The Palestinian Institute for Human Rights (Witness)
continues to organize what is known as the Israeli "Flag March" in
the occupied city of Jerusalem, with the participation of tens of thousands of
settlers and extremist nationalists, under the direct leadership of the
occupation authorities, and with the participation of extremist figures in the
Israeli government, led by Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque
before the march, announcing that prayer has become possible on the
"Temple Mount" and the participation of a number of extremist Knesset
members. This march is held on the anniversary of the occupation of the eastern
part of Jerusalem in 1967.
This year's march, Monday, May 26, 2025, witnessed racist
slogans and inflammatory slogans against Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims,
accompanied by physical and verbal attacks on Jerusalemite residents, in
addition to mass incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque under the protection of the
occupation police, and widespread closures in the Old City that disrupted the
lives of thousands of Palestinian citizens.
The march is organized with the direct support of well-known
settler organizations such as Bnei Akiva, Qualitative and the Temple Mount in
Our Hands, and funded by the Israeli municipality and the Israeli Ministry of
Education.
These practices constitute a grave breach of international
humanitarian law and explicitly violate the rules for the protection of
civilians under international law, in particular Article 27 of the Fourth
Geneva Convention (1949), which obliges the occupying power to respect the
dignity of the civilian population and protect it from violence and
persecution. Security Council resolution 478 (1980), which affirms that all
measures taken by Israel to alter the character of the occupied city of
Jerusalem are null and void. These violations also directly contradict UNESCO
resolutions affirming the cultural and Islamic identity of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Israeli allegations about it, particularly Security Council Resolution 2334 of
2016.
Organizing this march with the participation of government
officials reflects the escalation of hate speech and racism within the Israeli
establishment, and constitutes an effective tool in the systematic Judaization
policy, which aims to reshape the demographic identity of East Jerusalem, by
spreading terror and organized incitement against the Palestinian population,
as well as settlements, home demolitions, withdrawal of IDs, and daily arrests.
This requires a firm international stance on the danger of this racist trend to
international peace and security."
Chahed asserts that these policies represent a form of slow
ethnic cleansing and are prohibited under international humanitarian law, the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and relevant UN
resolutions.
Accordingly, the Palestinian Foundation for Human Rights
(witness) calls:
▶️The Security Council and the United
Nations General Assembly to take immediate action to stop the Judaization
policies in occupied Jerusalem.
▶️Call on the UN Human Rights Council to
convene an emergency session on Judaization practices in Jerusalem, and work to
appoint a special rapporteur to monitor Israeli violations there.
▶️The EU to exert diplomatic and economic
pressure on the occupation authorities to comply with international law.
▶️The International Criminal Court to
consider these practices in the context of ongoing crimes in the Occupied
Palestinian Territory, particularly in Jerusalem.
▶️Invite representatives of diplomatic
missions in Jerusalem to review Israeli measures aimed at ethnic cleansing in
Jerusalem.
Palestinian Association for Human Rights (witness)
Beirut – May 26