Dear friends,This week's NGO Action News has just been published. The newsletter summarizes activities undertaken or planned by civil society organisations across the globe as well as UN action on the question of Palestine over the week. Please feel free to inform us about your activities and publications by emailing us at palestinianrights@un.org and to forward this newsletter to your supporters. We welcome your organization's contributions, questions or comments. Happy holidays to those celebrating and peace to all,
Division for Palestinian Rights
Department of Political Affairs
United Nations
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Global
· To prevent further deaths and injuries, on 21 December, Amnesty International called on the Israeli authorities to put an end to the excessive force allegedly used as part of its response to demonstrations in the OPT, which followed the U.S. statement on Jerusalem of 6 December.
Middle East
· In a joint press release (“Israel is Unable and Unwilling to Conduct Genuine Investigations and Prosecutions”) issued on 21 December , Al Mezan Center for Human Rights and three other Palestinian human rights organizations reported the submission of their fifth substantive communication to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The confidential communication examines Israel’s investigative system in light of the admissibility requirements under Article 17 of the ICC Statute, calling on the court to open an investigation into serious crimes allegedly committed during the 2014 Gaza war.
· Putting a human face to data provided by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics on unemployment in the Gaza Strip, B’Tselem published on 21 December personal accounts of college and university graduates in search of professional opportunities in Gaza.
North America
· The Palestinian American Research Center (PARC) has announced several research and travel fellowships during the 2018/19 academic year. Information about the application process and deadlines is available online.
· On 17 December, Al Shabaka-The Palestinian Policy Network hosted its first policy lab “Holding the Line on Jerusalem: Key Questions and Options” with Nadia Hijab and Zena Agha. The latter also took part in the debate “What Now for the Palestinians?”, held on Newshour Extra of the BBC World Service, together with Mouin Rabbani, Yezid Sayigh, Gill Hoffmann and David Makovsky.
Europe
· On 21 December, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) informed about the services provided by the Dunya Women’s Cancer Centre in Ramallah and its activities to raise awareness about the importance of early diagnosis of breast cancer.
United Nations
· On 21 December, the UN General Assembly adopted resolution A/ES-10/L.22 on the status of Jerusalem, reaffirming, inter alia, the provisions of Security Council resolution 478 (1980).
· On 19 December, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein called for an independent and impartial investigation into the killing of 29-year-old activist Ibrahim Abu Thurayeh on 15 December, during a protest near the Gaza perimeter fence. Having reportedly lost his legs after an Israeli airstrike on Gaza, Ibrahim was severely disabled and used a wheelchair. To ensure accountability for any crimes committed in the context of recent demonstrations in the OPT, the High Commissioner also called for all other incidents resulting in death or injury to be investigated. He further condemned unequivocally all attacks against civilians, including the indiscriminate shelling of Israeli civilian areas by Palestinian armed groups operating from Gaza.
· On 4 December, UNRWA reported the establishment of its first ever elected agency-wide student parliament. The newly elected members, representing all UNRWA fields of operation (West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria) gathered in November for a four-day workshop in Beirut.
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