UNITED NATIONS A General Assembly Distr. GENERAL A/49/511 18 October 1994 ORIGINAL: ENGLISH Forty-ninth session Agenda item 78 REPORT OF THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE ISRAELI PRACTICES AFFECTING THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE AND OTHER ARABS OF THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES Note by the Secretary-General 1. The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the members of the General Assembly the twenty-sixth report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories, which was submitted to him in accordance with paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of Assembly resolution 48/41 A of 10 December 1993. The present report should be considered together with the Special Committee’s periodic reports contained in documents A/49/67 and A/49/172, which were transmitted to the members of the Assembly on 4 February and 7 June 1994, respectively. 2. The present report contains a summary of articles and reports received during the period covered by the present document. In preparing the report, the newspapers mentioned below have been taken into account. Reference to reports appearing in the Arab press published in the occupied territories is made when they contain relevant material not found in the Israeli newspapers listed below. The terminology used in the report is that found in the original version of the summarized newspaper reports. Israeli press Ha’aretz (Hebrew language daily) Jerusalem Post (English language daily) Arab press published in the occupied territories Al-Tali’ah (Arabic language daily) The Jerusalem Times (English language daily) 94-40454 (E) 151194 /... A/49/511 English Page 2 CONTENTS Paragraphs Page LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL .................................................. 4 I. INTRODUCTION ......................................... 1 - 5 8 II. ORGANIZATION OF WORK ................................. 6 - 16 9 III. MANDATE .............................................. 17 - 22 11 IV. INFORMATION AND EVIDENCE RECEIVED BY THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ............................................ 23 - 680 13 A. General situation ................................ 33 - 243 15 1. General developments and policy statements ... 33 - 130 15 2. Incidents resulting from the occupation ...... 131 - 243 32 (a) List of Palestinians killed by troops or Israeli civilians ....................... 142 36 (b) List of other Palestinians killed as a result of the occupation ................ 142 39 (c) Other incidents ......................... 143 - 243 40 B. Administration of justice, including the right to a fair trial ............................ 244 - 315 58 1. Palestinian population ....................... 244 - 276 58 2. Israelis ..................................... 277 - 315 63 C. Treatment of civilians ........................... 316 - 566 70 1. General developments ......................... 316 - 471 70 (a) Harassment and physical ill-treatment ... 316 - 324 70 (b) Collective punishment ................... 325 - 400 71 (i) List of houses or rooms that were demolished or sealed ................ 325 - 348 71 (ii) Imposition of curfews, sealing off or closing of areas ................. 349 - 399 75 (iii) Other forms of collective punishment .......................... 400 81 /... A/49/511 English Page 3 CONTENTS (continued) Paragraphs Page (c) Expulsions .............................. 401 - 416 81 (d) Economic and social situation ........... 417 - 470 83 (e) Other developments ...................... 471 94 2. Measures affecting certain fundamental freedoms ..................................... 472 - 524 94 (a) Freedom of movement ..................... 472 - 499 94 (b) Freedom of education .................... 500 - 508 99 (c) Freedom of religion ..................... 509 - 519 101 (d) Freedom of expression ................... 520 - 524 104 3. Information on settlers’ activities affecting the civilian population ...................... 525 - 566 105 D. Treatment of detainees ........................... 567 - 625 112 (a) Measures concerning the release of detainees 581 - 602 117 (b) Other information concerning detainees ...... 603 - 625 121 E. Annexation and settlement ........................ 626 - 667 124 F. Information concerning the occupied Syrian Arab Golan ............................................ 668 - 680 133 V. CONCLUSIONS .......................................... 681 - 769 138 VI. ADOPTION OF THE REPORT ............................... 770 161 Annex. MAP SHOWING ISRAELI SETTLEMENTS ESTABLISHED, PLANNED OR UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN THE TERRITORIES OCCUPIED SINCE 1967 .................................................... 162 /... A/49/511 English Page 4 LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL 26 August 1994 Sir, The Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories has the honour to transmit herewith its twenty-sixth report, prepared in accordance with General Assembly resolution 2443 (XXIII) of 19 December 1968, by which the Special Committee was established, and resolution 48/41 A of 10 December 1993, the latest resolution by which the General Assembly renewed its mandate. This report covers the period from 27 August 1993, the date of the adoption of the twenty-fifth report of the Special Committee, to 26 August 1994. The report is based on written information gathered from various sources, in particular Israeli press reports as well as articles appearing in the Arab press published in the occupied territories. It also includes oral information received by the Special Committee through testimonies of persons having first-hand experience of the human rights situation in the occupied territories. Written information concerning the period from 28 August to 30 November 1993 is reflected in the periodic report the Special Committee presented to you on 14 January 1994 (A/49/67). Written information concerning the period from 1 December 1993 to 31 March 1994 is reflected in the periodic report the Special Committee presented to you on 7 May 1994 (A/49/172). These periodic reports have been submitted in accordance with paragraph 6 of General Assembly resolution 48/41 A of 10 December 1993 in which the Assembly requested the Special Committee to submit regularly to the Secretary-General periodic reports on the current situation in the occupied Palestinian territory. For the purpose of collecting oral testimonies the Special Committee again organized hearings that were held at Cairo, Amman and Damascus. The Special Committee continued to monitor statements by members of the Government of Israel reflecting the policies of that Government in the occupied territories and reports on measures taken to implement them. The Special Committee further noted the letters addressed to you during the period of this report relating to its mandate and circulated as documents of the General Assembly, and received information from Governments, organizations and individuals on various aspects of the situation in the occupied territories. In carrying out its mandate, the Special Committee benefited from the cooperation of the Governments of the Syrian Arab Republic, Jordan and Egypt and from the cooperation of Palestinian representatives. However, the Government of Israel has continued to withhold its cooperation. His Excellency Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali Secretary-General of the United Nations New York /... A/49/511 English Page 5 In preparing its report the Special Committee has attempted to put before you a composite picture of the realities in the occupied territories as it affects the human rights of the civilian population. By this letter the Special Committee wishes to draw your attention to a number of aspects that deserve particular mention. The period covered by the Special Committee’s twenty-sixth report virtually coincides with that which has elapsed since the signing of the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) on 13 September 1993 in Washington, D.C. The international community welcomed this historic event with optimism and hope that a new era of peace, justice and understanding in the region had been brought about. The agreement generated high expectations among the majority of the Palestinians and other Arabs of the occupied territories that their situation of human rights would improve. It is in this spirit that the Special Committee has approached its responsibility in carrying out its mandate. The information contained in the twenty-sixth report of the Special Committee shows, however, that the situation of human rights in the occupied territories continues to be serious. A major factor of tension and instability in the occupied territories is the continued existence of Israeli settlements, which represents a threat to peace and security in the region. Although no new settlements have been established during the period under review, a number of existing settlements has been expanded. The Government of Israel has pursued the policy of land confiscation, which has reportedly been intensified significantly since the signing of the Declaration of Principles and of the Israel-PLO Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area signed at Cairo on 4 May 1994. A principal source of persistent tension among the population is the increasingly aggressive and violent behaviour of settlers, who have acted with impunity in most cases. Settlers have blocked roads, threatened, shot at and