PALESTINE’S LEGAL SCENE –Issue.132

Your weekly survey of the most important publications and activities related to Palestine and law, from local and international sources

10 – 16 July 2022

Issued every Sunday by Law for Palestine

This weekly report reviews the legal dynamics of the Palestine question, and everything related to international law and Palestine. The report includes an account of the most important publications, activities and conferences related to Palestine at the local, regional, international levels. The report further covers decisions, decrees, and judicial orders affecting the Palestinian cause, whether made at the official, academic or public levels. The report aims to be a reference for monitoring, documenting and archiving the latest human rights developments related to Palestine, and to present them to individuals, researchers, study centers, and official, academic and legal institutions concerned.

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Judicial decrees, decisions, positions, and orders issued by official Palestinian bodies

• The Human Rights Department of the PLO calls on the UN Secretary-General to adapt his annual report on children and activities to further efforts to hold Israel accountable for its crimes.(July 13, 2022). For further details, click here
• The Minister of Social Development urges international childhood institutions to take action to protect Palestinian children and to exert pressure on the Israeli occupation to comply with international conventions that guarantee special care for children during armed conflicts.(July 13, 2022).For further details, click here
• The Palestinian MOFA condemns the uprooting of 400 olive seedlings in Deir Sharaf village, west of Nablus, as well as the confiscation of 1,480 dunums of Jalud and Qaryut lands south of Nablus, Turmusaya and al-Mughayyir, north of Ramallah, in favour of settlements. The construction of a massive settlement bloc in the area is underway to complete the separation of the northern portion of the West Bank from the center and south. (July 14, 2022).For further details, click here
• The Commission of Detainees Affairs advocates for the deployment of an unbiased international medical delegation to assess the health of detained people held in occupation jails.(July 14, 2022). For further details, click here
• The head of the Jerusalem Affairs Department urges the US President to exert pressure on the Israeli authorities to cease excavations near the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque. (July 14, 2022). For further details, click here
• During his meeting with the US President, the Palestinian President emphasised the importance of ending aggressive actions that violate international law and undermine the two-state solution, including stopping house demolitions and daily killings, holding the killers of martyr journalist Shireen Abu Akleh accountable, and preventing settlement activity. (July 15, 2022). For further details, click here

Judicial decrees, decisions, positions, and orders issued by official Israeli bodies

• Before the arrival of the US President, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office ordered the postponement of the July 18 discussion on the proposal to build 2,000 new housing units in East Jerusalem settlements. (July 12, 2022). For further details, click here
• The Israeli government announces a range of benefits for the Palestinians on the day before the US President’s arrival, including the issuance of work licenses to 1,500 people from Gaza. (July 14, 2022). For further details, click here
• A settlement organization announces its intention to create three illegal settlements in unidentified West Bank territories. (July 15, 2022). For further details, click here

Judicial decrees, decisions, positions, and orders issued by Arab, European, and international bodies

• In the annual United Nations report on children and armed conflict, the Secretary-General highlights the systemic absence of accountability for Israeli violations against Palestinian children and calls on Israel to investigate every case of live fire.(July 11, 2022). For further details, click here
• The French public prosecutor decides to open a judicial investigation in response to the lawsuit filed by Salah Hammouri, the International Movement for Human Rights (FIDH), and the French League for Human Rights (LDH) to prosecute the Israeli electronic intelligence company NSO Group, which illegally hacked Hammouri’s phone.(July 11, 2022). For further details, click here
• Nine European countries have stated that they will continue to support six Palestinian institutions in their refusal to be designated as terrorist organisations by Israel.(July 12, 2022).For further details, click here
• Prior to US President Biden’s travel to the Middle East, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez and Senator Cory Booker urged him to raise the case of Shireen Abu Akleh at the highest levels and call for responsibility for her murder. (July 12, 2022).For further details, click here
• In a statement, US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib criticized Biden’s silence during his visit to Israel regarding the displacement of Palestinians in Masafer Yatta as well as his continued support for the occupation despite her prior demand that the US State Department seek to end these human rights violations. (July 13, 2022).For further details, click here
• The European Union’s Foreign Relations Committee adopts a set of recommendations in support of the Palestinian cause, urging the European Commission to continue providing financial support to the National Authority while ensuring that it arrives on time so as not to obstruct the work of its institutions. (July 14, 2022).For further details, click here
• The President of the US promises to support Israel’s security and underlines his sustained support for the two-State solution. He specifically underscored wanting to work toward a future in which Israelis and Palestinians can enjoy equal shares of security, freedom, and prosperity. (July 14, 2022).For further details, click here
• UN experts urge Israel to release prisoner Ahmed Manasra immediately, allow him to return to his family, and provide him with psychological support. They emphased that the time has come for international scrutiny of Israel’s current detention system in the occupied Palestinian territories. (July 14, 2022). For further details, click here
• The US President pledged $100 million for Palestinian hospitals in East Jerusalem. (July 15, 2022). For further details, click here
• The United Nations Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories summarized its visit to Jordan, identifying crimes committed against Palestinians and expressing disappointment that Israel didn’t respond to its request for consultations with Israeli authorities. (July 15, 2022). For further details, click here
• Jordanian King Abdullah II met with US President Joe Biden. The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to continue working for a just, lasting, and comprehensive peace between Israel and the Palestinians on the basis of the two-state solution. (July 16, 2022). For further details, click here
• The Prince of Qatar said that tensions will endure until Israel stops violating international law. (July 16, 2022). For further details, click here
• Egypt’s President, Iraq’s Prime Minister, and Bahrain’s king all emphasized the need to find a comprehensive, just, and long-term solution for Palestinians. (July 16, 2022).
• The Saudi Crown Prince said that a just resolution for Palestine is necessary for the region’s development.(July 16, 2022). For further details, click here

Publications of Human Rights NGOs

• According to the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel (Adalah), new evidence has been discovered that the US intends to establish an embassy on private land confiscated from Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem. (July10, 2022).For further details, click here
• The Arab-American Fund for Democratic Action (AADAF) considers the US statement on Shireen Abu Akleh’s assassination insufficient and weak, condemns politically charged findings in the US investigation, and calls on the US State Department to conduct an appropriate investigation into Abu Akleh’s case. (July12, 2022).For further details, click here
• Amnesty International urges the Biden administration and US Congress to halt military financing for Israel’s occupation army. (July 13, 2022).For further details, click here
• The BDS movement strongly condemns US President Biden’s visit to the region, pointing out that the Biden administration is permitting Israel to engage in settler colonialism and apartheid through providing military funding and avoiding accountability.(July 13, 2022). For further details, click here
• Peace Now: Despite the new Israeli Prime Minister’s commitment to postpone some settlement plans, 2,000 units in East Jerusalem were promoted during President Biden’s visit, with the further plans to be discussed on July 25. (July 13, 2022) For further details, click here
• The Center for Human Rights and Democracy Media “Shams” urges the United Nations Secretary-General to safeguard Palestinian children from violations and crimes committed by the occupation. (July 14, 2022) For further details, click here