The Committee for Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI) has urged the United Nations to revoke Israel‘s membership over Tel Aviv‘s military maneuvers that have claimed many victims.
„Expel Israel from the UN because the genocide carried out by the Israeli military continues, and more and more victims are falling,“ the committee‘s chairperson, Mardani Ali Sera, said in a statement released on Thursday.
Paris, 12 March 2024. Respect for human rights is an essential element of the EU’s association agreements with partner countries. Article 2 states that „relations between the Parties, as well as all the provisions of the Agreement itself, shall be based on respect for human rights and democratic principles, which guides their internal and international policy and constitutes an essential element of this Agreement“. Violation of the so-called „essential elements“ clauses allows the EU to denounce or suspend the agreements in whole or in part under Article 60 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. In the light of the deaths and suffering endured by the Palestinian people, the European Union has the duty and the means to act to prevent Israel’s crimes in Gaza and to reduce the extent of human suffering.
(October 30, 2024)
The defence ministry told Middle East Eye: “As a matter of principle, we only provide intelligence to our allies where we are satisfied that it will be used in accordance with International Humanitarian Law, and in this instance, only information relating to hostage rescue is passed to the Israeli authorities.”
(…)
Brendan O’Hara, the Scottish National Party’s spokesperson for the Middle East, told MEE it was “inconceivable”, given the scale of the destruction and death in Gaza, that the flights “do not contain footage which would be of significant interest to the investigators from the International Criminal Court”.
(…)
Labour MP Rachael Maskell told MEE: “It is crucial that any intelligence of breaches of international law are shared with the courts so they can assess the evidence and secure justice.”
“I trust that the UK government is working with the international courts to aid them in their work.”
(November 10, 2024)
Protests calling against Netanyhau’s government and for the release of hostages were also held Saturday evening in Jerusalem, Beersheba, Haifa, Kfar Sava, Raanana Junction, Nes Ziona, Ashkelon, Kiryat Gat, Rehovot, Karkur Junction, the southern Shaar HaNegev crossroad, Zikhron Yaacov and other localities. Five people were arrested in Jerusalem, Haifa and Karkur. At Haifa the police attacked again a protest vigil at Central Carmel, Activists from the Anti-Occupation Bloc, among them Hadash activists, demanded the end of the deadly war in Gaza and Lebanon and during the protest cops confiscated signs against the massacre in Gaza
Israel systematically infringes its duties towards the UN repeatedly violating the protections afforded to UN bodies such as the UNRWA and UNIFIL. This includes causing the death of UN workers, and bombing UN facilities. Furthermore, it resolutely refuses to engage with UN Mechanisms by not allowing visits from the UN Secretary-General, UN Special Rapporteurs, and the UN Independent Commission of Inquiry, among others. Within the halls of the UN, Israel also repeatedly issues defamatory statements against the organisation. These actions reflect a complete disregard for UN systems and are in breach of international law.
Israel’s systematic denial of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and relentless appropriation of Palestinian land have led to a critical, historical juncture in which the Israeli state is pursuing genocide and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians with ruthless, unprecedented force and determination. The very existence of the Palestinian people hinges on ending Israeli impunity and, at long last, realizing their right to control their own political, social, and economic destiny. Additionally, the gravity of the illegalities caused by Israel has raised serious questions about the legitimacy of the international legal system as a whole, threatening its continued integrity.
The General Assembly and its Member States can and must take meaningful action on both fronts —the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and the integrity of the international legal system—without delay by unseating the Israeli government from the Assembly, in accordance with the Assembly’s authority to approve the credentials of Member State delegations.
Unseating a state government’s delegation is an exceptional action, but , in this case, it is grounded in precedent—specifically, the unseating of South Africa’s apartheid government from the General Assembly in 1974—and in law. Fifty years ago, the General Assembly exercised its authority under the credentialing rules to unseat South Africa’s delegation, concluding that the government was unrepresentative and therefore illegitimate due to its failure to provide representation to its indigenous Black population. Even though South Africa’s apartheid practices were central to this decision, the removal of the South African delegation was also implicitly grounded in the right of self-determination, which was denied to the country’s Black population by the very nature of apartheid.
