S/PV.2610 Security Council

As this is the first meeting of the Security Council for the month of October, I should like at the very outset to pay tribute, on behalf of the members of the Council, to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom, Sir Geoffrey Howe, and to Sir John Thomson, representative of the United Kingdom, for their service as President of the Council for the month of September. I am sure I speak for all members of the Council in expressing to them our admiration and deep appreciation for the great diplomatic skill with which they conducted the business of the Council last month. Adoption of the agenda The agenda was adopted. Letter dated 1 October 1985 from the Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Security Council (S/17509)

I should like to inform members of the Council that I have received letters from the representatives of Algeria, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Tunisia and Turkey in which they request to be invited to participate in the discussion of the item on the agenda. In conformity with the usual practice, I propose, with the consent of the Council, to invite those representatives to participate in the discussion, without the right to vote, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the provisional rules of procedure. At the invitaiion of the President, Mr. Card (Tunisia) and Mr. Netanyahu (Israel) took places at the Council table; Mr. Djoudi (Algeria), Mr. Salah (Jordan), Mr. AESabah (Kuwait), Mr. Azzarouk (Libyan Arab Jamahariya) and Mr. Ttirkmen (Turkey) took the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber.

I should also like to inform members of the Council that I have received a letter dated 2 October 1985 from the representative of Egypt [S/175123, which reads as follows: “I have the honour to request that the Security Council extend an invitation to Mr. Farouq Qaddoumi, Head of the Political Department and Member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, in accordance with the Council’s past practice, in connection with the Council’s consideration of the item presently on its agenda.” 4. The proposal by the representative of Egypt is not made pursuant to rule 37 or rule 39 of the provisional rules of the Security Council, but, if approved by the Council, the invitation to participate in the debate would confer on the Palestine Liberation (PLO) the same rights of participation as those conferred ‘on a Member State when it was invited to participate under rule 37. 5. Does any member of the Security Council wish to speak on this proposal? 6. Since no member of the Council wishes to speak at this stage, I shall make the following statement in my capacity as the representative of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 7. The United States has consistently taken the position that under the provisional rules of procedure of the Security Council, the only legal basis on which the Council may grant a hearing to persons speaking on behalf of nongovernmental entities is rule 39. 8. For 39 ye& the United States has supported a generous interpretation of rule 39 and would certainly not have objected had this matter been raised under that rule. We are, however, opposed to’special ad hoc departures from orderly procedure. 9. The United States consequently opposes extending to the PLO the same rights to participate in the proceedings of the Council as if that organization represented a Member State. We certainly believe in listening to all 10. For these reasons, the United States requests’that the terms of the proposed invitation be put to the vote, The United States will of course vote against the proposal. 11. I now resume my function as PRESIDE.l$T of the Council. . 12. If no other member of the Council wishes toipeak, I shall take it that the Council is ready to vote on the proposal bv Egypt. A vote was taken by show of hands. “’ : ’ Infavour: Burkina Faso, China, Egypt, India, Madagascar, Peru, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago; ‘Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Against: United States of America. .. Abstaining: Australia, Denmark, France,$ United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. l%e proposal was adopted by 10 votes to I, with 4 abstentions. At the invitation of the President, Mr. i;broug Qaddoumi (Palestine Liberation Organization) took a place at the Council table.

I have to inform the Council that I have received a letter dated 2 October 1985 from the representative of Kuwait [S/Z75I.?‘j, which reads as follows: . “In my capacity as Chairman of the Group of Arab States for the month of October, I have the honour to request that the Security Council extend an invitation under rule. 39 of the provisional rules of procedure to Mr. Clovis Maksoud, Permanent Observer of the League of Arab States to the United Nations, to participate in the discussion in the Council of the item presently on its agenda.” 14. If I hear no objection, I shall take it that the Council agrees to extend an invitation under rule 39 of the provisional rules of procedure to Mr. Maksoud. It was so decided.

