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MEMORAND1 :I ' : Rj:~ ~ ~~~~~ - J J ~ ~~ .. NATIONS UNIES e• . 1~ . UNITED NATIONS HAUT COMMISSARIAT AUX DROITS DE .L'HOMME ~· rl HIGH ~OMMISSI?~ER F~R .~UMAN RIGHTS ~~ - , \ i~~ ''·· > r \~ u~::. ~ i .. ·. ;· " '• - -- ·-· _ ,. .'1 ~ , , . ' I MEMORAND1 :i ' : rJ:~ ~ ~~~~~ - J J ~ Afi'O: REF: rf DATE: /September 2013 DE/FROM: OBJET: SUBJECT: 1. Please fmd attached, for your information, the 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 established in 1968 by General Assembly resolution 2443. General Assembly resolution 67/118 of 14 January 2013 requested the Special Committee, " ...pending complete termination of the Israeli occupation, to continue to investigate Israeli policies and practices in the Occupied Palestinian Tenitory, including East Jerusalem, and other Arab territories occupied by Israel since 1967 ... " Paragraph 5 of the same resolution requested the Special Committee to report to the Secretary-General as soon as possible. 2. Most of the issues raised in this report have been addressed in previous reports of the Special Committee. The Special Committee reiterates its call on Israel to cooperate with the Committee's mandate; calls on Israel to take immediate action in relation to a wide range of policies negatively affecting Palestinian children in Israeli custody; urges Israel to conduct prompt, impartial, independent and thorough investigations into all cases of injuries and deaths of Palestinian detainees and prisoners held in Israeli custody. The Special Committee affirms that Israel's blockade of Gaza is illegal and amounts to collective punishment and calls for it to b~ lifted. The report also urges the international community to investigate the business activities of companies registered in their own respective countries that profit from Israel's settlements. Other recommendations address the exploitation of natural resources from the occupied Syrian Golan Heights. In this regard, the Special Committee calls on Israel to desist from issuing drilling licenses for natural gas and oil exploration. 3. For the first time this year, .the Special Committee addresses the role of pro-settler non-governmental organizations and their influence upon the settlement enterprise, including their use of petitions in the Israeli Supreme Court to accelerate the demolition of Palestinian homes in close proximity to Israeli settlements. · l ,' RECEiV ED SEP 2 3 ?013 If HtfT/ ot...Li oo l EOSG/CENTRAL 4. The report has been cleared by the Special Committee and was shared with the concerned Permanent Missions, namely Israel; Palestine and the Syrian Arab Republic on 29 August. The Syrian Arab Republic responded with a note verbale dated 2 September (attached) requesting that two specific revisions be made to the report, which the Special Committee acce~ted. No other responses were received. I i I j I I I i . j 1 I i 1 United Nations A;68/Slot no.30803 (~'\ General Assembly Distr.: General I I September 2013 ~ Original: English Sixty-eighth session Agenda Item 52 of the provisional agenda* Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories 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 The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the members of the General Assembly the forty-fifth 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 pursuant to General Assembly resolution 671118. * A/68/ 150 GE. Please recycle@ A/68/Slot no.30803 Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories Summary The present report contains information regarding the Special Committee 's efforts to implement its mandate over the past year. This includes its consultations carried out with Member States and its mission to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Arab Republic of Egypt. The report gives particular attention to Israeli practices relating to the situation of Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli prisons and detention facilities and the detention of Palestinian children. The report also focuses on home demolitions, the enclosure of Palestinian communities by the Wall and settler violence. It also gives attention to information received concerning the role of multinational corporations and non-governmental organizations in the continued expansion and maintenance of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory. As regards the Gaza Strip, the report addresses concerns related to Israel's adherence to international human rights and international humanitarian law in the context of the hostilities between Israel, the de facto authorities in Gaza and Palestinian armed groups in Gaza that occurred from 14 to 21 November 2012. It also focuses on the impact of the blockade on Gaza Strip that entered its seventh year. Information received from victims and witnesses in relation to the human rights situation and the exploitation of natural resources by Israel in the Occupied Syrian Golan is also included. 2 2 A/68/Siot no. 30803 Contents Paragraphs Page I. Introduction ... .......... .. .. ...... ........ ...... .......... .. .......................................................... 4 II. Mandate ...... ....... .. ....... ....... .............. ...... .................... ......... .. ....... ........................ 2-3 4 III. Activities of the Special Committee ................. .. .... .. ..... ....... ........... .. ......... .......... .. 4-9 4 A. Consultations with Member States ............................. .................... .. ... .. ........ 4-6 4 B. Field mission to investigate Israel practices . ............................................ ..... 7-9 5 IV. Situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory ................. .. ....... .. 10-58 6 A. Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli prisons and detention centres ...... ...... .... ................ ............ ... .............. ..... ....... ..... .. ........... 10-21 6 B. The West bank, including East Jerusalem .. ... .. ... ......... .. .. .. ... .. ....... ... ............ .. 22-41 8 C. The Gaza Strip .............................................................................................. .. 42-58 12 V. Situation of human rights in the Occupied Syrian Golan .. ................. .... .. .............. 59-64 15 VI. Conclusions ...... ....... .. ......... .. ... ... .. ....... ......... .......... ......... .......... ............ ...... ........... 65-68 16 VII. Recommandations .......... ..... .. ....... .. .......... .. ........ ............. .. ......................... ... ...... ... 69-86 18 3 A/68/Siot no.30803 I. Introduction I. The Special Committee to investigate Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the territories occupied since 1967 was established in 1968 by General Assembly resolution 2443 (XXIII). It is currently composed of three Member States: Sri Lanka (chair), Malaysia and Senegal. This year the Special Committee was chaired by Palitha T.B. Kohona, Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in New York. The Special Committee was also comprised of Dato' Hussein Haniff, Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations in New York and Fode Seck, Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations Office at Geneva. II. Mandate 2. The mandate of the Special Committee, as set out in General Assembly resolution 2443 (XXIII) and subsequent resolutions, is to investigate Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the population of the occupied territories. The occupied territories are considered those remaining under Israeli occupation since 1967, namely, the occupied Syrian Arab Golan and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which comprises the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. 3. The present report is submitted in pursuance of General Assembly resolution 671118. By this resolution, the General Assembly requested the Special Committee, " .. pending complete termination of the Israeli occupation, to continue to investigate Israeli policies and practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and other Arab territories occupied by Israel since 1967, especially Israeli violations of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, and to consult, as appropriate, with the International Committee of the Red Cross according to its regulations in order to ensure that the welfare and human rights of the peoples of the occupied territories are safeguarded and to report to the Secretary­ General as soon as possible and whenever the need arises thereafter". The General Assembly also requested " ... the Special Committee to continue to investigate the treatment of the thousands of prisoners and detainees, including children and women, in Israeli prisons and detention centres in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and other Arab territories occupied by Israel since 1967". III. Activities of the Special Committee A. Consultations with Member
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