Questioning the Legality of Proposed Palestinian Statehood

CAMERA

News Media Mum on Questionable Legality of Proposed Palestinian Nationhood

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With the Palestinian Authority (P.A.) pursuing a declaration of recognition of a Palestinian state from the United Nations in September, little is heard from most major news media about the questionable legality and diplomatic contradictions such a declaration would entail.

Meanwhile, the U.N. will not consider the case for Kurdish statehood, which is far stronger than that for the Palestinian Arabs. Not surprisingly, mainstream media have all but ignored this glaring contrast.

New York Sun columnist Hillel Halkin put it succinctly: The Palestinians have many friends, the Kurds have none. And so, viva Palestinian statehood -- and down with statehood for the Kurds. Since principles have nothing to do with it, it may be beside the point to observe that, in principle, the Kurds have a far better case for statehood than do the Palestinians. They have their own unique language and culture, which the Palestinians do not have. They have had a sense of themselves as a distinct people for many centuries, which the Palestinians have not had. They have been betrayed repeatedly in the past 100 years by the international community and its promises, while the Palestinians have been betrayed only by their fellow Arabs.

But the U.N. cares not that the Palestinians are on the wrong side of the U.N. Charter since they are not peace-loving. The charters of both wings of the Palestinians -- Fatah (P.A.) and Hamas – call for the elimination of Israel.

Secondly, ethnic cleansing is specifically forbidden by the U.N. General Assembly but the Palestinians openly demand a Jew-free state which of course entails ethnic cleansing of Jews residing in parts of ancient Israel known as the West Bank and claimed by the Palestinians and in the parts of Israel’s capital of Jerusalem claimed by the Palestinians.

Thirdly, Palestinian incitement to hatred and violence against Israel and Jews, continues in violation of U.N. decrees. Article 26 (2) of the U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights implicitly condemns incitement to hatred/violence against other ethnic/religious groups in textbooks but Palestinian textbooks previously and currently have continued to contain incitement against Jews and Israel. The U.N. Commission on Human Rights resolution 2003/37 (No. 4) ”Condemns incitement of ethnic hatred, violence and terrorism” but the P.A. seems to be doing all it can to demonstrate their hate-indoctrination causing even the U.S. State Department to take notice.

The lack of a legal basis for acquisition of Palestinian statehood through a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) via the U.N. General Assembly, rather than through negotiations with Israel, is documented by a CAMERA Backgrounder which notes that P.A. is bound by the 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo accords agreements to solve outstanding issues with Israel through direct negotiations, and that U.N. Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 call for Arab-Israel peace to be reached through talks between and among the parties.

If the U.N. General Assembly -- in violation of previous U.N. Security Council resolutions and international agreements supported by the United Nations -- complies with the request for a declaration recognizing a Palestinian Arab state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip outside of and in contradiction to the established procedure of direct negotiations in accordance with the relevant measures, even if the recognition lacked immediate effect, it would imply an imposition of international borders on Israel without Israeli input, including taking parts of its capital, Jerusalem, away from it and giving the parts to a new country.