Resolution 44/40
(December 4, 1989)
A*
The General Assembly,
Having discussed the item entitled "The
situation in the Middle East",
Reaffirming its resolutions 36/226 A and B of 17
December 1981, ES-9/1 of 5 February 1982, 37/123 F of 20 December 1982,
38/58 A to E of 13 December 1983, 38/180 A to D of 19 December 1983, 39/146
A to C of 14 December 1984, 40/168 A to C of 16 December 1985, 41/162 A to
C of 4 December 1986, 42/209 A to D of 11 December 1987 and 43/54 A to C of
6 December 1988,
Recalling Security Council resolutions 425 (1978)
of 19 March 1978, 497 (1981) of 17 December 1981, 508 (1982) of 5 June
1982, 509 (1982) of 6 June 1982, 511 (1982) of 18 June 1982, 512 (1982) of
19 June 1982, 513 (1982) of 4 July 1982, 515 (1982) of 29 July 1982, 516
(1982) of 1 August 1982, 517 (1982) of 4 August 1982, 518 (1982) of 12
August 1982, 519 (1982) of 17 August 1982, 520 (1982) of 17 September 1982,
521 (1982) of 19 September 1982 and 555 (1984) of 12 October 1984 and other
relevant resolutions,
Taking note of the reports of the
Secretary-General of 27 October 1989,1/ 16 November 1989 2/
and 22 November 1989,3/
Reaffirming the need for continued collective
support for the decisions adopted by the Twelfth Arab Summit Conference,
held at Fez, Morocco, on 25 November 1981 and from 6 to 9 September 1982,4/
which were confirmed by subsequent Arab summit conferences, including the
Extraordinary Arab Summit Conference held at Casablanca, Morocco, from 23
to 26 May 1989, reiterating its previous resolutions on the question of
Palestine and its support for the Palestine Liberation Organization as the
sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, and considering
that the convening of the International Peace Conference on the Middle
East, under the auspices of the United Nations, in accordance with General
Assembly resolution 38/58 C and other resolutions related to the question
of Palestine, would contribute to the promotion of peace in the region,
Welcoming all efforts contributing towards the
realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people through the
achievement of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East,
in accordance with the United Nations resolutions relating to the question
of Palestine and to the situation in the Middle East,
Welcoming the world-wide support extended to the
just cause of the Palestinian people and the other Arab countries in their
struggle against Israeli aggression and occupation in order to achieve a
comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East and the full
exercise by the Palestinian people of its inalienable national rights, as
affirmed by previous resolutions of the General Assembly on the question of
Palestine and on the situation in the Middle East,
Gravely concerned that the Palestinian territory
occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, and the other occupied Arab
territories still remain under Israeli occupation, that the relevant
resolutions of the United Nations have not been implemented and that the
Palestinian people is still denied the restoration of its land and the
exercise of its inalienable national rights in conformity with
international law, as reaffirmed by resolutions of the United Nations,
Reaffirming the applicability of the Geneva
Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War,
of 12 August 1949,5/ to the Palestinian territory occupied since
1967, including Jerusalem, and the other occupied Arab territories,
Reaffirming also all relevant United Nations
resolutions which stipulate that the acquisition of territory by force is
inadmissible under the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of
international law and that Israel must withdraw unconditionally from the
Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, and the
other occupied Arab territories,
Reaffirming further the imperative necessity of
establishing a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the region, based
on full respect for the Charter and the principles of international law,
Gravely concerned also at the continuing Israeli
policies involving the escalation and expansion of the conflict in the
region, which further violate the principles of international law and
endanger international peace and security,
Stressing once again the great importance of the
time factor in the endeavours to achieve an early comprehensive, just and
lasting peace in the Middle East,
1. Reaffirms its conviction that the question of
Palestine is the core of the conflict in the Middle East and that no
comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the region will be achieved
without the full exercise by the Palestinian people of its inalienable
national rights and the immediate, unconditional and total withdrawal of
Israel from the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including
Jerusalem, and the other occupied Arab territories;
2. Reaffirms that a just and comprehensive
settlement of the situation in the Middle East cannot be achieved without
the participation on an equal footing of all the parties to the conflict,
including the Palestine Liberation Organization, the representative of the
Palestinian people;
3. Declares once more that peace in the Middle
East is indivisible and must be based on a comprehensive, just and lasting
solution of the Middle East problem, under the auspices of the United
Nations and on the basis of its relevant resolutions, which ensures the
complete and unconditional withdrawal of Israel from the Palestinian
territory occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, and the other occupied
Arab territories, and which enables the Palestinian people, under the
leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, to exercise its
inalienable rights, including the right to return and the right to
self-determination, national independence and the establishment of its
independent sovereign State in Palestine, in accordance with the
resolutions of the United Nations relating to the question of Palestine, in
particular General Assembly resolutions ES-7/2 of 29 July 1980, 36/120 A to
F of 10 December 1981, 37/86 A to D of 10 December 1982, 37/86 E of 20
December 1982, 38/58 A to E of 13 December 1983, 39/49 A to D of 11
December 1984, 40/96 A to D of 12 December 1985, 41/43 A to D of 2 December
1986, 42/66 A to D of 2 December 1987, 43/54 A to C of 6 December 1988, and
43/175 A to C, 43/176 and 43/177 of 15 December 1988;
4. Considers the Arab peace plan adopted
unanimously at the Twelfth Arab Summit Conference, held at Fez, Morocco, on
25 November 1981 and from 6 to 9 September 1982,4/ which was
confirmed by subsequent Arab summit conferences, including the
Extraordinary Arab Summit Conference held at Casablanca, Morocco, from 23
to 26 May 1989, as well as relevant efforts and action to implement the Fez
plan, as an important contribution towards the realization of the
inalienable rights of the Palestinian people through the achievement of a
comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East;
5. Condemns Israel's continued occupation of the
Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, and the
other occupied Arab territories, in violation of the Charter of the United
