“Building Bridges with International Civil Society to Address the Ongoing Nakba” – 2024 Conference of CSOs working on the Question of Palestine

 

 DIVISION FOR PALESTINIAN RIGHTS

2024 Conference of CSOs working on the Question of Palestine

Building Bridges with International Civil Society to Address the Ongoing Nakba

Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People

3-4 April 2024

United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG)

Content

Executive summary

I. Introduction

II. Opening session

III. Plenary sessions

A. Plenary session I

B. Plenary session II

C. Plenary session III

D. Plenary session IV

IV. Key themes and recommendations

V. Closing session

Annexes

I. Programme
II. Summary of the Chair

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Executive Summary

The United Nations Forum on the Question of Palestine, focusing on the theme “Building Bridges with International Civil Society to Address the Ongoing Nakba”, was convened in Geneva on 3 and 4 April 2024. The Conference focused, among others, on the role of civil society worldwide in advocating for a durable and sustainable ceasefire in Gaza and in achieving accountability for Israel’s war crimes in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. The conference also aimed at facilitating partnerships among CSOs worldwide working for a just and lasting solution to the question of Palestine.

The Forum provided a platform for experts, civil society organizations and United Nations Member States and observers to debate ways to identify common priorities and messaging on core and emerging topics, discussing the responsibility of Member States to prevent and to protect the Palestinian people, and ensuring accountability as a fundamental requirement for the justice that is vital for peace.

The opening session included a statement from the Chair of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, statements from the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights and representing UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the Conference, and by the representative of the State of Palestine, Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in Geneva. These statements were followed by four moderated and interactive panels that were chaired by Bureau members of the Committee.

During the Forum, participants recalled that the horrific situation in Gaza has not started in October 2023 but has been a long process-initiated decades ago. They discussed the need of an immediate and permanent ceasefire and concrete measures from Member States and CSOs. Participants also highlighted that criticisms of Israel’s practices and Zionism were not criticisms against the Jewish faith but of an oppressive and coordinated system, reinforced by the lack of political will among Member States to hold Israel accountable for violations of international law or international humanitarian law. Speakers also highlighted how a continuing dehumanization of Palestinians, similar to that of non-white South Africans during its Apartheid, had undergirded the Palestine issue and reinforced discriminatory views, not only in Israel but also other regions in the world, for example the Global North.

CSOs discussed the growing support for Palestinian rights from public opinions all around the world, recalling that mass demonstrations against the war in Gaza, on a scale unseen since the invasion of Iraq, have been in stark contrast with the lack of reaction from governments and the dehumanisation of Palestinians, similarly to the situation during the Apartheid in South Africa. But this unwavering support for Israel from state authorities in some Western countries, and the failure of these states to uphold international law, are now challenged by their constituencies. Solving the issue of Israel-Palestinian will be increasingly important during upcoming elections. What is at stake transcends the Palestinian Question, but the legitimacy and survival of the entire rules-based world order.

The recent legal proceedings initiated by South Africa at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) were praised as a demonstration of true leadership that should be followed by other countries. In terms of addressing Israel’s and other States’ accountability, past best practices had included the severing of diplomatic ties with Israel, economic and energy embargos. But Palestinians must also coordinate their effort and decide a clear strategy for actions. These efforts will have to include the advocacy conducted by Palestinian CSOs, in both the OPT and from the diaspora. Participants also debated about the urgency of fostering Palestine’s full UN membership as some argued that it was more urgent to end the war in Gaza and address Israeli crimes, as a broader recognition of statehood will not solve immediately all the issues affecting Palestinians.

Participants called member states to start immediately an arms embargo and to put sanctions on Israel, banks and companies that are benefiting from the occupation of Palestinian territories. The UN should also take further step to ensure Israel’s accountability including to list Israel, together with Palestinian armed groups, in the upcoming Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC).

I. Introduction

1. The United Nations Forum on the Question of Palestine, focusing on the theme “Building Bridges with International Civil Society to Address the Ongoing Nakba”, was convened in Geneva on 3 and 4 April 2024 under the auspices of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.
2. The Forum brought together Palestinian, Israeli and international experts, civil society and representatives of the diplomatic community to highlight the need to substantively address issues related to the ongoing Nakba. A series of moderated interactive sessions, chaired by Bureau members of the Committee and featuring high-level panellists from across academia, governments and civil society, focused on the role of civil society worldwide in advocating for a durable and sustainable ceasefire and in achieving accountability for Israel’s war crimes in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), including East Jerusalem, including crimes perpetrated in the context of the current war in Gaza which had, to date of the Forum, resulted in the killing by the Israeli forces of over 32,000 Palestinians, the overwhelming majority being children and women, in addition to men, elderly persons and youth.

II. Opening session

3. The Chair of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations, Ambassador Cheikh Niang, presided over the opening session. He welcomed the attendees and the high-level speakers to the Conference, and noted the Conference aimed to gain the attention of civil society organizations from around the globe. Voices for peace and reason were so necessary in these times of painful polarization.
4. In her statement, Nada Al-Nashif, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights and Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, said this event took place in a harrowing context of unprecedented devastation. The killing of seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen by an Israeli airstrike had not been an isolated incident. From 7 October 2023
   to 20 March 2024, 196 humanitarians, including UN workers, had been killed in the OPT. Almost half a year had passed since the violent attacks by Palestinian armed groups resulting in the killing of approximately 1,200 Israeli and foreign civilians and the abduction of over
   230 hostages to Gaza, violations mounting to crimes under international law. But the Israeli military response in Gaza had been disproportionate, and there was evidence of war crimes. These actions had led to a horrific human toll – a staggering five per cent of the Palestinian population, mostly women and children, had been killed. The Israeli bombardment had flattened civilian areas, making them effectively uninhabitable. Around 1.7 million people had been displaced many times over. Civilian infrastructure, such as hospitals, schools and places of worship, protected under international law, had been destroyed. In Gaza, no one was safe: the collective punishment of the population by Israel was unacceptable.
5. All violations of international humanitarian law must be properly investigated, and any crime must be punished. With over 32,000 persons killed at the time the Conference was held, more were dying from malnutrition and dehydration. This human-made catastrophe was entirely avoidable, and Israel was obligated to provide or facilitate the safe distribution of humanitarian aid to the civilian population. Border crossings must be fully opened, and steps taken to ensure the free and secured distribution of humanitarian aid across Gaza and the free movement of humanitarian workers. The Security Council resolution 2728 was welcomed in this regard.
   The High Commissioner for Human Rights had also called for the immediate release of all hostages as well as the thousands of Palestinians by Israel who must be treated humanely and allowed to receive visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
6. In the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, the drastic acceleration of Israeli settlements and increasing settler and State violence were worsening long-standing patterns of discrimination, oppression, and restrictions of movement, leading to the displacement of Palestinian communities. As stated by the UN Secretary General, the 7 October attacks did not happen in a vacuum but took place after 60 years of suffering. There must be an end to the hostilities and to the conflict, with a genuine effort to ensure the Palestinian right to equality and non-discrimination. Accountability must be ensured on all sides. In all its efforts, the United Nations counted on civil society organizations, who had worked so tirelessly to provide humanitarian assistance to those in need and continued to campaign for a fair resolution of the situation.
7. Civic space, already dwindling across Israel and the OPT, had continued to shrink ever since the 7 October events, limiting the opportunities of individuals and the press to express themselves. Most civil society organizations in Gaza had lost their infrastructure and staff.
   Gaza had become the deadliest place for journalists in the world. The importance of national and international civil society and of journalists was vital for truth, accountability, and future reconciliation. The Office of the High Commissioner would continue to support these efforts and called upon all Member States to do all to back civil society and ensure that civil society actors were protected and empowered to work for the achievement of all human rights for all, in Palestine and across the Middle East.
8. Ambassador Niang, in his capacity as Chair of the Committee, stated that the Gaza Strip had been subject to the most intense bombardment in recent history. There had been more than 32,000 Palestinians killed and many more injured in Gaza, the denial of humanitarian assistance, including water, causing starvation and the spread of disease, and the destruction of civilian infrastructure, including hospitals. Around 1.9 million people had been dislocated, meeting international definitions of forced mass displacement. Israel continued to inflict the Nakba on Palestinians in Gaza, most of them 1948 refugees, by forcing them from their homes. The war on Gaza and the heavy death toll was supplemented by the escalating violence by Israeli forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. There must be an immediate humanitarian cease-fire, a call which continued to be made from every corner of the globe.
   The international community must act to protect the lives of those threatened by Israel’s ongoing military attacks. He welcomed the adoption of the recent United Nations Security Council resolution 2728 calling for an immediate ceasefire and a lifting of all barriers to humanitarian assistance and an immediate ceasefire.
9. Palestinians continued to endure decades of systematic violation of their inalienable human rights. Amb. Niang called for urgent humanitarian assistance and a resumption of diplomatic efforts to achieve the inalienable of the Palestinian people. The two-State solution based on the 1967 borders was the only viable solution for a just and lasting peace between Israel and Palestine. The Committee, established in 1975, promoted constructive discussions of the various aspects of the question of Palestine and mobilised support by the international community. Member States had a collective duty to bring the suffering to an end and to uphold their obligations under international law by ensuring accountability for those crimes. Civil society was the best partner to provide information on the realities on the ground. All efforts must be synergized to end the war and resolve the on-going conflict.
10. Ambassador Ibrahim Khraishi, Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in Geneva, said that accountability represented an essential task for civil society organizations and the international community. The 1948 Nakba could be seen in documentaries, as could be other massacres. But the world was watching today a genocide on television.
    The Palestinians of today were the victims of mistakes made by others. Palestinians did not agree to target civilians and take hostages, including those taken on 7 October, and believed that the detained must be released – as should the Palestinians held in administrative detention in Israel. Palestine wanted international law to be implemented, but this has not been happening. Practical and peaceful measures must be taken to implement the Security Council resolution and respect the decision of the ICJ on 26 January, which had said that it was plausible that there was a crime of genocide taking place in Palestine, and that the Occupying Power must implement measures to remedy the situation.
11. He added that no life was worth more than another life – all lives must be protected.
    All must work on preserving international law, and this was where civil society played an important role: to speak with each other around the world. International law must govern the whole world. This must reach all capitals of the world. The United States President must condemn the killings of aid workers, not just express outrage. He must stop weapons exports
    as a first step. The world must wake up and try to restore what could be restored.

 

III. Plenary sessions

A. Plenary session I

“The War on Gaza: Advocating for a Humanitarian Ceasefire and Assistance for the Palestinian People”

Summary

12. The first session, which focused on the question “The War on Gaza: Advocating for
    a Humanitarian Ceasefire and Assistance for the Palestinian People”, was chaired by the Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations and Chair of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, Ambassador Cheikh Niang.
    The session featured four panellists: Mr. Ayed Abu Eqtaish, Director of Accountability Programme at DCI-Palestine; Mr. Raji Sourani, Director of the Palestinian Center for Human Rights; Ms. Sahar Francis, Director of Addameer Prisoner Support and Human; and
    Issam Younis, Director of Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights.
13. Abu Eqtaish stressed that children in Gaza lived in fear due to Israeli practices of violating all international humanitarian law standards. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict had started long before 7 October 2023, and during this period Palestinians under occupation had suffered systematic human rights violations, exacerbated by what he called an “apartheid regime”, and children had often paid the highest price, whilst also suffering from the humanitarian crisis created by Israel in its near 17-year blockade of Gaza. This blockade had largely cut off its residents off from the rest of the world, with no freedom of movement, resulting in denial of fundamental human rights, including the right to health, education, to physical security, adequate food and water, and to a family life, with grave implications for children.
14. Israel had, as the Occupying Power, enjoyed impunity for their violations while benefiting from the support of many governments around, allowing these violations to continue. Since 7 October, many children had died due to bombardments and would continue to die due to the lack of food and clean water. Hundreds of children had been arrested by Israeli forces, with documented cases of ill-treatment and torture. Furthermore, children in the occupied West Bank suffered from the violation of their rights, including those under the International Convention on the Rights of Children.
15. Hundreds of children every year suffered threats of physical and psychological violence when arrested by the Israeli authorities, often amounting to torture. His NGO had documented that each year, Israeli forces detain around 700 Palestinian children and prosecute them in a military court system. Many children were usually placed in solitary confinement. Over
    33 per cent of the arrested Palestinian children had been placed under administrative detention orders, which was detention without charges or trial. Since 7 October, Israel had restricted lawyers’ visits to Israeli prisoners, and suspended family visits, entirely cutting off Palestinian child prisoners from the world. The failure of the international community to hold Israel accountable for its crimes amounted to a green light to perpetrate more crimes.
16. Sourani stated that many in Gaza faced death, displacement, starvation and destruction. Israel had de facto carpet-bombed Gaza, with 80 per cent already destroyed, with 34,000 people being killed, 14,000 of which were children and 12,000 of whom were women. Most of the rest were civilians. Due to the bombing and destruction, hundreds of thousands were moved from the north to the south, and almost 1.6 million people were cornered in Rafah.
    A new Nakba was underway. Palestine had never known starvation in its history: this now was a man-made starvation, unique and unprecedented, and broadcast live.
17. International law, international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions, the Rome Statutes protected civilians. He asserted that the ICJ had recognized that a process of genocide was underway, and that Israel must stop it. States had the legal obligation to act against it; however, neither Israel nor anybody in the international community had acted accordingly. Nothing was being done to prevent starvation and UNRWA was the only tool to prevent it.
    He added that the ICC Prosecutor, who was supposed to ensure accountability during the investigation had not moved at all until this very moment, failing to act according to his mandate in the most-documented conflict in history. Maybe if he had acted before this war, or during it,
    this would have deterred the Israeli authorities.
18. Francis declared that the most important issue was the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. Israel was violating international law at all levels, systematically, in a grave manner that threatened the international order morally, politically, and legally, without any accountability. These crimes relating to Palestinian detainees and prisoners did not start with
    7 October, nor in 1967, but since 1948. This was a continuing policy, with an escalation of use in the system of military rules in the occupied areas after 7 October. Thousands were detained in the West Bank and in Gaza, and there was no knowledge of their location nor of the conditions of detention. There were 9,314 Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons, a third being administrative detainees, held without evidence, charge, or trial. There was an escalation of violations associated to detention: torture, inhumane treatment, barbaric treatment of women, children, the elderly. In addition to direct physical violations, there was sexual abuse, whether verbal or physical, with strip searches, abuse and harassment of women, children and men in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Jail conditions had become extremely harsh. Medical neglect had led to the deaths of many detainees.
19. As for those from Gaza, no organization nor family can see them. There were also cases of administrative detention targeting human rights defenders. The arbitrarily detained must be immediately released. The occupying forces do not respect any convention such as on prevention of torture, or on the rights of women, in all impunity. What was needed was an immediate ceasefire, and the imposing of economic, social and cultural sanctions on the occupying State, forcing it to respect the rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination, immediately release all 9,000 prisoners in Israeli jails, and not repeat such crimes.
20. Younis said death prevailed in the whole area, and every single person in Gaza could be killed or wounded. What was needed was action commensurate to what was happening on the ground, which was genocide. What the various Israeli high-level military and political figures had said was that in Gaza people were human animals, would have no water, no fuel, no food. Palestinians were forcibly displaced to what were called “safe areas” in the south, and then these were shelled. At least 60 per cent of those killed and wounded had been bombed whilst naively believing that the blue United Nations flag would protect them.
21. Palestinian families aimed for just trying to provide a minimum to remain alive, to get water and food, and this in itself was a huge task. What was happening in the Occupied Palestinian Territory had been documented repeatedly, and at all levels. History had not started on 7 October 2023. There had been “apartheid” since 1948 and protracted occupation since 1967; and they were not temporary. Now, there was a policy of de-development, the siege of an entire people, depriving them of basic necessities in Gaza. There was no service for cancer patients in Gaza, not a single radiotherapy system available. Israeli authorities had even calculated how many calories were necessary to keep a Palestinian just alive.
22. The world had ignored the situation, with the result that today there was not just a threat to international peace and security, but a potential dismantlement of international law. The main need was accountability as an ongoing impunity and no sanctions for Israel would only lead to more catastrophes, not only for Palestinians but for the whole world. Justice was not about revenge: it was a moral and legal entitlement.

