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Demanding accountability for Palestinians in Gaza and an end to impunity
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In December 2019, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) concluded her preliminary examination of the ‘Situation in Palestine’. However, before proceeding to investigation, she decided to ask the Court for a ruling confirming that the "territory" over which the Court may exercise its jurisdiction comprises the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza. The Israeli Attorney General (AG) published a memorandum opposing the ICC’s exercise of jurisdiction and the Prosecutor’s position.
In June 2020, Adalah issued a report in response to the AG. The report exposed the flaws in his position, and found that his memorandum contradicts positions that he himself put forward before the Israeli Supreme Court (SCT), as well as SCT caselaw. The cases and the caselaw examined in Adalah’s report also show that the Israeli legal system has made Gaza into a legal “black hole”, and by this, a vacuum has been created. These findings lead to the conclusion that, contrary to the AG's memorandum, the ICC must exercise jurisdiction in defense of victims in Gaza, who have been left with no domestic legal recourse or remedy, and that a system of impunity and lack of accountability prevails both in Israeli civil tort law and in criminal law. Adalah’s report was cited in several amicus briefs submitted by practitioners to the ICC. Read the report
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COVID-19 emergency: Defending the rights of Palestinians
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From the outbreak of COVID-19, Adalah worked to secure access of Palestinian citizens of Israel to health, education, and socio-economic rights, as well as civil liberties’ protections in response to the state’s discriminatory practices and the government’s illegal decree of tens of Emergency Regulations. Adalah brought 50 legal actions, including 15 petitions before the Israeli Supreme Court (SCT), to date. Several of those cases challenged violations of the rights of Palestinian prisoners from the OPT incarcerated in Israel, and the rights of Palestinians from Jerusalem. Included here are five key achievements of Adalah:
• A decision by the SCT accepting our argument that there is no legal authority for the Shin Bet (Shabak) to massively surveil the cell phones of COVID-19 patients and those in their vicinity;
• The opening of COVID-19 testing centers in the Naqab, Triangle, and Upper Galilee, and via HMOs in the Shuafat refugee camp, Kufr Aqab, and Silwan neighborhoods of East Jerusalem, and a drive-in testing center by the Qalandya checkpoint;
• The cancellation of Emergency Regulations allowing for the illegal dismissal of around 4,000 pregnant women and new mothers from their workplaces;
• The securing of NIS 200 million (US $58 million) in state funds for Arab local municipalities in Israel to mitigate initial COVID-19 related financial damages and to provide services for residents;
• A commitment by Israeli authorities (dated 1 October) to stop home demolitions in East Jerusalem and in Israel during the second wave of COVID-19.
Read Adalah's report to the UN detailing Israel’s response to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and its negative impact on human rights.
Follow Adalah's COVID-19 website page for all the latest news about our emergency COVID-19 work
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At this very critical time, Adalah needs your support more than ever. This week offers a great opportunity to show your commitment to Adalah and Palestinian human rights, as December 1 is #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving
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