CEIRPP meeting – Summary record

COMMITTEE ON THE EXERCISE OF THE INALIENABLE RIGHTS

OF THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

SUMMARY RECORD OF THE 188th MEETING

Held at Headquarters, New York,

on Wednesday, 17 June 1992, at 10.30 a.m.

Chairman:                         Mr. CISSE                   (Senegal)

CONTENTS

Observance  of  the  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  the  occupation  by Israel  of  the Palestinian  territory,  including   Jerusalem,  and  other Arab   territories

     This  record   is  subject  to  correction.

     Corrections  should  be   submitted  in  one  of   the   working  languages.   They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated in a copy of the record.  They should be sent within one week of the date of this document to the Chief, Official Records Editing Section, Office of Conference Services,  room DC2-750, 2 United Nations Plaza.                     

     Any corrections to the record of this meeting and of other meetings  will   be issued  in  a  corrigendum.

                 The meeting was called to order at 10.45 a.m.

OBSERVANCE OF THE TWENTY-FIFTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE OCCUPATION BY ISRAEL OF THE

PALESTINIAN TERRITORY, INCLUDING JERUSALEM, AND OTHER ARAB TERRITORIES

1.   The CHAIRMAN said that since its inception, the Committee had clearly

understood that the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the occupied territories

was a sine qua non for the exercise of Palestinian rights and the attainment

of a just and lasting settlement in accordance with United Nations

resolutions.  For that reason, the Committee had given priority in its

original recommendations to the Security Council to the development of a plan

to ensure such withdrawal.  Those recommendations had been endorsed every year

by the General Assembly, but the Security Council had been unable to act upon

them because of the veto of a permanent member.  In the absence of action by

the Security Council, the military occupation had continued and even been

consolidated.  The devastation it had caused not only to the Palestinian

territories, but also to neighbouring countries, was well known; the

twenty-fifth anniversary of the Six Day War coincided with the tenth

anniversary of the invasion of Lebanon and the massacre at Sabra and Shatila.

In a letter addressed to the Secretary-General on 5 June 1992, he had given a

brief account of the increasingly grave situation in the occupied Palestinian

territory during the 25 years of military occupation.  The occupation could

only be maintained through increasingly ruthless measures, which the current

Israeli Government seemed determined to pursue in defiance of the Fourth

Geneva Convention and other human rights instruments, and also in disregard of

a sizeable sector of its own public.

2.   Despite the valiant efforts of UNRWA and other international and

non-governmental organizations, the situation had continued to deteriorate,

particularly since the beginning of the intifadah nearly five years earlier.

The number of casualties had increased steadily, at least one quarter being

children under 16, and Israel had responded not with efforts to work out a

political solution, but rather with violent repression.  The Israeli

leadership did not yet seem to have realized that security and peace could not

be brought about purely by military action, but must result from mutual

accommodation.  It was imperative that appropriate measures should be taken at

the international level to ensure that Israel respected the provisions of the

Fourth Geneva Convention and that adequate protection was provided to

Palestinians in the occupied territories.

3.   Of even greater concern was the Israeli policy of de facto annexation of

the Palestinian and other Arab territories:  Israel had relentlessly

appropriated ever more land for its own use, established settlements and

expanded existing ones, and moved its own citizens to the occupied land.

Land-use plans and other economic development measures had been geared to

further fragmenting Palestinian land and integrating large portions of the

occupied territories into the Israeli economy.  The process had accelerated

even more since the beginning of the Madrid peace process, in an obvious and

avowed effort to create irreversible facts on the ground.  Israel was telling

the world that in a few years, hundreds of thousands of Jews would be living

in the occupied territories and that the notion of territorial compromise

would fade away like a bad dream.

4.   However, no such statements could turn the occupation into an

irreversible fact or make it any more acceptable to the international

community.  The Security Council and the General Assembly had affirmed that

the measures taken by Israel to change the demographic composition and the

status of occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab

territories, were null and void, and had called for an end to the settlement

policy and for the withdrawal of Israeli forces.

5.   The international consensus that completely rejected the occupation and

the policy of faits accomplis pursued by Israel must be reaffirmed, and the

relevant resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly must be

implemented, in order for a peaceful, but also just, settlement of the

question of Palestine to be achieved.

