Palestine : Removal of ESCWA Report Would Promote Israel's Apartheid Regime

Ramallah, 21 Jumadil Akhir 1438/20 March 2017 (MINA) – The removal of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) report on Israel’s racist policies would encourage Israel to move on with its occupation, murder, oppression, settlement and apartheid, Palestinian government spokesperson Tareq Rishmawi said on Sunday.

The Palestinian government denounced the removal of ESCWA report, which accused Israel of apartheid, emphasizing that Israel continues to impose an apartheid regime on the Palestinian people in the occupied territories, Palestinian News Agency WAFA reported.

Rishmawi praised the humanitarian position of Dr. Rima Khalaf, who resigned from her post as UN ESCWA Executive Secretary after UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres asked ESCWA to take down the report, which was published on its website on Wednesday. The UN agency removed the document from its website on Friday.

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Following her resignation, Khalaf told reporters that she still stand by the report, describing it as the “first of its kind” from a UN agency that sheds light on the alleged Israeli “war crimes.” (T/R04/RS5)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)