Excellency,

As the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, continues to deteriorate, I am compelled to write in follow-up of our recent letters regarding the crimes being perpetrated by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people, even in this time of the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes illegal colonization and annexation measures that risk destroying the two-State solution on the pre-1967 borders.

Since our last letter, not a day has passed where Israel has not cynically exploited the COVID-19 crisis, globally and locally, to forge ahead with its annexationist plans and in full coordination with the current US administration. Israeli officials have escalated inflammatory rhetoric boasting of such illegal intentions, in total contempt of international law and the appeals and warnings of the international community, human rights and civil society organizations, and leaders of conscience worldwide.

On 20 April, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his rival Benny Gantz signed a coalition agreement according to which, starting 1 July, the parliament would be able to decide on the annexation of parts of the West Bank based on the US plan presented on 28 January. While Israel described this coalition agreement as the formation of a “national emergency government” aimed at fighting the pandemic, the reality is that this is an “annexation government”, formed with the cynical intention of perpetuating the permanent colonization of Palestinian land, in breach of the UN Charter and all other relevant provisions of international law, and in flagrant violation of UN Security Council resolutions, including resolution 2334 (2016).

US support for annexation has emboldened Israeli impunity and “provided the Israeli government with a green light to annex all West Bank settlements and the Jordan Valley and maintain its occupation in perpetuity, making a sovereign, independent and contiguous Palestinian state impossible,” as stressed in a recent letter by 32 US foreign policy professionals, including former national security officials. The permissive US attitude was reinforced on 22 April, when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated that annexation is “an Israeli decision to make”, as though grave breaches of international law are States’ exclusive “decisions” and no international norms guide and regulate the conduct of international relations. This was followed, on 6 May, by US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, who is leading the joint US-Israel “committee” to “map out” areas of Palestinian land for illegal annexation, stating that the US is “ready” to recognize Israeli annexation of 30% of the occupied West Bank.

If allowed to proceed, these unlawful, unilateral plans will spell the demise of the two-State solution to the conflict and result in a one-State apartheid reality, with far-reaching consequences. This is not only Palestine’s view, but is shared by countless politicians, academics, public figures and civil society actors, who have recently reflected on the matter. Below are just a few examples in this regard:

 “Israeli officials have repeatedly stated their intention to annex Israeli settlements and other parts of the occupied West Bank. If implemented, such steps would not only constitute a serious violation of international law, but they would also effectively end the prospect of the two-State solution and close the door to negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.” – UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (March 2020 report on resolution 2334 (2016)

“Annexation would mean a fatal blow to the possibility of peace and the establishment of an Apartheid State. Democracy, equality and social justice all depend on a just peace and an end to the occupation.” – 56 former Members of the Israeli Knesset (17 April)

“The dangerous prospect of annexation by Israel of parts of the occupied West Bank is a growing threat. If such a move were implemented, it would constitute a serious violation of international law, deal a devastating blow to the two-state solution, close the door to a renewal of negotiations, and threaten efforts to advance regional peace. Moves to annex land and to accelerate settlement expansion, combined with the devastating impact of COVID-19 can ignite the situation and destroy any hope of peace.”- Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov (in his briefing to the Security Council on 23 April)

“The coming annexation will pull the rug from under the argument, currently prevalent in many circles, that while Apartheid, or at least an Apartheid-like regime, is currently practiced in the West Bank, the sovereign State of Israel is a democracy.” – Israeli NGO Yesh Din (Position Paper, April)

“A situation where Jewish communities in the West Bank live under Israeli civilian law, while neighbouring Palestinians live under Israeli military law, would inevitably prompt parallels with historical repressive and discriminatory regimes, including apartheid South Africa.” – The Elders (1 May)

Such a move would strip away the essence and objective of existing agreements between the Palestinian and Israeli governments, which are based on the realization of a viable two-State solution, a just peace and lasting security. As Israel destroys the possibility of achieving such a vision, the Palestinian leadership cannot be expected to uphold these agreements.

In addition to its devastating effects on the Palestinian people’s human rights and national aspirations and rights, Israel’s planned annexation would pose a severe threat to regional peace and the rules-based international order. Acquisition of territory by force is prohibited with no derogation permitted. If it goes unchallenged in the case of Israel, then the very core and relevance of international law to global peace and security will be at risk, sending a stark message that violators of the law, even war criminals, can do so at will without any consequences.

Here we echo the warnings by former UN Secretary-General, Deputy Chair of the Elders, Ban Ki-Moon: “The principles of international law are the bedrock of our global order. They provide a framework for defending rights and exercising power that is crucial to all global challenges. Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank would not only be an act of aggressive folly, it would have a destructive influence on global rights and norms. I call on the whole world to speak out against this damaging agenda.”

In this regard, we recognize the many strong statements issued from all over the world – by Arab, European, African, Asian and Latin American States and organizations, as well as by Special Envoys of concerned States and by the UN – condemning and warning against Israeli annexation. These statements reflect a global and principled commitment to the standing and universal application of international law. They also reaffirm commitment and support for the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to freedom, sovereignty, and peace, as enshrined in the United Nations Charter and relevant United Nations resolutions, including 2334 (2016), 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) among many others. 

The Palestinian people and leadership are grateful for these principled positions, which are firmly anchored in our shared values of human rights and peace and security for all. But the years have proven that Israel has no regard for such principles, and that statements alone will not compel its respect for the law or avert its destruction of peace prospects as annexation unfolds on the ground at this time. Such impunity will persist should the political will to enact measures of accountability remain lacking.

As stated by Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk, “The looming annexation is a political litmus test for the international community. This annexation will not be reversed through rebukes, nor will the 53-year-old occupation die of old age… the international community should review its extensive menu of sanctions and countermeasures to stem this march towards further illegality. Settlement products should not enter the international marketplace. Agreements, existing and proposed, with Israel should be reviewed. The current investigations at the International Criminal Court should be supported. There has to be a cost to the defiance of international law. Only this can compel the Israeli political leadership to do the right thing.”

