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UN Denounces Israeli Settler Stabbing of a Palestinian

Mourners carry the body of Palestinian Ali Harb, who was stabbed to death by an Israeli settler during a confrontation, during his funeral in Salfit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank June 22, 2022. (Reuters)
Mourners carry the body of Palestinian Ali Harb, who was stabbed to death by an Israeli settler during a confrontation, during his funeral in Salfit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank June 22, 2022. (Reuters)
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UN Denounces Israeli Settler Stabbing of a Palestinian

Mourners carry the body of Palestinian Ali Harb, who was stabbed to death by an Israeli settler during a confrontation, during his funeral in Salfit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank June 22, 2022. (Reuters)
Mourners carry the body of Palestinian Ali Harb, who was stabbed to death by an Israeli settler during a confrontation, during his funeral in Salfit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank June 22, 2022. (Reuters)

The United Nations condemned an Israeli settler’s stabbing of a Palestinian in the West Bank on Tuesday as Tel Aviv imposed a media blackout on the investigation.

“Tor Wennesland, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, condemned the fatal stabbing yesterday of a Palestinian man, Ali Harb, reportedly by an Israeli settler near Salfit in the occupied West Bank,” Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General, said at a press conference at the UN’S headquarters in New York.

“He sent his deepest condolences to his family. Mr. Wennesland added that perpetrators of violence must be held accountable and swiftly brought to justice,” Haq added.

Witnesses said Harb, was stabbed while Palestinians tried to remove a group of settlers off their land.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said Harb, 28, was stabbed in the heart by a settler. An Israeli police spokesperson originally said it was unclear who had killed Harb and that the incident was under investigation.

Hundreds of Palestinians marched in Harb's funeral in the Palestinian town of Iskaka near Salfit in the northern West Bank on Wednesday.

Police arrested the suspect on Wednesday.

The settler, in his 40s, was held as an accomplice and not on suspicion of carrying out the stabbing himself, according to the Kan public broadcaster.

“This was an event in which Jews were miraculously saved,” said Adi Kedar, an attorney at Honenu, a right-wing legal aid organization that often represents Jews accused of hate crimes.

Israeli officials told The Times of Israel last year that Jewish extremist violence in the West Bank was on the rise. The number of attacks rose in 2021 by nearly 50 percent, according to the Shin Bet.

Most of the cases are never solved. Since 2005, just 3 percent of police investigations into extremist violence against Palestinians have led to indictments, according to the Yesh Din rights group.

The United Kingdom voiced “deep disturbance” over Tuesday’s killing.

“Settler violence is a growing problem in the OPTs & one that the Israeli Government must do more to tackle. The perpetrator of this crime must be held to account,” UK Consulate General in Jerusalem said.

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Arab World

After US Exemption, UN Says More Significant Syria Sanctions Work Needed

A general view shows Damascus from Mount Qasioun, after one month since the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A general view shows Damascus from Mount Qasioun, after one month since the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
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After US Exemption, UN Says More Significant Syria Sanctions Work Needed

A general view shows Damascus from Mount Qasioun, after one month since the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A general view shows Damascus from Mount Qasioun, after one month since the ousting of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)

A US sanctions exemption for transactions with governing institutions in Syria is welcome, but "much more significant work ... will inevitably be necessary," the UN special envoy on Syria, Geir Pedersen, told the Security Council on Wednesday.

After 13 years of civil war, Syria's President Bashar al-Assad was ousted in a lightening offensive by opposition forces led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group a month ago.

The US, Britain, the European Union and others imposed tough sanctions on Syria after a crackdown by Assad on pro-democracy protests in 2011 that spiraled into war. But the new reality in Syria has been further complicated by sanctions on HTS - and some leaders - for its days as an al-Qaeda affiliate.

"I welcome the recent issuance of a new temporary General License by the United States government. But much more significant work in fully addressing sanctions and designations will inevitably be necessary," Pedersen told the council.

The US on Monday issued a sanctions exemption, known as a general license, for transactions with governing institutions in Syria for six months in an effort to ease the flow of humanitarian assistance and allow some energy transactions.

"The United States welcomes positive messages from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, but will ultimately look for progress in actions, not words," deputy US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Camille Shea told the Security Council.

The foreign ministry in Damascus on Wednesday welcomed the US move and called for a full lifting of restrictions to support Syria's recovery.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said earlier on Wednesday that European Union sanctions on Syria that obstruct the delivery of humanitarian aid and hinder the country's recovery could be lifted swiftly.

Russia's UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia criticized the sanctions imposed on Syria by Washington and others, adding: "As a result, the Syrian economy is under extreme pressure and is not able to cope with the challenges facing the country." Russia was an Assad ally throughout the war.

'END THE SUFFERING'

Formerly known as Nusra Front, HTS was al-Qaeda's official wing in Syria until breaking ties in 2016. Along with unilateral measures, the group has also been on the UN Security Council al-Qaeda and ISIS sanctions list for more than a decade, subjected to a global assets freeze and arms embargo.

There are no UN sanctions on Syria over the civil war.

Syria's UN Ambassador Koussay Aldahhak was appointed a year ago by Assad's government but told the council on Wednesday that he was speaking for the caretaker authorities.

"It is high time to end the suffering, to enable Syrians to live in security and prosperity, to live a dignified life in their country, to build a better future for their country," Aldahhak said.

"For this reason, we call upon the United Nations and its member states to immediately and fully lift the unilateral coercive measures to provide the necessary financing to meet humanitarian needs and recover basic services," he said.

Pedersen said he is seeking to work with the caretaker authorities in Syria "on how the nascent and important ideas and steps so far articulated and initiated could be developed towards a credible and inclusive political transition."

Pedersen said attacks on Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity must stop, specifically calling out Israel.

As Assad's government crumbled towards the end of last year, Israel launched a series of strikes against Syrian military infrastructure and weapons manufacturing sites to prevent them falling into the hands of enemies.

"Reports of the IDF using live ammunition against civilians, displacement and destruction of civilian infrastructure are also very worrying," Pedersen said. "Such violations, along with Israeli airstrikes in other parts of Syria – reported even last week in Aleppo – could further jeopardize the prospects for an orderly political transition."