PALESTINE’S LEGAL SCENE –Issue.168

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

19 – 25 March 2023

Issued every Sunday by Law for Palestine

Prepared by: Razwan Issa, Nour Kharouf, Nermin Allawh, Sophia Alisaa

Translation: Mays Abu Atwan and Ahmad Staitia
Editing: Rachel Marandett

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.

To view this Volume of Palestine’s Legal Scene, please click here (3 minutes read)

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

• The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (PMFA) condemns settlers’ violations against the Church of Gethesmane in the occupied Jerusalem. (March 19, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Palestinian President condemns Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s remarks that “There’s no such thing as Palestinians.”. These statements are an attempt to falsify history and, as Israel continues to deny the existence of the Palestinian people, unmask the true face of Israeli racism. (March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Palestinian Cabinet condemns the decision of Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, to close the office and summon the working crews of the company that provides media and production services to the Palestinian official media. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The PFMA said that Netanyahu’s position on the so-called law of separation amounts to an official recognition of the annexation of the occupied West Bank and the practice of the worst forms of apartheid and persecution against the Palestinian people. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The PFMA condemns the occupying government’s approval to build more than a thousand settlement units, including expanding and legitimizing pre-existing settlements that they treat as blocks in large colonies. (March 24, 2023). For further details, click here

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

• National Security Minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, signed an order barring a Palestinian radio station from operating inside Israel on the grounds that it is backed by the Palestinian Authority and thus has no official permission to work in the Israeli lands. (March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• During his participation in an event in Paris, Israeli Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, spoke from a podium featuring a map of “Greater Israel” that included the borders of Jordan and the occupied Palestine. He said, “there’s no such thing as Palestinians because there’s no such thing as a Palestinian people.” (March 20, 2023).For further details, click here
• The Knesset voted to repeal the Disengagement Law for the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In doing so the rule banning Israelis from entering the settlements of Homesh, Ganim, Kadim and Sa-Nur was abolished. (March 21, 2023). For further details, click here
• Contrary to its commitments under the Sharm el-Sheikh summit, the Israeli government announced the construction of 940 additional housing units in the Efrat and BeitarIllit settlements as well as 89 units in East Jerusalem. (March 24, 2023). For further details, click here

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

• The delegation of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) called on parliamentarians from countries around the globe to support Palestine refugees in the face of multiple crises in the Middle East. The delegated stated, “UNRWA’s financial crisis puts at serious risks the Agency’s essential services”. (March 15, 2023). For further details, click here
• At the invitation of the Arab Republic of Egypt, senior political and security officials from the Egyptian, Jordanian, Israeli, Palestinian, and U.S. met in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt where they reaffirmed their commitment to advancing security, stability and peace for Israelis and Palestinians alike. They also recognized the necessity to de-escalate the situation on the ground, prevent further violence, pursue confidence building measures, enhance mutual trust, create political horizon, and address outstanding issues through direct dialogue. (March 19, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Israel’s deployment of a map depicting the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Occupied Palestinian Territory is inflammatory conduct that violates both international law and the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty. The Ministry summoned the Israeli Ambassador to their headquarters and informed him that this constituted racist and extremist behavior in violation of international standards and the peace treaty.(March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• The EU stated that Smotrich’s remarks are dangerous and disrespectful and called on the Israeli government to disavow the comments and start collaborating with all parties to defuse tensions. (March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Arab Parliament, the League of Arab States, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation denounced the racist remarks made by the Israeli Finance Minister rejecting the existence, history, and legal rights of the Palestinian people. Additionally, they denounced the Israeli occupation authorities’ choice to shut down the Palestinian official information services office in the city of Jerusalem.(March 21, 2023).
• The UN Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process calls on Palestinians and Israelis leaders to help calm the situation and avoid spreading inflammatory rhetoric. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The offices of foreign affairs for the UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and Qatar condemned the Israeli Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich’s statements denying Palestinian’s right to exist while using a map of Israel that included borders of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the occupied Palestinian territories.(March 21, 2023).
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs offices of France, Turkey, the UK,Egypt and Kuwait condemned the Israeli Knesset’s approval of a bill allowing the return of settlers to four settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories that were dismantled in 2005 because it is inconsistent with international law and would fuel tensions.
• The US condemned the legislation passed by the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, to annul important parts of the “disengagement law” enacted in 2005. It also summoned the Israeli ambassador to protest the move, as it contradicts Israel’s commitments to the United States.(March 22, 2023).
• In a joint statement at the UN Security Council, Brazil, Ecuador, France, Gabon, Ghana, Japan, Malta, Switzerland, the UAE and France called on Israel to immediately completely halt all settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and end forced displacement of Palestinians and demolitions of their homes. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The UK agreed to a new trade and security agreement with Israel that opposes use of the “apartheid” label to describe Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians and pledged to confront “anti-Israel bias” in international institutions. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The parliament of Jordan voted to recommend the expulsion of Israel’s ambassador from Amman in protest against the behavior of a minister in Israel’s far-right government, who denied the existence of the Palestinian people while standing at a podium adorned with a map showing a fictional, expanded Israel including all of the occupied Palestinian territory and Jordan.(March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories since 1967, Ms Francesca Albanese, issued a preliminary report on Israel’s lack of cooperation in facilitating her visit to the occupied Palestinian territories. She confirmed her preliminary examination concluded that the military and security legislation of the occupying power “appears structurally aimed at impeding the enjoyment of all the fundamental human rights” and the Palestinian people’s collective right to self-determination, and to make such domination felt by the subjugated people in a way that pushes them “to give up their wish and desire for freedom and self-determination”. (March 23, 2023). For further details, click here
• Following Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to London, MPs have highlighted Israeli government extremism towards Palestinians in an Urgent Question. (March 23, 2023). For further details, click here
• Jordan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned Israel’s bid to build more than a thousand new settlement units in the West Bank. It further affirmed that settlement activities constitute a grave breach of international law, including of Security Council resolution 2334. (March 25, 2023). For further details, click here

