NEW YORK / PNN/

Palestine's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Riyad Mansour, said that Israel has evaded accountability for its crimes against Palestinian children for decades now which led it to persist and intensify its crimes against them in a violation of all norms and of the principles of legality, morality and humanity.

The United Nations' decision to add Israel to the list of violators of children’s rights, often referred to as the “list of shame”, will not bring back tens of thousands of our children who were killed by Israel over decades and will not restore normal life for the children who were permanently disabled by its actions, stressed Palestine's UN observer. But it is an important step in the right direction towards ending the double standards and the culture of impunity Israel has enjoyed for far too long and that left our children vulnerable to its consequences, he added.

“The lives of our children are not less worthy than the lives of children around the world and it is no longer possible for the international community to maintain Israeli exceptionalism as its crimes against our people have only become more brutal in a manner that shocks the conscience of the world,” said Mansour.

In a statement following the UN decision to add Israel to the list of violators of children’s rights, Mansour said: “We will continue our efforts until justice is achieved and Israel finally puts an end to its crimes against the Palestinian people, one generation after another.”