The Palestinian National Council, PNC strongly condemn and denounce the Israeli occupation authorities' arrest of  Khaleda Jarar, a member of the Palestinian National Council and the Palestinian Legislative Council on Sunday. The PNC, in a press release on Monday, said that the arrest is a crime that violates the rights of Palestinian legislators, and is a flagrant violation of international law practiced by Israel against legislators and the Palestinian People. This crime comes in a string of political and on the ground escalation against the Palestinian people, their leaders, their institutions, and rights.

The PNC demanded that the Inter-Parliamentary Union, in particular, and all other regional and international parliamentary unions, to condemn the arrest of MP Khaleda Jarrar and condemn and denounce the continued detention of the remaining 11 members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, 9 of them under administrative detention, by the Israeli occupation authorities.

The PNC called upon the Inter-Parliamentary Union to voice their concerns over these crimes and Israeli violations. The PNC also demanded the release of the detained MP members and to take immediate punitive measures against the Israeli Knesset, which is a partner to the Israeli government in all its crimes and violations against the Palestinian people.

 

Settlements

Since 1967 ,Israel has embarked on a campaign to colonize the occupied Palestinian territories by illegally confiscate Palestinian lands and natural resources while confining the indigenous Palestinians population in enclaves .

The Israeli government has attempted to consolidate its control over Jerusalem by systematically pursuing a number of policies including establishing settlements : Israel has attempted to integrate occupied East Jerusalem into Israel through constructing illegal settlements with and along the unilaterally expanded borders. These settlements now form a ring around the Palestinian population at the heart of the city, sealing it off from the rest of the West Bank .Today more than 277,501 of the approximately 560,546 settlers in the occupied Palestinians territories live in occupied East Jerusalem ,almost 49% of the total settler population.

 

Palestine Refugees

UNRWA defines eligible Palestine refugees as persons whose normal place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948 ,who lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab –Israeli conflict . The descendants of Palestine refugees (males or females married to male refugees ) are also entitled to UNRWA services. Refugees should be living and registered in its fields of operations; The West Bank ,Gaza Strip, Syria, Lebanon ,Jordan .

On June ,1947, the Zionist terrorist organization were planning, organizing and carrying out terror and sabotage activities with a view to expelling Arab citizens .The Zionist gangs employed all methods to forcibly evict the people :Large –Scale  intimidation ,laying siege to and bombarding villages and population centers setting fire to homes ,properties ,cultivated lands, even dozens of massacres were committed with the aim of evicting and massive explosion of the Palestinian people .

 

Places where Palestinian refugees live:

One third of registered refugees live in 59 camps in;

Jordan

Lebanon

Syria

The west bank

Gaza strip

Refugee’sdistribution in the hosting countries:

The hosting country	Percentage
Jordan	42%
West Bank	22%
Gaza	17%
Lebanon	9%
Syria	9%
diapora	1%
Total	100%

 

Outstanding International resolution concerning Palestine Refugees:

Resolution	Concerning
Resolution No(181)	Partition
Resolution No(194)	Repatration and  Compensation
Resolution No(273)	Admission of Israel to the UN
Resolution No(302)	UNRWA Establishment
Resolution No(393)	Development of UNRWA Role and Function
Resolution No(242)	Israel’s Borders

 

UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)

UNRWA was established by General Assembly resolution 302(IV) (1949), following the 1948 Arab – Israeli conflict, to carry out direct relief and work programs for Palestine refugees. The Agency began operations on 1 May 1950.

UNRWA is by far the largest UN operation in the Middle East .It has around 22.000 staff (almost all of whom are refugees themselves) .

UNRWA is the main provider of basic services to about 5.3 million registered Palestine refugees in its field of operations: 17% of them in the West Bank, 24% IN Gaza Strip, 40% in Jordan, 9% in Lebanon ,10% in Syria .

 

Mandate

UNRWA’s services are available to those living in its area of operations who meet this definition, who are registered with the Agency and need assistance.

Since 1967, UNRWA has also been authorized by General Assembly resolution(2252)toprovide humanitarian assistance, on an emergency basis and as a temporary measure, to other persons in the area who are at present displaced and in serious need of continued assistance as a result of the June 1967 hostilities . Since then UNRWA provided services for Gaza refugees coming to Egypt.

