Child victims of Israeli terror
Twenty-five Palestinian children, between four and 16 years old, have been killed by the Israeli military since Yitzhak Rabin took office as prime minister, claims the Jerusalem Media and Communication Centre.
"The policy of killing children is clearly on the increase" says the centre. "In the same period in the previous year (24 July 1991 - 24 January 1992), during Shamir's Likud government, six children were killed. And in general the last few months have seen an increase in the level of random Israeli violence against Palestinians in the occupied territories."
The increase in killings is said to be "a result of an unwritten change of policy regarding open fire regulations. This policy was summed up by Israeli Chief-of-Staff, Ehud Barak, following the Khan Younis massacre on 19 December 1992, when six Palestinians were shot dead: 'What happened in Khan Younis will be repeated and should be taken as an example as to what can happen if residents [Palestinians] continue their protest'."
It is becoming common for snipers to target, according to the centre. "The military is now taking over high-rise buildings and placing snipers in strategic positions ...
"A new method of attack on the population is the use of anti-tank missiles in attacks against homes. In the West Bank and Gaza Strip, people are evacuated from their homes with usually 5 minutes warning. Anti-tank missiles and grenades are then fired at homes, ostensibly in the search of 'wanted' Palestinians ... In the whole of the Gaza Strip and West Bank around 30 houses have been damaged in this way since Rabin came to power."