During the reporting period, 31 Palestinian civilians, including 4 children and 5 women, were wounded when IOF used excessive force against peaceful demonstrations organized in protest to the construction of the Annexation Wall and settlement activities in the West Bank.

During the reporting period, IOF issued a military order declaring the area of the Annexation Wall in Bal'ein and Ne'lin villages, west of Ramallah, a closed military zone on Fridays, banning access of Palestinian civilians to the area.  According to the order, such ban will remain effective until 17 August 2010. 

In the Gaza Strip, IOF fired at Palestinian workers and fishing boats.  They also fire at a peaceful protest against the security zone IOF plan to establish along the border. 

On 12 March 2010, Israeli warplanes bombarded and destroyed a factory of plastics in Khan Yunis.

During the reporting period, IOF conducted at least 13 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank.  IOF arrested 27 Palestinian civilians, including two children and a journalist.  

In the Gaza Strip, on 12 March 2010, IOF moved into the east of Jabalya town in the northern Gaza Strip.  They leveled areas of land which they had already razed.

IOF have continued to impose a tightened siege on the OPT and imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.

Gaza Strip

IOF have continued to close all border crossings to the Gaza Strip for more than two years. The Israeli siege of Gaza, which has steadily tightened since June 2007, has had a disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic situation in the Gaza Strip.   

• On Friday, 01 January 2010, IOF decided to close the crossing permanently, and to allow the entry of fuels through Karm Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing, southeast of Rafah, for security claims.     

• 1.5 million people are being denied their basic rights, including freedom of movement, and their rights to appropriate living conditions, work, health and education.

• The main concern of the population of the Gaza Strip is to obtain their basic needs of food, medicines, water and electricity supplies.

• IOF have continued to prevent the entry of raw construction materials into the Gaza Strip for more than two years.

• IOF have not allowed fuel supplies into the Gaza Strip, excluding few amounts of cooking gas and energy fuel for Gaza Power Plant, since 10 December 2008.

• The Rafah International Crossing Point has been opened for a few days for a number of patients who received medical treatment abroad and needed to return home to the Gaza Strip.

• IOF have continued to close Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing in the face of Palestinian civilians wishing to travel to the West Bank and Israeli for medical treatment, trade or social visits.

• IOF have imposed additional restrictions on access of international diplomats, journalists and humanitarian workers to the Gaza Strip. They have prevented representatives of several international humanitarian organizations from entering the Gaza Strip.

• Living conditions of the Palestinian civilian population have seriously deteriorated; levels of poverty and unemployment have sharply mounted.

• At least 800 Gazan prisoners in Israeli jails have been deprived for family visitation for more than two years. 

• IOF have continued to attack Palestinian fishermen along the Gaza Strip coast.

West Bank

IOF have continued to impose severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians throughout the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem. Thousands of Palestinian civilians from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip continue to be denied access to Jerusalem.

• IOF have established checkpoints in and around Jerusalem, severely restricting Palestinian access to the city. Civilians are frequently prevented from praying at the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

• There are approximately permanent 630 roadblocks, manned and unmanned checkpoints across the West Bank. In addition, there are some 60-80 ‘flying’ or temporary checkpoints erected across the West Bank by IOF every week.

• When complete, the illegal Annexation Wall will stretch for 724 kilometers around the West Bank, further isolating the entire population. 350 kilometers of the Wall has already been constructed. Approximately 99% of the Wall has been constructed inside the West Bank itself, further confiscating Palestinian land.

• At least 65% of the main roads that leads to 18 Palestinian communities in the West Bank are closed or fully controlled by IOF (47 out of 72 roads).

• There are around 500 kilometers of restricted roads across the West Bank. In addition, approximately one third of the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem, is inaccessible to Palestinians without a permit issued by the IOF. These permits are extremely difficult to obtain.

• IOF continue to harass, and assault demonstrators who hold peaceful protests against the construction of the Annexation Wall.

• Palestinian civilians continue to be harassed by IOF in Jerusalem, and across the West Bank, including being regularly stopped and searched in the streets by IOF.

On Thursday, 11 March 2010, IOF started imposing increased restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in the old city.  According to eyewitnesses, hundreds of Border Police officers established military checkpoints at the entrances of the old city, on all of the streets inside the walls of the old city, as well as on streets in the immediate vicinity.  

They prevented all those who were not residents of the old city from entering it. In addition, Palestinians under 50 years of age were not permitted to enter al-Aqsa Mosque, all gates to the al-Aqsa compound, with the exception of al-Majles, Hattah and al-Selselah gates, were closed.  On Saturday, 13 March 2010, IOF closed al-Aqsa Secondary School for Girls, the Shari'a Secondary School and the Islamic Kindergarten of al-Aqsa, all of which are located inside al-Aqsa compound. 

These measures, which are still ongoing, came on the eve of the inauguration of a synagogue in al-Shorfah neighborhood.  The synagogue is located 300 meters to the west of al-Aqsa Mosque and was inaugurated yesterday, on Monday, 15 March 2010. IOF have continued settlement activities and Israeli settlers living in the OPT in violation of international humanitarian law have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property.

On Thursday morning, 11 March, the Israeli daily Ha'aretz reported that the Israeli Municipality of Jerusalem set out plans to build thousands of housing units in Jerusalem, especially in the east and south of the city.  The plans are supported by the Israeli government.  The distribution of the new unit is like this:  3,000 units in "Gilo" settlement; 1,500 one in "Har Homa" settlement; 1,500 ones in "Pisgat Ze'ev" settlement; 3,000 one in "Giv'at Matosim" settlement; 1,200 ones in "Ramot" settlement; 600 ones in "Armona Netseev" settlement; 450 in "Neve Yacov" settlement; and 144 ones in "Olive Mount" settlement.  A new settlement neighborhood of 13,000 housing unit will also be established near al-Walaja village, northwest of Bethlehem.

On Friday morning, 12 March 2010, dozens of Israeli settlers from "Elli" settlement attacked Battisha area in the northwest of Qaryout village, southeast of Nablus.  They uprooted 40 olive trees.