1_March 2019, Ramallah – On the occasion of the International Women’s Day (8 March), a week-long joint campaign “My Rights, Our Power” was launched today in Palestine to raise awareness on women’s fundamental human rights. The joint effort, with participation from over 30 national and international partners from civil society organizations, media outlets, and international development agencies, targets youth, women, and men in various geographic areas in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza to promote women’s human rights in Palestine.

The campaign comes at a crucial moment when the anticipated adoption of the Family Protection Bill is at a standstill, raising concerns among national and international stakeholders about the consequences of such delay on safeguarding women’s fundamental human rights in Palestine. According to the Palestine report of the International Men and Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES), nearly one in five Palestinian men (17 percent) surveyed said they had perpetrated act of physical intimate partner violence against female partners, while 21 per cent of women surveyed reported having experienced such violence.

“Family violence, usually committed by a family member who has social or economic power over others in the family, causes enormous pain and suffering to all members of the family, especially the women and children,” said a spokesperson from civil society, which has vigorously initiated the development of the Family Protection Bill (FPB), and has strongly pushed its adoption since 2004.

“The violation of women’s human rights manifests in various levels and should be also understood from economic, cultural, and social aspects,” the spokesperson added, highlighting the lack of opportunities and freedom of choice, as well as limited access to justice and services that women in Palestine still experience.

The joint campaign aims to raise awareness of the general public, especially youth, women, and men on women’s fundamental rights in line with international standards and embedded in the Family Protection Bill draft endorsed by the previous Cabinet at the end of December 2018. Five key messages, addressing women’s right to a life free of violence, right to achieve justice and seek help in case of violation of such life, as well as the right to equal opportunities and right to make one’s own choices, will be distributed through various channels such as radio, social media, helpline (121), outreach activities, and on-site events. The closing event of the joint campaign will take place on 8 March in Jerusalem and will celebrate women’s achievements using TED-style talks, followed by art performances.

“My Rights, Our Power” joint campaign is part of the global International Women’s Day 2019 campaign under the theme of “Think equal, build smart, innovate for change”. The theme focuses on innovative ways in which we can advance gender equality and the empowerment of women, particularly in the areas of social protection systems, access to public services and sustainable infrastructure, echoing the theme of the 63rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 63) taking place in New York on 11-22 March 2019.

The participating organizations of the “My Rights, Our Power” are (in alphabetical order): 17 Palestinian women’s organizations represented by Al-Muntada (coalition), British Consulate-General, Business Women Forum, CARE International, Consulate General of Sweden, Consulate General of Belgium, EUPOL COPPS, EU Representative Office, FAO, General Union of Palestinian Women, Government of Japan, CowaterSogema/GROW Project, International Labour Organization, Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, Ma’an TV, MIFTAH, Netherlands Representative Office, Nisaa FM, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development, Palestinian Family Planning and Protection Association, Representative Office of Canada, Representative Office of Denmark, SAWA, Sawasya II, Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, Sports for Life, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Representative Office of Norway, UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNOPS, UN Women, Women's Centre for Legal Aid and Counseling, Women’s Studies Center.

For more information, please contact Eunjin Jeong at UN Women via eunjin.jeong@unwomen.org or 059 2321 308, Majd Beltaji at UNESCO via m.beltaji@unesco.org or 059 4501 506.

Mr. President,

We thank France for organizing this important meeting and extend our appreciation to the Chef de Cabinet of the Secretary General, the Executive Director of UN Women, the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security and the Secretary-General of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie for their efforts and important briefings.