6.   Mr. JONAH (Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs) said that the

convening of the current meeting of the Committee reflected the international

community's great concern with the continuation of the occupation, and for a

just and lasting settlement of the Middle East problem and its core, the

question of Palestine.  The United Nations had always attached the utmost

importance to the endeavour to achieve such a settlement in accordance with

Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) and taking fully into

account the legitimate political rights of the Palestinian people.

7.   The current Arab-Israeli negotiations had proved that dialogue was

possible; the framework for such negotiations had been provided by the

Security Council in its relevant resolutions.  The General Assembly had

welcomed the convening of the Peace Conference on the Middle East in Madrid on

30 October 1991 as a significant step towards peace.  It was hoped that the

Conference would result in agreements that would satisfy all parties concerned

and allow the Palestinian people to realize its inalienable rights.  While

that process took place, however, the immediate protection of Palestinians in

the occupied territory must be ensured.  The intifadah had made it clear that

the Palestinian people would continue to reject Israeli occupation and to

struggle for the exercise of its rights.  Since December 1987, hundreds had

been killed and thousands wounded, including many children.  Palestinians had

been expelled and other measures had been instituted despite many resolutions

of the Security Council, the General Assembly, the Commission on Human Rights

and other United Nations bodies.

8.   The international community unanimously considered that Israel must

respect its obligations under the 1949 Geneva Convention relative to the

Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, whose signatories, in

particular, had an obligation to ensure respect for its provisions in the

occupied territories.

9.   The Committee was a valuable forum for helping to advance the peace

process and the prospect of a just peace in the Middle East and a lasting

settlement of the question of Palestine.

10.  Mr. AL-KIDWA (Observer for Palestine) noted that it had been 25 years

since Israel had occupied the Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and

other Arab territories.  That was the core of the Middle East problem and the

source of all related problems:  25 years of occupation was not a normal event

in the life of a people.  The Palestinian people had suffered in many ways

because of Israel's ongoing attacks and violations of the Charter and of

Security Council resolutions.

11.  The Security Council had adopted more than 20 resolutions on the

situation in the Arab territories; none had been respected by Israel.  The

General Assembly, too, as well as other agencies, had enacted resolutions;

none had been complied with.  Moreover, Israeli violations of international

law had been compounded by its transgressions against natural law.  The

phenomenon of the intifadah was too well known to need any elaboration.

12.  The approach taken by Israel could be called settlement colonialism.

Israel's plan was to occupy land, empty if possible, and to nip in the bud any

desire to establish a Palestinian State.  If that situation was allowed to

continue, the Palestinian people was in danger of experiencing a new tragedy

no less serious than that of 1948.  It was regrettable that the time available

to prevent such a tragedy was so short.

13.  It was true that a peace process had been initiated, but absolutely no

progress whatsoever had been made.  The reason for its failure was clear:

Israeli leaders refused openly and every day to leave the occupied

territories.  What was more, they denied the very existence of the Palestinian

people and refused to deal with the sole legitimate representative of the

Palestinian people, the Palestine Liberation Organization.  Time was running

out, and the world must react rapidly if any results were to be expected from

the peace process and if the current situation was not to deteriorate.  The

United Nations and its associated agencies must act, each according to its

mandate but interdependently.  The Committee had special responsibilities in

that regard, and a special political role.  The role of the Division for

Palestinian Rights in the United Nations Secretariat should also be

strengthened.

14.  The United Nations must respond to the urgent needs of the Palestinian

people, taking into account the situation in the occupied Arab territories and

the serious violations of international law, particularly the Fourth Geneva

Convention.  The responsibility of the Security Council was fundamental in

that regard.  Unfortunately, the failure of the Council to take effective

steps had raised many doubts about its impartiality.  Nevertheless, he hoped

that it would be able to respond to the urgent needs of the Palestinian people

and that the Secretary-General would take concrete measures to implement

Security Council resolution 681 (1990) to ensure compliance with the Fourth

Geneva Convention.

15.  He stressed the need for increased and more effective participation by

the United Nations, and supported the position of the Secretary-General in

that respect.  At a time when the role of the Organization was expanding in

many parts of the world, its failure to participate in efforts to uphold the

rights of the Palestinian people seemed to run counter to United Nations

positions in other areas.

16.  His delegation supported the draft statement by the Committee on the

twenty-fifth anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian

territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab territories, and hoped that it

would be adopted by the Committee.

