S/PV.2782 Security Council

I should like also to inform members of the Council that I have received a.letter dated 15 January 1988 from the Permanent Representative'of Algeria to the United Nations, which reads as follows~ "I have the honour to request the Security Council to extend an invitation, under rule 39 of its provisional rules of procedure, to or. Samir Mansouri, Acting Permanent Observer of the League of Arab States to the .United Nations, in connection with the item'presently on its agenda and entitled 'The. situation in the Middle East'." That letter will be published as a document of the Security Council under the sylI&l s/19432. If I hear no objection, I shall-take it'that the council agrees to extend an invitation to Mr. Mansouri under rule 39 of its provisional rules of procedure. '8. .r There being no objection, it is 80 decided. The Security Council will naw begin its consideration of the item on its ,.. . agenda. I should remind the Council that the Security Council fs meeting-today in response to the request contained in the-letter dated 7 January.1988 fran the Permanent Representative of Lebanon to the United Nations addressed to the' President of the Security Council, document S/1941!. The first speaker is the representative of Lebanon, on whom I call. Mr. PAKI33URY (Lebanon) (interpretation from Arabic): we have requested that the Security Council be convened to discuss Israel's policies and repeated acts of aggression against Lebanon. Many metiers had hoped that we would be satisfied with a statement issued by .the President of the Security Council containing all the elements of the resolution we consider that the Council should adopt. We acceded to that request,in order to facilitate the work of the Council towards our goal. But the week-long consultations held under your wise leadership, g. .President, revealed a lack of unanimity due to the position of one of the Council's permanent members. We were therefore compelled to request an open meeting of the Security Council. Israel continues to occupy Lebanese territory in the South of our country and has called it a "security zone". Israel has unceasingly violated the territorial integrity, the airspace and the territorial waters of Lebanon, in contravention of the United Nations Charter, international law and resolutions of the Security Council. Israel's policy is a challenge to the international community as embodied (Mr. Fakhoury, Lebanon) in the United Nations, specifically its Security Council, which bears responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security and which is thus responsible for ensuring the independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Members States and the safety of their citizens. The Security Council must meet this flagrant challenge and bears responsibility for not ensuring the implementation of its resolutions. This responsibility has grown with the stepped up inhuman Israeli practices and acts of aggression, which have claimed increasing numbers of victims among civilians and have caused the widespread destruction of cities, villages and farmlands. There has been harassment of the population, through sieges from land and sea. In 1987 we addressed 15 letters to the Secretary-General, complaining of acts of Israeli aggression and Israel's abusive policies. We made no mention of hundreds of similar daily incidents. Not a day has passed thus far in 1988 without renewed brutal acts of aggression and inhuman practices against Lebanon and its '5 : people. ' (Mr. Fakhoury, Lebanon) I shall not recount here the contents of all those letters; they have been issued as official documents of the Security Council and the General Assembly, and I am sure that all metiers are familiar with them. I would, however, like to recall here some acts of aggression and some practices as examples of Israel's criminal policy against Lebanon and its people. First, on 15 December 1987 an Israeli military helicopter attacked a Lebanese Army position at Ain et Tin& in western Bekaa, destroying an armoured vehicle and wounding one soldier. On the same day, an Israeli force, supported by tanks and helicopters, advanced from within the so-called security zone towards the town Of Maidoun, which lies at a distance of 21 kilometres from the Israeli frontier. As a result of the intensive artillery shelling of that town and its surroundings, 25 were killed or wounded. Following that operation, which took four hours, the Israeli forces proceeded to occupy what was for them a new position outside the so-called security zone, approximately two kilometres to the north of their last position. On that same day, the villages of Yatar, Braachit and Kafra were exposed to shelling by the Israeli forces and their puppets , causing material losses of houses and agricultural crops. Secondly, on Saturday, 19 December 1987, at approximately 1500 hour&, Israeli forces and their puppets shelled the -town of Navatiyeh and the outskirts Of Habbouche with heavy artillery, causing considerable material damage. On Monday morning, 21 December 1987, the Israeli forces shelled the villages of Jebaa and Arabsalim and the area surrounding Ain Kana , causing heavy material losses. The Israeli air force also carried out simulated aerial attacks against those uillages. In the afternoon of that same day, the region'located between the QaaguaXet el-Jisr valley and Habbouche was subjected to intensive bombardment supported by artillery fire aimed mainly at the village of Arabsalim; The shelling resulted in the death of 7 persons and wounded 25 others, including (Mr. Fakhoury, Lebanon) civil-defence elements.