Issued by the Diplomatic Mission of Palestine in Portugal

 Tomorrow marks the most inhumane massacre perpetrated by a Jewish terrorist “Baruch Goldstein”.

On February 25 1994, a US-born Israeli military medical doctor, walked into the Ibrahimi

Mosque in Hebron armed with a Galil assault rifle. It was early morning during the holy month of Ramadan, and hundreds of Palestinians were crammed inside, bowed in prayer. Baruch Goldstein, who had immigrated to Israel from North America in 1983, lived in the Kiryat Arba (settlement on the outskirts of Hebron). As worshippers kneeled, Goldstein opened fire. He reloaded his gun at least once, continuing his barrage for as long as possible before finally being overpowered and eventually beaten to death.

By the time he was stopped, 29 worshippers were killed, and more than a hundred had been injured.

The Israeli government immediately released a statement condemning the act and stating that Goldstein acted alone and was psychologically disturbed. The massacre was widely reported in the international media – and been added to dozens more of the Israeli massacres against the indigenous people of Historic Palestine “the Palestinians”. Words of condemnation came from the whole world including Israel but no action as if Israel is licensed to kill with impunity. The 29 people killed inside the mosque were not the only “martyrs” that day. Locals estimate the final number of deaths at between 50 and 70 – and an estimated 250 were injured over the course of the day. After the initial attack inside the mosque, more Palestinians were killed by the Israeli army during protests outside the mosque, outside Hebron’s Ahli hospital, and even in the local cemetery as the dead were being buried.

Some survivors of the massacre also report that they were shot by a second gunman inside the mosque, and claim that this was a planned attack of which the Israeli military was aware in advance. None here believe the official story of Goldstein acting entirely alone in a fit of madness.

No action had ever been taken, by the Israeli authorities to protect the Palestinians from the illegal Jewish settlers, to the contrary, settlers with the blessings of the Israeli army, erected a shrine for the terrorist Goldstein, inside the settlement, to become a site for pilgrimage for them and their likens.

Ambassador Ajjuri, says “Lack of action by the International Community against such Israeli crime, has encouraged Israel to perpetrate with impunity, massacres and war crimes, two massacres in Qana, Lebanon and four offensives against the Palestinians in Gaza , in the last one in 2014, Israel killed 22000 Palestinians, 517 of them were children”.

He added that for the same reason and in an utter defiance of the International law, Israeli Knesset adopted on the 6^th of this month, the so-called “Regularization Bill”, a scheme being presented as “law” with the express purpose of facilitating and authorizing the expropriation, colonization and ultimate de facto annexation of Palestinian land.

07-02-2017

O Ministério dos Negócios Estrangeiros Palestiniano condena fortemente a aprovação no Knesset da Lei que “regulariza” a situação de mais de 4000 unidades de colonatos, construídos em território palestiniano privado. Esta Lei permite às autoridades de ocupação continuar a expropriação e o roubo do que resta da terra palestiniana ocupada, utilizando meios de colonização baseados na força de ocupação e no engano da Lei. Este cenário acabará com qualquer hipótese de criar um Estado palestiniano viável e soberano. Esta Lei foi orgulhosamente descrita pelo Ministro Israelita Ofir Akunis, do Partido Likud, como “um passo importante para acabar com a solução de dois Estados”.

O Ministério confirma que esta Lei surge no contexto de uma histeria israelita crescente, para passar/elaborar/decretar mais leis expansionistas. Especialmente o projecto de Lei de controlo sobre o colonato de Ma’ale Adumim, entre outros, algo que abre caminho para um regime racista na Palestina. O Ministério acredita que o governo israelita de Benjamin Netanyahu está a aproveitar-se das condenações internacionais, que são apenas formalidades inúteis, para mudar a situação dos colonatos, e interpreta o silêncio norte-americano como uma luz verde para atacar o que resta da solução de dois Estados.

Esta decisão de aprovar uma Lei expansionista racista é o verdadeiro teste à seriedade da Comunidade Internacional no que toca a  aplicar a Lei Internacional na Palestina e proteger a solução de dois Estados e a paz justa.

O Ministério exige ao Concelho da Segurança das Nações Unidas que defenda as suas resoluções sobre os colonatos, especialmente a resolução 2334, e convida a administração norte-americana a apressar a sua tomada de posição sobre esta escalada israelita perigosa que acaba com todos os esforços internacionais de reanimar o processo de paz, destrói qualquer possibilidade de chegar a uma solução política através das negociações e abre a porta ao extremismo e à violência na zona.

the strongest terms, PLO Executive Committee Member Dr. Hanan Ashrawi condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s approval of more than 3,000 illegal settlement units in the Occupied West Bank; this decision comes just one week after Netanyahu and Lieberman authorized 2,500 units in the Occupied West Bank and the Jerusalem Municipality Planning and Construction Committee approved the permits for more than 550 units in Occupied East Jerusalem:

“Such a frenzied escalation of Israel’s illegal enterprise signals the final demise of the two-state solution.  The silence of the new American government, including those who actively support the settlements in the White House and the administration as a whole, has emboldened Netanyahu to persist with his settlement activities.  All settlements are a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and constitute a direct violation of international law and conventions, including UNSC resolution 2334.  It it evident that Netanyahu and his racist coalition government are carrying out such dangerous and disastrous measures in collusion with the most extreme settler elements to displace Palestine and replace it with “Greater Israel.” 

The enormity and severity of the situation should send a strong message to the international community, including the United States and the European Union, to intervene immediately and bring about an end to all settlement activities and Israel’s illegal unilateralism.  We also call on UN Secretary-General António Guterres to ensure respect for Security Council resolutions, including UNSC resolution 2334, and to make certain that Israel complies with them.  Without a territorially viable and contiguous Palestinian state, there will be no peace or stability and the entire region will explode and plunge into grave violence and chaos.”

