S/PV.5940
5940th meeting
Tuesday, 22 July 2008, 10 a.m.
New York
The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question
Mr. Mubarak (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) (spoke in Arabic): I wish at the outset to thank Mr. Lynn Pascoe, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, for his briefing.
The situation in the occupied Palestinian territories remains the same. More than a month after the ceasefire agreement between Palestinian factions and the Zionist occupying forces — which came about as a result of the efforts of Egypt and which entered into force on 19 June — the situation at crossing points remains one of closure and only partial opening. That is in contravention of the occupying forces’ commitment to the declared period of calm. Israeli forces continue to assassinate Palestinian activists in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, which reflects the persistent attempt by the occupying authorities to put an end to this temporary ceasefire.
Such partial openings of crossing points should not be understood as a concession by the occupying Power: they are a commitment of the Israeli occupying forces under international law and human rights law. The occupying Power’s policy of collective punishment has been described in this Chamber by the Secretary-General and the Under-Secretaries-General for Political Affairs and for Humanitarian Affairs as a crime under international law and humanitarian law, and it is considered to be a crime of genocide under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which the Council discussed two days ago. A number of other international officials and international organizations have also spoken out, most recently the European Commission, which has called for the siege on Gaza to be lifted.
The activities undertaken by the Israeli authorities following the Annapolis Conference, in particular their continued construction of settlements, leave no doubt that they are not serious about attaining a permanent, just and comprehensive solution to the situation in the region. All those activities not only impede the peace process, but also endanger the concept of a two-State solution.
Despite all the requests, exhortations and appeals to the occupying Power to halt the construction of settlements, the occupying authorities continue daily to issue new permits for the construction of new settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. They are also entrenching the settlements by continuing to build the apartheid separation wall, in spite the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice. There is evidently international paralysis in the face of this expansion of the settlements, which has resulted in the seizure of 76 per cent of the occupied Palestinian territory.
The Security Council’s inability to express its will on the settlements, which the international community has unequivocally rejected, calls for a review of the Council’s working methods and its machinery. It is legally and morally unacceptable for some States to prevent the Council from shouldering its responsibilities on this issue. There is injustice in the unequal treatment accorded to a people under occupation and an occupying Power that is daily violating its obligations as an occupying Power.
For more than a month, the Arab Group has been making intensive efforts to bring about a Security Council resolution to address the issue of settlements as an impediment to progress in the peace negotiations and to address the illegal actions undertaken by the occupying Power in contravention of all international norms and agreements, which have been condemned by all international and regional parties. Regrettably, however, that endeavour has met with paralysis and flimsy justifications and pretexts aimed at using the Middle East problem as a way to impose a solution that will protect the occupying Power and metes out unjust treatment to the victim. That is not the proper stance for an impartial mediator to take.
My delegation stresses the right of the Palestinian people to resist occupation. That right is recognized under all international norms and laws. My country completely rejects any linkage between resistance to occupation and terrorism. Real terrorism is the confiscation of Palestinian property, the continued killing of Palestinian leaders and activists and the siege imposed on 1.5 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Real terrorism is more than 60 years of forced displacement of Palestinians and of not permitting them to return to their homes. Real terrorism is the detention without trial of 11,000 Palestinians, some of them children, old people, women or members of the Palestinian Legislative Council — and when there is a trial, it is usually unfair and a mere formality.
My delegation is astonished by the suggestion by some that it is futile for the Council to discuss a question as important as that of the Middle East. Perhaps such comments will help us to understand why the Council is unable to shoulder its responsibility on this issue and to understand the paralysis and lack of credibility resulting from the abuse of authority and the double standards used in addressing the question of the Middle East.
Turning to Lebanon, my delegation has consistently emphasized non-intervention in Lebanese affairs. Such intervention leads to crisis rather than helping the Lebanese parties to achieve reconciliation. When, in Doha, the Lebanese were offered the opportunity, they succeeded in emerging from the political crisis that Lebanon had faced for more than a year and a half. We welcome the positive developments in Lebanon following the Doha agreement, the developments in Syrian-Lebanese relations, and the return of Lebanese prisoners of war from Israel.
But despite those positive developments, Lebanon still faces daily violations of its airspace and borders. The most recent report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of resolution 1701 (2006) (S/2008/425) notes an unprecedented increase in the number of Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace since February, reaching 72 in a single day.
Israel, the occupying Power, continues to occupy the Shaba’a farms and the Lebanese village of al‑Ghajar. It has failed to respond to the appeals of the Secretary-General and his representatives or to the requests by the forces of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon to present maps showing the locations of mines, explosive devices and cluster munitions, which, as emphasized in the Secretary-General’s report (S/2008/425), cover 49 per cent of the surface area of southern Lebanon. All of these acts, including the daily violations, the continued occupation of Lebanese territory and the non-response to efforts to determine the locations of mines and other remnants of war are in flagrant violation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006).
The occupied Syrian Golan continues to be subjected to the Israeli settlements policy, which has been in effect since 1967. Despite Syria’s announcement and emphasis on the fact that peace is its strategic option and that it is prepared to negotiate without conditions, and despite the many resolutions declaring the annexation of the Golan null and void and without any legal basis, the occupying Power continues its expansionist settlement policy in the occupied Syrian Golan. The recent announcement by the Israeli Knesset that it will not give up the occupied Syrian Golan except through a general referendum reflects the utmost arrogance and constitutes blackmail and the seizure of others’ lands.
A few minutes ago, we heard the representative of the Israeli entity present a tourism promotion in the Security Council, as if the Council were a travel agency. I believe that his propaganda was inspired by what we saw a couple of days ago on television: photos of a young Palestinian, blindfolded and handcuffed, who had been shot by Israeli soldiers. Those photos were actually provided by the Israeli entity. That propaganda should make us think twice about accepting the revolting invitation to visit the Israeli entity. We want the representative of the Israeli entity to respond to the appeals of the Security Council, and those contained in the relevant resolutions adopted by the Human Rights Council, to permit observers to see what is actually happening in the Palestinian refugee camps. I believe that, instead of making statements concerning Libya’s conduct, the representative should improve the conduct of his own country, which is based on terrorism. I do not wish to take up the Council’s time by listing the terrorist acts committed by the State called Israel since its establishment. We thank God that that was the last statement to be made by the representative of that country in the Council.
