Middle East

• On 7 October, Gisha published the article “Crossings update: After the holiday closure”. According to the NGO, during the recent Jewish holidays, Israel severely limited operations at its crossings with Gaza. The report also informed that Israel continues to impose restrictions and bans on the entry of essential goods which undermines recovery and reconstruction efforts following recent conflicts. Nevertheless, Gisha also reported that Israel lifted in September the full ban on the entry of items and equipment for Gaza’s communications infrastructure, including internet cables.

• On 6 October, Gisha published the report “Trading in the Dark – A Guide to Israel’s Unknowable Policy on Movement of Goods to and from the Gaza Strip”. In the report, the NGO argues that Israel frequently uses its control over commercial access to the Gaza Strip as a means of punishment and coercion by blocking the entry of essential goods. It also criticizes the inconsistency, ambiguity and lack of transparency surrounding Israeli policies and procedures on commercial access to and from Gaza.

• On 5 October, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights organized the workshop “Destruction of Economic Infrastructure and Implications of Delayed Reconstruction on Gaza Population’s Economic Rights”. Participants discussed the impact on the Gaza Strip economy of the destruction or damages caused by the Israeli military operations in 2021. Representatives from Governmental and non-Governmental Organizations as well as owners of affected economic installations and academics attended the workshop.

• On 30 September, 7amleh announced the launch of its new study “Hateful Network: Hate Speech on Social Media Platforms Among Palestinians and its Impact on Their Digital Rights”. This study included a survey conducted between August 2019 and July 2021, which found that during this period, nine out of ten Palestinians had been subjected to hate speech on social media platforms on political or gender-based grounds. The study also found the increasing use of hate speech among Palestinians on social media platforms.

North America

• On 14 October, Americans for Peace Now organized a webinar on “Rise in Settler Violence” with Hagit Ofran, Co-Director of the Settlement Watch project at Israel’sPeace Now (Shalom Achshav) movement, and Lior Amihai, Executive Director of Yesh Din. Panellists and participants discussed the causes and objectives of the recent increase in Israeli setters’ violence against Palestinians and their property.

• On 8 October, Human Rights Watch issued a statement asking Facebook to follow up on the company’s Oversight Board’s recommendation issued on 14 September. According to this statement, Facebook wrongfully removed contents related to human right abuses carried out in Israel and Palestine during the May 2021 hostilities, and the company’s attempts to correct those errors have remained so far insufficient. The Facebook Oversight Board recommended to commission an independent investigation into content moderation regarding Israel and Palestine, particularly in relation to any bias or discrimination in its policies, enforcement, or systems, and to publish the investigation’s findings.

This newsletter informs about recent and upcoming activities of Civil Society Organizations affiliated with the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. 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.