Occupying Israeli forces continue their brutalities against the Palestinian people, with near-daily deadly raids into Palestinian towns and refugee camps in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli troops yesterday shot dead another Palestinian youth, identified as Mohammad Abdul Hakim, during a raid into Al Ain refugee camp in Nablus. He was 23. A day earlier on Tuesday, the occupying forces shot dead three Palestinian motorists in Nablus. The military also prevented medical staff from approaching the scene, and eye witnesses claimed that the Israeli forces deliberately hit surveillance cameras in the area to hide true circumstances of the shooting. Violence has reached new heights ever since Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right, ultranationalist coalition took office in December.
So far this year, over 161 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, the highest death toll in over a decade, according to The Associated Press. The victims also included stone-throwing youths protesting the incursions as well as innocent bystanders. Palestinian attacks targeting Israelis have also killed at least 25 people this year. The far-right Israeli government has refused to engage with the Palestinian leadership and sought to expand Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The State of Qatar has always been a staunch advocate of rights of the Palestinian people in line with international legitimacy resolutions. In a memorandum submitted to the International Court of Justice this week, Qatar condemned in the strongest terms the ongoing and illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine, and demanded the court to conclude that Israel's obligations under international law require it to immediately stop its illegal occupation, in addition to providing full compensation for the damage and suffering caused by the occupation. The memorandum warned that the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories aims to completely and permanently deprive the Palestinian people of their inherent right to self-determination, and noted that the occupation amounts to being an illegal and racial apartheid regime.
The memo also documents many examples of Israel's human rights violations, war crimes committed by it, and its crimes against humanity against the Palestinian people. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has also called on the international community to assume its responsibilities, and to take the necessary measures, to prosecute and hold the Israeli war criminals accountable, and to provide international protection for the Palestinian people. In light of the ongoing deadly incursions and settlement activity by Israel, the international community must do more than voicing concerns and work towards finding a sustainable two-state solution.
