The Note of the Secretary General on the

The Note of the Secretary General on the Economic and Social Repercussions of the Israeli Occupation on the Living Conditions of the Palestinian People in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including occupied East Jerusalem, and the Arab Population in the Occupied Syrian Golan Prepared by the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia Presented by Dr. Rima Khalaf, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary General Assembly 66 th Session October 2011

Outline 1. Legislative Mandate 2. General Remarks 3. The Occupied Palestinian Territory a. Excessive Use of Force and Arbitrary Detentions b. Home Demolitions, Property Confiscation and Population Displacement c. Israeli Settlements and Settler Violence d. The Wall e. Mobility Restrictions and Closure Policies f. Impact on Natural Resources and the Environment g. Social and Economic Indicators 4. The Occupied Syrian Golan 5. Conclusion

Legislative Mandate ECOSOC Resolution 2010/31: • • • Border crossings of the Gaza Strip (blockade) Movement restrictions Protection of civilians Destruction of homes and properties, and agricultural lands and orchards Israeli settlements The wall GA Resolution 65/179: • Inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and the population of the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources • Exploitation, damage, or endangerment of natural resources • The wall • The alteration of the character and status of the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem • Destruction of vital infrastructure. Both Council and Assembly requested the Secretary-General to submit a report on the implementation of the two resolutions.

General Remarks • The main cause of socio-economic and humanitarian plight of the Palestinian people is the Israeli occupation • Israel has established a regime of occupation, which has manifested itself in a series of unlawful and internationally prohibited measures

The Occupied Palestinian Territory a. Excessive Use of Force and Arbitrary Detentions

OPT: Excessive Use of Force and Arbitrary Detentions • 98 Palestinians killed and 1, 871 injured by Israeli security forces and settlers (Reporting period: 1 February 2010 and 29 March 2011) • Another 142 Palestinians, including 18 children were killed (between March and October 2011) • Between 2000 and 2010 1, 335 Palestinian children killed by Israeli soldiers/settlers • Administrative Detention: detaining an individual without any charge or trial. • Between 1967 and 2010, more than 760, 000 Palestinians were detained by Israeli forces including 15, 000 children • 201 Palestinian children were in Israeli prisons (July 2011) • 90 cases of torture/ill-treatment of detained children were documented in 2010 • An estimated 700 Palestinian children are prosecuted in Israeli military courts each year

The Occupied Palestinian Territory b. Home Demolitions, Property Confiscation and Population Displacement

OPT: Home Demolitions, Property Confiscation and Population Displacement • Demolitions peaked in 2010 increased by 59% from 2009: – higher than any year since 2005 – 431 Palestinian structures were demolished including 137 residential structures – 594 people displaced – 14, 136 others directly affected • At least 20, 194 Palestinians have been left homeless as a result of home demolitions since 2004 • 23, 500 people are homeless in the Gaza Strip, due to inability to reconstruct 15, 000 homes damaged or destroyed during “Operation Cast Lead”

OPT: Home Demolitions, Property Confiscation and Population Displacement East Jerusalem: Policy of systematic displacement and land grab • Expropriation of 23, 378, 000 m 2 of land in East Jerusalem since 1968 • 376 Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem demolished since 2004 • Limitations on Palestinians’ ability to construct in East Jerusalem – 60, 000 Palestinians in East Jerusalem under the threat of becoming homeless • Revocation of 13, 115 residency permits for Palestinian between 1967 and November 2009 (46 additional permits in the first half of 2010)

The Occupied Palestinian Territory c. Israeli Settlements and Settler Violence

OPT: Israeli Settlements and Settler Violence Israeli settlements in the OPT are considered illegal according the UN Security Council Resolution 446 (1979), and outposts are even illegal under Israeli law • 517, 774 Israeli Settlers in 144 settlements and 100 outposts in the OPT (mid 2010) • Israeli settler population growth rate in the OPT has been more than double the rate within Israel: • Number of Israeli settlers has doubled since 1992 Year 1992 1997 2002 2007 2010 Israeli Settlers 241, 500 308, 689 383, 275 461, 169 517, 774 • In 2011, the rate of construction in Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land was double that of construction within Israel • Settlers use roads in the OPT marked for Israeli access only

OPT: Israeli Settlements and Settler Violence • Settler attacks more than doubled compared in 2010 to 2009: – 304 settler-related incidents against Palestinians and their properties (February 2010 and February 2011) – Settlers took over at least ten Palestinian housing units in occupied East Jerusalem – Israeli settlers burned down Palestinian churches and Mosques – Attacks against four medical facilities and crews and educational institutions – Destruction of roughly 4, 000 olive trees – many of them ancient • No indictments following 97 investigations into the destruction of Palestinian trees by Israeli settlers between 2005 and 2010. Israeli Settlers “Price Tag Policy”: Respond to any action by Israeli authorities limiting settlement expansion by attacking Palestinians and their property

