The kite was launched from the nearby Arab village of Burin (Shehab Facebook page, August 6, 2018).
• In an effort to prevent arson terrorism, the IDF attacked squads planning to launch incendiary balloons into Israeli territory:
  • On August 4, 2018, Israeli Air Force aircraft attacked squads in the northern and southern Gaza Strip. No casualties were reported. The Palestinian media reported that UAVs had attacked a group of young Palestinians east of Jabalia and another east of Gaza City (Shehab, Palinfo, August 4, 2018).
  • On August 5, 2018, Israeli Air Force aircraft attacked a squad of incendiary balloon launchers and their vehicle in the northern Gaza Strip. The Palestinian media reported that a UAV had attacked a “resistance” [i.e., terrorist] post north of Beit Lahia, wounding four Palestinians (Shehab, August 5, 2018). The military wing of the Mujahideen Movement^[3] confirmed its post had been attacked, and that four of its operatives had been wounded (Twitter account of the Mujahideen Movement’s military wing, August 5, 2018).
  • On August 6, 2018, Israeli Air Force aircraft attacked a squad of incendiary balloon launchers in the northern Gaza Strip. The Palestinian media reported that UAVs had attacked a group of Palestinians east of the cemetery in the northern Gaza Strip (Palinfo, August 6, 2018).

Son of senior Hamas military commander Marwan Issa wounded by IDF fire

• The Palestinian media reported that three Palestinian youths were seriously wounded by IDF fire east of the al-Bureij refugee camp after they tried to sabotage the barbed wire fence east of the camp. It was reported that one of the wounded was Mahmoud Marwan Issa, son of Marwan Issa, deputy general commander of Hamas’ military wing (Ma’an and the Palinfo Twitter account, August 5, 2018).

Rocket and mortar shell fire

• This past week no rockets or mortar shells were fired at Israeli territory.

Rocket and mortar shell fire during and between the recent rounds of escalation^[4]

Monthly Distribution of Rocket and Mortar Shell Fire since January 2018

Annual Distribution of Rocket Hits

Israel constructs a marine barrier to the north of the Gaza Strip border

• The Israeli defense ministry issued, for the first time, pictures of a marine barrier being built to the north of the Gaza Strip border, a new response to security threats from the sea. It is 200 (219 yards) meters long by 50 meters (55 yards) wide and will have a fence six meters (6.5 yards) high. The barrier will have additional facilities that will warn of infiltration from the sea. The construction of the barrier will be completed by the end of the year, and will serve Israel’s security for many years to come. The decision to build the marine barrier was made after Operation Protective Edge, during which a squad of Hamas naval commandos landed on the Zikim shore north of the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian media and Hamas-affiliated sites reported the barrier’s construction (Shehab Facebook page, August 5, 2018).

   
The construction of the marine barrier to the north of the Gaza Strip border (Israeli defense ministry’s spokesman’s unit, August 5, 2018).

The Rafah Crossing

• Egypt opened the Rafah Crossing on August 7 and closed it on August 7. It was opened to allow pilgrims from Gaza to fly to Mecca from the Cairo airport (Akhbar al-Youm, August 3, 2018). The Palestinian waqf reported that 3,321 Palestinians were planning to leave the Gaza Strip to fulfill their religious duty of hajj (Filastin al-Yawm, August 3, 2018).