As demonstrated by the ICJ’s July 19, 2024 advisory opinion on the legal consequences of Israel’s policies and practices in the OPT, the case for unseating Israel’s government for lack of representativeness is just as strong as it was in the case of South Africa, if not stronger.
)November 8, 2024)
More than 500 scholars and practitioners of international law, international relations, conflict studies, politics, and genocide studies have called on the UN General Assembly and its member states to unseat Israel from the assembly.
The letter, led by Türkiye‘s initiative, was signed by 52 countries and two international organizations, and submitted to the UN on Nov. 1, calling for a cessation of arms supplies to Israel.
“We must reiterate at every opportunity that selling weapons to Israel amounts to complicity in genocide,” Fidan said at a news conference in Djibouti, where he attended the third Ministerial Review Conference of Türkiye-Africa Partnership.
The attorneys highlight three categories of potential US code violations the DOJ could investigate:
– The killing of US citizens by Israeli citizens and soldiers in recent years (including Ayşenur Eygi, Kamel Ahmad Jawad, Jacob Flickinger, Tawfiq Abdel Jabbar, Mohammad Khdour, Omar Assad, and Shireen Abu Akleh).
– Israel’s illegal settlement activity in the occupied West Bank, assisted by US citizens and organizations.
– Evidence that Israeli forces may have committed war crimes and engaged in torture – including killing thousands of civilians, forcibly displacement and starvation, unlawful confinement, torture and inhumane treatment of detainees, and mass destruction of civilian property and infrastructure.
“Of course,” the attorneys note, “U.S. courts have jurisdiction over the more than 23,000 U.S. citizens currently serving in Israel’s armed forces, along with IDF members or other Israeli officials that travel to the United States.”
We write regarding the case of Dylan Collins, a U.S. citizen and journalist for Agence France-Presse (AFP) injured by Israeli tank fire on October 13, 2023. It has now been more than one year since Mr. Collins was injured in a targeted Israeli strike while on assignment for AFP. To date, Mr. Collins has received no explanation for the attack, and there have been no steps toward accountability. Given the inaction of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, the United States must open an independent investigation into this incident.
We previously wrote to the State Department regarding Mr. Collins’ case. On October 13th, Collins was part of a group of journalists covering the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. The group was clearly marked as press and had selected an open and highly visible position on a hilltop near the Blue Line to minimize the risk of misidentification. The group was clearly visible to several Israeli military positions, as well as to an Israeli Apache helicopter and drone circling overhead. There were no Hezbollah positions in the vicinity. The group had been filming from the position for close to an hour when, despite these precautions, they were struck twice by Israeli tank rounds, followed by a sustained burst of .50 caliber heavy machine gun fire. Issam Abdallah, a Reuters journalist, was killed and six other journalists (from Reuters, AFP, and Al Jazeera) were wounded, one severely. Collins was the only American involved in the incident. The first tank round largely missed him, but he sustained shrapnel wounds to his face, arms, and back when a second tank round hit as he was applying a tourniquet to his colleague’s leg (despite Mr. Collins’ efforts, Ms. Assi lost her leg in the attack).
The U.S. attorney general is also facing internal pressure to investigate Israel‘s killing of Americans.
A group of approximately 50 Black Muslim leaders have signed a statement urging Black and Muslim American voters to shun Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in her bid for the White House and instead back candidates who support a ceasefire in Gaza and an arms embargo on Israel.
The new statement, first reported by Middle East Eye, is the latest effort from Muslim community leaders – from imams to scholars, to activists to politicians – telling voters not to choose Vice President Harris in the upcoming November election over her unwillingness to commit to policy changes that would hold Israel accountable for its ongoing war on Gaza and now Lebanon, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and Lebanese people.
CAIRO, October 20, 2024 (WAFA) – Ambassador Muhannad Al-Aklouk, the Permanent Representative of Palestine to the Arab League, said that Palestine has urgently requested an emergency meeting of the Arab League Council at the level of permanent representatives, as soon as possible.