Other figures who have recognized the need for sanctions to deter annexation include 127 British politicians – former cabinet members, ministers and diplomats – who stated in a letter published on 1 May: “The government must now make clear publicly to Israel that any annexation will have severe consequences including sanctions. Words are not enough: Prime Minister Netanyahu has ignored our words. We need to prevent his government from setting this alarmingly dangerous precedent in international relations.”

On 7 May, a group of former Israeli officials also called upon the Government of Ireland to approve a draft bill that would ban settlement products from entering the Irish market, underscoring that: “Needless to say, unilateral annexation will lead to escalating crises in Palestine, Jordan, and the entire region, and runs the risk of turning Israel into an apartheid state…We firmly believe that now is the time for action from the international community to prevent Israel from proceeding with annexation, which will doom generations to come to more oppression, injustice and violence.”

If principled voices from around the world, including Israelis, are brave enough to oppose annexation call for sanctions, how can the international community perceive concrete action as anything but an imperative in the interest of both Palestinians and Israelis and the preservation of peace prospects? 

We urge that principled positions be backed by proactive, concrete steps to hold Israel accountable and deter further Israeli crimes, especially in view of the impending annexation, and to safeguard the rights of the Palestinian people. As stated by former Algerian Foreign Minister, UN diplomat and Elder Lakhdar Brahimi, “The world has overlooked its responsibility to the people of Palestine for too many decades. Silence now would be a bitter betrayal, and is certain to have dire consequences for all concerned.”

All States are obligated to ensure respect for peremptory norms of international law. The international community must not withhold action until it is too late and Israel deals the final blow to the chance for a just peace. It can and should immediately leverage its collective influence to chart a new and credible multilateral political, legal, and economic approach that stops Israel’s illegal, reckless actions from condemning Palestinians, Israelis and entire region to perpetual conflict. Accountability measures, including preventive action, must be urgently pursued denying Israel additional time to carry out its extraterritorial agenda.

We must also draw attention to the many other crimes and violations being perpetrated by the occupying Power violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, including its construction of settlements particularly in areas slated for annexation; its immoral and illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip; its detention of thousands of Palestinians, including children, and countless other human rights violations. Below are just a few examples of recent Israeli illegal policies and actions:

On 21 April, Israel announced the confiscation of Islamic Waqf land belonging to the Ibrahimi Mosque in Al-Khalil (Hebron) to construct a road for illegal settlers to reach the mosque area, a provocative action, violating international law and signed agreements and stoking religious sensitivities. This violation also reflects the occupying Power’s abject disregard of the status of Al-Khalil’s Old City as a World Heritage Site that must be protected from all acts of aggression, alteration and destruction.

On 6 May, Israel revealed plans for yet another war crime – the confiscation of 1,000 square kilometers of Palestinian land to construct 7,000 more illegal units in the so-called “Efrat” settlement in the Bethlehem district south of Jerusalem, in a move clearly intended to ‘prepare the ground’ for annexation, as reflected in the provocative statements of Israeli officials regarding this decision.

Meanwhile, Israel persists with its destruction of Palestinian property, including homes, animal shelters, and water, sanitation and hygiene facilities. According to UN OCHA, Israel has demolished 69 structures in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since 21 February, forcibly displacing 63 people and affecting 417 others. A third of the destroyed or seized structures consisted of humanitarian aid provided by the donor community. One of the affected Palestinian villages, Qarawat Bani Hassan, received 22 demolition and stop-work orders on 30 April alone, with the clear intent of forcibly displacing civilians to enable expansion and entrenchment of five surrounding settlements.

Settler violence targeting Palestinian communities has surged by over 80% since March. Israeli settlers have attacked Palestinians with firearms or with clubs, axes, stones, assault dogs, and electroshock weapons; torched cars; vandalized and uprooted olive trees; and stolen livestock—all under the consenting eye or with the active participation of Israeli occupation forces. As stated by Israeli NGO B’tselem, “These actions are part of a joint strategy by the settlers and Israeli authorities to systematically block Palestinian access to land – one acre, field, fertile plot, grove or pasture at a time – for decades on end, and take effective control of it. This way the state transfers the means of livelihood of Palestinians into the hands of Israelis. Settler violence is the state’s unofficial, privatized arm that serves to gradually achieve this goal.”

On 11 May, Israel extended a closure order it had issued on 20 November 2019 to censor the work of Palestine Television’s office in Occupied East Jerusalem for a further six months. This blatant infringement on the right to freedom of expression and of the press is aimed at silencing Palestinian media, and constitutes yet another attempt by the occupying Power to ban any event or activity organized by or in coordination with the Palestinian Authority in Occupied East Jerusalem. Under the same pretext, on 15 April, Israel arrested four volunteers who worked at, and shut down, a coronavirus testing clinic in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, where healthcare needs have been cruelly neglected by the occupation, leading to Silwan harboring almost half of the known COVID-19 cases in Jerusalem.

Israel has also continued arresting Palestinian civilians and its cruel, illegal policies against the 5,000 Palestinians being held captive in its jails. On 22 April, Palestinian prisoner Jaber Al-Barghouthi, age 23, died in the Israeli Negev prison after occupation forces failed to provide him with medical aid. He is the 273^rd Palestinian to have died in an Israeli prison since the occupation began in 1967. A group of concerned UN human rights experts issued a call on 24 April urging Israel, which released approximately 500 Israeli inmates from its jails to protect them from a possible virus outbreak, “not to discriminate against thousands of Palestinian prisoners facing high-risk exposure to COVID-19 and to release the most vulnerable – particularly women, children, older persons and those with pre-existing medical conditions.”

The 194 Palestinian children being held in Israeli prisons are especially vulnerable. As stressed in the statement of 11 May by UN officials: “since the start of the COVID-19 crisis in Israel, legal proceedings are on hold, almost all prison visits are cancelled, and children are denied in-person access to their families and their lawyers. This creates additional hardship, psychological suffering, and prevents the child from receiving the legal advice to which they are entitled…The best way to uphold the rights of detained children amidst a dangerous pandemic, in any country, is to release them from detention and to put a moratorium on new admissions into detention facilities.”

