YouSaid · the spoken record

Prendergast

lines on the record: 716
first: 1999-08-27
most recent: 2018-09-10
sittings or episodes: 36
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

“As we have repeatedly stated, the international community lacks an empowered interlocutor on the Israeli side with whom donor representatives can discuss policy issues and solutions. In the absence of significant improvement of the conditions under which the international community operates, many donors are now reviewing the basis on which their operations in the West Bank and Gaza can continue. We call upon the Government of Israel to take immediate and practical steps to live up to its assurances that it will do all it can to facilitate humanitarian and emergency aid efforts. We recognize Israel's right and duty to defend its people from terrorism, but that should not be at the expense of the Palestinian people as a whole.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“The donor Task Force on Project Implementation has prepared a paper that sets out the situation and concludes that measures taken by the Government of Israel on security grounds have greatly increased the difficulty and cost of providing social, economic and humanitarian support to the Palestinian civilian population. The operational environment has now deteriorated to a degree that many donors consider both unmanageable and unacceptable. Such measures compromise our work and have dramatically negative and indiscriminate effects on the living conditions of the civilian population. The Government of Israel has given multiple assurances from the highest levels that donor activity and humanitarian aid will be fully facilitated. However, those assurances contrast starkly with the facts on the ground.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs as of 1 November there were 757 barriers of various types blocking roads in the West Bank, affecting the movement of 2.3 million people. In the Gaza Strip, movement on the north-south roads and around Gaza City has also been severely limited owing to the continued presence of barriers. The number of Palestinians with permits to leave Gaza and enter Israel remains minimal. As we have described in previous briefings to the Security Council, the Israeli policy of restrictions on movement affects the ability of donors to carry out their work, as well as the ability of Palestinians to move freely through the West Bank and Gaza Strip.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“Qurei's appointment and expect him to take immediate steps to establish law and order, control violence and start operations to confront those who engage in terror. Such steps would begin to address Israel's security concerns and build the confidence necessary to develop a partnership for peace. The United Nations will do all it can to assist Mr. Qurei and his Government to implement the road map and pursue the path to peace. As we have stated in each of the monthly briefings to the Security Council, the humanitarian situation, largely caused by Israeli security measures in the occupied Palestinian territory, continues to worsen. Movement restrictions on Palestinians continue to hamper everyday life and strangle the Palestinian economy.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“This raises the death toll since September 2000 to 2,947 Palestinians and 862 Israelis. After the carnage of the past few months, one might conclude that the absence of large-scale successful terrorist attacks by one side and extrajudicial killings by the other during the current reporting period is an improvement. However, the deaths of more than one Palestinian each day since the previous briefing, including five children aged 16 or under, and the killing of five Israeli soldiers, highlight the need for increased seriousness of purpose on the part of the parties and the international community towards achieving peace. Last week, the Palestinian Legislative Council confirmed the appointment of Ahmed Qurei - Abu Ala - as Palestinian Prime Minister. We welcome Mr.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“For their part, Palestinians continue to suffer from closures and from Israeli military operations that kill and injure civilians. In addition, settlement activity, the construction of the separation barrier and the destruction and appropriation of Palestinian property continue to cut deep into the landscape of the West Bank, creating unwelcome facts on the ground. Israel, despite its obligations under the road map and international law, has done little to remedy the situation. In the region, violations of the Blue Line by both sides continue, adding to an already tense situation. It remains essential to address seriously the regional track of the peace process. Since my previous briefing to the Security Council, 44 people have lost their lives to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict - five Israelis and 39 Palestinians.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“We, too, will be judged on the effectiveness of our efforts. We hear talk here and there of a possible meeting between the two Prime Ministers and of another ceasefire. These tender shoots need nourishing. The peace process cannot be allowed to remain stalled. In such a dangerous environment, continued inertia could be deadly. While the past month has been relatively quiet, the dangers set out in my last briefing to the Council remain. Nothing has been done to mitigate the underlying instability. The threat of terrorism still hangs over the head of each Israeli. As we have repeatedly stated, the Palestinian Authority - despite its obligations under the road map and under international humanitarian law - has done little to address that core issue.