A/38/PV.95 General Assembly

34.  The situation in the Middle East: reports of (he Secretary-General I. Mr. MOHAMMED (Nigeria): As this is the first time I have spoken at the current session of the General Assem- bly, I should like to congratulate you most heartily, Sir, on your unanimous election as President of the thirty- eighth session of the .&sembly. We are confident that, given your well-known diplomatic skills and dedication to the United Nations, the session will be led to a suc- cessful conclusion. 2. Once again, as in previous years, the United Nations is preoccupied with the situation in the Middle East. The issue of Palestine, which is the core of the Middle East problem, has so far defied a just, equitable and com- prehensive solution. Consequently, the situation in the Middle East remains as volatile as ever and continues to constitute a singular threat to international peace and security, in spite of the numerous resolutions, decisions and recommendations of the Security Council and the General Assembly. 3. Recent developments in the region, particularly the sporadic military conflict, have attracted the serious attention of my country, My delegation views with serious concern the continued Israeli aggression against the Pales- tinians in the occupied Arab territories. It is time for Israel and its powerful allies to realize that the solution of the Middle East question can only be achieved through a negotiated settlement, and not by force of arms. Aggres- sion by Israel will only serve to exacerbate tensions in the region. The 1982 invasion of Lebanon by Israel clearly shows the futility of attempting to find a military solution to the Middle East problem. We are obliged to condemn such recourse to force for the same reasons that the whole world deplored the Holocaust suffered by the Jews under the Nazis. 4. As a direct consequence of the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, we now have a new and dangerous phenom- enon in the Middle East problem, that is, the direct injection of the super-Powers. The introduction of the so-called multinational force has brought more tragedy to the Middle East and has escalated the tension there today. We deplore the presence of this force and call for its withdrawal. We also call for the restoration of the legitimate role of UNIFIL. 5. The recent fratricidal Palestinian conflict in Tripoli, Lebanon, is deeply regrettable and totally undermines the Palestinians’ just struggle. However, we reiterate our con- tinued support for the legitimate struggle of the Pales- tinians for their homeland. We call on all Palestinians to solve their internal problems by peaceful and demo- cratic means. It is clear from the outcome of the recent tragedy that such fraticidal fighting can only play into 1547 A/38/PV.95 Tuesday, 13 Decemlrer I983, aI 3.35 p.m. NEW YORK the hands of lsrael and its supporters by giving them further pretexts for escalating the tension in the Middle East, as they are currently doing. 6. The outcome of the internal Palestinian squabbles is that Mr. Arafat is now being forced to evacuate his forces and himself from Lebanon. The United Nations offer of assistance is right and commendable for the protection of the Palestinians, but we note with regret and condemnation the apparent determination of the Israeli Government to prevent the granting to the Pales- tine Liberation Organization [PLO] of safe conduct out of Lebanon. The United Nations and the international community should prevail upon Israel and its supporters to guarantee the safe passage of Arafat and his men out of Lebanon. 7. My delegation equally condemns the escalation of tension in Lebanon through the recent series of aerial bombings there, ostensibly as retaliatory strikes. There is no wisdom in the threat of, or :he use of, such military retaliation. The projection of, and the use of, military force is not the answer to the Middle East problem. We also view with grave concern the conclusion of the so- called strategic alliance between the United States and Israel. Such an unholy alliance will only serve to make Israel more arrogant and intransigent on the Middle East question. 8. The time has come to consider an alternative to the super-Power approach and to impose a solution in the Middle East. The time has also come to do away with the military option, as force is not the answer. The time has come for the challenge of peace-a just, equitable, lasting and comprehensive peace achieved under the aus- pices of the United Nations. In this connection, it is with great satisfaction and hope that my delegation takes note of the outcome of the International Conference on the Question of Palestine, held at Geneva from 29 August to 7 September 1983. Among the things that the report of the Conference calls for is the convening of a United Nations international peace conference on the Middle East.’ Participants in such a conference should include the Palestinians themselves, the other interested parties and the two super-Powers-the United States and the Soviet Union. 9. It is the view of my delega?ion that for such an international conference to succeed, it would have to be based on the following framework: first, the implemen- tation of all the resolutions, decisions and recommenda- tions of the United Nations; secondly, the withdrawal of all foreign troops from Lebanon; thirdly, total with- drawal by Israel from all Palestinian and Arab territories occupied since 1967; fourthly, the sovereign exercise by the Palestinian people of its inalienable rights, including the right to self-determination, the right to return to its homeland and the right to establish an independent State in Palestine; fifthly, the right of the PLO, the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, to participate on an equal footing in the international con- ference aimed at finding a just and lasting solution to the Middle East problem; and, sixthly, the recognition of and respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and having signed a peace treaty with the Zionist enemy, has had to rely for its survival upon the so-called presence of the so-called United States peace-keeping forces. 15. The United States is, therefore, facing a paradox. Its allies, such as the United Kingdom, are letting it down. Some members of the British Parliament have commented on the recent American role in Lebanon as stuoid. The American Dubiic is losing its oatience with go;ernment policy reg’arding Lebanon, a’s it has been counting the increasing numbers of American soldiers killed in Lebanon. The House of Representatives and the Senate, while trying to be very tolerant and patient under the circumstances, embarrass the President and occa- sionally make unfriendly remarks, which may prove very disturbing to a President who wishes to be returned cheer- fully to the White House after the coming presidential election. But to withdraw from Lebanon would be tanta- mount to bringing about the fall of President Gemayel’s r&me, to the support of whom the United States wants to be honestly committed, and without whom nothing would remain of the famous peace treaty with the Zionist enemy. 16. However., remaining in Lebanon in order to keep the President m power sharply increases the distrust by the Lebanese masses of the present regime, and adds to its insecurity. Hence, withdrawal would be detrimen- tal to the intended objectives which brought President Gemayel to power. 17. The PRESIDENT (interpretation from Spanish): I call upon the representative of Lebanon on a point of order. 18. Mr. FAKHOURY (Lebanon) (interprefufion from Arubic): I would like to draw the attention of the repre- sentative of the islamic Republic of Iran to the fact that he cannot refer to a legitimate President in this way. 19. Mr. RAJAIE-KHORASSANI (Islamic Republic of Iran): Now, to remain or not to remain in Lebanon is the basic problem. If we were engaged in scientific research and encountered a contradictory situation such as this, then I think the scientists would go back to the presuppositions, the axioms and the fundamental idea on the basis of which the whole research started, in order to find out what was wrong from the very beginning. If some honest, scientifically minded people wanted to adopt the same procedure here, they would then go back to the basic presumptions and assumptions on the basis of which the troops were deployed in Lebanon. There must have been something wrong there, otherwise we could not have come to the question of whether to remain or not, only to find both courses wrong and impractical. 20. The second great mistake of American foreign pol- icy in Lebanon was the direct military involvement of Its forces. The United States forces. like the Zionist agares- sor’s forces and in collaboration with them, have”gom- barded not only military bases but civilians. In the early days of its presence, United States planes bombarded the villages of Aliea and Behamduon, and recently they bom- barded the Syrian forces that were stationed in Lebanon upon the recommendations of the League of Arab States. The Uriited States is, therefore, openly a party to the conflict., and its insistence upon the restoration of stability to the situation in Lebanon is entirely irrelevant. It must prepare itself-as officials of the United States themselves have said on television-for further punishment from the Lebanese Muslim masses and, consequently, for further retaliations against innocent people-a vicious circle. The alleged peace-keeping role of the United States naval forces and fleets is therefore not very much different from that of the so-called Soviet contingency forces in Afghanistan, who claim similarly to be there at the invi- tation of another “legitimate” rCgime which cannot sur- vive without the presence of foreign forces. So much for the role of the United States as part of a multinational Force in Lebanon. 