International law is the key to ending these human rights violations, ending the colonization and annexation of the Palestinian land, and ending this illegal 53-year occupation. With the threat of annexation looming, it is high time for the international community to use all means available to it to uphold international law and implement UN resolutions and to demonstrate to the Palestinian people that they are not alone in the struggle for their rights, for freedom, for justice and for peace.

This letter is in follow-up to our 686 letters regarding the ongoing crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, which constitutes the territory of the State of Palestine.  These letters, dated from 29 September 2000 (A/55/432-S/2000/921) to 15 April 2020 (A/ES-10/xxx-S/2019/xxx) constitute a basic record of the crimes being committed by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people since September 2000.  For all of these war crimes, acts of State terrorism and systematic human rights violations being committed against the Palestinian people, Israel, the occupying Power, must be held accountable and the perpetrators must be brought to justice.

Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Dr. Riyad Mansour

Minister, Permanent Observer

of the State of Palestine to the United Nations

Excellency,

As the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, continues to deteriorate, I am compelled to write in follow-up to the critical concerns raised in our recent letters about the human rights violations and crimes being perpetrated by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people, even amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the public health emergency persists in Palestine, with 369 confirmed cases (291 in the West Bank, 78 in East Jerusalem, and 13 in the Gaza Strip) and 2 deaths as of 15 April, Israel continues to cynically exploit the international community’s focus on the life and death circumstances imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, to entrench its illegal occupation, advance annexation, and escalate its repression of Palestinians. It is estimated that, in one month alone from 5 March to 5 April, Israel demolished or confiscated 47 Palestinian structures, conducted 267 arrests and 238 raids, killed 3 Palestinians and injured another 52.

In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Israel’s land grab and settlement and Wall construction continue unabated, as do provocative calls for annexation. In fact, annexation plans have become the centerpiece of negotiations to form the next Israeli government. Some, like former Minister Ayelet Shaked have gone so far as to declare that, “The government that is being formed has no right to exist unless it applies sovereignty over Judea and Samaria and the Jordan Valley”.

This proves yet again that those in Israel’s political establishment, regardless of political leanings, do not differ in their pursuit of permanent colonization, annexation, and apartheid-like policies. Moreover, this reconfirms that Israel has abandoned all pretense of commitment to the internationally agreed solution of two States on the basis of international law and relevant United Nations resolutions. Clearly, for Israel, the peace process was always a short-term tactic, never a long-term strategy.

We are grateful for the strong statements recently that issued from countries around the world, including Arab and European States, reaffirming their firm opposition to Israeli annexation of Occupied Palestinian Territory. We recognize as well the opposition by members of the US Congress who expressed concern about reports Israel intends to move forward with unilateral annexation of Palestinian territory, and emphasized that “This runs counter to decades of bipartisan U.S. foreign policy and to the will of the House of Representatives as recently expressed in H.Res.326, which opposes unilateral annexation and explicitly warns against the dangers of such an effort for peace in the region and Israel’s security.”

We reiterate, however, that statements alone about the threat to peace and about international obligations will not avert the looming destruction of the two-State solution and peace prospects. Serious, deterrent action is required to stop Israeli actions and plans. The international community must act to hold Israel accountable for its illegal actions and perverse impunity before the two-State solution is permanently undercut, perpetuating the conflict and the immense human suffering it is causing.

In this regard, extremist Israeli settlers, emboldened by the specter of imminent annexation since the presentation of the US administration’s “plan” for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, have intensified attacks against Palestinians. According to a UN report, between March 17 and 30, the number of attacks reflects “a 78% increase compared to the bi-weekly average of incidents since the start of 2020.” In addition to physical assaults on civilians, the stoning and torching of vehicles, the uprooting of olive trees and crops, and the unleashing of dogs on Palestinian herders, settlers have also flooded sewage into Palestinian farms near the town of Beit Ummar, and vandalized tombstones in the village of Burqa. The aim of such violence and terror is clear: intimidating Palestinians and pressuring them to leave their lands.

In addition to these deplorable developments, while governments around the world work tirelessly to limit the spread of COVID-19 in their countries, Israel continues to undermine Palestine’s efforts in this regard. While coordination efforts continue in this regard, the occupying Power has simultaneously obstructed Palestinian efforts to ensure the orderly return and health testing of workers from Israel, disinfect neighborhoods, raise awareness, and provide assistance to families financially affected by the virus. Below are just a few examples of Israeli actions in the recent period:

On 3 April, Israeli forces stormed the home of Palestinian Minister of Jerusalem Affairs, Fadi Al-Hidmi, physically assaulting him, confiscating around $2,750 directly from him, forcing him to wear a dirty, bloody mask, and then detaining him. This outrageous act was carried out as punishment for the Palestinian government’s efforts to provide Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem with assistance and healthcare, a human and moral prerogative; especially as the occupying Power has deliberately neglected its obligations to carry out vigorous testing of the Palestinian population under its illegal control in and around the City. Two days later, undeterred by condemnations of its actions, Israel arrested the Palestinian Governor of Jerusalem, Adnan Ghaith, after storming his house in Silwan.

Since 6 March, when a state of emergency was imposed in Palestine to control the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, Israeli forces have carried out more than 207 military incursions across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Such actions are directly undermining Palestinian containment efforts. Moreover, on 6 April, in an appalling attempt to spread fear and panic among Palestinian civilians, Israeli soldiers spat on doorsteps, cars and homes of residents of the village of Beit Ummar, and dumped contaminated trash, needles and used gloves between village homes. Also, despite the risks that Palestinian workers returning from Israel are bringing the virus to their hometowns – estimated to be the cause of at least one-third of confirmed coronavirus cases in the West Bank – and despite directives by the Palestinian Ministry of Health that all Palestinians returning from Israel must undergo testing before being quarantined, the occupying Power opened several wastewater tunnels near the city of Qalqilya to smuggle Palestinian workers back into the West Bank without testing or proper health precautions.