The issue before us is of relevance not only for half the planet, but to all, given the role and contribution of women in the fields of peace and security and the untapped potential that could be unleashed by mainstreaming their participation. Since the adoption by consensus of resolution 1325 by this Council, a lot has happened, and yet we are still far from the goal of full and equal participation, including in the prevention and resolution of conflicts and in peace-building, and from ensuring the protection and empowerment of women. Gender equality and non-discrimination remain prerequisites for the fulfilment of the purposes and principles of this organization and all of our lofty, collective commitments, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The State of Palestine welcomes the Secretary General’s report and his commitment to implementing the women and peace and security agenda, including by placing gender at the centre of his prevention platform and surge in diplomacy. We appreciate all efforts by the UN in this regard, including by UN Women, OHCHR and UNDP, notably in the field of human rights, capacity building, employment and rule of law. We urge UN bodies, notably those operating in Palestine, including the Special Representative, to intensify their engagement and collaboration with women organizations.

Mr. President,

I wish to highlight some of Palestine’s own important efforts in this regard. The Palestinian women’s movement is one of the oldest and strongest in the region and beyond, with institutional and representative structures established as early as the 19th century. Within the PLO, the General Union of Palestinian Women was among the first unions to be established. A coordination of women frameworks within PLO political parties and other organizations has also been established as the “Women’s Affairs Technical Committee” in the aftermath of the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference.

There have been many achievements thereafter. Among them: In 2012, Palestine inaugurated a High-Level National Committee for the implementation of resolution 1325, led by the Ministry of Women Affairs in partnership with relevant Ministries and NGOs. In 2016, the State of Palestine was among the 68 countries and areas that adopted a National Action Plan on women, peace and security.

This Action Plan (2017-2019), adopted by both the Government and civil society organizations, identifies three primary objectives: 1. ensuring protection for women and girls both domestically and in the face of the Israeli occupation; 2. ensuring accountability through national and international mechanisms, with a particular focus on crimes and violations committed by the occupation; and 3. furthering women’s political participation in decision making at the national and international level. The State of Palestine also joined core IHL and human rights instruments, including CEDAW, without reservations. Women’s participation and empowerment are also important and cross-cutting objectives in the context of the National Policy Agenda (2017-2022).

We are, however, conscious that, despite all these efforts, much more work remains to be done. Only in 2009 was a women elected to the highest executive body of the PLO. Quotas are still decisive in allowing women’s election to Parliament and local councils. And while women organizations were among the strongest advocates of national reconciliation, they have been unfairly absent from reconciliation talks. The relevant legislative framework applicable in Palestine is also outdated and must be revised to ensure consistency with Palestine’s international commitments and obligations and avail women the protection and rights they are entitled to and the opportunities they deserve.

Mr. President,

The Palestinian women’s movement since its establishment over a century ago pursued the struggle on two fronts – the struggle for the independence of Palestine and the struggle for women’s rights and empowerment – a dual struggle the movement continues to pursue to this day. The Israeli occupation remains the main source of the violations of our women’s rights and their vulnerability and violence against their person. We have repeatedly called for protection of the Palestinian people, especially women and children. We have also called for accountability, a key element of resolution 1325, the first resolution to address the disproportionate and unique impact of armed conflict on women, as the only way to put an end to violations and crimes.

While Palestine stands ready to do its part to advance women rights and the role of women in the fields of peace and security, it is clear that the enjoyment of these rights in our country necessitates ending the Israeli occupation. We will thus continue to work for an end of the occupation and true progress on the path to independence, justice and peace, with the equal and full involvement of women, leading to an independent State of Palestine ensuring human rights for all its citizens without discrimination.

On the occasion of the ICC Prosecutor’s Office to Palestine, the Palestinian Women Coalition of UNSCR 1325, which consists of twelve different Palestinian women’s organisations, is urging the Prosecutor’s Office to take concrete actions towards investigating war crimes committed against Palestinians. The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom remains deeply concerned with the complete impunity of Israeli war crimes and firmly supports the Coalition’s call for a just accountability mechanism for Palestinian victims. WILPF also calls on the international community to recognise and fully support Palestinian women’s organisations substantial role in paving the paths to justice, accountability and peace. Read the statement of the Palestinian Women Coalition of UNSCR 1325 below.

