Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has called on the United Nations to take decisive action and demonstrate effective role to protect lives of the people of Palestine, ending Israeli aggression against innocent population.

He was addressing the emergency meeting of the UN General Assembly on the situation in Palestine and Israeli aggression against unarmed Palestinians in New York today (Friday).

The Foreign Minister said our first priority must be to halt the Israeli aggression. He said there is no more a military equivalence between the belligerent and the beleaguered and occupied Palestinian people, who have no army, navy, air force, while the Israeli war machine is one of the most powerful in the world. He said this is a war between a military occupier and the occupied people. He said there is a conflict between illegal occupation and a legitimate struggle for self-determination.

The Foreign Minister recalled UNGA Resolution 2649 of November 1970, which affirms the legitimacy of the struggle of people under colonial and alien domination, recognized as being entitled to right to self-determination to restore to themselves that right by any means at their disposal. 

Shah Mahmood Qureshi emphasized the need to mobilize all possible humanitarian help for the devastated Palestinian population in Gaza and other parts of the occupied Palestinian territories. He urged the UN Secretary General to launch a comprehensive humanitarian assistance plan to provide sustenance to the Palestinians. He said we need to send medical teams, medicines, food supplies and other necessities to Gaza and other parts of the occupied territories.

Welcoming the access being provided by Egypt to Gaza, the Foreign Minister said Israel must open all access points to Gaza to ensure timely and urgent delivery of international assistance.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi proposed the UNGA to deploy an international protection force to safeguard Palestinians as was called for in the UNGA Resolutions ES10/20 and has demanded by the Islamic Summit on 18th May, 2018. He said if the UNSC cannot agree to send the protection force, a coalition of the willing can be formed to provide at least civilian observers to monitor a cessation of hostilities and supervise the provision of humanitarian help to the Palestinians.

The Pakistan Foreign Minister also called on the UN Secretary General and the High Commissioner of Human Rights to offer protection to Israel's Arab citizens for being lynched and murdered by fascist Israeli gangs.

He said the UNGA should condemn Israel's forcible and illegal eviction of Palestinians, including in Al-Jarrah, district of Jerusalem, and continued construction of Jews settlements. He said the onslaught against Palestinian worshippers inside Al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan and Israel's brutal and indiscriminate aerial and land bombardment of Gaza is condemnable. He said Israel's crimes against humanity should not escape accountability and there should be no impunity for violation of international law, including the 4th Geneva Convention and other human rights conventions. He said Human Rights Council, the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice and other avenues should be activated to ensure Israel's accountability for its war crimes.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi said we must revive concrete efforts to end Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories and to dismantle illegal settlements and the apartheid like regime Israel has imposed in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Foreign Minister said the UNGA should secure unconditional implementation of UNSC Resolution 242 of November 1967 in which the Security Council has declared the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and demanded that Israel should withdraw its armed forces from territories occupied in the 1967 war. He said it is imperative to initiate bold steps to secure the implementation of UNSC and UNGA Resolutions calling for the establishment of a viable, independent and contiguous Palestinian state with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Pakistan endorses Palestinian President Mehmood Abbas' call for an international conference to secure a peaceful settlement. He said a just solution of Palestine issue is imperative for the maintenance of regional and global peace and security.