Such reckless and negligent behavior of the occupation authorities is similarly witnessed in Israeli prisons. At a time when the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is appealing to governments to “examine ways to release those particularly vulnerable to the pandemic,” including “those detained without sufficient legal basis, political prisoners and others detained simply for expressing critical or dissenting views”, and the UN Secretary-General’s Envoys to the Middle East are jointly calling for “special attention to the plight of the detained”, Israel is continuing its arrest and detention campaign in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.

In the month of March, Israel arrested 250 Palestinians, including 54 children and 6 women and girls. It has likewise refused to take measures to improve the provision of healthcare and hygiene for Palestinian prisoners and detainees in line with WHO guidance for preventing COVID-19 outbreak in prisons, in addition to refusing to sterilise detention facilities. Instead, despite the fact that two Israeli prison officers and a recently released Palestinian prisoner tested positive for the virus, Israel continues denying prisoners access to adequate soap and hygiene materials, heightening risk of contagion.

As stressed in a statement issued on 8 April by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission, “in view of the global health emergency, precarious hygienic conditions and inadequate health services, overcrowded Israeli prisons constitute perfect conditions for catastrophic spread of pandemic, putting lives of inmates at grave risk and creating environment for major unrest in the prisons.” We reiterate our call upon Israel to release the Palestinian civilians it is imprisoning, starting with the most vulnerable, among them older and infirm Palestinian detainees, women and children, in accordance with international law.

Israel, as occupying Power, is under legal obligation to ensure the physical and mental health and well-being of Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Article 10 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, mandates that “[a]ll persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.” Moreover, the UN Basic Principles for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules) stipulate that, “Prisoners shall have access to the health services available in the country without discrimination on the grounds of their legal situation.”

In the Gaza Strip, where two million Palestinians, most of them refugees, have been forced to live under appalling conditions as a result of Israel’s 13-year blockade and repeated military aggressions, the situation remains precarious and risks are enormous. Gaza is densely populated; its water resources largely contaminated; its population mostly unemployed and living below the poverty threshold; its healthcare system severely weakened and overstretched, with 80-90% of its few ventilators are already in use; its electricity supply sporadic; and its coping capacities already exhausted.

Based on epidemiologic estimates and given the near-impossibility of effective sanitation practices and physical distancing in Gaza, if the virus spreads, approximately 80% of Gaza’s population could become infected, necessitating at least 100,000 hospital beds would be needed, when there are only about 2,500 at present, of them only 120 ICU beds. Moreover, the needed hygiene kits, ventilators, drugs and other essential medical supplies are largely unavailable to the population. As stated by Gaza’s UNRWA director, Mr. Matthias Schmale, an outbreak would be “a disaster of gigantic proportions”.

While the Palestinian Government along with the support of the WHO, UNRWA, OCHA and other UN partner agencies are working diligently to quarantine, prepare for and avoid a worst-case scenario, as the occupying Power, Israel bears ultimate responsibility for the inhumane conditions in Gaza. As per its Fourth Geneva Convention obligations, Israel must, at the very minimum, allow humanitarian access and the needed medical supplies to enter Gaza. It must suspend the requirement for transit permits for those who require hospitalization outside Gaza. It must also facilitate the entry of medical personnel willing to volunteer their services, and develop a plan for treating Palestinians from Gaza who need urgent medical attention in Israel.

As stated by the Secretary-General in his remarks to the Security Council on 9 April, two of the priority actions where further action is needed are: “ensuring humanitarian access and opening corridors for the safe and timely movement of goods and personnel” and “protecting the most vulnerable populations and those least able to protect themselves.” Moreover, he reminded that “international humanitarian, human rights and refugee law continue to apply, even—and especially—in challenging times like these.” Also, on 11 April, in a joint appeal, the UN Secretary-General’s Envoys to the Middle East also underscored the need to facilitate humanitarian access and assistance including to refugees and “communities under siege”.

Yet humanitarian measures alone are insufficient. Fulfilling its legal obligations requires that Israel act forthwith to end to its illegal occupation, including the full lifting of its blockade on Gaza.  As long as Israel refuses to abide by its obligations, it becomes the responsibility of all States to adopt effective measures to uphold international law and ensure accountability, as well as to protect the Palestinian civilian population under Israeli occupation, and alleviate the human suffering and insecurity caused by this situation, inter alia, by providing humanitarian support.

As stated by the Foreign Minister of Norway, Chair of the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC), in light of the great risks posed by the pandemic, “We need to work together to prevent this from being a bigger humanitarian and health disaster than we think it can be, especially in Gaza, but also in the West Bank.” In this regard, we reaffirm our gratitude for the humanitarian support being extended to the Palestinian people. We thank AHLC Chair for consulting with the international donor community on how to best coordinate the efforts to counter spread of the virus in Palestine and mitigate its impact on the extremely fragile Palestinian economy. We appeal for and welcome increased or accelerated international donor support, including to UNRWA, which requires funds both for its emergency COVID-19 appeal but also, critically, for continuation of its core operations, including provision of education and health services as well as food assistance.

Estimates that UNRWA’s budget for core capacities will be depleted by end of May are deeply worrying. We urge the necessary support to ensure the continuity of UNRWA services as per its General Assembly mandate in order to ensure the well-being of the Palestine refugees and regional stability, including in this time of global crisis. Further, as underscored by the UN Special Coordinator Nickolay Mladenov in his statement on 12 April, “The Palestinian Government will also require generous external support and technical assistance that is targeted directly to the recovery process”, support that is urgent in light of the fiscal deficits already affecting the Government.

