Syria

It gives me great pleasure to congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the presidency of this session. We are confident that the posts you held in your country and the respect you enjoy will facilitate your task in leading the deliberations of this session of the General Assembly to their desired objectives. I would also like to express our appreciation to your predecessor, Mr. Harri Holkeri, for the efforts he made last year to lead the work of the previous session to a successful conclusion. Let me also congratulate Mr. Kofi Annan on his re-election to a second term as Secretary-General of our international Organization and on winning the Nobel Peace Prize, together with the United Nations. I would like to assure him that our cooperation with him will continue in order to consolidate the role of the United Nations in various domains. The international and regional circumstances prevailing since the events of last September have cast a dark shadow on our work. The new world order, whose emergence was announced after the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the Gulf war, soon faltered, due to the failure or lack of desire to adopt the language of dialogue in order to eliminate hostile climates and the refusal to apply equal standards in international relations to resolve regional conflicts, and due to the adoption of the method of daily crisis management, which consists of addressing only surface issues, instead of delving deep into the root causes and addressing them according to the 23 criteria of justice, international legitimacy and human solidarity. The world watched in disbelief the horrifying attacks on Washington, D.C., and New York. We in Syria and in the Arab world did not hesitate to denounce those attacks and to condemn them in the strongest possible terms. In the aftermath of those attacks, we also called for international cooperation under the auspices of the United Nations to uproot terrorism in all its forms. Likewise, we called for an agreement on measures to define terrorism in an effort to guarantee effectiveness in combating it and in addressing its root causes. The phenomenon of terrorism is not confined to a particular society, culture or religion. It has appeared, and is still appearing, in many countries made up of numerous groups with different demands, beliefs and objectives. That is why it is a gross injustice and is totally unrealistic to link terrorism to Arabs and Muslims. Suffice it to mention, for example, a number of infamous terrorist organizations such as Bader- Meinhoff gang, in Germany, the Red Brigades, in Italy and Japan, and what has been taking place in Northern Ireland and in Spain, not to mention the various extremist organizations in the United States of America. Those who link terrorist acts to Islam ignore the fact that Islam respects all monotheistic religions, calls for tolerance among their followers and prohibits the killing of innocents or acts of aggression against their properties. But the pressing question now is how to eliminate from the minds of American citizens the feeling of hatred against Arabs and Muslims, feelings promoted by tens of thousands of publications, articles and films for the last 50 years. Senior officials at the highest level in the American Administration and in European countries have warned against linking terrorism to Arabs and Muslims and have issued positive statements. But, regrettably, those statements, though important, cannot erase the long history of defamation in books and films that have distorted the image of Arabs and remain in circulation. Moreover, we have recently heard that new films are being made, and books being prepared for publication, that incite feelings of hatred and link terrorism to Arabs and Muslims, thereby manipulating the tragic events of September. Syria has always stressed the need to work on all levels to combat international terrorism in all its forms and in a way that is consistent with the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations. Syria was the first country to call, in 1985, for the convening of an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations to define terrorism and to differentiate it from the struggle of peoples for national liberation. In response to a request by Syria, an item was listed on the agenda of the General Assembly, stressing the importance of determining the root causes of terrorism and taking appropriate measures to prevent it, combat it and address its root causes. Syria has also called upon all countries to take the necessary measures at the national, regional and international levels to combat terrorism and implement the provisions of international law and relevant international resolutions, with the aim of preventing the perpetration of terrorist acts or their financing and inciting. We would also like to indicate that, since 1952, the Syrian Arab Republic has been one of the first countries to adopt firm national laws and legislation to combat terrorism. International terrorism is not a new phenomenon. Syria and other Arab countries have also been victims of terrorism. For years we have called upon the international community to condemn all types of terrorism, especially the State terrorism practised by Israel. In this context, I would like to refer to the values of tolerance that have distinguished our region throughout history. Our region had never known the phenomenon of terrorism until after Israel was created on the basis of religion, in 1948, supported by the efforts of such well-known terrorist organizations as the Irgun, Tzioni, the Stern gang, the Lehy and the Haganah, which were responsible for sowing the seeds of terrorism and fear in Palestine and outside it. Israel has invented new types of terrorist practices in order to continue its occupation of Arab territories. It expelled Palestinians from their homes and lands and perpetrated numerous massacres, beginning with the massacre of Deir Yassin in 1948, to that of Beit Reima just a few weeks ago. But despite that, it has not been held accountable for these crimes. The Palestinian people have, therefore, had no alternative in their struggle to rid themselves of their state of frustration, despair and international disregard for their plight but to start one uprising after another as 24 a way to liberate their lands from occupation and to restore their dignity like any other people in the world. What is both odd and surprising is that whenever Palestinian refugees and their organizations residing in Syria are mentioned, the United States describes them as terrorist organizations and considers the