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“Israel, whose Prime Minister recently declared his readiness for his Government to carry out its road- map obligations, can and should take immediate steps to build confidence and prevent further backward progress. Such steps might include easing closures, removing settlement outposts, freezing settlement activity and halting construction of the separation barrier. Bolder steps - such as evacuating settlements in the Gaza Strip - might be necessary, if there is to be a renewal of hope and confidence and if the process is to be put back on track. Israel, like the Palestinian Authority, should be judged on its performance. The international community must be actively engaged in assisting the parties to fulfil their road-map obligations, through the Quartet and through our own obligation to monitor and report.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“Even if the Israelis and Palestinians are not engaged face to face across the negotiating table, there is much they can do, and should do, to meet their road-map obligations. Those obligations, based on the core principle of parallelism, cannotjust be bargaining chips dependent on actions by the other side. The Palestinian Authority - whoever has control over security services - must confront and rein in militant groups that carry out terrorist attacks on Israelis. Performance, not lines of authority, should be the basis on which the Palestinian Authority is judged. The reform process is crucial, both to addressing pressing security needs and to promoting a democratic and prosperous future Palestinian State.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“The Palestinian Authority has waited for Israel to halt military operations and take steps to ease the closures that have so deeply damaged Palestinian life, for the international community to lead the parties toward peace, and for its own political wrangling to end. And we, the international community, have waited for the parties to make progress on their own, despite the accumulation over the years of compelling evidence that they are incapable of making peace without international intervention. Particularly now, when there is a new Palestinian Prime Minister, we cannot afford just to keep waiting. Progress towards Middle East peace cannot just be contingent on the actions expected of others.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“Mr. Prendergast: When I last briefed the Council on the Middle East, I described a bleak situation in which peace efforts were stalled on every front, tensions were rising in the region and the parties seemed to lurch from crisis to crisis. On behalf of the Secretary-General, I called on the Israelis and Palestinians to return to the negotiating table and recommit to the road-map process, and I urged the international community to reassert its role. Sadly, very little of the sort has occurred since the last briefing. It is true that it has been a month of relative quiet. But that quiet has been met not with positive steps, but with inaction. Everyone has waited for others to act. The Government of Israel has waited for the Palestinian Authority to form an empowered Government and for terrorism to end.”
2003-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4861 (2003) · source
“That vision is part of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East, including the Syrian and Lebanese tracks. The road map still offers a viable instrument to get from here to there. But if we are to achieve that vision, it is essential that there be a return to the negotiating table and, meanwhile, not only that restraint be exercised but that there be an end to all acts that undermine confidence among the parties. There has to be a better way. We cannot continue to lurch from crisis to crisis. Israelis and Palestinians alike feel exhausted by today, and fearful for tomorrow. We have to break the cycle of violence, revenge and escalation. We need to work together to find that better way.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“I would note here that Israeli overflights, which had declined in number in the latter part of September, have showed a marked increase since early October. The continued air violations are not helpful. In conclusion, let me say that we are living through difficult and dangerous days. The region is faced with a potential broadening and deepening of interlinked conflicts. This is a time for restraint, not incitement. It is a time for statesmanship, not opportunism. It is a time for the parties to look to the longer term and to think of what kind of world they want their children and grandchildren to live in. The vision of two States, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security must remain our goal.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“In his meetings in all three countries, he noted that attacks and counter attacks would lead all concerned down a steep and precarious path towards more violence. And, on the Secretary-General's behalf, he advised all parties not to travel down that disastrous road. It is of paramount importance that all parties exercise the utmost restraint and work through diplomatic channels to resolve their differences. In that regard, the Secretary-General appreciates the approach of the Governments of Syria and Lebanon of turning to the Security Council for redress in response to the Israeli strike. I would also note the Lebanese Central Security Council's statement of commitment last week to preserving calm, security and stability in the country. The Lebanese authorities should be encouraged and supported in this effort.