The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel (COI) has issued a 19-page report condemning Israel for alleged criminal acts, specifically the crime of extermination and restrictions on religious freedom. This report has caused significant backlash, with the U.S. and legal experts highlighting concerns over its content.
The report, compiled by the COI, examines violations of international human rights law, international humanitarian law, and suspected international crimes. The commission criticizes the alleged attacks on educational facilities, religious and cultural sites. However, the COI seems to take a harsher stance on Israel compared to Palestinian authorities. In conclusion, the CO, offers 13 recommendations for Israel, two for the de facto authorities in Gaza, two for the Government of the State of Palestine, and two for all U.N. members states.
The report is already generating controversy, with the U.S. mission and legal experts expressing concerns over its content. For instance, Anne Bayefsky, Director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust and President of Human Rights Voices, stated, ‘The latest report from this U.N.’s kangaroo court is a frightening indication of the antisemitism and incitement to violence spread by the United Nations on a global scale.’
Among the most severe accusations against Israel are allegations that it restricts religious freedoms, citing its control over holy sites in Jerusalem. The COI reported that Palestinian worshipers were subjected to increased security checks, checkpoints, harassment, and assault, with criteria linked to age, gender, and place of residence applied by Israeli authorities to restrict which Palestinians are allowed to enter the Temple Mount. The commission also claims that a ‘religious leader’ was arrested shortly after Oct. 7 after giving a sermon at the mosque without explaining what was said.
The commission also expressed concerns that ‘extremist Jews and right-wing politicians’ were permitted ‘on multiple occasions to enter the site with a police escort, pray and cause provocation, despite a long-standing prohibition against Jewish prayer.’ The commission seems to take greater issue with Jews praying than with the ban on their ability to do so, despite claiming to admonish restrictions on religious freedoms.
Bayefsky asserted, ‘They claim Jews exclude non-Jews from religious sites when the exact opposite is true. Only Israel protects freedom of religion for Christians, Muslims, and Jews, while Jews have been banned and Jewish religious sites have been systematically trashed by Palestinian Arabs for a century.’
In response to a Fox News Digital request for comment, a State Department spokesperson said, ‘The U.S. firmly opposes this COI’s open-ended and vaguely defined mandate and does not support its involvement in investigating the current conflict given our reservations about its structure and approach.’
‘To be clear, Palestinians are going through sheer hell in this conflict and a lot of that is because Hamas has put them in an impossible situation. We’ve been clear that Israel has a right to take action against Hamas, but we’ve also been just as clear that Israel must take every precaution possible to protect civilians,’ the spokesperson added.
In another part of the report, the COI notes that the UNRWA documented 42 instances from Oct. 7, 2023, to March 15, 2024, in which ‘parties to the conflict’ interfered with its schools. In response to a Fox News Digital request for comment and clarification on whether Hamas used its schools, UNRWA reiterated its condemnations of ‘any party to the conflict’ using its facilities for ‘military or fighting purposes.’
‘Since the start of the war, UNRWA has repeatedly condemned the use of UN facilities by any party to the conflict for military or fighting purposes. We have repeatedly called for independent investigation and accountability for the blatant disregard of UN staff lives, premises and operations,’ a spokesperson for UNRWA told Fox News Digital. ‘We reiterate our call on all parties to the conflict to respect the sanctity and neutrality of UN installations.’
While UNRWA did not directly address whether Hamas used its facilities, the commission said that Israeli forces caused ‘the majority of harm to educational facilities.’ While the commission mentions Israel’s claim that Hamas has operated out of these schools, it also says that the terror organization ‘contested’ the allegation.
In its recommendations for Israel, the commission calls on Jerusalem to ‘cease the use of educational facilities and cultural sites for military purposes.’ It also recommended that ‘de facto authorities in Gaza’ — Hamas — ‘cease using civilian objects for military purposes.’
The commission also calls on Israel to ‘provide effective, adequate and prompt remedy for victims of human rights violations, including surviving family members,’ but makes no such demands of those responsible for atrocities committed on Oct. 7.