Amid Israel’s escalating attacks on their work, a group of more than 150 Palestinian, regional and international organizations express their full solidarity with the seven main designated Palestinian civil society organizations, Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association , Al-Haq Law in the Service of Man (Al-Haq), Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCI-P), Health Work Committees (HWC), Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC) and Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees (UPWC).
On the morning of August 18, 2022, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) raided and sealed the doors of the offices of the seven Palestinian organizations. The IOF also confiscated documents and equipment and destroyed objects in the offices. At the gates of the organizations, military orders were left behind ordering the closure of offices under Section 319 of the 1945 Emergency Regulations. This development follows the designation on October 19, 2021, by Israeli Minister of Defense, Benny Gantz, of six main Palestinian civil society organizations as terrorist organizations under Israel’s Counterterrorism Law (2016), which was later extended to the West Bank on November 3, 2021 by a military order that banned same organizations.
We urge the international community to unequivocally condemn Israel’s targeting of Palestinian civil society and tactics to further suppress freedom of expression. States must take all necessary measures to support and protect Palestinian human rights defenders and ensure the continuation of their invaluable work.
These raids and closures represent the latest escalation in Israel’s broad campaign to silence and discredit any Palestinian individual or organization that dares to demand accountability for serious human rights abuses, war crimes and crimes against humanity. humanity committed by Israel. The “persecution of organizations and individuals, depriving them of fundamental rights and freedoms, for opposing apartheid” is a method used by Israel, amounting to acts of apartheid punishable under of the Rome Statute, to maintain its domination and oppression over the Palestinian people.
Organizations remain at additional risk of bank account closures, travel bans and movement restrictions, as well as the arrest and detention of staff for their work. Israel’s attacks on these organizations pose an existential threat to independent Palestinian human rights and civil society organizations that work to monitor and document human rights abuses and provide basic services to the Palestinian people.
We call on the international community to demand that Israel immediately revoke its designations of Palestinian human rights and civil society organizations as “terrorist organizations”, rescind military orders designating the organizations and closing their offices, and repeals its Anti-Terrorism Act (2016) because it fails to uphold basic human rights standards.
Furthermore, we call on the international community to take effective measures to end all other actions that deprive Palestinians of their inalienable human rights.
Finally, we call on members of the international community to continue their support and increase funding for organizations and to engage with financial institutions to ensure the transfer of funds to organizations.
Signatories:
- Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
- 11.11.11
- Association of Abductee Mothers
- Academic Program for Arab and Muslim Communities in the Diaspora
- ACAT-France
- Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association
- Advokatfirmaet Roli
- Al Mezan Center for Human Rights
- Al-ataa Charitable Association
- Aldameer Association for Human Rights
- Al-Haq
- Alrowwad Cultural and Artistic Society
- Andalusian Institute for Studies on Tolerance and the Fight against Violence
- Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ)
- SECTION 19
- Artists for Palestine United Kingdom
- Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
- Palestinian Association Biladi
- Belgian-Palestinian Association
- Association of Academics for the Respect of International Law in Palestine (AURDIP)
- Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression
- France Palestine Solidarity Association (AFPS)
- Aswat Nissa
- Atfaluna Society for Deaf Children
- Australian Center for International Justice
- Basmeh & Zeitooneh for emergency aid and development
- Baytna
- Bd Morocco
- BDS Netherlands
- BDS Vancouver Coast Salish Territories
- Belgian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (BACBI)
- Bytes for All, Pakistan
- Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME)
- Center for Constitutional Rights
- Center for Strategic Studies to Support Women and Children
- Global Education Center
- Center of Legal and Social Studies
- CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation
- CNCD-11.11.11
- Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid
- Comhlamh Justice for Palestine
