From the Liveblog of
Monday, May 9, 2022
Outgoing UN rapporteur accepts Palestinian Authority award
Michael Lynk, the UN Special Rapporteur on Palestine until last week, has been awarded the Order of the Star of Jerusalem by the Palestinian Authority.
Lynk was given the award in Dublin by Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Al Malki.
The NGO UN Watch protests the move, saying Lynk is violating UN neutrality rules.
President Mahmoud Abbas has awarded the Order of the Star of Jerusalem to Professor Michael Lynk, presented by Foreign Minister Dr Riad Al Malki in Dublin pic.twitter.com/HCtGqXoNJ7
— Mission of the State of Palestine in Ireland (@IrePalestine) May 8, 2022
“For the past six years, we documented how Lynk was acting not like an impartial UN investigator, but rather like an agent for the PLO,” says Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch. “He turned a blind eye to Hamas and Fatah terrorism, and demonized Israel. Lynk insisted he was impartial, but now he isn’t even pretending any more.
“It is repulsive that Lynk accepted this award from [PA President] Mahmoud Abbas at a time when his Fatah group participated in and praised the latest spate of Palestinian terrorist attacks that have killed 19 people in Israel.”
