MIDDLE EAST.

• Author: Rutsch, Horst
• Position: Brief Article

Violence Derails Peace Process

Continued violence between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli security forces led to an indefinite suspension of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, threatening to derail the Middle East peace process. The Secretary-General travelled to the region on an urgent mission to help defuse the crisis (see photo).

On 18 October, the General Assembly resumed its tenth emergency special session on illegal Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory. During the resumed session--originally convened in April 1997 and last suspended in February 1999-representatives of over 50 States participated in the debate. Noting that since 28 September the violence at Al-Haram Al-Sharif and other holy places in Jerusalem, as well as in other areas of the occupied Palestinian territory, had resulted in more than 100 deaths-the vast majority of them Palestinian civilians-the Assembly on 23 October, by a resolution adopted by 92 votes to 6, with 46 abstentions, condemned all acts of violence, "especially the excessive use of force by the Israeli forces", and demanded an immediate end to it. Supporting efforts towards the resumption of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations within the Middle East peace process, the Assembly also called for the "speedy conclusion" of the final settlement agree ment between the two sides and urged all parties to implement the understanding reached at the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit in Egypt. Held on 16 and 17 October, the Summit produced agreements on security cooperation, on renewing the peace process and on establishing a committee of fact-finding on the recent events.

Reporting to the Assembly on his recent trip to the region, Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 20 October called the Summit agreement a "vital first step back from the brink" and towards a resumption of the peace process. "In the end, peace remains the only strategic option for Israel and Palestinians", he said. Earlier, briefing the Security Council, the Secretary-General said that while the violence had abated...