Morocco World News
New York, Nov 20, 2012
The United States rejected on Tuesday a press statement on Gaza, which “called on the parties to stop immediately all military activities.”
Members of the Council held negotiations on the press statement on Monday morning and late in the evening. After long consultations, the draft was put under “silence procedure.” According to the rule of silence procedure, if no country objects to a draft that circulated to the members of the council or other UN entities, or no amendments are proposed before the deadline set for the procedure, the text is considered as accepted by all members of the Council. In case a country breaks the silence procedure, that means that it still opposes some parts of text.
A source contacted by MWN on Monday said that one country was still opposing the adoption of the statement by the Council, in tacit reference to the United States.
In a press statement in the media stakeout on Monday night, US Ambassador, Susan Rice, told reporters that the top priority of the moment is to use “all diplomatic channels to try to negotiate an end to the violence and a de-escalation. Asked by a reporter whether her country was going to oppose the adoption of the press statement by the Council, she said that she “will get instructions overnight on a draft on the table.” “But again, we will judge the draft as to whether or not it advances the goal of supporting an agreed cessation,” she said.
The draft presidential statement, which was circulated by the Moroccan Mission to the United Nations, in its capacity as the Arab member of the Council, “expressed grave concern at the escalation and steep deterioration of the situation in Gaza and calls for an immediate halt to all violence.”
The aborted presidential statement did not include any strong language against the Israeli government.It rather “called on the parties to stop immediately all military activities.”
As in previous instances, it equated Hamas, which defends the rights of the Palestinians to be freed from the inhuman siege imposed on them by Israel since 2006, with Israel, which violates the human rights of the Palestinian people and all relevant UN resolutions.
The draft statement called on all parties to address the serious humanitarian and economic needs in Gaza and to take necessary measures to allow for the unhindered, safe and secure access of humanitarian assistance and personnel to the Palestinian people and to ensure the provision of humanitarian supplies, including supplies of food, fuel and provision of medical treatment.”
The Members of the Council call on the international community “to provide additional emergency and humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people in the Gaza strip to address their urgent humanitarian needs,” while stressing “the need for the restoration of calm in full. The members of the council are due to hold another s meeting at 6pm New York time before issuing the statement.
Unlike resolution adopted under Chapter V of the UN Charter, press statement are not legally binding, although they reflect the consensus of its members and can be considered as a reflection of the international opinion.
Despite the repeated violations of human rights perpetrated by Israel for 6 decades in the Palestinian occupied territory, and its disregard for all UN resolutions calling on it to decolonize the territories occupied after the June 1967 war, the Council, because of the opposition of the United States and the United Kingdom, never adopted a single binding resolution (i.e under Chapter V) against Israel.
During her statement at the Council emergency meeting held last Wednesday, US Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice did not show any sympathy or concern for the plight of the Palestinians. She also failed to denounce the crimes being perpetrated by Israel against an unarmed Palestinian civilian population. She instead renewed its countries support to Israel in its fight against “terrorism”. The same stance was adopted by UK’s Permanent Representative to the UN, who echoed his “country’s understanding of the steps Israel takes to defend itself,” while calling on it to take “every necessary steps to deescalate” the crisis.
