Bahrain condemns extreme violence against Palestinians

Geneva, May 18 (BNA): Bahrain's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office and other international organisations in Geneva, Dr. Yousef Abdul Karim Bucheery, participated in the special session of the Human Rights Council on the deteriorating human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem. The Council's decision to hold its special session follows the formal request made by the Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates on behalf of the Arab Group, which was supported by 17 Member States of the Human Rights Council and 9 observer states, including Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman. The special session was attended by a large number of member states and observers, the President of the Human Rights Council, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and number of observers and non-governmental organisations, all of whom strongly condemned the dangerous escalation of extreme violations in the Palestinian territories, which pose serious threats to the whole region in view of the excessive use of force aimed at the Palestinian people and the unacceptable targeting of civilians by the Israeli occupation forces. In his statement, Bucheery welcomed the decision to hold this emergency session of the Human Rights Council, in response to the request of the Arab, Islamic and friendly countries, and in light of the difficult circumstances occurring in the Palestinian territories, as the Palestine territories are witnessing a dangerous escalation that threatens the region as a whole, as a result of the excessive use of force by Israel against Palestinians who continued to demand their legitimate rights in a peaceful manner witnessed by the entire world. Bucheery also strongly condemned the unjustified Israeli repression and violence against the defenseless Palestinian people, their connection to the horrific killing and abuse of live ammunition against innocent civilians, and warned of the extreme dangers and negative repercussions of this dangerous escalation in the occupied Palestinian territories, specifically the suffering of the brotherly Palestinian people in East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, and the events of the suppression of the peaceful return process, which reached approximately seventy victims, and exceeded three thousand wounded, including children, women and the elderly, in blatant violation that did not stop at the limits of international conventions and treaties and international humanitarian law, but rather struck down the most basic human concepts. Bucheery stressed Bahrain's belief in the formation of an international fact-finding committee, in support of the independent and transparent international investigation into this heinous crime and the international community's demand for protection for the brotherly Palestinian people, stressing the seriousness and impact of recent events on the human rights of Palestinians, which puts before the international community and the United Nations in particular the responsibility of immediate action to ensure the elimination of this pattern and approach of continuing crimes against the Palestinian people. The Permanent Representative called upon the Human Rights Council to adopt the draft resolution, which reflects the international concern about the deterioration of the situation and stresses the need to ensure accountability and impunity. He also stressed Bahrain's firm position and support for the legitimate rights of the brotherly Palestinian people to establish their independent and fully sovereign state on the borders of 4 June 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital and in accordance with the resolutions of international legitimacy, the two-state solution and the Arab Peace Initiative.