A sample of Israeli military violence in the West Bank

Illustrative: IDF troops in a raid in the West Bank. (Israel Defense Forces)

Maybe it’s not as dramatic as what’s happening in Gaza, but the West Bank has its own set of intolerable circumstances. In A Routine Founded on Violence, Israeli NGO B’Tselem reports statistics on just three of the many ongoing injustices in the West Bank – all three contravene international law.

Checkpoints: In July 2018, OCHA recorded 705 permanent obstacles across the West Bank restricting Palestinian movement. Another count was kept of flying checkpoints: from January 2017 to the end of July 2018, Israeli forces added 4,924 ad-hoc checkpoints (nearly 60 a week) to the 700 permanent ones. (Read an eyewitness account of a Palestinian’s commute through Checkpoint 300 – with amazing photos – here.)

Military raids on Palestinian homes in the dead of night, with soldiers waking entire families and ransacking their property, have become a staple of the occupation regime in the West Bank. The forces are not required to present a search warrant and are sent in at any time and place their commanders see fit, in keeping with the military’s adoption of sweeping arbitrary powers. These actions, which are clearly designed to intimidate the population, are unjustified. This is yet another example of daily life under the occupation. (Read about just two raids here.)

Arrest/detention: At the end of August 2019, there were 4,787 Palestinian security detainees and prisoners being held in Israel Prison Service (IPS) facilities, including 312 from the Gaza Strip. Another 629 Palestinians, 16 of them from the Gaza Strip, were in IPS prisons for being in Israel illegally. The IPS classifies these Palestinians – both detainees and prisoners – criminal offenders.

B’Tselem’s 2-week tally of arrests, raids, and temporary or “flying” checkpoints (11-24 May, 2019) gives us a glimpse into Israeli military actions that must elicit a constant state of fear that Palestinians (especially children) must feel.

It is essential to keep in mind that the context of this report is Palestinian land. This is not happening in Israel – it’s happening in Palestine.

From May 11 through May 24 Israeli security forces arrested at least 97 Palestinians, including 11 minors; made at least 95 raids on towns and villages; raided at least 92 homes; and set up at least 99 flying checkpoints.

(Below is a breakdown by district)

• In the Hebron District, Israeli security forces arrested at least 12 Palestinians, made at least 8 raids on towns and villages and raided at least 14 homes; and set up at least 25 flying checkpoints.

• In the Bethlehem District, Israeli security forces arrested at least 12 Palestinians, including 2 minors; made at least 7 raids on towns and villages and raided at least 12 homes; and set up at least 6 flying checkpoints.

• In the Ramallah District, Israeli security forces arrested at least 25 Palestinians, including 7 minor; made at least 21 raids on towns and villages and raided at least 27 homes; and set up at least 6 flying checkpoints.

• In the Nablus District, Israeli security forces arrested at least 13 Palestinians, including 1 minor; made at least 13 raids on towns and villages and raided at least 6 homes; and set up at least 5 flying checkpoints.

• In the Jordan Valley, Israeli security forces arrested at least 30 Palestinians, including 5 minors; made at least 19 raids on towns and villages and raided at least 9 homes; and set up at least 22 flying checkpoints.

• In the northern West Bank, Israeli security forces arrested at least 30 Palestinians, including 1 minor; made at least 27 raids on towns and villages and raided at least 24 homes; and set up at least 35 flying checkpoints.