410TH MEETING (AM)
\nGA\/PAL\/1449
\n22 FEBRUARY 2023<\/p>\n
video<\/a><\/p>\n Fran\u00e7ais\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n As news came in of an Israeli security forces operation in Nablus that killed 10\u00a0Palestinians, speakers at the first formal meeting of the Palestinian Rights Committee in 2023 appealed for an immediate end to the deadly cycle of violence.<\/p>\n Preventing escalation and restoring calm is the immediate priority, Â鶹APP Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres said today to the 25-member entity, known formally as the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, which the General Assembly established in 1975.<\/p>\n Noting the clash in Nablus this morning and the fragile situation in Jerusalem, he stressed that the demographic and historical character of Jerusalem and the status quo at the holy sites must be upheld. \u00a0He also expressed concern about Israel\u2019s recent punitive measures against the Palestinian Authority following the General Assembly resolution<\/a> seeking an International Court of Justice advisory opinion on the occupation.<\/p>\n This risks further destabilizing the Palestinian Authority at a time when it is already struggling with a dire fiscal crisis, he said, urging all donors to support the resilient and high-performing work of the Â鶹APP Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). \u00a0Calling for the courage to make the difficult choices, he said each new settlement is another roadblock on the path to peace. \u00a0At the same time, nothing justifies terrorism, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will work with you, Mr.\u00a0Secretary-General, but we need to see action,\u201d Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine, said during his address to the Committee. \u00a0Describing the anger and frustration among the Palestinian people, he said it is increasingly difficult to convince them that Security Council resolutions will be implemented. \u00a0They keep seeing the Organization adopting appropriate documents but \u201cthey don\u2019t see teeth to these resolutions\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n Condemning this morning\u2019s attack in Nablus, a city that is supposedly under the control of the Palestinian Authority, he noted that so far 10\u00a0people, including children and the elderly, have died, with many fighting for their lives. \u00a0The timing of the Nablus massacre was not an accident, he said, adding that Israel knew that \u201cthe international community will be busy with another big issue\u201d and assumed nobody will pay attention. \u00a0Despite the Council presidential statement adopted two days ago, which emphasized the need for humanitarian access, the Israeli occupying forces did not allow ambulances access this morning, he said.<\/p>\n Drawing attention to the extremist Israeli Government that took office in December, he said its actions have triggered several Council meetings. \u00a0Also condemning settler terrorism, he said the Palestinian people live in daily fear of being attacked by settlers who have been armed by the current Government. \u00a0If principles such as the right to self-determination and the inadmissibility of acquisition of land by force are applicable to other situations in the world, they should also be applicable to Palestine, he declared.<\/p>\n Cheikh Niang (Senegal), speaking upon his re-election as Committee Chair, said the devotion to the Committee demonstrated by those present reflect their countries\u2019 respective commitment to the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. \u00a0Israel\u2019s continued occupation and illegal practices \u2014 including settlement activities, creeping annexation and deliberate demographic change \u2014 constitute a serious threat to the sovereignty of the Palestinian State. \u00a0Further, elevated violence across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, is concerning, and recent weeks have been marked by alarming violence, confrontation and military action that includes children among the victims, he said.<\/p>\n He went on to welcome the Security Council\u2019s recent adoption of a presidential statement<\/a> condemning Israeli settlement activities, urging the organ to turn this message into effective action and address the suffering that has continued for too long. \u00a0He also stressed that the peace process must be relaunched, and that all pending matters must be discussed, including the status of Jerusalem, refugees, security and the situation in Gaza. \u00a0Meanwhile, all parties should refrain from unilateral actions that undermine resuming the peace process. \u00a0Calling on Israel and the international community to uphold the rights of the Palestinian people \u2014 namely the right to live in freedom and dignity in a sovereign State \u2014 he also urged Member States to continue supporting UNRWA.<\/p>\n The Committee re-elected Pedro Luis Pedroso Cuesta (Cuba), Arrmanatha Christiawan Nasir (Indonesia), Neville Melvin Gertze (Namibia) and Jaime Hermida Castillo (Nicaragua) as Vice-Chairs.\u00a0 It will fill the vacant posts of Rapporteur and one Vice-Chair at a later time.