- Committee for a Just Peace in the Middle East, Luxembourg
- justice committee
- Community Empowerment and Social Justice Network (CEMSOJ)
- Conectas Human Rights
- Cultura è Libertà, a campaign for Palestine
- DefendDefenders (East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project)
- Een Andere Joodse Stem / Another Jewish voice (Belgium)
- Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms
- Egyptian Front for Human Rights (EFHR)
- Egyptian Human Rights Forum
- Egyptian Initiative for Human Rights
- El Nadim Center for the care and rehabilitation of victims of violence
- ESCR-Net, International Network for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
- EuroMed Rights
- European Coordination of Committees and Associations for Palestine – ECCP
- European Legal Support Center (ELSC)
- European Trade Union Network for Justice in Palestine
- FIDH (International Federation for Human Rights), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
- Financial Justice Ireland
- Middle East Peace Foundation (Washington, DC)
- Front line defenders
- Mundubat Foundation
- Action Gaza Ireland
- Global Coalition of NPOs on the FATF
- Herbst Law LLC
- Media Center for Human Rights and Democracy “SHAMS”
- Human Rights for All (HR4A) Saskatchewan
- human rights in china
- Human Rights Watch
- Human Security Collective
- ICAHD-USA
- International Accountability Project
- International Civil Liberties Watch Group
- International Commission in Support of the Rights of the Palestinian People
- International Rehabilitation Council for Victims of Torture (IRCT)
- International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)
- International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia-Pacific
- Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign
- Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions – UK
- Just Peace Advocates/Just Peace Movement
- Just limited words
- Justice for Palestinians in Calgary
- Justitia Center for the Legal Protection of Human Rights in Algeria
- Kairos Ireland
- kenya human rights commission
- League for the Defense of Human Rights in Iran (LDDHI)
- Support for local development and small projects (LDSPS)
- Makan
- MakeShiftPublishing
- MENA Rights Group
- Muslim Peace Fellowship
- Mwatana for human rights
- Nederlands Palestine Komitee
- New Weapons Research Groups
- Niagara Movement for Justice in Palestine Israel
- North Bronx Racial Justice
- Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO-Norway)
- Norwegian Union of Municipal and General Employees
- NOVACT Institute for Nonviolent Action
- Oakville Palestinian Rights Association
- Palestina Solidarity vzw Belgium
- Palestinian Solidarity Alliance
- Palestine Solidarity Campaign United Kingdom
- Palestine Solidarity Network – Edmonton
- Palestine Solidarity, St. John’s, NL
- Palestine Solidary Organization at Nelson Mandela University
- Palestinian and Jewish Unity (PAJU)
- Palestinian Campaign Against the Apartheid Wall (Stop the Wall)
- Palestinian Center for Human Rights
- Pan-African Palestine Solidarity Network
- Paz con Dignidad
- Foundation for Peace and Construction
- Physicians for Human Rights Israel
- Platform of French NGOs for Palestine
- Middle East Democracy Project (POMED)
- South Project
- International Response
- Sadaka-Ireland-Palestine Alliance
- Sadaqah
- Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network
- Scottish Friends of Palestine
- Sexual Rights Initiative
- SOLIDARITY
- Solsoc
- South African BDS Coalition
- South African Jews for a Free Palestine
- STEILAS
- Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM)
- Tamkeen for Legal Aid and Human Rights
- Teaching Palestine: pedagogical practice and the indivisibility of justice
- The African Center for Democracy and Human Rights Studies
- The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ)
- The Association of Norwegian NGOs for Palestine
- The Canadian BDS Coalition
- The Civic Coalition for Palestinian Rights in Jerusalem
- The Danish house in Palestine
- The Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the USA Presbyterian Church
- The Norwegian Initiative DEFENDING INTERNATIONAL LAW
- The Palestine Committee of Norway
- The Palestinian Institute for Public Diplomacy
- The Palestinian Human Rights Organization “PHRO”
- The Palestinian Initiative for Promoting Global Dialogue and Democracy – MIFTAH
- The Rights Forum
- The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP)
- Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA (Australia)
- United Network for Justice and Peace in Palestine and Israel (UNJPPI)
- University Network for Human Rights
- University of KwaZulu-Natal Decoloniality Action Group
- American Campaign for Palestinian Rights
- Visualize Palestine
- Viva Health
- Vrede vzw
- West African Network of Human Rights Defenders
- Women in Black Vienna
- Women Now for Development
- Women’s Legal Aid and Counseling Center (WCLAC)
- World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
