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Tuesday, August 23, 2022

Human Rights Watch doesn't give a damn about human rights, example #2843


Ken Roth, the outgoing head of Human Rights Watch, revealed how little he actually cares about human rights yet again, in just one tweet:
First of all, is there a basic human right "to be able to travel from a nearby airport"? Is HRW lobbying for airports to be built in remote areas of the world because of this "basic right"? 

Why is it a violation of basic rights for Palestinians to travel through national borders with Egypt or Jordan to get to an airport - and they can only achieve this right by crossing a different national border with Israel to travel to the Negev?

Secondly, did Israel really condition travel through Ramon on the ICC?

The Guardian article that he is referring to says:
A controversial plan to allow Palestinians to fly to Turkey from southern Israel’s Ramon airport has been shelved on the eve of the first scheduled departure.

Israel’s airport authority announced earlier this month that Ramon in the Negev desert, near the Red Sea city of Eilat, would begin allowing Palestinians from the occupied West Bank to travel on Turkish-operated flights to Antalya and Istanbul from 22 August.

The proposal is believed to be part of a package of goodwill measures from Israel to the Palestinians unveiled to the US president, Joe Biden, during his visit to the region last month, reportedly offered on the condition that the Palestinians withdraw their charge of war crimes at the international criminal court.
This article was written before Israel did a pilot flight yesterday to Larnaca, Cyprus, with Palestinians aboard - but Roth wrote his tweet afterwards. From all reports, Israel has every intention to continue with this plan and offer Palestinians who are not a security risk the ability to fly out of Israel.  

In other words, it is clear today that Israel is not conditioning the use of the airport on Palestinians withdrawing their charges at the ICC and that the rumor floated by the Guardian is incorrect - but Ken Roth reported it as fact.

However, there was another part of the Guardian report about someone limiting the rights of Palestinians to travel: the Palestinian Authority itself!
Remarks attributed to a Palestinian ministry of transport source published in Palestinian outlets last week suggested the PA would fine or otherwise punish people who sought to use Ramon.

“The PA has no right to do or say anything about Ramon airport. They have permits and VIP cards so they and their families can travel through Ben Gurion, while we have to go to Jordan and spend one day there before the flight, and spend money,” a Palestinian critic of the PA said in a popular TikTok post.

“So do not sell us patriotism, and don’t say it is without coordinating with the PA. All the PA officials care about is their personal interests.”
Haaretz adds, "The Palestinian Authority also condemned the flight, and announced that it would impose sanctions on the passengers. "

If Ken Roth cares about the right to travel, why doesn't he mention that the only ones trying to ban that for Palestinians are their own leaders?

Beyond that, it is clear that for Roth, the right to travel is not as important as his bashing Israel. 

Here we have a plan, and a successful pilot, to allow Palestinians to travel through Israel to the rest of the world on their own passports. This plan saves them time and money. They are treated respectfully and equally with the Jewish passengers on the same flights. If this was really a human rights issue, Ken Roth should be celebrating. Instead, he parrots an obviously false rumor against Israel.

That is proof positive that, to Human Rights Watch, spouting malicious lies about Israel is more important than what they call "basic rights."



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