Between 17–20 January, the Israeli army closed all three road entrances to Hizma, a village in the West Bank near Jerusalem, home to over 7,300 people, writes David Polden. They kept its main entrance closed for another eight days. The Israeli army stated that this was a response to stone- throwing from the village toward Israeli settler vehicles travelling past the village.
Restricting the freedom of movement of some 7,000 people constitutes collective punishment, which is prohibited under international law. This illustrates the Israeli military’s routine, arbitrary use of its power in dealing with the Palestinian population.