Discussion

23. In the ensuing dialogue, national delegates, representatives of civil society and others commented on various elements of the war on Gaza and on measures that must be implemented by the international community. Venezuela took the floor on behalf of the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations, expressing serious concerns toward Israeli actions, including the expansion of illegal settlements, the expropriation of Palestinian land and the demolition of homes and properties. The international community was witness to a massacre of the Palestinian people and must act now to avoid more loss of human life. There must be an immediate ceasefire, and an end to the ongoing humanitarian crisis. A fair, lasting and holistic solution to the Palestinian situation, in line with all the international community’s stipulations and laws, was the only route to a peaceful resolution. The international community must urgently create a credible political horizon that would lead to the achievement of the inalienable right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, within the 1967 borders.
24. Another speaker said that this conference was an attempt to find a solution, but it seemed that international actors were hoping that civil society by itself would bring an end to the Nakba. The State of Israel has been able to kill Palestinians with no accountability because they de-humanized the people of Palestine and Gaza. Using religion and accusation of antisemitism as a pretext to silence supporters of Palestinian rights was unacceptable. The removal of the Occupation could bring back peace between Jews and Palestinians.
25. One attendee asked the panellists what types of sanctions could be imposed by Member States. Another asked what measures could be applied right now by the General Assembly to help the Palestinians in living and achieving their rights, putting an end to genocide and holding the Israeli authorities accountable for the crime of apartheid.
26. Eqtaish responded that the root of the issue of sanctions was the lack of political will. These measures had been used in the past, whether economic, diplomatic or other, including military sanctions on States that were violating international law or international humanitarian law. The international community had developed norms and standards to protect human rights over the last 70 years, but the gap between these norms and standards and their application was still wide, mostly due to political interest of some States in keeping their relationship with Israel.
27. Francis added that it was time to review the United Nations system, the role of the General Assembly and the Security Council, which could be paralyzed by the interests of one State. The General Assembly had to act and implement existing treaties, and step in where the Security Council failed. Support must be given to the Committee and other entities to break this apartheid system.
28. Sourani referred to the overwhelming support from “the West” for Ukraine after the Russian invasion. That situation should have made the world also wake up to the situation in Palestine. Genocide legislation was blind to race, colour and religion, it was an obligation of all States, and should not be applied in a selective and discriminative way. There could be no double standards. Palestinians are entitled to self-determination and would achieve and practice self-determination some day with the support of other countries.
29. Younis asserted that a political will was needed for the responsibility of third parties. States could, either individually or multilaterally, ensure international peace and security.
    Israel committed crimes such as genocide, yet was being rewarded, gaining privileges in various areas, including the arms trade. Any State that provided arms was an accomplice in genocide. Individuals who criticized Israel were accused of anti-Semitism, and thus refrained, so as not to damage their political or diplomatic careers. The international community must put an end to the privileges enjoyed by Israel.
30. Ambassador Niang concluded the plenary by stating that civil society was vital to awaken public responsibility and awareness, as States could then be held accountable by the public.
    The General Assembly was made up of a combination of many countries, including those that were not engaged in putting an end to the situation. In this context, CSOs had more leeway than states. This was why an international campaign was needed, and some countries were shifting to being more responsive to the situation of Palestine.

 

B. Plenary session II

“The Role of Civil Society Organizations in Ensuring Third Party Responsibility: Perspectives from Global and Regional Voices”

Summary

31. The second session focused on the theme “The Role of Civil Society Organizations in Ensuring Third Party Responsibility: Perspectives from Global and Regional Voices”.
    Panellists discussed the need for renewed advocacy for accountability towards the human rights violations faced by Palestinians. Ambassador Yusnier Romero Puentes, Deputy Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, chaired the discussion. The session featured
    five panellists: Ms. Samah Sisay, attorney at the US Centre for Constitutional Rights;
    Yasmine Ahmed, Director of Human Rights Watch UK; Ms. Rawan Arraf, Director of the Australian Centre for International Justice; Ms. Tilda Rabi, President of the Federation of Argentine-Palestinian Entities; and Mr. Frank Chikane, Chair of the Steering Committee of the Global Anti-Apartheid Conference – South Africa.
32. Sisay stated that her organization had issued urgent warnings to the U.S. Government on the events in Gaza; nevertheless, the country failed to uphold its legal obligation to prevent genocide, and members of the Government were actively supporting that genocide. The total siege and closure and mass starvation in Gaza, among others, were evidence of the crime of genocide, one of the gravest crimes under international law, with no justification. The Center
    for Constitutional Rights had brought a case to court against President Biden, and other members of the government, over the United States’ failure to prevent and complicity in an ongoing genocide by Israeli authorities. For the first time in history, Palestinians had been able to testify in a United States court about the Nakba and the harmful effects of the countries support to the bombardment of, and displacement in, Palestine.
33. Ahmed informed that Human Rights Watch had been documenting for decades the ongoing abuses in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and Israel. Israel was using starvation as a weapon of war, in violation of its international obligations and in direct contravention of the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) provisional measures. This sat against a backdrop of decades of crimes against humanity and persecution inflicted on the Palestinians by Israel.
    The Israeli hostages who were being held in Gaza in breach of international law and those who had been subjected to crimes on 7 October 2023 must not be forgotten. But the atrocities inflicted on the Palestinian people in Gaza today would not be happening if not for the provision of arms, diplomatic cover, and other forms of support by other States, including some who claimed to be the pillars of the international order, making this order shake in the clear assault on democratic standards. States also had a duty in regard to arms transfer, where there was clear evidence that arms could be used to violate international human rights law. She added that this threshold had clearly been met.
34. Human Rights Watch was working to push the government of the United Kingdom to impose an arms embargo, and additional sanctions, on Israel. It was pushing for the government to ensure that it supported accountability efforts at the International Criminal Court (ICC)
    and the Human Rights Council, and to use all leverage to ensure that Israel ended its activities.
35. Arraf spoke about the Australian people’s widespread response to the war on Gaza, and their commitment to a ceasefire. This was the greatest anti-war movement since the Iraq War. The government had ignored the issue of Israel’s attacks, despite clear evidence of genocidal intent. Activists, union members and artists had worked to raise awareness of the situation, and many new groups had sprung up recently to work to protect Palestinian rights, educate communities, and end Australian complicity in Israeli crimes in all its forms.
36. Grassroots groups continued to call for an end to apartheid in the OPT and the conflict as a whole. The Australian government had hardly condemned Israeli actions, allying with Israel, providing it with political cover, and developing economic and military ties, despite Israel’s violations of humanitarian law. The Centre for International Justice, representing three Palestinian human rights organizations, had filed a case in the Federal Court in an attempt to gain more transparency over arms transfers, and was determined to continue to find avenues to uncover information and challenge those transfers. The government had initially ignored the International Court of Justice’s order and instead had immediately ended funding to UNRWA, and later reversed its decision. Australia must hold an inquiry and review and assess its political, economic and military links with Israel, and at minimum impose an arms embargo.
37. Rabi talked of the urgent and pressing need to respond to and take action on behalf of Palestinians and put an end to a systematic and continuing genocide in Gaza. Regarding Palestine and the occupation of Palestinian land by Israel, this had culminated in multiple waves of aggression against Palestinians, leading to expulsion, arbitrary detention, and death.
    Since October 2023, these oppressive activities had affected the world as a whole, challenging humanity. Faced with this, civil society and its actors had a critical and decisive role to play, bringing together all who were active in the sphere in different fora and processes in the Global South, putting an end to the dehumanizing narrative.
38. The instruments that civil society organizations had available to them were awareness-raising and civil society mobilization through mass gatherings calling for a ceasefire, accountability, the respect of the rights of the Palestinians, and an end to the silence or moral support of governments. Argentinian civil society had been working to cooperate further with Palestinian organizations, highlighting new forms of colonialization and settlement, which was also seen in Argentina.
39. Community groups often served as the catalyst to achieving the resolution of a tragedy facing humanity. If civil society did not continue to pressure Israel, the deaths would only continue to increase. There was a vital need to approach all of this in a spirit of empathy and humanity, in the spirit of the acts of the government of South Africa, which confronted an international community that was held hostage by illicit interests. Those who were perpetrating the most documented genocide in human history must be confronted.
40. Chikane argued that the same countries that had supported apartheid in South Africa then were supporting Israel now. Pressure must be put on these governments to change. He added that, after visiting Israel, he had become convinced that this situation was worse than what was experienced in South Africa at the height of the apartheid system. It shocked him that the world could allow Palestine to be illegally occupied for about 57 years, and that Gaza could be blockaded for 16 years, and expect the Palestinian people to do nothing. Unless the international community was able to go towards the root causes of the situation, nothing would happen.
41. The problem had begun with the 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1948 Nakba, and the
    1947 United Nations resolution that partitioned Palestine. The international community had allowed Israel to be emboldened to pursue the Zionist project, which was clearly expressed by the words of the current Finance Minister in the Cabinet of Israel, who had said that either Palestinians submitted, left, or died. Palestinians were being brutalised to the end of forcing them to leave, and the world had allowed Israel to do this publicly. The only way this could happen was in a context where Palestinians were not viewed as human beings. States must be forced by the people to do what they ought to do and adopt sanctions. History had shown that no empire lasted forever: those who had power must remember that power always comes to an end.

