Human Rights Issues in Israel

 

Violation of Equal Protection Rights of Palestinian Citizens

While Israeli citizens are granted the right to family reunification with their foreign spouse, the Nationality and Entry into Israel Law denies the same right to Israeli citizens married to the Palestinian residents in the OPT, solely on the basis of their national group.

The law severely violates human rights and fundamental freedoms under domestic and international law, including the right to equality, liberty, privacy, and family life. The law discriminates against Arab citizens of Israel, the vast majority of Israeli citizens who marry Palestinians from the OPT.

Culture of Impunity
  • Civil Wrongs (Liability of the State) Law - 2005

New amendments from the civil Wrongs Law prevent Palestinians from suing for compensation from the State of Israel for damages caused to them by the Israeli military.

  • The Or Commission - Mahash investigations

In November 2000, the Israeli government established the official Or Commissionof Inquiry to investigate the tragic causes of the killings of 12 Palestinian citizens of Israel and 1 Palestinian from Gaza by the Israeli military. The Or Commission found that there was no justification for opening fire, which led to the killings, and found chief commander of the police responsible for the unjustified use of excessive force. But the Mahash report, in 2005, recommended that no indictments be issued against any police officers.

The families of the victims as well as the entire Israeli public should be entitled to an impartial, thorough investigation. Israel must hold those responsible to account for their actions and bring them to justice.

Threat to Land Rights and Official Racism on the Rise

The Israeli has reinforced efforts to alter the demographic reality on the ground in the NAQAB for the benefit of the Jewish majority. The Arab populations in these areas have continually been referred to as "demographic threat". This "new generation" of policies developed and being implemented by the state presents a strategic innovation in Israel's attempts to minimise the amount of land held by the Palestinian citizens of Israel.

This troubling development highlights the failure of the Attorney general's protection for the minority, thereby increasing overt public hostility towards Arabs and public calls for encouraging Arabs to emigrate out of Israel.

Torture and Ill Treatment of Detainees and Prisoners 

At least 9,000 palestinians, about 300 minors and 200 women, are in Israeli custody in detention facilities and prisons throughout Israel and in the OPT.

Palestinian prisoners have reported poor ventilation, overcrowding, lack of adequate sanitation facilities, poor food and water supplies and denial of appropriate medical care. There are continous reports regarding various methods of interrogation used against Palestinian detainees, including minors, held in Israeli prisons and detention centres, which constitutes torture and ill treatment as defined both in the Convention against Torture and other international instruments.

 Settler Violence and Denial of Law Enforcement for Palestinians

The Israeli military generally fail to prevent, halt or redress instances of settler violence, which constitutes a threat to Palestinian limb, life and land. These cases of private violence include killings, beatings and shooting of Palestinians, and also destruction of their crops and trees.

 Extra-Judicial Killings Committed by the State of Israel

The Israeli armed forces commit wilful killings against wanted Palestinians, predetermined and approved by the Israeli political and judiciary establishments. The policy was briefly suspended from February 2005, but was officially resumed in June of the same year, and has been significantly intensified since early 2006.

Killng of Civilians During Military Operations in the Ocuppied Territories

Since September 2000, a total of 3,405 Palestinians were killed in the OPT, out of which 693 were minors under the age of 18. At least 1,625 of the people killed were civilians who did not take part in fighting while they were killed.

The actions of the Israeli armed forces in the OPT involve the use of unnecessary, disproportionate and often lethal force against Palestinian civilians, including children. 

Administrative Detention

Administrative detention refers to the imprisonment of Palestinians, without charge or trial, through the use of administrative rather than judicial procedures. The reason given by the state is that the Palestinians so detained pose a threat to "the security of the area or public security". However, these terms are not defined.

The Israeli practice of administrative detention violates the fourth Geneva Convention, Art. 78 of which only allows such detention as an exceptional measure for "imperative reasons of security".

Impeding the Establishment of a Viable Palestinian State

Israeli policies of settlement expansion, movement restrictions, house demolitions and the construction of the Barrier/Wall inside the West bank, are rapidly foreclosing the establishment of a viable independent Palestinian state co-existing side by side with Israel - an indispensable component for any durable solution of this conflict.

As authoritatively stated in the ICJ Advisory Opinion of 9 july 2004, Israel must cease the construction of the Barrier/Wall in occupied territory and dismantle those parts of it that are situated on occupied land. Israel must also return all lands seized for this purpose and, in addition, compensate for all material damage.

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