Jenin destruction has no parallel

The devastation and destruction in Jenin camp has left all those who have visited the place horrified by the magnitude of the destruction.

Talking about Jenin camp, Janine Giovanni of London's Times newspaper said: "Twelve years of covering war hadn't prepared me for this place."

United Nations envoy, Terje Roed-Larsen, who toured the Jenin refugee camp, said that the devastation left behind by the Israeli forces is "horrific beyond belief" and a "blot on the history of the state of Israel".

"It is totally destroyed, it looks like an earthquake has hit it," he noted. U.S. Undersecretary of State for the Middle East, William Burns, described the situation in the camp as a "terrible human tragedy for thousands of innocent Palestinian people".

Javier Zuniga, the human rights regional director, said: "We have concluded, on a preliminary basis, that very serious violations of human rights were committed. We are talking here (about) war crimes."

The Israeli army used every conceivable method to deal with the Jenin camp without any respect for the fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 governing the protection of civilians in times of war, which stipulates respect of human rights and protection of civilians not involved in the conflict.

This principle should be applicable to the Palestinians living in the Re-Occupied Territories who, as protected persons, should not be subject to intentional killing, torture, humiliation or destruction of property by Israel, which is a contracting party of the Geneva Convention.

In fact, Article 33 of the Convention categorically prohibits collective punishment against civilians.

"No protected person may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited. Reprisals against protected persons and their property are prohibited".

Palestinian deaths

Nevertheless, the latest Israeli incursions into the Palestinian Re-Occupied Territories have resulted in the death of at least 500 Palestinians, according to some international organisations.

Human Rights Watch also denounced the coercion of civilians to assist the Israeli army in its arrest operations by their use as human shields by Israeli soldiers as they entered the Palestinian cities.

In Jenin and Nablus, the Israeli army demolished many houses over the heads of the inhabitants. Police stations, municipalities and other official institutions were destroyed or vandalised, and vital records confiscated.

The Israeli army also targeted non-governmental institutions such as the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), schools, health units and private Radio and TV stations.

These acts of destruction and vandalism were perpetrated regardless of all the recommendations clearly expressed by Article 53 of the Geneva Convention, which proscribes "Any destruction by the Occupying Power of real or personal property belonging individually or collectively to private persons, or to the State, or to other public authorities, or to social or cooperative organisations, is prohibited".

Despite all moral norms and international laws, Israel carried out a wave of massive arrests of all males between 15 and 45 years in the Palestinian localities.

According to Amnesty International, up to April 11, more than 4,000 Palestinians had been arrested. The prisoners were blindfolded, handcuffed and held for many hours without food or shelter, and treated in a humiliating and degrading manner.

Geneva Convention

Article 3 of the Geneva Convention states "each party to apply as a minimum the following: persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by sickness, wounds, detention, or any other cause, shall in all circumstances be treated humanely…" and Article 29 stipulates "the party to the conflict in whose hands protected persons may be is responsible for the treatment accorded to them by its agents, irrespective of any individual responsibility which may be incurred".

As the Israeli military aggression continues, the humanitarian and sanitary conditions in the Re-Occupied Territories deteriorates day after day. Several humanitarian organisations have called on the international community to interfere to put an end to the disastrous situation in the Palestinians cities and camps.

The alarming reports denounce Israel's restrictions and its denial of access to humanitarian workers inside these territories. Indeed, these restrictive measures have prevented the medical staff from providing the urgently needed care to the population under siege, as well as from saving the lives of the wounded left to bleed to death by the Israeli army.

These facts are glaring proof of Israel's defiance of the international community and the Geneva Convention, which stipulates in Article 3 that "the wounded and sick shall be collected and cared for", while Articles 20 and 21 imply the respect and protection for medical personnel and convoys.

Growing concerns

Regardless of the principles of medical neutrality, the Israeli army has endangered the lives of medical personnel. According to the UNRWA director, Peter Hansen, more than 350 ambulances had been denied access and 185 ambulances had been hit by gunfire.

Under these circumstances, concerns are growing worldwide over the public health situation and the humanitarian crisis menacing over one million people living under curfew for more than three weeks now.

The accumulation of uncollected garbage as well as corpses increases the risk of epidemics. The shortage of drinking water supplies for half the population also contributes to the risk of infection, dehydration, cholera, especially for the elderly and infants. This threat becomes more real in the absence of vaccination and immunisation programmes.

The conditions in hospitals are also alarming, with a lack of almost everything - food, water, electricity and medicines. Patients suffering from chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular and renal diseases are facing a disastrous situation and are condemned to death due to the absence of care and treatment.

The UN fact-finding mission that was being set up constitutes an important first step towards establishing the truth and bringing justice. The Israeli manoeuvre to suspend its agreement of cooperation with the UN fact-finding team should not undermine the determination of the international community in revealing what really happened in Jenin.