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“Two landed inside Lebanon, one on a house, killing one child and seriously injuring another. The third rocket impacted on the Israeli side, constituting a violation but causing no damage. These events underscore yet again the need for the Government of Lebanon to exert control over the use of force from the whole of its territory. The spiral of events of the first week of October illustrates the significant potential for escalation within the region. With that in mind, on the instructions of the Secretary-General, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Mr. Roed-Larsen, travelled to Beirut and Damascus on 8 and 9 October to discuss the regional situation with leaders in both countries. Mr. Roed-Larsen also discussed the situation with Israeli officials.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“The order marks an unacceptable deepening of restrictions against the Palestinians caught between the barrier and the Green Line. Recent incidents along the Blue Line and in the region have heightened tensions and highlight the fragility of the situation. The day after the 5 October Israeli air strike into Syria, two hostile incidents occurred along the Blue Line. In the first, on 6 October, it was reported that sniper fire from the Lebanese side of the Blue Line killed an Israeli soldier in an area south of Metulla. Subsequent IDF retaliatory fire damaged a passing United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) vehicle, but caused no injuries. On 7 October, three rockets were fired towards Israel from the general area of Hula on the Lebanese side of the Line.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“On 2 October the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued an extensive military order declaring those areas between the separation wall and the Green Line to be militarily closed areas. The order covers the entire northern trajectory of the wall - approximately 25,000 acres, where as many as 12,000 Palestinians would be left in enclaves between the wall and the Green Line. The order prohibits any person from entering or exiting these areas except, as it states, "those entitled to the law of return, Israelis, or Palestinians who have special permanent or temporary permits". It explicitly specifies that people age 12 and older who resided in those areas before the military order was issued must now have entry permits to continue doing so. Free access will be granted only to Israelis.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“In a recently released report, the co-chairs of the all-donor Local Aid Coordination Committee - namely, the Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator in the Occupied Territories (UNSCO), the World Bank and Norway - drew particular attention to the rapid expansion of Israel's separation barrier around East Jerusalem. There alone, the wall affects tens of thousands of Palestinians as it divides communities and families and threatens to seal Jerusalem off from the rest of the West Bank. Palestinians along the barrier's route face land loss and severely restricted access to jobs, markets and essential social services. We repeat our call to the Israeli authorities to halt construction of the wall.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“The meeting will enable donors to discuss Palestinian economic stabilization and emergency needs. The Ad Hoc Liaison Committee will also address the donor community's ongoing support to the Palestinian Authority's reform efforts and the problems encountered in this endeavour. The meeting will coincide with the launch of the United Nations Consolidated Appeal, which highlights the need to address the deepening humanitarian crisis faced in the occupied Palestinian territory. Allow me to say a word about the construction of the separation barrier, or wall, which continues to deeply worry not only Palestinians but the international community as a whole. Over the last month, the speed of construction has accelerated.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“The aid and donor community recognizes Israel's security concerns and wishes to be responsive to them. However, donors fail to understand the logic of measures that increase insecurity for the civilian population and the aid community, and that raise the complexity and cost of providing assistance. The aid community feels that the Government of Israel has thus far failed to appoint a high-level empowered interlocutor to discuss these policy issues, and that, as a result, it has to spend substantial time responding to unpredictable and seemingly arbitrary regulations and procedures that make its work increasingly expensive, dangerous and frustrating. A meeting of the capitals-level Ad Hoc Liaison Committee, which is composed of key donors, is scheduled to take place on 18 and19 November.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“However, there is no substitute for the official representatives of the Israeli and Palestinian people returning to the negotiating table and progressing down the road to peace, as called for in the road map. The disappointing setbacks in the quest for peace have had a continuing deleterious effect on humanitarian conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory. We continue to observe increased economic hardship and further reduced capacity of the Palestinian Authority to deliver essential services to its population. Unemployment rates in the West Bank and Gaza Strip have risen to 36 per cent, and the number of Palestinians below the poverty line is at 60 per cent. Severe restrictions on the movement of humanitarian goods and aid workers remain in place.