Time: 9pm (local time)

In the context of the weekly demonstrations on Friday in the Gaza Strip, on 17 August 2018, Israeli forces killed two Palestinians and injured another 130 more, including 34 children, two women, and two paramedics. At least 106 of the injured people were hit by live fire and two are in critical condition according to medical sources at the time of issuing this press release.

Al Mezan’s documentation shows that from 3:30pm on Friday, 10 August 2018, Israeli forces located at the fence in the east of Gaza used live ammunition, plastic-coated steel bullets, and tear gas on unarmed protesters. Al Mezan documented the two fatal casualties on Friday as follows:

• -- Karim Fatayer, a 28-year-old resident of Deir Al Balah city, was shot in the head with live fire at 5:50pm. He was rushed to Al Aqsa Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:05pm.
• -- Saadi Abu Muammar, a 27-year-old resident of Rafah, was also shot in the head with live fire at 6:30pm. He was taken to the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis, where he was pronounced dead at 7pm.

Al Mezan’s documentation shows that Israeli forces have demonstrated a pattern of directing fire at unarmed protesters, including medics and journalists. Both live ammunition and tear gas canisters have been repeatedly fired directly at medics and journalists by Israeli forces. In this context, Al Mezan has also documented the cases of the following attacks on medics on Friday:

• -- Mahmoud Al-Massri, a 24-year-old volunteer paramedic, was hit in the right hand with a tear gas canister; and
• -- Jamal Al-Sayyed, a 30-year-old volunteer paramedic, was hit in the right knee with shrapnel.

Both paramedics volunteer with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society and were injured while providing medical aid to casualties in the east of the North Gaza district.

Al Mezan’s documentation shows that from the start of the Great Return March on 30 March 2018, 179 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza. Of them, 130 were killed in the demonstrations—including 23 children, two journalists, three paramedics, and three persons with disability. Another 9,156 people were injured, including 1,685 children, 407 women, 101 paramedics, and 84 journalists—of them 5,155 were hit by live fire, including 845 children and 111 women.

Al Mezan reiterates its strong condemnation of the use of lethal and other excessive force by the Israeli forces, including sharpshooters, to police demonstrations. Al Mezan stresses its condemnation of the continued attacks on medics, whose service adheres to the standards of impartiality and neutrality. Palestinians in Gaza have the right to peacefully assemble to demand their fundamental and inalienable human rights. The case of protesters, who pose no serious threat to the Israeli forces, being shot lethally indicates a continuation of unlawful targeting practices, despite its legal consequences and international condemnation.

Al Mezan urges the international community, led by the Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention, to take prompt and effective steps to ensure respect for international law and provide meaningful protection for unarmed protesters and civilians throughout Gaza. The duty to protect civilians is a principal legal obligation and is, at this point in the conflict, a test of the authenticity of the international community’s commitment to their legal obligations, moral standards and humanitarian objectives vis-à-vis the Palestinian population.

Al Mezan stresses its position that the failure to hold to account perpetuators of human rights and international humanitarian law violations encourages the advancement of impunity. Al Mezan therefore calls on the international community to activate accountability mechanisms to ensure that violators are brought to justice in accordance with international humanitarian and criminal law.