Chaim Herzog, Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, charged today that while the momentum for peace is being maintained in the Middle East itself, the UN General Assembly continues “to re-hash old formulas that do not mention negotiations but advocate an imposed solution in total disregard of the legitimate interests of one of the parties to the conflict.”
Addressing the General Assembly in the course of a debate on “The Question of Palestine,” the Israeli envoy declared: “While serious efforts are being made in Cairo, Jerusalem and elsewhere to remove the obstacles to a Geneva peace conference, this Assembly will vote, for the second time in two weeks, on a resolution which deliberately avoids reference to Security Council Resolutions 242 and 333 on the basis of which the Geneva conference was convened.”
TWO DRAFT RESOLUTIONS PENDING
The Assembly is scheduled to conclude its debate on the Palestine question this evening and vote tomorrow on two draft resolutions sponsored by a number of Arab and Third World countries. The first resolution, sponsored by Syria, Jordan and nine other states, reaffirms a plan for the individual return of Palestinians to their homes and for the establishment of a Palestinian state in Palestine. The draft resolution also endorses the report of a 23-nation special committee on Palestine.
The report includes a call to adhere to the now passed deadline of June, 1977 for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from all Arab territories occupied in 1967. The committee proposed that the deadline should serve as a symbolic reminder of the urgency of a peaceful solution under UN auspices.
The second draft resolution also sponsored by Syria, Jordan and Third World countries, calls on UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim to establish a special secretariat unit on Palestinian rights that would prepare studies and promote publicity about the Palestine issue. It also calls for the observance of an annual day of solidarity with the Palestinian people. Both resolutions are expected to be adopted tomorrow by substantial majorities.
Referring to the second resolution, Herzog said that the sole purpose of a special secretariat unit “will be to chum out hatred and vilification of Israel.” He said, “Ironically, the financing of this hostile unit, at a time when the world organization is already experiencing financial difficulties, will be borne primarily by tax-payers of those nations (the Western nations) that have officially welcomed the current move toward peace and which contribute well over 60 percent of the budget of the UN.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
