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Mr. President,
We thank the Bolivian Presidency for organizing this open debate today. We also thank the Secretary General's Special Coordinator, Nickolay Mladenov, and Hagai El-Ad, for their insightful briefings.
Mr. President,
We are meeting at a particularly poignant juncture in the political history of the Middle East.
On the 25th anniversary of the Oslo peace accords, the sense of hope and optimism engendered by the two-state solution has given way to despair and desperation.
As fundamental tenets of the two-state solution are systematically dismantled in plain sight of the international community, it comes as no surprise that there are few people in the region who believe that peace can even be achieved in their life time.
Many more question if peace is at all possible.
An unfortunate sequence of events has exacerbated this sense of despondency.
Long-standing resolutions of the Security Council on the status of Jerusalem have been flouted and cast aside.
The illegal expansion of Israeli settlements into the occupied territory continues with intensity.
The recent Israeli decision to dismantle the Bedouin community of Khan Al-Ahmar is only another manifestation of the occupying power's longstanding policy of forcibly displacing Palestinians from their lands. This measure takes fresh aim at the roots of Palestinian identity and their existence as a people.
The killing fields of Gaza continue to be drenched with the blood of innocent Palestinians - over 200 civilians have been killed since peaceful protests began in March 2018, including another seven on 12 October.
Mr. President,
The decision by a major donor to cease all financial support to UNRWA has not only cast a deep shadow of uncertainty over the long-term sustainability of many of its critical activities including education, health and social services, it also runs the risk of unravelling the peace 'dividend' of the work of this organization. From its very inception, UNRWA has served as a vehicle for political stability and social cohesion in its areas of operation.
The humanitarian needs of the Palestinian refugees should not be mortgaged to political expediency and narrow interests. All the more so, when the prospect for a just settlement of the Palestine issue, remains more distant than ever.
As members of the international community, we must collectively endeavour to preserve the integrity of the agency's core services to 5.3 million Palestinian refugees.
On our part, Mr. President, Pakistan's commitment to our Palestinian brethren remains firm and abiding. As an expression of our solidarity with them, Pakistan is making an additional contribution to UNRWA this year.
The international community must also continue to lend its voice in support of a two-state solution based on agreed parameters including pre-1967 borders and with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as the capital of the Palestinian state.
Mr. President,
As instability and violence continue to ravage many parts of the Middle East, the imperative for diplomatic solutions is more urgent than ever.
As the Syrian sides work towards the establishment of an inclusive constitutional committee, we commend the diligent efforts of the Secretary General's outgoing Special Envoy, Staffan de Mistura, in pursuing the goal of a negotiated settlement in Syria for a good part of the last five years.
Pakistan will also continue to lend its support for a negotiated settlement in Yemen, based on agreed frameworks and through inclusive political engagement. Immediate measures to alleviate the humanitarian suffering of the Yemeni people must remain an equally urgent international priority.
Mr. President,
The plight of the Palestinians is as old as the UN itself. It is also intrinsic to lasting peace in the region.
Over the years, as international efforts to bring an end to the suffering of the Palestinian people have faltered, the burning cauldron of anger and pervasive sense of injustice have inescapably sowed the seeds of animosity and violence in the entire region, fueling instability and intensifying insecurity across the Middle East.
If we want to put out these fires of conflict, we must act decisively against injustice and oppression across the world.
It is time to bring an end to the tragedy of Palestine.
It is time to inspire hopes of peace and mutual co-existence for the entire region.
Our pursuit of this worthy endeavour must be renewed, despite the odds, with even greater determination now.
I thank you.