massacres d'enfants palestiniens (sources DCI/PS)

2008/06/09

Wilful killing of baby by Israeli army in Gaza house raid


Name of victim: Amira A.
Date of incident: 4 March 2008
Age of victim: 20 days
Location: Abu al-Ageen, southern Gaza

On 4 March 2008, Israeli tanks under aerial helicopter coverage
besieged the home of Youssef S., a wanted Palestinian combatant, near
Khan Younis in southern Gaza1. For several hours, Israeli soldiers
directed gunfire towards the house and its occupants, including 15
children, and subjected them to cruel, inhumane and degrading
treatment. During the raid, Israeli soldiers fired upon unarmed
civilians, including children, as they followed orders to exit the
house. This unlawful act claimed the life of 20-day-old Amira, who was
shot in the head while in her mother's arms. DCI/PS strongly condemns
the wilful killing of civilians, which constitutes a war crime under
international humanitarian law.

Description of incident

In the early evening hours of 4 March 2008, Khaled A. and his wife
Nadia arrived at the home of their friend, Youssef S., in Abu al-Ageen
near Khan Younis in southern Gaza. They had come to visit Youssef's
mother, Alia', who was suffering from renal failure and had recently
been hospitalised. With them, were their two daughters Nadine (2), and
Amira, just 20 days old.

Several members of Youssef's family were also in his house that
evening: his mother Alia' (76), his wife Aziza (43), and their
children, Mu'ath (17), Alia' (16), Omar (15), Iman (13), Shayma' (12),
Mohammed (11), Neveen (7), and twins Hassan and Hussein (5). Youssef's
brother, Mahmoud, was also there with his children Bilal (15), Faten
(14), Tariq (13), and Iyad (11). Altogether, there were 15 children
inside the house that evening.

When Khaled and his family first arrived at Youssef's house, the men,
women and children sat together in the living room for approximately
half an hour. It was past 6:00 pm when Khaled, Youssef, Mahmoud, and
their sons moved to the diwan, a sitting area for men, for dinner. The
diwan was located outdoors, approximately eight metres away from the
house. The sun had set shortly before 6:00 pm and it was dark outside.
When the siege began, the men and boys were eating dinner in the diwan
while the women and girls were in the living room inside the house.

As they ate dinner inside, the women heard the sound of gunfire and an
approaching helicopter. The sound was coming towards the western side
of the house where the women and children were seated. The women
immediately gathered the children and ran into the kitchen on the
north side of the house for cover. Nadia was carrying baby Amira in
her arms. Youssef's mother remained alone in the living room because
she could not walk or easily move due to her failing health.

At about the same time, the men heard a strange sound and Youssef
asked his 11-year-old nephew Iyad to see what was happening. Iyad
looked out the door of the diwan and yelled out that he saw tanks.
Khaled ran to the door where he too saw tanks approaching the western
side of the house. He quickly exited the diwan and with Iyad ran
towards the house. Youssef fled in the opposite direction, away from
the house. Khaled reports he had run a distance of about eight metres
when heavy gunfire began. He dropped to the ground to avoid being hit
by live fire and crawled the remaining distance to the house. When he
entered the house, Khaled saw a tank through one of the windows; it
was stopped at the western side of the house. Afraid that the soldiers
might see him, he ran into the kitchen on the north side of the house
where he found the women and children crouching on the floor in fear.
When Khaled reached the kitchen, he noticed Iyad had been shot in the
arm and was bleeding heavily. Khaled gripped Iyad's arm to stop the
bleeding and with his other hand held his daughter Nadine on his left.

Sustained and heavy gunfire from Israeli forces continued from all
directions and bullets were flying both outside and inside the house.
According to eyewitness statements gathered by DCI/PS, the soldiers
neither ordered the occupants to exit the house and surrender nor gave
prior warning before the gunfire began. Eyewitnesses provided further
testimony asserting that occupants inside the house were unarmed and
did not exchange fire with Israeli forces. They were unaware of any
clashes taking place in the area at that time. To the best of DCI/PS'
knowledge based on the evidence gathered, there was no exchange of
fire between Palestinian combatants and Israeli forces prior to or
during the raid.

After several more minutes of heavy gunfire, a voice called through a
megaphone in broken Arabic, "Everyone leave the house, young and old,
leave the house." The soldier repeated his order three times. From
inside the kitchen, Nadia could see the front door of the house, which
was open, and the soldiers standing outside. Youssef's wife, Aziza,
told Nadia, "You are carrying a baby so leave first as they may take
sympathy on us." Nadia stepped out of the kitchen first with baby
Amira in her arms. Amira was wrapped in a white sheet, her head
clearly visible. Directly behind Nadia was Aziza, who was carrying her
daughter Neveen, and then Youssef's 14-year-old niece Faten. Khaled
and the rest of the children stood just behind them inside the
kitchen. Before stepping out of the kitchen, the women called out
together, "We are coming out. We are coming out" and the soldier
answered through the megaphone, "Leave one by one."

