Reparations for Victims as a Key Element of Transitional Justice in the Middle East Occupied Territories: A Legal and Institutional Approach

Victims of gross human rights violations derived from terrorist acts and victims of serious violations of international humanitarian law are entitled to obtain reparation for the harm suffered، a right that is being increasingly recognized and enforced in international law and practice. The Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation adopted by the UN General Assembly can be regarded as a systematic and comprehensive framework for the design and implementation of reparation schemes and programmes that operate through five basic forms of reparation، such as restitution، compensation، rehabilitation، satisfaction and guarantees of non repetition. Based on the premise of an international peace treaty between Israel and Palestine containing a general settlement of the conflict in the Occupied Territories، this paper outlines the basic features of a Trust Fund that would be created by both States، with support from the international community، for the benefit of the victims of this conflict. This contribution is a first approach to the structure، funding، types of reparation activities and links to other mechanisms of transitional justice that an institution like the Trust Fund would have. Considering it a catalyst of the reparation process، especially in areas such as rehabilitation and satisfaction، the Trust Fund is presented as one of the possible elements of an overall transitional justice scheme that would consider the redress of victims as a major concern. Effective and just victim reparation helps communities walk towards genuine reconciliation once a peace settlement has been reached.