In a first for the UN General Assembly, the international body amended the Global Counter Terrorism Strategy on Tuesday to specifically denounce the use of civilians as human shields.
By: World Israel News Staff
The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday updated its Global Counter Terrorism Strategy, amending it to condemn the use of civilians as human shields by terrorist organizations.
Israel’s Mission to the UN in cooperation with the United States Mission was instrumental in advocating the resolution, which denounces the misuse of “schools and hospitals, for military purposes such as launching attacks and storing weapons” and strongly condemns the use of “civilians to shield military objectives from attacks.”
Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon commented on the resolution, calling it “another important step in our efforts [to] change the rules of the game at the UN.”
For almost three months, Gaza-based terrorists have exploited the Hamas-orchestrated “March of Return” riots along Israel’s border, which use a combination of terror group operatives and civilian human shields in an attempt to breach Israeli territory.
The Hamas terror group has a long history of using human shields, including young children, in addition to storing weapons in UN schools and facilities, going so far as to launch rockets from high-density civilian locations.
In welcoming the resolution on Tuesday, Danon commented, “Less than two weeks ago, a plurality of members in the General Assembly voted to denounce Hamas, and now today’s resolution explicitly condemned terrorists for the despicable double war crime of hiding behind women and children while attacking civilians.”
“There is much work to be done, but this milestone accomplishment brings us closer to the day when the UN will focus on truly bringing security and stability to the world,” Ambassador Danon continued.
The UN originally adopted the Global Counter Terrorism Strategy in 2006 and reviews the policy every two years. The UN describes it as “a unique global instrument used to enhance national, regional and international efforts to counter terrorism.”