The report published today by the Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian Territories brings shame to the Human Rights Council. It is clear by her previous statements, before and after the October 7 massacre that, under the guise of the UN, the Special Rapporteur continues her campaign of delegitimizing the very creation and existence of the State of Israel.
Since she took office, the whole premise of the Special Rapporteur’s argument is that the very establishment of the State of Israel was a “colonialist” project, denying both Israel’s right to exist, as well as the historic ties of the Jewish people to the land of Israel. It is therefore no surprise, that the premise of this report is that the creation of the Jewish State in 1948, was an act of “settler colonialism”, and genocide is an “inherent part” of that act.
Before October 7, the Special Rapporteur accused the Jewish lobby of subjugating America; dismissed Israeli security concerns as paranoia; talked of “Israel’s greed”; compared Israel’s actions of that to the Nazis, and legitimized terrorist actions by Hamas and other terrorist organizations. Since the war, she has continued this campaign unabated, excusing and legitimizing the attacks of October 7, dismissing their antisemitic nature and dismissing any concrete evidence of acts of savagery that were perpetrated on that day.
It is clear from the report that the Special Rapporteur began with the conclusion that Israel is committing genocide, and then tried to prove her distorted and politically-driven views with weak arguments and justifications.
The report is therefore an obscene inversion of reality, where a so-called expert can make outrageous accusations, the more extreme the better, that hinges on telling a story in which Hamas, its abuse of civilians and civilians’ infrastructure, and its utter brutality simply disappear. This is clear as she tries to excuse Hamas of using Palestinians as human shields, takes its arguments as facts and takes Hamas death figures as gospel.
It is hardly surprising that those who have no qualms about distorting the facts, have no hesitation about distorting the law. The very attempt to level the charge of genocide against Israel is an outrageous distortion of the Genocide Convention. It is an attempt to empty the word genocide of its unique force and special meaning; and turn the Convention itself into a tool of terrorists, who have total disdain for life and for the law, against those trying to defend against them.
As demonstrated in word and deed, Israel’s war is against Hamas, not against Palestinian civilians. This is a matter of explicit government policy, military directives and procedures. It is no less an expression of Israel’s core values. As stated, our commitment to uphold the law, including our obligations under international humanitarian law, is unwavering.
Israel utterly rejects the report. It is simply an extension of a campaign seeking to undermine the very establishment of the Jewish State. Instead of seeking the truth, this Special Rapporteur tries to fit weak arguments to her distorted and obscene inversion of reality. It is yet another stain on her biased mandate, and only brings the Human Rights Council further into disrepute.
ENDS