Articles for Palestine

On 20 October 2014, the United Nations Human Rights Committee (HRC) reviewed Israel's fourth periodic report at its 122th session held in Palais Wilson, Geneva.

Geneva, 23 September 2014

Prominent lawyer in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Shireen Issawi will receive the 2014 Alkarama Award for Human Rights Defenders. Shireen will be recognised for her courageous work in monitoring and documenting human rights violations committed by the Israeli authorities against Palestinian prisoners and advocating for their rights. The Alkarama Foundation will present its 2014 Award at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva on Thursday 11 December, to mark Human Rights Day (10 December).

On 6 August 2014, Alkarama called on the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms Navi Pillay to ask the United Nations Security Council to refer the war crimes committed in Gaza by the Israeli Defence Forces to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

On 8 July 2014, Alkarama wrote to the Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in the Palestinian territories to call upon the Israeli authorities to investigate the arbitrary execution of 17-year old Palestinian, Zakariah Jamal Abu Arram.

Since the launch on 8 July 2014 of "Operation Protective Edge", Israel's third major offensive on the Gaza strip in the last six years, the Israeli defence forces have killed 171 civilians, including 48 children and 31 women. Amongst them are the cases of four families, documented by Alkarama, which amount to 30 victims of extrajudicial executions, almost half of whom are children.

On 9 July, Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders to call upon Israeli authorities to respect their obligation to let defenders carry out their work freely. In particular, Alkarama brought the Special Rapporteur's attention on the case of Badia Dwaik, a respected human rights activist for the Palestinian cause, who has been continuously subjected to reprisals and harassment for his work documenting Israel's violations against Palestinians.

For nearly 10 years now, the Issawi family has not been durably reunited. Because of the political activism of their children, the Issawi's parents have seen them successively arrested or questioned by the Israel police. The latest ones, Shireen, a young lawyer, and her brothers, Shadi and Medhat, were arrested in March 2014 by the Israel police.

On 12 December 2012, Mohamed Al Salaimeh, a 17 year-old Palestinian from Hebron, was shot several times at the checkpoint of Al Salaimeh district by the Israeli military. He died on his birthday. More than a year later, those responsible for his execution have not been brought to justice. Today, Alkarama solicited the intervention of the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions to intervene with the Israeli authorities on the behalf of his family.

On Thursday 7 November 2013, Anas Al Atrash, a 23 year-old Palestinian, was travelling from Jericho back home to Hebron with his brother, Ismail who was driving the car. He was asleep when they reached, around 11 p.m., the Container checkpoint in the Northeast of Bethlehem (West Bank) and was woken up as the car had to break suddenly to avoid bumps. His reflex was to quickly get out of the car.

On 10 June 2013, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Mr Richard Falk, presented his report to the UN Human Rights Council.