Humanitarian aid in Palestine: A message of impunity?

Ofir Feuerstein is researcher at B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories

Israel has been controlling the Palestinian territories since 1967. It is an unprecedented case. No other example exists of the military occupation of a territory lasting so long. As a result, from the perspective of the defence of human rights, we are faced with an important challenge: it is necessary to reflect on the international community's role and discover the stance and needs of Israelis critical of their own Government.

The first question we must ask ourselves is who is responsible for guaranteeing human rights in the Palestinian territories. In the wake of the Oslo Accords, Israel handed over some responsibilities – which it had adopted as the occupying power – to the newly-formed Palestinian National Authority (PNA). Nowadays, the PNA partially governs certain areas of the West Bank, but Israel is still by all means ultimately responsible for the situation in these territories. As for the Gaza Strip, important changes have taken place in recent years. Ariel Sharon's government withdrew military forces and colonies from these areas, thus establishing a Palestinian government across the entire territory. Nevertheless, here Israel also effectively controls the borders, the population census and most business activity, so it is largely to blame for the humanitarian crisis being suffered in Gaza. In a nutshell, Israel continues to control the West Bank and practically all the Gaza Strip. This control means that the Israeli government must hold responsibility for the Palestinians who live under its occupation. An occupied state is also subject to international laws and must exercise control adhering to international humanitarian law and the international conventions on human rights to repair the damage it causes and to offer compensation to the victims of the illegal actions it wages.

In spite of this, responsibilities should not only fall on Israel's head. The international community is intensely involved in the day-to-day reality of the region. In fact, the Europeans play a pivotal role here: they pay the humanitarian bill of Israel's collective punishment. It is an important and necessary role, especially given the current climate in the Gaza Strip, but it cannot only imply the distribution of medicines and sacks of flour. Europe must also ensure that Israel meets its obligations.

Let's look at an example. Two years ago, the Israeli air force intentionally destroyed the only power station in Gaza, so cutting off electricity supply to an area inhabited by 1.4 million people for several months. What's more, the attack had serious repercussions on water supply, sewage treatment, hospitals and almost all aspects of daily life. Wilful attacks against civilian objects are deemed to be war crimes. Therefore, in this case, Israel was legally obliged to repair damages, compensate victims and prosecute the perpetrators of the crime, but none of this even began to cross its mind. Instead of pressuring for these obligations to be met, the Swedish government led European efforts to restore electricity supply in Gaza. Without the slightest doubt, the Swedish-led initiative was essential, motivated by the intense suffering of Gaza inhabitants, but the subsequent effect for Israel was impunity. This is a particularly extreme example, but not the only one. European donors help Palestinians who have lost their jobs due to Israeli policies – such as traffic restrictions – and have financed the reconstruction of infrastructures destroyed by Israel.   

Outside humanitarian aid, there are other preferable necessary actions which, if disregarded, can be detrimental to the struggle of those who defend international laws. Take, for example, B'Tselem, the Israeli Information Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. Our work is to make the Israeli public aware of the actions the government carries out in our name within the Palestinian Territories. We condemn violations of human rights, we fight against impunity and we demand that Israel respects its obligations as the occupying power. However, we are convinced that a major change will not come about based solely on a shift in Israeli public opinion. The transformation will come from a combination of internal and external political forces, but we do not mean political endeavours from abroad that focus only on offering humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people. Although this aid arises from a genuine interest in solving the problems of the West Bank and Gaza, if it doesn't come hand-in-hand with political endeavours from abroad that pressure Israel to accept the consequences of its acts. It could even be counter-productive, as it would hinder the efforts of B'Tselem and other Israeli nonviolent groups.

If Europe only clutches at straws with its humanitarian aid for the victims of Israeli policies, it will then be taking aboard a task that legally corresponds to Israel and so freeing the occupying State from its responsibilities. These policies need to be turned on their head. Humanitarian aid must continue even if Israel doesn't accept it, but it's also vital for European political mechanisms to be employed in order to ensure that Israel fully respects the human rights of Palestinians.