A rchive Date
[ 30-03-2002 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ U.N ]
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[http://canoe.ca/Canoe/canoecnews.html
U.S. joins Security Council vote calling for Israeli troops to withdraw from Palestinian cities
By GERALD NADLER-- Associated Press
Saturday, Mar. 30, 2002
UNITED NATIONS (AP) -- The United States joined in a Security Council vote Saturday calling on Israel to withdraw its troops from Palestinian cities, including Ramallah, where Yasser Arafat's headquarters have been under attack.
It was the second time in a month that the United States voted with the Council for a Middle East resolution after years of abstaining and vetoing council measures that were critical of Israel. On March 13, the United States voted with the council calling for a Palestinian state.
The 14-0 vote capped a marathon emergency council session called at the request of the Palestinians as Israeli troops raided Arafat's West Bank headquarters. Syria, which opposes peace with Israel, abstained from the vote.
The council resolution called on "both parties to move immediately to a meaningful cease-fire; calls for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian cities, including Ramallah; and calls upon the parties to cooperate fully with (U.S.) Special Envoy (Anthony) Zinni" to work to get a cease-fire and start negotiation for a political settlement.
Syria, however, sought a resolution that would not refer to the Palestinian suicide bombings, which Israel responded to with its massive push into Ramallah. The Syrian government regards the Palestinian radicals as fighting a legitimate war against Israeli occupation.
Syria, the most hard-line of Israel's neighbors, has fought in every war against the Jewish state and still has land -- the Golan Heights -- under Israeli occupation.
Several Palestinian groups on the U.S. terrorist list have headquarters in Damascus, and Syria has ties to Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite Muslim guerrilla group admired by some Arabs for ending Israel's 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon, but considered terrorist by Washington.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan opened the five-hour debate, urging Israel to stop its assault on Arafat's compound, saying destroying it will not bring peace.
At the beginning of the emergency debate, Deputy U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham warned Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his government "to carefully consider the consequences" of attacking Arafat's headquarters.
Cunningham said Arafat must not be harmed.
"Chairman Arafat is the leader of the Palestinian people. His leadership is now, and will be, central to any meaningful effort to restore calm," Cunningham said.
The emergency session, which interrupted a Good Friday holiday, was called at the Palestinians' request after Israeli troops, backed by tanks, besieged Arafat's headquarters, confining the Palestinian leader.
The meeting concluded a tumultuous week in Middle East politics -- Arab League nations endorsed a Saudi peace plan, a suicide bomber killed 22 Passover diners and Sharon vowed Israel would "isolate" Arafat with a massive military push.
U.N. envoy Nasser al-Kidwa called the Ramallah assault one more in a series of "insane" steps by Sharon. "Any harm to President Arafat would be the mother of all these mistakes," he said.
Saying he was trying to salvage the situation, al-Kidwa called for a cease-fire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian cities.
Annan, who flew home Friday from the Arab summit in Lebanon, said he was "deeply alarmed at the rapid escalation of the violence."
"Israel should halt its assault on the Palestinian Authority," Annan said. "Destroying the Palestinian Authority will not bring Israel closer to peace."
Terming suicide bombings "repugnant," he said they subverted all peace attempts.
 World Fact Book (CIA)]
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