Bureij (camp)
Encyclopedia
Bureij is a Palestinian refugee camp located in the central Gaza Strip
east of the Salah ad-Din road in the Deir al-Balah Governorate
. The camp's total land area is 529 dunum
s and in 2005, it had a population of 34,951 with 28,770 registered refugees.
The camp was established in 1949 with a population of 13,000 Palestinians from the broader Gaza area. A small percentage of the refugees were housed in the British
army barracks but the bulk of them were housed in tents. The UNRWA built concrete homes in 1950 to replace the tents.
Most of the refugees today like those in most camps in the Gaza Strip today live in densely populated shelters. The camp does not have a sewage system and most waste accumalates in the Wadi Gaza, a stream north of the camp and as a result poses a health hazard. Most of the camp's water comes from an Israel
i water company.
Bureij has six primary and two secondary schools with a population of 9,306 pupils at the end of 2004. All schools are operated by the UNRWA.
starting training "a patrol of the unit [] infiltrated into the Gaza Strip as an exercise, encountered [Palestinians] in al-Bureij refugee camp, opened fire to rescue itself and left behind about 30 killed Arabs and dozens of wounded." According to Bishara 43 Palestinian civilians with seven women amongst them were killed, and 22 wounded. The Mixed Armistice Commission report put the total at " 20" killed and twenty-seven seriously wounded and thirty-five less seriously wounded. Unit 101 suffered two wounded soldiers. Ariel Sharon
, who had personally led the attack wrote in his report:
The raid was heavily condemned by the Mixed Armistice Commission
, who called it “an appalling case of deliberate mass murder”, the raid was publicly criticized in the Israeli cabinet by at least one minister. The Mixed Armistice Commission, in an emergency meeting, adopted by a majority vote a resolution according to which the attack was made by a group of armed Israelis. Major General Bennike Chief of Staff of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization
stated that it was "probable in view of the fact that a quarter of the Israel complaints during the preceding four weeks referred to infiltration in this area" that the likely explanation was a "ruthless reprisal raid".
On 22 August 1988, Hani al-Shami from Bureij was killed by Israeli soldiers from the Givati Brigade
. Maher Mahmud al-Makadma was shot and killed by IDF troops while painting slogans on 4 October 1989. On 20 September 1990, an Israeli soldier in civilian clothes either took a wrong turn into Bureij or broke down and walked into the refugee camp where he was killed by a lynch mob.
On 11 March 2002, a mass round-up of Palestinians took place when tanks entered the Bureij refugee camp killing two people. An IDF raid on 6 December 2002 by Israeli tanks and helicopter gunships led to 10 people being killed. A UN investigation found that eight of those killed in the attack were unarmed civilians. Of those, two were UN employees. On 6 March 2004 an Israeli raiding force was ambushed and came under fire.
An IDF raid on Bureij refugee camp in July 2007 by approximately 10 tanks and two bulldozers backed by helicopters was ambushed by members of Hamas's armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
killing an IDF soldier. On 6 October 2007, Israeli forces breaking into the eastern part of the camp with the cover of Israeli aircraft led to armed clashes in the camp.
The extra judicial assassination occurred on 27 February 2008 in the camp. During the Israeli shelling
of the Gaza Strip in January 2009 ten people were injured at a UN health centre in the Bureij refugee camp and four people kiled with 16 others wounded in a market.
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
east of the Salah ad-Din road in the Deir al-Balah Governorate
Deir al-Balah Governorate
The Deir el-Balah Governorate is one of 16 Governorates of the Palestinian National Authority in the central Gaza Strip which is administered by the Palestinian National Authority aside from its border with Israel, airspace and maritime territory. Its total land area consists of 56 sq. kilometers...
. The camp's total land area is 529 dunum
Dunam
A dunam or dönüm, dunum, donum, dynym, dulum was a non-SI unit of land area used in the Ottoman Empire and representing the amount of land that can be plowed in a day; its value varied from 900–2500 m²...
s and in 2005, it had a population of 34,951 with 28,770 registered refugees.
The camp was established in 1949 with a population of 13,000 Palestinians from the broader Gaza area. A small percentage of the refugees were housed in the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
army barracks but the bulk of them were housed in tents. The UNRWA built concrete homes in 1950 to replace the tents.
Most of the refugees today like those in most camps in the Gaza Strip today live in densely populated shelters. The camp does not have a sewage system and most waste accumalates in the Wadi Gaza, a stream north of the camp and as a result poses a health hazard. Most of the camp's water comes from an Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i water company.
Bureij has six primary and two secondary schools with a population of 9,306 pupils at the end of 2004. All schools are operated by the UNRWA.
