February 17, 2022

he was “disappointed at the council’s decision to single out only one specific regional item given the range and scope of allegations of human rights

“The skewed focus on Israel has been slammed by numerous Western governments – several of whom now boycott meetings held under agenda item seven –

“Pillay has also defended the HRC’s “agenda item seven” – under which Israel is the only country, out of 193 U.N. member-states, to be targeted

“Never in her U.N. tenure did Pillay use such inflammatory language regarding any other country—not even against serial abusers such as China, Russia, Iran, Syria

“Pillay condemned Israel’s action and referred to the Israeli government treating “international law with perpetual disdain.” — Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) February 17, 2022

“Pillay was high commissioner when in 2010 Israeli commandos raided a Turkish ship carrying pro-Palestinian activists to Hamas-ruled Gaza. In ensuing clashes nine Turkish activists,

“The examples laid out in the brief include Pillay’s depictions of Israel as an “apartheid state” – including in public comments, interviews, and lectures, and

“‘Anyone who takes a moment to see what Pillay lobbies for in her campaigns against Israel, and reads what her panel is charged to investigate,

“Hillel Neuer said Villegas “failed to address the evidence in our complaint of how Navi Pillay has been campaigning against Israel, signing letters to President

“Both during her U.N. tenure and over the years since, she has regularly taken stances strongly critical towards Israel. In its legal brief submitted to

“The selection of Pillay to head the three-person inquiry, critics say, removes further any veneer of impartiality. Pillay, a South African jurist, served as the

“It is the first inquiry in the HRC’s 16-year history to have an open-ended, rather than time-limited mandate. The Biden administration, which rejoined the HRC