Finance

The Agency’s operations are financed almost entirely by voluntary contributions from donors (governments ,intergovernmental and non – governmental organizations and private sources) ,Throughout the past decade ,it has faced recurring financial crises .The Agency has found it increasingly difficult to finance its program to continuing services .The Agency ended last year with a deficit in its budget was 70 million Dollars .

The Main Function

In line with its mandate ,it promotes the human development and well –being of Palestine refugees. UNRWA principle areas are education, health,relief,social services ,micro –credit and camp improvement programs.

 

 

Jerusalem

History

Given the city’s central position in both Arab and Palestinian nationalism and Jewish nationalism (Zionism),the selectivity required to summarize more than 5,000 years of inhabited history is often influenced by ideological bias or background .The periods of Jewish sovereignty in the city’s history are important to Israeli nationalists (Zionists),who claim the right to the city based on Jewish descent from the Israelite kingdom of Judah.The periods of the city’s history are important to Arab and Palestinian nationalists ,who claim the right to the city based on modern Palestinian descent from many different peoples who have lived in the region .

Religious Status

In Islam Jerusalem is the third –holiest city, after Mecca and Medina .In Islamic tradition in 610 CE ,it became the first Qibla ,the focal point for Muslim prayer (salat) and Prophet Muhammad made his Night Journey there ten years later, ascending to heaven to meet previous prophets and receive his final revelation .The first in Qura’n’sSurat al – Isra notes the destination of Prophet Muhammad’s journey as al –Aqsa (the farthest ) mosque ;”Glory to (Allah ) Who did take His servant for a Journey by night from Sacred Mosque to the farthest Mosque ,whose precincts We did bless, in order that We might show him some of our signs : for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things) “.(17:1)

 

What also makes the city significant is the existence of a large number of holy places :Mosques ,Churches ,Synogogues Tombs.

Restoration of Jerusalem

The Hashemite Royal Family Leadership carried out restoration and reconstruction of the Holy Places in Jerusalem three times in the twentieth century .

In 1922 a nongovernmental organization ,the Islamic Higher Council (IHC) was established to preserve Islamic ideals and sanctuaries ,alike .The (IHC) took responsibility for raising funds to restore the Dome of the Rock .A delegation visited Sharif Hussein in Mecca in 1924 ,and explained to him the mosque’s condition .Sharif Hussein contributed 24 thousand golden Lire. This generous sum went towards the restoration of buildings in the Haram Al Sharif compound and a number of other mosques in Palestine .When Sharif Hussein died on 4 June 1931 ,the elite Jerusalemites insisted on his burial in Jerusalem, His tomb is located in the southern corridors of Al Aqsa Mosque.

King Abdulla1 took up the responsibilities of his father .During the 1948 Arab – Israeli war, Al Haram  Al Sharif suffered considerable damage .King Abdulla 1 sounded the call for the restoration of Zakaria’smihrab .He held the role of guardian of the holy sites in Jerusalem, maintaining and repairingthem, throughout his resign .

 

 

Second  Restoration

On 8 May 1952 ,six days after the coronation of King Hussein ,the Jordanian government took action to continue restoration of the Dome of the Rock ,and the compound of all AL Haram Al Sharif (The Noble Sanctuary ) This restoration was funded totally by Jordan (JD 19.000).

Third Restoration

In 1969,after setting Al Aqsa Mosque on fire the late King Hussein again initiated preservation of the holy sites ,particularly ,the restoration of Minbar of Salaheddin ,gilding the dome with glittering gold plates ,as well as the rebuilding of the roof supports .The late King Hussein spend more than US$8 million of his own resources .When King Abdulla II ascended the throne of Jordan ,he continued the royal commitment to care for the holy sites working continuously on the maintenance and restoration of these sites.

The UNESCO and Jerusalem

The UNESCO General Conference ,in its session No 195 ,adopted a resolution in which it :

Deplores the continuing Israeli measures and decision regarding the Ascent of the Mughrabi Gate and reaffirm that no Israeli unilateral measures shall be taken in conformity with its status and obligations under the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed conflict .

