QADER Submits Urgent Follow-up Report to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

QADER for Community Development has submitted an urgent follow-up report to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, within the framework of the Committee’s 33rd session held in Geneva from 11 to 29 August 2025. The report builds on the oral statements and analytical reports previously presented by QADER representatives before the Committee, concerning the List of Issues related to the State of Palestine’s initial report, as well as the policy of starvation and its impact on persons with disabilities in the Gaza Strip amid the ongoing Israeli aggression, in line with Article 11 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities regarding situations of risk, emergencies, and armed conflict. 

In its urgent report, QADER raised serious concerns regarding the absence of the Palestinian government, represented by the Ministries of Social Development and Foreign Affairs, from the session addressing Palestine’s obligations, and the fact that the State delegation in Geneva limited its responses exclusively to Article 11 of the Convention, which constitutes a clear breach of the State party’s obligations. 

Through its report, QADER put forward a set of urgent recommendations, including: 

Requesting the Committee to formally notify the State of Palestine to submit a comprehensive report responding to the List of Issues within three months from the date of notification. 

Activating the Optional Protocol to the Convention, and establishing an international commission of inquiry from among the Committee members in accordance with the Protocol, to investigate violations and crimes committed against persons with disabilities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly in the Gaza Strip. 

Inviting members of the commission of inquiry to enter Gaza in order to investigate violations and international crimes targeting persons with disabilities, to hear victims’ testimonies, and to collect evidence on the ground, in implementation of the ruling of the International Court of Justice. 

Calling upon the UN Secretary-General to convene an international conference of States parties under the Convention to address the policy of systematic starvation, genocide, and forced displacement, and their devastating impact on persons with disabilities. 

Strengthening efforts in monitoring, documentation, and accountability on the basis of a disability-inclusive approach, ensuring that disability issues are integrated into all relevant UN reports and mechanisms, and adopting QADER’s guide on monitoring, documentation, and accountability in the Committee’s work. 

QADER concluded by reaffirming its full readiness to cooperate and build strategic partnerships with the Committee, UN bodies, and specialized agencies, in order to strengthen the protection and promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities, ensure accountability, and advance international justice. 

To the Urgent Follow Up report Here