The Palestinian ministry of foreign affairs called Sunday for international measures to protect the Palestinian people from Israeli “violations and crimes”. The ministry announced in a statement it has received the report of United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the protection of Palestinian civilians in accordance with the resolution of the UN General Assembly (UNGA). The ministry said it would contact the UN Secretary-General to follow up on the contents of his report and to make the appropriate decision. It also underlined the need to launch a serious and meaningful political process through the establishment of a multilateral international mechanism, based on the Palestinian peace initiative presented by President Mahmoud Abbas to the UN Security Council in February and consistent with the rules of international law and the recognized peace process. Last June, UNGA adopted a draft resolution in favor of the protection of the Palestinian people, backed by 120 countries, while 8 countries rejected the resolution and 45 abstained from voting. For its part, the Israeli government on Monday rejected Guterres’ proposal to strengthen the protection of Palestinians in the occupied territories. The only protection the Palestinians need “is shielding from their own leaders, rather than Israel”, said Danny Danon, Isreals UN envoy to the United Nations.