Geneva: UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk stated on Wednesday that the "systematic asphyxiation of Palestinians' rights in the West Bank constitutes a particularly severe form of racial discrimination and segregation closely resembling the apartheid system the world has seen before." This statement was part of a new report issued in Geneva, highlighting that every aspect of Palestinian life in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is controlled and restricted by occupation forces through discriminatory laws, policies, and practices.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the report documented decades of severe racial discrimination by the Israeli occupation in the West Bank, noting a rapid deterioration since December 2022 amid a climate of impunity and widespread violence by occupation forces and settlers. It emphasizes the application of two separate sets of laws and policies by Israeli authorities for Israeli settlers and Palestinians, resulting in disparity and inequality across fundamental issues like freedom of movement and access to resources such as land and water.
The report highlights that since October 7, the Israeli occupation has increased its use of unlawful force, arbitrary detention, and torture, imposed tighter restrictions on movement, and accelerated settlement expansion. It also notes the compounded deterioration by the continued and escalating violence by settlers, often with the consent, support, or participation of Israeli occupation forces.
Further, the report underscores that the military legal system serves as a key tool for controlling Palestinians in the West Bank, documenting patterns of unlawful killings and other forms of violence by the state and settlers. It includes numerous examples of lethal force used without justification in a discriminatory manner against Palestinians, with clear intent to kill.
The report stresses that illegal settlement expansion continues relentlessly, with plans to build 19 new settlements intended to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state. Turk called on Israeli authorities to repeal all discriminatory laws, policies, and practices against Palestinians and to bring an end to their unlawful presence in the occupied territories, including dismantling settlements and respecting Palestinians' right to self-determination.