Excellency,

I am compelled to write to you once again to draw your attention to the ongoing critical situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and more specifically, to the grave reality faced by Palestinian civilians as a direct result of the Israeli military occupation.

Israeli occupying forces carried out airstrikes across the Gaza Strip on 13 July, and continued overnight, culminating on 14 July in Israel’s largest daytime airstrike campaign in the besieged enclave since its 2014 aggression on the territory that killed more than 2,200 Palestinians.

Two Palestinian children, Amir al-Nimra, age 15, and Louay Kaheil, age 16, were killed by an Israeli missile as they were playing on the roof of the Al-Katiba building, a large unoccupied and unfinished concrete structure in the heart of Gaza City located next to a park often visited by Palestinian families during the summertime. Amir and Louay were best friends, described to be “like twin brothers” who grew up in the same street in central Gaza. Louay was killed by a hit to the head and in the back, and Amir died as a result of shrapnel puncturing his entire body. [Read more…]

Excellency,

I write to you in follow up to previous letters to draw urgent attention to the imminent threat of forcible transfer facing the Palestinian Bedouin communities of Khan al Ahmar-Abu al Helu and Abu-Nwar in the sensitive “E-1 area” of the West Bank northeast of Occupied East Jerusalem.

In recent days, Israel, the occupying Power, has begun implementation of its plans to forcibly remove both the inhabitants and civilian and livelihood structures in this area to clear the way for its plans for the illegal construction and expansion of settlements in the area. These cruel and destructive measures are not only in grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention, thus constituting war crimes, but also threaten to completely sever East Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank, destroying whatever remains of the physical viability of the two-State solution.

For years, Israel has been advancing its plans to forcibly transfer and ethnically cleanse the Bedouin population of Khan al Ahmar, 53% of whom are children and 95% of whom are Palestine refugees registered with UNRWA. The known purpose of such plans is to facilitate the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the area, in grave breach of international law and numerous UN resolutions, including Security Council resolution 2334 (2016). Yesterday, the Israeli occupying forces, using bulldozers and other military machinery, began destroying all access routes in Khan al Ahmar-Abu al Helu, which is home to more than 180 civilians. At least 35 Palestinians were injured due to use of force by Israeli soldiers against the defenseless civilians protesting this illegal and provocative action that is traumatizing the entire community. [Read more…]

Excellency,

I am compelled to write to you once again, for the eleventh week in a row, to draw your attention to the ongoing critical situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and more specifically, to the grave reality that continues to be faced by Palestinian civilians under Israel’s military occupation.

Civilian casualties continue to be directly caused by the illegal policies and practices of the occupying Power, further traumatizing the population. On 6 June, Israeli occupying forces shot and killed 21-year-old Izz al-Din Al-Tamimi, in the village of Nabi Saleh, northwest of Ramallah. The youth was shot at close range with three bullets, one of them to the neck, even as he posed no direct or immediate threat to the soldiers. When Palestinian medics attempted to rescue him, Israeli forces prevented them from doing so and left Izz al-Din to bleed to death for over thirty minutes before an ambulance was allowed to arrive to carry his corpse.

What makes the killing of Izz al-Din Al-Tamimi even more atrocious is that it was clearly premeditated. According to his mother, two days prior to the incident, soldiers had come to her house and told her “we will kill your son and leave you crying”. Like all Palestinians living under occupation, Izz al-Din’s entire life was marked by daily violence, humiliation and oppression. [Read more…]

Excellency,

On this somber 51^st anniversary of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian and Arab territories in 1967, I am compelled to write to you once again to draw the international community’s attention to the violent crimes and human rights violations that continue to be endured by the Palestinian people as a result of this illegal and belligerent Israeli military occupation.

It is astounding and deeply tragic that – despite the passage of more than a half-century of Israel’s occupation and the passage of 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 mobilize to redress this unlawful situation – from its root causes to the crises we witness today – but it has allowed the situation to further deteriorate, with regression of both the conditions on the ground and the prospects for achieving a just and peaceful solution.

As the suffering of our people has intensified in recent weeks and months, their faith in the international community and international law to protect them and preserve their rights from Israel’s relentless onslaught has been even more severely diminished. Yet again, despite their appeals and hopes, the United Nations Security Council failed to act to address their worsening plight, particularly in the Gaza Strip, due to the veto cast by the United States on the draft resolution that was presented by Kuwait in its capacity as the Arab representative on the Council. [Read more…]

Excellency,

Since 30 March 2018, we have been repeatedly compelled to draw your attention to the illegal actions being perpetrated by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people, in particular in the Gaza Strip in the context of the Great March of Return. Such criminal actions by the occupying Power, including the lethal use of force against unarmed civilian protesters, have exacerbated the already-severe protection crisis being endured by our people and risk the further ratcheting of tensions and destabilization of the situation, with grave consequences.

It is urgent that the international community act, in accordance with the Charter, international law and the relevant resolutions, to immediately address this situation to de-escalate this dangerous situation, to deter further violence and to protect civilian lives. In this regard, we reiterate our unequivocal stance against any and all forms of violence against civilians.

