NGO Action News – 27 November 2024

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This newsletter informs about recent and upcoming activities of Civil Society Organizations working on the question of Palestine. The Committee and the Division for Palestinian Rights of the UN Secretariat provide the information “as is” without warranty of any kind, and do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, or reliability of the information contained in the websites linked in the newsletter.

You may find previous issues of the NGO Action News in Spanish here.

You may find issues of the NGO Action News in French here.

You may find issues of the NGO Action News in Arabic here.

Middle East

• On 5 December, Zochrot will organise the event “Remembering and Resisting”, a conversation with professor and author Naomi Klein on the topic of the weaponization of trauma and the role of remembrance in resistance.
• On 25 November, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights published an article to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the beginning of the UN initiative “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based violence”. The article warned that at least 11,979 women have been killed in Gaza in over more than a year of relentless Israeli military attacks, adding that women in Gaza are confronted with the alarming risk of being arbitrarily arrested and subjected to severe physical and psychological abuses.
• On 24 November, Al Mezan informed that Israeli forces had escalated deliberate attacks on medical personnel and health facilities in Gaza, with the latest wave of attacks concentrated on Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya. The NGO condemned Israel’s deliberate targeting and destruction of medical facilities and personnel, adding that international law prohibits targeting medical facilities.
• On 21 November, the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies published an article welcoming the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue arrest warrants for several high level representatives of the State of Israel, as well as the head of Hamas’ military wing, in the context of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Israel and Palestine from 7 October 2023. The NGO called on Israel to allow full access to the Gaza Strip and other affected areas for the ICC Prosecutor’s office in order to establish the factual record of the actions of all parties that have facilitated or committed grave international crimes. Other organizations, including Addameer, and the Institute for Palestine Studies, Amnesty international, Association France Palestine Solidarité, and Australia Palestine Advocacy Network, published articles on this topic as well.

Africa, Asia and Europe

• On 24 November, the Palestinian Return Centre urged Member States to support Norway’s initiative to request an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) condemning Israel’s recent ban on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). The NGO warned that dismantling UNRWA would have devastating consequences not only for Palestine refugees but also for regional stability and the enforcement of international law.
• On 22 November, Diakonia published a legal update on the publicly known content of the ICC arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, former Israeli Defence Minister Gallant and the Commander-in-Chief of Hamas’ military wing Al-Masri for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory since
  7 October 2023. The legal update also briefed on the possible next steps in the proceedings, and legal implications for State and non-State parties to the Court.

North America

• On 3 December, the Columbia University Center for Palestine Studies will hold the event “The Message and the Messengers – a conversation between Ta-Nehisi Coates and Rashid Khalidi”.
• On 21 November, Americans for Peace Now published the podcast “War and Annexation: How the Israeli Government Changed the West Bank During the First Year of War”, co-produced with Peace Now, Canadian Friends of Peace Now, and La Paix Maintenant. Yonatan Mizrachi, from Peace Now’s “Settlement Watch” team, presented new insights from their latest annual report, e.g., that the Israeli government’s agenda in the occupied West Bank is to advance annexation policies and further reduce Palestinian presence in Area C.

United Nations

• On 26 November, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People commemorated the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People in a Special Meeting. Similar events were held at UNOG, UNON, UNOV and UNICs around the world. The Special Meeting was presided over by the Chair of the Committee who called on the International Community to act decisively to end this humanitarian, political, legal and moral catastrophe, adding that Palestinians deserved dignity, respect and the same inalienable rights afforded to all people. The President of the General Assembly, the President of the Security Council, the UN Deputy Secretary-General and representatives of the LAS, OIC and NAM also delivered statements, while the Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine delivered a statement on behalf of President Abbas. As this year’s civil society speaker, Tanya Haj-Hassan, a medical practitioner at Medical Aid for Palestinians Charity, delivered a poignant testimony of her experience in providing medical assistance in Gaza. The meeting was attended by 40 Members and Observers of the Committee and many other Member States, as well as over 50 external guests, including NGO representatives.
• On 25 November, Muhannad Hadi, Deputy Special Coordinator, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory briefed the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East. He highlighted the enormous humanitarian challenges in Gaza, as the delivery of critical aid across Gaza is grinding to a halt and the survival of two million people hangs in the balance. Mr. Hadi also warned about the increasingly dangerous dynamics unfolding in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, where violence has continued at alarming levels.