UN Human Rights Council calls for halt to arms sales to Israel
The UN Human Rights Council demanded this Friday, April 5, an end to all arms sales to Israel at war with Hamas in Gaza, in a resolution citing fears of “genocide” against the Palestinians. , a term that sparks lively debate.
An Israeli soldier in Khan Younes, January 27, 2024. © Sam McNeil / AP
By: RFI with AFP
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This is the first position taken by the Human Rights Council on the
conflict
that has raged since October 7 and the unprecedented attack by Hamas in
Israel
. The tone of the text is very harsh towards Israel but the Council has no binding means of imposing its resolutions.
Twenty-eight of the 47 members of the Council voted in favor of the text, six voted no, including the United States and Germany. Thirteen countries, including France, India and Japan, abstained.
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“
You all need to wake up.
”
“
A yes vote is a vote for Hamas
,” accused Meirav Shahar, the Israeli ambassador, before the assembly. “
You all need to wake up and put an end to this genocide broadcast live on television around the world and killing thousands of innocent Palestinians
,” said Palestinian representative Ibrahim Mohammad Khraishi.
France abstained because the reference to
genocide
cannot “
be included in a text of a scope such as that of a resolution of this Council without the qualification having been validated by a jurisdictional authority empowered to do so. to do
,” explained Ambassador Jérôme Bonnafont.
The resolution, which was very critical of Israel, was amended again on Thursday to try to rally as many members as possible. The reference to the notion of genocide was thus removed in several passages of the text.
However, it continues to refer to it by “
expressing its deep concern at reports of serious violations of human rights and serious violations of international humanitarian law, in particular possible war crimes and crimes against humanity
» and facing “
the determination of the International Court of Justice that there is a plausible risk of genocide
”.
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End of the blockade
The document demands that Israel “
end its occupation
” of Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem. It also demands that Israel “
immediately lift its blockade on the Gaza Strip and all other forms of collective punishment
.”
This resolution also calls on "
all States to cease the sale, transfer and delivery of weapons, ammunition and other military equipment to Israel... in order to prevent further violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses human rights
". The draft “
condemns Israel's use of wide-range explosive weapons in populated areas of Gaza
” and the use of artificial intelligence “
to assist in military decision-making that could contribute to crimes international
”.
Last week, the UN Security Council in New York adopted a
resolution calling for a ceasefire
- thanks to the abstention of Washington, Israel's closest ally. However, this has not yet had an impact on the ground. The draft resolution does not name Hamas, but it condemns rocket attacks against Israeli civilian areas.
The amended draft resolution
also “condemns attacks against civilians, including on October 7, 2023, and demands the immediate release of all remaining hostages, arbitrarily detained persons and victims of enforced disappearance, as well as the guarantee of access immediate humanitarian action to the hostages and detainees
.
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