Deplores the continuous Israeli restrictions that in effect amount to a blockade of theGaza Strip ,as well as the targeting of the children ,the attacks on schools and other educational and cultural facilities, and the  denial of access to education, and urges Israel, the occupying power , to immediately ease this blockade in accordance with the spirit and essence of the 2014 Cairo agreement between Israel and Palestine for a long – term ceasefire in Gaza .

Deplores the ongoing Israeli construction of private roads for settlers and a separation wall inside the Old City of Al-Khalil /Hebron and the subsequent denial of freedom of movement and freedom of access to places to worship, and urges Israel, theoccupying Power to end these violations, in compliances of provisions of relevant UNESCO conventions,resolutions,and decisions.

Also deplores the continuous Israeli violations such as : closure and restrictions of access to the Muslim holy site Al –Aqsa Mosque ,as well as the frequent intrusions of religions –extremist groups and uniformed forces into the Mosque and urges Israel ,the occupying  Power ,to end these abuses which inflame the tension on the ground .

 

During 1967 war Israeli forces occupied East Jerusalem, along with the entire West Bank and subsequently annexed it .On 27 June 1967 ,a few weeks after the war

ended  ,Israel extended its jurisdiction and administration over East Jerusalem ,establishing new municipal borders .At that time ,Moshe Dyan declared at the Wailing Wall :

“…We have reunited the torn city ,the capital of Israel .We have returned to this most sacred shrine ,never to part from it again …”

Fierce Attacks and Aggressive Plans

The  Israeli forces occupied the Arab city of Jerusalem on 7 June 1967 .Thereupon they immediately proceeded to Judaize the Holy City .They embarked on the execution of their plans by confiscating Arab lands and property ,obliterating Arab and Muslim civilization .They Launched a harsh and stern campaign of terrorism against the Arab inhabitants to force them to evacuate the city ,with a view to filling the vacuum so created by Jewish immigrants .The Israeli authorities further initiated  a programme of diggings and excavations within the city walls ,and in particular under the buildings adjoining the southern and western walls of Al – Haram Ashareef . This led to the collapse of the property and thereafter to its demolition, pretending that such demolition were necessitated by the need to widen and enlarge the open space near the Wailing Wall.

 

The Separation Wall

In the summer  of 2002 ,Israel began constructing its wall in the occupied Palestinian territories .Though Israel has claimed that the Wall is for security purposes ,in actuality it forms an integral component of Israeli’s settlement infrastructure. The Wall snakes through the West Bank seizing large portions of the West Bank territory for the settlements future expansion while confining the indigenous Palestinian population in enclaves and severing East Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank .

 

The Wall has a Number of Dimensions :

• The security dimension : to severely restrict Palestinian movement within the West Bank ,and to prohibit resistants from entering 48 territories.
• The political dimension : constructing Israeli settlements which pose the single greatest threat to the establishment of an independent viable Palestinian State .
• The economic dimension: to isolate Palestinians communities ,preventing their expansion, restricting access to farm lands and natural resources ,and destroying Palestinian territorial contiguity .
• The social dimension: to isolate Palestinian communities .The Wall actually separates Palestinian neighborhoods from other Palestinians neighborhoods. It also separates Palestinians  from their sources of livelihood and social services .

In its Advisory Opinion of 9 July 2004 ,the International Court of Justice (ICJ) held that the Wall ,along with the settlements ,violate international Law .It called upon Israel to halt its construction ,dismantle portions already built ,and provide reparations to Palestinians for damages it has caused.

 

The Wall disastrous effects on the Palestinian people:

The Wall seizes large portions of the West Bank territory for the settlement‘s future expansion .It confiscates large portions of farm lands particularly in Tulkarem and Qalqilya governorates.

The United Nations' cultural arm declared the Old City of Hebron a protected heritage site in a secret ballot, an issue that has triggered a new Israeli-Palestinian spat at the international body.

UNESCO voted 12 to three - with six abstentions - to give heritage status to Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Hebron is home to more than 200,000 Palestinians and a few hundred Israeli settlers, who live in a heavily fortified enclave near the site known to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque and to Jews as the Tomb of the Patriarchs.

