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NEW YORK, Oct 19 (KUNA) -- UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland Tuesday warned that the political stalemate in the Palestinian file will lead to increasing tensions and despair, and instability, amid the deterioration of situation in the occupied Palestinian territories and no progress in a two-state solution.
This came in a briefing by Wennesland during a UN Security Council session on Palestine.
"Settlement activity, evictions, demolitions and seizures of Palestinian property, ISF military operations, particularly in Area A, and movement and access restrictions, including the severe closures on Gaza, further feed the cycle of violence," he said.
"The security situation in Gaza remains fragile and the security dynamics in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are deteriorating, including growing tensions in and around the Holy Sites," he added.
He called on Israel to take all necessary steps to fulfil its obligation to protect Palestinian civilians from violence, including by Israeli settlers, and to investigate and hold accountable those responsible for such attacks.
Wennesland underlined the need for all parties to respect and back the current situation in the holy places, urging Israel to stop home demolition and eviction, in line with its obligations under international humanitarian law.
"Efforts continued to stabilize the situation in Gaza and support recovery and reconstruction following the May escalation," he mentioned.
"I remain concerned by UNRWA's continued budget shortfall. I welcome the recently announced contributions from key donors, however, UNRWA still lacks the necessary funds to sustain its critical programmes for the rest of this year.
"UNRWA remains indispensable for regional stability and must have the necessary resources to fulfil its mandate," he affirmed.
He highlighted continued attacks carried out by the settlers against Palestinians, saying settlers and other Israeli civilians carried out 26 attacks against Palestinians, resulting in 18 injuries and damage to property. (end)
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