Press Releases

BADIL participated in the 34^th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council which took place in Geneva between 27 February and 24 March 2017. BADIL’s interventions included; one written statement, four oral statements, and two side events in addition to attending other side events and participating in a meeting with member representatives. 
 
BADIL submitted a statement under Item 3 on Children in Armed Conflict, which addressed Israels practice of extrajudicial killing.  BADIL called for the immediate protection of children’s rights in Palestine that are being continuously violated by the Israeli government and military.
 
Also under Item 3 on the Right to Adequate Housing, BADIL submitted a statement on the Israeli imposition of a discriminatory building permit regime. The statement also addressed the involvement of corporations and their complicity in human rights violations.  BADIL called upon all states to uphold their obligations to condemn and halt these violations.
 
BADIL gave an oral statement under Item 3 of the General Debate. Here, BADIL called for the immediate end to the ongoing displacement and transfer of Palestinian people through illegal Israeli policies.
 
BADIL also gave an oral statement under Item 7 condemning the annexation of Jerusalem and the ongoing colonization of the oPt. This statement expressed concern for the racist and discriminatory systems that have been put in place to benefit Jewish Israelis while simultaneously forcibly displacing the Palestinian population.  

In addition, BADIL, in partnership with several other Palestinian NGOs, met with three state representatives, and provided a briefing on the current human rights situation in Palestine. BADIL and the other NGOs spoke to these representatives about the human rights violations throughout the opt which included the oral testimony of a father (Muhammad Elayan) from Jerusalem whose son was killed extrajudicially, his home demolished by Israel as punishment, and his wife’s permanent residency status revoked.

On 17 March 2017, BADIL, along with Al-Haq, and St. Yves, conducted a side event on the issue of collective punishment in East Jerusalem. During the event, BADIL and the other partner organizations highlighted the Israeli policies and practices that collectively punish Palestinians. During the session, BADIL screened a short film entitled “Visualizing Occupied Jerusalem: Israeli Colonizers’ Violence” which sheds light on the coercive environment created in tandem with Israeli policies that lead to the forcible transfer of Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem. 

On 20 March 2017, under the title of “Human Rights in Palestine: Ongoing Violations and Severe Suppression”, BADIL held a second joint side event with Mezan Center and the Civic Coalition of Jerusalem, which highlighted Israeli violations of human rights in the oPt, with a special focus on policies of forcible transfer.