A/HRC/28/44
other international enterprises reiterated that companies engaged in the Occupied
Palestinian Territory should assess the human rights impact of their activities, also in the
light of the heightened risks of negative human rights impact in a conflict-affected area, and
take all necessary measures to ensure that they did not have an adverse impact on human
rights, in conformity with international law and the Guiding Principles on Business and
Human Rights (see also A/HRC/22/63, paras. 96-99 and 117).In 2012, the SecretaryGeneral emphasized that the business and human rights agenda of the United Nations and
the said Guiding Principles should be an integral part of global efforts to bridge existing
governance gaps and safeguard protection and respect for human rights in the context of
economic activities (A/HRC/21/21, para. 92).
IV. Impact of Israeli settlements and settler violence on the human rights
of Palestinians
16.
Israeli settlements and acts of violence committed by Israeli settlers against
Palestinians continue to underpin a broad spectrum of human rights violations against
Palestinians (see A/HRC/25/38, A/68/513 and A/69/348).
Denied or restricted access to agricultural land
17.
As highlighted in previous reports, the access of Palestinians to agricultural lands is
severely restricted and often completely denied for a number of reasons, including
intimidation and attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians (A/67/375, paras. 19-21);
physical obstacles erected by the settlers themselves (A/67/375, paras. 19-21); the
imposition of military or security areas off limits to Palestinians, for instance, closed
military zones and fenced-off areas around settlements (A/64/516, paras. 30-31; A/65/365,
para. 16,); physical movement restrictions, such as the wall, in particular with respect to the
farm lands located in the seam zone (A/65/365, para. 33); and settlement roads that impede
access to agricultural lands (A/63/519, paras. 16 and 30-36).
18.
In response to the difficulties faced by Palestinian farmers in gaining access to
Palestinian-owned land located in fenced-off areas around Israeli settlements and in areas
witnessing frequent incidents of settler violence, the Israeli authorities have, in recent years,
applied the “prior coordination” regime. This mechanism allows registered Palestinian
farmers to have access to their land for a limited number of days each year through
settlement gates, or to work in the fields under the protection of Israeli security forces
(A/67/375, para. 20). According to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs,
about 90 Palestinian communities in the West Bank that have land inside or in the vicinity
of 55 Israeli settlements and settlement outposts may have access to their land only through
“prior coordination” with the Israeli authorities.28
19.
“Prior coordination”, which has mostly been applied during the olive harvest, does
not prevent attacks on trees and crops, which can occur at any time (A/67/375, para. 20).
Access to private Palestinian land at times when no “prior coordination” is available
remains uncertain and dangerous for farmers, particularly in areas with recurrent incidents
of settler violence. Another shortcoming of the mechanism is that it is mainly applied for
the olive harvest, not for other harvests. In a case documented by the Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Israeli security forces officers refused to protect
28
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, “The Impact of Israeli Settler Violence on the
Palestinian Olive Harvest: The Case of Al Mughayyir Village”, October 2013.
7
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