MONITORING DESK
ISLAMABAD: The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Office has condemned Israel over the recent deportation of Palestinian-French human rights defender Salah Hammouri to France.
Jeremy Laurence, UN Human Rights spokesperson, said in a statement that the Office was deeply concerned by Israel’s chilling message to human rights activists working in the occupied Palestinian territory.
The statement said that Israel revoked the residency of Hammouri in occupied East Jerusalem based on a violation of allegiance to the state of Israel.
Hammouri who is a lawyer with the Palestinian human rights institution Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association was taken into custody by Israeli security forces in March and placed under administrative detention without any trial or charge.
Lawrence said that International Law does not allow the deportation of protected persons from occupied territory and clearly prevents such persons to swear allegiance to the occupying power.
UN Rights Office: Deportation shows Palestinians’ vulnerable situation
The UN Rights Office said that such deportation is a grave violation of the 4th Geneva Convention, constituting a war crime. The deportation of Hammuori demonstrated the vulnerable situation of Palestinians living in East Jerusalem, as the occupying power has given them a revocable residency status under the law of Israel.
