#agnes callamard

[vyorei]

Part 2 of 2 batch updates from the last 2 hours

[agentfascinateur]

For every "D Weiss", there is a better woman defending Palestinians:

Diana Buttu, Clare Daly, Francesca Albanese, Dr Ashrawi, Agnes Callamard, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Queen Mozah, Queen Rania and many more. 💟♾️☮️

[disruptiveempathy]

[The resolution calling for "urgent steps to immediately allow safe and unhindered and expanded humanitarian access"] is a much-needed resolution – all efforts to address the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza must be welcomed, but it remains woefully insufficient in the face of the ongoing carnage and extensive destruction wrought by the government of Israel’s attacks in the occupied Gaza Strip. Nothing short of an immediate ceasefire is enough to alleviate the mass civilian suffering we are witnessing. The vote on the resolution – which was watered down significantly from earlier versions to avoid a US veto fails to call for an immediate halt in the fighting, instead including a call to ‘create conditions’ for a cessation of hostilities. Given the staggering death toll – with more than 20,000 killed in over two months, and the horrifying scale of destruction and devastation in Gaza this is simply unacceptable. It is disgraceful that the US was able to stall and use the threat of its veto power to force the UN Security Council to weaken a much-needed call for an immediate end to attacks by all parties.

—Agnès Callamard (Secretary General of Amnesty International), quoted in "Israel/OPT: Adoption of UN resolution to expedite humanitarian aid to Gaza an important but insufficient step," from Amnesty International News

[thekeypa]

"The US government has not engaged with the legal and empirical bases of positions on Israel apartheid. Instead it is censoring, shutting down debates, and threatening"

[cavalierzee]

Israel Is "Engineering Famine" In Gaza

Amnesty International says Israel is “engineering famine” in Gaza. Organization head Agnes Callamard adds, “all states that cut UNRWA funding, sold weapons and supported Israel bear responsibility too.”

Yazan Al-Kafarna, a 9-year-old Palestinian boy with cerebral palsy, was forced to flee the Israeli invasion of Beit Hanoun with his family to southern Gaza. Recently, Yazan’s health deteriorated due to a shortage of food and oxygen.

Today, Yazan passed away due to insufficient healthcare and a lack of specialized food for his condition at Abu Youssef Al-Najjar Hospital, exacerbated by the Israeli blockade of Gaza.

Biden and Netanyahu did this. Media justified it. Institutions protected it. Protestors lost jobs and reputations fighting it. We will never forget. Or forgive.

Abdul Rahman Al-Dahdouh, an elderly Palestinian, died due to severe dehydration and malnutrition as a result of Israel’s continuous prevention of food convoys from reaching northern parts of Gaza.

Israel did this. With the full support of the US and Britain. We must ensure every criminal who played a role in this genocide faces justice.

Future generations will not forgive us if we don’t.

[athena5898]

(Quds) Agnes Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, says Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya should now be regarded as a victim of enforced disappearance by Israeli authorities, highlighting urgent concerns for his whereabouts and well-being.

[palestinegenocide]

‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’ Day 150: Israel is ‘engineering famine’ in Gaza

Amnesty International says Israel is “engineering famine” in Gaza. Organization head Agnes Callamard adds, “all states that cut UNRWA funding, sold weapons and supported Israel bear responsibility too.”

[Link]

[sapropel]

--Agnes Callamard, head of Amnesty International

[plethoraworldatlas]

Biden administration officials attempted Monday to downplay the significance of a newly passed United Nations Security Council resolution, drawing ire from human rights advocates who said the U.S. is undercutting international law and stonewalling attempts to bring Israel's devastating military assault on Gaza to an end.

The resolution "demands an immediate cease-fire for the month of Ramadan respected by all parties, leading to a lasting sustainable cease-fire." The U.S., which previously vetoed several cease-fire resolutions, opted to abstain on Monday, allowing the measure to pass.

