Tunisia UN envoy urges international community to exert pressure on Israel 

Tunisia’s representative in the United Nations (UN) Security Council has stated that despite the decisions issued by the UN, Israel continues to occupy Palestinian territory and inflict injustices on the Palestinian people.

According to the Tunisian envoy, Israel is maintaining its expansionist practices and annexation policies in order to seize more land in clear violation of international law. He further added that Israel is working tirelessly to frustrate efforts to achieve peace, pointing out that Tunisia celebrated the Palestinian Declaration of Independence on 13 March.

In a speech he delivered in the opening session of the UN Security Council held via Zoom to discuss the situation in the Middle East on Thursday, the representative called on the international community to exert further pressures to bind Israel to international legitimacy resolutions, the latest of which was UN Resolution 2334 of 2016. In addition, he urged the international community to force it to stop building settlements and abandon its plans to confiscate land, undermining the two-state solution.

He added that the State of Palestine is preparing for a comprehensive process to promote democracy, and the international community has welcomed these efforts. He asserted that Israel is trying to undermine this endeavour and stand in the way of Palestinian election candidates, particularly in East Jerusalem, raising concerns over the occupation’s intention to destroy the democratic process in Palestine.

The Tunisian official urged the international community to take steps to ensure the holding of elections in East Jerusalem and help to ease the restrictions imposed by the occupation state.

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He also called on Israel to suspend the restrictions on the Palestinians’ right to worship in Jerusalem, especially during the blessed month of Ramadan.

Tunisia’s envoy to the UN asserted: “We also call to increase aid to the Palestinian people, and emphasise the importance of providing financial support to UNRWA in order to help it fulfil its obligations, as an organisation that accomplishes important work to provide services to 5.5 million refugees awaiting a solution to their just cause in accordance with United Nations resolutions,” noting that Tunisia will initiate donations within the donor community to help the agency.

He welcomed the US decision to resume humanitarian and economic aid to the Palestinian people and return to funding UNRWA.

The Tunisian official invited the Security Council and all partners to end the unjust blockade imposed on Gaza, pinpointing a collective punishment policy practised by Israel, and demanded international protection to the Palestinian people.

He avowed that there is a need for concerted international efforts to revive the peace process in the Middle East, to end the occupation that has continued for more than seven decades in Palestine.