The new Israeli law that prohibits Palestinians who were injured or had their property damaged by Israeli army troops from suing the government encourages Israeli soldiers to commit more crimes against Palestinians, the Palestinian Prisoners Society said in a press release published on Tuesday.
The press release describes the new Israeli regulation as ‘racist’ since it cancels all the lawsuits submitted to Israeli courts by Palestinians since the year 2000. The main argument in support of the law, the statement noted, is Israel’s claim that the state is not responsible for any damage or harm caused to Palestinians as a result of clashes with the Palestinian resistance in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The society warned that the new law compares ‘the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory to a state of war.’
The concern presented by the society is that soldiers will have a free hand since they know that they will not be pursued by the law if they kill or injure Palestinians or damage their property.
This new law, says the press release, contradicts with international law and the United Nations resolutions, which regard the situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip as a state of occupation and not a state of war.
In a state of occupation, the occupying force must compensate the occupied for any damage caused by the occupation.
The Palestinian Prisoners Society specializes in supporting prisoners held in Israeli jails. It employs lawyers to represent prisoners at no cost. It regards the Palestinian prisoners as directly affected by the Israeli occupation.