17.  Mr. TLILI (Department of Public Information) said that the Department's

special information programme on the question of Palestine was designed to

enhance understanding of the various aspects of the question and promote the

right of the Palestinian people to self-determination.  The Department pursued

those objectives through a combination of multimedia activities, including the

production of posters.  In observing the twenty-fifth anniversary of the

occupation of the Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab

territories, he was pleased to announce that the Department had released the

English and French versions of a poster aimed at promoting self-determination

as an inalienable right of the Palestinian people.  On behalf of the

Under-Secretary-General for Public Information, he had the honour to present

the Chairman with copies of the poster in English and French, as a symbol of

the Department's close and constructive cooperation with the Committee.

18.  The CHAIRMAN thanked the representative of the Department of Public

Information for the poster and expressed the hope that the Secretary-General

would continue to provide the Department with the resources needed to continue

its activities concerning the rights of the Palestinian people.

19.  Mr. KHOUINI (Tunisia), speaking on behalf of the Arab Group, said that in

the past 25 years the Palestinian people had made inestimable sacrifices and

had been the victim of horrendous practices never before visited on any other

people.  The Israeli occupation authorities had been doing their best to

efface the identity of the Palestinian people and change the demographic

composition of the occupied territories through an expansionist policy.  In

spite of numerous United Nations resolutions and international agreements,

including the Fourth Geneva Convention, those authorities continued to use

lies and delaying tactics in order to avoid having to carry out their

international responsibilities.

20.  The stepped-up Israeli occupation policy had resulted in the

expropriation of approximately 60 per cent of the land in the West Bank and

Gaza Strip.  The Israeli authorities had expelled Palestinians, demolished

houses and expropriated sources of water.  International organizations such as

UNHCR, ICRC and UNRWA were unable to carry out their mandates in the occupied

territories because of the obstacles placed in their way by Israel.  In spite

of those practices, which were an aspect of daily life in the occupied

territories, the Palestinian people continued to struggle for its legitimate

rights and seek a just and lasting peace in the Middle East in accordance with

Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) and the Charter of the

United Nations.

21.  The current peace process would succeed only if it was based on

principles rooted in respect for international law and the relevant United

Nations resolutions.  If Israel really wanted just and lasting peace in the

region, it must demonstrate that by recognizing the principle of land for

peace, refraining from building further settlements, and discontinuing its

repressive practices, which only further aggravated the situation.

22.  He expressed satisfaction at the efforts by all the international and

non-governmental organizations that had provided assistance to the Palestinian

people, and hoped that the draft statement by the Committee would be adopted.

23.  Mr. WISNUMURTI (Indonesia) said that just and lasting peace in the Middle

East could not be achieved until the Palestinian people was allowed to

exercise its inalienable national rights.  A comprehensive and equitable

settlement of the conflict in the region could not be brought about without

the total withdrawal of Israel from all Palestinian and other Arab territories

occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem.  For more than four decades,

Israel's policies of expansionist aggression and creeping annexation and its

systematic but vain attempts to obliterate the identity of the Palestinian

people had continued in defiance of the will of the international community

and in violation of international law.  Indonesia urged Israel to carry out

its obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention and comply with the

relevant United Nations resolutions.

24.  The Ministerial Meeting of the Coordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned

Movement, recently held in Bali, had adopted a communiqué welcoming the

current peace efforts aimed at bringing about a comprehensive and lasting

solution to the Middle East problem and calling for the speedy implementation

of the relevant United Nations resolutions.  The communiqué stressed that the

attainment of a just, comprehensive and lasting solution to the question of

Palestine should remain a priority objective of the Movement, and reiterated

the view that a comprehensive negotiated settlement could be achieved through

the International Peace Conference on the Middle East, under the auspices of

the United Nations, with the participation of all parties concerned on an

equal footing, including the Palestine Liberation Organization and the

permanent members of the Security Council.

25.  His delegation called upon Israel to adopt a positive approach to the

peace process by observing international treaties and implementing the

relevant United Nations resolutions and decisions.  It urged the Security

Council, particularly its permanent members, to show the same determination in

dealing with the question of Palestine that it had demonstrated during the

crisis in the Gulf, and to seize the opportunity resulting from the cessation

of East-West tension.  Lastly, it expressed satisfaction at the laudable

record of the Committee, which over the years had mobilized international

support for the valiant struggle of the Palestinian people.

