UN chief voices concern about Israeli law blocking Palestinian family reunification
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E-mail Xinhua, March 17, 2022
UNITED NATIONS, March 16 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday expressed concern over a controversial Israeli law that denies citizenship or permanent residency for Palestinians from West Bank or Gaza married to Israeli citizens.
The Israeli parliament voted on Thursday to renew the so-called Citizenship Law, which was first passed in 2003.
The secretary-general has been following this long-standing issue and has taken note of the vote of the Knesset to pass a temporary order applying the law for 12 months, said Farhan Haq, Guterres' deputy spokesman.
"The secretary-general is concerned about the impact of the law on Palestinian families seeking to reunify in Israel and East Jerusalem, and in this connection underscores relevant concerns expressed by the UN human rights treaty bodies in the past," said Haq.
The secretary-general specifically calls on Israel to ensure that its domestic legislation respects the principles of equality, nondiscrimination, and proportionality and international human rights law, and further facilitates family reunification of all citizens and permanent residents of Israel, he said. Enditem
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