As Nadia stepped out of the kitchen and into the living room she saw
the soldiers just beyond the entrance of the house. Some were lying on
the ground on their stomachs while others were kneeling on one knee,
all with their weapons directed at her. They were wearing helmets
equipped with night vision binoculars. One of the soldiers pointed the
red laser emanating from his weapon at baby Amira and slowly moved it
along her body. The soldier with the megaphone asked, "What are you
holding in your hands?" Faten, Youssef's niece answered, "katen"
meaning baby in Hebrew, repeating the word several times. Another
soldier directed a bright spotlight at Nadia and her baby, switching
it on and off several times. At the same time, Nadia cautiously
proceeded to exit the kitchen into the living room. She was just one
metre beyond the kitchen door when the soldiers, who were
approximately eight metres away, opened fire without warning or
provocation.

In the barrage of gunfire, Nadia was struck in her right upper arm.
She immediately secured Amira in her left arm and scrambled back into
the kitchen following the others. Khaled took Amira from his wife's
arms. He reports seeing at that moment that Amira's head was covered
in blood and that she appeared to be dead. He passed baby Amira to
Faten so he could tie his wife's arm to stem the bleeding from her
wound. Fearful for her baby, Nadia asked about Amira but Faten told
her not to worry, her daughter was fine. The scene in the kitchen was
one of chaos and commotion. Women and children screaming in panic,
crying in fear while gunfire continued to ring out both inside and
outside of the house. Several minutes later, the gunfire ceased and
the soldier once again commanded through the megaphone in broken
Arabic, "Leave the house or we will bomb it." Left with no other
choice, the group made their way out of the kitchen with Nadia out in
front once again. Faten followed directly behind her with Amira still
in her arms.

After they exited the house, the soldiers ordered the women and
children to sit on the ground. They handcuffed Khaled, Mu'ath (17),
Bilal (15), and Omar (15), and sat them down on the ground with their
backs facing the women and children. The soldiers then started to beat
them, hitting them with their guns and kicking them, as the women and
children looked on. Testimonies from two eyewitnesses indicate the
soldiers beat the two younger boys, Bilal and Omar, more than the
others. Khaled tried to reason with the soldiers in Hebrew, telling
them that his wife had been injured and needed medical attention. They
replied by insulting him and his wife. One soldier, who was kneeling
on the ground next to Nadia, laughed and verbally insulted her honour
as she cried in pain and fear. Nadia reported that every few minutes a
soldier would walk by and shoot the ground around where the women and
children were sitting then laugh and walk away.

While Khaled and the three boys were beaten, one soldier ordered them
to remove their clothing. They removed their shirts and trousers as
they continued to be beaten. Another soldier then ordered them to
remove their undergarments but Khaled refused because they were in the
presence of women. The soldier once again ordered them to remove their
undergarments, threatening to kill them if they did not comply. When
they refused again, the soldier proceeded to fire gunshots on the
ground all around their legs to further threaten and intimidate them.
Khaled and the boys endured more beatings for at least another half
hour and Khaled recalled hearing one of the soldiers say to another in
Hebrew, "Let's kill them all and be done with it."

At the same time, other soldiers continued to shoot in and around
Youssef's home. Nadia and Youssef's wife, Aziza, called out to them
repeatedly, telling them there was an elderly woman who cannot walk
still inside the house. One soldier answered, "Tell her to come out".
Nadia repeated, "She cannot walk." The gunfire ceased for a moment and
Nadia and Aziza called out to Alia', telling her to come out of the
house. After several minutes, Alia' appeared at the door, dragging
herself along the ground. The soldiers sat her on the ground with the
women and children. Nadia reported that Alia' was panicked and terrified.

Mu'ath's statement reveals that the soldiers subjected him to
particularly harsh treatment when they learned he was Youssef's son
after he was asked to identify himself. The soldiers blindfolded
Mu'ath, still stripped of his shirt and trousers, and forced him to go
back inside the house as they searched its interior. One soldier
grabbed him by the hair and pushed him forward into the house. Once
inside, Mu'ath could hear the sound of several soldiers searching
through the house. A soldier asked him, "Where are the weapons?" and
pressed the barrel of his rifle against his neck. When Mu'ath replied
that there were no weapons in the house, the soldiers beat him,
kicking him in the abdomen. After their search, the soldiers brought
him back outside to where Omar, Bilal, and Khaled were being held.

