Construction of New Jewish Settlements Should Be Investigated
March 19, 1998 - 0:0
NEW YORK, United Nations Iran's ambassador and permanent representative to the UN Hadi Nejad-Husseinian here Tuesday called for serious investigation into construction of new settlements in the occupied lands by the Zionist regime. He made the remark while addressing the tenth emergency special session of the UN General Assembly on illegal Israeli actions in occupied East Bait-ul-Moqaddas and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory.
The resumption of the tenth emergency special session yet again illustrate the gravity of the situation in the region and beyond as a direct and inevitable consequence of the unlawful Israeli policies and brutal practices, he noted. He stressed that aggression, forceful occupation of others' territories, torture and illegal detention of civilians, combined with state terrorism, have manifestly exposed the real face and true nature of the Israeli regime to the entire world.
The international community cannot therefore be indifferent to the dangerous and devastating backlash that such pattern of behavior would unleash, he underlined. ``The special session has already adopted three resolutions which each condemns the construction of new settlements and all other Israeli actions in the occupied territories, and demands an immediate and full cessation of these measures and actions.'' The Iranian envoy further stressed that now one year after the adoption of the first resolution of the tenth special session, and at a time when the world is witnessing the intransigent refusal of Israel to abide by the wish of the international community, the General Assembly should pursue decisively the objectives of the previous resolutions of the special session with a renewed determination.
``The Islamic Republic of Iran, as a party to the fourth Geneva convention, while welcoming the convening of the conference of high contracting parties, believes that those recommendations should be implemented without further delay,'' he noted. He expressed hope that the meeting of experts of the high contracting parties to the fourth Geneva convention will be held by the end of April 1998, as recommended in the draft resolution, and that such conference can contribute to the restoration of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.
Numerous UN reports and documents indicate that the Zionist regime has not abandoned its policy of constructing the new Israeli settlement and that settlement activities have continued unabated throughout the occupied territories, Nejad-Husseinian said. The policy of expanding Jewish settlement in the occupied lands through the use of brute force, intimidation and deceit in order to change the basic characteristics of the Palestinian territories have always been an integral component of the Israeli grand design to perpetuate its occupation, he said.
More importantly, he noted, the decision to build Jewish settlements in East Bait-ul-Moqaddas is aimed at changing the legal, religious and demographic composition of Al-Qods al-Sharif, thus creating a fait accompli towards Judaization of Bait-ul-Moqaddas. ``Such initiatives and actions, which clearly contravene the rules of international law, have exacerbated the critical situation in the region which has been engulfed in a whirlpool of conflict, tension and instability.'' The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has constantly called upon the international community to take appropriate and urgent measures to renounce the unlawful Israeli policies and conducts and to restore the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, Nejad-Husseinian added.
As to the eighth OIC summit in Tehran, he said that the session condemned continued occupation by the Zionist regime of Palestinian and other Arab territories including Al-Qods al-Sahrif, the Syrian Golan and southern Lebanon, saluted the steadfastness of the Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian peoples in their resistance to the Israeli occupation, and called for the liberation of all occupied Arab territories and restoration of the usurped rights of the Palestinian people.
The summit also condemned the expansionist policies and practices by the Zionist regime such as the establishment and expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, as well as acts to change the demographic and geographic status of Al-Qods and emphasized the need for Israel to desist from state-terrorism which it continues to practice in utter disregard for all legal and moral principles, the Iranian envoy stressed.
He called on the special session of the General Assembly to take a firm stand against the atrocities committed by Israel in the occupied lands. Nejad-Husseinian concluded by urging the UN to exert pressure on the Zionist regime to respect international norms and principles through the implementation of the UN resolutions.
The resumption of the tenth emergency special session yet again illustrate the gravity of the situation in the region and beyond as a direct and inevitable consequence of the unlawful Israeli policies and brutal practices, he noted. He stressed that aggression, forceful occupation of others' territories, torture and illegal detention of civilians, combined with state terrorism, have manifestly exposed the real face and true nature of the Israeli regime to the entire world.
The international community cannot therefore be indifferent to the dangerous and devastating backlash that such pattern of behavior would unleash, he underlined. ``The special session has already adopted three resolutions which each condemns the construction of new settlements and all other Israeli actions in the occupied territories, and demands an immediate and full cessation of these measures and actions.'' The Iranian envoy further stressed that now one year after the adoption of the first resolution of the tenth special session, and at a time when the world is witnessing the intransigent refusal of Israel to abide by the wish of the international community, the General Assembly should pursue decisively the objectives of the previous resolutions of the special session with a renewed determination.
``The Islamic Republic of Iran, as a party to the fourth Geneva convention, while welcoming the convening of the conference of high contracting parties, believes that those recommendations should be implemented without further delay,'' he noted. He expressed hope that the meeting of experts of the high contracting parties to the fourth Geneva convention will be held by the end of April 1998, as recommended in the draft resolution, and that such conference can contribute to the restoration of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.
Numerous UN reports and documents indicate that the Zionist regime has not abandoned its policy of constructing the new Israeli settlement and that settlement activities have continued unabated throughout the occupied territories, Nejad-Husseinian said. The policy of expanding Jewish settlement in the occupied lands through the use of brute force, intimidation and deceit in order to change the basic characteristics of the Palestinian territories have always been an integral component of the Israeli grand design to perpetuate its occupation, he said.
More importantly, he noted, the decision to build Jewish settlements in East Bait-ul-Moqaddas is aimed at changing the legal, religious and demographic composition of Al-Qods al-Sharif, thus creating a fait accompli towards Judaization of Bait-ul-Moqaddas. ``Such initiatives and actions, which clearly contravene the rules of international law, have exacerbated the critical situation in the region which has been engulfed in a whirlpool of conflict, tension and instability.'' The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has constantly called upon the international community to take appropriate and urgent measures to renounce the unlawful Israeli policies and conducts and to restore the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, Nejad-Husseinian added.
As to the eighth OIC summit in Tehran, he said that the session condemned continued occupation by the Zionist regime of Palestinian and other Arab territories including Al-Qods al-Sahrif, the Syrian Golan and southern Lebanon, saluted the steadfastness of the Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian peoples in their resistance to the Israeli occupation, and called for the liberation of all occupied Arab territories and restoration of the usurped rights of the Palestinian people.
The summit also condemned the expansionist policies and practices by the Zionist regime such as the establishment and expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, as well as acts to change the demographic and geographic status of Al-Qods and emphasized the need for Israel to desist from state-terrorism which it continues to practice in utter disregard for all legal and moral principles, the Iranian envoy stressed.
He called on the special session of the General Assembly to take a firm stand against the atrocities committed by Israel in the occupied lands. Nejad-Husseinian concluded by urging the UN to exert pressure on the Zionist regime to respect international norms and principles through the implementation of the UN resolutions.