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“Let me mention a rare positive note amid the general gloom, in the shape of the track-two effort referred to as the Geneva Accord. Mr. Yossi Beilin and Mr. Yasser Abed Rabbo and others have reportedly led Israelis and Palestinians through a process of imagining a future final status settlement that details possible solutions based on the same goal as that of the road map: a two-State solution and the end to occupation. The Secretariat has not yet seen the text of this plan, and we cannot comment on the details. But we welcome any initiatives that bring Israelis and Palestinians together to discuss their common future. Real and lasting peace will be made as much by people working together for reconciliation as it will be by official parties reaching agreement.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“The Quartet principals - the Secretary-General, Russian Foreign Minister Ivanov, United States Secretary of State Powell, Italian Foreign Minister Frattini, European Union High Representative Solana and European Commissioner Patten - met on 26 September to review the situation in the Middle East. The Principals noted that they viewed the situation with great concern, and reaffirmed their commitment to continue working together to achieve progress towards peace. They remained eager to assist the parties to meet their road map obligations. In his own capacity, the Secretary-General called for a revitalized and active international involvement, asserting that, if steps are not taken, all of us will pay a heavy price.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“For its part, in keeping with its obligations under the road map, and in order to build confidence on the Palestinian side, the Government of Israel must reverse its policy of settlement expansion and implement a settlement freeze. In addition, it must halt construction of the security wall that it is building on Palestinian land and remove those sections already constructed. These steps would begin to address Palestinian concerns about the viability of the future Palestinian State and assist in building support among the Palestinian people for the peace process.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“If the parties are to re-engage with the negotiation process, they must be in a position to send to the negotiating table representatives who can commit to credible confidence-building measures. In this connection, we note the Palestinian Authority's efforts to appoint a new prime minister. As called for in the road map, that prime minister should be empowered and credible, and, with the Minister of the Interior, should be the person to whom consolidated Palestinian security forces would report. We would expect the new prime minister to take immediate steps to establish law and order, diminish violence and start operations to confront those who engage in terror. These steps would begin to address Israel's security concerns and build the confidence necessary to develop a partnership for peace.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“The bombing, which was clearly carefully planned, represents a worrying widening of the conflict, and raises serious security concerns for United Nations and international personnel working in Gaza. Yesterday, at least 14 Palestinians were killed, with scores of civilian casualties, in a series of Israeli air strikes on Gaza. These attacks appeared to be aimed at carrying out extrajudicial killings. They followed a series of rocket attacks by Palestinians into southern Israel. Again, Israel has conducted military operations in crowded civilian areas, with sadly predictable results. We once more call on the Government of Israel to cease the use of disproportionate and indiscriminate force in civilian areas. We also again call for a halt to extrajudicial killings.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“However, the right of self- defence is neither unconditional nor unlimited. It must be exercised in proportionate terms, and in keeping with Israel's obligations under international law. It should not be exercised in such a way that large numbers of Palestinians are made to suffer for the acts of a violent minority. The consequences of these actions could be viewed as collective punishment, which is a violation of international humanitarian law. On 15 October, last week, a bomb attack in the Gaza Strip on a United States diplomatic convoy resulted in the deaths of three American security officers. This deliberate attack on diplomatic personnel, which we condemn in the strongest terms, was unprecedented and completely unacceptable. The Secretary-General has condemned it as a terrorist act.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“By disturbing a front that has been stable for many years, the Israeli action risks broadening and deepening the already complex network of conflicts in the region and encouraging extremists everywhere. Since 9 October, the Israeli army has conducted operations in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, aimed, according to the Government of Israel, at destroying tunnels used for the smuggling of arms. According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), 12 Palestinians were killed, including 2 children and an UNRWA schoolteacher. UNRWA reports that 189 buildings were demolished or rendered uninhabitable, and some 1,780 people have lost their homes as of 20 October. We recognize Israel's right to defend itself against terrorist attacks.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“On 4 October, a suicide bomber struck a crowded restaurant in Haifa, resulting in a death toll that has recently risen to 21. The casualties were both Jewish and Arab. I reiterate the Secretary-General's strong and consistent condemnation of such acts of terrorism. The deliberate targeting of civilians is a war crime, and cannot be justified by any cause. We call on the Palestinian Authority to bring to justice those who plan and carry out such attacks and to live up to its obligations under the road map as regards security. On 5 October, Israel launched an air strike against Syrian territory. An attack by one State on another's sovereign territory is a dismaying new escalation in the regional dimension of the conflict. The Secretary- General strongly deplored this action, and called on all sides to exercise restraint.