UN experts sounded the alarm Friday over the continuing destruction in Gaza and the West Bank during a briefing before the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.
اضافة اعلان
The United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People held its 431st meeting on Friday at UN headquarters in New York under the theme, “Human Dignity Under Pressure: Humanitarian and Human Rights Implications in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
The meeting featured briefings by Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967; Farida Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on the right to education; Surya Deva, Special Rapporteur on the right to development; and Navi Pillay, Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.
The briefings addressed the immediate humanitarian and human rights consequences of the ongoing crisis in Gaza, one year after the ceasefire took effect, as well as escalating violence linked to Israel’s unlawful occupation.
The speakers stressed the gravity of the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, warning that “genocide is continuing in Gaza,” while “crimes against humanity and war crimes” are being committed in the West Bank.
They also warned that erasing the truth has become part of the destruction of an entire people, depriving Palestinians of hope and their aspirations for the future.
The special rapporteurs and the chair of the Commission of Inquiry highlighted the cumulative, intergenerational impact of Israeli policies and practices, including settlement expansion, violence and forced displacement, on the rights, livelihoods and living conditions of the Palestinian people.
The speakers also drew attention to the devastating impact on children and young people, warning that the prolonged unlawful occupation is deepening patterns of dispossession and deprivation of rights, undermining prospects for sustainable development for the Palestinian people.
The discussion highlighted the responsibilities of all parties and UN member states under international law. The speakers stressed the need for concrete measures to protect civilians, uphold human dignity, support recovery and reconstruction efforts through the effective, free and meaningful participation of Palestinians, strengthen accountability, and advance the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.
