Human Rights

21 Mar 2023; MEMO: The Knesset (Israel's parliament) has passed the second and third readings of a Bill to allow Israeli settlers to resettle in four settlements in the Occupied West Bank, Anadolu News Agency reports.

The Bill rolled back legislation that ordered the evacuation of the illegal outposts of Homesh, Ganim, Kadim and Sa-Nur in the Occupied Territory in 2005.

The Bill was passed by 31-18 votes in the 120-seat Knesset, the assembly said in a statement.

21 Mar 2023; MEMO: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan talked with his Israeli counterpart, Isaac Herzog, on the phone on Monday evening about the Al Aqsa status, Turkish media outlets reported Tuesday.

According to the report, the two leaders exchanged greetings on the upcoming Islamic holy month of Ramadan and Israel's Passover. Erdogan stressed the importance of prevention of "provocation and threats towards Al-Aqsa mosque", especially during Ramadan.

22 Mar 2023; MEMO: The US State Department's annual human rights report adopted the Israeli occupation government's account of the assassination of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, and failed to mention the death of an American citizen after he was arrested by Israeli forces last year.

22 Mar 2023; MEMO: A large group of reserve Israeli soldiers and officers yesterday warned that they will not turn up for duty if called upon as a result of government plans to overhaul the judiciary, local media reported.

20 Mar 2023; MEMO: Australian authorities said, on Monday, they had arrested a former soldier for allegedly killing an Afghanistan civilian while deployed with the country's defence force there, Reuters reports.

The 41-year-old man is expected to be charged in an Australian court with one count of war crime murder, which carries a maximum penalty of life in jail, the Australian Federal Police said in a statement.

20 Mar 2023; MEMO: Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, on Monday ordered the closure of the Voice of Palestine radio station's offices in Occupied East Jerusalem and Israel, Anadolu News Agency reports.

A statement by Ben-Gvir's office attributed the move to incitement against Israel by the Palestinian radio.

According to an Anadolu reporter, a number of staff working for the radio station were summoned by Israeli police for questioning.

21 Mar 2023; MEMO: The Saudi Arabian authorities have freed a prisoner with dual Saudi-US citizenship after widespread pressure for his release, Associated Press has reported. Saad Almadi, 72, has lived in Florida for years, and was visiting his homeland when he was arrested a year ago.

21 Mar 2023; MEMO: The European Union expressed deep regret on Monday over remarks made by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich during a Jewish community event in France. Echoing the words of former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, far-right extremist Smotrich claimed that there is "no such thing as Palestinians" and they are a "fictitious nation invented only to battle against the Zionist movement."

21 Mar 2023; MEMO: Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant has threatened that he will resign if the government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu persists in going ahead with its proposed judicial overhaul, Israeli media revealed on Monday.

Denouncing the wave of military personnel taking part in anti-government protests in Israel for almost three months, Gallant added that such "widespread insubordination may harm the IDF's ability to carry out its missions."

19 Mar 2023; MEMO: Opponents of the Israeli government's plans for judicial overhaul staged fresh demonstrations for the 11th straight week on Saturday, Anadolu reports.

Protesters held rallies in several Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv, where several main roads were blocked, The Jerusalem Post newspaper reported.

Saturday's protests were joined by Arab-Israelis and members of the Bedouin community, marking their first appearance in the ongoing demonstrations against the judicial reform plans.