LOC19:48
16:48 GMT
Extraordinary meeting of the Arab League Council
CAIRO, April 24 (KUNA) -- The Arab League on Wednesday convened an extraordinary meeting to push for accountability in the face of "crimes" committed by Israeli forces against the Palestinians across the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
The talks, on the level of permanent envoys to the Cairo-based bloc, aim to bring to light the "mass genocide" perpetrated by Israeli occupation forces against the Palestinians, drawing large-scale condemnation from across the world, Mauritania's ambassador to the Arab League El Houcine Ould Deh told the gathering.
Putting an end to these "crimes" by Israeli occupation forces is tantamount to a legal and moral "obligation," the Mauritanian diplomat underlined, saying that the "conscience" of the international community should not allow any impediments to the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.
He went on to lament the "failure" of the United Nations Security Council in recognizing a Palestinian state through membership, slamming the "distressing" move as undermining the chances of a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict, based on 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state.
Palestinian envoy Mohannad Aklouk called for economic, legal, political and diplomatic measures aiming to hold Israel accountable for its actions, saying that some 8,000 Palestinians have been killed despite calls by a top UN court to halt the violence, pressing the international community to sever ties with Israeli as a punitive measure.
He lashed out at the US for vetoing a Palestinian request to the United Nations Security Council for full UN membership, which subsequently blocked Palestinian entry into the global body, slamming Washington's "bias" towards Israel and its military aid for the occupation forces.
The Palestinian diplomat mentioned the findings of a report by Francesca Albanese, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the West Bank and Gaza, which he said exposed "massive" human rights violations committed by Israeli forces against the Palestinians.
The acts of "mass genocide" perpetrated by Israeli occupation forces are embedded in "Israeli ideologies," he said, citing the report, as he voiced his support for works of the UN expert in bringing the matter to the world's attention. (end)
mm.nam