Behind the Headlines: U.N. Session Expected to Bring Usual Spate of Anti-israel Moves

As the new U.N. General Assembly session opened Tuesday, Israeli diplomats braced for the usual plethora of resolutions against the Jewish state.

Each year, more than 30 General Assembly resolutions are introduced pertaining to Israel, and most, if not all, are decided against the Jewish state.

There are no indications that this year will be any different.

“We don’t see, as yet, any changes in the positions of the countries that are hostile by tradition to Israel,” said Yoram Aridor, the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations.

If the past is any indication, many of the same resolutions will be recycled, and Israel will be condemned for — among other things — its peace treaty with Egypt in 1979, its destruction of an Iraqi nuclear reactor a decade ago and its efforts to rehabilitate Palestinian refugees.

A resolution has already been drafted for this session condemning Israel for its relations with South Africa. Israel was singled out for condemnation despite the fact that many countries have resumed relations with South Africa since it began to dismantle its apartheid structure.

While Israel does not fare well in the halls of the United Nations, there were some small victories in the General Assembly session that just came to a close.

For the first time, Israel’s credentials for membership in the United Nations went unchallenged. The annual ritual calls for one of the Arab countries to contest Israel’s member status, followed by a move by one of the Scandinavian countries to stymie the vote through a procedural maneuver.

Last year, the Arabs tried a different route: The resolution would have approved the credentials of the State of Israel as it existed before the 1967 war. However, there was little support for such a move, and the Soviets indicated that they were going to support Israel for the first time.

Rather than lose on this question by a larger margin than usual, the Arabs dropped it altogether. As a result, there was no vote and all the member nations went through the entire session without approval of their credentials.

It is not clear yet whether last year’s tactics will set a precedent for this year’s session.

MOVE ON ZIONISM RESOLUTION POSSIBLE

There is some indication that this 46th session of the General Assembly may be the one in which Israel attempts a repeal of the 1975 resolution denigrating Zionism as a form of racism.

The United States has been working with Israel to garner support for repealing the resolution, and U.N. observers have expressed some guarded optimism toward that end, particularly because of changes in the political climate throughout the world.

Israel will not seek a repeal until it is certain it has the votes needed. And, according to Aridor, “we are not sure as yet if we have a comfortable majority.

“We have to be assured,” the ambassador said. “We don’t want to risk any failures.”

Aridor said he is optimistic that the repeal effort will move forward, insofar as Israel is enjoying better relations with more member countries.

Dr. Harris Schoenberg, director of U.N. affairs for B’nai B’rith International, said he has met with at least-70 ambassadors since June 1990, and that “we seem to be getting close to our goal.”

“They are favorably disposed to do something about the problem,” he said. “Everyone I’ve spoken to has said we have the best chance going.”

Malcolm Hoenlein, executive director of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, said it is still not clear whether the votes are there, but he agreed that “we are in a better position than ever.”

Hoenlein said indications from many of the Eastern European countries are that they would be more willing to go along with the move.

And Schoenberg pointed out that the Arab hard-liners are “increasingly isolated on this issue.”