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SvennoJ on 07 February 2024
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More double standards

Palestinians accuse UN Office on Genocide Prevention of ignoring Gaza plight

Al-Mezan, a Gaza-based human rights organisation, has noted that four months into Israel’s war in Gaza, “it’s now evident that the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide and the UN Office on Genocide Prevention (UNOSAPG)  have failed to fulfill their mandates”.

In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the group said that since October, the UN Office on Genocide Prevention addressed various conflicts.” However, noticeably absent are statements addressing the ongoing atrocities faced by 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, half of whom are children.” The “double standards” in addressing conflicts is evident, Al-Mezan said. On January 26, the International Court of Justice found it plausible Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Twelve days later, there is still no reaction from the UNOSAPG.

“Conversely, in Ukraine v. Russian Federation, UNOSAPG promptly acknowledged ICJ’s order within two days,” it said in the letter.

Silver lining? Ukraine situation is not looking good though :(

US Senate rejects package that includes assistance for Israel, Ukraine

The US Senate has rejected a package that tied additional support for Israel and Ukraine to a harsh crackdown on the US border with Mexico. The $118bn bill was shot down by Senate Republicans, which their colleagues in the House of Representatives have already said would be “dead on arrival”.

Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer has said he will force a second vote on the foreign aid provisions without the border components. The House rejected a Republican standalone bill on $17.6bn for Israel yesterday, which Democrats described as a cynical ploy to separate support from Israel from a larger package.



Norway transfers $26 million to UNRWA: FM

Espen Barth Eide has said that the funds will go to the UN agency’s efforts to provide assistance “to the 5.9 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, Syria and Jordan”. “UNRWA is the backbone of humanitarian efforts in Gaza. Its services are critical for millions of people in extreme need,” he said in a statement.

“We should not collectively punish millions of people for the alleged wrongdoing of 12 staff members. I urge all donors that have suspended their support to think about the consequences. The situation is dire not only for the population of Gaza, but also for Palestinians throughout the Middle East,” Eide said.

 

Brown University students in US on hunger strike for Palestine

Students at the university in the US state of Rhode Island say their school is complicit in Israel’s war on Gaza. On Friday, they began a hunger strike that they say will continue until Brown divests from companies that “are helping aid the Israeli occupation”, Niyanta Nepal, one of the strikers, told Al Jazeera.





Human Rights Watch calls on Canada to suspend arms sales to Israel

The rights watchdog has called on the Canadian government to suspend arms sales to Israel in order to avoid complicity in potential war crimes. In a letter today, the group said countries that “transfer arms to another country that are likely to be used in the commission of war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide risk being complicit in those crimes”.

The letter also cites a recent International Court of Justice decision – that a case alleging that Israel is committing acts of genocide against the Palestinians is “plausible” – as further reason to halt its arms transfers to Israel.



I've written emails to the government as well and signed several petitions, when will they finally wake up.



Every day a new low

Rights group details Israeli army dog attack on 4-year-old boy

Israeli forces released a military dog into the Hashash family apartment the morning of February 4 after raiding Balata refugee camp, near Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank, according to documentation collected by Defense for Children International – Palestine.

The dog ran into the apartment and began attacking four-year-old Ibrahim, tearing off his clothes in the incident and repeatedly biting him on the lower half of his body as he bled profusely, the group said. “The attack continued for about three minutes before Israeli forces entered the apartment and removed the dog from Ibrahim. An ambulance brought Ibrahim to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus, where he is being treated for internal and external injuries.”

DCIP documented four cases in 2023 where Palestinian children were attacked by Israeli military  dogs. These cases include a 13-year-old boy in Tulkarem, a 14-year-old girl in Jenin, and two siblings aged eight and 12 in Tubas