YouSaid · the spoken record

Heumann

lines on the record: 60
first: 2014-02-19
most recent: 2018-05-17
sittings or episodes: 8
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“The Council, the international community and everybody in this Chamber must ensure that international law is no longer exploited by terrorists for violent purposes. Those protections exist to shield civilians; they must not turn civilians into shields.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“Accordingly, checks and balances of international law are built into every stage of Israel's policy and decision-making processes. For example, military personnel receive instructions on the law of armed conflict, soldiers prepare for encounters with civilians through dedicated training drills and skilled attorneys advise the forces to ensure compliance with international law. Israel also maintains independent investigative bodies to examine credible allegations and reasonable suspicions of misconduct by its armed forces. In conclusion, we must acknowledge that the very rules that were created to protect civilians have become one of the main tools used by terrorist organizations to put them in harm's way.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“That build-up is not only a blatant and flagrant violation of resolutions 1701 (2006) and 1559 (2004), but it is also a deliberate attempt to exploit the international law that is meant to protect the civilian population. Despite the constant threats that we face on almost all fronts, our legal system ensures that our reaction and responses comply fully with international law. As a retired President of Israel's Supreme Court, Justice Aharon Barak, once said, "Although a democracy must often fight with one hand tied behind its back, it nonetheless has the upper hand." Justice Barak's words reflect the fact that Israel remains steadfastly committed to the law and our democratic values when acting to ensure our national security.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“Armed attacks were also carried out under the cover of the riots, including an incident where the IDF thwarted attacks by eight Hamas gunmen who opened fire on IDF members. Those are therefore not the acts of a peaceful protest. The events of recent days are part of a Hamas- led military operation intended to carry out attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians. Indeed, just yesterday, a senior Hamas representative acknowledged that of the deceased, no fewer than 50 were Hamas members. Just to our north, in Lebanon, and now also in Syria, we face the Iranian proxy Hizbullah. Its tactics and strategies are no different: locating missiles, launchers and command posts next to and inside Lebanese homes, schools and hospitals. We have warned the Council time and again that Hizbullah has an estimated arsenal of more than 100,000 missiles.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“They are violent riots that are incited by Hamas, which they use as a cover to carry out attacks on the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and try to reach Israeli communities just over the fence. The terrorist group even goes as far as to circulate on social media instructions to bring weapons to the demonstrations, hide them under their clothes and use them to capture soldiers or residents of Israel. The rioters are also requested to hand over anyone captured to the Hamas terrorists to be used as bargaining chips against Israel. More than 40,000 Palestinians, civilians and militants alike, took part in the violence on Monday, 14 May, at 13 locations spread along the 30-mile security fence. Many of the rioters were seen hurling firebombs and flaming materials, detonating explosive devices and throwing rocks at Israeli soldiers.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“Since October we have destroyed nine additional tunnels - tunnels intended for Hamas militants to infiltrate Israel. Let me remind the Council that Hamas used those tunnels to kidnap two soldiers, Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, whose bodies remain in the hands of those terrorists, together with two Israeli civilians. Hamas refuses to provide any information on the status of those civilians and fallen soldiers, allow international organizations to access them or return the soldiers' bodies. That refusal is in and of itself a breach of international law. Over the past few weeks, we have encountered a new variation on Hamas's old strategies. Hamas is now encouraging Palestinians to bring women and small children to the so-called peaceful protests it has instigated at Israel's security fence. Peaceful? Far from it.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“To our south, Hamas, the internationally recognized terrorist organization, is a pioneer in the use of human shields. It has set up headquarters in hospital basements and used ambulances to transport terrorists. It has stored rockets in mosques and hospitals, as well as in schools and shelters run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and fired them from those sites. But it does not stop there. In recent years, Hamas has built a sophisticated underground tunnel system beneath the Gaza Strip. Those attack tunnels originate from the backyards, or even the living rooms, of family homes, snaking under civilian neighbourhoods and penetrating Israeli territory. In 2017 Israel discovered two terror tunnels that Hamas had dug under UNRWA facilities.