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“The Secretary-General has repeatedly called on the parties to return to the negotiating table. It is clear, however, that they are unable to do so on their own. The level of trust between them is too low and the lines of communication too weak. This makes it imperative that the international community reassert its role in Middle East peacemaking. The Quartet must assist the parties along the road map to peace. Implementation of the road map has been stalled for too long. Since the last briefing to the Security Council, 80 people have lost their lives to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: 27 Israelis, 50 Palestinians and, now, 3 American diplomatic security officers. This raises the death toll since September 2000 to 2,858 Palestinians and 857 Israelis.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“Events during the past month include a suicide bomb in Haifa, the first Israeli air strike into Syria in 30 years, serious and fatal violations of the Blue Line, Israeli army incursions into Rafah in the Gaza Strip, increasingly tight closures in the West Bank and Gaza that have exacerbated the already dire humanitarian conditions of Palestinians and a terrorist attack on a United States diplomatic convoy in Gaza that killed three innocent people. During the past three days alone, 21 Palestinians were killed during Israeli military operations and 3 Israeli soldiers were killed in the West Bank. It ought to be clear by now that violence only begets violence, and that there is no military solution to the conflict. Lasting stability will be found only when the parties reach a just, lasting and comprehensive peace agreement.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“Suicide bombings, rejectionist language, extrajudicial killings, walls that extend deep into the occupied Palestinian territory, the destruction of homes, expropriations and continued settlement activity lead both Israelis and Palestinians to feelings of hopelessness, despair, hatred, rage and revenge. Worst of all, they leave each side doubting whether it has in the other a partner for peace and questioning the viability of the two-State solution. Since the previous briefing, we have witnessed an escalation of violence that has crossed previously respected lines, principles and borders.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“Mr. Prendergast: We are meeting at a low point. It is urgent to re-establish momentum towards a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East. Sadly, however, the trend is increasingly in the opposite direction. Instead of moving forward, we are seeing backward movement, away from a peaceful settlement and away from the negotiating table. Instead of mutually reinforcing confidence-building measures, we are seeing far too much by way of mutually reinforcing confidence-destroying measures. Instead of policies and actions that encourage the parties to move towards one another, meeting in the centre, the effect of actions taken by both Israelis and Palestinians has been to weaken moderates on both sides and to encourage extremists.”
2003-10-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4846 (2003) · source
“Yet, the same period also witnessed the continuation of the sort of violence by both sides that has snuffed out every previous effort during this period to renew the peace process. In endorsing the road map the parties have taken the first step on the path towards a permanent settlement. As I said at the beginning of my briefing, they need to stay the course, and they will need help to stay the course. With that objective uppermost in our minds, the Quartet principals will be meeting in Jordan on 22 June. Following the Aqaba summit, as well as the recent wave of violence in the region, that meeting offers a timely opportunity to discuss next steps for the work of the Quartet mechanism to strengthen the prospects for renewing the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“I regret to report that, despite repeated requests to the Government of Lebanon, the anti-aircraft gun placed in the immediate vicinity of UNIFIL position 8-32 since 18 February remains in place. These air violations and the consequent anti-aircraft fire that takes place carry an escalatory potential. We call again upon the parties to refrain from such actions that threaten to disrupt the otherwise calm situation and to uphold their commitment to fully respect the Blue Line. In conclusion, let me say that the past month has witnessed the most promising openings in the political process since the autumn of 2000. The personal engagement of President Bush and the successful summit at Aqaba were developments of the highest significance which generated enormous hopes and expectations.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“It is now a little under five months since the last violent transgression of the Blue Line in late January. Since then, it appears that the parties have lived up to their stated intentions to avoid an escalation. It was in the context of this general calm that the third anniversary of the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon took place last month. Nevertheless, breaches of the Blue Line continue to take place in the form of Israeli air violations and Hizbullah anti-aircraft fire. Israeli jets have continued their pattern of often flying around the area of operation of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to enter Lebanese airspace further north.