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Amnesty Calls for International Observers in Palestine
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, Sept 22 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Amnesty International (AI) renewed its call for international observers, an end to closures, and respect for international humanitarian law in the Occupied Territories, news agencies reported.
In a statement released by AI after a ten-day visit to the Occupied Territories in September, coupled with the recent killings of Palestinians, the human rights organization stated that, "The closures represent the punishment of all Palestinians in the Occupied Territories in the name of security."
"Basic foodstuffs and water are not getting through, and Palestinians have died as access to hospitals becomes increasingly difficult," said delegates who toured the area illegally occupied by Israel.
"They are simply increasing poverty and despair and creating a population which sees no future and no possibility for a better life."
"During the visit, delegates drove along almost-deserted roads where every turning to a Palestinian village was blocked by earth or concrete blocks. They traveled in Palestinian taxis which made tortuous detours of several kilometers to avoid a kilometer of road banned to Palestinians," said the statement.
In relation to killings since the September 18th Palestinian initiated cease-fire, delegates stressed that the killing of civilians was absolutely prohibited by international law.
Since the attack on the U.S. on September 11th, Israel has increased its attacks on Palestinians, sustaining the deadliest violence on the Occupied Territories since the beginning of the Intifada, or uprising, against illegal Israeli occupation.
Amnesty International delegates witnessed reckless Israeli shooting, which was not in response to any Palestinian attacks, the statement added.
An Israeli army source reported that the two days immediately following the attack on the U.S. constituted the "largest number of simultaneous [Israeli] operations since the uprising started," stated an American Muslims for Jerusalem (AMJ) press release on Saturday.
Former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's testimony before Congress yesterday also attempted to capitalize on the attack on the U.S. His words supported those offered by Hebrew University's Ehud Sprinzak, who stated that, "the attack on America is the most important public relations act ever committed in our favor. Many of us feel vindicated by this."
On September 16th, the Israeli occupation army shot in the direction of delegates from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch as they were examining the sites of recently destroyed houses 100 meters from the border with Egypt. There was no fire from Palestinian areas at the time.
On the following day, near the Erez checkpoint, Israeli soldiers fired throughout the day in the direction of taxis collecting Palestinians and those crossing the border with land occupied by Israel. Amnesty International delegates were among those caught in the Israeli gunfire. Again, there appeared to have been no prior Palestinian fire.
"It is imperative that international observers with a human rights monitoring component be introduced into the Occupied Territories in order to ensure that international humanitarian law is respected and every killing is investigated," Amnesty International said.
In July, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch issued a joint statement calling for the urgent deployment of international observers to monitor Palestinian human rights and humanitarian law violations.
In their letter, the agencies asked the United States, the European Union and United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan to take steps to facilitate the establishment and deployment of such a force.
''We completely agree with the Mitchell Committee's conclusion that peace and security must be built on respect for international law and the protection of human rights,'' said the two human rights organizations. ''Independent observation of what is happening on the ground is essential, and only the international community can provide this.''
The joint letter pointed out that the joint Israeli-Palestinian security committees have not been able to address these recurrent human rights and humanitarian law violations on their own. It went on to suggest that the international monitoring mechanism should report to Israeli and Palestinian security officials, but should also issue regular public reports, at least monthly, that would note what steps the parties had taken to correct policies and actions responsible for the violations.
''An initiative of this sort is long overdue,'' the two human rights organizations added. ''We call on those states whose influence in the region is greatest to help see that it happens."
On August 1 - after Israel shot two missiles from an Apache helicopter against the Nablus based Palestinian Center, which resulted in the assassination of eight Palestinians in Nablus, six of them from the resistance group, Hamas - AI issued a report saying that Israel exhibited an utter disregard for human life in the Occupied Territories.
Amnesty reiterated long-standing calls to Israel to end its policy of liquidations and other arbitrary killings and urged the international community to send international observers with a human rights remit to the area.
"The Israeli authorities must have known and totally disregarded the fact that the media center targeted was likely to be frequented by journalists and others," said Amnesty. "In these state assassinations the Israeli authorities offer no proof of guilt, no right to defense. Extrajudicial executions are absolutely prohibited by international law."
"The international community must no longer accept any excuses or any delay in sending independent observers with a human rights mandate and sufficient expertise, resources and powers to monitor, investigate and make public reports," Amnesty stressed.
On March 30th, AI issued a report on its position regarding the forcible exile of Palestinians and their right to return to their lands.
"In line with international law, Amnesty International opposes forcible exile - when a government forces individuals to leave their own country on account of their political, religious or other conscientiously held beliefs or by reason of their ethnic origin, sex, color, language, national or social origin, economic status, birth, or other status, and then prohibits their return, or, if they are already outside their own country, prevents them from returning for the same reasons," the report said.
"Accordingly, Amnesty International calls for the recognition of the right of those who are forcibly exiled to return to their country. The right to return to one's own country is based in international law and is the most obvious way to redress the situation of those who are in exile."
AI said that the right of the Palestinian right of return continues to be recognized by authoritative bodies within the U.N. system for the protection of human rights.
Israel, with the support of the U.S., has however failed to abide by U.N. resolutions calling for the right of Palestinians to return to the occupied lands, a cease in the building of illegal Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land, and the return of Israel to its 1967 borders.
The U.S. has also turned down Palestinian President Yasser Arafat's pleas for an international observer force to be deployed in the Occupied Territories.
With additional reporting by Neveen A. Salem
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