26.  Mr. MAKKAWI (Observer for Lebanon) said that the international community

must clearly recognize that only one country had been allowed to defy its will

for the past 25 years.  Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory,

including Jerusalem, and of the Golan Heights and parts of southern Lebanon

had elicited scores of United Nations resolutions.  Israel increasingly

resorted to armed repression and the violation of fundamental human rights in

the Palestinian territories and Syria and Lebanon, in order to perpetuate its

occupation, exploit the resources of those lands and settle many of the recent

Soviet immigrants on Arab soil.  It had no intention of exchanging the Arab

land for peace, and had stepped up the building of settlements in the

Palestinian territories and the Syrian Golan through the use of force against

the indigenous inhabitants, in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

27.  Lebanon had hoped that the peace talks would result in the implementation

of Security Council resolution 425 (1978) and the long-awaited withdrawal of

Israel from Lebanon.  Instead, Israel had subjected the Lebanese civilian

population to regular bombardment since the beginning of the International

Peace Conference on the Middle East in Madrid, and had expanded the area of

Lebanese territory under its occupation.

28.  The people living under occupation in the Palestinian territories, the

Golan Heights and southern Lebanon were demonstrating to the world that they

would never accept the continuation of that situation.  They cherished the

hope that in the end Israel would acquiesce to the will of the international

community in order to ensure justice through the implementation of all the

relevant United Nations resolutions.

29.  He commended the Committee for the excellent work that it had carried out

in support of the people in the occupied Arab territories.

30.  Mr. BATIOUK (Ukraine) said that the continued illegal occupation by

Israel of the Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab

territories was of grave concern to his Government and people.  There was

broad international agreement that the question of Palestine, which was at the

core of the Arab-Israeli conflict, could be resolved on a just and lasting

basis only if Israeli forces withdrew from Arab territories occupied since

June 1967, and when there was an acknowledgment of and respect for the

sovereignty and territorial integrity and political independence of all the

States of the region, as well as their right to live in peace within secure

and internationally recognized boundaries.  A viable peace had to be based on

the recognition of the legitimate political rights of the Palestinian people,

including the right to self-determination.  One of the most important issues

was the protection of Palestinian civilians under occupation, and the Security

Council, the General Assembly and all other relevant organs of the United

Nations, including the Committee, should do their best to discharge their

responsibilities in order to ensure respect for the human rights and

fundamental freedoms of Palestinians in the occupied territories.

31.  Israel must be persuaded to stop deportation of Palestinian civilians,

and accept the de jure applicability of the Fourth Geneva Convention to all

the territories occupied since 1967.  The Secretary-General should continue

his efforts to convene a meeting of the High Contracting Parties to the

Convention to discuss measures that might be taken to ensure that Israel

respected its obligations.  The situation of Palestinian civilians under

Israeli occupation must be closely monitored by the Secretary-General in order

that the Security Council might be kept regularly informed.

32.  The implementation of such measures alone would not bring an end to the

conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, which was essentially political

and called for a political, negotiated solution.  It was to be hoped,

therefore, that future negotiations within the peace process initiated in

Madrid on 30 October 1991 would produce tangible results based on Security

Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973), and that hope had recently been

encouraged by the decision of the Palestine National Council to continue its

participation in the process.  The twenty-fifth anniversary of the Israeli

occupation of the Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab

territories was an appropriate occasion to call on all concerned to grasp the

historic opportunity, display wisdom and goodwill, and refrain from any

actions that might jeopardize or in any way complicate the search for lasting

peace in the Middle East.  One of the most pressing issues that caused almost

universal concern was the Israeli policy of confiscating land and building new

settlements, including those for newly arrived Jewish immigrants.  His

Government shared that concern, since a number of those settlers had come from

Ukraine, and called upon Israel to reconsider and abandon its policy, thereby

removing one of the major obstacles to the successful conclusion of the peace

talks.

33.  Twenty-five years of occupation had not weakened the resolve of the

Palestinian people to achieve its inalienable rights, including the right to

self-determination, or the determination of the international community to

continue its support and assistance to the Palestinians in their just cause.