The siege lasted for at least another half hour before Israeli
military jeeps arrived at the scene. The soldiers ordered Khaled and
Mu'ath to put their clothes back on, blindfolded them, and put them
each in a separate jeep. The jeeps left first, taking Mu'ath and
Khaled, then the helicopter, tanks and remaining soldiers began to
withdraw. While inside the military jeep, Mu'ath recounts that the
soldiers held him at gunpoint and tormented him. One soldier said to
him while laughing, "Your father is dead. We killed him. He is over
there (pointing) on the ground."

After waiting several more minutes to make sure the soldiers did not
return, Nadia gathered the children then began walking to find help.
Youssef's wife remained behind with his mother Alia'. Faten walked
beside Nadia, with Amira still in her arms. In her statement to
DCI/PS, Faten says she realised Amira was dead as she held her during
the siege. She reported that Amira's body was lifeless and she could
feel the blood from the baby's gunshot wound seeping onto her shirt.
Faten however chose not to tell Nadia that her daughter had died.

Nadia and the children walked for approximately 15 minutes before they
arrived at a house where they could summon medical help. An ambulance
arrived shortly after and immediately transferred the injured to
Shuhuda al-Aqsa Hospital where Amira was pronounced dead on arrival.
This is when Nadia learned her baby had been killed. That same night,
Nadia underwent surgery on her right arm and was released from the
hospital after several days.

According to the medical report obtained by DCI/PS, Nadia was still
undergoing medical treatment several weeks following the incident. At
the time eyewitness statements were first taken just days after the
attack, 11-year-old Iyad, still recovering in the hospital from the
gunshot wound to his arm, was suffering from severe post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) and was unable to recall events or even speak
about them. His 14-year-old sister Faten was also showing clear
symptoms of PTSD after carrying Amira's lifeless body for most of the
siege. The DCI/PS fieldworker who investigated this case was only able
to collect statements from Iyad and Faten on his third visit to the
area in early June. DCI/PS also learned that Youssef's 76-year-old
mother, Alia', died several days after the siege. The emotional and
physical stress of the ordeal undoubtedly impacted her already failing
health. Following the raid, the surviving members of Youssef's family
moved into the nearby home of a relative since their house suffered
damage from the heavy gunfire. DCI/PS later learned that several days
after the raid, Israeli forces demolished the nearby home of another
one of Youssef's relatives. Youssef's family has since returned to
their home although exterior damage remains.

Extra-judicial execution

According to a statement published by the Gaza-based Al-Mezan Centre
for Human Rights, there is sufficient evidence to suggest that Youssef
was the victim of an extra-judicial execution after he fled his house
that evening. Al-Mezan reports that neighbours discovered Youssef's
body in an open area, about 150 metres from his house at approximately
10:00 am on the morning after the siege (5 March). He had sustained a
bullet wound to the chest and his skull was crushed. An initial
post-mortem examination indicated that he was killed when his skull
was crushed as a vehicle ran over him after he had already been
injured by a live bullet and was lying on the ground. Al-Mezan
condemns the assassination of Youssef and draws a parallel with a 2001
case in which two Palestinian naval force staff who were injured and
posed no immediate threat were deliberately struck and killed by
Israeli military vehicles.

DCI/PS strongly condemns the excessive use of force against unarmed
Palestinian civilians posing no threat to Israeli soldiers. In a
non-combat situation, the soldiers should have employed law
enforcement means to bring a wanted suspect to justice. If Israeli
forces raided Youssef's home on 4 March because he was in fact wanted
by Israel at the time, the military operation should have entailed his
arrest and prosecution; not the shooting of unarmed civilians and
arbitrary brutalisation of at least 20 people among his family and
friends, including 15 children.

Wilful killing of civilians

The soldiers acted recklessly in the way they dealt with Youssef's
family and friends, using lethal force unjustified by military
necessity according to the circumstances. They showed no intention of
taking precautions to avoid or minimise harm to civilians, especially
children. Eyewitness testimonies obtained by DCI/PS fieldworkers
reveal that the Israeli soldiers intentionally fired on civilians,
including children, even as they obeyed orders to exit the house
without resistance. DCI/PS field investigations also indicate that
despite her being wrapped in a sheet, Amira's head was clearly visible
for the soldiers to see. The soldiers were standing approximately
eight metres away from Nadia and her child, and equipped with night
vision binoculars and spotlights to enhance their vision capabilities.
When Nadia was asked what she was carrying in her arms, one of the
children explicitly and repeatedly responded "baby" (katen) in Hebrew.
Despite this, the soldiers opened fire on the woman and child.

As a High Contracting Party to the Fourth Geneva Convention, Israel
has a legal duty to protect civilians who are not actively taking part
in hostilities, particularly if they are wounded or infirm. Of the
family members and guests in Youssef's home on the evening of the
raid, 15 were children, who are granted special protection under
international law. As a State Party to the UN Convention on the Rights
of the Child (UNCRC), Israel is legally obligated to recognise every
child's "inherent right to life" and "ensure the survival and
development of the child to the maximum extent possible." However, no
consideration was given by the soldiers to the status of the occupants
of the house, and no precautionary measures were taken before the
start of the shooting to spare civilians, and particularly children,
who might be inside.