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“Those non-State actors do not merely attack civilians intentionally and systematically, they also embed their fighters and store weapons in their own densely populated urban areas, including United Nations facilities and hospitals. Their calculation is as simple as it is cynical: either civilian lives will be the fighters' defence or civilian deaths will be their rallying cry. That cowardly strategy is a breach of international law and an abuse of the very system created to protect civilian populations. Unfortunately, the challenges that Israel faces from non- State actors are not hypothetical situations posed in a law-school textbook. Deliberations on issues relating to proportionality or distinction are not confined to academic debate; rather, they are dealt with on a daily basis by all our relevant authorities.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“Much of international law is rooted in the assumption that armies battle armies and countries face off against countries, but today that is often no longer the case. The world is facing a changing paradigm in international warfare as more countries face asymmetric fighting, confronting not States but terrorist organizations. Terrorist organizations do not abide by rules, norms or laws. Although international law is intended to be a constructive tool to minimize the loss of human lives, terrorists increasingly use and abuse it as a tool to maximize casualties. In many instances, we are confronting an enemy with no red lines. Nothing is off limits.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“At the outset, I would like to thank the Polish delegation for convening this important debate. I also wish to thank the briefers we heard this morning. Recent events in Syria have reminded us of the value and necessity of international law. Last month, the Syrian regime again deployed chemical weapons against its own people, brutally killing innocent men, women and children. Iran has also recently moved into Syria and used its base there to conduct attacks against Israel, another Member State. Those outrageous acts show what States are capable of doing when they ignore international law. Israel has already made it abundantly clear that it holds the Government of Iran, together with the Syrian regime, directly responsible for those latest unlawful acts.”
2018-05-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8262 (2018) · source
“I warmly suggest to him that he make better use of his time and, instead of attempting to divert attention from his own country's crimes, that he develop a new policy that would actually take the rights of children into account and protect children from cruel and indiscriminate attacks in Yemen.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“It is regrettable that I need to take the floor for a second time today, but given some of the statements that have been made, I feel obliged to respond. I shall do so very quickly. We heard today the Saudi representative address my country. This representative, whose country was just put on the blacklist as one of the worst violators of children's rights, has the audacity to criticize my country. Saudi Arabia is responsible for the killing and maiming of more than 600 children in the past year, and that has entitled it to be included on the list ofthose parties who commit grave violations against children.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“In fact, since 2013 we have treated hundreds of wounded Syrian children who have been injured under the Al-Assad regime because children are children and they all deserve to be safe and secure. We must let children grow and change the world, and I would like to end with a quote from a girl named Hannah. After escaping Boko Haram in Nigeria, she said, "I am still struggling with the memories, but I am trying to focus and to continue with school and become a businesswoman." Protecting our children is protecting our future. We must never take a child's life for granted. We must let children be children, regardless of their race, religion, birthplace or heritage.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“Including an NGO linked to the PFLP in a report on children and armed conflict is no different from using Da'esh recruitment magazines andjihadi chatrooms for a guide to pacifism. It is entirely unacceptable, and we hope that the Special Representative will address the issue. Despite all these absurdities, the reality on the ground is that Israel goes the extra mile. Israel acts in full accord with international law and international human rights law. It goes to extraordinary lengths to avoid harming civilians, even if that puts our soldiers at risk. Israel will always safeguard all children's rights and security, with no discrimination or special treatment.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“The working group is responsible for collecting the information that goes into the draft report. Its members include United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). We were astonished to learn recently that one of those NGOs, Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCI-Palestine), has clearly established links to a terrorist organization. DCI-Palestine is closely tied to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PF LP), an acknowledged terrorist organization that made airplane hijacking a preferred tool of terror. Hassan Abed Al-Jawad, a current board member of DCI- Palestine, is also a leader ofthe Bethlehem-based PFLP. And, as ifthat were not enough, a former DCI-Palestine board member, Shawan Jabareen, was jailed after being convicted of recruiting for the PFLP.