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Israel Denounces U.N. Call for Mideast Observer Force
JERUSALEM, Dec. 21 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Continuing its rejection of any international monitoring of the military campaign against Palestinians, Israel denounced Friday a non-binding resolution adopted by the U.N. General Assembly overnight, which calls for observers to be sent to the occupied Palestinian territories, news agencies reported.
"Israel can only reject such a resolution, whose manifest intention is to divert the attention of the international community to the need to combat terrorism," claimed Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yaffa Ben Ari, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
"This unilateral decision ... cannot help but damage the chances for a peaceful settlement," Ben Ari said. He added: "there can be no peace negotiations before a halt to the terrorism and violence."
An overwhelming majority passed the Palestinian-sponsored resolution demanded by the Arab League and the Non-Aligned Movement, debated in an emergency session Thursday.
The vote came after Israel's chief ally, the United States, torpedoed a similar resolution in the U.N. Security Council Saturday. The U.S. representative complained that language in the resolution ignored facts on the ground, particularly a recent spate of deadly Palestinian bombings in Israel and the occupied territories.
The General Assembly passed the latest resolution with 124 votes, with only six countries voting against, including Israel and the United States. Twenty-five countries abstained, including the United Kingdom.
The General Assembly also passed a resolution condemning Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem, calling them illegal and an obstacle to peace.
The assembly vote on Thursday has no binding authority but carries the weight of international opinion, reported the Israeli daily newspaper,
Ha'aretz.
The measure condemned acts of terror against Israelis and Palestinians, demanded an end to nearly 15 months of Mideast violence and asked for a monitoring mechanism to bring in observers, which Israel strongly opposes.
The Assembly also passed a second resolution, demanding that Israel, as an occupying power, immediately refrain from such acts as willful killing, torture, and extensive destruction of property.
The vote on that second resolution was 133-4, with 16 abstentions.
In a veiled attack on the United States, the Palestinian U.N. observer, Nasser Al-Kidwa, said "the 15-member Security Council is being used by some only when it suits them."
The United States voted against both resolutions on Thursday.
"These one-sided resolutions do nothing to further the goals of ending the violence between the Palestinians and Israelis and to get both parties back to the peace table," U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte said.
"Terrorism cannot be justified by any cause," said Negroponte, who objected that the resolution made no reference to attacks on Israel.
"The resolutions invoke misleading language," claimed Israel's deputy U.N. ambassador Aaron Jacob, "and amount to an effort to provide diplomatic cover."
The request for the emergency Assembly session was made by Egypt on behalf of the Arab League and South Africa, which heads the Non-Aligned Movement.
Egypt's U.N. Ambassador, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said Wednesday that "supporters of the resolution believe an endorsement by the General Assembly would help the Palestinians and show that international legality and world opinion is… supporting the just needs of the Palestinian people under occupation."
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