Herald Reporter
PALESTINIAN Ambassador to Zimbabwe Dr Tamer Almassri has condemned what he described as continued Israeli aggression against the Hebron Governorate, characterised by intensified raids, military reinforcements, widespread closures, the seizure of Palestinian vehicles, assaults on civilians, forced displacement and a total lockdown.
Approximately 3 000 Palestinians have been displaced from Hebron, with Ambassador Almassri accusing Israel of extending its campaign of ethnic cleansing to the West Bank city, as it has done in Gaza.
The measures have severely worsened humanitarian and living conditions, restricting residents’ movement, disrupting livelihoods and placing an unbearable burden on displaced and affected families.
Ambassador Almassri said systematic demolitions, mass displacement and collective punishment of Palestinians constituted flagrant violations of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions. He also condemned what he described as Israel’s continued violations against Hebron’s sacred sites, including the closure of the Ibrahimi Mosque, also known as the Sanctuary of Abraham, and restrictions on worshippers seeking access to the site.
He said the measures represented a blatant assault on freedom of worship and the sanctity of holy places.
The State of Palestine called on the international community and the United Nations Security Council to take immediate and effective action to halt the aggression against Hebron, prevent the forcible displacement of residents, ensure accountability for alleged crimes committed by the occupying power and provide urgent international protection for the Palestinian people.
A United Nations commission of inquiry has accused Israel of committing crimes against humanity in the occupied West Bank, including extermination, torture and rape, while also continuing “to commit genocide in Gaza” despite a ceasefire brokered by the United States. The report, published on Monday by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, examined killings and physical and mental harm inflicted by state actors from October 7, 2023, through September of this year.
The Gaza Health Ministry says at least 74 500 people have been killed in the genocidal war, which has displaced nearly all of the territory’s population.
