Pakistan supports continued and unimpeded operations of UNRWA for Palestinian refugees – Calls for accountability of Israel’s war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza Pakistan joined other delegations in requesting the Eighth Special Session of the UNESCO’s Executive Board to support the continuity of UNRWA’s educational activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Ambassador of Pakistan to France and Permanent Delegate to UNESCO highlighted that this discussion was significant in many respects. Nowhere else in the world today has education been attacked to a level seen in Gaza, he added. With the entire student population impacted, around 10,000 students killed and another 15,000 injured, mostly children, to over 400 teachers killed and more than 2,400 injured, almost the entire educational infrastructure including school buildings having been entirely or partially destroyed, the loss of human lives and scale of destruction are unimaginable. The Ambassador further said that nowhere else in the world today has international law, including international humanitarian law, been violated with the level of impunity as that enjoyed by Israel – the occupying power. Prolonged blockade and denial of humanitarian assistance as well as deliberate targeting of humanitarian workers and organizations are clearly designed to inflict maximum pain and suffering on the civilian populations – indeed war crimes and crimes against humanity. It is no surprise that UNRWA, the only lifeline of humanitarian assistance and a key provider of critical services including education for Palestinian refugees, is being systematically targeted by Israel, the occupying power, in order to discredit, dismantle and obstruct its essential operations. A devastating number of UNRWA’s staff members - 247 personnel have been killed to date. This is the highest number ever recorded in the history of the United Nations, exceeding losses in any other war zone or natural disaster, he said. With overlapping objectives and priorities, UNESCO has a long history of cooperation with UNRWA in the field of education, having provided significant strategic and technical support to the design and delivery of its schools and vocational training programs for over 7 decades. We cannot allow that important work, that capacity and that contribution over the years to be erased by bombs and missiles, or blocked by any unlawful legislation by the occupying power. It is evident that such measures are in violation of international law and international humanitarian law and contravene UNGA resolutions concerning the immunities and protections of international organizations. Education, as a fundamental right, cannot be politicized or denied, especially to those most vulnerable. The attempts to ban UNRWA must not be tolerated. This is a direct affront to UNESCO's mandate and the broader commitments of the United Nations on SDG 4 and refugees. While condemning such acts, we must underline Israel’s international obligation as the occupying power, to uphold and respect UNRWA’s mandate and ensure its continuity without hindrance or interference, he said, while noting that there was no alternative to UNRWA. Any interruption or suspension of its work would have severe humanitarian consequences for millions of Palestinian refugees. The entire international community - from the UN General Assembly to the Secretary-General, to the ICJ, and the ICC - has spoken with clarity. It is important for UNESCO to also pronounce itself, and reaffirm its strong support for UNRWA and its critical humanitarian mandate. The invisibility, the unexplained silence and unwillingness of the Secretariat leadership to fulfill its responsibilities in these times of unprecedented crises, was unfortunate, he observed. It was also regrettable that invitation was not extended in a timely manner to the Head of UNRWA to brief the session despite the specific request and provision in the rules of procedure, he added. We cannot, however, allow the reputation and credibility of the organization to be questioned and damaged. Member States must continue to undertake their responsibility. Hence this Session - Let it serve as a powerful reaffirmation of UNESCO’s role as a defender of education and our steadfast support for UNRWA’s vital mandate. Let us adopt the draft resolution with our full backing - for the Palestinian children, their future, and in the interest of multilateralism, he emphasized. As UN Secretary-General said, laws undermining UNRWA would be detrimental for the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We must therefore also remain mindful of the ultimate objective of durable peace and security in the region. And as Le Monde put it in its editorial of 22 November, the ICC’s arrest warrants are a stand against Israel’s impunity, and a reminder of an essential function of justice: Accountability. Indeed, there must be accountability, stressed the Ambassador. Concluding his statement, the Ambassador reiterated Pakistan’s call, together with the international community, for an immediate, complete, durable and unconditional ceasefire in Gaza and reaffirmed its longstanding position in support of the Palestinian peoples’ right to self-determination and the establishment of a sovereign, independent State of Palestine, in accordance with relevant UN resolutions, with pre-1967 borders and Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital. *******
PREVIOUS NEXT