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“As a minimum first step to alleviate its effects, humanitarian access points should be opened in those portions of the wall that have been completed. Since work on the wall began, the road map has been presented to the parties and they have agreed to undertake its implementation. Furthermore, Palestinian Prime Minister Abbas has pledged to disarm violent Palestinian groups and to work to end terrorism. Suspending construction of the wall would contribute to the overall effort to improve security and humanitarian conditions and to restart the political process. If I may turn for the moment to the situation along the Blue Line, we are pleased to report that the parties have continued to act with restraint, maintaining a fragile calm along the Line.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“The placement of the wall has both short-term and long-term implications. In the short term, the isolation and separation resulting from the wall will devastate the lives and livelihoods of thousands of Palestinians, generating more frustration and anger among the Palestinian people, which could lessen support for necessary compromises. In the longer run, while we are aware of the Government of Israel's statements regarding the temporary nature of the wall, its course, particularly around Jerusalem, could prejudice final status negotiations. While understanding the dilemma that Israel faces in deciding how to protect itself from terrorist attacks, nevertheless, in the light of developments since construction on the wall began, we believe that work on the wall should be halted.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“It potentially separates tens of thousands of Palestinians from their agricultural lands, their wells, their markets, their schools, their health clinics and their hospitals. By the end of July, 12,000 Palestinians in 15 villages could find themselves wedged between the wall and the Green Line. A further 138,000 Palestinians in 16 localities could be surrounded on three sides by the wall. The construction of the wall could have obvious adverse implications for the peace process as well. Given that the wall lies well inside the West Bank and not along the Green Line, it could easily be seen as jeopardizing the territorial contiguity of a Palestinian State and therefore inhibiting the establishment of a Palestinian State on the basis of Security Council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 1397 (2002) and as called for in the road map.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“The complete closure of Gaza was partly lifted today as international staff members can again enter and exit through the Erez crossing and Palestinians can leave the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt. We have recently drawn the Council's attention to the Government of Israel's construction of a separation wall and the effects of this on Palestinian populations. As the construction of the wall continues, it is worth recalling its impact on the lives of those Palestinians who find themselves trapped between the new wall and the Green Line. Phase one of the wall's alignment diverges from the Green Line by as much as 6 kilometres in some areas, penetrating into the northern West Bank and slicing across roads and water networks.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“The renewal of the closure regime - after assurances from the Israeli authorities that the situation would improve - is worrying. We will persist in our efforts to resolve this issue on the local level and will continue to keep the Council informed of developments regarding this problem and the closure regime more generally. Meanwhile, the security of staff and goods remains a serious concern. In both meetings, the international community noted recent incidents of shootings at diplomatic vehicles and refusal to facilitate movement of a European Union/United Nations convoy. IDF investigations of these incidents have yet to be concluded.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“Since the last briefing, representatives of the United Nations system and the broader international community have met on several occasions with interlocutors from the Government of Israel on the issue of movement restrictions. On 27 May, I met with the Deputy Permanent Representative of Israel to express the United Nations concerns about the closure. On 29 May, two meetings took place in the region between the Government of Israel and the international community to discuss the access situation, with particular focus on the Gaza Strip. The closure of the Gaza Strip to national and international staff of international organizations has a detrimental effect on our efforts to provide needed humanitarian assistance. Mr. Roed-Larsen described the effects on the work of United Nations agencies in some detail in the briefing last month.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“In the last briefing to the Council, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative of the Secretary- General to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority, Terje Roed-Larsen, described a new, draconian closure regime for the Gaza Strip that seriously affected the work of United Nations and other international agencies. For a brief period, between 2 and 10 June, the situation improved somewhat, even though the movement of international personnel and goods into and out of the Gaza Strip remained subject to a stringent Israeli security closure regime. On 10 and 11 June 2003, Gaza was closed to all but those with diplomatic passports. Moreover, the Rafah crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt has been closed as well.