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Jerusalem: Israel is
taking steps to prevent a Palestinian initiative at the United
Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to establish a fact-finding
mission on West Bank settlements.
According to the initiative, slated for discussion Monday, a UN
fact-finding team will be formed with the goal of examining the
impacts of the Jewish settlements and construction in east
Jerusalem on the Palestinian residents.
"This is an improper Palestinian attempt to escape from the
uppermost need for peace negotiations," Israeli Foreign Ministry
spokesman Yigal Palmor told Xinhua Monday.
"Instead of doing what needs to be done according to the
international community's decisions, they (the Palestinians) are
putting their efforts in confronting and struggling with Israel in
diplomatic and political fronts," he added.
"We hope that this battle of propaganda will be rejected by all
the states, like Israel, that desire to bring the conflict into an
ending in peaceful methods to the benefit of the two peoples," he
said.
The Israeli foreign ministry has instructed Israeli ambassadors in
UNHRC member countries to work with the local authorities in order
to convince the Palestinians to withdraw their request.
"Israel views with severity a decision that demands the
establishment of a fact-finding committee against it," the foreign
ministry said in a telegram sent to the ambassadors, adding that
such a committee will be an obstacle to any possibility of
renewing direct talks with the Palestinians, the Ma'ariv daily
reported.
A diplomatic source told Xinhua Monday that the general assumption
in the Israeli foreign ministry is that the Palestinians will have
an automatic majority if the UN body decides to bring the
initiative to a vote.
"Based on our former experience, they can pass any resolution they
want in this organization. Even if all the European
representatives will vote against it -- which they won't -- the
Palestinians still have a majority among the developing countries,
" the source said.
Israeli Knesset (parliament) opposition Labor party member Yitzhak
Herzoz also slammed the Palestinian initiative.
"I think that the Palestinians are making a terrible mistake when
engaging in unilateral acts," Herzog told Xinhua Monday.
"This move clearly subverts the world view that promotes conflict
resolutions through negotiations, and this is why it should be
rejected," he said.
The UNHRC will discuss a series of resolutions on Israel and the
Palestinians during its 19th session.
One of the resolutions calls on the council "to dispatch an
independent international fact-finding mission to be appointed by
the president of the council, to investigate the implications of
Israeli settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and
cultural rights of the Palestinian people throughout the occupied
Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem."
It also calls on Israel to cooperate with the mission.
According to the Ma'an News Agency, senior Hamas official Ismail
al-Ashqar is scheduled to address the UNHRC Monday as part of the
council's debate on Israel.
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