Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-04-24-Speech-3-057"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20020424.3.3-057"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spoken text |
"Mr President, I welcome both Commissioner Patten's contribution to this debate and Kofi Annan’s decision to send a fact-finding team to ascertain exactly what happened during the Israeli bombardment of Jenin refugee camp. I am, however, somewhat concerned at the motivation underlying attempts by Israel to delay the investigation.
Israel claims that its invasion of Jenin and other areas was an attempt to destroy the Palestinian terrorist infrastructure. However, serious allegations have been made that the Israeli defence forces were involved in extra-judicial executions and the use of human shields. If these prove to be true, then Israel itself and its army are as guilty of acts of terrorism as those who plan, support and carry out suicide bombings.
When he was defence Minister, Ariel Sharon masterminded the “Operation Peace for Galilee” invasion in 1982. His objective then he claimed was: “to eradicate the Palestinian terrorist threat in Lebanon”. This resulted in the massacre of 800 Palestinians in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps. A subsequent Israeli commission of enquiry concluded that he bore responsibility, as they put it “ having disregarded the danger of acts of vengeance”
Are we seeing history repeat itself?
Mr Sharon must take personal responsibility for what has happened in Jenin and elsewhere on the West Bank. It is a consequence of his policies, his prejudices and his hatred of Yasser Arafat. If the UN team concludes that war crimes have indeed occurred, then the international community must take action including referring the matter to the International War Crimes Tribunal.
Mr Sharon does a grave disservice to the people of Israel. Single-handedly he has caused his country’s political isolation. Furthermore, he has fed the hatreds that have resulted in the escalation of anti-Semitic activity which I deplore.
He humiliated the US Government during Colin Powell’s recent visit to the Middle East. Perhaps, however, this will have a positive effect and lead to a reassessment of US policy in this area and encourage them to abandon their one sided approach of unequivocal support for Israel and instead to work with the EU and others for a balanced, peaceful resolution to this terrible conflict which has already cost too many lives."@en1
|
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples