(Witness) condemns Argentina embassy
transfer to occupied Jerusalem and calls for respect for international law and
UN resolutions
Argentina President Javier Milei has
announced on February 6,2024 plans to shift his country’s embassy from Tel Aviv
to Jerusalem upon his arrival on his first diplomatic visit as President of
Argentina as he meets Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz.
The Palestinian Association for
Human Rights (Witness) affirms that according to the international humanitarian
law, East Jerusalem is an integral part of the occupied Palestinian territories
in June 4, 1967 and falls under the Fourth Geneva Convention in 1949. All
legislative and discriminatory measures enacted by the Israeli Knesset are
deemed null and void and violate all legitimate international resolutions
concerning the occupied Jerusalem.
Security Council Resolution 242
(1967) stipulates the withdrawal of Israel armed forces from the territories
occupied in June war then and the necessity to establish a just and lasting
peace in the Middle East. Since the Israeli occupation remains on the
Palestinian territories, the determination of their future post-Israel troops
withdrawal is not merely a humanitarian mission but rather an international
concern directly related to upholding the inherent national rights of the
Palestinian people.
The embassy transfer is a serious
step that can further legitimize the Israeli occupation which violates the
international humanitarian law, especially Fourth Geneva Convention in 1949 and
its additional protocol in 1977. It also contradicts UN purposes that call for
the right to self-determination of peoples and don’t confer legitimacy on
occupation. Additionally, it violates numerous international resolutions,
notably Resolution 181 and Resolution 242.
(Witness) affirms that the
relocation of the Argentine embassy constitutes a violation of the inherent
rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination
and the establishment of their independent state. Moreover, it contravenes the
principles of the United Nations Charter, which obligate states to respect the
sovereignty of other states and refrain from interfering in their internal
affairs. Therefore, we urge for a reversal of this decision and enforcement of
the principles of international humanitarian law in the occupied Palestinian
territories.
February 7, 2024
The Palestinian Association for
Human Rights (Witness)