by Dogan Akman
On October 7, 2023 Hamas and the armed wing of the Fatah movement which controls the Palestinian Authority, joined Hamas to carry out a large scale pogrom of Israelis and committed heinous crimes. LPH INFO, The armed wing of Fatah admits to having participated in the massacres of October 7, May 14, 2024.
In addition to the pogrom, Hamas took about 252 hostages from more than 20 countries (including Canada) and treated them abominably to the extent of withholding the services of the International Red Cross for hostages requiring medical attention during the first few months.
After releasing about 100 of them in a temporary ceasefire, to date Hamas continues to hold about 132 hostages while continuing to treat them abominably sexually, physically and mentally; depriving them of medical care while keeping them in equally abominable environments.
This is not the first case of hostage taking by Hamas. For the past several years, Hamas has held four Israelis: Oron Shaul, Hadar Goldin, Avera Mengitsu and Hisham Al-Saye, consistently refusing their unconditional release.
Thus, for years and more recently since October 7, 2023, Hamas has been and continues to be guilty of crimes under international humanitarian law and international human rights law that prohibits hostage taking and their ill-treatment.
Yet it took the United Nations Security Council over seven months to convene on May 16th inst., the very first organised meeting at the United Nations devoted exclusively to recognizing the hostage-taking as a clear violation of international law.
Strangely enough, Pramila Patten, the Special Representative of the U.N Secretary General on Sexual Violence in Conflict withdrew from a slated appearance before the informal Security Council meeting about the sexual crimes committed against the October 7 hostages, despite the fact the UN finally recognised that Israeli women were raped and sexually attacked by Hamas terrorists, as reported by Benjamin Weinthal, UN envoy for sexual violence under fire for no-show at meeting on Hamas’ hostages held in Gaza. Fox News, May16, 2024
It is hard to explain, justify or rationalise, this lack of urgent focus and motivation to address this matter independently of the on-going war, and do so on an urgent basis, and to take immediate concrete actions to liberate all the hostages.
This is particularly the case since as U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield addressing the meeting on May 16, pointed out, that the U.N. Security Council has repeatedly condemned hostage –taking as a clear violation of international law since 2014 in Resolutions 2133( 2014) and 2474 (2018).
The foregoing facts and circumstances show an unforgivable dereliction of duty by the Security Council in dealing with the matter of hostages immediately and effectively to secure their freedom independent of the outstanding political issues related to cease-fires and the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Gazans.
By contrast, in the three resolutions passed since October 7, namely; 2712(Nov. 2023), 2720 (Dec.2023) and 2728 (March 2024), the Council called for the immediate release of hostages by adopting a ransom formula of granting benefits to Hamas in exchange for the release of the first and only group of hostages in violation of the U.N. Security Council resolution 2133 of 2014. which, inter-alia, prohibits making political concessions to secure the release of hostages.
These resolutions defective on some other points showed the Security Council’s utter cynicism and indifference to the protection of the humanity, human dignity and safety of the hostages under international humanitarian law and international human rights law.
On this issue, the Ambassador, much to her credit conceded when at the end of her speech she stated: “Let’s be honest: the plight of these hostages has not received the attention it deserves from the U.N Security Council. That needs to change and I hope today is the first step towards that goal. And we must not relent until all hostages are back home with their loved ones at long last.”
Towards this change, the Ambassador “called on all Member States:
“to fully implement resolutions 2133 and 2474 to enhance co-operation and information sharing to combat hostage-taking and dismantle the networks supporting it.”
“[to] stand behind international legal frameworks that provide mechanisms for the prevention, prosecution, and punishment of all acts of hostage taking.”
She concluded: “As leaders from 18 nations emphasized in a joint statement last month: ‘That the fate of the hostages and of the civilian population in Gaza, are protected under international law, is of international concern.’”
Fine words and declarations are fine but not worth the paper on which they are written when the so-called “civilised countries” are not prepared to do what it takes to engage in any noble action to secure the liberty of hostages, particularly of those who like the kidnapped Israelis have been and continue to be subjected to utterly savage treatment.
Would the Security Council adopt a Resolution to establish a multi-national military Peace Corp comprising voluntary members and mandate it to enter Gaza to force, and if necessary, fight Hamas to liberate the hostages and arrest all those involved in the taking and treatment of the hostages?
No, such a Resolution would not see the light of day because it will be vetoed by the same leaders of the group of 18 who are also members of the Security Council with veto power.
Would some or all of these 18 countries voluntarily establish such a Peace Corp of their own, with the same or similar mandate? Certainly not those countries like the U.S, France and others who are actually trying to save Hamas, acting against the security of Israel and insisting that Israel offer Hamas political concessions in exchange for some hostages contrary to the Security Council Resolution 2133.
Where does all this lead? To the twilight of western civilisation, where human hostages, especially Jewish hostages, are worth only whatever political and material benefits are granted to terrorists in exchange for their release, dead or alive, and whatever political points and votes are awarded to the state parties vying for electoral votes.
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