29 mar 2018
The Secretary of the Executive Committee of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Dr. Saeb Erekat, issued a statement, Thursday, strongly denouncing what he called a calculated incitement campaign by Israel and the United States, against the Palestinian people, their leadership and their legitimate, internationally-guaranteed rights.
Dr. Erekat said that both the U.S. Administration and Tel Aviv are spearheading this illegal campaign against the unalienable legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, including their internationally-guaranteed Right of Return, self-determination, independence and sovereignty on their land.
He added that both Washington and Tel Aviv are also calling for removing the Palestinian leadership, including President Mahmoud Abbas.
“These open campaigns are calculated and programmed by both Israel and the United States, to remove the Palestinian leadership, and replace it,” Erekat said, “They are ignoring International Law and all related United Nations and Security Council resolutions, and are just seeking to extend the life of this colonialist, Apartheid regime by keeping and supporting this illegal occupation.”
Erekat’s statements came in response to U.S. Ambassador in Tel Aviv, who expressed full support not only to Israel, but to its illegal occupation of Palestine, including Jerusalem, and its illegal colonies on Palestinian lands.
“From the moment he assumed his duties as Ambassador, David Friedman acted in support of the illegal annexation of occupied Palestinian lands, and has personally financed and supported colonialist activities,” Erekat said, “Such actions do not only violate International Law and its core foundation; they also grant Israel complete power and immunity to annihilate the Palestinian people, and their existence on their historic land, in addition to assassinating the entire Palestinian cause, the struggle for liberty, independence and justice.”
Furthermore, Dr. Erekat said that the personal attacks against him, and against the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and the incitement by Israeli “Defense Minister” Avigdor Liberman, are open calls for assassinations.
Lieberman was attacking Abbas and the Palestinian Authority for paying salaries to Palestinian political prisoners, held by Israel, and supporting their families.
“Palestine continues to pay a heavy price for this illegal occupation, and for Israel’s defiance of International Law – It imprisons the detainees and violates their rights, and the rights of their families,” he said, “Articles 81 and 98 of the Fourth Geneva Convention require the occupation authorities to provide support to the detainees, and those dependent on them.”
The official said that the Palestinian struggle against the colonialist occupation is a legitimate, historic right, and added that all nations under foreign occupations must fight for their liberation and independence.
Furthermore, Erekat said that the Palestinian leadership will not abandon the detainees, and their rights, as its commitment to them is moral, and legal.
Erekat called on the International Community to act and perform its duties, to protect the Palestinian people and their legitimate rights, as stated by all International Resolutions and Treaties, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, and to end fifty years of brutal and illegal occupation, instead of encouraging Israel to escalate its violations and crimes against the Palestinians people.
|Article 81. Parties to the conflict who intern protected persons shall be bound to provide free of charge for their maintenance, and to grant them also the medical attention required by their state of health.
No deduction from the allowances, salaries or credits due to the internees shall be made for the repayment of these costs.
The Detaining Power shall provide for the support of those dependent on the internees, if such dependents are without adequate means of support or are unable to earn a living.|
|Article 82. The Detaining Power shall, as far as possible, accommodate the internees according to their nationality, language and customs. Internees who are nationals of the same country shall not be separated merely because they have different languages.
Throughout the duration of their internment, members of the same family, and in particular parents and children, shall be lodged together in the same place of internment, except when separation of a temporary nature is necessitated for reasons of employment or health or for the purposes of enforcement of the provisions of Chapter IX of the present Section. Internees may request that their children who are left at liberty without parental care shall be interned with them.
Wherever possible, interned members of the same family shall be housed in the same premises and given separate accommodation from other internees, together with facilities for leading a proper family life. – Chapter II. Places of Internment|
|Article 98: All internees shall receive regular allowances, sufficient to enable them to purchase goods and articles, such as tobacco, toilet requisites, etc. Such allowances may take the form of credits or purchase coupons.
Furthermore, internees may receive allowances from the Power to which they owe allegiance, the Protecting Powers, the organizations which may assist them, or their families, as well as the income on their property in accordance with the law of the Detaining Power.
The amount of allowances granted by the Power to which they owe allegiance shall be the same for each category of internees (infirm, sick, pregnant women, etc.) but may not be allocated by that Power or distributed by the Detaining Power on the basis of discriminations between internees which are prohibited by Article 27 of the present Convention.
