Ramallah (UNA/WAFA) – The Palestinian National Council said that the values and principles that form the core of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are facing a difficult test today in the face of the crimes of the Israeli occupation and its systematic violations against the Palestinian people.
In a statement issued today, Wednesday, on the occasion of International Human Rights Day, the Council added that the Palestinian people are facing an open war that includes genocide, ethnic cleansing and forced displacement, in addition to the total destruction of the Gaza Strip, where residential neighborhoods are crushed over their inhabitants and a siege of starvation is imposed, depriving the sick and wounded of food, medicine and treatment, stressing that what is happening is not an accidental violation, but rather systematic practices that target human existence itself.
The Council addressed the suffering of the displacement camps and their harsh conditions of hunger, disease and cold, as well as the continuation of daily terrorism in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, represented by direct killing, arbitrary arrests, demolition of homes and displacement of residents, in addition to the attacks of settlers under the protection of the occupation army and by political decisions that violate international law.
He also pointed out that detainees are subjected to killing, torture and field executions, amid attempts to pass racist laws that legitimize execution, which is a flagrant violation of international standards that prohibit harming the right to life or subjecting detainees to torture or cruel treatment.
He stressed that what the Palestinian people are going through represents a dark page in the record of contemporary human rights, and that international silence is not only complicity, but also a breach of legal and moral obligations to protect human beings and prevent mass crimes.
The Palestinian National Council stressed that human rights are not an annual slogan, but a permanent commitment that the international community must bear, by enforcing respect for international law, holding accountable those who commit crimes against civilians, working to protect the Palestinian people, stopping the aggression, and lifting the siege.
