In light of the "pause" in the Hamas-Israel armed conflict and the exchange of hostages and political prisoners, we see the need for increased mediation among groups and governments to maintain international humanitarian law and human rights standards. The taking of hostages is a violation of international humanitarian law. Thus the International Committee of the Red Cross which is the chief organization to maintain international humanitarian law was directly involved in the release of the hostages. Many of the Palestinian persons in Israeli prisons have not had fair trials - in some cases no trials at all only administrative detention - in violation of international human rights provisions.
There are real dangers that the violence will increase on the frontier with Lebanon and in the West Bank area between Israeli settlers and Palestinians. An increasing number of people are being displaced, adding to the vast number of people uprooted in the Gaza Strip.
The pain and suffering already undergone should be an increased motivation for strong efforts for peace and justice. The negotiations which led to the "pauses" and the exchanges were largely carried out by the representatives of a few governments. There is a potential role for non-governmental efforts. We must cooperate on such possibilities by exchanging information and possible contacts. There may be ways of increasing the non-governmental efforts of mediation through "pilot projects". The times require strong and coordinated efforts.
Rene Wadlow, Association of World Citizens
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