2018–2019 Gaza border protests

Protest campaign for refugee rights in the Gaza Strip Casualties and losses The 2018–2019 Gaza border protests , also known as the Great March of Return ( ), were a series of demonstrations held each Friday in the Gaza Strip near the Gaza-Israel border from 30 March 2018 until 27 December 2019, during which a total of 223 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces. The demonstrators demanded that the Palestinian refugees must be allowed to return to lands they were displaced from in what is now Israel and they protested against Israel's land, air and sea blockade of the Gaza Strip and the United States recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel . The first demonstrations were organized by independent activists, but the initiative was soon endorsed by Hamas , the rulers of the Gaza Strip, as well as other major factions in Gaza. The activists who planned the Great March of Return intended it to last only from 30 March 2018 ( Land Day ) to 15 May ( Nakba Day ) but the demonstrations continued for almost 18 months until Hamas on 27 December 2019 announced that they would be postponed. Thirty thousand Palestinians participated in the first demonstration on 30 March. Larger protests took place on the following Fridays, 6 April, 13 April, 20 April, 27 April, 4 May, and 11 May — each of which involved at least 10,000 demonstrators — while smaller numbers attended activities during the week. Most of the demonstrators demonstrated peacefully far from the border fence. Peter Cammack, a fellow with the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace , argued that the march indicated a new trend in Palestinian society and Hamas, with a shift away from violence towards non-violent forms of protest. Nevertheless, groups consisting mainly of young men approached the fence and committed acts of violence directed towards the Israeli side. Israeli officials said the demonstrations were used by Hamas as cover for launching attacks against Israel. At least 110 Palestinians were killed between 30 March and 15 May 2018, a number of whom were members of various Palestinian militant organizations: an independent United Nations commission set the number of known militants killed at 29 out of the 183. Other sources claim a higher figure, of at least 40. Israeli soldiers fired tear gas and live ammunition. According to Robert Mardini, head of Middle East for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), more than 13,000 Palestinians were wounded as of 19 June 2018, the majority severely, with some 1,400 struck by three to five bullets. No Israelis were physically harmed from 30 March to 12 May, until one Israeli soldier was reported as slightly wounded on 14 May, the day the protests peaked. The same day, 59 or 60 Palestinians were shot dead at twelve clash points along the border fence, Hamas claimed 50 of them as its militants, and Islamic Jihad claimed 3 of the 62 killed as members of its military wing. Some 35,000 Palestinians protested that day, with thousands approaching the fence. Israel's use of deadly force was condemned on 13 June 2018 in a United Nations General Assembly resolution . Condemnations also came from human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch , B'Tselem , and Amnesty International , and by United Nations officials. Kuwait proposed two United Nations Security Council statements, both blocked by the United States , which called for investigations into Israel's killing of Palestinian protesters. The Israeli government has praised Israeli troops for protecting the border fence. Media coverage of the demonstrations, and what has been termed the " PR battle", has been the object of analysis and controversy. In late February 2019, a United Nations Human Rights Council 's independent commission found that of the 489 cases of Palestinian deaths or injuries analyzed only two were possibly justified as responses to danger by Israeli security forces, deeming the rest illegal, and concluded with a recommendation calling on Israel to examine whether war crimes or crimes against humanity had been committed, and if so, to bring those responsible to trial. "Palestinians carry on rallies in Gaza on third consecutive Friday – Xinhua – English.news.cn" . An IDF spokesman, Lt Col Jonathan Conricus, said one soldier had been "slightly wounded by shrapnel" on Monday but he did not have details on the source of the injury." "3 soldiers wounded in wake of incessant barrage of Gaza mortars" . Khaled Abu Toameh, "Hamas vows Gaza protests last until Palestinians return to all of Palestine" , The Times of Israel , 9 April 2018. "The protests are an uprising for "Jerusalem, Palestine, and the right of return", he said, referring to the demand that Palestinian refugees and their descendants be allowed to return to their former homes in Israel." David M. "They are objecting to Israel's 11-year-old blockade of Gaza and seeking to revive international interest in Palestinian claims of a right of return to the lands they were displaced from in 1948." David M. "Masses of Palestinians are expected to come to the Gaza border on Friday and move into tents there for a planned six-week-long protest 'to demand the right of return to the homes and villages that they were expelled from in 1948'", Ahmad Abu Ratima, an organizer of the protest, told The Jerusalem Post ". The New York Times . "Israeli troops fire shots, tear gas at Gaza protesters, 1,100 ..." Reuters . The New York Times . "15 Killed, Dozens Wounded, as Thousands Gather on Gaza-Israel Border for "March of Return" " . "Gaza braces for protests and funerals a day after at least 58 Palestinians killed by Israeli troops" . Israeli troops shot dead seven Palestinian protesters …Gaza medical officials said, raising the death toll to 27 in the week-long disturbances. "OCHA Flash Update: No Palestinian fatalities but hundreds reported injured in Gaza during continuing demonstrations along the fence with Israel" . Seven of these interviewees not only witnessed people being shot, but were also themselves shot. The shootings happened at places where protests were held near the perimeter fences that separate the Gaza Strip from Israel, including east of Jabalya, Gaza City, Khan Yunis, and Rafah. Their accounts, along with photographs and videos, show a pattern of Israeli forces shooting people who posed no imminent threat to life with live ammunition." Abdelaziz, Salma; Lee, Ian (16 May 2018).

