UN tells Israel, Palestinians to stop unilateral actions

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Cairo October 2014

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 http://news.yahoo.com/un-tells-israel-palestinians-stop-unilateral-actions-205940616.html

United Nations (United States) (AFP) - UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged Israel and the Palestinians on Tuesday to move away from unilateral actions stoking tensions and make the "tough compromises" needed to end their decades-old conflict.

Ban spoke to the UN Security Council after returning from a visit to the Middle East where he saw first-hand the destruction in Gaza wrought by the 50-day war between Israel and Hamas militants.

"Leaders on both sides must overcome their differences and dispense with the unilateral initiatives that serve only to fuel mistrust and polarization," the secretary general said.

The appeal came after Palestinian youths attacked an apartment building taken over by Jewish settlers in east Jerusalem and as the Palestinians pushed for a divisive UN resolution on ending the Israeli occupation in 2016. 

UN diplomats say the draft resolution stands no chance of being adopted, but they appear at a loss to point a way forward to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Describing the two-state solution as the "only viable option" for peace, Ban said: "It is time for courage and vision to make the tough compromises that are needed now. I challenge both sides to rise to the occasion."

Illegal Israeli settlements

The UN chief called on Israel to reverse settlement activity which he emphasized were "illegal" and expressed concern over clashes sparked by Jewish visits at holy sites in Jerusalem. 

"International law is clear: settlement activity is illegal. It runs totally counter to the pursuit of a two-state solution," he said.

Israeli police have vowed to restore order following clashes between Palestinian youths over recent Jewish visits to the Al-Aqsa mosque, Islam's third holiest site.

In his address to the council, Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour said the "time is past due to acknowledge that Israel, the occupying power, rejects peace and is deliberately destroying the two-state solution."

Mansour appealed to the 15-nation council to support the draft resolution on setting 2016 as the date for an Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank and Gaza, and to set a course for Palestinian statehood.

He invited the council ambassadors to visit Gaza, as Ban did last week, and emphasized the "centrality" of the United Nations in the search for peace after US efforts to re-start peace talks failed. 

Israeli Deputy Ambassador David Roet took a swipe at European countries that have moved toward recognition of Palestinian statehood, saying such actions would not advance peace.

"By prematurely recognizing a state of Palestine, European governments are sending a message that Palestinians do not need to make hard choices and they are undermining efforts to bring about a real and lasting change in our region," he said.

Gaza ceasefire talks are due to resume next week in Cairo to address Palestinian calls for ending the Israeli blockade and Israeli demands for disarming Hamas.

The Day After #PeaceDay 2014

International Day of Peace

 

So much great energy today. So much inspiration for the year ahead. #Peaceday #Gratitude

Marking International Day, UN affirms people's right to 'imagine' world at peace. The theme of this year’s International Day of Peace is “Right of Peoples to Peace” in honour of the 30th anniversary of the General Assembly Declaration on the Right of Peoples to Peace.  

Live by the Golden Rule

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Voicing solidarity with Palestinian cause, UN officials stress importance of resumed peace talks

Mohammed Assaf, UNRWA Regional Youth Ambassador and Winner of Arab Idol 2013 addresses the meeting. UN Photo/Ryan Brown

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http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=46578&Cr=palestin&Cr1#.UpP_dbbhERy

25 November 2013 – United Nations officials today voiced their solidarity with the people of Palestine in their aspirations for independence and sovereignty, and stressed the importance of ongoing peace talks aimed at a two-State solution which must be given a chance to bear fruit.

“We cannot afford to lose the current moment of opportunity,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a message read on his behalf to the observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

“I ask all in the international community to work together to translate the solidarity expressed on this occasion into positive action for peace and justice,” he added.

The special meeting held at UN Headquarters comes ahead of the International Day, observed annually on 29 November. The Day marks the date in 1947 when the General Assembly adopted a resolution partitioning then-mandated Palestine into two States, one Jewish and one Arab.

“The goal remains clear – an end to the occupation that started in 1967 and the creation of a sovereign, independent, and viable State of Palestine based on the 1967 borders, living side by side in peace with a secure State of Israel,” Mr. Ban stated.

“Jerusalem is to emerge from negotiations as the capital of two States, with arrangements for the holy sites acceptable to all. An agreed solution must be found for millions of Palestinian refugees around the region.”

Israelis and Palestinians resumed direct negotiations in August, thanks to the efforts of United States Secretary of State John Kerry, following a three-year hiatus owing to Israel’s refusal to extend its freeze on settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territory.

