Israel: INCLO members stand in solidarity with Palestinian human rights organizations declared terrorist groups by Israeli government and raided
Israel must desist from its persecution campaign.
Solidarity statement, August 19, 2022
At the behest of the Association of Civil Rights in Israel, INCLO member organizations sign this statement in solidarity with the Palestinian NGOs raided by the Israeli military. In support of the six organizations that have been designated as “terrorist groups” under Israel’s anti-terrorism law, we call for the Israeli government to immediately reverse its decision and remove them from the list of terrorist organizations.
On August 17, 2022, the Israeli Military Commander denied the appeals submitted by five of the six organizations against the military order designating them unlawful associations, following which Israel’s Minister of Defense ratified three of the NGOs as terrorist organizations. The same evening, the army invaded the offices of the NGOs, confiscated equipment, and welded the doors shut. This is a prime example of the political persecution conducted by Israel against Palestinians who speak out against the occupation.
Even after nine European countries who had temporarily ceased their funding of these NGOs rejected Israel’s claims following the examination of the materials transferred to them and the EU Commission, Israel continues its persecution campaign. By raiding the offices of the human rights organizations and confiscating documents, Israel reconfirms its declaration without any evidence or proof of the serious accusations levelled against the NGOs.
The work of human rights and civil society organizations is a key element in stopping and preventing human rights abuses, in particular among populations suffering from continuous and deep harm such as that caused by the Israeli oppressive regime.
Today, as before, we offer our full support to these organizations that contribute to the defense of human rights including through legal aid and representation of children and political prisoners in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and condemn any type of criminalization and persecution of human rights defenders. We are particularly concerned for the safety of human rights activists and employees related to the aforementioned organizations and expect every effort to be made on behalf of authorities to maintain their well-being. Anti-terrorism laws should never be used to target, criminalize, or incarcerate human rights defenders.
Endorsed by:
- Agora International Human Rights Group (Agora, Russia)
- American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
- Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI)
- Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS, Argentina)
- Dejusticia (Colombia)
- Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR)
- Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC, Australia)
- Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU)
- Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL)
- Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC)
- KontraS (Indonesia)
- Legal Resources Center (LRC, South Africa)
- Liberty (United Kingdom)