NEW YORK – pakistan told the UN that instability in the Middle East was theresult of big power politics and divergent interests of regional states,that has led to suffering for millions of people in the region.
“Big power rivalries, combined with the divergent policies and interests ofmajor regional states, presage a period of continued conflict andinstability in the region, and prolonged suffering for the millions ofinnocent victims”, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN, Dr. Maleeha Lodhi saidwhile speaking in the security Council debate on the Situation in theMiddle East.
She warned the 15 member Council that “The region stands at a dangerouscrossroads”, adding that the seething fires of conflict and violencethreaten to exacerbate the multiple intersecting and overlapping regionalfault-lines, thus presenting a greater risk to international peace andsecurity than ever before.
Ambassador Lodhi urged the Security Council to analyze the reasons for theregion’s “troubles”, as some characterize the Middle East as a ‘troubled’place. Most of these troubles, she stressed, are a direct consequence offoreign occupation, annexation and intervention.Highlighting the plight of the Palestinians, the Pakistani envoy said thatin recent times, no people have suffered greater injustice than the peopleof Palestine.
“During the past seventy years, they have been driven from their homes andtheir homeland, militarily occupied and obliged to live in conditionsresembling apartheid”, she asserted.Condemning Israel’s “cruel occupation and repression” during the ‘GreatMarch of Return’ in Gaza, Pakistani envoy said that a peaceful protest wastransformed into a callous killing zone by the occupying power, even as theworld watched the wanton shooting of unarmed Palestinians on theirtelevision screens.
She also criticized the Security Council’s inability to even call for anindependent and transparent investigation into the incidents, much lesscondemn the crimes of the occupying power. “The Palestinian demand forjustice was met, once again, by arrogant dismissal”, she commented.The world community, she noted, has long since recognized that peacebetween Israel and the Palestinian people, and other Arab and Muslimpeoples, can only be built through a two-state solution.
Ambassador Lodhi pointed out that the international peace and stabilitycannot be promoted by denying freedom and justice to peoples living underforeign or alien occupation. “An illusionary one-state will perpetuateoccupation and conflict and provide neither peace nor security”, she added.
Expressing grave concern about reports of the alleged use of chemicalweapons in Syria, Ambassador Lodhi condemned any use of chemical weapons byanyone, anywhere. “It is abhorrent and illegal and deserves unreservedcondemnation”, she added.Dr. Lodhi welcomed the deployment of the Organisation for the Prohibitionof Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Fact Finding Mission to Syria, and expressedconfidence that its investigations would assist in establishing the facts.
“At the same time, we reiterate our call on all sides to refrain fromactions that are incompatible with the Charter of the United Nations andinternational law”, she stressed.She concluded by cautioning that unless the value of human life and therights of all peoples are respected; and unless the principles of the UNCharter are upheld, the Middle East – and other regions, near and far- maywell be racing, towards unprecedented disaster.—APP/ AFP