We, the Palestinian Women Coalition of UNSCR 1325,welcome the visit of the delegation of the ICC Prosecutor’s Office as a step in the right direction. But we are deeply disappointed that the purpose of this visit was restricted to preliminary examination, while Palestinian victims of Israeli war crimes, including women, continue to suffer and urgently await justice and an end to Israel impunity.

We do not understand the decision to exclude the Gaza Strip from this visit, when Gaza has been the site of the most war crimes and where women have been most systematically impacted by Israeli collective punishment policies; a prolonged imposed siege and a severe humanitarian deterioration resulting from Israeli military aggressions .

We are further disappointed that women who have been systematically impacted, and their women’s organisations, have been excluded from the delegation’s agenda.

We call upon all future delegations of the ICC Prosecutor’s Office to include on their agenda meetings with women’s organisations and women who have experienced direct and indirect impacts of Israeli crimes.

We, the Palestinian Women Coalition of UNSCR 1325, have seen in UNSCR 1325, 2242, and other UN Resolutions a commitment to hold the Israeli perpetrators accountable for their war crimes.

We look to the ICC as the most important mechanism to end impunity for all war crimes committed, finally bringing justice for the Palestinian people. Yet, we are very concerned that the preliminary examinations will be an endless process.

Therefore, we urge, Ms. Fatou Bensouda, the Prosecutor of the ICC, to conclude the preliminary examination and move to investigations into Israeli war crimes, bringing justice to Palestinians.

We have paid the price of non-accountability and impunity of Israeli war crimes for too long. “Delaying justice is justice denied.”

Palestinian Women Coalition of UNSCR 1325: The General Union of Palestinian Women (GUPW), the Women’s Affairs Technical Committee (WATC), Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development (PWWSD), MIFTAH, Filastinyat, Women Media and Development (TAM), Women Stu Dies Center, Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counseling (WACLAC), the National, YWCA of Palestine, Center for Women’s Legal Research and Consulting (CWLRC), the Culture and Free thought Association(CWLRC) and Women’s Affairs Center (GWAC).

Occupied Palestine

October 11, 2016

As a Palestinian organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of human rights and international humanitarian law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Al-Haq is extremely concerned about the constant escalation of Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip, which are exacting a heavy toll on the civilian population, in particular amongst children. The Israeli air strikes conducted in the last three days against highly populated areas of the Gaza Strip have killed at least 33 people, including 14 civilians, seven of them children, and injured 86 people, including 46 children. These attacks, when coupled with recent statements by Israeli officials clearly indicate a policy of unrestrained violence towards the civilian population of the Gaza Strip. In a notable example, on 20 January, Israeli Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter stated that unlawful rocket fire by Palestinian armed groups must be “stopped completely irrespective of the cost to the Palestinians.”

The use of unrestrained force against a civilian population in response to the unlawful rocket attacks carried out by Palestinian armed groups is a blatant violation of the laws of war, enshrined in customary international humanitarian law and the Fourth Geneva Convention. Many of the recent Israeli attacks constitute war crimes which may amount to grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, for which individuals can be held criminally responsible. Grave breaches are the most serious infringements of the laws and customs of war and are listed in Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention as including wilful killings, wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health, and extensive destruction of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly. All States have criminal jurisdiction to try those accused of grave breaches, whatever their nationality, or wherever the crimes were committed, by virtue of the principle of universal jurisdiction.

On 27 February an Israeli air strike hit a street in the vicinity of Salam mosques in Jabalia killing five civilians, amongst whom there were four children aged between 7 and 14, and injuring seven people, three of them critically. On the same day around 10:00 pm, three missiles targeted a central area of Gaza City, where the Palestinian Ministry of Interior, an UNRWA school and an 11-storey residential building are located. In the attack a five-month old child was killed, 22 apartments were rendered inhabitable and a clinic was severely damaged. On 28 February Israeli air forces attacked a main street in Jabalia killing two children, aged 12 and 13, and injuring at least another three civilians.

