The director of the NGO Human Rights Watch explains the reasons for the publication, Tuesday, April 27, of a report which analyzes Israel’s treatment of Palestinians and concludes that there are “crimes of apartheid and persecution” in the occupied territories.
Why do you claim that apartheid exists in the occupied territories?
Human Rights Watch has come to the conclusion that the crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution are committed by the Israeli government against part of the Palestinian population. We are building on two years of investigation and two decades of work in Israel and the occupied territories. By using the term “apartheid” we are not making a historical analogy, but we are applying international law. This word has its origin in South Africa, but it has status in international law, in the 1973 Apartheid Convention and in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), both ratified by many states. .
Three elements contribute to such a crime: the intention by one racial group to dominate another, systematic oppression and the commission of certain inhumane acts. Persecution is the imposition of severe violations of one’s rights on a specific group, with discriminatory intent.
We conclude that the Israeli government has repeatedly demonstrated, through its laws, statements and practices, an intention to maintain the domination of Israeli Jews over Palestinians. In particular, we observe his efforts to manipulate demographics to exclude Palestinians from large areas, as well as the existing difference in access to resources.
You analyze the situation in Israel and in the territories, from the Jordan to the Mediterranean. What is the interest in this extended perspective?
The crime of apartheid only exists in the occupied territories. But its first condition, the intention to dominate, is exercised everywhere. We observe, for example, that in more than 900 small communities in Israel, admissions committees allow Jews to live but not Arab citizens of the country. There is also an effort to regroup Palestinian communities in limited areas, while Jewish communities can thrive.
Why are you adopting this term today?
Previously, we have documented one after another of abuses committed by the Israeli government or by Hamas, when it fires rockets against Israeli cities, or when suicide bombings are committed in Israel. But this case-by-case approach lacked a holistic perspective. The government of Benyamin Netanyahu has also deepened more and more clearly its policy of domination.
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