Publications of human rights NGOs:

• The European Legal Support Center stated that two muslim women are taking Lloyds Bank to court for discrimination after being sanctioned for posting messages in support of Palestine in their internal work portal. The center has called for donations to support its work suing the bank. (March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society holds the Israeli occupation fully accountable for the life of prisoner Mohammed Al-Khatib from Tul Karim who suffers from severe health symptoms. (March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• Al-Haq released a film explaining the origins and evolution of Israeli apartheid. (March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Egyptian Journalists Syndicate condemned Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people in all areas of historical Palestine, as well as the occupation forces’ continued pursuit of Palestinian media institutions. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• Amnesty International offices handed over petitions signed by more than 200,000 people to the Israeli authorities, calling on them to end the demolition of Palestinian homes as a first step towards dismantling the apartheid system. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Independent Commission for Human Rights condemned the decision of the Israeli Minister of Internal Security, Ben Gvir, to close the headquarters of the Palestinian Public Authority for Radio and Television and to ban its broadcasting in the occupied city of Jerusalem for six months. (March 22, 2023). For further details, click here
• The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society holds the occupation full responsibility for the fate and health of intellectual prisoner WalidDuqqa who is in critical condition due to spinal cord cancer in Barzilai hospital. (March 24, 2023). For further details, click here

Opinion Pieces and features:

• Eve Geddie, director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office, wrote an article titled “EU needs to acknowledge the reality of Israeli apartheid”. She argued that criticism of Israel based on international human rights standards cannot be dismissed as being anti-Semitic. (March 20, 2023). For further details, click here
• Shawan Jabarin, General Director of Al-Haq wrote an article published by The Independent titled “As Netanyahu visits the UK, we call for Israel to be held accountable”. (March 24, 2023). For further details, click here

 Human rights conferences and events:

• The Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) organized a session at the United Nations Conference entitled “The Importance of Achieving Goal VI of Water in the Palestinian Special Context”. The president of PWA called the United Nations and international community to intervene to help stop Israel’s abusive water policies and obligate Israel to act in accordance with international legal resolutions. (March 25, 2023). For further details, click here

Upcoming human rights opportunities and events:

• Americans for Peace Now (APN) announced a webinar about the Netanyahu government, the occupation, and its campaign to weaken the judiciary in order to advance the settlement enterprise. For further details, click here