RAMALLAH, October 19, 2024 (WAFA) – Major cities and capitals around the world witnessed massive demonstrations today in condemnation of the ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza.
Thousands participated in protests organized in Copenhagen, Denmark; Bremen and Berlin, Germany; Milan, Italy; Birmingham and London, UK; Istanbul, Turkey; Rotterdam, Netherlands; and Helsingborg, Sweden, showing solidarity with the Palestinian people and calling for a ceasefire and the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The ‘Gaza Effect’ may be much larger than anyone expects. Unless they change course, the Democrats are much likelier to lose in November than most people seem to realize.
It should be self-evident that genocide is bad because it’s genocide, but apparently it isn’t—at least, not to everyone.
Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Sir Keir Starmer MP,
Dear Prime Minister,
We, the undersigned, are writing to you as Muslim Labour Councillors representing communities all across Britain to call for an immediate and complete suspension of arms sales to Israel.
The tragic human toll we have seen over the past year has been unimaginable.
The letter by the Muslim councillors adds to pressure mounting on the British government from within the Labour Party to take stronger action against Israel.
Last week, 51 British MPs from seven political parties backed a parliamentary motion calling for the Labour government to take measures against Israel.
(October 15, 2024)
US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Monday criticized the Biden administration over the “horrors” seen in Gaza due to the actions of an „unrestrained“ Israel.
„The horrors unfolding in northern Gaza are the result of a completely unrestrained Netanyahu gov, fully armed by the Biden admin while food aid is blocked and patients are bombed in hospitals. This is a genocide of Palestinians,” she wrote on X.
„The US must stop enabling it. Arms embargo now,” added Ocasio-Cortez, a high-profile progressive lawmaker.
(October 16, 2024)
The president told the Arab League chief that Israel is trying to spread the flames of conflict across the region as it aims to occupy Palestinian lands to leave them without a homeland.
He continued by saying that Türkiye continues its initiatives to hold Israel accountable for its crimes, as he highlighted the importance of an extensive arms embargo to increase pressure on Tel Aviv.
In a statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:
“Although we welcome the Biden administration’s long overdue threat to withhold weapons from the Israeli government, waiting 30 days to do so is unacceptable. The Israeli government is starving and killing the Palestinian people today, right this very moment, in violation of U.S. law. The Palestinian people cannot wait another month for the Biden administration to uphold the law and end its complicity in the Israeli government’s campaign of slaughter and starvation.”
The Israeli forces’ assault on Gaza has escalated to a horrifying level of atrocity. Northern Gaza is being wiped off the map. Under the guise of “evacuation,” Israeli forces have ordered the forced displacement of an estimated 400,000 Palestinians trapped in northern Gaza, including Gaza City. This is not an evacuation – this is forced displacement under gunfire. Since 1 October, no food has been allowed into the area, and civilians are being starved and bombed in their homes and their tents.
(…)
Signatories:
– ActionAid
– Action For Humanity
– Afri (Action from Ireland)
– Amos Trust
– Bloody Sunday Trust
– Centre for Global Education
– CESVI
– Children Not Numbers
– Christian Aid
– Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
– Comhlamh Justice for Palestine
– Council for Arab-British Understanding (Caabu)
– Embrace the Middle East
– Feminist Humanitarian Network (FHN)
– Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS)
– Global Justice Now
– HelpAge International
– Interpal
– Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign
– Islamic Relief
– KinderUSA
– Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP)
– Médecins du Monde Spain
– Middle East Children‘s Alliance
– Muslim Aid
– Novact Institute for Nonviolence
– Oxfam
– Plan International Jordan
– Sabeel-Kairos UK
– Sadaka-The Ireland Palestine Alliance
– TDH Italy
– Trócaire
– Trinity College Dublin Students‘ Union/ Aontas Mac Léinn Choláiste na Tríonóide (TCDSU/AMLCT)
– Vento di Terra
– War Child
– War on Want
– WeWorld
– Welfare Association
In other campaign news, the Democratic National Committee has released an ad attacking Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein, claiming a vote for Stein is a vote for Trump. Democrats are planning to run the ad in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan. In August, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, CAIR, published a survey that showed Stein is leading Harris among Muslim voters in Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin. Stein has criticized Harris for refusing to cut off arms sales to Israel.
