19 dec 2017
IDF says investigation shows 'no live fire was aimed at' wheelchair-bound agitator during 'day of rage' clashes on Gaza border; 'It's impossible to determine what caused his death.'
A senior UN official said on Tuesday that Israel's killing of a disabled Palestinian man protesting against US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital was "incomprehensible", but Israel said he had not been targeted.
A statement issued by Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said wheelchair-bound Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was shot in the head by Israeli security forces close to the border fence with Israel on Friday.
Abu Thuraya, killed in the "day of rage" protests on Friday, was one of the regular protesters on the Gaza border. The Palestinians claim he was killed when a "sniper shot him in the head," while IDF officials said soldiers are instructed, according to the rules of engagement, to shoot main instigators only in the lower body area.
But the Israeli military later said its own investigation had found that it was not possible to say what had killed Abu Thurayeh and that no live fire had been directed at him during the dispersal of the violent demonstration.
"No live fire was aimed at Abu Thurayeh. It is impossible to determine whether Abu Thurayeh was injured as a result of riot dispersal means, or what caused his death," part of the military statement said.
It added that protesters hurled explosive devices and rocks and rolled burning tyres "with the aim of harming soldiers and destroying security infrastructure" and that non-lethal riot dispersal means were mainly used, although a few live rounds fired under supervision were aimed "towards main instigators."
Zeid said there was nothing to suggest Abu Thurayeh was posing an imminent threat when he was killed and "the facts gathered so far by my staff in Gaza strongly suggest that the force used against (him) was excessive."
"Given his severe disability, which must have been clearly visible to those who shot him, his killing is incomprehensible and a truly shocking and wanton act," Zeid's statement said.
The Israeli military statement said "numerous requests" for information on Abu Thurayeh's wounds had not been answered and that "if additional details are received, they will be examined and studied."
Gaza medical officials said on Friday that Israeli troops had shot dead four people, including Abu Thurayeh, and that 150 others were wounded by live fire during the protests.
Most of the casualties were on the Gaza Strip border. In the West Bank, the Israeli military said about 2,500 Palestinians took part in riots against soldiers and border police officers.
Abu Thurayeh, 29, was a regular at such demonstrations and considered by Israel as a prime agitator. In media interviews, he had said he had lost both his legs in a 2008 Israeli missile strike in Gaza.
Zeid's statement said the Israeli response had resulted in five people being killed, including three deaths in Gaza, as well as more than 220 injured by live ammunition.
International law strictly regulates the use of force in the context of protests and demonstrations, and the lethal use of firearms should only be employed as the last resort when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life, Zeid said.
"These events ... can sadly be traced directly back to the unilateral US announcement on the status of Jerusalem, which breaks international consensus and was dangerously provocative," Zeid said, calling for an independent investigation into the casualties.
A senior UN official said on Tuesday that Israel's killing of a disabled Palestinian man protesting against US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital was "incomprehensible", but Israel said he had not been targeted.
A statement issued by Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said wheelchair-bound Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was shot in the head by Israeli security forces close to the border fence with Israel on Friday.
Abu Thuraya, killed in the "day of rage" protests on Friday, was one of the regular protesters on the Gaza border. The Palestinians claim he was killed when a "sniper shot him in the head," while IDF officials said soldiers are instructed, according to the rules of engagement, to shoot main instigators only in the lower body area.
But the Israeli military later said its own investigation had found that it was not possible to say what had killed Abu Thurayeh and that no live fire had been directed at him during the dispersal of the violent demonstration.
"No live fire was aimed at Abu Thurayeh. It is impossible to determine whether Abu Thurayeh was injured as a result of riot dispersal means, or what caused his death," part of the military statement said.
It added that protesters hurled explosive devices and rocks and rolled burning tyres "with the aim of harming soldiers and destroying security infrastructure" and that non-lethal riot dispersal means were mainly used, although a few live rounds fired under supervision were aimed "towards main instigators."
Zeid said there was nothing to suggest Abu Thurayeh was posing an imminent threat when he was killed and "the facts gathered so far by my staff in Gaza strongly suggest that the force used against (him) was excessive."
"Given his severe disability, which must have been clearly visible to those who shot him, his killing is incomprehensible and a truly shocking and wanton act," Zeid's statement said.
The Israeli military statement said "numerous requests" for information on Abu Thurayeh's wounds had not been answered and that "if additional details are received, they will be examined and studied."
Gaza medical officials said on Friday that Israeli troops had shot dead four people, including Abu Thurayeh, and that 150 others were wounded by live fire during the protests.
Most of the casualties were on the Gaza Strip border. In the West Bank, the Israeli military said about 2,500 Palestinians took part in riots against soldiers and border police officers.
Abu Thurayeh, 29, was a regular at such demonstrations and considered by Israel as a prime agitator. In media interviews, he had said he had lost both his legs in a 2008 Israeli missile strike in Gaza.
Zeid's statement said the Israeli response had resulted in five people being killed, including three deaths in Gaza, as well as more than 220 injured by live ammunition.
International law strictly regulates the use of force in the context of protests and demonstrations, and the lethal use of firearms should only be employed as the last resort when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life, Zeid said.
"These events ... can sadly be traced directly back to the unilateral US announcement on the status of Jerusalem, which breaks international consensus and was dangerously provocative," Zeid said, calling for an independent investigation into the casualties.
Ibrahim Abu Thurayya in Gaza City in 2013. Abu Thurayya, who lost his legs in an Israeli airstrike in 2008, was shot dead by Israeli forces in what the UN human rights office called a “truly shocking and wanton act.”
The United Nations human rights chief has joined the condemnation of Israel’s killing of a disabled Palestinian man in the occupied Gaza Strip.
But while Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein calls the killing of Ibrahim Abu Thurayya “incomprehensible” and a “truly shocking and wanton act,” his office stops short of calling for any real accountability from Israel.
