OIC Group strongly condemns the grave breaches and violations of int. law by Israel in the oPt – OIC statement/Non-UN document

OIC Group Statement on Grave Situation in Occupied State of Palestine including East Jerusalem

The OIC Group at the United Nations in New York met on Tuesday, 24 June 2014, at the Ambassadorial level, and considered, inter alia, the grave situation in the Occupied State of Palestine, including East Jerusalem, and issued the following statement:

“The OIC Group at the United Nations in New York expresses its strong condemnation of the continuing grave breaches and violations of international law, including humanitarian and human rights law, by Israel, the occupying Power, in the Occupied State of Palestine, including East Jerusalem. The Group condemns in particular the large-scale offensive assault launched by Israel, the occupying Power, against the Palestinian people following the incident in which three Israeli settlers went missing while they were hitchhiking from the illegal settlement of “Kfar Etzion,” which is located between Jerusalem and Al-Khalil (Hebron) on Friday, 13 June 2014. The OIC Group condemns the occupying Power’s violent and brutal campaign of repression, which has included measures of collective punishment and excessive use of force against the Palestinian civilian population. In this regard, the OIC Group condemns the killing of at least five Palestinian civilians, including a 14-year-old boy, and the grave injury of many others in the Occupied West Bank.

The OIC Group also condemns the measures of collective punishment, such as the detention of over 450 Palestinians, including elected Members of the Palestinian Legislative Council and Palestinians who were previously released in a prisoner agreement swap in 2011, as well as condemns Israel’s ban on travel for the 800,000 Palestinians residing in Al-Khalil (Hebron), the largest Palestinian Governorate. The OIC Group also condemns the escalated military aggression against the Gaza Strip where the occupying Power has carried out multiple air strikes, resulting in the death of at least two Palestinians, including a 7-year-old boy, and injuring many more. The OIC Group expresses grave concern that in addition to causing death and injury among the Palestinian population, the military campaign in Gaza was also causing great fear and distress among the population who continue to suffer from deplorable living conditions as a result of Israel’s inhumane, unlawful blockade.

The OIC Group calls for the immediate cessation of all acts of aggression and collective punishment against the Palestinian people by the occupying Power. It also reiterates its call upon Israel, the occupying Power, to respect its obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention, in particular the responsibility of the occupying Power to protect the Palestinian people under its occupation. In absence of this protection, the OIC Group demands that the international community undertake appropriate measures to ensure the protection of the Palestinian civilian population. The Group, in particular, calls on the Security Council to shoulder its responsibility in maintaining international peace and security and to take all necessary measures to bring Israel’s onslaught against the Palestinian people to an end and to ensure compliance if Israel remains defiant of international law.

The OIC Group expresses its solidarity with and support for the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails and detention centers. In this regard, the OIC Group notes that today marks the 62nd day in which hundreds of Palestinian prisoners have been on a hunger-strike in protest of their captivity by Israel, the occupying Power, under administrative detention, whereby they are being held without charge and without access to due process of the law or fair trial. The OIC Group expressed its grave concern that more than 60 Palestinian prisoners and detainees have been hospitalized and many are in critical condition. The OIC Group calls on the international community to compel the occupying Power to comply with all of its legal obligations regarding its treatment of all Palestinian prisoners and detainees it is holding, including children. The OIC Group further calls for their immediate release along with all other Palestinians being unlawfully and arbitrarily imprisoned and detained.

The OIC Group expresses its strong condemnation of continued Israeli provocations and violations in Occupied East Jerusalem, and particularly at Al-Haram Al-Sharif, which houses the Holy Mosque of Al-Aqsa. In this regard, in the recent period, Israeli extremists, among them Government officials, have escalated their incitement regarding Al-Haram Al-Sharif and repeatedly breached the sanctity of the compound, including the repeated violent storming of the compound by occupying forces, heightening tensions and stirring religious sentiments. The OIC Group considers all such acts of aggression and incitement, which constitutes a direct provocation of Muslims worldwide, a flagrant violation of relevant United Nations resolutions and international covenants, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, and an affront to the international community’s repeated calls for a cessation of illegal Israeli policies in the Occupied State of Palestine, including East Jerusalem.

​In closing, the OIC Group expresses its full support and solidarity with the Palestinian people in their endeavor to regain their legitimate and inalienable national rights, including their right to self-determination, sovereignty and independence in their State in the territory occupied since 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital, and to find a just solution for the plight of the Palestine refugees in line with United Nations Resolution 194.”

http://www.oic-oci.org/oicv2/topic/?t_id=9168&t_ref=3672&lan=en

http://www.oic-oci.org/oicv2/topic/?t_id=9170&t_ref=3672&lan=fr