JAKARTA: Indonesia is calling on the UN Security Council to make no exceptions in upholding international law and bringing Israel to accountability over atrocities in Gaza.
The question of Palestine is being discussed at the UNSC as it hosts an open debate from Jan. 23 to 24, the third such event since Israel began its bombardment of the Gaza Strip in October, killing more than 25,000 people and displacing nearly 2 million people.
Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi reaffirmed Indonesia’s “unwavering commitment to stand with Palestine” during the debate as she reminded the security council of its mandate “not to tolerate wars,” especially genocide.
“Israel must be held accountable for its actions, including atrocities in Gaza. No nation is above the law,” Marsudi said.
“The UN Charter is clear. The Security Council resolutions are binding and must be enforced … Where must Palestine go when, for decades, the council fails to act on its own resolutions while Israel kills Palestinians with impunity?”
Last month, the council passed a resolution on more aid for Gaza and called for steps “to create the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities,” after several postponements and reported compromise in the language that would not be rejected by the US, which previously vetoed another UNSC resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire.
Though UNSC resolutions are legally binding, Israel and other countries have ignored them in the past.
Israel has allowed only limited amounts of aid into the besieged enclave, where 2.2 million Palestinians are facing dire shortages of food, water and supplies.
Marsudi also said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rejection of Palestinian statehood was “unacceptable,” saying that his recent remarks confirmed Israel’s “ultimate goal to wipe Palestine” from the world’s map.
“Will this council remain silent in the face of such intention? A threat of full-blown war in the Middle East is a real and present danger,” she said, calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, and the granting of an immediate and full UN membership for Palestine.
Marsudi also urged a halt to arms shipments to Israel, which has been receiving most of its weapons from the US and European countries.
“Every weapon sent to Israel can be used to kill innocent civilians,” she said.
