The report reviews Israeli and Palestinian compliance with the "recommendations" for changes issued by UN entities and urges the General Assembly to seek an advisory opinion from the ICJ on the parties' compliance with the recommendations. The General Assembly may seek an advisory opinion from the ICJ pursuant to article 96 of the UN Charter, and in 2003 invoked article 96 to request an advisory opinion on Israel's construction of a security barrier to prevent Palestinian suicide bombers.
In the words of the report:
"75. The High Commissioner suggests the Human Rights Council consider recommending to the General Assembly that it make use of its powers under Article 96 (a) of the Charter of the United Nations in order to specify how all parties can fulfil their obligations in implementing the recommendations reviewed in the present report."
Although the report recommends the ICJ rule on "all parties," the focus of any ICJ opinion will likely center on alleged Israeli violations rather than Palestinian violations, as the vast majority of UN recommendations were issued to Israel (551 of 773 recommendations since 2009).
Other lowlights of the report include:
- Numerical proof of the UN's bias against Israel: Since 2009, UN entities made 551 recommendations for changes to Israel, while making only 75 recommendations to Palestinian authorities and 22 recommendations to Palestinian terrorists.
- The report equates Israel's actions to defend its citizens from indiscriminate rocket attacks during the 2014 Gaza war and Hamas's targeting of civilians and use of the Palestinian population as human shields, claiming both sides must ensure "accountability" for "war crimes": "63. The recommendations by human rights mechanisms and by the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner show a general consensus on the measures that parties must take in order to further compliance with international humanitarian law and international human rights law: ... ensuring accountability for past violations, including war crimes."
- The report does not explicitly refer to or condemn the rockets Hamas and other terror organizations continue to launch into Israel or the terror tunnels which Hamas continues to construct, including at UNRWA schools.
- There is no specific mention of any of the hundreds of car-ramming or shooting attacks by Palestinian terrorists against Israelis. Instead, there are only general references to "ongoing violence."
- The report does not use the word "terror" or "terrorism" or address Palestinian incitement to terror or violence.
- The only mention of Hamas is in a sentence blaming Israel for establishing a blockade to prevent Hamas from restocking its thousands of rockets and other weaponry: "44. Following the gaining of control in Gaza in 2007 by Hamas, Israel established a blockade in breach of international humanitarian law..."
- The only reference to the slew of Palestinian stabbing attacks against Israelis is in the context of the trial of Israeli soldier Elor Azaria, who was convicted of manslaughter by an Israeli military court for shooting a Palestinian terrorist who had stabbed an Israeli soldier. The report claims that Azaria's sentence is too lenient and that the terrorist only "allegedly" stabbed an Israeli: "21. Regarding allegations of acts perpetrated outside active hostilities, the 2017 conviction of Sergeant Elor Azaria to 18 months' imprisonment for the manslaughter of Abdelfattah al-Sharif, a Palestinian who was incapacitated after being shot for allegedly stabbing an Israeli soldier, has been highlighted as exceptional for even reaching trial but referred to as excessively lenient..."
- The report promotes the International Criminal Court's examination of Israel for "war crimes": "68. The High Commissioner takes note of the preliminary examination launched by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in January 2015 into the situation in Palestine to establish whether the Rome Statute criteria for opening an investigation are met. The High Commissioner is encouraged by Israel's dialogue with the Office of the Prosecutor.
69. The High Commissioner notes the repeated failure to comply with the calls for accountability made by the entire human rights system and urges Israel to conduct prompt, impartial and independent investigations of all alleged violations of international human rights law and all allegations of international crimes. Furthermore, the High Commissioner calls upon Israel to ensure that all victims have access to remedies and reparation.
70. The State of Palestine is bound by international human rights and international humanitarian law instruments and bears primary responsibility for the implementation of recommendations addressed to it. The cooperation of the State of Palestine with the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court is encouraging." - The report supports the Boycott, Divest, Sanction (BDS) Movement against Israel by warning corporations about conducting business in Israel: "40. Eleven recommendations concern businesses, civil society and Member States, and call for investigations of the activities of companies and financial institutions profiting from Israeli settlements, and for such practices to be ended and for reparation to be provided to Palestinians affected.
...
76. The role of States and businesses in addressing the human rights impact of businesses in the Occupied Palestinian Territory has been the subject of increasing attention. Under the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, 'business enterprises should respect human rights. This means that they should avoid infringing on the human rights of others and should address adverse human rights impacts with which they are involved' (principle 11). In 2014, the Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises stated in the context of Israeli settlements that 'where an enterprise cannot effectively prevent or mitigate an adverse human rights impact ... it should consider whether its continued operation can be reconciled with its responsibility to respect human rights and act accordingly'. The Working Group also noted that: 'States that are 'home State' of business enterprises operating in or connected with settlements in the OPT should engage with such enterprises at the earliest possible stage to provide advice and guidance, and should make clear the State's policy in regard to the settlements.'" - The report criticizes Israel for the arrest and detention of children, while failing to note that children have been responsible for terror attacks against Israelis and that the incitement to violence promoted by Palestinian authorities is a form of child abuse: "31. The recommendations call on Israel to bring its policies and practices relating to the treatment of children in line with international standards, including using detention as a last resort, conducting arrests during daylight hours only, providing legal counsel before interrogation and ending administrative detention...
32. As at August 2016, Israel held 319 Palestinian children as 'security detainees and prisoners' - an 82 per cent increase compared to 2015... In 2016, the Secretary-General stated that the number of children detained 'raises concerns about meeting international law requirements that children be arrested and detained only as a last resort' and noted with concern the reinstating of administrative detention of children, unused since 2011."