It is our deep hope that such global cooperation and solidarity will be forthcoming and accompanied by concrete measures by the international community to uphold international law and compel Israel to end its violations and end illegal occupation, deprivation and denial of the rights of the Palestinian people, including to self-determination and freedom. This is a time to act to save human lives, but it is also a time to stop conflict, stop human rights violations, and work together for a just peace.

This letter is in follow-up to our 684 letters regarding the ongoing crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, which constitutes the territory of the State of Palestine.  These letters, dated from 29 September 2000 (A/55/432-S/2000/921) to 2 April 2020 (A/ES-10/xxx-S/2019/xxx) constitute a basic record of the crimes being committed by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people since September 2000.  For all of these war crimes, acts of State terrorism and systematic human rights violations being committed against the Palestinian people, Israel, the occupying Power, must be held accountable and the perpetrators must be brought to justice. 

Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Dr. Riyad Mansour

Minister, Permanent Observer

of the State of Palestine to the United Nations

Excellency,

As the situation on the ground regrettably continues to deteriorate, I am compelled to write in follow-up of the critical matters and concerns raised in our recent letters following the announcement of the US administration’s plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Since then, the situation in Occupied Palestine, including East Jerusalem, has been seriously aggravated as Israel, the occupying Power, escalates the pace of its illegal annexation and colonization schemes and its aggressions and inflammatory rhetoric against the Palestinian people. This has led to increased tensions, recurrent violence endangering Palestinian civilian lives, and further loss of Palestinian land to this illegal occupation.

Following a series of Israeli announcements last month of provocative and unlawful plans to construct more than 17,500 settlement units throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly in areas in and around Occupied East Jerusalem and Bethlehem, on 27 February Israel approved plans for yet another 1,739 settlement units. Most of that construction is planned in settlements deep in the Occupied West Bank. It is clear that as the international community is focused on efforts and cooperation to confront the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Israel is exploiting the situation to expedite its long-planned de facto annexation of Palestinian land, in grave breach of international law and further shredding the contiguity of our territory, the two-State solution on the pre-1967 borders and the prospects for peace.

Moreover, on 9 March, as part of its ongoing threats to carry out the notorious “E-1” settlement project, Israeli officials have brazenly announced the construction of a new “Palestinian-only” apartheid road near the illegal settlement of “Maale Adumim”. That road would connect with the existing apartheid road between the Palestinian villages of Anata and Za’ayyem that was built by the occupying Power in 2019, and would ultimately prevent Palestinian access from the southern part of the West Bank to Jericho and the Jordan Valley to the east.  All of this entails the seizure of large swathes of Palestinian land and would obviously facilitate Israeli colonization plans for the area. This is being done in absolute contempt of the constant international calls to cease such actions and the warnings that if implemented these measures would gravely undermine the territorial contiguity of Palestine.

As stated by the Israeli NGO Peace Now in relation to this reckless and illegal move: “The planned road would allow Israel to cut the West Bank in half, build up E1 and the West Bank barrier, and shut down the possibility of developing a viable Palestinian state. The only roads Israel paved for Palestinians in its 52 years of control over the Territories were designed to allow Israel to build settlements or barriers that block existing Palestinian routes. There is no desire here to improve Palestinian transport, only to expand the settlements.”

Such measures are yet further evidence of the occupying Power’s agenda to entrench its occupation and obstruct the physical viability of the two-state formula. Moreover, this intention has been explicitly expressed countless times, including on 19 February by Israeli Minister Bazelel Smotrich, who provocatively stated: “As you know we oppose the idea of a Palestinian state and we will fight with all our power against its establishment. As you know there is no such thing as Palestinian people so that there can be a Palestinian state. Not today, not tomorrow, not in this or that border, not by this name and not by other names…”

Similarly, on 27 February, his colleague Naftali Bennet wrote on his Facebook page: “No to a Palestinian state of any kind (including “demilitarized”). Yes to construction and imposing sovereignty!”On 3 March, the Israeli Prime Minister then repeated his pledge to annex all Israeli settlements and the Jordan Valley in front of a cheering crowd of supporters of his right-wing agenda, further stoking incitement and extremist fervor in this regard. In this regard, it is relevant to note that, in a survey of young Jewish Israelis aged 18-24 published by Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz on 1 March, it is reported that 40.2% of them support the annexation of all of the West Bank, and 29.6% of them support a peace deal based on a two-State solution.

Such Inflammatory rhetoric and pursuit annexationist measures – flagrantly challenging international law and the international community – have been non-stop and markedly escalated in recent weeks. No doubt, Israeli officials have only been further emboldened following presentation of the US plan and ongoing steps by the current US administration appearing to assist Israel in stripping Palestinians of their rights and identity, such as in a recent State Department report that has removed the reference to Palestinians in Occupied East Jerusalem, instead referring to them as “Arab residents” of the City.

Moreover, such escalating rhetoric and aggression against the Palestinian people has led to heightened tensions and violence, with extremist Israeli settlers calling for the full and immediate annexation of the West Bank and escalating their daily terrorist attacks against defenseless Palestinian civilians across the occupied West Bank, including in East Jerusalem. Such attacks continue to be carried out under the protection of Israeli occupation forces and, in many cases, with their support all over the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

In recent days, Israeli settlers have repeatedly raided Mount Al-‘Arma near Nablus in the occupied West Bank in an attempt to forcibly seize the area with the active participation of the Israeli army. Palestinians in Beita-Nablus have organized peaceful, civilian sit-ins aimed at protecting their land and stopping the settlers from taking over the hilltop. In doing so, they have been met with repeated assaults from Israeli forces that were equipped with around 40 military vehicles and two bulldozers and with violent attacks by Israeli settlers.

The latest victim of such violence by the occupation was a young Palestinian boy, Mohammed Hamayel, age 15, who was shot in the head and killed by Israeli live fire at Mount Al-‘Arma. At least 16 other Palestinian were injured in the attacks. During a similar incident in the same village on 28 February, Israeli occupation forces injured over 100 Palestinians, including children.