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“Israeli authorities have provided assurances that humanitarian goods can be brought into the Gaza Strip via an alternative crossing point, but, based on past experience, it is doubtful if the alternative will allow for sufficient volume of vehicles to meet humanitarian needs. If the Palestinian Authority is to build effective institutions and gain the support of the Palestinian people for the peace process, it is essential that the closure regime be eased. It is incumbent upon Israel to pursue its security and self-defence in a manner that minimizes the suffering of Palestinian civilians.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“Vehicular traffic into and out of Beit Hanoun, outside Gaza City, is limited to United Nations and International Committee of the Red Cross cars. No exception is made for Palestinian ambulance operators, who are now instructed to employ the so-called back-to-back method for medical evacuations, which requires that patients be moved from an ambulance on one side of the checkpoint to an ambulance on the other side. This is a method that is more usually employed for the movement of commercial goods. The movement of goods to the Gaza Strip via the Karni crossing - which is the only crossing for humanitarian goods - has been limited. Only 200-250 trucks with commercial and humanitarian items are entering daily, as compared with up to 700 in April and May. Since 11 June, the Karni crossing has again been fully closed.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“The circulation of Palestinians within the West Bank has been reduced since the suicide bomb attack in Afula on 19 May, while the movement of West Bank residents with permits to Jerusalem has been completely halted since 2 June. On average, 204,000 Palestinians in 21 localities were placed under curfews of varying duration during the first two weeks of June. The populations of Hebron and Tulkarem were hardest hit by uninterrupted curfews of up to seven consecutive days. The Gaza Strip was placed under tight closure following the 8 June attack by Palestinian groups on the Erez crossing. Movement within the Gaza Strip, particularly across the Abu Houli checkpoint in central Gaza, is restricted to several hours each day.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“In the Gaza Strip alone, approximately 275 acres were destroyed. In addition, some 74 homes in the occupied Palestinian territory were destroyed, rendering more than 700 persons homeless. The humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territory has not improved, despite the tentative steps towards renewal of the political process. As we have stated in previous briefings, the main cause of the humanitarian crisis is the closure regime imposed by the Government of Israel. Since the last briefing, the humanitarian situation has worsened as a result of a tightening of the closure. A more stringent movement control regime has been introduced by the IDF at the main entry and transit points to and within the occupied Palestinian territory.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“Rantisi - which undercut the efforts of the Palestinian Authority to negotiate a ceasefire as a first step to disarming violent armed groups - is counter to the spirit of the road map. Unfortunately, such attacks are likely only to harden sentiments among the Palestinian people and to strengthen the extremists. Israel has a right to self-defence in the face of repeated terrorist attacks. However, we continue to believe firmly that the best way to ensure the long-term security of Israel is through the pursuit of a peaceful resolution of the conflict, beginning with implementation of the road map. During the period since the last briefing, there was continuing significant destruction of Palestinian property by the IDF. Agricultural lands totalling some 477 acres of citrus trees and olive groves were bulldozed.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“As for the Israeli side, the Government of Israel should immediately halt actions such as extrajudicial killings. Israel should also stop using excessive and disproportionate force in civilian areas, which has caused the death and injury of so many Palestinian civilians. And the Government should discontinue measures of collective punishment, including house demolitions and curfews. The Secretary-General has repeatedly called on the Government of Israel to desist from such acts. He has also called on Israel, consistent with international humanitarian law, to take steps to ensure the protection of Palestinian civilians. The road map calls on Israel to take no actions undermining trust in its first phase. Tuesday's attack on Mr.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source
“The Secretary-General has stated time and time again that terrorist attacks are morally reprehensible and have as their purpose the undermining of the peace process. He has called on the Palestinian Authority to do everything in its power to stop terrorist attacks from territory under its control. He has also called on the Palestinian Authority to meet its obligations under international law to protect Israeli civilians. In endorsing the road map, the Palestinian Authority has committed itself to rebuild and refocus the Palestinian security forces to provide security effectively for Palestinians and to prevent terrorist attacks on Israelis. In addition, the Palestinian Authority is to regroup all security forces under the authority of the Minister of the Interior, Prime Minister Abbas - a task which has not yet begun.”
2003-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4773 (2003) · source