- mo vehicles belonging to .the Lebanese Ped Cross were also completely burned. Thirdly; on the evening of 2 ‘January 1988 the Israeli Air Force barnbed and destroyed blocks and ‘flats in the suburbs ,of Sidon and an entire Palestinian”familY of seven perished in the ruins. At the same time Israeli military helicopters took off from an Israeli aircraft carrier off the coast of Lebanon and fired m’iSSileS at six dwellings in the villages of Bar ja and Jieh, which are .located more than ‘80 kilometres from Lebanon’s international border ‘with Israel. The shelling resulted in the destruction of the six houses and the deaths of 16 civilians, including’ 12 members of two Lebanese families, chiefly women and children. This deliberate shelling occurred at night in order to bring about the-greatest number of casual ties possible . In addition to those examples and Israel’s continuing naval and land seige imposed against Lebanon, particularly in the southern part of the countryr ’ particularly against the ports of Sidon and Tyre, Israel ~ is nas implementing a’& policy that includes laying seige to the town of Yohmor for an entire week, during which period large concrete roadblocks were erected on”‘roads leading into that town and the population of 4,000 people forbidden’ to enter or leave’it. Food and medical supplies have been prevented from reaching the town. Students in I . neighbouring villages have not been allowed to attend school in Yohmor. Israel has ah0 prevented International Red Cross personnel from verifying conditions inside Yohmor . We have requested the Secretary-General to mediate with Israel to lift .the siege, and I should like to take this opportunity to express our thanks to him for his interest and efforts in that regard and to congratulate him on the results of his good offices, since the siege was. lifted and supplies have now reached that town. (Mr. Fakhoury, Lebanon) .’ ‘i .This new Israeli approach poses a threat to civilians, particularly the elderly, women and children. They are inhumane acts contrary to -has ic moral conduct and in contravention of the Geneva Conventions. We fear that Israel ;intends to ,Fntinue with similar practices in order to starve the -civilian population and bring it to heel by threatening i.ts very existence. : No doubt the members of the Council have ieviewed the Secretary-General’s report, S/19318, of 4 December 1987, which states that Israel has donstructed roads inside the Lebanese border, building fences and denying to the inhabitants of neighbouring villages access to their agricultural lands close to the border, which are often their main source of livelihood. The report also indicates that the existence of such border encroachments was first reported in 1980 and that -concern was again expressed in 1986 and 1987. I see no need to quote extensively from that report of the Secretary-General, but I should like to refer to .one expression used by the Secretary-General, namely8 “encroachmentsa, and to his statement. that the apparent effect of such \ ,._ .-. -encroachments is the realigning of the border and that there have been 10 such encroachments which have been observed by &IFIL at various points along the Armistice Demarcation Line. The areas that have been fenced off vary frdm Several hundred square metres to several square kilometres. . 5’ (Mr. Fakhoury, Lebanon The report goes on to say that the Government of Israel has used a similar argument to justify its maintenance of the so-called security zone in southern Lebanon. In other words, Israel has given itself the right to act to change the international border and to occupy Lebanese territory. Israeli official statements to the effect that Israel has no territorial claims whatsoever in regard to any Lebanese territory, to which the Secretary-General has referred, are in our view but a smoke-screen and a thinly veiled pretext for Israel's designs and ambitions regarding Lebanese territory and waters. TWO days ago Israel hurled a new challenge at this Council’s resolutions, ignoring them completely , using what it calls the security zone to deport four Palestinian notables to Lebanon. Yesterday I explained my country's position on the policy