On 12 August, UNA-UK’s Chairman Sir Jeremy Greenstock wrote to Prime Minister David Cameron to reflect the horror and helplessness that our UK-wide membership feels over the situation in Gaza and to urge Mr Cameron to do everything in his power to alleviate the suffering and support a sustainable solution.
The past weeks have made it painfully clear that, as ever, it is civilians who bear the brunt of violence. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, almost 2,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly civilians and including over 400 children, along with 67 on the Israeli side, three of whom were civilians.
Describing the proportion of civilians to militants killed or wounded as “unacceptable”, Sir Jeremy notes that while Hamas has to bear some responsibility for the violence, Israel holds the greater responsibility as long-term occupier and as a democracy that pledges to uphold human rights.
The following concrete measures were proposed to Mr Cameron:
- Suspend the granting of future arms export licences and revoke existing arms export licenses to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT)
- Strongly support UN efforts to investigate alleged war crimes and encourage accountability on both sides
- Continue to facilitate economic development in the OPT, and call for the removal of restrictions not justified on security grounds
- Push for a greater role for the United Nations in seeking a sustainable peace
The current crisis has demonstrated once again the urgent need for a new approach to this situation. As the parties come back to the table, UNA-UK hopes that the UK will do what it can, individually and with parties, to alleviate suffering and prevent it from recurring.
Full text of Sir Jeremy's letter to the Prime Minister
Dear Prime Minister,
I am writing as Chairman of the United Nations Association – UK (UNA-UK) to convey the horror and helplessness our UK-wide membership feels about the situation in Gaza and to urge you, on their behalf, to do everything in your power to alleviate the suffering and support a sustainable solution.
The past weeks have made it painfully clear that, as ever, it is civilians who bear the brunt of violence. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, almost 2,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly civilians and including over 400 children, along with 67 on the Israeli side, three of whom were civilians.
The number of Gazans in need of shelter is nearing half a million, and public services – under duress prior to the crisis – are close to collapse. DFID reported last week that 136 schools, 24 hospitals and clinics and 25 ambulances have been damaged or destroyed. So too have water and sanitation systems, increasing the risk of disease. In Israel, many living along the border with Gaza were evacuated following the increase in rocket attacks.
The proportion of civilians to militants killed or wounded is unacceptable. Hamas has to bear some responsibility for the violence, but it is Israel that holds the greater responsibility as occupier and as a democracy that pledges to uphold human rights. Friends of Israel must point out that the way in which its response to attacks is increasingly perceived is harming its chances of securing a long-term future in a peaceful region.
The past weeks have also been a grim reminder of the need to press on with efforts to find a negotiated two-state solution. Without this, we risk perpetuating the cycle of violence, with Gazans trapped in an open prison that descends periodically into a battleground and Israelis living in fear of bombardment. The drift in the political track, while Israel continues to expand settlements is a bad mark for EU diplomacy.
UNA-UK has been encouraged by the diplomatic efforts put into securing a ceasefire, and by the swift increase in humanitarian support that the UK has provided directly, and through the UN and NGOs, to people in Gaza. We were also heartened by the decision to activate UK Aid Match for the Gaza DEC appeal, to which the British public has already given an astounding £4.5m. We believe that this demonstrates the strength of feeling on this issue in the country.
We therefore urge you to make every possible effort to relieve and resolve the situation. In this regard, we believe there are additional steps that the UK could consider.
First, we believe that the UK should suspend and revoke arms export licences to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). The suspension mechanism should be applied in the way it was to Egypt, covering new, pending and extant licences, and using the lower threshold criterion of “equipment which might be used for internal repression”. In light of media revelations last week that British-made components for drones and tanks are likely to have been used in Operation Protective Edge, transfers must be halted.
Second, we believe that the UK should strongly support UN efforts to investigate alleged war crimes and encourage accountability by both sides. The Human Rights Council resolution creating a Commission of Inquiry may not have been phrased as the UK and its EU partners would have liked, but the Commission has the potential to play an important role in providing factual and legal analysis on indiscriminate targeting of civilians by Israel and by Hamas, Should it find evidence of war crimes, the UK should support action to end “the longstanding impunity that has been such a feature of this situation”, as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has said. A real focus on UN standards of human rights across the Territories is needed.
Third, the UK should continue to facilitate economic development in the OPT, and call for the removal of restrictions not justified on security grounds. This could include supporting the World Bank programme helping the Palestinian Authority (PA) with land registration, as recommended by the International Development Committee, and abolishing the time restrictions that prevent the PA from claiming tax revenue, as recommended by the UN Conference on Trade and Development. Pressure on Hamas and other Palestinian factions to cooperate in this, while setting aside the option of violence and rearmament, must of course be included.
Crucially, the UK should seek to ensure that its development activities do not unduly support the status quo, for example, by working with partners to reconsider funding arrangements for Palestine, in order to avoid PA dependence on sources that serve to freeze rather than promote progress.
Finally, we encourage the UK to push for a greater role for the United Nations in seeking a sustainable peace. Although involved in negotiations, the UN has not been in a driving seat since 1967-8, and the lack of progress since then in the search for a comprehensive settlement is no tribute to those who have taken over the responsibility. The UN Special Coordinator is the only Quartet representative to be based permanently in the region, and to maintain contact with all parties. This office also coordinates the UN’s development and humanitarian activities in the OPT.
It has been widely accepted that the Oslo Peace Process has nothing more to offer. Of the Quartet’s members, the UN is the most likely to be perceived as an ‘honest broker’. This is apparent from the calls by senior Israeli, Palestinian and EU figures for the UN to play a leading role in implementing a ceasefire agreement, which UNA-UK would strongly support if the UN were given the mandate and support needed to see real progress for Palestinian rights and needs, and for Israeli security concerns.
The situation in Israel and the OPT requires a full-spectrum response – political, humanitarian, development and human rights, with a regional and international buy-in that only the UN is equipped to deliver with full legitimacy.
The current crisis has demonstrated once again the urgent need for a new approach to this situation. As the parties come back to the table, we hope that the UK will do what it can, individually and with partners, to alleviate suffering and prevent it from recurring.
Sir Jeremy Greenstock
Chairman, UNA-UK
Image: Palestinians Search through Rubble in Gaza, (c) UN Photo/Shareef Sarhan, Aug 2014