Discussion

42. In the ensuing discussion, speakers discussed how the South African experience could be used to advance the Palestinian cause. A speaker asked what the United States obligations to not aid and abet genocide were and what the legal obligations of not living up to them were. Palestinians called for a three-way arms embargo, on selling, buying, and transfer. Another speaker pointed out the issue of changes in government and how this could affect relationships between States and Israel and Palestine, highlighting various challenges that could arise in this context. Focus should be on implementing a de-colonialist strategy, to ensure peace with accountability. Speakers also discussed the value and potential efficacy of sanctions, and what possible effects could come from targeted effects of sanctions on certain corporations. Humanitarian aid and food must be supplied before the people of Gaza died of starvation, which could happen within weeks. Members of the audience asked further questions on the role of neighbouring countries in terms of receiving Palestinian refugees and asylum-seekers, from a legal standpoint, and on the specific role Palestinian communities in the diaspora could play in the context of the broader actions of civil society in their countries.
43. Sisay responded that under the United Nations Conventions there was a legal obligation to prevent genocide. The Genocide Convention did not say that it had to be underway to apply – it showed that if events had a likelihood of extending into genocide, it was up to all parties to intervene to end this. There was an obligation to not commit genocide, to prevent it, and to prosecute those who had been or were engaged in it, and this applied to all. All State parties should be doing everything possible to end the situation, which all knew was an unfolding genocide in Gaza. The role of Palestinian society in the diaspora had been to show leadership on behalf of Palestinians, and this had been seen in the ongoing litigation against the United States government: the voices and testimony of Palestinians was being heard loud and clear. There had been mass protests, which was causing a shift in the attitude in the United States parliament, particularly important during an election year, and this was due to the efforts of Palestinian civil society, among others.
44. Ahmed added that the current situation was so desperate that it could somehow create an opportunity for change. What was happening now in Gaza was far from a two-State solution, and civil society must hold governments to account, demanding that action be taken to make this a reality. Some action had been taken against settlers, but more needed to be done to ensure that those who were involved at the institutional and organisational level knew that they would be sanctioned, and their activities would not be tolerated. States with particularly close relationships with a State that was committing violence had a greater obligation to ensure that this violence ended. There should be a suspension on buying, selling and transferring weapons to Israel.
45. The Palestinian diaspora should be front and centre of all the work being done across the world, speaking of their rights and the rights of their communities. There was a weaponization of anti-Semitism across the world to shut down discussion of the rights of Palestinians. Anti-Semitism was egregious and must be fought, but it was not being used in the interests of Jews, undermining the real fight. Also, it was critical for the United Nations to fight apartheid.
46. For Ms. Arraf, civil society must play an important role and should make recommendations in a multilateral fashion in the different jurisdictions with laws in response to targeted objectives linked to Israeli crimes. Ms. Rabi highlighted that, in Argentina, the role of the Palestinian diaspora was getting stronger internally as well as externally. Her federation was the main glue bringing all actors together, allowing for strategic action. Progress had been made on Boycott, Diversion and Sanctions (BDS). In the past, legislators did not wish to talk about Israel, but this was now changing. Argentina was not yet taking strong steps forward, but people’s awareness was changing, and they were taking a specific stance. There must be an end to apartheid, discrimination and colonialization, but there needed first to be a change in the political determination in many States.
47. Chikane talked about the precedent created by South Africa, which had been suspended from the United Nations, and only returned after the elections in 1994. There was therefore a basis upon which, if Israel defied all provisions of international law, it could be dealt with under international law. Regarding the International Court of Justice case, South Africa’s action there had been well known, and was a major development. It was clear that there was a blockage within the International Criminal Court. South Africa had suggested that the whole War Cabinet of Israel be charged with crimes against humanity but had received no response. On the Special Committee on Apartheid, a resolution against apartheid should be adopted, and it should be generalised beyond Palestine. He was concerned that Western democracies were allowing themselves to reverse the gains of democracy, maintaining ignorance among their populations in order to avoid calls for change. This showed that democracy itself was at risk, and there was a reversion backwards into dictatorship. These countries should realise that their actions were detrimental to themselves. Member States of the United Nations would not tolerate the killing of their children in the way that children were killed in Gaza.

 

C. Plenary session III

State Actions on Accountability: Discussing Best Practices

Summary

48. The panel, on the theme “State Actions on Accountability: Discussing Best Practices”, was chaired by the Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the United Nations and Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, Ambassador Arrmanatha C. Nasir. The panel featured three panellists: Mr. Ahmad Abuzneid, Executive Director of the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights; Mr. Diego Khamis, Executive Director of the Palestinian Community in Chile; and Ms. Rula Shadid, Executive Director of the Palestine Institute for Public Diplomacy.
49. Abuzneid briefed about how the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USPCR) was dedicated to ending any kind of support for the State of Israel. The United States had refused to act against the genocide of Palestinians, offering only a slight shift in rhetoric whilst continuing the same actions, arming, defending, and covering for Israel. Its tax revenues should be dedicated to funding healthcare, education and other items rather than the death of Palestinians. This was the time of the largest grassroots movement for Palestinian rights in United States history: thousands of people in the United States had protested in the interest of Palestine. And social media was helping to shift the perspective on Palestine.
50. In 2023, USCPR had launched a campaign with some partners called “Not On Our Dime”, working to limit funds being made available to illegal Israeli settlements in the OPT by charities raising millions of tax-exempt dollars that were then used to evict thousands of Palestinians from their land. These organisations were funding illegal activities committed by settlers, working to entrench Jewish-only settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and displacing Palestinians. “Not On Our Dime” aimed to remove charitable status from organisations providing these funds, and empowered Palestinians who had been impacted by settler activities to seek accountability.
51. Khamis informed that there were around 500,000 Chileans of Palestinian origin. Since the Nakba there had been a significant and increasing role played by the Palestinian community in Chile, with a historic involvement of Chilean Palestinians working together with Palestinians in Palestine. Chile had a State position on the Palestinian question, based on the strict respect of international law and international humanitarian law. That position had always been upheld, even through changes of government. In 2010, a new strategy has been generated, with the aim of creating impact, seeking to create a single valid voice for Palestinians, in terms of the position vis-à-vis the public and the Government. To this end, Palestinian institutions and bodies across Chile have been unified, aiming to come up with a single political voice and express a single Palestinian position, aiming to raise a single, unified voice from Palestinians across the world, in order to bolster the legitimate Palestinian claims and make them stronger than they would be otherwise.
52. They aimed at having an impact on decision-makers, whilst remaining party-neutral and secular, with a professional structure that did not depend on individuals, but on working as a team, evidence-based, working in a cross-cutting manner, and remaining independent. As a non-violent movement, the conviction was that to have a lasting peace, there had to be the implementation of international law and legality, the application of the respect for human rights and humanitarian law. The work of the Palestinian diaspora in Latin America must be strengthened. There were attempts to separate Chileans from Palestinians that were still in Palestine, but the community would not accept this, and worked to this end, working to maintain links.
53. Shadid requested a minute of silence for the tens of thousands of Palestinians who had been killed in Gaza to date. She had witnessed an improved public comprehension around the world of what was ongoing. The focus had been on the narrative, and the opportunity was being used to explain that this was a situation of colonisation and blockade, a genocide, a settler-colonial project with the main aim of displacing Palestinians and replace them with another racial group. People were starting to comprehend this better. State responsibility was to State-only interests. And some Palestinians knew the colonial project was inseparable from the “Western States” supporting it, but it had become clearer that even those States who had claimed respect for the rule of law, including civil liberties, did not live up to this commitment with regard to Palestine. This was no longer just about Palestine, it was about democracy itself, and the freedoms of expression and assembly, all of which were being undermined in many European countries.
54. She added that Palestinians would not submit and the right to resist was one of the core rights that would not be abandoned. The incapacity of the United Nations and its institutions to even deliver aid was a third issue of concern, unprecedented in the Palestinian cause.
    Important voices had been coming out in support of the Palestinian people, and these voices had now become heard in a bigger mainstream, which was a best practice. It was clear that there was a need to build bridges between those participating in the Palestinian struggle and those in the global majority. The travel bans on Israeli settlers was developing across Europe, increased funds were being made available to UNRWA, and some African countries and elsewhere had recalled their ambassadors from Israel, suspending diplomatic ties. Some countries had threatened to refer others to the International Court of Justice if they did not cease weapons transfers to Israel. Several companies cut their cooperations with the Israeli military apparatus. Regarding justice and accountability for Palestine, an initiative had begun examining what could be done in domestic courts, whilst using domestic legislation, aiming, among others, at State officials and companies that supported genocide.