2 1. The recent alliance concluded between the Zionist base of imperialism and the United States is another factor contributing co the exacerbation of the situation in Lebanon. Members are aware of the delegation which travelled from the occupied territories to the United States late in November. It was headed by an Irish-born Zionist who was accompanied by a Polish-born ex-leader of a Zionist terrorist organization, both of whom had emi- grated to occupied Palestine. The former has been given recognition by United States officiais as President and the latter as Prime Minister of the fabricated political non-entity called Israel. The Irish gentleman even ad- dressed the General Assembly in the same disguise as President of the base of imperialism. 22. Actually, he is not the only professional terrorist who has found it easy to enter the international club of the United Nations. A famous Iranian terrorist, who is stationed in Paris, also sent his brother to New York to organize an anti-Iranian demonstration in front of the gates of the United Nations. He, too, easily entered United Nations Headauarters and ennaned in a Iot of lobbying in order to engineer the sub&ion of a reso- lution against the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Third Committee. 23. Last year, another counter-revolutionary Iranian managed to creep into the General Assembly, grab my Foreign Minister’s speech and tear it to pieces. This year’s terrorists, however, entered the United Nations after having years ago carried out certain procedures to gain recognition-and as soon as someone gains recognition there is no problem. If those two Iranian fellows had observed certain procedural trivialities, no doubt they, too, would have gained the necessary recognition and would probably have been able to “cake the places reserved for them at the side of the Chamber”. In our glossary, those terrorists that have supersonic aircraft, modern tanks and surface-to-surface missiles in order to terrorize other nations are still terrorists. 24. In any case, the two Zioni!:*.s who came to the United States in November also possess many tanks and suoersonic aircraft. They can even make them. There are ruhours that they even-have the ability to manufacture nuclear bombs. However, they have been murdering and occupying for the past 40 years. They are ex-members of professional national or international terrorist orga- nizations, and the quality or quantity of the property in their possession does not change their ugly mode of life as terrorists. 25. In order to project the events which were taking place or were about to take place in the United States a.: something different from a conspiracy against the Jvluslim people of the Middle East to be carried out by 1 he Zionist agents of imperialism, a face-saving device, a new alliance, was necessary and one was therefore concluded between the United States and an illegitimate Government in a model country called Israel. As shown on television programmes, the two, agents convinced the United States that it should shoulder a fairer share of the heavy expenditures usually incurred in the course of that base’s defence of United States interests and assume more direct participation and immediate involvement in the actual military undertakings in the area. This alliance has had splendid political consequences and colossal mali- cious military outcomes. 26. Politically, it has revealed the real nature of the United States Administration and its foreign policies and also its ties to its dirty Zionist base in the Xliddle East. Consequently, even those most uninformed in the area have learned much that they could hardly ha\e learned in years of study of political literature concerni?g the area. The educative aspect of that alliance is lar beyond estimation. Militarily, it has put more deadly weapons and military hardware and more material sup- plies at the disposal of a bunch of terrorists who have been bringing insecurity and murder to our area. How- ever, on the whole our political gains are more, and more important, than the military losses. It is not something insignificant for many people in the area really to get to know the nature of imperialism; and only through such alliances can it be known. Therefore, the alliance has been very revealing and informative, but the situation in the Middle East, for the Assembly’s information, has also been drastically changed. 