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This newsletter informs about recent and upcoming activities of Civil Society Organizations working on the question of Palestine. The Committee and the Division for Palestinian Rights of the UN Secretariat provide the information “as is” without warranty of any kind, and do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, or reliability of the information contained in the websites linked in the newsletter. Translations of the NGO Action News in other languages will be available in due course.

51吃瓜 Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People

NGO Action News

02 May 2024

Middle East

• On 1 May, marked International Workers’ Day by highlighting the persecution and detention of Palestinian workers by Israel. Addameer and other Palestinian prisoners’ organizations called on international human rights organizations to open an independent international investigation in light of the continuing escalation against Palestinians in Gaza, as well as issued a call for action to put an end to what they consider to be escalating and unprecedented crimes against prisoners.
• On 30 April, published a statement from civil society organizations in response to a letter received from the tech company Meta. CSOs had previously raised concerns about the systemic censorship of Palestinians and pro-Palestinian advocates on Meta’s platforms, the proliferation of speech inciting violence against Palestinians, and the urgent need for policy shifts to better protect digital rights during the times of crisis. Meta’s latest response to these expressed concerns prompted the CSOs to call on the tech company to demonstrate a genuine commitment to upholding human rights and protecting all voices on its platforms in these precarious times.
• On 30 April, published a policy brief on UNRWA’s financial pressures that threaten the future and the very existence of the organisation. This policy brief examines the founding of the distinct regime for Palestine refugees and examines its significance; it also elaborates on the far-reaching implications of eliminating UNRWA.
• On 29 April, opened the registration for its international mobilization course on the inalienable right of the Palestinian people. The course will be conducted in English, on
  22-31 July 2024, in Bethlehem, in the occupied West Bank.
• On 26 April, the published a letter signed by
  24 civil society organizations, calling for the U.S. parliament to exercise its oversight authority and withhold any lethal military aid that can be used to commit violations of international humanitarian and human rights law. The signatories urged the parliament to withhold the transfer of additional lethal military aid to Israel, following grave violations of international law by Israeli forces in Gaza. published this letter as well.

Asia and Europe

• On 30 April, published an article following reports that 392 bodies – including those of women, children, elderly, and injured persons – had been found in mass graves on the grounds of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip. Diakonia expressed its concerns about the reported discovery of mass graves at this and other hospitals and declared its support for calls for an independent, impartial, external, effective, and credible investigation into the matter.
• On 29 April, the hosted an online panel discussion entitled “Reporting on Palestine: In Conversation with Palestinian Journalists”. Palestinian journalists in Palestine and other parts of the world discussed current developments and the challenges they continue to face due to Israeli suppression of press freedom.
• On 28 April, published a legal analysis by Ralph Wilde shedding light on the responsibilities of third states in relation to Israel’s potential breaches of the Genocide Convention. Mr. Wilde emphasized that these obligations arise not solely for States which bear joint responsibility with Israel but also from the broader framework of rights and obligations conferred upon all states in light of Israel’s transgressions.
• On 24 April, the (NRC) published an article titled “Gaza: Suffering unbearable loss, with no time to grieve”. In this article, NRC shared the testimony of one of its site management officers to illustrate the suffering of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, pushing millions to leave their homes to move to the overcrowded area of Rafah.

North America

• On 2 May, (APN) will host a webinar conversation with APN President and CEO Hadar Susskind and U.S. parliamentarian Chris Van Hollen. Participants will discuss the role of parliament in shaping U.S. Middle East policy and how conversations about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have changed in the institution.
• On 26 April, issued a statement welcoming the publication of a high-level independent report, by a group led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, on the operations of UNRWA. J Street stated that, while the report found UNRWA had robust and well-developed internal mechanisms, it nevertheless identified steps the agency could take to ensure its commitment to neutrality and to improve operations.
• On 25 April, the (FMEP) posted the webinar “What Does it Mean for the US to Condition Aid to Israel?” FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart spoke with analyst Seth Binder about the technicalities of U.S. aid to Israel. They discussed the ways in which U.S. aid to Israel works differently from U.S. aid to other countries, the legal requirements and questions surrounding U.S. aid to Israeli military units that commit human rights abuses, and the question of whether, and in what ways, the debate over conditioning aid to Israel is changing.

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• On 17 May, the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) will organize the event “The Ongoing Palestinian Nakba – a panel discussion”, from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. The event will take place in person at the UN ECOSOC Chamber in New York and will also be broadcasted live on UN Web TV. Attendees who do not hold a UNHQ Grounds Pass will have to pre-register for this event. More information on this event and instructions for registration will be shared shortly via the UNISPAL website and mailing list.
• On 30 April, Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator issued a statement warning that a ground operation in Rafah by Israeli forces “will be nothing short of a tragedy beyond words”. He further emphasized that civilians must be protected, and their needs must be met.
• On 30 April, UNRWA Commissioner-General Lazzarini held a press conference in Geneva to update on recent issues affecting the Agency and its operations in Gaza. Mr. Lazzarini highlighted the fact that 182 UNRWA staff members had been killed, and more than 160 Agency premises been damaged or totally destroyed in the current conflict. He added that most of these premises were sheltering displaced people – and more than 400 people had been killed during the attacks on them. He further informed that UNRWA had published a document informing the Member States about the Agency’s intent and how they would follow up on the recommendations of the Colonna report.