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“We cannot tolerate it any longer. The Council must send a clear message to the Palestinians that enough is enough. We congratulate Special Representative Gamba on her new appointment and appreciate her joint efforts, with the Secretary-General, to improve the latest report on children and armed conflict (S/2017/821) by comparison with those of previous years. But we also expect it to include the crucial context we have just provided. Without that, without objective narratives and truth, we learn only a fraction of the reality. The integrity of this institution depends on our reporting complete information. Another crucial issue that we expect to be addressed immediately is the institutionalized bias against Israel that results from the composition of the report's formal fact-finding working group.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“We simply cannot tolerate these blatant violations any longer. Nor can we ignore the trend encouraging incitement and the glorification of terror, through which young children are taught to kill. Palestinian children go to schools named after heinous killers. They cross streets honouring terrorists. They watch their leaders on television hand out candy in celebration of the murderers of innocent Israelis. It is therefore not surprising that dozens of Palestinian teenagers commit brutal terror attacks on our people. In one of the cruellest recent attacks, a Palestinian teenager broke into the house ofa 13-year-old Israeli girl, sneaked into her bedroom and stabbed her to death. That act and his decision to commit it were a direct result of ongoing Palestinian incitement. We have come to a reality where children kill children.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“It is part of an ongoing systematic operation to infiltrate Israel through an underground maze, and it has one purpose and one purpose only - kidnapping and killing innocent Israeli children. In June, Hamas built a terror tunnel directly beneath an elementary school operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). This past weekend, another such tunnel was found under another UNRWA schoolyard, in yet another demonstration of Hamas's ruthless exploitation of Palestinian children, as well as of its misuse of United Nations facilities. First we found Hamas hiding rockets in schools. Then we saw it hijacking hospitals and turning them into military command centres. And now we see it jeopardizing the safety of UNRWA schoolchildren by tunnelling directly under their classrooms.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“Too many children are killed and maimed all over the world. A child in armed conflict may be forced to become a soldier on the front lines, a slave trapped in besieged territory or a killer of innocent people. Israel knows these tragedies far too well. We understand what it means to face enemies who systematically exploit children as weapons of war and place our children in danger. We live every day with the threat of the next terror attack. Hamas, the party controlling Gaza, which is acknowledged internationally to be a terrorist organization, has tried time and again, year after year, and by every possible means to harm our people. The construction of its vast terror tunnel network was no unplanned decision.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“They told me not to talk, and I would talk, so they beat me. They told me not to sing; I would sing, and they would beat me. When I sing in my tribal language I forget, but ifI sit quietly I remember everything and will just cry." The cries of children in war-torn areas transcend borders and boundaries. Thousands of children have perished in armed conflict. Thousands more may not have lost their physical lives, but they weaken in spirit every day. The hopes and dreams of boys and girls can crumble like the debris of bombed-out buildings. Just last week, the world witnessed the horrific picture of a Syrian baby dying of malnutrition. Once again, we saw the cruelties of the Al-Assad regime, its disregard for human life, through the eyes of a child weighing less than a bag ofrice, struggling in the hands ofa frightened nurse.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“I would like to join others in welcoming Ms. Virginia Gamba, the new Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. I would like to start by sharing with the Council some of the voices of war's youngest Victims, the children who suffer from armed conflict around the world. Razan, just seven years old, is from Syria. She said, "I like to be alone, to be able to go out and no one kidnaps me. And for there to be no fighters or anything, and no bombing." Fatima Mohammed Ali grieves as her 3-m0nth-old daughter fights severe malnutrition in Yemen, saying, "There are times that I wish for death instead of living this life." Martha was captured as a teenager by Boko Haram in Nigeria. She recalls, "They told me not to walk around outside, and when I did they would beat me.”