It thus demonstrates a double standard in which Israel is treated more leniently by the UN than other perpetrators of human rights crimes.
Abu Thurayya, 29, lost both his legs in an Israeli airstrike in 2008. Last Friday he was participating in demonstrations in Gaza near the boundary fence with Israel in protest of the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Abu Thurayya “was protesting around 15 metres from Gaza’s eastern fence when he was shot while sitting in his wheelchair,” the human rights group Al-Haq stated.
Shot dead in wheelchair holding flag
According to Al-Haq documentation and footage of the incident, Abu Thurayya “was only holding a Palestinian flag and did not pose any threat to the [Israeli occupation forces] when he was shot in the forehead in what appears to have been a deliberate act of killing.”
A statement on Tuesday from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein acknowledges these facts and states that “there is nothing whatsoever to suggest that Ibrahim Abu Thurayya was posing an imminent threat of death or serious injury when he was killed.”
The statement adds: “Given his severe disability, which must have been clearly visible to those who shot him, his killing is incomprehensible – a truly shocking and wanton act.”
Yet the statement falls far short of what should be expected in such a grave situation.
Mild language
The UN human rights office also said that Israel’s other killings and injuries to hundreds of Palestinians the same day raise “serious concerns as to whether the force used by Israeli forces was properly calibrated to the threat.”
This mild language appears to justify and rationalize an occupation army’s use of force against civilian demonstrators while appealing politely to the occupier to be slightly less brutal.
Most troubling, however, is the UN human rights office’s call on Israel “to immediately open an independent and impartial investigation into this incident, and into all others that have resulted in injury or death, with a view to holding the perpetrators accountable for any crimes committed.”
The UN knows full well that Israel is utterly incapable of investigating itself in any serious manner. The statement even acknowledges that a “preliminary internal Israeli army investigation has taken place” into the killing of Abu Thurayya.
That “investigation” already concluded that Israeli forces had done nothing wrong and had demonstrated “no moral or professional failures” in shooting dead a disabled man.
Zeid’s office certainly knows that this kind of impunity is systematic.
Human rights groups have handed masses of evidence of Israeli violations, including war crimes and crimes against humanity, to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
These are crimes that Israel has refused to investigate.
The International Criminal Court appears to be dragging its feet on cases involving Israel.
According to Al-Haq, Israel’s killings of Palestinian protesters on Friday “may amount to a wilful killing, a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention and a war crime falling within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.”
Yet in its statement on Abu Thurayya, the UN human rights office fails to call for the International Criminal Court to robustly combat Israel’s systematic impunity.
Calls for intervention
This is in marked contrast to the human rights office’s calls on the court to get involved in other countries such as Syria, Burundi, North Korea and Myanmar
Zeid has also called for an “international investigation into the human rights violations in Venezuela” to hold perpetrators there accountable.
His call for intervention in Venezuela was based on his assessment that “the current mechanism is inadequate” and needed to be “reconfigured with the support and involvement of the international community.”
The statement on Abu Thurayya is worryingly not the only sign of a bias where the UN treats Israel with kid gloves.
Under the mandate of the UN Human Rights Council, Zeid’s office is compiling a database of companies doing business in Israel’s settlements on occupied Palestinian land.
The database was originally expected to be published this month, but Zeid’s office reportedly pushed it back amid intense pressure from Israel and the United States, prompting concern from human rights groups.
And in 2016, while saying it was “extremely concerned” about the extrajudicial killing of an injured Palestinian by an Israeli army medic, the UN human rights office appeared to insist that Palestinians under military occupation have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their occupiers.
The United Nations human rights chief has joined the condemnation of Israel’s killing of a disabled Palestinian man in the occupied Gaza Strip.
But while Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein calls the killing of Ibrahim Abu Thurayya “incomprehensible” and a “truly shocking and wanton act,” his office stops short of calling for any real accountability from Israel.
It thus demonstrates a double standard in which Israel is treated more leniently by the UN than other perpetrators of human rights crimes.
Abu Thurayya, 29, lost both his legs in an Israeli airstrike in 2008. Last Friday he was participating in demonstrations in Gaza near the boundary fence with Israel in protest of the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Abu Thurayya “was protesting around 15 metres from Gaza’s eastern fence when he was shot while sitting in his wheelchair,” the human rights group Al-Haq stated.
Shot dead in wheelchair holding flag
According to Al-Haq documentation and footage of the incident, Abu Thurayya “was only holding a Palestinian flag and did not pose any threat to the [Israeli occupation forces] when he was shot in the forehead in what appears to have been a deliberate act of killing.”
A statement on Tuesday from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein acknowledges these facts and states that “there is nothing whatsoever to suggest that Ibrahim Abu Thurayya was posing an imminent threat of death or serious injury when he was killed.”
The statement adds: “Given his severe disability, which must have been clearly visible to those who shot him, his killing is incomprehensible – a truly shocking and wanton act.”
Yet the statement falls far short of what should be expected in such a grave situation.
Mild language
The UN human rights office also said that Israel’s other killings and injuries to hundreds of Palestinians the same day raise “serious concerns as to whether the force used by Israeli forces was properly calibrated to the threat.”
This mild language appears to justify and rationalize an occupation army’s use of force against civilian demonstrators while appealing politely to the occupier to be slightly less brutal.
Most troubling, however, is the UN human rights office’s call on Israel “to immediately open an independent and impartial investigation into this incident, and into all others that have resulted in injury or death, with a view to holding the perpetrators accountable for any crimes committed.”
The UN knows full well that Israel is utterly incapable of investigating itself in any serious manner. The statement even acknowledges that a “preliminary internal Israeli army investigation has taken place” into the killing of Abu Thurayya.
That “investigation” already concluded that Israeli forces had done nothing wrong and had demonstrated “no moral or professional failures” in shooting dead a disabled man.
Zeid’s office certainly knows that this kind of impunity is systematic.
