Palestinian Prime Minister: Settler Terrorism Is Part of a Policy That Entrenches Impunity
Ramallah, July 29 (KUNA) -- Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa affirmed on Wednesday that it is no longer possible to view settler violence as isolated, individual acts, but rather as part of a broader policy that provides protection and entrenches impunity.
During the launch of the Palestinian National Observatory for Documenting Violations of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights by the Occupation, organized by the Human Rights and Civil Society Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Ramallah, Mustafa stressed that the most dangerous aspect of this policy is the normalization of crimes through repetition, which dulls their ability to stir the global conscience.
Speaking on behalf of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Mustafa said, “The occupation may be able to destroy a building, confiscate land, or attempt to cover up a crime, but it cannot erase the truth when it becomes an organized, institutionalized act, nor can it obliterate national memory when our institutions take on the task of preserving and documenting it according to the highest professional and legal standards.”
He added, “Our national responsibility is not limited to reporting what is happening, but also to documenting it with professional methodology, verifying it, and transforming scattered incidents into coherent evidence that exposes this organized pattern, counters attempts at denial or skepticism, and holds the international community accountable for its legal, ethical, and political responsibilities.”
Mustafa noted that the crime in the town of Tal, where four Palestinians were martyred, and the preceding crime in Beit Furiq, where two Palestinians were killed, along with continuous assaults, incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, and the continuation of crimes and aggression in the Gaza Strip, are not merely a series of isolated incidents. Rather, they reflect an escalating pattern targeting the Palestinian people, their livelihoods, their land, their holy sites, and their national existence.
He addressed the world, emphasizing that the Palestinian people do not seek special treatment or privileges, but rather demand the application of international law to all parties without selectivity or double standards.
For his part, Ahmad Tamimi, a member of the PLO Executive Committee and head of the Human Rights and Civil Society Department, affirmed that the launch of the Palestinian National Observatory embodies a national vision responding to the urgent need to unify efforts to document Israeli occupation violations in accordance with international legal standards. He clarified that the Observatory will serve as a national reference for preserving Palestinian memory, safeguarding evidence and testimonies, and enhancing Palestine’s capacity to prosecute perpetrators before international courts and judicial mechanisms.
For his part, Public Prosecutor Akram al-Khatib, head of the National Documentation Team, confirmed that the Observatory will serve as a crucial resource for the work of the national team specializing in crimes under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is chaired by the Public Prosecution and tasked with collecting, documenting, and investigating all facts and information related to crimes committed by the occupation on the territory of the State of Palestine. This will contribute to building coherent legal files that meet the requirements of proof and accountability.
According to statements made during its launch, the Observatory focuses on building a secure national database to preserve evidence, testimonies, and documents; prepare legal files and specialized reports in accordance with international standards; and convert documented information into legal evidence usable before international bodies and courts. This will strengthen the Palestinian narrative based on documented facts and realities.
The Observatory provides a reliable national source serving official, human rights, diplomatic, and media institutions in countering the Israeli occupation’s narrative and documenting violations in a professional and methodical manner. (End) N.Q. / M.A.K.
