Amnesty international denounces Israeli violations of human rights

Spokesman for the London-based Amnesty International, Mark Salieh, condemned Israel's human rights violations against the Palestinian people.

In an interview with London radio broadcast on Wednesday, Salieh said that Amnesty International issued a statement yesterday marking the Universal Declaration of Human Rights' 50th anniversary. The statement expressed deep concern over acts of torture, kidnapping and killing carried out by Israel.

Salieh added that the implementation of a "general security law" in Israel legitimized acts of international murder. This was evident when the Israeli authorities tried to assassinate Hamas official Khaled Mishal in Jordan. The authorities did not make any excuse for trying to kill another official in another state.

They also gave the Israeli Supreme Court the "right" to kidnap Lebanese citizens in order to "trade them for the remains of Israeli soldiers." For the past three years, the organization tried hard to stop the Israeli law, but it was in vain, Salieh concluded.

The statements were based on Amnesty International's 1998 annual report, which also contained criticism of the Palestinian government over the detention and treatment of prisoners, as well as sections on other regional and international countries' human rights practices.