In order for the above killings and injuries to constitute grave breaches both a material and mental element must be satisfied. The material element of the crimes is the death and injury of civilians, who are protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention, and the extensive damage to civilian property. The mental element of the crime, namely the intent to commit the acts leading to the material element is also present. Despite statements by Israeli political leaders and military officers claiming that potential harm to civilians is taken into account during the planning and execution of military operations, the choice of targeted areas, methods of attack and the number of civilians killed and injured, clearly indicate a reckless disregard for civilian life, synonymous with intent. The wilful disregard by those who executed and sanctioned the attacks described above, of the foreseeable impact on civilians is evident in Israeli Defence Minister Barak’s recent blanket statement: "Israel will not refrain from taking any course of action in order to bring a stop to the fire against Sderot."

While the laws of war do allow that civilian life may be lost as an incidental result of military action, this is only the case where such military action distinguishes between military and civilian targets, is proportionate and causes the least foreseeable harm. These conditions cannot be found in the cases reported above.

Those who planned, ordered and executed the attacks described above are individually criminally responsible and should be made the subject of prosecution as required under Article 146 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. The blanket impunity for civilian deaths that military officers and political leaders enjoy in Israel, as recently proved by the rejection of any legal action in regard to the killing of 21 civilians in Beit Hanoun in November 2006, requires that these crimes be prosecuted in other jurisdictions. Article 146 of the Fourth Geneva Convention establishes that the High Contracting Parties have the legal obligation of searching for those who have allegedly committed grave breaches and of bringing them before their courts to face trial.

Some High Contracting Parties, in particular member States of the European Union, have enacted the necessary legislation implementing the principle of universal jurisdiction over grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. No excuse can therefore justify their inaction in view of the unlawful wilful killing of civilians in the OPT.

In light of the cost in human life that Israel’s most recent military escalation in the Gaza Strip is imposing on the civilian population, Al-Haq urges the High Contracting Parties to take immediate action and to fulfil their legal obligations under common Article 1 of the Geneva Conventions and Article 146 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, in particular to adopt the necessary measures, including searching for and prosecuting those responsible for grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, and to ensure that Israel as the Occupying Power respects its legal obligations under international humanitarian law.

As a Palestinian NGO committed to the protection and promotion of human rights and international humanitarian law, Al-Haq is deeply concerned by the recent military attacks carried out by the Israeli occupying forces in the Gaza Strip. These attacks, including ground incursions and air strikes, have displayed an excessive and often indiscriminate use of force in crowded residential areas, putting civilians at severe risk of harm and in violation of fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.

Between 15 and 18 January 2008, at least 39 people were killed in the Gaza Strip, including three children and three women, and at least another 127 have been wounded. Since the beginning of 2008, Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip have caused the death of at least 72 people, including six children and eight women, and have injured at least another 208, amongst those were 34 children and 13 women. During the same period, the Israeli authorities estimate that some 130 home-made rockets were fired towards Israel from the Gaza Strip.

Recent statements by Israeli officials clearly indicate that further escalation of the raids to the Gaza Strip is planned. Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter recently declared “[t]hese [rocket] attacks need not be minimised or managed, but stopped completely irrespective of the cost to the Palestinians” [emphasis added]. Statements such as this, when coupled with the brief overview of the Israeli occupying forces recent attacks in the Gaza Strip provided below, which have resulted in numerous civilians being killed and wounded, demonstrate a marked disregard by the Israeli authorities for the lives of the civilian population of the Gaza Strip.