Shortly after the resolution's approval, several administration officials—including State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield—falsely characterized the measure as "nonbinding."

"It's a nonbinding resolution," Kirby told reporters. "So, there's no impact at all on Israel and Israel's ability to continue to go after Hamas."

Josh Ruebner, an adjunct lecturer at Georgetown University and former policy director of the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, wrote in response that "there is no such thing as a 'nonbinding' Security Council resolution."

"Israel's failure to abide by this resolution must open the door to the immediate imposition of Chapter VII sanctions," Ruebner wrote.

Beatrice Fihn, the director of Lex International and former executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, condemned what she called the Biden administration's "appalling behavior" in the wake of the resolution's passage. Fihn said the administration's downplaying of the resolution shows how the U.S. works to "openly undermine and sabotage the U.N. Security Council, the 'rules-based order,' and international law."

In a Monday op-ed for Common Dreams, Phyllis Bennis, a senior fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies, warned that administration officials' claim that the resolution was "nonbinding" should be seen as "setting the stage for the U.S. government to violate the U.N. Charter by refusing to be bound by the resolution's terms."

While all U.N. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, they're difficult to enforce and regularly ignored by the Israeli government, which responded with outrage to the latest resolution and canceled an Israeli delegation's planned visit to the U.S.

Israel Katz, Israel's foreign minister, wrote on social media Monday that "Israel will not cease fire."

The resolution passed amid growing global alarm over the humanitarian crisis that Israel has inflicted on the Gaza Strip, where most of the population of around 2.2 million is displaced and at increasingly dire risk of starvation.

Amnesty International secretary-general Agnes Callamard said Monday that it was "just plain irresponsible" of U.S. officials to "suggest that a resolution meant to save lives and address massive devastation and suffering can be disregarded."

[silicacid]

Israel used US-made munitions to kill 43 civilians in Gaza: Rights group

The Israeli military killed 43 Palestinians using US-made munitions in two documented air strikes in the blockaded Gaza Strip, Amnesty International said in a report on Tuesday.

“A new investigation by Amnesty International has found US-made Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) were used by the Israeli military in two deadly, unlawful air strikes on homes full of civilians in the occupied Gaza Strip,” the organization said in a post on X.

“The two strikes killed a total of 43 civilians. In both cases, survivors said there had been no warning of an imminent strike,” the watchdog added.

“These strikes were either direct attacks on civilians or civilian objects or indiscriminate attacks. They must be investigated as war crimes,” Amnesty further said.

The organization also called upon the US to stop arms supply to Israel.

“The US must immediately stop transferring arms to Israel that more likely than not will be used to commit or heighten risks of violations of international law,” it concluded in the post.

The organization also published additional details on its website.

"The organization found that these air strikes were either direct attacks on civilians or civilian objects or indiscriminate attacks and is calling for them to be investigated as war crimes," the watchdog said in the statement on its website.


"On 10 October, an air strike on the al-Najjar family home in Deir al-Balah killed 24 people. On 22 October, an air strike on the Abu Mu’eileq family home in the same city killed 19 people. Both homes were south of Wadi Gaza, within the area where, on 13 October, the Israeli military had ordered residents of northern Gaza to relocate to," it added.

Agnes Callamard, the secretary general of Amnesty International, said: “The fact that US-made munitions are being used by Israeli military in unlawful attacks with deadly consequences for civilians should be an urgent wake-up call to the (Joe) Biden administration. The US-made weapons facilitated the mass killings of extended families.”

“Two families have been decimated in these strikes, further proof that the Israeli military is responsible for unlawfully killing and injuring civilians in its bombardment of Gaza," said Callamard, who is a former UN Special Rapporteur on Extra-Judicial Summary or Arbitrary Executions.

“In the face of the unprecedented civilian death toll and scale of destruction in Gaza, the US and other governments must immediately stop transferring arms to Israel that more likely than not will be used to commit or heighten risks of violations of international law," she added.