27. The calm and friendly people of Lebanon, thanks to such developments as the recent alliance, no longer hesitate to challenge seriously the arrogant oppressors who have developed the bad habit of pointing their guns at their opponent when inviting him to the negotiation table. The entire population of Lebanon numbers less than the addicts in New York City. The professional beggars of New York, who collect their scanty food from the garbage bins, number about 200,000. Even the con- cept of 200,000 does not seem to be as expressive and revealing as the actual observation of the men and women who search for anything edible in the garbage bins on Third Avenue every day. Nevertheless, a rich, powerful, big country like the United States claims that tiny Leba- non is a threat to international peace and security. There- fore, the Government of the rich, powerful United States has decided to send troops to that tiny country in order to restore international peace and security. 28. What is the population of Grenada? Let us suppose that all the allegations that the mother base of imperialism produces against Grenada or Nicaragua are absolutely right. Let us accept for the sake of argument that what- ever they claim is correct. Let us suppose that Nicaragua is a dreadful threat to the “leaitimate. democratically elected rtgime of Honduras”. Let us aiso suppose that Nicaragua pleads guilty to sending a few Soviet-made guns-a few Kalashnikovs, for instance-to El Salva- dor. Let us also assume that the “legitimate democratic rtgime” of El Salvador has simply extended a friendly invitation to the friendly country of the United States to send some of its military advisers to play golf with their Salvadorian counterparts. Let us suppose that Grenada bought weapons from the Soviet Union, even through Cuba. Let us also suppose that the current regime of Lebanon is the sole, legitimate representative of the peo- ple of Lebanon and can therefore subsist without the presence of the multinational forces. 29. And let us suppose that the people of Lebanon are wrong in not wanting that regime. Now, please tell us who is more dangerous to international peace and secur- ity? Who is more of a threat to the entire world-the United States Government or the sum total of Lebanon, Grenada, Nicaragua and Cuba, all together? Who is more dangerous now? Please be honest with yourselves and tell the true message of your conscience to the rest of the General Assembly: Who is more dangerous, the sum total of Lebanon, Grenada, Nicaragua and Cuba, or the United States Administration? Some people must feel ashamed of themselves. 30. I would appreciate it if representatives would kindly formulate the same argument with regard to the other super-?ower. That is, let us agree to all the allegations that the other super-Power produces and then let us ask the same question. Let us assume for the sake of argu- ment that the Afghan Mujahidin receive military support from the impcriahst agents. Let us also agree that Paki- stan intervenes in the internal affairs of Afghanistan. Let us take it for granted that the Solidarity labour union is indeed dancing to the American guitarist and is fully organized and supported by some agents paid by the West -let us just suppose, for the sake of argument; we do not want any discussion on the substance of these issues. Who now is more dangerous-the KGB or the sum total of the Afghan Mujahidin, President Zia’s regime and the entire Solidarity labour union? 3 1. True, in the context of political debates in the United Nations everybody may produce arguments against everybody, but there must be a moment of honesty in the life of each of us in which we speak nothing but the truth. It is that moment of honesty that must permeate throughout the entire life of the Administrations of the super-Powers. Please, super-Powers, come back to hon- esty, sincerity, modesty and humility. Please give up arrogance, treachery and fraud. In the eyes of God, you are as small as anybody else. Do not be deceived by your armies, planes and naval forces-you, by virtue of being human beings, are as vulnerable as anyone else. You allow yourselves to cheat because you have taken it for granted that the small nations need to rely on the law more than you do and because you think that your deci- sions can bend the law. You think you are the law. You think you can cheat and get away with it because othet people are not lawless or are not lawless enough to do whatever they can against you. Remember, even in your fraud you still count on the honesty of others. Please let others count on your honesty and you will see that our world would be a happy one even without your Com- mittee on Disarmament. 