UAE renews support for UN Resolutions on Syria

The UAE on behalf of the Arab group at the United Nations has renewed its support for the UN Security Council Resolutions 2042 and 2043 of 2012 concerning to resolving the current crisis in Syria through peaceful means.

Ambassador Ahmed Al Jarman, Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations, and Chairman of the Arab Group in his statement on behalf of the Arab Group said that the Arab Group supports the UN Security Council Resolutions ( 2042 and 2043) as well as the efforts of the Joint Special Envoy Kofi Annan towards resolving the crisis through peaceful means.

Following is the full speech of Al Jarman:

President,

Let me on behalf of myself and the Arab Group to congratulate Your Excellency on your Presidency of the Security Council for this month.

The periodic monthly briefings submitted by the Secretariat to the Security Council on the latest developments at the Occupied Palestinian and Arab Territories since 1967, reflect in way or another the gravity of the legal, humanitarian and political violations being committed by Israel “the occupying Power” against the Palestinian people, which include the continued and systematic expansion of its illegal settlement expansion in the depth of the West Bank and East Jerusalem and their surroundings, the expulsion of the Arab population from their homes, and confiscation of more private and public lands and properties, all of which undermined the elements of the Palestinian State and its national authority.

The Arab Group renews its condemnation of such serious Israeli actions, which were the direct cause of failing all regional and international efforts made so far to resume peace negotiations and resulted as well in increasing anger, tension and instability in the region as a whole. The Arab Group is deeply concerned about the continuing inability of the international community to end such violations or the aggressive Israeli measures, which encouraged Israel to continue its provocative decisions regarding the establishment of new settlements and expanding existing settlements as part of its policy to consolidate its occupation of the Palestinian lands, particularly in the city of East Jerusalem, with the aim of changing its demographic, historical and religious nature and the Arab character of this city in serious anticipation of the results of the negotiations.

The Arab Group regards such Israeli practices as null, void and unrecognized in accordance with the principles of the Charter, the provisions of international law, the relevant international resolutions and the principles of the roadmap. Therefore, today we demand for the international community and the UN Security Council in particular to assume its full responsibility towards forcing Israel to cease immediately its serious policies, including the immediate cancellation of all illegal decisions and unilateral measures taken by Israel in this regard.

We also demand for the Council to support the recent decision of the Human Rights Council, which calls for sending an independent international fact-finding mission to investigate the repercussions of Israel’s settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Palestinian people, in order to determine the responsibility that Israel would have to bear in full towards this issues and to ensure its compliance to immediately stop all illegal settlement activities. That would pave the way for the establishment of an environment conducive to the unconditional and immediate resumption of peace negotiations for finding a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Question of Palestine, based on the principle of the two-state solution provided for in the Road Map and the Arab Peace Initiative.

While we are deeply concerned at the continued humanitarian and economic dire situation of the Palestinian people resulting from the Israeli occupation and closures, we call upon Israel to immediately lift the closures on Gaza crossings in accordance with Resolution 1860, and to remove all military barriers in the Palestinian towns and villages which limit trade and the movement of the Palestinians. We also demand for Israel to stop its repeated attempts to freeze customs and tariffs funds belonging to the Palestinian Authority. We hope that the international community increases its economic, financial and humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people, and we urge donor countries to fulfill their commitments towards providing one billion dollars to the annual budget of the Palestinian Authority for 2012, pursuant to the decision taken by the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee for Coordinating Humanitarian Assistance to the Palestinians at its meeting held last March in Brussels, in order to enable the Palestinian Authority to control the growing fiscal deficit and fulfill its responsibilities towards the Palestinian People. In the humanitarian context, we also call upon Israel to immediately and unconditionally release all Palestinian prisoners detained at Israel’s prisons, who live in difficult illegal conditions at the prisons and detention centers of Israel.

We renew our total condemnation of the continued Israeli occupation of the Syrian Golan, and we consider all measures practiced by the occupation in the occupied Syrian Golan to be null and void.

We also deplore Israel’s relentless violations of the Lebanese sovereignty, by land, sea and air, and request the international community to compel Israel to fulfill its obligations set out in resolution 1701, particularly with regard to the implementation of its military withdrawal from the rest of the Lebanese territory.

Regarding the crisis in Syria, the Arab Group supports UN Security Council Resolutions 2042 and 2043 of 2012, as well as the efforts of the Joint Special Envoy Kofi Annan towards resolving this crisis through peaceful means in accordance with the terms of reference of his mandate, and the relevant decisions of the Arab League, which include a political road map for the Syrian crisis based on the Arab initiative. In this context, we reiterate our support for the resolutions issued by the recent Summit of the League of Arab States held in Baghdad, which condemned the serious violations of human rights of Syrian civilians and called the Syrian Government to immediately stop all acts of violence and killings, protect the civilians, ensure the freedom of peaceful demonstrations, the immediate release of all detainees in these events, withdrawal of military forces from all cities and villages and allow immediate access to Arab and international relief organizations. We hope that concerned parties in Syria bear their national responsibilities, and comply with their commitments and pledges set out in the six-point settlement plan of the Joint Envoy, in a rigorous and transparent manner, in order to end the bloodshed of the Syrian people, achieve their legitimate aspirations, and restore security and stability throughout the country.

In conclusion, we hope that the Security Council, in the context of its responsibilities, will take the critical measures required to revive the efforts aiming at achieving comprehensive, just and lasting peace and security in the Middle East.