The Detaining Power shall open a regular account for every internee, to which shall be credited the allowances named in the present Article, the wages earned and the remittances received, together with such sums taken from him as may be available under the legislation in force in the territory in which he is interned.
Internees shall be granted all facilities consistent with the legislation in force in such territory to make remittances to their families and to other dependents. They may draw from their accounts the amounts necessary for their personal expenses, within the limits fixed by the Detaining Power.
They shall at all times be afforded reasonable facilities for consulting and obtaining copies of their accounts. A statement of accounts shall be furnished to the Protecting Power, on request, and shall accompany the internee in case of transfer.| – Chapter VII. Administration and Discipline
Convention (IV) relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War. Geneva, 12 August 1949
Dr. Erekat said that both the U.S. Administration and Tel Aviv are spearheading this illegal campaign against the unalienable legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, including their internationally-guaranteed Right of Return, self-determination, independence and sovereignty on their land.
He added that both Washington and Tel Aviv are also calling for removing the Palestinian leadership, including President Mahmoud Abbas.
“These open campaigns are calculated and programmed by both Israel and the United States, to remove the Palestinian leadership, and replace it,” Erekat said, “They are ignoring International Law and all related United Nations and Security Council resolutions, and are just seeking to extend the life of this colonialist, Apartheid regime by keeping and supporting this illegal occupation.”
Erekat’s statements came in response to U.S. Ambassador in Tel Aviv, who expressed full support not only to Israel, but to its illegal occupation of Palestine, including Jerusalem, and its illegal colonies on Palestinian lands.
“From the moment he assumed his duties as Ambassador, David Friedman acted in support of the illegal annexation of occupied Palestinian lands, and has personally financed and supported colonialist activities,” Erekat said, “Such actions do not only violate International Law and its core foundation; they also grant Israel complete power and immunity to annihilate the Palestinian people, and their existence on their historic land, in addition to assassinating the entire Palestinian cause, the struggle for liberty, independence and justice.”
Furthermore, Dr. Erekat said that the personal attacks against him, and against the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and the incitement by Israeli “Defense Minister” Avigdor Liberman, are open calls for assassinations.
Lieberman was attacking Abbas and the Palestinian Authority for paying salaries to Palestinian political prisoners, held by Israel, and supporting their families.
“Palestine continues to pay a heavy price for this illegal occupation, and for Israel’s defiance of International Law – It imprisons the detainees and violates their rights, and the rights of their families,” he said, “Articles 81 and 98 of the Fourth Geneva Convention require the occupation authorities to provide support to the detainees, and those dependent on them.”
The official said that the Palestinian struggle against the colonialist occupation is a legitimate, historic right, and added that all nations under foreign occupations must fight for their liberation and independence.
Furthermore, Erekat said that the Palestinian leadership will not abandon the detainees, and their rights, as its commitment to them is moral, and legal.
Erekat called on the International Community to act and perform its duties, to protect the Palestinian people and their legitimate rights, as stated by all International Resolutions and Treaties, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, and to end fifty years of brutal and illegal occupation, instead of encouraging Israel to escalate its violations and crimes against the Palestinians people.
|Article 81. Parties to the conflict who intern protected persons shall be bound to provide free of charge for their maintenance, and to grant them also the medical attention required by their state of health.
No deduction from the allowances, salaries or credits due to the internees shall be made for the repayment of these costs.
The Detaining Power shall provide for the support of those dependent on the internees, if such dependents are without adequate means of support or are unable to earn a living.|
|Article 82. The Detaining Power shall, as far as possible, accommodate the internees according to their nationality, language and customs. Internees who are nationals of the same country shall not be separated merely because they have different languages.
Throughout the duration of their internment, members of the same family, and in particular parents and children, shall be lodged together in the same place of internment, except when separation of a temporary nature is necessitated for reasons of employment or health or for the purposes of enforcement of the provisions of Chapter IX of the present Section. Internees may request that their children who are left at liberty without parental care shall be interned with them.
Wherever possible, interned members of the same family shall be housed in the same premises and given separate accommodation from other internees, together with facilities for leading a proper family life. – Chapter II. Places of Internment|
|Article 98: All internees shall receive regular allowances, sufficient to enable them to purchase goods and articles, such as tobacco, toilet requisites, etc. Such allowances may take the form of credits or purchase coupons.
