Not considering Hamas a terrorist group, imposing disproportionate condemnations on Israel and taking too long to pronounce on the sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas are evidences pointed out by André Lajst
The UN General Assembly ended 2023 with a total of 21 resolutions condemning the actions of specific countries. Of these, 14 were against Israel and only 7 against other nations.
Countries like North Korea, Syria, Myanmar and Iran, known for their history of human rights violations, received only one condemnation each. Russia, which is still waging a war of aggression against Ukraine and has committed several violations in Crimea, was condemned twice. The United States also received one condemnation for its embargoes on Cuba.
Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, a non-governmental organization that monitors the actions of the United Nations, spoke out about the condemnations of Israel, calling them “surreal”, with the aim of “demonizing the Jewish state”, which encourages the growth of anti-Semitic demonstrations around the world.
“The UN’s disproportionate attack on the Jewish state undermines the credibility of what should be an impartial international body,” Neuer said in a press release. He goes on to point out that the disproportionate attacks on Israel only highlight that “the UN’s automatic majority has no interest in truly helping the Palestinians, nor in protecting anyone’s human rights; the aim of these ritual and one-sided condemnations is to make Israel the scapegoat”.
André Lajst, executive president of StandWithUs Brazil, explains that the UN’s unequal treatment of Israel goes back a long way, with a long history of prejudice and persecution, but this bias has become increasingly clear since the Hamas terrorist attacks on October 7. “It is regrettable and unacceptable that a body like the UN, as well as its agencies, created with the purpose of promoting peace between nations after the Second World War, should take this position – disproportionately condemning a country that defends its people after suffering the biggest terrorist attack in its history, while ignoring not only the atrocities done to the Israeli population, but also the actions of various bloodthirsty dictatorships around the world,” he says.
Regarding the disparity in treatment of the suffering of its population, Israel criticized the UN for its late response to the sexual violence committed by Hamas against Israeli women. The UN Women agency only issued a statement on the accusations of sexual crimes during the war, condemning “unequivocally the brutal attacks by Hamas”, on December 1, almost two months after the attack began.
On December 21, the issue came up again at the UN with a speech by Pramila Patten, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Sexual Violence in Conflict, who called for the immediate, safe and unconditional release of all Israeli civilians being held hostage by Hamas, especially women. Patten recalled that all forms of sexual violence and hostage-taking are strictly prohibited by international humanitarian and human rights law, and called for all horrific reports of sexual violence allegedly committed by Hamas to be swiftly and rigorously investigated, stressing the UN’s willingness to independently investigate such violations.
“The cost of this war to innocent civilians on both sides is too high and must end. We know that in circumstances of abduction or detention, women in particular run an increased risk of suffering different forms of violence, including sexual violence,” she said.
Lajst explains that another factor contributing to the UN’s lack of action on Hamas is that the organization doesn’t even consider it a terrorist group. “Despite several nations classifying Hamas as a terrorist group, including the European Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Japan, the Security Council does not include those responsible for the greatest tragedy in Israel’s recent history in its list of terrorist groups. Without this definition, Hamas is not condemned in the way it should be by the United Nations and its member countries, including Brazil, which follows the UN’s determination not to call Hamas a terrorist group, despite the atrocities they have committed against the Israeli population and their own, who are used as human shields,” says the political scientist.
The expert concludes by saying that Israel’s main motivation for continuing with the war is to rescue the Israelis held captive by Hamas, and that “Israel will do everything to bring them back safely, taking the decisions that any other country would take to defend its citizens and ensure that terrorists don’t return to commit barbarities against its population”.
*** Translated by DEFCONPress FYI Team ***