MGGZ01 - ISRAELI GAZA INCURSION - JERUSALEM JUNE

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 002696 SIPDIS SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA; NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/LOGERFO E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/28/2016 TAGS: PREL ASEC CASC KPAL KWBG SUBJECT: MGGZ01 - ISRAELI GAZA INCURSION - JERUSALEM JUNE 28 1800 SITREP REF: JERUSALEM 2680 Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles. Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d). -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) The Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) held a press conference in which they displayed a copy of the ID card of missing Israeli settler Eliyahu Asheri and threatened to kill him if IDF forces did not leave Gaza. The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades has threatened additional kidnappings and rocket firing into West Bank settlements if Israeli military forces do not pull back from Gaza. IAF aircraft reportedly conducted additional strikes in Northern Gaza and near Rafah. An explosion occurred in a Palestinian house in Khan Younis, killing two, in an apparent premature detonation of a device intended for use against the IDF. President Abbas condemned Israelis attacks against bridges and the Gaza power plant, terming them "collective punishment." Palestinian power providers have begun to ration electricity, and there are concerns about the water supply given shortages of electricity to power pumps and damage to water lines. -------------- Kidnapping Updates -------------- ¶2. (C) The Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) held a news conference during the afternoon of June 28 in which they displayed the national ID card of Eliyahu Pinchas Asheri, ID # 200515773, the 18-year old settler reportedly kidnapped during the evening of June 25. The PRC provided no proof that he is alive, but reiterated an earlier threat to kill Asheri if Israel did not pull IDF forces out of the Gaza Strip. PRC Spokesman Abu Abir said that Asheri would be killed on camera. Separately, a spokesman of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades in the West Bank threatened further kidnappings in the West Bank and the firing of rockets into West Bank settlements if Israeli military operations in Gaza continue. ¶3. (C) There are no new developments regarding missing IDF Corporal Gilad Shalit. Deputy Prime Minister Nasser al-Shaer, a Hamas official, said in a news conference in Ramallah that Shalit is not in the hands of the PA government. He did not provide any details about Shalit, saying he had no information. -------------- IDF Moves -------------- ¶4. (C) Israeli aircraft are reported to have fired missiles at areas in the northern Gaza Strip. Israeli aircraft also reportedly fired on a location variously described as a training camp/rocket factory/empty house outside Rafah. -------------- "Work Accident" -------------- ¶5. (C) An explosion occurred inside a house in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, killing two Palestinians and wounding several others. Initial assessments are that the explosion was caused by the premature explosion of a bomb intended for use against the IDF. PA security sources informed political specialist that militants are still placing explosives in the northern and eastern parts of the Gaza strip. -------------- Impact of Infrastructure Attacks -------------- ¶6. (C) President Mahmoud Abbas, in a statement released by his office, called the Israeli attacks against bridges and the Gaza power plant "collective punishment and crimes against humanity." Deputy Prime Minister al-Shaer accused the Israeli government of acting above international law and of cutting off 750,000 Palestinians from power and water. ¶7. (C) According to Gaza-based staff, 75 percent of the Gaza Strip is currently without electricity, including at least one-third of Gaza City, the Deir el-Balah areas, Rafah City, and Khan Younis. The PA-owned and operated Gaza Electrical Company (GEC),the company responsible for power distribution, plans to rotate power through its distribution system in order to allow for an average transmission of electricity of six hours per day in each area of the Gaza Strip. ¶8. (C) Health sector: 75 percent of public and private primary healthcare clinics have generators. All UNRWA primary healthcare clinics have generators because they handle immunizations and vaccine storage. ¶9. (C) Staff of USAID contractor DAI estimate that water shortages will occur within 48 hours if electricity is not restored. Municipal water systems in Gaza require electricity to operate water pumps. Electricity is also needed to pump water from wells and from water network lines to roof-top tanks on apartment buildings. Hospitals are estimated to have enough water for one week. WALLES