UN Security Council must enforce settlement blacklist

"An entirely new accountability culture is sorely needed by the United Nations to bridge the enormous gap between promise and performance," said Michael Lynk, Special Rapporteur for the Situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967. "The UN has adopted hundreds of resolutions on this occupation, and these hundreds of resolutions have been ignored and defied by Israel, the occupying power."

Building on his October 2019 report to the General Assembly on accountability, the Special Rapporteur pointed out that the resolutions and decisions of the Security Council and the General Assembly are the bedrock of the international legal consensus respecting the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

The Security Council had adopted more than 30 binding resolutions on the Israeli occupation respecting the applicability of the Fourth Geneva Convention, the prohibition against territorial annexation, and the illegality of the Israeli settlements. Israel has accepted and applied none of them.

In February 2020, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights published a list of 112 companies with business ties to Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). 94 domiciled in Israel and 18 in six other countries. These countries include the United States, Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Thailand and Luxembourg.
The list of these companies contained within the Human Rights council report refers to a wide range of sectors including construction, food, banks, retail and transport. All of the companies have been identified as engaging in business activity, as a parent company of a subsidiary engaged in business activity, or as a company that has granted a license/ franchise to a company engaged in business activity in the OPTs.

The special rapporteur’s new report also examined the influential role of businesses and corporations in sustaining the Israeli settlement economy. "The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, adopted in 2011, call upon corporations to exercise "enhanced due diligence" when operating in conflict zones and occupations," noted the Special Rapporteur. He requested all States not to permit the entry of any goods and services produced in or originating from, in whole or in part, the Israeli settlements or Israeli regulated commercial enterprises in the OPT.

“The Security Council has stated that the settlements are a flagrant violation under international law” “I would add that they are a presumptive war crime under the 1998 Rome Statute. The settlements are the engine of the Israeli occupation.” He continued. In these circumstances, it is impossible for businesses to be engaged, directly or indirectly, with the settlements while honouring their human rights commitments."

He also called upon all States to discourage the promotion of tourism and emigration to the Israeli settlements. He requested all States to refrain from any relations — including diplomatic, consular, trade and other agreements — with Israel implying any recognition of the authority of the Government of Israel over any part of the OPT. Lynk’s call comes as some of the Arab countries has begun to normalize relations with Israel.

“The 53 year old occupation of the Palestinian Territory will only come to a just and complete end with the international community imposing accountability measures on Israel to enforce the many resolutions on the issue adopted by the Security Council, the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council.” He believes.

For more information on his latest report to General Assembly see: A/75/53.

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