15 – 18 January 2008: Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip

On Tuesday, 15 January 2008, Israeli occupying forces, including 13 tanks, two bulldozers and several aircraft, carried out an incursion in the Zaitoun area to the east of Gaza City. The incursion resulted in the death of 17 Palestinians, of whom at least five were civilians, and the injury of at least another 30, five of whom were critically wounded. The attack, which started at 8:15 and ended at approximately 13:00, also affected the area adjacent to the “Tunis” high school where a student was killed and several people were injured. Disturbingly, the area near the school was shelled by tanks a second time after a crowd had gathered to provide assistance to the victims of the initial attack.

On Wednesday, 16 January 2008, Israeli aircraft carried out numerous attacks in the Gaza Strip, targeting cars carrying alleged members of Palestinian armed groups. One of these operations killed three civilians, including a 5-year-old child, when their car, travelling in the Al-Daraj area in the east of Gaza City, was hit by a missile. According to official statements issued by the Israeli military authority the car was hit by mistake. On the same day two alleged members of Palestinian armed groups were killed in a similar strike.

On Thursday, 17 January 2008, at approximately 13:45, an Israeli missile hit a car being driven by an alleged member of an armed group, who was killed along with a 34-year-old woman. Three bystanders were severely wounded. Later that afternoon, another car containing three alleged members of armed groups was hit by a missile, causing the death of all passengers. The same day, at 19:40 in Beit Lahia, a donkey-drawn cart was hit by an Israeli air strike. In the incident, three civilians, namely a woman and two children, were killed, while two more children were wounded.

On Friday, 18 January 2008 at approximately 15:40, an Israeli F-16 fighter jet launched an attack against a building which formerly hosted the Palestinian Ministry of the Interior, located in the south-east of Gaza City. As a result of the attack, the building was completely destroyed. Three civilians, namely a woman and two young men, were killed, and at least 45 others were severely wounded, as at the time of the attack a wedding party was taking place nearby.

All of the above attacks have the distressing common denominator of having been carried out in densely populated urban areas, in apparent disregard for the increased risk of harming civilians.

Distinction and Proportionality

In carrying out the operations described above, the Israeli occupying forces clearly failed, once again, to respect the basic principles of distinction and proportionality enshrined in international humanitarian law.

Under conventional and customary international humanitarian law, civilians are persons who are not members of the armed forces and as such they are protected against attack, unless and during such time as they take direct part in hostilities. Similarly, Parties to a conflict “shall at all times distinguish between civilian objects and military objectives and accordingly shall direct their operations only against military objectives.” Indiscriminate attacks, including bombardment by any method which treats as a single military objective a number of separate military objectives located in an urban area containing a similar concentration of civilians and civilian objects, are strictly prohibited. Additionally, the Parties to a conflict must take all feasible precautions in their choice of means and methods of warfare in order to avoid and minimise incidental loss of civilian life, injury to civilians and damage to civilian objects.

This prohibition on attacking civilians and civilian objects, known as the principle of distinction, should be read in conjunction with the principle of proportionality. The International Committee of the Red Cross, in its authoritative study on customary international humanitarian law, has held this principle to dictate that launching an attack which may be expected to cause incidental loss of civilian life, injury of civilians and damage of civilian objects, which would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated, is prohibited. When conducting hostilities in an urban area, the combating parties hold an increased duty of diligence in order to ensure the application of the rules of international humanitarian law, and in particular to spare civilians from the effects of the hostilities.

Israel’s widespread use of heavy artillery, tanks and F-16 fighter jets against civilian populated centres in the Gaza Strip, one of the most densely populated areas on earth, results in flagrant breaches of the principles of distinction and proportionality, and is therefore unlawful under international humanitarian law. The cost of the Israeli occupying forces’ disregard for these principles is being paid by the civilian population of the Gaza Strip. These civilians, who are entitled to the protection provided under international humanitarian law as a population under belligerent occupation, are instead being subjected to unrelenting attack.

Regrettably, these recent attacks are not an isolated example of the occupying forces’ practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). Military raids in urban areas, resulting in similar injury and killing of civilians, have been a sadly recurrent feature of the Israel’s 40-year long occupation of the OPT. Israel’s persistence in launching attacks in densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip is evidence of Israel’s complete disregard for the protection of the civilian population and the rules of international humanitarian law.