Spain and Ireland are asking EU countries to suspend the EU–Israel Association Agreement on the basis that Israel may be breaching the agreement’s human rights clause.
“The European Commission must respond once and for all to the formal request made by two European countries to suspend the association agreement with Israel if it is found, as everything suggests, that human rights are being violated,” Sanchez told an event on Monday in Barcelona.
The agreement stipulates that free trade between the EU and Israel must be “based on respect for human rights and democratic principles.”
Auch Bundesinnenministerin Nancy Faeser (SPD) warnte vor den zunehmenden Gefahren durch russische Geheimdienst-Aktivitäten in Deutschland. „Wir sehen, dass Putins Regime immer aggressiver agiert“, sagte Faeser dem „Handelsblatt“. Der CDU-Politiker Roderich Kiesewetter warnte in diesem Zusammenhang auch vor Gewalttaten: „Sabotage und gezielte Mordanschläge sind deshalb wahrscheinlich“, sagte er ebenfalls dem „Handelsblatt“.
Nach Informationen der Nachrichtenagentur dpa bestand der glückliche Zufall darin, dass der Weiterflug des aus dem Baltikum stammenden Frachtpakets sich in Leipzig verzögerte. Das Paket hatte einen Brandsatz enthalten, der dort zündete und einen Frachtcontainer in Brand setzte. In Sicherheitskreisen wird davon ausgegangen, dass der Vorfall im Zusammenhang mit russischer Sabotage steht.
„Der Kreml sieht den Westen und damit auch Deutschland als Gegner“, warnte auch Bruno Kahl, Präsident des Bundesnachrichtendienstes (BND), mit Hinweis auf den Ukraine-Krieg.
(…)
Alle drei Geheimdienst-Spitzen mahnten, dass die Sicherheitsdienste mit den nötigen Kompetenzen ausgestattet werden müssten, um die Gefahren abwehren zu können. Rosenberg sagte, sie hoffe auf „eine Realitätsanpassung der Gesetzeslage, um unseren Auftrag bestmöglich erfüllen zu können“.
(September 30, 2024)
„The Democrats cannot win without the support of the Muslim American community. And that community has left the station and is not coming back unless the Democrats decide that it‘s more important to them to win the election than it is to conduct the genocide,“ Stein said in an interview with Newsweek.
„So they have to do a 180 on the genocide and they don‘t appear willing to do that. They could win those votes back, but it doesn‘t look like that‘s on the cards. So it looks like they are sacrificing several swing states.“ Israel denies it is conducting genocide.
Wenn am nächsten Sonntag Bundestagswahl wäre …
(September 25, 2024)
Democracy Now! speaks with the Green Party‘s presidential ticket, Jill Stein and her running mate Butch Ware, after the Green Party suffered a setback Friday when the U.S. Supreme Court declined a request to put Stein on the ballot in Nevada. The Democratic Party had sued to keep Stein off the ballot for failing to submit the proper forms. In this campaign cycle,
The UK is failing to stand up for international law, as Israeli forces are forcibly transferring civilians from northern Gaza to the south and relentlessly bombarding the area, making it uninhabitable and stripping away the essential conditions that sustain life. The Government must demand that Israel end its heinous attacks, and take action to oppose any annexation or shrinking of Gaza. Its current silence is tantamount to complicity.
(…)
Signatories:
– Action For Humanity
– Amos Trust
– Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP)
– Welfare Association
– Caabu
– Sabeel-Kairos UK
– Amnesty International UK
– Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS)
– Islamic Relief UK
– Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights (LPHR)
– Trócaire
– War on Want
– Action Aid UK
– Global Justice Now
– Oxfam GB
Qahtan Al-Janabi, Iraq’s permanent representative to the League, told the official Iraqi News Agency (INA) yesterday: “Iraq has requested an urgent meeting at the level of permanent representatives in the Arab League.”
