UN: Revoking permits for Palestinians is collective punishment

The Israeli army revoked permits for 83,000 Palestinians to enter Israel and announced it would send hundreds of soldiers to the occupied West Bank the day after Palestinians carried out an armed attack in Tel Aviv, which resulted in the deaths of 4 Israelis, Reuters reports, Patria conveys.

- The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, condemned this attack, which has caused the largest number of victims on the Israeli side in a single attack, said spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani.

- But he is deeply concerned about the revocation of entry permits, which indicates collective punishment that will only increase the sense of injustice and frustration felt by Palestinians in these very tense times, Shamdasani said during a press briefing.

The UN spokesperson added:

- Israel also suspended 204 work permits for individuals from the extended families of the alleged attackers, while Israeli security forces blocked entire cities or towns from which they come. The Geneva Convention stipulates that punishing people for crimes they have not personally committed can indicate collective punishment, Shamdasani said.

The Israeli diplomatic mission in Geneva stated that the comment from Zeid's OHCHR office "sets a new record for cynicism and double standards."

- The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights is using the murder of innocent Israelis to attack Israel. Once again, instead of siding with the Israeli victims, it offers a forced, weak condemnation and rushes to defend terrorists, the statement from the Israeli diplomatic mission in Geneva reads.

- Like any other country in the same situation, Israel is taking legitimate steps to defend its citizens from terrorists whose actions are based on beliefs and the glorification of death and martyrdom, supported by the Palestinian leadership and society, the statement says.  

On the same topic, the spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office stated the following in her press release:

- Israel has an obligation to bring those responsible to justice, as has been done. However, the measures taken against the wider population do not punish the perpetrators of the crimes, but tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of innocent Palestinians.

Entry permits were originally granted to Palestinians so they could visit their relatives in the occupied territories during Ramadan.

So far, no one has claimed responsibility for the attack by two armed individuals that occurred on Wednesday in a shopping center near the Israeli Ministry of Defense, but Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups immediately praised it afterwards, according to a Reuters news agency report.