The secretary general also emphasized that "to knowingly assist in violations is contrary to the obligation to ensure respect for international humanitarian law."

"A state that continues to supply arms being used to commit violations may share responsibility for these violations,” she added in criticism of the US for arms transfers to Israel.

The watchdog also said that there were "no legitimate military targets" in the area Israel bombed.

"Amnesty International did not find any indication that there were any military objectives at the sites of the two strikes or that people in the buildings were legitimate military targets, raising concerns that these strikes were direct attacks on civilians," it said.


"In addition, even if the strikes – which Israel has yet to provide any information about – were intended to target military objectives, the use of explosive weapons with wide-area effects in such densely populated areas could make these indiscriminate attacks. As such, these attacks must be investigated as war crimes," Amnesty added.

'Bombs used US-manufactured JDAM kits'

"In both attacks, the bombs used US-manufactured JDAM kits," the watchdog said.


"The photos of the metal fragments from the weapons clearly show the distinctive rivets and harness system that indicate they served as a part of the frame that surrounds the body of the bomb of a JDAM. In addition, the codes stamped on the plates from both sets of recovered scrap, 70P862352, are associated with JDAMs and Boeing, the manufacturer," Amnesty said.

It added that additional codes stamped on the plates "indicate that the JDAM that killed members of the al-Najjar family was manufactured in 2017, while the JDAM that killed members of the Abu Mu’eileq family was manufactured in 2018."

The organization also said that they contacted the Israeli military to inquire about the attacks and have not received a response from it yet.

"Amnesty International sent questions regarding the two attacks to the Israeli military’s spokesperson unit on 21 November. At the time of publication, no response had been received," it concluded.

Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip on Friday after the end of a weeklong humanitarian pause with the Palestinian group Hamas.

At least 15,899 Palestinians have been killed and more than 42,000 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 following a cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.

[masterofd1saster]

Israel war stories

is a good article about support in the U.S. for terror and anti-semitism.

Facing the United Nations plaza with police helicopters whirring above, 23-year-old Jordan native Youssef Almasri stood with a group of friends and declared, “Glory to the revolution.” He told The Free Press what decolonization means to him. “It means: Land. Fucking. Back. We’re taking the land that they took from us, we’re taking it back. We’re putting our refugees home,” said Almasri, who added that he is a student based in New York. As for the Israelis, he said, they should “go back to where they came from.” 

Al Masri is interesting. In Arabic, his name is slang for Egyptian. He's from Jordan. He's not from Palestine.

Where did the Israelis come from? Abraham was from Israel. So was Isaac. Jacob was from Israel - indeed God changed his name to Israel.

When Cyrus the Great released the Jews from captivity in 538BC, he didn't send them to New York or New Jersey. They went back to Israel.

So if you want Jews to go back where they came from, you want them to go to Israel.

+++

makes some good points

*** when people say something, they often mean it, and we should believe them, or at least take them seriously. Fancy-sounding academic jargon is not a curious intellectual exercise. Words make worlds.  Here is how Quillette editor Claire Lehmann put it on X, formerly Twitter: “For the past decade I’ve been told that jokes, words & scholarly debates need to be suppressed because they may cause ‘harm’ to vulnerable minorities. Yet when a global minority is butchered, tortured & maimed, those who suppress words shrug as if war crimes are no big deal.” Real decolonization is a physical process. It is about removing bodies from a place.  The meaning of Sharif’s post—a very tidy, very millennial encapsulation of the old Bolshevik spirit—is: the ends shall justify the means, and if that bothers you, well, you’ve probably been infected by some bourgeois, liberal fungus. *** The New York Times decided this was the right moment to run a story headlined “Gaza Has Suffered Under 16-Year Blockade.” The Times was good enough to note that the blockade was made possible not only by Israel but by Egypt, but it failed to mention Israeli forces withdrew from Gaza in 2005; that Palestinians elected Hamas to rule them; that Israelis routinely give Gazans notice before attacking to minimize loss of civilian life; and that one reason (maybe the reason) so many Palestinian children have died during Israeli air strikes is Hamas uses them as human shields—the better to generate sympathetic news coverage. Then, of course, there were the moral relativists, those who provide a patina of legitimacy to the alleged freedom fighters. Amnesty International’s Agnes Callamard called on “all parties to the conflict to abide by international law and make every effort to avoid further civilian bloodshed.” Representative Ilhan Omar reminded everyone, “Gaza doesn’t have shelters or an iron dome” (one wonders if she mentioned this to the Hamas leadership in Doha or its patrons in Tehran before the violence commenced). Or Jeremy Corbyn, Britain’s national embarrassment, declaring, “we need a route out of this tragic cycle of violence.” Meanwhile, the ersatz activists of Hollywood and Silicon Valley are eerily quiet. The people who turned the Ukrainian flag into their avatars, those who worry about misgendering and triggering and safe spaces, those who insist words are violence (those for whom violence is apparently not violence)—they’re busy ignoring all this. ***

