Protesters wave flags of Fatah and Palestine as they burn Israeli ones during a demonstration against the expropriation of Palestinian land by Israel, in the village of Kfar Qaddum near the Jewish settlement of Kedumim in the occupied West Bank on May 20, 2022. (JAAFAR ASHTIYEH / AFP)
UNITED NATIONS – The UN General Assembly on Wednesday adopted a resolution to call for efforts to solve the question of Palestine.
The resolution reiterated the assembly's call for the achievement, without delay, of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East on the basis of the relevant UN resolutions and for an end to the Israeli occupation, and reaffirmed its unwavering support for the two-state solution.
It stressed the need to urgently exert collective efforts to launch credible negotiations on all final-status issues in the Middle East peace process, and called once more for the intensification of efforts by the parties toward the conclusion of a final just, lasting and comprehensive peace settlement.
The UN General Assembly's resolution called on Israel to comply strictly with its obligations under international law and to cease all of its measures that are contrary to international law, including all unilateral actions in the occupied Palestinian territory that are aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the territory and thus at prejudging the final outcome of peace negotiations
It also called for a timely convening of an international conference in Moscow for advancing and accelerating the achievement of a settlement.
The resolution called on both parties to act responsibly in order to urgently reverse negative trends and create the conditions necessary for a credible political horizon and the advancement of peace efforts.
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It called on Israel to comply strictly with its obligations under international law and to cease all of its measures that are contrary to international law, including all unilateral actions in the occupied Palestinian territory that are aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the territory and thus at prejudging the final outcome of peace negotiations.
It stressed the need, in particular, for an immediate halt to all settlement activities, land confiscation and home demolitions, for the pursuit of measures to ensure accountability, and for the release of prisoners and an end to arbitrary arrests and detentions.
It further stressed the need for an immediate and complete cessation of all acts of violence, including military attacks, destruction and acts of terror, as well as all acts of provocation and incitement.
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The resolution called for Israel's withdrawal from the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem; the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, primarily the right to self-determination and the right to their independent state; and a just resolution of the problem of Palestine refugees.
It also urged all states and the United Nations to continue and expedite the provision of economic, humanitarian and technical assistance to the Palestinian people and the Palestinian government in order to help alleviate the serious humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, to rehabilitate the Palestinian economy and infrastructure and to support the development and strengthening of Palestinian institutions and Palestinian state-building efforts in preparation for independence.
The resolution was adopted with 153 votes in favor, nine against and 10 abstentions.
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Palestinian students inspect a classroom at a school destroyed during the recent 11-day war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement, on their first day of the new academic year in Gaza City, on Aug 16, 2021. (MAHMUD HAMS / AFP)
The resolution called for Israel's withdrawal from the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem; the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, primarily the right to self-determination and the right to their independent state; and a just resolution of the problem of Palestine refugees
Resolution concerning Golan
Meanwhile, the General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring that Israel has failed to comply with Security Council Resolution 497 of 1981, which demands Israel rescind its decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.
The General Assembly resolution, adopted with 92 votes in favor, nine against and 65 abstentions, reiterates that the Israeli decision of Dec 14, 1981, to annex the occupied Syrian Golan Heights is null and void and has no validity whatsoever, as confirmed by the Security Council in its Resolution 497, and calls on Israel to rescind the decision.
Wednesday's resolution determines once more that the continued occupation of the Golan Heights and its de facto annexation constitute a stumbling block in achieving a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the region. It demands Israel withdraw from the entire occupied territory to the line of June 4, 1967, in the implementation of the relevant Security Council resolutions.
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The resolution calls on all the parties concerned and the entire international community to exert all the necessary efforts to ensure the resumption of the peace process and its success.
Israel seized parts of the Golan from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and annexed the occupied territory in 1981. Immediately after the annexation, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 497.