Discussion

55. In the ensuing discussion, speakers asked if the United Nations could put pressure to allow a more rapid transfer of medical resources to come to the aid of patients in Gaza.
    Another speaker asked to what extent had the growing opposition to the current situation in the OPT reduced the influence of pro-Israeli parties in the United States and had the voices of Palestinians been heard in such places as the United States parliament. A speaker referred to activity within the General Assembly and Security Council to recognise the State of Palestine as a Member State of the United Nations, adding that this was not necessarily a priority at this time, as it was much more important to address crimes ongoing in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. Members of the audience asked why there was focus on this issue when the international community should instead be focusing on sanctions.
56. Abuzneid responded that USPCR had been working to not only explicitly rejecting the political influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as an agent of the State of Israel in the United States but also highlighting that it was anti-democratic. After
    7 October, many liberal Zionist organizations and lobbies fell in line with AIPAC. However, there was also a growing minority voice within the Democratic Party that was extremely critical of the State of Israel and was calling for a ceasefire. Regarding “Not On Our Dime”, there was no precedent in the United States with regard to such legislation.
57. Khamis stressed the need for a social and political majority supporting the legitimate claims of Palestinians, a work involving everyone on the political spectrum, as long as they were willing to listen to the Palestinian position, generating a consensus on State policy.
    The Palestinian community had stated that supporting the Palestinian issue should not be limited to a specific side of the political spectrum. There was a need for a national Palestinian strategy, which could not be based on solidarity, civil society or other Government’s pressure on Israel. But there was no Palestinian national strategy. The issue was how to generate a common position, and Palestinians needed to overcome their organizational crisis, with a guide containing tangible points, including the recognition of the Palestinian State. Palestinians had to look at a new structure: Oslo had led to a provisional agreement that was only to last for five years, but today there was the same structure. He added that it was important for Palestine to be recognised as a full member of the United Nations, with a global strategy allowing them to work towards tangible objectives.
58. Shahid talked about the failure of the UN to address the issue adding that without political will, there would be no progress. There were many initiatives, even on an individual level, that were actually working better than the United Nations institutions in terms of getting food into Gaza. In relation to the recognition of the State of Palestine, having a State would not end the status quo, based on the history of other cases around the world. The Palestinian Authority was a non-elected authority, and despite need it had not been reformed. In addition to decolonization from the outside, there were also a need for internal work. Nevertheless, recognition would give Palestinians access to different spaces, making it a tool, but not one that would solve everything.
59. Initiatives were more effective when they were coordinated and this was a challenge, due to the fragmentation of the Palestinian people. After the International Court of Justice’s decision, bilateral talks had become much smoother. The actions of States were also very important, as they influenced the actions of other States. Public opinion was also vital, creating a form of awareness, opening doors, allowing for engagement with journalists and trade unions representatives in other countries, working with the Palestinian diaspora to multiply voices, and engaging with others to allow them to lead within their own countries.
60. In further questions and comments, a participant raised the issue of different measures being taken by the different national and international organizations and different governments in terms of the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people, noting that there appeared to lack a common strategy with regard to the achievement of that outcome.
61. Another participant said the combat of racism, colonialism and inter-related activities was the shared responsibility of all. States should take a common, firm position, and move from words to action, recognising that there were States that had not even taken a position on the tens of thousands of civilians killed in the Gaza Strip. Another speaker said that the United Nations Charter stipulated that all United Nations Conventions were legally binding, and that States should respect resolutions passed in the United Nations. Yet, Israel was ignoring this and should be expelled from the United Nations. A speaker stressed that civil society should confront the role that the United Nations currently played, especially around the right to veto, which set up an impunity, and Israel had enjoyed that impunity over the years, the removal of sanctions leading to a form of racism in democratic governance. There was a need to reform the Security Council to reflect the will of the global community.
62. One speaker highlighted the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by Israel in Gaza, and that there had been discussions on this issue at the United Nations for the last ten years. Experts had warned that this would be a new generation of warfare. Palestine had repeatedly brought attention to this issue in many forums. Now the Human Rights Council had taken this issue on board and was writing an opinion, and it was vital for all to express themselves.
63. Shadid responded that the use of AI had been growing, and Israel was using it as a tool to build relationships with other States. On expelling Israel from the United Nations,
    Ms. Shadid said she could not believe that this had not been done or asked for already, and it was important to make it part of accountability and made for other states. A reform of the whole
    UN system was thus very important. Palestine was a cause that had become a test for all the tools for accountability, discussion, debate and papers, on what was actually working and what was not. Every single action of civil society members was extremely important and should not be underestimated.
64. When looking at the lack of elections in the West Bank, Ms. Khamis responded that Palestinians could not forget the fact that they did not have a State like other people. Holding elections in Jerusalem was an issue, but there was a need for an organisational structure to set out the true Palestinian advocacy positions, including from the Palestinian Authority, the PLO, and the diaspora. Solidarity movements would be the leading stakeholders of Palestinian issues at local level. Everyone had different roles, and a national strategy was needed to develop plans and work together. Responding to another question, he stated that without a political will among the international community to compel Israel to bring its behaviour in line with international law,
    it could not be enforced. Palestinians were fighting for a rules-based system. Without enforcement of international humanitarian law, no progress could be made. The only solution would be a peaceful solution, and the only way to achieve this was through international humanitarian law and political will between the two main stakeholders.
65. Abuzneid added that civil society must continue to ask for ceasefire but without returning to the status quo: there must be no blockade, no occupation, and the right to return must be guaranteed. Israel must be isolated in every single avenue, not just at the United Nations.

IV. Plenary session IV

“Ensuring Compliance with International Mechanisms After the International Court of Justice Rulings”