Egypt delivers gas to the Gaza Strip

• In light of the continued launching of incendiary balloons from the Gaza Strip, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman announced on Aug 1, 2018, that Israel would stop the transfer of fuel and cooking gas to the Gaza Strip through the Kerem Shalom Crossing (Israel HaYom, August 1, 2018). Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) spokesman Da’ud Shehab said in response that the decision to intensify the “siege” on the Gaza Strip and prevent fuel and cooking gas from reaching the Gaza Strip was an attempt to create new facts on the ground and damage Egypt’s attempts to reach an agreement (Filastin al-Yawm, August 2, 2018).
• Following the stopping of the transfer of fuel from Israel and in an attempt to improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, Egypt announced a number of measures to ease the Gazans’ lot. For the first time, Egypt began sending cooking gas into the Gaza Strip through the Rafah Crossing (Dunia al-Watan, August 3, 2018). It was also reported that Egypt would allow the passage of trucks carrying sheep and cattle, fruit and building materials into Gaza (Ra’ya, August 5, 2018). According to Khalil Shakfa, the head of the General Authority of Petroleum in the ministry of the treasury in Gaza, the entry of 250 tons of cooking gas was authorized for an interim period, until the completion of facilities for delivering Egyptian gas to Gaza on a daily basis. He said the price of Egyptian gas was similar to the price of Israeli gas, that is, 5 Israeli shekels (about $1.40) per kilo (al-Anadolu News and Ma’an, August 5, 2018).

Electricity and water in the Gaza Strip

• The Gazan electric company reported that electricity was supplied in cycles of four hours with electricity and a 16-hour hiatus (Dunia al-Watan, August 4, 2018). The office of the EU in Gaza reported that newly-provided solar energy supplied 0.5 megawatts, and thanks to new investments, the water desalination plant in the southern Gaza Strip would provide drinking water for an additional 75,000 Gazans in the Khan Yunis and Rafah areas. By 2020 the desalination plant will provide water for 250,000 residents (Filastin al-Yawm, August 2, 2018).

Attempts for an agreement with the Gaza Strip

• Mediated by Egypt and Nikolay Mladenov, the UN envoy to the Middle East, talks and contacts continue in order to reach a lull with Israel and promote the internal Palestinian reconciliation. Most of the details are classified to keep the efforts from being undermined. Various sources say the agreement includes several stages: the first will ease the “siege” in return for ending the “marches” and an end to launching incendiary kites and balloons. After that the “siege” will be lifted and various projects will be begun in order to improve Gaza’s economy and development. Later stages will include a stabilized ceasefire of several years and then negotiations will begin for the exchange of prisoners (al-Sharq al-Awsat, August 4, 2018).
• A delegation of the senior Hamas leadership living outside Gaza, headed by Saleh al-Arouri, deputy head of Hamas’ political bureau, arrived from Egypt to meet with the senior leadership in the Gaza Strip. The objective of the meeting was to update the Gazan leadership on the attempts to reach an agreement (al-Arabi21, August 2, 2018). On August 5, 2018, the delegation held a meeting with representatives from all the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip. During the meeting Husam Badran said the decision to make war or peace was a national decision and needed the overall agreement of the various organizations (Palinfo, August 5, 2018).

   
Right: Isma’il Haniyeh, head of Hamas’ political bureau, meets with his deputy, Saleh al-Arouri, and members of the external Hamas delegation when they arrive in the Gaza Strip (Hamas website, August 2, 2018). Left: The Hamas delegation, headed by Saleh al-Arouri (second from left), pays a visit to the grave of Ahmed Yassin (Palinfo Twitter account, August 5, 2018).

