New UN "Expert" on Human Rights in "Occupied Palestinian Territories" Equates Palestinian Terror and Israeli Self-Defense

On October 27, 2016, U.N. special rapporteur on "human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories" Michael Lynk presented his first report to the UN General Assembly since his appointment to the position in March 2016. The report confirms that Lynk will utilize his new post to continue his anti-Israel agenda. His lop-sided job description, which dates back more than 20 years, is to condemn Israel and not to investigate Palestinians. Like his many predecessors who found no problem allegedly promoting "human rights" from the vantage point of a discriminatory mandate, Lynk did exactly what he was hired to do.

For instance...

• Equate deaths of Palestinian terrorists and their victims:
  
  "During the escalation of violence, more than 230 Palestinians and at least 32 Israelis were killed over the course of 2015 and 2016 in the context of demonstrations by Palestinians, as well as Palestinian attacks or alleged attacks, and the often lethal response of the Israeli security forces...The large majority of those killed have been Palestinians - often as a result of disproportionate use of deadly force by Israeli security forces..."

• Express "concern" that Palestinian terrorists are killed - not that they commit terror attacks:
  
  "[O]f those killed in the West Bank between October 2015 and January 2016, 88 were Palestinians whom the Israeli authorities suspected were responsible for attacks or attempted attacks. Two concerns arise with respect to these cases. First, that they occurred at all - that lethal force is used so often, and frequently without justification. Second, the fact that, in a majority of cases in which a member of the Israeli security forces used lethal force, no investigation was conducted or if an investigation was conducted, it was closed without any action being taken against the perpetrator..."

• Claim that Israeli self-defense from terror attacks is to blame for more terror attacks:
  
  "The fact that the attacks and alleged attacks by Palestinians against Israelis are, not infrequently, responded to with disproportionate and deadly force only compounds the violence..."

• Express "worry" over "hopelessness" of Palestinian minors who commit terror attacks - not worry about Palestinian child abuse in turning children into terrorists, or about their victims:
  
  "Many of the attacks and alleged attacks have been committed by minors, which is particularly worrying because of the hopelessness it seems to represent... [T]hose working in the Occupied Palestinian Territory consistently noted a sense of desolation and desperation among children manifesting itself ... in violent outbursts... Sadly, in the present circumstances, children born today in the Occupied Palestinian Territory do not enjoy hope for a peaceful future..."

• Criticize the application of the legal principle 'innocent until proven guilty' to Israeli soldiers:
  
  "So far, only the killing of Abd al-Fatah al-Sharif in Hebron has resulted in the indictment and prosecution of a soldier. The trial is ongoing and Israel's Defense Minister, Avigdor Lieberman, reportedly said, in relation to the case, ... that individuals are innocent until proven guilty. Such statements implicitly encourage leniency for soldiers who use deadly force against individuals, which undermines efforts to ensure accountability..."

• Express "concern" over measures promoting coexistence between Palestinians and Israeli settlers and penalizing "those who seek to harm Jews":
  
  "A recent announcement by the Defense Minister provides concerning evidence that ... the Minister proposes to continue using harsh measures such as closures, the increased presence of security forces and demolitions in areas that are home to suspected attackers and, meanwhile, to build infrastructure in areas that are seen by the Israeli authorities as 'seeking coexistence'. Notably, this primarily implies coexistence with illegal settlements. The Minister reportedly said of the policy that '[i]ts purpose is to continue to give benefits to those who desire coexistence with us and make life difficult for those who seek to harm Jews'..."

• Criticize Israeli efforts to prevent Hamas' rearmament while failing to even once mention Hamas or the thousands of rockets it has launched into Israel- a "blockade" in a vacuum:
  
  "Measures that amount to violations of the right to development include the blockade of Gaza and the ensuing collapse of its economy... The misery of the blockade for the population of Gaza has been compounded by the three escalations of violence between Israel and Gaza, in 2008-2009, 2012 and 2014..."

In his statement presenting the report, Lynk rationalized terrorism as a response to hopelessness (thereby validating it): "I am concerned about the increasingly desperate social and political climate that these attacks reflect. The deepening of the Occupation and the utter absence of a political horizon leading to self-determination for the Palestinians have reinforced an atmosphere of despair and hopelessness – this does not excuse the violence, but it goes a long way to understanding why it is happening."

Lynk also doubled down on his equation of terrorists and those defending themselves from terror: "First, violence, and particularly violence against civilians, by anyone is to be deplored. Also to be deplored is the frequency of what appear to be disproportionate responses by Israeli security forces..."