UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged Israel and the Palestinians on Tuesday to move away from unilateral actions stoking tensions and make the “tough compromises” needed to end their decades-old conflict.
Ban spoke to the UN Security Council after returning from a visit to the Middle East where he saw first-hand the destruction in Gaza wrought by the 50-day war between Israel and terrorist groups including Hamas and Islamic Jihad. The trip also involved a tour of some of Hamas’s terror tunnels and of Israeli communities affected by indiscriminate rocket fire by terrorists.
“Leaders on both sides must overcome their differences and dispense with the unilateral initiatives that serve only to fuel mistrust and polarization,” the secretary general said.
The appeal came after Arab extremists attacked an apartment building recently purchased by Jewish families in Jerusalem, and as the Palestinian Authority pushed for a divisive UN resolution on forcing Israel out of Judea and Samaria by 2016.
UN diplomats say the draft resolution stands no chance of being adopted, but they appear at a loss to point a way forward to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
Describing the “two-state solution” as the “only viable option” for peace, Ban said: “It is time for courage and vision to make the tough compromises that are needed now. I challenge both sides to rise to the occasion.”
The UN chief called on Israel to reverse “settlement activity” – a euphemism for Jews living in Judea and Samaria – which he claimed were “illegal,” and expressed concern over clashes during Jewish visits at holy sites in Jerusalem.
“International law is clear: settlement activity is illegal. It runs totally counter to the pursuit of a two-state solution,” he said.
That claim, however, is disputed not only by Israel but by numerous international legal experts.
Israeli police have vowed to restore order following clashes with Islamists over recent Jewish visits to the Temple Mount, Judaism’s holiest site, which Islamists claim as their own.
In his address to the council, Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour said the “time is past due to acknowledge that Israel, the occupying power, rejects peace and is deliberately destroying the two-state solution.”
Mansour appealed to the 15-nation council to support the draft resolution on setting 2016 as the date for an Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria, as well as Gaza – despite the fact that Israel already withdrew from there in 2005 – and to set a course for Palestinian statehood.
He invited the council ambassadors to visit Gaza, as Ban did last week, and emphasized the “centrality” of the United Nations in the search for peace after US efforts to re-start peace talks failed.
Israeli Deputy Ambassador David Roet took a swipe at European countries that have moved toward recognition of Palestinian statehood, most recently Sweden and the UK, saying such actions would not advance peace.
“By prematurely recognizing a state of Palestine, European governments are sending a message that Palestinians do not need to make hard choices and they are undermining efforts to bring about a real and lasting change in our region,” he said.
Gaza ceasefire talks are due to resume next week in Cairo to address Palestinian calls for ending the Israeli blockade and Israeli demands for disarming Hamas.
AFP contributed to this report