Human rights groups have handed masses of evidence of Israeli violations, including war crimes and crimes against humanity, to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
These are crimes that Israel has refused to investigate.
The International Criminal Court appears to be dragging its feet on cases involving Israel.
According to Al-Haq, Israel’s killings of Palestinian protesters on Friday “may amount to a wilful killing, a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention and a war crime falling within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.”
Yet in its statement on Abu Thurayya, the UN human rights office fails to call for the International Criminal Court to robustly combat Israel’s systematic impunity.
Calls for intervention
This is in marked contrast to the human rights office’s calls on the court to get involved in other countries such as Syria, Burundi, North Korea and Myanmar
Zeid has also called for an “international investigation into the human rights violations in Venezuela” to hold perpetrators there accountable.
His call for intervention in Venezuela was based on his assessment that “the current mechanism is inadequate” and needed to be “reconfigured with the support and involvement of the international community.”
The statement on Abu Thurayya is worryingly not the only sign of a bias where the UN treats Israel with kid gloves.
Under the mandate of the UN Human Rights Council, Zeid’s office is compiling a database of companies doing business in Israel’s settlements on occupied Palestinian land.
The database was originally expected to be published this month, but Zeid’s office reportedly pushed it back amid intense pressure from Israel and the United States, prompting concern from human rights groups.
And in 2016, while saying it was “extremely concerned” about the extrajudicial killing of an injured Palestinian by an Israeli army medic, the UN human rights office appeared to insist that Palestinians under military occupation have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their occupiers.
The bloc of Arab countries at the UN has submitted a request with the General Assembly to hold an emergency meeting to adopt a resolution that overturns the US decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
This came after Washington vetoed a UN Security Council resolution rejecting the US move.
For his part, the president of the General Assembly, Miroslav Lajcak, confirmed on Monday evening that he had received the request and said that the emergency session will be conducted as soon as possible.
The Palestinian envoy to the UN, Riyad Mansour, expected it to be held on Wednesday or Thursday and pointed out that the request was also filed on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and Non-Aligned Movement.
Mansour added that the request stipulated that the session be held in accordance with the principle of "Uniting for Peace" in reference to the General Assembly resolution No. 377 which allows a chance to circumvent a Security Council veto.
The Palestinian Foreign Minister, Riyad al-Maliki, said on Monday that the Palestinians will call for an emergency meeting of the UN General Assembly after the US vetoed the Security Council resolution.
Maliki added that the member states will also demand the resolution challenged by the US to be passed.
The US on Monday vetoed a draft resolution, filed by Egypt at the request of Palestinians, that rejects the US president Donald Trump's recognition of Occupied Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and his plan to move the US embassy there although the resolution won the support of 14 of the 15 members of the UN Security Council.
This came after Washington vetoed a UN Security Council resolution rejecting the US move.
For his part, the president of the General Assembly, Miroslav Lajcak, confirmed on Monday evening that he had received the request and said that the emergency session will be conducted as soon as possible.
The Palestinian envoy to the UN, Riyad Mansour, expected it to be held on Wednesday or Thursday and pointed out that the request was also filed on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and Non-Aligned Movement.
Mansour added that the request stipulated that the session be held in accordance with the principle of "Uniting for Peace" in reference to the General Assembly resolution No. 377 which allows a chance to circumvent a Security Council veto.
The Palestinian Foreign Minister, Riyad al-Maliki, said on Monday that the Palestinians will call for an emergency meeting of the UN General Assembly after the US vetoed the Security Council resolution.
Maliki added that the member states will also demand the resolution challenged by the US to be passed.
The US on Monday vetoed a draft resolution, filed by Egypt at the request of Palestinians, that rejects the US president Donald Trump's recognition of Occupied Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and his plan to move the US embassy there although the resolution won the support of 14 of the 15 members of the UN Security Council.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ben Ra'ad al-Hussein, expressed on Tuesday “true shock” over Israeli forces’ fatal shooting of Ibrahim Abu Thuraya, a wheelchair-bound amputee, near Gaza’s border fence last Friday.
“The facts gathered so far by my staff in Gaza strongly suggest that the force used against Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was excessive,” Zeid said in a press statement.
“As far as we can see, there is nothing whatsoever to suggest that Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was posing an imminent threat of death or serious injury when he was killed. Given his severe disability, which must have been clearly visible to those who shot him, his killing is incomprehensible – a truly shocking and wanton act,” he stated.
The casualty has gone hemiplegic and got his two legs amputated in an Israeli strike on the Gaza enclave nine years ago.
Abu Thurayeh is one among ten Palestinians who died when Israeli occupation army attacked Palestinian citizens protesting against U.S. President Donald Trumps’ decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Also read: Israel: International law strictly regulates the use of force in the context of protests and demonstrations, and the lethal use of firearms should only be employed as the last resort when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life, Zeid said.
“The facts gathered so far by my staff in Gaza strongly suggest that the force used against Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was excessive,” Zeid said in a press statement.
“As far as we can see, there is nothing whatsoever to suggest that Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh was posing an imminent threat of death or serious injury when he was killed. Given his severe disability, which must have been clearly visible to those who shot him, his killing is incomprehensible – a truly shocking and wanton act,” he stated.
The casualty has gone hemiplegic and got his two legs amputated in an Israeli strike on the Gaza enclave nine years ago.
Abu Thurayeh is one among ten Palestinians who died when Israeli occupation army attacked Palestinian citizens protesting against U.S. President Donald Trumps’ decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Also read: Israel: International law strictly regulates the use of force in the context of protests and demonstrations, and the lethal use of firearms should only be employed as the last resort when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life, Zeid said.
