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Journalism of Courage
Israeli officials on Friday rejected any prospect of cooperation with an inquiry called for a day earlier by the UN Human Rights Council into how Israeli settlements affect the rights of Palestinians.
Israeli officials called the council resolution seeking the inquiry a new source of friction between Israel and the Palestinian leadership,but the Western-backed Palestinian Authority welcomed it.
Neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis are members of the council. The measure was adopted with 36 votes in favor,10 abstentions,and a sole no vote by the US.
Israel has no intention to cooperate, said Mark Regev,a spokesman for the Israeli government. We do not want to legitimize what is illegitimate. Instead of dealing with real issues of human rights,the council has proven itself a disreputable body manipulated by autocracies with atrocious human rights records.
Israels foreign minister,Avigdor Lieberman,told Army Radio on Friday that Israel was weighing its steps,including ending all cooperation with the council.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh,a spokesman for Mahmoud Abbas,the president of the Palestinian Authority,said,This is a new international position that supports Palestinian rights and sends a message to Israel from the international community that settlements are illegal and should be stopped in total.
The UN and much of the world considers the settlements in West Bank and East Jerusalem as a violation of international law.