<\/p>\n In other business, the Committee adopted its programme of work for 2023 (document A\/AC.183\/2023\/L.3).<\/p>\n The Committee will reconvene at a date and time to be announced.<\/p>\n Discussion<\/u><\/p>\n Expressing alarm and grief about the attack in Nablus earlier today, Committee members took the floor to reaffirm support for the two-State solution and the rights of the Palestinian people.<\/p>\n \u201cOn a morning like today\u201d, the representative of Namibia said, \u201cI really do not feel it appropriate for me to congratulate any one of us for being re-elected or making statements\u201d.\u00a0 The brutal attack in Nablus this morning is another reminder of the persistent misery that the occupying Power inflicts on its people, he said, calling on the Committee to \u201ccontinue to be bold\u201d in pursuit of its mandate in a manner that remains realistic and rooted in international law.<\/p>\n The representative of the League of Arab States noted the double standards within the Â鶹APP when it comes to the situation in Ukraine versus the situation in Palestine. \u00a0Pointing to the multiple meetings convened on Ukraine, including the one later today, he said the attitude towards Palestine is different. \u00a0This makes it essential to support Palestine in various international forums such as the International Court of Justice, he said, calling on Committee members to collect evidence and legal precedents. \u00a0Also stressing the importance of international recognition for Palestinian statehood, he said the Committee must convince more countries to recognize the State of Palestine.<\/p>\n Venezuela\u2019s delegate also looked forward to the day when Palestine will be a full-fledged member of the Â鶹APP, as he paid tribute to the long heroism of its people, who have withstood colonial aggression, military brutality and the criminal apartheid of the occupying Power for 75\u00a0years since the\u00a0nakba<\/em>. \u00a0The time has come to adopt measures to provide international protection to the Palestinian civilian population, he said.<\/p>\n Jordan\u2019s delegate expressed concern about \u201cattempts to obfuscate reality\u201d, noting that two days ago in the Council, the representative of Israel demonized Palestinian children as terrorists. \u00a0He was trying to justify Israel\u2019s legitimate right to kill Palestinian children, he said, also expressing concern about media reports that portray Israel as the victim. \u00a0Condemning attempts to erase the Muslim, Christian and Arab identity of Jerusalem, he reaffirmed his country\u2019s custodianship of the holy sites.<\/p>\n The speaker for Lebanon noted how the occupation has deprived Palestinian people of their land and their identity while the representative of T\u00fcrkiye condemned Israel\u2019s legalization of nine outposts in the West Bank, as illegal \u201ceven under Israeli law\u201d. \u00a0The representative of Indonesia said that it \u201cmay not be an exaggeration\u201d to say that that occupying Power\u2019s actions are creating a \u201chell on Earth\u201d for the Palestinian people.<\/p>\n Egypt\u2019s delegate condemned the killing of innocent civilians, the use of live munitions against children, the demolition of Palestinian homes and the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip for more than 15\u00a0years. \u00a0He reiterated his country\u2019s full support of the Palestinian people\u2019s legitimate rights \u2014 including seeking an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice. \u00a0A day will come when the Committee will celebrate the accession of the Palestinian people to long-due freedom and independence, he said.<\/p>\n The representative of Syria pointed to the Security Council\u2019s silence in the face of Israel\u2019s actions, adding that as a result, the region is witnessing unprecedented levels of tension and instability. \u00a0Reaffirming that \u201cthe Palestinian cause is a central one\u201d, he supported all efforts aimed at implementing Security Council and General Assembly resolutions pertaining to the Palestinian issue and ending the continuing, systematic crimes perpetrated by Israel.<\/p>\n Feda Abdelhady-Nasser, an observer for the State of Palestine thanked Committee members for their solidarity, adding that the Palestinian people are grieving yet again today, part of a painful, ongoing grief for all the devastation inflicted on generation after generation. \u00a0Mr.\u00a0Mansour also took the floor again, apologizing for having to leave the meeting earlier, as he was meeting with the President of the Security Council regarding the crime committed in Nablus today. \u00a0He also detailed ongoing preparations relating to the proceeding before the International Court of Justice and urged all those willing and able to submit written interventions to the Court to do so before the deadline of 25\u00a0July.<\/p>\n Also speaking were the representatives of Tunisia, China, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Cuba, Nicaragua and South Africa.<\/p>\n For information media. 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