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Resolution 1700 (2010) Final version
Situation in the Middle East
1. The Parliamentary Assembly refers
to its Resolutions 1420 (2005), 1452 (2005), 1493 (2006), 1520 (2006) and 1550 (2007), and
reasserts its undertaking to participate, for matters in its remit,
in the international community’s efforts to promote and foster peace
in the Middle East.
2. The Assembly stresses that the passage of time does not facilitate
peace. Quite the contrary, the undue slowness of the peace process
is exactly what has weakened it, causing frustration and bitterness.
3. The Assembly invites the parties not to remain prisoners of
the past and to overcome any attitude of distrust, loss of confidence
or recrimination, in order to embark resolutely on the course of
a shared and negotiated peace.
4. The Assembly confirms that there can be no peace without resolutely
and explicitly combating all forms of intimidation, violence and
terrorism, particularly against civilians, and urges all parties
to act accordingly.
5. It reaffirms that peace can only come from a negotiated solution
shared by the parties, and certainly not from military solutions.
6. It condemns all forms of anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism and anti-Israeli
prejudice and all forms of incitement to violence, and enjoins all
members to combat them.
7. In the same way, it also condemns anti-Arab and anti-Muslim
prejudices and enjoins all members to combat Islamophobia.
8. The Assembly reaffirms that the right to defend oneself must
never transgress the principle of proportionality, taking into account
the gravity of the subjected aggression and the means of self-defence,
and that the use of all weapons and technologies prohibited by international
agreements is unacceptable.
9. The Assembly appreciates the way the new United States Administration
immediately took action to confirm the United States’ resolve to
pursue a solution of peace between the Israelis and Palestinians
and, in welcoming the direct personal involvement of President Obama,
expresses its full support for his initiatives to foster a resumption
of negotiations between the parties in the conflict.
10. It also underlines the value of the President of the United
States’ speech in Cairo on 4 June 2009, which sought to establish
a new climate of trust between the United States and the Muslim
world. It underlines that President Obama’s visit to Buchenwald
once again demonstrated friendship and solidarity with the Jewish people
and his commitment to supporting Israel’s right to exist. It also
hopes that a future visit of President Obama to Israel would be
warmly welcomed and of great help.
11. The Assembly again underlines that the conflict in the Middle
East above all concerns two equally legitimate aspirations – Israel’s
right to be recognised and to exist in safety and the Palestinians’
right to have an independent, viable and contiguous state – and
that a stable peace cannot be achieved unless the aspirations and
rights of both peoples are fulfilled.
12. The Assembly stresses that the resolutions adopted by the
United Nations, the Oslo Accords, the Washington Declaration and
the Taba negotiations, the 2001 Moratinos document, the Road Map
proposed by the United Nations–European Union–United States–Russia
Quartet and the final declarations of the Annapolis Conference all
point in the direction of a peace founded on the principle of land
for peace in order to guarantee the existence of a Palestinian state
next to the state of Israel.
13. The Assembly underlines that, until the Annapolis Conference,
all the preliminary talks and negotiations were directed at seeking
mutual solutions on four strategic points: a Palestinian state based
on the 1967 borders, modified by possible exchanges of territory
as agreed by the parties concerned; a “fair and mutual” solution
for the Palestinian refugees, which would not undermine the characteristics
of the State of Israel; the evacuation of Israeli settlements in
the territories occupied in 1967; an agreed status of Jerusalem,
taking account of the historic and religious value of the city,
which both the Israelis and the Palestinians claim as their own
capital. On each of these questions, convergences of positions,
though not formalised, have been recorded and ought not to be jeopardised.
14. The Assembly notes that the current Israeli Government has
proposed a new approach for a peaceful solution which, while acknowledging
the right to a Palestinian state, at the same time demands recognition
of the Jewish nature of the State of Israel.
15. The Assembly regrets that the proposals made by Prime Minister
Netanyahu in his Bar Ilan speech of 14 June 2009 (for a demilitarised
Palestinian state with airspace and borders under Israeli control;
Jerusalem as the sole and exclusive capital of the State of Israel;
the Palestinian refugees’ right of return to be exercised outside
the State of Israel; the borders between Israel and the Palestinian
state to be determined on the basis of the current population breakdown) deviate
from the approach followed to date by the parties and the international
community.
16. The Assembly points out that the issue of the Israeli settlements
in the Palestinian territories has become an increasingly acute
aspect of the conflict and that the United States Administration
and the international community has asked the Israeli Government
to stop the settlements.
17. The Assembly appreciates the fact that on 25 November 2009
the Israeli Government agreed on a ten-month suspension of new settlements
and building in the West Bank, but notes that this suspension does
not include new buildings already begun or approved, public works,
or construction in East Jerusalem. Nonetheless, the Assembly hopes
that this partial freeze may be a first step to fostering the resumption
of relations between the parties in the conflict, even though the
limitations referred to are a cause for concern. The Assembly places
particular emphasis on the need not to take any steps which would
pre-judge the identity of that part of Jerusalem.
