Occupation of Palestine, Syrian Golan Worst Form of Settler Colonialism
GENEVA, (ST)- The Israeli occupation of Palestine and the Syrian Golan has been the worst form of settler colonialism which has been continuous throughout the 21st century, Syria’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations in Geneva Husam Ala has stressed, clarifying that this occupation violates human rights and international laws which have been applicable to the occupied Arab territories since 1967.
In a statement at the 31st session of Human Rights Council’s debate on human rights in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories, Ala condemned some countries’ stances at the Human Rights Council which, instead of calling for holding the Israeli occupation accountable for its crimes in the occupied lands, call on other countries to stop condemning the Israeli violations there.
Ala, who reviewed the Israeli occupation’s oppressive practices in occupied Palestine and the Syrian Golan, said that the committee in charge of investigating the Israeli practices besides the UN Chief reports has documented the occupation’s violations despite the restrictions imposed by the Israeli authorities.
“However, though tens of UN resolutions were adopted against the Israeli practices, occupation settlement expansion activities continues in the occupied lands and more houses and facilities are being destroyed with the purpose of ensuring the land necessary for building more settlements,” Ala clarified.
The Syrian diplomat warned against Israel’s continuous attempt to perpetuate its occupation of the Syrian Golan, stressing that by doing so the occupation keeps violating the international law and the Security Council resolutions, particularly resolution No. 497 of 1981.
He pointed out that the Israeli occupation authorities adopt many discriminatory practices against the Syrians in occupied Golan through continuous attempts to issue decisions on destroying the Syrians’ properties, confiscating their lands, refusing to give any licenses that allow the Syrians to build houses or facilities, expanding settlement activities in the Golan and exploiting Golan’s water resources in the service of settlers.
Ala renewed his call on the Human Rights Council to pressure the occupation authorities to immediately release Syrian prisoner and freedom fighter Sidqi al-Maqt and other Syrian detainees from the Israeli jails. He also urged rejecting the Israeli settlement activities in the occupied Syrian Golan and called for condemning the occupation’s stealing of water resources in Golan, for putting an end to the Israeli oppressive practices against the people of Golan and for refusing all the procedures adopted by the occupation to change the legal and demographic situation of occupied Golan.
Hamda Mustafa