At the same time, the Bethlehem area, which is the epicenter of Palestine’s COVID-19 outbreak and under strict measures of quarantine, has been targeted by Israeli settlers, who have exploited the cordoning off of the area, uprooting at least 1,200 olive and vine trees as part of their ongoing environmental terrorism. When news of suspected cases of COVID-19 at a hotel in Bethlehem appeared, Israeli social media users applauded the news with provocative comments and incitement against the Palestinian people, including such statements as: “amazing, I wish it kills them all”, “finally, good news” and “I wish success to corona”.

This utter disregard for Palestinian lives is without doubt the result of years of systematic dehumanization of the Palestinian people by the Israeli occupation authorities, from the Prime Minister on down. It has created a culture of incitement and hate prevalent among supporters and enablers of the Israeli occupation, especially among extremists.

Here, I must also bring to your attention, a report published on 6 March in the Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz, which revealed harrowing testimony by Israeli army snipers who were involved in army violence unleashed against peaceful Palestinians protesters demanding an end to the Israeli blockade during the “Great Return March” in Gaza. Such violence has resulted in the killing of over 300 Palestinian protesters with tens of thousands more injured or maimed for life.

In the report, one of the soldiers is quoted as he boasts about the numbers of knees of Palestinians that he shot: “From the point of view of hits, I have the most. In my battalion they would say: ‘Look, here comes the killer.’ When I came back from the field, they would ask, ‘Well, how many today?’ You have to understand that before we showed up, knees were the hardest thing to rack up. There was a story about one sniper who had 11 knees all told, and people thought no one could outdo him. And then I brought in seven-eight knees in one day. Within a few hours, I almost broke his record.”

He then brags about breaking the “knee record” during a demonstration that took place on the day the US embassy in Jerusalem was inaugurated on 14 May 2018: “On that day, our pair had the largest number of hits, 42 in all. My locator wasn’t supposed to shoot, but I gave him a break, because we were getting close to the end of our stint, and he didn’t have knees. In the end you want to leave with the feeling that you did something, that you weren’t a sniper during exercises only. So, after I had a few hits, I suggested to him that we switch. He got around 28 knees there, I’d say.”

He goes on to say: “After some time there, in a debriefing, I said: ‘Let me just once take down a kid of 16, even 14, but not with a bullet in the leg – let me blow his head open in front of his whole family and his whole village. Let him spurt blood. And then maybe for a month I won’t have to take off another 20 knees.’”

Such shocking and repulsive rhetoric is further damning evidence of war crimes committed in cold blood against Palestinian civilians and of their constant and total dehumanization by this illegal, barbaric occupation. These crimes will continue unabated, as they have over decades, unless the international community, with the Security Council at the forefront, moves beyond declarations of regret and concern to decisive action, including measures of accountability. There must be a cost to the defiance of international law. This is a moral and legal imperative.

Urgent efforts must be taken to bring about the achievement of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, without which the basic rights of Palestinians will continue to be trampled on and their lives constantly endangered. Palestinian statehood and the chances of peace must be salvaged, and annexation deterred with immediate action.

In this regard, we draw attention to a letter, published by The Guardian on 27 February 2020, by 50 former European ministers stressing that: “Peace to Prosperity is not a roadmap to a viable two-state solution, nor to any other legitimate solution to the conflict. The plan envisages a formalisation of the current reality in the occupied Palestinian territory, in which two peoples are living side by side without equal rights. Such an outcome has characteristics similar to apartheid – a term we don’t use lightly.” Such cautionary words are most striking and important, but they require concerted, collective follow-up and action by the international community to be given meaning and to contribute to upholding international law salvaging the prospects for peace.

As stated by United Nations Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk, “Criticism without consequences guarantees that settlement expansion and annexation will continue. I call upon the international community to review its extensive menu of sanctions and countermeasures to stem this march towards further illegality. Settlement products should not enter the international marketplace. Agreements, existing and proposed, with Israel should be reviewed. The current investigations at the International Criminal Court should be supported.”Lastly, at this critical juncture, we must also appeal to the international community for continued vital humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people. We urge in particular support to UNRWA to continue uninterrupted its indispensable assistance to Palestine refugees. According to a report issued on 28 February, UNRWA stands before an unprecedented financial crisis and, up to now, there are no funds for emergency programs in Gaza and the West Bank, despite an unanticipated additional need of $10 million to fund UNRWA’s immediate response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Agency could soon be forced to cancel programs and services, with dire impact on humanitarian conditions and stability in the refugee community. This can only be urgently averted with the support of the international community.

This letter is in follow-up to our 682 letters regarding the ongoing crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, which constitutes the territory of the State of Palestine.  These letters, dated from 29 September 2000 (A/55/432-S/2000/921) to 26 February 2020 (A/ES-10/xxx-S/2019/xxx) constitute a basic record of the crimes being committed by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people since September 2000.  For all of these war crimes, acts of State terrorism and systematic human rights violations being committed against the Palestinian people, Israel, the occupying Power, must be held accountable and the perpetrators must be brought to justice. 

I should be grateful if you would arrange to have the text of the present letter distributed as a document of the tenth emergency special session of the General Assembly, under agenda item 5, and of the Security Council.

Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Dr. Riyad Mansour

Minister, Permanent Observer

of the State of Palestine to the United Nations

Excellency,

I am compelled to write to you once again as Israel, the occupying Power, persists in rabid pursuit of its illegal colonization schemes in the Occupied State of Palestine, emboldened in its impunity and further exploiting the situation following presentation of the US plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

Following the Israeli announcement just last week of plans to construct more than 14,000 settlement units throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including in particular in and around Occupied East Jerusalem and Bethlehem, severing the continuum of these cities and further isolating them from the rest of their natural Palestinian environs, the Israeli Prime Minister made yet another brazen settlement announcement on 25 February.

