Israel’s rIghts regardIng
terrItorIes and the
settlements In the eyes
of the InternatIonal
CommunIty
terrItorIes and the
settlements In the eyes
of the InternatIonal
CommunIty
Alan Baker
For over y years, in countless United Nations
resolutions adopted virtually verbatim year a er year
on various aspects of the Middle East problem, and speci cally on issues regarding the territories,
the reference to Israel is almost exclusively couched in terms of “Israel, the occupying Power” and
the reference to the territories is termed “the occupied Palestinian territories.” Similarly, reference to
Israel’s settlement policy consistently includes the element of illegitimacy or illegality.
on various aspects of the Middle East problem, and speci cally on issues regarding the territories,
the reference to Israel is almost exclusively couched in terms of “Israel, the occupying Power” and
the reference to the territories is termed “the occupied Palestinian territories.” Similarly, reference to
Israel’s settlement policy consistently includes the element of illegitimacy or illegality.
ese general and all-embracing terms have become the “lingua
franca” of the United Nations
- accepted phrases that
neither generate nor attract any thought or discussion as to their legal, historical, or political accuracy. Nor do they connect with
ongoing developments in the region.
ey are merely accepted as part of the reality of the UN General Assembly and other organs
within the UN system.
ey are merely accepted as part of the reality of the UN General Assembly and other organs
within the UN system.
As an illustration, one
need merely refer to fourteen of the resolutions on the Middle East issue that were adopted at the recent 65th General Assembly in
2010,1 to grasp the repetitiveness and the automatic usage of the above phrases in their various
clauses. If one multiplies this number by over y years of constant repetition and
brainwashing in UN resolutions, one may well perceive how the phrases “Israel, the occupying Power” and “occupied
Palestinian territories” have indeed become
accepted, standard UN terminology.
Strangely enough, this
description is not limited to Israel’s status in the West Bank areas of Judea
and Samaria, but, despite removal by Israel of all its forces and civilians from the Gaza Strip in
and Samaria, but, despite removal by Israel of all its forces and civilians from the Gaza Strip in
65
2005, including the
dismantling of its settlements, these phrases are still used by UN bodies, in
reports, other documentation, and in resolutions, to describe Israel’s status in the Gaza Strip.2
reports, other documentation, and in resolutions, to describe Israel’s status in the Gaza Strip.2
In light of the
developments over the years, including the signing of agreements between Israel
and
the PLO, the support and a rmation of such agreements by the United Nations, and the changes
in the status of the respective parties vis-à-vis the territories that such agreements generated, one
may well ask whether the continued usage of this standard terminology is accurate or relevant, and
if it indeed re ects international realities, or rather the ongoing and blind “wishful thinking” of the
initiators of the resolutions and those member states that blindly and unthinkingly support them.
the PLO, the support and a rmation of such agreements by the United Nations, and the changes
in the status of the respective parties vis-à-vis the territories that such agreements generated, one
may well ask whether the continued usage of this standard terminology is accurate or relevant, and
if it indeed re ects international realities, or rather the ongoing and blind “wishful thinking” of the
initiators of the resolutions and those member states that blindly and unthinkingly support them.
Israel’s status vis-à-vis the
respective territories has indeed evolved over the years and has been accompanied by constant discussion as to its nature.
