WJC @ UNHRC: Item 7 is an obstacle to peace

Representative delivering the statement: Mr Leon Saltiel 

Thank you, Madam President.

The winds of change in the Middle East are blowing strongly. Only in the last month, two Arab states, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, established full diplomatic relations with Israel. They join Egypt and Jordan with whom Israel has enjoyed peaceful relations for several decades. We hope other countries will follow soon.

From a region of instability, animosity and conflict, the Middle East is becoming the epicenter of a transformation, where decades-old misgivings are giving way to hope for a peaceful future, marked by cooperation, exchange and understanding. 

Regrettably, this Council is still stuck in the past. Instead of helping to promote friendship, understanding and reconciliation, the Council, with its current biased agenda item 7, is perpetuating and entrenching animosities from a forgone era.

Current developments show that item 7 is not only outdated but completely counter-productive and contrary to the United Nations’ goal of “living together in peace with one another as good neighbors” as stipulated in the UN Charter. That is why we must join forces to limit all those who work to the detriment of peace.

Madam President,

The World Jewish Congress decries item 7 as a historical fallacy and calls on all states to help promote peace and reconciliation in the Middle East, rather than undermining it. As Mahatma Gandhi reminds us “The future depends on what you do today.” And today, Madam President, we choose peace.

Thank you.

To read more about WJC's activities at the 45th session of the United Nations Human Right's Council, click here.