32. You bring our enemy, who has occupied our Holy Land and our sanctuaries, into your country and with him you bring agreements of military and technical co- operation and joint military manoeuvres, and you still expect the Palestinians, the Lebanese and the survivors of Sabra and Shatila just to stand idly and watch you? You think you can simply go to Lebanon and in the name of Israel kill and destroy and occupy and then, under the guise of multinational peace-keeping forces, enter Leba- non across another frontier, from another direction, to support your legitimate regime of so-and-so; do you think you can give the signal to your so-called Israeli troops to proclaim their readiness to withdraw from Lebanon provided that others leave Lebanon? This game is already played out. It has been played far too long to work any longer. We know you very well. 33. The Arab ambassadors, who you think do not know, know you very well too. They understand all your divi- sive, fraudulent games, the games that your media play on us. They all understand your meaning of the words “Shiite fundamentalist” and your intentions behind your repetition of that term. They all understand the com- ments of the Zionist humanist who, immediately after the famous film The Day After, said, “What happens if the atomic bomb falls into the hands of someone like Khomeini?” Everybody understood what he meant. All those people, and even your own people, who you think you have been able to keep ignorant, do understand some of the sinister intentions behind such insipid, taunting jokes. The supercilious Powers had better know that the best guarantee of their security is meticulous concern for the security of other people. Maintain other people’s security and your own security is guaranteed. 34. The entire universe, the entire world, is based on order, on honest order. That is why we have universities , and sciences, and social and political relations cannot be an exception to the rule. You must return to honesty if you ever dream of happiness For yourselves and for the rest of the world. Do not manipulate political issues. You must come back to honesty. The United States must evacuate its Zionist agents from Palestine peacefully. Then you will see that there will be no problem in the area. They must evacuate their agents in the same way that the Soviet Union must withdraw its troops from Afghanistan. 35. Prior to the Zionist invasion of Lebanon, Mr. Brze- zinski, the mastermind of United States foreign policy, said on :levision that the United States must make every effort to prevent the unification of the Palestinian and the Islamic revolutions. He was wrong. His statement was not a factual, descriptive statement. It was a hypothetical, prescriptive sentence, and ycu understand the difference. A few months after that television programme, the United States officials decided to launch a sort of spider-man programme to prevent the unification of the two revolu- tions. The Zionists were given the green light to invade Lebanon, to burn and murder, to expel thousands of the Palestinians from Lebanon and, finally, to build the slaughterhouses of Sabra and Shatila in order to ensure absolutely that the prevention of that feared unification was achieved. But those very criminal pre- ventive measures actually motivated, reinforced and hastened the unification. 36. The Holy Koran tells us how the Pharaoh decided to kill all the pregnant women of the family of Israel in order to prevent the realization of a vision that a son would be born to that family who would topple him, the Pharaoh, from the throne. He just did not know that his very preventive plan of killing the pregnant women became a part of the divine plan to bring Moses, may peace be upon him, to the palace of the Pharaoh, where he would be brought up by the Pharaoh’s sister. How do you know that your preventive measures are going to serve the purpose you are after? They will do that only if there is no God and everything is under your control, but there is a God, thanks be, a very powerful God. When you send your multinational forces to Lebanon, you just do not know how you are participating in the formation of the unification- that you are trying to prevent. The Holv Koran savs: “Thev elan and mot. and God also pla& and plot;, but All& is the be’st of the planners” [Surah VIII: 301. 37. The struggle which is nowadays going on in Leba- non is the perennial permanent struggle between faith in God, on the one hand, and faith in self-deified, self- centred, godless man, on the other. As a matter of fact, it is a struggle between men of God and men of Satan. All struggles are ultimately brought down to the same basic struggle: the one between the man of God and the man of Satan. It is the internal struggle of every individual as well. It is the struggle between Abel and Cain, the very old struggle which is still going on. 38. Nature, nature in the raw, including all it contains, is a faithful nature; it is obedient to the drommandments of God and follows the law accordincrlv. This obedient nature, just by functioning according lo-the natural laws inherent in the nature of events, is automatically obeying God. But man may withstand the Commandments of God. The Holy Koran says: “Have you not seen that unto Allah pray in adora- tion whosoever is in the heavens and whosoever is in the earth, and the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and the hills, and the trees, and the beasts, and many of mankind” -not all of them-“while there are manv unto whom the doom is just due. He whom Allah scorneth, there is none to give him honour. Lo! Allah doeth what He will. “These twain”-which means the believers and the disbelievers--“are two opponents who contend con- cerning their Lord. But as for those who disbelieve, garments of fire will be cut out for them; boiling fluid will be poured down onto their heads.” [Sumh XXZZ: 18 and 19.1 39. The Middle East is conducting this struggle. The Middle East is trying to be honest. an honest WorshiDDer obedient to the command of God. And it is condu&g that struggle very well. It is actively returning to its spir- itual life, a life which does not compromise nor does it surrender. 