Summary

66. The panel, on the theme “Ensuring Compliance with International Mechanisms After the International Court of Justice Rulings”, was chaired by the Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations and Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, Ambassador Ahmad Faisal Muhamad. The panel featured opening remarks by Mr. Thembela Ngculu, Counsellor, South Africa Permanent Mission in Geneva, and three panellists: Mr. Ahmed Abofoul, Al-Haq Legal Expert; Mr. Saleh Hijazi, Apartheid-Free Policy Coordinator, Palestine BDS Committee; and Ms. Bethany Ellis, Watchlist Global Advocacy Advisor.
67. Ngculu, in opening remarks, stated that it was Israel’s failure to comply with initial provisional measures and the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza, including the risk of famine, that caused South Africa to approach the ICJ on 6 March to request further measures. Accordingly, on 28 March, the Court handed down new provisions, including that Israel should take all necessary and effective measures to ensure, without delay, in cooperation with the United Nations, the unhindered provision of humanitarian and aid assistance to Palestinians throughout Gaza, including opening a greater number of land crossing points, and keeping them open for as long as necessary. Further, Israel must ensure that its military would not impede the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian assistance.
68. He added that all parties to the Genocide Convention must take the necessary measures to comply with the convention and to live up to their commitments. But only a few countries had demonstrated the political will to force Israel to comply with the ICJ ruling. South Africa maintained the view that the only way to end the suffering was to end the illegal Israeli occupation, as well as its apartheid practices. This would allow the Palestinian people to enjoy their inalienable human rights, including the rights to self-determination, political independence, and economic emancipation. Human rights should be respected for all, everywhere, without consideration of race, colour or other status.
69. Abofoul said that a genocide was taking place amidst indifference and complicity of some Western States. The current situation did not happen in a vacuum but was the result of 76 years of settler colonialism and apartheid of 57 years of belligerent military occupation of Palestinian territory and of over 17 years of suffocating military blockade of a population in Gaza, 70 per cent of whom were refugees that had been ethnically cleansed from their original lands by the Nakba in 1948. He further added that an occupying power did not have the right to self-defence against the people it was occupying, as those people, in accordance with international humanitarian law, had the right to resist. The ICJ had been clear on this.
70. The ICJ provisional measures order invoked a positive obligation by all States party to the Genocide Convention, but after their issuing, Israel had accused UNRWA of supporting Hamas and then the Western liberal democracies moved so fast to suspend funding, without waiting for evidence, that some later had to reverse this decision. The West’s complicity and distortion of the situation had made Gaza a graveyard of children, and also the graveyard of international law, with governments in clear violation of international and customary law, including United Nations treaties and the four Geneva Conventions. What was at stake was not only the existence of the Palestinian people facing genocide, but the very system of international law and the so-called rules-based order. Civil society organizations around the world were challenging governments from within their own legal systems and the public supported them. Mr. Abofoul also called for re-establishing the Special Committee Against Apartheid.
71. Hijazi stated that Israel’s live-streamed and automated genocide could be the final blow against the international law system. There must be an instant arms embargo, and sanctions put in place, as Israel had failed to comply with the ICJ ruling, and economic and other measures put in place to ensure an immediate ceasefire and respect for international law. Lawful and proportionate economic sanctions must be imposed on Israel, and an end put to free trade and cooperation agreements, until it lived up to its commitments and obligations. Failing to prevent genocide and to provide assistance to put an end to that genocide made States complicit.
    Over the last 18 years, the BDS movement had built a massive network worldwide, representing tens of millions, and had had a large impact on isolating Israel, by making some multinationals end their involvement and complicity with Israel. He concluded by stating that CEIRPP should call the United Nations General Assembly to hold an emergency session to expel Israel from the United Nations and reconvene the Special Committee Against Apartheid.
72. Ellis said that her organisation had worked on every situation in the CAAC Agenda, and child protection concerns in Israel and Palestine had been included every year since 2005. The overwhelming majority of these concerns had been caused by Israeli security forces, and
    the overwhelming majority of victims had been Palestinian children. However, neither Israeli Government forces nor any other party had ever been included in the list of perpetrators in the CAAC report so far, adding that Israel was one of eight particularly severe examples of inconsistencies in the report and the listing or lack thereof perpetrators. In response to this disconnect between the information contained in the report and the list of perpetrators included in the Annexes, Watchlist began to strongly advocate for Israeli security forces to be listed for killing and maiming children.
73. She explained that such listing was important as it would trigger a series of mechanisms to assess and control measures taken to end violations. Since 7 October, over 13,000 Palestinian children in Gaza had been reported killed: more than all those verified as killed across the world in the CAAC Agenda from 2019-2022. Children had been abducted, detained, schools and hospitals decimated, 92 per cent of educational buildings had been damaged, and there was a denial of humanitarian access, which was particularly harmful to children. The protection of children in war should be an issue on which all agree. In the coming weeks, the Secretary-General and the Special Representative for CAAC would be finalising the 2023 report and making their decisions on the list of perpetrators. Now was the time for all Member States to stand up and demand that the list of perpetrators be complete and hold all perpetrators to the same standards.
74. In the ensuing discussion, participants discussed the South African steps to put an end to the war, which consolidated the legal approach to settling disputes, whilst being committed to the United Nations principles. Mr. Abofoul said that the problem was the lack of political will, and he expressed his conviction that people’s actions on the ground would eventually lead to change by forcing governments to change. The Jewish people had always been an integral part and component of the social fabric of Palestine, considering themselves Palestinians and part of the community, and this was the case until the ideology of Zionism was imported from Europe. Zionism was the problem in this situation and opposing Israeli policy was not meaning to be against the Israeli Jewish people.
75. Further questions and issues raised included a request to elaborate what would happen if no appropriate listing was done on the CAAC Agenda, and what could be done to ensure this listing was made to unblock the issue and protect the rights of children in armed conflict, including in Palestine. Another speaker addressed sanctions and the lack of political will, asking the panelists to elaborate on political leadership for an arms embargo and diplomatic sanctions, as well as banking sanctions. The international community needed to think about creative ways to hold perpetrators accountable, a final speaker noted, urging that domestic accountability be ensured in all ways possible.
76. Abofoul answered that South Africa had provided a model of true leadership, showing what States could do, e.g., issuing warnings to its dual citizens who were in the Israeli army that they could be complicit in genocide and would be prosecuted. What was needed immediately was an arms embargo and meaningful sanctions. Israel could not define Palestinians or who they were and would never have a veto on their humanity. Palestinians had the right to self-determination and the right to return.
77. Hijazi avowed that change would come from the bottom up. South Africa had provided moral and legal leadership but was also empowered by the millions that had gone out in the streets demanding change and an end to genocide, and for accountability for Israeli crimes. Political support was growing around the world.
78. Ellis stated that, given the scale of the violations seen this year, Watchlist genuinely hoped that perpetrators of crimes in Israel and Palestine would be listed as appropriate in this year’s CAAC Report. She urged Member States to communicate to the Secretary-General that they expected them to be listed.
79. Ngculu gave the closing remarks and said that South Africa had received positive feedback on its action; this served as a source of courage and motivation. Many countries had expressed their wish to join the case, and were taking strategic decisions to recall their ambassadors, to put pressure on Israel, and this pressure needed to continue at all levels.
    There should be economic sanctions to make Israel comply with the Provisional Measures. The ultimate goal was to end the occupation itself, to make sure Palestinians lived in peace, with economic and political freedom. The people of Palestine would prevail, and he believed that a free Palestine would be seen in our lifetime, with the two-State solution of both peoples living side by side.

IV. Key themes and recommendations

80. The following key themes and recommendations emerged during the Conference deliberations:
81. The situation in Palestine, and in Gaza in particular, was catastrophic. The international community must urgently take concrete actions to put pressure on Israel to end what has been described as a situation of genocide and to facilitate a ceasefire and access of humanitarian aid. The Gaza conflict had triggered the greatest anti-war movement of the time and civil society organisations must put pressure on their own governments to reach the above goals.
82. The Palestinian suffering had not started on 7 October 2023 but was the result of a continued and ongoing Nakba. Civil society had been at the forefront of documenting this constant oppression, but a synergy of actions must be reinforced between the different organisations, Palestinian communities in the OPT and the diaspora, and UN Member States. The fight against apartheid in South Africa, which had been done by a wide range of actors and actions, should be the example to follow to force a country to abide by international law.
83. Member States, especially in the West, had the legal and moral duty to demonstrate their respect for an international legal system, which now was at serious risk of collapsing because of Israel’s constant and unimpeded violations. Governments, pressured by public opinion, must take strong measures to stop this conflict and the oppression of Palestinians by severing ties with Israel and through the targeted boycotts of companies directly involved in Israeli violations of international law, as well as economic, social and cultural sanctions.
84. Individuals and groups committing serious crimes in the OPT had so far acted with full immunity, and with the de facto backing of Western countries. Perpetrators should be held accountable for their crimes. Member States must support the ICJ’s recent rulings and join the initiative launched by South Africa. Member states must also condemn perpetrators through their own legal systems and at the ICC.
85. Israeli security forces had repeatedly been accused of violating the rights of children in armed conflict. Israel, together with Palestinian armed groups, must be listed in the upcoming Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC).

