Jerusalem/Diplomatic missions – Letter from Acting CEIRPP Chairman

Letter dated 19 April 1984 from the Acting Chairman of the

Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the

Palestinian People to the Secretary-General

As Acting Chairman of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, I wish to refer to a news item in The New York Times of 14 April 1984 in which it is reported that the Government of El Salvador has officially removed its Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

You will recall that, in a previous letter dated 4 August 1980 (A/35/378-S/14090), the Chairman of the Committee wrote to the Secretary-General expressing grave concern at the action taken by the Government of Israel to bring to completion its plan to make Jerusalem the capital of Israel. Later, by resolution 478 (1980) of 20 August 1980, the Security Council called upon those States that had established diplomatic missions at Jerusalem to withdraw such missions from the Holy City.

Subsequently on 29 August 1980, the Chairman wrote to the Permanent Representatives of all States concerned, including El Salvador, expressing the Committee's deep satisfaction at the decision of their Governments to close their Embassies in Jerusalem and to move them to Tel Aviv.  It was the belief of the Committee that such withdrawal of diplomatic missions reflected the concern of Governments for the sentiment and the opinion of the vast majority of the international community as well as respect for decisions of the Security Council.

I bring this recent action on the part of the Government of El-Salvador to your attention, since it is the considered opinion of Committee members that such action is not only detrimental to a satisfactory solution of the question of the status of the Holy City, but also is contrary to the spirit of Security Council and General Assembly resolutions on the subject.

Further, the Committee is of the strong conviction that until full and strict respect is accorded to relevant resolutions of the United Nations, and in particular those aimed at enabling the Palestinian people to exercise its inalienable rights, international peace and security in the region will be perpetually threatened.

Accordingly, I should be grateful if you would be so good as to have the text of this letter circulated as a document of the General Assembly, under item 33 of the preliminary list, and of the Security Council.

*A/39/50.