Washington: The UN should be more proactive in its efforts to end conflicts and wars ravaging the Middle East because global stability was at stake, said a senior Arab League official at the world body’s Summit of the Future in New York on Monday.
Assistant Secretary-General Hossam Zaki, delivering the league’s position at the summit held on Sept. 22 and 23, said the world was now at a dangerous “crossroads.”
The Summit of the Future is an annual meeting of UN member states that adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015.
Zaki was speaking in the wake of Israel launching airstrikes on targets in southern Lebanon and Beirut killing at least 500 people and injuring more than 2,000, according to the country’s Ministry of Health.
Zaki said that with no end in sight to Israel’s aggression against the Palestinian people in Gaza, the world’s ability to end the conflict decreases.
Since Hamas’ attacks on Oct. 7 last year, Israeli forces have killed more than 41,000 people in the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children.
Israel has also destroyed the majority of homes and civilian infrastructure throughout Gaza.
Zaki said the UN has failed to act since Israel intensified its bombardment.
“For a whole year, we in the Arab region had felt this unfortunate paralysis, as months had passed by before the UN Security Council was able to pass a resolution last June calling for (a) ceasefire and the end of the Israeli aggression on Gaza,” he said.
“This paralysis that effected the UN system has caused deep frustrations among many member states,” he added.
He accused the international community of having double standards with regard to Israel’s actions against the Palestinian people in Gaza.
“Disgraceful silence regarding what’s happening in Gaza while massive support to nations in conflict elsewhere.”
While Zaki stressed the league’s support for the UN system, he expressed dismay at the world body’s inability to recognize Palestine as a full member state.
The fact that 149 member states recognize Palestine constitute an internal consensus that the UN has to take into consideration, he added.
He said “the current UN structure stands against the international consensus of establishing an independent Palestinian state.”