V. Closing session

86. In the closing session of the Forum, Ambassador Niang thanked all speakers and the audience for actively participating in the Conference. He stated that Palestinians and international experts had spoken of how they worked to expose the gross violations of the Occupying Power, demanding a ceasefire and accountability for the war crimes. Accountability and justice were a pre-requisite for ending cycles of violence and for Palestinians and Israelis to take meaningful steps towards peace. All human rights violations under international law must be investigated. The international community must stand together and with civil society to put an end to the Israeli oppression of the Palestinian community. He lauded the initiatives of some Member States in this regard.
87. Ambassador Khraishi stated that such a meeting had been sorely needed, and he expressed his hope that it would act as an incentive for Member States to be fully present in the Human Rights Council session when voting on resolutions on proposed texts on Israeli accountability and settlements, and Palestinian self-determination. Civil society organizations often had information that official bodies lacked, and thus strengthened the fight for justice for the Palestinian people. Without accountability, there would be no end to crimes and human rights violations. The world had a responsibility to awaken its conscience and move to action, to stick to its principles. Law and rights needed to be the guiding light to overcome all challenges.
    He added that the work of the Committee must continue until the aspirations of Palestinians for statehood were fulfilled.

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Annex I

PROGRAMME

Day 1

10.00 – 10:40              OPENING SESSION

 Statements by:

Ms. Nada Al-Nashif

Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations

Ambassador Cheikh Niang  

Representative of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People

Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations

Ambassador Ibrahim Mohammad Khraishi

Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in Geneva

 

Recess

 

10:50 – 12.30               PLENARY I

“The War on Gaza: Advocating for a Humanitarian Ceasefire and Assistance for the Palestinian People”

Mr. Ayed Abu Eqtaish

DCI-Palestine – Director of Accountability Programme

Mr. Raji Sourani

Palestinian Centre for Human Rights Director

Ms. Sahar Francis

Addameer Prisoner Support& Human Rights Association Director

Mr. Issam Younis

Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights Director

 

13:30                           PRESS CONFERENCE

 

15.00 – 17.30              PLENARY II

“The Role of Civil Society Organizations in Ensuring Third Party Responsibility: Perspectives from Global and Regional Voices”

Ms. Samah Sisay

Attorney at the US Centre for Constitutional Rights

Ms. Yasmine Ahmed

Director of Human Rights Watch UK

 Ms. Rawan Arraf

Director of the Australian Centre for International Justice

 Ms. Tilda Rabi

President of the Federation of Argentine-Palestinian Entities

Mr. Frank Chikane

Chair of the Steering Committee of the Global Anti-Apartheid Conference – South Africa

 

Day 2

10.00 – 12.30               PLENARY III

“State Actions on Accountability: Discussing Best Practices”

Mr. Ahmad Abuzneid

Executive Director of the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights

Mr. Diego Khamis

Executive Director of the Palestinian Community in Chile

Ms. Rula Shadid

Executive Director of the Palestine Institute for Public Diplomacy

 

15.00 – 17.00               PLENARY IV

“Ensuring Compliance with International Mechanisms After the ICJ Rulings”

Remarks by Mr. Thembela Ngculu, Counsellor South Africa Permanent Mission in Geneva

 Mr. Ahmed Abofoul

Al-Haq Legal Expert

Mr. Saleh Hijazi

Apartheid-Free Policy Coordinator, Palestine BDS Committee

Ms. Bethany Ellis

Watchlist Global Advocacy Advisor

 

Recess

 

17.30 – 18.00               CLOSING SESSION

 Chaired by:

 Ambassador Cheikh Niang

Representative of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People

Permanent Representative of Senegal to the United Nations

Statement by:

Ambassador Ibrahim Mohammad Khraishi

Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in Geneva

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 Annex II

 CHAIR SUMMARY

The 2024 Conference of civil society organizations (CSOs) working on the Question of Palestine “Building Bridges with International Civil Society to Address the Ongoing Nakba” was convened in the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) under the auspices of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP). Ahead of the Opening Session, the Committee Delegation held a bilateral meeting with the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms. Nada Al Nashif.

The Conference focused, among others, on the role of civil society worldwide in advocating for a durable and sustainable ceasefire in Gaza and in achieving accountability for Israel’s war crimes in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. In convening this conference, the Committee aimed at strengthening partnerships with civil society organizations, identifying common priorities and messaging on core and emerging topics, discussing the responsibility of Member States to prevent and to protect the Palestinian people, and ensuring accountability as a fundamental requirement for the justice that is vital for peace. The conference also aimed at facilitating partnerships among CSOs worldwide working for a just and lasting solution to the question of Palestine.

At the opening, the Chair of the Committee, Ambassador Cheikh Niang (Senegal), reminded that as the Holy Month of Ramadan was coming to an end, the world had completed the sixth month of a devastating war in Gaza that would impact the Middle East for years to come. Under one of the most intense bombardments in modern history, in Gaza more than 32,000 people had been killed and more than 73,000 injured, the majority women and children. Further, Israel, the occupying Power, denied humanitarian assistance, water, fuel and other essential supplies, causing starvation and spread of disease as well as the destruction of civilian infrastructure, including schools and hospitals. More than 1.9 million Palestinians in Gaza had been forcibly displaced. In doing so, Israel continued to inflict the Nakba onto Palestinians in Gaza.

The war on Gaza and the heavy death toll it has caused is supplemented by the escalating violence by Israeli forces and settlers in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Ambassador Niang echoed the Secretary-General’s appeal for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. The international community must protect the millions of Palestinian children, women and men whose lives were being threatened by Israel’s ongoing military attacks against the Gaza Strip and across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.

The adoption of the UN Security Council resolution 2728, on 25 March, calling for an immediate ceasefire and the lifting of all barriers to the provision of humanitarian assistance during the remaining weeks of Ramadan, was a welcome step. It needed to be implemented and coupled with a resumption of diplomatic efforts to realize a just and durable two-State solution based on the pre-1967 borders as the only path to ending the Israeli occupation and peace in the Middle East.

The Committee welcomed the cooperation with civil society, as there was no better partner to inform about the realities of the current war on Gaza and to provide recommendations to the Committee and Member States on the enforcement of international humanitarian and human rights law. What was needed was a synergy of efforts to end the war, address the underlying drivers of the conflict and a ensure to the independence of the State of Palestine, as called for by international law, UN resolutions, and the vast majority of the peoples of the world.

In her opening statement, Ms. Al Nashif, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights and representing UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the Conference, stated that the event took place “in a harrowing context of unprecedented devastation,” adding that – from 7 October 2023 to 20 March 2024 – 196 humanitarians, including UN workers, had been killed in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

If not killed by bombs, Palestinian civilians were dying of disease and hunger, she continued, noting that a staggering 5 per cent of the population – mostly women and children – had been killed. Ms. Al Nashif strongly opposed a full-scale assault on Rafah, urging Israel to facilitate the safe distribution of humanitarian aid to the population. To this end, border crossings must be fully opened, she stressed, welcoming in this regard Security Council resolution 2728 (2024). The Deputy High Commissioner also voiced concern over shrinking civic space in Gaza, where most civil society organizations have lost their infrastructure, staff and funding, noting that it has become the deadliest place for journalists in the world.

The representative of the State of Palestine, Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in Geneva Ambassador Ibrahim Khraishi, underscored that while Ramadan would end in a few days, the recently adopted ceasefire resolution had not been implemented and the world “continued to watch a genocide live on television”. Palestinians did not believe in taking hostages, including those taken on 7 October, and believed that those detained in Gaza must be released – as should the Palestinians arbitrarily held in administrative detention in Israel.

Practical and peaceful measures must be taken to implement Security Council resolution 2728 (2024) and the ICJ order of 26 January, which called Israel to prevent acts of genocide in Gaza and to remedy the humanitarian situation there.

He also urged the United States to condemn the killings of aid workers and stop weapon exports to Israel.

During the first panel, themed “The War on Gaza: Advocating for a Humanitarian Ceasefire and Assistance for the Palestinian People”, speakers provided a picture of the situation in Gaza. “Time in Gaza is counted by a drop of water, a pill of medication for children, a body count of children killed,” said one. Palestinians were forcibly displaced to “safe areas” which were shelled, with 60 per cent of those killed and wounded having been bombed while believing that the blue United Nations flag would protect them.

The only way to stop the genocide was an immediate and permanent ceasefire. The Palestinian suffering had not started on 7 October; since 2013, Israel had undertaken several major military offenses in Gaza, with grave consequences for its inhabitants, and especially children. The latter also suffered threats of physical and psychological violence when arrested by the Israeli authorities, often amounting to torture.

