This a matter of utmost importance. We would like to ask you to write to your Government to demand that it assumes its legal responsibility to uphold and protect humanitarian law. In failing to meet this responsibility, your Government weakens the laws that protect those under occupation and other innocent victims from the worst abuses in warfare.
Humanitarian law obliges the military occupier to respect life and human dignity.
The Fourth Geneva Convention protects civilians under occupation from murder, torture, imprisonment by unfair trial or for offences not personally committed, deportation and transfer, confiscation of land, destruction of property and measures that are currently described as ethnic cleansing . Israel s refusal to accept that Palestinians benefit from the Geneva Convention is intended to protect Israel from its own guilt in committing these illegal acts. After 30 years of violations, Governments around the world met on 15 July 1999 and agreed that the new Israeli Government should be requested to act legally and to respect the rights of Palestinians. Over the past year, Israel has not changed its policies. Even while discussing peace, the Government of Israel continued to breach humanitarian law.