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Commission on Human Rights continues debate on violations in occupied Arab territories (1/2)

23 March 2005


The Commission on Human Rights this morning continued its general debate on the question of the violation of human rights in the occupied Arab territories, including Palestine. The Representative of Palestine said he extended a hand to the Israeli neighbour in order to live side-by-side in peace, harmony and cooperation. The Representative of Israel said dramatic changes were taking place in the real world, perhaps nowhere more so than in Israel and the Palestinian territories. Israeli and Palestinian undertakings, agreed at the Sharm el-Sheikh summit, as well as the renewed commitment to the Road Map, had created a new reality of shared responsibility. 

UN official's monthly briefing expresses concern over Israel's failure to freeze expansion of settlements

24 March 2005


Stressing the concern of the United Nations over Israel’s failure thus far to dismantle settlement outposts and freeze settlement expansion, Kieran Prendergast, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, told the Security Council this morning that Israeli settlement policy could not be separated from the issue of the barrier under construction in the West Bank. Delivering his monthly briefing on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question, he said that the approved route of the barrier still incorporated a significant percentage of Palestinian land. While Israel had stated that the barrier was a temporary structure to meet security needs, no one could observe its scope and route without being concerned over possible implications for the contiguity of the future Palestinian State. 

Know When To Say "No": A Call For Divestment From The Israeli Occupation

Shamai Leibowitz 24 March 2005


After years of failed political efforts by the Israeli and international human rights community aimed at ending the occupation, it is clear that new approaches must be implemented. It is time for American civic institutions to support a multi-tiered campaign of strategic, selective sanctions against Israel until the occupation ends. Since the Israeli government is flagrantly disobeying the ICJ decision, international law mandates the use of sanctions to force Israel to comply with UN resolutions and human rights treaties. 

Amnesty: Time to act on removal of unlawful Israeli settlements

24 March 2005


For the first time in four and a half years, we are witnessing some positive developments in the human rights situation Israel and the Occupied Territories. In recent months killings by both the Israeli army and Palestinian armed groups have significantly diminished, as has the destruction of Palestinian homes and properties by Israeli forces. The evacuation of some 8,000 Israeli settlers from the Gaza Strip and from some very sparsely populated settlements in the West Bank must not be allowed to be used by Israel as an opportunity to expand other settlements in the West Bank, where some 400,000 Israelis live in violation of international law. 

Federation of Journalists condemns intimidation of whistleblower

18 March 2005


The International Federation of Journalists today accused Israel of bullying and intimidation in its continuing campaign against Mordechai Vanunu, the man who spent 18 years in jail for telling the world that Israel possesses nuclear weapons but who may be sent back to prison - for talking to reporters. “Israel is creating a new crime - of talking to journalists,” said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary. “It is a shocking betrayal of democratic principles in what is a vindictive campaign of bullying and intimidation against a man who has served his time.” Vanunu was served with official notice yesterday that he is to be brought to trial for breaking draconian restrictions imposed on him by the authorities following his release from prison in April last year. 

Caterpillar: Making a Killing in Palestine?

Nick Dearden and Joe Zacune 22 March 2005


Frequently in the global economy, it seems that corporations are able to get away with activities which would see an individual locked up in the Hague for decades. Take the case of Caterpillar. Without selling a single bomb, gun or F16 fighter, Caterpillar has been supplying the Israeli military with its “key weapon”, in the words one Israeli commander, in its illegal and brutal occupation of Palestine. Caterpillar’s D-9 bulldozers have been responsible for destroying “agricultural farms, greenhouses, ancient olive groves.. numerous Palestinian homes and sometimes human lives”. 

Weekly report on human rights violations

17 March 2005


This week Israeli forces killed two Palestinians and wounded five Palestinians, including two children in the Gaza Strip. Israel continued the construction of the Apartheid Wall in the West Bank. Israeli forces confiscated more land for this purpose. Jerusalem has been isolated from the rest of the West Bank. Israeli forces invaded a number of areas in the occupied West Bank, raided homes and arrested at least 23 Palestinians, including 6 children. Israeli forces arrested 6 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Israeli settlers have continued to attack Palestinian civilians and property in the West Bank. Israeli forces continued to impose a total siege on the occupied Palestinian territories. Israeli forces continue to close a number of roads. Israel continues the curfew imposed on the old town of Hebron. 

The passionate minority and the silenced majority

Laurie King 22 March 2005


“It’s a safe bet that not even a fraction of those who recognize Terri Schiavo’s name and vacant face would know who Rachel Corrie is, what she stood for, or how she was mowed down by a US-supplied armored D9 Caterpillar bulldozer in Gaza while she and others bravely confronted the Israeli army. Unarmed with anything but a megaphone and her convictions, Rachel was crushed with all the impunity and inhumanity that her killers could muster. Rachel Corrie’s story - shocking, stirring, incredible - is just as heartbreaking as Schiavo’s.” EI co-founder Laurie King-Irani examines troubling deficiencies in the Republican party’s “culture of life” campaign. 

Bethlehem bloggers online

Arjan El Fassed 21 March 2005


“A window for you to look in; to see past the walls, barbed wire fences, and the media distortions; to hear from the people in Bethlehem themselves.” Palestinians and internationals living in the Bethlehem region have started a weblog. They want to tell the world what it is like to be living in occupied territory, under an economic siege, encircled by a wall and military checkpoints. For them the new site, Bethlehem bloggers, found at www.bethlehemghetto.blogspot.com, is a portal to communicate to the outside world and tell the stories of their lives in Bethlehem and what it is like to live in a “Palestinian Ghetto.” 

Jordanian diplomacy falters on Palestine, Syria and Iraq

Hasan Abu Nimah 23 March 2005


In recent weeks, Jordan has been embroiled in crises with its neighbors Iraq and Syria and has been subjected to harsh regional criticism for apparently proposing that Arab states normalize relations with Israel without Israel withdrawing from any occupied territories. EI contributor Hasan Abu Nimah, who spent four decades as a Jordanian diplomat writes, “In order to understand how we got here, and see how we can restore the good relations and reputation that Jordan should enjoy, we need to make an objective assessment of recent events and actions, including missteps by Jordan’s diplomats.”