The family of slain Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh demands justice
NPR Online NewsDec 23, 2022
The Facts
A UN independent commission of inquiry (COI) on Monday began five days of public hearings in Geneva regarding alleged human rights violations against Palestinians. Day one concentrated on Israel's banning of multiple Palestinian rights organizations in 2021.
The commission, established by the Human Rights Council, says it will be impartial and will examine allegations from both Israelis and Palestinians, though Israel dismissed the process as a sham trial. The US has also accused the UN of having a "chronic bias" against Israel.
The Spin
Pro-Palestine narrative
While the Israeli occupiers have and will continue to label these hearings as a "sham," history and the UN's past investigations highlight Israel's long record of killing and criminalizing Palestinians. Israel's opposition to such hearings is also absurd given that the commission has no power to punish it for its crimes against Palestinians.
Pro-Israel narrative
Israel appears in UN condemnation reports exponentially more often than the words Palestine, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Iran combined. Despite the reality that those groups continue their terror campaigns against Israel and the free world, the UN has decided to waste time and resources to hold another kangaroo court.
