The Palestinian Authority has asked the United Nations Human Rights Council to conduct a formal inquiry into the impact of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Al-Maliki said on Mar 19. The probe should look into “attempts to confiscate land and settler violence along with the impact of settlement expansion on Palestinian life and basic human rights,” he said, adding that the proposal for an inquiry was formally tabled on Mar 16.
If it goes ahead, the investigation would be similar in format to recent UN inquiries into Syria and Libya, and would involve three or four experts who would report back to the UN human rights body in June. “If this is the case, we will go back to the Human Rights Council to pass new resolutions that condemn the Israeli policy and call for just policies which respect Palestinian rights and offer a clear condemnation of Israel on this issue,” Al-Maliki said, adding: “Certainly we coordinate our steps: first, we will wait for the resolution to pass; second, for the committee to be formed; third, for the UN to demand Israel allow the committee to enter.”
US Ambassador Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe did not mention the Palestinian request for an inquiry when she addressed the UN forum in Geneva on Mar 19. But she did say that the council was biased and had a disproportionate focus on Israel, adding it should hold all countries to the same standards. The debate also gave an opportunity for the Syrian delegate to complain about Israel’s behavior in Syria’s Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.