Member States of the Global North were complicit in the genocide in Gaza by providing Israel with legal cover, funds and arms. Even the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, had failed to act according to his mandate in the most documented genocide in history.

Whereas in the case of Ukraine, the West had been shaken by Moscow’s invasion and reaffirmed the right of the Ukrainian people to resist the occupation by all means; had provided political, legal, financial and military support; had imposed seven waves of unprecedented sanctions on the Russian Federation – in the case of Palestine little had been done comparatively.

During the discussion, attendees raised the issue of sanctions and what CSOs and Member States could and should do; the difference of Israel, as a Jewish nationalist state, and Jews as a religious community, which should not be conflated with Israel; the lack of political will among Member States to hold Israel accountable for violations of international law or international humanitarian law; the unbreakable determination of Palestinians to achieve their self-determination; and the danger that the current conflict could threaten peace and security beyond the region if the solution was not based on multilateralism and international law.

In the second panel, on “The Role of Civil Society Organizations in Ensuring Third Party Responsibility: Perspectives from Global and Regional Voices”, speakers focused on CSO advocacy and action.

The Gaza conflict had triggered the greatest anti-war movement since the 2003 Iraq War. Some CSOs had brought legal action against perpetrators of violations of international law as well as their own Governments who are deemed complicit in Israel’s violations, for example in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. Ongoing abuses in the OPT, and inside Israel, had been documented for many years, but many Western Governments had failed in their obligations to prevent violations of international law, now including genocide.

Speakers also highlighted how a continuing dehumanization of Palestinians, similar to that of non-white South Africans during its Apartheid, had undergirded the Palestine issue and reinforced discriminatory views, not only in Israel but also other regions in the world, for example the Global North. Faced with this, civil society and its actors had a critical and decisive role to play, bringing together all who were active in different domains in the Global South, putting an end to the dehumanising narrative.

The Israeli hostages who were being held in Gaza against international law and those subjected to crimes on 7 October 2023 must not be forgotten, but the atrocities inflicted on the Palestinian people in Gaza today would not be happening if not for the provision of arms, diplomatic cover, and other forms of support by other States, including some who claimed to be the pillars of the international order. Thus, this moment was not only about the Palestinian question but the legitimacy and survival of the entire rules-based world order.

The Western complicity with Israel had not begun in 2023; there was a heavy historical responsibility on the conscience of those States. The crimes seen today were a direct result of the cloak of impunity that had been provided to Israel over many decades by others. In the end, no solution to the question of Palestine would be found until its foundations were addressed: the 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1947 Partition resolution and the 1948 Nakba.

In the ensuing discussion, speakers raised issues such as how the South African experience could show ways to advance the Palestinian cause: the value and potential efficacy of sanctions, and specifically targeted boycotts of companies directly involved in Israeli violations of international law; the need for political will on the highest level to effect change; the role of the Palestinian diaspora; and possible suspension of Israel from the UN General Assembly.

The third panel on “State Actions on Accountability: Discussing Best Practices” outlined how, in these times of limited success in bringing a ceasefire and meeting the immediate humanitarian needs of Gazans, there existed successful initiatives from Global South countries. In terms of addressing Israel’s and other States’ accountability, past best practices had included the severing of diplomatic ties with Israel, economic and energy embargos.

Among the examples mentioned was the 2023 “Not On Our Dime” campaign in the United States, aiming to remove ‘charitable’ status from organisations providing funds to the “Israeli settler enterprise”. Another avenue was to change the narrative: many people in the Global North were starting to comprehend better that the Israeli policy was a blockade of Gaza, a genocide, a settler-colonial project with the main aim to displace Palestinians. Within the West, the debate was even no longer about Palestine, but about democracy itself, and the freedoms of expression and assembly.

In all this, there was a need to create a societal and political majority. This would be achieved by first having organizational unity – to synchronize efforts and messages – which should be the goal of all civil society groups working on the issue of Palestine.

In the ensuing discussion, speakers underscored that Israel’s treatment of Palestinians violates not only human rights but the sanctity of life itself. Accordingly, there was a proposal to adopt of a standardized value of human life, with a monetary value, and then hold Israel responsible to provide compensation. Others placed the question of Palestine within a colonial/neo-colonial context and described as one of the last vestiges of settler-colonialism.

Some argued that the current focus, at the United Nations, on achieving full membership for the State of Palestine should not be a priority as it was more important to address Israeli crimes, to enact and implement sanctions and to force Israel to abide by the ICJ’s rulings. Others held that Palestine’s full recognition would provide access to different spaces and be a useful tool, if not a be-all-end-all. There were also calls for political unity among the Palestinian leadership and for it to provide a strategy for action around the globe.

Attendees also mentioned Israel’s use of “Artificial Intelligence” and “killer drones” (lethal autonomous weapons) during the war on Gaza, and its sales of such technology to other states including to gain political support and reminded of the urgent need for new international regulations in this field.

At the fourth panel, titled “Ensuring Compliance with International Mechanisms After the ICJ Rulings”, speakers highlighted South Africa’s actions at the ICJ as sign of the Global South’s action to uphold international law and its impatience with Western countries’ hypocrisy. The latter were embarking on a relentless campaign of distorting international rules and regulations to support their stance.

An example was that of Israel’s right to self-defence, which in the case of Gaza did not apply, as Israel remained the occupying Power and thus Article 51 of the UN Charter did not apply. On the contrary, occupied people had an innate right to self-defence against an occupation.

One speaker alleged that the West’s complicity in Israel’s actions had made Gaza “not only a graveyard of children but a graveyard of international law”, including through Western democracies having moved fast to suspend funding for UNRWA, based on mere accusations and without waiting for evidence.

The only way out and forward was clear: There would have to be an instant arms embargo and sanctions put in place, as Israel had failed to comply with the ICJ ruling. Also, the General Assembly should hold an emergency session to suspend Israel from the United Nations General Assembly, as had been done with South Africa in the 1970s and reconvene the Special Committee against Apartheid to address the Israeli case.

Another, more targeted, action would be to list Israel, together with Palestinian armed groups, in the upcoming Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC), as a continued failure to list them would undermine the CAAC Agenda’s credibility. Listing a perpetrator would send a signal – no Government wished to appear on the same list as ISIS or Boko Haram.

In the ensuing discussion, speakers raised such issues as South Africa’s steps to put an end to the Gaza war, which consolidated the legal approach to settling disputes, whilst being committed to the United Nations principles. Others recalled that Arabs and Jews had lived in peace for hundreds of years – understanding what happened after the Zionist movement began would help to solve the question of Palestine. Religion was not at the root of the conflict – it was Zionists who were intimidating the world into providing them with support, using their religion and the Jewish suffering during the Holocaust as a pretext.

However, Palestinians were determined to hold on to their humanity, despite the world giving them every reason not to. They were demanding their human rights, to which they were entitled, despite what their oppressors and the world thought. Palestinians were on the right side of history and would prevail, whereas history would judge Israel and those who stood by watching the genocide.

In the closing session the Chair of the Committee, Ambassador Cheikh Niang (Senegal), highlighted how, during the Conference, Palestinian and international experts had detailed their efforts to expose the gross violations of the occupying Power, demanding a ceasefire and accountability for the war crimes. Justice was a pre-requisite to end cycles of violence and for Palestinians and Israelis to take meaningful steps towards peace. Investigations were thus needed to look into all human rights violations, under international law, including hostage-taking, wanton destruction of civilian property, collective punishment, forced displacement, incitement to hatred and violence, sexual assault and torture, among others. The two days of the Conference once more showcased the need for the international community to stand together to put an end to the Israeli oppression of the Palestinian community.

Ambassador Ibrahim Khraishi (Palestine) expressed his hope that the Conference would add momentum to the decisions at the UN Human Rights Council, concurrently in Geneva in session. Palestinians had been one of the victims of the Second World War, despite not having any responsibility therein, losing any opportunity to craft their own independent status, and instead facing an unjust divide of the country, followed by the ongoing Nakba, hand in glove with ethnic cleansing and genocide. The world had a responsibility to awaken its conscience and move to action, to stick to its principles to avoid the law of the jungle prevailing.

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