UNRWA Gaza field assessment of IDF Operation Days of Penitence
Report, UNRWA, 22 October 2004
i. Introduction
Late on 28 September 2004 large numbers of Israeli Defence Force (IDF) tanks,
bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers moved into Northern Gaza from
permanent bases in Nissanit settlement, Erez Industrial Zone and the Eastern
Border, tearing up roads and flattening homes and crops as they pushed forward.
Israeli Army units established strategic positions on high ground overlooking
the Jabalia, Izbet Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia areas; troops also deployed
along the main road between Jabalia camp and Beit Hanoun and on the northern
and eastern sides of Jabalia camp.
Over the next 17 days the IDF remained in control of Northern Gaza. An estimated
200 armoured vehicles were on the ground in towns, villages and densely populated
refugee camps, launching regular raids into civilian areas, firing on Palestinian
targets from the air and ground, sealing off Palestinian neighbourhoods and
restricting movement of civilians and humanitarian/emergency relief workers.
Large swathes of agricultural land were leveled and there was widespread
damage to public and private property -- homes, schools, commercial interests
- and public infrastructure. IDF bulldozers dug deep trenches across several
main roads, severing sewage, water and electricity lines.
During the operation, approximately 36,000 Palestinians in different locations,
including Beit Hanoun (22,000 persons), Izbet Beit Hanoun (5,000 persons),
the areas east of Sikka St. and Salah Eddin St (2,500 persons), Nada and
Awda towers (2,500 persons) and parts of Jabalia camp (4,000 persons) were
under siege. Many thousands of civilians were unable to leave their homes,
as fighting raged around them. An additional 4,000 persons fled their homes
in the affected areas.
The stated aim of the IDF operation was to prevent the firing of homemade
Palestinian rockets into the Israeli town of Sderot. These have killed four
Israeli citizens in recent months. At the time of the IDF redeployment on
15 October over 100 Palestinians had been killed, including 27 children,
and over 400 injured. Operation Days of Penitence was the largest IDF incursion
into Gaza since the start of the Al-Aqsa intifada in September 2000.
This report summarizes the preliminary findings of UNRWA's field assessment
of 16 October 2004, in the form of general data and a sector-by-sector review,
which details the Agency's response and planned activities.
ii. General Data
Casualties
According to data collected by UNRWA's Field Security Office, 107 Palestinians
were killed and 431 injured during Operation Days of Penitence. This is the
number of confirmed casualties and is likely to rise. Tank shells and helicopter
missiles, fired into densely populated areas, caused many of the casualties.
A quarter of those killed (27) were aged 18 years and under. Five Israelis
were killed during the same period.
The dead include nine UNRWA pupils from six schools and two teachers.
These latest deaths bring to 1,796 the number of Palestinians killed in Gaza
since the start of the intifada; a further 12,600 persons have been injured.
October 2004 has been the deadliest month so far, with 112 killed as at 17.10.2004.
Destruction of homes
According to initial investigations by UNRWA social workers and technical
staff, 675 Palestinians were made homeless during the IDF operation: 91 homes,
for 143 families, were destroyed. Over 90 percent of those affected were
refugees. The total cost of rebuilding these homes is estimated at around
USD 2.5 million. A further 101 homes (housing 833 persons) sustained damage.
The majority of homes destroyed were on the eastern edge of Jabalia camp,
close to Block 4. This was the most intense house demolition operation in
northern Gaza since the start of the second intifada.
Across the territory as a whole, demolition rates have reached alarming levels
in 2004: 1,360 Gazans per month, or 45 persons each day, have been made homeless
as a result of IDF demolition operations. Whilst Operation Days of Penitence
was ongoing in Northern Gaza, 482 persons were made homeless in Rafah, as
the IDF continue to hack away at Palestinian areas along the Egyptian border.
Destruction of public buildings and commercial property
In addition, 19 public premises and commercial properties were completely
destroyed during the incursion, either by IDF shelling or bulldozers. These
included PA security compounds, as well as a mosque, two farms, three factories
and several workshops and small shops.
A further 16 buildings were damaged, including five UNRWA school compounds
housing eight schools on the eastern border of Jabalia camp (see below for
more details), one governmental school, a private kindergarten and two mosques.
Damage to infrastructure
Engineers in UNRWA's Special Environmental Health Programme estimate that
damage to roads in the affected areas will cost USD 240,000 to repair : IDF
bulldozers and tanks ripped up asphalt, dug deep trenches to prevent the
movement of traffic and wrecked sandy paths. Much of the damage was wreaked
when the IDF expanded their operation into the centre of Beit Lahia town
on 13 October.
The total area of the damaged road network is around 12,000 m2. In many places
temporary repairs have already been completed. These will not survive the
winter rains.
