EuroMed Rights welcomes the EU and its Member States’ unanimous support for the Human Rights Council resolution calling for accountability and justice in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
On 3 July, the Human Rights Council overwhelmingly voted in favor of a resolution welcoming the United Nations Independent Commission of Inquiry on the 2014 Gaza Conflict. The adopted resolution “calls on all duty bearers and UN bodies to pursue the implementation of all recommendations of the report”. The resolution also expresses “grave concern by reports regarding serious human rights violations and grave breaches of international humanitarian law, including possible war crimes” as well as the “long-standing systemic impunity for international law violations”. Echoing calls by EuroMed Rights, the resolution calls on all parties to “cooperate fully with the preliminary examination of the International Criminal Court and with any subsequent investigation that may be opened”.
The EU and its Member States’ unanimous support for the resolution marks a welcome break from the EU’s poor record in addressing accountability in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. EuroMed Rights urges the EU and its Member States to continue to engage constructively with the report of the Commission of Inquiry with a view to ensuring the full implementation of its recommendations and those of previous UN reports.