[JURIST] The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, Richard Falk, on Thursday emphasized [press release] in a speech to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) that efforts to mask the human rights violations in the occupied Palestinian territory cannot disguise how Israel’s actions are endangering Palestinians’ daily lives. Falk observed that since Israel began occupation of Palestine 46 years ago that Israel has detained approximately 750,000 Palestinians or roughly 20 percent of the Palestinian population. Falk is scheduled to present a report concerning Israel’s blockade in Gaza [BBC backgrounder] to the UNHRC on June 10.

Conflicts between Israel and Palestine continue to raise concern of possible human rights violations. In March a UN rights experts called for Israel to cease all settlement activity and immediately withdraw settlers [JURIST report] from Palestinian territories due to the possibility of human rights abuses. In December the UN called on Israel to implement and support [JURIST report] the conflict-ending cease fire agreement with Palestinians in Gaza. Last August Amnesty International [advocacy website] urged Israel to investigate [JURIST report] the alleged mistreatment of two Palestinian prisoners currently on hunger strike.