Yesterday, Netanyahu pledged to build 3,500 new illegal settlement units in the so-called “E-1” area, aiming to connect the illegal “Maale Adumim” settlement with Occupied East Jerusalem. These plans are not only in grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention, thus constituting war crimes, but also threaten to completely sever the northern and southern parts of the West Bank and further isolate East Jerusalem, completely undermining the Territory’s contiguity.

Together, these are premeditated and clear steps whose intention is to deal a final and decisive blow to the practicability of the two-state formula and yet further evidence of Israel’s agenda for permanent occupation. As stated by Israeli NGO Peace Now, “Last time they tried to promote construction in E1 the world was shaken. This is a strategic area for the two-state, solution and building a settlement in E1 means that Israel is officially choosing to risk perpetual conflict instead of resolving it. It is no less than a national disaster that must be stopped before it is too late.”

This string of Israeli announcements are a clear indication that Israel sees the US administration’s plan as a green light pursuing its expansionist annexationist ambitions, which Israeli officials, including candidates running in the election that will take place in less than one week, are scrambling to unilaterally implement on the ground.

Settlement plans in and around East Jerusalem that had previously been frozen as a result of international pressure and outrage, are now boastfully relaunched, with the extremist, rightwing Israeli government exploiting the current circumstances, including international inaction, to move forward with these illegal plans. As long as there is no accountability for its actions, Israel will clearly continue its contempt of the will of the rest of the international community and continue to trample the law and the chances for a just solution.

Such intentions were borne out once again, on 24 February, when the joint US-Israel “committee” formed to “map out” areas of the Occupied West Bank slated for illegal annexation toured the settlement of “Ariel” and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu provocatively stated: “The process will be completed as quickly as possible; there is no artificial impediment… We are determining here lines that have historic implications. Therefore, the work will be done as quickly as possible, and we will not stop for anything.”

Extremist Israeli settlers have been equally emboldened, calling for the full and immediate annexation of the West Bank and escalating their violent attacks on Palestinian civilians. On 21 February, under the protection of Israeli occupation forces, around 4,000 Israeli settlers aboard dozens of buses and cars raided the Palestinian villages of Laqba and Al Burj in the Jordan Valley and gathered on land belonging to the Latin Patriarchate in Tayasir, terrorizing the local population.  

This utter disregard for Palestinians’ inalienable rights is the result of years of systematic dehumanization of the Palestinian people, who are treated by the occupation as undeserving of basic human rights and dignity. In Israel’s latest demonstration of unhinged cruelty and barbaric treatment of Palestinians, images were caught on video on 23 February of an Israeli military bulldozer dragging the body of a dead Palestinian man in Gaza. Reacting to the video, Israeli Minister Naftali Bennett then tweeted “this is how it should be done, and this is how it will be done”. Mohammed Ali al-Naim, age 27, had previously been shot dead by Israeli forces. Two Palestinian men who tried to retrieve the dead body were also injured by Israeli forces and ended up in hospital.

In a further demonstration of such utter contempt for Palestinian lives, the Israeli Prime Minister chose to visit to Al-Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, the same week marking the 26^th anniversary since a terrorist Israeli settler, Baruch Goldstein, used an army-issued automatic rifle to fire on hundreds of Palestinian worshippers, murdering 29 Palestinians while as they were performing a dawn prayer during Ramadan in Al-Ibrahimi mosque, and injuring 150. That terror attack was followed by Israeli soldiers killing an additional 21 Palestinians who protested the massacre.

It should be recalled that These horrific acts led the Security Council to adopt its resolution 904 (1994), calling for “measures to be taken to guarantee the safety and protection of the Palestinian civilians throughout the occupied territory, including, inter alia, a temporary international or foreign presence”. It is not a coincidence that the mandate of the presence that was established – the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH) – was terminated by Israel just last year as it obviously seeks to forge ahead with its illegal plans in the City and the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Without genuine international efforts to hold Israel accountable for all of its violations and crimes, the occupying Power’s impunity will only escalate. This is being blatantly exhibited by the contemptuous declarations of Israeli officials and by the incessant series of illegal actions on the ground that are aggravating already high-tensions and risk further destabilization of the situation.

It is past time for the international community, with the Security Council at the forefront, to answer such defiance by Israel, with a firm resolve for peace and rejection of all illegal actions and provocations. It must be unyielding in its response to the occupying Power and this requires immediate action. As stated by the UN Special Coordinator Nikolay Mladenov in his briefing to the Security Council on 24 February, “Today, it is not enough to reaffirm the internationally agreed parameters on how the conflict can be resolved.” This must include tangible measures now to save the viability of the two-State solution and the possibility for Israeli-Palestinian peace before it is too late.

We urge the international community to act now with concrete measures to uphold international law and to actualize the longstanding international consensus for a just solution as enshrined in the relevant UN resolutions.  As stated by Pope Francis on 23 February, “inequitable” solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would only be a prelude to new crises, which we must collectively act to avert.

This letter is in follow-up to our 681 letters regarding the ongoing crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, which constitutes the territory of the State of Palestine.  These letters, dated from 29 September 2000 (A/55/432-S/2000/921) to 20 February 2020 (A/ES-10/xxx-S/2019/xxx) constitute a basic record of the crimes being committed by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people since September 2000.  For all of these war crimes, acts of State terrorism and systematic human rights violations being committed against the Palestinian people, Israel, the occupying Power, must be held accountable and the perpetrators must be brought to justice. 

I should be grateful if you would arrange to have the text of the present letter made available to the members of the Security Council for their immediate, valuable consideration and also distributed as an official document of the Security Council.

Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Dr. Riyad Mansour

Minister, Permanent Observer

of the State of Palestine to the United Nations

Excellency,

In follow-up to my recent letter of 14 February 2020 regarding the relentless crimes by Israel, the occupying Power, in Occupied Palestine, including East Jerusalem, I must draw your attention to Israel’s continuing illegal settlement activities, land grab and annexation schemes.