The resolution, brought by the Palestinians and which declares Hebron's Old City as an area of outstanding universal value, was fast-tracked on the basis that the site was under threat, with the Palestinians accusing Israel of an "alarming" number of violations, including vandalism and damage to properties.

On Tuesday in a separate vote, the heritage committee backed a resolution condemning Israeli actions in Jerusalem, sparking Israeli anger.

Israel says the Hebron resolution - which refers to the city as Islamic - denies thousands of years of Jewish connection there.

Hebron claims to be one of the oldest cities in the world, dating from the chalcolithic period or more than 3,000 years BC, the UNESCO resolution said.

The resolution is seen as a victory for Palestinian diplomacy and would be cited by Israel as a fresh example of what it alleges is the UN's inherent anti-Israel bias.

In May Israel reacted furiously after UNESCO passed a separate resolution on Jerusalem, and has recently prevented UNESCO researchers from visiting Hebron.

We are marking 50 years since a deliberate Israeli attack resulted in Israel occupying the 22% of historic Palestine that had been left since  1948. It was clear since then that, what Israel wanted was not a “temporary occupation”, but a colonial settlement strategy aimed at taking as much as Palestinian land and natural resources as possible. In defiance of its obligations under International Law and UN resolutions, Israel has strengthened its colonial policies for the past 50 years.

For the Palestinian people, marking 50 years of occupation means marking 50 years of oppression, subjugation and daily control over all aspects of people's lives. It means 50 years of attacks and aggression from occupation forces and settlers against a defenseless civilian population. At the same time, it has also meant 50 years of statements and international resolutions that Israel, the occupying power, has insisted on violating with impunity.

As we mark 50 years, there are a number of countries that continue to reward the Israeli occupation of our land: They trade with Israeli settlements, their companies profit from the Israeli colonial settlement enterprise and are engaged in an agenda of strengthening relations with Israel. At the same time, Tel Aviv systematically denies our basic rights, including the right to freedom and self-determination.

It is long overdue to implement UNSC resolutions, including 2334 regarding Israeli settlements. It is also overdue for countries who haven’t recognized the State of Palestine on the 1967 border to do so. How is it that countries which condemn settlements continue to trade with them: We demand a full ban on Israeli settlement products and we call upon the UN to publish as soon as possible the list of companies profiting from the Israeli colonial occupation of our country.

We are not simply calling upon the international community to take action: We are demanding from each member of the international community to assume its legal responsibilities and stop cooperating with the Israeli occupation: We don’t want another 50 years of impunity and complicity with the systematic denial of our rights. Israeli policies to destroy the two-state solution will not be met with the disappearance of our rights, rather they will be met with more resilience from our people who will remain steadfast towards the fulfillment of their rights. Our people will defeat Apartheid.

This report summarizes a number of attacks committed by Israel between January 1st, 2017 and May 31st, 2017. It provides an overview of Israel’s violations and crimes, committed by its occupying forces and settlers, against the Palestinian civilian population living under its belligerent military occupation. It also includes attacks against Palestinian property and lands in flagrant violation of Israel’s obligations, as the occupying power, under international law and international humanitarian law.
Israel’s culture of impunity over 50 years of colonization has allowed it to deny the people of Palestine the freedom to exercise their inalienable national and human rights, including the right to self-determination. Marking 50 years of Israel’s colonial occupation reflects the failure of the international community to take urgent and concrete measures to protect the Palestinian people and to hold Israel accountable for its systematic violations.

 

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This report was commissioned by the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) from authors Mr. Richard Falk and Ms. Virginia Tilley.
Richard Falk (LLB, Yale University; SJD, Harvard University) is currently Research Fellow, Orfalea Center of Global and International Studies, University of California at Santa Barbara, and Albert G. Milbank Professor of International Law and Practice Emeritus at Princeton University. From 2008 through 2014, he served as United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967. He is author or editor of some 60 books and hundreds of articles on international human rights law, Middle East politics, environmental justice, and other fields concerning human rights and international relations.

 

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