Furthermore, internees may receive allowances from the Power to which they owe allegiance, the Protecting Powers, the organizations which may assist them, or their families, as well as the income on their property in accordance with the law of the Detaining Power.
The amount of allowances granted by the Power to which they owe allegiance shall be the same for each category of internees (infirm, sick, pregnant women, etc.) but may not be allocated by that Power or distributed by the Detaining Power on the basis of discriminations between internees which are prohibited by Article 27 of the present Convention.
The Detaining Power shall open a regular account for every internee, to which shall be credited the allowances named in the present Article, the wages earned and the remittances received, together with such sums taken from him as may be available under the legislation in force in the territory in which he is interned.
Internees shall be granted all facilities consistent with the legislation in force in such territory to make remittances to their families and to other dependents. They may draw from their accounts the amounts necessary for their personal expenses, within the limits fixed by the Detaining Power.
They shall at all times be afforded reasonable facilities for consulting and obtaining copies of their accounts. A statement of accounts shall be furnished to the Protecting Power, on request, and shall accompany the internee in case of transfer.| – Chapter VII. Administration and Discipline
Convention (IV) relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War. Geneva, 12 August 1949
27 mar 2018
“The UNHRC is manipulated by bloodthirsty dictatorships hiding their own massive human rights violations by attacking Israel,” a spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry said, after the council had adopted five decisions against Israel.
In diplomatic circles, language hardly changes from one scenario to the next. It is only the accusations levelled against different political actors that convey part of the context, which always disregards allegations of violence in order to maintain the level of impunity for all aggressors.
The latest UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) session, during which five resolutions against Israel were passed, is one such example of how rhetoric has degenerated to the point that there is no longer any coherence between the human rights violations and condemnations thereof. Such rhetoric is irresponsible.
According to Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon, the UNHRC is “manipulated by bloodthirsty dictatorships hiding their own massive human rights violations by attacking Israel.” US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley displayed her devotion to the Zionist state by insisting that Washington’s “patience is not unlimited. Today’s actions make clear that the organisation lacks the credibility needed to be a true advocate for human rights.” This, of course, is all nonsense.
The context offered by Nahshon and Haley is reflective of nothing more than the impunity that Israel enjoys. The reality is that Israel employs violence against Palestinians as its trademark and there is no reason whatsoever why it should not be singled out as an agenda item at the UNHRC.
What stands out in all of this is not the juxtaposition of Israel’s human rights violations against those of other countries, but the international community’s passive response to Israeli violations. Resolutions are useless; Israel and the international community know this very well. Even so, the farce instigated by the international community through such statements continues to keep Palestinians tethered to the same cycle of abuse, worthy only of repetitive rhetoric which prompts momentary anger and then fades into oblivion.
Of particular note was the Palestinian Authority’s spokesman Yusuf al-Mahmoud who, as quoted in the Times of Israel, praised countries which voted in favour of the UNHRC resolutions “for their ability to stand in the face of injustice, arrogance, and occupation, and to reject the language of threats and coercion.”
The countries that he praises so effusively have merely acted in order to comply with measures requiring the least effort on their part; words are, after all, cheap. However, it is “language of threats and coercion” which requires further dissection when applied to the PA’s track record of rhetoric that invites violence against Palestinians.
Just days after the UNHRC resolutions were passed, PA leader Mahmoud Abbas told a press conference in Ramallah attended by Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, that the PA “never rejected political negotiations with Israel.” Abbas also insisted that he would not “accept solutions outside the framework of international legitimacy.”
The ramifications of “international legitimacy” should be considered as part of the “language of threats and coercion.” In remaining aligned to obsolete paradigms, as well as institutions which granted legitimacy to Israel at the expense of Palestinian displacement and dispossession, Abbas is allowing violence against Palestinian society at every level.
Thus, not only does Yusuf Al-Mahmoud’s statement ring hollow, but it also reflects the perpetual dissonance when discussing the violence inflicted upon Palestinians by the political protagonists who claim antagonism against themselves while collaborating flawlessly in the elimination of Palestine and its people.
In diplomatic circles, language hardly changes from one scenario to the next. It is only the accusations levelled against different political actors that convey part of the context, which always disregards allegations of violence in order to maintain the level of impunity for all aggressors.