The Committee and the various activities undertaken under its guidance had

contributed significantly to greater understanding of the question of

Palestine throughout the world, and it was to be hoped that it would continue

to receive the necessary resources to fulfil the mandate entrusted to it by

the General Assembly.  Ukraine would continue to give its full support to the

work of the Committee, and to the draft statement before it.

34.  Mr. INSANALLY (Guyana) said that in the past 25 years, attitudes had

hardened and hostility deepened as the division between Israel as the

occupying Power and the Palestinian people had increased to the point where

the situation had become a serious threat to peace not only in the Middle

East, but also beyond.  It was therefore incumbent upon all, particularly the

parties involved, to make a determined effort to reach agreement on those

issues which were crucial to a final, definitive and durable settlement.

Other conflicts had shown that the willingness of disputants to use all

available techniques of diplomacy was an important ingredient of success; the

spirit which had brought about the remarkable rapprochement between East and

West must be allowed to pervade the current dialogue aimed at bringing an end

to the conflict in the Middle East.

35.  The United Nations could be an important catalyst for diplomacy at the

present, crucial time, and with the assistance of the Division for Palestinian

Rights, the Committee must continue to keep the Palestinian issue at the

forefront of international attention and work vigorously to promote an

environment in which fruitful negotiations might be held.  He expressed the

hope that the current meeting and the draft statement before the Committee

would serve to provide renewed impetus towards cutting the Gordian knot which

the situation in the Middle East had become.  In essence, the question of

which the Committee was seized was one of respect for the human rights of all

peoples of the area, particularly the Palestinians, and in the light of the

third preambular paragraph of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the

international community, and the United Nations in particular, had an

obligation to defend the welfare of the Palestinian people.  It was his

sincere hope that by the time the World Conference on Human Rights was held in

1993, the plight of the Palestinian people would have been resolved, and it

would have been restored to its rightful place in the international community.

36.  Mr. MARKER (Pakistan) said that it was a matter of extreme regret and

concern that the situation with regard to the Palestinian civilian population

in the territory occupied by Israel for the past 25 years had deteriorated

following the start of the intifadah in December 1987.  Any settlement of the

Middle East crisis which bypassed the core issue of the fundamental right of

the people of Palestine to self-determination and a State of its own would be

inherently flawed and would not bring peace to the area.  A solution based on

Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) would be both just and

lasting.  However, in the meantime, Israel must be prevailed upon to abide by

its obligations under the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of

Civilian Persons in Time of War, and must discontinue its policy of annexing

land and building settlements.

37.  It was his sincere hope that the profound changes which had occurred in

the world would have a positive bearing on the situation in the Middle East.

His Government was following with keen interest the negotiations co-sponsored

by the United States of America and the Russian Federation, but until such

time as a comprehensive, just and lasting solution of the Arab-Israeli

conflict was brought about, it was imperative that the United Nations should

remain actively involved in the search for peace.  The work of the Committee

remained as relevant to the cause of the Palestinian people as it had been at

the time of its establishment, and it was important for it to enhance its role

in the quest for a peaceful and just solution of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

38.  The Government and people of Pakistan remained unflinching in their

support for the just cause of the people of Palestine and for the important

work of the Committee.  They fully supported its efforts on behalf of the

Palestinian people and the draft statement that was before it.

39.  Mr. KASOULIDES (Cyprus) said that the world community was commemorating

the anniversary amid general disappointment and concern over recent

developments which were adversely affecting the situation of the Palestinian

people in the occupied territories.  It was the view of his Government that

the question of Palestine should be solved through implementation of the

relevant United Nations resolutions, especially Security Council resolutions

242 (1967) and 338 (1973), but that such implementation could be achieved only

through the complete and unconditional withdrawal of all Israeli armed forces

from the Palestinian and other Arab territories which had been occupied since

1967.  Repeated incidents in the occupied territories, causing a large number

of casualties among Palestinian civilians, were a source of grave concern to

the people of Cyprus.

40.  The Security Council had a responsibility to ensure full implementation

of its relevant resolutions and guarantee the safety of the Palestinian

people.  The enhanced role of the United Nations and the decisive approach of

the Security Council in its efforts to impose a political climate of

conciliation upon world affairs gave grounds for hope for the Palestinian

people.  All parties to the Middle East peace process should be encouraged to

demonstrate goodwill and a spirit of conciliation in order to achieve a

permanent solution to the tragic Arab-Israeli conflict.  Such a solution was

long overdue.

