Dubai, 19 March 2024 (TDI): Riyad Mansour, the permanent observer of the State of Palestine to the UN sounded hopeful that the time to admit the State of Palestine as a UN member state is approaching closer.
He expressed his views following the recent statements given by Western leaders, particularly US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron, speaking about pathways to the establishment of State of Palestine.
“I believe these statements do put us on the course of getting closer and closer to the objective of having a recommendation from the Security Council to the General Assembly to admit the state of Palestine for membership,” he expressed.
He mentioned that such endorsements have already been secured from the Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation joint summit in Saudi Arabia (November 2023) and the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Uganda (January 2024).
Israeli opposition
He has highlighted efforts by the Israeli policymakers to prevent such membership from being secured by the State of Palestine.
“As to the timing, the Israeli side pushed the envelope in that direction when about two weeks ago the Israeli Knesset voted by 99 members out of 120 to deny statehood for the Palestinian people.”
“So, they are dictating that the timing is now, and we should proceed as soon as possible through the Security Council for that recognition, and we will,” Mansour has affirmed.
“It is very ironic. If you want to save lives and send humanitarian assistance, you should not send weapons and ammunition that the Israeli occupying forces use to kill the Palestinian civilian population,” he lamented the hypocritical role played by the US during the Israeli offensive against Palestinians.
“If truly the intention is to save lives, then you should not send weapons to allow Israel to kill the Palestinians, and you should use everything possible in terms of political leverage and power to stop Israel from continuing this carnage against our people and to have a ceasefire,” he further added.
Also Read: International Support & recognition for the State of Palestine
“United Nations… is the place that was created in the first place to save future generations from this war. So, when there is war, the UN must call for a ceasefire and try to resolve it,” he articulated.
“So, therefore, at the UN, I’m devoting all my energy, and the energy and the thinking of my entire team to accomplish that objective,” he affirmed his trust in the UN for a peaceful future.
Respect for International Humanitarian Law
“The Israeli government can’t blame anyone they wish. There is international humanitarian law and obedience of that law regardless of any reasoning or narrative or spinning of whatever one wants to say,” he criticized.
“International humanitarian law puts the responsibility on the attacking army or government to protect civilians, not to harm them under any condition or situation,” he further asserted.
“These are the provisions of international humanitarian law that Israel and any invading or attacking country should abide by and not to blame anyone else but to blame themselves for violating the provisions of these humanitarian international laws,” Mansour concluded.