In disregarding the principles of distinction and proportionality, the Israeli occupying forces carrying out and the political leaders sanctioning attacks such as those described above, have committed grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which constitute war crimes entailing individual criminal responsibility for the perpetrators. The High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions hold the responsibility to bring before their courts those responsible for such breaches, as established under Article 146 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Further, during his recent meeting with the Dutch Foreign Minister, Maxime Verhagen, the Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, asserted that the relentless attacks on the Gaza Strip serve, in part, the purpose of “signalling to the population in Gaza that it cannot be free from responsibility to the situation.” This contrasts starkly with Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention which prohibits collective punishment and further holds that “[…] all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited.” The continuous military operations against the densely populated Gaza Strip have sown a state of terror amongst the civilian population, who are already suffering the dire humanitarian consequences of Israel’s ongoing blockade and economic sanctions.

In light of Israel’s consistent failure to adhere to international humanitarian law as described above, Al-Haq is extremely disturbed by the escalation of the attacks on the Gaza Strip. Statements given by Israeli officials in this regard, such as Minister of Defence Ehud Barak, who explained that “[w]e increased, and will increase, the pressure,” clearly indicate that the recent increase in attacks will escalate further.

In light of the above, Al-Haq urges:

Israel to immediately cease indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks against the civilian population of the Gaza Strip, consistent with their obligations under international humanitarian law.

The High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions to fulfil their obligation under common Article 1 to ensure respect for the provisions of the Conventions, taking appropriate measures to compel Israel to abide by its obligations under international humanitarian law, in particular placing pivotal importance on the respect and protection of civilians from the effects of the hostilities.

The High Contracting Parties to fulfil their legal obligation under Article 146 of the Fourth Geneva Convention to prosecute those responsible for grave breaches of the Convention.

EU institutions and member states to make effective use of the European Union Guidelines on promoting compliance with international humanitarian law (2005/C 327/04) to ensure Israel complies with international humanitarian law under paragraph 16 (b), (c) and (d) of these guidelines, including the adoption of immediate restrictive measures and sanctions.

The UN Human Rights Council, at its Sixth Special Session currently being held in Geneva, to recommend that the General Assembly invoke GA Resolution 377, Uniting For Peace, to reconvene the 10th Emergency Special Session under agenda item five (Illegal Israeli actions in Occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory).

The UN Security Council to end its inaction by adopting concrete measures, including the imposition of sanctions, in order to ensure Israel’s fulfilment of its obligations under international humanitarian law.

- Ends -

On Sunday 20 January 2008, Israel’s ongoing siege of the Gaza Strip, including the blocking of fuel supplies, forced Gaza’s only power plant to shut down, plunging over 800,000 Palestinians into darkness. According to the General-Director of the plant, the shortage of electricity caused by the lack of fuel will affect the provision of medical care and water and sanitation services. On Sunday morning, the Gaza Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, which normally operates 130 wells as well as sewage treatment plants, stated that if the fuel supply is not restored by Tuesday, these services will cease to function throughout the Gaza Strip. Since Friday 18 January, Israel has also closed all Gaza’s border crossings and blocked all humanitarian aid, except in exceptional circumstances. With some 80 percent of Gaza’s population requiring food aid, the impact of these measures will be catastrophic. This escalation has also been accompanied by an intensifying of Israeli military attacks on the Gaza Strip in the first 19 days of 2008, costing the lives of 69 Palestinians, including four children and eight women, and the injury of over 190.

Israel’s current policy in relation to the Gaza Strip and its 1.5 million inhabitants constitutes an unmitigated violation of international humanitarian law including, but not limited to, Israel’s obligation as an Occupying Power to, at a minimum, ensure the basic needs of the population under its effective control, and the prohibitions on collective punishment, coercion and unlawful reprisals.