Following the 1967 Six Day War, the views as
to Israel’s status veered between a predominant
section of the international community that considered, for whatever reason, that it was a classical
occupation, as a rmed in the UN General Assembly resolutions, and others, predominantly Israel
itself, that considered that Israel had come into control of the territories following a legitimately
fought defensive war.3 Another very signi cant historical and legal viewpoint regards Israel’s
presence in the West Bank areas of Judea and Samaria as emanating from the historical rights
granted in Palestine to the Jewish people by the Balfour Declaration and a rmed by resolution
of the League of Nations in 1922, granting to the Jewish people a national home in all parts of
Mandatory Palestine and enabling “close settlement on the land.” e continued validity of this
resolution, beyond the days of the League of Nations, was in fact maintained by Article 80 of the
UN Charter, according to which rights granted to peoples by international instruments remain
unaltered, and hence still valid.4
section of the international community that considered, for whatever reason, that it was a classical
occupation, as a rmed in the UN General Assembly resolutions, and others, predominantly Israel
itself, that considered that Israel had come into control of the territories following a legitimately
fought defensive war.3 Another very signi cant historical and legal viewpoint regards Israel’s
presence in the West Bank areas of Judea and Samaria as emanating from the historical rights
granted in Palestine to the Jewish people by the Balfour Declaration and a rmed by resolution
of the League of Nations in 1922, granting to the Jewish people a national home in all parts of
Mandatory Palestine and enabling “close settlement on the land.” e continued validity of this
resolution, beyond the days of the League of Nations, was in fact maintained by Article 80 of the
UN Charter, according to which rights granted to peoples by international instruments remain
unaltered, and hence still valid.4
However Israel’s status
might have been perceived, up to the signing of the Oslo accords between
Israel and the PLO in 1993, the legal and political nature of both the Gaza Strip and the West
Bank has undergone a critical change. e fact that the international community has failed, and
consistently fails to acknowledge this change, and repeats inaccuracies and absurdities in UN
resolutions that are utterly disconnected from reality, is perhaps indicative of the selective blindness
vis-à-vis Israel, and the extent to which the international community is being manipulated by the
Arab and Muslim states.
Israel and the PLO in 1993, the legal and political nature of both the Gaza Strip and the West
Bank has undergone a critical change. e fact that the international community has failed, and
consistently fails to acknowledge this change, and repeats inaccuracies and absurdities in UN
resolutions that are utterly disconnected from reality, is perhaps indicative of the selective blindness
vis-à-vis Israel, and the extent to which the international community is being manipulated by the
Arab and Muslim states.
While each of the various
viewpoints set out above as to Israel’s status in the territories has had, and
in some cases continues to have its respective merits, no one in the international community - not
even the United Nations - can negate the fact that with the signature by Israel and the Palestinian
leadership of the Israel-Palestinian Interim Agreement of 1995,5 signed and witnessed by the United
States, the European Union, Egypt, Jordan, Russia, and Norway, the status of the territory changed,
and the status of each of the parties to the agreement vis-à-vis the territory changed as well.
in some cases continues to have its respective merits, no one in the international community - not
even the United Nations - can negate the fact that with the signature by Israel and the Palestinian
leadership of the Israel-Palestinian Interim Agreement of 1995,5 signed and witnessed by the United
States, the European Union, Egypt, Jordan, Russia, and Norway, the status of the territory changed,
and the status of each of the parties to the agreement vis-à-vis the territory changed as well.
66
THE
UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE TERRITORY AND THE SPECIAL NATURE OF THE
ISRAELI PALESTINIAN
RELATIONSHIP
RELATIONSHIP
e
agreements and memoranda between the Palestinian leadership and the government
of Israel,
a rmed and recognized by the United Nations both in its signature as witness to the 1995 agreement,
as well as in resolutions acknowledging the agreements,6 have produced a special regime - a lex
specialis - that governs all aspects of the relationship between them, the relationship of each one
of the parties to the territory under its responsibility and control, and its rights and duties in that
territory.7
a rmed and recognized by the United Nations both in its signature as witness to the 1995 agreement,
as well as in resolutions acknowledging the agreements,6 have produced a special regime - a lex
specialis - that governs all aspects of the relationship between them, the relationship of each one
of the parties to the territory under its responsibility and control, and its rights and duties in that
territory.7
ese documents8 cover
all the central issues between them including governance, security,
elections, jurisdiction, human rights, legal issues, and the like. In this framework, when referring
to the rights and duties of each party in the territory that remains under its jurisdiction pending
the outcome of the permanent status negotiations, there is no speci c provision either restricting
planning, zoning, and continued construction by either party, of towns, settlements, and villages,
or freezing such construction. Article 27 of Annex III (Civil A airs Annex) to the 1995 agreement
sets out the agreed terms for planning and zoning, and construction powers in the territories, and
places no limitation on either side to build in the areas under its respective jurisdiction.9
elections, jurisdiction, human rights, legal issues, and the like. In this framework, when referring
to the rights and duties of each party in the territory that remains under its jurisdiction pending
the outcome of the permanent status negotiations, there is no speci c provision either restricting
planning, zoning, and continued construction by either party, of towns, settlements, and villages,
or freezing such construction. Article 27 of Annex III (Civil A airs Annex) to the 1995 agreement
sets out the agreed terms for planning and zoning, and construction powers in the territories, and
places no limitation on either side to build in the areas under its respective jurisdiction.9
e central
legal and political change brought about by the agreement is the fact that the
two sides agreed pending the
outcome of the negotiations on a permanent status agreement between them, to divide their respective jurisdictions in the West Bank into
Areas A and B (Palestinian jurisdiction) and Area C
(Israeli jurisdiction).10
ey de ned
the respective powers and responsibilities of each side in the areas under its
control. In Area A (the major cities and towns and highly populated areas)
Israel completely transferred all powers
and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority including security and police
powers. In Area B Israel transferred all powers and responsibilities except for
security, over the villages that predominantly
constituted Area B. Area C, without
Palestinian villages and population centers, includes the Israeli settlements and military
installations. us Israel’s powers and
responsibilities in Area C include all
aspects regarding Israeli residents of settlements and military installations -
all this pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiations.
