UN Secretary-General categorically rejects Trump’s plan against people of Gaza
WORLD, March 01 (YPA) -UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced on Friday that he will be travelling to the Egyptian capital, Cairo, next week, for the Extraordinary Summit of the League of Arab States, stressing that Palestinians deserve lasting stability and a just and principled peace.
According to Palestinian News Agency WAFA, he insisted the need to prevent any form of ethnic cleansing, ensuring no long-term Israeli military presence in Gaza.
Addressing journalists at UN Headquarters in New York, Guterres said he would outline priorities at the March 4 Arab League meeting, including that the ceasefire and hostage deal between “Israel” and Hamas must hold and that there must be a clear political framework towards Gaza’s recovery, reconstruction and lasting stability.
The emergency Summit is set to discuss the reconstruction of Gaza, which had been at the centre of an intense Israeli military operation.
The UN chief said that Tuesday’s Summit provides an opportunity for leaders from across the Arab world “to come together and discuss the elements required to deliver peace and stability” in the enclave.
“Their unified position will help guide the way forward,” he stressed.
While ending the immediate crisis is essential, Guterres also underscored that a long-term political framework was needed for Gaza’s recovery, reconstruction and lasting stability.
“This framework must be based on clear principles.”
“And it means Gaza remaining an integral part of an independent, democratic and sovereign Palestinian State, with no reductions in its territory or forced transfer of its population,” he added.
Any transitional arrangements, he stated, should have a clear and limited timeframe leading to a unified Palestinian administration.
Guterres also voiced concern over rising violence in the West Bank, where Israeli military operations and colonists’ attacks have led to killings, displacement and destruction.
“Unilateral actions, including settlement expansion and threats of annexation, must stop,” he said, calling for an end to attacks on civilians and their property.
The only path to lasting peace is a Two-State solution, said Guterres, where Israel and Palestine live side by side, in peace and security and in line with international law and UN resolutions, with Jerusalem as the capital of both states.
“The Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves, to chart their own future, and to live on their land in freedom and security,” he said.
At next week’s Summit in Cairo, Guterres said he would call for sustainable reconstruction and a “unified, clear and principled” political solution.
“Palestinians deserve lasting stability and a just and principled peace. And the people of Israel deserve to live in peace and security,” he said.
“At this fragile moment, we must avoid a resumption of hostilities that would deepen the suffering and further destabilize a region that is already perched on a knife’s edge.”
@E.Y.M