UN reports highlight Israeli infringement of Palestinians` rights 4 United Nations

Regarding closures, the Secretary-General says that Israel’s closures
have had serious consequences, including economic ones, on
Palestinians. “The restrictions continue to undermine the enjoyment
of other rights guaranteed under international human rights law by
effectively impeding access to health care, education and
employment.”


In the West Bank, restrictions have blocked access to such services
as health and education, while “approximately 1.4 million
Palestinians are forcibly confined in the Gaza Strip, where social
and economic conditions are deteriorating rapidly,” he writes.


The wall erected in June 2002 by Israel to separate it from the West
Bank further impedes access for Palestinians, the report says. “In
addition to its immediate impact on freedom of movement, the wall and
the associated restrictions of movement significantly undermine the
enjoyment of a host of other fundamental human rights.”


It calls on the Assembly and the international community to take
measures to further the implementation of the decisions, resolutions
and recommendations of the Security Council, ICJ and UN human rights
mechanisms.


The Secretary-General also says the Assembly should ask for the
Council’s help in putting into practice the ICJ’s 2004 advisory
opinion that said that the building of a barrier in the occupied
Palestinian territory is illegal, called for an end to construction
and said Israel should make reparations for any damage caused.


--SPA