Protest campaign for refugee rights in Gaza Not to be confused with March of Return (Israel) . The 2018–2019 Gaza border protests , also known as the Great March of Return ( Arabic : مسیرة العودة الكبرى , romanized : Masīra al-ʿawda al-kubrā ), were a series of demonstrations held each Friday in Gaza near the Gaza-Israel border from 30 March 2018 until 27 December 2019, in which Israel killed a total of 223 Palestinians . The demonstrators demanded that the Palestinian refugees must be allowed to return to lands they were displaced from in what is now Israel . They protested against Israel's land, air and sea blockade of Gaza and the United States recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel . The first demonstrations were organized by independent activists, but the initiative was soon endorsed by Hamas , the governing party of Gaza, as well as other major factions in Gaza. The activists who planned the Great March of Return intended it to last only from 30 March 2018 ( Land Day ) to 15 May ( Nakba Day ) but the demonstrations continued for almost 18 months until Hamas announced on 27 December 2019 that they would be postponed. Thirty thousand Palestinians participated in the first demonstration on 30 March. Larger protests took place on the following Fridays, 6 April, 13 April, 20 April, 27 April, 4 May, and 11 May — each of which involved at least 10,000 demonstrators — while smaller numbers attended activities during the week. Most of the demonstrators demonstrated peacefully far from the border fence. Peter Cammack, a fellow with the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace , argued that the march indicated a new trend in Palestinian society and Hamas, with a shift away from violence towards non-violent forms of protest. Nevertheless, smaller groups attempted to breach the fence, rolling tires, and throwing stones and molotov cocktails . Israeli officials said the demonstrations were used by Hamas as cover for launching attacks against Israel. An independent United Nations commission said that at least 29 out of the 189 killed were militants. Israeli soldiers fired tear gas and live ammunition. According to Robert Mardini , head of Middle East for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), more than 13,000 Palestinians were wounded as of 19 June 2018. The majority were wounded severely, with some 1,400 struck by three to five bullets. No Israelis were physically harmed from 30 March to 12 May, until one Israeli soldier was reported as slightly wounded on 14 May, the day the protests peaked. The same day, 59 or 60 Palestinians were shot dead at twelve clash points along the border fence. Hamas claimed 50 of them as its militants, and Islamic Jihad claimed 3 of the 62 killed as members of its military wing. Some 35,000 Palestinians protested that day, with thousands approaching the fence. Israel's use of deadly force was condemned on 13 June 2018 in a United Nations General Assembly resolution . Condemnations also came from human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch , B'Tselem , and Amnesty International , and by United Nations officials. Kuwait proposed two United Nations Security Council statements, both blocked by the United States , which called for investigations into Israel's killing of Palestinian protesters. The Israeli government praised Israeli troops for protecting the border fence. Media coverage of the demonstrations, and what has been termed the " PR battle", has been the object of analysis and controversy. In late February 2019, a United Nations Human Rights Council 's independent commission found that of the 489 cases of Palestinian deaths or injuries analyzed, only two were possibly justified as responses to danger by Israeli security forces. The commission deemed the rest of the cases illegal, and concluded with a recommendation calling on Israel to examine whether war crimes or crimes against humanity had been committed, and if so, to bring those responsible to trial. "Palestinians carry on rallies in Gaza on third consecutive Friday – Xinhua – English.news.cn" . An IDF spokesman, Lt Col Jonathan Conricus, said one soldier had been "slightly wounded by shrapnel" on Monday but he did not have details on the source of the injury." "3 soldiers wounded in wake of incessant barrage of Gaza mortars" . "They are objecting to Israel's 11-year-old blockade of Gaza and seeking to revive international interest in Palestinian claims of a right of return to the lands they were displaced from in 1948." Khaled Abu Toameh, "Hamas vows Gaza protests last until Palestinians return to all of Palestine" , The Times of Israel , 9 April 2018. "The protests are an uprising for "Jerusalem, Palestine, and the right of return", he said, referring to the demand that Palestinian refugees and their descendants be allowed to return to their former homes in Israel." David M. "Masses of Palestinians are expected to come to the Gaza border on Friday and move into tents there for a planned six-week-long protest 'to demand the right of return to the homes and villages that they were expelled from in 1948'", Ahmad Abu Ratima, an organizer of the protest, told The Jerusalem Post ". The New York Times . "Israeli troops fire shots, tear gas at Gaza protesters, 1,100 ..." Reuters . "15 Killed, Dozens Wounded, as Thousands Gather on Gaza-Israel Border for "March of Return" " . "Gaza braces for protests and funerals a day after at least 58 Palestinians killed by Israeli troops" . Seven of these interviewees not only witnessed people being shot, but were also themselves shot. The shootings happened at places where protests were held near the perimeter fences that separate Gaza from Israel, including east of Jabalya, Gaza City, Khan Yunis, and Rafah. Their accounts, along with photographs and videos, show a pattern of Israeli forces shooting people who posed no imminent threat to life with live ammunition." Abdelaziz, Salma; Lee, Ian (16 May 2018). The Times of Israel . The New York Times . Report of the independent international commission of inquiry on the protests in the Occupied Palestinian Territory Human Rights Council 25 February 2019: "The commission investigated all 189 fatalities and tracked more than 300 injuries caused by the Israeli security forces at the demonstration sites and during the demonstrations. With the exception of one incident in northern Gaza on 14 May that may have amounted to “direct participation in hostilities” and one incident in Central Gaza on 12 October that may have constituted an “imminent threat to life or serious injury” to the Israeli security forces, the commission found reasonable grounds to believe that, in all other cases, the use of live ammunition by Israeli security forces against demonstrators was unlawful."