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By Dr. Haidar Eid
In 2009, 21-year-old Ibrahim Abu Thurayya, together with some other youngsters, was targeted by an Israeli F16. He lost both legs. On December 15, 2017, Ibrahim was killed by an Israeli sniper on the eastern borders of Gaza while carrying a Palestinian flag and peacefully protesting against American president’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Ibrahim was a wheelchair- bound double amputee! What is the message that apartheid Israel wanted to send to us, Palestinian, by brutally killing Ibrahim in broad day light? ‘There are no red lines! We, The Chosen People, can kill the most vulnerable amongst you regardless of international law and international humanitarian law. You have to accept your status as “two-legged” beasts, “cockroaches” that we must crush, the goyim whose only role is to serve us! We have the US, Arab janissaries and a complicit EU on our side. UN and its SC? They are useless: how many of their resolutions have been implemented? NONE! Jerusalem is ours; in fact, all of Palestine is Eretz Israel” Ibrahim’s crime? He was a Palestinian at the beginning of the 21st Century living in the most densely populated area on Earth, Gaza. He was not born to a Jewish mother. Being an Arabic speaking Palestinian who does not understand the |
English of BBC and CNN, or the Hebrew of Israeli TV Channels, Ibrahim was never able to comprehend the Israeli logic behind the attack that had cost him both legs in 2009.
Benjamin Netanyahu and Avigdor Lieberman do not have to face his family and explain to them as to why they, “men of peace,” had to kill their disabled son. He, together with other Palestinian young men, is to blame for “forcing” the Israeli “boys” to shoot them. They should not have existed in the first place.
“Jerusalem is ours” was one of the last uttered sentence by Ibrahim, as seen on camera; he had never been to Jerusalem, and now he has flown away, with a flock of birds, before reaching the city.
But tens of thousands of Palestinian men responded to Ibrahim; they attended his funeral chanting his name, “Ibrahim, The Martyr of Jerusalem!”
And all I could do is write a poem and sing it in his memory!
Lyrics:
We have a martyr,
His blood runs in my veins,
Whether from Khuzaa or Shejaeyya,
His songs are sung by me,
My martyr is Habibi,
Shahidi, Habibi
Video
– Dr. Haidar Eid is an Associate Professor at the Department of English Literature, Al-Aqsa University, Gaza Strip, Palestine. He is also a one-state activist and a member of Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI). He contributed this article this article to PalestineChronicle.com.
Benjamin Netanyahu and Avigdor Lieberman do not have to face his family and explain to them as to why they, “men of peace,” had to kill their disabled son. He, together with other Palestinian young men, is to blame for “forcing” the Israeli “boys” to shoot them. They should not have existed in the first place.
“Jerusalem is ours” was one of the last uttered sentence by Ibrahim, as seen on camera; he had never been to Jerusalem, and now he has flown away, with a flock of birds, before reaching the city.
But tens of thousands of Palestinian men responded to Ibrahim; they attended his funeral chanting his name, “Ibrahim, The Martyr of Jerusalem!”
And all I could do is write a poem and sing it in his memory!
Lyrics:
We have a martyr,
His blood runs in my veins,
Whether from Khuzaa or Shejaeyya,
His songs are sung by me,
My martyr is Habibi,
Shahidi, Habibi
Video
– Dr. Haidar Eid is an Associate Professor at the Department of English Literature, Al-Aqsa University, Gaza Strip, Palestine. He is also a one-state activist and a member of Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI). He contributed this article this article to PalestineChronicle.com.
Hamas has condemned, in the strongest terms, Washington's vetoing of a UN Security Council's resolution aimed at voiding U.S. President Donald Trump's move to recognize Jerusalem (al-Quds) as Israel's capital.
Hamas said in a Monday statement that Washington’s vetoing of the resolution proves once again that any attempt to bet on its role as a peace broker is just a waste of time.
“Hamas Movement believes that today’s UN Security Council session has been an occasion to confirm Palestinians’ commitment to Jerusalem and rehabilitate international resolutions which have long been overthrown by Israel,” it said.
“Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the State of Palestine. No U.S. or Israeli decision shall change such a deep-rooted fact,” said Hamas. “To millions of Arabs and Muslims, Jerusalem and its holy sites are a red line.”
The group vowed to make every possible effort in response to such oppressive and biased decisions.
Hamas held the U.S. administration responsible for the repercussions of the move both in the occupied Palestinian territories and MENA region.
“The U.S. is adding fuel to fire,” said Hamas, calling on the international community to urgently step in so as to defend Occupied Jerusalem against malevolent agendas aiming to alter the city’s demographic and religious character.
“Israel will pay the price for its crimes against our people and holy sites,” the resistance movement added.
Hamas also urged the Palestinian Authority (PA) President, Mahmoud Abbas, to take advantage of the present situation to throw out the notorious Oslo Accords, which it said have been the main reason why the Palestinians are undergoing tragic conditions.
It also called on the PA to halt peace negotiations once and for all, cease security cooperation with Israel, and restructure home affairs in favor of national unity.
On Monday, the United States blocked a Security Council resolution at the United Nations that would have rejected President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley’s vote marked the Trump administration’s first Security Council veto. All 14 other members supported the resolution, underscoring the U.S. isolation on the issue.
Haley claimed she cast the veto “in defense of American sovereignty and in defense of America’s role in the Middle East peace process.”
The draft of the resolution, called for by Egypt, did not name the United States or Trump. It expressed “deep regret at certain decisions concerning the status of Jerusalem,” and asserted that “Jerusalem is a final status issue to be resolved through negotiations.” It further declared as null and void “any decisions and actions which purport to have altered the character, status or demographic composition” of the city, and urged countries not to establish diplomatic missions in the city.
Trump’s Dec. 6 decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and start lengthy preparations to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city has been criticized by all the Arab countries and many U.S. allies, including fellow Security Council members France and Britain.
Hamas said in a Monday statement that Washington’s vetoing of the resolution proves once again that any attempt to bet on its role as a peace broker is just a waste of time.
“Hamas Movement believes that today’s UN Security Council session has been an occasion to confirm Palestinians’ commitment to Jerusalem and rehabilitate international resolutions which have long been overthrown by Israel,” it said.
“Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the State of Palestine. No U.S. or Israeli decision shall change such a deep-rooted fact,” said Hamas. “To millions of Arabs and Muslims, Jerusalem and its holy sites are a red line.”
The group vowed to make every possible effort in response to such oppressive and biased decisions.
Hamas held the U.S. administration responsible for the repercussions of the move both in the occupied Palestinian territories and MENA region.
“The U.S. is adding fuel to fire,” said Hamas, calling on the international community to urgently step in so as to defend Occupied Jerusalem against malevolent agendas aiming to alter the city’s demographic and religious character.
“Israel will pay the price for its crimes against our people and holy sites,” the resistance movement added.
Hamas also urged the Palestinian Authority (PA) President, Mahmoud Abbas, to take advantage of the present situation to throw out the notorious Oslo Accords, which it said have been the main reason why the Palestinians are undergoing tragic conditions.
It also called on the PA to halt peace negotiations once and for all, cease security cooperation with Israel, and restructure home affairs in favor of national unity.
On Monday, the United States blocked a Security Council resolution at the United Nations that would have rejected President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley’s vote marked the Trump administration’s first Security Council veto. All 14 other members supported the resolution, underscoring the U.S. isolation on the issue.
Haley claimed she cast the veto “in defense of American sovereignty and in defense of America’s role in the Middle East peace process.”
The draft of the resolution, called for by Egypt, did not name the United States or Trump. It expressed “deep regret at certain decisions concerning the status of Jerusalem,” and asserted that “Jerusalem is a final status issue to be resolved through negotiations.” It further declared as null and void “any decisions and actions which purport to have altered the character, status or demographic composition” of the city, and urged countries not to establish diplomatic missions in the city.
Trump’s Dec. 6 decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and start lengthy preparations to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city has been criticized by all the Arab countries and many U.S. allies, including fellow Security Council members France and Britain.
18 dec 2017
Fourteen of the fifteen nations in the United Nations Security Council voted Monday reaffirming the status of the city of Jerusalem as unresolved, and challenging the U.S. administration’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The U.S., which has veto power in the Council, vetoed the resolution.
Following the U.S. veto of the resolution, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu tweeted, “Thank you, Ambassador Haley. On Hanukkah, you spoke like a Maccabi. You lit a candle of truth. You dispel the darkness. One defeated the many. Truth defeated lies. Thank you, President Trump.”
The veto on Monday’s vote marked the first time that the U.S. has used its veto power since Donald Trump took power in the country.
The U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations said following the vote, “We [veto this resolution] with no joy, but we do it with no reluctance. The fact that this veto is being done in defense of American sovereignty and in defense of America’s role in the Middle East peace process is not a source of embarrassment for us; it should be an embarrassment to the remainder of the Security Council.”
But critics have pointed out that the U.S. administration’s move claiming Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is outside of the U.S. government’s jurisdiction, and is undermining the sovereignty and self-determination of the Palestinian people by denying their existence and right to the holy city.
Ambassador Haley also called the UN Security Council Resolution an insult.
The UN Security Council resolution was introduced by the Egyptian delegation to the Council, and was widely supported by nations around the world.
The UN Mideast Envoy Nickolay Mladenov spoke in favor of the resolution, citing Israel’s decade-old ‘E1 Plan’ to encircle the city of Jerusalem with colonial settlements, thereby cutting off the West Bank from the city and expanding the Israeli state in direct violation of international law and signed agreements.
According to Mladenov, since Trump made his declaration on December 6th, “some 1,200 units in the occupied West Bank were approved for construction, approximately 460 of them in the settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, in addition to the new settlement of Amihai, a new neighborhood in Kochav Yaakov, and a new site near Alon Shvut. The construction of infrastructure in Givat Hamatos…would solidify the ring of settlements isolating East Jerusalem from the southern West Bank.” Also in the past 12 days since Trump’s statement, “Israeli authorities demolished or seized 61 structures, 110 people, including 61 children were displaced and the livelihoods of over 1,000 people were affected.”
He pointed out that Israel has engaged in massive settlement growth on stolen Palestinian land, violence against civilian populations, and incitement against Palestinians, and noted that, “in 2017, there were 109 shooting, stabbing, ramming and bombing attacks conducted [by Palestinians against Israelis], compared to 223 in 2016. In 2017, 72 Palestinians and 15 Israelis were killed, while in 2016 there were 109 and 13, respectively.
The Israeli ambassador to the United Nations criticized the Security Council resolution, saying, “members of the Security Council can vote another hundred times to criticize our presence in Jerusalem, but history won’t change. While the Jewish people celebrate the holiday of Hanukkah that symbolizes the eternal connection to Jerusalem, there are people who think that they can rewrite history. It’s time for all countries to recognize that Jerusalem always was and always will be the capital of the Jewish people and the capital of Israel.”
But the statement by the Israeli ambassador did not acknowledge that the Security Council was not criticizing Jewish presence in the city of Jerusalem, but was instead challenging a unilateral action by the state of Israel, backed by the United States, to take over territory through the use of military force and expand Israel’s (never declared) borders while pushing out, killing and denying the presence of the indigenous Palestinian population.
As Juan Cole pointed out in 2010 in his synopsis of the history of the city of Jerusalem, “The Assyrians conquered Jerusalem in 722. The Babylonians took it in 597 and ruled it until they were themselves conquered in 539 BCE by the Achaemenids of ancient Iran, who ruled Jerusalem until Alexander the Great took the Levant in the 330s BCE. Alexander’s descendants, the Ptolemies ruled Jerusalem until 198 when Alexander’s other descendants, the Seleucids, took the city. With the Maccabean Revolt in 168 BCE, the Jewish Hasmonean kingdom did rule Jerusalem until 37 BCE, though Antigonus II Mattathias, the last Hasmonean, only took over Jerusalem with the help of the Parthian dynasty in 40 BCE. Herod ruled 37 BCE until the Romans conquered what they called Palestine in 6 CE (CE= ‘Common Era’ or what Christians call AD).
