A/HRC/43/67 industry was involved in the exploitation of natural resources, while residents of the occupied Syrian Golan were unable to develop their own energy industries owing to Israeli restrictions.62 63. Developments affecting the Syrian population of the occupied Syrian Golan were noted during the period under review in relation to the “Clean Wind Energy Project”; a renewable energy project, which is expected to have a significant impact on the livelihoods, culture, health and environment of Syrian residents. 63 Reportedly, the 31 wind turbines planned, which can reach a height of 220 metres, will be built on Syrian agricultural lands and in proximity to Syrian population centres. It is expected to occupy some 4,300 dunums of land, almost a quarter of the agricultural land remaining in the possession of the residents of the occupied Syrian Golan. Al-Marsad estimated that Syrian landowners would receive about 1 per cent of the total profits of the project once it is operational.64 It also noted that the project could have a severe impact on health and the environment, while further limiting the possibility for Syrian village expansion and undercutting the important cultural ties that residents of the occupied Syrian Golan maintain to the land.65 The project was reportedly advanced without the free, prior and informed consent of Syrian residents, who have filed a local petition with 5,000 signatures opposing the project.66 64. During the period under review, Al-Marsad was repeatedly targeted by a smear campaign for its activities opposing the energy project. The energy company filed under the anti-boycott law of Israel a lawsuit against Al-Marsad for a report it had published outlining the implications of the project for the Syrian community. The company demands that AlMarsad retract and apologize for allegedly slanderous material it has published on the project. This is the first time that a non-profit human rights organization registered in Israel67 has been sued under the anti-boycott law, and could set a concerning precedent that would have a widespread impact on civil society in Israel. VI. Conclusions and recommendations 65. The establishment and expansion of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory amounts to the transfer by Israel of its population into the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which is prohibited under international humanitarian law. 68 The transfer of an occupying Power’s population to a territory it occupies amounts to a war crime that may engage the individual criminal responsibility of those involved. 69 A number of international bodies have confirmed the illegality of Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the occupied Syrian Golan, including the International Court of Justice, the Security Council, the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council.70 66. Plans for further housing units in settlements increased, while the announcement of tenders and the rate of construction starts of settlement housing decreased. Incidents of settler violence continued at a high rate and the severity of attacks and injuries to Palestinians increased, without any decisive action by Israeli authorities to protect the Palestinian population in accordance with their obligations as the occupying Power. 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 14 http://golan-marsad.org/wp-content/uploads/AM-AH_Joint-Parallel-Report-to-the-CESCR-Israel2019.pdf, para. 23. Ibid., para. 26. Ibid., para. 27. Ibid., para. 28. http://golan-marsad.org/wp-content/uploads/Al-Marsad_Urgent-Appeal-to-UN-Experts.pdf. Israel applies its domestic law also within the occupied Syrian Golan, and therefore requires local non-governmental organizations to be registered with the Government of Israel. Fourth Geneva Convention, art. 49 (6). Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, art. 8 (2) (b) (viii). See Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Advisory Opinion, I.C.J. Reports 2004, p. 136; Security Council resolutions 465 (1980) and 2334 (2016); General Assembly resolutions 71/97 and 72/86; and Human Rights Council resolution 31/36.