A/RES/63/98 GA

United Nations A/RES/63/98 General Assembly Distr.: General 18 December 2008 Sixty-third session Agenda item 30 08-47667 Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 5 December 2008 [on the report of the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) (A/63/401)] 63/98. Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem The General Assembly, Recalling the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 0F1 Recalling also the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1F2 the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights0H2 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, 2F 3 and affirming that these human rights instruments must be respected in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, Reaffirming its relevant resolutions, including resolution 62/109 of 17 December 2007, as well as those adopted at its tenth emergency special session, Recalling the relevant resolutions of the Commission on Human Rights and the Human Rights Council, Recalling also the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, and stressing the need for their implementation, Having considered the report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories 3F4 and the report of the Secretary-General, 4F5 Taking note of the recent reports of the Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, 5F6 _______________ 1 Resolution 217 A (III). 2 See resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex. 3 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1577, No. 27531. 4 See A/63/273. 5 A/63/518. 6 A/HRC/7/17; see also A/63/326. A/RES/63/98 2 Recalling the advisory opinion rendered on 9 July 2004 by the International Court of Justice, 6F 7 and recalling also General Assembly resolutions ES-10/15 of 20 July 2004 and ES-10/17 of 15 December 2006, Noting in particular the Court’s reply, including that the construction of the wall being built by Israel, the occupying Power, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including in and around East Jerusalem, and its associated regime are contrary to international law, Aware of the responsibility of the international community to promote human rights and ensure respect for international law, and recalling in this regard its resolution 2625 (XXV) of 24 October 1970, Reaffirming the principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force, Reaffirming also the applicability of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, 7F8 to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and other Arab territories occupied by Israel since 1967, Reaffirming further the obligation of the States parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention 1H8 under articles 146, 147 and 148 with regard to penal sanctions, grave breaches and responsibilities of the High Contracting Parties, Reaffirming that all States have the right and the duty to take actions in conformity with international law and international humanitarian law to counter deadly acts of violence against their civilian population in order to protect the lives of their citizens, Stressing the need for full compliance with the Israeli-Palestinian agreements reached within the context of the Middle East peace process, including the Sharm el-Sheikh understandings, and the implementation of the Quartet road map to a permanent two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, 8F9 Stressing also the need for the full implementation of the Agreement on Movement and Access and the Agreed Principles for the Rafah Crossing, both of 15 November 2005, to allow for the freedom of movement of the Palestinian civilian population within and into and out of the Gaza Strip, Expressing grave concern about the continuing systematic violation of the human rights of the Palestinian people by Israel, the occupying Power, including that arising from the excessive use of force, the use of collective punishment, the reoccupation and closure of areas, the confiscation of land, the establishment and expansion of settlements, the construction of a wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory in departure from the Armistice Line of 1949, the destruction of property and infrastructure, and all other actions by it designed to change the legal status, geographical nature and demographic composition of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, _______________ 7 See A/ES-10/273 and Corr.1; see also Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Advisory Opinion, I.C.J. Reports 2004, p. 136. 8 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, No. 973. 9 S/2003/529, annex. A/RES/63/98 3 Gravely concerned about the military actions that have been carried out since 28 September 2000 and that have led to thousands of deaths among Palestinian civilians, including hundreds of children, and tens of thousands of injuries, Expressing deep concern about the continuing deterioration in the humanitarian and security situation in the Gaza Strip, including that resulting from the Israeli military actions against civilian areas, and the prolonged closure of crossings into and out of the Gaza Strip, as well as from the firing of rockets into Israel and the negative impact of the events of June 2007 leading to the unlawful takeover of Palestinian Authority institutions in the Gaza Strip, Expressing deep concern also about the vast destruction caused by the Israeli occupying forces to Palestinian homes, properties, vital infrastructure, agricultural lands and institutions of the Palestinian Authority, and expressing deep concern about the short- and long-term detrimental impact of such destruction on the socio-economic and humanitarian conditions and human rights of the Palestinian civilian population, Expressing deep concern further about the Israeli policy of closures, severe restrictions, and a permit regime that obstruct the freedom of movement of persons and