The Security Council is meeting today in response to the request contained in the letter dated 1 October 1985 from the representative of Tunisia to the President of the Council [S/175!9$ 18. The Council has before it an official communication from my Government describing in detail an act of aggression against Tunisia for which Israel has officially claimed responsibility. That act of aggression resulted in the loss of many human lives, which initial estimates put at more than 60 dead and more than 100 injured. Furthermore, it caused material damage and destruction on a large scale. 19. Contrary to what Israeli officials are claiming, the place chosen for this cowardly attack is situated in an exclusively residential urban area which has traditionally been the home of Tunisian families and a small number of Palestinian civilians who had to flee from Lebanon following the invasion of that country by the Israeli army. ’ 20. The Israeli raid constitutes a blatant act of aggression against the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Tunisia and a flagrant violation of the rules and norms of international law, as well as the principles set fort in the Charter. 21. Nothing can justify this act of terrorism committed by and duly acknowledged by the Government of a Member State against another Member State, Tunisia, which has so often unequivocally condemned terrorism of every kind and from whatever source. Countries that have denounced State terrorism and declared their determination to combat it cannot but join forces within the Security Council to take appropriate measures in response to this crime. Any attempt to justify it, any indulgence shown to its perpetrators, no matter what the pretext, can only encourage aggression and set the seal of approval on the aggressor. In any case, my country would have no altemative but to consider that an unfriendly gesture, from which it would draw the necessary conclusions. 22. Indeed, Tunisia has unfailingly denounced aggression, condemned the aggressor and assured the victim of its active sympathy. We did so when it was United States nationals who were the victims. We did so when it was French nationals who were the victims. And we do so today in this chamber, as we pay our respects to the memory of the Soviet citizen who was the victim in Lebanon of blind violence and the deterioration of a situation with which: the aggressor against, Tunisia today is not unconnected: 24. Tunisia’s aim in inviting the Council to condemn vigorously both the deliberation act of aggression and its perpetrators, and to demand that they make just and full reparation for all damage caused, is not merely to seek the -sanctions imposed by international legality and morality; we are also calling upon the Council to declare its deter-m& nation to avert and prevent any repetition of such acts of terrorism committed by a Member State. We are attempting also to preserve the chances for a peaceful settlement in the Middle East, which Israel is clearly attempting to undermine. 25. The Tunisian Government is confident that the Council will give its utmost attention to the grave situation created by the act of aggression planned and carried out by the Israeli Government against the sovereignty of Tunisia and peace in the region, and that it will adopt the necessary resolutions.

The next speaker is the Deputy Premier and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber ‘Al-Sabah, who wishes to make a statement on behalf of the Group of Arab States. I welcome him and invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

I congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the Security Council. You represent a country which, in its capacity as a permanent member of the Council, has a special role to play in the maintenance of international peace and security. In addition, your wide experience and outstanding abilities will enable you to accomplish your task with great competence. 28. I pay a tribute also to your predecessor, Sir John Thomson, the representative of the United Kingdom, for the wisdom and competence with which he conducted the Council’s business last month. 29. May I thank the Council for allowing me to participate in the debate on the item now under discussion, on behalf of the Arab countries, in my capacity as Chairman of the Group of Arab States this month. 30. The Council is meeting today to discuss a new act of aggression by the Zionist entity, which has no regard whatsoever for the sanctity of international laws and norms. This act of aggression is now added to the very long list of the continuous series of Israeli acts of aggression directed not only against the Palestinian people and the neighbour- 31.’ The brutal air raid against the Tunisian capital is a flagrant violation of the sovereignty’ of Tunisia, a sister Arab country, as well as of the integrity of its skies and land. ‘It ,is also an open act of aggression against the Charter of 1 the United Nations, which guarantees the sovereigrity of States and their territorial integrity, and against the international laws that disapprove such illegal intemational behaviour, and indeed against ethics, which normally constitues the major moral arbiter in the relations among those nations that respect the Charter and cherish the sanctity of international laws. .,: 32. The Arab States strongly condemn this blatant aggression and declare their total solidarity with and full support for the sister State of Tunisia. 