Nations, the principles of international law and the relevant resolutions
of the United Nations, and demands the immediate, unconditional and total
withdrawal of Israel from all the territories occupied since 1967;
6. Rejects all agreements and arrangements which
violate the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and contradict the
principles of a just and comprehensive solution to the Middle East problem
to ensure the establishment of a just peace in the area;
7. Deplores Israel's failure to comply with
Security Council resolutions 476 (1980) of 30 June 1980 and 478 (1980) of
20 August 1980 and General Assembly resolutions 35/207 of 16 December 1980
and 36/226 A and B of 17 December 1981; determines that Israel's decision
to annex Jerusalem and to declare it as its "capital" as well as
the measures to alter its physical character, demographic composition,
institutional structure and status are null and void and demands that they
be rescinded immediately; and calls upon all Member States, the specialized
agencies and all other international organizations to abide by the present
resolution and all other relevant resolutions and decisions;
8. Condemns Israel's aggression, policies and
practices against the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian
territory and outside this territory, including expropriation,
establishment of settlements, annexation and other terrorist, aggressive
and repressive measures, which are in violation of the Charter and the
principles of international law and the relevant international conventions;
9. Strongly condemns the imposition by Israel of
its laws, jurisdiction and administration on the occupied Syrian Arab
Golan, its annexationist policies and practices, the establishment of
settlements, the confiscation of lands, the diversion of water resources
and the imposition of Israeli citizenship on Syrian nationals, and declares
that all these measures are null and void and constitute a violation of the
rules and principles of international law relative to belligerent
occupation, in particular the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection
of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949;
10. Considers that the agreements on strategic
co-operation between the United States of America and Israel, signed on 30
November 1981, and the continued supply of modern arms and materiel to
Israel, augmented by substantial economic aid, including the Agreement on
the Establishment of a Free Trade Area between the two Governments, have
encouraged Israel to pursue its aggressive and expansionist policies and
practices in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including
Jerusalem, and the other occupied Arab territories, and have had adverse
effects on efforts for the establishment of a comprehensive, just and
lasting peace in the Middle East and pose a threat to the security of the
region;
11. Calls once more upon all States to put an end
to the flow to Israel of any military, economic, financial and
technological aid, as well as of human resources, aimed at encouraging it
to pursue its aggressive policies against the Arab countries and the
Palestinian people;
12. Strongly condemns the continuing and
increasing collaboration between Israel and the racist regime of South
Africa, especially in the economic, military and nuclear fields, which
constitutes a hostile act against the African and Arab States and enables
Israel to enhance its nuclear capabilities, thus subjecting the States of
the region to nuclear blackmail;
13. Reaffirms its call for convening the
International Peace Conference on the Middle East, under the auspices of
the United Nations, with the participation of the five permanent members of
the Security Council and all parties to the conflict, including the
Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole legitimate representative of
the Palestinian people, on an equal footing, and that the Conference should
be effective with full authority, in order to achieve a comprehensive and
just solution based on the withdrawal of Israel from the occupied
Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and the other occupied Arab
territories, and the attainment of the inalienable rights of the
Palestinian people in accordance with United Nations resolutions relevant
to the question of Palestine and the situation in the Middle East;
14. Endorses the call for setting up a
preparatory committee, within the framework of the Security Council, with
the participation of the permanent members of the Council, to take the
necessary action to convene the Conference;
15. Requests the Secretary-General to report to
the Security Council periodically on the development of the situation and
to submit to the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session a
comprehensive report covering the developments in the Middle East in all
their aspects.
*Only resolution 44/40 A deals with matters related to the question of
Palestine
* * *
1/ A/44/690 and Add.1.
2/ A/44/731-S/20968.
3/ A/44/737-S/20971.
4/ See A/37/696-S/15510, annex. For the printed
text, see Official Records of the Security Council,
Thirty-seventh Year, Supplement for October, November and December
1982, document S/15510, annex.
5/ United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75,
No. 973.
RECORDED VOTE ON RESOLUTION 44/40 A: 109-18-31
In favour: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola,
Argentina, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana,
Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Byelorussia,
Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Côte
d'Ivoire, Cuba, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Democratic Kampuchea, Democratic
Yemen, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, German Democratic
Republic, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti,
Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lao People's
Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Madagascar, Malaysia,
Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco,
Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan,
Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe,
Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, Spain,
Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and
Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, USSR, United Arab Emirates,
United Republic of Tanzania, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen,
Yugoslavia, Zaire, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Against: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark,
Dominica, France, Federal Republic of Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Israel,
Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, United
Kingdom, United States.
Abstaining: Antigua and Barbuda, Austria,
Bahamas, Barbados, Central African Republic, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican
Republic, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Fiji, Finland, Grenada, Honduras,
Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Malta, Panama, Papua New Guinea,
Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Spain, Sweden, Uruguay.
Absent: None.
Sources: The United Nations |