The latest UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) session, during which five resolutions against Israel were passed, is one such example of how rhetoric has degenerated to the point that there is no longer any coherence between the human rights violations and condemnations thereof. Such rhetoric is irresponsible.
According to Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon, the UNHRC is “manipulated by bloodthirsty dictatorships hiding their own massive human rights violations by attacking Israel.” US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley displayed her devotion to the Zionist state by insisting that Washington’s “patience is not unlimited. Today’s actions make clear that the organisation lacks the credibility needed to be a true advocate for human rights.” This, of course, is all nonsense.
The context offered by Nahshon and Haley is reflective of nothing more than the impunity that Israel enjoys. The reality is that Israel employs violence against Palestinians as its trademark and there is no reason whatsoever why it should not be singled out as an agenda item at the UNHRC.
What stands out in all of this is not the juxtaposition of Israel’s human rights violations against those of other countries, but the international community’s passive response to Israeli violations. Resolutions are useless; Israel and the international community know this very well. Even so, the farce instigated by the international community through such statements continues to keep Palestinians tethered to the same cycle of abuse, worthy only of repetitive rhetoric which prompts momentary anger and then fades into oblivion.
Of particular note was the Palestinian Authority’s spokesman Yusuf al-Mahmoud who, as quoted in the Times of Israel, praised countries which voted in favour of the UNHRC resolutions “for their ability to stand in the face of injustice, arrogance, and occupation, and to reject the language of threats and coercion.”
The countries that he praises so effusively have merely acted in order to comply with measures requiring the least effort on their part; words are, after all, cheap. However, it is “language of threats and coercion” which requires further dissection when applied to the PA’s track record of rhetoric that invites violence against Palestinians.
Just days after the UNHRC resolutions were passed, PA leader Mahmoud Abbas told a press conference in Ramallah attended by Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, that the PA “never rejected political negotiations with Israel.” Abbas also insisted that he would not “accept solutions outside the framework of international legitimacy.”
The ramifications of “international legitimacy” should be considered as part of the “language of threats and coercion.” In remaining aligned to obsolete paradigms, as well as institutions which granted legitimacy to Israel at the expense of Palestinian displacement and dispossession, Abbas is allowing violence against Palestinian society at every level.
Thus, not only does Yusuf Al-Mahmoud’s statement ring hollow, but it also reflects the perpetual dissonance when discussing the violence inflicted upon Palestinians by the political protagonists who claim antagonism against themselves while collaborating flawlessly in the elimination of Palestine and its people.
26 mar 2018
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened Sunday's cabinet meeting by praising the Taylor Force Act passed on Friday in the US under which the US government will cut financial aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA) if it transfers money to Palestinian prisoners or their families.
Meanwhile, two similar bills in Israel have been delayed in recent months due to objections by the defense and finance ministries who prefer to leave the matter up to the security cabinet rather than have it legislated.
The first is sponsored by the government and initiated by Israel's War Minister Avigdor Lieberman while the second is private and presented by MK Elazar Stern.
Stern's bill to cut back funding to the PA was passed in its initial Knesset vote, while Lieberman's was approved a month ago by the Ministerial Committee for Legislation.
War Ministry lawyer Gal Cohen said that the government bill is preferable because it is more flexible.
Meanwhile, two similar bills in Israel have been delayed in recent months due to objections by the defense and finance ministries who prefer to leave the matter up to the security cabinet rather than have it legislated.
The first is sponsored by the government and initiated by Israel's War Minister Avigdor Lieberman while the second is private and presented by MK Elazar Stern.
Stern's bill to cut back funding to the PA was passed in its initial Knesset vote, while Lieberman's was approved a month ago by the Ministerial Committee for Legislation.
War Ministry lawyer Gal Cohen said that the government bill is preferable because it is more flexible.
On Sunday evening, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in its 138th session, in Geneva, Switzerland, voted to support the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, to have a state of their own with Jerusalem as its capital.
The resolution counters a statement that Donald Trump made in December in which he unilaterally bypassed all peace agreements and negotiations and declared that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel – thus denying all Palestinian claims to their historic capital city.
The IPU is a forum made up of representatives from the national legislatures of 176 countries.