33. It is indeed ironic that this aggressive Zionist entity, which had an illegitimate birth, should persist in committing illegal acts of aggression and crimes with a total disregard for all international laws and norms represented by the world Organization which had a major helping hand in its creation. 34. Since that alien entity was implanted in the midst of Arab lands and Arab countries, we. have seen that the colonialist way of thinking-from which the idea of creating such an entity, which could not be anything but a byproduct of colonialism, originated-still constitutes the cornerstone of the way of thinking and the behaviour of the rulers in Tel Aviv, who have made a habit of not allowing the slightest legal or ethical motive to stand in the way of their ambitions and cyclical policies of aggression. In addition to the iron-fist policy by which they rule the population of the Palestinian and other occupied Arab territories, we find them from time to time striking out at secure, independent and sovereign Arab States, in a desperate effort to reaffirm their adherence to the colonialist theories and traditions which the world Organization seeks to eliminate for good. 35. Like similar acts of aggression against the sovereignty of other Arab countries, the Israeli air raid against the Tunisian capital summarizes the way of thinking of Zionist colonialism, which in no circumstances whatsoever allows the slightest check to its ambitions and objectives; it is a way of thinking which embodies the idea that all means are acceptable and should be used, including the stretching of the long arm of aggression, to attack the sanctity of independent and sovereign States on pretexts which only the kind of sick logic used by Israel and its supporters could accept. 36. The limitless arrogance of the Zionist entity, which is a natural extension of the extinct colonial era, would not be displayed but fcr the fact that that entity is sure that it can do with impunity whatever it wants, no matter how much it is in violation of international laws and norms. 38. We saw that happen in the aftermath of the recent criminal raid on the Tunisian capital, when the United States announced that that heinous Israeli crime was justifled and concurred with the Israeli argument that the crime had been committed in self-defence, without any reference whatsoever to the aggression against Tunisia’s sovereignty, carried out by aircraft manufactured in the United States. It seems that United States officials, who repeatedly announced during the hijacking of the TWA airliner that retaliation against that terrorist act would in itself constitute a terrorist act, have changed their minds and are now saying “As a matter of policy, retaliation against terrorist acts is a legitimate response and an expression of selfdefence”. 39. We are convinced that the Israeli crime falls within the category of ofticial State terrorism. Israeli has made unrelenting efforts to destroy all traces of the PLO, the some legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, wherever it is to be found. It has done so through its invasion of Lebanon, with all its terrible consequences, such as the murder of thousands of innocent people,‘the destruction of cities and villages and even the siege of the Lebanese capital; by its adoption of policies of coercion and repression against the populations of the occupied territories, where people are deported from the land of their forefathers merely on suspicion of having connections with the PLO, in flagrant violation of the provisions of the fourth Geneva Convention;’ and, indeed, by the barbaric raid on the PLO headquarters in the Tunisian capital, involving the murder of innocent people in a heavily populated, civilian area. 40. All those actions point in the same direction-to the Zionist design to usurp the remaining Arab land of Palestine by perpetrating various crimes aimed at the.Judaization of those lands after the eviction of their Arab population, and eventually taking possession of them, in violation of the Charter principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force, 42. Had the Zionists read history, they would have come across a well-known fact which has been well learned by the former colonial Powers after they had paid dearly for it-that attempts to suppress peoples or destroy liberation movements by brute force, no matter what name is given to those attempts, are fruitless, and that victory always crowns the struggle of the oppressed peoples. 