Israel came under attack today during the first session of the United Nations-sponsored World Conference to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination.
The United Arab Emirate delegate to the Conference stated that “Israel is applying a policy of racial discrimination against the people of Palestine and other inhabitants of the occupied Arab territories…” He declared that “Zionism is a form of racial discrimination, and in this sense it goes side by side with the system of apartheid in South Africa…South Africa and Israel have flagrantly violated conventions and United Nations decisions.” The delegate concluded his remarks by stating that “Israel is violating the 1949 Geneva Convention to which it was a party.”
Israel, the United States and major Jewish organizations, such as the World Jewish Congress and the Coordinating Board of Jewish Organizations, non-governmental organizations with consultative status at the UN, are not attending the Conference because it is being convened under UN resolutions which refer to previous measures adopted by the General Assembly, including the one equating Zionism with racism.
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