Fatah’s response

• In view of the fact that so far attempts to reach an agreement have not borne fruit, Fatah accused Hamas of attempting to reach an agreement at the expense of the internal Palestinian reconciliation, and claimed the agreement was becoming part of the “deal of the century” [the agreement formulated by the United States]. Fatah spokesman Usama al-Qawasmeh warned Hamas not to sign a lull agreement in return for humanitarian aid (Safa, August 4, 2018). Ahmed al-Majdalani, a member of the PLO’s Executive Committee, said he hoped the hudna [ceasefire] would not serve the “deal of the century.” He added that any agreement with Israel had to be national, and that Hamas did not have the right to sign an agreement with Israel (al-Quds, August 5, 2018). In response senior Hamas figure Sami Abu Zuhri said the decision to sign a lull agreement would be made for the sake of national interests and that anyone who had security coordination with Israel did not have the right to discuss Gaza’s sacrifice.
• In the meantime Egypt continues its efforts to advance the internal Palestinian reconciliation. According to reports, Egypt made a number of changes to its reconciliation initiative. It now has three stages instead of four, in response to the demand to hand the governance of the Gaza Strip over to the PA and to transfer tax collection and the payment of Gazans’ salaries to the PA (al-Hayat, August 6, 2018).
• Nabil Shaath, advisor to Mahmoud Abbas for international affairs, said UN envoy Nikolay Mladenov was working energetically to return the PA to the Gaza Strip. He added that was in addition to the lull agreement, the agreement to open the crossings with Egypt, an exchange of prisoners, the construction of a port and airport, and economic projects. Shaath said all the sides agreed it was clear that everything had to go through the PA. He also said that Hamas played an key role in the lull and prisoner exchanges, but matters relating to the tunnels, weapons, economy and airport would only be dealt with by the PA (Ma’an, August 5, 2018).

Israel’s response

• On August 5, 2018, Israel’s security cabinet met to discuss the plan for the lull in the Gaza Strip. Chief of Staff General Gadi Eizenkot briefed the ministers on the situation in the Gaza Strip. No decisions were made and ministers were not asked to confirm Israel’s part in reaching an agreement. An announcement was made at the end of the meeting to the effect that the IDF was ready for all scenarios (Ynet, August 5, 2018).

Hamas-manufactured sniper rifle

• Hamas’ military wing issued a video of a sniper rifle the wing had manufactured. It is called the “al-Ghoul,” after Adnan al-Ghoul, an engineer working in the service of Hamas’ military wing who was allegedly killed by Israel in 2004. According to the video, the rifle has a caliber of 14.5 mm (.57 inches) and a range of up to two kilometers (1.24 miles). The video claimed that a number of IDF soldiers were hit by military wing snipers using the rifle (Hamas military wing website, August 3, 2018).

Military training in Hamas’ summer camps

• On August 6, 2018, Hamas opened its “Pioneers of Liberation” summer camps for children and adolescents. The camps operate in two shifts a day, morning and evening, in Hamas military wing posts. Campers undergo military and semi-military training.

   
The first day of the “Pioneers of Liberation” camp at the al-Qadissiya post in the Khan Yunis district (Facebook page of Hamas’ central committee for summer camps, August 6, 2018). The sitting instructor is uniformed and apparently a military operative.

   
The first day of the “Pioneers of Liberation” evening camp at the al-Yarmouk post in the Khan Yunis district (Facebook page of Hamas’ central committee for summer camps, August 6, 2018).

   
Simulation of assault and abduction held at a summer camp near the al-Amal network of Khan Yunis (Facebook page of the Khan Yunis summer camp committee, August 1, 2018).

