Occupied Palestinian Territory

West Bank: Freedom in the World 2013

Published by on July 9, 2013

Freedom House 24 May 2013 In 2012, the Palestinian Authority government in the West Bank continued to operate without an electoral mandate or a functioning legislature, despite ongoing state-building efforts by the administration. A May 2011 political agreement between the ruling Fatah faction and Gaza-based Hamas failed to produce a new caretaker government or a timetable for elections during the year. Meanwhile, Israel expanded its West Bank settlements, and attacks by Jewish settlers on Palestinian individuals and property continued. In November, the Fatah-led Palestine Liberation Organization won recognition for Palestine as a nonmember observer state at the UN General Assembly, Read the full article…

Israel and The Occupied Territories: ICRC Annual Report 2012

Published by on July 1, 2013

International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) July 2013 International efforts did not succeed in reviving the Israeli- Palestinian peace process. Hamas, which controlled the Gaza Strip, and Fatah, the elected Palestinian Authority, remained divided, but developments at year-end reportedly gave new impetus to rapprochement between the two parties. November saw the largest escalation of confrontations between Israel and the Gaza Strip since 2008, with the launch of “Operation Pillar of Defense” by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The week- long fighting left scores of dead and wounded, mainly Palestinians, before an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire decreased the tension. At end-November, Palestine Read the full article…

The situation in the Middle East

Published by on June 10, 2013

Council of Europe: Parliamentary Assembly 10 June 2013 Summary The Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy reiterates its support for the “two States for two peoples” solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, based on the 1967 borders, with limited and mutually agreed land swaps. Regretting the lack of progress in the peace process since 2010, the committee welcomes the newly intensified efforts of the American administration for a rapid resumption of the negotiations with a view to a long-lasting and just solution. Pending such a permanent settlement, interim arrangements could be made. In parallel to status issues, those of standards should Read the full article…

Gaza Strip: Freedom in the World 2013

Published by on May 24, 2013

Freedom House 24 May 2013 Civil liberties remained severely curtailed in the Gaza Strip in 2012, despite some loosening of religious restrictions on women in particular. A May 2011 agreement between Hamas in Gaza and Fatah in the West Bank yielded no date for overdue Palestinian elections. In November 2012, Hamas and the Israel Defense Forces engaged in eight days of fighting, in which 160 Palestinians and six Israelis were killed. For the first time, Hamas rockets fired from Gaza reached the cities of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Under an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire, Israel eased its blockade on Gaza in return Read the full article…

Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories: Amnesty International Annual Report 2013

Published by on May 23, 2013

Amnesty International 23 May 2013 The Israeli authorities held more than 4,500 Palestinian prisoners, including 178 administrative detainees at the end of the year, after a temporary decrease in numbers following Palestinian and international protests. Torture and other ill-treatment of detainees during arrest and interrogation was reported. Israel’s military blockade of the Gaza Strip continued to severely affect Gaza’s 1.6 million residents. In November, Israel launched an eight-day military campaign against Palestinian armed groups who fired rockets indiscriminately from Gaza into Israel; more than 160 Palestinians as well as six Israelis were killed, including many civilians. Both sides violated international Read the full article…

The Occupied Territories: 2012 Report on International Religious Freedom

Published by on May 20, 2013

United States Department of State 20 May 2013 Religious freedom in the Occupied Territories falls under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority (PA), Israel, or Hamas (which maintains de facto control in the Gaza Strip). The laws and policies of the PA and Israel protect religious freedom, and in practice the two governments generally respected these rights. The trend in the governments’ respect for religious freedom did not change significantly during the year. The de facto Hamas authorities in Gaza continued to restrict religious freedom in both law and practice, and the negative trend for respect of this right was Read the full article…

Occupied Palestinian Territory: Global Overview 2012: People internally displaced by conflict and violence

Published by on April 29, 2013

Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) 29 April 2013 As of the end of 2012, there were about 144,500 people in protracted displacement across the Occupied Palestinian Territory (oPt), some of them since 1967. Internal displacement is both a consequence and a cause of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In November Israel launched its largest military offensive in nearly four years in Gaza, an operation that left 103 civilians, including 33 children dead, and at least 1,400 people injured. Some 12,000 Palestinians were temporarily displaced, but the majority returned home quickly as the hostilities ceased. More than 380 homes were destroyed, however, leaving Read the full article…

The Occupied Territories (including areas subject to the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority): 2012 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

Published by on April 19, 2013

United States Department of State 19 April 2013 The Palestinian Authority (PA) has a democratically elected president and legislative council. The PA exercised varying degrees of authority over the West Bank due to the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) continuing presence, and none over Arab residents of East Jerusalem due to Israel’s extension of Israeli law and authority to East Jerusalem in 1967. Although PA laws apply in the Gaza Strip, the PA had little authority in the Gaza Strip and none over Israeli residents of the West Bank. In the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections, candidates backed by Hamas, Read the full article…

Human Rights and Democracy: The 2012 Foreign & Commonwealth Office Report

Published by on April 1, 2013

UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office April 2013 SECTION IX: Human Rights in the Countries of Concern This section contains our review of the human rights situation in 27 countries where the UK Government has wide-ranging concerns. For this year’s report, we decided to review thoroughly the criteria we use for deciding which countries are of most human rights concern to the UK. We drew on feedback from the Foreign Affairs Committee and consulted with the Foreign Secretary’s Advisory Group on Human Rights in doing so. Our geographical directors, with input from our embassies and high commissions overseas, subsequently assessed all Read the full article…

Israel and Occupied Palastinian Territory: World Report 2013

Published by on January 31, 2013

Human Rights Watch 31 January 2013 Serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law continued in 2012 in Israel and in the West Bank and Gaza. Renewed armed conflict between Israel and Hamas and armed groups in Gaza from November 14-21 involved unlawful attacks on civilians by both sides. At least 103 Palestinian civilians and 4 Israeli civilians died during the fighting, which ended after a ceasefire brokered by Egypt and the United States. Israeli forces killed at least four Palestinian civilians during the year off Gaza’s coast and in the “no-go” zone on the Gaza side of the Read the full article…