In 1967, with the onset of the occupation, Israel held a census in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Ever since, with the exception of children under 16, a person who is not listed in the population registry is able, allegedly, to acquire residency status only through the family-unification procedure. Although under the Oslo Accords the powers to administer the population registry in the Occup
The right not to be subjected to torture is an absolute right. International law makes no exceptions to the absolute prohibition on torture – which constitutes a crime against humanity – including in circumstances of war or a fight against terror. Torture is defined by the United Nations as "any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a per
Israel has demolished the homes of Palestinians suspected or convicted of attacks against Israelis since 1967. This extreme sanction is implemented pursuant to Regulation 119 of the Defense (Emergency) Regulations, which date back to the British Mandate. The Regulation allows the military to demolish a home based solely on suspicions that an offense had been committed. Israel claims demolitions
Since 2002, Israel has been building a separation wall between its territory and the West Bank.* The Wall (also called the Barrier or Fence) is not erected on the Green Line (the 1967 Armistice Line), as required under international law, but deep inside the occupied territory. Palestinian land is thus trapped in areas isolated from the rest of the West Bank. These enclaves, located between the
Despite the geographic divide, the West Bank and Gaza Strip constitute a single integral unit. Palestinians living in these two parts of the OPT share a single national identity, a language and a history. Family ties, social organization, the health care system – all these, and more, cut across the lines that physically separate between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Israel itself has recognize
With the onset of the occupation in 1967, Israel conducted a census in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Palestinians who were present in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) were recorded as permanent residents in the population registry. Since then, Israel has allowed only the registration of minors under the age of 16 who have at least one parent who is an OPT resident. In 1995, as part of t
With the occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in 1967, Israel annexed, in contravention of international law, those parts of Jerusalem which were under Jordanian rule from 1948, as well as other extensive West Bank areas near the city. The municipal jurisdiction of West Jerusalem was expanded to include these annexed areas. The annexed Palestinian neighborhoods and villages together beca
