UN Security Council to hold emergency session on Palestine

Palestine

Published: 2021-05-12 11:21

Last Updated: 2024-03-26 05:47


Source: Sada el balad
Source: Sada el balad

Wednesday, the UN Security Council will hold a new emergency session on escalating violence in the Israeli Occupation.  

This new closed session is held at the request of Tunisia, Norway and China.

Monday, the first meeting held at Tunisia's request ended, without any joint declaration from the council, because the United States had refused "at this stage" from adopting a draft statement proposed by Norway.

This draft statement, which was obtained by Agence France-Presse, does not condemn violence. Rather, it proposes that the Security Council demand “Israel cease settlement, demolition and expulsion activities” of the Palestinians, ”including in East Jerusalem,” activities that have been a source of tension in recent weeks.

The draft statement also calls on both sides to “refrain from taking unilateral measures that exacerbate tension and undermine the chances of reaching a two-state solution,” and urges restraint, avoiding any provocation and respecting the “historical status quo in the holy places.”

In response to Tuesday's question about whether the United States opposed adopting a statement in the Security Council, State Department spokesperson Ned Price did not want to respond directly.

He only said, "We want to see measures, whether issued by the Israeli government, the Palestinian Authority or the UN Security Council, that are not used as a provocation or escalation, but rather to calm down."

In a statement Tuesday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an "immediate halt" to the escalation between Israelis and Palestinians.