country that hosts them as one that sponsors terrorism. It ignores the fact that Israel was completely responsible for uprooting those Palestinians from their homes, expelling them from their homeland and denying them, up until this very moment, their right of return in accordance with General Assembly resolution 194 (III). Regrettably, there are some countries and certain media outlets that believe those claims and describe those Palestinian organizations as terrorist. They do not stop there, but extend that allegation to Syria as well, instead of condemning Israel and expressing appreciation to Syria for hosting about 500,000 Palestinian refugees and offering them work, security and a dignified life. But in any case the request on the part of Israel and those who support it to have these Palestinian refugees and their organizations expelled from Syria raises the very important question of where those refugees should go. The natural and human answer says that they should go back to their country, Palestine. They are more entitled to go back to their homes than the million Russian Jews who were brought in by Israel during the last 10 years. They are also more entitled than another 1 million Jews that the head of the Israeli Government plans to bring into Israel, although they live well and securely in their countries. Although the rulers of Israel claim that the Palestinians have no place in their towns and villages and that the return of Palestinians threatens the existence of Israel, the truth is that the return of Palestinian refugees will alleviate racism in Israel and will not threaten its existence. During its invasion of Lebanon in 1982 Israel perpetrated the ugliest of crimes when it shelled and besieged Beirut for over 80 days, during which time thousands of innocent Lebanese civilians were killed, the infrastructure of Lebanon was destroyed and many horrific massacres were perpetrated. Those massacres included the atrocities at Sabra and Shatila, which the entire world witnessed and is aware of. Faced with Israeli arrogance, the failure of the international community to stop Israel from perpetrating its crimes, and the provision of Israel with the latest American warplanes and the most destructive and sophisticated weapons, the Lebanese people had no choice but to stand fast and resist occupation. This resistance continued until it achieved its most important victory in May 2000, when it forced the Israeli occupying forces to abandon most Lebanese territories. No one in the world should forget that the battles of the Lebanese resistance were fought on the occupied territories of Lebanon against occupying Israeli soldiers and that this resistance did not act beyond Lebanese borders and did not hurt Israeli civilians during the 20 years of occupation, whereas the occupying Israeli forces killed thousands of Lebanese civilians, not to mention their repeated destruction of hundreds of houses and much of the Lebanese infrastructure. After all this, how could anyone fail to distinguish between terrorism and resistance? Anyone wishing to target terrorism in our region must target Israeli terrorism first and foremost, because what Israel does is the utmost form of terrorism; it is absolutely bereft of human compassion. There is no alternative but to address the root causes of this terrorism once and for all and uproot it from our modern life through the implementation of international legitimacy in order to restore rights, end injustice and occupation and grant the Palestinian people the right to self-determination freely and wholly. These days mark the tenth anniversary of the convening of the Madrid Peace Conference, for which we made sincere efforts so it would create an opening for a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East. The serious and purposeful negotiations that Syria has engaged in during recent years have shown two things to the international community: first, that Israel neither desires nor is serious about achieving a just and comprehensive peace in accordance with United Nations resolutions; secondly, that Syria has the right to recover its territory in the Golan to the border of 4 June 1967, without compromise. However, we were always faced with Israel’s intransigence, denial of rights, evasion of the real issues and of the requirements of peace. Indeed, Israel has done what its Prime Minister promised at the time: to make negotiations go in circles for 10 years, with all the dangerous repercussions and tragic results that would produce. There is talk now about an opportunity for the resumption of the peace process according to the terms 25 of reference of the Madrid Conference. We believe that unless the two sponsors of the peace process, the European Union and the United Nations, make a serious effort to implement the relevant United Nations resolutions, this opportunity will be wasted again, with all the dangerous repercussions that will hold for this important and sensitive region of the world. The dialogue among civilizations has gained increasing importance in the aftermath of the escalation of hostile attacks on certain cultures, religions and nationalities. Syria, which is the cradle of early civilizations and a source of scientific and intellectual enlightenment, recognizes the importance of this dialogue and the necessity of pursuing it in the service of humanity and future generations. Our region, at its pinnacle, was a lively example of dialogue and interaction among civilizations. Within its broad horizons, the civilizations of East and West met. Intellectuals, men of letters, scientists and philosophers from different parts of the world contributed to the formation of these civilizations. In this context we hope that the Global Agenda for Dialogue among Civilizations, recently adopted by the General Assembly, will be implemented. We find in this agenda a horizon that responds to the aspirations of people towards enriching the awareness of common human values among all peoples and deepening the spirit of understanding among them. In conclusion, allow me to convey to you the gratitude of my country, Syria, and its President, Government and people for the precious trust and the great support that so many countries in the world expressed when they elected the Syrian Arab Republic to the Security Council. I would like to assure you that Syria shall remain, as it has always been, in the forefront of those who defend international legitimacy and the Charter of the United Nations and will make every possible effort during its membership on the Security Council to contribute to preserving international peace and security.