Israel bears responsibility for Palestinian welfare, the U.N. human rights chief said. Louise Arbour, a Canadian judge who is the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said both sides are to blame for the human rights crisis in the region. The Palestinian Authority “has the urgent duty to do everything in its power to maintain law and order, prevent attacks on Israeli civilians, investigate those attacks that have taken place, and bring to justice those responsible,” she said in Geneva. However, as the “occupying power,” Arbour said, Israel bears responsibility for Palestinians’ welfare, and she called on Israel to facilitate the entry of goods into the Gaza Strip. Israel has cut off the Palestinian Authority since the January election of Hamas, a terrorist group that advocates violence and says Israel has no right to exist.
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