A/HRC/16/24 brutally murdered while asleep.42 Palestinian civilians continue to be injured and killed by Israeli soldiers, and a 65-year-old Palestinian man was killed “by mistake” as he slept in his bed in Hebron in January.43 Meanwhile, Palestinian children are routinely arrested in the middle of the night and taken off to military detention.44 Settler violence against Palestinians and Palestinian violence against Israeli civilians continues in the West Bank. The harsh conditions imposed on Palestinians at checkpoints and border controls, often in humiliating circumstances, feeds the feeling of injustice among the civilian population.45 As recently reported by the High Commissioner for Human Rights in her report on the implementation of Human Rights Council resolutions S-9/1 and S-12/1 covering the period from 4 February to 30 November 2010, the situation is of profound concern and serious violations occur “on a widespread and persistent basis” (A/HRC/16/71, para. 55). As stressed by the General Assembly in its resolution 64/254, there is a “need to ensure accountability for all violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law in order to prevent impunity, ensure justice, deter further violations and promote peace”. The Committee believes that significant and sustained efforts from the parties concerned are required to achieve accountability and justice. B. Human rights defenders 65. Second, the Committee is keenly aware that human rights organizations play a vital role in any system of investigating and prosecuting allegations of violations of international law. The Government of Israel has acknowledged that the MAG himself considers the information provided by human rights defenders as an important part of his deliberations about incidents. It has further represented that the Military Police actively seek the help of human rights organizations and Israeli lawyers representing complainants in order to facilitate meetings between Israeli investigators and Gaza residents.46 Similarly, both the Independent Investigation Commission and the de facto Gaza authorities report receiving valuable information from human rights organizations. The Commission engaged in consultations with human rights and other civil society organizations and national figures in relation to its methods of work, identifying potential difficulties, and how to resolve them (A/64/890, annex II, p. 82, para. 64). The Committee itself has obtained invaluable information from NGOs in Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Geneva, London and New York. 66. The FFM expressed concerns about allegations of hostile retaliatory actions directed at civil society organizations for criticism of the Israeli authorities and for exposing alleged violations of international law during the military operations (A/HRC/12/48, para. 1767) – concerns that appear to be increasingly valid. The Committee has heard a constant refrain from NGOs about the deteriorating climate for human rights defenders in Israel and that this has had a negative impact on their ability to pursue their work. Specifically, the Committee has been informed about an initiative in the Knesset to launch a parliamentary inquiry probing human rights organizations, notwithstanding the Attorney General’s 42 43 44 45 46 16 Human Rights Watch, “West Bank: no excuse for murder of settler family”, 12 March 2011. Available from www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/03/12/west-bank-no-excuse-murder-settler-family. “IDF kills 65-year-old Palestinian man during raid on Hamas cell in Hebron”, Haaretz, 7 January 2011. Available from www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/idf-kills-65-year-old-palestinianman-during-raid-on-hamas-cell-in-hebron-1.335713. Defence for Children International – Palestine Section, “In their own words: a report on the situation facing Palestinian children detained in occupied East Jerusalem”, 3 February 2011. Jack Khoury, “Machsom Watch activist: removing checkpoints doesn’t remove the occupation”, Haaretz, 15 February 2011. Available from www.haaretz.com/print-edition/features/machsom-watchactivist-removing-checkpoints-doesn-t-remove-the-occupation-1.343471. Israel, “Gaza Operation” (note 17 above), para. 27.