Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour has urged the UN Security Council to “immediately intervene” to halt what he called a “genocidal operation” being carried out by Israel against 2.3 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
He strongly criticized the logic of the US regarding the right to self-defense, asserting that Israel sees it as a “license to kill” Palestinians.
He emphasized that the Palestinian Authority, led by President Mahmoud Abbas, is presenting a “different path” for achieving peace based on ending the occupation and achieving a two-state solution.
In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Mansour said that the next steps at the UN “await instructions from the Palestinian leadership in light of the meetings held by the Arab League.”
He emphasized that “now is not the time to allow Israel to escalate its military options,” but rather to “inform Israel that it needs to change its course.”
He reminded that “there is a path to peace, a path where both Palestinians and Israelis don't have to die, a path that directly contradicts what Israel is currently doing.”
“It cannot be said that nothing justifies the killing of Israelis and still provide justifications for killing Palestinians,” argued Mansour.
The Palestinian envoy expressed regret that “for some media outlets and politicians, history seems to begin when Israelis are killed.”
Mansour’s comment referred to the extensive media coverage of attacks by Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and other Palestinian factions on Israeli settlements near the Gaza Strip since last Saturday, which resulted in the deaths of over a thousand Israelis.
“The Palestinian people have endured deadly years, one after another, with the UN Security Council failing to act despite our warnings about the consequences of Israeli impunity and international complacency,” said Mansour.
Mansour strongly criticized Israel’s rationale that”"the blockade and repeated attacks on Gaza are aimed at destroying Hamas’s military capabilities and ensuring security.”
According to the delegate, past experiences have proved that Israel’s blockade and assaults have not achieved any of its security goals.
“The only thing they have accomplished is inflicting significant suffering on all civilian populations in the Gaza Strip,” said Mansour.
“The time has come to immediately halt the violence and bloodshed, and it's time to end this blockade and open a political horizon,” he added.
Mansour observed that “US messages about Israel’s right to self-defense will be interpreted by Israel as a license to kill and continue down the same path that has led us to where we are now.”
