Situation in the OPT/Mideast situation – Congress of Deputies of Spain communiqué – Letter from Spain

DOCUMENT S/l9549* **

Letter dated 26 February 1988 from the representative of Spain

to the Secretary-General

[Original: Spanish]

[29 February 1988]

I have the honour to convey to you a communiqué concerning the situation in the Middle East, which was adopted unanimously by the Congress of Deputies of Spain.

I request you to have this letter circulated as an official document of the General Assembly and of the Security Council.

(Signed) Francisco VILLAR

Permanent Representative of Spain

to the United Nations

ANNEX

Communiqué adopted by the Congress of Deputies of Spain

The Congress of Deputies:

EXPRESSES its profound concern at the violent confrontations which have been occurring in the territories of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem under Israeli occupation;

DEPLORES the loss of human life and the grave violations of the individual and collective rights of the populations in those regions;

RECALLS that the Government of Israel, as the occupying Power, is obliged to abide strictly by tbe Fourth Geneva Convention, of 12 August 1949, 1/ with regard to the protection and freedom of the populations in occupied territories, an obligation which has been highlighted recently by tbe international community in resolutions 605 (1987), 607 (1988) and 608 (1988) of tbe United Nations Security Council.

APPEALS to all the parties involved to act with moderation and thus to avoid aggravating the situation;

EXPRESSES its conviction that a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East should be based on the observance by all of United Nations resolutions in their totality, in particular the right of all States in the region to existence within secure and internationally recognized boundaries, together with the recognition of the national rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination;

CONSIDERS the proposal for the convening of an international conference on the Middle East under the auspices of the United Nations as the only approach in the current circumstances which has the potential for bringing about a statement of the conflict afflicting the peoples of the region;

URGES the Government to seek to promote, both at the bilateral level and within the framework of the European Community, any initiative which it regards as conducive to the convening of such an international peace conference on the Middle East, with the participation of all the parties directly involved and concerned, as promptly as possible;

REQUESTS the Government to transmit this statement to the Governments and bodies concerned and affected.

____________

 *Incorporating document S/19549/Corr.l of 1 March 1988.

**Circulated under the double symbol A/43/177-S/19549.

Notes

1/   Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949 (United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, No. 973).