43. To justify the crime committed against the sovereignty of our sister State of Tunisia, Israel and its friends now say that the attack was directed against the PLO and not against Tunisia. In the past, in order to justify the barbaric Israeli invasion of Lebanon, they said that it was meant to protect the northern Israeli settlements. Now, since Palestinians are to be found in innumerable Arab and non-Arab countries all over the world, because of their dispersal by the Zionist entity and as a result of the creation of that entity, does that mean that those countries-no matter how many they are or how far away they are from the Zionist entity-are potential targets of Israeli aggression whenever that appeals to the rulers in Tel Aviv, and that the long arm of the Israeli forces, as the Defence Minister of the Zionist entity announced yesterday, will reach them wherever they are? 44. We should like to put the following question to those who follow such logic: if the barbaric and beastly acts that you are trying to pass off as legitimate self-defence can indeed be regarded as such, why was there any need to have a Charter and why is there a need for the Charter to affirm the sovereignty and territorial integrity of States? We also ask Israel and those who concur with its twisted logic: where would the Israeli forces draw the line in acting in self-defence? The Charter was adopted in order to be implemented, in order to save the world from just such Nazi or Fascist way of thinking, which gives those who follow it absolute freedom to act with total disregard for the sovereignty and security of other States. 45. When Israel insists on not abiding by relevant United Nations resolutions, which express the will of the intemational community, the Council has a duty to discuss taking appropriate measures under the Charter in order to ensure that Israel abides by those resolutions. 46. Israel’s sense of total impunity in its indifference to international law and its disregard of relevant United Nations resolutions is organically connected with the Council’s failure to assert itself as the body responsible for 47. The international community has become a true expert on Zionist strategy and on the twisted behaviour of the Zionist entity. Everyone knows perfectly well that whenever Israel feels the pinch of pressure from peace efforts it simply commits a military act in order to blow to pieces any initiative or other effort to push it in the direction of peace. It wants land without people, and it therefore-insists On continuing its efforts to upset all peaceful initiatives to reach a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East. We could almost believe that this was among Israel’s basic reasons for committing this act of aggression against fraternal Tunisia. 48. The Arab countries strongly condemn and denounce this latest act of aggression and affhm that they stand by Tunisia in confronting this brutal act of Zionist aggression. They join their voices to those of other nations in calling on the Security Council to should its responsibilities and carry out its basic task of maintaining world peace. The Council must condemn Israel, which is seeking to impose its will in contravention of all international law and conventions, and must restore what the United Nations has lost in prestige as a result of Israel’s disregard of the collective will of the international community in all matters relating to the Middle East. 49. The Arab States anneal to the members of the Council to adopt the draft resolution to be submitted by Tunisia. That, we believe, is the least the Council can do if it intends to play its role in the maintenance of international peace and security.

Allow me at the outset. Sir, to congratulate your delegation on its assumption of the presidency of the Council for the month of October, which coincides with the culmination of the commemorative ceremonies marking the fortieth anniversary of the United Nations, and during which month the Council also has to address a number of urgent and important questions. Our two countries have friendly and co-operative relations in diverse fields, and the ties that bind our two peoples are many. We are both now engaged in new efforts to give more positive content to our relationship. Let me add, Sir, that your own diplomatic skills and wide experience are well known. I have therefore much pleasure in extending to you my personal greetings. 51. We should like also to convey our appreciation to your predecessor, the representative of the United Kingdom, for the very able manner in which he guided our work last month. Our warm tribute goes also to Sir Geoffrey Howe, Secretary of State for Foreign and Common- 52. The Council is meeting yet again, at the request of a fellow non-aligned country, to consider the latest acts of aggression and terrorism committed by Israel, this time against Tunisia, a friendly and peace-loving country. It is ironic that we should be meeting under these tragic circumstances so j soon ,after our commemorative meeting of 26 September, at which we unanimously reaffnmed our commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United ,Nations and undertook to fulfil with renewed dedication .and determination our individual and collective responsibility for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace): , 53. The ready response of Council members in agreeing to the request by Tunisia for an urgent Council meeting to condemn this act of deliberate aggression, to demand reparations, and to take measures to prevent other such acts bears witness to our sensitivity to the grave challenge posed by the latest Israeli action. 