all this pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiations.
is division of control,
powers, and responsibilities was accepted and agreed upon by the
Palestinians in the 1995 agreement and even acknowledged by the United Nations. As such it
constitutes a radical change in the status and nature of the territory. Israel’s continued presence
in Area C, pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiations, enjoys the sanction of
the PLO. It cannot, by any measure of political manipulation or legal acrobatics, be considered
“occupied territory,” and hence, Israel cannot be termed “the occupying Power.” Israel’s presence
in the territory of the West Bank is with the full approval of the Palestinian leadership composing
the PLO.
Palestinians in the 1995 agreement and even acknowledged by the United Nations. As such it
constitutes a radical change in the status and nature of the territory. Israel’s continued presence
in Area C, pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiations, enjoys the sanction of
the PLO. It cannot, by any measure of political manipulation or legal acrobatics, be considered
“occupied territory,” and hence, Israel cannot be termed “the occupying Power.” Israel’s presence
in the territory of the West Bank is with the full approval of the Palestinian leadership composing
the PLO.
67
THE
SETTLEMENTS ISSUE
In a similar vein, the legal nature of
Israel’s settlements, which has also become a cliché in UN terminology
as being illegal, is equally part and parcel of this lex specialis regime based
on the Oslo Accords. e Palestinian leadership cannot present this
as an alleged violation by Israel of the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention, in order to bypass their acceptance of the
rights and responsibilities pursuant to the Interim Agreement as well as the
international community’s acknowledgment of that agreement’s relevance and continued validity.
In fact, even in the 1993
Israeli-PLO Declaration of Principles, and as repeated in all the ensuing
agreements including the 1995 Interim Agreement, the settlement issue is one of the core issues
determined by the parties to be negotiated in the permanent status negotiations.11 is is a
agreements including the 1995 Interim Agreement, the settlement issue is one of the core issues
determined by the parties to be negotiated in the permanent status negotiations.11 is is a
mutually
agreed-upon component of the accords between Israel and the Palestinian
leadership.
at Palestinian leadership has accepted and is committed to the fact that it does not exercise
jurisdiction regarding permanent status issues, settlements included, in Area C pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiation.
at Palestinian leadership has accepted and is committed to the fact that it does not exercise
jurisdiction regarding permanent status issues, settlements included, in Area C pending the outcome of the permanent status negotiation.
As such, the Oslo Accords
contain no requirement that prohibits, limits, or freezes construction by Israel in Area C.
In fact, during the
course of the negotiations on the Interim Agreement in 1995, the Palestinian
delegation requested that a “side letter” be attached, the text of which would be agreed upon,
whereby Israel would commit to restricting settlement construction in Area C during the process
of implementation of the agreement and the ensuing negotiations. Several dra s of this “side
letter” passed between the negotiating teams until Israel indeed agreed to a formulation restricting
construction activities on the basis of a government decision that would be adopted for that
purpose. Ultimately, the Palestinian leadership withdrew its request for a side letter.
delegation requested that a “side letter” be attached, the text of which would be agreed upon,
whereby Israel would commit to restricting settlement construction in Area C during the process
of implementation of the agreement and the ensuing negotiations. Several dra s of this “side
letter” passed between the negotiating teams until Israel indeed agreed to a formulation restricting
construction activities on the basis of a government decision that would be adopted for that
purpose. Ultimately, the Palestinian leadership withdrew its request for a side letter.