Incidents in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
On the night of 28 August 1953 bombs were thrown through the windows of huts in which refugees were sleeping and, as they fled, they were attacked by small arms and automatic weapons. According to Gelber, after one month of Unit 101Unit 101
Unit 101 was a special forces unit of the Israeli Defense Forces , founded and commanded by Ariel Sharon on orders from Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion in August 1953...
starting training "a patrol of the unit [] infiltrated into the Gaza Strip as an exercise, encountered [Palestinians] in al-Bureij refugee camp, opened fire to rescue itself and left behind about 30 killed Arabs and dozens of wounded." According to Bishara 43 Palestinian civilians with seven women amongst them were killed, and 22 wounded. The Mixed Armistice Commission report put the total at " 20" killed and twenty-seven seriously wounded and thirty-five less seriously wounded. Unit 101 suffered two wounded soldiers. Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
, who had personally led the attack wrote in his report:
- "The enemy opened fire on me from the northwest... I decided that it was better to pass through the camp and slip out the other side than to go back the way I came, because crops, gardens, barbed wire and guards made it difficult to move in that direction... I also decided that offensive action was better than giving the impression that we were attempting to escape... Therefore I invaded the camp with my group."
The raid was heavily condemned by the Mixed Armistice Commission
Mixed Armistice Commissions
The Mixed Armistice Commissions is an organisation for monitoring the ceasefire along the lines set by the General Armistice Agreements. It was composed of United Nations Military Observers and was part of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization peacekeeping force in the Middle East...
, who called it “an appalling case of deliberate mass murder”, the raid was publicly criticized in the Israeli cabinet by at least one minister. The Mixed Armistice Commission, in an emergency meeting, adopted by a majority vote a resolution according to which the attack was made by a group of armed Israelis. Major General Bennike Chief of Staff of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization
United Nations Truce Supervision Organization
The United Nations Truce Supervision Organization is an organization founded on 29 May 1948 for peacekeeping in the Middle East. Its primary task was providing the military command structure to the peace keeping forces in the Middle East to enable the peace keepers to observe and maintain the...
stated that it was "probable in view of the fact that a quarter of the Israel complaints during the preceding four weeks referred to infiltration in this area" that the likely explanation was a "ruthless reprisal raid".
On 22 August 1988, Hani al-Shami from Bureij was killed by Israeli soldiers from the Givati Brigade
Givati Brigade
The Givati Brigade is an infantry brigade of the Israel Defense Forces, and serves as its amphibious force. Givati soldiers are designated by purple berets...
. Maher Mahmud al-Makadma was shot and killed by IDF troops while painting slogans on 4 October 1989. On 20 September 1990, an Israeli soldier in civilian clothes either took a wrong turn into Bureij or broke down and walked into the refugee camp where he was killed by a lynch mob.
On 11 March 2002, a mass round-up of Palestinians took place when tanks entered the Bureij refugee camp killing two people. An IDF raid on 6 December 2002 by Israeli tanks and helicopter gunships led to 10 people being killed. A UN investigation found that eight of those killed in the attack were unarmed civilians. Of those, two were UN employees. On 6 March 2004 an Israeli raiding force was ambushed and came under fire.
An IDF raid on Bureij refugee camp in July 2007 by approximately 10 tanks and two bulldozers backed by helicopters was ambushed by members of Hamas's armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades is the military wing of the Palestinian Islamist fundamentalist socio-political organisation Hamas. Created in 1992, under the direction of Yahya Ayyash, the primary objective of the group was to build a coherent military organisation to support the goals of...
killing an IDF soldier. On 6 October 2007, Israeli forces breaking into the eastern part of the camp with the cover of Israeli aircraft led to armed clashes in the camp.
The extra judicial assassination occurred on 27 February 2008 in the camp. During the Israeli shelling
2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict
The Gaza War, known as Operation Cast Lead in Israel and as the Gaza Massacre in the Arab world, was a three-week bombing and invasion of the Gaza Strip by Israel, and hundreds of rocket attacks on south of Israel which...
of the Gaza Strip in January 2009 ten people were injured at a UN health centre in the Bureij refugee camp and four people kiled with 16 others wounded in a market.
External links
- Al-Bureij Rehabilitation Society, 7 April 2007.
- A Woman's Centre Takes on Domestic Violence in the Gaza Strip, 14 September, United Nations Population Fund, 2005.
- Bureij, articles from UNWRA
Audio and video
- Heavy gunbattles right in the heart of the Bureij refugee camp, BBC News, 6 December 2002.
- Profile: Bureij Refugee Camp Recovering From Most Recent Israeli Incursion in the Gaza Strip, National Public Radio, 3 March 2003.