Khan Yunis and Rafah Massacres

Khan Yunis and Rafah Massacres:

During the tripartite (British–French-Israeli) aggression against Egypt, marks the annual anniversary of the brutal atrocities committed by the Israeli occupation forces against the Palestinians in Khan Yunis refugee camp. Some 250 Palestinians were killed in cold blood in this massacre. A few days later, the Israeli army committed another terrorist atrocity in the same refugee camp, where 270 Palestinians were slaughtered.

This tragedy followed the Kufr Qasim massacre that had been perpetrated four days earlier, and took away the lives of 49 people, and 23 days after the Qalqilya onslaught. In fact, and on the same day of Israel’s brutal attack on Khan Yunis, the Zionists also killed more than 100 Palestinians in Rafah refugee camp.

Eye Witness

Hajj Abdul Ra’ouf Badran (103 years old), a contemporary witness of the Palestinian century–old catastrophes and displacement, recalls the initial phases of the massacre. The Palestinians there refused to surrender to the Israeli occupation forces which conquered Sinai, Rafah and Gaza. Instead they took to resistance and defense of the city. Badran also recalls the heavy bombardment of the residential quarters of the city by the Israeli war planes and tanks to silence the resistance. Dozens of martyrs fell, and many people were wounded as a result, and a new wave of horror and panic emerged among the inhabitants. Shivering under the heavy, melancholic reminiscences of the past, Hajj Badran said that’s why the Israeli soldiers conquered the city and started brutal retaliatory actions. He added that it never occurred to the inhabitants that the Israelis would be that brutal. They gathered our men and youth, led them to public squares, and mercilessly shot them down. According to Dr Mohammed Al Farrawho wrote a book about Khan Yunis entitled Khan Younis – Past and Present, the Israeli occupation forces intruded into private Palestinian residences, and shot indiscriminately at men and youths in front of all other members of the family. More than 500 Palestinians in Gaza were killed this way, to say nothing of other serious casualties.

3-12-1- Sheikh Omari Massacre

Abdul Majeed (Abu Muhammed), was 13 years old when the Sheikh Omari slaughter took place. He remembers how the Israeli soldiers attacked their home in the Qarrar residencial area, and led him with his elder brother Abdul Raheem, and other young people to Sheikh Omari. Abdul Majeed said that an Israeli soldier asked him to stay away from the group and go back home, only to see the Israeli soldiers shoot at the almost 50-members of Palestinian youth for no reason.

• Some of them died, others pretended to be dead, or tried to escape the horrible scene. Abu Mohammed was obviously very moved in recalling the event. Having heard the story from her trembling son before, Um Al Abed unconsciously hurried to the massacre scene. Her elder son had already emitted his last breath. Um Al Abed still remembers, with deep furrows lining her face, that she was encouraged to meet the last wish of the wounded and fetch them water, adding that the Palestinians then soon moved the corpses and buried them, while they sent the wounded for treatment.

3-12-2– A Criminal plan

• A survivor of the slaughter, Abdul Qader Al Astal, said the Israeli soldiers started to gather the youth of the village in the morning. As the number approached 50, we were ordered to align in one row. The soldiers then told us that they would kill the first man in the row and the next two would move him to the road-side. This criminal plan was immediately carried out. After 10 executions had already been carried out, another Israeli patrol arrived to the scene and all of the Israeli soldiers left for Sheikh Omari area. They assaulted Diwan Al Fayyad and killed all of its family members. Twenty-Five Palestinians were killed in that onslaught, among them were Abdul Raheem Abdul Ghafour, Abdallah Fayyad, Moh’d Fayyad, Abdul Azeez Fayyad, Abdul Razzaq Fayyad, Saleem Al Shami, Salman Al Shami. Al Astal believes it’s high time that the file of this massacre was opened and its perpetrators tried and punished. Hence he calls upon appropriate lawyers to take up this task.

3-12-3– Martyrs are swimming in their blood

• On his part, another survivor of this slaughter, Abu Yousif Aashur (75 years old), described the war crimes committed by the Israeli soldiers in another venue of brutal atrocities, namely in Khan Yunis refugee camp, where 30 Palestinians were killed and many injured, including himself. Aashur still suffers from that wound. He recalls that the Israeli soldiers conquered the area, broke down the doors and evacuated the houses of all those 15-years old and He said that they then were escorted to the Club area, ordered to stand in lines, and were shot at from all directions. Deeply distressed as he spoke, Aashur said he fell on the ground out of terror and pretended to be dead as he was certain the Israelis were determined to leave the area drowned in blood.

3-12-4– A Call to investigate the crime

• Aashur raises his voice along with those other voices demanding aninvestigation into this crime and the punishment of the perpetrators. He also noted that, now and then, he hears of followup efforts of this issue, but these are neglected as soon as the anniversary is passed. Thus he underlines the fact that a genuine and sincere effort is duly needed to ensure the rights of the martyrs and wounded relatives are observed, especially that such issues can be raised under internal law at international courts.

Dr Kamal Al Astal, chairman of the Department of Political Sciences, commented on this issue, and said that massacres are crimes of war and are punished under international law and in accordance with the Fourth Geneva Convention. He said that it is the right of the Palestinian people to demand the setting up of an international committee to investigate this massacre where hundreds of civilians were victimized at the hands of the Israeli occupying army. It is also their right to demand the punishment of the perpetrators of the current and on-going slaughter and brutal atrocities committed against the Palestinian people.