goods, including medical and humanitarian personnel and goods, throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and about the consequent violation of the human rights of the Palestinian people and the negative impact on their socio-economic situation, which remains that of a dire humanitarian crisis, particularly in the Gaza Strip, Concerned in particular about the continued establishment of Israeli checkpoints in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the transformation of several of these checkpoints into structures akin to permanent border crossings inside the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which are severely impairing the territorial contiguity of the Territory and undermining efforts and aid aimed at rehabilitating and developing the Palestinian economy, adversely affecting other aspects of the socio-economic conditions of the Palestinian people, Expressing deep concern that thousands of Palestinians, including hundreds of children and women, continue to be held in Israeli prisons or detention centres under harsh conditions that impair their well-being, and expressing concern about the ill treatment and harassment of any Palestinian prisoners and all reports of torture, Convinced of the need for an international presence to monitor the situation, to contribute to ending the violence and protecting the Palestinian civilian population and to help the parties implement the agreements reached, and, in this regard, recalling the positive contribution of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron, Emphasizing the right of all people in the region to the enjoyment of human rights as enshrined in the international human rights covenants, 1. Reiterates that all measures and actions taken by Israel, the occupying Power, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, in violation of the relevant provisions of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949,2H8 and contrary to the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, are illegal and have no validity; 2. Demands that Israel, the occupying Power, cease all practices and actions that violate the human rights of the Palestinian people, including extrajudicial A/RES/63/98 4 executions, and that it respect human rights law and comply with its legal obligations in this regard; 3. Also demands that Israel, the occupying Power, comply fully with the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 3H8 and cease immediately all measures and actions taken in violation and in breach of the Convention, including all of its settlement activities and the construction of the wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including in and around East Jerusalem, which, inter alia, gravely and detrimentally impact the human rights of the Palestinian people; 4. Condemns all acts of violence, including all acts of terror, provocation, incitement and destruction, especially the excessive use of force by the Israeli occupying forces against Palestinian civilians, which have caused extensive loss of life and vast numbers of injuries, including among children, massive destruction of homes, properties, agricultural lands and vital infrastructure, and internal displacement of civilians; 5. Expresses grave concern at the firing of rockets against Israeli civilian areas resulting in loss of life and injury; 6. Notes the Israeli withdrawal in 2005 from within the Gaza Strip and parts of the northern West Bank and the dismantlement of the settlements therein as a step towards the implementation of the road map;4H9 7. Calls upon Israel, the occupying Power, to comply strictly with its obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, with respect to the alteration of the character, status and demographic composition of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem; 8. Demands that Israel, the occupying Power, comply with its legal obligations under international law, as mentioned in the advisory opinion rendered on 9 July 2004 by the International Court of Justice 5H7 and as demanded in resolutions ES-10/15 of 20 July 2004 and ES-10/13 of 21 October 2003, and that it immediately cease the construction of the wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including in and around East Jerusalem, dismantle forthwith the structure situated therein, repeal or render ineffective all legislative and regulatory acts relating thereto, and make reparation for all damage caused by the construction of the wall, which has gravely impacted the human rights and the socio-economic living conditions of the Palestinian people; 9. Reiterates the need for respect for the unity and territorial contiguity and integrity of all of the Occupied Palestinian Territory and for guarantees of the freedom of movement of persons and goods within the Palestinian territory, including movement into and from East Jerusalem, into and from the Gaza Strip, and to and from the outside world; 10. Calls upon Israel, the occupying Power, to cease its imposition of closures and restrictions on movement, and, in this regard, to implement the Agreement on Movement and Access and the Agreed Principles for the Rafah Crossing, both of 15 November 2005; 11. Urges Member States to continue to provide emergency assistance to the Palestinian people to alleviate the financial crisis and the dire socio-economic and humanitarian situation, particularly in the Gaza Strip; 12. Emphasizes the need to preserve the Palestinian institutions and infrastructure for the provision of vital public services to the Palestinian civilian A/RES/63/98 5 population and the promotion of human rights, including civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights; 13. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its sixty-fourth session on the implementation of the present resolution. 64th plenary meeting 5 December 2008

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