Excellency,

I write to you upon instructions from President Mahmoud Abbas with regard to an issue of utmost priority for the Palestinian people and their leadership, namely the plight of the Palestine refugees.

As conflict and upheaval continue to plague the region, the suffering of the Palestine refugees has markedly intensified as they are among the millions of civilians that have been severely affected by the spreading instability, particularly as a result of the crisis in Syria and the spillover effect in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and elsewhere in the region. In the midst of this turmoil, Palestine refugee men, women and children have been enduring death, injury, starvation, destruction of their homes and communities, repeated displacement and dispossession, and drowning and death in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea as they have tried to escape the conflict and the human insecurity, poverty and endless suffering it has inflicted on so many innocent civilians. [Read more…]

Excellency,

I regret to inform that the situation of the Palestinian people under Israeli occupation remains dire due to the repressive, destructive and colonial policies and practices that continue to be perpetrated by Israel, the occupying Power, in deliberate, systematic and grave violation of international humanitarian law and human rights law and with total impunity.

Here, I must bring to your urgent attention the details of the heinous terrorist crime committed this morning by a group of terrorist settlers against a Palestinian family in the village of Duma, near Nablus. A group of Israeli terrorist settlers smashed the windows of two homes in Duma before throwing flammable liquids and Molotov cocktails inside. Ali Saad Dawabsha, 18-month infant, was trapped inside the family’s home as the fire spread and died shortly after sustaining serious burns. His parents and four-year-old brother were left with severe burns. The mother is in critical condition with third-degree burns covering 90 percent of her body. The father had burns on 80 percent of his body and the son 60 percent, with all of their lives in danger. [Read more…]

Excellency,

I write to draw urgent attention to the dangerous and rising tensions in Occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of Occupied Palestine due to the illegal actions, provocations and incitement by Israel, the occupying Power, including in particular by extremist Israeli settlers and religious zealots, against the Palestinian people, their land and their holy places. Civilian casualties continue to be caused by the violence of Israeli occupying forces and extremist settlers and recent incidents are aggravating religious sensitivities and the fragile situation on the ground, threatening to precipitate a religious conflict and further destabilize the region, which is already experiencing unprecedented turmoil.

For two consecutive days, extremist Israelis escorted by occupying forces broke into Al-Aqsa Mosque compound (Al-Haram Al-Sharif), the third holiest site in Islam, in Occupied East Jerusalem. They prevented the entry of Palestinian worshipers and instigated violent confrontations. In this volatile context, on 26 July, an Israeli settler woman shamefully insulted Islam’s Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) with the clear aim of provoking Palestinian worshipers. This incident was caught on a cell phone camera and made public, setting off angry reactions resulting in clashes between Palestinians and Israeli extremists at the Holy Site. [Read more…]

Excellency,

I regret to inform that the situation of the Palestinian people under Israeli occupation remains dire due to the repressive, destructive and colonial policies and practices that continue to be perpetrated by Israel, the occupying Power, in deliberate, systematic and grave violation of international humanitarian law and human rights law and with total impunity. Combined with the Israeli Government’s blatant rejection of peace and relentless provocations and incitement, this situation has deepened the pervasive sense of insecurity among the Palestinian people and the hopelessness regarding any possible redress of this appalling injustice. Moreover, it is inflaming tensions reminiscent of years past, including this time last year, when Israel launched a devastating military aggression against the Palestinian people, particularly in the Gaza Strip, from which they continue to suffer gravely and have yet to recover. [Read more…]

Excellency,

In follow-up to my letter, dated 9 June 2015, on the 48^th year of Israel’s military occupation, I draw attention to the illegal policies and practices of the recent period, which continue to destabilize the situation and to inflict grave hardship on the Palestinian people.

In this regard, it should be noted that the illegal practices being highlighted in this letter reflect only a small sample of Israel’s violations throughout the Occupied State of Palestine, including East Jerusalem.  The fact is that no one has been spared the occupation’s subjugation, oppression and aggression as Palestine men, women, children, disabled, ill and elderly persons have all been victims of the grave and systematic violations of international law, including humanitarian and human rights law, perpetrated every single day by Israel, the occupying Power.

In the recent period, civilian casualties continued to be caused by the Israeli occupying forces against Palestinian civilians, including children and peaceful demonstrators.  On 10 June, the occupying forces killed a young man in Jenin in a violent military raid on the area.  Izz al-Din Bani Gharra, age 23, was shot in the back by Israeli soldiers as he came out of a mosque after prayers.  This was preceded by a dawn raid on 8 June, where undercover units invaded the Beit Jala Hospital in Bethlehem and attempted to abduct two wounded Palestinians, Mo’tasem Nabil Shweiki, age 21, and Mahmoud Emad Shweiki, age 18, who were receiving treatment after being shot by the occupying forces on 7 June in Beit Jala. [Read more…]