The Occupied Palestinian Territory d. The Wall

Total Length: 707 km Within the West Bank 85% Constructed 61. 4% (434 km) Under Construction 8. 4% (60 km) Planned 30. 2% (213 km) Green Line (OCHA-OPT) • De facto annexation of 13%of the West Bank • 33, 000 Palestinians stranded between the Wall and the Green Line • 855, 000 Palestinians affected • East Jerusalem severed from the remainder of the West Bank • Palestinians have to obtain ‘visitor’ permits for their farming land water resources WEST BANK

The Occupied Palestinian Territory e. Mobility Restrictions and Closure Policies

Mobility Restrictions in the West Bank: Closed Areas/Natural Reserves Road Obstacles Fragmentation The Wall Restricted Roads Settlements Areas A and B (Oslo Accords) Areas C 149 Israeli settlements, 100 outposts and land cultivated by Israelis Israeli military closed areas (Fire Zones) and 48 military bases Nature Reserves West Bank Barrier and Areas between the Barrier and the Green Line Restricted Roads Closures and Checkpoints The effect of the closures and the road system Fragmentation of the West Bank Tunnels (As of September 2008) Map Courtesy of OCHA-OPT (2008)

The Gaza Strip: Blockade and Access Restrictions • Blockade imposed by Israel on the Gaza Strip since June 2007: • collective punishment imposed on an entire civilian population in direct violation of article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. • Most of the fundamental parameters of Israel’s blockade remain in place • Movement of Gaza’s population in and out of the Strip remains difficult and largely banned • Limited access of humanitarian assistance • importation of basic construction materials remains heavily restricted • Israel imposes a 1 -1. 5 km ‘buffer zone’ within the Gaza Strip • Denying Palestinians access to 35% of the Strip’s agricultural land • Sea areas beyond 3 nautical miles from shore are barred for Palestinian access • 200 Nautical miles is the Exclusive Economic Zone for UN member states • 65, 000 people affected by restrictions to maritime areas Map Courtesy of OCHA-OPT

The Occupied Palestinian Territory f. Impact on Natural Resources and the Environment

OPT: Impact on Natural Resources and the Environment • Palestinians have very limited access to water resources: – Palestinian access to domestic fresh water averages 73 litres/person/day in the West Bank and 52 in the Gaza Strip. (WHO recommends a minimum of 100 litres/person/day) – Half of Palestinian wells have been dried up over the last two decades • On average, an Israeli settler consumes 7 times as much water as a Palestinian, while Palestinians pay 5 times as much as the settlers for water • 170, 000 m 2 of fertile land are isolated by the wall in the West Bank • Israeli settlements dump around 40 million m 3 of wastewater and solid waste annually on Palestinian land. • Due to the blockade on the Gaza Strip, 60 million litres of untreated or partly treated sewage reaches agricultural lands, the sea, and sources of drinking water on a daily basis

The Occupied Palestinian Territory g. Social and Economic Indicators

OPT: Social and Economic Indicators • GDP person in 2010 to be 30 per cent less than it was in 2000 • 22% of Palestinian lived in poverty in 2009 • 24% unemployment rate in the OPT In the first half of 2011 (relaxed definition) • 1, 365 establishments operational in the Gaza Strip (June-July 2010), compared to 3, 900 prior to the blockade • Land access restrictions in the Gaza Strip cost the economy a loss of approximately 75, 000 metric tons of potential produce annually • Palestinian households dedicate more than half of their total cash expenditures to food • The OPT has become one of the most aid-dependent economies in the world

OPT: Social and Economic Indicators • 1. 43 million Palestinians suffer from food insecurity • 2 out 3 children in the Gaza Strip report severe and moderate reaction to trauma. Post-traumatic stress among families is estimated at 45%. • The blockade on the Gaza Strip has forced people “to make unacceptable tradeoffs, often having to choose between food or medicine or water for their families” • The blockade on the Gaza Strip has led to severe shortages in essential drugs and medicines, as well as in medical equipment • Restrictions are placed on the movement of patients and health staff in the West Bank • 80% of schools in the Gaza Strip operate on double shifts to accommodate the number of students • 40 incidents in which students are prevented from accessing schools, learning is disrupted, or where the safety of students was compromised were documented in 2010 in the West Bank

The Occupied Syrian Golan

The Occupied Syrian Golan • The Security Council, in its resolution 497 (1981), declared that the Israeli decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the Syrian Golan was null and void • 22, 000 Syrians still reside there in five towns in the occupied Syrian Golan while 19, 000 Israeli settlers, live in some 33 settlements • Reported discrimination against Syrian workers and landowners in the occupied Syrian Golan: – Syrian citizens who wish to maintain their Syrian Arab identity face hardship and severely restricted prospects of earning a decent living – Taxation on the agricultural produce of the occupied population can reach up to 50% – Disparities between water allocated for Syrian residents and Israeli settlers

Conclusion End the Israeli occupation and restore the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people www. un. org/regionalcommissions