The Romans and then the Eastern Roman Empire of Byzantium ruled Jerusalem from 6 CE until 614 CE when the Iranian Sasanian Empire Conquered it, ruling until 629 CE when the Byzantines took it back.
“The Muslims conquered Jerusalem in 638 and ruled it until 1099 when the Crusaders conquered it. The Crusaders killed or expelled Jews and Muslims from the city. The Muslims under Saladin took it back in 1187 CE and allowed Jews to return, and Muslims ruled it until the end of World War I, or altogether for about 1192 years.”
As the late Edward Said noted in 2011, “The Zionist claim to the land is one claim among many others. Certainly the Arabs have a much greater claim because they have a longer history of inhabitance, of actual residence in Palestine than the Jews did…..If you look at history, you’ll see that the actual Israelite inhabitance in Palestine, in the Old Testament, amounted to about 200 to 250 years. But there were Mallebites, there were Jebusites, there were Canaanites, there were Philistines, there were many other people in Palestine at the time and before and after. And to isolate one of the claims and say that’s THE claim, that is the real owner of the land — that’s fundamentalism…Because the only way you can back it up is to say ‘God gave it to us’.
Yes, but Christians say that God gave it to them, Muslims say that God gave it to them – it’s not a rational argument. So I think that the people who have a history of residence in Palestine, including the Jews and, of course, the Arabs, have a claim. But I don’t think that any claim, whether it’s given by god or the emperor, nobody has the claim that overrides all the others’ and entitles that person with that so-called claim to drive people out.”
Following the U.S. veto of the resolution, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu tweeted, “Thank you, Ambassador Haley. On Hanukkah, you spoke like a Maccabi. You lit a candle of truth. You dispel the darkness. One defeated the many. Truth defeated lies. Thank you, President Trump.”
The veto on Monday’s vote marked the first time that the U.S. has used its veto power since Donald Trump took power in the country.
The U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations said following the vote, “We [veto this resolution] with no joy, but we do it with no reluctance. The fact that this veto is being done in defense of American sovereignty and in defense of America’s role in the Middle East peace process is not a source of embarrassment for us; it should be an embarrassment to the remainder of the Security Council.”
But critics have pointed out that the U.S. administration’s move claiming Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is outside of the U.S. government’s jurisdiction, and is undermining the sovereignty and self-determination of the Palestinian people by denying their existence and right to the holy city.
Ambassador Haley also called the UN Security Council Resolution an insult.
The UN Security Council resolution was introduced by the Egyptian delegation to the Council, and was widely supported by nations around the world.
The UN Mideast Envoy Nickolay Mladenov spoke in favor of the resolution, citing Israel’s decade-old ‘E1 Plan’ to encircle the city of Jerusalem with colonial settlements, thereby cutting off the West Bank from the city and expanding the Israeli state in direct violation of international law and signed agreements.
According to Mladenov, since Trump made his declaration on December 6th, “some 1,200 units in the occupied West Bank were approved for construction, approximately 460 of them in the settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, in addition to the new settlement of Amihai, a new neighborhood in Kochav Yaakov, and a new site near Alon Shvut. The construction of infrastructure in Givat Hamatos…would solidify the ring of settlements isolating East Jerusalem from the southern West Bank.” Also in the past 12 days since Trump’s statement, “Israeli authorities demolished or seized 61 structures, 110 people, including 61 children were displaced and the livelihoods of over 1,000 people were affected.”
He pointed out that Israel has engaged in massive settlement growth on stolen Palestinian land, violence against civilian populations, and incitement against Palestinians, and noted that, “in 2017, there were 109 shooting, stabbing, ramming and bombing attacks conducted [by Palestinians against Israelis], compared to 223 in 2016. In 2017, 72 Palestinians and 15 Israelis were killed, while in 2016 there were 109 and 13, respectively.
The Israeli ambassador to the United Nations criticized the Security Council resolution, saying, “members of the Security Council can vote another hundred times to criticize our presence in Jerusalem, but history won’t change. While the Jewish people celebrate the holiday of Hanukkah that symbolizes the eternal connection to Jerusalem, there are people who think that they can rewrite history. It’s time for all countries to recognize that Jerusalem always was and always will be the capital of the Jewish people and the capital of Israel.”
But the statement by the Israeli ambassador did not acknowledge that the Security Council was not criticizing Jewish presence in the city of Jerusalem, but was instead challenging a unilateral action by the state of Israel, backed by the United States, to take over territory through the use of military force and expand Israel’s (never declared) borders while pushing out, killing and denying the presence of the indigenous Palestinian population.
As Juan Cole pointed out in 2010 in his synopsis of the history of the city of Jerusalem, “The Assyrians conquered Jerusalem in 722. The Babylonians took it in 597 and ruled it until they were themselves conquered in 539 BCE by the Achaemenids of ancient Iran, who ruled Jerusalem until Alexander the Great took the Levant in the 330s BCE. Alexander’s descendants, the Ptolemies ruled Jerusalem until 198 when Alexander’s other descendants, the Seleucids, took the city. With the Maccabean Revolt in 168 BCE, the Jewish Hasmonean kingdom did rule Jerusalem until 37 BCE, though Antigonus II Mattathias, the last Hasmonean, only took over Jerusalem with the help of the Parthian dynasty in 40 BCE. Herod ruled 37 BCE until the Romans conquered what they called Palestine in 6 CE (CE= ‘Common Era’ or what Christians call AD).
The Romans and then the Eastern Roman Empire of Byzantium ruled Jerusalem from 6 CE until 614 CE when the Iranian Sasanian Empire Conquered it, ruling until 629 CE when the Byzantines took it back.
“The Muslims conquered Jerusalem in 638 and ruled it until 1099 when the Crusaders conquered it. The Crusaders killed or expelled Jews and Muslims from the city. The Muslims under Saladin took it back in 1187 CE and allowed Jews to return, and Muslims ruled it until the end of World War I, or altogether for about 1192 years.”
