The State of Palestine condemned in the strongest possible terms Israel’s forcible displacement of Palestinian-French human rights defender Salah Hammouri from his hometown Jerusalem, today said the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates.
“This outrageous step committed by the illegal occupation is a war crime that is added to its long list of crimes committed against the Palestinian people,” it said in a statement
“Israel’s criminal displacement of Salah under the disguise of the so-called ‘breach of allegiance’ used to effectuate the forcible displacement of the Palestinian people sets a dangerous precedent. It is a continuation of the Israel’s entrenched criminal policy of forcible displacement that started 75 years ago,” it added.
“Salah and all other Palestinian citizens owes no allegiance to Israel, the occupying Power. They are entitled to protection not displacement.”
The ministry said “Salah’s forcible displacement is part and parcel of Israeli colonial apartheid regime that is bent on forcibly displacing Palestinian people to replace them with illegal Jewish settlers.”
It said that allowing Israel’s deportation of Salah to go unchecked is sanctioning the persecution of human right defenders and will also have a negative effect on all human rights defenders worldwide.
“The State of Palestine calls on the international community, including France, to hold Israel accountable for its ongoing crimes, including Salah’s forcible displacement. We call on the United Nations Security Council to uphold its obligations and bring an end to Israel’s continuous war crimes. It is also high time for the ICC to hold those responsible for the widespread and systematic policy of forcible displacement of the Palestinian people, including Salah, accountable for their crimes.
“We salute Salah, the son of Jerusalem, whose noble struggle towards freedom and dignity will continue until the day he returns to home in Jerusalem,” concluded the statement.
Source: Palestine News & Information Agency