AJIRI #53: The Resolutions that Maintain the UN Worldwide Anti-Israel Propaganda Apparatus

December 21, 2015 by
December 21, 2015

At each of its annual sessions, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopts about 80 resolutions by roll call vote, including 18 resolutions that are directed against Israel.  The United States votes No on each of these resolutions.  AJIRI has focused its attention on three of these resolutions, the resolutions that renew annually the mandates of three UN bodies, two UNGA committees and one division in the UN Secretariat.

“. . . the United States remains profoundly troubled by the repetitive and disproportionate number of one-sided General Assembly resolutions designed to condemn Israel. . .” — U.S. Ambassador David Pressman

The sole purpose of these UN bodies is to conduct the UN’s worldwide anti-Israel propaganda apparatus.  It is in that context that we should take special note of the statement made by Ambassador Pressman, the U.S. Alternate Representative at the United Nations, on November 24, 2015, when he delivered the U.S. explanation of vote after the UNGA had adopted a series of anti-Israel resolutions.  He underlined the special importance of the three resolutions that AJIRI has emphasized:Continue Reading …

Filed Under: Reports

Kerry Speaks on the Battle for Zionism at the UN

November 13, 2015 by
Photo of John Kerry at the UN

Secretary Kerry Delivers Remarks at U.N. Herzog Commemoration in New York

The Battle for Zionism at the UN: Marking 40 Years Since the Historic Speech of the Honorable Chaim Herzog

Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
United Nations
New York City
November 11, 2015

SECRETARY KERRY: Moran, thank you very, very much. Thank you for being here, and for lending your success and persona to this event. Mr. Secretary General, it is a privilege to be here with you always, and we thank you for your great work. Ambassador Danon, thank you for helping to sponsor this night. David Harris, good to see you, thank you for your leadership. Ambassador Power, always wonderful to be with you. I love your energy, enthusiasm, and your action. And I think everybody appreciates what you are doing here at the United Nations. (Applause.)

And it is a great privilege for me to be able to be here with all of you. I see many good friends out there, and many who have been laboring so hard in the vineyards. Particularly, I cite Stu Eizenstat over here, whose work I admire. And I thank him for his efforts. (Applause.) And most especially, I want to thank Bougie and Mike Herzog, and the entire Herzog family, for the chance to come here and share some thoughts. And I appreciate the special friendship with Bougie. I appreciate his leadership. I know what it’s like to run for leader of your country and actually come short. (Laughter.) He’s actually born a little shorter than me in that effort, but – and Mike and I have worked very closely together in our efforts the last few years. And all I can say is he is a great intellect, a patriot, and far too young looking to be a retired general, folks. I admire his work. (Applause.)Continue Reading …

Filed Under: In the News, State Dept Info Tagged With: , , , ,

AJIRI #52: Fatah’s Call for a One-State Solution

August 14, 2015 by
August 14, 2015

It is well known that Hamas is committed to resort to warfare and terrorism to end the existence of the State of Israel.  What is less well known is that Hamas’s political rival, Fatah, which leads the Palestinian Authority (PA), has the same objective, to be achieved by different means.  Rather than resorting to violence, the PA looks to the United Nations to help it achieve its desired result.

That is why we need to take due note of the news item in the Jerusalem Post that PA Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki announced on August 11, 2015 that the PA “is planning to present a new resolution to the UN Security Council (UNSC) calling for ending Israeli ‘occupation’ and providing international protection for the Palestinians.”  What such a resolution is likely to contain is spelled out in a June 18, 2015 position paper authored by Saeb Erekat, principal negotiator and now also Secretary-General of the PA.Continue Reading …

Filed Under: Reports

A “Heads Up” for the Pro-Israel Community: Our Next Major Challenge after the Pending Nuclear Agreement

June 26, 2015 by

Dear Friends:

We all are aware of the grave dangers to the security of Israel and the world inherent in the ongoing negotiations toward a nuclear agreement with Iran.

However, there is another major challenge looming on the horizon which is not yet fully  understood by the pro-Israel community, but to which we must respond.

The use of the United Nations to damage Israel on the international scene is longstanding and well-known. However, there is a new undertaking that can do far more damage than has been done before, unless we take action to stop it.

…a proposal to engage the U.N. Security Council in an effort to impose a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.

It is a proposal to engage the U.N. Security Council in an effort to impose a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. This agreement would be heavily slanted against Israel.

Moreover, it would be expressly designed to replace the United States as the principal mediator between the parties. In other words, the U.N. would be in charge of the peace process, minimizing the protection that the U.S. can offer Israel in the international arena.Continue Reading …

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AJIRI #51: The Fatah Goal at the UN Security Council: Recognition of the Claim of a “Right of Return”

January 27, 2015 by

What do the latest Palestinian moves at the UN really mean?  AJIRI’s latest report “The Fatah Goal at the UN Security Council: Recognition of the Claim of a “Right of Return” spells it out.

Filed Under: Reports Tagged With: , , , , , ,

A Report on the UN from the Australia-Israel and Jewish Public Affairs Council

November 22, 2014 by

A draft resolution proposed for adoption by the UN Security Council that calls for Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank to the pre-1967 lines “without swaps”  is now circulating at the UN. This would contravene the principle laid down in Security Council Resolution 242, which was adopted in November 1967, that the withdrawal should be to “secure and recognized borders.”  The issue here posed is well discussed in an article published by the Australia/Israel and Jewish Public Affairs Council.