54. We have listened with great attention-and, I might add, anguish-to the statement made by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tunisia and to the statement made by the Deputy Premier of Kuwait, who was speaking on behalf of the Arab delegations. Those statements have given a detailed account of the unjustified and blatant Israeli attack against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a sovereign Member State, Tunisia. This attack is yet another glaring entry in the lengthy catalogue of Israel’s aggressive policies designed to intimidate its Arab neighbours with the threat and use of massive force. It has been condemned world-wide; we join in that condemnation. 55. The attack is one more manifestation of Israel’s desire to eliminate the heroic Palestinian resistance against it and to consolidate its stranglehold on the occupied Palestinian and Arab territories. Such actions by the Israeli authorities are in flagrant violation of the norms of international law and the purposes and principles of the Charter. They also serve to delay the prospects of peace in the region. 56. The Israeli attack against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Tunisia was comprehensively discussed at the Meeting of Ministers and Heads of Delegation of Non-Aligned Countries to the General Assembly at its fortieth session, held yesterday, 1 October, at United Nations Headquarters. The Ministem and Heads of Delegation noted with indignation and grave concern the serious acts of aggression perpetrated by Israel. In the special communique adopted by the meeting, “They strongly condemned Israel for its barbaric, cold-blooded and totally unjustified attack on Tunisia, in flagrant violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity. The target of the attack was the ‘premises of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), in a vain 58. Grave concern is being expressed over ‘the escalating cycle of violence in the Middle East. It should be clear to all by now-and we hope it is-that there && be no end to violence without peace, and peace cannot be achieved except through a comprehensive, just and lasting solution of the Middle Fast problem. The fundamental principles of, and the basic framework for, such a solution already exist in the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council, in the Arab peace plan adopted at Fez [see S/15510 of 4 December 1982, annex] and the pronouncements adopted at the Seventh Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-‘Aligned Countries, held at New Delhi in March 1983 [.ree‘S/I5675 and Corr. 1 :and 2, annex]. :-. 59. Those well-recognized fundamental principles are: first, that the question of Palestine is at the heart of the problem of the Middle Fast and no solution to that problem can be envisaged without taking into account the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people; secondly, that the exercise of those inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to return to their homes and property and to exercise their right to self-determination, including the establishment of a State of their own, will contribute to a final solution of the Middle Fast crisis; thirdly, that the participation on an equal footing of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole and authentic representative of the Palestinian people, is indispensable to all efforts to find a solution to the Middle East problem; and, fourthly, that no just and lasting peace in the Middle East can be estab lished without the withdrawal of Israel from all the Palestinian and other Arab territories that ‘it has occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, and without the guarantee that all States of the region Can, live within secure and recognized borders. . : 60. Those * fundamental principles were reiterated and endorsed at the recently concluding Conference of Foreign Ministers ‘of Non-Aligned Countries, held at Luanda in September of this year [see S/Z7620 and Corr.Z, annex]. The Ministers further decided to call for a meeting of the Security Council to consider the situation in the Middle Fast, including the question of Palestine, during the early part of the current fortieth session of the General Assembly. *: > 62. The Movement of Non-Aligned Countries attaches paramount importance to the achievement of a just, cornprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East. It is well known that the primary reason for the lack of progress in finding a comprehensive solution is the arrogance and intransigence of Israel, which has deliberately defied the will of the international community. Israel’s policies and practices over the years in the occupied Palestinian and Arab territories and against its Arab neighbours have posed a serious threat to international peace and security. The time has come for the international community to raise its voice in outrage against these policies and to restrain Israel from such actions. 63. The Security Council should take action to deal with the specific action by Israel with which we are at present faced, which undoubtedly is a breach of international law and of the Charter by Israel. I trust that the Council will demonstrate the will to act immediately and resolutely.