THE
LEGALITY OF ISRAEL’S SETTLEMENTS
e issues
of the legality of Israel’s settlements and the rationale of Israel’s
settlement policy have for years
dominated the attention of the international community. is has been evident in countless reports of di erent UN bodies, rapporteurs, and
resolutions,12 as well as in political declarations and statements by governments and leaders. In varying
degrees, they consider Israel’s settlements to be in violation of
international law, speci cally Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of
War, of August 12, 1949.13
But apart from the almost
standardized, o -repeated, and commonly accepted clichés as to
the
“illegality of Israel’s
settlements,” or the “ agrant violation” of the Geneva Convention, repeated
even by the International Court of Justice,14 there has been little genuine attempt to elaborate and
consider the substantive legal reasoning behind this view. Yet there are a number of very relevant
factors that inevitably must be considered when making such a serious accusation against Israel.
even by the International Court of Justice,14 there has been little genuine attempt to elaborate and
consider the substantive legal reasoning behind this view. Yet there are a number of very relevant
factors that inevitably must be considered when making such a serious accusation against Israel.
68
President Bill Clinton, Israeli Prime
Minister Yitzhak Rabin, and PLO leader Yasser Arafat sign the Oslo II Interim Agreement, September 28, 1995, at the White House.
(AP Photo/Doug Mills)
ese factors include:
f the text
of the sixth paragraph of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention and the
circumstances of, and reasons for, its inclusion in the
Convention in December 1949;
f the unique circumstances of the territory and the context
of the Israeli-Palestinian relationship
that, as set out above,
has developed since 1993 through a series of agreements between them. ese
agreements have created the sui generis framework that overrides any general determinations unrelated to that framework.
IS ARTICLE 49 OF THE FOURTH GENEVA
CONVENTION APPLICABLE TO ISRAEL’S SETTLEMENTS?
Immediately a er the
Second World War, the need arose to dra
an international convention to
protect civilians in times of armed con ict in light of the massive numbers of civilians forced to
leave their homes during the war, and the glaring lack of e ective protection for civilians under any
protect civilians in times of armed con ict in light of the massive numbers of civilians forced to
leave their homes during the war, and the glaring lack of e ective protection for civilians under any
69
of the then valid conventions
or treaties.15 In this context, the sixth paragraph of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states:
e
Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian
population into the territory it
occupies.16
e
authoritative and o cial commentary by
the governing body of the International Red Cross movement,
the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), published in 1958 in order
to assist “Governments and armed forces…called upon
to assume responsibility in applying the Geneva
Conventions,”17 clari es this provision as follows:
It is intended to prevent
a practice adopted during the Second World War by certain Powers,
which transferred portions of their own population to occupied territory for political and racial reasons or in order, as they
claimed, to colonize those territories. Such transfers worsened the economic situation of the native population and
endangered their separate existence
as a race.
In other words, according
to the ICRC commentary, Article 49 relates to deportations, meaning the
forcible transfer of an occupying power’s population into an occupied territory. Historically, over
forty million people were subjected to forced migration, evacuation, displacement, and expulsion,
including een million Germans, ve million Soviet citizens, and millions of Poles, Ukrainians,
and Hungarians.
forcible transfer of an occupying power’s population into an occupied territory. Historically, over
forty million people were subjected to forced migration, evacuation, displacement, and expulsion,
including een million Germans, ve million Soviet citizens, and millions of Poles, Ukrainians,
and Hungarians.
