7 November 2001
Dr. Ramadan Shallah
Secretary-General
Islamic Jihad Organization
Damascus
Dear Dr. Shallah,
Human Rights Watch strongly condemns the attack on a municipal bus in Jerusalem on November 4, claimed by Islamic Jihad, in which two civilians under eighteen years of age were killed, and at least thirty-five others were wounded. The attack follows other recent attacks against civilians that have been claimed by Islamic Jihad, and specifically endorsed by leading figures in your organization.
No matter what the aims and objectives are, attacks by any parties to a conflict that deliberately target civilians are in flagrant violation of the most fundamental principles of international humanitarian law. This prohibition applies equally whether such attacks are committed by agents of a government or by armed groups.
As you are aware, Human Rights Watch is an international human rights monitoring organization that documents and campaigns against violations of human rights and international humanitarian law throughout the world. In this connection we have for many years researched and spoken out against abuses taking place in Israel, the Occupied Territories and the areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority. Our reports and public statements covering our activities around the world, as well as on Israel, the Occupied Territories, and the Palestinian Authority, are available in English and Arabic, and can be found on our website at www.hrw.org.
On November 4 an armed Palestinian opened fire on the number 25 Egged bus at an intersection in northern Jerusalem, killing Shoshana Ben-Yishai (16) and Meni Regev (14), and wounding thirty-five other passengers, some critically. According to media reports, Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack. The gunman, who was killed by two policemen, was later identified in the Israeli media as Hatem Yaein al Shuweiki (23), from Hebron.
According to news reports, Islamic Jihad has claimed responsibility for several recent attacks that targeted civilians. These include an attack at a bus station in Hadera on October 27, in which four civilians were killed and up to fourteen others were wounded; a bomb explosion on 6 November at the Profiline factory in the Shaked industrial zone, in which three civilians were wounded; and a shooting attack on a minibus on September 9, in which two civilians were killed. Islamic Jihad also claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing of the Wall Street Café in Haifa on 12 August by Muhammad Mahmud Nasser, in which fifteen people were injured.
You have claimed that these attacks are in response to Israeli attacks against Palestinian civilians, and suggested they are a legitimate form of resistance to occupation. Under international humanitarian law, systematic attacks that target civilians constitute crimes of the gravest sort. The absolute prohibition against targeting civilians extends to acts of reprisal for attacks against one's own civilians, as well as acts to resist occupation. There can never be any justification for such blatant disregard of basic principles of international humanitarian law.
We strongly urge the Islamic Jihad organization to adopt and publicize a policy of full respect for the laws of war, and immediately stop the practice of targeting civilians or of launching indiscriminate attacks that claim civilian lives. We ask that you publicly and unequivocally call on the military wing of your organization, the Al-Quds Brigades, and any other groups or individuals acting on behalf of Islamic Jihad, to desist from any attacks or acts of reprisal that deliberately target civilians, or cause them disproportionate harm.
Sincerely,
Hanny Megally
Executive Director
Middle East and North Africa division
Human Rights Watch
