Mideast situation – Letter from Israel

Letter dated 2 March 2001 from the Permanent Representative of Israel

to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General

I wish to draw your attention to the latest act of Palestinian terrorism perpetrated yesterday in the north of Israel near the Mei-Ami Junction.

An intercity taxi, en route from Tel Aviv to the northern Israeli city of Tiberias, was stopped at a police roadblock shortly before 2 p.m. As a police officer approached the van, one of the passengers detonated a bomb. The explosion killed Claude Knafo, age 29, from Tiberias, and wounded nine others.

Yesterday’s attack was the second bombing attempt in less than 24 hours. A cafe owner on Tel Aviv’s Allenby Street had reported an unattended shopping bag which police found contained two kilograms of explosives. Police sappers safely detonated the bomb Wednesday night.

Thursday’s bombing is the latest in a series of attacks that have targeted Israeli civilians in recent months. Terrorist groups have been responsible for ambushing of Israelis as they travel on roads, bombings of public places, abductions and murders. These incidents have been detailed in a number of letters addressed to you, most recently my letters dated 14 February 2001 (A/55/787-S/2001/137), 13 February 2001 (A/55/781-S/2001/132), 2 February 2001 (A/55/762-S/2001/103), 25 January 2001 (A/55/748-S/2001/81), 23 January 2001 (A/55/742-S/2001/71), 28 December 2000 (A/55/719-S/2000/1252), 22 November 2000 (A/55/641-S/2000/1114), 20 November 2000 (A/55/634-S/2000/1108) and 2 November 2000 (A/55/540-S/2000/1065).

The Palestinian leadership continues to avoid taking the necessary steps that could halt the violence and terrorism directed against Israel. Rather than act to control terrorism, the Palestinian leadership has actively encouraged this behaviour, mainly through the release of convicted terrorist prisoners who now enjoy complete freedom of movement within the Palestinian territories. Such conduct stands in stark contrast to Chairman Yasser Arafat’s signed commitment of 9 September 1993 in which he renounced the use of violence and resolved to ensure the compliance of all elements and personnel under his authority with this principle.

Chairman Arafat’s failure to abide by this commitment has directly contributed to the outbreak of violence and to the proliferation of terrorist attacks in recent months. Israel again calls upon the Palestinian leadership to abide by its written commitments to halt all violence directed against Israeli soldiers and civilians.

I should be grateful if you would arrange to have the text of the present letter circulated as a document of the General Assembly, under agenda item 164, and of the Security Council.

(Signed) Yehuda Lancry

Permanent Representative