+++

On a lighter note, Babylon Bee puts a point on the issue

and

[vyorei]

[juan-1980]

Tras el derrocamiento de Assad, ¿terminará el sufrimiento en Siria o comenzará de nuevo?

Amy Goodman y Denis Moynihan El Gobierno sirio ha sido derrocado y el dictador Bashar al-Assad ha huido a Moscú. Assad y —antes de él— su padre, Hafez al-Assad, gobernaron Siria con extrema brutalidad durante más de 50 años. Tras el derrocamiento del régimen a manos de varias facciones rebeldes, la secretaria general de Amnistía Internacional, Agnes Callamard, afirmó en un comunicado: “La…

[darkmaga-returns]

Amnesty International released a report on 5 December saying there is “sufficient” evidence that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in its war on the Gaza Strip. 

“Research has found sufficient basis to conclude that Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip,” the report said. 

Agnes Callamard, secretary general of Amnesty International, said the report gives evidence that Israel has committed acts prohibited under the Genocide Convention. 

“These acts include killings, causing serious bodily or mental harm, and deliberately inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction. Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them,” she said. 

The report notes the situation in northern Gaza, where the besieged Palestinian population faces constant displacement and relentless attacks, as well as starvation and severe restriction of desperately needed aid. 

It highlights that Israel has repeatedly ignored and disregarded countless international warnings and three legally binding decisions from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordering Israel to take immediate action to prevent genocidal actions in Gaza. 

It also says the continued recurrence of Israel’s actions, public statements by Israeli officials, the number of casualties, and the amount of destruction since the war started all point to genocide.

“Taking into account the pre-existing context of dispossession, apartheid, and unlawful military occupation in which these acts have been committed, we could find only one reasonable conclusion: Israel’s intent is the physical destruction of Palestinians in Gaza, whether in parallel with, or as a means to achieve, its military goal of destroying Hamas,” Callamard said. 

The report added that international law strictly states that a perpetrator does not need to succeed in their actions to destroy the entirety of a certain group for genocide to have been committed. 

Numerous statements by government officials revealing a clear intent to commit genocide have been compiled over the past year. 

[prevencia]

Amnistía Internacional acusa a Israel de "cometer genocidio" en Gaza

Un nuevo informe de Amnistía Internacional (AI) acusó a Israel de cometer genocidio en la Franja de Gaza, la rama israelí de AI está en desacuerdo con las conclusiones del informe. “[Hemos] encontrado pruebas suficientes para concluir que Israel ha cometido y continúa cometiendo genocidio contra los palestinos en la ocupada Franja de Gaza”, afirmó el informe publicado. Agnes Callamard,…

[cavalierzee]

The International Community's Failure To Hold Israel Accountable

Amnesty International’s Secretay General, Agnes Callamard, has condemned the failure of international community to hold the Israeli occupation accountable over its crimes against Palestinians.