UNSC holds open debate on Mideast, Palestinian cause

NEW YORK, Jan 22 (KUNA) -- The UNSC will hold on Tuesday its quarterly open debate on the Middle East, including the Palestinian cause.
Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov and several member-states are expected to reiterate that the recent Israeli settlement activity is a major obstruction to the peace process and a violation of the international law.
Mladenov also may update members on the latest developments following Israel's decision in late 2018 to build new homes in the Ofra, Arnei Hefetz and Beitar Illit settlements.
He and member states might also reiterate concerns about the planned demolition by Israeli authorities of Khan Al-Ahmar, a Bedouin village of 180 people in the West Bank.
The debate could also address the recent escalation in violence between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank since December 2018, as well as ongoing violence associated with protests along the Gaza fence.
On January 21, based on preliminary information, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated that 254 Palestinians and two Israelis had died as a result of violence resulting from the "March of Return" protests in Gaza between on March 30 and December 31, 2018.
On January 18, several Palestinian protestors were reportedly wounded by Israeli gunfire during protests in Gaza.
Mladenov and others are also likely to tackle the regional security implications of recent developments in Lebanon, the Golan Heights and across the Israel-Syria border more generally.
With regard to the Golan Heights, Mladenov may note violations of the ceasefire line and areas of separation and limitation between Israel and Syria that have occurred in recent months.
No military forces other than those of the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) are allowed in these areas.
Adding to tensions along the Syria-Israel border, the Israeli Defense Forces said that it had struck Iranian military targets yesterday in Syria, including what it identified as a training camp, an intelligence site, a military site at the Damascus International Airport, and munitions storage sites, after Iran fired a surface-to-surface missile from Syria toward the Golan Heights.
In the debate, some Council members may reiterate their desire to receive written reports in advance of the quarterly briefing on the implementation of resolution 2334, even though the next such briefing is not until March 2019.
Resolution 2334 demanded an end to Israeli settlement activities and called for "immediate steps to prevent all acts of violence against civilians, including acts of terror".
These reports have been conveyed orally, with the exception of the written report produced in June 2018, following a 14 May 2018 letter requesting written reports on this issue from ten Council members, including Bolivia, China, Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, France, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Peru, and Sweden.
On December 21, 2018, a second letter was submitted to the Secretary-General signed by two permanent members, China and France, elected members Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Kuwait, Peru, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, and Sweden; and incoming members Belgium, Indonesia, and South Africa, saying that the "circulation of written reports to the Council is standard practice" and expressing their expectation "to receive written reports at least every second reporting occasion." Council members and others participating in the open debate may also discuss the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
The debate takes place against the backdrop of recent signals from the Palestinian Authority leadership that Palestine would seek UN member state status in the coming weeks.
Some speakers may express their views on this issue. A series of rules and procedures govern membership applications, notably Article 4 (2) of the UN Charter, which says that a state may accede to membership "by a decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council." Applications for admission to the UN are submitted to the Secretary-General, who is required to "immediately place the application" before the Security Council (rule 59 of the Provisional Rules of Procedure of the Security Council) and to send a copy of the application to the General Assembly "for information" (rule 135 of the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly).
A standing Security Council Committee on Admission of New Members (comprised of all 15 members) reports its conclusions to the Council proper, which then decides on whether to make a recommendation to the General Assembly.
In the General Assembly, under rule 83 of its Rules of Procedure, the admission of a new member is an "important question", which requires a two-thirds majority.
Palestine submitted an application for UN membership on September 23, 2011, but this effort was unsuccessful after the Council's Admission Committee reported that it was unable to reach a unanimous recommendation on Palestine's bid.
An alternative to going through the Committee would have been for a Council member to table a resolution in the Council, thus bypassing the Committee, but this was not pursued and almost assuredly would have been vetoed.
The meeting will be the first opportunity for the new members, Belgium, the Dominican Republic, Germany, Indonesia, and South Africa, to speak in the open chamber on Israel-Palestine since the start of their 2019-2020 Council tenures.
Indonesia's Vice President Mohammed Jusuf Kalla emphasized at the opening of the General Assembly on September 27, 2018 that the current situation destroys the Palestinians desire for an independent state and that the international community needs to call for immediate negotiations for a two-state solution. (end) asf.ma