The Anti-Defamation League welcomed on Friday the condemnation from the United States of the latest report by U.N. Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur Richard Falk on the human rights situation of Arabs living in Israel, and called on other member states of the Council to “denounce Falk and his outrageous abuse of the position he holds.”
Ambassador Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe, the U.S. Representative to the Human Rights Council, stated that the U.S. “completely rejects and condemns the irresponsible call” and denounced Mr. Falk’s assault on the credibility of U.N. Watch, an internationally respected U.N.-accredited NGO. Falk’s recommendation that the organization be investigated to ascertain that it is not controlled by the Israeli government was also condemned.
“We welcome U.S. Ambassador Donahoe’s strong rejection and condemnation of Richard Falk’s latest report on the human rights situation of the Palestinians, and call on Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, U.N. High Commissioner Navi Pillay and member states of the Human Rights Council to denounce Falk and his outrageous abuse of the position he holds,” said ADL National Director Abraham Foxman.
“Mr. Falk’s attempt to paint himself as the victim of an Israeli government-sponsored defamation campaign, carried out by U.N. Watch, has echoes of classical anti-Semitic conspiracy theories,” asserted Foxman.
“We fully agree with Ambassador Donahoe’s conclusion that Mr. Falk ‘is unfit to serve in his role as a U.N. special rapporteur.’ His continued affiliation with the U.N. makes a mockery out of the Human Rights Council’s founding purpose, and undermines the important work of the U.N. If he does not leave voluntarily, the Human Rights Council should remove him,” he added.
ADL has publicly criticized Mr. Falk’s consistently biased reports in the past.
The report is scheduled to be presented to the UNHRC on June 10th and contains Falk’s usual one-sided attacks solely blaming Israel for the challenges facing the Arab population and the lack of progress on the peace process. Falk also repeats his prior call for a boycott of companies conducting business with Israel or Israelis in Judea and Samaria.