Haniya Says Gaza Siege Crime Against Humanity, Human Rights Groups Says Israel Deprives Palestinians of Water

Human rights groups: Israel is depriving Palestinians of water

[ 23/09/2009 - 09:54 AM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)--

Twenty human rights and political societies in Israel have charged that Tel Aviv was depriving Palestinians living south of Al-Khalil from water as means of racial cleansing.

The organizations in a joint press release on Tuesday pointed to the difficult living conditions of 3,500 Palestinians living in caves and slums south of Al-Khalil and earn their livelihood from farming and rearing animals.

They said that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) was exploiting settlers to hurt those Palestinians and usurp thousands of dunums of their lands.

The IOA was exercising racial cleansing in this area through demolishing homes, streets and wells in addition damaging crops and declaring large areas closed military zones, the organizations underlined.

They added that the Palestinians are deprived of a water network to irrigate their lands while Israeli settlers are consuming big quantities of water to irrigate their hothouses.

The organizations announced they would organize a rally in solidarity with those Palestinians next Saturday.

Haniya: Gaza siege a crime against humanity

[ 23/09/2009 - 09:16 AM ]

GAZA, (PIC)--

Ismail Haniya, the Palestinian premier, has described the Israeli siege on the Gaza Strip as a crime against humanity, and asked the world community to assume its responsibility towards this crime.

Haniya, addressing a message to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday, said that Israel's policy of collective punishment against the Palestinians is in blatant violation of the fourth Geneva Convention and of all international doctrines and norms.

The premier, who was addressing the message in his capacity as the foreign minister, reminded the world with its legal and ethical duties towards the Palestine cause in general and the siege on Gaza in particular.

Addressing the message on the eve of the UN General Assembly's session, Haniya hoped that the UNGA would adopt resolutions ending the siege and the oppression befalling the Palestinians in the Strip.

He underlined that the people of Gaza were still waiting for implementing the international promises to rebuild thousands of civilian homes that were destroyed during the Israeli war on Gaza in January 2009.

The premier said that his government would not impede any effort to create an independent Palestinian state on the borders of the 4th of June 1967 with Jerusalem as its capital.

Haneyya said that the US and Israel constantly opposed the world's support for a two-state solution based on the full Israeli withdrawal from the lands occupied in 1967 and solving the Palestinian refugee' problem based on the right of return and compensation.

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