18. The Assembly welcomes the Israeli Government’s moves to reduce
checkpoints and controls on entry to the West Bank and hopes that
other steps of this kind will be taken. At the same time, it notes
that most of the separation wall falls inside the West Bank and
that, even if it has reduced the death toll caused by terrorist attacks,
it remains a serious point of contention and represents a violation
of international law. The Assembly calls upon Israel to abide by
the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice to reroute
the wall so that it lies solely on Israeli sovereign territory,
and pay reparations to Palestinians who have been affected.
19. The Assembly reaffirms its support for President Mahmoud Abbas
and hopes that he will reverse his decision not to stand again for
election as president.
20. The Assembly welcomes the significant economic and security
improvements made in the West Bank by the Fayyad Government and
urges it to continue in this direction.
21. The Assembly welcomes the fact that the Fatah Congress confirmed
the leadership of President Mahmoud Abbas and hopes that the new
leaders elected by the Congress will keep their active commitment to
a negotiated and shared peace.
22. The Assembly hopes the negotiations between President Mahmoud
Abbas and Hamas will lead to a positive outcome, enabling a government
of national unity to be formed and an acceptable date to be agreed for
the holding of parliamentary and presidential elections.
23. The Assembly strongly urges Israel and Hamas to resume negotiations
for a firm and lasting truce, the reopening of the crossing-points
into Gaza and an exchange of prisoners allowing the soldier Gilad
Shalit and the Palestinian prisoners to return to their families.
24. In particular, the Assembly reminds the parties in the conflict
that it is urgent to restart peace negotiations as soon as possible
and, to this end, it encourages them to restore a climate of mutual
trust, which is now almost non-existent, and accordingly asks each
party to be consistent and generous in their actions in taking account
of the expectations of the other party.
25. The Assembly therefore urges the Government of Israel to:
25.1. confirm the goal of a peace
based on the birth, alongside the State of Israel, of a Palestinian
state set up on the 1967 borders modified by possible limited exchanges
of territory, as agreed by the parties concerned;
25.2. attain this goal through negotiation with the Palestinian
National Authority, on the basis of negotiated and shared criteria
and objectives;
25.3. vest the Palestinian National Authority with all the powers
set out in the agreements concluded to date;
25.4. conduct a thorough inquiry in order to ascertain the responsibilities
of Israel’s military forces in human rights violations, the gratuitous
and unwarranted use of force and the use of chemical weapons, as
reported by Richard Goldstone;
25.5. free the imprisoned Palestinian Legislative Council members
and a large number of other prisoners in accordance with the Annapolis
agreement;
25.6. authorise no further settlements beyond the borders of
the State of Israel, or the extension of existing ones, and to remove
what are referred to as “illegal outposts”;
25.7. lift the siege of the Gaza Strip, allow humanitarian aid
to enter and guarantee the lasting re-opening of access points;
25.8. continue relaxing the constraints on mobility and day-to-day
living for the population of the West Bank by reducing the roadblocks
and easing controls at the passages into the West Bank, while keeping its
sense of responsibility toward the Israeli population;
25.9. fulfil its obligations under international law, including
adhering to United Nations Security Council resolutions and its
obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, and to cease
with immediate effect all home demolitions in occupied territory,
all confiscation of land and theft of property;
25.10. ensure equal rights for the non-Jewish citizens of Israel.
26. The Assembly urges all the Palestinian forces to:
26.1. recognise the authority of President
Mahmoud Abbas;
26.2. take definite and significant steps in the direction of
the three requests made by the Quartet: to refrain from violence;
to recognise the right of the State of Israel to exist; to abide
by all the agreements signed by the Palestinian representatives
in recent years;
26.3. rapidly conclude the negotiations for the formation of
a government of national unity and set a universally acceptable
date for the parliamentary and presidential elections;
26.4. avoid any national form of incitement to violence, in
particular related to children, and any celebration of martyrdom.
27. In particular, the Assembly urges Hamas to:
27.1. reject the use of terrorism
and combat it explicitly, renouncing its charter (The Charter of
Allah: The Platform of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas),
1988);
27.2. cease rocket launching and all types of aggression against
Israel;
27.3. free the soldier Gilad Shalit;
27.4. end all illegal smuggling of weapons into the Gaza Strip
and the West Bank;
27.5. cease all forms of persecution of opposing factions.
28. The Assembly urges both Israel and the Palestine Liberation
Organisation to adhere to previously signed agreements.
29. The Assembly calls on the United States, the European Union,
the Russian Federation and the United Nations to revitalise the
joint action of the Quartet by extricating it from the stagnation
of 2008 and adjusting its approach in line with developments.
30. The Assembly underlines the essential role which the European
Union needs to play in supporting the action of the Quartet, helping
the parties concerned to resume negotiations and expanding bilateral
relations with the countries in the region, as well as in making
the newly established Union for the Mediterranean the instrument
for a policy of co-operation, progress and security.
