1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which states that, “Everyone lawfully within the territory of a State shall, within that territory, have the right to liberty of movement and freedom to choose his residence.”59 In his latest report to the United Nations Human Rights Council, Richard Falk says that residency revocation, paired with the demolition of residential structures and forced evictions of Palestinian families, is in violation of the basic right to adequate housing enshrined within the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Between 2004 and 2013, excluding “self-inflicted” demolitions60, 492 housing units were demolished in East Jerusalem, displacing 1,943 Palestinians. The situation is desperate, and Falk refers to the case of Palestinian Jerusalemites as “a gradual and bureaucratic process of ethnic cleansing”.61 As this paper will go on to demonstrate, however, the findings of Falk and a variety of other individuals and organizations in relation to the discriminatory practices of Israel reveal not a series of isolated incidents, but rather a comprehensive patchwork of legislation and judicial decisions which systematically targets the Palestinian ‘other’, driving a steady and relentless process of forced population transfer. Here it is important to note that according to the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities of the former Commission on Human Rights, forced population transfer: [...] remains a systematic coercive and deliberate […] movement of population into or out of an area […] with the effect or purpose of altering the demographic composition of a territory, particularly when that ideology or policy asserts the dominance of a certain group over another.62 As such, this represents a clear and direct contravention of Israel’s obligations as occupying power under international humanitarian law, and it is a breach which demands a swift and decisive response. 59 United Nations, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966, http://www. ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CESCR.aspx. 60 This term relates to instances where the Israeli authorities demand homeowners demolish their own property. Failure to do so will result in the property being demolished by the State, with the homeowner invoiced for this expense at an inflated rate. The homeowner is therefore coerced into demolishing their own property so as a means of mitigating the financial impact upon them and their family. 61 Richard Falk, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories Occupied since 1967 (UNHRC, January 13, 2014), http://richardfalk.wordpress. com/2011/02/14/report-of-special-rapporteur-to-the-un-human-rights-council-on-occupiedpalestinian-territories/. 62 Al-Khawasneh and Hatano, The Human Rights Dimensions of Population Transfer Including the Implantation of Settlers, Preliminary Report Prepared for Commission on Human Rights SubCommission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, Forty-Fifth Session, 27–32. 28