“The meeting will address the situation in Lebanon, particularly concerning the displaced and refugees, and providing assistance to the country.”
Earlier yesterday, the Ministry of Migration announced that 144 Lebanese citizens had entered Iraq via the Al-Qa’im border crossing with Syria, including some wounded.
(August 24, 2024)
The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, stressed that the court has jurisdiction to investigate Israelis, urging judges to decide on arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Security Minister Yoav Gallant, which he had requested months ago.
Anadolu has seen it.
Reuters has seen it.
A resolution, the so-called „Palestine Authority“ would „likely“ bring into the United Nations General Assembly. Alleged content: the Israeli occupation force has to leave Palestine within a year (and therefor 58 years too late).
Now – where is the resolution?
Today, 6:37 am
Rocket warning sirens sound in Tel Aviv and the surrounding areas.
“This deal-sabotaging government is forsaking the captives and abandoning them to die,” said Yotam Cohen, the brother of Nimrod Cohen, an Israeli soldier held captive in Gaza.
“As long as Netanyahu is in power, this war will go on indefinitely and there will be no hostage deal. To save the hostages lives, Netanyahu must be replaced,” Cohen told The Associated Press news agency.
To Our Guild Leadership and Staff:
We are proud rank-and-file union and trade association members from every corner of our industry — working on screen, stage, set, and in the field — united in solidarity with the global call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and a just, lasting peace. As artists and storytellers, we cannot stand idly by as our industry refuses to tell the story of Palestinian humanity.
Following SAG-AFTRA’s statement in sympathy with Israel regarding October 7, many SAG-AFTRA and sister guild members have watched in horror as the Israeli government wages a war of collective punishment on the civilian population of Gaza — killing over 40,000 Palestinians, injuring over 90,000 more, forcibly displacing 2 million people, and openly targeting members of the press and their families. As the IDF continues its assault on “safe zones,” schools, and hospitals, and as civilians in Gaza die from starvation, dehydration, and lack of medical supplies and fuel, major human rights groups have labeled these acts as war crimes, human rights atrocities, and even genocide. The UN has described Gaza as a “graveyard for children” — and estimate that by mid-July “half of the population — more than a million people — could face death and starvation.” As of now, there is no end in sight — only escalation, death, and destruction.
SAG-AFTRA members Mark Ruffalo, Ramy Youssef, Susan Sarandon, Melissa Barrera and Cynthia Nixon are among the hundreds of union members calling on their organization’s leadership to keep people from being blacklisted for their views on Palestine.
In a statement provided with an open letter from organization SAG-AFTRA and Sister Guild Members for Ceasefire, members claim their numerous attempts to communicate with leadership about their concerns and work on a ceasefire statement together have been consistently ignored. When asked, SAG-AFTRA declined to comment on the claim or the letter.
“There are many tools that are available to the United States, not simply harsh talk, which seems to have gotten us nowhere. But is America ready to do that?”
“I’m not too optimistic,” he said, answering his own question.
On Britain, Prince Turki said the country had “a special responsibility for what is happening in Palestine” due to its role in the “ill-begotten Balfour Declaration in 1917”.
Protesters gather to pressure Benjamin Netanyahu‘s government to negotiate the release of hostages. The single protest also includes hostages‘ relatives and demonstrators calling for the end of the Israeli prime minister‘s government. Speakers at protest: Michal Lobanov, wife of the late Alex Lobanov who was killed last week by Hamas; Anat Angrest, mother of Matan Angrest; Einav Zangauker, mother of Matan Zangauker; Sha‘ban al-Sayed, father of Hisham al-Sayed; Amit Elgarat, nephew of Itzik Elgarat; Ido and Shani, friends of Gali and Ziv Berman.
(today)
In filing to court, Karim Khan expresses frustration with court‘s delay in issuing warrants, urging swift action ahead of Netanyahu‘s scheduled speech at UN General Assembly later in September