40. The Holy Koran says: “Therefore let those-who fight in the way of Allah, who sell this world’s life for the hereafter: Jnd who- ever fights in the way of Allah, then be he’slain or be he victorious, we shall grant him a mighty reward. “And what reason have you that you should not fight in the war of Allah and of the weak among men and women and children, those who say: Our Lord! cause us to go forth from this town, whose people are oppressed, and give us from Thee a guardian and give us from Thee a helper.” [Sarah IV: 74 and 75.1 Now this message is very important. It says: “Those who believe fight in the way of Allah, and those who disbelieve fight in the way of Satan”-this is the situation in the Middle East-“Fight therefore against the friends of Satan; surely the strategy of Sat,an is weak.” [Ibid.: 76.1 41. The solution to the problem is basically to end the oppression and the oppressive policies. For, as the verse I have just quoted says, Muslims have to struggle against oppression. In this strugJ$e, there are two opposing forces. The major differences between the two opposing forces in Lebanon are very clear. One group believes in God, believes in decent human relations, believes in an honest approach to problems, does not have any army, vet has no choice but to defend itself. The other eroun does not believe in God-or even if it does, th$Ybd~krf is irrelevant so far as daily life is concerned; decency in human relations, if appreciated at all, is appreciated only to the extent thz+ x tiw:~ not touch its material interest; it makes use of 2s gullpower to compensate for the invalidity of its arzum?- CS. The former takes the divine texts as the model for Its behaviour; the divine texts for the latter are irrelevant to daily life. The former has an entirely different epistemological view. It believes: “Fear God and He will teach you and will grant you know- ledge” [Sarah ZZ: 2821. It also believes that knowledge is a light that God sheds, which penetrates the heart of anyone He chooses. This group-therefore seeks know- ledge from God and follows His orders without denvine thescientific epistemology. The other group believes or& in its pragmatic, scientific epistemology and has no regard for the divine light. 42. There are many other social and political differences to which we do not need to refer at this stage. But the two fronts are well known and their positions are quite clear. Under such circumstances, there is land and water, there is oil as well as other raw materials: there is cheaD labour, there is a rich market. Therefore, ihere are multi- national companies, Zionist hordes, fleets and naval forces belonging to the materialist aggressor and puppet rCgimes-all of them against the defenceless. innocent pe%ple who have been exploited culturally, materially, physically, psychologically, socially and politically and who desire to liberate themselves. That is the situation in Lebanon and in the Middle East as a whole. 43. All these factors are at work in the complex situation of the Middle East. From our point of view, the good thing about it is that the motives and the plans are no longer unknown. Everybody knows the truth. The people have learned the crux of the matter. From the viewpoint of the enemy, the bad thing about it is that the motives and the plans are no longer unknown and that the people have learned the crux of the matter. That is the situation in the Middle East. 44. Our proposed solution to the situation is as follows. Those who have brought their forces and their bases of imperialism to our area are part-in fact the main part- of the problem; they are not part of the solution, and they should not make the mistake of thinking they are part of the solution. They have to leave us alone. To say that if one of them goes out the other enemy will come in is not a valid argument. It does not justify intervention, occupation and murder. The Middle East does not belong to any super-Power. Both must go. The land of Palestine belongs only to the Palestinians. The aggressors must redefine their foreign policies regarding the area and give up their oppressive and exploitative intentions, and then there will be no problem in the Middle East. We say this to you super-Powers: Please do not, either of you, defend us against the other. Please do not defend the people of Lebanon, for God’s sake; give them a chance to decide for themselves. We in the Middle East do not interfere in your internal problems. We do not want to know what you do to your own people in Washington or in Moscow. We expect the same degree of independence in return. But if you wish to impose your repressive policies and preserve your Zionist base of imperialism in our area, you are in trouble because we are jn trouble. 