Situation in the OPT/Peace process – Letter from Palestine

GENERAL ASSEMBLY SECURITY COUNCIL

Fifty-first session Fifty-second year

Agenda items 33, 35 and 85

THE SITUATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST

QUESTION OF PALESTINE

REPORT OF THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO

  INVESTIGATE ISRAELI PRACTICES

  AFFECTING THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE

  PALESTINIAN PEOPLE AND OTHER

  ARABS OF THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES

Letter dated 4 April 1997 from the Permanent Observer

of Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the  

Secretary-General

I wish to refer to the letter addressed to you from the Chargé d'affaires a.i. of Israel to the United Nations on 21 March 1997 (A/51/839-S/1997/243), in which some senseless assertions were made.  The assertions in that letter, in addition to those made by various other Israeli officials, are not only irresponsible and dangerous fabrications, but they seem to indicate once more a desire on the part of the Israeli Government to find a way out of the peace process and the existing agreements reached within the context of that process.

I should also like to draw your attention to the fact that the Israeli Government continues to carry out countless destructive actions and measures, the last of which was the recent approval by the Defence Minister of even more settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory.

It is clear that statements such as the above-mentioned, and Israel's continuing violation of international law, United Nations resolutions and the agreements reached, through its pursuit of such policies and actions, serve only to erode and undermine the peace process and threaten its very existence.  At this stage, the peace process cannot be salvaged without the complete cessation of such illegal Israeli actions.

I should be grateful if you would arrange to have the text of the present letter distributed as a document of the fifty-first session of the General Assembly, under items 33, 35 and 85, and of the Security Council.

                                             (Signed)  Nasser AL-KIDWA

                                              Permanent Observer of Palestine to

                                                      the United Nations

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