e vast
numbers of people a ected and the aims and purposes behind such a population
movement
speak for themselves. ere is nothing to link such circumstances to Israel’s settlement policy. e
circumstances in which Article 49(6) of the Geneva Convention was dra ed, and speci cally the
meaning attached by the International Committee of the Red Cross itself to that article, raise a
serious question as to the relevance of linkage to and reliance on the article by the international
community as the basis and criterion for determining Israel’s settlements as illegal. One may further
ask if this is not a misreading, misunderstanding, or even distortion of that article and its context.
speak for themselves. ere is nothing to link such circumstances to Israel’s settlement policy. e
circumstances in which Article 49(6) of the Geneva Convention was dra ed, and speci cally the
meaning attached by the International Committee of the Red Cross itself to that article, raise a
serious question as to the relevance of linkage to and reliance on the article by the international
community as the basis and criterion for determining Israel’s settlements as illegal. One may further
ask if this is not a misreading, misunderstanding, or even distortion of that article and its context.
e international lawyer Prof.
Eugene V. Rostow, a former dean of Yale Law School and Under Secretary of State, stated in 1990:
[T]he Convention prohibits
many of the inhumane practices of the Nazis and the Soviet
Union during and before the Second World War - the mass transfer of people into and
out of occupied territories for purposes of extermination, slave labor or colonization,
for example… e Jewish settlers in the West Bank are most emphatically volunteers.
Union during and before the Second World War - the mass transfer of people into and
out of occupied territories for purposes of extermination, slave labor or colonization,
for example… e Jewish settlers in the West Bank are most emphatically volunteers.
ey have
not been “deported” or “transferred” to the area by the Government of Israel, and their movement involves none of the atrocious purposes
or harmful e ects on the existing population it is the goal of the Geneva
Convention to prevent.18
Ambassador Morris Abram,
a member of the U.S. sta at the
Nuremburg Tribunal and later involved in the dra ing of the Fourth Geneva
Convention, is on record as stating that the convention:
70
Ariel, an Israeli settlement in the central West Bank
was not designed to cover
situations like Israeli settlements in the occupied territories,
but rather the forcible transfer, deportation or resettlement of large numbers of
people.19
but rather the forcible transfer, deportation or resettlement of large numbers of
people.19
Similarly, international
lawyer Prof. Julius Stone, in referring to the absurdity of considering Israeli
settlements as a violation of Article 49(6), stated:
Irony would…be pushed to the absurdity of
claiming that Article 49(6), designed to prevent repetition of
Nazi-type genocidal policies of rendering Nazi metropolitan territories
judenrein, has now come to mean that…the West Bank…must be made judenrein and must be so maintained, if necessary by the
use of force by the government of Israel against its own
inhabitants. Common sense as well as correct historical and functional context excludes so tyrannical a reading of
Article 49(6).20
Article 49(6) uses terminology
that is indicative of governmental action in coercing its citizens to move. Yet Israel has not forcibly deported or
mass-transferred its citizens into the territories. It has consistently maintained a policy enabling people to reside
voluntarily on land that is not privately owned. eir continued presence is subject to the
outcome of the negotiation process on the status of the territory, and without necessarily prejudicing that
outcome.
71
In some cases Israel has
permitted its citizens who have for many years owned property or tracts
of land in the territory, and who had been previously dispossessed and displaced by Jordan, to
return to their own properties. e presence in these areas of Jewish settlement from Ottoman
and British Mandatory times is totally unrelated to the context of, or claims regarding, the Geneva
Convention.
of land in the territory, and who had been previously dispossessed and displaced by Jordan, to
return to their own properties. e presence in these areas of Jewish settlement from Ottoman
and British Mandatory times is totally unrelated to the context of, or claims regarding, the Geneva
Convention.
Israel has never expressed any intention to
colonize the territories, to con scate land, nor to
displace the local population for political or racial reasons, nor to alter the demographic nature of
the area.
displace the local population for political or racial reasons, nor to alter the demographic nature of
the area.
As stated above, the
agreements signed with the Palestinian leadership have in fact placed the
entire
issue of the status of the territory, as well as Israel’s settlements, on the negotiating table - a factor
that proves the lack of any intention to colonize or displace. e fact that Israel chose unilaterally
to dismantle its settlements and remove its citizens from the Gaza Strip in 2005 is further evidence
of this.
issue of the status of the territory, as well as Israel’s settlements, on the negotiating table - a factor
that proves the lack of any intention to colonize or displace. e fact that Israel chose unilaterally
to dismantle its settlements and remove its citizens from the Gaza Strip in 2005 is further evidence
of this.