PLO Executive Committee Member Dr. Hanan Ashrawi strongly denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s approval of 2,500 illegal settlement units in the Occupied West Bank; this decision was made just two day after the Jerusalem Municipality Planning and Construction Committee approved the permits for more than 550 units in Occupied East Jerusalem:

 “Once again, the Israeli government has proved that it is more committed to land theft and colonialism than to the two-state solution and the requirements for peace and stability.  Such a deliberate escalation of Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise constitutes a war crime and the flagrant violation of international law and conventions, in particular UN Security Council resolution 2334. 

 It is evident that Israel is exploiting the inauguration of the new American administration to escalate its violations and the prevention of any existence of a Palestinian state. Therefore, we urge the US and the rest of the international community to undertake serious and concrete measures to bring about a full cessation of all settlement activities and to hold Israel to account for these disastrous plans with punitive measures and sanctions before it completes the destruction of the territorial and demographic contiguity of the West Bank.”

Statement by PLO Secretary General Dr. Saeb Erekat:

We welcome the statement by the Paris Middle East Peace Conference and call upon France to recognize the State of Palestine.

We welcome today’s Statement by the Paris Peace Conference, which stressed the need to end the Israeli occupation that began in 1967 as per international law and international legitimacy resolutions; including the recent Security Council Resolution 2334.

We appreciate the participation of each and every country and their commitment to the right of our people to establish our independent sovereign state to live side-by-side in peace and security alongside Israel.  They have again created a momentum in rejection to the Israeli occupation and its settlement enterprise on the land of Palestine. It’s a message to Israel, the occupying power, to abide by international law and international humanitarian law and to end its military occupation of Palestine towards the achievement of peace and stability in the region and the world. It is time to stop dealing with Israel as a country above the law and to hold it accountable for its systematic violations of international law and the rights of our people.

We call upon France to immediately recognize the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital. We also call upon all participating countries in today’s conference, including European countries and the United States of America, which all have continuously supported the importance of the two-state solution as the only viable solution, to recognize Palestine in line with their recognition of Israel and their strong position to preserve the two-state solution.

All Israeli settlements in Occupied Palestine are illegal regardless of any law passed by the Israeli parliament or any decision of an Israeli judge.

Israel has a long history of attempts to “legalize” war crimes. This latest step shows the extremist Israeli government’s confidence that the international community will not act.  This culture of impunity continues to destroy the prospects to end the Israeli occupation and achieve a just and lasting peace between Israel and Palestine.

We call upon all states of the United Nations, particularly Security Council members, to support a forthcoming resolution on settlements. Additionally, we will provide the International Criminal Court with information about this and other steps taken by the Israeli government relevant to its Prosecutor’s current examination into the situation in Occupied Palestine, including in and around Occupied East Jerusalem.

Link: https://www.nad.ps/en/media-room/press-releases/dr-saeb-erekat-latest-israeli-steps-regarding-illegal-settlements-occupied

Each and every crime Israel commits in violation of our rights are documented, reported, and presented to the relevant international bodies, including the International Criminal Court

 Over the past 24 hours, seven Palestinian homes have been demolished in Occupied East Jerusalem, Surif, Qabatia and Duma by the Israeli Occupying Forces. This is another act of collective punishment committed by Israel against the Palestinian civilian population in violation of international law and Israel’s obligations as the belligerent occupying power. 

 Each and every crime Israel commits in violation of our rights are documented, reported, and presented to the relevant international bodies, including the International Criminal Court. Granting impunity for continued and systematic Israeli crimes will not achieve a resumption of negotiations, rather, it is killing any realistic political horizon to end the Israeli occupation of the State of Palestine. 

 A few days ago, the Human Rights Council voted a resolution on “Ensuring accountability and justice for all violations of international law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.” Although it passed with resounding approval, countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Latvia, India, Netherlands and Paraguay, among others, opted to abstain. We call upon those countries to review their positions.  Allowing Israel to act as a state above the law only perpetuates Israeli violations of Palestinian human rights and ensures the destruction of the two-state solution.

 Between September 13^th 2015 and April 4^th 2016, Israeli Occupation Forces have demolished 157 houses in occupied Palestine.

The people of Duma are reeling this morning following the latest terrorist attack against Duma resident, Ibrahim Dawabsheh, the sole surviving witness of last July’s terrorist attack which left three members of the Dawabsheh family dead as a result of arson, including 18-month-old Ali. 

Ibrahim Dawabsheh and his wife were rushed to a hospital in Nablus following smoke inhalation as a result of their home being lit on fire in the early morning hours on Sunday.

We hold the Israeli Government fully responsible for the crimes in Duma. Israel has yet to convict those responsible for the murders of Saad, Reham, and Ali Dawabsheh, instead choosing to send violent murderers back to the illegal settlements where they live, and place them under house arrest. This has become common practice by the Israeli government, as was the case in the 2014 gruesome murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir, whose murderers were held under house arrest or in a mental facility, with little or no security supervision.

Israel’s disregard for the gravity of these atrocious crimes reflects both the Israeli culture of impunity and the international community’s free license granted to Israel to systematically disregard international law.  The Israeli prolonged belligerent occupation, colonization, and transfer 650,000 Israeli citizens into the occupied State of Palestine is part of a comprehensive system of continued oppression and subjugation perpetuated by the international community.

While we wait for another sham investigation to determine the source of this morning’s attack on another civilian family in Duma, we invite the international community to ensure that Israel upholds its obligations as the occupying power to provide security and protection for the Palestinian civilian population it occupies. We reiterate our calls for international protection and an immediate international intervention in order to end the Israeli occupation and achieve the long overdue inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.