SWC: Judge Arbour Must Demand UN Human Rights Council Condemn Palestinian Terrorists Targeting Israeli Civilians

November 21, 2006

JUDGE ARBOUR MUST DEMAND UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL CONDEMN PALESTINIAN TERRORISTS TARGETING ISRAELI CIVILIANS, SAYS FRIENDS OF SIMON WIESENTHAL CENTER

TORONTO – NOVEMBER 21, 2006

A statement from Leo Adler, Director of National Affairs, Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center For Holocaust Studies: 

“While grateful that UN Human Rights Commissioner Louise Arbour was not injured by a terrorist rocket during her visit today to the Israeli town of Sderot, Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies urges that Ms. Arbour urge the UN Human Rights Council to condemn daily terrorist targeting of Israeli civilians.

"While it may have lasted only one day for her, deadly Kassam barrages have been a daily threat for more than five years to the citizens of Sderot and surrounding southern Israeli communities.

"Two months ago, I participated in the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s  presentation to Ms. Arbour of Israeli and Lebanese witnesses to Hezbollah atrocities, who unlike the UNHRC itself, unequivocally declared to us that Hezbollah was guilty of crimes against humanity for firing rockets laden with ballbearings at civilian hospitals and population centres.

“Now, as she returns to Geneva, her message to the UNHRC must be that there are two populations, on both sides of the border, that are suffering and this is because of one cause:  Palestinian terrorists extremists who target the children of Sderot and use Palestinian civilians as human shields to protect themselves.

“Ms. Arbour must speak out against Hamas's continuing copying of Hezbollah's tactics. Her role as chief international human rights officer demands it, as do all who seek to live in democracies free of acts of terror."

For more information contact:
David Eisenstadt 
1-800-267-4476 x 36                           
deisenstadt@tcgpr.com    


About Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies 
Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies is a Canadian human rights organization dedicated to fostering tolerance and understanding through community involvement, educational outreach and social action. With over 40,000 members of all faiths around the world, it confronts important contemporary issues including racism, anti-Semitism, terrorism and genocide. Friends is affiliated with the world-wide, Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center, an accredited Non-Government Organization with status at international agencies, including the United Nations, UNESCO, OSCE and the Council of Europe, with offices in New York, Miami, Paris, Jerusalem, Buenos Aires, and Toronto.  Simon Wiesenthal died in 2005 after devoting his life to preserving the memories of the victims of the Holocaust, while simultaneously seeking justice for the war criminals.

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