ATLANTA (January 24, 2023) — The Carter Center is alarmed that the early actions of the new Israeli government violate human rights, contravene international law, and risk instigating identity-based violence in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel.
The Carter Center is especially disturbed by the Israeli government’s intention to expel more than 1,000 Palestinians residing in the area of Masafer Yatta in the West Bank. This would be the largest Israeli displacement of Palestinians since 1967. It would violate international law and could escalate the already tense situation in the West Bank, Gaza, and Israel.
Additionally, the government has engaged in provocative measures, including ordering police to remove Palestinian flags from public spaces and limiting Palestinians from making visits to the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif compound in East Jerusalem. These actions threaten to destabilize the delicate status quo around Jerusalem’s holiest site. The Carter Center was encouraged to learn that the prime minister made a commitment to a visiting U.S. Senate delegation that the status quo will be maintained. However, the new leadership has promised to increase illegal settlement expansion while preventing Palestinian construction in parts of the West Bank. The new government also has vowed to erode the independence of Israel's High Court, which has played a key role in protecting the civil rights of Palestinians and other indigenous populations.
While the Biden administration has committed to a private dialogue with Israel on human rights issues, the events of the last year — the deadliest year for Palestinians since 2006 — have shown that quiet diplomacy has not yet worked. We urge U.S. officials, including members of Congress, to impress upon the Israeli government that the worsening human rights violations are the subject of a growing number of public campaigns in the U.S. and will negatively affect the relationship between our two countries.
Alongside other key stakeholders, we urge the Biden administration to publicly condemn these actions, which violate existing U.S. policies, human rights, and international law.
The U.N. Security Council would be justified to strongly respond to the Israeli government’s actions, which are a clear threat to international peace and security. The Carter Center calls on the United Nations to use its power to block the advancement of illegal Israeli construction in the West Bank, including outposts, farms, and new neighborhoods and extensions of existing settlements.
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Contact: In Atlanta, Amanda Larson, Amanda.Larson@cartercenter.org
The Carter Center
Waging Peace. Fighting Disease. Building Hope.
A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in over 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.
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