As the late Edward Said noted in 2011, “The Zionist claim to the land is one claim among many others. Certainly the Arabs have a much greater claim because they have a longer history of inhabitance, of actual residence in Palestine than the Jews did…..If you look at history, you’ll see that the actual Israelite inhabitance in Palestine, in the Old Testament, amounted to about 200 to 250 years. But there were Mallebites, there were Jebusites, there were Canaanites, there were Philistines, there were many other people in Palestine at the time and before and after. And to isolate one of the claims and say that’s THE claim, that is the real owner of the land — that’s fundamentalism…Because the only way you can back it up is to say ‘God gave it to us’.
Yes, but Christians say that God gave it to them, Muslims say that God gave it to them – it’s not a rational argument. So I think that the people who have a history of residence in Palestine, including the Jews and, of course, the Arabs, have a claim. But I don’t think that any claim, whether it’s given by god or the emperor, nobody has the claim that overrides all the others’ and entitles that person with that so-called claim to drive people out.”
The spokesman of Hamas Movement, Hazem Qasem, said that the Israeli shelling that targeted Gaza at dawn Monday, is a failed attempt to end the ongoing uprising that erupted after the US President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Qasem pointed out that the Israeli air strikes aimed at pressuring Hamas Movement due to its continuous support for all of the ongoing events of the Jerusalem Intifada (uprising) across the Palestinian territories.
“Our people will not be intimidated by the Israeli repeated airstrikes and crimes. Our people will continue the Intifada until the US recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel is annulled and the liberation of Palestine is achieved”, the Hamas spokesman said.
Israeli airstrikes at dawn Monday targeted different areas of northern Gaza, without causing injuries among civilians.
Qasem pointed out that the Israeli air strikes aimed at pressuring Hamas Movement due to its continuous support for all of the ongoing events of the Jerusalem Intifada (uprising) across the Palestinian territories.
“Our people will not be intimidated by the Israeli repeated airstrikes and crimes. Our people will continue the Intifada until the US recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel is annulled and the liberation of Palestine is achieved”, the Hamas spokesman said.
Israeli airstrikes at dawn Monday targeted different areas of northern Gaza, without causing injuries among civilians.
Political bureau member of Hamas Husam Badran on Sunday dubbed a projected visit by the U.S. Vice President, Mike Pence, to the Buraq Wall a provocation to the Palestinian people.
According to Badran, the visit comes as part of U.S. and Israeli intents to impose a new fait accompli on the city following the U.S. President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Badran called on the Palestinians across the occupied territories to escalate protests and uprisings at all flashpoints with the Israeli occupation particularly near Jerusalem and al-Aqsa in protest at underway attempts by, the U.S. administration-backed, Israel to Judaize the city.
Badran vowed that the Palestinians will never ever forfeit a single inch of occupied Jerusalem no matter the stakes and challenges.
The Hamas leader hailed the Palestinian martyrs, injured protests, and prisoners who have stood so firm throughout the anti-occupation struggle, urging the Palestinians to combine forces so as to defend Occupied Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque.
Senior Trump administration officials outlined their view Friday that Jerusalem's Buraq Wall (Western Wall) ultimately will be declared a part of Israel, in another move that has enflamed tension across the Middle East and other parts of the world.
Historical records, however, prove that the Buraq Wall is part and parcel of holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
According to Badran, the visit comes as part of U.S. and Israeli intents to impose a new fait accompli on the city following the U.S. President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Badran called on the Palestinians across the occupied territories to escalate protests and uprisings at all flashpoints with the Israeli occupation particularly near Jerusalem and al-Aqsa in protest at underway attempts by, the U.S. administration-backed, Israel to Judaize the city.
Badran vowed that the Palestinians will never ever forfeit a single inch of occupied Jerusalem no matter the stakes and challenges.
The Hamas leader hailed the Palestinian martyrs, injured protests, and prisoners who have stood so firm throughout the anti-occupation struggle, urging the Palestinians to combine forces so as to defend Occupied Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque.
Senior Trump administration officials outlined their view Friday that Jerusalem's Buraq Wall (Western Wall) ultimately will be declared a part of Israel, in another move that has enflamed tension across the Middle East and other parts of the world.
Historical records, however, prove that the Buraq Wall is part and parcel of holy al-Aqsa Mosque.
Since the outbreak of the current intifada (uprising) 10 days ago, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) have killed eight Palestinian citizens and wounded 535 others, mostly in shooting attacks, in different areas of the besieged Gaza Strip.
According to the health ministry in Gaza, four Palestinians were killed in sniper attacks east of Gaza city and three others in Jabalia during the recent protests, which were organized inside Gaza border areas against the US recognition of Occupied Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
There are also seven citizens who have suffered serious injuries during the same protests, a spokesman for the health ministry said.
47 children, the youngest of them only six months old, and eight women were among the wounded, the spokesman added.
The health ministry accused the Israeli army of using excessive and deadly force against Gaza protesters and deliberately targeting ambulance crews during the events.
14 ambulances sustained damage and several paramedics suffered from their exposure to direct teargas attacks, its spokesman said.
According to the health ministry in Gaza, four Palestinians were killed in sniper attacks east of Gaza city and three others in Jabalia during the recent protests, which were organized inside Gaza border areas against the US recognition of Occupied Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
There are also seven citizens who have suffered serious injuries during the same protests, a spokesman for the health ministry said.
47 children, the youngest of them only six months old, and eight women were among the wounded, the spokesman added.
The health ministry accused the Israeli army of using excessive and deadly force against Gaza protesters and deliberately targeting ambulance crews during the events.
14 ambulances sustained damage and several paramedics suffered from their exposure to direct teargas attacks, its spokesman said.
17 dec 2017
The League of Arab States on Sunday announced the formation of Arab ministerial delegation to work at the diplomatic and media levels to address the repercussions of the US President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and relocate the US embassy to the occupied city.
