Prometheus 6

Didn't it set off this particular round of intifada?

COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Report of the Fifth Special Session
(17-19 October 2000)

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL
Official Records, 2000

Supplement No. 22

II. Resolution adopted by the Commission at its fifth special session

S-5/1. Grave and massive violations of the human rights of the Palestinian people by Israel

The Commission on Human Rights,

Meeting in special session,

Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and the various provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Human Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,
Recalling Security Council resolutions 476 (1980) of 30 June 1980, 478 (1980) of 20 August 1980, 672 (1990) of 12 October 1990 and 1073 (1996) of 28 September 1996, and taking note of Council resolution 1322 (2000) of 7 October 2000,

Recalling also its previous resolutions on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem, the most recent of which was resolution 2000/6 of 17 April 2000,

Taking note of the report of the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Giorgio Giacomelli (E/CN.4/S-5/3), submitted on 17 October 2000, regarding his mission undertaken in accordance with Commission resolution 1993/2 A of 19 February 1993,

Condemning the provocative visit to Al-Haram al-Sharif on 28 September 2000 by Ariel Sharon, the Likud party leader, which triggered the tragic events that followed in occupied East Jerusalem and the other occupied Palestinian territories, resulting in a high number of deaths and injuries among Palestinian civilians,[P6: emphasis added]

Gravely concerned at the widespread, systematic and gross violations of human rights perpetrated by me Israeli occupying Power, in particular mass killings and collective punishments, such as demolition of houses and closure of the Palestinian territories, measures which constitute war crimes, flagrant violations of international humanitarian law and crimes against humanity,

Taking into account the principles of international law and international humanitarian law, particularly the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949 and Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions of 1977, and the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials of 1990, which prescribe that such officials should, inter alia, "minimize damage and injury, and respect and preserve human life" and "ensure that firearms are used only in appropriate circumstances in a manner likely to decrease the risk of unnecessary harm",

Bearing in mind the outcome of the Sharm el Sheikh summit of 17 October 2000,

1. Strongly condemns the disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force in violation of international humanitarian law by the Israeli occupying Power against innocent and unarmed Palestinian civilians, causing the death of 120 civilians, including many children, in the occupied territories, which constitutes a flagrant and grave violation of the right to life and also constitutes a war crime and a crime against humanity;

2. Calls upon Israel, the occupying Power, to put an immediate end to any use of force against unarmed civilians and to abide scrupulously by its legal obligations and responsibilities under the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War;

3. Calls upon the international community to take immediate effective measures to secure the cessation of violence by the Israeli occupying Power and to put an end to the ongoing violations of human rights of the Palestinian people in the occupied territories;

4. Affirms that the Israeli military occupation in itself constitutes a grave violation of the human rights of the Palestinian people;

5. Also affirms that the deliberate and systematic killing of civilians and children by the Israeli occupying authorities constitutes a flagrant and grave violation of the right to life and also constitutes a crime against humanity;

TBILISI, Georgia, March 17 — Two months after taking office, President Mikhail Saakashvili has touched off his first crisis by doing something that would seem quite unremarkable elsewhere: driving through his own territory.

He was stopped Sunday by armed men at the border of the renegade province of Adzharia, touching off a series of events that left his government in a standoff with the warlord who runs the province, Aslan Abashidze.

A confrontation was bound to come sooner or later, analysts say. But in attacking the problem directly by trying to cross the provincial border, Mr. Saakashvili has raised the possibility of armed conflict and put his young administration to a harsh test.

"If he succeeds in this he is very strong," said Ghia Nodia, a leading political analyst. "And if he is seen as a loser, this will of course become the beginning of a big problem for him also in Tbilisi."

The standoff is of keen interest to both Moscow and Washington, which have important interests in Georgia. It carries echoes of the proxy conflicts between the superpowers during the cold war.