of deportation and expulsion. I said that in our view the International Red Cross should have received those persons , who were present in Lebanese territory, in order to return them to their homeland. In view of what I have said regarding the exposing of Israel's aggressions and policies, the delegation of Lebanon wishes strongly to call for the fallking. First, the Security Council should deplore and condemn the inhuman Israeli * acts of aggression and policies. Secondly, Israel must halt such acts of aggression and policies forthwith. Thirdly, Israel must implement the resolutions of the Security Council calling for its immediate unconditional withdrawal from Lebanese territory, especially resolution 425 (1978) and subsequent relevant resolutions. Fourthly, Israel must stop encroaching upon land on the international border, halt the construction of roads and fences , cease preventing civilians from reaching their farmland, which is their main source of livelihood, and normalize the situation on the international border. (Mr. Fakhoury, Lebanon) In view of the situation in southern Lebanon and the tragedy being suffered by its population, the delegation of Lebanon warns against Israeli persistence in implementing its policies and expanding its operations, which in the early part of this year have reached the area of Shuf. It is the collective and individual responsibility of the members of the Security Council to put an end to aggression and to impose security and peace in an extremely explosive area that might erupt at any moment and thus poses a threat to peace and security. Lebanon has a right that must be fulfilled by this Organizatfon.. It has that right by virtue of its membership. It calls upcn the Security Council to implement that right. We have every hope that the Security Council ,will adopt a resolution that will deter Israel and put an end to the bloodshed it has caused in Lebanon. In conclusion, in regard to the tragic incident involving two high-ranking officers of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNiFIL), I should like to express to the Australian Government, to the family of Captain McCarthy, to the team of observers and to the Secretary-General our deep condolences on’the loss of Captain McCarthy, who fell in the line of duty. I wish Major Gilbert Cat6 of Canada a speedy recovery. The PRRS IDENT: The next speaker is the representative of Jordan-, who wishes to make a statement in his capacity as Chairman of the Group of Arab States for the month of January. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement. Mr. SALAH (Jordan) (interpretation from Arabic): Allow me to congratulate you, Sir, on behalf of the Arab Group and on my own behalf, on your assumption of the presidency for this month. We are convinced that, with your great skill and experience and your profound knowledge of the international community, you will successfully discharge the’work devolving upon you as President. (Mr. Salah, Jordan)’ I should also like to pay tribute to your predecessor, His Excellency Ambassador Pelonogov, Permanent Representative of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, who presided over the Council last month with great Success. .. Mote than five years have elapsed since the last time Israel invaded Lebanon, leading to the occupation of .the southern part of that country. The international community and the Security Council have continued to condemn that occupation, and have adopted resolutions &king Israel completely to withdraw from internationally defined Lebaneqe territory, but Israel has persisted in solidifying its occupa’tion by means of a number of measures -and a series of violations aga’inst Lebanese territories oontrary to international customs and instruments, and it has persisted in taking arbitrary measures against civilians in Lebanon. All of this has been d&e in a way that leaves no room for doubt as to Israel’s designs on Lebanese’ territory. Isrdel continues obstinately to bon33 towns, to destroy houSes, to damage harvests and to pursue people in the area known as the “security zone”, all shming that Israel is determined to make life impossible for Lebanese citizenSin the.southern part of their land. This gives us two optionst emigration or annihilation. Both options are of equal value to Israel, since both enable it to swallow up the land it occupies. However, that is not enough for Israel. Following the establishment of. the so-called security zone, and having strengthened its presence within Lebanese territory contrary to the provisions of international la4 and the Charter, Israel transformed Lebakn into an .area of continuing warfare to justify its occupation of the southern part of the country using %ecurity needs. as a’ pretext. . (Mr. Salah, Jordan) j ., /, . This is a pretext which is constantly invoked.py Israel to justify its .I *.. ., c.. _' expansionist policies and arbitrary practices