1 feb 2019
An Israeli minister, on Wednesday, threatened to ban human rights group Amnesty International from the country, for its criticism of some tourism companies.
Gilad Erdan, the minister of public security, accused the rights group of promoting a boycott against Israelis.
“I have instructed the Ministry of Strategic Affairs to examine the possibility of preventing the entry of members of Amnesty to Israel,” Erdan said.
His remarks came after Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s strategy and research director for Turkey,warned that online tourism companies that do business in the occupied Palestinian territories could face prosecution “for supporting war crimes”.
In a new report, Amnesty chides several prominent online tourism firms — including Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor — for promoting tourism to illegal Israeli settlements, thus contributing to Israel’s decades-long occupation.
Such activities, Gardner added, “violate the UN’s guiding principles on business and human rights […] which call on corporations to operate in accordance with international humanitarian law”.
Palestinian figures show that some 640,000 Jewish settlers currently live on 196 settlements (built with the Israeli government’s permission) and more than 200 settler “outposts” (built without its permission) across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Israel occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as Israel’s “eternal and undivided capital” — a move never recognized by the international community.
International law continues to view the entire West Bank as “occupied territory” and considers all Israeli settlement building there as illegal.
~Andalou Agency/Days of Palestine
Gilad Erdan, the minister of public security, accused the rights group of promoting a boycott against Israelis.
“I have instructed the Ministry of Strategic Affairs to examine the possibility of preventing the entry of members of Amnesty to Israel,” Erdan said.
His remarks came after Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s strategy and research director for Turkey,warned that online tourism companies that do business in the occupied Palestinian territories could face prosecution “for supporting war crimes”.
In a new report, Amnesty chides several prominent online tourism firms — including Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor — for promoting tourism to illegal Israeli settlements, thus contributing to Israel’s decades-long occupation.
Such activities, Gardner added, “violate the UN’s guiding principles on business and human rights […] which call on corporations to operate in accordance with international humanitarian law”.
Palestinian figures show that some 640,000 Jewish settlers currently live on 196 settlements (built with the Israeli government’s permission) and more than 200 settler “outposts” (built without its permission) across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Israel occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as Israel’s “eternal and undivided capital” — a move never recognized by the international community.
International law continues to view the entire West Bank as “occupied territory” and considers all Israeli settlement building there as illegal.
~Andalou Agency/Days of Palestine
Al-Marsad has published a new legal report that investigates the implications of a recent Israeli project which proposes to develop a massive wind farm in the occupied Syrian Golan (‘Golan’).
The report highlights the consequences of Israel’s latest attempt to tie itself to the Golan by stealing the region’s resources and manipulating its native population.
Although the report focuses on one specific project, it identifies many of the common characteristics of settlement businesses, in the Golan, which violate international law and harm the native community immensely.
Windfall – The Exploitation of Wind Energy in the Occupied Syrian Golan investigates Energix Renewable Energies’ Clean Wind Energy Project. The project seeks to build at least 52 wind turbines across much of the limited remaining Syrian owned land in the Golan.
Energix is an Israeli company and is working collectively with the Israeli government to advance the project. Energix has sought to execute the project through a number of concerning practices, including fraud and misrepresentations, and has possibly engaged in widespread corruption.
According to the PNN, the report starts by exploring Energix’s project and its actions in the native Syrian community. Next, the report discusses how Energix is violating numerous principles of corporate social responsibility in advancing the project.
Lastly, the report shows how the project, like the majority of Israeli sponsored business development plans in the Golan, violates fundamental principles of international law. The report concludes by identifying how the project is simply a tool for Israel to tighten its illegal grip on the Golan to profit Israelis and Israeli settlements at the expense of the local Syrian community.
With no end in sight to the occupation, Al-Marsad seeks to uphold basic international laws and standards in the region. It therefore rejects and will continue to contest Energix’s and Israel’s actions in the Golan. Syrians must have the final say in what happens with Syrian natural resources on Syrian land.
Click here to view full report. [pdf]
The report highlights the consequences of Israel’s latest attempt to tie itself to the Golan by stealing the region’s resources and manipulating its native population.
Although the report focuses on one specific project, it identifies many of the common characteristics of settlement businesses, in the Golan, which violate international law and harm the native community immensely.
Windfall – The Exploitation of Wind Energy in the Occupied Syrian Golan investigates Energix Renewable Energies’ Clean Wind Energy Project. The project seeks to build at least 52 wind turbines across much of the limited remaining Syrian owned land in the Golan.
