Human rights in Israel

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International human rights organizations, along with the United Nations, and the United States Department of State, have reported human rights violations committed by the State of Israel, particularly against minority groups. These reports include violations of the rights of Palestinians, both inside and outside Israel as well as other groups in Israel.[1][2]

Israel is described in its Declaration of Independence as a "Jewish state"[3] – the legal definition "Jewish and democratic state" was adopted in 1985. In addition to its Jewish majority in the area excluding the occupied Palestinian territories, Israel is home to religious and ethnic minorities, some of whom report discrimination. In the Palestinian territories, successive Israeli governments have been subject to international criticism from other countries as well as international and domestic human rights groups.[4][5][6][7] One of the Basic Laws of Israel, intended to form the basis of a future constitution,[8] Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, is a major tool for safeguarding human rights and civil liberties in the State of Israel. However, the United Nations Human Rights Council and Israeli human rights organization Adalah have highlighted that this law does not in fact contain a general provision for equality and non-discrimination.[9][10]

Freedom House has described Israel as more politically free and democratic than neighboring countries in the Middle East.[11] According to the 2015 US Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Israel faces significant human rights problems regarding institutional discrimination against Arab citizens of Israel (many of whom self-identify as Palestinian), Ethiopian Israelis and women, and the treatment of refugees and irregular migrants. Other human rights problems include institutional discrimination against non-Orthodox Jews and intermarried families, and labor rights abuses against foreign workers.[12]

  1. ^ Israel 2022 Human Rights Report: Executive Summary (PDF). United States Department of State. 2023. pp. 1–69.
  2. ^ "Third Committee Spotlights Human Rights Abuses in Conflicts, Stressing Need to End Terrorist Attacks, Genocide, Illegal Hostage-Taking, Enforced Displacement" (Press release). United Nations. 17 October 2023.
  3. ^ "The Avalon Project : Declaration of Israel's Independence 1948". Avalon.law.yale.edu. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
  4. ^ "Israel's apartheid against Palestinians". Amnesty International. 1 February 2022. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  5. ^ Shakir, Omar (27 April 2021). "A Threshold Crossed". Human Rights Watch.
  6. ^ "Apartheid". B'Tselem. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  7. ^ "ארכיון Settler Violence". Yesh Din. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  8. ^ Gavison, Ruth (1985). "The Controversy over Israel's Bill of Rights". Israel Yearbook of Human Rights. 15: 113–154.
  9. ^ "Inequality Report: The Palestinian Arab Minority in Israel - Adalah". www.adalah.org. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  10. ^ Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee—Israel, CCPR/C/ISR/CO/3, 29 July 2010, para. 2, available at: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrc/docs/CCPR.C.ISR.CO.3.doc
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference jpost.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (13 April 2016). Israel and The Occupied Territories (Report). 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. US Department of State. Retrieved 14 February 2017.