and enable it to carry out its .,,. -.' long-term plans and projects. .1 ., " y! delegation listened with keen interest to the statement made by the representative of Lebanon ; aware as we are of~the measures adopted by Israel. and of its-practices on Lebanese soil, my delegation believes that we are entering a new phase in Israeli objectives which go beyond isolating southern Lebanon and turnjng II '. . it into a region of permanent occupation: it is an attempt to alter Lebanon's international borders. It is obvious today that in 1985, when Israel shifted the barbed-wire, international boundaries of the Metullah settlement one and a half kilometres north '. into Lebanese territory, it was attempting to,create a new international boundary .in the region. The proof is that Israel has cpnsistently repeated that tactic all along the Lebanese border. In the absence of international control,,Israel i ., I. .: i ), ,s ._ ; , ".', ,._. .;, ',__ persists in flouting the rights of peoples and in pursuing a policy of swallowing up southern Lebanon. Members of the Security Council, as well as all members of the internatsonal ,. i . community, are familiar with the map of Lebanon contained in the annex to the . t Secretary-General's report (S/19318) dated 4 December 1987. It shows the< locations and scope of Israeli border encroachments of Lebanon's borders as at October 1987. .' .;. There are more than ten such instances, although they vary in depth and breadth. . I am sure that the Security Council is aware that,this practice of violating _' .. ., internationally recognized boundaries is designed to establish conditidns for pumping Lebanese water into Israel. It constitutes a violation of international law, including the 1949 truce agreements between Israel and Lebanon and Security . Council resolutions calling for Israel's total withdrawal from Lebanese ter-ritory. (Mr. Salah, Jordan) Such practices - if the Council does not take decisive action to abolish them - will continue; they will become institutionalized and thus new political realities, all part of the fait accompli policy which Israel has consistently pursued in the region, We are now confronted with a situation where Israel has, over the last few weeks, perpetrated new acts of aggression against Lebanese sovereignty and security. It has expropriated the lands of others; it has violated the human rights of the innocent civilian population of southern Lebanon, especially their natural right to live in safety and security on their own soil. Israeli aggression has led to an intensification of air raids, and the intensive bombardment of entire villages and regions 80 kilometres inside the territory of southern Lebanon. Israeli commandos have infiltrated the security zone and committed acts of murder and sabotage , as well as attacks on villages. We . know what happened in the village of Yahmar, the latest in a series of tragedies. Israel has thus managed to create a buffer zone on Lebanese territory, north of an already existing "security zone". This has prevented the inhabitants of . southern Lebanon from tilling their lands and has inflicted greater suffering on them. Let us recall that the acts of aggression and the air raids of the last few weeks have resulted in more than 200 casualties. Forty-nine innocent civilians were killed, and seven wounded in a single day in the Ein el Helwa alone. If the Council considers that 95 per cent of all of the victims of Israeli aggression are innocent civilians, many of whom are women and children, it will see that Israel's purpose in adopting the aforementioned measures and practices is not to attack Palestinian resistance bases but to empty the land of its inhabitants and then appropriate it. (Mr. Salah, Jordan) Israel ‘6 invasion of Lebanon and the occupation of the southern part of Lebanon since 1982, as well as Israeli practices against Lebanese sovereignty and security, are-acts which are part of Israel’s overall policy in the entire Arab region; they aim at implementing Israel’s strategic objectives. Israel has taken advantage of its occupation of Lebanon and of its practices against the Lebanese people and their lands to divert international attention from Israel’s arbitrary and illegal policy of establishing settlements in the West Bank, Gaza and the Golan Heights. Israel has expanded the scope of its manoeuvres in order to conceal the oppressive and bloody measures which it has repeatedly perpetrated against Lebanon and against the population of the occupied Arab territories who have risen in resistance to annexation and occupation. Israel’s strategic objective in occupying Lebanon is to carry out its historic designs on Lebanese lands and waters. It is no coincidence that .the areas of -0 southern Lebanon currently occupied by Israel, particularly the region opposite the Metullah settlement, are the very regions defined by the Zionist movement in its of Israel in and its settlements policy by,invoking "security reasons"., Invoking the same I ,” :; r. .,I .,’ T . , - reasons, it violates the rights of the Arab ,inhabitants of the West, Bank, the,G,asa, : 1. .: , .:’ ::a. ’ : “. Strip, the Golan Heights and southern*Lebanon. ,sIG’-“’ .: .) .i It now resorts to the same pr.etext :. to justi-fy its,, rejection of international resolutions with regard. to occupied..:., I : : . .., territories - "security reasons". That means that safe and secur.e, boundaries :fOr :,_ , .’ : 1. ” Israel must of necessity remain-, fluid, but always outward bound, in accordance: With Israel's logic and vision of its security. Therefore, Israel’s understanding pf ,’ F its security w!ll lead to a tolzal absence of international oversight and transform . the Middle Fast into a state of insecurity, instability, and political and ,_ :, ! . . I geographfcal anarchy, posing a grave threat to international peace and security and ,‘~. compromising international principles. , Lebanon has for years lived through this, tragedy. Its citizens have been dispersed and killed.; its economy has been deteriorating,; its towns and citieshave .been demolished; entire areas of its territory have been occupied; and its .-. ; 1 sovereignty has been undermined, attacked and challenged. Today Lebanon is calling ._., !‘.““ . _. _I.. 1 ~. _. ,a I . _ . upon the Council to help it regain its sovereignty and restore its territorial . integrity and to allow it to conduct its own affairs. , ‘i Lebanon hopes that this Council will take whatever measure is necessary to compel Israel to respect the CouncilVs resolutions , withdraw its forces from ! 4 Lebanese territory up to the internation,ally recognized boundaries, and refrain from interfering in Lebanon's internal affairs as an essential stage for the ' achievement of stability and Security in Lebanon and, to bring about understanding and the extension of its sovereignty and control over all Lebanese territory. Peace and stability in southern Lebanon - indeed throughout the ,entire country - hinge on Israel's abandonment of the policy of expansion and aggression and of its stubbornness in refusing to implement United Nations resolutions. (Mr. Salah, Jordan) ,l. e.,, % . The Secretary-General of’ the ‘United Nations has mentioned in several reports - ~ * for example, his’ report in documents S/18164 of 17 June 1986 and S/i8164/Add.l of 10 July 1986 -’ that the continuation of this grave and explosive situation in southern Lebanon is due to the attitude of Israel, which refuses to implement ..‘., Security c0utdi resolutions calling for its complete, total and unconditional withdrawal from Lebanese territory and. the deployment of international forces up to ‘the internationally recogn‘ized boundaries so as to enable the Lebanese Government . to extend its sovereignty and controi over all Lebanes-e territory. ‘. “The Security Council has adopted many resolutions, beginning with its resolutions 425 (1978) and 426 (1978). following the first Israeli invasion of Lebanese territory in 1978. After the ado&n of those .resolutions, the kited Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was deployed in that area. The Council also adopted other resolutions an the situation in Lebanon when Israel once again, and more extensively, invaded Iebanon in 1982. The two sost important resolutions L in this regard are Security Council resolutions’ 508 (1982) and 509 (1982), ‘which mntain the key for the settiemkt of the Lebanese question. Those resolutions call upbn Israel to withdraw unconditionally.all its military Forces from all Lebanese territory, to respect Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and to end the arbitrary treatment of civilian inhabitants inside the country. This Council, to which the Charter has enti’usted the task of maintaining international peace and security, ‘must fully discharge its responsibilities with regard to the Lebanese question. Israel cannot be permitted to continue’defying the entire world by persisting in the application of those policies that have been condemned. The Council now has a fresh opportunity to assist Lebanon to find a way out of this tragedy. The PREsIDENTi I thank the representative of Jordan for his kind words about me. ’ There are no further speakers inscribed on my list for this evening, although I have some for Monday morning , and I think it righ.t that I should ad journ the meeting now and say that we shall &et again to continue our consideration of this item on Monday, 18 January, at 11.30 a.m. I alSO take the oppartunity to inform members of the Council that a draft resolution, as referred to in the counc5J.*s prior consultations, has been submitted by the delegations of Algeria, Argentina, Nepal, Senegal, Yugoslavia and Zambia. It is contained in document S/19434 and will be circulated to members of the Council this evening. The meeting rose at 4.55 p.m.