MGGZ01 - ISRAELI GAZA INCURSION - JERUSALEM JULY

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 003029

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE, NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/LOGERFO, USAID
FOR KUNDER/MCCLOUD/BORODIN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/19/2016
TAGS: PREL ASEC CASC KPAL KWBG PHUM
SUBJECT: MGGZ01 - ISRAELI GAZA INCURSION - JERUSALEM JULY
19 SITREP

Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, per reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

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Summary
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1. (C) Approximately 100 American citizens left Gaza on
July 19. Approximately 5,200 Palestinians passed through the
Rafah crossing into Gaza on July 18. The IDF July 19 launched
a large incursion into the al-Maghazi refugee camp, killing
six Palestinians, including civilians, with at least 50
reported injuries. The IDF operation is ongoing in
al-Maghazi as of 1400 local. Qassam rockets fired from Gaza
continued to fall in or near Israeli population centers,
resulting in some light injuries and property damage. In the
West Bank, the IDF focused operations in Nablus on the main
PA security forces compound, killing three al-Aqsa Martyrs'
Brigades members, and wounding at least seven others,
including one critically. IDF units have also engaged in
clashes with Palestinian stone-throwers in Nablus, resulting
in at least 21 injuries. Palestinian President Abbas (Abu
Mazen) met with UN officials regarding the crisis in Gaza.
The Karni/al-Mintar and Nahal Oz crossings are open July 19.

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AMCIT Update
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2. (C) On the morning of July 19, Post successfully
assisted approximately 100 American citizens in leaving Gaza
via the Erez crossing point. According to ConGenoffs, one
Amcit was unable to cross due to insufficient travel
documentation, while another 16 Amcits were reported
no-shows. As of 1400 hours local, the Amcits are being
processed at Allenby Bridge en-route to Jordan.

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Rafah Crossing
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3. (C) According to ConGen Palestinian contacts,
approximately 5,200 Palestinians transited from Egypt into
Gaza via the Rafah crossing on July 18 (septel). The
crossing remained open to process those seeking passage until
midnight July 19. Nazmi Muhanna, head of the General
Administration of Crossings and Borders, told EconSpecialist
that the Rafah passenger crossing was open between 1100 and
1600, July 19. 600 people entered Gaza from Egypt.

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Military Developments
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4. (SBU) In the early hours of July 19, the IDF, supported
by APCs and tanks, moved into al-Maghazi refugee camp in the
central Gaza Strip. Intense clashes were reported, resulting
in four Palestinian gunmen and two civilians killed, and at
least 50 others injured, including 14 children from an IDF
tank shell that hit two houses in the camp. Israeli press
reported that five Israeli soldiers were wounded in the
clashes. As of 1400 local, the IDF operation is continuing
in the camp with soldiers conducting house-to-house searches.
The IAF overnight July 18-19 conducted air strikes against
militant targets in central Gaza, but there were no reported
injuries.


5. (SBU) At least eight Qassam rockets were launched from
northern Gaza toward Ashkelon, Sderot, and the Western Negev
overnight July 18-19. There were some light injuries (mostly
shock related) and some property damage. The Palestinian
Islamic Jihad (PIJ),the PRC, and the Abu Rish Brigades
claimed responsibility.


6. (SBU) In the West Bank, the IDF July 19 continued
military operations in Nablus (septel). IDF soldiers
surrounded and subsequently entered the main headquarters of
PA security forces, with three al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
reported killed and seven others wounded, including a NSF
officer in serious condition. According to Israeli press
accounts, the IDF was seeking several wanted Palestinians
hiding inside the compound. ConGen Palestinian contacts
reported that the IDF detained and transferred about 170 PA
security personnel from the compound to the IDF military base
near Huwarra for questioning. The IDF continues to operate
elsewhere in Nablus engaging Palestinian stone-throwers. At
least 21 Palestinians sustained injuries, mostly from rubber
bullets, in the clashes. In Ramallah, the IDF overnight July
18-19 arrested seven security guards protecting the

Governor's residence. IDF special undercover units also
arrested a wanted PFLP activist in Birzeit, north of Ramallah.


7. (SBU) Factional violence between Fatah and Hamas
escalated on July 18 with the attack on the Gaza home of
senior Preventive Security Organization (PSO) Officer Nabil
Tamous, a close ally of Muhammad Dahlan and the reported head
of the "Death Squads" battalion in the PSO. During the
incident, Hamas gunmen attacked the Tamous home, firing
rocket-propelled grenades and hand grenades, causing
significant damage. Several gunmen also detonated an
explosive device in the house. One PSO bodyguard was killed
and five others sustained minor injuries. Neither Tamous nor
his family were in the home at the time of the incident.
Fatah blamed the PRC and Hamas for the attack.

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Political Developments
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8. (C) Abu Mazen, in Gaza as of July 18, met with UN
officials in Gaza City to discuss the Gaza crisis. According
to the president's office, Abu Mazen is tentatively scheduled
to meet Hamas PM Isma'il Haniyyah the evening of July 19.


9. (SBU) A partial strike took place July 18 in East
Jerusalem, including the Old City, to protest Israeli
military operations in Gaza and Lebanon. Palestinian
activists had urged shopkeepers to close their businesses in
protest, but a number of businesses remained open.

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Humanitarian Update
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10. (SBU) Crossings: The Kerem Shalom and Sufa crossings
remain closed. The Karni/al-Mintar commercial crossing
opened July 19 at 1130, according to PalTrade Gaza-based
official Mohammed Skaik. The Karni crossing July 18
processed 170 inbound truckloads, mainly food, according to
Skaik. The Nahal Oz fuel transfer station is operational on
July 19. On July 18, a USAID contractor monitoring the
crossing reported the following deliveries:

-- 600,000 liters of diesel;
-- 200,000 liters of gasoline; and
-- 144 tons of cooking gas.


11. (SBU) Electricity: According to USAID Gaza-based field
staff, eight of the ten medium-tension electricity feeder
lines into Gaza are operational on July 19. One of the two
feeder lines into northern Gaza was damaged in fighting late
on July 18, so Beit Hanoun and Jabaliya did not have
electricity as of 1600 local. Water wells are operating on
stand-by generators. The single feeder line for the central
Gaza area was damaged during the IDF incursion late on July
18, so towns in the area are without power.

WALLES