31. The Assembly recalls the conclusions of the European Union
Council of Ministers meeting on 8 December 2009, in which the European
Union expressed its deep concern about the stalemate of the peace process,
confirmed its profound commitment for a two-state solution, declared
that it would accept the modifications to the 1967 borders only
if they were agreed by both parties, underscored that the illegal settlements
were an obstacle to peace and asked that they be stopped, demanded
the reopening of access to the Gaza Strip, and warned against attempts
to annex East Jerusalem which would jeopardise reaching an agreement
between the parties for Jerusalem as a capital of both states.
32. The Assembly warmly welcomes the renewed commitment of the
Arab League and its member countries to peace and regards the Arab
initiative adopted in Beirut and Riyadh, recently confirmed again
in Doha, as an essential contribution to a peaceful mutual arrangement.
33. It expresses its support for the Arab leaders – first and
foremost President Mubarak – actively engaged in creating a climate
of trust and building a peace with which all parties can identify.
34. The Assembly underlines the contribution which the Kingdom
of Jordan makes to stability in the region and to efforts to achieve
a shared arrangement conducive to peace.
35. The Assembly is gratified by the formation of a new Lebanese
Government, after many months of negotiations between the parties,
and the new relations established between Syria and Lebanon following Prime
Minister Hariri’s visit to Damascus; it stresses the importance
of the United Nations Interim force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) contingent’s
peace-keeping action, welcomes the commencement of business by the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon and appeals to all members of Lebanese society
to pursue the path of rebuilding the country’s economy and institutions,
strengthening its unity and overcoming the earlier divisions between opposing
factions and armed groups. At the same time, the Assembly draws
attention to the question of the disarmament of the militia, which
exposes the country to the risk of continuous outbreaks of violence
and is still unresolved, as is the question of the role of Hezbollah,
the main Lebanese Islamist party.
36. The Assembly regards as decisive a positive resolution of
the international dispute with Iran under the new approach suggested
by President Obama, and calls upon the Iranian authorities to display
the same readiness to seek an agreement which offers specific guarantees
as to the exclusively civilian use of nuclear technologies, on the
basis of the proposals put forward by the United Nations. To prevent
these efforts being undermined, Iran must comply with international
demands to suspend its nuclear enrichment and reprocessing activities,
co-operate with the International Atomic Energy Agency in its investigation
of open questions, and immediately cease construction of the Qom
enrichment site. Both Iran and Israel should co-operate with the United
Nations on nuclear issues.
37. The Assembly condemns the repression and continuous acts of
violence on the part of the Iranian authorities against the peaceful
demonstrators and members of the opposition, and calls for the release
of those detained following the demonstrations. At the same time,
the Assembly rejects the violent anti-Israeli statements made by
the Iranian leaders, as well as those against western countries.
38. The Assembly welcomes the progress made in the democratic
transition in Iraq and asks the international community to support
all the efforts of the Iraqi authorities to further the country’s
development and enhance its stability, based on respect for universal
values.
39. The Assembly takes note of the new, more constructive attitude
shown by the Government of Syria and encourages it to stay on course.
40. The Assembly welcomes the important role played by Turkey
and therefore hopes that this country’s positive relations of friendship
with Israel, which have recently been strained, can be restored
to their previous level.
41. The Assembly stresses the major contribution that the Russian
Federation can make to the region’s stability, in particular by
encouraging Syria and Iran to put more open policies in place.
42. The Assembly stresses how important it is to support the peace
process through policies of assistance for the economic and social
development of the region and accordingly commends the action of
the Quartet’s Envoy, Mr Tony Blair, and welcomes the financial undertakings
made at the Donor Conference in Sharm El Sheikh.
43. The Geneva Initiative of December 2003, although not the expression
of official institutions, is promoted by key figures of Israeli
and Palestinian society, and makes a very important contribution,
supplying precious details for negotiations related to the final
status.
44. It stresses that full affirmation of and respect for human
rights, individual freedoms and democracy in all the countries in
the region are vital to a stable and lasting peace, and that the
Council of Europe has an important part to play in this respect.
45. The Assembly stresses that the Council of Europe can make
a useful and specific contribution to peace in the Middle East.
It considers that the Committee of Ministers and the relevant sectors
of the Organisation should promote:
45.1. technical and legal assistance for complete conformity
of legislation with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and
the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5);
45.2. initiatives involving interinstitutional, intercultural
and interfaith dialogue.
46. The Assembly is pleased by the start of the activities of
the Tripartite Forum, bringing together the Council of Europe Assembly,
the Knesset and the Palestinian Legislative Council, and urges the
parties to keep up their efforts.
47. The Assembly encourages the Palestinian Legislative Council
to submit its request for “Partner for democracy” status with the
Assembly.
48. For its part, the Assembly is determined to continue its efforts
to establish relations with the parliamentary institutions of the
countries of the region and to foster contacts between them.
49. The Assembly decides to continue to follow developments in
the situation in the Middle East.