At their annual session in Geneva this week, they considered four resolutions regarding Palestine and Israel – three proposed by the Palestinian Authority, and one proposed by the Israeli representative.
The Palestinian Authority was joined by Kuwait and Bahrain in introducing three resolutions condemning the declaration by Trump of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, as well as condemning the US decision to cut funding to the United Nations Refugee Works Agency, which provides food aid and schools to Palestinian refugees.
The Israeli representative responded with a resolution calling Iran a “terrorist state”. That resolution did not pass.
The three measures introduced by the Palestinian Authority did pass, despite the Israeli delegate’s meetings through the weekend to try to convince the delegations of Argentina, France, Russia, Mexico, Canada, Brazil and other countries to vote against the measure.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement strongly denouncing the resolutions and claimed on that the council is “adopting resolutions that have lost touch with reality.”
He also said that the time has come to change the name of the Human Rights Council to the “council that adopts resolutions against the only democracy in the Middle East.”
For his part, Israeli “Defense Minister” Avigdor Lieberman called on Israel to withdraw from the council, adding that Israel’s membership with this council “grants it recognition, and harms the Jews.”
Israel’s ongoing illegal occupation of occupied Palestine, including East Jerusalem, and its colonies, violate International Law, the Fourth Geneva Convention, and numerous United Nations and Security Council resolutions.
The resolution counters a statement that Donald Trump made in December in which he unilaterally bypassed all peace agreements and negotiations and declared that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel – thus denying all Palestinian claims to their historic capital city.
The IPU is a forum made up of representatives from the national legislatures of 176 countries.
At their annual session in Geneva this week, they considered four resolutions regarding Palestine and Israel – three proposed by the Palestinian Authority, and one proposed by the Israeli representative.
The Palestinian Authority was joined by Kuwait and Bahrain in introducing three resolutions condemning the declaration by Trump of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, as well as condemning the US decision to cut funding to the United Nations Refugee Works Agency, which provides food aid and schools to Palestinian refugees.
The Israeli representative responded with a resolution calling Iran a “terrorist state”. That resolution did not pass.
The three measures introduced by the Palestinian Authority did pass, despite the Israeli delegate’s meetings through the weekend to try to convince the delegations of Argentina, France, Russia, Mexico, Canada, Brazil and other countries to vote against the measure.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement strongly denouncing the resolutions and claimed on that the council is “adopting resolutions that have lost touch with reality.”
He also said that the time has come to change the name of the Human Rights Council to the “council that adopts resolutions against the only democracy in the Middle East.”
For his part, Israeli “Defense Minister” Avigdor Lieberman called on Israel to withdraw from the council, adding that Israel’s membership with this council “grants it recognition, and harms the Jews.”
Israel’s ongoing illegal occupation of occupied Palestine, including East Jerusalem, and its colonies, violate International Law, the Fourth Geneva Convention, and numerous United Nations and Security Council resolutions.
25 mar 2018
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attacked the performance of the UN Human Rights Council after it adopted a series of resolutions condemning Israeli violations against Palestinians.
In a tweet published on his Twitter account, Netanyahu described the UN Human Rights Council as a “circus of futility,” claiming that its decisions against Israeli is not correct.
He considered, according to Al Ray, UNHRC resolutions to be an attack against “the only democracy in the Middle East”.
The UNHRC adopted, on Friday, a number of resolutions that stress the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, and establishing an independent and sovereign state.
It also expressed its dissatisfaction with the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, and called on Israel to withdraw to the 1967 borders.
It also called Israel to immediately stop all violations against the Palestinian people and to implement the Security Council resolutions in this regard.
03/20/18 Netanyahu and Family to be Investigated in Corruption Case
In a tweet published on his Twitter account, Netanyahu described the UN Human Rights Council as a “circus of futility,” claiming that its decisions against Israeli is not correct.
He considered, according to Al Ray, UNHRC resolutions to be an attack against “the only democracy in the Middle East”.
The UNHRC adopted, on Friday, a number of resolutions that stress the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, and establishing an independent and sovereign state.
It also expressed its dissatisfaction with the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, and called on Israel to withdraw to the 1967 borders.
It also called Israel to immediately stop all violations against the Palestinian people and to implement the Security Council resolutions in this regard.
03/20/18 Netanyahu and Family to be Investigated in Corruption Case
