COHRE Protest Open Letter Jerusalem Israel 2008

COHRE calls on Israel to end house demolitions as a means of collective punishment 15 July 2008: The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) is gravely concerned about the reported violent bulldozer attack in Jaffa Road, Jerusalem on 2 July 2008, committed by a Palestinian resident of occupied East Jerusalem, which resulted in the death of three people and the injury of dozens more. COHRE expresses solidarity with the victims and families of the victims and calls on the Government of Israel to ensure that its response remains within the limits of international law.

COHRE is particularly concerned that statements made by very high ranking Israeli officials evince an intent to violate international human rights law. After the attack, senior officials of the Government of Israel, including Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, have publicly called for the demolition of the homes of those responsible for attacks in East Jerusalem. According to Haaretz, Attorney General Menachem Mazuz stated publicly that demolishing the homes of “terrorists” is permissible by law, although the opposite is true. In addition, senior officials of the Government of Israel have recently called for the separation of East Jerusalem’s neighbourhoods from the rest of Jerusalem and for the revocation of the permanent residency status in reprisal for violent acts carried out by residents of East Jerusalem.

COHRE is concerned that such statements are misleading as to the content of Israel’s international law obligations; inflame an already mobilized public; and further that they may constitute threats to violate international human rights law.

The homes most currently under threat of demolition are apparently those of Mr. Hussam Duwiyat, responsible for the bulldozer attack on 2 July 2008, and Mr. Alaa Abu Dhaim, who carried out the attack on a Jewish yeshiva – an institution of formal religious education – in March 2008. The latter attack resulted in the death of eight students and wounded many more. It has been reported that around 20 people live in the home of Mr. Duwiyat in the Sur Bahir neighbourhood of East Jerusalem. All, including members of his family, have claimed no prior knowledge that the attack would be carried out. Early reports have suggested that Duwiyat was not connected to any Palestinian militant group and acted alone.

COHRE urges the Government of Israel to abide by its international law obligations, including but not necessarily limited to international human rights law, as well as the law of armed conflict.

As to the former, Israel has extensive obligations flowing from, inter alia, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, to ensure that all persons in the occupied Palestinian territories, as well as any other places under the effective control of Israel, enjoy all of the human rights set out under those treaties. These obligations include, inter alia: (i) Ensuring that any persons accused of crimes are guaranteed all due process safeguards, and to ensure the presumption of innocence for any and all persons not convicted of a crime; (ii) Ensuring that any persons slated for removal from their housing enjoy all of the guarantees set out under ICESCR Article 11(1) as elaborated by the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in particular in General Comments 4 and 7.

(iii)

Ensuring an effective ban on all forms of discrimination, including the particularly invidious harm of racial discrimination. This obligation flows from all three of the treaties named above.

The UN Human Rights Committee has urged Israel to cease the punitive destruction of housing. In this regard, the Committee has stated that it: “deplores what it considers to be the partly punitive nature of the demolition of property and homes in the Occupied Territories. In the Committee’s opinion the demolition of property and houses of families some of whose members were or are suspected of involvement in terrorist activities or suicide bombings contravenes the obligation of the State party to ensure without discrimination the right not to be subjected to arbitrary interference with one's home (art.

17), freedom to choose one's residence (art. 12), equality of all persons before the law and equal protection of the law (art. 26), and not to be subject to torture or cruel and inhuman treatment (art 7) .”

In addition, international humanitarian law provides extensive guarantees against the arbitrary treatment of civilians in occupied territories. Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Times of War, which is applicable to all territories occupied by Israel, states that: "No protected person may be punished for an offense he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited." Article 33 further states that: "Reprisals against protected persons and their property are prohibited."

Likewise, Article 53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention makes clear that: "Any destruction by the Occupying Power of real or personal property belonging individually or collectively to private persons, or to the State, or to other public authorities, or to social or cooperative organizations, is prohibited."

In Resolution 1544, the United Nations Security Council, reiterated "the obligation of Israel the occupying Power, to abide scrupulously by its legal obligations and responsibilities under the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Times of War" and called "on Israel to respect its obligations under international humanitarian law, … in particular, on its obligation not to undertake demolition of homes contrary to that law." The demolition of the homes of Hussam Duwiyat and Alaa Abu Dhaim would clearly constitute violations of Articles 33 and 53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Destruction of civilian property as a means of collective punishment is common practice by the State of Israel. The Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, reports that between October 2001 and the end of January 2005, Israel demolished 667 Palestinian homes in the occupied territories as a means of punishment, rendering over 4,200 individuals homeless.

Of these demolished homes, half were located next to the family homes of suspected terrorists.

COHRE urges the Government of Israel to implement an immediate moratorium on the demolition of homes in all territories under its effective control, particularly where they are carried out as a means of punishment against the civilian population in reprisal for the actions of individuals for which the civilian population at large is not responsible; COHRE particularly urges that, without delay, Israeli authorities make clear that they have no intention of acting on current, standing threats to destroy the homes of the families of Mr. Hussam Duwiyat and/or Mr. Alaa Abu Dhaim.