A/HRC/28/78 crisis and the denial of basic human rights in Gaza was an entirely man-made result of the prolonged occupation and blockade, arguing that people in Gaza have the skills, knowledge, capability and determination to achieve sustainable peace based on human rights and to pursue sustainable economic development without reliance on international aid if only the blockade were lifted and the occupation ended. III. Situation of human rights in the West Bank A. Excessive use of force by Israeli security forces 41. According to OHCHR, in 2014 alone there were at least 50 Palestinian fatalities in incidents involving Israeli security forces in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, a figure almost double the 27 Palestinian fatalities reported in 2013 in similar circumstances.27 Most worryingly, information available to the Special Rapporteur suggests that these incidents are not isolated, but part of an increasing pattern whereby Palestinian civilians (often children) who pose no serious threat to Israeli security forces are deliberately shot and injured with rubber-coated steel bullets, or increasingly killed with live ammunition by “trigger-happy” soldiers.28 42. The period of heightened tensions across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, from 12 June to 31 August 2014, also witnessed a striking increase in the lethal use by Israel of force in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, leading to the death of 27 Palestinians, including five children, the youngest of which was only 11 years old. These reported killings have continued in recent months. On 16 October 2014, a 13-year-old child was shot with live ammunition allegedly by Israeli security forces and killed in the village of Beit Liqya in Ramallah governorate. The boy had reportedly been shot on his way back from the village’s playground and was not participating in clashes involving stone-throwing by Palestinian youths taking place at around the same time, some 150 metres away from the site of the incident.29 43. The actions taken by the Israeli security forces appear to be at odds with the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials. The plausibility of the use of firearms in self-defence or the defence of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury is questionable in many of the cases involving Palestinians exercising their right to peaceful protest. B. Right to peaceful protest 44. Concerns at the excessive use of force by Israeli security forces in the context of peaceful demonstrations received, ironically, global attention on Human Rights Day in 2014, when a Palestinian Minister, Ziad Abu Ein, died following confrontations with Israeli security forces during an olive tree planting ceremony celebrating Human Rights Day and protesting against an illegal Israeli settlement outpost nearby the occupied West Bank village of Turmus’aya. On the same day in Jalazone refugee camp in the West Bank, Israeli security forces reportedly shot a 14-year-old Palestinian boy in the head with live 27 28 29 OHCHR, “Zeid says Israel must take action to curb rise in protest fatalities in Occupied Palestinian Territory”, 12 December 2014. See Amnesty International, “Trigger-happy: Israel’s use of excessive force in the West Bank”, 2014. See Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Protection of Civilians Weekly Report, 14 – 20 October 2014. 13