Such illegal decisions and measures are further undermining the viability of the two-State solution on the pre-1967 borders and the horizon and prospects for a just and lasting solution.  Moreover, as Israel’s extremist right-wing government persists not only with such aggressive and oppressive policies, it also persists with its inflammatory rhetoric and incitement, ratcheting up tensions and threatening further destabilization of this already fragile situation.

On 18 February, Israel announced that it plans to construct yet another illegal settlement, comprising 9,000 units and a shopping centre, in Occupied East Jerusalem between the Palestinian neighborhoods of Kafr Aqab, Qalandiya and Al-Ram. If implemented, this would entail the demolition of dozens of Palestinian homes and the forcible transfer of hundreds more Palestinian civilians and further undermine contiguity of the Palestinian land. This provocative scheme was followed by the announcement today of plans to construct 2,200 additional settlement units in the illegal “Har Homa” settlement in the Palestinian neighborhood of Jabal Abu Ghneim in Occupied East Jerusalem, as well as another 3,000 units in the illegal settlement of “Givat Hamatos”, which would completely sever the connection between Occupied East Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

If implemented, these provocative and destructive plans would constitute further grave breaches of international law, including international criminal law as articulated in the Rome Statute, flagrant violations of United Nations resolutions, including Security Council resolution 2334, and blatant disrespect of the international community’s will as articulated inter alia in the numerous statements made in the Security Council only last week. The international community must be firm in demanding a halt to all such illegal activities by Israel, the occupying Power, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the reversal of all policies and attempts aimed at forcibly, unilaterally and unlawfully prejudging the outcome of negotiations.

It is clear that, before the eyes of the world, the Israeli government is doing everything in its power to bury the two-State solution and any chance for a just peace. As stated by Israeli NGO Peace Now, “Netanyahu wants to strike another deadly blow to the prospect of a two-state solution. The planned [9,000-units] settlement neighborhood drives a wedge in the heart of the Palestinian urban continuity between Ramallah and East Jerusalem, thus preventing the establishment of a viable Palestinian state with capital in East Jerusalem.”

The Israeli Prime Minister continues to boast about his criminal intentions and defiance of the international community, declaring today: “I established Har Homa when I was first prime minister in 1997, against the wishes of the entire world, and I am happy to see it expand. For years, governments opposed building there and in Givat Hamatos, and now we are building there”.

It must be noted here that these illegal settlement plans were drawn up years ago, and, given international pressure and the sensitivity of Jerusalem, were shelved pending emergence of a more permissive political environment. Undoubtedly, such conditions have been amply offered by the current US administration and its unjust, reckless “plan” for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has clearly emboldened Israeli leaders to accelerate their expansionist, annexationist agenda.

In this regard, the US administration regrettably continues to exacerbate tensions, including with the decision to appoint the US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, as head of the joint US-Israel “committee” assigned to “map out” areas of the Occupied West Bank slated for illegal annexation.

It is astounding and deeply tragic that – despite the passage of more than a half-century of Israel’s occupation and the passage of more than seventy years of the dispossession, displacement and oppression of the Palestinian people in an ongoing and cruel Nakba – not only has the international community failed to sufficiently mobilize to redress this unlawful situation – from its root causes to the crises we witness today – but is passively witnessing a further deterioration of the situation and the compounding of the conflict. This regression of conditions on the ground and the prospects for achieving a just solution is unquestionably due in part to the lack of accountability for these illegal actions, permitting Israel’s illegal occupation to continue cost-free.

In this regard, it is deeply regrettable that some States have undertaken steps in recent days to shield Israel from criminal accountability at the International Criminal Court, obstructing the Palestinian people’s recourse to the justice they seek and deserve. Attempts to deny the applicability of international law to the Palestine question will only serve to perpetuate the occupying Power’s widespread criminal conduct and imperil the credibility of international law worldwide, to the detriment of humanity as a whole.

The dehumanization of the Palestinian people, and exceptionalism with which they are treated, as though they do not deserve justice or the protections of the law, must end. It must be understood that Palestinians, like their fellow human beings, are a people who cannot endure decades of violent oppression, domination and control by the Israeli occupation without voicing their rejection of this and demanding accountability for the grave injustices they are enduring.

It is not normal that a Palestinian boy should not be able to buy a sandwich without facing a threat to his life. There is nothing normal about the fact that on 15 February, on his way home from school with his sisters, 8-year old Malek Issa was shot in between the eyes by Israeli occupying soldiers after he stepped out from a restaurant in the East Jerusalem village of Issawiya. His skull and face were fractured, causing a hemorrhage in his brain, and leading him to lose his left eye. There is nothing normal about expecting the Palestinians to accept the barbaric and horrendous circumstances in which they have been forced to live under this illegal occupation.

We call yet again on the international community, including the Security Council, to uphold the responsibilities to redress this monumental injustice. Action must be taken to hold Israel accountable for all of its crimes before it is too late and peace prospects evaporate. It can no longer suffice to condemn or simply be appalled by Israel’s illegal actions; practical measures are necessary to bring an end to Israel’s occupation and to truly advance the establishment of a just and lasting solution. The Security Council must uphold its Charter duties and implement its own resolutions, without exception, as the first and most vital step for signaling to the occupying Power that its defiance will no longer be tolerated. The viability of the two-State is dependent on this as is the prospect for Palestinian-Israeli peace and security.  

This letter is in follow-up to our 680 letters regarding the ongoing crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, which constitutes the territory of the State of Palestine.  These letters, dated from 29 September 2000 (A/55/432-S/2000/921) to 14 February 2020 (A/ES-10/xxx-S/2019/xxx) constitute a basic record of the crimes being committed by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people since September 2000.  For all of these war crimes, acts of State terrorism and systematic human rights violations being committed against the Palestinian people, Israel, the occupying Power, must be held accountable and the perpetrators must be brought to justice. 

I should be grateful if you would arrange to have the text of the present letter distributed as a document of the tenth emergency special session of the General Assembly, under agenda item 5, and of the Security Council.

Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Dr. Riyad Mansour

Minister, Permanent Observer

of the State of Palestine to the United Nations