With limited power still comes great responsibility: human rights obligations and responsibility in Palestine as a limited state

Shadi Sakran

Chapter 11 in Human Rights Accountability of Non-Universally Recognised States and State-Like Entities, 2026, pp 225-245 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter analyses the participation of ‘contested states’ in international human rights law, focusing on territorial entities whose international legal status remains unclear. It argues that the UN General Assembly's 2012 recognition of Palestine as a non-member observer state enabled its accession to numerous international human rights treaties, notwithstanding the continued reluctance of many states to recognise its fully fledged statehood. The absence of formal objections to Palestine's treaty participation reflects an implicit acceptance of its capacity to act as a limited state within human rights regimes. While such participation has subjected Palestine to international monitoring and recommendations by treaty bodies, effective compliance is constrained by its lack of effective control over territory due to Israel's occupation, which also grounds Israel's own obligations under international law. The chapter concludes that Palestine exemplifies the legal and practical difficulties inherent in admitting entities of uncertain status into state-centric human rights frameworks.

Keywords: Contested states; International human rights law; Palestine; Israel; Limited state; Responsibility (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035365128
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