45. The koran tells us: “Verily God loves those who fight in his cause in battle array as if they are a solid armoured structure” [Suroh LXI: 4]. The Koran also teIls us: “Make ready for them whatever forces and strings of horses you can, to terrify the enemy of God and your enemy and others besides them that !iou know not. God knows them and whatever you expend in the way of Allah shall be repaid you in full; you will not be wronged.” [Sarah VIII: 60.1 46. That is the only choice left to the people of the Middle East. That is the situation in the Middle East. 47. Mr. FAKHOURY (Lebanon) (inlerpretufion from Arabic): The delegation of Lebanon has read the report of the Secretary-General on agenda item 34, entitled “The situation in the Middle East” [AN8/4.58]. It gives me great pleasure to exteni to him our thanks for the interest he is taking in the situation and the efforts he is making to alleviate the suffering caused by the tragic crisis in Lebanon. We do, however, have one comment to make about the report. It is dated 30 September 1983. Hence, it was prepared before the Security Council meeting of 18 October 1983 and it was not possible to include in it a reference to Council resolution 538 (1983), under which the man&te of UNIFIL was extended for six months, until 19 April 1984. We merely wished to point that fact out. 48. For nine years, Lebanon has been the arena for wars between many parties with different ambitions and inter- ests. During those nine years, when the country ran with the blood of the innocent, many events, many tragedies, occurred and many great sacrifices were made. The inter- national community‘s ignorance of the importance and priority of the crisis, as well as its failure to respond to the calls of Lebanese officials and other friends and brothers, enabled the occupiers to seize Lebanese territory and settle there as if their occupation were to be eternal, knowing no limits of space or time. This also enabled the occupiers to behave as if they had an absolute right, unlimited by the legitimacy that is deeply rooted in the hearts and institutions of the Lebanese, and undeterred by moral or humanitarian values, international agree- ments, laws and norms. Thus the crisis became exacerbated over time and developed into a very complex question. 49. Many speakers have said at this session of the Assembly that the question has overshadowed the most complex issues in the Middle East. The Secretary-General says in his report that “preoccupation with the events in Lebanon has tended to overshadow the consideration of major aspects of the Middle East problem” [ibid., para. 391. But if the events in Lebanon had not been major events in themselves, they would not have been able to overshadow major aspects of the Middle East problem. The correct evaluation of the situation neces- sitates reformulating that statement as follows: “Pre- occupation with the events in Lebanon has tended to overshadow consideration of the other major aspects of the Middle East problem”. We believe that that is what the Secretary-General meant. 50. On Lebanon’s Independence Day, a little more than two weeks ago, President Amin Gemayel made a state- ment in which he pointed out the way to overcome the crisis. The following sentences from his statement sum up the Government’s practical policy for solving the crisis: “I can attribute all the ramifications and complica- tions to the one most important issue-the occupation of our territory and the shrinking of the authority and the security forces of the State. We can hope for a solution or a cure only on the basis of a rescue effort crystallized around three direct objectives: first, and most important, mobiiizing the national will around the priority of termination of the occupation; secondly, it is important to work in co-operation with friendly major Powers to secure total Israeli withdrawal; thirdly, reaching an understanding with the Syrian Arab Repub- lic so as to set a timetable for the withdrawal of its forces from Lebanon.” Mr. Bhatt (Nepal), Vice-President, took the Chair. 