Israel deports Human Rights Watch director
Omar Shaker, director of Human Rights Watch in Israel and Palestine, left in response to Tel Aviv’s decision to deport him.
The organization held a press conference in the presence of the CEO asserted that Shaker will continue to work from abroad to document all violations.
The speakers stressed that the Israeli decision targets all human rights organizations and proves that for years Israel is no longer a democratic state.
Shaker was deported by the Israeli Supreme Court on the basis of criminalization of an invitation to Israeli companies to stop working in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank to avoid involvement in human rights violations.
The deportation decision was based on Israeli law prohibiting supporters from entering the boycott of Israel or its settlements.
Shaker told Al-Jazeera earlier this month that Israel’s decision to deport him and cancel his residency and work visa violated freedom of opinion and human rights.
He called on the Israeli occupation authorities to cancel the decision and called on international organizations and the United Nations to pressure Israel to reverse its decision, and to provide an opportunity to facilitate the work of human rights organizations in the region.
Human Rights Watch had previously made it clear that it had “strongly challenged” allegations that Shaker had called for a boycott since joining the organization.
The organization’s executive director, Kenneth Roth, condemned the court’s decision and warned that other similar provisions might follow.
“The Supreme Court has already declared that freedom of expression in Israel does not include the very ordinary call for Palestinian rights,” he said.
Source: Al-Jazeera + Agencies