After decades of talks and “far too many” adverse developments on the ground, Mr. Ban urged Palestinian and Israeli leaders to take the decisions that will usher in a political solution to this serious and long-standing conflict.

The Chair of the General Assembly’s Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, Abdou Salam Diallo, called on the international community to seize “what seems to be one of the last opportunities” to promote a negotiated solution.

“Time is running out. The negotiating process is endangered by certain policies and particularly by the ongoing establishment of Jewish settlements,” he told the meeting.

Later today, Mr. Diallo will introduce several draft resolutions related to the question of Palestine to the General Assembly, which will be asked to, among other things, declare 2014 as the “International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.”

General Assembly President John Ashe welcomed the Committee’s initiative to have 2014 proclaimed as the International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, and called for using it to redouble efforts to create the necessary environment for successful peace talks.

“Ongoing peace negotiations must be given a chance for peace to take root and flourish, but peace cannot be meaningful and durable without taking fully into account the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, which are key to the solution of the Arab-Israeli conflict in the Middle East.”

“I call on the Governments and people of both Israel and Palestine to avoid actions that would undermine the fragile hope created by this renewed round of negotiations, and to cease and desist from any actions that are in contravention to international law and would pose a major impediment to peace in the Middle East and, more importantly, render the two-State solution impossible,” said Mr. Ashe.

Speaking on behalf of the UN agency responsible for assisting five million Palestinian refugees, Filippo Grandi said that solidarity – which transcends political and financial support – is crucial because it makes Palestinians feel that they are not alone.

Mr. Grandi, the outgoing Commissioner General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said his organization is “sadly familiar” with this loneliness, given how closely it works with refugees whose plight has remained unresolved for over six decades.

As part of the observance of the International Day, the Palestinian Rights Committee will hold a concert later today featuring two Palestinian singers – Mohammed Assaf, UNRWA Regional Youth Ambassador and Winner of Arab Idol 2013, and Nai Barghouti.

The Committee is also screening the documentary film “State 194,” which focuses on former Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s 2009 plan to demonstrate that his people were deserving of statehood, inspiring them to change their destiny and seek UN membership.

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News Tracker: past stories on this issue

Israelis and Palestinians must refrain from undermining renewed talks – UN political chief

My online comment posted 11-22-2013 RE UN secretary-general: JFK left indelible imprint on me

President Kennedy addresses Red Cross youth group at the White House on Aug. 29, 1962. Ban Ki-moon is second to the right of JFK.( Photo: Family photo)

RE: UN secretary-general: JFK left indelible imprint on me
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2013/11/22/ban-ki-moon-un-secretary-general-jfk/3639233/

comment i left on usatoday website

Delighted to see UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon's inspiring op-ed "JFK left indelible imprint on me"...  In giving sincere thanks, and telling such a charming story, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon helps elevate an important person, but more importantly he promotes magnificent ideas and ideals. 
Annie Annab

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UN secretary-general: JFK left indelible imprint on me

Ban Ki-moon 6 a.m. EST November 22, 2013

Meeting the president as a youth led to my decision to choose a life of public service.

Story Highlights

• President Kennedy that day reminded us that we could be friends even if our governments were not.
• His last speech at UN reads like a primer for addressing the problems that still plague us today.
• I deliver the message JFK gave me: Be a global citizen and love your country by serving the world.

One of my great personal regrets is not having better preserved the autograph I received from President Kennedy when I had the overwhelming good fortune to meet him as a nameless teenager from a dusty village in Korea.

I was in the United States as part of an eye-opening tour organized by the Red Cross for a group of young people from around the world. It was more than a visit to a foreign country -- it was a pilgrimage to the land of possibility, a shining democracy that had helped to save my nation in its darkest hour.

President Kennedy's signature was quickly dispersed among the many fingerprints of my friends who grabbed at the glossy White House Bulletin and passed it around with such eagerness that by the time it returned to me no trace of his writing remained.

But nothing could remove the imprint the American president made on my life...READ MORE

 

 

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Global hotspots top agenda as UN chief meets with new US Secretary of State: "We all need to make special efforts to forge a two-State solution "

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (left) and US Secretary of State John Kerry at a joint press conference. UN Photo/Mark Garte

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=44148&Cr=united+states&Cr1=#.UR1aVdY1aS5

“We all need to make special efforts to forge a two-State solution before the window of opportunity closes,” said Mr. Ban, who welcomed the plans of President Barack Obama and Mr. Kerry to visit the region.
 
“It is important that the right of Israel to exist should be respected and also the viable Palestinian authorities, in terms of the political and financial situation, be supported so that both can live side by side in peace and security. That is a two-State solution,” he stated.