In a statement, the League said that the committee comprises the foreign ministers of Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, the UAE and the Arab League secretary general.
The delegation is scheduled to hold its first meeting in Amman early next week.
In a statement, the League said that the committee comprises the foreign ministers of Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, the UAE and the Arab League secretary general.
The delegation is scheduled to hold its first meeting in Amman early next week.
Each of Bari, Florence, Trento, and Bergamo cities of Italy witnessed on Sunday protests and sit-ins in condemnation of the US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The events were attended by Palestinian and Islamic communities in the country along with sympathetic Italian citizens.
In a press statement, the communities announced their solidarity with the Palestinian people and their just cause. They stressed the importance of respecting the international legitimacy and the rights of people to self-determination.
The statement asked the international community to support the Palestinian people against the Israeli occupation and called for recognizing the State of Palestine.
In a press statement, the communities announced their solidarity with the Palestinian people and their just cause. They stressed the importance of respecting the international legitimacy and the rights of people to self-determination.
The statement asked the international community to support the Palestinian people against the Israeli occupation and called for recognizing the State of Palestine.
Millions of people around the world have taken to the streets over recent days, condemning a decision by the U.S. President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Tens of thousands rallied in the Turkish capital, Ankara, as they expressed their strong condemnation of Trump’s move.
Angry protests have also been staged across Arab and Islamic countries, namely Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Jordan, Lebanon, and Malaysia in support for the Palestinian cause and Occupied Jerusalem.
One million persons joined a mass rally held by Indonesia’s Scholars Council in the capital Jakarta under the slogan “Indonesia United for Occupied Jerusalem.”
The rally-goers urged the government to boycott Israeli and U.S. products and to never recognize Israel as a legitimate entity.
At the same time, tens of thousands marched in Karachi, south of Pakistan, calling for anti-U.S. moves so as to pressure the U.S. administration to backtrack on its latest decision.
Demonstrations also swept the metropolitan city of London and Manchester in protest at Trump’s biased step.
Representatives of Jewish-American groups flocked to the White House, where they yelled chants lashing out at Trump and calling for ending Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories and for the U.S. to stop backing the Israeli government.
Meanwhile, dozens of protesters maintained vigil outside the U.S. embassy in Vienna and raised banners reading “Palestine is Free” and “Hand off Jerusalem.”
Trump recently recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and pledged to transfer the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city—home to Muslims’ third holiest site, al-Aqsa Mosque—prompting universal condemnation.
Tens of thousands rallied in the Turkish capital, Ankara, as they expressed their strong condemnation of Trump’s move.
Angry protests have also been staged across Arab and Islamic countries, namely Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Jordan, Lebanon, and Malaysia in support for the Palestinian cause and Occupied Jerusalem.
One million persons joined a mass rally held by Indonesia’s Scholars Council in the capital Jakarta under the slogan “Indonesia United for Occupied Jerusalem.”
The rally-goers urged the government to boycott Israeli and U.S. products and to never recognize Israel as a legitimate entity.
At the same time, tens of thousands marched in Karachi, south of Pakistan, calling for anti-U.S. moves so as to pressure the U.S. administration to backtrack on its latest decision.
Demonstrations also swept the metropolitan city of London and Manchester in protest at Trump’s biased step.
Representatives of Jewish-American groups flocked to the White House, where they yelled chants lashing out at Trump and calling for ending Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories and for the U.S. to stop backing the Israeli government.
Meanwhile, dozens of protesters maintained vigil outside the U.S. embassy in Vienna and raised banners reading “Palestine is Free” and “Hand off Jerusalem.”
Trump recently recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and pledged to transfer the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city—home to Muslims’ third holiest site, al-Aqsa Mosque—prompting universal condemnation.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has expressed its rejection of recent White House remarks describing the Aqsa Mosque’s western wall as part of Israel, condemning any attempt to change the historical and religious status of Occupied Jerusalem.
In a press release on Saturday, PA spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said that such position confirmed further that the current US administration had lost its role completely as a mediator in the peace process.
Abu Rudeina added that the US administration’s persistence in adopting or taking unilateral decisions on final status issues “represents a departure from the international consensus and perpetuates the occupation.”
A senior White House official said last Friday that the US administration “cannot envision a scenario” under which the Western Wall “would not be part of Israel” in a future peace agreement with the Palestinians.
The official underscored this point in a briefing with reporters in advance of this week’s visit to Israel by US vice president Mike Pence.
In a press release on Saturday, PA spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said that such position confirmed further that the current US administration had lost its role completely as a mediator in the peace process.
Abu Rudeina added that the US administration’s persistence in adopting or taking unilateral decisions on final status issues “represents a departure from the international consensus and perpetuates the occupation.”
A senior White House official said last Friday that the US administration “cannot envision a scenario” under which the Western Wall “would not be part of Israel” in a future peace agreement with the Palestinians.
The official underscored this point in a briefing with reporters in advance of this week’s visit to Israel by US vice president Mike Pence.
Palestinian Authority (PA) ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour stated last Saturday that an Egypt-worded draft resolution on the US capital decision was submitted to the Security Council (SC) to put it to the vote no later than Monday, December 18.
Mansour told a local radio station that he worked together with Egyptian diplomats at the UN on drafting a text that would reaffirm the previous resolutions of the Security Council on Jerusalem and ask the US administration to reverse its step.
Knowing that the bid at the Security Council would certainly be vetoed by the US, the ambassador said the PA would go to the UN General Assembly if the draft resolution was thwarted.
Mansour told a local radio station that he worked together with Egyptian diplomats at the UN on drafting a text that would reaffirm the previous resolutions of the Security Council on Jerusalem and ask the US administration to reverse its step.
Knowing that the bid at the Security Council would certainly be vetoed by the US, the ambassador said the PA would go to the UN General Assembly if the draft resolution was thwarted.
