<html>
<body>
<font size=3><br><br>
The Palestine Monitor<br>
A PNGO Information Clearinghouse<br><br>
UPDATE<br>
Number of Palestinian children killed rises to 545 on Palestinian Child
Day <br><br>
6 April, 2004<br><br>
<a href="http://www.palestinemonitor.org/updates/palestinian_child_day.htm" eudora="autourl">http://www.palestinemonitor.org/updates/palestinian_child_day.htm</a><br><br>
Israeli troops saw in Palestinian Child Day yesterday by killing
two<br>
boys and another young man in Hajour Adiq, north of the Al Buriej<br>
refugee camp in the Gaza Strip.<br><br>
Imad Arajourdi (17), Mohammad Erweda (17), and Mohammad Abu
Samaderneh<br>
(19), all from the Al Buriej camp, were hit by tank shells in the
early<br>
hours of yesterday morning. Local residents said they had heard
tank<br>
fire at about 1am, but Palestinian security and medical services
were<br>
not informed of the deaths until 9 in the morning and the bodies
were<br>
not handed over until the afternoon and had not been properly
preserved<br>
during the intervening hours.<br><br>
The Israeli forces said they had feared the three were planting mines
on<br>
a road near the Netzarim settlement, but later admitted the three
had<br>
been unarmed. It seems likely they were trying to enter Israel to
find<br>
work.<br><br>
The deaths of Imad Arajourdi and Mohammad Erweda bring the number
of<br>
children killed by Israeli forces since the beginning of the Intifada
to<br>
545. In addition to these deaths, the Palestinian Authority's
ministry<br>
for prisoners' affairs has called for international pressure for
the<br>
release of 348 Palestinian children locked in Israeli jails. <br><br>
The ministry declared that in addition to these 348 children, 209<br>
children have turned 18 in Israeli captivity. A ministry statement<br>
expressed particular concern for 30 incarcerated children who are
sick<br>
and not receiving sufficient medical care, and 24 children who have
been<br>
detained without charge. The statement pointed out that Israeli
action<br>
in the Occupied Territories is a flagrant violation of
international<br>
laws and conventions that should guarantee the rights of children
in<br>
times of war and conflict. <br><br>
To coincide with Palestinian Child Day, the Palestinian Central
Bureau<br>
of Statistics released a report that found that 70.3% of the child<br>
population in the Occupied Territories currently lives below the
poverty<br>
line. In the West Bank, 59.5% of children live in poverty, while in
Gaza<br>
this figure rises to 88.2%. In total, 1,321,000 Palestinian
children<br>
have been condemned to lives of deprivation and disease by the<br>
occupation.<br><br>
<a href="http://www.palestinemonitor.org/updates/palestinian_child_day.htm" eudora="autourl">http://www.palestinemonitor.org/updates/palestinian_child_day.htm</a><br>
For more information contact: The Palestine Monitor <br>
+972 (0)2 298 5372 or +972 (0)59 387 087<br>
<a href="http://www.palestinemonitor.org/" eudora="autourl">http://www.palestinemonitor.org</a><br><br>
<br>
<br>
</font><font size=3 color="#FF0000">The Freedom Archives<br>
522 Valencia Street<br>
San Francisco, CA 94110<br>
(415) 863-9977<br>
</font><font size=3><a href="http://www.freedomarchives.org/" eudora="autourl">www.freedomarchives.org</a></font></body>
</html>