Security Council
Under the
United Nations Charter,
the Security Council has primary responsibility for the maintenance of
international peace and security. Since
1948, the Council has addressed the situation in the Middle East and the Palestinian
question on many occasions. When
hostilities broke out, the Council has called for, or ordered
cease-fires to prevent further hostilities. It also dispatched military
observers, and deployed United Nations peace-keeping forces
in the region to help reduce tensions and
keep opposing forces apart. The Council has set forth the basic
principles for a peaceful settlement in the Middle East, known as the "land
for peace" formula, by its resolutions 242
(1967) and 338
(1973). the Security
Council has, on numerous occasions, expressed concern about the
situation on the ground, declared
null and void the measures taken by the Israeli government to change the
status of Jerusalem, called for the cessation of Israeli settlement activity,
which it determined to have no legal validity, reaffirmed the applicability of
the Fourth Geneva Convention to the Palestinian and other Arab territories
occupied by Israel since 1967, including Jerusalem and
called for the return of Palestinian deportees. The Council has
repeatedly expressed its support for, and called for the immediate resumption of the
negotiations within the current
Middle East peace process with the aim of achieving an early final settlement
between the Israeli and Palestinian sides. The Council affirmed the vision of
two States, Israel and Palestine, living side by side within secure and
recognized borders, by its resolution
1397 (2002), and endorsed the
Road Map by its resolution
1515 (2003).
See also:
Security Council Briefings by the United Nations Secretariat