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STORY: UN / PALESTINE
TRT: 04:00
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 27 JUNE 2022, NEW YORK CITY – FILE
FILE – NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, UN headquarters, exterior
27 JUNE 2022, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“In recent months, violence has continued at a high level, leading to scores of Palestinian and Israeli casualties.”
4. Wide shot, Security Council
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“Mounting violence has been further fueled and exacerbated by provocative steps and inflammatory rhetoric. It is crucial that all parties take immediate steps to lower tensions and reverse negative trends that undermine prospects for a peaceful two-State resolution of the conflict, with a contiguous, independent, viable, and sovereign Palestinian State.”
6. Wide shot, Security Council
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“This will require not only specific actions to defuse crises and maintain calm but also redoubled efforts to strengthen the Palestinian Authority and support a broader strategy that can ensure collective efforts by the parties and the international community are geared towards establishing a two-State reality.”
8. Wide shot, Security Council
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, remains deeply troubling. Settlements constitute a flagrant violation of United Nations resolutions and international law. They undermine the prospect of achieving a two-State solution by systematically eroding the possibility of establishing a contiguous, independent, viable, and sovereign Palestinian State. I call on the Government of Israel to cease the advancement of all settlement activity immediately.”
10. Wide shot, Security Council
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“I call upon the Government of Israel to end the demolition and seizure of Palestinian-owned property, prevent the possible displacement and eviction of Palestinians, in line with its obligations under international humanitarian and international human rights law, and approve plans that would enable Palestinians in Area C and occupied East Jerusalem to build legally and address their development needs.”
12. Wide shot, Security Council
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“I remain gravely concerned by continuing violence against civilians, which exacerbates mistrust and undermine a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The violence must stop, and all perpetrators must be held accountable. I condemn the terrorist attacks carried out by Palestinians and Arab-Israelis against civilians in Israel in recent months. These attacks, the deadliest in years, can never be justified and must be clearly condemned by all.”
14. Med shot, Security Council
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“I also condemn the killings of Palestinians, including children, by Israeli security forces, related in particular to incidents where they did not appear to present an imminent threat to life. I note that to date, in 2022, 15 Palestinian children have been killed in the West Bank as compared to nine children killed in the West Bank during the same period last year. Children must not be target of violence or put in harm’s way.”
16. Wide shot, Security Council
17. SOUNDBITE (English) Tor Wennesland, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, United Nations:
“The persistence of conflict drivers and the absence of political will to change course have empowered extremists and are eroding the perception among Palestinians and Israelis that a resolution of the conflict is achievable.”
18. Wide shot, Security Council
Addressing the Security Council today (27 Jun), the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, said, “it is crucial that all parties take immediate steps to lower tensions and reverse negative trends that undermine prospects for a peaceful two-State resolution of the conflict, with a contiguous, independent, viable, and sovereign Palestinian State.”
According to the Special Coordinator, violence has recently continued at a high level, leading to scores of Palestinian and Israeli casualties.
Since mid-March, 49 Palestinians have been killed in demonstrations, clashes, and Israeli security operations, including in Area A, attacks, and alleged attacks against Israelis and settler-related violence.
The period has also been marked by the most severe terrorist attacks inside Israel in years, in which 11 Israelis and three foreign nationals were killed.
Wennesland noted that the firing of a rocket from Gaza towards Israel, the first since April, is also a concerning reminder of the situation’s fragility in the Strip.
“Mounting violence has been further fueled and exacerbated by provocative steps and inflammatory rhetoric,” he added.
A peaceful two-State resolution “will require not only specific actions to defuse crises and maintain calm,” the Special Coordinator highlighted, “but also redoubled efforts to strengthen the Palestinian Authority and support a broader strategy that can ensure collective efforts by the parties and the international community are geared towards establishing a two-State reality.”
He also said that Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, remains “deeply troubling.”
He explained, “Settlements constitute a flagrant violation of United Nations resolutions and international law. They undermine the prospect of achieving a two-State solution by systematically eroding the possibility of establishing a contiguous, independent, viable, and sovereign Palestinian State. I call on the Government of Israel to cease the advancement of all settlement activity immediately.”
Wennesland also called upon the Government of Israel to end the demolition and seizure of Palestinian-owned property, prevent the possible displacement and eviction of Palestinians, in line with its obligations under international humanitarian and international human rights law, and approve plans that would enable Palestinians in Area C and occupied East Jerusalem to build legally and address their development needs.
He added, “I remain gravely concerned by continuing violence against civilians, which exacerbates mistrust and undermine a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The violence must stop, and all perpetrators must be held accountable.”
He condemned the terrorist attacks carried out by Palestinians and Arab-Israelis against civilians in Israel in recent months.
“These attacks, the deadliest in years, can never be justified and must be clearly rejected by all,” he said.
The Special Coordinator also condemned Israeli security forces' continued killings of Palestinians, including children, particularly in incidents where they did not appear to present an imminent threat to life.
“Children must not be target of violence or put in harm’s way,” he stressed.
Talking about the killing of journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, he reiterated the Secretary-General’s call for an independent and transparent investigation into the and to ensure those responsible are held accountable.
Wennesland also noted that the indiscriminate launching of rockets toward Israeli population centers is prohibited by international humanitarian law and must stop immediately.
“The fragility of the political and security situation, particularly in the occupied West Bank, is highly concerning,” he said.
“The persistence of conflict drivers and the absence of political will to change course have empowered extremists and are eroding the perception among Palestinians and Israelis that a resolution of the conflict is achievable,” he stressed.
The Special Coordinator also noted that the situation remains fragile in Gaza, that the risk of escalation persists, and that only sustainable political solutions will relieve the pressures on the population.
He also drove attention to the Palestinian Authority’s financial crisis, compounded by the constraints of the occupation, the absence of serious Palestinian reforms, and unclear prospects for donor support.
