New York, 22 January 2019:
“The responsibility of this august Body is to act appropriately so as to bring an end to such lawlessness and impunity by Israel, the occupying power. The international community, with the Security Council at the forefront, must act to ensure accountability for all Israeli violations, in line with international law, including humanitarian, human rights and criminal law, and to provide protection for the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including in the Gaza Strip” said the Permanent Representative (PR) of Bangladesh Ambassador Masud Bin Momen on behalf of the Member States of OIC at an open debate at the Security Council (SC) on ‘the Situation of Middle East, including the Palestine Question’, today.
The open debate was convened by Dominican Republic, the President of SC for the current month. At the opening of the debate, the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative of the Secretary-General Nickolay Mladenov briefed the council in which he cautioned “As 2019 begins, we should have no illusions about the dangerous dynamics of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which continue to unfold before our eyes”. 47 other Member States also participated in the debate.
The PR said, “Israel’s assaults on Islamic and Christian holy places, notably Al-Aqsa Mosque, have exacerbated the humanitarian crisis affecting Palestinians, especially in Gaza. Such actions cannot be seen as isolated from provocations by Israel and others aimed at forcibly and unlawfully altering the legal status of Jerusalem”.
On behalf of OIC, Ambassador Masud reiterated his call upon the UN Security Council to recommend and consider positively the admission of the State of Palestine as full-fledged member of the United Nations. He also invited the states which have not yet recognized the State of Palestine, to do so to promote the chances of peace and establish political and legal measures to protect and support the two-state solution.
The PR urged the international community to come forward generously and responsibly to ensure more predictable and sustained funding for UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) in support of the Palestine refugees.
On behalf of OIC, Ambassador Masud also urged the UN Security Council to uphold its commitment and act with responsibility to revive hopes and opportunities for real progress on the stalled peace process.
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