Water, sewerage and electrical lines were also destroyed during the course
of the incursion, with the cost of repairs estimated at USD 80,000.
Total damage to infrastructure is estimated at USD 355,000.
Land leveling
Large swathes of agricultural land, in particular olive groves and citrus
trees in Beit Hanoun, were leveled during the two-week incursion. The North
Gaza Governorate is continuing work on its damage assessment: according to
information dated 15 October, between 1,000-1,100 dunums of agricultural
land and 30 greenhouses were destroyed. In excess of 50 percent of all arable
land in Beit Hanoun has now been destroyed since September 2000.
iii. Sectoral review
Education department
Teaching for 40,000 pupils at 34 UNRWA schools in Jabalia, Beit Lahia and
Beit Hanoun was suspended when the IDF operation began on 29 September. Whilst
17 schools in western Jabalia reopened on 9 October and a further 15 began
functioning on 16 October following the IDF redeployment, two schools, which
sustained extensive damage (see below for details), remain closed.
Due to the fighting and restrictions on movement, 1,154 UNRWA teachers were
prevented from reaching their duty stations, resulting in a loss of 13,938
teaching days at a cost of USD 280,000 by the end of the operation. Wherever
possible, affected students were reassigned to functioning schools.
As noted above, nine UNRWA pupils (aged 15 and below) and two teachers were
killed during the IDF operation. These include four boys at a single school.
Five UNRWA school compounds were damaged during the operation : four schools
on the eastern side of Jabalia and one in Beit Lahia. Two of the schools
sustained extensive damage and remain closed, with affected pupils and teachers
accommodated temporarily at neighbouring schools.
Tank shells and bullets were fired at schools, destroying walls and classrooms,
windows and window frames, and leaving blackboards pitted with holes. Bulldozers
destroyed boundary walls. A resident school attendant's shelter was also
demolished. Furniture was damaged and equipment, including computers, fax
machines, fans and stationery, was looted.
The cost of repairing the damage to UNRWA schools will be close to USD 100,000.
Health Department
UNRWA primary health centres in Jabalia and Beit Hanoun operated on 24 hour
shifts during the incursion and additional staff were called in to handle
the emergency situation; ambulance drivers were on call throughout and transported
46 injured persons to neighbouring hospitals.
No major outbreaks of disease or infection were reported. UNRWA health centres
were well stocked with pharmaceuticals and there was regular coordination
with other service providers (e.g. Ministry of Health, PRCS).
Access to regular services at UNRWA's clinic in Beit Hanoun was affected
by the restrictions on movement: daily out-patient attendance dropped from
400-500 patients to 200; family planning and dental services and treatment
for chronic conditions was suspended; and the child vaccination programme
and provision of ante/post natal care were reduced. Of the regular workforce
of 29, 14 staff (who live outside Beit Hanoun) were initially unable to reach
the health centre. Five of those trapped outside were later able to enter,
following coordination with the IDF.
An additional six staff members were assigned to UNRWA's Jabalia health centre
during the incursion, with a total of 79 persons on duty. The average number
of patient visits dropped from 1000/day to 500/day in the first five days
of the operation, subsequently increasing to 1200 per day. Provision of all
primary health care services continued as normal throughout.
Relief and Social Services
Over the course of the operation UNRWA, with assistance from WFP, was able
to distribute emergency food parcels to 1,000 besieged families in Northern
Gaza. Access was not afforded to relief workers until 7 October, eight days
after the incursion began. A number of planned distributions, most notably
to 26,000 persons trapped inside Beit Hanoun, had to be cancelled, despite
repeated attempts to coordinate with the IDF. Mass food shortages were not
reported during the operation and water/power supplies were only intermittently
cut.
UNRWA food parcels comprised rice, sugar, oil, powdered milk, lentils, and
canned food. The Agency also distributed water to several hundred affected
families. The Agency coordinated its distributions with WFP and ICRC.
Following the IDF redeployment and lifting of the trisection in the Gaza
Strip, the Agency has been able to resume distributing food to eligible families
under its emergency and Special Hardship Case programmes. A total of 9,000
families under the emergency programme and 300 under the SHC programme will
receive parcels by the end of October. Distributions, which were suspended
in mid-June due to restrictions placed on the Agency at Karni crossing, had
resumed on 19 September, only to be suspended again with the onset of the
IDF operation.
Over 60 families whose homes were demolished have already received relocation
fees. Social workers are continuing to process outstanding cases. The Agency
has also provided in-kind assistance to needy families -- both refugees and
non-refugees - in the form of mattresses, blankets, kitchen kits and other
supplies.
In 2004, UNRWA has disbursed almost USD 145,000 each month in rental subsidies
to families (mainly refugees) whose homes have been destroyed. A total of
4,250 families have been assisted.
(Published on The Electronic Intifada website.)
See report on:
http://www.un.org/unrwa/