Energix is an Israeli company and is working collectively with the Israeli government to advance the project. Energix has sought to execute the project through a number of concerning practices, including fraud and misrepresentations, and has possibly engaged in widespread corruption.
According to the PNN, the report starts by exploring Energix’s project and its actions in the native Syrian community. Next, the report discusses how Energix is violating numerous principles of corporate social responsibility in advancing the project.
Lastly, the report shows how the project, like the majority of Israeli sponsored business development plans in the Golan, violates fundamental principles of international law. The report concludes by identifying how the project is simply a tool for Israel to tighten its illegal grip on the Golan to profit Israelis and Israeli settlements at the expense of the local Syrian community.
With no end in sight to the occupation, Al-Marsad seeks to uphold basic international laws and standards in the region. It therefore rejects and will continue to contest Energix’s and Israel’s actions in the Golan. Syrians must have the final say in what happens with Syrian natural resources on Syrian land.
Click here to view full report. [pdf]
31 jan 2019
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Online booking giants Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor are fueling human rights violations against Palestinians by listing hundreds of rooms and activities in Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land, including East Jerusalem, Amnesty International (AI) said on Wednesday.
In Amnesty International's new report entitled "Destination: Occupation," the organization documents how online booking companies are driving tourism to illegal Israeli settlements and contributing to their existence and expansion. AI said, “Israel’s settling of Israeli civilians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) violates international humanitarian law and is a war crime. Despite this, the four companies continue to operate in the settlements, and profit from this illegal situation.” |
“One of the settlements included in AI report is Kfar Adummim, a growing tourism hub located less than two kilometers from the Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, whose imminent and complete demolition by Israeli forces has been given a green light by Israel’s Supreme Court. The expansion of Kfar Adummim and other surrounding settlements is a key driver of human rights violations against the local Bedouin community.”
“Israel’s unlawful seizure of Palestinian land and expansion of settlements perpetuates immense suffering, pushing Palestinians out of their homes, destroying their livelihoods and depriving them of basics like drinking water. Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor model themselves on the idea of sharing and mutual trust, yet they are contributing to these human rights violations by doing business in the settlements,” said Seema Joshi, Amnesty International’s Director of Global Thematic Issues.
“The Israeli government uses the growing tourism industry in the settlements as a way of legitimizing their existence and expansion, and online booking companies are playing along with this agenda. It’s time for these companies to stand up for human rights by withdrawing all of their listings in illegal settlements on occupied land. War crimes are not a tourist attraction.”
In November, Airbnb pledged to remove all listings in settlements in the occupied West Bank, however it did not extend its commitment to occupied East Jerusalem, which is also occupied territory, and where it has more than 100 listings in settlements.
AI called on Airbnb to implement its announcement and remove all its listings in settlements in occupied territory, including East Jerusalem. AI also said that Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor should remove all their listings in the OPT.
All four companies in Amnesty International’s report have listings in settlements including East Jerusalem.
Airbnb currently has more than 300 listings of properties in settlements in the OPT. TripAdvisor lists more than 70 different attractions, tours, restaurants, caf s, hotels and rental apartments in settlements in the OPT. Booking.com lists 45 hotels and rentals in settlements in the OPT. Expedia lists nine accommodation providers, including four large hotels, in settlements in the OPT.
Amnesty International found that Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor not only play a significant role in driving tourism to illegal settlements, they also mislead their customers by failing to consistently indicate when listings are located in Israeli settlements.
“Tourists coming here are brainwashed, they are lied to, they do not know this is our land,” said a Palestinian farmer living next to illegal Shiloh settlement, where the Israeli government is funding a large visitor centre to draw tourists to an archaeological site.
In recent years the Israeli government has invested huge sums to develop the tourism industry in settlements. It uses the designation of certain locations as tourist sites to justify the takeover of Palestinian land and homes, and often deliberately constructs settlements next to archaeological sites to emphasize the Jewish people’s historic connections to the region.
AI’s report highlights how the Israeli government allows and encourages settlers to exploit land and natural resources that belong to Palestinians, and how Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor also benefit from this exploitation.
“Despite the fact that these are illegally appropriated Palestinian natural resources, these activities only benefit settlers and the online companies that do business with them.”
