In a recent development, Riyad Mansour, the Permanent Representative of the State of Palestine to the United Nations, emphasized that the time has come for nations committed to the rule of law and human rights to ensure Israel is held accountable for its severe violations in the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem. He stressed the importance of imposing sanctions on the war crimes and crimes against humanity Israel has allegedly perpetrated against the Palestinian people.
Mansour communicated these concerns through three identical letters sent to the United Nations Secretary-General, the current President of the Security Council (Albania), and the President of the United Nations General Assembly. The letters addressed Israel’s perceived impunity in the face of a lack of accountability.
In his letters, Mansour referenced the recent address by the Israeli Prime Minister on September 22 at the General Assembly. He criticized the Israeli leader’s confidence in showcasing a map which Mansour interpreted as Israel’s plans to erase the Palestinian people and the Palestinian state.
This act, according to Mansour, transparently indicates Israel’s illicit colonial intentions and policies of ethnic cleansing and annexation in the Palestinian lands they’ve occupied for over 56 years.
Mansour expressed Palestine’s condemnation of this provocative speech and urged the international community to denounce Israel’s racist portrayal of the Palestinian people, a people with a history spanning centuries.
Highlighting recent events, Mansour pointed to continuous attacks by Israeli occupation forces and settlers against Palestinians. He noted that in one week alone, eight Palestinians, including children, were martyred during military operations in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Dozens of civilians were injured, with 30 Palestinians wounded on September 19 in another Israeli assault on the Jenin refugee camp.
Education in Palestine has also come under assault. Mansour lamented the intimidation and harassment students face from occupation soldiers and settlers, resulting in students’ hindered access to schools, attacks on educational facilities, and the continued demolition of schools.
He specifically mentioned the recent raid by occupation forces on the Al-Eizariya primary school for girls in occupied East Jerusalem on September 21 and the incursion into Birzeit University on September 24. He called upon the international community to condemn such attacks and work towards safeguarding the educational rights of Palestinian children and youth.
Mansour also highlighted continuous settler assaults on Palestinian civilians, their properties, and their sacred places. These attacks have led to the injuries of a disabled young man, a woman, and a four-year-old child.
The settler terror has further resulted in the forced displacement of civilian inhabitants in the occupied Palestinian land. Settler incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Noble Sanctuary, with the most recent one on September 26, signify a grave violation of the historical and legal status quo of this sacred site.
Palestine’s call to the global community reflects an urge for renewed commitment to human rights and a plea for accountability in the face of alleged violations.
The Israel-Palestine conflict has spanned decades with multiple instances of escalations and relative peace. Amid this, the issue of human rights abuses and infringements of international laws by various parties has been a recurring topic at international forums.