Loureen Sayej

Date of Award

2016

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Hicks, Barbara

Area of Concentration

International and Area Studies

Abstract

Twenty-five years ago the international community made a promise to its children in the chambers of the United Nations with what would become the most universally ratified treaty in history: the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Now international human rights law and international humanitarian law intersect on the core principle of children’s rights that applies universally to children. The existing normative framework with regard to children and armed conflict was also augmented by the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict and subsequent decisions of the United Nations Security Council. Israel ratified the CRC in 1991 and put it into force shortly thereafter. However, child rights standards in international instruments do not mean much for the lived reality of Palestinian children in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, under Israeli military occupation since 1967. Using the human rights framework, this study examines whether Israel’s accession to the Convention has affected its protection of Palestinian children’s rights during times of heightened violence. It compares the Israeli military’s conduct during the first Intifada, before the CRC came into force, and the second Intifada, after Israel ratified the CRC, with respect to the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary- General for Children and Armed Conflict’s first grave violation of children’s rights, killing and maiming. Israel’s repression in the Occupied Palestinian Territory intensified during the second Intifada, despite its ratification of the Convention, as measured by child fatalities and injuries. In spite of the extensive monitoring of the systematic violations committed by Israeli forces against children in the Territories, the CRC review mechanism and the international armed conflict framework have failed to foster compliance of Israeli forces with this particular international benchmark for the protection of children. While primary responsibility for these violations lies with Israel, the study also pointed out some gaps in the CRC mechanism and the development of policy to support implementation of the agreement.

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