It is not just the tourism industry which is profiting from, and contributing to, illegal settlements. Hundreds of millions of pounds’ worth of goods produced in Israeli settlements are exported internationally each year, despite the fact that most countries around the world have officially condemned the settlements as illegal under international law.
AI called on individual companies to stop doing business in and with the settlements, as well as calling on governments worldwide to make this mandatory through regulation, and to introduce laws prohibiting the import of settlement goods.
Joshi stressed, “It’s not enough to condemn the settlements as illegal but allow the commercial activities that make them profitable to continue.”
The Irish Senate is currently in the process of approving a landmark bill that prohibits the import and sale of goods, services and natural resources originating in illegal settlements in occupied Palestine and Amnesty International is calling on other countries to follow this lead.
“Israel’s unlawful seizure of Palestinian land and expansion of settlements perpetuates immense suffering, pushing Palestinians out of their homes, destroying their livelihoods and depriving them of basics like drinking water. Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor model themselves on the idea of sharing and mutual trust, yet they are contributing to these human rights violations by doing business in the settlements,” said Seema Joshi, Amnesty International’s Director of Global Thematic Issues.
“The Israeli government uses the growing tourism industry in the settlements as a way of legitimizing their existence and expansion, and online booking companies are playing along with this agenda. It’s time for these companies to stand up for human rights by withdrawing all of their listings in illegal settlements on occupied land. War crimes are not a tourist attraction.”
In November, Airbnb pledged to remove all listings in settlements in the occupied West Bank, however it did not extend its commitment to occupied East Jerusalem, which is also occupied territory, and where it has more than 100 listings in settlements.
AI called on Airbnb to implement its announcement and remove all its listings in settlements in occupied territory, including East Jerusalem. AI also said that Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor should remove all their listings in the OPT.
All four companies in Amnesty International’s report have listings in settlements including East Jerusalem.
Airbnb currently has more than 300 listings of properties in settlements in the OPT. TripAdvisor lists more than 70 different attractions, tours, restaurants, caf s, hotels and rental apartments in settlements in the OPT. Booking.com lists 45 hotels and rentals in settlements in the OPT. Expedia lists nine accommodation providers, including four large hotels, in settlements in the OPT.
Amnesty International found that Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor not only play a significant role in driving tourism to illegal settlements, they also mislead their customers by failing to consistently indicate when listings are located in Israeli settlements.
“Tourists coming here are brainwashed, they are lied to, they do not know this is our land,” said a Palestinian farmer living next to illegal Shiloh settlement, where the Israeli government is funding a large visitor centre to draw tourists to an archaeological site.
In recent years the Israeli government has invested huge sums to develop the tourism industry in settlements. It uses the designation of certain locations as tourist sites to justify the takeover of Palestinian land and homes, and often deliberately constructs settlements next to archaeological sites to emphasize the Jewish people’s historic connections to the region.
AI’s report highlights how the Israeli government allows and encourages settlers to exploit land and natural resources that belong to Palestinians, and how Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor also benefit from this exploitation.
“Despite the fact that these are illegally appropriated Palestinian natural resources, these activities only benefit settlers and the online companies that do business with them.”
It is not just the tourism industry which is profiting from, and contributing to, illegal settlements. Hundreds of millions of pounds’ worth of goods produced in Israeli settlements are exported internationally each year, despite the fact that most countries around the world have officially condemned the settlements as illegal under international law.
AI called on individual companies to stop doing business in and with the settlements, as well as calling on governments worldwide to make this mandatory through regulation, and to introduce laws prohibiting the import of settlement goods.
Joshi stressed, “It’s not enough to condemn the settlements as illegal but allow the commercial activities that make them profitable to continue.”
The Irish Senate is currently in the process of approving a landmark bill that prohibits the import and sale of goods, services and natural resources originating in illegal settlements in occupied Palestine and Amnesty International is calling on other countries to follow this lead.
The World Health Organisation issued its monthly report entitled “Health Access Barriers for Patients in the Occupied Palestinian Territory”, in which the organisation highlighted the case of ALRAY Media Agency’s photographer, Attia Darwish, who was seriously injured a month ago.
WHO said, in its report, which comes in three parts, that a tear gas canister hit Darwish, a 31-year-old photojournalist, in his face, under his left eye, when he was covering demonstrations near the Gaza fence.
“I was taking photos when my phone rang, and I tried to take the call. Suddenly, I felt a blow to my face and fell down,” Attia said, according to Al Ray.