At the outset I should like to congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the Council for this month, the beginning of which finds us in a difftcult situation. However, we are convinced that, with your wellknown skill you will guide the work of the Council and preside over our deliberations with efficiency, as the United States delegation always has. 65. I should also like to express my thanks and appreciation to the representative of the United Kingdom, who presided over the work of the Council during a very busy month in which it held what I do not think I exaggerate in calling an historic meeting. We look forward to the next few years, during which we shall understand, accept and absorb the statements delivered at that historic meeting. 66. Yesterday the Middle East region witnessed a very dangerous escalation of tension and a major threat, Tension has suddenly escalated because of the treacherous.raid .carried out by the Israeli air force against the Tunisian capital. 67. Egypt strongly and clearly condemns that brutal act of aggression by Israel against a sister State and states that it is a clear violation of all the norms of international law and the Charter of the United Nations. It is a flagrant challenge to the United Nations and all its international institutions. The Israeli air raid was an effort to undermine the framework within which the Middle East is trying to move towards peace, and demonstrates Israel’s excessive violence. Instead of moving towards a peaceful settlement 75. At a time when the United Nations is commemorating its fortieth anniversary, Israel has committed a new act of aggreSsion, which this time was directed against Tunisian territory in violation of the sovereignty of that sister country, g,l$ember State of the United Nations. That criminal act of aggression has claimed the lives of hundreds of Tunisians And Palestinians. _. 6 _” , 76. At the$ame time, the forces of Israeli occupation persist in ‘their most heinous. forms of oppression and repression of Arab &i&s within the occupied Arab and Palestinian territories1 .., -.._ ‘. “. -, , . . . 69. Despite that .declaration by the PLO, Israel undertook the raid, for which it had paved the way a short time ago. Everyone knows of the two letters sent by the representative of Israel to the Secretary-General in which he mentioned “Force 17” of the PLO, which he said was responsible for many acts of violence against Israel. The first letter, dated 4 September 1985 [S//743a, mentioned “Force 17” and said that it and its leaders were present in Jordan; it also mentioned a socalled group of terrorists said to be in Algeria and on its way to Israel. The second letter, dated 27 September [S/I750Jl, accused Force 17 of the acts that took place in Larnaca. The representative of Jordan mentioned earlier references in which Israel warned the sister country of Jordan that it would undertake acts against Jordan because that Palestinian force had its headquarters in Jordan. 77. It is neither a surprise nor a coincidence that this act of aggression has coincided with a similar raid launched by the forces of. the other racist regime, in South Africa, against the militant people of Angola, and that in both instances the United States has supported and justified those acts of aggression. 70. My country believes that such acts against the Palestinian people, wherever they take place, strengthen the circle of violence and extremism, at a time when all peace-loving peoples in the world are trying to achieve a lasting and peaceful settlement of the dispute in the Middle East. My delegation believes that this new act of aggression by Israel against the PLO headquarters in Tunisia will only increase .feeIings of hatred and anarchy in a region that is in dire need of efforts to establish peace and stability. Unfortunately, it seems that Israel has not learned the lesson of Lebanon, that is, that violence only breeds violence; it has not learned that it is not possible to eliminate the PLO or its leadership. 78. it ‘is truly mgrettable that the United States claims in another context that it is fighting international terrorism while it justifies the Israeli act of aggression and protects Israel from the sanctions it deserves under international law for such crimes, Were those planes and bombs not manufactured in the United States, and were they not provided to Israel under a strategic alliance between the two countries? 79. By committing that crime, Israel has reaffirmed its hostility towards peace and its insistence on undermining all international efforts to preserve peace in the Middle East, the area to which we belong. The United States, by supporting and justifying that act of aggression, reveals its lack of credibility and lack of seriousness in playing any constructive role in the international endeavours under way to establish a lasting and just peace in the Middle East. 71. Egypt cannot understand the position of some that see Israel’s right to revenge for its citizens when it undertakes actions that kill innocent people or when it threatens the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other States. The current situation prevailing in the Middle East cannot be settled by such acts of aggression. 80.. The PLO has on numerous occasions expressed its sincere desire for peace by its acceptance of United Nations resolutions and its commitment to international legality as a basis for a just solution to the Middle East crisis. But by their intransigence and their rejection of international initiatives, Israel and the United States have foreclosed all avenues of peace. The Israeli act of,&ression has unveiled the real intentions of Israel, which are hostile to peace. Moreover, the United States. position in support of the Israeli act of aggression will definitely contribute to an increase of tension in the area. It will also increase the prospect of war and hostiitities. .., . 72. Egypt declares that it stands by the people and the Government of Tunisia; it stands by the Palestinian people in its struggle to achieve its inalienable rights. Egypt expects the Security Council to take a firm position in dealing with this situation and with this heinous Israeli attack, which has been condemned on the widest intemational scale.

