Civil Society and the Question of Palestine
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Middle East
- On 18 January, 7amleh released the findings of the report “Index of Racism and Incitement on Israeli Social Media in 2021”, which indicated an increase in hate speech by 8% since 2020. It monitored 620,000 posts which mentioned violence and inciting hate against Arabs. It recorded an increase by 46,000 posts including violent speech, compared with 574,000 in 2020. The 2021 index showed an increase in incitement by 3 times since 2020. Violent speech against Palestinians, Arabs and their representatives further intensified, constituting 11% of overall speech online – an unprecedented rate since 2017.
- On 13 January, al Mezan issued a press release urging Israel to stop obstructing access for Gaza patient to hospitals in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and within the Green Line. According to al Mezan, many patients in the Gaza Strip reported delays in obtaining medical referrals and financial coverage. Patients who are in their last stages of treatment and had been receiving referrals for years also reported delays in renewing their referrals, fearing that their recovery will be impacted.
- On 12 January, B’Tselem published a joint statement by Israeli civil society organizations urging donors to maintain and, if possible, increase their funding to the six Palestinian civil society organizations (CSOs) designated by Israeli authorities as ‘terrorist entities’. The statement reads that defunding the designated CSOs based on unsubstantiated allegations will cause irreparable damage to Palestinian civil society at large and would undermine decades of humanitarian and human rights work.
- On 11 January, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) concluded a training program on “Capacity Building for Child Protection Teams on Participation, Monitoring, and Accountability to Fulfil Their Rights”. The training course was attended by 70 female and male children from child protection teams in the Gaza Strip to raise children’s awareness on national and international conventions pertaining to child rights, and to enhance their role in monitoring, documenting, and reporting violations against children.
- On 10 January, Badil issued a press release announcing the publication of the working paper “USA-UNRWA Framework Agreement: Assistance or Securitization?”. This working paper denounces the allegedly problematic nature of the 2021-2022 “Framework for Cooperation Between the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and the United States of America”, BADIL argues that the Agreement is a form of conditional funding restricting impartial humanitarian action.
Europe
- On 17 January, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) issued a press release calling on the Israeli authorities to immediately halt the forceful expulsion of a Palestinian family from their home in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of East Jerusalem currently taking place. Association France Palestine Solidarité published an article as well on this case. According to NRC, the affected family are refugees from 1948 prevented from returning to their home in what is now the West Jerusalem neighbourhood of Ein Kerem. The household consists of seven members, including five children. NRC further informed that dozens of Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah who are refugees from the western half of the city are facing eviction.
North America
- On 14 January, the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP) published the podcast “Israel Again Tries & Fails to Connect Palestinian NGOs to Terrorism” as part of the series “Occupied Thoughts”. FMEP discussed with Oren Ziv (photojournalist, a founding member of the ActiveStills photography collective, and a staff writer for Local Call) about the latest developments related to Israel’s designation of six Palestinian human rights NGOs as “terrorist entities”.
- On 12 January, the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP) published the podcast “We don’t have another place to go: Dispossession, Settler Violence, & Resistance in Masafer Yatta”. In this episode of the series “Occupied Thoughts”, FMEP speaks with activist and author Ali Awad about the threats of dispossession and state-backed settler violence facing Palestinians in the Masafer Yatta area of the South Hebron Hills.
United Nations
- On 19 January, Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, briefed the Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question. Tor Wennesland highlighted the worsening deterioration of the economic, security and political situation across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, daily violence against civilians, settlement expansion, demolitions and evictions conducted by Israeli authorities. The Special Coordinator further updated on recent diplomatic and political developments related to the OPT as well as on the general situation in Gaza. The Vice-Chair of the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People delivered a statement at the same meeting.
- On 18 January, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) announced it was seeking from the international community US$ 1.6 billion in 2022. According to the Agency, the funding will fulfil the mandate of the United Nations General Assembly to provide millions of Palestine refugees services and programs, including education, health, and food assistance. The request includes additional emergency funding for UNRWA to address the humanitarian needs arising from crises in Gaza, the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) Syria, and Lebanon. The 2022 budget proposal comes as UNRWA confronts a chronic funding shortfall. On the same day, the UNRWA Commissioner-General raised concerns about the Agency’s financial stability during an Executive Briefing held in Geneva.
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.