2017-10-31 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8082 (2017) · source
“Direct contact, combined with trust and confidence-building, is an essential basis for the creation of a new security paradigm in a region that is increasingly fraught with wars, conflicts, disintegration of national territories and human suffering.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“Finally, allow me to comment with regard to what we have heard today with regard to the establishment of a WMD-free zone in the Middle East. Israel's long- held vision of a more secure and peaceful Middle East requires that all regional States engage in a process of direct and sustained dialogue to address the broad range of regional security challenges. Such a dialogue, based on the widely accepted principle of consensus, can emanate only from within the region, and address in an inclusive manner the threat perceptions of all regional parties with a View to enhancing and improving their security.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“At the national level, Israel has implemented counter-proliferation measures through legislation and practices that are strictly enforced by the relevant authorities. Those measures include, inter alia, gathering and sharing intelligence, improving border controls, developing advanced detection and identification devices, enhancing the security of facilities and the relevant dual-use materials and strengthening export controls. That multipronged strategy is part of Israel's comprehensive approach to preventing the proliferation of non-conventional weapons, as well as to preventing terrorists from acquiring such weapons. As part of the international community's ongoing efforts, Israel is fully committed to acting with determination against this threat.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“For example, expanding the cooperation of the Committee established pursuant to resolution 1540 (2004) and its Group of Experts with United Nations bodies with regard to terrorists and WMD proliferation will help the Committee to better equip States to deal with threats in their own territories. The issue under discussion today is a matter of the highest priority for the State of Israel. Let me conclude by outlining the steps that Israel has taken as part of our robust policy aimed at preventing the proliferation of WMDs. As detailed in the reports submitted by Israel to the 1540 Committee in 2004 and 2012, Israel has taken wide-ranging legal and practical steps intended to curb proliferation.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“First, States must have at their disposal the tools and the infrastructure necessary to meet their commitments under the regime established by the resolution. States must be further encouraged to report, update existing reports and designate a national focal point to be responsible for reporting and coordinating the national implementation of the resolution. Secondly, Israel believes that cooperation with the academic community is key. Strengthening outreach to the academic world can achieve a balance that preserves the independence of academic institutions while safeguarding sensitive technology and know-how against unintentional leakage to non-State actors. Finally, here at the United Nations, we see room for increased coordination among the relevant bodies.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“This year, we have an opportunity to review the achievements of the resolution and look ahead with renewed dedication for the full implementation of its provisions. A positive trend has been evident over the years, as a growing number of States have increased their measures for the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004). Most prominent have been the legal actions that States have undertaken to prohibit the activities of non-State actors with regard to nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and their means of delivery. As we look to the challenges ahead, Israel believes there are practical and legal steps that can advance the effective implementation of resolution 1540 (2004). Let me mention three steps that can readily be put into practice.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“The systematic use of chemical weapons by the Al-Assad regime has made WMD-related material and know-how widely available, paving the way for non-State actors to achieve such horrific capabilities. Make no mistake: the regime's actions lead to further cracks in the WMD non-proliferation regime. At a time when terrorist groups are increasingly emboldened and practice unspeakable acts of cruelty on a regular basis, the consequences of Al-Assad's actions should be clear to everyone in the Chamber. In the face of those dire threats, the international community must show resolve and take determined action to counter the proliferation of WMDs. Israel views resolution 1540 (2004) as an essential tool in that collective effort.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“Zaher Sahloul, a Syrian-American doctor who regularly treats the injured in Aleppo and has briefed the Council, said, "Using chemical agents without accountability has become the new normal in Syria". In fact, just two weeks ago, Syrian Government forces conducted air strikes on the Zabadieh neighbourhood of the besieged city of Aleppo, in an attack that was widely reported to have included the use of chlorine gas. We cannot allow that to become the new normal. Al-Assad's actions are not only in violation of international law and an affront to humankind itself, but they also increase the chances of weapons of mass destruction falling into the hands of non-State actors.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“Last August, the Security Council established the Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) in response to the conclusions of the fact-finding mission of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which found "compelling confirmation" that a toxic chemical had been used "systematically and repeatedly" to attack Syrian villages. The JIM. was given the mandate to investigate and to identify those responsible for the use of those lethal chemical weapons. Over the course of the past year, as the teams were on the ground working to assign attribution for that heinous war crime, the Syrian regime brazenly continued to use toxic chemicals against its own population.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“Israel understands the grave nature of the threat and views the prevention of the proliferation of WMDs as a matter of paramount importance for the international agenda. In our time, we have witnessed the shocking erosion of the absolute prohibition against the use of the world's most horrific weapons. We now live in a world in which the premeditated use of chemical weapons on innocent civilians is no longer even treated as breaking news. Nowhere is that trend more evident than in Syria. And there can be no mistake: the primary responsibility for the widespread use of chemical weapons in Syria lies squarely at the feet of the Al-Assad regime. That is the same regime that has been killing, attacking and besieging its own people, supported by Iran and its terror proxy Hizbullah.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“The threat that the world faces from the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) is greater than ever. Advances in science and technology, combined with the evolving nature of terrorism, present challenges never seen before. And nowhere is the threat more real than in the Middle East, where failing States have transformed the region into a breeding ground for terrorists who now control vast areas of territory and dominate large populations. For the people of Israel, the scale of the danger posed by the combination of terrorism and weapons of mass destruction is not abstract. Israelis have lived with conventional and unconventional threats for decades, and the prospect of terrorism is a daily reality.”