The next speaker is the observer for the Palestine Liberation Organization, on whom I now call. 81. We no longer have any illusions as to the United States position, which impedes efforts towards peace. It is therefore incumbent upon the international community fully to shoulder its responsibilities. It is high time that the

It gives me great pleasure at the outset of my statement to extend my thanks and 82. Israel claims-and its claims, regrettably, are supported by the United States-that it perpetrated its most recent crime on Tunisian territory in retaliation to Palestinian acts of resistance. Here, we must ask: Is Israel’s occupation of Arab and Palestinian territories and its depriving the Palestinian people of their basic rights under the Charter of the United Nations and resolutions of the Organization not an act of terrorism? Are the actions of the Israeli occupation army against Palestinian citizens, actions that run the whole gamut of oppression, murder, torture, imprisonment and arbitrary detention, not in themselves blatant examples of State terrorism? Are the Fascist acts of the Zionist settlers who storm Palestinian homes, shoot the occupants, seize and confiscate their properties and displace the inhabitants from their homeland not acts of terrorism? In the face of all this, is it not the right of the Palestinian people to resist such systematic Israeli State terrorism? The right to self-defence and to defence of the homeland are legitimate rights acknowledged under international laws and norms for all the peoples of the world. 83. If Israel believes that it can, through its terrorism, subjugate the Palestinian people and continue JO usurp their national rights, it is indulging in self-delusion. History has proved that the will of peoples is invincible. Despite all the suffering of our Palestinian people for 70 years under colonialism and occupation, that people are still increasing their resistance and consolidating their will to attain the freedom and independence of their homeland. 84. It would have been more becoming had the United States acted with a sense of its responsibility as a major 85. Those who seek or claim to seek a lasting peace in the Middle Past must recognize those facts and deal with them in the light of the many resolutions adopted by the intemational community, the most recent of which was the resolution calling for the convening of an international conference within the framework of the United Nations at which the super-Powers, the PLO and all other parties concerned would participate on an equal footing. 86. If the Israeli raid is a response to our recent initiatives seeking to achieve a just and peaceful solution to the problem, then let Israel and the United States know that such terrorism will not intimidate us, nor will it discourage us from continuing the struggle through all legitimate means until our Palestinian people have wrested their inalienable national rights and returned to their homeland. The meeting rose at 1.10 p.m. NOTE ‘Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949 (United Nations, Treory Series, vol. 75. No. 973). ..: HOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATIONS United Nations publications may be obtained from bookstores and distributors throughout the world. Consult your bookstore or write to: United Nations, Sales Section, New York or Geneva. COMMENT SE PROCURER LES PUBLICATlONS DES NATIONS UNIES Les publications des Nations Unies sont en vente. dans les librairies et les agences d&ositaires du monde entier. Informez+ous aup&s de votre libraire ou adressez-vous B : Nations Unies, Section des ventes, New York ou Genbve. KAIC IIOJIYYHTb kI3&4I-IWI OPI-AHH3m OEb~HHbIX HAW ~3mm1 Opmtmamm 06aenmemaxx Ham&l MOHHO xynu~b B xmtcHb~X Maraxittax H aretmmtax BO ~cex paiiomx huipa. HaBonrrTe crtpaal~ 06 xi3m3miax B ~amM KHHXHOM bmramte msi nmI.uiTe no a,upecy: Oprami3atuia 06%eLViHeHHbIX HatWt, Cemm no npomxe si3~amR. )IbrdopK msi Xexie-Ba. COMO CONSEGUIR PUBLICACIONES DE LAS NACIONES UNIDAS Las publicaciones de las Naciones Unklas estin en venta en librerfas y casas distribuidoras en todas partes de1 mundo. Consulte a su librero o dirfjase a: Naciones Unidas, Secci6n de Ventas, Nueva York o Gmebra. . Litho in United Nations, New York 00300 90-61439~March 1995-1.925