The ambulance picked him up within minutes and took him to a trauma stabilization point close to the fence. After initial assessment and first aid, Attia was rushed to Shifa hospital, in Gaza, for treatment. He had multiple facial fractures and severe bleeding at the back of his eye, putting his sight at risk, the report said.
WHO said that Darwish had surgery to remove shrapnel from the wound, fix his lower jaw and replace fragmented bones in his face with metal plates. He also received initial treatment for his eye injury, but needed review and specialist care outside of Gaza.
“As a photographer, I depend on my eyes to do my job. Now, I can hardly see with my left eye. Getting proper treatment is something critical for me,” Attia said. He subsequently received a medical referral, from the Palestinian Ministry of Health, to go for an appointment to St John’s Eye Hospital, in Jerusalem.
He applied to Israeli authorities for a permit to exit Gaza, for treatment, but, when the date of his hospital appointment came, his permit application was still under review. Attia despaired of getting a permit to exit Gaza, via Erez crossing with Israel, and asked the Services Purchasing Unit in the Ministry of Health to refer him, instead, for treatment in Egypt, WHO recounted.
On the day of his travel, however, Rafah crossing point to Egypt was closed for exit. “I cannot feel the left side of my face. I can only eat soft food and I’m suffering with the pain. The cold weather makes it even worse. When I was in hospital, one of the doctors said I either need a bone graft or an artificial implant. But, neither of those is available in Gaza,” he said, according to the report.
WHO said that when they spoke with Attia, he still had not received his permit to leave Gaza to Jerusalem, stressing that “his case is not an exception.”
The orgnisation pointed out that of 435 permit applications to Israeli authorities by those injured during the Great March of Return demonstrations, only 19% have been approved, where those unable to access the health care they need face a higher risk of complications and poorer health outcomes.
WHO said, in its report, which comes in three parts, that a tear gas canister hit Darwish, a 31-year-old photojournalist, in his face, under his left eye, when he was covering demonstrations near the Gaza fence.
“I was taking photos when my phone rang, and I tried to take the call. Suddenly, I felt a blow to my face and fell down,” Attia said, according to Al Ray.
The ambulance picked him up within minutes and took him to a trauma stabilization point close to the fence. After initial assessment and first aid, Attia was rushed to Shifa hospital, in Gaza, for treatment. He had multiple facial fractures and severe bleeding at the back of his eye, putting his sight at risk, the report said.
WHO said that Darwish had surgery to remove shrapnel from the wound, fix his lower jaw and replace fragmented bones in his face with metal plates. He also received initial treatment for his eye injury, but needed review and specialist care outside of Gaza.
“As a photographer, I depend on my eyes to do my job. Now, I can hardly see with my left eye. Getting proper treatment is something critical for me,” Attia said. He subsequently received a medical referral, from the Palestinian Ministry of Health, to go for an appointment to St John’s Eye Hospital, in Jerusalem.
He applied to Israeli authorities for a permit to exit Gaza, for treatment, but, when the date of his hospital appointment came, his permit application was still under review. Attia despaired of getting a permit to exit Gaza, via Erez crossing with Israel, and asked the Services Purchasing Unit in the Ministry of Health to refer him, instead, for treatment in Egypt, WHO recounted.
On the day of his travel, however, Rafah crossing point to Egypt was closed for exit. “I cannot feel the left side of my face. I can only eat soft food and I’m suffering with the pain. The cold weather makes it even worse. When I was in hospital, one of the doctors said I either need a bone graft or an artificial implant. But, neither of those is available in Gaza,” he said, according to the report.
WHO said that when they spoke with Attia, he still had not received his permit to leave Gaza to Jerusalem, stressing that “his case is not an exception.”
The orgnisation pointed out that of 435 permit applications to Israeli authorities by those injured during the Great March of Return demonstrations, only 19% have been approved, where those unable to access the health care they need face a higher risk of complications and poorer health outcomes.
United Nations officials, Wednesday, expressed deep concern over the rise in ongoing Israeli interference in Palestinian education.
“As the second school term resumes in the State of Palestine, we remain deeply concerned by the high number of reported incidents of interference in or near schools in the West Bank since the beginning of the school year,” said the Humanitarian Coordinator, Jamie McGoldrick, UNICEF Special Representative, Genevieve Boutin, and UNESCO in a joint statement.
