OHCHR Protection Cluster Lead Statement

Natalie Grove, Protection Cluster Coordinator

Conference organized by MKs entitled
Expulsion and Annexation - What's going on in Area C?
The Knesset, West Jerusalem
27 July 2016

I have been asked to discuss the humanitarian impact of Israeli policies in Area C. Let me start
with who we, humanitarians, are and why we are here. The humanitarian community is the UN
and NGOs acting with the support of donors and Member States. We are here because the
international community recognizes Israels obligations and status as the Occupying Power
throughout the whole of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Area C. As the
Occupying Power, Israel has obligations both under international humanitarian law and
international human rights law towards Palestinians living in Area C, who have the status of
protected population. The UN in particular is mandated to monitor the situation of this
protected population and to advocate for their rights, including the right to receive humanitarian
assistance.
What are we, as humanitarians concerned with?
Two broad issues which arise as a direct result of Israels policies in respect of expanding its
control over Area C and designating land in Area C for its exclusive use.
The first is that these policies are the driving force behind immediate humanitarian needs in
Area C.
We see inadequate housing, shelters that cannot protect from the heat in summer or from the
cold and rain in winter. High levels of food insecurity previously prosperous herding
communities becoming reliant on food aid to make it through the month. A lack of access to
services water, sanitation, healthcare, education. 180 communities in Area C are not connected
to a water network. 136 communities are not connected to electricity. Primary school children,
seven and eight year olds, walk long distances to reach the nearest schools, some passing daily
through military checkpoints, others regularly harassed by violent settlers. Half the communities
lack a primary health care centre many rely on mobile health clinics visiting once a week.

Obtaining building permits to address this situation is virtually impossible. Palestinians who
attempt to repair or upgrade their homes - shelters that are often little more than a tin and
tarpaulin shack - risk demolition. Those who install solar panels so their children can study at
night, risk demolition. Likewise for anyone fixing a latrine, maintaining a water cistern or
repairing an animal pen to protect their livelihoods. Those who dare to install a childrens play
set in their yard, risk demolition.
Israel as the Occupying Power has the primary responsibility itself to meet the basic needs of the
population in Area C. It does not do so.
With an Occupying Power unwilling to act, the humanitarian community seeks to provide this
assistance. This takes the form of temporary shelters, blankets, food aid, support for livelihoods,
legal aid to respond to demolition orders, protective presence, and psychosocial support,
especially for children who have witnessed their homes being destroyed. We do this
transparently, sharing on a yearly basis with Israel our analysis of the humanitarian situation
across Palestine including in Area C. This is contained in the Humanitarian Needs Overview. We
share our plan to respond to these needs. The Humanitarian Response Plan details what
assistance will be provided, by which organizations. This HRP is shared ahead of publication
and is available online to the public throughout the year. This has been the practice here for
more than 15 years.
Despite this we see increasing efforts by Israeli authorities to obstruct this aid. Israel regularly
demolished, seizes or confiscates humanitarian material counter to its obligations under
international law.
And this issue brings me to the second broad concern that Area C today is an environment
marked by lack of respect for both human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL).
The ambassador has already mentioned the rights and protections at stake - the right to adequate
housing, to access water, to health, to education - and the protections afforded under IHL , in
particular the prohibition on destruction of private property.
Of particular concern to the UN at the moment is the risk of forcible transfer affecting
thousands of Palestinians living in Area C. Under international law, a population transfer is
forcible and thus unlawful unless the affected persons choose to move voluntarily. The most
obvious cases of concern are where the Israeli Civil Authority has a stated plan to relocate
selected Bedouin and herding communities in the Jerusalem periphery to three sites allocated for
this purpose.
These communities strongly oppose relocation and request protection and assistance in their
current location, including adequate planning and permits for their homes and livelihoods
structures. The forcible transfer story is not new. It dates back to the late 90s when three
successive waves of displacement took place to make way for the expansion of the illegal
settlement of Maale Adummim. The story is ongoing and today affects communities beyond
this area.
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The reason for this is that Israeli policies and practices over the past years have established a
highly coercive environment which today pressures people to leave. Some of the key elements of
this coercive environment include the demolitions and threats of demolitions, denial of access to
basic infrastructure and services, restricting access to natural resources and markets, and failing
to protect against violence and harassment by settlers.
There have been recent attempts to mediate or even negotiate with communities to move,
however any agreements reached under these conditions of coercion cannot be considered an
expression of genuine consent. The UN is deeply concerned that movement of individuals and
communities (including but not limited to moves to proposed relocation sites), will amount to
forcible transfer. Forcible transfer is a grave breach of the Geneva Conventions.
In summary - Israel creates humanitarian need in a place it should be addressing it. When the
international community seeks to respond to these needs Israel attempts to prevent it. The
recent Quartet report highlights what many describe as a creeping annexation of Area C. It
reflects that key international actors recognize that demolishing Palestinian private property
while denying Palestinians permits to construct, making declarations of state land and advancing
settlement construction are acts which are not unconnected, but rather form the basis of a
systematic and comprehensive policy which seeks to expand Israeli presence in the West Bank
and prevent Palestinian development. These policies deepen humanitarian need, risk forcible
transfer, bring Israel into conflict with international law, and further speculation that Israel has
no intention to see a viable sovereign Palestinian State in the West Bank.
Thank you.
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