Israel’s current policy and recent actions have shown a casual disregard for the lives and dignity of the 1.5 million Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip, treating their suffering and the violation of their fundamental rights as little more than an inconvenience that will earn gentle reprimand from the international community and Palestinian National Authority, but will otherwise be irrelevant. With the intolerable conditions and constant state of fear that the Gazan population is now forced to live under, it is time for this position to change. Israel must not be allowed to shield itself from the implementation of its international legal obligations, nor should the international community shy away from enforcing such implementation. Inarticulate fears of disrupting a “peace process” that exists only in vague declarations and diplomatic handshakes, that treats the Gaza Strip as separate from the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and Palestinians as a divided people, cannot be an excuse for allowing the continued siege of the Gaza Strip. In fact, if any “peace process” is to succeed, the conclusion reached must embody a sense of justice. This requires, as an unavoidable starting point, that the fundamental rights of all parties be recognised and protected.

Al-Haq therefore calls upon,

• Israel to immediately cease all military operations in the Gaza Strip and to end its policy of collective punishment, including the opening of border crossings to allow the movement of goods and people, and restoring the supply of fuel and humanitarian aid.

• the Palestinian Liberation Organisation to establish Israel’s obligations under international law in respect of the civilian population of the Gaza Strip, including ending the collective punishment and ensuring access to essential medical services, food and water and sanitation, as an integral part of any negotiations.

• regional organisations and individual states to take concrete measures, including economic and diplomatic sanctions, to ensure Israel’s compliance with international law.

• all international agencies, including the UN, present in the OPT to actively draw the attention of international decision makers to the impact of Israeli policies on the Palestinian civilian population of the Gaza Strip.

• the UN Secretary-General immediately bring the situation in the Gaza Strip to the attention of the Security Council.

• concerned individuals and civil society groups to raise Israel’s violations of international law with elected officials in their home counties.

• Palestinian armed groups to immediately cease the launching of rockets targeting civilian population centres in Israel.

- Ends –

United Nations Special Rapporteur for the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Mr. Martin Scheinin, will present his mission report following his July 2007 visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on Wednesday, 12 December 2007.

In the report, the Special Rapporteur finds serious incompatibilities between Israel’s counter-terrorism laws and practices and Israel’s international human rights obligations. Among his conclusions and recommendations are the following:

• “…not all acts of violence committed against an occupying power, particularly when violence is targeted at military forces of an occupying power, amount to acts of terrorism.” [para. 3]
• “All legislation, regulations and military orders must comply with the requirements of the principle of legality…Having achieved those requirements, the enactment by the Knesset of this new [counter-terrorism] legislation should be accompanied by a repeal or revocation of all current counter-terrorism legislation, regulations and military orders.” [para. 55]
• “[The incompatibilities of Israeli law and practice include those related to] the prohibition of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment; the right to life and humanitarian law principles concerning legitimate targeting; the right to liberty and fair trial; and the severe impact of the construction of the barrier in the West Bank and associated measures on the enjoyment of civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights and freedoms in the OPT.” [para.54]
• “Given the illegality under international law of the existence and continued development of Jewish settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the Special Rapporteur recommends that a decision be made immediately to withdraw all such settlements…” [para. 59]
• “To replace the still unfinished barrier, extending deep into Palestinian territory, with a security infrastructure that…respects the Green Line or is otherwise accepted by the Palestinians.” [para. 59]

The Special Rapporteur’s oral presentation related to his Israel/OPT mission report will be broadcast live via the Human Rights Council’s webcast between 9:00 -10:00 am (GMT +1) on 12 December
(http://www.un.org/webcast/unhrc/index.asp).

The Special Rapporteur’s full report is available in the following formats:
English only - http://daccess-ods.un.org/TMP/3354845.html
English with Arabic Executive Summary - http://daccess-ods.un.org/TMP/7750390.html