41.  He expressed his country's full support for the draft statement before

the Committee.

42.  Mr. REDZUAN (Malaysia) said that the Government and people of his country

paid tribute to the people and the leaders of Palestine in their brave and

just struggle to exercise their inalienable rights and to reject the illegal

and brutal Israeli occupation of their territory.  He associated himself with

the statement made by the observer for Palestine, and had been encouraged by

the statement made by the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs.  His

delegation fully supported the draft statement before the Committee.

43.  Malaysia recognized that priority should be given to the achievement of

the legitimate national and political rights of the Palestinian people, and in

that regard supported the Middle East peace process, which should allow for a

rightful United Nations role.  Meanwhile, it was of the utmost importance that

the Security Council should be actively and continuously seized of the

question of Palestine, especially with regard to compliance by Israel with the

provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention and with regard to the safety and

protection of Palestinians in the occupied territories.

44.  Malaysia had been a sponsor of Security Council resolution 681 (1990),

and had been involved in negotiations over a period of 51 days to avoid a veto

by a permanent member.  Accordingly, Malaysia believed that the provisions of

the resolution provided a workable machinery that would enable the Security

Council to monitor, on a regular basis, the situation affecting the safety and

protection of Palestinians in the occupied territories, as well as Israel's

full compliance with all the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention,

including the issue of Israel's confiscation of Palestinian land and

establishment of illegal settlements.  Malaysia would like to see an earnest

effort on the part of the Security Council to implement its resolution

681 (1990), and looked forward to the next report from the Secretary-General,

as provided for in that resolution.  The time had come for the Palestinian

people to benefit from the new spirit of cooperation that prevailed in the

Security Council, which had a special responsibility towards the people of

Palestine, whom it must not fail.  The Palestinians had suffered and been

denied their rights for too long.

45.  The CHAIRMAN read out the following draft statement by the Committee on

the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian

territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab territories:

          "On the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the

     Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab territories,

     the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the

     Palestinian People wishes to draw the most urgent attention of the

     international community to the fact that the occupation still continues,

     in defiance of the United Nations Charter, its resolutions and

     international efforts to bring about a just and peaceful settlement of

     the Palestine question, the core of the Arab-Israeli conflict, the latest

     of which is the Peace Conference on the Middle East convened in Madrid in

     October 1991.

          The Palestinian people has consistently manifested its determination

     to resist the occupation and to regain and exercise its inalienable

     rights, in particular its right to self-determination.  It has also

     expressed its readiness to live in peace in a State of its own, alongside

     Israel, and has presented peace proposals to this effect.  However,

     Israel has increasingly resorted to armed repression and violations of

     fundamental human rights in order to maintain the occupation.  Through

     confiscation of land, establishment of settlements, appropriation of

     natural resources, and efforts to integrate the Palestinian economy into

     its own, Israel has pursued a policy of de facto annexation of the

     occupied Palestinian territory.  Its illegal annexation of Jerusalem

     since 1980 and its persistence in changing the physical character and

     demographic composition of the Holy City remain matters of the greatest

     concern.  These policies and practices of Israel, the occupying Power,

     which are in violation of its obligations under the Geneva Convention

     relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, have been

     universally condemned.

          The continued suffering of the Palestinian people after 25 years of

     occupation poses an urgent imperative to the international community to

     take all necessary measures to ensure the protection of the Palestinian

     people and the attainment of a just and lasting settlement based on

     Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973), and the

     fundamental principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of

     territory by war.

          On this twenty-fifth anniversary of the occupation by Israel of the

     Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and other Arab territories,

     the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the

     Palestinian People wishes to draw once again the attention of the

     Security Council and the General Assembly to the fact that their

     resolutions on the question of Palestine remain unimplemented.  The

     perpetuation of the occupation causes persistent tension and conflict in

     the region, and threatens the credibility of the United Nations at a time

     of historic importance for its efforts to create a better and more just

     and peaceful world for all.  The international community has a duty and a

     responsibility to ensure that this unacceptable situation is brought to

     an end."

46.  The draft statement was adopted.

47.  The CHAIRMAN said that the statement would be published in the monthly

bulletin of the Division for Palestinian Rights.

                        The meeting rose at 12.30 p.m.