Israel’s occupation is illegal and indistinguishable from settler-colonialism, which must end as a pre-condition for the Palestinians to exercise their right to self-determination, the UN’s independent expert on the occupied Palestinian territory said today.
“For over 55 years, the Israeli military occupation has prevented the realisation of the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, violating each component of that right and wilfully pursuing the “de-Palestinianisation” of the occupied territory,” said Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, in a report to the General Assembly.
Albanese’s report found that the Israeli occupation violates Palestinian territorial sovereignty by seizing, annexing, fragmenting, and transferring its civilian population to the occupied territory. The occupation endangers the cultural existence of the Palestinian people by erasing or appropriating symbols expressing Palestinian identity and violates Palestinians’ ability to organise themselves as a people, free from alien domination and control, by repressing Palestinian political activity, advocacy and activism.
“This is, in essence, proof of the intent to colonise the occupied territory, and manifests Israel’s policies of domination through the “strategic fragmentation” of the occupied territory,” the expert said.
According to the report, the international community’s political, humanitarian, and economic approaches to resolving the Israel/Palestine “conflict” have failed without exception.
“These approaches conflate root causes with symptoms and serve to normalise Israel’s illegal occupation instead of challenging it. This is immoral and renders the regulatory and remedial function of international law futile,” Albanese said.
The report calls for “a paradigm shift”, which entails moving away from the narrative of “conflict” between Israel and the Palestine and recognising Israel’s “intentionally acquisitive, segregationist and repressive settler-colonial occupation.”
Albanese urged the international community to formally acknowledge and condemn the settler-colonial nature of the Israeli occupation, demand an immediate end to the illegal occupation, and call on Israel to withdraw its military presence and support to Israeli civilians in the colonies. She cautioned all States against making withdrawal subject to negotiations between Israel and Palestine.
“Meaningful discussions on a political solution for Palestine can only begin when the illegal occupation is dismantled once and for all,” the expert said.