2016-08-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7758 (2016) · source
“They deserve to grow up in a society that fosters a vision of hope and promotes an education that preaches peace instead of hate, tolerance instead of violence and mutual understanding instead of martyrdom. Before concluding, let me say that earlier this month, the world lost a true man of conscience and a voice for humanity. Elie Wiesel lived through the horrors of the Holocaust as a child, and throughout his adult life he warned of the dangers of failing to stand up to evil. Wiesel famously said, "The opposite of love is not hate. It is indifference". The voices of children around the world are crying out to us for a sign that they have not been forgotten. We dare not be indifferent to these cries.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“They have attacked, injured and killed men and women of all ages, including 22 Israeli children. Just last month, a 17-year-old Palestinian stabbed a 13-year-old Israeli girl to death, in her bed, as she slept, in her family's home. Imagine a young girl sleeping comfortably in her bed stabbed over and over in cold blood by a child just a few years older than she is. Children killing children: this is the direct result of the venomous hatred preached to children in Palestinian society. For the sake ofpeace, for the sake ofthe children on both sides, the international community must send a clear message to the Palestinian leadership. Children are our most precious gift.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“As the recently published Quartet report states, "Palestinians who commit terrorist attacks are often glorified publicly as 'heroic martyrs'. Many widely circulated images depict individuals committing terrorist acts with slogans encouraging violence and [this] is particularly affecting young people." (S/2016/595, annex, p. 4) We are paying the price ofthis glorification ofterror on the streets of Israel today. Since October, Israel has faced a tide of terror. Forty people have been killed and more than 500 injured as Israelis continue to endure attack after attack, day after day, week after week, and month after month. In this wave of ongoing violence, 47 of those acts of terror - stabbings, shootings and car rammings - have been carried out by Palestinian youth under the age of 18.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“Fortunately, this time no one was hurt, as the rocket exploded just a short time after the schoolchildren had left the building. Unfortunately, we know that Hamas will continue to target our homes and schools, to make our children live in constant fear of the next attack. It is the responsibility of leaders everywhere to protect children at all costs from the ravages of war and to shelter them in a protective environment where they can thrive. Unfortunately, the Palestinians are failing at this most critical responsibility. Instead of nourishing their youth with the dreams of a bright future, Palestinian children are fed a steady diet of hatred for Israel and glorification of violence in the lessons they learn in school, in the sermons they hear in the mosque, and in streets that are named after terrorists.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“No child should play in a schoolyard that doubles as a rocket-launching site, and no child should spend his or her summer being drilled on how to make and engage in war. Contrary to all of the basic international legal rights of children, Hamas conducts annual military camps and recruits thousands of children. Instead of learning how to swim or play soccer there, the children of Gaza are taught how to assemble automatic weapons and operate shoulder-fired missiles. But Hamas is not only exploiting their own children, it is also teaching them to see every Israeli child as a potential target. We were reminded of this all too clearly when, just last month, a rocket fired from Gaza hit a preschool in the Israeli town of Sderot.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“In the north, the internationally recognized terrorist group Hizbullah has transformed the villages of southern Lebanon into terror outposts. They place rocket launchers next to kindergartens where youngsters play and store missiles under the homes to which children return after school. For years, Israel has warned the Council of the dangers of the illegal smuggling and the continued build-up in southern Lebanon, but our warnings have fallen on deaf cars. In Gaza, the terrorist group Hamas uses young boys to dig their terror tunnels and uses children of all ages, along with their mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters, to serve as human shields. Hamas deliberately embeds their terror infrastructure in the schools, hospitals and civilian neighbourhoods of Gaza, knowingly placing their own children in harm's way.