An Israeli rights group has revealed that the Israeli forces are preventing newborn Palestinian infants from leaving the occupied West Bank because they have not been registered in the army’s Palestinian population registry.
According to the Center for the Defense of the Individual (HaMoked), the decision punishes these children and their families in light of the Palestinian Authority’s decision to halt security coordination with Israel.
Since halting the coordination, the PA has stopped giving Israel the information needed to issue passports, political sources revealed.
The army responded by barring any child who arrives at the international crossings from Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Egypt or Jordan, from crossing the borders.
Israeli authorities have returned dozens of Palestinian families from the borders for not having their children’s names in their records.
HaMoked said it sent in late September an urgent letter to the Israeli authorities in this regard, requesting them to allow the entry and exit of Palestinians to and from the Palestinian areas even if their names are not listed in their registry.
Israel’s action is considered punitive against children who have nothing to do with the political situation, the Center stressed.
It addressed the Israeli authorities on behalf of dozens of Palestinian women who have recently given birth in the West Bank, stressing that they have birth certificates and passports issued by the PA.
The group also pointed out that the details on the newborns were also recorded on the Palestinian mothers’ identity cards, stressing that they are enough to identify these children.
The ban leads to depriving these women and their children from returning to their homes abroad and reuniting with their husbands, the center explained.
“These practices constitute a serious violation of the right to freedom of movement and the right to family life, as well as a violation of the supreme principle, which is the child’s interest.”
The center demanded an Israeli court to address the matter.
“All international conventions and human rights force occupying armies anywhere to protect the rights of the population living under occupation, disregarding the bureaucratic procedures,” it said.
