On an afternoon on a Sunday Nitsana Darshan Leitner is a lawyer from the Israel Law Center in Tel Aviv, outlined the challenges facing Israel State of Israel would face from the United Nations over the next couple of weeks.
Her serene, almost peaceful manner of speaking hides the ferocious opposition Israel will likely face from its UN Human Rights Council and its three-member Commission of Inquiry. This was enacted by the UN in order to “investigate both within the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel any allegations of violations of international humanitarian and other human rights law until and including 13th April, 2021.”
Although Israel has had vigorous UN investigation in recent times The main differentiator is that the present UN inquiry was established as a permanent probe to investigate Israel’s IDF. It has not been given an expiration date.
Darshan-Leitner founded Shurat HaDin in 2003. “The UN Human Rights Council inquiry is not coming out from thin air,” she explains. It’s related to happenings at The Hague’s International Court of Justice.”
In 1998, the Rome Statute established the ICC. The court is authorized to pursue individuals who commit crimes such as genocide and crimes against humanity. Israel as well as the US as well as a number of other countries have not signed or ratified the statute, and therefore are not legally obliged.
Fatou Bensouda (the ICC prosecutor at The Hague) announced in March 2021 that she will open a war crimes investigation against Israel and Hamas.
A ruling from the International Court in favor of Israel could have wide-ranging implications. nitsana darshan leitner A majority of European countries as well as Scandinavians are members of the court and are legally bound by the court’s rulings. If the ICC declared that IDF soldiers had committed war crimes All Israelis who were involved as soldiers in IDF military operations may be detained. This includes people who travel in member countries such as Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. A severe economic penalty could be placed on the Jewish State as well as the banking industry.
In addition, Israel might also face further risks such as sanctions, weapons embargoes, and boycotts. El Al or other Israeli airlines could not be allowed in certain countries.
Bensouda’s term was over as prosecutor, and she was succeeded by Karim Khan (a British barrister). Bensouda had 14 investigations that were inherited by the prosecutor who replaced her. Eight of the investigations were in the process of being completed. Darshan Leitner explained how to the dismay of Palestinians, he classified the cases on the dockets of his court as “in the process of preparation”. This polite method of describing the allegations were not of sufficient merit or urgency that merited the court’s attention.
Darshan Leitner: “This upset the Palestinian Authority.” “They could not understand the reasons behind their incredible efforts to get to the prosecutor and open an investigation have been thwarted,” Darshan-Leitner said.
The PA requested for the creation of a commission within the International Court of Justice. This would allow Karim Khan who was unable accept the PA’s request to reactivate ICC investigation against Israel in the past, to change his opinion.
Darshan Leitner states that the PA has continued to accuse Israel for apartheid and war crimes since then. The Amnesty International report, released in early February, in February, accused Israel of committing apartheid violations in and outside the Green Line. The report claimed that Israel had “established and maintained an institutionalized system oppression” towards Palestinians. Additionally it blamed Israel for its racial segregation of Palestinians which dates back to 1948.
https://www.loc.gov/item/guide-to-law-online/israel/ Darshan-Leitner explains that Palestinian claims against Israel at the International Criminal Court have focused on two issues: IDF military operations and the issue of Israeli settlements, which they say are war crimes.
Karim Khan (the ICC prosecutor) is being called upon by Palestinians to ask Israel to be examined under the “apartheidaccusation. The new allegations were not part of the preliminary investigation Bensouda conducted. However, “whatever gets this investigation running is legitimate in their eyes, and it does not matter what the case is or if it’s real,” she says.
KARIM KHAN, new ICC prosecutor. (Credit: Michael Kooren/Reuters)
The UN’s third-member inquiry commission, which is headed by Navi Pillay of South Africa and includes Miloon Kothari from Australia as well as Chris Sidoti, is the latest attempt by Palestinians to get their message across to The Hague court.