“These incidents are impacting children’s safe access to education. Incidents of interference in schools by Israeli Forces, demolitions, threats of demolition, clashes on the way to school between students and security forces, teachers stopped at checkpoints, and the violent actions of Israeli forces and settlers on some occasions, are impacting access to a safe learning environment and the right to quality education for thousands of Palestinian children,” they said, according to WAFA.
“From January to December 2018, the UN documented 111 interferences to education in the West Bank affecting 19,196 children, an average of more than two violations every week. More than half of the verified incidents involved live ammunition, tear gas, and stun grenades fired into or near schools by Israeli Forces, impacting the delivery of education or injuring students. Nearly two-thirds of all verified interference incidents in West Bank schools took place in the last four months of 2018.”
The UN officials added, “Currently, some 50 schools in the West Bank, including in East Jerusalem, are under threat of demolition. In 2018, five schools in the West Bank were demolished or seized by Israeli authorities, including Izbiq Community School north of Nablus, Al Semeye School south of Hebron, and the Abu Nuwar and Jabel Baba schools in East Jerusalem.
Also, since mid-October 2018, the Sawiya al Luban school south of Nablus was closed for a day, and the Khan al-Ahmar village school, east of Jerusalem, remains under threat of demolition, along with the rest of the village.
Orief secondary school for boys near Nablus has also been forced closed twice due to settler violence, and children from this school have been hospitalized with multiple injuries, including from gunshots. In the H2 area of Hebron, tear gas is regularly used around schools, and new measures are being applied at checkpoints that expose students and teachers to violence – at one particularly affected H2 school, more than 20 such incidents were documented in 2018.”
Moreover, they said, “during military escalations from 11 to 13 November, schools in Gaza and in southern Israel were closed for at least one day, including four schools in Gaza that received minor damage, and one learning support centre and one kindergarten that both severely damaged.”
The UN officials said “schools should be respected as places of learning, safety and stability. The classroom should be a sanctuary from conflict, where children can learn and develop into active citizens.
“Children should never be the target of violence and must not be exposed to any form of violence.”
“As the second school term resumes in the State of Palestine, we remain deeply concerned by the high number of reported incidents of interference in or near schools in the West Bank since the beginning of the school year,” said the Humanitarian Coordinator, Jamie McGoldrick, UNICEF Special Representative, Genevieve Boutin, and UNESCO in a joint statement.
“These incidents are impacting children’s safe access to education. Incidents of interference in schools by Israeli Forces, demolitions, threats of demolition, clashes on the way to school between students and security forces, teachers stopped at checkpoints, and the violent actions of Israeli forces and settlers on some occasions, are impacting access to a safe learning environment and the right to quality education for thousands of Palestinian children,” they said, according to WAFA.
“From January to December 2018, the UN documented 111 interferences to education in the West Bank affecting 19,196 children, an average of more than two violations every week. More than half of the verified incidents involved live ammunition, tear gas, and stun grenades fired into or near schools by Israeli Forces, impacting the delivery of education or injuring students. Nearly two-thirds of all verified interference incidents in West Bank schools took place in the last four months of 2018.”
The UN officials added, “Currently, some 50 schools in the West Bank, including in East Jerusalem, are under threat of demolition. In 2018, five schools in the West Bank were demolished or seized by Israeli authorities, including Izbiq Community School north of Nablus, Al Semeye School south of Hebron, and the Abu Nuwar and Jabel Baba schools in East Jerusalem.
Also, since mid-October 2018, the Sawiya al Luban school south of Nablus was closed for a day, and the Khan al-Ahmar village school, east of Jerusalem, remains under threat of demolition, along with the rest of the village.
Orief secondary school for boys near Nablus has also been forced closed twice due to settler violence, and children from this school have been hospitalized with multiple injuries, including from gunshots. In the H2 area of Hebron, tear gas is regularly used around schools, and new measures are being applied at checkpoints that expose students and teachers to violence – at one particularly affected H2 school, more than 20 such incidents were documented in 2018.”
Moreover, they said, “during military escalations from 11 to 13 November, schools in Gaza and in southern Israel were closed for at least one day, including four schools in Gaza that received minor damage, and one learning support centre and one kindergarten that both severely damaged.”
The UN officials said “schools should be respected as places of learning, safety and stability. The classroom should be a sanctuary from conflict, where children can learn and develop into active citizens.
“Children should never be the target of violence and must not be exposed to any form of violence.”
