Mideast situation/Netanya attack – Letter from Israel

Letter dated 27 March 2002 from the Permanent Representative

of Israel to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General

I wish to draw your attention to the latest horrific act of Palestinian terrorism which occurred several hours ago, as Jews in Israel and throughout the world sat down to the festive Seder meal to celebrate Passover, the festival of freedom.

At approximately 7.30 p.m. (Israel time), a Palestinian suicide bomber entered the Park Hotel in the coastal Israeli city of Netanya, where approximately 250 people were celebrating their Passover meal. The bomber detonated his explosives in the hotel dining room, tearing up the ground floor of the hotel, killing 19 people, at last count, and injuring over 100, at least 24 severely. The terrorist organization Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack, declaring it a “victory”, in a call placed to the television station “Al-Jazeera”, while other sources have reported that the military wing of Chairman Arafat’s own Fatah movement claimed responsibility for the attack in a call placed to the Hezbollah television station “Al-Manar”. The bomber has been identified as Abdel-Basset Odeh, a man whom Israel has been requesting Palestinian police forces to arrest for some four years for involvement in terrorist activities.

This gruesome act of terrorism against innocent civilians is the latest in the ongoing campaign of Palestinian terrorism that has been detailed in my letters dated 26 March 2002 (A/56/889-S/2002/315), 18 March 2002 (A/56/880-S/2002/293), 14 March 2002 (A/56/876-S/2002/280), 11 March 2002 (A/56/867-S/2002/257), 8 March 2002 (A/56/864-S/2002/252), 5 March 2002 (A/56/857-S/2002/233), 4 March 2002 (A/56/854-S/2002/222), 27 February 2002 (A/56/843-S/2002/208), 20 February 2002 (A/56/828-S/2002/185), 19 February 2002 (A/56/824-S/2002/174), 11 February 2002 (A/56/819-S/2002/164), 8 February 2002 (A/56/814-S/2002/155), 28 January 2002 (A/56/798-S/2002/126), 22 January 2002 (A/56/788-S/2002/104), 18 January 2002 (A/56/781-S/2002/86), 16 January 2002 (A/56/774-S/2002/73), 11 January 2002 (A/56/771-S/2002/47), 4 January 2002 (A/56/766-S/2002/25), 13 December 2001 (A/56/706-S/2001/1198), 4 December 2001 (A/56/678-S/2001/1150), 30 November 2001 (A/56/670-S/2001/1141), 27 November 2001 (A/56/663-S/2001/1121), 12 November 2001 (A/56/617-S/2001/1071), 5 November 2001 (A/56/604-S/2001/1048), 24 October 2001 (A/56/506-S/2001/1011), 19 October 2001 (A/56/492-S/2001/990), 17 October 2001 (A/56/483-S/2001/975), 8 October 2001 (A/56/450-S/2001/948), 5 October 2001 (A/56/444-S/2001/943), 3 October 2001 (A/56/438-S/2001/938), 24 September 2001 (A/56/406-S/2001/907), 20 September 2001 (A/56/386-S/2001/892), 17 September 2001 (A/56/367-S/2001/875), 7 September 2001 (A/56/346-S/2001/858), 4 September 2001 (A/56/331-S/2001/840), 30 August 2001 (A/56/325-S/2001/834), 27 August 2001 (A/56/324-S/2001/825), 13 August 2001 (A/56/294-S/2001/787), 9 August 2001 (A/56/286-S/2001/780), 8 August 2001 (A/56/280-S/2001/775), 6 August 2001 (A/56/272-S/2001/768), 27 July 2001 (A/56/225-S/2001/743), 26 July 2001 (A/56/223-S/2001/737), 17 July 2001 (A/56/201-S/2001/706), 13 July 2001 (A/56/184-S/2001/696), 3 July 2001 (A/56/138-S/2001/662), 2 July 2001 (A/56/131-S/2001/656), 21 June 2001 (A/56/119-S/2001/619), 19 June 2001 (A/56/98-S/2001/611), 18 June 2001 (A/56/97-S/2001/604), 13 June 2001 (A/56/92-S/2001/585), 11 June 2001 (A/56/91-S/2001/580), 4 June 2001 (A/56/85-S/2001/555), 30 May 2001 (A/56/81-S/2001/540), 25 May 2001 (A/56/80-S/2001/524), 18 May 2001 (A/56/78-S/2001/506), 11 May 2001 (A/56/72-S/2001/473), 9 May 2001 (A/56/69-S/2001/459), 1 May 2001 (A/55/924-S/2001/435), 23 April 2001 (A/55/910-S/2001/396), 16 April 2001 (A/55/901-S/2001/364), 28 March 2001 (A/55/863-S/2001/291), 27 March 2001 (A/55/860-S/2001/280), 26 March 2001 (A/55/858-S/2001/278), 19 March 2001 (A/55/842-S/2001/244), 5 March 2001 (A/55/821-S/2001/193), 2 March 2001 (A/55/819-S/2001/187), 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).

Since the arrival of United States Special Envoy General Anthony Zinni to the region, Israel has spared no efforts to work with him in order to ensure that a ceasefire is put in place so as to enable the parties to implement the Tenet Plan and Mitchell Committee recommendations. The Palestinian side has continued to reject General Zinni’s ceasefire proposals and has taken absolutely no measures to bring an end to the wave of Palestinian terrorism that has shaken the region for over 18 months.

In the face of the abject failure of Chairman Arafat and the Palestinian Authority to fulfill its moral and legal commitments to take even minimal steps to bring this terrorism to an end, and the continued active support and glorification of suicide bombings against innocent civilians by the highest echelons of the Palestinian leadership, the international community must hold them directly responsible for these reprehensible acts of terrorism. In these circumstances, Israel will take the necessary actions to protect its citizens, as is the right and duty of any state under international law.

Israel’s commitment to the achievement of a negotiated political settlement with the Palestinian people is unshakable. But we will not stand idly by as an unrelenting campaign of violence, sanctioned by the Palestinian Authority, continues to massacre innocent civilians, precisely because they are innocent. Israel calls on the international community to make it clear to Chairman Arafat and the Palestinian leadership that their continued terrorism and their nurturing of hatred in Palestinian society are intolerable. Full pressure must be brought to bear to ensure that genuine and immediate action is taken by the Palestinian leadership to completely dismantle the terrorist infrastructure which it sustains in the territory under its control. The Palestinian leadership must be compelled to fully respect the basic duty to resolve all disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with its own signed commitments.

I should be grateful if you would arrange to have the present letter circulated as a document of the fifty-sixth session of the General Assembly, under agenda item 166, and of the Security Council.

(Signed) Yehuda Lancry