IJC and Access Now Submit Report Detailing Instances of Internet Shutdowns in the Gaza Strip to United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and in Israel

May 25, 2024

This semester, the International Justice Clinic at the University of California, Irvine School of Law collaborated with Access Now, an international NGO that defends and extends digital rights of people and communities, on advocating for human and digital rights in Palestine. Our project focuses on the comprehensive documentation of and advocacy against internet shutdowns in the Gaza Strip. The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry (COI) on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and in Israel has called for submissions on international crimes and violations of international human rights law since October 7, 2023. The findings of the Commission’s investigations will be presented in its report to the Human Rights Council during its 56th Session in June 2024, to enable the Council to take further action. To draw CoI’s attention, we have produced a written submission of instances of internet shutdowns that have been reported since October 7, 2023 and their impacts on the civilian population in the Gaza Strip alongside the current legal framework under international human rights and humanitarian law. The submission also cites direct testimonies from individuals living in Gaza.

As a law school clinic focused on international human rights law, it is particularly meaningful for the IJC to address this issue. Jacob Basta, an advanced student who led the project on the IJC side said: “As a student at UCI Law, it seems like times have never been more hectic. Throughout our typical day-to-day life, world events follow us in every corner: when we’re watching TV, dining at restaurants, working out at the gym, having conversations with friends and family, and even at UCI’s own Rowland Hall. Everywhere we go, there seems to be constant messaging about conflicts overseas – more specifically, about the Israel-Palestine Conflict. Even though this conversation is loud, volatile, and sometimes leads to social, civil, and political unrest, somewhere drowned by the noise is the importance of international human rights and humanitarian law and obligations that states have, regardless of the current motivations for armed conflict.”

In the wake of the October 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel, multiple and overlapping human rights crises have gripped the Occupied Palestinian Territory. In the period since then, there have been reports of specific violations of fundamental human rights law critically affecting the civilian population in Gaza. One such reported violation is the systemic implementation of internet shutdowns. This has been done through a combination of direct attacks on civilian telecommunications infrastructure, restrictions to access to electricity, and deliberate technical disruptions to telecommunications services. Those shutdowns have resulted in psychological distress and harm, inability to access emergency aid and threat to physical safety, economic harm, and impeded humanitarian aid delivery, as the testimonies and articles demonstrate. The submission documents such a violation and calls on the State of Israel to adopt a set of recommendations founded on international human rights and humanitarian laws and principles.

You can find our full submission here.

Clinic Students Jacob Basta and Ahmad Azzawi supported the research and drafting of the work.

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