Palestinians Evicted From Homes in Dispute With Israeli Rightists

April 25, 2002 8:54 AM

Palestinians Evicted From Homes in Dispute With Israeli Rightists UN Security Council Resolution 446 "Determines that all measures taken by Israel to change the physical character, demographic composition, institutional structure or status of the Palestinian and other Arab territories occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, or any part thereof, have no legal validity and that Israel's policy and practices of settling parts of its population and new immigrants in those territories constitute a flagrant violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War and also constitute a serious obstruction to achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East;"
posted by aLienated (11 comments total)

my apologies, it's Resolution 465, and it's right here (see number 5)
posted by aLienated at 8:59 AM on April 25, 2002

The UN says this, my 3 year old niece says that. I don't take either of them seriously.
posted by dagny at 9:05 AM on April 25, 2002

Thank God, it was already 45 mins without new Middle East FPPs
posted by matteo at 9:14 AM on April 25, 2002

speaking of 3 year old niece... heres something to smile about.

from newstoday.com
posted by specialk420 at 9:15 AM on April 25, 2002

that thing is badass.
posted by aLienated at 9:46 AM on April 25, 2002

Could you get your niece to sign up and post instead of you, dagny?
posted by riviera at 10:04 AM on April 25, 2002

I'm sorry, but the United Nations has no moral authority regarding this issue, since they are responsible for the creation of Israel and consequently everything that has followed. The Partition of Palestine: UN General Assembly Resolution 181, November 29, 1947 is a prime example of the thoughtlessness, ineffectiveness and lack of resolve to follow up and enforce international law, and refusal to take responsibility for the results of it's mistakes. Their footdragging in this case as well as in Rwanda, Yugoslavia, etc. is a travesty and enhances their reputation as a debating society financed by the first world and ran by the third world. Like Dr. Frankenstien, you cannot create a monster without responsibility.
posted by Mack Twain at 11:57 AM on April 25, 2002

I'm not sure I follow you, Mack Twain, though i agree that international law is rarely enforced, but the first world nations are the ones who escape the enforcement of these resolutions (Israel has violated dozens of sc resolutions --465 is one of many examples where Likud has been unresponsive-- and escaped any kind of sanction whereas Iraq has undergone military invasion and over 10 years of sanctions for their violations).

Speaking to the validity of these resolutions, the Israeli government officials and spokespeople themselves regularly recognize and use the UN Security Council resolutions (esp. 242) as exclusive indicators of international law in their defense of "secure and defendable borders" etc., so I can't find a justification on either side for deeming them irrelevant (if that was your intent).
posted by aLienated at 7:02 AM on April 26, 2002

aLienated, my gripe is with the UN itself, because rather than provide solutions the UN has created huge problems. Although its Charter prohibits the discussion of domestic matters of any state, here's three examples of the UN breaking its own rules: The partition of Palestine; the partition of Korea; the partition of Vietnam...With no backup mechanisms put in place these countries were illegally partitioned against the will of their citizens. Millions of people have died as a result of resolutions that should never have been issued, but since they were, it was shortsighted and heartless of the UN to do so without installing armies to insure the peace vs the reactions that were sure to come. And yes, of course these silly resolutions are always imposed on the small countries. I just don't have any respect for the UN.
posted by Mack Twain at 11:32 AM on April 26, 2002

right on, fair enough.
posted by aLienated at 12:26 PM on April 26, 2002

...have no legal validity...

Notice that the resolution does not say that what Israel is doing is *illegal*. To misquote Ira Stoll of the smartertimes.com, I can declare myself Secretary-General of the UN. While this may be without legal validity, it is certainly not illegal. The same holds true for Israeli occupation. Gaza and the West Bank were seized in a war of self-defense and no tenet of international law holds that the lands must be returned before a peace treaty. Just so I'm clear, Israel is not in violation of any law here.

Now, Sharon is probably guilty of war crimes, but that's a different story.
posted by charlesv at 6:00 PM on April 26, 2002