Resolution 59/117
(December 10, 2004)
The General Assembly,
Recalling its resolution 194 (III) of 11 December 1948
and all its subsequent resolutions on the question, including resolution
58/91 of 9 December 2003,
Recalling also its resolution 302 (IV) of 8 December
1949, by which, inter alia, it established the United Nations Relief
and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East,
Recalling further relevant Security Council resolutions,
Aware of the fact that, for more than five decades,
the Palestine refugees have suffered from the loss of their homes, lands
and means of livelihood,
Affirming the imperative of resolving the problem of
the Palestine refugees for the achievement of justice and for the achievement
of lasting peace in the region,
Acknowledging the essential role that the United Nations
Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East has
played for more than fifty-four years since its establishment in ameliorating
the plight of the Palestine refugees in the fields of education, health
and relief and social services,
Taking note of the report of the Commissioner-General
of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees
in the Near East covering the period from 1 July 2003 to 30 June 2004,1
Aware of the continuing needs of the Palestine refugees
throughout all the fields of operation, namely Jordan, Lebanon, the
Syrian Arab Republic and the Occupied Palestinian Territory,
Expressing grave concern at the especially difficult
situation of the Palestine refugees under occupation, including with
regard to their safety, well-being and living conditions, and the continuous
deterioration of those conditions during the recent period,
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1 Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-ninth Session, Supplement
No. 13 (A/59/13).
Noting the signing of the Declaration of Principles
on Interim Self- Government Arrangements on 13 September 1993 by the
Government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization 2 and
the subsequent implementation agreements,
Aware of the important role to be played in the peace
process by the Multilateral Working Group on Refugees of the Middle
East peace process,
1. Notes with regret that repatriation or compensation
of the refugees, as provided for in paragraph 11 of General Assembly
resolution 194 (III), has not yet been effected and that, therefore,
the situation of the Palestine refugees continues to be a matter of
grave concern;
2. Also notes with regret that the United Nations Conciliation
Commission for Palestine has been unable to find a means of achieving
progress in the implementation of paragraph 11 of General Assembly resolution
194 (III), and requests the Conciliation Commission to exert continued
efforts towards the implementation of that paragraph and to report to
the Assembly as appropriate, but no later than 1 September 2005;
3. Affirms the necessity for the continuation of the
work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees
in the Near East and the importance of its operation and its services
for the well-being of the Palestine refugees and for the stability of
the region, pending the resolution of the question of the Palestine
refugees;
4. Calls upon all donors to continue to make the most
generous efforts possible to meet the anticipated needs of the Agency,
including those mentioned in recent emergency appeals;
5. Decides to extend the mandate of the Agency until
30 June 2008, without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 11 of
General Assembly resolution 194 (III).
71st plenary meeting
10 December 2004
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2 A/48/486-S/26560, annex.
Sources: The United Nations |