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“And these are the unimaginable circumstances faced by young girls like Fati, one of the hundreds of young girls kidnapped, imprisoned and forcibly married by Boko Haram. Fati described how the captive girls would volunteer as suicide bombers, offering to strap bombs to themselves, in the desperate hope of escaping from a life filled with constant fear, terrible hunger and daily sexual violence. Fati escaped with her life, but an untold number of children still live this daily nightmare. Such brutality and cruelty against children not only tear at our hearts; they unravel entire communities and destroy the fabric of a society. In Israel, we know all too well what it means to face enemies who systematically exploit children as weapons of war.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“Thousands and thousands ofchildren have been killed in Al-Assad's brutal campaign against the people of Syria, while tens of thousands live in constant fear for their lives. Torture in State prisons, barrel bombs exploding in the streets and shells landing in their homes: the worst atrocities have not spared the children of Syria. In Yemen, widespread and systematic attacks by the Saudi-led coalition against civilian targets such as hospitals, schools, and mosques continue. Almost 2,000 children were killed or maimed last year. The Saudi-led coalition alone is responsible for the deaths of and injuries to about 1,200 children. Across West Africa, 44 suicide bombings were carried out by children in 2015, three quarters of them by young girls. This is the devastating reality of child sacrifice in the twenty-first century.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“These figures are staggering, but we must not allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by the enormity of the challenges before us. Each and every child deserves a future free of war and violence. All the trend lines show an increase in the most horrific forms of violence and oppression, directed at the most helpless among us. Children are used as suicide bombers and exploited as sex slaves, and girls and boys not old enough to drive a car are being forced to operate weapons of war. It is difficult to find the words to describe the scale of the atrocities we have seen in the past few years - acts of sustained barbarism and cruelty that shock the conscience of the civilized world.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“We meet here to discuss the impact of war and conflict on our most valuable and precious resource: our children. We are at a time when the plight of these children is more desperate than ever. Approximately 250 million children, one out of every nine boys and girls on the planet, are forced to grow up in a war zone. In 2015, when the number of displaced persons worldwide reached an all-time high, 50 per cent were under the age of 18. The ongoing violence in so many parts of the world has destroyed families, leaving the youngest to struggle to escape the devastation of war on their own. Nearly 100,000 asylum-seekers across 78 countries are unaccompanied or separated minors, facing their difficult fates vulnerable and alone - 100,000. The stories emerging from those who managed to escape are horrifying and alarming.”
2016-08-02 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7753 (2016) · source
“In one incident, they killed over 70 civilians when they directly bombed a wedding party in Yemen. The accusation of the Saudi representative that the actions that my country takes to protect its citizens fuel terror demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of what terror is, what causes it and how to counter it. Since the Saudi representative seems to be confused on the subject, allow me to extend a warm invitation to him and his advisers to attend one of Israel's many international expert training sessions on counter- terrorism. I am sure that will be helpful for him.”
2016-04-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7670Resumption1 (2016) · source
“I am sure we will hear in just a moment, once again, Iran trying to direct attention away from its true colours, but in the Middle East where there is terror, there is Iran. It is at the helm of destabilization and radicalization. It is sponsoring terrorism in Lebanon, Gaza and Yemen, to name just a few examples, and with Hizbullah as its proxy, it is exporting it around the world. In particular, I also want to comment on the remarks made by the Saudi representative. It is odd that Saudi Arabia is so confident in its rebuke of others. Saudi Arabia's own approach to conflict management seems to be to launch large-scale, indiscriminate aerial bombardments in utter disregard for the lives of men, women and children on the ground. Thousands have been killed in these bombings.”
