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UN / PALESTINE
STORY: UN / PALESTINE WENNESLAND
TRT: 5:49
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 28 SEPTEMBER 2022, NEW YORK CITY / RECENT
RECENT – NEW YORK CITY
1.Wide shot, exterior, United Nations Headquarters
28 SEPTEMBER 2022, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process:
“Israelis and Palestinians must determine how they envision the future. Negotiations can no longer be pushed off indefinitely. The current course is leading us towards a perpetual state of violence and conflict. Meaningful initiatives are needed to turn the current trajectory around and they are needed quickly. Ending the occupation and realizing a two-State solution must drive our collective efforts.”
4. Wide shot, Security Council
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process:
“I remain deeply troubled by continued Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and attempts by some Israelis to further expand the settlement footprint through the establishment of outposts which are illegal also under Israeli law. I am also concerned that the Supreme Court’s Mitzpeh Kramim decision could set precedent for the legalization of additional outposts under Israeli law. I reiterate that Israeli settlements have no legal validity and constitute a flagrant violation of international law and United Nations resolutions. I call on the Government of Israel to cease all settlement activity immediately.”
6.Wide shot, Security Council
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process:
“Demolitions and seizures of Palestinian-owned property remain a serious concern. I am particularly concerned by the ongoing situation in Masafer Yatta, where over 1,000 Palestinians, including 569 children, are at imminent risk of eviction. I urge Israeli authorities to cease immediately the demolition of Palestinian-owned property and the forcible displacement and eviction of Palestinians, in line with Israel’s obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law, and to approve plans that would enable Palestinians to build legally and address their development needs.”
8. Wide shot, Security Council
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process:
“I am deeply concerned by the tragic civilian deaths and injuries, including of children, caused by the latest escalation in Gaza. Israel must abide by its obligations under international humanitarian law, including the proportional use of force, and take all feasible precautions to spare civilians and civilian objects during military operations. Further, I condemn the indiscriminate launching of rockets by Palestinian armed groups from highly populated neighborhoods in Gaza into civilian population centers in Israel, which also resulted in casualties and violates international humanitarian law and puts the lives of civilians at risk.”
10. Wide shot, Security Council
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process:
“The high number of Palestinians killed and injured by Israeli security forces in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, remains deeply troubling, particularly reports that some did not appear to pose a threat. The possible excessive use of force by Israeli security forces continues to raise serious concerns, particularly the use of live ammunition. Security forces must use lethal force only when strictly unavoidable to protect life and must promptly, thoroughly investigate all instances of death or injury resulting from its use, and hold those responsible accountable.”
12. Wide shot, Security Council
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process:
“The absence of intra-Palestinian unity continues to undermine Palestinian national aspirations and prevent a common Palestinian approach towards resolving the conflict and addressing the needs of the population. I call upon all Palestinian factions to redouble efforts to reunite Gaza and the occupied West Bank, under a single, democratic, national government. Gaza is, and must remain, an integral part of a future Palestinian State as part of a two-State solution. It is also crucial that Palestinians hold elections – not only a key step towards Palestinian unity, but also as a means to renew legitimacy of national institutions.”
14. Wide shot, Security Council
15. Wide shot, Security Council stakeout
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer to the United Nations, Palestine:
“It is extremely disappointing to listen to the report that there is no progress in the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2334, because the occupying authority is persisting on its breach of international law by continuing to build and expand settlements. And the Security Council remain paralyzed and not resorting to action in order to enforce the implementation of that Resolution, as well as other Resolutions. It is also in interesting to observe that members of the Security Council, again, they say the principal correct thing, yet they do not move in the direction of implementation of their Resolutions and implementation of what they observe as need to be done.”
17. Wide shot, Security Council stakeout
UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland said, “Israelis and Palestinians must determine how they envision the future. Negotiations can no longer be pushed off indefinitely. The current course is leading us towards a perpetual state of violence and conflict.”
The Special Coordinator today (28 Sep) briefed the Security Council on the 23rd report of the Secretary-General Wennesland said, on the implementation of Security Council resolution 2334 (2016). The reporting period is from 17 June to 20 September.
Wennesland said, “I remain deeply troubled by continued Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and attempts by some Israelis to further expand the settlement footprint through the establishment of outposts which are illegal also under Israeli law.”
He added, “I am also concerned that the Supreme Court’s Mitzpeh Kramim decision could set precedent for the legalization of additional outposts under Israeli law.”
The Special Coordinator reiterated that “Israeli settlements have no legal validity and constitute a flagrant violation of international law and United Nations resolutions.”
He called on the Government of Israel to cease all settlement activity immediately.”
“Demolitions and seizures of Palestinian-owned property remain a serious concern,” Wennesland said.
He highlighted, “I am particularly concerned by the ongoing situation in Masafer Yatta, where over 1,000 Palestinians, including 569 children, are at imminent risk of eviction.”
The Special Coordinator urged Israeli authorities to “cease immediately the demolition of Palestinian-owned property and the forcible displacement and eviction of Palestinians, in line with Israel’s obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law, and to approve plans that would enable Palestinians to build legally and address their development needs.”
On Gaza, Wennesland expressed that he is “deeply concerned by the tragic civilian deaths and injuries, including of children, caused by the latest escalation in Gaza.”
He said, “Israel must abide by its obligations under international humanitarian law, including the proportional use of force, and take all feasible precautions to spare civilians and civilian objects during military operations.”
Further, the Special Coordinator condemned “the indiscriminate launching of rockets by Palestinian armed groups from highly populated neighborhoods in Gaza into civilian population centers in Israel, which also resulted in casualties and violates international humanitarian law and puts the lives of civilians at risk.”
On West Bank, Wennesland said, “the high number of Palestinians killed and injured by Israeli security forces in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, remains deeply troubling, particularly reports that some did not appear to pose a threat.”
He added, “the possible excessive use of force by Israeli security forces continues to raise serious concerns, particularly the use of live ammunition.”
Wennesland reiterated, “security forces must use lethal force only when strictly unavoidable to protect life and must promptly, thoroughly investigate all instances of death or injury resulting from its use, and hold those responsible accountable.”
“The absence of intra-Palestinian unity continues to undermine Palestinian national aspirations and prevent a common Palestinian approach towards resolving the conflict and addressing the needs of the population,” the Special Coordinator said.
He called upon “all Palestinian factions to redouble efforts to reunite Gaza and the occupied West Bank, under a single, democratic, national government. Gaza is, and must remain, an integral part of a future Palestinian State as part of a two-State solution.”
“It is also crucial that Palestinians hold elections – not only a key step towards Palestinian unity, but also as a means to renew legitimacy of national institutions,” Wennesland added.
After the Council’s meeting, Palestinian Permanent Observer to the UN Riyad Mansour spoke to the reporters.
He said, “it is extremely disappointing to listen to the report that there is no progress in the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2334, because the occupying authority is persisting on its breach of international law by continuing to build and expand settlements. And the Security Council remain paralyzed and not resorting to action in order to enforce the implementation of that Resolution, as well as other Resolutions.”
Ambassador Mansour continued, “it is also in interesting to observe that members of the Security Council, again, they say the principal correct thing, yet they do not move in the direction of implementation of their Resolutions and implementation of what they observe as need to be done.”
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