Analysis of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council
(www.aijac.org.au)

When considering interpretations of a historical document like UNSC 242, a natural place to begin would be the stated intent of the drafters themselves. In 2007, The Committee for Accuracy in the Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) assembled a collection of footnoted quotes by the drafters of UNSC 242, starting with then-UK Ambassador to the UN Lord Caradon, then-US Ambassador to the UN Arthur J. Goldberg, then-US Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Eugene Rostow, then-British Foreign Secretary Baron George-Brown and then- Senior Adviser on International Law to the United States Mission to the United Nations J. L. Hargrove.Continue Reading …

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Remarks by Ambassador Samantha Power at a Press Conference on the September Program of Work for the UN Security Council

September 5, 2014 by

09/03/2014 08:07 PM EDT

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power

Samantha Power, photo by United States State Department

AMBASSADOR POWER: Hello, everybody. Okay, sorry to keep you waiting. Forgive, and thank you again for coming.

QUESTION: Thank you very much. Edith Lederer from the Associated Press. Madam Ambassador, we understand that negotiations are going on right now on a resolution on the Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire to try and ensure that it becomes permanent with some kind of monitoring, verification, and some other measures. Could you tell us whether the United States supports this and whether you expect Council action on this in the coming weeks before the GA starts?

AMBASSADOR POWER: Thank you, Edie. I’d say a few things. First, there is now a ceasefire in place that has held in recent days, and our first point of reference here would be to make sure that nothing we do be unhelpful as it relates to current talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians, which are meant to resume, as you know, in Cairo. So that’s a do-no-harm proposition that I think we should always keep in mind here in New York.

The second point I’d make though is that, yes, we have been engaging – we, the United States; I’m speaking in my national capacity – we’ve been engaged for some time within the Council on a number of ideas about how the Council might potentially contribute to the effort to secure a sustainable ceasefire. Those discussions are continuing, and the United States is of the view that a Council product could conceivably play a positive role in supporting a durable solution. And as you indicated, those discussions are underway. But again, our emphasis is going to be on what the Council can do that will be additive and seen as additive by the parties on the ground, given that there is a calm of sorts that we very much seek to preserve.

MODERATOR: In the back. Lou from Reuters.Continue Reading …

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Letter: Parents of Israeli Child Daniel Tregerman to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon

September 5, 2014 by

Text of a letter sent by Gila and Doron Tregerman, parents of 4 year-old Daniel, who was murdered during a mortar attack on his home, to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

By Israel News Agency Staff

For UN Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon

Dear Sir,

My name is Gila, I am an Israeli citizen, and I am a resident of Kibbutz Nahal Oz, near the border with Gaza.A week ago, we lost our eldest son, Daniel 4.5 years old, when he was killed by a mortar shell fired from Gaza into Israel.I address you after your announcement to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to establish an international investigation Committee to investigate “Israel’s crime” in the recent fighting in Gaza.

About us: Doron and I were married five years ago and we have three amazing kids: Daniel 4.5 yrs, Yoval 3.5 yrs and Uri 4 months old. We were a happy family. We lived in Kibbutz Nahal Oz near Gaza, and found ourselves constantly debating whether not to abandon Nahal Oz and move to another location, quieter, safer, far from rocket fire from Gaza, and far away from the alarms.

Then came the threat of terrorist tunnels, which Hamas members dug from Gaza to Israel under our home to hurt us. At night we heard noises and voices digging beneath us. Thus, in the last six months our children slept with the window closed and locked. We were afraid that they will be kidnapped from us.

Can you imagine our life, Mr. Secretary-General? How do you live in constant fear of mortar shell and terrorists emerging from tunnels?

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US State Dept: August 19 Cease Fire Rockets Came From Gaza

August 21, 2014 by
US State Department confirms that the rocket fire that broke the cease fire on August 19, 2014 came from Gaza.  At the press briefing on 8/19/2014 the State Department Spokesperson stated: 
    
“[I]t is our understanding that an extension[of the cease fire] was agreed to, but that since has been broken. We are very concerned about today’s developments, condemn the renewed rocket fire, and as we have said, Israel has a right to defend itself against such attacks. We call for an immediate end to rocket fire and hostilities and a return to cease-fire talks. It [the rocket fire] came from Gaza. And the – and Hamas has security responsibility for Gaza. So it did come from Gaza.”

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AJIRI #50: The UN’s latest Anti-Israel Project: The War Crimes Charge

August 19, 2014 by

After ignoring the continuing Hamas attacks against Israel for years, the UN Human Rights Council convened 15 days after the start of the most recent military activities between Israel and Gaza. It spent a few hours listening to speeches attacking Israel and, without further investigation, adopted a pre-cooked resolution that found Israel guilty of a series of war crimes. The Council then arranged for the creation of a commission that was assigned the task of collecting the evidence that would retroactively prove that the Council was right in issuing its guilty verdict against Israel. The Council also called upon the Commission to come up with the names of Israeli officials against whom war crimes charges are to be brought.

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