New York, December 02: The United Arab Emirates has renewed its support before the United Nations for the rights of Palestinian people to self-determination and establishing their independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
It urged the international community to strengthen its support politically and provide developmental, economic and relief assistance to the Palestinian people and their national authority to enable them attain freedom, independence and decent living.
This came during the annual message of solidarity from President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to Ambassador Paul Badji, Chairman of the United Nations’ Committee on Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, which is observed annually on November 29.
Shaikh Khalifa, in his message, denounced all attacks and serious violations by Israel in the Palestinian territories and putting challenges to the work of the Palestinian Authority leadership as well as other attempts to strip the peace process of its political content to serve Israel’s expansion and consolidation of its occupation and illegal annexation of Palestinian territory.
Shaikh Khalifa called upon the international community to take urgent steps in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations to make the Israeli government stop its aggressive policies against Palestinian people and to withdraw completely and unconditionally from all the occupied Arab and Palestinian territories since 1967, including Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan.
The UAE President said this year’s celebration comes under a critical stage as a result of the continuous Israeli occupation of the Palestinian land, and its violations of the conventions, humanitarian laws and resolutions of relevant international legitimacy.
“After we had been encouraged by the efforts of US administration and the Quartet, based on the roadmap envisioning the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, we and the international community were surprised that the Israeli government once again revealed the true intentions of hostilities against the Palestinians to disrupt and thwart any efforts to help achieve their aspirations in their own legitimate and independent country,” he said.
“Israel was not content with intimidating the Palestinian people and exercising the worst forms of aggression against them, especially in Gaza strip, as witnessed by the report of UN investigation commission known as the Goldstone Commission, but it persisted in the closure policy of Gaza strip and the cities of the West Bank and it continued its aggression and illegal settlement besides building the separation wall deep into the West Bank and Jerusalem.
“The UAE expresses its disappointment at the continuing inability of the international community to face all these Israeli practices, which are punishable by international law and international humanitarian law under the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949. Accordingly, we hold the United Nations, particularly the Security Council and member states in the Quartet, responsible for Israeli government persistence to all these crimes against the Palestinian people.
“We also call them to take all emergency measures in accordance with the Charter of the UN to bring the Israeli government to stop its aggressive policies against the Palestinian people and to withdraw completely and unconditionally from all Arab and Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan by fully complying with all the legal and moral obligations set forth in the agreements concluded by the resolutions of international legitimacy and human rights protocols.
“We also call upon the implementation of the recommendations of “Goldstone” report including holding the Israeli government responsible for the adverse consequences of its crimes, including the payment of compensation for the Palestinian people.”
–Agencies