Highlights
During the month of February the situation in Palestine remained tense with 17 recorded incidents, resulting in 15 Palestinians and two Israelis killed. In February more than 400 Palestinians and 16 Israelis have been injured in clashes in West Bank and Gaza.
In February, seven Palestinian children aged between 13 and 17 years were reported killed, and more than 300 injured in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. There were two Israelis killed in the same period, including a woman, and two others injured.
During the reporting period, 82 children were arrested in East Jerusalem by Israeli Security Forces (ISF). Since the beginning of the clashes and escalation of violence in September, a total of 546 children have been arrested or detained.
In February, UNICEF, through its NGO partners, provided legal assistance and counselling to 62 arrested children including 7 girls, and 12 children under the age of criminal responsibility (12 years).
UNICEF continued to support NGO partners in ensuring protective presence on the way to, from, and around schools, especially in Hebron and East Jerusalem. More than 4,350 children and 350 teachers who cross checkpoints daily are benefiting from the programme.
In February, UNICEF continued water distribution to the most vulnerable communities in water-scarce areas in the West Bank. Since the beginning of the year more than 3,000 people (50% children) have benefitted from improved access to drinking water.
In February, UNICEF distributed micronutrient supplements to 20,000 children and women in Gaza and West Bank as part of the Primary Health Care (PHC) package.
Situation Overview
During February 2016, the situation in the State of Palestine has remained tense, with violent incidents and clashes across the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza. There have been multiple attacks and incidents resulting in deaths and injuries of Palestinians and Israelis, including children and women.
During the past month, a total of 15 Palestinians have been killed, including seven children aged between 13-17 years, and more than 940 were injured, including 316 children, the vast majority in protests and confrontations with Israeli forces. During the same period there were two Israelis killed, and two others injured.
Between 9 and 11 February the Israeli authorities destroyed at least 80 homes and livelihood-related structures in seven Palestinian communities in Area C, all but one in the Jordan Valley, displacing approximately 60 people, including 30 children.
On 17 February, the Humanitarian Coordinator for the State of Palestine, Robert Piper, called on Israel to immediately halt demolitions in the occupied West Bank and to respect international law. In the press release, Mr. Piper stated that between 1 January and 15 February 2016, Israeli forces have destroyed, dismantled or confiscated 283 homes and other structures, displacing 404 Palestinians, including 219 children, and affecting another 1,150 Palestinians, who lost structures related to their source of income.
On 21 February, Israeli forces dismantled and confiscated a new school section in the Palestinian Bedouin community of Abu Nuwar, to the east of Jerusalem, for lack of building permits. The new school comprised seven caravans and three latrines, which were donor-funded and built to serve 62 children in first and second graders in the community’s school.
During the reporting period, the Egyptian-controlled Rafah Crossing was exceptionally open in both directions, for three days, allowing 1,122 Palestinians into Gaza, and 2,439 Palestinians, mainly patients and students, to exit Gaza. Authorities in Gaza indicated that over 25,000 people with urgent needs, including around 3,500 medical cases, are registered and waiting to cross.