Mahmoud Abbas makes changes in the Palestinian leadership

• Mahmoud Abbas is working to reorganize the Palestinian leadership. He announced a number of changes and new appointments to key positions (Wafa, August 1, 2018). The changes known to the ITIC so far are:
  • Mahmoud Abbas will serve as chairman of the PLO’s Executive Committee and be in charge of the Palestinian National Fund.
  • Taysir Khaled, from the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, was removed from his position as head of the department of expatriate affairs of the PLO’s Executive Committee. The department is directly subordinate to Mahmoud Abbas.
  • Issa Qaraqe, chairman of the Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission, was removed from office. He was replaced by Qadri Omar Abu Bakr, a former senior figure in the PA’s security forces (Wafa, August 5, 2018).
  • Nabil Abu Rudeina, spokesman for Mahmoud Abbas, was appointed deputy prime minister and minister of information.
  • Nabil Shaath, advisor to Mahmoud Abbas for foreign and international relations, was appointed to head the department of expatriate affairs.
  • Mahmoud Abbas also announced the abolishment of the department of shaheeds, prisoners and the wounded, and transferring care of their affairs to Saeb Erekat, secretary of the PLO’s Executive Committee.
• In the meantime the Palestinian media reported that a meeting of the PLO’s Central Council is expected to be held in the middle of August. The meeting will deal with the dissolution of the PA and its institutions as part of preparations for declaring a Palestinian state.
• Mahmoud Abbas’ actions were severely criticized throughout the entire spectrum of Palestinian politics. Most of the criticism was directed at the firing of Issa Qaraqe. According to Taysir Nasrallah, a member of Fatah’s Revolutionary Council, firing Qaraqe was the result of his criticism of the PA and what was called his “political ambitions” (Shabakat Quds, August 5, 2018). According to various sources, the Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission may be merged with the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club, which is headed by Qadoura Fares. According to sources, pressure has been exerted on Qaraqe and Fares since the end of the prisoners’ hunger strike in May 2017 because it has been claimed that they supported the strike, which was led by Marwan Barghouti (al-Arabi al-Jadeed. August 3, 2018).

   
Right: Qadri Omar Abu Bakr, appointed to replace Issa Qaraqe as chairman of the Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission (Palestinian TV Facebook page, August 6, 2018). Left: Ceremony held by Abu Bakr at the Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission (Commission website, August 5, 2018).

UNRWA’s financial crisis

• Demonstrations continue in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip in front of UNRWA offices to protest the cuts in the support the agency provides. Scott Anderson, UNRWA director in Judea and Samaria, held a press conference where he said that despite UNRWA’s difficulties, they had managed to find the funds they needed to open the new school year. However, Matthias Schmale, UNRWA director of operations in the Gaza Strip, said in an interview that UNRWA had a deficit of $460 million and that so far the agency had not received the funds necessary to open its schools in the Gaza Strip, Judea and Samaria. He also said the agency was doing its best to ensure the continued distribution of food packages to the Palestinian refugees (Ma’an, August 2, 2018).

   
Matthias Schmale, UNRWA director of operations in the Gaza Strip, during an interview (Ma’an, August 2, 2018). Left: Anti-UNRWA demonstration in the Balata refugee camp in Nablus to protest the firing of hundreds of employees (Wafa, August 3, 2018).

The flotilla to the Gaza Strip

• On August 3, 2018, Israeli navy forces took control of the Huriya, the second Freedom Flotilla Coalition boat to sail from Italy in an attempt to reach the Gaza Strip. The takeover of the boat was without exceptional events. The boat was towed to the southern Israeli port of Ashdod and its 12 civilian passengers were removed for further procedures (IDF spokesperson, August 4, 2018). The event was not extensively covered by the global media.

• The Supreme National Authority of the Return March and Breaking the Siege on the Gaza Strip held a press conference where it denounced Israel’s takeover of the boat en route to the Gaza Strip. According to the activist speaking for the Authority, the passengers were 12 activists from various countries and correspondents from the Iranian Press TV channel. He added that the Palestinians would continue to work on land and sea until the “siege” of the Gaza Strip had been lifted (al-Aqsa, August 3, 2018).
• On August 5, 2018, the Supreme National Authority announced the sailing of a protest flotilla from the Gaza Strip. The flotilla consisted of two boats with about 20 passengers, among them sick Palestinians, handicapped, children, adolescents and media personnel. The boats sailed northward for an hour and then returned.
• A press conference was held where Bassem al-Munasra, spokesman for the Authority, said the activity had been a peaceful naval demonstration and a message of objections to the “Zionist terrorism” against the Freedom Flotilla and its foreign activists. He said it also expressed the right of the Palestinians to sail in the waters off the coast of the Gaza Strip and Gaza’s right to sea lanes and a port, in accordance with international law and international human rights. He also said the activities would continue on land and at sea until all the [Palestinians’] objectives had been attained (al-Aqsa, August 5, 2018).