Ramallah: On the occasion of International Human Rights Day, the Human Rights and Democracy Media Center “SHAMS” called for not trading human rights for political interests, and not discriminating in the application of this declaration among peoples, nationalities, and communities as it is a universal constitutional document that protects human rights and their sanctity from any abuse. Human rights are inalienable and indivisible, and the rights of the Palestinian people have been continuously violated since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which coincided with the Nakba of the Palestinian people, their displacement from their land, the violation of their rights, and the commission of heinous crimes against them by the Israeli occupation. The manifestations of the Palestinian people’s tragedy are still evident and ongoing, as the ongoing genocide in Gaza is the best evidence of the occupation’s violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and its commission of war crimes and genocide against the Palestinian people.
“SHAMS” Center emphasized that these crimes of the occupation, which target civilians and civilian objects and are met with suspicious international silence, clearly reveal the impotence of the international system and the complicity of some countries with these crimes. These countries exploit the existing international system to serve their interests, rendering international institutions, especially the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court, and the United Nations Security Council, as bodies without spirit, empty structures whose decisions or recommendations hold no value. All that has been issued by these institutions regarding the cessation of the genocide against the Palestinian people has not been adhered to by the occupation.
“Shams” Center reminded the world that the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights comes again this year amid the severe violation of all the rights and freedoms enshrined in the declaration by the Israeli occupation through its ongoing crimes against the Palestinian people. The rights and freedoms that this declaration grants to all humans, regardless of their color, race, gender, religion, language, national origin, or political affiliation, are still being stripped from the Palestinian people before the eyes of a motionless world. This declaration, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1948, by Resolution (217 A), has become the common standard that encompasses all the peoples of the world, setting forth fundamental human rights that all countries and governments must protect and preserve from any violation.
“SHAMS” Center emphasized that this declaration, which came after the massacres, horrors, and atrocities committed during World War II to prevent their recurrence in the future, still sees these crimes continuing against the Palestinian people. The world must respect its international commitments and obligations in protecting human rights and adhere to all provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All the rights enshrined in this declaration are still being violated and stripped from the Palestinian people due to the genocide waged by the occupation, whether in Gaza or the West Bank. This includes the systematic targeting of civilians and civilian objects, the violation of the right to life, health, education, movement, and work, and the destruction of civilian objects (schools, universities, institutes, kindergartens, cultural centers, residential buildings and homes, hospitals, medical centers, ambulances, government buildings and municipalities, infrastructure, and the destruction of water, electricity, and sewage networks).
“SHAMS” Center pointed out that the excessive use of force by the occupation and the commission of genocide against the Palestinian people since October 7, 2023, has led to the martyrdom of approximately 45,535 individuals in the occupied Palestinian territories, the injury of approximately 111,790 individuals, the displacement of approximately 2 million citizens, the execution of approximately 17,200 arrests, and approximately 11,000 missing persons, including approximately 17,600 children, approximately 12,050 women, 1,140 Palestinian families completely erased from the civil registry, and 3,463 families exterminated by the occupation, leaving only one survivor.
In addition, the severe violation of the right to health through the destruction of hospitals, health centers, medical staff, and emergency services has been referred to as “health genocide,” where the health system was completely destroyed. This led to the martyrdom of approximately 1,055 medical personnel, the arrest of more than 319 health workers, the removal of 34 hospitals and 80 health centers from service, the targeting of 162 health institutions, and the destruction of more than 134 ambulances. Furthermore, the destruction of the infrastructure of health facilities, especially water and sewage systems, and the prevention of the entry of humanitarian aid, particularly medicines, vaccines, medical supplies, and food, have resulted in the spread of infectious diseases. Cities, towns, and camps in Gaza have become fertile ground for the spread of insects and rodents that carry diseases. In Gaza, there are approximately 12,500 cancer patients, 2,136,000 cases of infectious diseases due to displacement, 71,338 cases of hepatitis, 60,000 pregnant women at risk, and 350,000 chronic patients in danger due to the blockade on medicine. The educational journey in Gaza has not been spared from these violations; the occupation has destroyed 132 schools and universities completely and 348 schools and universities partially, killed 12,780 students, deprived 785,000 students of education, killed 755 teachers and educational staff, executed 144 scientists and university academics, and violated the right to housing by destroying homes and residential buildings and displacing citizens from their homes. About 160,500 housing units were completely destroyed, 193,000 housing units partially destroyed, and 83,000 housing units became uninhabitable. The right to worship was also violated through the destruction of churches, mosques, and cemeteries, with the occupation destroying approximately 819 mosques completely, partially destroying 153 homes, destroying 3 churches and 19 cemeteries. The occupation also targeted journalists and media institutions, severely violating freedom of opinion, expression, and truth reporting, with the number of journalist martyrs in Gaza reaching approximately 190.
“SHAMS” Center called on the signatory countries of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the member states of the United Nations General Assembly, the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions, the United Nations Security Council, the Human Rights Council, and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories to take urgent action and exert pressure on the occupation government to implement all provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to cease committing crimes against innocent civilians in the occupied Palestinian territories. This is a call for the triumph of the values of freedom, justice, and human dignity and the realization of the principles and purposes of the United Nations, foremost among them the protection and preservation of international peace and security.