5 1. There is indeed a national consensus and a national determination to terminate the occupation. There is indeed serious work going on continuously to secure total Israeli withdrawal. There are indeed contacts and efforts being made to reach an understanding with the Syrian Arab Republic so as to set a timetable for the withdrawal of its forces from Lebanon. In the mean time, the inter- national community and influential major Powers have a historic responsibility to support the Lebanese Govern- ment in helping it achieve the goals for which it is striving, which would secure the restoration of its sovereignty over its national soil inside internationally recognized bound- aries. This support is essential in order to avoid more tragedies, more moral and physical pain, more destruc- tion of cities and villages and more deterioration of the financial and economic sectors in Lebanon. It is indis- pensable for the maintenance of the peace and security of Lebanon, of the region and of the world, and for an effective contribution to a final radical solution to the crisis. 52. Lebanon has not submitted any draft resolution of its own at this session, because the Security Council is still seized of the question of Lebanon. We officially submitted our demands to the Council, in an integrated, complete draft resolution, on 19 September this year.2 We leave it to the President of the Security Council to act when he believes the circumstances have become favourable for those demands to be incorporated in a draft resolution of the Council. The demands are an indivisible whole, because they are the result of a con- sidered, free Lebanese decision and of a strong Lebanese conviction about their legitimacy and validity. The adop- tion of any partial resolution would gravely harm those demands and weaken the solution. 53. I feel duty-bound to reaffirm here once again the basic principles of the Lebanese position, so as to avoid any misinterpretation or wrong impression. First, Leba- non is determined to safeguard the unity of its people and territory and to maintain its independence and freedom of decision, as well as to restore its full sovereignty over every inch of its national soil. Secondly, Lebanon is determined to secure the complete and total withdrawal of Israeli forces to the internationally recognized bound- aries. 1 ebanon condemns all military acts undertaken by Israel; it strongly demands the cessation of its practices in occupied southern Lebanon and the measures on the Awali River by which it subjects officials and ordinary citizens to a thorough search when they travel to or from the south and forces them to carry passes and obtain authorizations, thus hampering freedom of movement and the transfer of goods. The continued imposition of these restrictions by Israel could lead to the separation of southern Lebanon from the motherland. The use of security requirements to justify those acts is as ill-founded as the Israeli presence in Lebanon is unjustified and illegal. Thirdly, Lebanon is also determined to make sure that all unauthorized forces, without exception, are with- drawn from its territory, because their presence is illegal; their presence is the direct cause of what has been hap- pening in Lebanon-fighting, bloodshed and destruction -for which Lebanon alone is paying the price. Fourthly, UNIFIL and the Truce Supervision Observer Group of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization in Palestine both have a role and a mandate in accordance with Security Council resolutions 426 (1978), 5 16 (1982) and others. Facilitating that role and mandate is vital to achieving the general goals for which they were sent there. Fifthly, the multinatior,al force is present in Lebanon at the request of the Lebanese Government. Their presence there is a purely Lebanese matter. Regrettably, it seems that some speakers here still continue to ignore the freely taken Lebanese decision, while there exist on the ter- ritories of some of their countries foreign forces invited by their Governments and as a result of the freely taken decision of those Governments. Sixthly, Lebanon has never interfered in the affairs of others, nor has it ever spoken on anybody’s behalf. Therefore, it does not allow anybody to’ speak on its behalf or decide for it what to accept and what to reject. Some hide behind the words “Lebanese people” to say what they want to say, not what the Lebanese people want to say, but that is a transparent ploy. The Lebanese people has never given them authority to speak on its behalf, nor has it made them the custodians of its destiny. There is a legitimate Government emanating from that peopte, representing it and making decisions and speaking on its behalf. A peo- ple such as the Lebanese people, which has suffered severely and whose sons are committed to accept sacri- fices, deserves life and survival and must be able to surmount crises and reconstruct its country without cus- todians or guardians. 54. The delegation of Lebanon pays a tribute to all international and multinational forces for standing by the Government and for their sympathy with the people in their difficult‘days. The delegation of Lebanon solemnly pays homage to the victims of those forces who have joined the scores of thousands of innocent Lebanese vic- tims who died so that Lebanon would survive as a haven of peace and brotherhood.