During the negotiation on
the 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court,21 Arab states initiated an alteration in the text of the court’s statute
listing as a serious violation of the laws of armed con ict the war crime of “transferring, directly or
indirectly, parts of the civil population into the occupied territory.”22 e deliberate addition of the phrase “directly
or indirectly” to the original 1949 text was intended by them to adapt the
original 1949 Geneva Convention language in order to render it applicable to
Israel’s settlement policy. is in
itself is indicative of the proponents’ and the international community’s
acknowledgment of the fact that Article 49(6) as dra ed in 1949 was simply not relevant to the circumstances of Israel’s
settlements.
CONCLUSION
e
propensity of the international community, whether through constant,
parrot-like repetition in UN documentation and annual resolutions or
other means, to label Israel as the “occupying Power,” and the West Bank and Gaza territories as the “occupied
Palestinian territories,” as well as the
automatic labeling of Israel’s settlements as “illegal,” are indicative of a
stubborn refusal to face the realities of the
situation in the Middle East.
In permitting themselves
to be driven by certain states with a clear political agenda, to ignore vital
and serious agreements between the PLO and Israel in which the status of the Gaza Strip and West
Bank territories is mutually rede ned; and to ignore the legislative history and logic behind the
Fourth Geneva Convention provision regarding forcible transfer of peoples, those member states
of the United Nations supporting such resolutions and determinations are damaging the UN as a
credible body in international law and society, and undermining the Middle East peace process.
and serious agreements between the PLO and Israel in which the status of the Gaza Strip and West
Bank territories is mutually rede ned; and to ignore the legislative history and logic behind the
Fourth Geneva Convention provision regarding forcible transfer of peoples, those member states
of the United Nations supporting such resolutions and determinations are damaging the UN as a
credible body in international law and society, and undermining the Middle East peace process.
e
international community cannot seriously continue to bury its head in the sand
and ignore these factors. It is high time
that responsible and likeminded states endeavor to restore the credibility of
the international community in general and the United Nations in particular,
and bring it back into reality as a viable body capable of ful lling the
purposes for which it was established.
72
NOTES
1 See,
for example, those resolutions most recently adopted in the 65th Session of the
General Assembly in 2010 including
A/RES/65/202 on “The right of the Palestinian People to Self-Determination” (in the 7th and 9th preambular paragraphs);
A/65/179 on “Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem,
and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources” (in virtually all the preambular and
substantive paragraphs); Resolution A/65/134 on “Assistance to the Palestinian people”; Resolution A/65/105 on “Israeli
practices a ecting the human rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem”;
Resolution A/65/104 on “Israeli practices a ecting the human rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory, including East Jerusalem”; Resolution A/65/103 on “Applicability of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection
of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the
other occupied Arab territories”; A/65/102 on “Work of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices A ecting the
Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories”; A/65/100 on “Operations of the United
Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East”; A/65/98 on “Assistance to Palestine refugees”;
A/65/17 on “Jerusalem”; A/65/16 on “Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine”; A/65/15 on “Special information
programme on the question of Palestine of the Department of Public Information of the Secretariat”; A/65/14 on “Division
for Palestinian Rights of the Secretariat”; A/65/13 on “Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian
People.”
A/RES/65/202 on “The right of the Palestinian People to Self-Determination” (in the 7th and 9th preambular paragraphs);
A/65/179 on “Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem,
and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources” (in virtually all the preambular and
substantive paragraphs); Resolution A/65/134 on “Assistance to the Palestinian people”; Resolution A/65/105 on “Israeli
practices a ecting the human rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem”;
Resolution A/65/104 on “Israeli practices a ecting the human rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory, including East Jerusalem”; Resolution A/65/103 on “Applicability of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection
of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the
other occupied Arab territories”; A/65/102 on “Work of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices A ecting the
Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories”; A/65/100 on “Operations of the United
Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East”; A/65/98 on “Assistance to Palestine refugees”;
A/65/17 on “Jerusalem”; A/65/16 on “Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine”; A/65/15 on “Special information
programme on the question of Palestine of the Department of Public Information of the Secretariat”; A/65/14 on “Division
for Palestinian Rights of the Secretariat”; A/65/13 on “Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian
People.”