2016-04-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7670Resumption1 (2016) · source
“I wish we did not have to make a further statement, but today several States have once again revealed their true intentions. They do see today's debate not as a forum for combatting terrorism, but as a platform to single out Israel with baseless accusations and inflammatory remarks. The fact is that Israel is on the front line ofcombating terror. It may be convenient to point a finger at us, but it does not address the heart of the problem. Rather than obsessively focusing on Israel, representatives' condemnation should be aimed at the real terrorist perpetrators. It has been evident throughout today's debate that some States have much to say when it comes to my country. I would suggest that these countries first take a look at their own internal issues before spreading baseless accusations about others.”
2016-04-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7670Resumption1 (2016) · source
“It is always an interesting experience when the representative of the greatest State sponsor of terror speaks out on the maintenance of peace and security. As we are witnessing the rise of anti-Semitism and xenophobia, I cannot forget that Iran is holding an official Holocaust-denial cartoon contest this year. We are all accustomed to the lip service of Saudi Arabia, preaching about peace and human rights while continuing to oppress women and deny them their basic rights, from driving to voting and from receiving an education to travelling alone in public. But I would also like to end by awarding the representative of Saudi Arabia a special prize, due to his creative intervention that we heard earlier, in the category of Best Sound, for his ability to tune out the public outcry due to the official stoning and lashing of innocent citizens.”
2015-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7389 (2015) · source
“Allow me to quote Ecclesiastes 3:7: "There is a time for everything; a time to be silent and a time to speak". When we gather to discuss the values of the Charter of the United Nations, there is no doubt that for some of the countries whose representatives we have just heard take the floor, it is time to be silent and, I would add, to reflect. We have just witnessed a march of folly of the worst human rights abusers, taking a seat at the Security Council table and attacking my country. It is truly absurd to hear representatives of those tyrannies lecture the only democracy of the Middle East. As we speak here, Iran is continuing to oppress its own people, while helping other tyrants in the region to slaughter theirs. Iran supplies sophisticated weapons to Hamas, Hizbullah and other terrorist groups in the region and around the world.”
2015-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7389 (2015) · source
“For decades, Iran has funded hundreds of terror campaigns that have taken thousands of innocent lives in Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. In Syria, Iran has sent its Revolutionary Guards to fight alongside Al-Assad's force and spent billions sustaining the bloody civil war that has taken almost 200,000 lives. In Lebanon, Iranian-backed Hizbullah terrorist groups have built a militia larger and stronger than many armies. The international community has realized the need for a robust strategy that will contain the threat posed by terrorist groups like Daesh. The same thinking is needed with regard to sponsors of terror like Iran.”
2014-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7316 (2014) · source
“I will not respond to the ridiculous allegations made by the Syrian representative against my country. The Syrian delegation represents a Government with zero credibility that cares nothing about the needs of its own people. Its remarks are another cheap attempt to divert attention from the massacre of the Syrian people. Lastly, I am pleased to see that the Iranian representative is taking full advantage of the freedom of expression in this Chamber. I suppose it is fitting, given that the Iranian people do not enjoy that right at home. It seems to me that he got a little carried away with the novelty and has used this forum to spread tall tales at Israel's expense. But the truth is that Iran is today the main sponsor of terrorism around the globe.”
2014-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7316 (2014) · source
“I will also be very brief, but I would like to respond to some of the allegations we have heard made against my country today. I think it is truly absurd to hear the representative of the dictatorship of Saudi Arabia criticize the Middle East's only democracy. Under the guise of combating terrorism, Saudi Arabia has aggressively repressed the rights and freedoms of its own people. It even proclaimed atheism to be a terrorist offence andjailed a poet named Hamza Kashgari, whose only offence was posting harmless tweets. Saudi Arabia may have given $100 million to the United Nations counter-terrorism programme but it is worth remembering that the Saudi regime has made far larger and more generous donations to extremist terror groups that promote radicalization and terror attacks around the world.”
2014-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7316 (2014) · source