In international humanitarian law, civilian deaths that are
intentional and not justified by military necessity amount to war
crimes. "Wilful killings" of protected persons, or "wilfully causing
serious injury to body and health" of protected persons, also
constitute a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention (Article
147), for which individuals can be held criminally responsible. All
High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention are under a
legal obligation to search for persons alleged to have committed, or
ordered to be committed, such grave breaches, and to bring them in
front of their domestic courts or to exercise universal jurisdiction
and hand them over for trial to another High Contracting Party
(Article 146).

Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment

Once they were outside of the house, the soldiers deliberately
terrorised and threatened the women and children by shooting the
ground around them and laughing at their fear. Moreover, the soldiers
subjected Khaled, Youssef's 17 and 15-year-old sons, and his
15-year-old nephew to humiliating and degrading treatment, forcing
them to strip their clothes and endure beatings in front of the women
and children. Mu'ath was particularly exposed to cruel physical and
psychological abuse for being related to a wanted combatant. When the
soldiers identified Mu'ath as Youssef's eldest son, they forced him
back inside the house and threatened and physically abused him to gain
information on weapons they alleged were inside. Mu'ath was later
detained at gunpoint in a military jeep where soldiers further carried
out acts of psychological abuse.

Article 3 of the Fourth Geneva Convention protects persons taking no
active part in hostilities from "violence to life and person and
outrages upon personal dignity, in particular humiliating and
degrading treatment." Further protection is afforded by Article 27 of
the Convention that states, "protected persons shall at all times be
humanely treated, and shall be protected especially against all acts
of violence or threats thereof." The UN Convention Against Torture
(UNCAT), to which Israel is a signatory, defines torture as acts
perpetrated by persons acting in an official capacity which
intentionally inflict pain or suffering "for the purpose of punishing
him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of
having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person,
or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind" (Article 1). As
a State Party to the UNCRC, Israel also has a legal obligation to
protect children from "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment."

House demolitions

Israeli forces frequently carry out house demolitions as part of its
military operations, including search and arrest operations. Article
53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention strictly prohibits the destruction
of personal property except in circumstances justified by military
necessity. In order to establish military necessity, several
conditions must be met: the house demolition must meet the principle
of proportionality, meaning the military advantage gained must
outweigh the damage caused to civilians and their property; the house
must be deemed essential to combat operations posing a specific threat
to occupation forces; and all other less harmful options must be
exhausted. House demolitions are also routinely employed as a punitive
measure against Palestinians, who have carried out or are suspected of
having carried out violent acts against Israelis, or their extended
family. Punitive house demolitions do not meet the requirements of
military necessity and amounts to collective punishment, which is
prohibited by the Fourth Geneva Convention (Article 33).

House demolitions have devastating impacts on Palestinian families,
with children suffering disproportionately from its effects. Children
often experience psychological trauma and an acute sense of insecurity
after losing their homes and their belongings. As families struggle to
survive without access to basic necessities and social services, the
children often face gaps in their education. According to a recent
survey conducted by the Palestinian Counselling Centre with support
from Save the Children UK and the Welfare Association, the emotional
and behavioural impacts persist well beyond the first six months
following a demolition and include increased aggression, depression,
bedwetting, and poor academic performance2.

On 4 March, an otherwise normal evening among family and friends in
the comfort and safety of their home was shattered by the brutal
violence of a military raid. The 14 children who survived this ordeal
have been psychologically scarred for life, but the full impact of
this incident, especially on its youngest victims, is impossible to
measure.

DCI/PS strongly condemns the excessive and unnecessary use of force
against unarmed Palestinian civilians who posed no threat to Israel
soldiers at the time of the incident. In light of the documented facts
surrounding the killing of Amira, DCI/PS calls on the High Contracting
Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to call on Israel to prosecute
those responsible for committing these grave breaches, failing which,
the High Contracting Parties should themselves identify, search for
and prosecute those responsible, in accordance with their legal
obligations under international humanitarian law.

DCI/PS again calls on Israel to compel its army to respect its legal
obligations under international humanitarian law and respect the lives
of Palestinian children.

------------ ------

1. DCI/PS investigated this incident over a period of three months,
during which the Gaza fieldworker collected five statements from
victims and eyewitnesses in three separate visits and several follow
up phone calls with those directly involved in and affected by the
attack. The case study is built on information gathered from four of
the victims.

2. Long Term Implications of Israel's House Demolition Policy and
Practice on Palestinian Children and Their Families, forthcoming.