2 For a full analysis of
Israel’s status in the Gaza Strip, see the chapter in this book by Pnina
Sharvit Baruch, “Is the Gaza Strip
Occupied by Israel?”
3 For a full analysis of
Israel’s status following the 1967 war, see the chapter of this book by
Nicholas Rostow, “The Historical and
Legal Contexts of Israel’s
Borders.”
4 See the chapter in this
book by Martin Gilbert, “‘An Overwhelmingly Jewish State’ from the Balfour
Declaration to the Palestine
Mandate.”
5 http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace+Process/Guide+to+the+Peace+Process/THE+ISRAELI-
PALESTINIAN+INTERIM+AGREEMENT.htm. See also UN General Assembly Resolutions A/RES. 50/21, A/RES.50/29 and A/
RES.50/84 of December 1995, in which the UN welcomed and expressed support for the Interim Agreement.
PALESTINIAN+INTERIM+AGREEMENT.htm. See also UN General Assembly Resolutions A/RES. 50/21, A/RES.50/29 and A/
RES.50/84 of December 1995, in which the UN welcomed and expressed support for the Interim Agreement.
6 See
annex to UN document A/48/486-S/26560 dated 11 October 1993.
7 See the
Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Sept.
28, 1995, at Article XVIII, para. 1, http://
www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace+Process/Guide+to+the+Peace+Process/THE+ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN+INTERIM+AGREEMENT.
htm.
8 Israel-Palestinian
Declaration of Principles, September 13, 1993, Exchange of Letters between
Prime Minister Rabin and
Chairman Arafat of September 9-10, 1993, Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area, May 4, 1994, Interim Agreement
between Israel and the Palestinians, September 28, 1995, Agreement on Temporary International Presence in Hebron, May
9, 1996, The Wye River Memorandum, October 23, 1998, The Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum on Implementation Timeline
of Outstanding Commitments of Agreements Signed and the Resumption of Permanent Status Negotiations, September 4,
1999, Protocol Concerning Safe Passage between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, October 5, 1999. All these documents
are referenced in http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/peace%20process/reference%20documents.
Chairman Arafat of September 9-10, 1993, Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area, May 4, 1994, Interim Agreement
between Israel and the Palestinians, September 28, 1995, Agreement on Temporary International Presence in Hebron, May
9, 1996, The Wye River Memorandum, October 23, 1998, The Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum on Implementation Timeline
of Outstanding Commitments of Agreements Signed and the Resumption of Permanent Status Negotiations, September 4,
1999, Protocol Concerning Safe Passage between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, October 5, 1999. All these documents
are referenced in http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/peace%20process/reference%20documents.
9 http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace+Process/Guide+to+the+Peace+Process/Gaza-Jericho+Agreement+Annex+II.htm.
10 Id., Article IV (Land).
11 Israel-Palestinian
Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements of Sept. 13,
1993, Article V, para. 3, as well
as Article XXXI, para.
5 of the Interim Agreement, http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace+Process/Guide+to+the+Peace+Process/
Declaration+of+Principles.htm.
12 Extending
from General Assembly Resolution A/RES/3005/(XXVII) of December 15, 1972,
through Security Council Resolutions
446 (1979), 452 (1979),
465 (1980), to the most recent General Assembly resolution of December 10,
2010, A/RES/65/105.
13 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, No.
973, p. 287.
14 The
International Court of Justice in its 2004 Advisory Opinion on Israel’s
Security Fence. See http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/
les/131/1671.pdf at
paragraph 120.
15 See
ICRC Commentary to the Fourth Geneva Convention, edited by Jean S. Pictet
(1958), at pp. 3-9, for an extensive summary
of the reasoning behind
the drafting of the convention.
16 Id., p. 278.
17 Foreword to the ICRC Commentary, at n. 13
above.
18 American Journal of International Law, Vol.
84, 1990, p. 719.
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