GA President Philemon Yang at the General Assembly rostrum. The GA Special Session on the Middle East resumed its work in New York Peace and Security
Opening the extraordinary session of the General Assembly on the Middle East, GA President Philemon Young said that the main organs of the UN – the General Assembly and the Security Council – have a responsibility to put an end to Israel’s illegal presence in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Stressing that the rule of law and justice must prevail, Young handed the floor over to Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine Riyadh Mansour. The Palestinian diplomat, in turn, presented a draft resolution for discussion by the General Assembly delegates, co-sponsored by more than twenty countries.
“The Palestinians want to live, not just survive”
Referring to the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice on the Legal Consequences of Israeli Policies and Actions in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, the resolution demands that Israel “put an immediate end to its illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” The document also specifies a deadline: “no later than 12 months from the adoption of this resolution.”
“Palestine is an important part of world history, and the Palestinian people are an integral part of humanity,” Mansour noted. “Neither our country nor our people can disappear.” However, the diplomat continued, the existential threats to which the state and people are exposed cannot be ignored.
“The Palestinians want to live, not just survive,” he said.
Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine Riyad Mansour.
Israel: “The resolution submitted is diplomatic terrorism”
Israel’s Permanent Representative to the UN Danny Danon recalled that the General Assembly has yet to assess the unprecedented terrorist attack that Hamas carried out against Israel on October 7 last year. However, the General Assembly, according to him, continues to adopt “unilateral anti-Israeli resolutions.”
“Jewish blood cannot be so cheap,” the diplomat said. “We will never again stand by and watch our people being massacred.”
Danon drew attention to the fact that the proposed draft resolution does not mention Hamas, emphasizing that the process of submitting it for discussion was politicized. “This resolution is diplomatic terrorism,” he added, reporting that the UN has already adopted more than 150 anti-Israeli resolutions.
Israel’s Permanent Representative to the UN Danny Danon.
Voting on the draft resolution
The vote on the draft resolution proposed by the State of Palestine will take place on Wednesday at 11 a.m.
How special sessions of the General Assembly are convened?
In accordance with General Assembly resolution 377A (V), “Uniting for Peace,” adopted in 1950, when the Security Council, as a result of disagreement among the permanent members, is unable to maintain peace, an emergency special session may be convened “within 24 hours of the date of the request for such a session.”
An emergency special session shall be convened at the request of the Security Council supported by the votes of any seven members of the Council, or at the request of a majority of the Members of the United Nations.
The tenth special session on the Middle East conflict resumed its work since it was first convened in April 1997.
Since 1945, only 11 emergency special sessions of the General Assembly have been convened, five of which concerned the Middle East.
The eleventh emergency special session was convened in late February 2022, six days after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.