Los Angeles, CA
January 11, 2022
StandWithUs has initiated a mass campaign to counter the permanent, open-ended “Commission of Inquiry” created by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on May 27, 2021. The campaign includes a petition that "rejects the legitimacy of this inquiry" and contains valuable resources for people to learn more about anti-Israel bias at the UN.
The stated purpose of this “inquiry” is to “investigate all underlying root causes of recurrent tensions, instability and protraction of conflict” between Israelis and Palestinians. However, it is being led by officials with long records of anti-Israel bias and a corrupt "human rights council" dominated by undemocratic regimes that violate human rights. As such, the inquiry is expected to lead directly to legal and political campaigns aimed at isolating Israel, undermining its efforts to defend Israeli homes and families from terrorism, and denying its right to exist as a Jewish and democratic state.
Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs stated, “The UNHRC’s systemic discrimination against Israel has been condemned by multiple UN Secretaries-General, but this ‘inquiry’ shows it is only getting worse. The goal is to put the world's only Jewish state on trial, as part of the global campaign to eliminate Israel and strip away Jewish rights to self-determination and self-defense. This abuse of power will do nothing to advance the cause of human rights, justice, or peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Moreover, it is outrageous that the UNHRC is using dramatically more resources for this transparent effort to harm Israel, than to investigate horrific atrocities in Syria and other places around the world.”
The commission of inquiry’s proposed budget and staff are twice the size of a similar commission focusing on the Syrian Civil War. While the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a tragedy that must end, the UN’s own estimates show that at least 120 times fewer people have been killed on both sides since 2011 (4,133), compared to the Syrian Civil War in that same time period (over 500,000).
The UNHRC’s politicization, abuse of power and systemic discrimination manifest as follows:
The UNHRC is controlled by a majority of undemocratic governments, including regimes responsible for some of the worst human rights violations in the world today.
Israel, the only proven democracy in the Middle East, is the only state whose human rights record is routinely examined under a permanent special agenda item (No. 7) while all other countries’ records are scrutinized in the general debate.
The UNHRC has condemned and investigated the Jewish state more than all other governments in the world combined.
Israel has been subjected to more UNHRC special sessions (9) than any other state. The UNHRC has failed to call special sessions regarding governments such as North Korea, China, Russia, Iran or Venezuela – all serial human rights abusers.
The UNHRC has subjected Israel to more commissions of inquiry (9) than any other state.
Several UN Secretaries General have harshly criticized the UN’s institutionalized anti-Israel bias. UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in 2017, “Israel needs to be considered as a state [that is] the same as all the others ... without any form of discrimination.” In 2007 UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon stated, “[I am] disappointed at the council’s decision to single out only one specific regional item given the range and scope of the allegations of human rights violations throughout the world.” And, in 2006 UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said, “Supporters of Israel feel that it is harshly judged by standards that are not applied to its enemies – and too often this is true, particularly in some UN bodies.”
StandWithUs hopes that people of all faiths and other organizations around the world will join our effort to expose and condemn this unreasonable and inhumane UNHRC campaign to delegitimize the State of Israel.
About StandWithUs
StandWithUs (SWU) is an international, non-profit and non-partisan Israel education organization that works to inspire and educate people of all ages about Israel, as well as challenge misinformation and fight against antisemitism.
Through university fellowships, high school internships, middle school curricula, conferences, materials, social media, educational films and missions to Israel, StandWithUs supports people around the world who want to educate their schools and communities about Israel.
Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Los Angeles, the organization has chapters and programs on 5 continents, including the U.S., Israel, UK, Canada, South Africa and Brazil.
For the last ten years, SWU has consistently received the highest possible ratings from Charity Navigator (4 stars) and Guidestar (Platinum).
