Date: January 21, 2008
Source: http://www.unog.ch/80256EDD006B9C2E/(httpNewsByYear_en)/7477CE022C5634E5C12573D700581EA6?OpenDocument

HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL TO HOLD SPECIAL SESSION ON 23 JANUARY ON VIOLATIONS EMANATING FROM ISRAELI INCURSIONS IN OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY
The Human Rights Council will hold a Special Session on Wednesday, 23 January at the request of the Group of Arab States and the Group of the Organization of Islamic Conference to consider and take action on “human rights violations emanating from Israeli military incursions in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including the recent ones in occupied Gaza and the West Bank town of Nablus”.

In order for a Special Session to be convened, the support of one-third of the membership of the Council (16 members or more) is required. The request for the Special Session was signed by the following Member States of the Council: Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, China, Djibouti, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malaysia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Qatar, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Syria and Uruguay.

The Special Session will start at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, 23 January in Room XVII. There is a possibility that it will continue on Thursday, 24 January.

This will be the fourth Special Session which the Human Rights Council holds relating to Israel. The first one concerned Israel’s military incursion in Lebanon and the other two related to Israel’s actions in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The Council has also held Special Sessions on the situation in Darfur, Sudan and Myanmar.

For use of the information media; not an official record