Mr. Ban also noted that at a time when families and government everywhere are feeling severe financial strains, the benefits of working with the UN are clear – burden-sharing, wise use of the global taxpayers’ money, and international solutions in the national interest.

“I look forward to strengthening the US-UN partnership and working closely with Secretary of State Kerry towards our shared goals of peace, development, and human rights.”

My letter to the New York Times RE Report on Iran Nuclear Work Puts Israel in a Box

RE: Report on Iran Nuclear Work Puts Israel in a Box
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/31/world/middleeast/report-on-iran-nuclear-work-puts-israel-in-a-box.html?_r=1&ref=global-home

Dear Editor,

If Israel actually stepped up to abide by international law- dismantling its settlement projects and apartheid policies so that the Israel-Palestine conflict could actually end with a fair and just two state solution based on full respect for universal basic human rights, Iran would be forced to seriously rethink its own trajectory and rhetoric.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon warns about the current state of bellicose rhetoric coming from Israel and Iran, saying "a war of words can quickly spiral into a war of violence."

Ziad Asali founder of the American Task Force on Palestine wisely points out in a recent article that "Over the past 30 years, the rise of religious fanaticism in some parts of Palestinian society, mirroring that in the broader Arab world as well as among Jewish Israelis, has also undermined healthy social, cultural and educational attitudes. However, such fanaticism does not define the Palestinian mainstream or essential national culture. On the contrary, most Palestinians, while devout and socially conservative, remain essentially secular and fundamentally worldly."

Peace and earnest honorable support for a sovereign Palestinian state living in security alongside Israel is a win-win situation for all the people in the region.  Religious extremists, nay sayers and hate mongers on all sides will object but religious extremists, naysayers and hate mongers should not be handed the power to exasperate the very real plight and suffering of the Palestinians.

Sincerely
Anne Selden Annab

NOTES
Bulldozing the Special Relationship: The Rachel Corrie verdict should be a wakeup call to America.

The Truth is Stranger than Fiction in Palestine

Guardian: Nick Hayes on the Rachel Corrie court verdict – cartoon

Rachel Corrie

ALERTNET: Gaza not "liveable" by 2020 barring urgent action - U.N.

CSM: Severe attack on Palestinian teen spotlights conflict's impact on Israeli youths

Breaking the Silence: More than 30 former Israeli soldiers have disclosed their experiences of the treatment of Palestinian children during military operations and arrests, pointing to a pattern of abuse.

Ending the Israel-Palestine conflict: "It is the view of the United Nations that there is a responsibility not only on the parties themselves but on all member states to consider their action and their language in light of the goal,"

We Palestinian are locked in a fierce struggle for our independence....to make the matter straight and simple this is not a clash of religions...

Israel, Iran and the Nuclear Challenge... Since Israel has nuclear weapons, other countries in the region want them, too.

Violent attacks by settlers on Palestinians and their property, mosques and farmland had increased by 150% over the past year.

'Separate and Unequal' is Unacceptable to Palestinians

"If you have to modify it, it isn't really a democracy."

Demographics should be a research tool, not a national policy shaping institutionalized bigotry and injustice.

********

The Office of International Religious Freedom ( http://www.state.gov/j/drl/irf/ )  Given the U.S. commitment to religious freedom, and to the international covenants that guarantee it as the inalienable right of every human being, the United States seeks to:

Promote freedom of religion and conscience throughout the world as a fundamental human right and as a source of stability for all countries

Palestinian Refugees (1948-NOW) refused their right to return... and their right to live in peace free from religious bigotry and injustice.

Refugees and the Right of Return: "Palestinian refugees must be given the option to exercise their right of return (as well as receive compensation for their losses arising from their dispossession and displacement) though refugees may prefer other options such as: (i) resettlement in third countries, (ii) resettlement in a newly independent Palestine (even though they originate from that part of Palestine which became Israel) or (iii) normalization of their legal status in the host country where they currently reside. What is important is that individual refugees decide for themselves which option they prefer - a decision must not be imposed upon them."

"It is in Israel's vital interest to come to a complete resolution of the conflict between it and the Palestinian people sooner rather than later, relieving the weight of this tragic conflict from both of our peoples' shoulders. We owe it to ourselves. We owe it to the world." Maen Rashid Areikat: The Time for a Palestinian State Is Now

"Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home - so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world."Eleanor Roosevelt

The Golden Rule... Do unto others as you would have them do unto you

2012 Stream ATFP's Middle East News: World Press Round up and stay up to date with the latest news concerning the Israeli-Palestinian issue.