Today’s cycle of violence underscores the urgency of action.  Throughout the day, Israel has launched numerous air strikes against the occupied and besieged Gaza Strip, threatening to fully ignite another round of deadly violence and further threatening international peace and security.  We condemn in the strongest terms these Israeli military attacks on the densely-populated Gaza Strip, further endangering civilian lives and causing damage and destruction to civilian property, including, inter alia, a school. [Read more…]

Excellency,

It has been a week since the 14 May massacre carried out by Israel, the occupying Power, against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, in which at least 62 civilians were killed and more than 2,000 civilians injured, including children. As the traumatic causes and consequences of this heinous crime remain without remedy, tensions continue to rise and despair continues to deepen, threatening even further destabilization.

The fact remains that, despite our repeated appeals for urgent international action to deter Israel from its criminal behavior towards the Palestinian people, the absence of serious efforts to hold the occupying Power accountable and reign it in, has only made our people more vulnerable to the brutality of this illegal occupation. We are thus compelled to reiterate the call made at the 15 May emergency Security Council meeting, and countless times prior to it, for the protection of the Palestinian people, in compliance with international humanitarian and human rights law and numerous relevant resolutions, in particular concerning the protection of civilians in armed conflict, including children.

This call for protection has been echoed widely in the Council chamber and from capitals and humanitarian and human rights organizations worldwide. It is a call for protecting and ensuring the safety and well-being of a defenseless civilian population being held captive under a more than half-century occupation and more than decade blockade. It has equally been a call for rescuing the tenets of international law, which are being shredded by the occupying Power and those shielding it from censure and aiding it in its criminality. The consequences have been dire for the Palestinian people and continue to be, compelling us to persistently raise the alarm on this matter. [Read more…]

Excellency,

In follow-up to my recent letter of 2 March 2018 regarding the violations and crimes by Israel, the occupying Power, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, I am compelled to draw your attention to the continued rise of tensions as Israel’s right-wing government persists with its oppressive, provocative and illegal decisions and measures.

Illegal Israeli settlement activities in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the blockade and the bombardment of the Gaza Strip, demolition and confiscation of Palestinian homes and properties, the arrest and detention of Palestinian civilians, including children, and violent military raids into Palestinian villages, towns, cities and refugee camps, causing death and injury to Palestinian civilians, continue unabated, causing further instability and deterioration of conditions on the ground.

The persistence of such actions starkly illustrate just how much Israel, the occupying Power, has been emboldened by recent developments and the ongoing lack of accountability. Before the eyes of the world, the Israeli government has abandoned all restraint and is doing everything in its power to bury the two-State solution and any chance for a just peace, in absolute contempt of the law and the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council and General Assembly. Moreover, it persists on this reckless and ruthless path in blatant disrespect of the will of the international community as articulated in those relevant resolutions and in the numerous statements made in recent and past debates at the United Nations and other international fora.

While impossible to record each and every crime committed by Israeli occupying forces and terrorist settlers against the Palestinian people, listed below are just a few of the countless Israeli crimes perpetrated in the period since our last letter on 12 February 2018, all reflecting policies aimed at dehumanizing and denying the rights of the Palestinian civilian population, traumatizing generation after generation under this illegal occupation. [Read more…]

Excellency,

I write to draw your attention to the ongoing critical situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and, more specifically, to the continued repressive practices by Israel, the occupying Power, against Palestinian worshippers and holy sites in Occupied East Jerusalem, including one of the holiest churches in Christianity, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Recent developments highlight once again the urgency of efforts by the international community, particularly the Security Council, to collectively act to stem the dangerous deterioration to avert further instability; to ensure respect for the relevant United Nations resolutions, including with regard to the status of Occupied East Jerusalem as occupied territory, the applicability of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and the prohibition of all acts aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the City; and to ensure respect for the historic status quo at the holy sites.

In light of ongoing attempts by the occupying Power to change the status of the City and in contravention of the historic status quo, on Sunday, 25 February 2018, leaders from the Roman Catholic, Armenian and Greek Orthodox churches were compelled to announce the closing of the doors of their churches, including the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in united protest against Israel’s discriminatory policies, which undoubtedly aim at weakening the Christian presence in Jerusalem. [Read more…]

Excellency,

As conditions continues to dangerously deteriorate, I am compelled draw your attention to the critical situation in the Occupied State of Palestine, including East Jerusalem.  The illegal and destructive policies and practices by Israel, the occupying Power, continue to cause immense suffering among the Palestinian civilian population and to obstruct any potential for the peaceful resolution of this grave injustice.

Unprotected, despite the very clear provisions of international law according protection to civilians under foreign occupation, the Palestinian people continue to endure countless human rights violations and war crimes at the hands of the Israeli occupying forces and its illegal settlers.   The international community, in particular the Security Council, must confront this unlawful situation and cannot continue to turn a blind eye as the rights of an entire people and the most fundamental pillars of international law are being so egregiously breached.  Action must be taken to finally uphold international law and to bring an end to fifty years of Israeli occupation, along with all of Israel’s violations against the Palestinian people and their land.

The incidents mentioned below reflect only a few of the countless violations and crimes being perpetrated by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people.  Israel’s belligerent military occupation is driven and sustained only by such illegal policies and practices that affect every single Palestinian, child, woman and man living under occupation, whether it be in Occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, or in the Gaza Strip, where nearly two million Palestinians continue to live in the world’s largest prison suffering massive collective punishment tantamount to a war crime. [Read more…]