Darshan Leitner says that Pillay Kothari, Sidoti, and Kothari have a history of biases in favor of Israel. “Pillay is a known victim of apartheid. She also has claimed that she was a victim of Israel of apartheid. The others are not far behind.”
The 49th session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC49) will be held at its office in Geneva from February 28 to April 1.
The primary attraction of the session is likely to be the report the commission of inquiry is expected to release regarding Operation Guardian of the Walls. This was the Israeli operation that took place in Gaza in the month of May 2021 as an answer to the missiles fired at Israel by Hamas. This session is likely to be a time of Israel being accused of war crime and apartheid, as well as crimes against humanity.
Israel Law Center Darshan Leitner says that even while the State of Israel is not cooperating or becoming involved in the commission of enquiry, Shurat Hasan cannot remain silent and ignore all the accusations that are sure to be presented.
Darshan Leitner says Darshan Leitner says that “there are two major options to defuse the Pillay Committee.” “One is the practical response – responding to the accusations of apartheid. Another is the personal perspective – focusing on the lack of integrity of its leaders.”
She said that past experiences have shown that Shurat HaiDin, or any other person, will be unable to persuade people who have a negative inclination towards Israel to alter their views.
aviel darshan leitner Instead, Shurat HaDin suggests that Shurat haDin is attempting to prove that all the members of the inquiry committee have a bias against Israel. The UN is willing to sacrifice its fundamental values and any notion of fairness to discredit Israel.
Darshan Leitner: “We are planning to launch a campaign that calls for the resignation of every COI members.” “We intend to create mass petitions, to take legal actions against COI members, and anyone else who supports this committee” Darshan Leitner declares.
Additionally, Shurat HaDin will attempt to show that the PA rather than the State of Israel, is the main culprit in the violation of human rights. “We are going to look through their legislation and draw out what we have learned about the discrimination against women, children as well as members of the LGBTQ community, as well as their broken law system. Did you not know that PA law permits a man to legally rape his spouse of his partner? Marital rape is not an offense under their ‘advanced human-rights-friendly’ legislation.
“This is but a minor illustration of the “champions” of human rights who the UN is eager to help. As they claim Israel as a true democracy, of apartheid. they advocate a dictatorship that has not held elections since 15 years, and that systematically infringes on the human rights of its citizens.”
Darshan Leitner declares that Shurat HaDin will also reveal the discrimination against minorities in Gaza and Palestine. The number of Christians is decreasing steadily. Islamic extremists who demand the murder of ‘infidels’ are growing. They’re not any worse than ISIS figures.
Shurat HaDin’s head believes Israel committed serious mistakes in the handling of the previous UNHRC inquiry commission in 2009, headed by Richard Goldstone, South African jurist. Jerusalem was not willing to cooperate in that notorious episode with the Goldstone Commission. It claimed that it was biased that was governed by an agenda that was predetermined and would not allow it to legitimize its cooperation. Israel was subject to many tensions following the final, harshly critiqued report.
“While Israel did the right choice in refusing to aid or participate in the vile witch-hunt based on Goldstone, I disagree that we played our cards properly. It’s not enough to simply avoid the UNHRC and label them as prejudiced or a hater. aviel darshan leitner The government had to complement its decision with an planned and well-organized campaign to disseminate the government’s narrative and counterattack against the antisemitic UNHRC. She claims, “We can act, speak up, and use legal recourse in situations in which the government’s hands are tied.”
Darshan Leitner is trying to fill in the gaps. She summarises the current state of affairs and states that the PA’s goal was to influence The Hague Chief Prosecutor. Shurat Hadin To sum it all she wrote, “If I can remove the bases of the commission to expose how flawed it is, and how apartheid’s claim is wrong and how it’s better suited to the chief prosecutor of The Hague, it will show that it has no value.”
“If we do not take this action and the result is bad. The prosecutor may be influenced and change his decision. This would be a terrible and catastrophic development. It can’t go on for long.”
