"The article does not clarify that it is illegal according to international law for Israelis to settle anywhere in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including but not limited to Area C. The repetitive focus on Area C further obscures this fact."
August 25, 2023
To:
Jon Whitten, News Director, CityNews
Josef Federman, Editor, Associated Press
Julia Frankel, Journalist, Associated Press
Dear Mr. Whitten, Mr. Federman, and Ms. Frankel,
I'm writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME, https://www.cjpme.org) to express concern about AP’s article “3 small Palestinian villages emptied out this summer. Residents blame Israeli settler attacks” published by CityNews Toronto on August 24.
The article does not clarify that it is illegal according to international law for Israelis to settle anywhere in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including but not limited to Area C. The repetitive focus on Area C further obscures this fact.
It is stated that settlers' “presence is viewed by most of the international community as a major obstacle to peace.” This omits that settlements are illegal according to international law, not only in Area C but in all of the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
In an article by Ilan Ben Zion published by the Associated Press, he states that “Most of the international community considers Israel’s West Bank settlements illegal and an obstacle to peace with the Palestinians.” Just as Ilan Ben Zion mentions these two points, I believe it is important and necessary that you do.
Failing to do so presents the illegality of settlements as if it is a matter of mere opinion. It is a violation of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention which states that an occupying power “shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.”[1]
There is no ambiguity about this question and it should be explicitly stated.
Please feel free to contact me at 438-380-5410 for more information or additional comment.
Sincerely,
Jason Toney
Director of Media Advocacy, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
[1] Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, Article 49, August 12, 1949, https://www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/documents/atrocity-crimes/Doc.33_GC-IV-EN.pdf