General Assembly — 8th Plenary Meeting — Summary Record (A/74/PV.8) (Excerpts)

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Address by Mr. Evaristo do Espirito Santo Carvalho, President of the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe

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In that vein, I cannot close this chapter without referring to the situation in the Near and Middle East, particularly in Syria and Yemen, with particular reference to the brother people of Palestine, as well as to other peoples who remain, even today, deprived of their most basic rights. Let me say that the illegal occupation of Palestine and the savage repression of the Palestinian people are fuelling extremism on all sides. It is therefore time for the General Assembly, just as it strived for the existence of Israel, to restore the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination through the creation of a Palestinian State, living in peace with the State of Israel, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

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Address by Mr. Ismaël Omar Guelleh, President and Head of Government of the Republic of Djibouti

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The surge of violence in the occupied Palestinian territories is increasingly clouding the prospects for a two-State solution. Those settlements constitute a violation not only of international law, in particular article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, but also of the human rights of the Palestinians. We also strongly condemn Israel’s recently announced plans to annex the Jordan Valley and the northern Dead Sea to extend its sovereignty in the occupied West Bank.

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Address by Mrs. Isatou Touray, Vice-President of the Republic of the Gambia

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We also reiterate our commitment to a two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The international community must galvanize renewed efforts leading to a comprehensive peace process. The conflict has persisted for far too long. Palestinians must be allowed to have their own independent State, with East Jerusalem as its capital. Israel must also stop all settlement activity in occupied Palestinian territories and respect the human rights of Palestinians. The two sides need to urgently negotiate a political solution to a conflict that continues to affect millions of lives. We are convinced that the situation requires a credible peace initiative, which the United Nations and the international community can spearhead with the support of the Organization of Islamic  ooperation
(OIC) in its search for peace in Palestine.

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Address by Mr. Zoran Zaev, President of the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia

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Israel wants peace with all its neighbours. We have signed peace agreements with Egypt and Jordan and are working today to advance our relations with many Arab States in the region. We call on the Palestinian Authority to stop incitement, stop encouraging and financing terrorism and recognize the right of the Jewish people to their own State. We call on the Palestinians to return to direct negotiations without any preconditions.

In Gaza, the terrorist organization Hamas is holding two Israeli citizens, Avraham Mengistu and Hisham Al-Sayed, and the bodies of two Israeli soldiers, Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul. I call on the United Nations to implement the decisions that it took on that issue and not allow any country to provide aid to Gaza until Hamas returns them to their families.

Recently, I heard President Erdoğan attack Israel (see A/74/PV.3), and I want to say to him: “You, who brutally oppress the Turkish people, slaughter the Kurdish minority and support the terrorist organization Hamas, are the last person who can lecture Israel. You are not the Sultan and Turkey is not the Ottoman Empire. Shame on you.”

The main problem threatening stability and security in the Middle East is Iran, which threatens to destroy Israel and works against the regimes of many countries in the region. Iran uses its proxy terrorist organizations, Hizbullah in Lebanon, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen and the Shi’ite militias in Syria and Iraq, against not only Israel but also other States in the Middle East. We recently saw a serious escalation in which Iranian missiles were launched from Iran against Saudi oil facilities in order to destabilize world oil supplies. That terrorist attack against Saudi Arabia was carried out on the direct orders of Iranian leader Ali Khamenei. Iran is the leading terrorist State and the principal sponsor of terror in the world.

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