Israeli rights group vows to continue fight against occupation

An Israeli human rights group on Sunday vowed to continue its struggle against the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories despite a rebuke from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"We will continue saying the truth in Israel and abroad: the occupation must end," B'Tselem said in a statement.

The uproar came after Hagai El-Ad, B'Tselem's executive director, participated in a special session of the UN Security Council on Friday, where he urged the Security Council to take actions against the expansion of the Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

On Saturday, Netanyahu lashed out at the group, calling it a "shoddy and unhinged" organisation.

He said the group has joined the "chorus of mudslinging" and accused it of spreading the "false claim that the occupation and the settlements are the reason for the conflict."

Netanyahu also said the group was trying to gain through "international coercion" what they "failed to achieve in democratic elections in Israel."

The Israeli prime minister added he would move to ban young national service volunteers from working with B'Tselem.

B'Tselem responded that it "believed the Israeli public deserved a serious debate on the occupation," noting the "wall-to-wall objection to the occupation and settlements at the Security Council".

A group spokesman noted there were currently no volunteers in the NGO in the framework of civilian service, and there had only been three in total.

At the Friday meeting, organised by Angola, Egypt, Malaysia, Senegal and Venezuela, US Deputy Ambassador David Pressman said the continued building of Israeli outposts on Palestinian land was "corrosive to the cause of peace."

National service is the non-military alternative for those who do not want to serve in the Israeli army.

B'Tselem, established in 1989, is one of the largest human rights groups in Israel. It works with local Palestinian volunteers to document daily life and violations of human rights in occupied Palestinian territories.